Chapter 278: Trap (4)
People murmured. The title of Prince of Jianzhou was unfamiliar. But the Emperor could not claim ignorance. The Prince of Jianzhou was none other than Myeong-gyeong’s royal title.
The Emperor fell silent for a moment. A chill seemed to seep from that silence.
“Did the Prince of Jianzhou come as well?”
“Yes.”
“Oh. There he is. He has grown much.”
The Emperor scanned the audience. Myeong-gyeong had been half-hidden behind me, so he must not have been seen.
The Emperor shifted his gaze from Myeong-gyeong to me.
“So, as the Prince of Jianzhou’s retainer, you cannot pledge loyalty to me. A convenient excuse.”
“It is not an excuse. It is the truth.”
“I was under the impression your relationship was that of senior and junior brothers, not of lord and vassal.”
“Your intelligence seems lacking. Perhaps you should filter it once.”
When I sneered, Seo Jong-haeng, the Commander-in-Chief—no, now the Right Vice Commander-in-Chief of the Five Lakes Regional Command—shouted from behind.
“How dare you speak so insolently!”
“Silence. I am speaking with him now.”
At the Emperor’s cold voice, Seo Jong-haeng hastily bowed his head.
“Do you know where Jianzhou is?”
“It is near the Supyeong River. I believe it is a place that can hardly be called part of the Great Empire’s territory.”
“By national law, it is part of the Great Empire. I am truly suspicious that you might be a rebel.”
“Then move the people there. I hear it is quite underdeveloped.”
“Heh heh. No one has ever spoken to me like this before.”
The Emperor laughed. More than killing intent, his laughter held interest. From his perspective, it was only natural to see someone like me for the first time.
“Do you not value your life?”
“Your Majesty seemed to be engaging in wordplay, so I merely played along.”
The onlookers kept their mouths shut. The atmosphere was such that a sword fight could break out at any moment.
“How interesting. Then I will ask the Prince of Jianzhou. Yujin-ah. Come up.”
The Emperor looked toward Myeong-gyeong. I infused my qi and projected my voice with Six Directions Voice.
“Your Majesty!”
My voice echoed across the Hall of Supreme Harmony plaza.
“The Prince of Jianzhou is a regional king. Addressing him by name in a formal setting is not appropriate.”
The atmosphere was precarious. The Imperial Guard around us had already raised their killing intent. At the Emperor’s word, they would draw their swords and charge.
But the Emperor waved his hand at the Imperial Guard, laughing.
“Haha. How interesting. Truly amusing.”
The Emperor continued laughing and spoke to Myeong-gyeong again.
“Prince of Jianzhou, ascend the stage.”
That was the one thing neither Myeong-gyeong nor I could refuse with any justification. I turned my head slightly to look at Myeong-gyeong. He was hesitantly coming up.
I actually felt a little sorry toward Myeong-gyeong. After all, I had stirred up this mess without consulting him.
But I believed that as much as I cared for Myeong-gyeong, he cared for me in return. He would surely read my intentions.
“It has been a while, Your Majesty.”
Myeong-gyeong, having ascended the stage, bowed with a trembling voice.
I could see the people below the stage growing agitated. Most of them had not even known of the existence of a Prince of Jianzhou, and none would have expected him to be so young.
“It has been a while. Have you been well?”
“I have been well under Your Majesty’s grace.”
Myeong-gyeong’s voice was different when facing the Emperor. It was a display of perfect etiquette, something never seen at Wudang. The palace manners drilled into him since childhood.
“You say that without meaning it.”
“It is not so.”
“You need not tremble so much.”
The Emperor chuckled. But in this atmosphere, only the Emperor could laugh.
Everyone stared intently at the Emperor and Myeong-gyeong on the stage with tense expressions.
“I have a favor to ask of a blood relative I have met after a long time. Will you grant it?”
“What favor?”
“I want that friend there.”
The Emperor pointed at me with his finger. Myeong-gyeong followed his finger and looked at me.
“My junior brother? No, my retainer, you mean?”
“Yes. I am not asking for nothing in return.”
The Emperor wore a subtle smile.
“I will grant you what you desire most.”
“What is that?”
“I will depose the title of Prince of Jianzhou. And I will officially acknowledge, with my own mouth, that you are a disciple of Wudang.”
Myeong-gyeong’s small body trembled. I nearly staggered as well. This was the one move I had not anticipated.
The Emperor clearly knew what Myeong-gyeong wanted. Myeong-gyeong wished to break free entirely from the Imperial Court’s grasp. For him, that proposal was perfect.
Moreover, the Emperor did not stop there.
“And I promise the Imperial Court’s full support to Wudang. Officials will no longer rudely barge in and cause trouble as before.”
“……”
Myeong-gyeong’s mouth hung open. He had not expected the Emperor to make such an offer.
“You… you were that fond of my retainer?”
“Yes. Seeing him today makes me like him even more. He is clearly a talent who will shine for the Empire.”
“……Ah.”
Myeong-gyeong let out a sigh. He was definitely conflicted…
“That is absurd. Muk Hui-yeong is my retainer. Even if it is Your Majesty, you cannot covet him. I apologize.”
…I thought there would be none. But Myeong-gyeong, even while kneeling, stared straight at the Emperor.
Even if Myeong-gyeong was a regional king, this was sufficiently rude. But Myeong-gyeong had the wisdom to hide his true self from me for years. That rudeness was clearly intentional.
“Heh heh heh……”
The Emperor burst out laughing. The laughter did not stop at a single burst. He laughed so heartily that his head tilted back, and I could see his Adam’s apple moving up and down.
“Very amusing, very amusing indeed!”
The Emperor clapped his hands as he laughed. He was truly amused, even wiping tears from his eyes.
“……Haha, ha……”
The Emperor’s laughter began to subside. And when it ended, no one could even breathe properly.
“How interesting. Both of you.”
“My apologies.”
Myeong-gyeong bowed his head again. Even more than when I had been the one to be rude, his heart was pounding faster now.
And I realized that I had underestimated Myeong-gyeong. My original goal had been to rid Myeong-gyeong of his fear of the Emperor. Even if I had to fight the Emperor in his stead.
But Myeong-gyeong did not need my help. From the beginning, he possessed the strength to overcome the Emperor on his own.
“This is truly troublesome.”
The Emperor clicked his tongue. Myeong-gyeong was indeed wise and clever.
By declaring the title of Prince of Jianzhou—the very thing he had wanted to cast aside—Myeong-gyeong had narrowed the Emperor’s room to maneuver.
I was merely a commoner, but Myeong-gyeong was a vassal. Even if it was in name only, a vassal and the Emperor had a relationship of mutual respect.
If the Emperor executed a vassal without proper justification, it would be a tremendous threat to the other vassals.
Furthermore, Myeong-gyeong was a member of the Imperial family. The Emperor might not think so, but if the Emperor executed another royal, the other royals would have no choice but to be wary.
Right now, the New Justice Association and Myeong-gyeong were not a force so massive that they needed to be executed to counter this kind of imperial threat. Whether Myeong-gyeong had calculated all this and acted accordingly, it was an exquisite move.
“I will overlook the rudeness you have shown me today.”
In the end, the Emperor had no choice but to say that.
Myeong-gyeong and I had not committed any particular rudeness. Of course, I could be punished and no one would say a word, but Myeong-gyeong was the problem. To punish me, the Emperor would have to punish Myeong-gyeong as well for committing similar rudeness.
Moreover, if only I were punished, Myeong-gyeong would surely make a fuss. As the head of the Empire, his political sense was sharp.
“In exchange.”
As expected. But retreating like this would also diminish the Emperor’s prestige.
Those who engaged in politics were all people who pursued extreme gains. The Emperor was no exception.
“Could you grant me a favor?”
This was something we could not refuse. Myeong-gyeong seemed to sense it and nodded.
“Please command us.”
“It is not an excessive favor.”
The Emperor spoke.
“Capture the Mad Buddha.”
“……The Mad Buddha?”
Myeong-gyeong murmured blankly. The Mad Buddha was a famous martial artist formerly of Shaolin. A villain who, having fallen into deviation, annihilated an entire village.
But as far as I knew, he had been designated a martial criminal a few years ago and his whereabouts were currently unknown. To suddenly ask us to capture him felt like grasping at clouds.
“However, as far as I know, the Mad Buddha’s whereabouts are currently untraceable.”
Myeong-gyeong bowed his head as he spoke. He was a martial artist, so he could not be unaware of the famous martial criminal, the Mad Buddha.
In fact, I could sense the people below the stage murmuring in confusion at the sudden mention of the Mad Buddha.
“You need not worry about that. The Imperial Court has recently caught his tail.”
The Emperor’s words increased the murmuring.
“Will you grant my favor?”
Myeong-gyeong hesitated and glanced at me. I subtly nodded. There was no way out of this.
As we had struck the Emperor with an unexpected move, the Emperor had also struck us with one.
Regardless of our confrontation with the Imperial Court, a martial criminal was a public enemy that had to be punished. The Emperor knew this, which was why he made such a request.
“……We will obey.”
“Thank you. Heh heh. You may go down now.”
The Emperor dismissed Myeong-gyeong and me.
When Myeong-gyeong returned to his seat, his legs momentarily gave out, and he leaned on me for support.
In the end, it had ended without incident, but something felt unsatisfactory. Because it had unfolded completely differently from what Hyeong Tae-seong had written in his letter.
The Emperor should have pressured me differently, and the outcome should have been different. But this sudden Mad Buddha business.
“Now that the rewards for the meritorious have been concluded, it is time to punish the villains of the Imperial Court.”
At that moment, the Emperor continued. A chill ran down my spine.
At the Emperor’s words, the Embroidered Uniform Guard began to move in perfect formation. And then a person was dragged out.
A man blindfolded, gagged, and covered in wounds as if he had been tortured. When I saw him, I froze as if doused with cold water.
“The criminal’s name is Hyeong Tae-seong. Hyeong Tae-seong dared to betray my grace and collude with the enemy. As a public example, he will be publicly executed.”
Only then did I realize. This trap was not for me. It was a trap set within the Imperial Court itself.
The Imperial Court had set such a trap, and anyone who sent a letter to Hubei would have had their courier intercepted and examined along the way. That was how Hyeong Tae-seong had been caught.
“You have confessed your own crimes.”
The Emperor glanced at me with a contemptuous smile. He was speaking to Hyeong Tae-seong, but it clearly sounded as if he were speaking to me.
I bit my lip hard and trembled. It was a smile that seemed to say, “You are in the palm of my hand.”
The Embroidered Uniform Guard guard removed Hyeong Tae-seong’s gag. Hyeong Tae-seong was already half-dead from torture and seemed to have difficulty speaking.
“Kill… kill me…”
Hyeong Tae-seong was begging for death. That was how severe the torture had been.
Originally, Hyeong Tae-seong should have become the Empire’s prime minister. But because of me, he had become a traitor.
“I was going to kill you anyway.”
The Emperor wore a smile brimming with killing intent. Even Myeong-gyeong, who knew Hyeong Tae-seong’s face, was trembling violently. He seemed to have a rough idea of what had happened.
I admitted it. I had underestimated the Emperor. He was a deeper person than I had thought.
Boom!
“An attack! It is an attack!”
But the Emperor had also underestimated me.