There Was a Reason (4)
The thought swirling in Hong Seon-il's mind was that the guest served by that palace maid might be a spy.
He had no choice but to think that way.
How else could they know it was his without surveilling and investigating him?
In that case, exposing the crime was precisely the duty of a servant of the empire like himself.
"May I visit whenever it's convenient? I'd like to express my gratitude in person."
"I'll ask once."
That afternoon, the palace maid returned with her master's permission.
Hong Seon-il found it odd.
I figured she'd put it off or refuse... She's awfully confident.
With that in mind, he followed her straight to Hwanhwa Pavilion, where the foreign envoys were staying.
And he was stunned.
The person she served was no ordinary envoy—she was the princess of the Marae Kingdom.
"……."
An awkward silence passed, but he composed himself and greeted her.
"First off, thank you so much for returning that paper."
"It wasn't all that difficult."
Her command of the imperial tongue was remarkably fluent.
"But... how did you know it was mine?"
"For one, matters of publication fall under the Hanlin Academy's purview. And carrying around a transcribed copy of His Majesty's edict, pondering it so deeply—that suggests you're the one in charge."
"But there are others who hold the title of Junior Compiler besides me."
Several others in the Hanlin Academy bore the rank of Junior Compiler, after all.
"That paper was quite worn. It spoke of deep, repeated contemplation. Yet the part with the writing wasn't worn at all. A sign of how precious you hold His Majesty's edict."
"……!"
Hong Seon-il was astonished.
It was exactly as she said. Even though he'd copied the edict himself, he regarded it as the emperor's sacred words.
Thus, he'd never dared touch those characters.
"It also means your loyalty to His Majesty hasn't cooled one bit."
She continued.
"Even if one starts with pure loyalty, time inevitably dulls it. That's reality. After all, His Majesty issues the orders, and no one truly loves the work."
"But when it's His Majesty's command, it's only right to carry it out with utmost sincerity."
"Think about it. Do your seniors really pour their hearts into it?"
"……."
Hong Seon-il was at a loss for words.
Come to think of it...
He recalled his seniors.
"No need to overdo it. His Majesty won't notice anyway, and we'll just have more work."
"Sigh, more tasks already? I was hoping to leave early today."
"Why do we still have five days left until the holiday?"
Watching Hong Seon-il's darkening expression, she said,
"If such fervent loyalty still burns, and you're a recent exam graduate serving as Junior Compiler in the Hanlin Academy, I figured you must be one of the top scorers."
Those who achieved top honors were typically assigned to the Hanlin Academy and granted the Junior Compiler rank.
"That leaves only you."
"Yes."
"Not that they lack loyalty, of course. Theirs is just a warmer, steadier kind."
"……."
He looked up at her. His heart trembled for some reason.
A woman this wise... she might have answers for my dilemma.
"Could I perhaps seek your advice on this matter?"
He explained the whole situation.
"……So, what should I do?"
"In my view, if His Majesty wanted a record of the imperial family's merits, he would have explicitly said to document the court's responses to the famine—not just the famine itself."
"Then... what about this?"
"Did you perhaps assign a large number of people to the task?"
"Yes, that's right. Double the usual staff."
"I think it means to record everything."
"Pardon?"
"Imperial matters, common folk's struggles—everything. And since the famine hasn't ended, there's plenty of time."
"……."
It made perfect sense to him too.
The problem was the sheer volume of work.
"Doesn't that mean His Majesty expects great things from your abilities?"
He scratched the back of his neck.
"I-if that's the case, I'm honored. In any event, thank you for sparing this precious time today. I'm sorry to have taken so much of it on our first meeting."
"It's not our first meeting."
"Pardon?"
"We met yesterday in the rear gardens of the palace. You hurried off when I approached."
"Ah!"
He gave an awkward smile.
"So it was you. I thought you were a palace maid. I left quickly to avoid any scandal if someone saw us alone in the gardens. As you know, palace maids who get tangled in rumors just... vanish without a trace."
"You were looking out for me."
After that, Hong Seon-il met her often, and he learned her name.
"My name is Sina Aye. In my tongue, it means 'light.'"
When had it started?
Probably from their first meeting.
Like the meaning of her name—light—she had become the light of his life.
Imagining a life without her brought only pitch darkness to mind.
But she's leaving?
Come to think of it, she had nothing more to gain by staying here.
Once the winds shifted, she'd return home.
Deep down, he knew it.
That they'd part ways, somehow.
He just hadn't felt it yet.
A few days passed after that.
I received word that Seon-il hyung wanted to see me and headed straight to the nearby relay station.
But the moment I saw his face, I couldn't help gasping in shock.
"Gasp! Hyung! What happened?"
And well I might—his face had deteriorated sharply in just those few days.
Gaunt, pale, with dark circles under his eyes...
That means hyung's made up his mind.
"I'm fine, so don't make a fuss."
"Your aunt and uncle must be worried sick."
"I've tried eating something, but it just won't go down."
"Hyung..."
Seon-il hyung looked at me with eyes full of steely resolve.
"Help me. I don't think I can live without her."
"Understood."
.
.
.
The most crucial step in uniting the Marae Kingdom's princess with Seon-il hyung was, of course, the emperor's approval.
She had come to the empire seeking marriage into the imperial family, after all.
Marrying hyung instead would be seen as deceiving the throne—a grave offense.
At minimum, she'd be exiled, and hyung dismissed from office.
To avoid that...
I had to meet the emperor.
"Ugh..."
Just thinking about facing him sent a chill down my spine.
What an incredible man.
To make even me—who doesn't feel the cold—shiver!
But if you want the tiger's whiskers, you must enter the tiger's den.
Conveniently, I had reason to see him anyway.
I needed to deal with that Hand Se-gil who'd squeezed silver from me.
With the merchant group recruitment for foreign trade wrapped up, no risk of scandal either.
Back at the Beijing branch, I immediately sent a letter to Jin Yeong Daehyeop.
That evening,
Jin Yeong Daehyeop visited the Beijing branch.
"Daehyeop, how was your trip?"
"It went well. Sorry about this, though—not passing on the palace martial arts in time. His Majesty commanded it personally..."
"It's not like it's unrelated to your duties, right? No worries. And it's not enough just to learn it; I have to make it my own to digest the next lesson properly."
I cupped my hands in a fist-palm salute.
"So please, don't trouble yourself."
"I'm grateful you say that. Well then, off we go. His Majesty summons."
I went with Jin Yeong Daehyeop to the palace and met the emperor in his study.
"Your subject Seo-ho of the Eunhae Merchant Group pays respects to His Imperial Majesty, sovereign of the empire."
"Indeed, I figured you'd show up soon enough. Time to report on your duties, no?"
"……."
Cold sweat trickled down my back at his words.
If I hadn't come now and gone back to Hubei instead, I'd have been nailed to a palace post for dereliction.
I inwardly wiped my brow and continued.
"How could I neglect the duties Your Majesty graciously assigned? If I did, I'd sooner hurl myself into the water with a boulder tied to me."
Though I'd survive even that.
"The rascal's got a silver tongue."
A tone straight out of some marketplace yarn.
The eunuch urgently remonstrated.
"Your Majesty, such speech is unbecoming."
"Who's around to hear? Does it matter?"
"Even so..."
"Besides, you and this lad—you're both my people, aren't you?"
"Your Majesty..."
The eunuch's voice grew misty as he prostrated.
I could sense the emperor's trust in us from his words. The eunuch, maybe—but me? I wasn't so sure...
"Your grace overwhelms this subject."
"See? Silver tongue, I tell you."
The emperor chuckled, then turned serious.
"Raise your head."
"Your boundless mercy humbles me."
Finally, the command to look up. Whew, prostrating that long was tough.
"Right, I heard the gist through Jin Yeong. You have a report?"
"Yes, Your Majesty. Regarding bribery during the selection of merchant groups for foreign trade."
The emperor tilted his head at my words.
"As you know, there weren't many applicants, so we planned to approve any without issues on paper."
"Of course. But someone demanded a bribe in exchange for information."
"What an amusing fellow."
That "amusing" wasn't genuine mirth, surely.
"Tell me the details."
"Yes."
I reported in full on my encounter with Hand Se-gil.
"I did give him fourteen silver taels in the process, but it was for the investigation."
I stated it boldly.
"To uncover any backers or information leaks."
Per the emperor's edict granting me investigative authority.
In other words, paying him was legitimate police work.
No punishment due, hence the payout.
"Fourteen taels, though? If you're giving, give more—such stinginess."
"Merely maximizing effect with minimal cost."
"Understood. I'll have the Censorate handle him."
Fair enough—the cleanest solution.
With the emperor's direct order, the probe wouldn't be gentle.
Hand Se-gil, you're done. Now, onto hyung's marriage.
I took a deep breath, steadying my nerves, and spoke.
"Your Majesty, your subject dares ask one thing."
"Out with it."
"The other day, while walking the palace, I glimpsed the Princess of Marae. It seems she'll soon return home."
"Just as you say."
The emperor nodded.
"Truth be told, I did broach marriage into the imperial family with Marae's king. I expected a prince, not a princess."
Of course.
Marae hadn't sent her recklessly.
There was reason behind it.
Which made it all the more awkward for the emperor.
"My brother happened to meet her."
"I know. The princess returned what Hong the Junior Compiler lost."
"……."
I was speechless.
S-scary man... what doesn't he know?
"And thanks to her advice, Hong's properly grasped the direction of my command and is proceeding."
"Indeed. Hyung said then that he'd never met anyone so wise."
I pressed on.
"And I believe Your Majesty recognizes her worth."
"Mm, true enough."
"Yet there's no word on her wedding. It seems Your Majesty has left the choice to the imperial princes."
The emperor scowled and clicked his tongue.
"Spot on. Fools! Judging only by looks, blind to her true value. Tsk tsk."
"Soon the winds will shift, and the princess will depart. Yet keeping her here by force offers no easy path."
"Get to the point. You have a way to keep her?"
"Yes. There is."
I continued with unwavering confidence.
"Your Majesty need only play the role of the Old Man Under the Moon."