HLCOB C68

Chapter 68

At a glance, Jaheon’s path seemed smooth.

His adoptive father Wang Yun had ascended to the post of Imperial Censor-in-Chief, Jaheon himself had become Chief Secretary, the Emperor’s closest attendant, and his younger sister Choseon had been made the Prince’s personal attendant.

Yet before Jaheon still loomed a great mountain—

the enthronement ceremony of the Empress.

“I am Im Huaseo. It is an honor to make your acquaintance.”

Had this not been a task decreed directly by the Throne?

From this day forth, Jaheon was to oversee the preparation of the Empress’s enthronement alongside the Grand Minister of Ceremonies. And such a ceremony, whether for an empress or crown prince, was no small affair: even at its shortest, it lasted for months; at its longest, for years.

To see it safely completed would be a merit unto itself.

But to see it fail was another matter entirely.

Jaheon would be branded a traitor, stripped from office for the crime of jeopardizing the state’s gravest affair. Nor would House Ha, the family of the Empress-to-be, escape unscathed.

Had not the ancients been obsessed with superstition? An empress whose ceremony faltered would surely be decried as an omen of ill fortune.

“……”

Everyone knew how critical the enthronement was for Jaheon.

So he had expected resistance. At his greeting, most of his subordinates gave no reply. If even they behaved so, what else could be expected from his future partner in the work, the Grand Minister of Ceremonies?

“They will spare no effort, employ any means, to ruin the ceremony.”

As though all of Jaheon’s fortunes rested upon it.

A humorless laugh escaped his lips.

“Truly, this is pressure.”

And the one who had engineered it was the Throne itself.

The more time passed, the harder the Emperor’s designs became to read. Jaheon rubbed at his aching temple as he made his way to his office.

“This shall be where Chief Secretary conducts his work.”

With his rise in rank, Jaheon was now granted an office of his own. He was also permitted to seek audience with the Emperor even without summons.

“Only two aides under me?”

But a position such as his ought never have so meager a staff.

“Th-that is…”

When Jaheon asked, his aide faltered. From the expression, Jaheon guessed the truth. Too many disapproved of him.

“Enough. I had expected as much.”

He intended soon to recommend Shunyu as his aide, so for now a smaller staff suited him well. In fact, the fewer who obeyed only him, the better.

“Instead, give order that by next week, every official submit reports of their work.”

From the start, Jaheon had no intention of leaving them be.

“But, my lord, such a sudden order…!”

“Is it not the regular practice?”

“In truth, the previous Chief Secretary rarely checked them. To demand so abruptly, few will be able to prepare…!”

At this, Jaheon smiled.

When his sudden smile struck them, the aides’ faces flushed red.

And then—

“That is precisely the point.”

The beautiful visage turned cold in an instant.

Before contending with foes, one must first know one’s allies.

“Those who are useless must be cut away.”

Jaheon would begin by cleansing within.

“……?”

Choseon felt a sudden pang of déjà vu as she gazed out the window.

“…This is the feeling I always had, just before Brother caused some trouble.”

It had been so when the Imperial Guards searched around Imbu, so when he quarreled with a village headman in Bing Province, so even when he set fire to the house of a nobleman who had wished to marry her. Each time, she had sensed it beforehand.

But this was the Imperial Palace.

“…He is Chief Secretary now. Would he truly dare such things here?”

Her brother was laughable indeed—

once the most dependable family she had, now so untrustworthy. Thinking of Jaheon, Choseon let slip a small laugh.

“Choseon, have you heard the rumor as well?”

The young Prince suddenly poked his head in and asked.

Choseon smiled at his mischievousness as one would at a younger sibling.

“What rumor do you mean?”

“Ah, so you’ve not heard! I thought you smiled because you knew it.”

At least she was managing well in the palace.

Her closeness with the Prince was such that they seemed almost like true brother and sister. Partly, it was because the boy would lose himself staring at her; partly thanks to Cai Yong’s persuasion:

—Your Highness, since Choseon is Huaseo’s sister, taught by him, and Huaseo’s poetry and calligraphy are renowned, keeping Choseon by your side will surely aid you.

But most of all, it was because of what they shared.

—This is a secret, but once, I too lived as a wanderer!

—Outside, they called me Sahu. But soon, I shall be granted a new name!

Choseon had been stunned. Who could have guessed the exalted Prince once roamed the streets? At first, she had pitied him…

“There’s talk everywhere! That Lord Yuan and the Commandant brawled over a courtesan in the street!”

“……?”

Choseon’s mind went blank.

“What a pity! If I still lived outside, I might have seen it myself!”

Then she realized—the feeling she had sensed was not anticipation of trouble. Trouble had already come.

The Prince, oblivious to her stiffened face, chattered on.

“They say she was tall, wearing a veil like a courtesan!”

That very night, had her brother not also worn a veil? He was always careless of propriety, dressing as he pleased; she had dismissed it then.

“…Ah.”

But now, to hear such rumors!

“Does Brother forget he is Chief Secretary?”

The post of Chief Secretary bore immense authority beyond its rank. Many sought to watch for his missteps. Why then did he move so recklessly?

“…Perhaps it is better if they believe he was a courtesan.”

With house affairs, the merchant guild, and the troops of Imbu all falling upon her shoulders, Choseon had learned much. And in the balance of things, it was indeed better her brother be rumored as a courtesan, than the truth be known.

“But some say the courtesan was Huaseo himself!”

Her thoughts ended there.

The Prince had struck the truth by chance.

“Y-Your Highness…”

Choseon stammered.

“Th-that is nonsense.”

Flustered, she rushed to deny it.

“But! That’s what they said! If there were so beautiful a courtesan, all Luoyang would already—mph!”

Alarmed, Choseon clapped her hand over the Prince’s mouth.

“If it is nonsense, then let it be nonsense!”

The boy blinked at this unfamiliar sight, then nodded. When at last he fell silent, Choseon sighed deeply and lowered her hand. Then she thrust a book before him.

“Before the Empress scolds you, finish your lessons, Your Highness.”

“But the lessons are too hard…”

“The more you learn, the greater ruler you will become. Then both the Empress and the Throne shall praise you.”

In truth, Jaheon had warned her in advance, but the Prince’s shortcomings were countless. Raised outside the palace, he lacked even the most basic learning. At times, Choseon herself seemed more royal than he.

Since her arrival, he had leaned heavily upon her. Knowing this, he murmured with a face of resignation:

“But I can never satisfy Mother.”

The longer he stayed in the palace, the more the young Prince withered.

“You know it too.”

Wildflowers may grow anywhere in the fields, but cannot thrive in a pot. No matter how gilded, a pot is still a prison. Even in their brief time together, Choseon felt it keenly.

Everyone demanded greatness of him.

“I am full of shortcomings.”

So Choseon’s company became his only breath of respite.

Even the palace maids pressed him harshly—when his studies faltered, it was they who suffered the Empress’s wrath.

But the Prince was four years younger than Choseon.

For so kindhearted a child, the palace was unbearably vast, cruelly silent, and desolately barren.

“…I wish you had been born a prince instead, Choseon.”

“Your Highness…!”

She chided him, startled.

But he was sincere.

“Without you, I cannot even finish these lessons.”

His earnestness pained her. Even she could see—without her brother’s protection and the Empress’s shelter, the boy’s fate was bleak.

—Choseon.

Then she remembered.

—There is only one way to endure safely in the palace.

It was what Jaheon had told her before she entered.

—Show the Throne your worth.

And before her eyes now stood a boy with no shield.

“Your Highness.”

“Yes?”

“Would you permit me to guide you?”

Her resolve firm, she spoke.

“So that even without me, Your Highness can complete your lessons.”

Choseon had resolved to become the Prince’s most indispensable person.