In two weeks, they left for the temple of Taehung, keeping close to the shoreline as they headed north, and then going inland to follow the narrow river that would lead them to the farming community of Kaepung.

They made good progress traveling during the day and resting at night and had managed to travel another two weeks without encountering anyone by keeping away from the main roads.

Thankfully, Soon Deok’s back had healed sufficiently enough for her to be able to ride on horseback, which should have made everyone happy… unfortunately, with the proliferation of new cells came itching, and as she was not allowed to scratch, it made her irritable.

“Yah! Stop wriggling!” Eun finally snapped. He the saddle to glare at her. “You're going to make me fall off, and if I fall off, so will you! Do you have any idea how hard I’ve been holding on? My hands and thighs are bruised!”

“It's not like I can help it!” she snapped back, wriggling some more and about how uncomfortable her back felt.

“And you'll attract all kinds of beasts being loud like that,” he grumbled, the tips of his ears turning red at the sounds she was making.

“Forget beasts, the royal army are probably already waiting for us at the other side of this mountain,” Baek Ah chuckled from somewhere ahead with Myunghee, who admonished, “Shh! Don't say things like that!”

From her position in front of the fourth prince, Hajin just smiled and listened. They had three horses in all - two they had used to get to the cave, and the third belonging to Prince So. Naturally, Eun and Soon Deok took the first one, and though Hajin had hoped she would be able to ride with Baek Ah, the fourth prince’s blunt pragmatism dashed that hope completely with the reasoning that she was abysmal at horse riding and, between him and Baek Ah, he was the better rider.

“We need to balance it out. Myunghee with Baek Ah.”

And that was that.

Still, Hajin had always been an optimist and thought to herself that having such a silent companion was good because it meant she was frequently left alone with her thoughts, and she made sure to use those moments to ponder on whatever little thing came to mind.

Like that little sparrow grooming itself on a little puddle left over from last night’s short rain. Or that nice little cluster of poisonous mushrooms at the base of that majestic pine tree that seemed to reach the heavens. Or the red and brown leaves littering the soaked, earthen floor. Or that annoying little bee that’s been buzzing around her ear since five minutes ago. And that man.

“Man!” she gasped, recoiling and knocking her head against So’s jaw.

He grunted and winced, “I know.” Keeping his head to the side to avoid further mishaps, he added, “There are two of them - a man and a woman. They’ve been following us since an hour ago.”

She turned to stare at him. “You’re not worried they might be spies for the king? We’re pretty close to the village.”

“Not likely. They’re outlaws, wondering how best to steal our food. By the looks of them, they haven’t stored enough to last through winter, which is why they’re desperate enough to try and rob us.”

“Oh,” she said, trying to locate the man again, but he had gone. “But why would there be outlaws?”

He wondered if she was being serious, but decided to humor her anyway. “There are no shortage of reasons. They have no food, so they aren’t farmers, and they’re reluctant to fight us, which means they aren’t soldiers. And since they lack stealth, they can’t be hunters. In all likelihood, they’re lowly merchants who were forced to abandon their homes after being unable to pay their taxes. To build his new fortress, my brother is demanding an increase in tax across the land. Failure to pay means death.”

“That’s terrible!” she exclaimed angrily. “He should increase trade, or export goods to foreign lands, not extort his own people!”

Her choice of words intrigued him. “I don’t know about exporting goods. Our relationship with Khitan is even more fragile now than it had been during my father’s reign because they’re bound to know that though the clans have sworn allegiance to the throne out of fear of retribution, they are not all loyal to the one sitting on it. There are those that still question Jeongjong’s ascension to power.”

“Okay,” she said slowly, “Still, there are plenty who would kill for a pound of genuine Korean ginseng. What about Japan? Hong Kong? The Western countries? America? Oh… but come to think of it… they don’t exist yet in this time…” she ended up mumbling.

Once again, he was baffled as to what she could be talking about, and in his bafflement, he came to his senses. He had no idea why he was talking so much.

“Anyway, the point is, there are many ways to get money without making the people suffer,” she said, giving up on dates and world history. She lifted a hand and began to briefly enumerate whatever possibilities came to mind, while he listened with an increasingly painful one. “You can even invest in growing enterprises. That’s a sure way to double, triple your money. Even more!”

“Money?”

“You know… currency. You give people money and they give you goods or services in return.”

He wondered if she had lost her language along with her memories. “You mean grain?”

Belatedly remembering where she was and who she was with, Hajin bit her tongue and suppressed a groan. But of course, people of this time were more into trading, as actual money would only come about much later in the century. She realized that majority of the Chinese currency being used in this time probably circulated among rich families, which meant the standard mode of payment for the commoners would of course be through grains, cloths and other valuable goods. She had to stop thinking of herself as Go Hajin and start thinking of herself as Hae Soo.

“I meant myeongdojun,” she said, “you know, knife money from Qin.”

“Ah.” Finally, something he was familiar with. “Our relationship with Qin isn’t all that better. Their conflict with Khitan is probably the only reason they’ve left us alone this long.”

“Well, then what do you suggest?” she asked in exasperation. “You can’t tell me you agree with your brother’s methods? Isn’t that why you’re fighting him in the first place?”

Refusing to be drawn into a conversation where he might unwittingly divulge secrets worth more than his own life, he kept silent and blocked her voice from his mind. Hajin, realizing she was being snubbed and indignant at the fact, expressed her annoyance by pinching his right knee. This caused him to flinch so badly that he kicked his horse’s flanks and sent them racing through the trees at high speed, their companions calling after them in surprise. Though Hajin tried her best to remain seated, her efforts were futile and she could only watch, screaming, as she flew off the horse and fell to the ground. And if that wasn’t bad enough, the ground she had fallen on sloped downward, and by the time she had stopped rolling at the base of the hill, she was completely winded and dazed. And surrounded.

With a cough and a wince, she staggered to her feet, clutching at her aching arms. “Who are you?”

There were two men and two women, dressed in muddied clothes, the women's hair unkempt and the men's faces unshaven. In hurried tones, the first man ordered her to take off her clothes, all the while with eyes darting to and fro in search of danger.

Hajin gulped, hoping Prince So was feeling generous enough to come to her rescue sooner rather than later. How was she to know he was the ticklish sort? She'd thought for sure that, taking into account his general lack of sensitivity, he would be immune to such trivial physical stimuli.

Suddenly imagining the surprised look on the prince’s normally impassive face gave Hajin the irrational urge to start giggling.

“Now!” the second man yelled, coming forward.

Instinctively, Hajin backed up some more, all traces of humor gone when the man withdrew a weapon and aimed it at her.

“And leave me in nothing but my undergarments in this cold weather?” she asked indignantly. Looking at the tiny knife in the man’s hand reminded her of the two she had on her - one a gift from her father, the other from General Park. Though her father’s knife was tiny in comparison, it was easier to get it from within her sleeves without arousing suspicion...  and having a tiny weapon at hand was better than none.

Making a show of untying her hanbok, she reached into her sleeve and felt… nothing. Nothing but the soaked cigarette lighter. Her father’s knife was gone.

Forgetting her situation, Hajin began searching everywhere. She felt the knife strapped to her leg, the hidden pockets in her sleeves and skirt, as well as bodice and belt… nothing. Where could it be?

“Hey! What are you doing? I told you to-” The second man had taken a step towards her, but she barely saw him through her distress.

That had been her father’s last gift… she had kept it with her at all times for over a decade, always with her. How could it disappear just like that?

She didn’t even notice the fourth prince’s arrival until he was directly in front of her. She couldn’t hear what he was saying. In her desperation, she was practically ripping her clothes apart, hoping she had made a mistake. She had probably just hidden it somewhere else… she must have.

“Yah,” the fourth prince turned around, alarmed by her behavior. “What’s wrong with you? You don’t need to take your clothes off anymore, they’ve-”

“Soo-yah!” Though Myunghee sounded far away, she was within Hajin’s vision in an instant and grasping her arms, looking her over for any signs of injury. “Are you alright? Did they hurt you?”

“It’s gone,” she whispered, feeling faint and weak.

“Gone? What is?” Myunghee asked, forcing her to make eye contact, but Hajin’s eyes had glazed over with tears.

She had just enough strength to whisper, “Gone,” one last time before she fell to the ground and lost consciousness.

It was dark when next she opened her eyes. A single candle flickered on the floor feet from where she slept, illuminating a small wooden room with sparse, simple wooden furnishings. Her fingers closed around the soft fabric that had been keeping her warm, and the rest of her aching body met with cool sheets and soft linens.

Though her head throbbed unpleasantly, she forced herself to sit up, wondering where she was.

The sounds of her movements alerted whoever was keeping watch outside her room. A shuffle of feet, a few moments of silence, and the sliding of the door later and Hajin was greeted by a regal-looking woman all dressed in white, her dark hair tied in a knot above her head, and the sternest expression on her fair face.

“Ah, so you finally wake,” the woman remarked, issuing whispered instructions to the man hovering outside the room before sliding the door shut.

“Who are you?” Hajin croaked, parched, her lips dry. “Where am I? Where are my friends?”

The woman took her time answering. She took a tray containing a pot, a cup, some bowls and herbs from one of the low tables nearby and knelt before Hajin’s sickbed with all the grace of a trained court lady. Hajin recognized the chopped root on the tray as tienchi ginseng.

“Concussion,” she mumbled absentmindedly, rubbing the sore spot on the back of her head on which she had collided against a sharp rock during her tumble in the forest. It had been bandaged neatly and Hajin knew for certain it was this woman who had done it.

The woman’s eyebrows lifted slightly in evident surprise. “You know something about herbs?”

Hajin nodded, then stopped because it made her head spin. “I studied herbs when I was… younger.” She cleared and took the tea cup with a whispered thanks, draining the contents in one gulp. The drink was bitter, but she was too weak and in pain to do anything except repeat her earlier questions. “And how long have I been asleep?”

“The young princes brought you here three days ago. You were badly wounded and unresponsive, and you’d been asleep so long, they all worried you might never wake up,” she explained.

“Three days?” Hajin gasped, slack-jawed from surprise. “I’ve been sleeping for three days?”

“Possibly four. It took them a good day’s ride to get here.”

“And where exactly is this place?”

“You are in the Fortress of Taehung on Mt. Chonma, and you are extremely lucky to be alive.” The woman stood, taking the tray and depositing it back onto the table. “As for your friends, I’m afraid they are all asleep so you’ll have to wait until morning to see them.”

Hajin scowled at the turn of events. They had probably been only a day or two away from this place and she had to get injured at the last possible moment. Though the woman claimed she was lucky just to be alive, Hajin secretly thought the contrary: she must have the worst luck in the history of mankind.

“Sleep, Hae Soo-shi, and welcome to Taehung Castle.”

“Soo-yah!” Eun’s gleeful shriek had her jumping out of her skin the next morning.

Looking up from her breakfast, Hajin saw everyone converging towards her and returned their warm smiles. “Hello.”

“You gave all of us quite a fright.” As Prince Jung sat across from her, Hajin was happy to see that he looked well, no longer as bruised and cut up as his brother said he was.

“And how are things over here?” Baek Ah’s boyish grin was handsome and teasing as he patted her head, “Now that you’ve hit your head twice, have you finally regained your memories as Hae Soo?”

“Er… not exactly,” she admitted, spooning a large portion of porridge into to avoid having to answer similar questions.

“It doesn’t matter, what’s important is she’s alright,” Myunghee sighed, looking the worse for wear. She had large bags under her eyes and looked like she hadn’t slept for days. She was still dressed in her dirty travel clothes.

“Nui, after you spent three days and three nights at the temple praying for her, the gods would have felt they had no choice but to give her back,” Baek Ah teased, squeezing Myunghee’s shoulder.

Guilty, Hajin - no, Hae Soo - offered her cousin her bowl of porridge. “How’s your cough?”

“Much better with the tea, actually,” Myunghee replied, taking a mouthful. “I’ve had that cough for years… who would have thought a bunch of weeds would end up curing it?”

“My back’s much better, too,” Soon Deok piped up from beside her. “I was able to go hunting with my father yesterday. Ah, it felt so good to be back on a horse!”

Piqued, Eun turned to her. “You rode on a horse behind me for weeks!”

She gave him a blank look. “Those didn’t count. I want to feel the wind on my face when I’m riding. Otherwise, it’s nothing special.”

“Nothing sp-!” Eun closed his eyes and staggered forward onto Prince Jung, who didn’t seem to mind being used as his half-brother’s personal stand.

Hajin - no, Hae Soo - listened to Eun and Soon Deok bicker with a wide grin on her face. Even though they still argued, there was something else between them now that definitely wasn’t there before. She smiled. Thinking of Beauty and the Beast made her want to break into song, but then she saw that General Park had come in with Prince So and the regal lady from the night before, and she got up to greet them, turning especially to the lady to thank her for her care and attention.

The lady merely nodded her head in acknowledgement.

“She was one of our father’s most trusted subjects and used to hold the highest position at the palace Damiwon,” Baek Ah introduced. “Soo-yah, this is Lady Oh Sooyeon. Sanggung, this is Hae Soo, our sister-in-law’s cousin.”

“Oh, it’s lovely to meet you, Sanggung,” Haj- Hae Soo said with the brightest, warmest smile she could muster.

But instead of acknowledging the greeting, Lady Oh said something that made Soo flush from embarrassment. “Indeed. Most people would kowtow after being saved from sure death, but I suppose it’s too much to expect the same courtesy from everyone nowadays.”

Soo saw Prince So’s smirk and bristled. Getting off her bench, she faced Lady Oh squarely and bowed as low as she could. “Please pardon my lack of manners.”

“No matter,” Lady Oh said with a flick of her eyebrow. “Manners are taught, after all, and as I’m told you’ve lost your memories, it seems befitting that you would lose other things as well.” She turned and left to discuss more matters with General Park. Evidently, Soo had been dismissed.

Sitting back down, she tried not to look too pitiful, but the others were sympathetic, telling her not to worry about it and that Lady Oh treated everyone much the same way.

“People believe she’s our father’s first love,” Eun whispered. “Baek Ah here will tell you she was his only love.” At these words, he rolled his eyes, and Baek Ah hissed at him.

“Hyung-nim… that’s what everyone says,” he clarified, shaking his head.

“Please, he has over 20 consorts and children. He couldn’t have just loved one woman all his life, not after all of us.”

Soon Deok looked up from her breakfast and stared at her husband. “Why, is love a prerequisite to all marriages? Does love happen just because you want it to?” She shook her head and mumbled something under her breath that reached no one’s ears but her own.

While Eun and Soon Deok began to argue again, Jung looked at Soo. “She was dismissed as senior court lady after our father’s death, that’s why she’s here. This is her hometown. She and our father first met somewhere near here when they were younger… she was just a farmer’s daughter then, while he was a general.”

“But if your father loved her so much… why did he not marry her? She’s not a royal consort, is she, if she was dismissed just like that?” Soo asked in a low voice.

It was her cousin who answered, “Queens must use their family’s strengths to support their king. That’s why King Taejo managed to rule for so long. Lady Oh’s family just wasn’t powerful enough.”

What kind of a reason was that? Soo thought indignantly. “That’s silly. If two people love each other, they should be allowed to marry. Since the king already had consorts with power to aid him, why not take one who didn’t?”

“It’s not so simple, Soo-yah,” Baek Ah shook his head, “matches between the aristocracy are always planned and almost always political in nature. One cannot marry another who is below or above her station. It’s not fitting.”

“Pah!” Soo grumbled her disapproval, “Prince this and prince that, noble this and noble that. Just you guys wait… in a thousand years, no one will be above anyone else. Everyone will be equal in the eyes of the law and-”

Before she could finish, Prince So shoved a large piece of rice cake into . “That’s treason.”

Soo wanted to yell at him to come back so she could give him a piece of her mind, but she was too busy choking.

Hastily, Myunghee handed her a glass of water. “Prince So is right, though, you shouldn’t say things like that.”

“I…” Soo wheezed, “I thought this was friendly territory.”

“Friendlier than most…” Jung agreed, looking serious, “but no place is completely safe anymore.”