Chapter 469
The Youngest Son of the Silver Sea Trading Company Chapter 469
Chapter 469. Why is this happening? (5)
The emperor urged me.
“Speak quickly.”
Um... Your Majesty.
Didn't you say that I couldn't say what I wanted to say?
But I don't know when another opportunity like this will come, so I can't just let it slip away.
I have no choice but to resort to the alternative plan I had thought of just in case.
“Your Majesty. All I want is for you to trust me once in the future.”
“Trust you?”
“Yes. I don't know when that day will come, but when it does, I will remind you of today's promise, and I ask that you believe me. That is my wish.”
This wish is for my future.
By succeeding in this matter, I have become a minister who is truly favored by the emperor.
It wasn't what I wanted, but
Therefore, someone may try to slander me.
When that happens, I will need time.
If the emperor buys me some time, I will be able to escape the trap that someone has set for me.
If not, the Martial Alliance may poison the imperial palace. If the emperor buys me some time in that case as well, I will be able to remove the poison.
In many ways, this is my own plan for the future.
The emperor thought about my words for a moment and nodded.
“It is not a difficult request, but it is a very difficult one.”
He is the emperor, after all.
He understood the true meaning of my request.
“However, I have agreed to grant your request, and as the emperor, I cannot go back on my word. Very well. I will grant your request. And in addition, I will give you ten rolls of silk.”
“Your Majesty, thank you very much.”
With that, the awards ceremony came to an end.
The emperor rose from his seat and approached the Royal Guards, patting them on the shoulder.
But... he looked especially proud and satisfied at one person.
That expression...
Isn't that the expression my father used to look at me and my brothers?
Could it be?
The moment I saw that, everything that I hadn't understood until now suddenly became clear.
Cold sweat ran down my back.
Didn't I force Master So-woon to kneel in front of me with my sword?
And even though it was just acting, I made him bark like a dog in front of me and slapped him on the cheek.
It'll be okay, right?
I did comfort him later.
What if he's not okay?
In my previous life, I heard from Jin Seung-wang that his older brother, Seongbo-wang, was very obsessed with things, to the point where he would only see that one thing.
I made up my mind.
It's not my business.
Then the emperor patted me on the shoulder and said,
“Prince Joo-hyun wants to see you.”
A moment later.
I was guided by an eunuch to meet Prince Joo-hyun.
We did not go directly to the prince's quarters, but were led to a room in a pavilion.
“Please wait here. I will bring His Highness.”
“Yes.”
As I looked around and waited, a familiar young man entered.
It was Prince Joo-hyun.
I quickly stood up and bowed.
“Sit down.”
“Yes.”
As I sat down, a court lady entered and served us tea.
“How are you feeling?”
The prince replied to my question.
“The physicians were surprised. They said that it would be difficult for me to recover so quickly, given the state I was in.”
The prince looked at me and continued.
“It must be thanks to the medicine you gave me and used to treat me.”
Ah... That was Geumryeong's acupuncture needle.
But ignorance is bliss, so I just smiled lightly and bowed my head.
Then Prince Joo-hyun began to misunderstand.
“Could that have been the elixir you had with you?”
“....”
“Oh no! You used something so precious for me....”
“No matter how precious an elixir is, it is not more precious than a human life.”
The prince looked at me with tears in his eyes.
Hmm, this is a bit embarrassing.
“You cleared the injustice of Chun-gyeongseong and saved me... How can I ever repay you...”
“I was only following the orders of His Majesty the Emperor. And if there is any reward, it was given by His Majesty.”
I continued.
“So please focus on your recovery. After saving you from such hardship, seeing you healthy is the greatest reward for me.”
He nodded at my words.
“I understand. I will do my best to recover. By the way, I think I understand why people call you Seonhaengmi.”
“Ahem!”
I never thought I would hear that title from the mouth of a member of the royal family.
At that moment, someone's voice was heard from outside the door.
“Your Highness, the Queen Mother is here.”
I could sense that there were several people approaching, but it was Her Majesty the Queen.
Her Majesty the Queen is the mother of Prince Joo-hyun.
It seems she came here because of her son.
We quickly stood up, and soon the door opened and a beautifully dressed woman entered.
I had seen her before during the royal silk delivery competition.
“Captain Eun Seo-ho of the Eunhae Trading Company is here to see Her Highness.”
“Raise your head.”
At her command, I slowly raised my head.
“I heard that you were meeting with the prince, so I came here. I wanted to thank you in person for saving my son.”
She spoke to me in a soft voice.
“Thank you for saving my son.”
“I am sorry, Your Highness. This was all thanks to the efforts of the Royal Guards. I did not do much.”
“Do you think I am blind? I am well aware of your great contribution to this matter. If it weren't for you, I might have lost two precious sons.”
Huh? Two?
Who else besides Prince Joo-hyun...?
Could it be Master Song-un...?
Queen Hwaryung had three sons.
The first was Seongbo, whom I have yet to meet, the second was Prince Joo-hyun, whom I rescued this time, and the third was King Jin-seung, whom I was close to in my previous life.
Then Master So-woon is Seongbo?
Ah... In his previous life, Seongbo may have seen Prince Joo-hyun's body.
That would explain why he destroyed Chun-gyeongseong so brutally.
The Master So-un I saw was quite emotional, so if he saw his brother's body in that situation...
But then why is the Crown Prince a member of the Royal Guards? And why is he hiding his identity?
But I must put those questions aside and focus on the present.
In any case, if Master So-un is the son of Queen Hwa-ryun, it is highly likely that he told her about my exploits.
I responded modestly.
“It is all thanks to His Majesty the Emperor.”
“I knew you would say that. And I will never forget this kindness.”
“I am deeply grateful that you remember me.”
“I am sorry to have interrupted your time together. I will leave now.”
With that, Hwaryungbi left.
I exchanged a few more words with Prince Joo-hyun and suggested that he rest.
“Go and rest now. You got up early, so you need to rest a little longer.”
In fact, I said that because I wanted to leave this uncomfortable place and go to the Beijing branch.
How effective was Geum-ryeong's medicine?
.
.
.
I left the imperial palace and headed straight for the Beijing branch.
They say that leaving home is hard, but I never thought I would return after only three months.
“Captain, you're here?”
“You're here? Captain.”
Everyone at the Beijing branch welcomed me warmly.
Fortunately, everyone seemed to be doing well.
“Thank you for your hard work while I was away. It's late, so let's go out for a nice meal tomorrow.”
“Yes, let's do that!”
Everyone cheered at my words.
After exchanging greetings, I headed straight to my office.
Seo Hyang stopped me.
“Young Mistress, there is no urgent business that needs your attention right now.”
“Oh, is that so?”
That's strange. I was away for so long, but there's nothing urgent for me to do?
“It seems that His Majesty the Emperor asked you to postpone your work a little.”
“I see.”
Should I be grateful?
“So go take a bath and get some rest.”
“I guess I should.”
Pal-gap replied to my words.
“I will prepare your bath.”
I smiled as I watched Pal-gap hurry to my quarters, then turned to Young Mistress Seo-hyang.
“Lieutenant Kwak.”
“Yes.”
“Your advice was very helpful this time. Thank you very much.”
She smiled and shook her head in response to my gratitude.
“Don't mention it. It was my duty to protect you.”
After all, I was her lifeline.
It was only natural, but I was still grateful.
That day, I washed myself in warm water and lay down on my bed with a refreshed body and mind.
Home was the best place to be.
Of course, this wasn't my real home, but before I knew it, I had come to feel as comfortable here as I did at home.
As soon as I lay down on the bed, my consciousness faded, and I fell asleep immediately.
.
.
.
When I opened my eyes, I slowly got up from the bed and stretched.
I felt very refreshed, probably because I had slept so soundly for the first time in a long time.
When I opened the door and stepped outside, Myeongjong and Lee Pil, who were standing there, greeted me with a clasped hands greeting.
“Did you cough?”
“Yes. But what time is it now?”
“You slept for two days straight.”
Those words made me feel embarrassed.
“Did I sleep that long? I wanted to treat you to something delicious, but now I broke my promise.”
“It's okay. I understand. And honestly, this wasn't a normal day, was it?”
“That's true. Besides, with everything you have to deal with, you must have been several times more tired than us.”
Those words made me feel a little emotional.
“You should eat and then go straight to your office.”
“What?”
“I heard that there are urgent matters that need to be taken care of starting this morning.”
Ah... I was feeling so moved just a moment ago, but now that feeling is gone.
* * *
The royal palace.
So-un of the Royal Guards followed Jin-yeong and Kwon-jik to the emperor's office.
A moment later, a court official who had been informed of their arrival opened the door, and they entered.
They bowed in respect.
Then So-un said to the emperor.
“Your Majesty. I report that I have completed the five years of service as a member of the Royal Guards as you commanded.”
“You have worked hard. I'm sure you resented me when I first gave you that order.”
“To be honest, I did at the time, but now I understand why you gave me that order, and I am in awe of your wisdom.”
He continued.
“I learned a lot from my last mission in particular.”
So-un's eyes sparkled as he said this.
“I learned a lot from Captain Eun Seo-ho. To be honest, he was the first person who treated me that way.”
The emperor assigned Eun Seo-ho to this mission because he believed in his abilities.
He also wanted his son, who was about to embark on his final mission, to learn more.
The crown prince had already been decided, but he had to prepare an alternative just in case.
That alternative was So-woon.
The others were also outstanding, but none of them had the qualities of an emperor.
So-woon was wise and talented in many areas for his age, but he was impatient and emotional.
In order to improve those shortcomings, the emperor sent him to the Royal Guards.
He hoped that through various missions, he would understand the ways of the world and learn to control his impatience.
Although his shortcomings were gradually improving, he had not yet completely overcome them.
However, for some reason, his personality had been completely transformed.
“But... it seems that he has learned more than I intended.”
Still, after learning from Eun Seo-ho for such a long time, he would not be easily swayed by those who sought to undermine him.
“You have worked hard. Now, you are free from your duties as a Royal Guard...”
“Your Majesty, I apologize, but I have a request.”
“What is it?”
“I would like to remain in the Royal Guards for one more year.”
The emperor asked him why he had made such an unexpected request.
“What is the reason for that?”
“Upon reflection, I realized that I have only caused trouble for the Royal Guards. Therefore, I would like to serve in the Royal Guards for one more year to be of help to the other guards.”
His eyes sparkled, and his sincerity was evident.
“I feel that now I can make up for my shortcomings.”
“You say you have been inadequate... Then you must know the reason for your inadequacy.”
“Of course. I am too hot-blooded. I am too emotional. It was because of my pride.”
So-un said confidently.
“Until now, I have been unable to let go of the pride that was given to me. But through this incident, I have realized that pride is something that depends on the individual.”
He continued.
“When I let go of the dignity that had been given to me, I saw new things. What I had been holding on to was not my true dignity. I realized that my dignity comes from my words and deeds.”
“I am proud of you for realizing that so quickly.”
“Actually, it was thanks to Captain Eun Seo-ho that I realized it.”
His face flushed slightly as he said this.
“It seems that Captain Eun Seo-ho has taught you a lot.”
“Yes, that's right. I now understand why Captain Eun Seo-ho is called Seonhaengmi. Captain Eun Seo-ho is a truly wonderful person.”
Seeing his expression full of admiration, the emperor suddenly began to feel sorry for Eun Seo-ho.
“I'm sorry. Even I can't stop that boy's obsession.”