Sobaeguk wanted to know what thoughts the Emperor harbored about Yunseo, and he could have laid it all out with an ingratiating smile if he'd wanted to. But even when he had clung to him, the Emperor had not given him a single hint. And now that he had placed Yunseo in the elevated position, there was no way to find out what intentions he had toward his own nephew.
He had not wanted to make Yunseo a puppet of the throne, and had raised him in the private residence without letting him enter public life, wielding influence in secret — had that been an elaborate act? All the connections he had cultivated thanks to Yunseo were also, in the end, all because of Yunseo. Moreover, the fact that Geumsan had shown such extraordinary merit was seen as a result of Yunseo's sacred sword, which only deepened his suspicion.
Sobaeguk could barely content himself with the position of Minister of the Left. He wanted to always maintain a close grip on public office at all costs. But Geumsan, that cold-blooded one who could not even manage to thaw even a little, making some incomprehensible choice — he was filled with anxiety that had begun to take root deep in the pit of his stomach.
After the invisible debate-like argument had passed once and a momentary silence had flowed, the Emperor, who had not made even a single movement as if made of stone, turned his gaze toward somewhere. That somewhere was right in front of the Minister of Punishments.
"Your Majesty, at the hour of 시* today, the criminal has confessed and turned himself in. I was unable to stop the traitor from taking his own life and my negligence weighs heavily on me. I beg that you issue an appropriate sentence."
The court went quiet with a hush. The criminal had beaten the Empress Consort and turned himself in? The criminal had until now only followed the Emperor's commands and so this reversal statement by the Minister of Punishments was an important key that overturned the situation. Sobaeguk felt the unease that had been pressing down on him gradually turning into relief.
"Confess."
The Emperor's single quiet word was thrown among the ministers. The changing air inside pressed across everyone's shoulders and swept past.
"Find out the truth first."
"Yes, Your Majesty. The criminal Buweon, at today's hour of 시, received orders from the head of a ministry under the Ministry of the Left — not the Empress Consort — and confessed that he had struck the Empress Consort and turned himself in out of fear of punishment. The criminal confessed in his robes with Gangpilseok as witness, but that witness has since taken his own life — and does his death itself not prove his crime?"
The atmosphere in the court became sharp. One shoulder of the entire group visibly flinched. Sobaeguk quickly turned the matter over in his head. Given that the Empress Consort had ties to the Ministry of the Left, the Ministry of the Left could no longer make any argument about the Empress Consort.
But he could not trust that a mere chief secretary had orchestrated all of this. Surely there must be a larger presence standing behind it……
"A chief secretary has colluded with the Empress Consort."
The Emperor spoke drily while chewing on something, and the Ministry of Punishments ministers looked nervously tense and seemed like they were about to catch fire. Their appearance was satisfying, and yet he also felt a tinge of bitterness that they too were from his faction.
"The palace does not trust the Minister of Punishments to have believed that to such a naive degree."
"I will investigate thoroughly and root out those who disrespected Gangpilseok."
"Dare to boldly throw Gangpilseok who fled to avoid the death penalty into the fields to be fed to the animals, and punish his household according to the law."
"Yes, Your Majesty!"
Once the Minister of Punishments withdrew, the Emperor drummed the armrest of the throne with his fingers, tok, tok, and slowly swept his gaze over the ministers. A regular sound rising from a space blanketed in deep silence tightened the tension further and constricted the throat.
"The fact that the palace has not held any position regarding this matter until now is because it judged that the truth would come to light in time. The conclusion has not yet emerged and you have been spreading your wings — who, looking on, would not know that the Empress Consort has a backer."
At the end of the words a light laughter rose but it was by no means lighthearted — everyone in this room knew that. The Emperor's gaze fixed on a point like a hawk, targeting a thousand years — even the ministers who were skilled and shrewd as veterans could do nothing before him but keep their mouths shut like criminals.
"Even supposing the Empress Consort did it, those……"
"……"
"The Empress Consort did play the puppet a little."
At the Emperor's single offhand remark, Sobaeguk went stiff and could not move. The Emperor's words, to speak honestly, were on the verge of crumbling.
Would anyone have no suspicion. In truth, the Empress Consort was the Emperor and he was trying to bring her down. Even so, the criminals involved in this matter had all taken their own lives to seek greater punishment, making it impossible to grasp anyone's position since dead men tell no tales.
Sobaeguk had only just now realized why Yunseo could not be entirely happy even though things were cleanly resolved. The situation had been settled cleanly and yet an inexplicable lingering unease had been left. Even so, it was not enough to raise further doubts.
After the long, chillingly drawn-out silence, one minister stepped forward to speak up.
"Your Majesty. Your servant dares to say — who would dare to suspect the true nature of the Empress Consort. However, the true intention of receiving grace from the Empress Consort and seeking to clarify the truth without delay appears as something murky trying to reveal itself, and I only ask that Your Majesty take into account the broad feelings of the ministers with the wide grace of the sacred image."
"Please, I beg of you."
One of the three ministers leading the court was Sagong司空. At her statement the Emperor's brow briefly furrowed.
Sagong was the first flower spirit to have risen to the seat of minister, and being a person with the disposition of someone who saw through things at a glance, those whose pride had been wounded could not stand her despite her position. Sobaeguk had not wanted this matter to grow bigger here either, but with Sagong stepping forward like this the atmosphere became uncomfortable and his seat squirmed.
As the atmosphere subsided, the Emperor called for the Imperial Physician who had been waiting at the very back of the court. The Imperial Physician came forward before the court and paid respects.
"At the previous palace visit I treated him with acupuncture and through Your Majesty's treatment his arm has fully recovered."
Sobaeguk suppressed the urge to flip his head sideways and quickly swallowed his breath.
His arm — his arm!
Ever since being disciplined, the Emperor's arm that had not been healed by so much as an inch of acupuncture treatment for all these years in the court had been Sobaeguk's longstanding concern. But the moment he received Yunseo's treatment, the arm having fully recovered was nothing short of a miracle.
"We pay our respects, Your Majesty!"
"We pay our respects, Your Majesty!"
The civil and military officials bowed their bodies and offered their congratulations. From this, Yunseo's necessity — the use of everyone here, and all the people of the world — would become known.
With the words that the audience was concluded, the Emperor rose from the throne. The clear sound of footsteps gradually grew more distant, cutting through the center of the court.
Just as the tension was beginning to ease, a short hairline with a tight bun atop the nape slid past and made the sound of footsteps that followed swiftly and confusedly. Sobaeguk still had the feeling as if a fishhook were lodged somewhere.
The sensation of having watched a tightly woven drama in one sitting was suffocating. The Emperor keeping his silence, and the confessions and the reports of Taeui that had come out just in time.
Had Gangpilseok truly committed his crime? Was his death truly a suicide?
The Emperor would have no reason to kill one person for his own sake. Furthermore, he had dubbed the act of denouncing the Emperor's curse as 'the act of a puppet.' That meant — even if Yunseo had cursed him, he would have been pardoned. From now on, whatever doubts and questions they might throw at him, it would be pointless — it was a warning.
Yet the fact that Yunseo had become a precious flower spirit to the Emperor was making joy rise on one side while fear began to creep closer on the other. If the Empress Consort existed outside the law, what influence would this have on the court, going forward?
As a deeply rooted scholar-official, the instinctive sense of refusal stirred, but as Soga's head of household, greed was also flaring up. Between those two, the unknowable thing swelled up and Sobaeguk's Adam's apple rose prominently.
The feeling of having returned 'home' washed over him and a laugh bubbled up involuntarily as the palanquin descended to the ground. Looking back, he had never once felt at home in the private residence, and now this place had become his home. There was a man who looked after him, and there were people here for him — so at least compared to the private residence, there was nothing more in his hands.
Getting out of the palanquin, fatigue came over him and Yunseo exhaled a long breath and entered the bedchamber inside.
"Are you tired? How was Hell?"
Yeondeok inside the room flinched at him. Yunseo, glancing at his curious and worried expression, rolled his eyes. What should he say. He didn't want to describe all of it and make Yeondeok anxious. But he didn't want to brush it off either and make it seem like nothing.