Chapter 26

Hongwi, Lee Hyang, and Yunseo of the 21st Century

"I've had Do Cheokji—the one who forged that fake debt document of yours—arrested and taken to the Uigeumbu."

Lee Hyang spoke as he quietly took Yunseo's hand.

They were sitting on the wooden floor of the daecheong hall between the east and west ondol rooms of Jaseondang.

There were several reasons why they were having this conversation here instead of at Bihyeongak.

Hongwi usually fell asleep around half past the hour of Sul (around 8 p.m.).

When that happened, Yunseo—who would sing lullabies like "Mom is in the shade of the island~"—would also end up dozing off beside him.

Lee Hyang believed that the reason Yunseo had collapsed as if dead after such extreme terror was due to overwork—standing night watch while sitting up, then handling various duties again during the day.

So he ordered that Yunseo take full charge of Hongwi's night duty, but that the form of the duty be changed: she was to lie down and sleep beside him.

He also took into account how extremely anxious Hongwi had become after witnessing Yunseo collapse.

Hongwi had been genuinely terrified that Yunseo might die and disappear, and ever since that day, he refused to be apart from her.

At night, he would only fall asleep if Yunseo lay beside him and sang him a lullaby, and during the day, if he couldn't see her, he would whimper anxiously.

With the Cheonjamun recitation ceremony (a kind of presentation where the Crown Prince's heir answers questions on what he has learned, before the king, royal relatives, and ministers) scheduled in a month, aside from his morning lessons with his teacher Seong Sammun, he wanted Yunseo by his side at all times.

It seemed that the unconscious fear from losing his mother, Crown Princess Kwon, had resurfaced as a fear of losing Yunseo, who had become like a mother to him.

So Yunseo decided to stay by Hongwi's side day and night until his anxiety subsided. With Lee Hyang's permission, she arranged to make ointment and soap in spare moments at an empty hall outside the East Palace while Hongwi was studying.

Because of this situation, the "romance" she had agreed to with Lee Hyang became difficult to continue for the time being.

For Yunseo—who had impulsively suggested dating after being swept up in Lee Hyang's devoted affection, which had appeared like salvation amid extreme fear—this situation was, in some ways, a relief.

Separate from the fact that she liked Lee Hyang very much, there were too many things to consider for someone who had lived as a free spirit in the 21st century when it came to a future where she might end up as a concubine or Crown Princess, bound to a suffocating life inside the palace.

And there was also the faint hope she couldn't let go of—that after eliminating Jeon Gyun and eventually the forces of Grand Prince Suyang, the Crown Princess's ring that had brought her soul to Joseon might return her to the modern world.

The intense affection she had developed for Hongwi in this unfamiliar Joseon was, in truth, like a lifeline—a support and direction that sustained her life here.

Humans are social beings who feel truly alive only when they both receive and give love.

For Yunseo, who had been suddenly cut off from those she once loved, Hongwi was a perfectly lovable and fragile child who fulfilled her need to love. And for Hongwi, Yunseo—who gave him unconditional affection—was someone he could not help but deeply depend on. It was a mutually dependent relationship.

And in that if she raised him well into a rightful ruler, there might be a chance to return to the modern world, Hongwi also served as a kind of goal for Yunseo.

But Lee Hyang was different.

Admiring the exceptionally handsome Lee Hyang was, in modern terms, like fangirling over a celebrity—yet admiring a celebrity didn't mean one would seriously dream of dating or marrying them.

Moreover, if she truly cleared the obstacles from Hongwi's future and then returned to the modern world by wearing the ring, what would happen to Lee Hyang—who had no luck with women? She couldn't help but worry in advance about the emotional blow he would suffer.

And if Lee Hyang continued to show her unwavering affection as he did now, she also worried whether she could live properly after leaving him behind and returning to the modern world.

After all, love is something that leaves you tormented most by what you couldn't do.

As soon as Yunseo regained full clarity of mind after taking the medicinal decoction prepared by the Royal Infirmary, these were the thoughts she had—and she wanted to take back the impulsive suggestion of a relationship she had made in the heat of the moment.

But there was no way to undo it.

After Hongwi fell asleep, when Lee Hyang summoned her to Bihyeongak, Yunseo prostrated herself and earnestly pleaded that, in her terror that day, she had lost her senses and committed the grave offense of daring to propose a relationship to His Highness, but now that she fully understood her insignificant status, she could not dare commit such a disrespectful act.

But—

"Then that would mean you deceived the Crown Prince without even having feelings, committing the crime of fraud. Were you not the one who first told me to close my eyes and pressed your lips to mine?"

Lee Hyang rejected her outright.

She wanted to argue that it had been a kind of incapacitated decision made impulsively in extreme fear and confusion—but in Joseon, where such a concept didn't exist, that argument would not work at all.

So what she came up with instead was Hongwi's anxiety.

When Yunseo explained that she couldn't leave the west ondol room even for a moment at night in case Hongwi woke up and looked for her, Lee Hyang replied—

"As the weather grows warmer, I too wanted a change of atmosphere. From now on, I will work at night in the cool daecheong hall of Jaseondang. Then, even while you and I 'date,' you can reach our Hongwi in just a few steps whenever you need."

He said this with a sly smile.

From the next day on, whenever Lee Hyang returned to the East Palace after finishing his daytime duties, he brought all his work from Bihyeongak to the daecheong hall.

And once Hongwi fell into a deep sleep, he would summon Yunseo and declare that it was now time for their "romance."

Fortunately (and sometimes unfortunately), because the daecheong hall was completely open, their displays of affection amounted to little more than holding hands.

That day as well, once the hour of Yi had passed, Lee Hyang called for Yunseo and told her that he had captured the group of thieves from Mapo Wharf who had forged the fake debt document and threatened her, and had thrown them into the Uigeumbu.

"Were you able to obtain fingerprints?"

Yunseo asked in surprise, but Lee Hyang shook his head.

"Fingerprint collection is still under experimentation. In this case, we made use of the fact that on the date written in that document—and even before and after that—you have no record of leaving the palace."

"Ah!"

To leave the palace, a court lady had to record her purpose and destination, receive an exit pass, and return within the designated time to hand it back.

Once one became accustomed to palace life and gained some authority, it was possible—like when Yunseo had gone out five days earlier—to disguise the purpose of leaving under a different pretext through the convenience of a superior. However, returning within the allotted time was a rule that had to be followed without exception.

"I have also arrested your adoptive father, who agreed to the contents of that fake debt document. And your step-siblings, who entered the palace and visited Hong Seunghwi's quarters, will soon be summoned to the Uigeumbu as well."

Lee Hyang spoke these words very carefully as he gently held Yunseo's hand.

He was worried that Yunseo might fear becoming a royal consort, recalling the tragic fates of the Yeoheung Min clan of Queen Wongyeong and the Cheongsong Sim clan of the current Queen—families that had been annihilated after becoming entangled with the royal household.

If Yunseo had truly been of the "Kwon family," she might have feared harm coming to her stepfamily. But Yunseo was only Kwon in body, and she had no reason to spare the family of Choi Gaeun, who had exploited the unfortunate Kwon family so cruelly and even tried to take her life.

Moreover, Noh Sandae—who had investigated at Yunseo's request—had recently reported through Maeggeum that behind Do Cheokji stood the financial backing of the Yun clan from the wife's side of Grand Prince Suyang.

This was a perfect opportunity to entangle them together with Do Cheokji and choke off the Yun clan's financial lifeline!

Abandoning her previous stance of firmly ignoring Lee Hyang's passionate advances over the past few days, Yunseo gently clasped his hand in return, scooted a little closer, and gathered all her charm as she spoke sweetly.

"Your Highness, this man Do Cheokji is a major shipowner at Mapo Wharf. He owns several grain transport ships that carry tax rice and tribute goods from the southern provinces to Mapo and Yongsan. The crime he committed cannot possibly be limited to forging a single debt document, nor could he have acted alone. So we must use this opportunity to capture and punish not only him, but also the forces behind him—all of them, Your Highness."

"…Hmm?"

Lee Hyang, who had already been secretly planning to use Do Cheokji as a starting point to uncover those who deliberately sank grain ships to later recover and steal the rice, as well as those who colluded with local magistrates to reap huge profits while substituting tribute payments, looked at Yunseo in surprise.

This operation was being carried out in utmost secrecy, as the backing forces involved included powerful aristocratic families closely tied to the royal household—such as the Yun clan of Grand Prince Suyang's wife and the Han clan of Han Hwak.

"How do you know this, Yunseo?"

"I have my own sources, Your Highness. Do you think I would simply stand by after someone tried to deceive and harm me—me, a court lady of the East Palace who serves you and a nanny to our baby Hongwi?"

Yunseo spoke earnestly, tightening her grip on his hand while meeting his gaze with a subtly alluring look.

Holding eye contact for a prolonged time was a calculated move, applying a psychological principle that such eye contact can evoke feelings of affection.

Though Lee Hyang had never paid close attention to women out of personal interest, as Crown Prince he had met all kinds of people—from high-ranking officials to Ming envoys, wealthy merchants, and even the lowest servants—each striving fiercely for their own gain. To him, such tactics were transparent.

So this is what they call pillow talk petitions.

Smiling inwardly with satisfaction, Lee Hyang pretended to shake his head, wanting to see more of Yunseo's cute antics.

"What great source could you possibly have? That Do Cheokji is merely a shipowner commanding several fleets and a ruffian—an unscrupulous man who uses his brute strength to collude with shameless people like your stepfamily to traffic and sell human beings."

Yunseo, who still firmly held the historical image of Lee Hyang as a refined and benevolent ruler comparable to King Sejong, had never imagined he could act so slyly.

So, thinking that Lee Hyang was still indifferent to the faction of Grand Prince Suyang—Hongwi's greatest future threat—she grew so frustrated that she ended up bringing up "romance" herself.

"Your Highness, didn't I say I wanted to date and get to know you gradually? Only when I feel that you possess sharp insight into state affairs and will become a wise ruler who eradicates the parasites feeding on the people's suffering… only then might I begin to consider becoming your consort—or whatever it is you desire."

Up until now, whenever "dating" was mentioned, Kwon Yunseo would firmly deny it, saying, "That day I lost my senses from fear and spoke nonsense beyond my station."

But now, she had finally brought up "dating" herself.

Seizing the moment, Lee Hyang pulled the cushion Yunseo was sitting on closer toward him.

Then, just as she had done that day, he cupped her cheeks in his hands and whispered in the same manner.

"Did you not say yourself that dating is simply about liking each other and expressing those feelings—and does not necessarily mean becoming a consort or a royal concubine? I am merely the Crown Prince, and you are merely Hongwi's nanny. We meet, and from time to time, confirm our feelings—"

Then, just as Kwon Yunseo had done to him before, he drew his face very close and whispered again,

"And an adult's romance is also expressed through actions."

"Close your eyes, Kwon Yunseo."

The next day, at the hour of Shin, Yunseo went to Cheonchujeon for the audience with King Sejong that had been postponed due to her illness.