'The Trunk' K-Drama Recap (Episodes 1-8) Explained: Who Killed Tae-seong? And Why?

The Korean drama, The Trunk, is a mix of thriller and romance starring Seo Hyeon-jin (Dr. Romantic, Why Her) and Gong-yoo (Train to Busan, Squid Game). The story is about a man who thought he could never fall in love again when his wife left him and a woman who refused to accept that the man she had been waiting for would never return. Noh In-ji and Han Jeong-won’s paths crossed in perhaps the most unromantic way, but as time passed, they started to depend on each other. In-ji worked for New Wedding, a company that provided marriage services. They believed that not every marriage was meant to last a lifetime, and not everyone could find the love of their lives, but they deserved to experience marital bliss or, in some cases, flaunt their partners to the world. In-ji lost her faith in marriage when the man she loved left her a few days before their wedding. She believed she could never fall in love again, and she treated her job extremely professionally. But that was until she met music producer, Jeong-won.

Spoiler Alert

Who Was The Murder Victim?

Tae-seong used to be a self-defense instructor at NM. He suffered from mental illness and was extremely violent. He had murdered a security officer and was admitted to a mental institute. Tae-seong was obsessed with In-ji, and he had been harassing her for years. He had seen disapproval in her eyes when he met her for the first time, and that gave birth to his desire to own her. No matter where she went or who she fell in love with, he always had to remind her that she could not live her life peacefully unless she submitted herself to him. In-ji realized she had to stay vigilant when she discovered he had been released from the asylum. As she had expected, Tae-seong had tracked her down and was keeping a close watch on her. Even though In-ji was in trouble, she did not want to get Jeong-won involved in her mess. Their arrangement was temporary, although they were attracted to each other. She could not risk seeming unprofessional and decided to handle the situation herself. But Jeong-won eventually found out, and he confronted Tae-seong. When he realized the man was truly demented, Jeong-won warned him to stay away from his wife. But Tae-seong continued to pester Jeong-won, and towards the end of The Trunk, In-ji decided to take matters into her own hands. She did not wish for Jeong-won to get hurt, so she distanced herself from him. She had also realized that she was falling in love with him, and she was not sure if she was ready for a relationship. 

In-ji terminated her contract, hoping to disappear from Jeong-won’s life, but Tae-seong contacted her before she left. He had stolen In-ji’s trunk from Jeong-won’s mansion, and he threatened to expose their temporary marriage arrangement to the world. The trunk consisted of contracts and details about NM’s operations, and In-ji knew that the expose would ruin Jeong-won and her reputation. Tae-seong could not stand Jeong-won because he had guessed In-ji had fallen in love with him. He hoped that exposing In-ji would leave her with no choice but to be with him. In-ji offered to help Tae-seong unlock the trunk, but in return, he had to spare Jeong-won’s life. Tae-seong texted her his location, and even though it was extremely dangerous, In-ji decided to confront her stalker all alone. She realized that it was not her trunk because she had seen Jeong-won’s ex-wife, Seo-yeon, had the same trunk that she had kept hidden in her cabinet. In-ji lied that the lock was jammed, and she suggested they take the trunk to the store to unlock it. But Tae-seong was not easy to fool, and to make matters worse, he texted Jeong-won his address. He wanted to watch the lovers suffer, and he held a knife against In-ji’s throat. 

When Jeong-won approached Tae-seong, he pushed In-ji away and attempted to stab Jeong-won. In-ji was carrying a gun (the one Jeong-won owned), and she pointed it at Tae-seong. Seeing that he was in danger, Tae-seong attempted to flee, but In-ji shot him. While she was confident she did not miss her target, Tae-seong was not injured, and he ran away with the trunk. Jeong-won later explained that his gun was not loaded because he feared that someday he would’ve used it to kill himself. Jeong-won and In-ji left the spot, and on their way home, Jeong-won asked In-ji if they stood a chance to be together. While it pained In-ji to let go of Jeong-won, she thought they were not ready to be together. So what happened to Tae-seong? Well, he was murdered, but clearly neither In-ji nor Jeong-won were responsible for his death. The trunk recovered by the police from the lake consisted of baby clothes and toys that Jeong-won and Seo-yeon had bought for their unborn child. Seo-yeon had kept them locked away in the trunk and the murder case brought back her traumatic memories. 

Did Jeong-won and Seo-yeon separate?

Jeong-won’s ex-wife, Seo-yeon, had arranged his temporary marriage. While it seemed that Jeong-won and In-ji were strangers, it was later revealed that they had crossed paths before. He had seen In-ji in school, and later he spotted her again while shopping at a store with Seo-yeon. Even though he did not know much about her, he was attracted to her, but he never got the chance to interact. Seo-yeon and Jeong-won were childhood friends, and she had noticed a spark in his eyes when they crossed paths with In-ji. Seo-yeon relished a good challenge, and she wanted to prove to herself that no matter who was on the other side, Jeong-won would always choose her. During their marriage, when they lost their unborn child, Seo-yeon and Jeong-won started to grow apart. She wanted him to miss her, and so she came up with a temporary marriage arrangement. Jeong-won always blamed himself for the death of their unborn child because he believed he had pushed her to the edge, and he felt guilty for asking the doctors to save their child instead of his wife. Seo-yeon could not forgive him for it, and so she decided to make him suffer. 

Seo-yeon was not entirely innocent. She never wanted to become a mother, but she could not explain herself to Jeong-won. Gradually, she found her pregnancy unbearable, and she intentionally walked into the middle of the road and got hit by a car. She took a sadistic pleasure in watching Jeong-won suffer, and she supplied him with meth in the form of pills to destroy him. She wanted him to realize that he would not be able to function without her and repent for choosing his unborn child over her. She had hoped one day he would come begging her to take him back. 

When Seo-yeon realized Jeong-won was enjoying In-ji’s company, she installed cameras in their home. She kept an eye on the couple and was devastated when she watched them kiss. In-ji had found out about the cameras and had warned Seo-yeon to stay away from her and her husband. After spending time with Jeong-won, she discovered that he had grown up in an abusive household, and his mother’s suicide had scarred him for life. He often blamed himself for everything that had gone wrong around him, and In-ji helped him realize that he was not a terrible human being and that he deserved a chance to make better choices. When Jeong-won’s caretaker, Mr. Kim, informed him about the secret cameras installed in his house, it reminded him of his father, whom he had wholeheartedly despised all his life. His father did the same to keep an eye on his mother, and Jeong-won was heartbroken to find out that the woman he once loved spied on him even though she knew his past. Seo-yeon wanted to remarry Jeong-won but at the end of The Trunk, Jeong-won decided that they were a terrible match and he could not stand to spend a minute with someone as manipulative as Seo-yeon.

Why Did Ji-o Kill Tae-seong?

Upon examining Tae-seong’s body, the police deduced that he was killed with a sharp pointed object. In the final episode of The Trunk, it was finally disclosed that Seo-yeon’s temporary husband, Ji-o, was the murderer. As it turned out, Ji-o despised Tae-seong from the time he had watched him murder his colleague at NM. He regretted running away from the situation then, but when the NM provided him the opportunity to murder Tae-seong, he did not hesitate to take the job. Tae-seong was terrible for NM’s reputation, and he was also a huge threat to their lives. He had to be taken care of, and Ji-o, a trained fencer, was perfect for the job. Ji-o followed Tae-seong when he ran away from the field after In-ji shot him. He was kayaking when his motor gave up all of a sudden, and Ji-o showed up. A single thrust from Ji-o’s long, sharp sword was enough to end Tae-seong’s life.

According to the ending of The Trunk, Ji-o was eventually arrested for the murder, and Seo-yeon had decided to hire the best lawyer she knew to free him. Ji-o had fallen in love with Seo-yeon, and he was heartbroken when she made up her mind to divorce him. He was no longer afraid of taking risks because he did not think his life was worth living anymore. Moreover, Tae-seong was also a threat to Seo-yeon’s life and he was better off dead than alive. Seo-yeon decided to renew her contract with Ji-o after his arrest. She perhaps realized that they made a perfect couple. 

Will In-Ji And Jeong-Won Get Back Together?

At the very end of The Trunk, before moving out of Jeong-won’s mansion, In-ji suggested that he express all his pent-up anger. He hated the house because it reminded him of his disturbing childhood, and thanks to In-ji, he finally gathered the courage to demolish the place and construct his own house. She grabbed hold of a demolition hammer and knocked down a portion of a wall; Jeong-won did the same, and he experienced a sense of relief. He had finally learned to let go of his past. 

Before parting ways, Jeong-won and In-ji decided they would give their relationship another chance if they crossed paths twice. Jeong-won believed it would be a divine signal. Jeong-won and In-ji had been through a lot in their personal lives, and instead of getting into a relationship immediately after, In-ji believed they needed to spend some time apart and heal. If fate brought them back together, they would reconsider. 

In-ji had retired from her job. She lived alone in an apartment with her dog and spent most of her time cooking, relaxing, or simply watching movies at the theater. While she was no longer in contact with Jeong-won, she never missed an opportunity to watch any film he had worked on. Jeong-won focused on his healing journey as well, and he lived with his two cats and learned to cook elaborate meals. In the final scene, Jeong-won and In-ji cross paths for the first time. He was on his way to the vet while she was walking home. They both remembered the promise that they had made, and they left it for fate to decide. They were emotional seeing each other all of a sudden, and they hoped that they would cross paths again. While we do not know for sure if they will get back together, everyone who has watched the series surely hopes they do. Maybe they truly were meant to be, and at the right time, they would find their way back to each other again.

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