Chapter 24
“Your Majesty, did you just say you want to arrange Yeon’s marriage? With whom, exactly?”
For the first time in a long while, the royal study echoed with a loud voice.
The Crown Prince’s reaction was exactly what Beom had expected.
Beom, his face worn with fatigue, let out a long sigh. The sigh clouded over the teacup he was holding.
It was a tea Yeon had given him not long ago, saying it was good for calming the body and mind, in her usual casual way.
That was the kind of child Yeon was.
Someone who could forgive even the gravest faults, embracing others with kindness and love.
The Crown Prince standing before him, on the other hand…
“Surely, Your Majesty, you can’t mean Assemblyman Kang Seo-jun? Do you really believe those rumors that he and Yeon are romantically involved?”
There were plenty of attendants within earshot.
Yet the Crown Prince, unable to control his emotions, let crude words spill from his mouth. His character was disappointingly small.
“Crown Prince, mind your tongue.”
“Your Majesty—no, Father. Yeon is still young. She lived abroad for a long time; she knows nothing of our country’s political affairs. And Kang Seo-jun is no asset to the Imperial Household.”
It seemed the discussion would drag on. Beom glanced at Chief Eunuch Jo.
“Leave us.”
Silent footsteps carried the attendants out of the chamber.
For a while, Beom and Byeong (the Crown Prince) both stayed quiet.
“Father, have you seen the bills Kang Seo-jun has introduced in the Assembly? It’s obvious he’s trying to strip the Imperial Family of its powers!”
Tourism revenue tied to the Imperial Household had always been exempt from taxation.
But Kang Seo-jun had proposed a bill to levy taxes on it.
“And that’s not all. He’s even trying to tamper with the royal family’s immunity from arrest!”
At the law reform assembly, Kang Seo-jun had argued that the privilege—which currently extended as far as the Emperor’s eighth cousins—should be limited strictly to direct descendants.
“And there’s more—”
“Enough.”
Beom cut off the Crown Prince, who had been railing against Seo-jun in a fit of anger.
“That is quite enough.”
Byeong’s face brightened, thinking he had won his father over.
“Then surely Your Majesty sees now what a terrible influence he would be if he entered the royal family?”
“Well… whether he would be harmful or beneficial, that is not yet certain.”
At that unexpected answer, the Crown Prince’s lips trembled.
“Crown Prince. Do you remember the day your mother passed away?”
To Byeong, his birth mother had been like a stone lodged in his body—painless most of the time, but unbearable whenever it flared up.
She had entered the palace as a concubine, given birth to the Emperor’s first son, yet died young without ever enjoying luxury or favor. To Byeong, she was a woman who had only ever tormented him before leaving this world.
She was also the very last concubine of the Empire, for Beom had declared monogamy in the Imperial Household thereafter.
Though there had been no affection between them, on the day his mother died, young Byeong had clung to Beom’s robes and wept.
“You feared being cast aside as a child of the old system. But what happened? You became the Crown Prince of this nation.”
“Are you comparing me to Kang Seo-jun?”
“How are you any different?”
“I am of royal blood! And you dare compare me to some commoner like Kang Seo-jun?”
Beom nearly laughed aloud.
He could have simply nodded and conceded that their situations were different.
But to hear the Crown Prince resort to arguing about bloodlines—such medieval feudal thinking left him disheartened.
“Enough. My decision is already made.”
“Your Majesty! I object.”
Of course, the Crown Prince had no right to object to a princess’s marriage in the first place.
The only reason Beom had called him privately was for Yeon’s sake—to share the decision beforehand, preserve the Crown Prince’s pride, and firmly state the Emperor’s will in case trouble arose later.
And Beom’s preparations did not end there.
“I understand your feelings. You clearly care deeply for your sister. Then surely you don’t oppose Yeon marrying altogether? I hear you even introduced her to a suitor recently.”
Byeong flinched. Then cursed Yeon inwardly.
“Already tattling to His Majesty? That little chatterbox…”
He forced himself to calm down.
It seemed Beom had not yet heard details about that meeting.
That was a relief. If the Emperor were to learn that the Crown Prince had tried to set Yeon up with a man of dubious background…
“He would be gravely disappointed. He would rage at me.”
Beom was the reigning Emperor. The throne itself gave him the power to jeopardize the Crown Prince’s position at any moment.
Sweat dampened Byeong’s palms as he clenched them tight.
“I’ll talk my way out of this.”
Clearing his throat, he composed himself.
“Of course, Father. She’s my only sister. And as for that suitor… even if Yeon had taken a liking to him, I had already decided to end it. Upon further investigation, I found problems with him.”
Beom raised an eyebrow.
Feeling cold sweat trickle down his forehead, Byeong quickly continued:
“Those subordinates who failed to conduct proper background checks will soon face severe punishment and be dismissed from their posts.”
(When he returned to his quarters, he resolved to seize some unfortunate servant and make an example of him.)
Beom exhaled deeply before speaking again.
“So, Crown Prince, you only doubt Kang Seo-jun’s qualifications?”
Relieved that Beom was not pressing about Yeon’s meeting, Byeong nodded quickly.
“Yes. And I’ve also heard his character is questionable. He is unworthy of Yeon.”
“Then we shall see proof of it.”
Byeong’s eyes went wide.
“I will issue a Royal Selection Edict.”
It was a shocking proposal.
Or rather, a notion that seemed to drag the times backward.
The gant’aek—Royal Selection—had been a Joseon dynasty practice for choosing a spouse.
In those times, all marriages of eligible men and women would be suspended for a set period, and numerous candidates would be gathered. Through examinations and scrutiny, a final spouse would be chosen.
Even after the founding of the Korean Empire, a few such selections had been held, but they had been abandoned by the 21st century as outdated and inefficient.
It was a discarded custom.
And Beom intended to revive it?
“Your Majesty, there will be fierce backlash.”
“But it is also a way to respect both the Crown Prince’s wishes and the Council of Royal Relatives.”
It was a reasonable explanation: prioritizing unity within the royal family over public opinion.
In fact, this was exactly what Byeong himself had often argued for.
Beom’s attentiveness to public sentiment had, more than once, caused the Imperial Family to suffer losses.
Byeong believed the monarchy’s authority must be restored to its former glory.
So he should have welcomed the idea. Yet something about it unsettled him.
“I tell you this in advance because I trust and respect you. Do not forget that.”
Beom’s voice dropped a tone, carrying a clear warning not to betray that trust.
“Am I just being too sensitive?”
Byeong bowed his head.
“Yes, Your Majesty. Then, perhaps I could oversee the Selection process…”
And with that, he revealed his ambition.
“That is the duty of the Empress.”
“But Her Majesty has not been in good health. What if such a heavy burden worsens her illness? As her son, I cannot simply stand by and watch. Would it not be better for me to manage the process and report to her?”
Byeong’s eyes gleamed.
The Empress was the sort of person who, after a bit of pressure, would simply yield.
If he became the de facto head of the Selection, he could arrange matters as he pleased, using the Empress as a figurehead.
“No matter how much Yeon resists, she won’t escape my grasp.”
He nearly let out a triumphant laugh.
But things rarely go as planned.
“Your filial piety is admirable. But the Crown Prince should not burden himself with such affairs.”
“Then perhaps the Crown Princess might assist? It would be a good opportunity for her to learn court duties as well.”
“This Selection will be the last of its kind. I cannot allow the Crown Princess to waste her strength on a dying tradition. If there are difficulties, the Grand Empress Dowager will support the Empress. You, Crown Prince, should return now.”
The sharp dismissal made Byeong’s eyes widen. His gaze burned with dissatisfaction.
