Hongdu - The King's Men - Chapter 28
“Are you awake?”
A voice tinged with urgency was heard.
I want to sleep just a little more.
Kwon Jwa Woo wrapped herself tightly in the blanket, ignoring the sound from outside.
How much time passed like that?
“Please wake up.”
“……”
“You must get up now.”
At the servant’s voice that sounded like she might enter the room at any moment, Jwa Woo barely opened her eyes.
“Why are you so pushy today… Huh!”
Muttering to herself, Jwa Woo sprang up like a coiled spring without realizing it.
What day was it today?
Wasn’t it the first day of the secret royal inspector candidate test?
And she had overslept.
Judging by the sunlight in the middle of the room, it must be close to noon.
She flung open the door to find an anxious servant and a clearly displeased official looking at her.
The servant was one thing, but who was that official behind him?
Her curiosity must have shown plainly on her face.
“I am a secretary from the Royal Secretariat.”
“Why is a secretary…?”
“Take this.”
The secretary held out an envelope to Jwa Woo.
“What is this?”
“What else? It’s the sealed letter given to candidates.”
A sealed letter?
Wasn’t a sealed letter the secret orders given by the king to secret royal inspectors? Even though she was just a candidate, she was being treated no differently than a full inspector.
Jwa Woo’s lips stretched into a long smile, feeling pleased for no reason.
“This is no time to be so happy.”
The servant whispered softly, glancing at the secretary.
“What?”
“All the other candidates have already left the palace to carry out their missions.”
“Oh no!”
She shouldn’t have drunk chrysanthemum wine, falling for Hong Woo Geon’s temptation last night.
It did help her relax, but it seems she relaxed far too much.
“I’ll get ready and come out right away.”
Jwa Woo said as she hurriedly put on the sand pouches she had taken off.
The servant looked at her with a puzzled expression.
“Why are you putting those on? They’ll just get in the way.”
“A real man should wear one or two of these…”
Jwa Woo trailed off mid-sentence.
She could tell just by looking at the servant’s face.
Hong Woo Geon, that rascal tricked me again. I won’t let him off easy when I see him.
After finishing her preparations, Jwa Woo quickly put on her shoes.
The outside of the sealed letter given by the secretary read . It meant the eighth candidate should open the letter outside the East Gate.
Even as she tucked the letter into her breast, Jwa Woo looked around. She was searching for Hong Woo Geon.
The servant approached, giving her a look that asked why she wasn’t hurrying out.
“I’m planning to go with Candidate Hong.”
After all, they were partners in name, so they should move together even if she disliked him.
The servant poured cold water on Jwa Woo’s sense of loyalty.
“He left about two hours ago.”
“What?”
Partners, you say?
Comrades are one in body and spirit on the battlefield, you say?
As Jwa Woo felt a deep sense of betrayal, the servant handed her a small note.
“What is this?”
“Candidate Hong left it.”
Jwa Woo unfolded the note Hong Woo Geon had left.
This man with not even a rat’s dropping of loyalty.
Jwa Woo gritted her teeth and hurriedly set off.
There was barely two hours left until afternoon.
The sealed letter rustled in Jwa Woo’s breast as she walked.
[This is the timeline separator]When she arrived at Yeoui Ferry out of breath, Hong Woo Geon had already finished his lunch.
“You need a full stomach when riding a boat.”
He handed Jwa Woo a rice ball as if being generous, then leisurely boarded the ferry headed for the Imjin River.
“If you knew so well, why didn’t you wake me up and bring me along?”
“One should take care of their own business.”
“Thanks to whom did I drink too much?”
“Who was it that drank all my precious chrysanthemum wine, saying ‘just one more glass’…?”
“Me?”
“Yes. You.”
“That’s not possible.”
“Are you saying I’m making this up?”
“You’re more than capable of that.”
“Why would I?”
“Because tricking others is your hobby and teasing is your habit.”
“My, my, you’re greatly misunderstanding me.”
“Whether I’m misunderstanding Candidate Hong or understanding you correctly, I’ll have to experience more to know.”
“So you’re thinking of experiencing more, I see.”
“I have no choice, do I?”
We’re partners after all…
Swallowing the last words, Jwa Woo took out the sealed letter from her breast.
She had been in such a rush to get here that she hadn’t checked the contents of the letter even after leaving the East Gate.
Jwa Woo went to the edge of the boat and opened the letter.
A sealed letter directly from His Majesty the King. It felt special. She was full of anticipation for what it might contain.
Jwa Woo opened the letter with utmost respect and examined its contents.
Unlike her expectations, the contents of the letter were quite businesslike.
1. The eighth candidate shall go to Yasung County in Paju.
2. The people of Yasung County are suffering from stomach ailments. Investigate the cause in detail and report back.
3. If there is need to mobilize servants, use the enclosed horse tokens.
Inside the envelope were two horse tokens engraved with horses.
Jwa Woo’s face turned pale as she read the letter’s contents.
“What’s wrong? What does it say to make you look like that?”
Hong Woo Geon, who had been watching her, grew concerned seeing her complexion.
He glanced at the letter’s contents, then patted her shoulder as if it were no big deal.
“It’s nothing much.”
“How can you say it’s nothing? This is a conspiracy.”
“What conspiracy…?”
“Otherwise, why would they give such a task to a mere candidate?”
Jwa Woo checked the task written in the letter again.
“I’m not even a doctor. How am I supposed to know about people’s stomach ailments?”
“You have a point there.”
“You see? This must surely be His Majesty’s conspiracy to fail me in the test.”
“Fail you to do what?”
“To have me beheaded or hanged, I suppose.”
“Hmm, our king has really intimidated you properly.”
Hong Woo Geon shook his head, looking at the half-dazed Jwa Woo.
[This is the timeline separator]“Achoo!”
The king sneezed dryly while reading a book.
The eyes of all the court ladies standing in the main hall turned to the king at once.
Eunuch Jang quickly brought a silk handkerchief to wipe the king’s mouth.
“I hope you haven’t caught a cold.”
“I’m fine. You’re making a fuss over one sneeze.”
“But…”
“More importantly, how are things at the West Palace?”
“I received word earlier that the last candidate has left the West Palace.”
“There should be some useful ones among them.”
Eunuch Jang looked worriedly at the king as he muttered to himself.
“Why are you looking at me like that?”
“I am concerned, Your Majesty.”
“Why?”
“I heard you met with Minister Cho Byung Doo recently.”
“Your information is correct. How did news of what happened in the Queen Dowager’s back garden already reach your ears? There truly are no secrets in this palace.”
“You know as well as I do that nothing good comes from clashing with that person, Your Majesty.”
The king stared intently at Eunuch Jang, whose words were half nagging, half worry.
Eunuch Jang turned his head away from the king’s gaze.
The king’s low voice reached Eunuch Jang’s ear.
“Eunuch Jang.”
“Yes, Your Majesty.”
“How long do you think I should endure?”
“What do you mean by that, Your Majesty?”
“You know better than anyone how the court has been since the late king passed away.”
“But Your Majesty, the power of the Andong Kim clan has diminished greatly since the incident 8 years ago.”
“And in its place, the Pungyang Cho clan’s influence has grown much stronger.”
“……”
“That’s the kind of country Joseon is now. The power simply shifts from one family to another, from one faction to another. I have never truly been king.”
“Your Majesty…”
“I don’t want to be a king for any particular family. I refuse to be a puppet for any faction. What I want to be is a king for my people. That is the king I dream of being.”
“Is this related to the West Palace, Your Majesty?”
“He agreed to create a group of 100 secret royal inspectors. Inspectors who serve only the king. They will make me and my descendants into true kings.”
“There will be strong opposition.”
“That’s why we’re doing it secretly. To minimize unnecessary resistance.”
“I still don’t know if this is truly the right path for Your Majesty.”
“Even if not for me, it will surely be the right path for my descendants. Eunuch Jang, you can stop worrying now.”
“If you say to stop, I shall stop. However, I wonder what they will be able to accomplish.”
“Just wait and see. They will likely accomplish more than we expect.”
“If Your Majesty says so, it must be true.”
“By the way, Eunuch Jang.”
“Yes, Your Majesty.”
“Did you send word to the Chief Scholar’s residence?”
“I did, Your Majesty.”
“Is that so?”
Suddenly, a mischievous look appeared on the king’s face.
Observing this, Eunuch Jang asked:
“What scheme are you planning this time?”
“What scheme? I merely wish to know. The true feelings of my own flesh and blood.”
“Can you discover that through such methods?”
“Fighting fire with fire. Only by clashing heat with heat can we know which is hotter.”
“May I ask one more thing?”
“My, you have so many questions today.”
“Why don’t you just leave that person be?”
“Because I want them to be a little happier…”
The king carved a lonely smile like a fossil as he continued:
“Just because I live this way doesn’t mean that child should be unhappy too.”
Male lead is reincarnated to save his wife
I’ve also read this one twice already. The female lead is kinda soft and gets embarrassed easily—not really my type, but the plot is definitely worth reading. Hurry up and read it, y’all!
Intro
When Shen Yuan encountered Su Jin again in his previous life, she had already become the Prime Minister of the current dynasty. As for him, the former top young master of the capital, he had long since fallen into the abyss, becoming a singer on a pleasure boat.
After a song ended, he was redeemed and sent to the Su Residence.
Su Jin respected and cherished him, gave him a roof over his head, and bestowed him with warmth. Shen Yuan fell deeper and deeper, but before he could express his feelings, Su Jin passed away.
Shen Yuan died to follow her in death, but instead, he returned to when he was fifteen years old.
At that time, he was not yet engaged, and Su Jin was just a poor scholar.
Shen Yuan gritted his teeth, casting aside all his pride, and thought of ways to coax and entice her every day.
The colder and more indifferent Su Jin was towards him, the more proactive Shen Yuan became.
He was not afraid of being mocked by the world, only wanting to marry his Wife-master early, to hold her hand and never let go for a lifetime.
[Note: This story will not specifically point out the male lead’s reincarnation time point; it’s all in the details. Whenever you feel that the male lead is acting strangely, he has most likely been reincarnated.]
[Touch the gear icon in the bottom right corner of the screen to move to the next chapter if you want.]
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