The Hated Male Concubine

“I saw Yeon Juwon’s face was so sour in today’s meeting.”

Yihan suddenly opened his mouth inside the Great Hall, which was quiet after Officer Wi left. There were only Yihan and Eunuch Oh inside, so without a doubt, that was directed to Eunuch Oh. Yihan continued on before the eunuch could give any reply.

“Even if he doesn’t show it, he can’t help but care about his son. That’s why I ordered his nameplate to be put back.”

“I see.”

“I won’t flip over Yeonbin’s nameplate, but I’m embarrassed to see his father’s face.”

“Your grace for Lord Yeon is boundless, Your Majesty.”

Yihan’s gaze finally turned to Eunuch Oh. These days, strangely, the more Eunuch Oh responded to him, the more Yihan’s mood turned bad. However, it was only his feelings, so there was nothing he could say about it. Yihan tried hard to press down his dissatisfied expression and said again,

“Well, speaking of…” 

“Yes, Your Majesty.” 

“… Is there no news from Jeongan Palace?”

The stealthy voice was timid and subtle, not clear. Eunuch Oh, who kept getting it hard to manage his expression in front of the emperor, bit his lips once and said, swallowing a laugh that was about to burst out.

“There’s no news in particular. Is there anything you are curious about?”

“No. What is it for me to be curious about?”

Roughly glossing over his words, Yihan once again recalled Hwawoon’s figure, which he passed by today. He didn’t even look sideways when he passed by Hwawoon just in case he might make eye contact, but it was a pity that he couldn’t guess what kind of expression Hwawoon was making at that time. Even after passing by, he only told Eunuch Oh to look at him, but he couldn’t check it himself. 

Yihan once again talked to Eunuch Oh. 

“Did I scare him because I ignored him too harshly?”

Eunuch Oh, who looked at Yeonbin’s reaction alone, couldn’t answer the emperor’s remark.

“In your opinion, Yeonbin’s expression was really wounded, right? So, isn’t it possible that he couldn’t even send some snacks?“

Eunuch Oh really couldn’t say anything. 

***

The rumor that the Emperor ordered Yeonbin’s nameplate to be put back again spread to the entire palace as soon as the sun rose the next day. Most of the opinions were that he could not help but think about Lord Yeon’s face, but since everyone in the palace had already heard about Yeonbin, who changed recently, the opinion that His Majesty really forgave Yeonbin was also gaining credence.

In addition, the emperor took a stroll in Suhwawon with Yeonbin, and his visit to Jeongan Palace when Yeonbin was sick had already spread through many people’s mouths. Thus, it added weight to the opinion that the Emperor changed his mind after seeing Yeonbin’s changed appearance.

The Department of Internal Affairs was responding more quickly to the new news than anyone else. It was natural because the Department of Internal Affairs had to be sensitive to changes in the atmosphere and subtle flow of the internal court due to the nature of their work.

The status of the concubines was not just determined by their rank, nor just estimated based on their families. The emperor’s favor was the most important, but it could not be determined with only that. The position of the general officer in charge of the Department of Internal Affairs looked insignificant on the surface, but underneath, it was a position that must closely read the flows.

For that very reason, Officer Jung, the general officer of the Department of Internal Affairs, had been heading directly to the Tailoring Bureau since the morning.

“Lord Jung, what brings you here at this time?”

Lady Lee from the Tailoring Bureau welcomed Officer Jung, pretending to be happy. However, Officer Jung roughly accepted her greeting as if he had no time to exchange a trivial hello and asked,

“How is it going with His Highness Yeonbin’s clothes?”

“It’s still being embroidered.” 

“Are you saying it’s not finished yet?” 

Lady Lee answered with a curious expression when Officer Jung, who never cared about His Highness Yeonbin’s clothes, suddenly asked. And when Officer Jung asked back with a serious attitude, she got confused and only blinked her eyes.

His Highness Yeonbin looked for the attire for male concubines, which he practically never wore before. For some time, the clothes for male concubines were never sent to Jeongan Palace, so there was a request to make some new clothes. From the Tailoring Bureau’s perspective, they had to throw away the clothes for Jeongan Palace they were working on and make new ones, so it was inevitable that more time would be needed.

Jeongan Palace took into consideration the Tailoring Bureau’s situation and told them to take their time. However, there was a possibility that a commotion could happen in the Tailoring Bureau if they just believed those words, so they were doing their best to work faster.

“I believe you also know it was a sudden request. So why do you suddenly become impatient like this?”

It wasn’t the first time for the Department of Internal Affairs to have a say about the Tailoring Bureau’s working pace, but it was hardly rare for Officer Jung to personally take care and demand items for Jeongan Palace. As Lady Lee asked, Officer Jung lowered his back a bit, leaning his head to Lady Lee’s ear, and whispered.

“I heard His Majesty ordered His Highness Yeonbin’s nameplate to be put back.”

“His Highness’s nameplate…?”

“That’s right. But that’s not all. He also often goes to Jeongan Palace nowadays… it seems there are some changes in his heart.”

“Ay, no way. I did hear some rumors, but… even if His Highness Yeonbin has changed, things he did in the past still exist, so would His Majesty change his heart?”

Actually, Lady Lee wasn’t wrong. It wasn’t known how long it would last, but the fact that Yeonbin changed had been proved by Jeongan Palace’s courtiers and people who ran across Yeonbin. However, even if she believed it, the emperor’s feeling for Yeonbin was a different case. In fact, some days ago, the emperor went to Jeongan Palace and scolded Yeonbin.

In addition, Yeonbin was backed by Lord Yeon, so it was likely that this time, the emperor forgave him because of Lord Yeon. 

“No… I don’t think it is that simple.”

Officer Jung went on, shaking his head with a significant expression like a man who alone had noticed something big.

“My instinct as the holder of the Department of Internal Affairs’ general officer warns me about that.”

When Yeonbin was ignored by the emperor, the Department of Internal Affairs never completely dismissed Jeongan Palace. In any case, Yeonbin’s father, Lord Yeon, was a meritorious retainer, who got the emperor’s absolute trust. So, even if Yeonbin was a troublesome concubine, his family was not to be ignored. 

In addition, the current Empress did not allow the Department of Internal Affairs to openly discriminate against each palace by assessing the emperor’s favor, so the Department of Internal Affairs was still doing the necessary amount of favor for Jeongan Palace. However, Officer Jung got a hunch that now was the time to escape that ‘necessary amount’.

“You better listen to me. Is there anyone else but me who can read the situation in the internal court better?”

“Well, that’s right…”

“So, hurry up in preparing His Highness Yeonbin’s clothes and send them. I’ll be waiting.”

Lady Lee watched Officer Jung, who left after saying that, silently, then she turned back and said,

“How is the progress with His Highness Yeonbin’s clothes?!”

As he said, no one would understand the atmosphere of the internal court better than Officer Jung in this palace, so there would be no harm in listening to him.

***

“Aren’t my lips too red”

Hwawoon, who had been looking at himself reflected in the mirror with an uncomfortable expression, eventually couldn’t hold back and asked. Ahjin, who was sticking a small flower decoration on his hair which was raised with a white jade guan, quickly answered with a wry look.

“Your Highness. The color of your clothes is so simple, and you don’t have much hair decoration either, so you need to make your lips bright. You don’t want His Majesty to worry about your complexion, right?”

“Well, that’s true, but I don’t think it needs to be this red…”

“It looks red because you keep paying attention, but compared to other people, it’s paler. Don’t worry, Your Highness. You are very beautiful now.”

Ahjin, who finally finished decorating as she wanted, took a step back to check her master’s appearance and drooled without realizing it. Hair that was put up with a white jade guan, a pale bluish garment that was close to white, and a neat decoration with bright beads on his waist. She was certain that if there was a god she met in a lake in the deep mountains, it would look like her master.

Before this change, Yeonbin was not only colorful in terms of decoration, but also the expression in front of the emperor. Of course, it wasn’t that he wasn’t beautiful at that time, but her master as of now was neat in everything and even his eyes looking down were elegant. His atmosphere was extraordinary.

These days, there were rumors that there were more than one or two court ladies secretly having a crush on the appearance of Yeonbin, who was like a gentleman with great beauty, and Ahjin loved the appearance of her master now.

“I just need to be clean and neat. What’s the use of going this far…”

“Your Highness, what are you saying? You’re not going to meet anyone else, but His Majesty. Of course, you need to pay special attention.” 

Ahjin said in an excited voice, but Hwawoon looked nervous again when he heard that he was on his way to see His Majesty.