In episode 10, the storyline of military corruption takes center stage, with Seong-jae fighting for Ye-rin’s honor and the fate of Ganglim Outpost. And as the story Behind the food supply scandal finally starts to come out, the episode sets up an even greater challenge that could determine the fate of everyone posted there.# Seong-jae’s Day Starts with a Reality Check
The episode starts on a lighter note as Seong-jae dreams of being the dreaded head chef of the military mess hall. Reality soon calls him back to duty, ending his fantasy.
Elsewhere, Seok-ho calls the commanders for a morning briefing. He is met with rising tensions as he criticizes Ye-rin for taking action without reporting directly to him. Mun-ik cuts into their conversation with the news that Min-gu’s leading a big inspection team on a surprise inspection of the base.Ganglim Inspection Target
Min-gu’s team searches every corner of the outpost without wasting a second, including the kitchen, barracks and Ye-rin’s office.
The inspection ironically causes problems for Ye-rin rather than revealing corruption. The kitchen is stocked with high-quality ingredients on the day of the review, and so the investigators conclude that her previous complaints about poor supplies were fabricated. And so she is taken away for questioning.
Things get even more worrying when Min-gu later reports to Chun-ik. Their discussion confirms what many viewers have been suspecting for weeks: Chun-ik is knee-deep in the military supply corruption scheme, and Min-gu has been following his orders. Chun-ik is livid that the operation is attracting unwanted attention and that soldiers at Ganglim are beginning to uncover the truth.# Seok-ho’s Pressure From Chun-ik
Jae-young is discouraged by Seok-ho’s reluctance to face up to Min-gu and Chun-ik. But pressure soon finds its way to Seok-ho as well.
Chun-ik calls him for a private meeting and again offers him career advancement. In return he forces Seok-ho to write reports saying that the facilities at Ganglim Outpost are deteriorating and that it has become unsafe. The purpose is clear: to justify the closing down of the base and its transfer to another unit.
It was a test of loyalty for Chun-ik. Another tough choice for Seok-ho between doing the right thing versus looking out for his future.## A clever way to save Ye-rin
Seong-jae is worried about Ye-rin’s condition and tries to find a way to help her. Chef’s Path tells us to go to Regimental Commander Won-young, a senior officer who has the power to properly investigate the issue.
Seong-jae discusses the idea with his fellow soldiers and learns that Won-young is an avid participant in religious activities and is very concerned about his daughter.
They decide to make chocolate cookies as a present and manage to find an opportunity to meet him during one of his weekend excursions. Thanks to the Chef’s Path upgrades, Seong-jae now has access to dessert recipes and bakes the treats with confidence.
Their plan changes when they find out that the beloved “daughter” of Won-young is actually a Pomeranian dog.## Convincing So-yul
Turns out regular cookies won’t do, and the group calls in Jae-young. He gives them the ingredients and instructions as they play around with gourmet dog treats for a whole week.
They experiment until they come up with a premium potato-and-meatball treat just for the finicky dog.
Their hard work finally pays off when they visit a church and meet Won-young and his dog, So-yul. The dog likes Seong-jae’s creation right away, giving the soldiers the opening they need.
When they get Won-young’s attention, they tell him all that they know about Min-gu’s weird behavior and his dodgy food supply practices. But Won-young is the only one in the chain of command who doesn’t dismiss the allegations and immediately orders another investigation.# The Corruption Scheme Begins to Collapse
Won-young’s involvement changes the whole thing.
Now that a powerful commander is investigating the case, Chun-ik realizes that there is no way to cover up this scandal. He sacrifices Min-gu to take all the blame on himself to save himself.
Chun-ik is using Min-gu’s connection to another controversial case to portray him as the mastermind behind the fraudulent purchases and financial misdeeds.
At the same time, he tries to recruit Seok-ho to help contain the fallout. He offers Min-gu’s position and promises career advancement if Seok-ho helps preserve the battalion’s public image as an incentive.
Seok-ho suspects that Chun-ik knows more than he lets on, but again he does not confront his superior directly.# New Bond of Seong-jae and Ye-rin
Ye-rin thanks Seong-jae for defending her after she is cleared of suspicion.
She worries that some of the soldiers may be angry with him for revealing the truth, but Seong-jae is confident. As long as Ye-rin keeps supporting him, he thinks he can get through whatever is to come.
And their growing trust is mirrored in Chef’s Path, where Ye-rin is officially acknowledged as one of Seong-jae’s registered allies.
In a second surprising development, Seok-ho calls Seong-jae to his office. He praises him for something he himself could not do, instead of condemning him for going around the chain of command.# The biggest threat to Ganglim is still
Even with the corruption network partially exposed, Ganglim Outpost is still in danger.
The closure order remains in effect, and in the end, Seok-ho does what Chun-ik tells him. He tells Ye-rin of the decision, but she says it looks like retaliation. Unfortunately, Seok-ho insists that the order came from higher up and cannot be ignored.
Chef’s Path brings a new mission right when you think things are bad.
Seong-jae has 14 days to win the next division cooking contest. Success may save Ganglim Outpost from closure. The failure would mean not only the end of the base, but the end of Chef’s Path.
The stakes are higher than ever.Episode Recap
- episode 10 finally gives us long-awaited answers about the food supply corruption plot. Although it’s hardly surprising that Chun-ik is pulling the strings behind the scenes, the story is more exciting for it and the eventual downfall is inevitable.
The best part of this episode is watching Seong-jae solve things creatively rather than by authority. His quirky quest to win over a commander with gourmet dog treats provides some of the show’s funniest and most memorable moments, while still serving the larger story.
On the flip side, Seok-ho is still one of the most annoying characters in the series. He will not take a stand again and again. He will leave it to others to take the responsibility for situations that are his as a leader. At times he seems to know the right thing to do, but he always chooses the safer course.
With Ganglim’s fate now resting on a high-stakes cooking showdown, the show has set an intriguing premise for the next chapter. The corruption scandal may be partially uncovered, but the battle to save the outpost is just beginning.