HLCOB C54

Chapter 54

He had long suspected that the Emperor would one day reach out for Choseon.

Wang Yun knew that Choseon was Jaheon’s weakness; could the Emperor possibly be ignorant of it?

“Damn it.”

Yet the feeling that he was being toyed with would not leave. No matter how he struggled, he always seemed to remain within the Emperor’s grasp. Jaheon understood anew why all who dwelt within the palace had gone mad: the Emperor sought to control every last thing, and in so doing drove them mad.

“It is like cavorting in the palm of a god.”

He wanted, with every fiber of his being, to stride to the Emperor this very moment and ask plainly what he intended. Why place Choseon beside the prince? And who in their right mind made a daughter the prince’s ornament? The misunderstanding that would follow was obvious: that he had placed Choseon as a stepping-stone to seize the next power.

“Do they think I would stoop so low as to seat Choseon upon the throne merely to claim the Empress’s place?”

But it was the Emperor. Jaheon could do nothing.

He could not hold back the rising tide of fury. He had not come all the way to Luoyang merely to pitch Choseon into another man’s arms. If that had been his intent, he would never have travelled here in the first place.

“Brother?”

Jaheon, sitting fixed and empty in the garden, turned at Choseon’s call. She stood with a tray; upon it lay his favorite nuts and a teacup.

“What is it?”

He forced a smile as he answered, though the strain showed. For once the matter concerned Choseon, and Jaheon—vainly fond, fiercely protective—could not disguise how much she mattered to him.

But these last two days had been different. Everyone in the household had noticed: Jaheon had been stiff with Choseon, refusing even the nuts he adored. He fumbled at his bowl and dropped utensils; small mistakes repeated themselves. The household servants, worried, had confided to Choseon.

“Miss, the master is acting strangely.”

“Do you think something has happened?”

And Choseon understood. Whenever her brother became entangled with anything that touched her, he would behave like this for a span of time. When Wang Yun had offered the foster-daughter arrangement, Jaheon had flailed thus for half a day.

So she asked bluntly, “Has His Majesty been calling for me?”

Startled, Jaheon flinched.

There was no other explanation for his discomposure. Eyes downcast, Jaheon could not meet her, and Choseon set the tray before him and asked again, “If you must take me into the palace, tell me now.”

Jaheon looked up at last.

“…”

His face was hollow; hesitation clouded his features. Choseon suddenly pinched his cheek. It was not hard enough to hurt, yet his cheek reddened.

“Ch-Choseon?”

Jaheon’s stammering voice called her name. She, without warning, pressed her forehead against his. Pain flared; he recoiled. Even Choseon would not praise a skull for its toughness.

“If this is why you came to Luoyang, go back,” she said firmly.

“…?”

Her expression was resolute.

“As long as I have you, brother, I can wander anywhere—let us go home.”

Jaheon held his forehead and stared at her like a fool. Choseon sealed her lips and burst forth.

“I work all day because I want to help you. Is this how you repay me?”

Her voice rose, emotion boiling up.

“Do you think I went out to meet you without thinking this might happen?!” she cried. Her boldness left him speechless. “Do you know why I accepted the token from Apo—!”

For a moment she halted.

“Don’t call him ‘Apo’!”

The pet name for Lü Bu slipped from her mouth and Jaheon erupted.

Choseon blinked in surprise; Jaheon, realizing he had raised his voice, scrambled for repair.

“That—Choseon, I’m sorry. But people will soon learn he’s no man of sense. Why do you call him that? Huh?”

He could not bear the thought of Choseon paired with that fool. Lü Bu’s stupidity was the stuff of legend; his future follies would be recorded for generations. No matter what, he could not give Choseon to such a dolt.

“I have told you to live alone many times. Kill off the men, live alone—haven’t I said it? Huh?” Jaheon’s words thickened with the thought and made his eyes sting.

‘Why would I give Choseon to that kind of man?!’

It was not false feeling. Merely imagining Choseon’s marriage to Lü Bu had unhinged him for two days. Perhaps it was because the marriageable age in this damned ancient world would soon fall upon Choseon.

“…”

Tears that had begun to surface at Jaheon’s outburst fell back into his eyes, and Choseon laughed.

“Brother.”

Jaheon, still clutching her sleeve, looked up at her at the soft summons.

“Yes?”

His eyes were rimmed in red.

“I do not intend to marry Apo,” she said.

“…?”

“I like him, but not enough for marriage. If I must, then I would rather marry Apo.”

Reluctantly, she spoke the reality.

“Living in Luoyang means I will receive endless proposals. You know that too, brother.”

“…”

“So it would be safer to come and go within the palace.”

Jaheon had no retort. If Choseon entered the palace, she might gain protection, as he had in the past by the favor of the Emperor—proposals stopped and attempts on his life were avoided. If the Emperor intended to use Choseon, that was in one measure a sign he would guard her.

Yet his life-line lay in the Emperor’s hands.

Tears clouded Jaheon’s eyes as he finally spoke the truth, though his expression remained displeased.

“His Majesty seems intent on making you the prince’s attendant.”

“The prince?”

“Yes.”

“But… attendants are—”

“Given to sons, not daughters.”

“I thought perhaps a palace maid—”

“So did I. But you know the Emperor.”

Jaheon thought of the Emperor and added, “He will make it happen somehow.”

Besides, the court was tightly balanced in three camps. No foolish man would risk openly opposing the Emperor now for fear of losing everything. A single misstep could cost them power and ruin.

“Moreover, precedent has already been broken for the eunuchs. Nothing is impossible.”

Eunuchs could not normally arrange adoptions nor live outside the palace. But by dividing the court, the Emperor had made such impossibilities possible once. Who could say he would not do so again?

“And besides, no one will think of you simply as an attendant.”

Choseon would in fact be seen as a future princess. Everyone would assume the Emperor, by assigning Jaheon to the prince, intended to pair the prince with Choseon.

‘So that is how it is.’

Jaheon began to understand how the Emperor had come to wield the court at the tender age of twelve.

“So His Majesty is not the one to be feared, then?” he asked.

“Probably not…?”

While worry piled mountains within Jaheon, Choseon’s countenance remained serene. He looked at her, puzzled.

“It’s not the worst case,” she smiled reassuringly.

Jaheon realized aloud, “He will be easier to handle than Apo.”

Easier because she was his sister.

“What are you fretting for? If the lady strips our master bare, the prince will have nothing left to use—!”

O Juk-yeop’s words faltered at Jaheon’s glower. After a couple of awkward clearings, he resumed.

“Ahem. By the way, the caravan master of the guild will be in Luoyang soon and has contacted us to meet. He’s astonished you took on this work. Says you’re a genius…”

“Do you think Choseon has anything she cannot do?” Jaheon cut in.

“…”

As Jaheon’s overbearing fuss, which he had hoped would ease once Choseon arrived in Luoyang, only intensified, O Juk-yeop grew pale. Jaheon’s expression softened briefly; then he recalled a task he had ordered.

“What of the children you spoke of—those to be prepared? I set aside an old house outside and gathered some children there.”

At Choseon’s earlier words—‘If I must, I would marry Apo’—Jaheon’s hostility toward Lü Bu rose anew. If she would frequent the palace, assigning a guard or two to protect her would be prudent.

“Let us go now.”

If he could, he thought wryly, he would have them be the sort who might even kill Apo if necessary.