On Jwa Woo’s face heading to Bukchon, there was a determined will.

There was only one way.

To become an official of the Office of the Inspector-General herself.

As Hong Woo Geon said, to become a government official by taking the state examination.

A story that was initially dismissed as impossible.

But the more she thought about it, the method Hong Woo Geon suggested was the best she could do.

The past 3 years. She had been circling around the best method.

The tall gate of the seventh house in Bukchon was always open day and night. As if waiting for Jwa Woo to come.

Thanks to that, she headed to the guest house where Hong Woo Geon stayed without anyone’s interference.

As expected.

Hong Woo Geon was sitting in the middle of the sunny porch waiting for Jwa Woo.

“You came?”

“Did you know I would return?”

“Isn’t it too tempting an offer to refuse?”

Hong Woo Geon nodded at the identification tag Jwa Woo was holding.

As he said, with just the tag, she could take a shortcut to finding out about her father’s death.

Jwa Woo lowered the veil covering her head and hung it on her shoulders.

“Now what should I do?”

“First, let’s go inside. I’ve learned not to keep a lady standing outside for long.”

Hong Woo Geon went into the room first and Jwa Woo followed.

In the guest house where he stayed, there were roughly close to ten thousand books.

Seeing that enormous amount of books, Jwa Woo swallowed a groan.

Though her father enjoyed collecting books when he was alive, he never accumulated and read this many books.

From this, two things were certain.

First, Hong Woo Geon was an avid reader, and second, it meant he had enough wealth to afford this many books.

“Before we start, there’s one thing I’m curious about…”

Hong Woo Geon opened his mouth as Jwa Woo looked around the room and sat down.

Jwa Woo focused her gaze on Hong Woo Geon.

Once again, she felt he was truly a man of exquisite beauty.

If it weren’t for the occasional mischievous look, she might have felt her heart flutter.

From Jwa Woo’s perspective, that playful demeanor was fortunate in the midst of misfortune.

For she couldn’t conspire on important matters with a man who made her heart flutter.

As Jwa Woo let out a low sigh mixed with relief, Woo Geon’s voice penetrated her ears.

“How did you know?”

“Know what?”

“The way you so accurately predicted the exam topics every time. Can you tell me how?”

[This is the timeline separator]

Hong Woo Geon asked with a genuinely curious expression.

“What was your method for knowing the exam questions in advance?”

To his repeated question, Jwa Woo replied.

“There was no special secret. At some point, I just told what suddenly popped into my head.”

A lie.

In fact, she would figure out the exam topics through a process of repeated deductions based on careful observation of people and information obtained through various channels.

For example, she thoroughly analyzed the nature, favorite academic subjects, background, and habits of the person setting the exam questions.

Also, she would find out what types of books the examiner had been reading most recently and extract the main issues discussed in those books.

After extracting several questions that way, she would sort through the questions that had appeared in various state exams including regular exams in recent years. Through this process, she would usually come up with two or three potential exam topics.

Ah, of course Jwa Woo couldn’t do all this process alone.

The person who made great contributions in gathering information was none other than Eon Nyeon.

Eon Nyeon would build friendships with the servants of the examiner’s household, chat about trivial matters to understand the situation in that household, and even find out the titles of books the master was reading.

But not wanting to tell Hong Woo Geon such detailed stories.

Jwa Woo dismissed his question with a somewhat irrelevant answer.

The clever Hong Woo Geon couldn’t have missed Jwa Woo’s true thoughts.

“What? Is it a trade secret?”

“Rather than that, I think it’s urgent we discuss what to do from now on.”

The exam was right around the corner.

She didn’t want to waste time on such frivolous talk.

“Discussion…”

Woo Geon mulled over Jwa Woo’s words.

“I clearly said it was a deal.”

“Discussion or deal. It’s all the same as long as we each get what we want.”

“Alright.”

“First, that way of speaking…”

“Huh?”

“I don’t expect honorifics, but please behave in a manner befitting a lady from a noble family.”

“Even though what you’ll have to do from now on is something a noble lady shouldn’t do?”

“Even so, your current way of speaking somehow feels like a master-servant relationship. It’s quite uncomfortable to hear.”

“What if I can’t do it?”

“Then…”

After thinking for a moment, Jwa Woo seemed to make a decision and continued.

“I’ll have no choice but to do the same.”

“How?”

“I’ll do exactly as you do.”

The honorifics she had been using consistently disappeared.

Hong Woo Geon burst into laughter at her bold behavior.

“Hahaha!”

What a strange woman.

Her innate nature and capacity were too good to be considered just a woman.

After letting out a hearty laugh, Hong Woo Geon quickly stiffened his expression.

“Fine. Do as you please.”

“You really don’t mind if I do this?”

“Well…”

Crazy.

Jwa Woo swallowed the rest of her words.

You think I can’t do it?

[This is the timeline separator]

After the commotion had passed, calm quiet returned to the guest house once again.

It was Hong Woo Geon who broke the silence.

“So we’ve settled the manner of speech. Now I have something I want from you.”

He was such an unpredictable man.

Jwa Woo looked at Hong Woo Geon with great tension.

Hong Woo Geon brought up what he had prepared to say in advance.

“How about moving into this house?”

“Moving? Why suddenly move?”

“Wasn’t this house chosen by the Hwa Seop-ja of Myeongye-bang?”

“So?”

“There’s a widespread rumor that a successful candidate will come from a house chosen by the Hwa Seop-ja. If a successful candidate comes from this house, people will think it’s only natural.”

“In other words, instead of me suddenly appearing and passing the exam to draw attention, you want to divert people’s gaze to the Hwa Seop-ja of Myeongye-bang?”

“This is why I like talking with clever people. When I say one thing, they understand ten. There’s joy in having a conversation.”

“However…”

A strange light appeared in Jwa Woo’s eyes as she stared at Hong Woo Geon.

Just as he was curious about what she was going to say as she trailed off.

Jwa Woo’s voice continued.

“You don’t seem very clever.”

“What do you mean?”

Hong Woo Geon shouted as if he had been wrongly accused.

“Isn’t that so? You came looking for me just to create one successful candidate… It seems like a losing business even if you lose.”

Finding it secretly amusing to tease him.

Jwa Woo spoke while barely suppressing her laughter that was leaking out.

Hong Woo Geon’s earlobes turned red as if his weakness had been exposed.

“Why are you like this? I’ll have you know, I learned the Thousand Character Classic at age two and started reading the Analects at four.”

“You must have had a private tutor?”

Hong Woo Geon nodded at Jwa Woo’s question.

“That’s right. How could one study without a private tutor?”

To Hong Woo Geon’s question, Jwa Woo shrugged her shoulders.

“As someone who studied by watching others, I also started the Analects at four. By just listening in, mind you.”

“…”

Feeling somewhat defeated, Hong Woo Geon shuddered.

Indignation was evident on his face.

A victor’s smile filled Jwa Woo’s lips as she looked at Hong Woo Geon.

“Then, when did you start the Great Learning?”

“You tell me first.”

Their childish conversation continued even after that.

Bo Jong, who had been standing in the shadowy part of the room, finally came out with an expression of boredom.

These days, his lord had changed noticeably.

Especially when he was with that woman, he looked just like an ignorant child who knew nothing of the world.

While it was pleasant to see this side of his lord, who had been called an old man in a child’s body since young, on the other hand, how should he take the current situation…

Unable to find an appropriate demeanor, Bo Jong just let out a low sigh.

[This is the timeline separator]

1. Kwon Jwa Woo promises to pass the regular state examination without fail.

2. Hong Woo Geon must use all his connections to secure Kwon Jwa Woo a position in the Office of the Inspector-General.

3. Henceforth, Kwon Jwa Woo will devote all efforts to helping those Hong Woo Geon designates pass the state examination.

4. Kwon Jwa Woo promises to continue helping Hong Woo Geon even after reading the Office of the Inspector-General’s daily log.

The deal between Hong Woo Geon and Kwon Jwa Woo was sealed.

The two each kept a document stamped with each other’s seal.

Hong Woo Geon stood up and looked at Jwa Woo.

“I think we should take care of that matter first.”

Jwa Woo gazed outside at Hong Woo Geon’s words.

She had come to this house in broad daylight, but darkness was already falling.

“You want me to do that at this hour?”

To Jwa Woo’s question, Hong Woo Geon nodded as if it were obvious.

“Wouldn’t it look even stranger if we did it during the day?”

“…”

That’s true.

[This is the timeline separator]

“You want us to move right now?”

Eon Nyeon’s voice rose.

The old servants sitting beside her also had unpleasant expressions.

“Just a moment, only Eon Nyeon and I will move our quarters for now. You two need to stay here and look after the house well.”

Since they were people who would even pretend to die if the young lady said so.

They didn’t raise any more objections.

“Then you all understand, so you may go. Eon Nyeon, help me pack some belongings.”

“But…”

The old woman who was leaving the room suddenly turned back.

“Young lady, where are you going?”

It was a question filled with the determination to at least know the whereabouts of their precious young lady, even if they would follow her words.

After pondering for a moment, Jwa Woo answered.

“To the seventh house in Bukchon.”

Suddenly, a scream mixed with a metallic sound was heard.

“The seventh house in Bukchon?”