“That is reasonable.”
Wolhwa’s complexion brightened a little.
But to keep the situation in court from wavering.
To guard against a Duke and Chancellor blinded by selfish desire.
She soon returned to a cold expression and opened her mouth.
“However.”
Wolhwa’s gaze sank.
“Since I have rejected Prince Jeongan’s demand, he will surely lead his army and invade.”
Her gaze swept over the court.
“When that time comes, how are we to stand against him?”
A heavy silence settled over the place where her words had ended.
And then—
“The national treasury is the problem.”
Someone spoke as if muttering.
“We lack military funds.”
At that moment.
“There are many ways.”
Yunseo cut in as though he had been waiting.
His voice was filled with conviction.
“Your Majesty.”
He stepped forward.
“These days, taking advantage of the endless disasters, countless merchants are hoarding grain and making outrageous profits.”
Yunseo’s eyes gleamed quietly.
“If we deal with them alone, we can secure sufficient military funds.”
At once—
“That is impossible.”
Jang Munyeon immediately refuted him.
“Do you take them for fools?”
His eyes narrowed.
“They will never hand over their wealth so easily.”
Jang Munyeon’s gaze fixed deeply on Yunseo.
“Yuk Yunseo, I know you are anxious, but a war without preparation is self-destruction.”
Yunseo shook his head.
“So you intend to sit by and do nothing?”
He, too, stared straight at Jang Munyeon.
“If we leave things as they are, an even greater calamity will come.”
Yunseo’s voice lowered.
“There is only one thing Your Majesty must do now.”
He turned his gaze toward Wolhwa.
“Stabilize the lives of the people.”
The court fell silent.
Someone gave the faintest of nods.
“If the people collapse, there will not even be a reason to wage war.”
The Duke interjected with a hardened face.
“Does that not mean you intend to squeeze the people dry?”
“When did I ever say we should lay hands on the people?”
Yunseo’s gaze clashed head-on with the Duke’s.
“Why are you twisting my intent in such a way?”
He tilted his head.
“Is that not what Your Grace desires?”
The air trembled.
The Duke’s face flushed red.
“Are you insulting this Duke with those words? How could I harbor such base thoughts!”
“Insult?”
Yunseo let out a faint laugh.
“What I said was clear.”
His eyes moved from the Duke to Jang Munyeon.
“I said we should strike down those who stole the people’s money. I never said we should strike the people.”
A chilling air lay in his gaze.
“And yet.”
The corner of his mouth twisted in a sneer.
“Your Grace insists on connecting the two. You look as though a thief, pricked by his own guilt, is trying to muddy the essence of the matter.”
Yunseo spoke without the slightest hesitation.
“Did that hit a sore spot?”
At that instant—
The air froze.
“Y-you wretch—!”
The Duke’s already heated face turned an even deeper red, swelling as though it might burst at any moment.
He could not bring himself to continue.
To think that someone would so openly humiliate him, a Duke in name and standing.
Ordinarily—
It was unimaginable.
Without so much as blinking, Yunseo was trampling on the Duke’s pride.
Then.
“Enough.”
Wolhwa stepped in.
With that single word from her, the taut confrontation snapped.
“Yuk Yunseo.”
Her gaze lowered lightly.
“Your opponent is a Duke. Show proper courtesy.”
Yunseo bowed his head.
“I shall obey.”
Then—
Jang Munyeon, who had been staring intently at Yunseo, opened his mouth again.
“Yuk Yunseo, you go yourself.”
The scattered gazes of the court gathered in one place.
“In your capacity as Inspector Censor.”
He smiled faintly.
There was something impure seeping through it.
“Investigating corrupt officials and merchants blinded by profit is originally the duty of a censor, so they would not dare raise objections, would they?”
It was a trap.
Clearly so.
Wolhwa’s brow furrowed.
At that moment—
“Why?”
Jang Munyeon asked with a sneer.
“Are you afraid?”
His gaze grew even more languid.
“If you do not wish to do it, this old man will. As Chancellor of a nation, I even go to the battlefield; something of this degree is nothing.”
And then—
He spat out in a voice laden with mockery.
“But if I, the Chancellor, were to step forward personally, how would the people under heaven look upon you, the Inspector Censor? Would they not point their fingers at you as an incompetent man who pushes even his own duties onto others?”
Yunseo looked at him calmly for a moment before opening his mouth.
“I will do it.”
The court stirred.
“However.”
His gaze changed.
“I have one condition. If information leaks before I make my move.”
His gaze crossed the court.
“No matter who it is, I will pursue them to the end.”
Everyone kept their mouths shut, only gauging one another’s reactions.
“Rank? Status? None of it matters.”
His eyes fixed directly on the Duke.
“That day will be their end.”
Veins stood out on the Duke’s face.
“Are those words aimed at me?”
Yunseo took two steps forward.
Then he gave a light shake of his head.
There was a smile on his lips, but his gaze was cold enough to chill one to the bone.
“This subject is merely doing what he must as Inspector Censor.”
His voice was composed.
“If, in the process, I happen to offend someone’s sensibilities, I humbly ask that they endure it with generosity.”
At Yunseo’s presence, which surpassed mere confidence, the Duke and the Chancellor felt, despite themselves, a tightening in one corner of their chests.
Of all the officials they had seen in their lives, he was harder than any to read, impossible to tell what he held within.
Then.
“Let us end it here.”
Wolhwa opened her mouth.
“The conclusion has already been reached. There is no need for further words.”
Her gaze turned to Yunseo.
“Yuk Yunseo. Do you still have something left to say?”
At that moment—
“Your Majesty!”
The Duke stepped forward again.
Impatience clung to his voice.
“You must not leave this man as he is! Trusting in Your Majesty’s favor, he grows more arrogant by the day. That wretch is now—”
“Enough.”
Wolhwa’s word fell like a single stroke of a blade.
Irritation was mixed in it.
“Duke.”
Her eyes narrowed.
“Is it because you have grown old? You repeat the same words again and again.”
The air froze in an instant.
“Who am I?”
Her gaze drove downward.
“I am the Son of Heaven of this nation. Do you trust the decision I have made so little?”
The Duke’s lips twitched.
But—
In the end, he could say nothing.
“…I shall follow Your Majesty’s will.”
He lowered his head.
Completely suppressed.
Ignoring him, Wolhwa turned her gaze back to Yunseo.
“On your way to attend to state affairs, find me a fine inkstone.”
And she immediately added.
“Remember this.”
Yunseo’s brow twitched slightly.
“I desire only the finest article, so see to it thoroughly that no one passes off an inferior item as a masterpiece.”
Wolhwa’s eyes curved faintly.
“Do you understand?”
Jang Munyeon narrowed his eyes.
On the surface, it seemed like a simple errand, but Chancellor Jang Munyeon immediately grasped the thorn hidden within those words.
It was a warning aimed at those within the court who pretended loyalty on the outside while harboring other intentions within.
The corner of his mouth twisted almost imperceptibly.
‘The Empress has become rather cunning. To think she would put bones in her words and try to pressure us.’
Jang Munyeon snorted inwardly and left the court together with the Duke.
Only after the sound of their footsteps had completely vanished did Wolhwa slowly let out a breath.
“…Did you see?”
She spoke with a weary air.
“Those two. They look ready to trample me down at any moment.”
Yunseo smiled lightly.
“Even so.”
His gaze turned to Wolhwa.
“They will not be able to inflict direct harm upon you.”
“Why is that?”
Wolhwa asked.
Just as Yunseo was about to open his mouth, she spoke again.
“It is not something we can conclude too hastily.”
Wolhwa’s eyes visibly trembled.
“What Prince Jeongan aims for in the end is this entire realm.”
Deep worry settled in her pupils.
“The separate court he established in the north is merely a means to soothe public sentiment. His taking the throne and calling himself emperor was a calculated move to make all the people under heaven point at me as an incompetent monarch.”
“Then should we not show them?”
Yunseo continued.
“Show them who truly is incompetent.”
Wolhwa’s gaze deepened.
“Would that be possible?”
At her question, Yunseo answered without hesitation.
“It is possible.”
His eyes shone clearly.
“Let us reveal it to the world.”
Yunseo’s unwavering gaze gave Wolhwa an indescribable sense of relief.
She quietly took a step closer to his side.
Before long, they were close enough for their breaths to touch.
“Tonight.”
Her voice flowed softly on her breath.
“Come to my sleeping chambers.”
Yunseo blinked for a moment.
“…Your Majesty.”
“I have something to say.”
Her gaze drifted elsewhere for an instant.
“It is important.”
In place of words, only shallow breaths filled the space between them.
Yunseo soon nodded.
“…Understood.”
“Do not be late.”
She restrained her words and turned away.
Yunseo watched her back for a moment, then turned without asking anything further.
“I will return as quickly as possible.”