Royal Coup d'État - Chapter 61

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Chapter 61
Deok Bi’s words were harsh. Yet they were also the most helpful thing she could have said to Sun.
Today, Uigu Daegun had found his reason to kill Sun. Just as he had orchestrated the death of his brother when news of the formal adoption came, there was no way he would allow Sun—who stood at the very threshold of the position he desired—to remain alive.
Sun slowly placed both hands on her thighs.
“Don’t worry. I won’t die.”
Sun spoke the words like an incantation to herself.
But Deok Bi’s expression remained grim.
“My father said the same thing. A very long time ago, my brother spoke similar words. But Sun—tell me, who stands beside me now?”
At Deok Bi’s words, laden with regret, Sun’s lips parted for a moment before closing again. The sorrow that filled her eyes ran deeper and more poignant than anything Sun had ever felt.
Sun’s lower lashes trembled. The water had already been spilled; now it was a matter of who seized the upper hand first. And Sun possessed a very powerful weapon.
“You’ve heard, haven’t you, that the TF Team has been formally converted into an investigative unit? A great deal has already come to light. We found traces of tampering with the Throttle Valve and Brake Line of the vehicle the Crown Prince was riding, and we discovered a money trail transferred to the accounts of children outside the imperial line, going to the family of the deceased Kim.”
If the investigation evidence uncovered so far could only pin down Uigu Daegun, he would no longer be able to have those terrible dreams. And Sun could feel that day was not far away.
Yet it was also true that problems remained. Deok Bi exhaled a shallow sigh.
“Connecting Uigu Daegun will not be easy. It was also the problem the Crown Prince found most difficult during his lifetime. The Jungju District development issue was entangled with Gyeongan Gun’s maternal relatives, but we failed to find the decisive connection.”
Fine lines creased Deok Bi’s forehead. Though she was known to have a gentle nature by birth and had suffered illness of the heart after losing her son early, she grasped the situation quite clearly.
The problem Sun wrestled with was the same one. How to find the connection to Uigu Daegun. Of course, Tae-o and the investigation team would make efforts, but Sun could not simply stand and watch either.
Deok Bi pressed her forehead for a moment, then spoke in a strained voice.
“It is difficult for me to help you much. As for His Majesty, there is no need to speak of it. Both he and I are too old and too weary.”
Deok Bi’s voice as she spoke held no strength. It seemed that even the listener’s vigor would drain away.
“I have no intention of remaining long in the imperial palace. I have no confidence in living alone in a place where my husband and son once lived with me. Since the Crown Prince’s repose is near the tomb of Won Sun, I thought to spend my remaining years in that vicinity.”
Deok Bi’s gaze turned toward one corner of the Junghuidang. Though she had walked these halls for more than twenty years, there was one thing that had never disappeared from the East Palace—a small garment hanging on the wall, the one Won Sun had loved most before he died of illness, before Sun was even born.
Sun felt the old emotion within that tender gaze. No matter how many decades passed, there were always things one could never forget.
“So while I still remain here, you must secure your position.”
“Yes, Your Highness.”
Sun answered willingly. She too had no intention of drawing this out.
Between Uigu Daegun, who had prepared fiercely for decades, and Sun, who had ascended this position through the backing of the Emperor and the Crown Princess—there was a clear difference.
So Sun had to move at her own pace. Faster than anyone, and beyond the reach of all.
“I will help as much as I am able, but there will certainly be corners my hand cannot reach. If it seems dangerous, perhaps you should summon that detective from the National Police Agency and keep him at your side?”
At Deok Bi’s words, his face suddenly came to mind.
Kwon Tae-o from the investigation team, who had been so full of vitality. He had impressive credentials, and keeping him nearby as a guard would not be unwise, but Sun did not wish to hold back the man who had shone so brightly throughout the investigation.
Sun slowly shook her head.
“I’ll think about it a bit longer. For now, resolving the matter with my uncle is urgent.”
“That problem doesn’t necessarily require someone from the National Police Agency to solve. In any case, it will be your choice, so judge well.”
“Yes, Your Highness.”
How many steps remained ahead. It felt as though if she reached out just a little further, her hand would brush against Uigu Daegun’s leash.
Watching Sun clench her lips, Deok Bi exhaled a long breath once more.
“We believe you will do well.”
“I’ll live up to those expectations.”
“I mean it sincerely. Which is why His Majesty has ordered you to reside at Inwondang from today.”
At Deok Bi’s words, Sun slowly raised her head. Her eyes widened to their fullest.
Inwondang had been the former residence of Jeonghoe Princess, the Emperor’s own sister. The Emperor, who held his sister in special regard, had never granted that palace to another, but after renovation spanning decades, its new master had become Sun.
How much speculation this alone would provoke was already clear without seeing it. The meaning was unmistakable—Sun enjoyed extraordinary imperial favor.
“His Majesty trusts and relies on you that deeply.”
“I will receive it with proper gravity.”
“Yes. And I will speak with Yeosan Bubuin myself. I should have given her some warning, as she must be quite startled.”
Deok Bi pressed the corners of her eyes repeatedly, trying to hide her exhaustion. The dark marks from poor sleep stretched down beneath her cheekbones.
Yet Deok Bi did not stop saying what she wished to say.
“Sun. You haven’t forgotten the promise you made with me?”
The words to find the culprit without fail. And the plea to capture him absolutely. And the vow that otherwise she would obstruct Sun’s path by any means necessary.
Sun gazed at Deok Bi and nodded.
That day, all the words spoken in the Binjeon were not merely Deok Bi’s threats. They were a resolution that Sun herself had to carve deeply into her own heart.
* * *
Sun left the temporary quarters where she had been staying and moved her belongings to Inwondang. She had obtained the rightful right to remain in the palace as the Crown Prince’s legitimate adopted son.
The Suspension of Succession Rights that Sun had declared for the investigation remained in effect. Being adopted did not mean Sun would immediately become Crown Prince Grandson.
Since no formal title had been determined, her Enfeoffment remained as Cheongyang County Lord. Yet much had changed in truth.
First, Inwondang was teeming with palace ladies.
Deok Bi had specially selected them from among those who served the Crown Prince and sent them. Moreover, attendants belonging to the Crown Prince’s Palace were dispatched as well, making Inwondang no different from the East Palace itself.
“Really, there’s no room for me to stand anymore.”
Seok Chul grumbled, yet he wore a broad smile, as though he did not dislike this change at all.
The moment Sun was declared the Crown Prince’s adopted son, Seok Chul, who belonged to the Daegun Palace, lost his qualification to serve her. Yet he was allowed to remain at her side in the form of a dispatch, and there was someone else who had given weight to this arrangement—someone Sun had never expected.
“If Madam hadn’t shown such consideration, I would have had to return to Jincheon straightaway.”
“Mother is something else, isn’t she.”
Sun smiled faintly at the memory of Yeosan Bubuin’s expression.
Yeosan Bubuin had come to the East Palace yesterday, following Deok Bi and Sun, and after their conversation ended, she’d had a private audience with Deok Bi alone. Sun hadn’t heard what passed between them, but what struck her most was that her mother hadn’t come to Inwondang afterward.
“Mother seems to have made up her mind.”
Sun had expected her to storm in at any moment and drag her away by the wrist. Instead, she’d left quietly—and had even sent Seok Chul along.
Her mother was a woman who had stepped back from the inner workings of Daegun Palace long ago; Sun would never have guessed she’d think to arrange such a thing.
A smile crept across Sun’s lips.
“Her heart must feel empty.”
“Surely everyone wishes for the young lady to adapt well?”
Seok Chul spoke carefully.
When Sun turned to look at him, she caught him averting his gaze. She understood then whose interests he had in mind.
Sun exhaled softly.
Uijeong Daegun’s heart must be burning black, having left in such haste that he’d barely gotten a proper explanation.
No matter how angry or disappointed she felt toward him, she couldn’t believe that the love he’d shown her all these years was a lie.
“When will Father return?”
“The funeral procession was held at Wonso yesterday evening, and once the final arrangements are complete, His Lordship will depart for Seoul. He should arrive by evening, I expect.”
“I should call him once he arrives.”
Sun stretched idly as she murmured this.
Father, Mother—titles she might not be able to use once she became the Crown Prince’s adopted son and secured her position as successor. But today, they felt strangely precious.
So much happened so suddenly. Maybe I’m not emotionally ready yet.
Sun lifted her eyebrows and let out a groan. A faint, weary sound escaped her throat—and then her phone on the table began to vibrate.
Buzz—
Sun’s gaze shifted to the phone. The name on the screen was familiar, yet unfamiliar too—a man she hadn’t called in recent memory.
Is there progress?
Sun quickly grabbed the phone and pressed the call button. Hope flickered in Seok Chul’s eyes as well.
―Cheongyang County Lord?
“Inspector Kwon.”
―Don’t be startled, but listen carefully. If possible, sit down first.
Tae-o’s voice was heavy and grave.
When he spoke with such care, bad news usually followed. The world tilted for a moment, and Sun squeezed her eyes shut.

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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