episode_0175

‘Did I talk too much like a child?’

As I was talking, that thought suddenly occurred to me, but I couldn’t help it.

Not only was it impossible to put back into my mouth what I had already spit out, but there was no other way to properly explain the discomfort I felt from Won Soo.

That’s why I tried to tone it down a bit harshly…

No matter how early I was, I guess I didn’t expect to hear those words right away.

Jojo, whose eyes were wide open as if to express his surprise, soon cleared his throat and straightened his expression.

“Can I ask why you say that you should not trust the herbal medicine?”

Then he looked straight at me with eyes that reminded me of violets and asked that question.

Why don’t you say that you knew right away and that you will do as you say?

It would be a lie if I said I wasn’t upset, but at the same time, I could understand Jojo’s attitude.

For the current Cao Cao, Yuan Shao was a political partner and at the same time close to a supporter.

We can see it that way because Cao Cao benefited from Yuan Shao more often than Yuan Shao benefited from Cao Cao.

And since it is such a relationship, from Cao Cao’s perspective, he cannot help but be reluctant to let go of Yuan Shao’s hand.

It’s not that I don’t know Jojo’s position, but I still had to let go.

If you don’t let go now, you might end up living under the shadow of elements for the rest of your life.

Even if we realize that fact too late and struggle to escape, the woman who, despite her bright appearance, has a darker inside than anyone else, will not let us get away easily.

That’s why I decided to answer Jojo’s question to me with another question rather than a proper answer.

It was something I personally absolutely hated, but what can you do?

In order to convince Jojo, build-up is necessary.

“Aman, have you seen it?”

“Huh? Who?”

“I mean Empress Ha. Ah, now she is the Empress Dowager.”

Of course you’ve seen it.

Jojo can be said to be a key member of the major event that took place last winter.

After all, he was responsible for cutting off the head of the infamous Geon-seok.

As such, he would have been assigned a fairly good seat at the emperor’s coronation ceremony held the day before yesterday.

Here, a good position means a position close to the emperor, so Cao Cao, who was occupying such a position throughout the coronation ceremony, would have undoubtedly seen Empress Dowager Xia’s face.

“What do you think? As rumored, is she so beautiful that even the emperor fell in love with her at first sight?”

“… It’s just a lady.”

“Really?”

“No, why are you suddenly asking that?”

Was he more dissatisfied with Empress Dowager Xia’s interest in her appearance than with my response to the question with a question?

Jo Jo’s attitude suddenly became sullen.

“I wonder what you would have seen.”

“So what.”

“I mean Empress Dowager. How do you think it will come out?”

“Well, wouldn’t it be scandalous.”

They say it’s embarrassing.

Yeah, that’s probably the general idea.

From Empress Dowager Xia’s point of view, the son she gave birth to was on the throne, but a lowly eunuch who was locked in prison waiting for her death was threatening her by citing an old relationship.

Normally, out of shame, he would do whatever it takes to rid the world of a guy who doesn’t even know who dared threaten him.

“But what if it is not Empress Dowager Ha, but Ha as a mother who is busy worrying about her son whether he is awake or awake?”

“Do you mean that Empress Dowager Xia will give in to Zhang Yang’s threats?”

“Yes, humans always imagine the worst case. There… No mother would gamble with her child’s life.”

Who were the people who made her and her older sister, who were mere butchers, into empresses and generals, respectively?

They are none other than eunuchs.

Therefore, Empress Dowager Xia would know better than anyone else.

I wonder how far and what the eunuchs can do if they put their minds to it.

Even looking at the current situation, isn’t the power of the eunuch forces almost completely lost to Jang Yang, who succeeded in surviving alone after all of the other ten leaders, including Geon-seok, died?

Therefore, she cannot help but feel even more fear.

“So eventually, Yang Yang will be released.”

As the new emperor came to the throne, Dong, who gave up the title of Empress Dowager and became the Empress Dowager, and even the Empress Dowager, the mother of the current emperor, protected him. What can those who are mere subjects say about that?

No matter how much you curse inside, you will have no choice but to accept such a disposition in the end.

“And the moment he is released…”

“… Revenge will begin.”

Yes, it will be as Jojo said.

Honestly, this was inevitable because Zhang Yang had already lost his dignity as the leader once.

Nevertheless, the reason the remaining eunuch forces still follow him is probably because there is no other alternative right now.

In other words, what if you cannot quickly regain the dignity befitting your position as the leader of a power?

It was clear that he would be eaten by those aiming for that position at any time.

I wonder if a person who spent his time in the imperial palace, from a young man full of energy until he became an old man with a shabby appearance, does not know one very obvious fact.

Of course he would know, and that is why he will begin revenge as soon as he is free.

“Then who is he targeting?”

“Of course… Wouldn’t they target one of the Cheongryu faction members who participated in the last rebellion?”

“That’s usually the case.”

“From what you say, Soohyun, your thoughts seem a little different.”

“That’s right.”

“Then who do you think Jang Yang is targeting?”

Is it okay if I tell you?

Is it okay to say that the moment I mention that name here, many things may change?

I was worried.

Before I open my mouth, I think and think again.

“… Hajin.”

I finally opened my mouth.

I opened my mouth and carefully took out the name I had been keeping inside.

“This guy is going to target Hajin.”

“What is that…”

Yeah, that would be absurd.

Looking at the current situation, it seems that Ha Jin is coaxing and coaxing down the hardliners who want to wipe out the remaining eunuch forces, including Zhang Yang.

So to speak, she plays the same role as a safety pin on a grenade, but the eunuchs remove it with their own hands?

Unless he wanted to commit suicide, he couldn’t have done that.

It is quite obvious that the moment the safety pin called Hajin is removed, the discontent of hardliners, including Won Won, who have been suppressed by it for so long, will explode all at once.

Nevertheless, they, no, Zhang Yang, will commit it.

If things continue like this anyway, it’s obvious that he’ll end up like an old man in the backroom and die with all kinds of humiliation. If that’s going to happen, I think it’s right to aim for at least a comeback.

And since no one would have thought that eunuchs would do such a thing, the likelihood of success was very high.

“What if, really what if… If a situation unfolds where Ha Jin is murdered by eunuchs and the eunuchs hold the emperor and other members of the royal family hostage, who do you think will benefit the most from that situation?”

“Of course… It must be Jang Yang. As long as the emperor is in his hands, no one will be able to move quickly.”

“Even if someone had predicted such a situation in advance?”

“… What?”

“What if you have predicted it in advance and prepared for it?”

Her eyes were trembling as if she was having a hard time believing what I was saying.

I noticed the trembling in my eyes and put my hand into my arms.

Then, he folded it neatly and took out what had been stored inside.

that… It was information.

Tell me what to do.

While Cao Cao, Cao Ren, and others were given official positions and went in and out of the imperial palace, I did not just sit idle.

While they were taking care of various matters within the imperial palace, I ignored Yuan Shao, even refusing the official position he was offered to give me.

And that by mobilizing all of our family’s strength.

It was easier said than done.

They are not called a famous family for nothing, but the Won clan were very thorough in this regard.

The number of people who were sacrificed as a result was worth dozens of pounds.

In fact, it was possible to mobilize not only the power of the Yoonga Trading Company run by our family but also the power of Deokhyeon Pyo-guk, which can be said to be a partner company, so it stopped at that level. What if it had not been so?

There was no doubt that the ship had suffered some damage.

Maybe we could have failed to acquire information after replacing so many people.

Anyway, after chasing after them and replacing the manpower in that way… I was finally able to grab the tail.

Those were the documents I was holding in my hands right now.

“Check it out.”

“This…?”

“It’s a transaction document.”

“Deal?”

“It would be more accurate to call it sponsorship rather than transaction.”

The document I handed over to Cao Cao contained a relatively brief description of the flow and flow of the Wen family’s wealth.

And according to the information we found out from our family… there were two places in total that the funds were ultimately directed to.

“Jungwon, and Dongtak.”

“Wait a minute, if it’s just those two…”

“Yes, they are warlords located in Byeongju.”

For reference, Byeongju was the neighborhood just above Luoyang, where we are now.

In short, it should be said that it is the perfect location to bring soldiers down in times of emergency.

“He Jin, the great general and Minister of Baoding, is murdered by eunuchs. Upon hearing this, the ‘loyal’ warlords near Luoyang, who were enraged, rushed in with their soldiers, burned down the imperial palace, and executed the eunuchs…”

“···.”

“And what if someone steps forward to put that chaos to rest?”

It was an entirely obvious story as to where the power of the government, which was about to float in the air after Ha Jin’s death, would be directed.

And that wasn’t what Jojo wanted.

That’s why I tried to stop it.

Since this wouldn’t have happened if only Ha-jin didn’t die, I tried to prevent it from progressing by providing tight security around Ha-jin…

*****

Hajin died.

The cause of death was poison.