3 Times Jung Ryeo Won & Wi Ha Joon Teamed Up In Episodes 3-4 Of "The Midnight Romance In Hagwon"

As Seo Hye Jin (Jung Ryeo Won) and Lee Joon Ho (Wi Ha Joon) finally work in the same academy, last week’s episodes focused more on their plan to increase the student count at Daechi Chase and less on the romance. However, their close proximity blessed the screen with some romantic moments. Here are three times our teacher-student duo worked together in “The Midnight Romance in Hagwon” episodes three and four.

Warning: contains spoilers for episodes 3-4.

Becoming the face of Daechi Chase Academy

Episode three starts with Kim Hyun Tak (Kim Jong Tae), the leader at Daechi Chase Academy, offering Joon Ho an intriguing opportunity. Until now, Hye Jin was the face of Daechi Chase, with her face plastered on bus stations for academy promotion. Even though the opportunity is tempting and would have been great for Joon Ho’s career, he refuses it and suggests a different strategy.

He tells Hyun Tak that it would be better if, instead of replacing Hye Jin, he becomes the face of the academy alongside her. A teacher-student duo would bring more attention to the poster. This scene revealed an interesting fact about Joon Ho: he does not want to overshadow Hye Jin, even if it is beneficial for his career.

On the other hand, a later scene explains how it was Hye Jin herself who suggested making Joon Ho the face of their institute. This shows how Hye Jin is secure in her skills and does not mind giving up being the face of Daechi Chase if it is going to bring business for her coworkers.

Hye Jin training Joon Ho

During the premiere week’s episodes, Hye Jin said she wouldn’t have time to train Joon Ho. Even though her statement was to discourage Hyun Tae from hiring Joon Ho, it was not a complete lie; she is indeed busy and cannot spend time teaching a rookie how to do his first lecture.

However, that changes and brings us some of the cutest moments from this week’s episodes. Since both Hye Jin and Joon Ho are now the faces of the academy, they decide to offer a free co-lecture as a promotion tactic to attract more students. Essentially, it’s a free trial class for potential students where both Hye Jin and Joon Ho would be teaching.

One thing to keep in mind is that a combined or co-lecture is not the same as a regular one. For a combined lecture to work, both teachers ought to have great chemistry and teaching styles that complement each other; otherwise, the lesson would fall flat and sound confusing. Knowing that, Hye Jin starts training Joon Ho, and because of that, we get the classic main-leads-standing-too-close-together-while-hiding moment.

Teaching a 1-on-1 class

Practicing and working hard for a gig only for it to be canceled is a painful and frustrating experience. This is what happens to Hye Jin and Joon Ho in episode four. However, the way both of them, especially Joon Ho, interact with the situation showcases how he and Hye Jin make a perfect team.

For context, Hye Jin tries to enroll kids from Heewon high school in her class. However, most of the kids from that school go to Choiseon Academy, a competitor of Daechi Chase and one of the best after-school academies in Seoul. When Choi Hyung Sun (Seo Jung Yeon), Choiseon Academy’s head, finds out about Hye Jin’s plan, she offers Heewon high school kids a supplementary class at the same time Hye Jin and Ha Joon’s free lecture is scheduled. Her plan works, and except Lee Si Woo (Cha Kang Yoon), everyone withdraws from the free session.

As any human being would, Hye Jin is utterly devastated and thinks of canceling the class. She even gets a nosebleed from the stress and is visibly embarrassed. This is where Joon Ho does something that changes her mindset about the entire situation.

Hye Jin is an amazing teacher and strong-willed, but she is also shown as equally emotional and, at times, even vulnerable. On the other hand, Joon Ho is quite headstrong and passionate, sometimes even over-optimistic. Having such opposite personalities is what makes them a perfect team. Instead of going with the flow and accepting Hye Jin’s suggestion to cancel the class, he reminds her that her talent lies in one-on-one teaching sessions.

And this is what makes a perfect team: members who understand your boundaries but still know when it’s the right time to push you for your own benefit. His plan works; they give the student a one-on-one class, and by the end of the episode, it seems like he is planning to switch from Choiseon Academy to Daechi Chase.

However, as this student, Si Woo, is one of the top students at both his school and academy, his actions might influence other students in future episodes, and Daechi Chase might end up getting more students from Heewon high school. Only time will tell.

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Javeria is a binge-watching specialist who loves devouring entire K-dramas in one sitting. Good screenwriting, beautiful cinematography, and a lack of cliches are the way to her heart. As a music fanatic, she listens to multiple artists across different genres but believes no one can top the self-producing idol group SEVENTEEN. You can talk to her on Instagram @javeriayousufs.

Currently watching: “Lovely Runner,” “The Midnight Romance in Hagwon,” and “The Atypical Family”
Looking forward to: “Chief Detective 1958”