Chapter 11…..
Everyone knew that Lady Sunbin’s claim was groundless, but a nominal investigation still had to be carried out.
At daybreak, the Queen summoned Lady Kwon Yangwon to the Central Palace. Having heard the news early that morning, Hong-ah accompanied her mother as well.
The Queen looked unsettled at the sight of Hong-ah, but she could hardly drive out a child who came to pay her daily morning respects. Instead, she softened her words for the child’s sake.
“Lady Kwon Yangwon.”
“Yes, Your Majesty.”
“Have you, of late, ever offered food to the Crown Princess Consort?”
“…Pardon?”
At the Queen’s question, Hong-ah’s mother repeated in surprise.
Though both were pregnant, all resources of the Eastern Palace were concentrated on the Crown Princess. Lady Sunbin was preparing for childbirth with far more comforts and privileges—there was no reason for Lady Kwon to make offerings as well.
“No, Your Majesty. I myself have been suffering from food-related discomfort, so I have not been able to pay any attention in that regard.”
“Is that so?”
The Queen responded ambiguously. Hong-ah glanced up carefully, trying to read the mood.
“Well, a gentle child like you would hardly do such a thing,” the Queen lamented aloud.
Her mother appeared puzzled, but Hong-ah understood what lay beneath the question.
So that’s why… Lady Sunbin must have slandered Mother. Hong-ah bit her small teeth tightly together.
“The Crown Princess Consort has suffered a miscarriage,” the Queen said at last, after hesitating over whether such words should be spoken in front of a child. She assumed Hong-ah would not understand, but the girl grasped the meaning immediately.
She claims Mother caused her to miscarry? Ridiculous.
So far, she hadn’t paid Lady Sunbin much mind—she would eventually be cast out anyway. But this… this was infuriating.
“Bear this in mind, Lady Kwon. Take good care of your body and focus on a safe delivery. The family’s future now rests upon you, so you must always be cautious.”
“I will remember, Your Majesty.”
The Queen judged that this matter was not worth further investigation. Any chance of forgiving Lady Sunbin had long since passed.
Several days later, Lady Sunbin was summoned to the Central Palace. Her face was taut with anxiety as she awaited the Queen’s verdict.
She hoped to turn this incident into an opportunity—restoring herself as the flawless mistress of the Eastern Palace. To achieve that, Lady Kwon had to be eliminated. Lady Sunbin looked at the Queen, expectant.
“The Crown Princess Consort shall return to reside at Hyunsimgak.”
“…What?”
But the Queen’s words were nothing like what she had longed to hear. Lady Sunbin’s expression collapsed into disbelief.
“P-pardon? My confinement ended months ago. I only stayed in the Central Palace because of my pregnancy. My rightful residence is Jaseondang. Why would you order me back to Hyunsimgak?”
“I mean simply that this matter shall be set aside for now—so go live quietly at Hyunsimgak.”
Even with the Queen’s firm tone, Lady Sunbin looked as though she couldn’t comprehend. The Queen let out a sigh so deep it seemed the floor might sink beneath her. She had lost count of how often she sighed these days.
“I too was at fault, overly eager at the thought of a royal heir. So I’ll let this pass. Do not err again—just return.”
“Your Majesty! I cannot understand. How can you treat me so coldly, I who bore the Crown Prince’s legitimate heir? Why send me back to Hyunsimgak? That is confinement! What crime have I committed?”
Her frantic protests showed no remorse. The Queen’s head throbbed, but she pressed on with severity.
“It is not confinement. Only your residence will be Hyunsimgak.”
“But I lost my child so recently… I need rest. Hyunsimgak is no place for recuperation.”
Instead of keeping quiet while the Queen overlooked things, Lady Sunbin overstepped her bounds.
“How dare you! To think you could deceive me so brazenly? A mother-in-law should not be treated with such contempt!”
The Queen’s voice finally thundered out. She had been trying hard to keep her temper, but Lady Sunbin’s eyes remained insolent. Taking a deep breath, the Queen spoke with deliberate calm.
“I have heard from the royal physician: when a woman strongly desires a child, sometimes what is called a false pregnancy occurs. Even the woman herself may not know it is false. Let us treat this as such.”
“I was truly with child! It was Lady Kwon who harmed me and caused me to lose it!”
“Would Lady Kwon commit such a vile act? She has not the wit or audacity for such schemes.”
“Your Majesty!”
Lady Sunbin pleaded with eyes brimming with indignation.
“It is unjust! I lost a child—the heir, the royal successor! That wretched woman must be seized and killed!”
Yet her words, though cloaked in grievance, dripped with savagery. The Queen fell silent, startled.
She had always known Lady Sunbin was not gentle or kind, but this brazen malice was new even to her.
For a fleeting moment, the Queen recalled Lady Kwon’s calm and composed demeanor a few days prior. Isn’t that what a Crown Princess should be? For the first time, she regretted ever allowing Lady Sunbin into the palace.
“Punish Lady Kwon!” Sunbin demanded.
“I have already investigated. There is no evidence against her,” the Queen said flatly. She had checked even the food supplies to the Eastern Palace. Despite this, Lady Sunbin continued to shout and rage.
Disgusted, the Queen finally rebuked her.
“Lady Kwon carries the Crown Prince’s child. Why do you despise so fiercely the woman who is doing what you could not?”
Lady Sunbin’s eyes flared. Ever since Lady Kwon bore Hong-ah, she had been forced to hear that same line again and again. Fury long bottled up now surged over. She spat out words she never should have dared.
“Is that child truly His Highness’s? Is Hong-ah really of his blood?”
“What?”
“No one else in the Eastern Palace has conceived. Why only Lady Kwon? With so many concubines, is that not suspicious?”
She seemed unaware of the gravity of what she said. To doubt the royal bloodline was treason.
“How dare you utter such words!”
A cold, low voice sounded behind the Queen. It was a familiar voice. Lady Sunbin raised her head—and there stood the Crown Prince himself. His face, darkened with fury, exuded a chilling aura.
“Your Highness… why are you here…?”
Only then did she realize the enormity of her mistake. But the words had already left her lips. Flustered, she stammered, trying to excuse herself.
“I-I only… wondered… As Crown Princess Consort, it was my duty to raise such doubts, and—”
“Silence!”
The Crown Prince roared, forgetting even that his mother was present. He usually paid little attention to the rivalries of the Inner Court—believing some measure of competition kept it functioning.
But to insult his daughter—that he could not abide.
He placed a hand at his waist, lifted his gaze to the ceiling, and let out a long breath, as though suppressing an anger too great to release.
At last regaining composure, he bowed formally before the Queen.
“Mother, I can no longer live with this woman as husband and wife. I beg you, allow me to cast her off.”
“Crown Prince…”
The Queen herself was both shocked and furious, but dismissing a Crown Princess Consort was no light matter. Yet her son’s resolve was unyielding. Lady Sunbin trembled, her forehead pressed to the floor.
“I am destined to be king. If I cannot even defend my own daughter’s honor, how shall I govern a nation? Having Lady Sunbin at my side would only hinder my reign. I beg you, grant my request.”
“N-no, Your Highness! I was wrong. Truly, I was!”
Only now grasping the danger, Lady Sunbin clutched desperately at his feet. The Crown Prince’s face twisted in disgust as he kicked her hands away.
The situation had spiraled beyond repair. The Queen too had no intention of overlooking it anymore.
“This is not to be decided in haste. Your father and I must discuss it. Besides, Lady Kwon is with child. Any shock now could endanger her. Crown Prince, compose yourself. Lady Sunbin, go to Hyunsimgak.”
“Your Majesty, I will never again offend you. I will be a devoted daughter-in-law,” Lady Sunbin sobbed, her tears flowing endlessly. They were so pitiful that it became clear her previous tears had all been false.
The Queen, unmoved, called her attendants.
“Attend me!”
“Yes, Your Majesty.”
“Confine Lady Sunbin in Hyunsimgak. Until further orders, no one is to enter or leave.”
“Your Majesty! Forgive me!”
A palanquin was brought at once. Dragged into its cramped space, Lady Sunbin’s frantic cries spilled out even after the doors shut. The Crown Prince clamped his hands over his ears, unwilling to hear.
Thus, the Crown Princess Consort was sent back—against all her desperate efforts to escape it—to Hyunsimgak once again. Soon, the terrified whispers of attendants carried throughout the palace: they had heard Lady Sunbin’s furious, despairing wails as she was taken away.
