Hyeok Gi-rin enjoyed a long, restful sleep. Despite this, a dark expression lingered on his face.
It was because Yoo Gyeong hadn’t visited him last night.
“I hope Older Brother had a good rest.”
Since entering the palace, Yoo Gyeong had visited Hyeok Gi-rin every night, but she couldn’t visit him last night. She had to go to Cheon Sang-ru with Ho Cheon-an, but couldn’t explain that to Hyeok Gi-rin, so she could only make up an excuse that she needed to rest due to accumulated fatigue.
At those words, Hyeok Gi-rin felt a pang of guilt. He had been alternating between managing state affairs during the day and spending time with Hyeok Gi-rin at night. He thought saying he would catch up on sleep until dawn and take a nap would be fine, but it seemed that ultimately, it had taken a toll on his body.
“Today, I was thinking of putting some energy into Older Brother. Would that be alright?”
“If Her Highness does so, the Emperor would surely be pleased.”
The court ladies in the palace were well aware of the acquaintanceship between Sa Ma Gyeong-hwi and the Emperor Yoo Gyeong and Ho Cheon-an. They also knew that the three had left the palace for somewhere last night.
However, the court ladies merely thought Yoo Gyeong and Sa Ma Gyeong-hwi were trying to figure out what kind of person Ho Cheon-an was. They had no idea that they were plotting to set up Ho Cheon-an in the Cheon Sang-ru gambling den.
To the court ladies, the two seemed like a whimsically foolish Emperor abandoning propriety to pursue the one his sister liked, coupled with a classmate Admiral caught up in such foolishness.
From the perspective of the court ladies, Yoo Gyeong’s love for Hyeok Gi-rin was perfectly encapsulated by the saying “too much of a good thing.”
Yet, they thought having excess was better than having nothing, and instead of disparaging the palace’s owner, they clung to optimism.
Ultimately, good was good.
Despite being a bit excessive, the Emperor Yoo Gyeong worked hard for Hyeok Gi-rin, while Hyeok Gi-rin devised a plan to relieve Yoo Gyeong’s fatigue.
What a heartwarming sibling bond it was!
Yoo Gyeong and Hyeok Gi-rin’s camaraderie brought smiles to the faces of the court ladies.
“It’s almost snack time; I will prepare it.”
“Mm.”
The court ladies began preparing tea and snacks, and Hyeok Gi-rin thought of Ho Cheon-an. He felt increasingly uneasy every time he thought of Ho Cheon-an.
His feelings towards Ho Cheon-an intertwined with those of the princess Yuya and the martial artist Hyeok Gi-rin. It was the crux of the issues arising from holding both identities simultaneously.
‘This isn’t something I need to conclude right away, but…’
Nevertheless, it wasn’t something that could be postponed indefinitely either.
Yet, the moment Hyeok Gi-rin laid eyes on Ho Cheon-an, his complicated emotions evaporated.
Ho Cheon-an was signaling with a tense expression, suggesting there was something he needed to discuss privately.
The court ladies sensed something was off with Ho Cheon-an’s demeanor and tried to keep them from being alone.
“I’d like to take a stroll with Senior Ho. Is that alright?”
“Certainly, Great Hero.”
“If you follow from a distance, wouldn’t that be fine? It’s quite stifling.”
Hyeok Gi-rin’s request could not be ignored, especially since the court ladies had vacated their positions whenever Yoo Gyeong and Sa Ma Gyeong-hwi had contact with Ho Cheon-an, leaving them with insufficient reasons to deny the two some time alone.
‘Why is Senior Ho behaving like this?’
“Is something the matter?”
Hyeok Gi-rin looked at Ho Cheon-an with a puzzled expression. They were inside the imperial palace, and this was the guest’s quarters. It was uncommon for disturbances to occur within the palace, and especially now, with both Hyeok Gi-rin and Yoo Gyeong present.
Could Ho Cheon-an possibly be relaying something urgent?
“Are you aware that I have court ladies assigned to me?”
“You mentioned it before.”
He had heard about the court ladies delaying his training. Ho Cheon-an had heard it from both him and Yoo Gyeong, that spending time with court ladies of the same gender might alleviate his burdens.
Could there have been an issue with those two court ladies?
“…Yesterday, I went to the gambling den with the two court ladies.”
“What?!”
Ho Cheon-an’s revelation was far beyond Hyeok Gi-rin’s imagination. Ho Cheon-an explained how two people abruptly approached him, one appearing to be of royal descent and the other from Sa Ma.
These individuals had diverted the Emperor’s spoils for gambling, and if he didn’t return them, they threatened to end his life and asked for help.
Though suspicious, Ho Cheon-an decided to help out of his past connection with Sa Ma Yeom.
However, upon reaching the gambling den, he discovered the two were in league with the gambling establishment, plotting to fleece him.
Today, he barely escaped using his gambling skills, but he had no idea what those two would do next.
“What should I do? It seems I’ve gotten myself into a mess.”
Hyeok Gi-rin sighed deeply upon seeing Ho Cheon-an, realizing the outline of the incident.
Currently, it was not a situation where mad court ladies scheming to fleece the Emperor’s guests could enter the imperial palace.
So, who could those court ladies be?
Hyeok Gi-rin recalled the day he discussed gambling with Yoo Gyeong. During that conversation, his brother had sternly told him to keep his distance from Ho Cheon-an but suddenly changed his tone.
He had taken it as a silent signal to let the matter go to avoid turning red over the topic…
But was he concocting such schemes behind the scenes?
‘Sa Ma Gyeong-hwi and… Older Brother…’
Are these fake court ladies suspected to be of royal blood and Sa Ma Hwi-gyeong? It was all too blatant. Were they trying to sneakily pull the Emperor’s guest from the palace to set a trap in the gambling den?
Hyeok Gi-rin gritted his teeth.
“I’ll take care of it.”
“No, what will you do? They might be of royal blood and Sa Ma.”
“It’s fine. I can’t share everything, but I have some connections in Nangyang. Please, let me handle this.”
“Hmm… Is that really okay?”
“Hehe… Of course. Please, kindly, for sure, absolutely, delegate this task to me.”
Ho Cheon-an swallowed nervously at Hyeok Gi-rin’s menacing smile. Oh man… isn’t this a big problem? He expected Hyeok Gi-rin to be angry, but this was a far cry from the fierce rage he had imagined.
“Ah… since Sa Ma is involved…”
“Hahahaha! Don’t you worry! I will deal with it all! Heh heh heh!”
“Um… now that you’ve insisted so strongly, I understand. I’ll place my trust in Great Hero Hyeok Gi-rin.”
After parting with Ho Cheon-an and returning to his chamber, Hyeok Gi-rin reflected on the warmth of sibling love just experienced, only to find his room frozen solid, as if a great ice age had swept in.
“Sigh.”
The court ladies realized something had gone awry and bowed low. The added pressure of Hyeok Gi-rin’s intimidating presence, combined with the Majesty of Princess Yuya, made beads of cold sweat roll down their backs.
“Did Senior Ho associate with two court ladies?”
“…Yes, Your Highness.”
“And those two were Sa Ma Gyeong-hwi and Older Brother?”
The court ladies felt their breaths catch. A deadly silence blanketed the court as Hyeok Gi-rin’s piercing gaze swept over them.
“I take your silence as confirmation.”
Hyeok Gi-rin… smiled.
“Heh heh. Hehehe.”
Swallow.
At Hyeok Gi-rin’s chuckle, the court ladies gulped and bent their heads even lower.
“I thought you were busy managing state affairs during the day, but it turns out, during that time, Older Brother was wooing Senior Ho. Then at nighttime, you masked it and met with me. So, you really went on an evening outing with Senior Ho yesterday?”
“Please forgive me, Your Highness!”
“Forgive me, Your Highness!”
All the court ladies knelt in unison. They had mutually aided Ho Cheon-an in leaving the guest palace, meaning they had deceived Hyeok Gi-rin in concert with Yoo Gyeong.
“I was worried about your relentless fatigue, only to have been tricked so neatly by you, Older Brother. Heh heh heh.”
“Your Highness!”
“Your Highness!”
“Indeed… Older Brother must be attending to state affairs now. As a royal princess, how could I interfere with state matters? So, let’s first investigate Sa Ma Gyeong-hwi.”
Hyeok Gi-rin declared.
“Bring in the classmate-admiral immediately!”
* *
In the grand hall, a heated discussion was underway.
The officials brought forth solutions they believed were best for the state’s major affairs, while the Emperor selected one of those proposals for implementation. This was the basic flow of governance.
How should they utilize the confiscated assets of the Hwang Gold Clan?
That was today’s topic for governance.
“Heh heh, isn’t it more urgent to commence with the road repair projects first? How many destitute people are in Nangyang? Utilizing them for labor would simultaneously resolve poverty and road repairs, a twofold benefit!”
“Road maintenance is indeed important. However, the Nangyang Waterway improvement project is urgent! It’s been delayed for decades due to budget constraints. Decades! Every time it rains, Nangyang turns into a sea!”
“Both road and waterway maintenance are good. But there’s a sequence to these matters, right? Not just five thousand liang, but grains from Sacheon will come pouring in. We must prioritize the warehouse renovations first.”
Yoo Gyeong stared blankly at the arguing officials discussing how to spend the Hwang Gold Clan’s budget.
In truth, the discussion on state affairs didn’t reach his ears at all.
‘Sigh…’
Yoo Gyeong exhaled deeply. Yesterday’s loss was not his first defeat. Since ascending the throne, he had fought endlessly in the political arena and had suffered countless losses.
However, even as he felt crushed by defeat, his spirit had never been broken.
Every time he couldn’t impose his will in governance and his intentions were thwarted by his ministers, he thought of Hyeok Gi-rin to gather his resolve. For that young one stepped into a chaotic Martial World to protect his brother’s imperial authority; how could he, as an elder brother, collapse!
He vowed to solidify absolute imperial authority and bring Yuya back to the palace!
With that determination, he worked to strengthen the imperial authority, weakened the power of ministers, and expelled factions. Throughout this process, he faced countless adversities and sometimes felt the sting of defeat.
Nonetheless, Yoo Gyeong never backed down. The trials and failures stoked his will into a blazing fire.
Thus, he dismantled the factions that supported Yuya, reinforced imperial authority, and robbed his ministers of their strength. He built the influence of Dongchang and Geumwiwei, establishing power and information.
Though Yoo Gyeong, the giant grasping the reins of this great nation, felt like he had hit a wall yesterday with Ho Cheon-an.
In a situation where overwhelming victory was expected, he faced a staggeringly devastating defeat. It wasn’t merely losing that posed the problem.
His spirit was crushed.
Deep within, he believed he could never defeat Ho Cheon-an in the gambling den.
Yoo Gyeong bit down on his lip.
‘…Fine. I acknowledge it.’
He recognized his defeat.
He got caught up in his preconceptions regarding gamblers, quarreled with Hyeok Gi-rin, and in his arrogance, attempted to undermine Hyeok Gi-rin’s trust towards Ho Cheon-an, eventually leading to his own public embarrassment.
How had his inquiry into Ho Cheon-an ended up this way?
Yoo Gyeong blushed at the thought of the mess he made.
“Road repairs! Road repairs! Road repairs are livelihood!”
“Waterway improvements! Waterway improvements! Waterway improvements are musts!”
“Warehouse expansions! Warehouse expansions are the future!”
Yoo Gyeong’s eyes lit up. He clenched his fist and slammed it down onto the armrest of his chair.
Boom!
A loud sound reverberated through the grand hall from the use of the specially designed throne!
“Ministers—!!”
Yoo Gyeong rose abruptly, furious.
“Are you raising your voices over just planning the budget that came in for free?!”
“Please pardon us, Your Majesty!!”
“That useless pardon, pardon! I don’t want to hear it! Did I ask you to go fetch money for me? Isn’t it to spend it? Isn’t that what it’s for? Why is it that some fulfill their duties as governors while also replenishing the national treasury, yet what are you doing?!”
“Please pardon us, Your Majesty!”
“Right now, I feel like commanding you to go to Sacheon and teach Sa Ma Yeom a lesson! How can those who hold such positions in the central government be so frustrating?!”
“Pardon…!”
“Enough! Enough! Today’s state affairs are concluded here! If you don’t bring a proper budget proposal next time, at that time, prepare yourselves!”
Storming out, Yoo Gyeong felt a little bit lighter. There was a sensation, as if the heavy aspects weighing on his heart were flowing out.
‘I was too narrow-minded… and petty.’
He realized he had simply nitpicked to find faults in things he didn’t like. Yoo Gyeong acknowledged this quietly while nodding his head.
Yes, let’s think positively. He would never, never, never go bankrupt in a gambling den, right? Even if troubles arise that could ruin a business or wreck a clan, with those gambling skills, he could rebound in no time at all.
There were plenty of aspects he could evaluate positively.
Despite possessing splendid gambling skills, Ho Cheon-an had diligently worked in Sacheon’s outcast jobs, earning money with sweat, and though he had every reason to grow arrogant and neglect martial training, he was reportedly focusing even more deeply on martial arts lately.
‘This time… Let’s truly see what kind of person Ho Cheon-an is.’
Only evaluate what he personally sees and feels about Ho Cheon-an. It would suffice to acknowledge his narrow perspective and see Ho Cheon-an with new eyes.
‘Simply look correctly at Ho Cheon-an and judge whether he is someone suitable for Yuya!’
With that refreshing mindset, as Yoo Gyeong returned to his quarters, he had to meet the court lady from the palace alongside his classmate-admiral who awaited him with a pale complexion.
