Her parents rejected him for being poor. 80 years later, he had only 1 request for his granddaughter

Everything might be fair in love and war, but that doesn’t mean it comes easily — when family expectations, class differences, and cultural pressures get involved, even the strongest bonds can be tested. One couple from 1940s Korea found themselves facing all three, until they found a way to hold on, in secret. A video shared by Julia Riew (@juliariew) on Instagram tells the story of her grandparents, whose hidden romance defied the rules set around them.

Julia begins the video by sharing the things her grandparents did "during their forbidden romance in the 1940s in Korea." Her grandmother, she explained, came from a prominent family. Her grandfather, in contrast, was poor, so the class divide created a clear obstacle from the start. "So her parents basically said that he wasn’t good enough for her," Julia said. Still, neither of them gave up. Instead, they agreed to only meet at night and only in secret. The meeting spots were far from ordinary. "They would meet at the abandoned palace or at the old graveyard," Julia shared. During the day, they avoided any contact, with Julia adding, "They walked by each other and pretended that they didn’t know each other at all."

Their plans nearly came to an end when her grandmother’s family discovered the truth. She had already been promised to the son of another wealthy man. "And when her parents found out that she was still seeing my grandpa, they put her under house arrest," Julia said. But that didn’t stop them either. They devised a hidden letter system, using their younger siblings, who were in the same class at school, as messengers. Julia explained, "My grandma sewed this pouch, and in the pouch they would pass back and forth love letters." Meanwhile, her grandfather focused on building a future he could offer.

"My grandpa took on five jobs in order to support their future family," Julia said. One of those jobs ended up playing a much larger role than anyone could have expected. He contributed to writing the first Korean-English dictionary. "He then used the money from selling [it] in order to pay for their wedding," Julia shared. Nearly eighty years later, Julia’s grandfather wrote their full story down and emailed it to her. He asked her to turn it into a fictional story based on his memories. She and her brother responded by writing a fantasy romance novel inspired by their grandparents’ history.

The story received an outpouring of support, with many convinced that it deserved its own K-drama. @noewritesstuff wrote, "I’m absolutely mind blown. I love this so much. It’s also just so sweet and beautiful." @jane_thebeautyowl commented, "Love. That was such a trying time period and the fact that they secretly saw each other to make it work out definitely shows they really really loved each other." @mrsgillspye added, "Just saying, this story could also be turned into a gorgeous musical like your Korean Disney Princess project." @luckycheese27 noted, "Halfway through your story I was like, 'And you wrote it all down to make a beautiful novel, musical or Korean drama out of correct?' Mad!"

You can follow Julia Riew (@juliariew) on Instagram to learn more about the book.