Chapter 174

It seemed as though the Cheon-ja had consumed narcotics.

It wasn’t confirmed, just a guess.

But I was already convinced.

“There’s no way to approach any contacts inside the palace. Since Insi 3-jak, all entries have been prohibited, and military forces of Sam Daeyong have been deployed at the four gates. There was one palace maid with whom I used to communicate via the Thousand-li Sound technique, but even she did not respond. It appears the eunuchs and maidservants are all under surveillance.”

This was the report from the contact-sending palace maid, Jin Ying. If the commotion had escalated to the point of sealing off the palace, it likely wasn’t something unrelated to the Cheon-ja.

What Tang Yeon-cheol had consumed was unknown.

Was it the substance (a mix of phenylacetone and fentanyl) disguised as aphrodisiacs passed through all the concubines by Seobang, who had been compromised due to his younger sibling? Or was it the heroin introduced through the exclusive eunuch of the Grand Princess?

Either way, if he had really consumed it, there’d be no going back.

Because pentany had been mixed into everything thrown inside the palace. It was blended into the phenylacetone and the heroin alike.

Turning people into mere addicts had little significant meaning.

After all, even with the use of drugs, they could still wage war.

My purpose was either to kill Tang Yeon-cheol or, failing that, reduce him to a state where he might as well be dead—and preferably in a particularly ugly form.

“They should have gone by now. Around this time.”

Chinguk’s court was bound to be wrapped in tremendous chaos. With public sentiment already turbulent, it was inevitable that the emperor’s condition had deteriorated.

However, I couldn’t just sit and wait until the results confirmed everything.

Chinguk was a nation where all power was concentrated in the Cheon-ja.

Because of that, the ability to respond to the emperor’s emergencies was also quite systematic.

If I gave them too much time, they would clean up the situation and dispose of Tang Yeon-cheol on their own. I had no intention of waiting for a new Cheon-ja to ascend and normalize the government.

I decided to strike another blow before Chinguk could emerge from the chaos.

It wasn’t a complicated plan—I intended to merely disclose the truth while threatening them.

Borrowing the name of the late princess, who was supposed to be my mother-in-law.

**

A chill crept into the grand hall.

Courtiers stood in rank as usual, attending the court session.

However, the imperial throne was glaringly vacant.

“Where is His Majesty?”

This question was thrown by an official with a face clouded by despair.

The generals in charge of the imperial guards tightened their expressions and glared.

“…Only Empress Lianhua, Her Majesty the Grand Empress, the ceremony eunuchs, and Admiral Dongchang have been informed. Just know that the emperor is gravely ill.”

“I understand. It’s only that I am worried.”

“Our gathering is for the orders of Her Excellency the Grand Empress.”

“So discussing matters is…?”

“…How can we forbid that?”

The signal that they could speak. However, no one was readily opening their mouths.

It wasn’t because there were imposing guards surrounding the inside and outside of the hall. Frankly, even the commanding generals looked uneasy.

Simultaneous appearances of the ganging zombies across several provinces.

The great catastrophe that occurred within the Yongbong Sect.

And the following major imprisonment.

In an already ominous situation, the orchestrator suddenly met with an accident, plunging everyone into shock. Even though the Eastern Chamber, the Imperial Guards, and the Inspectorate were mobilized fully to keep the mouths sealed…

There was no stopping the rumors.

Palaces never maintained absolute secrecy.

Eventually, murmurs rippled through the grand hall. No one was explicitly warning against it, but everyone cautiously glanced at each other, treading carefully.

“Did the incident really happen in Junior Concubine So-guin’s chambers?”

“Yes.”

“What did Supervisor Gyu Seo-fang do, exactly? …Impossible?”

“He’s already been taken to the Eastern Chamber. The eunuchs and maids who attended on His Majesty at the time… all of them.”

“We must find out quickly who contrived such a heinous plot…”

“I might lose my mind. If someone were to just kill me, it would be better.”

Everyone truly looked as if they were about to die.

Using narcotics as an excuse, countless innocents had been killed, and worse, the Cheon-ja caught in debauchery and discovered naked?

Especially since it happened mid-ritual in one of the concubines’ quarters, making the situation even more tragic.

If he had passed away, we could’ve prepared for the ‘next.’

But the Cheon-ja hadn’t died and there was no sign of death in the immediate future. He had merely fallen into a state worse than death.

Much like those who survived encounters with Gang-hon-san but lived in a miserable state.

Among the officials gathered, there was no one leading the situation with clear answers. There was no one with the authority to do so.

After a stifling passage of time…

“The Britania Empire… or rather, the Grand Empress received a transmission.”

One of the lower officials of the Ministry of Rites appeared and stated.

The faces of all the councilors participating in court sessions froze.

Britannia.

The power suspected to be behind this tragic state.

More specifically, the foe Alan Medoff was the principal enemy.

He was suspected to be behind all the chaos in Chinguk so far. Even those who had confessed under harsh interrogations mentioned his name. Of course, the confessions might have been forced, but his reputation was infamous enough.

And yet…

“The transmission was sent by the criminal Tang Yeon-hwa.”

He claimed it wasn’t the deed of the foe.

Tang Yeon-hwa.

The former emperor’s cherished princess while he was alive. Renowned for her extraordinary talent in music and her beautiful appearance, making her a well-known figure since childhood. Even after marrying in the Western Regions, her fame remained such that many sought to affiliate themselves with her.

But now, she was just a criminal.

Even worse, the Empress of an enemy nation.

How could someone who was both a criminal and an ally of the enemy dare send a transmission? Though it would’ve been sensible to ignore it, the officials in the Great Hall couldn’t afford to.

The Grand Empress, who already read the transmission, instructed that some of its content be disclosed to the council.

Soon, the contents were revealed.

“…Criminal Tang Yeon-hwa reported that the Britannia Empire possesses more than one thousand three hundred locations for opium cultivation. She mentioned that there are four places where one could secure North Inspectorate positions, though the laborers couldn’t guarantee more than 2,000 geun per month… She also mentioned that masuang has no cultivation grounds in the Britannia Empire and is only obtainable in small quantities from natural colonies.”

At this point of revealing Britania’s secrets, confusion began to show on the faces of the officials.

Why would the Empress of an enemy country suddenly disclose such sensitive information? Surely, they weren’t unaware that a drug war was being waged between the two nations.

Most significantly, Tang Yeon-hwa was this foe’s accomplice.

It was peculiar that such a criminal would suddenly start leaking information.

However, the officials’ suspicion didn’t last long.

“According to Yeon-hwa’s message… that thing….”

“Hurry and explain!”

“The original name of Gang-hon-san is Pentany, she stated. And… when manufacturing this substance, raw materials are unnecessary… rather, even if raw materials are required, the constraints on acquisition are limited. Furthermore, it can be produced at will…”

“Uh?”

“…And it can kill or incapacitate a person with an amount corresponding to only one ten-thousandth of a hop. Also, the time taken to produce enough Gang-hon-san for a hundred thousand people is merely a day and a half…”

The face of the Official from the Ministry of Rites grew darker as he read the communication.

The revelation of Gang-hon-san’s true nature.

It was exactly the information that the Cheon-ja, Tang Yeon-cheol, had longed to uncover—a powerful weapon of the enemy Empire. Yet, instead of relief, the officials’ expressions turned increasingly pale.

Gang-hon-san, or penta… The sheer brutality of the drug was far worse than imagined.

Not requiring separate raw materials, it could incapacitate or even kill a person with a minuscule dose—a terrifying drug.

No one dared to claim that Britannia Empire’s claims were mere bluff. Everyone in the court had witnessed the potency of Gang-hon-san. They simply hadn’t realized its true nature was so horrifying and far scarier than they’d discussed in their courts.

It was a better choice not to have glimpsed into it—a chasm, literally.

Some of the officials collapsed with ashen faces. Others sat on the ground muttering to themselves in despair.

Already, a thick blanket of fear and despair had settled over the grand hall.

…

…

At the same moment, in Jin-ning Palace, where the emperor’s mother, the Grand Empress, resided.

The aging Grand Empress silently gazed down at her son.

After the passing of the previous emperor, she had been recuperating from her ailing health. However, now she was burdened with this responsibility against her will.

With her son, Tang Yeon-cheol, tragically ruined, the direction of power rested on her shoulders.

And before her,

“Hu… huck… guh… huck…”

The emperor lay there, writhing in a grotesque posture.

A face twisted beyond recognition, with no clear signs of whether he was laughing or crying. His back, unable to straighten, was permanently bent, his breathing precarious. Most pitifully, his bulging, tear-streaked eyes.

A completely disfigured sight. Unlike the infant So-a, who was found dead outright, he clung onto life by a thread, but that was all. He was in a state worse than death.

“…”

The Grand Empress turned her back on her son. It was too painful to witness.

She looked once more at the transmission sent by her other offspring, Tang Yeon-hwa.

It contained information not disclosed to the officials but arguably more crucial. A ‘suggestion’ from either Tang Yeon-hwa or someone impersonating her name.

[If the Emperor is alive, take over his jade seal and serve briefly as a regent. If he has already passed, inform the empire immediately. Seek compromise. Only then can we help. Without this method, something terrible will happen soon.]

An open-ended threat.

Detailed, too detailed, descriptions of the catastrophic events that awaited if the offer was rejected. The sickly old Grand Empress wished to faint but couldn’t. She was certain that if she didn’t make a decision now, a terrible disaster would ensue.

After contemplating for more than an hour,

She finally passed judgment with a look of resignation.

“Bring the jade seal.”

When the Grand Empress uttered these words, the emperor helplessly flailed his arm.

“Choo… hoo!”

It was unclear whether he was pleading not to be deprived of the seal or begging for more drugs.

[!– Slider main container –]

---