CHAPTER~06
Gyeongbokgung, Jagyeongjeon.
Secretary Jo standing before Empress Dowager Min looked uneasy.
He looked almost like a criminal.
And rightfully so, because ever since he reported what had happened at the hospital today, Empress Dowager Min had been silently trimming the bonsai branches.
As a result, Secretary Jo could neither leave nor attend to other tasks, and he waited for the Empress Dowager’s command as if he were being punished.
Snip, tap-tap.
How much time had passed?
As the small branches fell to the floor with the sound of scissors, Empress Dowager Min finally spoke after a heavy silence.
“So, the Empress already knew the meaning of her name?”
“……Yes. She knew everything. She also knew in detail why the character ‘花英’ (Hwa-yeong) should not be used in a name.”
“She knows the forbidden characters, does she?”
If one had no interest in naming conventions, they would never notice.
So naturally, one would assume the Empress also did not know about forbidden characters.
“I suppose I didn’t know my daughter-in-law well enough.”
She had thought of her as just a spoiled young girl.
Without the backing of her father, the First Rank Senior Minister, she would never have dared marry my son.
Empress Dowager Min continued, her gaze cold on the bonsai before her.
“So what did you say in reply?”
“Excuse me?”
“I asked what you said when the Empress knew the meaning of the characters. What did you reply?”
“I said I had mistakenly brought a paper with a different name. I was worried it might offend Your Majesty…”
Empress Dowager Min’s eyebrows twitched at Secretary Jo’s words.
“Such a flimsy excuse.”
For someone working in Jagyeongjeon, his explanation was very weak.
But well, she probably wouldn’t scold him further.
It was the mistake of a subordinate. She could just deny knowing about it and be done with it.
“Was this matter discussed in the Royal Council?”
Secretary Jo’s face brightened at the mention of the Royal Council.
One of the top ministers in the council was the Empress’s father.
Someone like that wouldn’t overlook a matter concerning his granddaughter.
At the very least, Secretary Jo could be demoted to a local office, or in the worst case, expelled from the palace.
But with the Empress Dowager mentioning it like that, he firmly believed she would protect him.
“I don’t know what the council’s decision will be, but I don’t think you’ll be seen in this palace again.”
What came from the Empress Dowager’s mouth was not hopeful words of protection.
“E-Excuse me……?”
“You’ve served well. I’ll make sure your severance pay isn’t lacking.”
“Your Majesty……!”
Secretary Jo averted his gaze as the Empress Dowager looked at another courtier.
Immediately, they led Secretary Jo outside of his quarters.
Without a trace of the incident, the Empress raised her scissors and began trimming the pine bonsai again.
A woman standing beside her stepped forward.
It was Se-gyeong, Chief Secretary Han, the right hand of the Empress Dowager.
“Then, what shall we do about the baby’s name? Shall I propose a new one?”
“After all that fuss, there’s nothing to be done. The Empress will decide herself.”
Even as she said this, the Empress clicked her tongue in slight disappointment.
‘Tsk. The princess said that using that name would ensure a son in the next birth.’
Because the Empress noticed, the plan had failed.
It wasn’t necessary to worry about giving a good name to a girl who wouldn’t inherit the throne.
The Empress Dowager decided to leave the princess’s name alone.
She still had one more card to play.
As she snipped the branches, she spoke.
“Chief Secretary Han, do you know why I grow bonsai? It grows in the shape I want depending on which branch I trim.”
Only after cutting off the sprouts that won’t thrive does it become the tree I want.
“I find that very enjoyable and rewarding.”
Snip.
Another branch fell as the Empress Dowager smiled.
“Prepare to select the head royal nanny.”
Her lips stretched in a long smile.
Seoul Royal General Hospital.
The royal-run hospital was mainly used by the imperial family and its relatives.
Like other royal family members, Su-ryeon, who had given birth there, was about to be discharged.
Even as she smiled warmly at the baby wrapped in a blanket, her mind wandered to the upcoming return to the palace and the postponed concerns.
‘My position in this palace is extremely limited.’
While her father was alive, she had some standing.
Two years later, after her father’s sudden death, Su-ryeon’s position began to shrink.
The Empress’s favor, the Emperor’s favor, and the fact that her child was a princess all made her position clear.
Being in good standing with the Empress Dowager wouldn’t help.
Unless she gave birth to a son, she would never be treated as a true daughter-in-law.
She had no regrets about mentioning the forbidden characters at the hospital.
But the palace was full of the Empress Dowager’s people.
She needed to replace them with her own people, one by one.
‘But how?’
Su-ryeon began organizing her plans in her mind.
‘When did they select the head royal nanny?’
She remembered it was after some time following her entry with the princess.
The royal nanny instructed the Empress and took care of the newborn, while the head royal nanny was responsible for the princess’s care and education after 100 days.
‘Then at least three months remain.’
In that time, she needed to find a way to prevent Jeong-ah from entering the palace.
What method should she use?
Lost in thought, Su-ryeon was interrupted by a voice from the TV.
A trivial program delivering gossip caught her attention.
-Recently, news has emerged that the CEO of T Company in the U.S. is Korean.
But in fact, this Korean is revealed to be Grand Prince Anwon, who left Korea 13 years ago, surprising many.
The screen showed a photo of Grand Prince Anwon from his days as Crown Prince.
The man, with neatly swept hair, was undoubtedly handsome.
‘Yes, he even came to the funeral that day.’
At Princess Sahee’s funeral, she couldn’t even greet him properly due to her tragic circumstances.
-Rumor has it that he was once engaged to the current Empress when he was Crown Prince…
Bing-.
Fed up, Su-ryeon turned off the screen.
At that moment, a courtier outside the hospital room spoke.
“Your Majesty, the Duke of Buwon has arrived.”
“……Father?”
She recalled her father’s face the last time she saw him, lying on his sickbed, skin and bones.
After a moment of hesitation, Su-ryeon replied.
“Please, let him in.”
As soon as her command was given, her father, Yoon Si-rak, entered.
He looked far healthier than she remembered from his sickbed.
It was natural, as this was before his illness.
Su-ryeon smiled bitterly as she asked about his health.
“……Have you been well?”
“Yes. And has Your Majesty been well?”
The conversation felt cold for a father-daughter exchange.
It was no surprise, given that they weren’t particularly close.
He hadn’t even visited once during her hospitalization.
‘Still, we weren’t always like this.’
After her mother passed from cancer, they had maintained a somewhat proper father-daughter relationship.
Until that incident occurred.
