A few days later, Woon left Unyeon Palace early in the morning to meet with Kim Hak Gyu, the Chief State Councilor.

He had sent word ahead to meet before entering the palace.

After passing Yukjo Street, he arrived in front of Kim Hak Gyu’s house, dismounted his horse, and stood at the front gate.

Visiting his teacher’s house after a long time made him feel nervous without realizing it.

The servant who came out from inside greeted him as if he had been waiting and immediately guided him to where the Chief State Councilor was.

Kim Hak Gyu, who was standing in the courtyard of the men’s quarters, showed a relaxed smile when he saw him.

Kim Hak Gyu’s massive build alone was sufficiently intimidating.

His sharp eyes and well-trimmed beard further accentuated that impression.

“Teacher, have you been well?”

“I didn’t know the Prince still considered me his teacher. I thought you had completely forgotten about me since you haven’t visited in so long. But what wind has blown you here today?”

Kim Hak Gyu’s playful words were tinged with disappointment.

“Meeting with me often wouldn’t do you any good.”

“You’re still worried about things in advance. Whatever it is, let’s go inside first.”

Kim Hak Gyu’s office was something he couldn’t get used to every time he visited.

Incongruously, the walls were completely decorated with paintings.

And not landscape paintings, but flower paintings with deep colors. His taste in art was truly unexpected.

As Woon sat down, Kim Hak Gyu spoke first.

“Seeing you come so early in the morning, it doesn’t seem like a trivial matter. Do you have a favor to ask?”

“You’re quite perceptive.”

“Ha ha… To think the Prince would ask me for a favor, the sun must be rising in the west today. But what can I do? As you know, I’m not someone the Prince can use privately.”

He knew this was coming. This was exactly the kind of response to be expected from Kim Hak Gyu, and then some.

Kim Hak Gyu was a man who embodied the phrase “incorruptible integrity,” which is why he had held his position for so long.

Such a person would not grant his request easily.

“You don’t have to get directly involved, Teacher. Just look into it for me. It’s about someone falsely accused. Isn’t investigating officials who abuse their position for corruption also part of your job?”

“If an official has committed corruption, it should be rectified. What exactly is this about? Tell me.”

Kim Hak Gyu’s expression became quite serious. Woon explained the whole story about Min Ah.

“If that’s true and she was wrongly accused, I will help. However, I can’t act based solely on the maid’s words.”

“I understand. That’s why I’m asking you. It’s not something I can do myself.”

“I’ll have someone look into it. It may take some time, so please be patient.”

His face brightened at Kim Hak Gyu’s reassuring words.

Kim Hak Gyu’s eyes and expression changed as he watched him.

Kim Hak Gyu leaned back, crossed his arms, and narrowed his eyes.

“How did you come to know about this maid’s story? She’s not a maid from Unyeon Palace, so whose house is she from?”

“She’s a maid from Minister Yoon Tae Soo’s house. I only recently heard and learned about the story.”

“If it’s the Minister’s house, then the lady… No, it couldn’t be?”

Understanding what that “it couldn’t be” meant after a while, he couldn’t help but chuckle.

He wanted to tease his overly serious teacher a bit, as things had been dull lately.

“Why do you just laugh without answering my question, Prince?”

“Teacher, if I were in a secret relationship with that maid, what would you do? Would you still help?”

For a moment, Kim Hak Gyu’s expression hardened. His brows furrowed as he looked at him with sharp eyes.

“If that were the case, you wouldn’t have come to me.”

Kim Hak Gyu’s firm words made Woon, who had made the joke, feel even more embarrassed.

His attempt to see his teacher’s reaction had backfired.

“You’re still no fun, Teacher.”

“Not as much as you, Prince. As a young prince, you were just like a little old man. Sometimes I mistook you for the late king in front of me.”

“That’s… I wasn’t that bad.”

Though he was quiet and didn’t talk much, he wasn’t enough of an old soul to deserve that label.

If anything, Chief State Councilor Kim Hak Gyu was more so, not less.

“If you didn’t like something, you wouldn’t say a word throughout the lectures, just ‘Why is this so? Why must it be this way? I don’t like it. I don’t want to.’… These are the words a seven-year-old prince said to me.”

“Well. You have a good memory. If you disliked it so much, why did you come?”

“Because I knew you were waiting.”

Kim Hak Gyu’s words pierced his heart.

His chest felt heavy.

In those young days, Woon didn’t dislike Kim Hak Gyu, who only nagged and was stingy with praise every day.

So he waited for him every day.

“I know that even though I acted brusquely every time, you were waiting for me to come. That was one reason, but more than anything, I didn’t dislike the Prince’s stubborn gaze. You seemed lonely but knew how to smile brightly, and your confident and proud appearance lingered in my eyes, so I couldn’t stay away. That’s who you were to me, Prince.”

Kim Hak Gyu’s gaze rested on his face.

Staring intently at his face, he stroked his beard and asked.

“You still haven’t told me. How did you learn about that maid’s story?”

“Just know that the petition drum in Unyeon Palace rang. I’ll tell you the details later.”

“I’ll look into it as soon as possible. Prince, please have just one trustworthy person on standby. So they can accompany the person I send.”

Woon left Kim Hak Gyu’s house after expressing his gratitude and hurried back to Unyeon Palace.

* * *

Eun Seol was sitting by the window with her chin propped up, looking outside.

The midday sunlight she saw through the open window was dazzlingly bright and warm.

She had been worrying about Min Ah for several days.

She was concerned about what would happen if things didn’t get resolved in the desired direction.

“What are you thinking about that you don’t even notice someone coming?”

Woon appeared in front of her lost in thought, blocking her view.

He said he would come in for a moment and entered the room, crossing the narrow wooden porch.

“Word came from my teacher. They reinvestigated Min Ah’s father’s case at the Paju Police Bureau.”

“So? What did they say happened?”

Her heart raced. Without realizing it, she grabbed Woon’s hand and pulled him close to sit down.

Not noticing Woon’s flustered look, she urged him again.

“Tell me quickly. What happened? Did they prove the false accusation?”

“My lady… You’re too close.”

Only then did Eun Seol realize she was too close to him and moved away a bit to wait for his next words.

He cleared his throat lightly and composed his voice.

“It seems they can regain their yangban status now that the false accusation has been revealed. But.”

“Is there some problem?”

“There’s no evidence to prove Kang Chi Sung’s crime. He was investigated but released due to lack of evidence.”

How could that be?

If someone was falsely accused, there must be someone who framed them, and Min Ah was clear evidence, so she couldn’t understand what more evidence was needed.

“We can’t put Min Ah forward as evidence. Kang Chi Sung may have been released, but he’ll probably have a hard time living there now. Everyone knows about his misdeeds, even if there’s no evidence.”

“What good is that? He committed a crime but isn’t being punished.”

Seeing her expression darken, he cupped her face with both hands and smiled slightly.

“But didn’t they regain their status? Now Min Ah can live comfortably with her sibling.”

“What about the child called Min Seo?”

“Seo Yeom will bring her. It seems it’s not finalized yet, so it will take some time.”

“That’s a relief. Thank you so much.”

“What did I do? It was resolved well because the Chief State Councilor moved quickly, more than me. I should invite him to the palace sometime. Oh, have you thought of a place for Min Ah to live?”

“If it’s alright with you, I’d like to let her use the annex here for now. Would that be okay?”

“That’s what I was thinking when I asked. Let her stay here until we find a house for her.”

She thought they should bring Min Ah here first.

She couldn’t leave her in that hell any longer.

If someone had to bring Min Ah, it seemed right that she should do it.

“Yoon Eun Seol! Want to tell me what you’re thinking right now?”

As she was silently contemplating, his face came very close.

He narrowed his eyes as he looked at her and warned in a low voice.

“I told you not to get involved in such matters directly. Don’t get entangled with that household no matter what. I’ll do it instead. This isn’t a request, it’s a warning.”

“…Yes.”

“Now that she’s regained yangban status, Min Ah should be able to break free from the Minister. The Chief State Councilor said he’ll take care of it, so please wait.”

Eun Seol quietly nodded, knowing what he was concerned about.

Pleased with her response, he wrapped his arms around her shoulders.

His low, husky voice whispered in her ear.

“I know what you’re worried about. But you must never confront the Minister directly. Do you understand what I mean?”

Counting how many times she had seen her father’s face until now, it was barely enough to count on both hands.

The words she heard in those less than ten encounters always pierced her heart like a dagger.

There was no way she wanted to meet such a father.

* * *

It was only after ten days that Seo Yeom returned to Unyeon Palace.

Eun Seol saw a young girl walking with Seo Yeom.

The neatly dressed child looked around cautiously from behind Seo Yeom.

At Seo Yeom’s words to greet them, the child finally stepped forward and bowed her head.

“Pleased to meet you. I am Jung Min Seo.”

She looked very small in build to be sixteen years old.

Yet she seemed intelligent, and her tightly closed lips looked quite determined.

“Welcome. You look very clever. We’ll talk later, first go wash up and change your clothes.”

As Lady Eom took Min Seo away, Woon, who had been quietly watching, turned his gaze to Seo Yeom.

“You’ve worked hard. Did you wrap everything up well?”

“What hardship did I go through? It’s all thanks to the Chief State Councilor who paid a lot of attention. Please go inside, you two. I’ll give you the details inside.”

Eun Seol sat in the men’s quarters waiting for Seo Yeom to speak.

After drinking a glass of water, Seo Yeom recounted what had happened.

“Kang Chi Sung has been dismissed from office. The current administrative official spoke up. It seems he committed many corrupt acts and made his subordinates do terrible things in the process. Apparently, the Minister’s influence was behind his appointment to that position.”

Seo Yeom trailed off, glancing at her expression.

Woon’s brow furrowed as he sat with his arms crossed.

“To think a minister bearing such heavy responsibility for the country is running wild to satisfy his own greed… tsk.”

“It seems the Chief State Councilor will secretly investigate the Minister’s corruption. If the Office of the Inspector-General gets involved, things might get bigger than expected. My lady, will that be alright?”

Woon, who had been leaning back deeply in his chair, uncrossed his arms and leaned forward.

He sighed heavily.

“I’m fine with it. Please tell him not to worry and to investigate. I’m concerned the Minister might become the subject of gossip because of me.”

“I won’t let such a thing happen. Don’t worry and put your mind at ease.”

It was fortunate that Kang Chi Sung’s crimes had been revealed, but if her father’s crimes came to light because of this incident, not only could he be dismissed from office, but the entire household could be in jeopardy.

If that happened, even the Prince, as his son-in-law, might not be free from the matter.

No matter how unrelated he was to the incident, it happened in his wife’s family.

She was worried that the Prince’s position might become awkward because of her.

Seo Yeom finished speaking and left.

He had been holding her hand tightly under the table all this time, and now he kissed the back of her hand.

“I told you before, didn’t I? That there’s no safer place for you than by my side. Nothing will happen. I’ll protect my own.”

He was constantly expressing his concern and love for her through his gaze, touch, and warm lips.