Once upon a time, a government minister lived in Seoul. One day, he happened to talk with a guest surnamed Park who visited his house. The minister discovered that the guest was a man of high virtue and he became fond of the visitor. He found some noble and mysterious elements in the man and came to admire him. That was why the minister was willing to accept the visitor’s surprise proposal to let their children marry.

So, the minister’s son married the daughter of the guest. The bridegroom was excited, of course, at the thought of taking a wife. When he first saw his bride on their wedding night, however, he was greatly disappointed. The bride was as ugly as a toad. She was the homeliest woman he had ever seen. Disappointed and frustrated, he didn’t want to see his wife’s face. From the first day of their marriage, the young husband stayed away from his wife. Not just the husband but other family members didn’t like the ugly bride. Only the minister liked and even adored his daughter-in-law. He believed that the daughter of such a dignified man would make a wonderful wife to his son.

As the minister had expected, the bride or Lady Park was a woman of virtue and great wisdom. She never complained of her husband’s cold treatment. Rather, she asked her father-in-law to allow her to stay at a thatched cottage separated from the main residence so her husband could feel more comfortable. One day, she purchased a scraggy horse in the market. She fed and raised the animal well, and it eventually became a fine horse. She then sold the horse at an expensive price to contribute to increasing her family’s wealth. She was very skilled in needlework and even made court attire for her father-in-law in a single night. She also gave her husband a special Chinese ink water container on the day he took the state civil service exam. Thanks to the magical power of the container, he was able to score the highest on the exam.

Three years passed. Lady Park asked her father-in-law if she could visit her parents’ home. Of course, the minister allowed her to do so. Three days later, a beautiful, young woman came to the minister’s house. The minister and his son wondered what brought such an attractive woman to their house. When asked who she was, the lady said, smiling, “It’s me. Don’t you recognize me?” To their surprise, she was none other than Lady Park, the once-ugly bride. She explained to her husband and father-in-law, who were still dumbfounded, that she had been under a spell of bad luck and had to wear the ugly skin for all those years. Now that the ill luck was gone, she was able to restore her true identity. Her husband realized his mistake and apologized to her. On the back of his wife’s love and support, he later rose to a high-ranking official. The couple was now perfectly happy.

Around that time, the Qing Dynasty of China was ready to invade Korea. Lady Park knew by instinct that the fate of the country was at stake. She informed the king, through her husband, of the impending national crisis. Due to some unreliable subjects, however, the king didn’t listen to the advice to prepare for an attack from China. Before long, Chinese troops invaded Korea, as Lady Park had predicted. When a Chinese general intruded into her house, Lady Park boldly fought and killed him with Taoist magic. Later, the general’s brother attacked her house for revenge but she also beat the daylights out of the enemy, who eventually retreated. The king regretted not listening to Lady Park’s advice and granted her the honorable title of “Lady of Unswerving Loyalty.”

Female protagonists in Korean folk stories are mostly beautiful women in love with men or devoted wives or daughters who faithfully carry out their duty. The Lady Park character in this story is considered exceptional since she is as courageous as men in defending the family and country. In strict Confucian culture, the depiction of a heroine who is superior to men is extraordinary. Some literary critics interpret this element of the tale as women’s desire to be liberated from the patriarchal family system at the time, at least psychologically.