episode_0151

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Hyuk Kirin had a good night’s sleep for the first time in a long time. Nevertheless, a dark look remained on Hyeok Kirin’s complexion.

It was because Yu-kyung didn’t come to visit last night.

“I hope you rested well.”

Yu-gyeong, who had been visiting Hyuk Kirin every night since entering the palace, was unable to visit him like last night. It was because I had to go to Cheonsanru with Ho Cheon-an, but since I couldn’t say that to Hyuk Kirin, I had no choice but to say that I needed to rest for a day due to my fatigue.

At those words, Hyeok Kirin felt remorse. I watched state affairs during the day and spent time with Hyeok Gi-rin at night. I thought it was okay because he said he would go back and sleep until the sun came up and take a nap to supplement his sleep, but it seemed like it was taking a toll on his body in the end.

“I’d like to at least infuse my brother with some charm today. Is that okay?”

“If the princess does that, His Majesty the Emperor will also be happy.”

The court ladies at Gungcheongjeon were well aware of Sima Jinghui and the emperor Liu Jing’s contact with Hu Tianan. And last night, the three of them left Gungcheongjeon and went somewhere.

However, the court ladies only thought that Yu-gyeong and Sima Gyeong-hwi were finding out what kind of person Ho Cheon-an was. I had no idea that they were plotting a scheming plan to get Ho Cheon-an into the Cheonsangru gambling scene.

In the eyes of the court ladies, the two people only seemed to be an emperor who threw away all his strength to pretend to be an eunuch in order to find out the man the princess liked, and an admiral of Dongchang who was suffering because he was caught by such an emperor.

In the eyes of the court ladies, it was appropriate to say that Yu-gyeong’s love for Hyeok-ki-rin was too much.

Still, I think it’s better to have a lot than nothing at all, and I just try to think positively rather than find fault with the owner of the palace.

In the end, good things were good things.

Although it may be a bit excessive, Emperor Yu-gyeong goes out of his way to help Hyuk Kirin. And Hyeok Gi-rin comes up with a plan to relieve Yu-kyung of her fatigue.

What a heart-warming friendship between siblings!

The friendship between Yu-kyung and Hyeok-ki-rin brought smiles to the faces of the court ladies.

“It’s almost time for refreshments, so I’ll get ready.”

“Um.”

The court ladies began preparing refreshments and tea, and Hyeok Kirin thought of Hocheonan. Every time Hyuk Kirin thought of Hocheonan, he felt his heart becoming a little more disturbed.

Yuya, the imperial princess, has feelings for Ho Cheon-an, and Hyeok Kirin, the martial artist of the Okryong Shinhyeop, has feelings for Ho Cheon-an. It got to the core of the problem that arises from having these two identities at the same time.

‘It’s not an issue that needs to be decided right away, but…’

However, it was also not a problem that could be put off forever.

However, Hyuk Kirin’s complicated feelings disappeared as soon as he saw Ho Cheon-an.

This was because Ho Cheon-an continued to send signals with a tense expression as if he had something to talk about only with the two of them.

The court ladies in Gungcheongjeon felt something about Ho Cheon-an’s attitude and did not want to leave the two alone.

“I would like to take a walk with Warrior Ho for a while, is that okay?”

“Haona Daehyup.”

“Wouldn’t it be okay if you followed me from afar? I’m so frustrated.”

It was impossible to ignore Hyeok Kirin’s request.

“Huh, aren’t the people who easily keep their distance when they are together being too strict?”

Since Yu-gyeong and Sima Gyeong-hwi were court ladies who were absent every time they contacted Ho Cheon-an, there was no reason to show them around, so they had no choice but to give them alone time.

‘Why is Musa Ho like this?’

“What’s going on?”

Hyuk Kirin looked at Ho Cheon-an with an expression full of puzzlement. This is the interior of the imperial palace and Gungcheongjeon, where guests stay. In the first place, it was not easy for a disturbance to occur inside the imperial palace, and Hyeok Kirin was currently staying in the palace hall.

Is it just that? At night, even the emperor Yugyeong comes to visit.

It was no exaggeration to say that the entire imperial palace now revolved around Gungcheongjeon. In this situation, would Hocheonan send such a signal?

“Do you know that I have been given the title?”

“You told me last time.”

I heard a story about internal affairs being involved in education. I heard it from Ho Cheon-an and I also heard it from Yu-kyung. Did you say that spending time with a naekwan of the same sex could reduce the burden on Hocheonan?

Was there a problem with those two insiders?

“…I went to two inner halls and a gambling den yesterday.”

“Yes?”

Ho Cheon-an’s story was a story that went far beyond Hyeok Kirin’s imagination. Ho Cheon-an shared his reasoning. Suddenly two people approached, one seemed to be an imperial family member and the other was from the Sima family.

Those people gambled by stealing the emperor’s prize, and if they did not return it, they would die, so they asked for help.

It was a suspicious situation, but considering my relationship with Sima Yan, I agreed to it.

However, when he arrived at the gambling house, the two people and the gambler were part of a gang and were planning to rob him.

I got away with my gambling skills today, but I don’t know how the two will get out next time.

“Perhaps this would be a good idea. It seems like I’m caught up in something big.”

Hyeok Kirin looked at Ho Cheon-an, who was sighing, and guessed the outline of the incident.

Now, the palace hall was not in a situation where a crazy emissary trying to rob the emperor’s guests could enter.

So who are those two insiders?

Hyeok Gi-rin remembered the day when he and Yu-kyeong were talking about gambling. My brother, who had been angry at me to keep my distance from Ho Cheon-an, became silent and then suddenly changed his attitude.

I didn’t want to blush about that topic, so I took it as an unspoken signal to just move on…

Was this scheme being planned behind the scenes?

‘Sama Gyeong-hwi and… brother…’

A fake eunuch and Sima Huijing, presumed to be members of the royal family? This was too obvious. No, I heard that he was trying to steal the imperial guests who came with him from the imperial palace and make a fortune at the gambling table?

Hyuk Kirin gritted his teeth.

“I will take care of it.”

“No, what are you going to do? The opponent may be a member of the royal family, and it is the Sima clan.”

“It’s okay. I can’t tell you everything, but I have some connections in Luoyang. Please leave this matter to me.”

“Um…are you sure it’s okay?”

“Hehehe, hehehe…of course. Please, definitely, definitely, delegate this task to me.”

Ho Cheon-an swallowed his saliva as he saw Hyeok-ki-rin’s life-filled smile. Isn’t this going to be a big problem? He thought that Hyuk Kirin would be angry, but this current appearance was different from the anger that Ho Cheon-an had imagined.

“Well…the Sima family is also involved…”

“Ahahahaha! Don’t worry! I am! all! By-self! process! I’ll do it! Hehehe!”

“Hmm… since you said it so strongly… I understand. Let’s just trust Hyeokkirin Daehyup.”

Hyeok Gi-rin returns to his room after breaking up with Ho Cheon-an.

Hyeok Kirin’s room, which had been filled with warmth just moments ago while reminiscing about the friendship between siblings, was literally frozen as if the Great Ice Age had arrived.

“After.”

The court ladies realized that something was going wrong and bowed closely. Cold sweat ran down the backs of the court ladies as the majesty of Princess Yuya, who was born into the imperial family, was added to the momentum of Hyeok Kirin, a transcendent expert who had honed both body and mind.

“Ho I heard that the ronin and the naekwan got along well?”

“…That’s right. Princess Mama.”

“And those two people were Sima Qinghui and your brother?”

The court ladies felt themselves suffocating. A death-like silence enveloped Daejeon, and Hyeok Kirin’s frost-like gaze swept over the court ladies.

“Yes, I understand you answered.”

Hyeok Kirin…laughed.

“Hehe. Huhuhu.”

gulp.

The court ladies swallowed their saliva and lowered their heads even more as Hyuk Kirin laughed.

“I thought you were busy taking care of state affairs during the day, but in fact, at that time, your brother was taunting Master Ho. And then at night, let’s pretend! You took off and met me. So, I heard you went on a night out with warrior Ho yesterday?”

“Kill me! Princess Mama!”

“Kill me! Princess Mama!”

The court ladies in Gungcheongjeon bowed down all at once. All the court ladies cooperated in helping Ho Cheon-an escape from Gungcheongjeon. In other words, it could be said that he deceived Hyeok Gi-rin by matching the rhythm of Yu-gyeong.

“I was worried because I was tired, but it turns out I was completely fooled by my brother. Huhuhu.”

“Princess Mama!”

“Mama!”

“Yes…Your brother is probably looking at the real state affairs right now. As a princess of the imperial family, how could she interfere with state affairs? So…let’s look at Sima Jinghui first.”

Hyeok Kirin said.

“Bring Admiral Dongchang. Right now!”

*** ***

A heated debate was in full swing in Daejeon.

The basic flow of state affairs is that subjects come up with solutions they think are best when dealing with the nation’s affairs, and the emperor selects one of the solutions prepared by each subject and implements it.

How will the confiscated assets of the golden family be utilized?

That was the topic of today’s national affairs.

“Hehe, wouldn’t it be a priority to start with the road maintenance project in Hwangcheon-daero? How many poor people do you think there are in Luoyang Province right now? If you mobilize them for labor, you can kill two birds with one stone because you can solve both poverty relief and road maintenance projects at the same time!”

“Road maintenance is also an important task. However, the Luoyangseong Waterway Improvement Project to improve Luoyang’s waterways is urgent! It’s urgent! It has been postponed for several decades due to lack of budget. Decades! When it rains, Luoyang is likely to turn into a sea of water!”

“Road maintenance and waterway maintenance are both good. But isn’t there an order to things? Not only 5,000 taels of gold but also a lot of grain will come from Sacheon, and in order to accommodate it, I think we need to start with a warehouse maintenance project first.”

Yu-gyeong looked blankly at the ministers who were arguing over how to use the Golden House’s budget.

In fact, I didn’t even listen to the talk about state affairs.

‘Whoa…’

Yugyeong sighed deeply. In fact, yesterday’s loss was not Yu-kyung’s first loss. After ascending to the throne, Yu-kyung continued to fight in this political arena and lost countless times.

However, although his will was broken and he was defeated, his heart was never broken.

Whenever Yu-gyeong was unable to carry out her will in state affairs and her will was broken by her subjects, she would remember Hyeok Kirin and gather herself. How could the younger brother step into the martial arts world rife with blood and swords in order to protect his brother’s imperial authority?

I will absolutely establish absolute imperial power and bring Yuya back to the imperial family!

With that thought in mind, he strengthened the imperial authority, weakened the divine authority, and expelled factions. In the process, I experienced countless adversities and sometimes helpless defeat.

Nevertheless, Yu-kyung did not back down. Adversity and defeat only served as firewood and fueled Yu-kyung’s will.

In this way, he dismantled the faction that supported Yuya, strengthened the imperial authority, and took away the power of his subjects. By increasing the power of Dongchang and Geumwiwi, they were equipped with military and intelligence power.

Although Yugyeong was a giant who was taking control of this great empire…

Yesterday, Ho Cheon-an felt a wall.

In a situation where an overwhelming victory was expected, they suffered an overwhelming and cruel defeat. It wasn’t just a matter of losing.

My heart broke.

The thought that no matter what I did, I would not be able to defeat Ho Cheon-an at the gambling table, was deeply embedded in my mind.

Yu-kyung chewed her lips.

‘….good night. ‘I admit it.’

Yu-kyung admitted defeat.

He got into a fight with Hyeok Kirin because he was obsessed with the preconceived notion that he was just a gambler.

He treated Hyuk Kirin like a child who didn’t know anything about the world, and he planned this to break Hyuk Kirin’s trust in Ho Cheon-an, but he simply admitted that he had been humiliated by Ho Cheon-an.

How did my research to find out about Hocheonan end up like this?

Yu-kyung blushed as she thought about the indecent behavior she had committed.

“Road maintenance! Road maintenance! Road maintenance is the livelihood of the people!”

“Waterway improvement! Waterway improvement! Waterway improvement is a long-awaited project that needs to be resolved!”

“Warehouse expansion! Warehouse expansion is the future!”

Yu-kyung opened her eyes. Then he clenched his fist and hit the armrest of the chair.

Quaaaang!

The sound of light echoed throughout Daejeon. The power of the throne is specially designed to make a loud sound when you hit the armrest!

“ Sirs–!!”

Yu-kyung burst out in anger as she got up from her seat.

“They raise their voices like this just by planning a budget that came in for free!!”

“Please inform me, Your Majesty!”

“That damn touch, touch! I don’t want to hear it! Did I tell you to make money? Didn’t I tell you to write? Write! Some people fill up the treasury while performing their duties as governor, so what on earth are you doing!!!!”

“Please pray for me! Lungeee!!”

“I feel like sending you to Sichuan Province right now and ordering them to teach Sima Yan a lesson! How can it be so frustrating for the ministers who are responsible for the central government’s affairs!”

“Tong…!”

“Stop! stop! Today’s state affairs will be resolved here! If a proper budget plan is not brought in by the next national administration, prepare to be alarmed then!”

Yu-kyung left the room and felt a little relieved. Somehow, I felt like the black things in my heart were flowing away.

‘I was so narrow-minded… and petty.’

I just tried to find things I didn’t like, find fault with them, and put people down. Yu-kyung affirmed that fact in her heart and calmly nodded.

Okay, let’s think positively. Since you will never, never, never lose at a gambling table, you have one less thing to worry about. Even if a business goes bankrupt due to a bad luck or the family is destroyed, if you have that gambling skill, you will bounce back in an instant.

There were many aspects that could be evaluated positively.

Even though Ho Cheon-an didn’t have to work hard since he had sky-high gambling skills, he earned money by sweating as a Sichuan ronin. He used to neglect martial arts due to his arrogance, but these days, isn’t he even more devoted to martial arts?

‘This time…let’s see what Hocheonan really is.’

Let’s only evaluate the character of Ho Cheon-an, whom I have seen and felt with my own eyes. Even now, it would be enough to acknowledge the narrow-minded view and look at Hocheon-an with new eyes.

‘Let’s just look at and evaluate Hotianan correctly…and decide if he is a good match for Yuya!’

Yu-kyung returned home with a refreshed mind.

He had to greet the court ladies of Gungcheongjeon and the eunuchs from his class, who were waiting for him with pale complexions.