At the palace, the emperor held a meeting with the court officials.
The empress, Taehyung, and Seorin waited for the emperor in the royal chamber.
The empress was forty years old, but she maintained her youthful appearance and looked no older than thirty years old. The empress wore an intricately embroidered silk dress and she was seated high on a platform next to the chair reserved for the emperor. She smiled politely at Seorin. "Little girl, I remember the first time I met you four years ago. I thought you were beautiful and I didn't know who would be blessed to marry you. If I knew back that you would marry my little fifth prince then I would have asked him to come back to Hanyang earlier."
The empress' fake praises didn't enter Seorin's heart. Although in the past Seorin didn't meet the empress often, it was clear to her that the empress' loyalty was reserved for Princess Ji Hoon and Park Sang-Hee. Princess Ji Hoon hated her to death so there was no reason for the empress to love her. Besides, everyone in the palace had years of experience of giving fake praises, especially someone of high status like the empress.
"Imperial mother, you are too kind," Seorin said. "I'm quite blessed to be married to the fifth prince."
Seorin smiled politely at Taehyung.
"Imperial mother, I'm the one who is blessed to marry Rinnie," Taehyung said sweetly and smiled warmly at Seorin.
Seorin refrained from vomiting earlier when Taehyung called her 'wife' endearingly in front of the maids, but she felt more nauseous after hearing Taehyung call her 'Rinnie' too sweetly.
The empress' ears stiffened after hearing the newlyweds' loving exchange. It reminded her of the year she married the emperor. Except the emperor married her to secure the throne. She didn't know if the newlyweds' situation was similar to her and the emperor... it couldn't be, the deep love aura in Taehyung's eyes was too clear.
Suddenly the empress felt Taehyung's warm boxy smile was too blinding. She picked up a cup, drank a sip of tea, and hid her cold smile. She put the cup down and smiled politely. "I'm happy to see the strong bond between the two of you. My heart was saddened when the little fifth prince was heartbroken after his little fiancee died... ah! forgive a muddle-headed elder like me, I shouldn't talk about the sad past. You two should start eating. The imperial cooks made much delicious food."
The empress saw Seorin frown as she expected and she smiled brightly. She glanced at Taehyung but his head was lowered while drinking tea.
Seorin couldn't remember who that girl actually was and frowned. She thought deeply and finally remembered eight years ago when Taehyung was sixteen years old, the emperor arranged an engagement between Taehyung and a court official's daughter. Seorin was overjoyed and relieved Taehyung was going to marry her, it meant he wouldn't look for her in Daegu and trouble her anymore. Unfortunately less than two months after their engagement was announced, that girl became severely ill and died. Then Taehyung asked the emperor to allow him to visit his former teacher's home in Daegu while he grieved for her death. The emperor consented and during Taehyung's grieving period, Taehyung bullied Seorin in Daegu.
Seorin's heart laughed mockingly. The empress' intention to strain hers and Taehyung's relationship was too clear. The empress wasted her saliva, even if Taehyung married that girl, she wouldn't be depressed.
"The emperor, crown prince, and Consort Jung are approaching the royal chamber," a guard announced.
Everyone inside the royal chamber stood to bow and greet the emperor.
While Seorin bowed on the floor she felt the emperor's sleeve sweep past and her anxiety surfaced. It was the first time she officially met her father-in-law who had the highest status under the sky. From her side-eyed glance Seorin clearly understood that though her father-in-law is advanced in age, the age doesn't leave any type of mark on his face. She was shocked that emperor Seokjin look quite handsome and young like he belongs to the otherworld......
"Everyone can rise," the emperor said. "We're all one family, there's no need for imperial protocols."
The emperor sat on his chair next to the empress and he accepted the cup of tea from the empress.
Everyone obeyed the emperor and sat down. The empress sat on the emperor's left side and the crown prince sat next to the empress. Consort Jung sat on the right of the emperor and Taehyung and Seorin sat below Consort Jung.
The empress glanced at Consort Jung and was unhappy Consort Jung's dress was more beautiful than her but she smiled politely. "Today my little sister looks beautiful."
Consort Jung had battled with the empress for decades and understood the empress always hid a dagger behind praise. She knew the empress was accusing her of purposely outshining Taehyung's new bride.
"No matter how beautiful I look, my unnie is always more beautiful," Consort Jung said and sighed. "But the years and months haven't been kind to me. I need to wear thick makeup if I want to go outside my chamber. I need to choose my dress carefully too, unlike a young bride who can wear any dress and still look beautiful."
The empress sat upright. She glanced at the poor fabric quality of Seorin's dress and shook her head. Indeed her little sister Ji Hoon hated Shin Hye and Seorin deeply, it was clear Ji Hoon didn't want to waste a single silver coin on Seorin.
The empress didn't care if Ji Hoon hated Shin Hye and Seorin. What she cared about was Consort Jung using Seorin's ordinary dress to insult her. She knew Consort Jung implied that Seorin's family must be poor. How was it possible for a prime minister and his wife be poor? Then it was reasonable Seorin was mistreated by Ji Hoon, which reflected badly on her. Also, Seorin married Taehyung, if she didn't care about Seorin's appearance it meant that she was looking down on the emperor's son and daughter-in-law.
Indeed, after the emperor Seokjin heard Consort Jung's words, he looked at Seorin and a frown showed upon his handsome face. Although he didn't favor Taehyung, he wouldn't allow anyone to look down on Taehyung.
"I remember when Ji Hoon was a little girl, she always acted recklessly," the emperor said. He put the cup down and glared at the empress. "I didn't expect she would stay the same even after being married. As her older sister, you should teach her boundaries."
The empress lowered her head. "It's my fault for being careless."
The empress cursed Consort Jung in her stomach. Whereas Consort Jung was satisfied with the outcome and didn't say anything else.
Seorin's head ached. The empress and Consort Jung dragged her into their battle and she didn't want to offend either of them. She didn't know if she should praise Princess Ji Hoon in front of everyone to appease the empress. Then she thought if it was better for her to not deny she was a pitiful mistreated step-daughter. Her head ached more, she didn't have any experience dealing with battles in the palace.
Seorin glanced at Taehyung who was lowering his head as though his ears and mouth were dead. She realized Taehyung chose the right approach, acting dead was the safest choice.
Suddenly Seorin's back shivered. She felt like someone was staring at her intensely.
Seorin raised her head and unexpectedly the eyes that were staring at her belonged to the crown prince. He quickly looked away after their eyes met. It made her suspicious why he would care if she caught him staring at her.
The crown prince, Kim Namjoon is twenty-six years old. He is a beautiful young man. When Seorin first met him she thought he was a beautiful rich young lady with a very cute dimpled smile and unique dragon eyes who dressed in men's clothes for amusement.
Kim Namjoon was flustered Seorin caught him staring at her. He regretted she married Taehyung. Namjoon knew in the Park Manor there were two young mistresses. But at every banquet held at the palace, Park Sang-Hee always shadowed him and didn't give him a chance to carefully assess Seorin. Until the banquet a month ago, his heart was moved when he looked at Seorin closely for the first time.
Namjoon didn't care that Park Sang-Hee was more beautiful than Seorin. He hated her and he wouldn't spend time with Sang-Hee if his mother didn't force him. He regretted that he was born by the empress and was forced to become the crown prince to stable his mother's position in the palace. If he never happened to be the son of the empress then he would never take his current position as crown prince and be forced to act that he is willing to marry that immature girl. Even those planning for proposal to Sang-Hee was also planned by the empress. He felt Park Sang-Hee was too controlling. His ideal wife was someone who was beautiful and gentle like Seorin. A month ago, Seorin wore a beautiful dress and she looked heavenly under the setting sun. Seorin's gentle smile captivated him and carved deep in his heart. He had missed Seorin since that day and he was heartbroken when Seorin married Taehyung.
Seorin was unhappy throughout the meal with Taehyung's family in the palace. She hated how the emperor had a close bond with the third prince and the crown prince yet the emperor treated Taehyung coldly. Everyone else followed the emperor's behavior and they looked down on Taehyung. She wasn't fooled that on the surface the meal was to celebrate hers and Taehyung's marriage, but the truth was she and Taehyung were merely decorations in everyone's eyes.
From the moment Seorin stepped into the royal chamber, her intuition warned her the atmosphere was strangely familiar. After the meal, she realized the atmosphere resembled the Park Manor. She and Taehyung were alike, unloved, and viewed as insignificant by their families. Except, Taehyung's life inside the palace was more pitiful than her life inside the Park Manor. Although her father was useless under Princess Ji Hoon's control, at least occasionally her father didn't neglect her. Her heart ached for Taehyung who had no one inside the palace who would at least ask him about his health. Each time she glanced at Taehyung, he smiled gently in front of everyone but they ignored his presence.
After Seorin struggled to eat food at the palace, she was happy to leave. Taehyung led her to the horse carriage, but they were stopped by Consort Jung and the third prince, Hoseok at the palace gardens.
"I came here to see the flowers blossoming, I didn't expect to meet you two here," Consort Jung said. She smiled at Seorin. "You'll make me happy if you join me in my chamber and talk with me."
Seorin was about to reply when Taehyung spoke on her behalf.
"Mother, Rinnie is feeling quite weak," Taehyung said. "It's better if I take Rinnie home to rest."
Seorin didn't know when she feels her body become weak and when she says that to Taehyung. She glanced suspiciously at Taehyung. She didn't know why he didn't want her to accompany Consort Jung, but she believed he had his reasons so she followed his lead. "Mother, I feel a close connection with you. But today I don't know why I feel so unwell. Forgive me for not accepting your kind invitation."
Consort Jung acted regretfully but she didn't detain Seorin. She took off a jade bracelet, gave it to Seorin, and advised her to take care of her body.
After Taehyung and Seorin weren't within sight, Consort Jung's polite smile disappeared.
"It appears he doesn't want to help us," Consort Jung said. "He doesn't even want to step foot in my chamber. It shows he doesn't want to be associated with us."
Hoseok smiled coldly. "After he returned from Southern Busan, I visited his manor many times, but he made many excuses to avoid seeing me. Luckily his relationship with the other side is neutral too."
Consort Jung gripped the stem of a flower. "Don't worry, one day he will help us. There'll be other opportunities in the future, let me think of a way to force him."