Chapter 159
Chapter 159
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Translator: Vine
Chapter: 159
Chapter Title: The Invisible War (1)
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Yi Hwan entered the inn to meet Hwa Ryeong and narrowed his eyes upon spotting Jin Chukwang sitting across from her.
At that moment, Go Mi's voice transmission flowed into his ear.
[He's Jin Chukwang, the eldest son of the Prime Minister.]
Information on Jin Chukwang flashed through Yi Hwan's mind and vanished. He had already memorized everything Go Mi had gathered.
Yi Hwan strode toward Hwa Ryeong.
Seeing him, Hwa Ryeong quietly rose and bowed her head. Startled by the sudden situation, Jin Chukwang turned his head, then widened his eyes.
He knew who Yi Hwan was.
Crash!
Jin Chukwang jumped to his feet in surprise, knocking his chair over backward. He hastily righted it and bowed toward Yi Hwan.
“I greet the Great Prince.”
“Who are you?”
“I am Jin Chukwang of the Prime Minister's household.”
Hwa Ryeong feigned surprise.
“Oh? The Prime Minister's household? Wow! Now that I look at you, you're quite the big shot!”
“Ah, well, yes, yes.”
Jin Chukwang was flustered.
Yi Hwan had appeared out of nowhere. And it seemed the seductive woman who had stirred his lust knew him?
“Did I interrupt your time together?”
“No. We just met today.”
Hwa Ryeong followed up with a bright smile toward Jin Chukwang.
“It looks like we'll have to meet another time. It was fun.”
“Ah, yes.”
Yi Hwan watched Jin Chukwang's retreating figure as he hurriedly fled the inn, then sat across from Hwa Ryeong. Go Mi sat beside her.
“Did you sit with him without knowing who he was?”
“I didn't know at first, but I figured it out after sitting down. Anyway, why did you summon me?”
“There’s something you need to do.”
Yi Hwan picked up the alcohol bottle and filled the cup Jin Chukwang had been using. Hwa Ryeong quickly snatched it away.
“That's dirty. Pour it into a fresh cup. Hey, bring another cup please.”
Moments later, she poured into the new cup the server brought.
Pour.
“What do you need me to do?”
“You need to seal the Prime Minister's lips.”
At those words, Hwa Ryeong glanced at Go Mi before asking.
“Do you know what orders Her Majesty the Empress gave me?”
“I heard.”
Yi Hwan emptied his cup and asked back.
“Do you happen to know what the Empress is planning?”
“Yes, more or less. Isn't that why you're both trying to win over the ministers?”
Yi Hwan nodded silently.
“Pulling in the Prime Minister would secure votes from how many?”
“At least ten.”
“With fifty ministers qualified to vote, that's at least a fifth. No wonder it's tempting. Got it. I'll give it a shot.”
Go Mi interjected then.
“No need for seduction techniques.”
Hwa Ryeong grinned broadly.
“You're worried about me?”
“…….”
Hwa Ryeong turned to Yi Hwan and continued.
“I don't even need to approach the Prime Minister directly. I can just use that guy from earlier. Seduction wasn't on my mind from the start. Why would I?”
“Can I trust you?”
“Trust me. I'm doing this out of gratitude for the Great Prince accepting me. Oh! But first, let's make one thing clear.”
Hwa Ryeong took a breath and continued.
“If, by any chance, someone ends up dead, you'll clean it up afterward, right?”
“The Prime Minister absolutely cannot be killed. If he dies, his followers might side with the opposition.”
“Of course.”
Hwa Ryeong smiled and pointed outside the inn. Jin Chukwang, who had left, was entering the inn across the street.
Yi Hwan stared at his back and nodded silently.
“If it's unavoidable, then no choice.”
“Great. Then let's eat something delicious today! No, you buy!”
“…….”
* * *
Palace of Illusory Flowers.
As always, the Empress lounged in her ornate chambers, heavily made up, savoring tea.
No one was allowed near when she enjoyed her tea. Her preference for solitary time was something everyone in the Palace of Illusory Flowers prioritized above all.
Yet today, Second Prince Yi Tae-ji was with her. The Empress set down her teacup, stared straight at Yi Tae-ji, and spoke.
“How long must I worry about you?”
“Because of the third?”
“Didn't I tell you to embrace him? So why stir up trouble again?”
The Empress's voice and gaze were colder than usual. Yi Tae-ji fidgeted with his teacup and fell silent.
Clink, clink.
“That hand!”
Yi Tae-ji froze.
At the Empress's shout, he set down the teacup.
Clink.
“Mother knows better than anyone that he's not someone I can just embrace. We should have crushed his faction long ago.”
“Are you afraid of the third?”
“Of course not. I merely wish to clear obstacles from my path in advance. Of course, if he bows his head and comes now, I'm fully prepared to embrace him. But if he insists on opposing me to the end…….”
Yi Tae-ji trailed off.
A low sigh escaped the Empress's lips.
“The third lacks your ambition. As long as his life as an imperial prince is secure, he poses no threat to you. See to it there's no more bloodshed from now on.”
“You say that because you don't know, Mother. He hides greater ambition in his heart than anyone. What do you think that ambition is?”
“Enough!”
Thud!
Clink!
The table shook, spilling the teacup.
But Yi Tae-ji did not back down.
“Draw a clear line, Mother. Then I won't trouble him anymore.”
“Do you promise?”
“Yes, I promise.”
“Very well. I'll see to it, so there must be no more blood between brothers. Understood?”
“Fine.”
It was then.
A middle-aged man entered.
The Empress's eyebrows sharpened.
“Didn't I say not to disturb?”
“I have urgent news to report.”
“What is it!”
The middle-aged man continued immediately.
“Reports just came in that several ministers from the Six Ministries have been escorted to Golden Army headquarters.”
Twitch.
The Empress's eyebrows curved like blades.
“What? The Golden Army escorted ministers?”
“Yes. Details weren't specified, so I've sent someone, but it seems the Crown Prince's Palace is using the Fourth Imperial Prince to orchestrate something.”
The Empress's eyes grew even colder.
“That thunderbolt bastard is getting too bold, oblivious to the heights of heaven.”
Yi Tae-ji said.
“Does the Golden Army have authority to escort ministers?”
“Of course not.”
“There are times they do.”
The Empress and Yi Tae-ji focused on the middle-aged man. He continued cautiously.
“The Golden Army has no punishment authority, but if illegal acts are discovered, they can escort all ministers down to the Prime Minister. They can detain for ten days, after which the court must request release with just cause or His Majesty must order it.”
Even the Empress hadn't known this law.
Yi Tae-ji asked the man.
“So without special requests, they can hold them for ten days?”
“Yes, Your Highness.”
Yi Tae-ji turned to the Empress and continued.
“Shouldn't we quickly discern his intentions? We need over half approval soon to pass your will, but if the Golden Army holds the ministers, won't it cause issues?”
“I'll handle it. You may go. I'll inform you first if confirmed.”
“……Yes.”
Once Yi Tae-ji left, the Empress unleashed her pent-up fury.
“What were the men I attached to him doing that I only learn of the escorts after the fact!”
“Since the report came post-incident, it seems the Fourth Imperial Prince moved very discreetly. They might have already spotted our plants.”
The Empress leaned back slightly.
“Obviously the Crown Prince's Palace's orders?”
“That is what this subject believes. No matter how reckless the Fourth Imperial Prince, he couldn't escort ministers without the Crown Prince's Palace's permission.”
“So he's truly coming at me like this?”
The Empress's eyes sank cold as ice. The middle-aged man spoke cautiously.
“If I may boldly suggest, removing the Fourth Imperial Prince—who's currently the Crown Prince's Palace blade—should be priority. In the capital and surrounding cities, the Golden Army is absolute. If they act this way, we lack means to control them, Your Majesty.”
“That's why I tried undermining their unity through the Purge Wind Operation. Had those fools not failed, the Golden Army would be ours to command by now! My mistake for trusting those incompetents.”
The Empress drained the cold tea in one gulp and irritably shouted.
“Bring cold water!”
“Yes, Your Majesty.”
The Empress leaned deeply into her chair and closed her eyes tightly. The middle-aged man shut his mouth, awaiting orders.
Moments later, as a palace maid brought cold water, the Empress opened her eyes. A faint smile played on her lips.
‘Has she found the answer?’
Thud!
Draining the cold water, the Empress spoke.
“If they come at us like this, we'll have to change the voting method.”
“What do you…….”
“We'll watch the situation. If the flow turns against us, we'll raise the qualifications for voting ministers.”
The middle-aged man widened his eyes slightly and asked.
“You mean reduce the number of ministers eligible to vote?”
“Exactly. Exclude those the Golden Army took, and their efforts become wasted. For now, whatever they do, leave them be.”
“Truly ingenious, Your Majesty!”
“But no complacency. Greatly reinforce security for our ministers. Disperse all immediately deployable forces to them.”
“Understood.”
The middle-aged man withdrew.
The Empress rose abruptly and went to the window. Throwing it open, she gazed toward the Crown Prince's Palace.
“A man I deemed disposable has become the Crown Prince's Palace blade and struts about…….”
Her eyes darkened momentarily.
Images of Yi Tae-ji and Yi Seong-ji flashed through her mind in turn.
‘When we should be uniting our strength…….’
With Crown Prince Yi So aligning perfectly with Yi Hwan, her own sons were dividing. If left like this, they might cross a river of no return.
‘In the end, rectifying the family comes first?’
* * *
Several days later, Golden Army headquarters.
Go Mi visited Yi Hwan's office to report.
“We've escorted four ministers so far. Two confessed their crimes, two are still holding out.”
“How many days for detention on the holdouts?”
“Ten days. Two have passed, eight remain.”
“Any court movements?”
“Nothing notable so far. Strangest is the Palace of Illusory Flowers showing no reaction.”
“Really?”
It was unexpected. By now, they should have moved somehow.
“In recent days, the Empress hasn't left the Palace of Illusory Flowers. Nor has she summoned ministers there.”
Yi Hwan leaned back in his chair, subtly narrowing his brows.
“That's definitely odd. She should have reacted by now.”
“Why not have Lady Hwa Ryeong monitor the Palace of Illusory Flowers instead of seducing the Prime Minister?”
“Monitoring the Palace seems quite difficult.”
“The Inner Palace Bureau's protocols apply, so without the Empress's permission, approach is nearly impossible.”
“That makes sense. The Inner Palace Bureau operates with extreme secrecy.”
The Inner Palace Bureau fell strictly under the Empress. Even the Emperor rarely interfered, by unwritten rule.
Yi Hwan pondered silently. Go Mi watched quietly.
‘Will he find a solution this time too?’
Go Mi now absolutely trusted Yi Hwan's abilities. Reflecting on crises they'd overcome together, each had been massive, yet Yi Hwan pierced through with terrifying focus and breakthrough power.
What impressed her most was his icy composure, unshaken even in crisis.
“Moon Lord.”
“Yes, yes?”
“What are you thinking so deeply about?”
“Ah, nothing.”
“I'll find a way for the Palace of Illusory Flowers, so leave Hwa Ryeong as is. It's too dangerous alone without support.”
“Understood.”
“Want to grab a meal together?”
“Pardon?”
“Busy again?”
‘Honestly, yes,’ rose to her throat, but Go Mi bowed her head.
“No. Shall we go?”
Following Yi Hwan, Go Mi gave a wry smile.
‘What’s the big deal about eating together.’
Looking back, she'd dreaded being alone with him. Not because she disliked him—just the situation felt awkward.