Chapter 79

The Empress was so pale from sickness that she was practically bloodless. Even though she remained only in her palace with the Empress Dowager’s and Emperor’s permission, she was always perfectly dressed.

“I, too, wish to see her soon. Escort Consort Gwi-bi inside.”

“I obey your command.”

The palace matron paid her respects to the Empress and backed out. The momentarily closed door opened, and light footsteps entered the chamber. The person whom Palace Matron Ye, who rarely praised the appearance of others, had highly evaluated was wearing an elegant robe. His movement as he paid his respects was immaculate and graceful.

“Consort Gyo of Giryung Palace pays her respects to Her Majesty the Empress. May Her Majesty the Empress enjoy boundless fortune. I apologize for offering my greetings abruptly and without permission. Please forgive my rudeness.”

“Please rise.”

“I am overwhelmed by your grace.”

Yeon-oh rose neither quickly nor slowly. The Empress on the main seat clearly saw his face, but Yeon-oh, with his gaze lowered, was only looking at the floor.

“Welcome, Consort Gwi-bi Gyo. I suffer from a coughing illness, so it is difficult for me to speak for long. Let us skip the formalities. You said you had something urgent to tell me?”

The Empress urgently motioned, bringing up the main point. Palace Matron Ye quickly brought a teacup containing moderately cooled tea to the Empress’s lips.

“Please forgive me for speaking without observing the proper etiquette, as the matter is urgent. Yun So-hwa is asking for forgiveness at Handan Palace. At noon today, Yun So-hwa’s eunuch is said to have dropped an item while taking a pouch from his clothes. The item belonged to a consort, and I am a man, so it is difficult for me to speak of it.”

The Empress nodded at Yeon-oh’s hesitation. The Empress took another sip of tea and lightly dabbed her lips with a handkerchief.

“Yun So-hwa’s eunuch was caught at the scene and taken to the residence of the owner of the item. The investigation into Yun So-hwa’s residence has also concluded, revealing that the eunuch had committed additional crimes. I have heard that Yun So-hwa has served Your Majesty the Empress and His Majesty the Emperor for a long time. I wish for Her Majesty the Empress to adjudicate this matter.”

“Yun So-hwa and I have a long history together.”

The Empress’s voice was even more frail and lacked energy because she spoke while covering her lips with a handkerchief.

“What exactly is the item that Consort Gwi-bi finds difficult to speak of?”

At the Empress’s question, Yeon-oh brought his face close to So-ha, who was attending beside him, and whispered. [Read on RanaTranslations🌸] So-ha’s eyes widened at his words.

Yeon-oh motioned with his hand, urging So-ha.

So-ha went to the palace matron beside the main seat and conveyed the whispered message. The expressionless face of the palace matron suddenly crumpled. The matron looked back at So-ha and Yeon-oh, then quietly reported the matter to the Empress.

“It is an undergarment worn on the upper body.”

The Empress, who was pressing her mouth with a handkerchief, was also startled. The Empress took a sip of tea and spoke calmly.

“Who are the ones who lost the items?”

“They are Consort Jin and Consort Du-Cheob-yeo,”

Yeon-oh cautiously replied.

Silence descended upon the palace hall.

The Empress drank her tea, suppressing the cough that threatened to burst out. Yeon-oh kept silent, waiting for her decision. After a long moment of silence, the Empress opened her mouth.

“Do you have anything more to say?”

“I apologize, Your Majesty the Empress. I cannot confirm whether the eunuch involved in the incident, Yun So-hwa’s eunuch, is truly innocent or guilty. Perhaps the eunuch may have committed a greater crime than the one he has been accused of. The same goes for everyone connected to the incident. I cannot be certain of Yun So-hwa’s innocence either. Nevertheless, I wish for Your Majesty the Empress to show mercy to Yun So-hwa, who has recently endured several incidents.”

The Empress nodded, her mouth still pressed by the handkerchief. Many thoughts seemed to be passing over her silent face.

“The Imperial Palace is a harsh place.”

The Empress spoke after a long silence. The ambiguous words were difficult to grasp.

Yeon-oh guessed that the Emperor’s lenient decision in the past when Yun So-hwa claimed her innocence might have been an action guided by the Empress’s will. That was why he had hoped to rely on the Empress’s generosity this time as well.

“I will engrave your words.”

“Consort Gwi-bi, may I ask you to attend to me?”

The Empress said, extending her arm toward Yeon-oh. Despite sitting on the dignified main seat, her body, heavy with sickness, looked frail. Her voice, though elegant, lacked strength, which was pitiful.

“It is an honor.”

Yeon-oh was relieved just by the Empress stepping forward. He bowed deeply and approached the waiting arm, serving her carefully.

At Handan Palace, the same words were being repeated.

Yun So-hwa’s eunuch insisted on his innocence.

The consorts, whose intimate personal items had suddenly become evidence, vehemently denied any knowledge of the matter. Consort Jin burst into tears of distress, and Consort Du-Cheob-yeo loudly demanded that the culprit be punished for the sake of her honor.

Yun So-hwa knelt beside her eunuch, asking for forgiveness and appealing for the Imperial Palace’s generosity. Her voice had long since become hoarse from her desperate pleas.

“Her Majesty the Empress is arriving!”

A eunuch’s shout echoed from the main gate of Handan Palace.

“The, the Empress?”

Consort Bi’s face blurred with shock. She was sitting on the main seat of the interrogation room as the superior in charge of Consort Jin’s residence. Beside her was Consort Hyeok, who managed the consorts’ register in place of the frail Empress.

“We pay our respects to Her Majesty the Empress. May Her Majesty the Empress enjoy boundless fortune.”

Consort Hyeok was the first to pay respects. Following her, the consorts in the interrogation room rose one by one and paid their respects.

“We pay our respects to Her Majesty the Empress. May Her Majesty the Empress enjoy boundless fortune.”

“We pay our respects to Her Majesty the Empress. May Her Majesty the Empress enjoy boundless fortune.”

Consort Bi also rose without delay. As she paid her respects beside Consort Hyeok, footsteps approached the interrogation chamber. Then, a eunuch’s loud voice boomed through the hall.

“Her Majesty the Empress is arriving!”

A sound of hurried gasping could be heard from somewhere.

“It’s Consort Gwi-bi Gyo?”

“Why is Consort Gwi-bi…”

Consort Bi raised her gaze at the low murmuring. Just as the faint whispers suggested, Consort Gwi-bi was attending to the Empress. Not only Consort Bi, but also Consort Hyeok and Yun So-hwa had surprised eyes.

Everyone in the interrogation chamber stared, mesmerized, at the Empress entering while being attended by Consort Gwi-bi, then hastily lowered their eyes.

He escorted the Empress to the highest main seat.

And he directed his own seat to be placed lower, and he too paid his respects like the other consorts.

“Everyone, please rise.”

The Empress could not hide her sickness, but with it came great dignity. The grace cultivated from living as a member of the royal family for no short time had the power to make those who faced her lower their heads.

“We are overwhelmed by your grace.”

Yeon-oh was the first to rise. [Read on RanaTranslations🌸] Following him, Consort Hyeok, Consort Bi, and the other consorts sat down in turn.

“I have heard that an unseemly incident occurred today. As this matter directly touches upon the consorts’ honor, no one shall utter a word of this incident after this moment.”

“We obey your command.”

The chief eunuch of the interrogation chamber, standing guard by the main seat, replied.

“However…!”

Consort Bi opened her mouth urgently.

“My words are not finished, Consort Bi.”

“I apologize.”

At the Empress’s stern words, Consort Bi did not step forward further and shut her mouth.

“Yun So-hwa, I hear much has happened to you recently. Cough, cough, hmmm… Although a eunuch close to Yun So-hwa is closely related to a disrespectful incident, Yun So-hwa is a person who has served me and His Majesty for a long time. It would not do to leave a consort who serves His Majesty on the floor like this. Escort Yun So-hwa to rise.”

The Empress’s palace matrons carefully helped Yun So-hwa, who was collapsed powerlessly on the floor, stand up.

“Your Majesty the Empress, I am overwhelmed by your grace.”

Yun So-hwa expressed her gratitude with her completely hoarse voice.

“One cannot discuss guilt based only on superficial evidence without deep consideration. The affairs of the world are not always simple. The two consorts of the palace should forget about the evidence that was exposed contrary to your will. I will adjudicate this matter. I will also take Yun So-hwa and her eunuch, Yi-chun, with me.”

Yeon-oh attended to the Empress with tea beside her. If a cough was about to burst out and her breathing became sharp, he offered the teacup, and when the Empress finished her thought, he took the teacup back.

Even when the Empress, having finished her words, attempted to rise, he rose first and helped her stand by relying on his arm.

“Thank you.”

The Empress smiled and conveyed her gratitude. The eyes that looked up at Yeon-oh’s face, which still showed traces of youth compared to hers, held an emotion akin to looking at a very young younger sibling.

“It is nothing.”

The Empress tapped Yeon-oh’s hand with a familiarity that did not violate etiquette.

It was when Yeon-oh was about to escort her outside. Hurrying footsteps and urgent gasps of breath approached.

“We pay our respects to Her Majesty the Empress. May Her Majesty the Empress enjoy boundless fortune. Your Majesty, your health is still not good. You must not go out into the cold air.”

A voice full of worry spoke familiarly.

“Jun, you are late. Rise.”

The Empress also replied affectionately, calling the person by his name with ease. Dam So-ui briefly acknowledged Yeon-oh, who was standing beside the Empress, with a nod.

“Consort Gwi-bi.”

“Dam So-ui.”

Yeon-oh also replied briefly.

The Empress lightly patted Yeon-oh’s arm once and dismissed his attendance. Seeing this, Dam So-ui quickly approached and supported the Empress with a gesture much closer than Yeon-oh’s.

He knew that the Empress’s maternal family was the Dam clan. But he did not know that the Empress and Dam So-ui were close enough for the Empress to call him by name.

The Empress, who seemed about to move, stepped toward Yeon-oh.