Chapter 96

This was different from the promise.

‘I was tricked.’

Though she felt tricked, Mo-hwa did not regret it. She had already received silver pieces far exceeding a year’s worth of salary.

With that money, her parents and siblings could live without worry for a while. If she had received all the promised silver, she would have been worry-free for life, but she didn’t think she would truly be given that much money in the first place.

It was very unfortunate, though.

The Gwi-bi was the best superior Mo-hwa had ever met. He summoned the Imperial Physician to treat her, even though she was just a court maid who was ill. He had him check for potential hazards.

Although the possibility of it being a contagious disease was small, he replaced all the belongings of the sick her and the maids who shared her room with new ones, just in case.

Her friends would not be in danger.

Mo-hwa herself had already consumed all the pills that caused the illness. However, her mind was much more at ease knowing that all the belongings of her friends, who were afraid upon seeing symptoms that resembled a plague, were replaced.

On the other hand, it was so regrettable that she might die without ever using the best new things she had ever owned that she felt like crying.

She wondered if she should tell the Gwi-bi the truth now and beg him to save her. Contrary to rumors, the Gwi-bi was a good person, and he would not treat the sick her so heartlessly. If she explained well that she was tricked, he might even let her keep the new things.

But she wasn’t confident she could explain well. Her mind was fading in and out. The Gwi-bi was lenient and compassionate towards his subordinates, but he would immediately notice if she told an awkward lie.

Yet, she also feared that if she confessed everything, the silver she had sent home might be taken away. Even if she didn’t lose her life, she would definitely be punished. The fact that she accepted the proposal because it involved her taking the poison, not giving poison to the Gwi-bi or harming the pavilion maids, would not be an important detail to a superior.

Mo-hwa fell asleep amidst the dizziness.

When she woke up again.

The fever that had spiked for three days had somewhat subsided, and she wasn’t in as much pain as on the first day. However, she didn’t know when the illness would worsen again.

It was the early morning outside.

At this hour, the eunuch Seok, who guarded the pavilion and provided assistance, was away resting. Fortunately, this time was when Mo-hwa and her contact were scheduled to meet.

Mo-hwa collected her wits and left the pavilion, cautiously moving along the deserted passage while checking her surroundings. The sun had not fully risen yet, making the darkness outside even deeper. Her body, exhausted from the illness, moved stealthily along the deserted passage.

*****

Yeon-oh was eating doso-byeong (a type of rice cake) made by Gwak Jin. [Read on RanaTranslations🌸] Gwak Jin had come all the way from Goksan to the capital to make and deliver them. The savory doso-byeong paired well with the fragrant tea.

“Donhu Palace?”

Suspicion filled Yeon-oh’s face as he moistened his lips with tea.

“Yes, the person who made contact with Mo-hwa entered the Donhu Palace immediately after meeting her.”

The Donhu Palace was Dam So-ui’s chamber.

“Dam So-ui’s demeanor when she came to look for the golden phoenix hairpin didn’t seem like a lie or an act…”

Everything had started with the collapse of the Giryung Palace wall.

The junior eunuch was not severely injured when the charcoal in the portable brazier exploded because the court maids called him immediately after he put in the charcoal. The court maids called the junior eunuch at Mo-hwa’s request.

Mo-hwa’s contact was one of the eunuchs who had been going in and out to repair the collapsed wall.

The eunuch Wang Hak entrusted Mo-hwa with the charcoal, which had been ground as fine as powder, and applied it to the surface of the orchard tree every time he came to the Giryung Palace. Finally, Mo-hwa scattered the remaining powder and set it on fire, and because the flammable charcoal had been applied to the surface, the tree could burn completely even while it was raining.

The eunuch Wang Hak was in charge of repairing the wall, so he was not particularly suspected even if his fingernails were black or his hands were dirty. The workers and eunuchs working with him also had dirty hands from the hard work.

“It does not seem like the Donhu Palace led everything.”

“Then?”

“The contact person who left the Donhu Palace met a Handan Palace maid at the five-story watchtower. The two seemed very close. The Handan Palace maid is definitely Consort Bi’s person.”

Yeon-oh put down the teacup he was holding.

“Is the five-story watchtower a necessary meeting place for court maids when they are dating?”

“In a manner of speaking…”

Court Lady Dong replied hesitantly. She seemed displeased with Yeon-oh’s interest in irrelevant matters in this situation.

“We must assume there is some link between Consort Bi and Dam So-ui. I cannot know how much Dam So-ui was involved in the accidents. Dam So-ui is from the Seokwol Dam family, and she probably knows many unusual medicinal herbs, more than an ordinary person, right?”

“That would be correct.”

“Arrest the eunuch Wang Hak on the spot when he meets Mo-hwa again. Then, send word to Consort Neung (Neung So-yong), asking her to send the Handan Palace maid to the Giryung Palace.”

Court Lady Dong nodded, then looked at Yeon-oh.

“Then Dam So-ui…”

“We should consider Dam So-ui excluded this time.”

*****

Cheong-ryu and the younger maids came to check on Mo-hwa’s well-being, taking advantage of the early morning. Mo-hwa could not understand her friends who looked at her with sad faces.

She was much better than yesterday. The dizziness was gone, and the color of the blood-red blisters had become transparent again, like on the first day. The itching around the blisters had also subsided considerably.

Cheong-ryu whispered with a seemingly choked voice.

“How is your body, Mo-hwa?”

“I’m much better now. [Read on RanaTranslations🌸] Why did you come all this way when it might be contagious?”

“The doctors said it is not a contagious disease.”

Cheong-ryu affectionately held Mo-hwa’s hand. Mo-hwa pulled back her hand, covered in ugly blisters.

“Be careful, just in case.”

“I hope you get well soon.”

The maids who followed Cheong-ryu also nodded. Mo-hwa tried to show a smile to her friends who had come to visit despite her lack of energy.

Seeing her face, the younger maids’ expressions became even more sorrowful.

“…”

Mo-hwa understood the gloomy atmosphere.

“We should go now.”

Cheong-ryu was the first to rise. She seemed eager to leave before someone burst into tears.

“See you later.”

“…”

“Yes, see you later.”

The two maids next to Cheong-ryu merely hesitated at Mo-hwa’s farewell. It was not difficult to sense the awkward atmosphere. When the maids left and the door closed, Mo-hwa silenced her footsteps, approached the door, and listened.

“We should show Mo-hwa a good face.”

“H-How can we…”

“Shhh.”

Cheong-ryu comforted her weeping friend. Mo-hwa quickly put on her outer coat and waited for her friends to go to their respective rooms. She needed to know what they knew.

A moment later, Mo-hwa left the pavilion and sought out Cheong-ryu’s room. Cheong-ryu was not alone. The friends who had visited Mo-hwa were all inside the room together.

“I didn’t know there could be a disease that even the Imperial Infirmary doctors couldn’t cure.”

“Is Mo-hwa really going to die…?”

“Is it true that Gwi-bi Mama said Mo-hwa would be sent out of the palace? Today, she didn’t look much different from the last time we saw her. Shouldn’t we beg Gwi-bi Mama?”

At her friends’ words, Mo-hwa clapped her hand over her mouth. She walked in the darkness toward the meeting spot. When Mo-hwa confronted the contact yesterday about the state of her illness, the contact said something was wrong and that there would be a solution.

It seems that was a lie, too.

Mo-hwa, standing at the crossroads of the collapsed wall and the orchard in the Giryung Palace, took off the outer coat she was wearing. She had wondered if she had contracted a deadly illness, but she never thought it would actually be true.

“Mo-hwa. Mo-hwa.”

Wang Hak, who was hiding in the darkness, was startled to see Mo-hwa standing conspicuously in a place everyone could see, and called her in a low voice.

“Eunuch Wang, where is my antidote?”

Mo-hwa approached where Wang Hak was standing and spoke in a challenging tone.

“Mo-hwa. Well… there is no such thing as an antidote. They said there is a little toxicity, but they don’t know why your condition worsened. You knew you were taking it, didn’t you? You look much better today, so you will be fine soon.”

“That’s a lie. You gave me poison! And you haven’t even given me all the silver you promised!”

“Mo—, Mo-hwa. Keep your voice down. People will hear you. What if someone wakes up and sees you? The job isn’t finished yet. Have you forgotten that I promised to give you the rest of the silver when the job is done? I will give it to you when you leave for your hometown.”

She thought it would be difficult to stay by the Gwi-bi’s side after deceiving and causing trouble for her superior. Mo-hwa planned to use her illness as an excuse to request to return to her hometown after all traffic to the Giryung Palace had ceased and the atmosphere had become sufficiently ominous.

“When I leave for my hometown? When I die and go to my hometown, you mean…!”

Mo-hwa shouted and tried to rush at Wang Hak. Wang Hak’s strong hands, hardened by labor, roughly pushed the approaching Mo-hwa away. This was a situation he had anticipated.

Mo-hwa closed her eyes tightly, anticipating being roughly thrown onto the cold floor. However, there was no pain. Instead of the hard, cold floor, a soft body temperature embraced and caught her.