Episode 51
Confucius stiffened his shoulders in surprise.
“You, who only know how to play around without taking your responsibilities seriously, dare to underestimate the princess and her household?!”
“No, I didn’t mean to underestimate….”
“You dare to speak recklessly without even having the ability to handle this matter?!”
Stung by the painful criticism, Confucius continued to stare at the ground.
He couldn’t bring himself to lift his head.
He tried his best to curl up his body and waited for his father’s anger to pass….
“I told you that you need to avoid attracting attention as much as possible, especially in the ice palace! You shouldn’t draw attention as the head of Ji Clan!”
His father’s screams kept bursting out like thunderbolts.
“Didn’t I tell you repeatedly until my words were worn out?!”
“Father, it was my mistake. Please forgive me and…”
“Be quiet!!”
Confucius tried desperately to ask for forgiveness from his father, but Ji Gaju showed no mercy.
She slapped him across the face with every word she spoke.
Confucius was too afraid to open his mouth again, so he tightly shut both of his eyes.
Ji Gaju glared fiercely at her son with both
Ji Gaju glared fiercely at her son.
“You go and reflect on yourself!”
“Yes, yes! I understand!”
As soon as he heard the command, Confucius fled from the room as if escaping.
The door closed with a thud.
Ji Gaju, who had been glaring at the closed door for a while, raised her hand and rubbed her throbbing forehead.
“Phew… With only two children, it’s disappointing to see them fall short like this.”
After a moment, Ji Gaju calmed down slightly.
“Well, at least he will handle his destiny well.”
That’s why she made him the financial manager in the first place.
“Now I can relax a little.”
A bitter smile formed on Ji Gaju’s lips.
* * *
Back at the ice palace, Yerin and Doyul carefully reviewed the information they had received from the financial department.
The taxes were paid accurately without any discrepancies.
However, as Yerin had mentioned before, there were more cases than expected where furs were used instead of paying taxes directly.
“…At least in terms of payment itself, everything seems fine.”
Doyul couldn’t hide his skepticism.
In the Northern Ice Palace, certain upper classes were given the right to pay taxes in kind instead of using currency. This was because the administrative capacity of the ice palace was severely wasted with ordinary people individually paying taxes in goods. Therefore, instead of handling these tasks themselves, they granted trading rights directly with the Northern Ice Palace.
According to the documents from the financial department, there were not only gold coin merchants but also fur merchants.
They all acted as intermediaries for paying taxes in kind…
“Why then, in the Northern Fortress, can only gold coin merchants obtain furs?” Yerin asked. Doyul’s face darkened like a cloudy sky.
The documents were neatly organized without any doubt.
But still, once suspicion sets in, it doesn’t easily fade away.
“We should look into this matter further,” Doyul nodded silently and narrowed his eyes slightly.
“However, I’m worried that the financial department won’t take this investigation lightly.”
Indeed, it was likely to be so. This investigation itself would prove their lack of trust in the financial department’s handling of affairs.
“It might be better to divert their attention during the investigation period at least. But I wonder if there’s a way…”
“Oh, it seems like Your Highness is also quite worried,” Yerin said, shaking her head.
In response to her self-assured answer, Doyul gave her a puzzled look.
“Do you have any good ideas?”
“Well, there is already one way to divert their attention, isn’t there?”
Yerin met Doyul’s gaze and smiled mischievously.
An evil smile.
“You mean the illegal rent that Confucius collected?”
“…Surely not?”
“That ‘surely’ is correct. After all, the financial manager is under Ji Gaju’s control.”
Yerin muttered in a wicked tone.
“So, somehow Ji Gaju will try to cover up the illegal activities committed by Confucius. Don’t you think so?”
…Goodness.
Doyul blinked his eyes in surprise.
Yerin smirked as she wrinkled her nose.
“Just wait and see. If we bring up the issue of illegal rent, it will turn both the financial department and Ji Clan upside down.”
* * *
“Illegal rent?”
Upon hearing the news of the illegal rent, Sukmyeong doubted her ears.
“Did you just say ‘illegal rent’?”
Sukmyeong questioned Sibi again with a bewildered expression on her face.
Sibi lowered her head, looking remorseful.
“Yes, it’s true that Confucius collected illegal rent…”
With that, Sukmyeong forcefully slammed her fist on the armrest of her chair.
Thud!
“Is this…is he out of his mind?!”
She couldn’t help but burst into laughter at how absurd it was getting. Even she knew that her niece lacked common sense. But to think that she would go as far as collecting illegal rent in the Northern Ice Palace!
“I’d rather have her sit still and at least get a share. What is this…?”
Sukmyeong muttered with exasperation in her voice.
Meanwhile…
Suddenly raising her head, Sukmyeong sharply raised her voice towards Sibi who was trembling nervously.
“What are you staring at?! Get out right now!”
“My apologies! I’m sorry!”
Sibi hurriedly left the room.
Sukmyeong swung her sharp gaze at Sibi’s retreating figure.
“My father will probably push me to resolve the issue on my own!”
It was a predictable situation.
Ji Gaju had always been like that.
“If only I could send her to the financial department and make her handle it herself!”
That had become Ji Gaju’s habit of speech.
So, countless times, Sukmyeong had covered up for Ji Gaju’s mistakes and resolved the issues caused by her. Moreover, recently, due to Ga-eun being banned from entering the Northern Ice Palace, Sukmyeong had become more on edge.
“How do you even handle your responsibilities?!”
The image of Ji Gaju bustling about still lingered in Sukmyeong’s mind. She should have bowed down even lower since she also bore responsibility for Ga-eun’s actions…
“How long will I have to live like this?”
Feeling overwhelmed by helplessness, Sukmyeong clutched her head in both hands.
Her chest felt as heavy as a pile of rocks.
* * *
The next morning, early at dawn…
“Ahem.”
Yerin suppressed a yawn and looked at Doyul with tired eyes.
“Are you leaving already?”
In response to her summons, Doyul turned to look at her as he finished organizing his paperwork.
“Oh, did you wake up?”
“The princess has already risen, I can’t just lie around by myself, can I?”
Yerin pouted her lips.
Doyul chuckled softly.
“Well, since you took a break yesterday, you should catch up on your duties. And as for the gold coin merchants…”
Gold coin merchants.
As soon as those words left Yerin’s mouth, chaos erupted in Doyul’s mind. He couldn’t suppress the turmoil within him and fell silent.
“….Princess?”
In response to his sudden silence, Yerin looked at Doyul with a worried expression.
Oh no.
Doyul quickly turned his head sideways.
“No, it’s nothing.”
And then he gently scolded Yerin.
“You should rest a little more.”
But the concern still lingered on Yerin’s face and did not easily fade away.
“What about breakfast? You’re not planning to starve yourself, are you?”
“In that case, I’ll have it delivered to my office.”
Doyul nodded reassuringly as if telling her not to worry too much.
Finally, Yerin relaxed her expression a bit.
“Oh, I will also investigate the matter regarding the gold coin merchants. Please don’t push yourself too hard, Your Highness.”
“I will do my best.”
What is this guy saying?
Yerin frowned.
“Just doing your best is not enough.”
“Pardon?”
“Don’t promise not to push yourself too hard.”
“Well…”
Doyul rolled his eyes but couldn’t resist Yerin’s persistence.
“Alright, alright!”
In the end, Doyul couldn’t win against Yerin’s stubbornness and declared his defeat.
“See you later then. Take care of yourself as well, Your Highness.”
“Do you think I’m a princess? Don’t starve me.”
In response to Yerin’s playful retort, Doyul’s smile deepened.
“Then I’ll be on my way. Take care!”
“Yes, take care of yourself!”
After their intense confrontation, Doyul finally left the room.
At the same time, Yerin let out a deep sigh and stood up.
Well, Doyul did tell me to take it easy for a bit…
But still, isn’t Doyul working so hard?
It was uncomfortable to see her being lazy by herself.
“Ugh, better than being sick.”
After that, Yerin’s schedule was packed.
She did the chores, changed clothes, and had breakfast.
Just as Yerin was about to pick up her chopsticks.
“Madam.”
Sibi cautiously approached Yerin and spoke.
“Lady Jaejeongwonju is here to see you.”
“Jaejeongwonju?”
Yerin glanced at Sibi for a moment.
It was an unexpected visit, but she wasn’t surprised.
She didn’t know why Sookmyung had come to see her, but she couldn’t help feeling a little uneasy.
“Probably because of the land tax issue.”
Since Doyul had completely refused Sookmyung’s visit, Yerin must have been the only one open to conversation.
“But still, why come at this early hour…”
It was obvious why Jaejeongwonju had come at this time.
Of course, there might be some urgency, but more than that…
“To see if I would stop my meal and welcome her, or not.”
To check if I would treat her favorably, or not, in this matter.
She had deliberately come at this time to assess how important Sookmyung was to Yerin.
Or if she was willing to deal with this matter in a friendly manner.
In an instant, sparks flew from Yerin’s eyes.
