YCHW Ch 61

“I have heard that this Sowon is *young and ignorant, but I did not realize he would be so insolent even in front of Your Majesty. It is my belief that it would be right to discipline this Sowon strictly and restore order.”

“That is enough. Is he not merely sixteen?”

“Age is not important in knowing the rules of decorum.”

“I know that the rod is not a remedy. He will get better with time.”

It was ridiculous to scold someone just for speaking a little hatefully when they had done no actual harm. Had this Sowon, who entered the palace at a young age and fulfilled his duties, not done better than him, at least? Yoonso moistened his dry mouth with the warm tea.

“I agree with what you said, Senior Court Lady. His glare was so fierce, I thought he was a cat.”

Yeondeok belatedly fumed. The comparison to a cat was so apt that a laugh escaped him. Yeondeok did not hate people easily, but once he took a dislike to someone, it tended to last for quite a while.

“He’s like that because he’s young. Just let it be.”

“Even when my young mas… Your Majesty was young, you were not like that. He’s not even that young!”

“Isn’t it wonderful that his inside and outside are the same? There may be worse things to come, so don’t waste your energy on something like this.”

Yeondeok grumbled that he was acting that way because he trusted in his family, and that it was absurd since the So family was just as good a household. But Yeondeok was mistaken. In Daeyeong, the status of military officials was stronger than that of civil officials, and on top of that, the rank of a commanding general was higher than that of his own father, so it was only natural for him to be so imperious.

But was that truly only a good thing? This Sowon, unlike Hyunbi and Seongbin, had not received a title when he was invested and was appointed to the low rank of Sowon. He had heard that the general consensus was that the Emperor’s intention to not let his father, Yi Guk-ho’s, influence grow was at play. In the first place, this Sowon was no different than a hostage.

‘Even if they were of one mind, all relationships are bound to have interests intertwined.’

Suddenly, or perhaps naturally, a remark Hwi had made while watching the bride and groom getting married in Sinpunghyeon came to mind. Yoonso, as if he knew nothing, gazed at the peaceful scenery outside the window before he spoke.

“Court Lady Jo.”

“Yes, Your Majesty.”

“The Emperor…”

His tongue was about to mention Hyunbi next, but Yoonso paused for a long while, then erased the name with a faint smile.

“It is nothing.”

A butterfly that had fluttered in from the flower garden flew about Yoonso, its wings flapping as if showing off their clear, yellow light. Yoonso’s eyes followed the freely dancing butterfly, and he idly wondered where its home might be, before scattering his thoughts.

𓇢𓆸

His eyes grew stiff after looking at the ledgers related to the Yeongwiwon for a long while. Feeling even a slight headache, Yoonso closed his eyes and rubbed his forehead.

He had prided himself on being confident in reading any kind of book, but documents and books were two completely different things. If all he had to do was read, he could stay up all night as much as he wanted, but this was a duty assigned to him. He whipped himself to do well, which made it even more of a burden, and the papers in his hand grew heavy.

“Your Majesty. Please have something sweet while you work.”

“*Should I bring up some refreshments?”

At Yeondeok’s suggestion, Court Lady Jo quickly asked. Yoonso slowly lifted his eyelids and realized his brow was deeply furrowed. He let out a sigh and nodded, and Court Lady Jo sent a palace maid.

“Do you have to be so zealous about this? I did not know that the Empress had to do this kind of studying too.”

“I entered the palace late, so I must be diligent to catch up.”

In truth, miscellaneous tasks were the responsibility of his subordinates, but the authority to make decisions and the responsibility for them lay with him. There had been no truly critical matters yet, but the mere fact that this authority was his was truly burdensome.

While working, he would naturally think of Hwi. The one who, at the young age of twelve, had ascended the throne and had to bear a much greater task on his shoulders than he did.

Whether it was because he had to make up for a month’s absence, or because he was always so busy, it was not easy to run into Hwi even by chance. However, he visited Yoonso’s palace almost every night, and yet, he did not hold Yoonso. Thus, Yoonso simultaneously waited for Hwi and regarded those nights as poison. A poison that was slowly eating away at his heart.

Yoonso shifted his gaze back to the scattered ledgers. He wanted to do the work given to him well. Otherwise, would there be any meaning in his coming here?

Just as he was about to pick up a piece of paper, he heard a presence. A young palace maid entered, carrying a tea table. As his eyes followed the sweet-looking confections, the tea table suddenly dipped low and the palace maid fell with a thud. Yoonso shot up and went over to her.

“Are you all right?”

Through it all, the palace maid held the tea table tightly in her hands, and only a few confections on the plate had fallen onto the table. She quickly got up and knelt.

“I am deeply sorry, Your Majesty. It is because of my clumsiness…”

“You are not hurt? Then that is all that matters.”

“I am overwhelmed by your grace. Still, I protected these confections securely!”

The palace maid smiled bashfully with a proud look on her face. Her expression was so bright and cute that Yoonso ended up smiling along with her. But Court Lady Jo did not seem to think so, as a sharp order came down.

“How can you let His Majesty eat something that has become such a mess! Hurry and bring a new one.”

“It is fine. They only fell on the tea table.”

Court Lady Jo was lenient enough with Yeondeok to pretend not to notice that he sometimes shared a table with Yoonso, but she was strict with the other palace maids. He could understand, as the palace rules were stern and Court Lady Jo was in a position to manage the palace maids, but he could not help but feel for such a young maid.

Yoonso gestured with his eyes and sat down, and the palace maid stood up and placed the tea table in front of him. Yoonso moistened his mouth with tea and then asked.

“Your name is…”

“It is Wan, Your Majesty.”

“I see, Wan. How old are you this year?”

“I have turned fifteen.”

Fifteen, he had heard that palace maids enter the palace from an even younger age, but was this not an age to still be in the arms of one’s parents? This child must have her own circumstances, but…

“Are you having any difficulties?”

“No, I am not. The senior court ladies are good to me, and everyone is generous even though I make many mistakes. And what could possibly be difficult about serving the Empress?”

It seemed Wan, despite being the youngest in Jiseogung Palace, was doing well without being intimidated, which was admirable. Would he have felt this way if he had a younger sister? Yoonso had a soft spot for the young, so he quickly took a liking to her.

“Here.”

When he held out the bowl of confections, Wan jumped back as if startled and refused. He could see Court Lady Jo, standing behind, sighing silently, but she did not seem to be trying to stop him either. Having confirmed this, Yoonso offered it to Wan one more time.

“I cannot eat all of this by myself, so go on. Yeondeok will be eating some soon anyway. And I will be giving some to Court Lady Jo as well.”

Still hesitant, Wan fiddled with her fingers. The fidgeting motion of her index finger tracing her thumbnail in a circle and then flicking it was quite cute. She glanced at Court Lady Jo, then reached out her hand as if she could not refuse any longer.

“W-well, if you insist…”

A confection went into Wan’s mouth. It seemed to suit her taste, as her cheeks turned rosy, making him laugh automatically. Yoonso had the other palace maids taste the confections as well. After doing so, he felt as if he had grown a little closer to them, which made him feel quite satisfied.

“Your Majesty. Um… Instead of only looking over your duties like this, how about going out to the rear garden? You have not had a proper look around, have you?”

Having gained courage after getting a confection, Wan hesitantly suggested a walk. Even Court Lady Jo showed signs of welcoming Wan’s suggestion, so Yoonso looked down at the ledgers and then rose from his seat.

“Then shall we take a short break?”

Yoonso headed for the rear garden located inside the palace. He was a little more used to the number of people who followed him wherever he went now, but the discomfort had not completely disappeared.

The rear garden was beautiful. The lack of tall trees was a shame, but all the plants and structures harmonized together, making it seem like he was looking at a scene from a masterful painting. It was a picture he would have wanted to gaze at endlessly, had he not known the beauty of natural landscapes barely touched by human hands.

Yoonso strolled slowly through the place, but his gaze could not land on anything. As he wandered about like he had lost his way, he heard approaching footsteps.

“Your Majesty.”

It was Jeongju. Since the Yongrin always kept their positions as if they were there and not there, this was the first time he had spoken to him first.

“If you are bored, how about some archery practice?”

“Is there a place to shoot a bow in the inner palace?”

“One has been prepared near the Yeongwiwon. The noble consorts also visit often to train their stamina.”

Thinking that moving his body might lighten some of the stuffiness pent up in his chest, Yoonso immediately asked for guidance.