Now that Joohyun had laid her trap for Nongyu, she needed to find a way to lure the Princess into it. At the same time, she also had to keep her murderous intent a secret from Seulgi. She was sure it was going to be difficult, but then something happened and changed their circumstances drastically: Master Kang got injured during a hunting excursion and broke his leg. As such, Joohyun released Seulgi from her guardly duties, so that she could go and attend to her father for any period of time she saw fit.

During Captain Kang’s absence, her deputies took over her usual responsibilities, assisted by Moonbyul. Joohyun also went about her usual queenly duties, which involved going over top-secret state documents like military plans. Originally she was not going to do this late at night, or even at all after dinner. But she was not in the mood to go to bed just yet, especially since it did not make her happy to be reminded that she had to sleep alone without Seulgi in her arms. So here she was, at her desk, with several scrolls laid out in front of her.

She sighed to herself and shook her head, not happy that she was not well-versed in military matters. On other matters, she could go to her harem and talk to her privy council, but even among those women, only those who had male relatives in the military might know a little bit about national defense. She did have a very real need to consult military generals who had experience on the battlefield, and unsurprisingly all of them were men. She had no desire to work with men, except a select few who very loyally fought alongside her father some years ago. Perhaps she could go ahead and ask them for some advice and insights anyway...

She let out a yawn and stretched her arms. Maybe she ought to go to sleep after all. But then Moonbyul entered the room and asked to speak to her about the scar removal treatments.

“Well, I could use some air anyway,” said Joohyun, who then rose from her seat and went outside with Moonbyul. “So, any updates?”

“There’s this one merchant who already has some stocks available — but he’s absolutely unscrupulous.” Moonbyul rolled her eyes. “Looked me in the eye and demanded 4 million mun. He’s out of his mind! Would you still like me to try bargaining with him, or are we better off looking for other sellers?”

“If you have confidence that the product quality is fine, then carry on with the negotiations,” Joohyun answered. “Tell him if he agrees to cut the price by half, I’ll let him set up a store in the capital city where he will no doubt be able to access a bigger clientele. A wealthier clientele, too. At least we know that profit is his priority and it’s not impossible for us to cater to that — if he can give me what I want after all, then it won’t be a waste of time.”

As the two of them conversed outdoors, indoors the confidential documents were still on the Queen’s desk. Adjacent to her study was Princess Nongyu’s newly assigned bedchamber. She might not be the cleverest person under the sun, but surely she could see that she was placed in the Queen’s residence not so she could feel more supported but so she could be under the Queen’s surveillance. Although Joohyun said that she would not hold Nongyu accountable for Yixing’s crimes, her actions were enough to indicate that the foreign Princess was under suspicion.

Knowing that she was absolutely not under Joohyun’s protection, just as Yixing predicted and warned, Nongyu had to opt for other ways to protect herself. She decided to try striking up an alliance with her half-brother Yibo, now that he was the new Emperor of China. In order to do so, she had to show him just how sincere she was. To that end, she had to provide him with something that he would be interested in, and prove herself useful to him. And now, right in front of her, was an opportunity. The Queen was away and the classified documents were right there, on the desk. It would be so easy for Nongyu to just go ahead and take a look. The temptation was so strong.

Before she knew it, she was already standing at the desk.

She knew better than to steal those documents, of course, but she tried to memorize everything she saw. If she could reproduce these documents and pass this information to the new Emperor, the intelligence she was in the position to provide just might be enough to get her his protection in exchange. Or at least, that was the chance that she had to count on.

Once she heard footsteps approaching, she quickly retreated to her own bedchamber.

When Joohyun and Moonbyul returned, it was as if no one was even here just now. Discreetly, Moonbyul asked, “do you think it worked?”

Joohyun smirked. “If she does a neat job, then we shouldn’t be able to notice anything.”

Moonbyul nodded in agreement. “But you’re really going to just expose state secrets to her? Is that wise, Majesty?”

“Those are just drafts,” Joohyun explained. “Nothing’s been finalized just yet. In fact, I expect some major revisions to be made, if I’m going to go ahead with the reforms I have in mind.”

“I see. Well, what are we going to do next time?”

“I’ve been thinking about that too,” the Queen revealed. “It’s the oldest trick in the book.”

Moonbyul chuckled. “Are we feigning drunkenness?”

“That is exactly what we are going to do.”

Their plan did turn out to be effective. The more ‘careless’ and ‘distracted’ Joohyun was, the more Nongyu had the chance to access state secrets which sent her falling right into the devious Queen’s trap. It happened several times, even, and each time it did, Nongyu would summarize and paraphrase that information and send letters back to her home country, for the new Emperor to read and then decide what to do with her.

Every time she did it, she felt her heart ache. She would feel her palms sweating and her hands trembling, all the way up her arms, even reaching her shoulders. She was suffering. And perhaps that’s what I deserve, she thought to herself, since I’m betraying my husband, all to please a half-brother. The half-brother who may or may not have played a role in my own brother’s and mother’s disappearance. The half-brother whos managed to usurp the throne. The half-brother who is now in a position to decide if I will survive and thrive or rot and die. Dammit.

Another conflict in her heart was whether or not Lu Han would be able to forgive her if he turned out to still be alive. If he were to learn that his own sister had become a spy, providing intelligence to his archrival, what would he make of it?

Nongyu was no longer allowed to dwell upon her own doubts and worries as her handmaiden rushed in