Chapter 47:
Knock.
Knock knock.
Knock.
Knock knock knock.
Rhythmic raps are heard upon the wooden door of the quarters Lady Oh once occupied and is now being used by the new sanggun. It's the middle of the night and the garden outside is deserted. Woo Hee opens the door into a small opening and finds Won at the other side, carrying a pouch, looking around for any sign of people.
Won lifts the pouch on eye level and announces like someone just won a lottery, "Our king's weekly dose of medicine."
"Do I really need to keep doing this?" Woo Hee look scared and unsure, "It was the late king whom I wanted dead, not the current king."
"Come now, don't be like this." Won pushes the door to open it some more and leans closer to Woo Hee, "You've been deceiving your friends and poisoning the king for years, do you really want to stop?"
"Please..." Woo Hee steps back holding the door against Won, "I and the 3rd prince only agreed with getting rid of the late king and now he's gone. They are both gone. The reigning king has nothing to do with me anymore."
"You should have thought of that before you put the poison on the king's bath the first time." Won grins as if he's only having a normal conversation.
Before Woo Hee was proclaimed the new sanggun, Wook visited her and told her his plans of making her the head of the Damiwon, a her reward for serving him and his 3rd brother. Woo Hee declined it at first, saying she failed in her assignment of killing the king so she has no right to be rewarded as such. Though in truth, she only wants her freedom from their control and Wook had seen through it and forced Woo Hee to become a sanggun so he could hold her by the neck, more smothering than Yo did. He tricked her by saying she could at least be free from her gisaeng status and that her sanggun status would allow her to marry a prince, Baek-Ah, if she wants to. But the moment she became a Sanggun, they spiked the king's bath with mercury and blackmailed her for it.
"You tricked me!" Woo Hee is mortified.
"I see, you're still not as smart as my 13th brother think you are." Won's grin turning to something menacing, "You've been averting your eyes from your own gungnyeo(s) who are putting this mercury on the king's bath, why do you suddenly grew a conscience when we're almost done with it?"
He pushed passed her and enters her quarters, closing the door behind him. He discards the pouch by the floor, preying on Woo Hee who stands her ground, pretending she's not afraid, "What do you think you are doing?"
She steps back, her rear meeting the vanity table behind. Her hand discreetly looks for a dwikkoji she can use to defend herself.
Won is quick to pull her to him, making her let go of anything she had grab from her vanity table.
"Don't or I'll scream." Woo Hee warns, the pounding in her chest escalating, she hopes Won couldn't sense her fear.
"And draw your gungnyeo(s) attention to us?" Won insults her acting with a smirk, seeing through her pretense, "Kuere, call for help and I'll simply tell my 13th brother we've been having affair behind his back. Whether he believes you or me, it won't matter. It would hurt him to know he's sharing his woman's touch with another brother."
He turns her back to him, pushing her to the wall and keeping her trapped with his body.
"Please don't, please." Woo Hee pleads, terrified this time. She struggles to free herself but Won locks her hand above her head while his other free hand comes around her waist, up above her chest, coming inside her sokjeogori.
"I'm curious, what did my 3rd brother and my 13th brother saw on you?" Won whispers on her ear, his touch unwelcome and violating. He tears at her sokjeogori, revealing her skinny shoulder and her chest band.
Woo Hee starts crying, struggling to be free and begging with Won but it only excites him further, "Which one of my brother is better at giving you pleasure?"
His hand slides down her hips, finding the folds where the ends of her chima overlap each other. He tussles through her sokchima and tears at her dari-sokgot, revealing her bare thighs that he so wantonly rubs, "Was my 3rd brother rough or my 13th brother soft? Which one did you prefer? Tell me. I'm sure I could do just the same."
But Woo Hee is a virgin. She was a haengsu gisaeng only by a title. She had never seen or service a client. Yo might have handled her roughly but his hands never go astray where it shouldn't. He flirted with her because it makes her uncomfortable but she was never his type, seeing Woo Hee as beneath his status as a prince.
On the other hand, Woo Hee had shared kisses with Baek-Ah, a few of them one step shy of having Baek-Ah take his tops off in front of her but they had never gone farther than that.
Woo Hee senses Won clumsily untying his paji behind her and feels a rush of anger towards him and her unlucky fate that made her their slave. If she was going to suffer all her life, she shouldn't have escaped their kingdom and just died with her parents.
Won is about to force himself on her when a knock comes through the door, stilling them both. Woo Hee looks at the door, a little hope blossoming on her chest. The knock comes again, rhythmic the way, Won knocked a while ago.
Against Won's disappointment, he releases Woo Hee and puts his clothes in order.
Woo Hee wipes her tears and arranges her clothes in a hurry, not sparing herself the time to calm down. In three steps she reached her door and open it fast, dashing passed Wook the moment the door opens and run to Hae Soo's quarters.
Wook looks at Won pointedly, "What did you do?"
Won shrugs, "Just having fun."
Ha Jin opens her door to a disgruntled and crying Woo Hee, whom she lets in quickly. Leading Woo Hee to her bed, she takes a glass of water from her side table and give it to Woo Hee, "What happened?"
Woo Hee is still holding her sokjeogori together, her chima uneven on both sides. She couldn't speak and just sobs, finishing the glass of water and squeezing her hand around the glass with so much anger, her hands are turning pale even against the warm glow of her lantern. Ha Jin sits beside Woo Hee, worriedly taking the glass away.
Putting her arms around her, Ha Jin strokes her back, "Woo Hee-ya you're scaring me, tell me what's wrong. Shall I call for Baek-Ah wangjanim?"
"Andwaeyo!" Woo Hee clutches at her arm, trembling, "Please don't! I'll be fine. I just need to breathe."
Ha Jin lets Woo Hee sob in her arms, holding her together tight. She pulls her blanket over Woo Hee's shoulder and waits for her to calm down.
"Can I stay here tonight?" Woo Hee asks against Ha Jin's chest.
"Of course." Ha Jin answers, anxious about Woo Hee's state.
"I had a really bad dream." Woo Hee holds to Ha Jin for her sanity.
Ha Jin continuously strokes her back, lulling Woo Hee to stillness, "It's just a nightmare. You're safe. It will all go away in the morning."
Ha Jin assures Woo Hee, getting her to lie on her bed and tucking her in. She had never seen Woo Hee wrecked like this, pondering if there is a cause to let Baek-Ah know.
Days later, the main gate of the Damiwon is closed for exclusive use of the royal princes who are coming to participate in a ritual bath. Gungnyeo(s) hurry around the main floor dusting webs from the walls, wiping the floor, filling the tables with potpourri, which gives off pleasant, fruity smells that enlivens the senses.
The pool was emptied of the hot spring water and replace with cold water from a nearby lake. Pouches of eucalyptus mint and basil are suspended deep under its water since this morning to infuse its bath with herbal healing.
Woo Hee stands at the landing in the middle of the stairs, reminiscent of how Lady Oh used to oversee her mini palace. Behind her are four waiting gungnyeo(s) at her behest.
Baek-Ah, Jung and Eun arrived first, all in their bathing thin black sokgot. Eun runs to the side of the pool enthusiastically, dragging Jung with him.
"Ay wae…! Stop acting like a kid." Jung tells off Eun but lets himself be dragged by him, "You've been married for years, shouldn't we have outgrown this already?"
Baek-Ah takes to the stairs, greeting Woo Hee with a boyish grin, "How is our lady doing today?"
Woo Hee is a little under the weather this past few days and Baek-Ah is starting to worry. She looks ahead with a serious straight face, "I'm doing very well, wangjanim. Thank you for asking."
Baek-Ah can tell Woo Hee's is avoiding glancing at him so he decides to tease her and steps closer, leaning to her ear, "I heard you have a day off coming, I can't wait to ride with you to the fields."
Woo Hee tenses, a blush spreading on her nape as his bare chest touch the side of her arms and his breath plays on her ear. She automatically side steps away from Baek-Ah, uncomfortable of his show of affection. Everyone knew the two had been seeing each other for a while now and Baek-Ah had been planning to ask the king for his blessing to let them marry.
"Oi, Baek-Ah stop harassing the lady and come down here." Won comes in with Wook, a playful smile plastered on his face. It's as if the other night never happened and it puts Woo Hee in an angry mood, though at the outside, nothing changes on her expression.
Wook inclines his head to Woo Hee's direction, giving a polite greeting. The two joins Eun and Jung by the pool with Won taking off his sokjeogori and getting in the waters. Wook sits by the edge of the pool, drinking a tea served by a gungnyeo.
A eunuch announces King Hyejong at the door and everyone drops what they're doing to pay respect. He looks a bit better today with colors back on his cheek. Afternoons at Damiwon are usually reserved for the king's bath but today King Hyejong is sharing with his brother whom he hasn't bonded with for so long.
"I don't see our seja today? Where is he?" King Hyejong lets his eyes take a sweep on the whole Damiwon.
Ji Mong, who is accompanying the king, whispers at his side, "Our seja is uncomfortable with undressing with everyone, so he never participates in the bathing ritual."
"Nonsense. We are his brothers. He doesn't need to take off his clothes. Look at them." King Hyejong spread his arm in front. Except for Won and Eun, his brothers are all in their black sokjeogori and sokpaji. It might be thin but it allows for coverage, "Get my brother here."
Ji Mong fidgets, "He left the sky tower early this morning, Pyeha. I do not know where he is."
King Hyejong turns to Woo Hee, "Woo Hee Sanggun, where is Lady Hae Soo?"
"Probably with Soon Deok. Soon Deok came with me this morning saying she'll be meeting Hae Soo here." Eun answers for Woo Hee.
"The ladies are in the grooming room alone," Woo Hee explains, "Our seja might be at the corridor where Lady Hae Soo usually reads. They had breakfast there while ago."
True enough when Ji Mong went to get So, he's sitting by the chair, which Hae Soo usually occupies when she's reading at the corridor. He's resting his head at the back of the chair, his feet up in another chair in front of him, arms crossed against his chest, the book he was reading is lying abandoned at the table. He's lost inside the memory of that night in the pool with Hae Soo. Imagining the feel of her legs slinging at his waist.
"Wangsejanim." Ji Mong cuts in his wistful state.
"Kkeojyeo. (Get lost.)" So answers without opening his eyes.
"The king had asked for you to join your brothers at the bathing ritual." Ji Mong doesn't even wince. He's already expecting So not to bulge.
"Silhseubnida. (I don't want to.) It's not a ritual, they're just hanging around." So couldn't be bother.
"All the more for you to come. The king is looking forward to spending some time with all of his brothers." Ji Mong insists and then adds, "It's a command."
So sighs, there's nothing he can do if it's a command. He opens his eyes and look at Ji Mong with annoyance. He stands up and leaves with him.
The grooming room is laden with two beds, occupied with Ha Jin and Soon Deok, both of which has facial paper masks on their faces. Their clothes stripped to their Sokgot, here to have their selves pampered and relax.
Woo Hee comes in and dismisses her gungnyeo(s) trailing behind her.
"Oh, Woo Hee-ya," Soon Deok opens her eyes to see who was it who came in the door, "Come and join us. This facial mask Hae Soo made, feels cool in the face."
Ha Jin smiles underneath her mask.
"Ah kuereyo? Maybe I'll try it later before going to sleep. I still have a lot of chores today." Woo Hee bends over Soon Deok, checking her mask.
"Omo, do our princes keep you overworked?" Soon Deok teases.
"Aniyo, gwaenchanhseubnida, (No, I'm fine.) I'm glad the king and his brothers have found some time to relax." Woo Hee assures Soon Deok, walking over to Hae Soo to check her mask next.
"What are you going to do on your day off, Woo Hee-ya? I heard the king had grant you a week." Ha Jin folds her hand in her stomach.
"I thought of going home for a few days in my hometown. Though Baek-Ah wangjanim ask me to go with him somewhere."
Since Hae Soo had stripped to bare minimum and had has no make-up on, Woo Hee notices small patches of reddish marks littering down Hae Soo's neck to the inside of her sokjeogori. She couldn't help but smile. She leaves it alone and inspects the mask on her face instead. Finding the masks can be taken off after several more minutes, Woo Hee sits by the chair in front of the vanity table first and watches over the two.
"Ah jinjja? Are you heading to Joella?" Ha Jin thought of the gyobang that housed them for two years.
"Ne. It's going to be my parents death anniversary in a few weeks too, I thought I should visit them." Woo Hee feels reflective. How long had she been trapped in the Chunju Yu clan's hold and now under Wook's. The 8th prince is overlooking her relationship with Baek-Ah at the moment but she is afraid Wook would somehow make her pay a steep price if she is ever out the line. Yo might have been forceful but at least Woo Hee knows what he wants. Unlike serving Wook, Woo Hee couldn't get a read about him at all.
"Wah, I wish I could go to. It's been a while since I was able to freely leave the palace." Though Ha Jin is allowed to come and go inside the palace, Guen Sun had made it clear, she could never step out of the capital.
When So went in the north for a year, Guen Sun never failed to visit Hae Soo everyday. Sometimes just following her. Sometimes he approaches her and asks her how she is doing. He's always lurking around her like a shadow she couldn't shrug.
"The 4th prince had just come home. You should spent more time with him." Woo Hee tells Hae Soo, "It appears you spend more time apart rather than together for the greater part of your relationship. How long have you been seeing each other now?"
"Hmmm… if you don't count the two years I disappeared?" Ha Jin contemplates, "I guess four years now."
"And aren't you two getting married yet?" Soon Deok asks, getting a little bored of lying down doing nothing, "I was definitely sure back then that you would be the first one to marry among the three of us."
She laughs, "I couldn't believe I'm the only one married among us. It's strange."
The two giggles with her.
"And is their any baby coming? I heard the general and Eun's mother are itching to hold a grand baby already." Woo Hee repeats what her gungnyeo(s) had been gossiping about, effectively cutting Soon Deok's laughter.
Four years into marriage, Eun and Soon Deok still had no baby because Eun seldom shares a bed with Soon Deok. He only does when his mother tells about the auspicious day of the month. And even then, when he shares a bed with Soon Deok, he only ever sleeps beside her.
Soon Deok purses her lips, unable to say anything about their husband and wife arrangement.
A rare silence falls among the three of them and Ha Jin couldn't help but asks, "What's wrong Soon, Deok-ah?"
Soon Deok doesn't answer.
"Is the 10th prince treating you badly?" Woo Hee is suddenly worried. It never occurred to her or Hae Soo that something bad might be happening on Soon Deok's household.
Soon Deok abruptly gets up, the mask falling from her face, "Aniyo."
She quickly and vehemently denies it, then her expression falls to sadness, "Eun wangjanim treats me good."
And then adds in a very shy voice, "Too polite that he never touches me."
"Eh?!" The two exclaims.
"You mean, you've never…?" Ha Jin turns to face Soon Deok, careful for her mask to stay in her face.
Blushing uncomfortably, Soon Deok lowers her head and shakes it.
"Jeongmal? Not even a kiss?" Woo Hee feels embarrassed to ask too.
Soon Deok nods, "I think Eun wangjanim doesn't like me at all. He only married me out of obligation to his family since the late king made us marry."
Woo Hee can't find the right words to comfort Soon Deok. These kinds of things are not something they teach you in apprenticeship.
"Aniya, don't feel too bad about it." Ha Jin steps in to comfort Soon Deok, "Maybe Eun wangjanim only need some time to adjust and grow-up. You know how he had been sheltered all his life. You're both still young, enjoy your married life with only the two of you first."
If Ha Jin could reach out to her, she would have put her hand in her arm and assure her but since her mask would fall off if she stands up, she settles for a smile instead, "How about we pretty you up today so he'd look only at you, hmmm?"
Soon Deok cheers up a little, "Kuende Hae Soo-ya, you've been seeing So wangjanim for as long as I'm married and you, Woo Hee-ya had been seeing Baek-Ah wangjanim for a while now. Have you…"
"Aniya!"
"Anibnida!"
The two quickly deny it. Ha Jin lies in her back once more while Woo Hee suddenly finds the powders in the vanity cabinet interesting.
"Wah!" Soon Deok sports an expression of amazement upon the realization that her two friends have more experience than her, who is married, "How did it feel? Did it hurt a lot?"
"Mor-eu-gess-seub-ni-da. (I don't know.) I've never done it." Woo Hee is flushed, all red in the face.
"Mol-la-yo. (I don't know.)" Ha Jin is grateful that she has a mask on her face to hide her blush.
Her mind automatically wanders to that memory of the night at the pool with So, as if feeling his hand on her again. When she thinks about it, their first foray in intimacy isn't bad at all. So surely knows his way around her body and that's when Ha Jin suddenly sit up.
He knows his way on a woman's body? How?
Ha Jin squints her eyes, thinking how So seemed to be experienced, "Soon Deok-ah."
"Kkamjjakya!" Soon Deok clutches at her chest, "Myo ya! Don't just suddenly sit up like that, you've surprised me."
"You were childhood friends with So wangsejanim, isn't it?" Ha Jin asks, her mask forgotten in her lap.
Woo Hee watches them in the mirror.
Soon Deok nods, "Ne, waeyo?"
"Did he have women before me?" A woman's instinct tells Ha Jin, So isn't as innocent as she thought he is.
"Not that I know off?" Soon Deok thinks about it, "Ladies aren't exactly attracted to him because of his mask and you've seen how he is before. He used to be really scary that men and women avoid him. It is only when you covered his scar and took of his mask when ladies started paying attention to him."
Ha Jin couldn't believe it. So definitely has some experience with women. It's not possible to have that kind of skill by pure luck or by reading or simply talking with friends. Even with Ha Jin's present boyfriend, he wasn't as smooth as So. So knows what he is doing. He isn't clumsy. He knows what to touch, what to ask, what to do. He took the lead so confidently Ha Jin didn't even notice it.
Ha Jin inclines her head to the side, looking every bit suspicious.
Not bothering to change into bathing sokgot, So comes in the main floor of the Damiwon finding the inner pool in chaos, water is splashed in the floor everywhere as Eun and Jung outmatched each other on who can push the other to the pool. Baek-Ah is cheering for them at the edge of the pool. Won is holding attention with a group of gungnyeo(s) whom he is trying to impress. King Hyejong is down by the pool, the water up in his chest, his arms spread on each side of the top of the pool. Wook accompanies him, sitting at the edge of the pool. They are laughing, relax and enjoying the water.
It's been a while since the brothers had bonded and So had never seen them happy like this before. He stops below the stairs, watching them for a bit until Won finally notices him.
"Hyungnim!" Won greets, holding a glass of wine up towards So, "Join us."
Everyone turns to So, waving at him to join. He leaves the comfort of the pillars that is hiding him and greets the king. Ji Mong stays his place by a recluse table, watching over the princes. These days, he's busy accompanying King Hyejong everywhere. After his plan of skipping Hyejong's reign failed, he weighs his options and decided he could take a breather for a few years since Mu once promised to have Hae Soo and So married and he followed through with it. The problem now lies with Lady Shinjuwon, whom So refuses to talk to.
"Ah our brooding seja finally showed himself." King Hyejong feels better to have all his brother in one place. He notices So didn't change his clothes, "Aren't you going in the water?"
"Sunggohabnida pyeha, some other time. I did not come prepared." So sits at the edge of the pool opposite Wook.
Jung and Eun stop wrestling for a second. They look at each other, quietly agreeing on playing a joke on their 4th brother. They pretend to ask a gungnyeo for some snacks and hurry behind So.
"Haji ma." So warns without even looking at them. He easily catches up with Jung and Eun's plan.
The two freezes on their way to push So into the water.
"Eiiii hyungnim, jaemi eops-eo-yo. (That's no fun)." Eun throws a tantrum, stomping his feet to the floor, "You could at least pretend you don't know."
"Who cares?!" Jung pushes So into the pool. Only him would dare to touch their 4th brother and play a joke on him.
King Hyejong takes his arm off the edge of the pool as So splashes in the water and everyone laughs.
So comes out of the water and looks at Jung menacingly, "Ya! Jung-ah, this is too childish of you."
"Joesonghabnida, wangsejanim," Jung bows in mock meekness and then laughs with everyone.
So swears at him in annoyance and King Hyejong meddles, calming So down, "Let our 14th brother be, So-ya. You need to have some fun every now and then."
So turns away but does not leave the water. In truth, he's glad he was forced to join his brothers. He can't remember the last time they all had a laugh together. Probably his 13th birthday was the last time. If only his 3rd brother is here, they would be complete.
To maintain his dignity, the scowling expression doesn't leave So's face. He makes a show of annoyance by splashing some water towards Jung that Wook and King Hyejong avoids.
Eun grabs his chance and pushes Jung to the water but Jung's reflex is fast. He grabs at Eun and together they fall into the water.
Baek-Ah calls a jeering cheer at Jung, "Well done, Jung-ah!"
So wades to the side of the pool, steering clear of Jung and Eun who resumed their wrestling match in the water. Baek-Ah joins the two also. So takes of the ribbon holding the first layer of his hair and gathers all his hair to put it up in a ponytail.
Eun notices the long scratches on his nape disappearing inside his jeogeori, "Oh Hyungnim! You have scratches on your neck, what happened to it? You should see the royal physician for the wounds you got from spending time in the field."
Everyone turns to scrutinize the marks on So's neck. So automatically covers his nape with his hand, his ears turning red. He forgot he was wearing his hair down to hide the marks left by Hae Soo the other night. He tried putting a cream in it but he couldn't see nor reach it. Hae Soo was busy this morning so she wasn't able to help him.
Except for Eun, Jung and Wook, everyone laughs again, knowing that the long marks on So's neck were not from the war he had just fought but probably from a lady's finger nails.
"Aigoo!" Baek-Ah captures Eun's neck and arm choke him, "For a married man, you sure know nothing of marks. No wonder the general and your mother are getting antsy these days."
"Ya! What does that mean?" Eun tries to push Baek-Ah away, his head held between Baek-ah's arm and his chest. Baek-Ah's sokjeogori is open and Eun notices a purplish mark on his clavicle, almost fading, "Oh you have one, too."
Baek-Ah forgot about his mark and in his surprise, releases Eun. Eun grabs at the opening of his sokjeogori to look closer.
"Mwo ya!" Baek-Ah shoves him away and covers himself but Eun had already turned to Jung, who is naked up.
Jung automatically covers the upper part of his stomach with his hand. His, is not angry red but brownish, almost faded. It's not scratches but patches. Eun comes to each of his brother, examining them. Won has few on his neck and his biceps. He doesn't even try to hide it. Wook pushes Eun away. His body covered with his black sokgot and shows nothing.
"Don't even think about it." King Hyejong keeps Eun at an arm's length.
The gungnyeo(s) around Won try hard not to laugh while Ji Mong wants nothing but to leave. He really doesn't want to know what So is doing with his daughter.
"Why does everyone have it?" Eun looks clueless, "Do you have some kind of secret society that I don't know of?"
His face falls short, feeling left out, "Why wouldn't you invite me?"
Except for So, everyone seems to be laughing at every little thing today.
"Eun-ah," King Hyejong deeply sighs. He guesses the rumor about his 10th brother still innocent is true. "Do you know your father-in-law and your mother had been worried that an heir to your clan hasn't been taken cared of."
"Eh?" Eun dismisses it, "My mother should have known by now I only married Soon Deok to anger my grandfather. Besides,"
He points a finger at So, "It's So hyungnim's fault. He made our father engaged me to Soon Deok."
Silence falls in the inner pool, surprised of Eun's confession. He comes beside Jung and Baek-Ah again, as if he didn't say anything wrong. He crosses his arms against his chest, "I was in love with another girl."
"Eun-ah!" Jung and Baek-Ah cover Eun's mouth before he say something stupid.
"Eun-ah!" King Hyejong didn't like how Eun is throwing a tantrum as if he is still a child, "That is no way of speaking about your wife. You are embarrassing Lady Soon Deok. You are not a child anymore and it is your duty to provide your clan an heir. Do not speak that way about your wife again."
Eun suddenly feels bad realizing what he just did. He didn't mean to be rude to Soon Deok. He likes Soon Deok. They were a good team for the last four years. She always protects him and puts up with his tantrums even when it is beyond reasonable, "Sunggohabnida pyeha."
"There is no need to apologize to me. You should be apologizing to your wife." King Hyejong lets it pass, his 10th brother had always been childish but is always quick to make amends.
"Kuende," Eun pouts, his rudeness forgotten, "Do you all go into this secret society that I don't now of? Why do you have all this marks?"
Everyone looks at Eun, amused and frustrated at the same time.
"Why won't you tell me?!" Eun is annoyed now.
Won walks to his back and crouches at the edge of the pool. He puts his arm on Eun's shoulder, "If you've been doing your duty as a husband, you've be getting these marks too."
"Ah jinjja?!" Eun's eyes are wide with surprise, letting his accusing eyes pass his 13th, 14th, 4th and 8th brother, "But you're not married?"
"Aigoo!" King Hyejong stretches his neck, feeling his blood pressure going-up. Every little thing needs to be explained to Eun.
Won laughs loud this time, "Eun-ah, you don't need to be married to experience a lady's touch."
"Ah…! Oh!" Eun's simple mind finally catches-up with everyone.
"Do you want to come with us in a gyobang tonight? I shall introduce you to a few pretty gisaengs." Won invites Eun.
"Eiii…!" Jung and Baek-Ah disagrees. They both don't have a problem with their 10th brother seeing gisaengs but they are worried for Soon Deok.
"Go home to Soon Deok." So opens his mouth for once.
Eun looks at So with suspicion, crossing the wide expanse of the pool to come near him.
So is inclined to step back, wary of his 10th brother, "Wae?!"
"Have you been doing it with Hae Soo?" Eun looks serious.
"Kkeojyeo!" So puts up a menacing façade that doesn't scare Eun at all. If anything he advances to his face and tells him off,
"Haji maseyo. You haven't married her yet." Eun acts as if he's older than So. At the back of his head, Hae Soo is still his first love and he looks after her on his own way.
"Kuere." King Hyejong adds in, "I've given my blessing several times already. What's the hold up?"
Now So is in hot waters.
While manning the garrison in the north for a whole year, So came to visit Lady Shinjuwon alone in their palace at Shinju. Even as he step by their main gate, the unpleasant nauseating feeling of having to face the consort is already creeping up his spine.
Since he refused to meet her inside her quarters, the servants made him wait at her poisonous garden for an hour before she shows up knowing it would annoy him if she does.
"What brings my prodigal son back to his mother?" Lady Shinjuwon shows up all made up, looking more beautiful and ageless, So couldn't help but wonder when will she die if she doesn't age at all.
"I've poisoned the king for you, did I not?" So is sitting by the tea table, a cup of tea served in front oh him.
"And you are what now? A dog leashed to the king by the title of crown prince?" Lady Shinjuwon puts on her mittens and takes the bowl from a servant. She goes to a bush filled with purple helmet flowers, touching it's berry and picking it.
"I want to marry Hae Soo already." So sees no point in small talks.
Lady Shinjuwon pays no mind to his declaration. This isn't the first time they hd this talked and just like every other time, her answer is still the same. She continues with gathering the small berries, selecting only the fruit ripe in deep violet hue.
"Eomeonim—"
"-I heard you the first time." Lady Shinjuwon cuts off his sentence with a dismissal, "You never wrote me a letter or answer my summon for the last three years."
"I was punished by the king and sent to Later Jin, how can I answer your summon?" So sticks to half-truth.
"Do not lie to me." Lady Shinjuwon says with calmness that So knows hiding a brewing storm, "You were amassing your own supporters so you could cut your ties with me."
So keeps his mouth shut.
"You were never planning of holding your end of the deal, am I right?" Lady Shinjuwon straightens her back. Her small bowl of ceramic is half filled with the berries she had picked.
"I will never betray you, eomeonim." So lies smoothly, "I only want my reign… your reign… to go smoothly so I am careful of my way to the throne."
Lady Shinjuwon comes to the tea table and So eyes the bowl of berries she had just put down. He leans back to his chair, an instinctual aversion to Lady Shinjuwon and her berries. A natural twitch in Lady Shinjuwon's left eyebrow indicates she notices So's discomfort and it amuses her. She bends over at him, bracing her hand the back of his chair.
"Geo-jit-mal ha-ji ma-ra, nae a-deul-a. (Do not lie to me my son.)" Lady Shinjuwon brushes his bangs out of his left eye, the part where his scar used to be visible. It recedes to his ponytail, grabbing it and abruptly pulling so his face would look up to her, "I am running out of patience, my dear son and when I do, that little girl you treasure so much will become a tribute to the winner of war in our borders."
So keeps his mouth tightly shut as Wook and Jung observe him.
"Did Lady Shinjuwon disagree to let you marry her?" Jung asks, the unwelcome memory of what he saw in Lady Shinjuwon's room, never left his mind. He wishes he could forget but he can't.
"Aniyo." So answers, detecting a slight strangeness in the way Jung asks his question.
"Then marry her already before someone whisks her away." Jung warns, reminding So of their conversation in So's reclusive lake.
"No one can take her away." So confidently tells Jung.
"Ah kuereyo? Not even when she chooses someone else?" Wook chimes in, as serious as the two conversing.
"She will never do that to me." So assures himself more than Wook, suddenly missing Hae Soo.
Everyone can feel the change in the light atmosphere and Ji Mong silently listens. He too had been wondering why So haven't married Hae Soo yet. So once told him what Lady Shinjuwon wants from Hae Soo. He suspects the consort will not let them marry until So owns the throne.
Shall I help her already?
That night, Eun paces outside Soon Deok's quarters, holding something behind his back. The night feels cool with the summer breeze sweeping at the garden and the lanterns inside Soon Deok's quarter give off an orange warm glow on the patio where Eun is standing. Several back and forth in the patio and Soon Deok finally had enough of Eun's loud footsteps and comes out.
"Yie, wangjanim? What brings you to my quarters at this time of the night?" Soon Deok opens her door abruptly and make Eun jump.
"Ya! Kkam-jjak nol-a-seo! (You've surprised me!)" Eun annoyingly shouts at Soon Deok.
Used to his outbursts, Soon Deok invites him to come inside. This isn't Eun's first time to be inside Soon Deok's quarter but his heart is pounding on his chest, nervous somehow.
"Do you need anything?" Soon Deok asks.
Eun takes out what he is holding at his back. It's a lotus origami made of an expensive textile cloth. The one he used to give Hae Soo before, "I made this for you."
Soon Deok look at the beautiful origami and her face lights up with a pretty smile, "Wah. Kamsahabnida."
"Johahaeyo? (Do you like it?)" Eun acts highly of himself, a little snobbish.
Soon Deok eagerly nods, "Johahaeyo jeongmal. (I like it very much.) What is it for?"
"Kuenyang." Eun fidgets, forgetting his tough act. He chews on his lips, looking apologetic, "I talked rudely about you a while ago. Mianhada."
Soon Deok looked surprise and doesn't know how should she react.
Eun misunderstands it as her being offended and hurriedly explain, "I didn't mean too. They were asking why… you know… we still don't have a… baby."
He stammers and Soon Deok remains silent, letting him reach the end of his sentence.
"I told them, we weren't like a normal… husband and wife… I mean because we married… out of my father's decree…"
The longer Eun's explanation get the more his voice grew timid, embarrassed of how he acted in front of his brothers.
"Johahabnida." Soon Deok blurts out.
"Eh?" Eun didn't catch it the first time.
"Johahabnida." Soon Deok repeats, looking away shyly, "Na-neun wanjanim-eul… sa-rang-hae-seo… hon-in-haess-eo-yo. (I married you… because... I like you…)"
"Mwo rago?!" Eun never had a clue as to how Soon Deok feels about him all this time and he's making her more embarrassed than she should be.
Soon Deok is getting smaller and smaller as minutes tick by and Eun isn't saying anything.
"Maybe you should leave." Soon Deok trains her eyes on the floor, her face red from embarrassment, trying to hold her disappointment.
She looks adorable to Eun that Eun, himself, is just noticing it now. He touches nape, a characteristic everyone of his brothers shares when they are on a tight spot, his nervousness manifesting in the way he shuffles on his feet, not knowing what to do. He had never heard a girl confess to him before and he somehow feels elated.
He stoops over Soon Deok, trying to catch her gaze but Soon Deok shyly faces the other away, looking everywhere but him. He awkwardly takes a hold of Soon Deok's chin and abruptly touches her lips with his.
Soon Deok isn't expecting and automatically covers her lips with the back of her hand, her eyes wide with shock and questions. Warmth spread on her neck, down to her chest, matching Eun's nervousness.
Eun smiles at her, "I think I like you, too."
Grinning like a kid, he turns for the door, confidently whistling as he leaves.
It would take a long time before Soon Deok takes her hand from her lips, staring at the door where Eun just left, still couldn't get over the confession.
"Awooohhhh…." So makes a sound of a wolf outside Hae Soo's quarters at the Damiwon.
After spending the afternoon bathing with his brothers and then having dinner with them, So concludes his day would be best if it ends on Hae Soo's arm. Won had invited everyone to a nearby gyobang where Woo Hee used to work, to have some drinks. So declines. He'd rather visit Hae Soo on her quarters. He missed her already and is looking forward into spending some quiet time with her.
"Awooohhhh…" He repeats.
Ha Jin opens her windows after making So wait, "Wangsejanim, what brings you here?"
He grins like a boy drunk of happiness, "The moon is full tonight, I was hoping I'll go and watch it with you."
He takes to the door, waiting for Hae Soo to get out of her window and open it.
"Ah, watch the moon?" Ha Jin is in a foul mood ever since she made that connection at the grooming room a while ago, jealous of a girl she doesn't know existed but upon seeing So's grin, she momentarily forgets her annoyance and let So pass today, "Kuereul kkayo? (Should we?)"
She opens the door and steps out of it only for So to hold it ajar, "Can I come in?"
"Andwaeyo." Ha Jin close it a little too firm on So's face, "I thought we're going to watch the moon. We can't see it from the insides of my room."
Ha Jin knows So is only making an excuse and that what he really wants is to come in but that will not happen tonight. To his disappointment, she takes him by the wrist and leads him to the pond. They sit by the steps, overlooking the pond where white lilies float lazily on the water. Overgrown grasses come out of the stony steps and one or two dandelion lie unscathed here and there. The moon is indeed full tonight and the stars litter the sky.
So sits close to Hae Soo, his hands clasp together like in a prayer, resting upon his knees.
"How was your day with your brothers?" Ha Jin asks, her arms loosely crossed on her chest, as if holding herself.
"Jae-mi iss-eo. (Fun.)" The word taste foreign to So's mouth, "I didn't know it would be fun to hang around my brothers again. It's been so long since we all did that. Mu hyungnim even forbade talking about palace matters."
"I'm glad, you decided to spend some time with them." Ha Jin is infected by So's buoyant mood.
"And your day with the ladies?"
Hae Soo is about to sleep already when So visited her quarters hence her face is bare with make-up and only has a moisturizer on. So notices how her skin looks especially soft or that her fruity lime sweet scent is stronger tonight. Makes him want to bury his lips on her neck.
"Good. Woo Hee is leaving with Baek-ah for a week. They'll be visiting Woo Hee's village." Ha Jin breathes in the cozy atmosphere, "I wish I could come with them."
"Do you want to take a vacation too?" So is enticed to lean in.
Ha Jin nods enthusiastically.
"Maybe one of these days, we could go and see the sea." His hand tentatively inching at her back.
"Jinjja?" Ha Jin asks surprise. She knows there is a port nearby but she had never gone near it. The farthest she was able to leave the palace is when they stayed in the temple at Mt. Songak, years ago when Myung Hee was still alive.
"I Ju-mal-e (This weekend.)" So promises.
Ha Jin looks forward to it with a smile. She can feel So leaning in for a kiss and avoids him nonchalantly, determined to keep him at bay. If So is upset, he shrugs it off, he can always try again when Hae Soo lowers her guard.
"Soo-ya," So had been meaning to ask, "Why does Jung kept calling you Ha Jin?"
Ha Jin tenses, "It's the name I used when I was hiding with Woo Hee."
"Ara. (I know.)" So is aware of that, what makes him wonder is that Jung kept at it, "It's been years since we all got back to the palace, why does he still call you that name?"
"Silhseubnida? (Do you not like it?)" Ha Jin anticipates. Her real name is the one true thing that separates her from Hae Soo or the daughter of the moon. Being called by her real name is somewhat freeing.
So nods, "It reminds me of the time when you left me and it hurts here."
He touches his chest, pertaining to his heart, "Like drowning in a void."
Ha Jin understands that. It was her fault for leaving and creating that mess. Still, she can't help but be saddened a little. She wanted So to know the real her but her way of introducing herself as Ha Jin is hurtful to him, hence she can't fault him if it reminds him of painful memories.
Silence.
Ha Jin tries to not appear dismayed but So still notices it, "Wae? Have I said something wrong?"
"Aniyo." Ha Jin shakes her head. She avoids So's eyes and stares at the sky to count the stars, "I once had a friend. She…"
How does she see herself before, "had a very normal life."
She laughs, awkward and nervous, "She wanted simple things; a roof over her sick father, payment for her students loans, allowance for her brother, a house she could call home with her boyfriend and her best friend."
"Student loans?" So asks, he'd never heard about it. Education is usually only exclusive to noble families who can afford it.
"Payment for tuition. It's expensive to study where she lives so most students get a part time job and get a loan which they promise to pay when they get a job after school." Ha Jin explains.
So listens attentively, "I see. But she's a girl? What kind of job does she get after school? Don't they just marry and manage a household?"
Ha Jin is amused, "A lot actually and no, women don't just get married and become a housewife after. Where she lives, men and women are equal. They all get the same education and the same opportunity to get a job. Even when getting married, everyone gets to choose. At least in essence that's how their society works."
The concept is a little hard for So to understand but he tries to grasp it, "Explain it more. How does their king reign?"
"They don't have a king. I mean they used to…" Ha Jin racks her brain, how does she explain their modern society to So, "They have a president, a leader, who was elected by majority of the people or plurality."
"A what? The whole kingdom votes? But that would be thousands of people." So asks confused. Listening attentively now, he withdraws his hand from Hae Soo's back and keeps it tangled together, resting on his knees.
"Millions. Millions of people who are of legal age can vote." She simplifies it, "Meaning every single one who is of legal age and has registered has a voice on who could seat as the head of the state and the president is indebted to uphold the country's welfare first and foremost, always."
"Like the king?" So makes the connection.
Ha Jin snaps her finger, "Maj-a. (That's right.) Only this time, the crown isn't passed down by blood relation but by the voice of the people."
"I see." So thoughtfully pounders upon it, "Where does your friend live? I'd like to go and visit their kingdom."
Ha Jin chuckles, "Far away. A place I can't reach."
Confusion floats on So's face, "Alright…? What happened to your friend then?"
So has a lot of question, Ha Jin is sidetracked of her story, "Hmmm… betrayed by her boyfriend and her best friend."
"Namja chinggu?" Ha Jin's sentence are full of words that are foreign to So.
"Yon-in. (Lover.)" Ha Jin corrects her modern word.
"Ah she lives with her lover and her best friend and they betrayed her?" So clarifies.
Ha Jin nods, "Her lover and her best friend run off together with the deed of her house and left her with debts she couldn't afford to pay."
"She had a really bad life. Did she betray her country in her past life?" So asks, immersed with the story, "Ask your friend for her lover's and her best friend's name and I'll look for them. I'll cut them both down for her. She deserve someone better."
Ha Jin laughs, "Ko-ma-wa-yo kuende, nae chinggu, sa-ra-jyeoss-eo-yo. (Thank you but she disappeared.)"
"Eh?" So's face falls short, "Why are you telling me a sad story?"
"Kuenyang…" Ha Jin chuckles sadly, "The name Go Ha Jin belongs to her and I wanted to remember her so I used it for myself."
"Soo-ya." So takes her hand into his, stoking it softly, coming to understand the significance of the name to Hae Soo, "Mianhada if I hated the name at first. I didn't know it belong to a friend you wanted to remember. Wherever your friend is, I wish she finally found a better life. She deserves to be happy."
So taps her nose, "And so are you. Let's live happily for your friend from now on. We shouldn't taint her memory with more sadness."
Ha Jin smiles at So wistfully. Sometimes it still surprises Ha Jin when So is too happy, he reminds her of an innocent child waiting for his Christmas gift. It's so far from his scowling and brooding expression when she first met him.
Unable to resist her any longer, So touches her chin, making her face him. He's about to close the gap on their lips when Hae Soo's hand comes up between them, "Wae?"
"You don't ask permission anymore?" Ha Jin reminds him, an annoying smile on her face.
So pouts, the way Eun did a while ago, "Araseo,"
And then grins, "Kuereom can I kiss you now?"
He leans again and Hae Soo leans back, "Aniyo."
So is really upset, sulking like a kid and then he tries once more but Hae Soo puts her guard up, making it clear he won't be getting any kiss tonight. He sighs and lies to the grass instead to relax himself. He puts up his arm as a pillow, contenting himself with watching the stars with Hae Soo.
The assembly resumes normally once the week starts and everyone is present except for Baek-Ah, who accompanied Woo Hee on her travel back to her hometown.
Jung fidgets on his place beside the general. He'd been nervous throughout the whole weekend, wanting to ask the king a favor. He watches the king, who seemed to be doing better today. All the colors are back on his face. He, like the rest of his brothers, had rested well.
"What is our first order of the day?" King Hyejong asks his subjects, a smile displayed on his face.
"Pyeha," Jung touches his ear, hesitating. If it were their father whom he's facing, he wouldn't be able to show any sign of faltering.
"Oh, Jung-ah, do you have anything to add to your report?" King Hyejong welcomes Jung, listening attentively.
"Pyeha, I have served in our military loyally from the late king's reign to yours. I have never once asked for an incentive for the services I have rendered for I feel it is my duty to our kingdom to do so." Jung circles around what he really wants to ask.
"What does our 14th prince want then?" King Hyejong is incline to grant Jung a favor, who had always supported the late king and now him, "I shall listen."
"If his highness would permit," Jung kneels by the aisle, "May I be allowed to visit my mother in our hometown? I heard she had been sick…"
The change in King Hyejong's mood is instant and everyone felt it, "Jung-ah, your mother and your clan are not confined in your hometown for a vacation. They are banished there as a punishment."
"It's been two years Pyeha, I am merely going to visit. Surely even the thieves in our prison are allowed a visit from their family."
"Shall I put your mother and your clan behind bars then so they could have the same visitation rights?" King Hyejong firmly disagrees. Ji Mong and the general had warned him about granting favor once. Surely, his 14th brother is not trying to take advantage of him. It is not in Jung's nature to do so and yet he should also not forget that Jung is from the scheming Chungju Yu clan too.
"That is not what I meant, Pyeha." Jung hastens to reason.
"So wangsejanim," King Hyejong turns to So, "Do you also miss the queen, your mother. Do you think I should grant Jung what he is asking?"
So remains looking in front of him but side glances at Jung. Depending on his answer, Jung might be granted his favor. The king already knows his answer, why he has to put So on the spot irks him. So knows he is being tested too and he doesn't like it. The king is becoming more and more like their late father, who pits people against each other instead of taking responsibility for his decision,
"I'm afraid two years is a short time for banishment. The queen is getting a better punishment than she should. Banishment to their hometown is like a walk in the park compared to the thieves, who are spending years in our prison and the queen had committed treason. It's incomparable."
King Hyejong nods satisfactorily, "Even your full brother believes I am being lenient with the queen and your clan. Jung-ah, go back to your place and never speak of it again."
"Pyeha…" Jung balls his hands to a fist on each of his side, looking at So with resentment. He thought at least, his 4th brother will side with him. The way he did when they both pleaded for Mu to give them Yo's body.
"I shall grant you any favor you want except that." King Hyejong cuts Jung off. He doesn't want to hear any of it.
"Any favor?" Jung returns his focus on the king. Somehow, he reminds King Hyejong of Yo and So when they are angry, dangerous and scheming.
And it suddenly makes King Hyejong nervous to have said such words but he can't take it back, "Say it and it shall be done."
"I shall think about it then, Pyeha. Mang-geuk-ha-ob-ni-da. (I am grateful for your grace is immeasurable.)" Jung rises from his kneeling position, bows one more time before going back to his position beside the general.
Won occupies the aisle next, reporting about the treasury of the palace, "For playing two sides of the war in our northern borders, I must report Pyeha that our treasury had been greatly deflated. It would be best if we could replenish our vaults again for future emergencies. We do not want our nearby neighboring kingdom less of us lest they think we are too small of kingdom and it would be easy for them to conquers us."
The temporary respite the weekend had offered is slowly fading in the air. The problems they all had set aside must be dealt with and King Hyejong is starting to feel a migraine coming down, "What do you suggest that we do, Won wangja?"
"Might we be allowed to increase the tax by 2%, it would do wonders in our treasury." Won suggests confidently.
"But our people are suffering already. Haven't our tea farmers been shouldering a steep tax from the last time you've increased their taxes?" Ha Jin hesitantly voices her mind. She did her homework and studied the court with Baek-Ah's help for the last two years. She isn't ignorant with the comings and goings of the royal court anymore. Though how and when to speak her mind still needs a lot of practice and right timing.
"The whole kingdom will be shouldering the tax this time, they won't feel a thing at all." Won lies smoothly, "Didn't you see the way they celebrated our seja's homecoming. They were happy and throwing flowers on his path. They weren't suffering."
The ministers are seen nodding and agreeing with Won.
"You've announced a celebration and gave a holiday, of course the people would celebrate." Ha Jin didn't want to sound discourteous of the 9th prince but she is phrasing her words tactlessly, she's going head on with Won, "And the flowers they were throwing are of wild ones, those that can be picked at the nearby forest."
"Ah are you saying that the town were forced to celebrate our seja's homecoming?" Won directs everyone attention to So, "Isn't that a disrespect to our dear seja? What does that say about him?"
Won might not be as eloquent as Wook but he definitely has skills into twisting people's word and turning it against them.
So couldn't say a word since he is threading in a thin ice. If he defends Hae Soo, the ministers would think he's taking her side because of their relationship and it would reflect badly her. If it's just him, he wouldn't mind whether they support him or not. He'd walked out on them anytime and never look back but Hae Soo is different. She's young in this court and still learning. Whether she holds one of the highest seat in the court or not, it won't matter if she refuses to wield its power to her advantage and she's fast becoming a target for everyone.
"Lady Hae Soo is merely saying that our people are outstanding for being able to express their reverence for our seja and at the same time be prudent with what little resources they have." Wook comes to Hae Soo's defense, playing the guardian as always.
"What does the Lady of the Kang household suggest then?" King Hyejong is willing to listen to an alternative, knowing that Hae Soo is always the only one giving the correct answer even is it's not to their household's advantage.
King Hyejong was once young, a dreamer like Hae Soo. He believed in ruling his court with fairness and equality. Two years down the road and he knew, fairness and equality are two ideas that are hard to reconcile with their reality, beginning to understand why their father, the late king, ruled with an iron fist that can't be swayed no matter what.
Ha Jin doesn't have access to the Kang' household's accounting books but she was given access to the Hae's books courtesy of Wook. She studied the books for several months until finally she realized what's wrong with their books. She had asked Baek-Ah about it and learned that all aristocratic clans get a 10% cut on every tax they collect from their governing district and all of them never followed the rule. Each clan is supposed to remit 90% of the tax yet all of them only remit 50%-80%. Even her own clan, the Haes, doctored their own books and remit 70% only. 30% of it goes to their pocket. Ha Jin was surprised to know that her even own parents weren't as clean as she thought they were.
"How about we decrease the percentage of the clan's cut on the our monarch's remitted taxes."
No one is following anyway.
Ha Jin's suggested way might be futile. She's sure that won't stop the clans from corrupting the tax they have been collecting but at least the people won't have to suffer an increase in the tax they could no longer shoulder.
Her suggestion gathers an unpopular vote from everyone and the court erupts to disagreement. No one would support her cause that aims to diminish the fund in their own pockets.
King Hyejong orders silence but the ministers only grew discontent. They will not agree to Hae Soo's suggestion no matter what.
The south of the kingdom is halfway beyond the peak of summer and the roads in between villages are alive with bamboo stalks, all whispering and swaying to the light breeze. It took several days of riding by horse before Woo Hee and Baek-Ah reached Woo Hee's hometown of Jeolla. This isn't Baek-Ah's first time in Jeolla but this is his first time to be out with Woo Hee in the town. Most people whom they passed by appeared to recognize Woo Hee or maybe villagers from this part of the kingdom are just friendly that they never fail to greet any one passing by.
It would be night by the time they reached a Gwan [1] (postal guest house) in a fork main road at the town. They were given a room of their own and they both retire for the night, exhausted from riding the horse.
The next day, they set-off for Woo Hee's parent's grave first thing in the morning, with Baek- Ah insisting they share a ride in one horse so Woo Hee could rest some more. It's half-day ride to the mountains. They are at the middle of the bamboo forest, a meeting of tall greens and blue sky.
"Woo Hee-ya," Baek-Ah breaks their comfortable silence, "You've grown up here in Jeolla, right?"
Woo Hee nods. She had opened up about herself to Baek-Ah little by little, starting with where she came from. Though she haven't fully told Baek-Ah that she was a former princess of HuBaekje or that she is in anyway connected to Yo and Wook. When Baek-Ah ask why she tried to kill the king, she told him half-truths about herself; that she came from Hubaekje and that her family is one of the victims of his father's military campaign in the South. Baek-Ah never suspected her because it is very common to find slaves and free people migrating in the capital with the same circumstances.
"Yie." Woo Hee had that longing on her face, as she looks ahead to the mountains.
"Aren't the royal family of Hubaekje used to maintain a temple near here?" Baek-Ah asks, his arm encircled on Woo Hee's waist.
Woo Hee nods, "They do."
"What was your childhood like? Isn't this part of our kingdom the last of the struggling state at the fall of the three kingdoms?" Baek-Ah heard about it while growing-up. His family, being of the royal family of Silla had its own struggles as they assimilate with the Wang Family of Goryeo.
When Woo Hee thinks about it, as a princess of their kingdom, she was relatively protected and had a happy normal childhood until usurpers from her own relatives made their defense weak from the inside and the royal family fell apart.
"I remember playing in the pond of my father's courtyard during the afternoon, of being holed up in my room for the better part of the day learning the Cheonjamun (Thousand Character Classic), of being scolded every time my posture falls in front of my parents." Woo Hee is getting nervous as they near the foot of the mountains.
She'd been thinking how much should she tell Baek-Ah about herself. They've been seeing each other for two years now. Baek-Ah had been asking way too many things about her that she always hesitated to answer.
"Right. You were of noble birth." Baek-Ah like Soon Deok had long ago noticed how refined Woo Hee's manners are, "You were educated since you were a child, no wonder it was easy for you to follow Lady Oh's mentoring."
Baek-Ah lowers his voice, coming closer on Woo Hee's ear, "You were the most graceful of Lady Oh's apprentice, by the way."
Bringing a blush on Woo Hee's neck. She answers with modesty, "I'm sure many of your brothers will disagree."
"Eiii, my brothers have different taste in women. Thank the heavens, I don't share their preference." Baek-Ah smiles and playfully kisses Woo Hee's cheek, spreading the blush from her neck to her cheeks.
Soon the bamboo stalks give way to more deciduous trees that turn its leaves into different hues of earth tones during fall. A few trees are turning yellow now while some are still deep green. They are going up the mountain of Moaksan and if they go to the heart of it, they will end up in Geumsan Temple, built by King Beop of Baekje and is maintained by Buddhist monks under the once support of Hubaekje royal family.
They go off course the beaten path and ends up in a clearing at the side of the mountain, overlooking the town below.
Two tumulus (mound of earth raised over a grave) lie at the center. Off shoot wild grasses had swallowed the burial tablets and brown leaves from nearby trees had covered parts of the tumulus. The grave looked deserted and unmaintained.
Woo Hee unmounts from the horse with the help of Baek-Ah and proceeds to clean the dried leaves out of the grave. Baek-Ah automatically helps her on the other tumulus. As Baek-Ah clears the overgrown grasses at the epitaph, he reads in hanja script:
"Long my eyes rove, upon the distance gazing.
I long but once to return; but when will that time be." [2]
Baek-Ah stands up to stoop over and read the epitaph on the other tumulus. This one doesn't have a writing on it at all, "Woo Hee-ya, why do your parents' grave don't have names on it?"
Woo Hee's hand stills above the leaves she's about to sweep. She is at the other side of the tumulus, it's height hiding her from Baek-Ah's sight. She thinks twice and uncertainly answers, "Because no one can know who they are. Lest it reaches the king's ear and they lose this final resting place they have."
"Yie?" Baek-Ah finds Woo Hee's answer strange, his heart starting to race on uneasiness. He thinks about where they are, the mountain where the last of the royal family of Hubaekje was banished into a temple run by the Buddhist Monks, "Is the Geumsan Temple still standing near here?"
Closing her eyes, Woo Hee braves her fear, "Ne, but is no longer run by my family since your father put his sword on my uncle's throat and end our family's reign in our home once known as the kingdom of Hubaekje."
Baek-Ah felt like doused with a cold water, freezing on the ground where he is standing. He knew Woo Hee is harboring resentment towards his father but he didn't know it runs this deep. No wonder, Woo Hee once put everything in line to assassinate the king. She had nothing to lose anymore.
Seeking Woo Hee behind the mound of tumulus, Baek-Ah pulls a terrified Woo Hee into his arm, "Mianhada, I never knew how much grief my father had caused you."
He rest his head behind her back, around her nape, ashamed that it was his father who had taken everything from Woo Hee. Now he understands the scars left on Woo Hee's wrists and why Woo Hee kept withholding herself from living happily. It's the guilt of having to survive her family, when all of them died and what was once theirs were destroyed. Even in death, her parents had to remain anonymous lest their grave be desecrated by the late king's religious supporters.
"Mianhada Woo Hee-ya, mianhada." Baek-Ah apologizes over and over as Woo Hee's tears fall into his sleeves, his arm encircled on Woo Hee.
"Now that you know, you can stop caring about me and run away as fast as you could. We can never be together." Woo Hee hopes Baek-Ah doesn't do so, "I'm giving you the chance to leave."
Baek-Ah's response is tightening his arms around her, "I will never leave so don't ever say that again."
He's chest is racked with angry and ashamed sob. Anger that Woo Hee suffered like this without him knowing and ashamed that it was his family who cause this much grief on her, "I could never change what my father did to your family but if you let me, maybe I can help with healing that void left in your heart."
He turns Woo Hee to him, "Saranghanda Woo Hee-ya."
He touches his lips to her tear streaked cheek, drying it with his soft lips and tender touch.
When Baek-Ah and Woo Hee went back to the Gwan that night, Woo Hee is too exhausted physically and emotionally that she only got so far as bathing herself and falling on her cot on the floor, fast asleep.
Baek-ah repeatedly knock on her door to call her for dinner but there was no answer on the other side of the room. Tentatively, he tries for her door, opening and peaking inside. He finds Woo Hee on her cot on the floor, lying on her stomach, her arm, a pillow on her face.
Baek-Ah comes in quietly, sighing at the site of Woo Hee's hair still wet on her shoulder. He lies on the floor, on his side, facing Woo Hee, reaching to touch her hair and brush it to her shoulder to keep it from dampening her sokjeogori.
At his touch, Woo Hee wakes-up groggily, "Wangjanim,"
Her eyes keep closing even when she tries to open it, "Joesonghabnida, I was too tired that I fell asleep. Have you eaten already?"
There are traces of soreness in the rim of her eyes from crying so much this afternoon.
"Shhhh… gwaenhchanha, I came to invite you to have dinner with me but it's fine, I'm not that hungry anyway." Baek-Ah assures her, amuse that Woo Hee is trying to fight her drowsiness and not quite succeeding.
He snuggles closer to her, watching her lashes brush upon her skin. He didn't notice before but Woo Hee's lashes are long and dark brown, the same color as her hair. One lash tear out from her eyelid and fall into her cheek, Baek-Ah couldn't resists picking it.
"What are you doing?" Woo Hee asks innocently, her eyes still closed, feeling Baek-Ah's touch leaving her skin.
"I caught a wish." Baek-Ah holds her eyelash between his pointing finger and thumb.
Woo Hee opens her eyes confused, "Hmmm?"
"They say if you guess the finger where the eyelash would be stuck, your wish will come true." Baek-Ah playfully holds out the eyelash in front of Woo Hee, "Make a wish."
Woo Hee closes her eyes, giggling and dismissing Baek-Ah's ridiculousness.
"I'll make a wish on my own then." Baek-Ah closes his eyes and takes a minute to wish. He opens his eyes and asked Woo Hee, "Up or down?"
Woo Hee answers without opening her eyes, "Wi. (Up.)"
Baek-Ah opens his finger and finds the lash stuck at the underside of his pointing finger, "Yes!"
Woo Hee curiously look at Baek-Ah, "What did you wish for?"
"That your heart be at peace." Baek-Ah smiles, "You've been carrying this burden with you for so long, I'd like to share it with you."
He reaches to her cheek, stoking it with the tips of his finger, "Marry me, Woo Hee-ya."
"Yie?" Woo Hee is now wide-awake, surprised.
"Marry me." Baek-Ah repeats, "I'll register you under my family's registry and you'd be free from your family secret. You never have to be afraid that someone might find out about your bloodline. I'll protect you so marry me, Woo Hee-ya."
"Wangjanim." Tears form on Woo Hee's already sore eyes, unable to speak.
Baek-Ah moves closer and kisses her, sealing his promise, "Saranghanda."
Woo Hee returns Baek-Ah's kisses, her heart overflowing with joy.
At the back of her mind, her connection with Wook and Won nags at her but she pushes it away and lets herself be lost in the moment. Baek-Ah tastes of hope and promises Woo Hee had been yearning for so long, she couldn't believe he is painting them a future together.
He pulls her on top of him, lying comfortably on his back. Her hair envelops him on both sides, her fresh smell engulfing him. Their lips still busy with each other as his hand wander freely on her back, untying the ribbon that kept her belt in her waist.
This isn't the first time their kissing had been too deep, some ribbons came loose on few occasions but it is always Baek-Ah who had his jeogori open not hers. Though tonight, Baek-ah harbors a different thought.
"Wangjanim." Woo Hee breaks their kiss for a moment and pushes herself up about to lean away, holding her sokjeori together, unsure.
Baek-Ah holds her still, stopping her from pulling back, "I also wished…"
His finger tip toeing up her chest band, untying it underneath her loose sokjeogori, "…. to spend this night with you?"
Baek-Ah's gaze bores into her, reaching something inside her as she feels his finger spread around the shape of her bare breast, cupping her. Warmth spread on her neck down to her chest while a cold nervousness prickles at her spine, unsure. Baek-Ah's caress is light and curious, the least bit forcing unlike Won's.
Baek-Ah rises to meet her lips and roll them into her back, reversing their position.
"Can I make you mine tonight?"
There is confusion and hesitation on Woo Hee's mind but she doesn't oppose or push Baek-Ah away when he starts undoing her sokjeogori and dips his lips past her neck down to her bare chest.
Sitting in the balcony of Damiwon, overlooking the garden illuminated by lantern below the window, Jung sips a bowl of Makgeolli with his 8th brother whom he had dinner just now. The gungnyeo(s) had cleared the dishes and only the carafe of Makgeolli and a bowl was left.
"Our 4th brother didn't want you to become a target for everyone. You are the last of your clan in our court, he just wants to keep you safe." Wook assures Jung.
They were talking about what happened at their court a while ago and Jung couldn't help but unburden his resentment towards his 4th brother with Wook, "Tell you what, how about I talk to the king again and see if I could convince him to give you some leniency. I'm sure our brother was only worried that his ministers might see him favoring you that's why he couldn't grant you your request in front of them."
"You would do that for me, hyungnim?" Hope blossoms on Jung's chest.
Wook nods, "Our brother, Mu, sometimes just needs time to think things through. If I speak with him at the safety of his chambers, he'll see it with a different perspective."
"Kamsahabnida, hyungnim," Jung feels a little camaraderie growing between them. It's been a while since Jung was able to talk to his 8th brother like this, he couldn't remember why they had become distant with each other in the first place.
Ha Jin comes up at the balcony and finds the two brothers, with Wook saying his goodbye first. He tells the two he had a prior meeting with the king and reassures Jung of what he had promised. He smiles at Hae Soo and then leaves.
"Jung wangjanim." Ha Jin greets Jung in a formal and graceful way, the way a lady of a household should. She sees the carafe and bowl of Makgeolli left in the table, "Why are you doing drinking here? If Oh Sanggun is still alive, you wouldn't get away with this."
Jung smile, the alcohol starting to dilute in his veins, "My 13th brother run away with the sanggun."
"Yie?" Ha Jin exclaims.
"Joking." Jung chuckles. Under the influence of alcohol, he's tongue is a little loose.
He pours himself another bowl, offering it to Ha Jin, which she took but only taste a bit of it, "Baek-Ah hyungnim is not around and Eun… well I'm not allowed to disturb him according to our brothers. Ha Jin-ah, will you drink with me?"
He swallows a mouth full of Makgeolli, a little searing in his throat, "I miss our flat stone beside the stream. It's more comforting than my bed in my deserted clan's quarter."
"Jung wangja—"
"Jung-ah. Kuenyang Jung-ah." Jung cuts Ha Jin's sentence, "Address me in banmal. It's just the two of us here. I can't bear to feel distance even from you. Not tonight."
Ha Jin takes the chair in front of Jung, accompanying him on his drink, "Jung wangjanim,"
She sticks to formality, "If I may ask, would you please not address me in Ha Jin anymore."
"Wae?" Jung doesn't see what's wrong with addressing her in that way, "You like that name."
"Kuenyang, it makes people uncomfortable." Not many people but So in particular and Ha Jin doesn't want a misunderstanding to arise between them.
"You mean my 4th brother, right?" Jung says his name with bitterness, still sensitive with his 4th brother since their disagreement this morning, "Does he have something against me? I've been supporting him all these years. I even chose him over our family once, will he always take away things from me?"
Jung couldn't help but spill out his resentment about So. It is true that he had been staying beside him all these years, having his back not just in the fields but everywhere. It wasn't an easy choice and Jung continuously does it everyday so he could be at peace and stay beside Hae Soo even if only as a friend. But at a time like the one that happened in their assembly, Jung feels betrayed that his 4th brother wouldn't side with him.
"Jung-ah," Ha Jin is about to reach out to Jung when Guen Sun appears at the top of the stairs, looking all calm and collected as always but his eyes are dangerously brewing a storm, intervening with the two's dialogue.
"Hae Soo Agassi," He bows to her, observing politeness in front of the 14th prince, "May I ask you to come with me?"
Jung watches as Hae Soo withdraws her hand to herself, looking a little afraid of Guen Sun, "It's the middle of the night, a lady shouldn't be asked to leave the insides of her home."
"It's the middle of the night and a proper lady SHOUL be retiring in her home and not holding a company with a drunk prince." Guen Sun look so still, Ha Jin knows it's a warning, "Come home, Hae Soo Agassi."
He extends his hand, which Jung flicks away. He stands on his height, matching Guen Sun's calmly but dangerous manner, "This is her home."
"She might be residing in one of the quarters here but this isn't her home and her mother had been worried that she hasn't seen the inside of her household for the last two years." Guen Sun trains his eyes on Hae Soo, "Come away with me, Hae Soo Agassi. I shall not repeat it again."
Ha Jin stands-up coming to Guen Sun's side. Jung is unstable and Guen Sun is dangerous. To protect Jung, Ha Jin meddles, "Gwaenchanhnayo wangjanim, Guen Sun is right, I haven't visited our household for the last two years. I should probably do it tonight."
Guen Sun leaves with a bow and turns on his heel, expecting Hae Soo to be following him. Ha Jin smiles so awkwardly at Jung, he knows she is only doing this to assure him. They headed for the door and left Jung by the balcony.
Wook is ushered inside the king's room by his eunuch and finds King Hyejong already on his sleeping sokgot but still sitting at his tea table at the side of the room.
There isn't much different from how the room was when their late father first used it. The paintings are the same, the colors are the same, even the incense burner beside the bed is the same, Wook thinks his own brother's personality dissolved into their father's. Mu only continued the late king's decree down to every little detail of this room. He really has no power of his own and that makes Wook and the other ministers prey on him easier.
"Ah Wook-ah, I was just waiting for you. Come have tea with me. Hae Soo Agassi had prepared this for me since our Sanggun is not around." King Hyejong points at the chair beside him with his hand.
Wook gives his greeting and takes a sit, "Isn't this supposed to have a proper ritual?"
King Hyejong brings the teacup on his lips, "Yes there is but I didn't require Hae Soo Agassi to do it tonight. I ask her to rest instead."
Wook doesn't agree with the king not following customs, "Maybe you shouldn't be too lenient with your people, some of them might abuse your kindness."
"Hae Soo will?" King Hyejong sounds surprise.
"I mean other people, not Hae Soo." Wook hastens to correct his sentence, "Our Hae Soo is too pure, I'm surprise our 4th brother hasn't corrupted her yet."
"You and I both." King Hyejong good-naturedly agrees.
It's as if the two aren't sipping tea but alcohol instead, sharing men's joke at the expense of their 4th brother.
"I actually agree with him at the assembly this morning," Wook smoothly navigates their conversation to a more serious one, lauding their 4th brother for not siding with Jung. He's going against his promise to Jung and Jung wouldn't know he and their 4th brother are being played, "I thought he would choose to side with our 14th prince since they are full brothers. Apparently his adoptive clan's hold is still thicker."
Insinuating that So's isn't just doing the right thing but it's because his loyalty lies with his adoptive clan and not with his biological clan, "Well, it's only natural to choose the side that is providing him more support, isn't it."
"Our seja is not like that." King Hyejong still floats on his good mood, "He and I had been close since we were young, He's only looking out for our kingdom's welfare."
"I'm sure he does, even our people is singing praises about him because of his unwavering concern about them." Wook words his sentence cautiously, seeding doubts on King Hyejong's mind little by little, "Pyeha, I am only saying this out of concern for you. There's a lot of talk in town that our seja is already ruling your throne instead of you. We should clear this misunderstandings before it escalates and causes you trouble."
"What do you mean?" King Hyejong turns serious.
"Perhaps we should disarm the seja for the time being, find a way to tie him to you so he could never take-up arms against you. He has too many supporters inside the military and from other aristocratic clans, his own presence is becoming a threat to you." Wook tries to manipulate the king by whispering things on his ears that would make him be afraid of So.
"The seja will never betray me." King Hyejong holds steadfastly to his relationship with So.
"Maybe he won't but we can't say the same thing about his supporters." Wook plays with his own cup of tea, looking all casual and unconcerned while King Hyejong is starting to feel doubt towards So.
Wook ponders this seeding of doubt of the King's mind would have been easier if he was under the influence of the poison they have been mixing with his bath at the Damiwon but as it is, Woo Hee is not around to facilitate his poisoned bath and it is Hae Soo who had been in charge of it lately so the King hadn't ingested any for the last whole week. It should be rectified soon when Woo Hee arrives back.
Slap!
A thunderous crisp sound is made as Guen Sun's backhand connects with Hae Soo's cheek. They were trudging by the side of the walls of the Damiwon, the darkness enveloping the whole stretch of where they are walking. Ha Jin tried to ask Guen Sun if she could stay in the Damiwon but receives a shocking slap on her left cheek instead.
Ha Jin cries out in pain. She hasn't even processed it yet when Guen Sun grabs her hair and made her look at him, "Remind me, why… did we put you in that position again?"
Ha Jin is too shocked to answer, her cheek burning in pain. She holds Guen Sun's hand by her hair, trying to ease her way out of his hold.
"Why are you trying to put our clan in a disadvantage?!" Guen Sun have heard of Hae Soo's suggestion that put the assembly in an uproar this morning, "Do you know how your little suggestion could harm our household?! It is not just the other clan who would have to give up their source of income; ours would be greatly affected too, stupid girl! Are you trying to undermine your mother?"
He releases her and into the ground she falls, still clutching her cheeks and tears springing in her eyes.
"The next time you make a suggestion in the court, make sure it works only for our household or I swear," Guen Sun crouches into the ground and every instinct on Ha Jin's body tells her to run, "your cheek would be the last of your worry."
He reaches to pat her in the head and Ha Jin backs away from his touch, "Your little arrangement at the Damiwon seemed to have made you think that you could do as you please with what we have given you. Hae Soo Agassi, I might have allowed you too much freedom for the last two years but that stops now."
Ha Jin is enveloped with fear, unable to think clearly.
"Ya!" a foot comes out of the darkness and connects at Guen Sun's rib cage, "How could you lay your filthy hand on a lady!"
Jung grabs Hae Soo's wrist and pulls her to his back asking if she's alright. Ha Jin clamps her teeth together, trying not cry in front of Jung.
"Tsss…." Guen Sun stands up, dusting his hanbok as if he merely fell out of balance. His ribcage hurts but he won't show that. Dignified, he pulls his height asking the prince politely, "You will hand me the girl while I am asking politely, Jung wangjanim."
"I don't care if she is a lady of your household or not. I will not hand her to you." Jung matches his pretend calmness, all sobered up. From the way he stands defensively, down to the way he speaks quietly, Jung resembles So too much when he gets angry, Ha Jin and Gune Sun couldn't help but notice.
"Very well." Guen Sun holds himself back, gauging Jung. He definitely could outmatch the 14th prince if he wants to but he's beginning to understand why the consort had taken to liking the 14th prince. He's a good match when pitted against his 4th brother.
He advances towards the direction of Hae Soo and Jung automatically blocks his way. He speaks to Hae Soo directly, unmindful of Jung in front of him, "Hae Soo Agassi, I'd like to let you know that your mother will be arriving sometime in a few weeks. She will not appreciate it if she doesn't find her children home. I suggest you let the 4th prince know and make him come home too. I'm sure he'll be excited to see her."
Guen Sun smirks, a smile Jung would like nothing but erase on his face. He walks head on, bumping into Jung's shoulder as he leaves.
Jung takes Hae Soo back to her quarters at the Damiwon. Seething with anger, he closes the door behind him and faces Ha Jin to ask if she's alright, noticing a drop of blood pooling at the corner of Ha Jin's lips. Carefully, he brings her under the light of a lantern hanging at the side of the door and inspects it, holding her chin towards him.
Ha Jin uncomfortably moves away and Jung stills her, "My brother doesn't know that ajeossi is hurting you, does he? How long had this been going? Had he been hurting you while me and my brother are in the north?"
"Aniyo." Ha Jin holds her tears, embarrassed that Jung had to step in. She doesn't want any misunderstanding to come between So and Jung, "It's only the second time and So wangsejanim doesn't know about it."
"Damn it, Ha Jin-ah!" Jung swears, his words are strong but his hand is gentle, "Where do you keep your cotton and ointment?"
Ha Jin points at her vanity table and Jung fusses at the drawer, looking for something to put on Ha Jin's wound.
Her room is small and neat, with her bed pushed back to the wall, a wooden cabinet for her clothes at the foot of the bed and a vanity table opposite wall. He sits her at her bed and makes her face him, dubbing cotton to her small lesion at the corner of her mouth to clean it of blood.
Ha Jin winces and Jung lightens his hand some more, "How dare that man laid a finger on you. What did he do to you the first time?"
"Nothing too hurtful, Wook wangjanim intervened." Ha Jin avoids telling the thruth, feeling Jung's eyes scrutinizing her.
"Why did he hurt you?" Jung asks, his voice controlled.
"Because of what I said in the assembly this morning." Ha Jin honestly answers, "Apparently, the lady consort is displeased."
"While I admire the rightful way you're trying to wield your power in the court, going against my 9th brother carelessly and earning the ire of every aristocratic clan is stupid, Ha Jin-ah. I'm sure my 4th brother would tell you the same thing." Jung explains, getting another ball of cotton to dub an ointment with, "If your clan doesn't agree with the way you handle things in the court then why would they put you there in the first place?"
"Mol-la-yo. (I don't know.)" Ha Jin shrugs, lying through gritted teeth. She knew she was put there so So could never think of leaving and she feels helpless that she and So are both trapped inside the palace. Though Ha Jin studied well, surviving in the court is not something you could read in the books and Ha Jin is only learning it little by little.
"You should let my 4th brother know that that ajeossi is hurting you so he could do something about it." Jung suggests, "He would ask anyway."
"Andwaeyo!" Ha Jin hastens to disagree, "Please don't tell your brother."
"Wae? Don't try to protect that ajeossi!" There's anger in Jung's voice that makes it rise.
"I'm not protecting that ajeossi. I'm trying to protect your brother. They are his clan. He would only get hurt." Ha Jin pleads.
Jung grabs her by the shoulder, the cotton falling to the bed, "Ha Jin-ah, you are too protective of my 4th brother when he doesn't need it. How well do you even know him? Have you even saw him with the consort?"
Ha Jin is uncomfortable of Jung's hold, reading resentment and doubt on Jung's eyes "What are you saying?"
Jung catches himself slipping into a mistake. He abruptly lets her go, standing to leave. It's him who avoids her this time.
"Jung-ah!" Ha Jin reaches to his wrist, "Malhae pa. (Tell me.)"
Jung had his back on her, "I don't trust my 4th brother with you."
He takes a deep breath, holding himself back, his head free of the alcohol he had been drinking a while ago, "My 4th brother has too many secrets about that adoptive family of his and I worry it would hurt you in the future."
Ha Jin is confused. She doesn't understand what Jung is trying to tell her.
Jung lets himself calm down a bit before turning to look at Hae Soo. He levels with her, making sure his eyes meet hers. Speaking in a sincere manner, "If you ever feel terrified about my 4th brother in the future and you suddenly want an out from whatever you have chosen to enter with him, tell me and I'll do everything in my power to get you out."
In this moment, when Hae Soo is so close, his nose overwhelmed of her lemony citrus scent. The memories of secret meetings in the pavilion coming vividly in his mind, he'd like nothing but to taste that lips of hers but holds back, knowing that would be crossing the line. He stands back.
"You're hiding something from me." Ha Jin can tell.
"Not me but my 4th brother is." He leaves and closes the door behind him. Stopping to lean his back at it. It was hard to lie at Hae Soo but he will not betray his brother too. Confused of what he's feeling, he unknowingly passes his 4th brother while leaving.
So is on his way to call on Hae Soo when he sees Jung comes out of her room and quickly hide in the shadows. Somehow seeing his brother inside Hae Soo's room, where he is not allowed to enter, feels like a betrayal to him, a dose of jealousy springing on his chest.
He stands in the shadow for a long time, thinking twice if he should still call upon her or not. In the end, he takes a step towards her door and knocks, calling her name.
Ha Jin panics inside as she recognizes So's voice. The 4th prince can't see her wound. She wouldn't be able to explain it. She pretends to be asleep and doesn't answer, unaware that So had just seen Jung come out of her room.
The next day Ha Jin wouldn't attend the assembly or even the day after, careful to pretend she was sick for a few days so she didn't have to meet people. Though it is true that she had a slight fever due to the changes in the weather.
Today, Ha Jin comes out of her room and goes to the storage at the back of the Damiwon, timing it with the on-going assembly at the throne hall so no one would be around. She was sorting the herbs to their proper boxes when Ji Mong comes in, bringing a warm cocoa at a container wrap in a flower patterned Bojagi (square-shaped cloth used for wrapping objects, for table placemats or for covering valuables.).
Ha Jin jumps on her feet, surprised of the astronomer. Unknown to her, the king also did not attend the assembly since he is sick. It's a good thing Ha Jin had put on a light concealer on her bruise or else, So would be informed of it as soon as the astronomer leaves.
Jung is only behind Ji Mong by several minutes, coming to check upon Hae Soo and finds her not in her room so he set-out to look for her. He was about to enter the storage when he hears Ha Jin and the astronomer's voice.
"I heard my daughter is sick so I came to give you a warm drink, you've always liked chocolate even then." Ji Mong nervously slides the gift at the table and stands by the end corner, giving Ha Jin some space.
Ha Jin never sought him even after she found out their connection together, afraid to open more memories she didn't want to have. Though Ji Mong makes an effort to reach out on her, Ha Jin had remained afraid of him, knowing it's his hand who had ended the daughter of the moon and Hae Soo's life.
Ha Jin looks at the gift, the white peony designs winding around the deep violet cloth, thinking twice of accepting it, "Thank you but you don't need to do these things for me. I am not your daughter… even then, I wasn't your daughter."
"Daughter?" Jung repeats to himself, listening carefully.
That feels like a stab on Ji Mong, holding at the edge of the table as her words cut deep into him but when he speaks, there is no trace of anger, just concern, "Kuere, you are not my flesh and blood but I was the one who had taken care of you while growing up."
Sadness and guilt in his eyes as he looks at Ha Jin, "It was the moon who fathered you, the moon who abandoned my sister and you, the moon who never lifted a hand even when her daughter's life is in danger. The moon, your father, what did he ever do for you?"
Ha Jin never thought about it. Though she was once called the daughter of the moon, it never sunk to her that a deity's blood runs in her veins. It seemed like a far off fairytale, a fantasy you tell children in their bed before they go to sleep. It never felt real to her. Apart from the fact that she time travelled and is living on someone else's body, she considers herself normal and unremarkable.
Ji Mong is right. The moon deity never did anything for her. For all she knows, it might just be a ruse that she is a moon's daughter. No one really knew what happened to her mother after she disappeared and then just came back all pregnant and gave birth to her.
Ji Mong takes a step towards her and Ha Jin steps away hence Ji Mong remains in his place again, "What can I do for you to trust me?"
"Help me get back to my time." Ha Jin automatically answers.
"I can't. I don't know how." Ji Mong lies smoothly, "We've already gone through this many times. Why do you keep asking to go back? Do you think any of those people you left behind even think about you? It's been years since you disappeared on them."
Their talk doesn't make sense to Jung.
"There is nothing to go back to. And do you not feel any concern for the crown prince?" Ji Mong repeats, all frustrated and drained.
Ha Jin is aware of that. Still, she wanted to try. Her life in the present times might be bad but it can't be worse than what she had here. She had only been here for six years and she had lost way too many people than she can count. Every step of hers is watched. Every turn she does is met with warning. Every decision she makes corresponds with a life.
And then there is So, her lover even from their original lifetime. Of course, she cares about him. She wanted to stay beside him and come back to her time, a contradiction she can't resolve.
"Ask of anything but that, Ha Jin-ah." Ji Mong appeals at her.
"Stop addressing me in my real name then." Ha Jin avoids looking at Ji Mong, "Please leave."
"Why wouldn't you give me a chance? Have I done anything wrong to you?" Ji Mong doesn't understand where Ha Jin's resentment is coming from, "I did not have a hand on how you got here. I'm not the one who wished for a different life."
"So you remember that night in the quarry?" Ha Jin momentarily lets her guard down out of surprise, "It was really you? Ajeossi,"
Ji Mong realizes his mistake and racks his brain on how to navigate through it, "That's not important—"
"—It is important!" Ha Jin insist, closely observing the astronomer now, "You're also not from this time?"
"I told you when I was five years old, I was infected with illness and died. The next time I opened my eyes, my mother told me the physician at pronounced me dead and I was never the same again."
He was five years old, when Ji Mong started seeing visions. His young mind couldn't handle it so he had fallen ill. For days, his mother and the physician couldn't understand what was happening to him until finally one day, he comes through after being pronounced dead. Later he realized, what he is seeing are not visions but memories of his different lifetimes.
"I am from this time." Ji Mong assures Ha Jin.
"You're lying!" But his reasoning is sound and plausible to Ha Jin and Ji Mong is right, it was really her who wished a different life that night. It was no one's decision but hers.
Looking defeated, she asks, "I could never undo it, isn't it?"
Ji Mong sympathizes with her, "I'm afraid not. Mianhada nae dalya, (I'm sorry, my child.)"
At the back of Ha Jin's head, she already knew that but she couldn't help but try. Looking crest fallen, she tells Ji Mong, "Please leave."
She wants to be alone.
Ji Mong sighs, "Arasseo. Then please enjoy this warm cocoa I've brought for you. I'll send a physician to check upon you. Have a rest."
As Ji Mong exits, Jung scrambles out of the door and hide. He stands hidden at the post for a long time, thinking about what he just heard, his brain putting pieces together.
It would be days later when Baek-Ah and Woo Hee arrive back in the palace and they attend the assembly the next day. The wound on Ha Jin's lip is healing but it is still hidden under make-up so no one could notice the almost fading bruise at the corner of her lips.
Today, the sky is dark grey and rain accompanies them the whole morning. Everyone who came through the door is brushing off water in their sleeves and shoulders. Ha Jin comes in with Woo Hee and So automatically approaches her,
"Are you feeling better?" So hasn't seen her since Ha Jin had been hiding her bruise from him. He itches to feel her forehead, worried about her health.
Ha Jin nods, assuring So, "I'm doing better."
"We missed our supposed daytrip at the sea, do you want to do it on another weekend?" He whispers at her as they walk to their places.
Ha Jin was looking forward to it but she had to get rid of her bruise first, "I'd love to."
"Let's got together next weekend." He smiles at her before taking his place in the aisle.
As all of them fill their places, the king is rather late this morning, looking a bit tired and pale when he arrived and sat at his throne. His baths are spiked with poison the moment Woo Hee arrived and his irritable temperament and fatigue became apparent again. He's not in the mood for a long assembly and so he announces what Wook had been trying to convince him for the last whole week.
"There will be restructuring of the palace forces effective immediately. All the soldiers of the powerful army will join the palace army and they will take turns in providing support."
It is to cut off not just So's gathered support from powerful families but to also ensure that all aristocratic families will be kept in line. With the Kang's having the largest private soldiers, they will be the one shouldering loses that the royal militia have sustained from playing two sides of the coin from the war of Khitan and Later Jin. Though the ChungJu Yu clan no longer holds power in the court, they still have their vast lands and rich treasury up north. Second to the Kangs, they will suffer a blow too. They are quietly waiting for their chance to go back in power in the palace but with the king's latest decree, it's another mile for them to endure. The Hwangbo clans on the other hand never declared their accumulated private soldiers through the years, hence they will not be affected so much.
Wook kept his smirk from surfacing as the whole assembly erupts to disagreement and King Hyejong's mood flanks to a deeper annoyance. Unlike the king before him, King Hyejong isn't as firm or as authoritative as his father was and the ministers abuse this by disagreeing with him all the time, earning his ire.
Through the loud disagreements, Wook takes to the aisle holding a scroll on his hand, making himself heard and silencing the assembly, "Pyeha, I have here in my hands a message from the Khitans, delivered the other day."
So and Gen. Park exchange a look of question. It was So who had been the ambassador for the Khitans for the longest time. Why the scroll never passed his and went straight to the 8th prince is strange.
"In light of the recent peace treaty our kingdom and their kingdom had agreed upon, they would like to seal the agreement with a royal marriage with their king and the sejabin, Kyeong Hwa Gongju."
Isn't the princess only 11?
Ha Jin thinks to herself, remembering that little girl who used to be an apprentice to Lady Oh. After the sanggun died, the Damiwon had yet reopened it's doors for apprenticeship since Woo Hee feels, she's not yet ready for it. Kyeong Hwa gongju and Lady Haeryang were sent back to their families, taking-up private tutoring in their homes.
"Animyeon, if you worry for our sejabin since she is too young to be sent away," Wook turns to look at So, "They will also settle with sending their sejabin to our kingdom and have her marry our seja."
He smiles at So, "Chok-ha-hab-ni-da, wangsejanim. (Congratulations!)"
As if on cue, the thunder is heard loud and ominous. So stills and Ha Jin feels like being doused with cold water.
"It's about time our seja marries, isn't it?" And a dark grin draws itself on Wook's lips this time.
Footnotes:
1 A hostel subsidized by the government for travelling officials. During Goryeo, Won, a hostel run by Buddhist monks are more common form of inn rather than Cham and Gwan.
2 Lament for Ying by Ai Ying. A popular chinese poetry from Chu Ci (Song of Chu).
You know the drill ^^ Post now, notes later. Sorry, I'm in a rush.
BTW isn't Jung a much better enemy than Wook? He almost convinced me to make him the other prince at some point.
