"NO! Your Highness, have mercy on the prince! Don't surrender Yong to them, please," Jin-Ri begged the King
"All of you silent! Captain Gi, take her back to her residence now, or I will behead you and that incompetent lady-in-waiting where you stand!" he declared.
"My Lady, we have to go, right now we can't do anything for him," Yeng pleaded as she pulled Jin-Ri away from the court grounds.
"But Yong, they're going to take him back to Guiong for punishment, we have to do something." She begged Yeng to let her go
"Lady Jin-Ri, we won't be of any help to the prince if we are detained as well. For now, we need to trust him that he can handle himself, at least for the time being," Kwan explained to Jin-Ri
Having no other choice, Jin-Ri was forced to abandon Young-Sik and return to her residence. Young-Sik was dragged back to the mansion where the envoy stays. King Man-Ju asked the envoy, "What are the emperor's plans with the prince?"
"Your brother has defied and humiliated my Emperor. He wants retribution." The envoy stated, "Emperor Yuan wants him to suffer the same fate as Xun Ju, to die a slow and painful death." He glanced at the King, "Are you sure you want to surrender the prince to us?"
"He is a plague unto Chiongsun, pretending to be our savior, but all along he plots to take the throne for himself," he explained, expressing his thoughts about his brother. "I assume this will place me in the emperor's good graces?"
The envoy smiled as he began to walk back to their designated mansion, with King Man-Ju following. "Let's not get ahead of ourselves," the envoy said. "We still need to take him back to Guiong alive and well enough to endure whatever is thrown at him. But you need not worry once I present him to my emperor, I will be sure to tell him how you made his capture easy for us," the envoy promised.
"I heard that you plan to leave the day after you have him in custody," Man-Ju said. "Does that mean you will leave tomorrow?" He asked the envoy
"Sometime before noon," the envoy replied
"Then maybe I could fix something that will help you carry your prisoner easily," Man-Ju offered the envoy. The two of them grinned as they continued their leisurely walk.
That night, Kwan made his way to the prince's holding cell, his heart heavy with sorrow. The sight of Prince Young-Sik in such a dreadful state nearly brought him to tears. The prince was battered and bloodied, suspended by his arms, chained to the wall, his knees buckling under the strain of his weight.
In a fit of rage, Kwan shouted at the guards, "UNLOCK THE CELL! I COMMAND YOU TO OPEN THE DOORS!" The guards, trembling at the thought of facing the captain's fury, hastily complied. Once the door swung open, Kwan rushed in and freed the prince from his chains. Gently, he helped Young-Sik lie down on the cold floor, calling out, "Your Highness, Your Highness!" in a desperate attempt to awaken him. He took out a water container and gently poured the contents into the prince's mouth.
Young-Sik's eyes fluttered open, but he was so weak that he felt he might slip into darkness at any moment. With a surge of effort, he grasped Kwan's shoulder, pulling him close, and whispered urgently, "Take Jin-Ri and Yeng, get them out of the capital and to my grandfather's estate. He will know what to do next!"
"I can't leave you like this; I need to get you some help first." Kwan was about to stand to get some medical attention, but Young-Sik grabbed him
"No time, just do what I say. Please save her," Young-Sik said weakly. "Tell her, I'm sorry, but I dare not act against my brother while she is within his grasp. Now, please go!"
Kwan gritted his teeth and bowed to the prince. "As you wish, Your Highness!" He quickly stood up and exited the cell. He ran as fast as he could back to Jin-Ri's mansion.
Kwan entered straight into the consort's big mansion, which was elaborately adorned with expensive paintings, wall decorations, and pottery. He went straight into Jin-Ri's private quarters, outside the court, where maidens were waiting in line. "Open the doors," he ordered the court maidens
"Madame Jin-Ri, Captain Gi is here to see you," The eldest court maiden announced
From inside, Yeng answered, "The madame has granted him permission to enter."
The court maidens opened the door, granting Kwan entry. He bowed respectfully to Jin-Ri, his heart aching as he waited for the doors to close behind him. Finally, he spoke, his voice barely above a whisper, "The prince has sent me to take you and Yeng away from the capital."
"Why? How is he?" Jin-Ri stepped closer; her eyes were wide with concern. "Where is Yong? Is he safe?" She clutched at Kwan's garments, her voice rising in desperation. "Please, you must tell me how he is!" she cried, her heart longing for any word of her dear prince.
"He is well," a voice echoed from behind them, drawing their attention to the door where the King stood. "That is, if you consider being beaten and broken to a bloody pulp as being well."
"You monster!" Jin-Ri cried out, her fury igniting as she lunged at Man-Ju, landing blows with desperate determination. "You promised you wouldn't harm him! You said he would be free!" Her voice trembled with rage and heartbreak.
In a swift motion, Man-Ju seized Jin-Ri by the throat, pinning her against the wall. Yeng and Captain Gi moved to intervene, but the King's warning halted them. "Interfere with my affairs, and I will snap her neck!" he threatened, his eyes cold and unyielding.
Turning his attention back to Jin-Ri, Man-Ju sneered, "I vowed that I would not harm him and keep him free, but I never promised to shield him from those who wish to do him harm!" His words spilled forth, laced with bitterness.
"LIAR! You wanted to hurt him! You always wanted to hurt him, because you are jealous of how he is loved and revered by the people!" She declared while struggling to remove the King's grip on her neck.
"You've hit the nail on the head! I've always wanted to make him suffer. That's why I took such delight in... No, I savored every scrumptious moment of his torment. Care to hear how he howled and wept like a child?" he taunted Jin-Ri, a sinister smirk on his lips.
Jin-Ri ceased her resistance and glared daggers at the King. Then, she erupted into laughter, leaving Man-Ju spinning in confusion. "He howled and wept from pain?" Her laughter only grew, even as the King choked her. "I've seen him take blows from men far larger than those pathetic Guiong soldiers. I watched him get pierced by arrows and endure a tiger's claw to the face, without a peep, without even a groan, and you want me to believe he cried like a child from your weaklings?" Jin-Ri challenged the King, tearing apart his ridiculous claims.
Man-Ju's eyes grew wide from what he heard, and he was reminded of the events a few hours ago. He was watching as several Guiong soldiers took turns beating up a chained and bound Young-Sik. But soon his smile and hubris vanished, replaced by sheer terror, for despite being beaten up, Young-Sik kept a calm face that glared at him, without so much as a tiny twitch in his face.
Not to be outdone, the King snapped back, "Oh, I'm not talking about the physical beating. I am talking about the hurt that you inflicted on him." Those words hit Jin-Ri like a boulder, and her confidence suddenly waned.
"I…inflicted?" Her voice trembled, while her chest felt like something was squeezing the life out of her. "I hurt him?" She could not believe what she had done; the painful part was that it was true.
Man-Ju's eyes narrowed as he glared at Jin-Ri. "My brother is so many things, but invincible is not one of them. You see, he honed his body to be a weapon, he filled his mind with a sea of knowledge and wisdom, but for all his troubles, he forgot something…he forgot to strengthen his heart. Despite his magnificent abilities, skills, and knowledge, all it took to defeat him was one silly girl." The King released his grip on Jin-Ri and confidently strutted across the room. "You are his weakness!"
"Like how you betrayed him?" Jin-Ri reminded Man-Ju of his treachery against the prince
He looked around him and saw the judgmental eyes of Jin-Ri and her friends. Suddenly, he had the urge to escape their gazes. "Open the doors," he shouted. His servants outside quickly opened the doors, and he rushed out of the room that he felt was slowly suffocating him. Outside, he gave strict instructions to the court maidens: "No one, not Consort Hong, her lady-in-waiting, or Captain Gi, leaves this place unless I say so!"
"Yes, Your Highness!" everyone outside said in unison, bowing to the King as they did. The King then walked away, and his fury and anger lingered in the air.
Jin-Ri sank onto her bed, tears streaming down her cheeks as she clutched a pillow, envisioning it was Young-Sik. "I'm so sorry, Yong. I'm so sorry," she sobbed, her heart heavy with the haunting images of a bruised and bloodied Young-Sik invading her thoughts. The mere thought of her beloved in such a state was unbearable, and she shuddered at the pain it would bring her to witness it firsthand.
Yeng slowly approached the sobbing Jin-Ri, she sat beside her and allowed her to lay her head over her lap. "You need not worry about him, he is brave and tough, if anyone could endure this...he would be on the top of the list," she assured her with the utmost confidence while gently caressing her hair.
"I hope so.... I hope so," she murmured.
Kwan also approached Jin-Ri. "My lady, the prince wanted you to know." Jin-Ri lifted her head, eager to hear what the prince wanted to tell her. "The prince cannot defy the King as long as he has you within his grasp."
"And I gave the King the weapon he needed to defeat the prince." Jin-Ri buried her face in her arms and sobbed and sobbed. Yeng and Kwan exchanged worried glances as Jin-Ri continued to sob. The two watched over her until she cried herself to sleep.
Jin-Ri's eyelids twitched as the sunlight danced directly in her face. She squinted and covered her eyes with her hand to protect them from the bright light. Turning around, she noticed she was alone; she got up from bed and out of the room, looking for Yeng and Kwan.
She went downstairs and straight to the main door, and the doors swung open even before she could go near it. "Lady Jin-Ri! Lady Jin-Ri!" Yeng came in frantically calling her name. She saw her friends startled by the suddenly swinging doors that narrowly missed her, and she was rooted where she stood. "The King wants you at the eastern gates!"
"What? Why?" She asked, confused as to the reason she was being summoned. "He said he wanted you to witness something," she explained briefly. She then took Jin-Ri by the hand and started to run to the said area.
When they arrived at the location, Captain Gi was anxiously waiting for them. "Captain Gi, why are there so many people?" she asked Kwan, curious about the large gathering.
At first, Kwan bit his lips, unsure of how to break the news to Jin-Ri, and before he could speak, they heard a eunuch shout, "Here comes the false hero of our nation! Here comes the traitor who endangered our country."
"Who are they talking about?" Jin-Ri asked Kwan
"The prince, he's talking about the prince," Kwan replied, shaking his head in frustration.
Jin-Ri's eyes widened, and her face turned pale from the shock. Without uttering a word, she ran towards the crowd. She tried to push through the thick gathering of people, but they would not let her. She looked around her and saw the rampart stairs. She climbed the stairs and looked over the rampart walls just in time to see Young-Sik clad in white, bound and bloodied, being dragged by Guiong soldiers while the gathered crowd of commoners all shouted angrily at the prince.
Jin-Ri's hands flew to cover her lips. The sight of her prince being dragged, pushed, cursed, and spat on like a common criminal shattered her heart into a million pieces. Tears rolled down her cheeks as she saw the prince placed inside a wooden cage on a cart pulled by a donkey.
"I may not have broken him physically, but seeing him break emotionally and mentally is much more fun to watch," Man-Ju whispered into Jin-Ri's ear. "And it all started when you surrendered yourself to me," he chuckled openly and loudly