Sakura's Petals
New Concubine
The news that a new concubine's maid would be sworn in, rippled quickly at the palace the day after. Hwa Ryong, who was preparing to meet the Crown Prince at the time, heard that from the lady-in-waiting who had been inadvertently conversing around him. His favorite red chima and yellow dangui that he purposely wore that day instantly lost his image. His mood immediately deteriorated.
“Your Highness is okay?” asked Chief Dayang Noh, who knew the true mood of his master.
Hwa Ryong nodded. “Ya, let's go.”
Along the way to the East Palace Hall, where the Crown Prince's residence, Hwa Ryong could only walk while looking down. He held his chest that felt tight. In the middle of the road, without him noticing, someone had stood before him, making Hwa Ryong inevitably bump into that person.
“What are you thinking, Hwa Ryong?”
Hwa Ryong was immediately misbehaved when he learned that the person he hit was the Crown Prince. “Ah, Your Majesty! Ii'm sorry. You okay?”
“What if it turns out that in front of you this is a lake? You can fall into the lake ditch and drown.” said the Crown Prince, worried.
Hwa Ryong decided to bury her sadness when she saw the face of the husband she loved looking worried. “But I know very well that you will save me, so I am not afraid of anything.”
The Crown Prince grabbed Hwa Ryong's hand and held it tightly. “You are good at words. Please listen to your husband. You should be more careful, you understand?”
An amused laugh gushed from the sidelines of Hwa Ryong's lips. “Good, my dear husband.”
The Crown Prince immediately blushed in embarrassment and patted Hwa Ryong on the head, dear. “When can I win from you?”
They chuckle together. The Crown Prince and the Crown Princess also spend time together in the palace garden. Before then, the Crown Prince decides to spend the night with Hwa Ryong. In the midst of the romance, Hwa Ryong's sadness seemed to disappear unceremoniously. Replaced with a sense of happiness that is so bloated that it feels like his heart can explode at any time.
The next morning, a sudden affair at the Main Hall forced the Crown Prince to leave immediately, leaving Hwa Ryong who was still asleep due to sleep exhaustion at his residence. About an hour after the Crown Prince left, Chief Dayang Noh immediately tried to wake the Crown Princess.
“Your Majesty? You should get ready soon.”
Hwa Ryong rubbed his eyes, tired. “Good.”
He reluctantly got out of bed and was immediately served to prepare. Hwa Ryong was tidying his hair when a ladyboy outside said loudly to his friend. “Pity is right, our Crown Princess. It was not yet past three days from the first night, that the Queen was already busy appointing prospective concubines for the Crown Prince. What are we supposed to do? Will the Crown Princess lose the love of the Crown Prince later? I'm afraid the Crown Princess will be deposed if the new concubine succeeds in seizing the Crown Prince's heart.” Hwa Ryong's heart felt like it had been pierced by a thousand knives upon hearing that. Hwa Ryong is not sad because his position is threatened. He was more afraid of hearing the possibility that the Crown Prince no longer loved him. Even the thought alone, was able to make his heart ache tremendously. Hwa Ryong could not imagine what it would be like if that was indeed the case.
Head Dayang Noh who also heard, immediately sauntered out and scolded the ladies. But Hwa Ryong immediately caught up with him and stopped Chief Dayang Noh.
“Stop. What they say is true. No reason to scold them.”
Head Dayang Noh just sighed. “But, Your Majesty..”
His words made the lady who heard it giggle in awe. But they did not know that in every word that Hwa Ryong said, Hwa Ryong's heart seemed to be pierced by broken glass. Dayang Noh's head immediately breezed away following his master who had moved to the dressing room.
PALACE HALL
Meanwhile at the Palace Hall, the Crown Prince hears news of a new concubine for him for the first time.
“What, Uhmamama? Is Uhmamama serious?”
The queen nodded, though honest in her heart, she hesitated. “Iya, Seja. Having a lot of concubines would be good for you. Their family will be part of the Royal Family and that means they can help solve the problems of this country with what they have.”
“But..”.
The king spoke. “To be honest, I disagree about the appointment of a new concubine for the Crown Prince, Queen.”
“I understand His Majesty's concern for the Crown Princess, Jeohna. State affairs are more important than anything. It is our job to make sure our people are happy. And one way is to seek a lot of support to the Royal Family, especially to the Crown Prince. The Eo family is one of the most capable and worthy families to help the Crown Prince.”
The King fell silent, as did the Crown Prince. The Crown Prince immediately remembered the sad look on his wife's face yesterday afternoon. Is this perhaps why, he asked in his heart.
“The mother will make sure that the new concubine candidate who is appointed is a worthy and kind person, Seja. You know very well that Mother loves the Crown Princess as much as she loves you. Mother promised her mother would fully monitor this new future concubine so that she would never be able to hurt the Crown Princess in the slightest. So you don't have to worry, if this is what you're worried about now.”
The Crown Prince was in a great sense of dilemma. He had clearly promised Yunti to take good care of Hwa Ryong. However, not yet three days from their first night, another matter that could snatch away Hwa Ryong's happiness has arisen. The Crown Prince sighed loudly. He is also not a person who can override the interests of the state. The Eo Family was a family that was notoriously wealthy and could afford to finance the lack of funds that the Royal Family had.
The Queen's decision to find a concubine was not wrong at all. For him, to become the Crown Prince, the King's successor, he was required to seek as much support as possible. And having the support of the Eo Family which was the family of his future concubine, was not a bad thing at all. In fact, the Crown Prince knows that the Shim Family, Hwa Ryong family is also as powerful and famous as the Eo Family. The Crown Prince is actually not that greedy to gain power. But getting the support of two influential families at once in his hands was something that could guarantee his ascension to the throne later on.
He sighed deeply, before replying, “If this is indeed Uhmamama's wish, let it happen for the benefit of this country.”
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"I saw you perfect and I fell in love. Then I saw that you were not perfect and fell in love with it more and more. "
- NN
Hwa Ryong's outfit as Crown Princess :