Noble Concubine Shin asked back in a bitter tone. Noble Concubine Shin had very complicated feelings toward the Emperor. She had loved him deeply for a long time, and also hated him for a long time. Those things had become tangled together over the long years, all losing their true colors.
“Doesn’t he have a fiery side? Since he is one who shows no forgiveness when his mood is crossed, it would be better to first observe his heart a little.”
“How would going to see Concubine Yoon be crossing His Majesty’s mood? That girl’s kite string has already been cut anyway. If she hadn’t conceived, she couldn’t have avoided becoming a discarded woman.”
“Not Concubine Yoon—that older brother. According to what I hear, His Majesty held him in his arms to sleep. And this morning, he bestowed even more rewards than the previous day.”
The pleased expression disappeared from Noble Concubine Shin’s face as she listened to the story.
“…Held him in his arms to sleep, you say.”
In nearly twenty years of being married to the Emperor and serving him, she had never once seen such a case. Whether he summoned concubines to Geoncheonggung Palace or visited the concubines’ quarters, the Emperor dismissed concubines when the deed was done. It was something that had never been permitted even to the deceased Empress.
“Held him in his arms to sleep…”
Noble Concubine Shin bit her lip tightly with a hardened face. It wasn’t that she felt something like jealousy now. She was simply curious. About the Emperor’s heart.
Over the long years, many people had admired and longed for the Emperor only to wither away. Having watched all of that, Noble Concubine Shin felt some indescribable emotion sprouting in her chest. Something tiny as a speck of dust, yet something she felt she couldn’t live while ignoring.
“…I shouldn’t be going to see Concubine Yoon, but rather to see His Majesty. Sanghyeon, prepare. I should stroll through the Imperial Garden after so long. If I’m lucky, I might see him. What does it matter if not today? I have an abundance of time. I should stroll the Imperial Garden every single day without fail until I can see him.”
According to Ha Dynasty law, concubines could not go to see the Emperor. They could only see him if summoned, so the method concubines mainly used was to stroll the Imperial Garden all day. Though the Emperor rarely visited the Imperial Garden, if one was lucky they could meet, and it sometimes led to bedding.
Sanghyeon felt something unsettling seeing her master’s face grown cold, but there was nothing she could do. She bowed her head saying she understood, then began gathering subordinates to prepare.
***
Sansan sat huddled against the wall, body wrapped in the golden bed covers. He stared blankly down at the bed. He couldn’t forget last night.
He was forced to drink deer blood and vomited. Exhausted, the court ladies thoroughly washed him again. With his fever and the deep internal lacerations, every process was nothing but pain. After barely finishing the bath and returning, he was stripped in the place where Sanwol was.
Unable to endure, he pushed away once and was immediately slapped and flipped over like a dog. His buttocks, raised high, were struck several times. Saliva was spat into his hole. Immediately, severe pain starting from his lower body consumed his entire body.
Neither Sansan nor Sanwol could even breathe. Only the Emperor occasionally let out intense moans and irritated sighs without restraint.
“Tell me what your older brother did wrong.”
Having finished ejaculating once in the reversed position, the Emperor asked Sanwol who stood beside them. When Sanwol just lowered her head without answering, he reprimanded, “Then will you demonstrate in front of your older brother?”
“I humbly report, he should have pressed his chest more to the bed and raised his buttocks to make it easier for Your Majesty to enter, but this lowly concubine’s older brother failed to do so.”
“What else?”
“He should have shaken his own w-waist so Your Majesty wouldn’t be troubled, but Orabeoni failed to do so.”
“Is that all? Then you too should go to Gyeongsabang and learn again.”
“He endured without making sounds of pleasure. He constantly showed tears. He dared push Your Majesty away. And also… also…”
“You ignored my words and didn’t watch properly. Isn’t that right?”
Sanwol knelt and begged forgiveness. Meanwhile, Sansan had to hold up his buttocks while still holding the Emperor’s jade stalk inside. He buried his face in the bed and covered his ears with both hands while sobbing.
“Your older brother’s biggest problem is that he cannot achieve erection. Isn’t it because he doesn’t sincerely serve me?”
“…That’s, Orabeoni is a-a eunuch, so—”
“I don’t want to hear such words. If you had watched properly, you would have known this one isn’t even making an effort. He acts as if I’m violating him or something, making me constantly feel unpleasant—whose fault is it? Is it my fault?”
“Those words are absolutely undeserved, Your Majesty. It is all this lowly concubine’s fault for failing to teach properly. Please punish this lowly concubine, Your Majesty.”
“Yes. Even I think it seems to be your fault. Knowing your older brother is lacking, you should have taken more care to teach him. San-ah, did you hear? Concubine Yoon is volunteering to be punished like this. If you play dead again on the second round, I have no choice either. I can only punish Concubine Yoon.”
Sansan only repeated that he would try hard, that he was sorry. He tried to correct everything Sanwol had mentioned, but couldn’t. Because the resumed lovemaking was done in the normal position.
Due to the change in position, the previous advice became useless. Not knowing what to do, Sansan just cried again. It would be good if he could at least stop crying, but it hurt too much for even that.
“Raise your hands and embrace me.”
Sansan did as told.
“Wrap your legs around my waist too.”
Sansan again did as told.
“I want to hear sounds, so don’t bite your lips.”
“Yes. Shake your waist like this, like this.”
“Say it feels good. Once more… Once more…”
“Didn’t I teach you how to kiss? Try kissing me once.”
Sansan kept, kept trying to do as told. Fearing Sanwol would be punished, he endured the pain and did his best. The Emperor became increasingly rougher and more violent.
Like that, twice, three times, four times. With Sanwol standing before them, the lovemaking continued. From some point on, the Emperor didn’t make Sanwol speak. As if forgetting she was even there, he was absorbed in Sansan unable to escape. With each round of lovemaking, he seemed intoxicated by Sansan’s body scent that grew thicker.
Sansan’s situation was similar. The thick scent emanating from the Emperor pressed down heavily on Sansan’s entire body. The pain didn’t improve at all, but he felt hazy somehow. He couldn’t breathe. Then finally in the last lovemaking, Sansan ended up achieving erection too.
“Will you voluntarily mention leaving the palace again?”
The Emperor asked after finishing the final climax. Even in his daze, Sansan quickly shook his head. The Emperor held the exhausted, collapsed Sansan in his arms and fell asleep.
In the morning before leaving for the morning assembly, he greatly commended Sansan and Sanwol and bestowed rewards. But neither Sansan nor Sanwol was happy.
“I want to go home.”
Buried like a cocoon inside the golden bed covers, Sansan muttered while pressing his cheek to his knee. The sound was so small it didn’t pass beyond the curtains surrounding the bed. Sansan’s knee gradually became wet.
Even though Sansan was worried whether his younger sister was alright, he couldn’t muster the courage to go see Sanwol even though afternoon had passed. It was the same for Sanwol. Sanwol couldn’t take a single step outside from her rear hall.
Several days passed like that. From Yeongnyeong Palace’s Dongbaejeon, crying sounds didn’t cease every night.
***
Just before dawn, Sansan opened his eyes to the sound of drizzling rain. Though it was summer now, it felt rather eerily cold because of the rain falling every dawn. Sansan carefully removed the heavy arm embracing his bare waist and pulled the golden bed covers up over his shoulders.
When the subtle fog lifted and light brightened hazily, bird chirping would soon be heard. Then the man lying beside him would open his eyes as always. Getting up first wasn’t allowed. The black silhouette standing before the curtains would obviously block him.
Unable to sleep, Sansan stared blankly beyond the silk gauze curtains at the view outside the window. Though there wasn’t much to see since the sun hadn’t risen, he still thought it was honestly better than Geoncheonggung Palace.
On nights when he shared the bed at Geoncheonggung Palace, in bedchambers blocked on all sides without a single window, and moreover in unfamiliar bedchambers that changed every single day, he had to idly wait for the Emperor to awaken.
What had started as “just endure a few days, just a month” had already passed three months. The Emperor sought Sansan every single day without fail. It wasn’t just receiving bedding—he held Sansan in his arms to sleep. At first he would have him washed after lovemaking, but now he often just held him as is to sleep.
