CH 77

Hwawoon thought that he should call Ahjin quickly and reassure her, but he could not say it out loud. It was because of Yihan’s words that followed. 

“I was worried about you, so I was waiting for you to wake up without sleeping until this time.” 

This time, his heart dropped harder than before. Only then did the surrounding scenery come into Hwawoon’s eyes. The place, which was surrounded by golden curtains, was not Jeongan Palace. It wasn’t Hwawoon’s bedroom. Then where is this place? Where is this place where the emperor is staying all night? 

He remembered that before he lost his mind from getting hurt at Changgyeong Pavilion, the Emperor personally lifted him and walked with himself in his arms. He was confused between dreams and reality, so he thought that, too, was a dream. However, when he heard Yihan’s voice saying that he had been waiting for him, he suddenly realized that the moment was real, not a dream. 

Then does that mean this place where I was lying down is the Emperor’s bedroom? 

Hwawoon soon slowly pushed Yihan’s chest with both hands, detached his body, and faced Yihan. Yihan, who faced Hwawoon’s gaze in the air without saying a word, looked somewhat sad and heartbroken. 

That can’t be true. His Majesty can’t possibly make that face just because I’m hurt. 

He was feverish. His breathing was hot. Was it because of the wound, or was it because of his confused thoughts? 

Was the confused thought due to the emperor’s gaze, or was it due to his wound as well? 

Yihan continued to talk to Hwawoon, whose eyes were shaking because everything was just a tangled thread. 

“Do you mean these things mean nothing to you?” 

“Your Majesty… I…”

“Is that why you keep saying that your injury is nothing? That it’s a relief?”

Does my heart mean nothing to you? Yihan’s voice, which sounded as if he were asking so, was so heavy and affectionate that Hwawoon was just unable to breath and couldn’t say anything.

***

Biyoung returned to Unhwa Palace and managed to lie in bed, but could not close her eyes. When she closed her eyes, that moment kept coming to mind like a nightmare, so she had no choice but to open her eyes again in a hurry. Hwawoon’s arms which hugged her, the screaming voice calling for him, and the tremendous power striking Hwawoon’s back that was transmitted to her were still vivid as if it were happening right now. 

It was natural for Biyoung to be shocked because she had never experienced such a mess. However, Biyoung knew that the feelings she felt now were not just those of surprise and shock. When Hwawoon’s face, who was asking if she was okay while bleeding from his back, came to mind, her heart ached like a natural sequence. A guilty feeling that could not be excused. 

In a corner of her mind, she desperately repeated such excuses, saying that she didn’t know it would be like this, that she couldn’t think properly because she was so surprised, flustered, and scared. That she was just scared, and had no choice but to doubt Yeonbin until the end to protect herself. However, on the other hand, the fact that she hurt the person who took care of her at a dangerous moment because of her petty pride and useless doubt made Biyoung suffer. 

Of course, Biyoung may once again suspect that it was a desperate measure. There were a lot of stories of concubines in the past, who put themselves in danger and pretended to save others to win the emperor’s heart. There was no end to human greed for favor and power, so sometimes, some people would not hesitate to put themselves as well as their family in danger for love. 

Therefore, such a wound. Such a scar that the benevolent and upright emperor wouldn’t care about. If he got such a scar and then won the emperor’s love that no one else could receive, it would be quite worthwhile.

However, when she tried to comfort her mind with that thought, she remembered the desperation felt in Yeon Hwawoon’s arms that hugged her. The expression of Yeon Hwawoon, who had a pale face but only looked at her safety, seemed to be drawn in front of her. Then, Biyoung couldn’t bear to say that all that was made up. She couldn’t think of it like that anymore. 

If only I’d trusted him a little earlier. 

In the end, it was Biyoung’s dawn when such regrets could not be shaken off.

***

“I…” 

Yihan only looked at Hwawoon, who was stuttering the same word continuously. He looked as if he was giving time for Hwawoon to organize his thoughts. However, even if he thought about it over and over again, Hwawoon couldn’t understand anything properly. In the first place, Hwawoon was not even convinced of why the Emperor held him in his arms when he was injured in Changgyeong Pavilion. 

No matter how kind of person he was, he didn’t have to do this far. He didn’t have to personally pick him up and walk with himself in his arms, take him to the Emperor’s bedroom, or wait until this late hour for him to wake up. Hwawoon, who could not dare to guess the depth of kindness the Emperor had, was just opening his mouth like a person who forgot how to talk. 

At that time, Yihan’s hand, which moved silently, tucked Hwawoon’s hair and then slowly touched Hwawoon’s cheek. Hwawoon looked at Yihan with trembling eyes, unable to breathe out because he was completely frozen like a person with the tip of a knife touching his neck. The tip of the careful thumb swept Hwawoon’s cheek at a very slow pace, and Yihan opened his mouth. 

“Don’t do that again.” 

Don’t do that. The nuance of Yihan’s words was exactly like an order, but it was not an order. 

“Don’t throw your body like that again.” 

It was rather a request. It was a plea. It was never a voice that the emperor of a nation could say to a mere concubine. Hwawoon thought that he might not properly hear the tone imbued in the emperor’s voice because of the deep wound. 

“Your Majesty…”

However, the emperor’s hand was still touching Hwawoon’s cheek, the emperor’s gaze was still not able to look away from Hwawoon’s eyes, and the emperor’s approaching face was affectionate and desperate that it was difficult enough for Hwawoon to handle. Therefore, Hwawoon held his breath without realizing it and weakly held the hem of the emperor’s clothes with both hands. 

“Your Majesty, this is Ahjin.”

Yihan, who instantly opened his closed eyes due to the sudden sound from beyond the door, hurriedly moved away from Hwawoon. Hwawoon, who was also surprised, straightened up his body from leaning toward Yihan, and groaned in pain again. Surprised, Yihan carefully wrapped Hwawoon’s shoulder again and made him lean on one side of the pillow, then turned his head toward the door. 

“Come in.” 

The emperor’s earlobes and neck were red enough to notice, but Hwawoon, who was also surprised and flustered about what happened earlier, was only looking at the floor, so he didn’t see that. 

Without knowing what she did, Ahjin came inside with medicine, saw Hwawoon had woken up, and opened her mouth with tears in her eyes. 

“I heard… I heard His Highness has woken up, so I brought the medicine.”

If Ahjin had been in her usual condition, she would have fully noticed the subtle and awkward air surrounding the emperor and her master when she came in. However, today, Ahjin was also so surprised and was so distracted by her worries about Hwawoon that she couldn’t even think about looking at the atmosphere in the room. 

Hwawoon, who heard Ahjin’s voice shook helplessly, only then raised his gaze and looked at Ahjin. His heart sank again because her swollen eyes and red cheeks clearly showed that she had cried a lot. He had nothing to say because he felt like he had made the person who was paying attention to his health suffer again. 

And when Ahjin just knelt on the floor next to Hwawoon, Eunuch Oh, who was guarding the door under Yihan’s order, followed her inside and bowed to Yihan. 

“Your Majesty, His Highness Yeonbin has come to his senses, so why don’t you sleep now?” 

At that word, Yihan squinted his eyes and glared at Eunuch Oh, and Hwawoon looked so confused. Come to think of it, the banquet was held after sunset, and he must have lost his consciousness for a few hours, so it was clear that it was quite late now. Still, the Emperor was waiting by his side without taking a break. Hwawoon hurriedly opened his mouth, blaming himself for not noticing the situation earlier. 

“Eunuch Oh is right, Your Majesty. I’m all right now, so I’m going to leave for treatment.”

In the first place, the fact that he was lying in the bedroom of the noble emperor made Hwawoon feel like he had committed such a great crime. Of course, as the emperor’s concubine, Yeon Hwawoon could sleep in the emperor’s bedroom if the emperor allowed him, but Hwawoon thought that he did not deserve it, as he was different from the original Yeon Hwawoon. 

Thus, Hwawoon tried to get out of bed without taking medicine. And it was Yihan with a displeased look who softly grabbed Hwawoon’s arm and made him sit again.