Chapter 169
Chapter 169
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Translator: crow
Chapter Title: Succession Settlement (2)
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Baek Ha-yeon was disappointed by His Excellency's reaction.
In fact, she knew it too.
She knew that His Excellency had no desire to pass power to his own blood.
But she clung to a faint hope that if she bore a son, his thinking might change.
Yet His Excellency had drawn a firm line, coldly.
No.
Why not this child, who was His Excellency's own flesh and blood?
His own kin should be better suited to uphold His Excellency's will than some stranger with no blood ties.
Baek Ha-yeon couldn't understand His Excellency.
Was hereditary succession really such a problem?
Dynasties were fundamentally family businesses passed down through generations.
Had all those countless dynasties and great houses collapsed just because they practiced hereditary succession?
No.
Counterexamples were easy enough to find.
His Excellency fixated only on the downsides of succession and ignored the upsides.
But Ha-yeon gave up on persuading him.
His Excellency was a stubborn man.
She had asked for time, but she didn't really think it would change his mind.
The time she requested from him was just what she needed to accept reality herself.
The problem lay in the rift that had opened between them while she mulled it over.
Their marital relations had already ceased due to the pregnancy, and now this difference of opinion had reduced their bedroom conversations to almost nothing.
After several weeks like that, Ha-yeon's mind grew terribly complicated.
She thought back to how this awkward atmosphere had lingered.
'His Excellency is still young at heart.'
His Excellency had vigorous appetites for a man his age.
It was clear from how he satisfied his desires with her every day, however difficult it was.
For such a man to go weeks without even basic shows of affection.
What if His Excellency started having other thoughts?
The worry hit her suddenly.
She was already feeling her age creeping up on her bit by bit.
What if, in this growing distance between them, some younger, prettier woman tempted him?
She knew it wasn't His Excellency's style, but one could never be sure about the world.
Ha-yeon called the doctor to check if her condition had stabilized.
"Yes. It should be fine now."
"Then, is it okay to do that at night?"
She blushed at bringing up such an embarrassing topic.
"As long as it's not excessive."
After much deliberation, Ha-yeon decided to take the first step toward His Excellency.
As always, he finished his work and returned to the bedroom to sleep.
That's when Ha-yeon spoke up first.
"Prime Minister."
"Uh, yeah."
He answered, sounding a bit flustered and dazed.
"Let's end this awkwardness between us."
Ha-yeon slipped into His Excellency's familiar embrace.
Perhaps because it had been so long since she'd felt his warmth, he flinched.
He seemed a little thrown by the seductive intent in her gaze.
"Is this okay? You've got the baby."
"The doctor said gentle is fine."
Hearing that, he naturally moved atop her.
As expected, His Excellency never refused the language of the body.
After some light tussling, Ha-yeon lay with her head pillowed on his arm.
As always after intimacy, the distance between them had closed considerably.
"Prime Minister."
"I'm listening."
"I've come to understand why succession won't happen. Then at least leave some wealth for the children."
Ha-yeon decided to settle for what she could realistically get from him.
"Enough to live comfortably, you mean."
"That's not enough. They're still Your Excellency's children."
Baek Ha-yeon wanted her children to live in abundance.
After much thought, His Excellency gave his answer.
"Alright. I'll see to it, so don't worry."
Only then did Ha-yeon feel at ease upon hearing his promise.
Perhaps this was for the best.
There was no guarantee the child would even want power.
Ha-yeon closed her eyes, feeling His Excellency's warmth.
*
"Surely, for His Excellency, reliable blood kin would be the best choice? Holding a son in his arms would change his mind too."
What if the child in Baek Ha-yeon's belly really was a boy?
If it truly was a boy, even His Excellency would think differently.
A quiet meeting took place among the power brokers of the Guard Corps.
"It's improper to bring this up now, but let's sort out our positions ahead of when the First Lady gives birth to a prince. If His Excellency decides to name him heir, what will we say?"
"Well, if His Excellency wants it, we'll have to obey. What could we say?"
"But didn't His Excellency say he wouldn't do hereditary succession?"
"That was only because he had no sons, just daughters. A woman as heir would make the power base unstable and look bad too. That's why he said it."
Security Commander Park Jun cautiously cut into the conversation.
"Come on, everyone, calm down. No more overstepping. His Excellency's intentions aren't clear yet, and we don't even know if it'll be a prince or princess. What positions are we sorting now?"
"Thinking about it then will be too late. Whether for or against succession, we need our stances ready to offer opinions to His Excellency. Otherwise, we'll just say 'We obey' and that's it."
That was true.
'This guy's getting ahead of himself. Does he think he'll be the successor or something?'
Park Jun made a mental note of Army Chief of Staff Lee Jeong, who had raised his voice.
The meeting dragged on for two hours without conclusion.
"Let's just each settle our own positions. Pushing opinions like this will only annoy His Excellency."
The group dispersed in twos and threes.
Security Commander Park Jun pretended to head to his residence but turned toward His Excellency's quarters.
"Your Excellency. Actually, there was a meeting like that today. People are deeply confused about the prince."
His Excellency just nodded upon hearing it.
"Idle worries from those fools. Got it, go do your work."
Starting the next day, he began summoning the Guard Corps power brokers one by one to his quarters.
Those who heard trembled in fear.
"This isn't because His Excellency found out about yesterday's secret meeting and flew into a rage, is it?"
"Obviously. We met without even telling him, how could he not be displeased?"
"I'll go first since it's my turn."
They entered His Excellency's quarters one after another.
Contrary to expectations of seething fury, His Excellency's expression was utterly mild.
"I heard my retainers were worrying over my succession issue."
"W-We apologize for the concern, Your Excellency."
Of course, his words were anything but mild.
"So, what's your take? Do you think I'll do hereditary succession and hand power down to my blood for a thousand generations?"
One wrong answer here could spell doom.
Even if the right answer seemed obvious, caution was needed.
"I wouldn't presume to know. I'll simply follow Your Excellency's will."
"Don't dilute it like water. Speak your true mind."
"If it's a prince, he'll surely be exceptional, so I don't think it's bad."
His Excellency showed clear displeasure at that.
"You fool. Listen, I said no succession. If I go back on my word now, what does that make Lee Seong-jun? Do you see me as some petty flip-flopper?"
He had given the wrong answer, no doubt.
His Excellency's tone suddenly sharpened.
"Of course not, Your Excellency."
"Let me make it clear: Lee Seong-jun will never consider succession, no matter what. Even if three sons popped out at once, it won't happen. Understand?"
"I'll keep it in mind."
"Go."
His Excellency summoned the Guard Corps power brokers one by one to reconfirm that there would absolutely be no succession.
His stance was rock-solid.
At the very least, his closest aides, sensing the atmosphere during their talks, accepted that abandoning succession was his true intent.
But those hearing secondhand were skeptical.
He might say that now, but what if His Excellency changed his mind later?
Elderly leaders often grew capricious with age.
They'd swap out confirmed heirs or force favorites onto the throne.
Even without that, there were cases where they'd hope underlings voiced what they couldn't say for face's sake.
Stalin was a prime example.
With such precedents, people couldn't be sure Lee Seong-jun had truly forsaken succession.
He was human too—who could swear he had no desire for it?
People began speculating on His Excellency's thoughts anew.
"Who would dare point fingers if he passes power to his son? Only clueless activists would complain to His Excellency."
"Right. He's the one who put this country on solid ground. So what if he hands over power?"
His Excellency thought he'd made his beliefs clear to his aides, but the succession question sparked by Baek Ha-yeon's pregnancy refused to settle.
"If Lee Seong-jun wants to pass it to his son, he'll want to bolster legitimacy, right? Float the idea of giving him a princess if he has a son."
"You mean the princess who's already past infancy?"
"If needed, yes."
The Emperor grimaced even as he made the suggestion.
That was the mindset of a father selling his daughter for survival.
Even the dying imperial house saw opportunity and began to stir.
Despite His Excellency's crackdown, the noise around succession only grew louder.
If Baek Ha-yeon bore a son, would Lee Seong-jun's regime go hereditary or not?
Certainty lay only in Baek Ha-yeon's womb.
Just see the gender of her child.
All of Korea's attention focused on Baek Ha-yeon's belly.