Chapter 35
Episode 35. How to Fully Understand the Monarch's Heart (1)
“Gwaya, get up.”
The Queen told Yunseo, who was lying prostrate on the bare ground, to get up.
Yunseo got up with a sense of relief and first looked at Hongwi.
Our Hongwi was engrossed in playing fishing with Jaseon.
The Queen also saw Gwonga.
Her face, which had been tense with anticipation of her wish being granted, softened as she took in the sight of Gwonga, filled with deep affection, looking at Hongwi first.
“His Highness the Grandson has truly found a good nanny, Your Majesty the Queen.”
Chief Consort Choi, who had followed into the private residence of the Sim clan of Cheongsong as a royal lady and had been with the Queen her entire life, subtly confirmed the Queen’s judgment.
“Did you inform the Royal Physicians?”
“Yes, Your Majesty the Queen. I have already sent word to the East Palace to examine Kwon Ga, the maid, and prepare a medicinal decoction.”
“Did you hear that?”
The Queen asked Yunseo.
“Yes, Your Majesty the Queen. Thank you. I will drink it with all sincerity.”
“And you would drink it without knowing what kind of medicine it is?”
“······!”
What kind of medicine?
A list of dreadful medicines seen in countless historical dramas flashed through her mind.
Could it be······?
Yunseo turned her head in surprise to look at the Queen.
Then, for the first time, the Queen smiled brightly at Yunseo and said,
“I heard you were exhausted last night. This medicine is to ensure you don’t harm yourself, so drink it well.”
“!”
My goodness.
Yunseo’s face flushed crimson.
The Queen’s eyes sparkled again as she said,
“Hyangyi is utterly smitten with you right now and wants to give you all the good and precious things in the world. She would probably try to pluck the moon from the sky and give it to you if she could.”
“···Yes······.”
“Then what should you do, Gwaya? What will you do when the future monarch, finding you exceedingly lovely, insists on appointing you as a consort?”
“···That it is not in accordance with the law, so please withdraw the request,”
“Incorrect.”
“···Yes?”
“Do you not understand what it means to refuse the monarch’s desire to give with the excuse of law?”
“I am foolish and do not understand, so please teach me.”
“······.”
The Queen gazed at Yunseo and said,
“Since you are sincere towards our Hongwi, I will tell you as the daughter-in-law of the royal family and as a Queen who has experienced tragedy. Gwaya, a monarch is a being who gets angry. Standing in a position above all others, they possess immense authority, so they get angry when you refuse what they believe they can give, they get angry when you ask for what they cannot give, and most of all.”
“···Yes, Your Majesty the Queen.”
“They get most angry at those who do not strive to understand their heart and humbly accept it.”
“!”
“If you wish to remain by Hongwi’s side, you must strive to understand the Crown Prince’s heart and make your requests accordingly. Do you understand?”
Lee Hyang’s heart.
The heart of Lee Hyang, who wished to make Yunseo his woman.
A sudden realization struck Yunseo that any words spoken by others, not by her, could provoke Lee Hyang’s anger.
“···Your Majesty the Queen, I am truly grateful for your advice.”
“Yes, ask the Crown Prince yourself. The Crown Prince will not be able to hear anyone else’s words right now.”
With those words, the Queen approached Hongwi and began playing fishing with him.
Watching the usually strict Queen’s face shine with maternal affection as she looked at Hongwi, Yunseo decided she should have Hongwi come and learn sometimes when she taught him letters.
From behind, a young woman’s cheerful voice was heard.
“Mother, Mother, our His Highness the Grandson!”
Princess Jeongui had entered the palace with her eldest son, Yeodal.
Six-year-old Yeodal, upon seeing Hongwi, shouted, “His Highness the Grandson! Let’s play fishing!” and ran towards him.
Princess Jeongui, watching her son’s retreating back with affectionate eyes, turned her gaze to Yunseo.
“Welcome, Princess Consort.”
Yunseo bowed deeply, her waist bent, and as she greeted her, Princess Jeongui took her hand to help her up and said teasingly,
“I don’t know what to call you.”
Sigh, so even the princesses who enter the palace know now.
Yunseo’s ears turned red with embarrassment and shyness. Princess Jeongui whispered into her ear,
“Who would have known my elder brother would be so passionate? It’s unbelievable, truly.”
“······.”
There is truly no privacy in the palace. Sigh.
That day, until the afternoon, Hongwi played excitedly with Yeodal, and Yunseo discussed with Princess Jeongui how to structure the Book of Rites.
And leaving Hongwi, who had played all day and fallen asleep quickly, the time came to face Lee Hyang.
Eom Sangjeon, who came to inform her that she could meet Lee Hyang at Bihyeon Pavilion, said that Grand Prince Kim Jongseo and Grand Prince Jeong Inji had just left Bihyeon Pavilion, and,
“But those two Grand Princes took off their official robes and left wearing only their thin inner robes. Sigh, His Highness decreed that once his official duties for the day were finished, he would always wash and change into loose, thin garments, and it seems his officials are also unable to bear the heat and are following His Highness’s lead.”
“Sigh, what is the world coming to,” she clicked her tongue.
This is a good thing.
If the cumbersome official robes, which required attendants to help put on, disappear, fewer people will be needed for clothing assistance, and thus there will be changes in how people are employed in daily life.
Thinking this, Yunseo walked towards Bihyeon Pavilion, holding a lantern.
Her heart did not pound as violently as it had the day before when she went to confess her identity as a soul from the future, but she was tense in a different way.
This was the first time they would face each other after the passionate hours that had lasted until dawn.
However, as advised by the Queen, Yunseo had prepared her own strategy based on the portrayal of Crown Prince Lee Hyang in the historical records she had skimmed through, curious about the lives of Munjong and the late Crown Princess Consort Kwon after their deaths, and had resolved to ‘fully understand Lee Hyang’s heart and make careful requests.’
“Your Highness, Kwon Ga, the maid, has arrived.”
“Tell her to come in.”
As the eunuch pushed the door open, Lee Hyang was already standing at the entrance.
Perhaps because of the story that he died suddenly from boils, Lee Hyang had already taken off his thin robe and was wearing a loosely unbuttoned thin single-layered jeogori.
He was a handsome man with a beautiful collarbone, our His Highness.
Yunseo, not knowing where to look, blushed and lowered her head.
“Why are you shy, my lady? After such passionate play last night, and now this.”
Lee Hyang’s every gesture, teasing her affectionately, was filled with the ease that comes from the certainty that the woman before him was completely his.
Now was the time to act with effort, in accordance with that trust.
Yunseo concluded that Lee Hyang was not genuinely interested in filling the position of Crown Princess, as the records indicated that after the death of the late Consort Kwon, several decrees for selection had been issued, but no royal marriage had ever been performed.
Therefore, she believed his unreasonable claim to appoint her as Crown Princess was a smokescreen to have her appointed to a higher rank than the current highest rank in the East Palace’s concubines, the fourth-rank Seunghwi, such as the third-rank Yangwon or the second-rank Yangje.
Furthermore, inferring from the strict order not to mention the names of those who collaborated with Grand Prince Suyang’s coup the previous night, Yunseo reasoned that Lee Hyang, like King Sejong, was a monarch who greatly cherished outstanding talents, and would be extremely covetous of Yunseo’s modern knowledge.
Based on this thoroughly considered analysis, Yunseo planned to present the ideal candidate that the future wise ruler, Lee Hyang, would most favor.
However······.
Lee Hyang was already slyly reaching for Yunseo’s clothes tie.
Yunseo pushed his intrusive hand away and shook her head resolutely.
“Your Highness, tonight is simply impossible.”
Then Lee Hyang scooped Yunseo up and sat her on a cushioned chair, which he seemed to have prepared, and replied in a deep voice,
“I know, my lady. I will merely caress you a little.”
“······.”
He is indeed the son of His Majesty, who is both fond of learning and fond of pleasure.
“Your Highness, I have something very, very important to tell you, so please focus.”
“Like Father, I remember most things once I read or hear them, so please speak without concern, my lady.”
“······.”
Ah, I don’t care anymore.
Yunseo continued to speak, trying to ignore the large hand probing under her clothes.
“Your Highness, do you not wish for a versatile talent?”
“Outstanding talent is always a monarch’s joy.”
“I have studied for nearly twenty-five years, in various fields, from basic educational institutions like village schools to advanced educational institutions like Sungkyunkwan!”
“Oh, so you said you have the skill to pass the highest examination.”
“Is it not a waste to let such an outstanding talent languish among the concubines······?”
“!”
The hand that had been fumbling stopped abruptly.
Lee Hyang embraced Yunseo so tightly she could barely breathe and whispered into her ear in a cold tone,
“My lady, did you not like the me of last night?”
“No! I liked you very, very much!”
“Then why are you trying to push away someone like me, who is more handsome than the man of my dreams and also good at night, too?”
“It’s not that. If I become a concubine, I will receive a separate pavilion and have to move out of the ondol room, and then I won’t be able to see Your Highness as freely as I do now.”
“Hmm, so that’s why······. You like me much more than I thought.”
Seemingly pleased with her answer, Lee Hyang chuckled, his chest heaving, and resumed his caresses.
“Please continue, my lady. Tell me what other versatile talents you wish to be, besides being a woman who likes her husband too much and wants to stay close to the Jaseon Hall ondol room.”
“······.”
Who wrote in the history books that Munjong was a dignified, proper monarch who avoided women!
He is so cunning!
But she had safely passed the first hurdle.
Now it was time to pass the second.
“I have extensive knowledge in many fields. Especially, I know well how Joseon developed and declined.”
“Then, besides the matter of currency from last time, tell me something else.”
“Your Highness, did His Majesty implement the Yeongbun-gudeungbeop, which he created by surveying the nation’s land?”
“!”
This time too, Lee Hyang’s hands stopped and his body stiffened, but for a different reason than before.
It seemed he was seriously considering for the first time how the fragmented knowledge Yunseo was sharing could impact the lives of the people and the future of Joseon.
Lee Hyang, who had been holding Yunseo tightly without moving for a long time, finally sat up.
He then sat Yunseo on the chair behind the large work desk, holding her, and commanded, holding a brush in one hand.
“My lady, tell me about the historical changes in Joseon’s Jo-yong-jo system.”
The work chair was too small for Lee Hyang to sit stably, unlike the cushioned chair from before.
So, Yunseo had to wrap her arms tightly around Lee Hyang’s neck to avoid falling, and then she could speak what came to mind.
“Sejong, meaning His Majesty the King’s posthumous title will be Sejong later, the Yeongbun-gudeungbeop that Sejong painstakingly created for the people, despite its good intentions, did not have much effect due to the difficulties in its actual implementation.”
“What were the practical difficulties?”
“According to the books, the very act of dividing it into nine grades was cumbersome, the fertility of the land could change year by year, the harvest depended on the weather each year, and most importantly, there was no objective standard for evaluating the grades, so there were many cases where people bribed officials to be assessed at a lower grade.”
“Hmm······. Originally, it was planned to be implemented next year based on the plan created by Jeong Inji.”
Lee Hyang muttered, scribbling what Yunseo said in elegant Hanja, and asked again.
