If You Claim the Fallen Heiress - Chapter 68

The stormy night at Museolwon ended and morning came.

Kim Seon sat in front of his writing desk with a haggard appearance from staying awake all night.

The faces of the ministers who had suffered headaches together were darker than ever. It was because of Kim Seon’s words that the woman who had been inside the study of the inner house seemed to be Yuseol.

Chief Secretary Kwon Ujin, who had been exchanging positions with Myoyeon all night, opened his mouth.

“Your Majesty. The Museolwon side continues to insist that the woman Your Majesty saw yesterday is indeed the great lord’s lover, not another woman. When we asked to see the woman’s face, they are requesting time, saying she is having difficulty due to the nighttime commotion.”

“…….”

“At times like this, you must push forward so they cannot secretly use trickery.”

Kim Seon nodded slightly in agreement with those words.

Then the Minister of Rites, reading the mood, revealed his aged voice.

“Your Majesty, I humbly apologize for speaking, but that man called Mu-yeong is a respected figure for helping the people during every drought and flood. Moreover, since he operates schools throughout the regions and gains support by lending living expenses to students at low interest rates, there would be nothing good about confronting him.”

Kim Seon listened carefully to the Minister of Rites’ words, then struck his writing desk.

“But if it’s true that they’ve kept that woman alive until now, Museolwon has plotted treason!”

The Minister of Rites, not knowing what to do, opened his trembling lips.

“Your Majesty, before becoming indignant, you must have physical evidence in hand. I humbly apologize for speaking, but the ministers are anxious because they could not confirm that woman with their own eyes.”

Kim Seon showed his displeasure toward the Minister of Rites.

“Are you saying that I am not trustworthy?!”

The Minister of Rites could neither affirm nor deny it. Kim Seon, who had been waiting for an answer, narrowed his brow as if to show them.

“I don’t want to argue right now. Everyone leave!”

The worried ministers left the room one by one.

Only the chief secretary remained in the room. Kim Seon stood up from his seat, untying the gat strings that had been uncomfortably tightening his chin.

His head felt stuffy as if he had nightmares during the night. Was it because he had repeatedly recalled the scene inside the bedroom he saw yesterday?

At that time, he had firmly told the ministers that he had seen Yuseol, but looking back later, he was uncertain. He was already tired from chasing her traces for several days, and that bedroom had been particularly dark. Since he was the person who wanted to find Yuseol more than anyone, he thought he might have seen an illusion.

But why had he wanted to find her so badly?

He recalled the last moment. Before giving her the sasa execution, he had hesitated endlessly. Even while being urged by the chief secretary and receiving Meisa’s sharp glances. Was it because it had rained all day that particular day?

He stood by the window and closed his eyes briefly. For some reason, Yuseol’s face, which he thought he knew very well, couldn’t be drawn at all. Though she was someone he had promised marriage to, he had actually never looked at her face for long. He had seen her only very briefly during the year when he couldn’t concentrate on his studies because of the pouring rain.

Still, he definitely remembered her being pretty. However, Kim Seon disliked her eyes that resembled Prime Minister Han, who had been particularly strict with him. He also disliked her gentle personality that didn’t match her family’s reputation. Even when he openly vented his grievances accumulated against Prime Minister Han on her, that fact had never been conveyed to Prime Minister Han.

There was a time when he had suggested looking at flowers but then stood her up. She had even made new clothes from pink silk and waited endlessly in the East Palace yard before returning to her quarters in the evening.

“Let’s definitely go next time” was all the expression she had shown. While hiding the wildflower bracelet she had made alone during the waiting time inside her sleeve.

He now felt pointless doubts. How happy had he been when venting his anger on her? No, had he ever been happy? What kind of feeling was it when he gave the sasa execution?

He silently tied his gat strings loosely. Only after opening his closed eyes did he see a vision hazily. It was the back of a woman standing in the wide yard. That was the sight of Yuseol he had seen most often.

“If that woman is really alive, that would truly be a big problem.”

A voice that shattered the vision was heard. Kim Seon stepped forward as if chasing her disappearance, then made an empty face. Though he had come here to find her corpse, his heart was complicated thinking that she might be alive. Perhaps it was because she had also been a friend who had always stayed at an appropriate distance.

“I know.”

Kim Seon answered briefly and looked at Kwon Ujin. Kwon Ujin, who cleared his throat, put his hand back inside his sleeve and added.

“You must find that woman to the end and confirm her face. Even if the woman you find is not Han Yuseol, you must make it so and execute her.”

“Why must we go that far?”

“If you do that, you will be able to make all the wealth that man called Mu-yeong possesses yours, Your Majesty.”

Currently, the country was in a precarious situation with drought, poor harvests, and woefully insufficient tax revenue. Kim Seon, who was thinking of his father who had been particularly generous with the nation’s money to women in his later years, simply closed his eyes.