There was silence.

She didn’t want to believe that her brother had murdered their father. That he had murdered him slowly and painfully, as he suffered from the symptoms that came with the poison and slowly succumbed to the sickness.

And their mother forgave him for his absence, not knowing what he did. Making excuses for him when he failed to turn up at their father’s funeral, always worrying about him if he ate well because he said he was “too busy” to attend the funeral.

Her breaths came in uneven, as if her lungs were struggling to draw in air. The room seemed to blur around her, the edges of her vision tinged with a haze of unreality.

Taeyeon didn’t dare to look up to face Baekhyun. She is ashamed to find out that her brother was actually behind the death of the late Crown Prince as well. A death that caused Baekhyun so much pain all this time.

Tears welled up, blurring her vision as they spilled down her cheeks. They fell like silent raindrops, each one carrying a fragment of the pain that threatened to consume her.

Her hands trembled, fingers fumbling to grasp onto something, anything, to anchor herself in the face of the devastating revelation.

“Are you okay?”

She heard Baekhyun ask.

“I feel so ashamed in front of you right now,” she sobbed, covering her face with her hands.

She heard Baekhyun getting up from his chair, and coming around the table to be beside her. His touch was gentle, as he pulled her hands away from her face and pulled her up so that she was standing in front of him.

Without saying a word, he pressed her head against his chest, allowing her to hear the steady rhythm of his heart, a reassuring reminder of his presence.

She buried her face in the curve of his neck, seeking refuge in the warmth of his skin. He held her as if he could absorb her pain, his own heart aching in empathy. There were no words, for he knew that in that moment, words were inadequate.

As they stood there, locked in their intimate embrace, time seemed to slow. He listened to her sobs, and held her tighter.

In his arms, she found refuge from the storm of her emotions. The weight of her grief felt a little lighter, as if the burden was shared.

Eventually, her tears began to subside. Her breathing steadied. She pulled back slightly to look into his eyes. He flashed a soft, reassuring smile, brushing a stray tear from her cheek.

“You don’t have to feel ashamed in front of me. What he did doesn't have anything to do with you."

"Then what do we do now?"

"I will take care of it.”

***

“Your Royal Highness, I have prepared the financial records of this year for you,” Kim Min Jun bowed down towards the Crown Prince, gesturing to all the files he had gathered on the table.

The Crown Prince brushed past him to go further into the office, so Kim Min Jun quickly followed behind him.

“I would like a private word with you.”

“Sure, Your Highness,” Kim Min Jun replied, gesturing everyone to leave the office.

Once they were alone, the Crown Prince took a seat in Kim Min Jun’s chair.

“I am not going to waste my time going through all of these,” he started, glancing at all the bulky files on the other table, which Kim Min Jun had gathered for him to check.

Kim Min Jun clenched his jaw, annoyed that his efforts had been wasted when he changed everything to make sure that nothing in the tax records seemed suspicious.

“What I found was far more interesting. Does Mercury poisoning ring any bells?”

Baekhyun scoffed when he noticed how Tax Minister Kim’s body language suddenly tensed up at the mention of mercury.

“No, Your Highness. What is this about?” he asked, failing to hide the shakiness in his voice when he opened his mouth.

“Don’t bother denying it. I already have evidence that links you to both your father and my brother’s murder.”

Tax Minister Kim quickly got down on his knees, his forehead leaning against the floor with his hands beside his head. “Y-Your Highness, I don’t understand. But please spare my life.”

“If you don’t have anything to hide, why are you so afraid?” The Crown Prince got up from the chair and walked around the table, stopping in front of him. “I am not here to arrest you. I want to make a deal with you.”

“A d-deal?” Tax Minister Kim asked, slowly looking up.

“If you bring me the evidence that Prince Jung had paid you to do it, then I will exclude you from the punishment of assassinating the late Crown Prince. The crime of murdering your father is another matter I won’t pursue, so you will be free from this as long as you hand over the evidence that you have that shows that Prince Jung was the mastermind behind this.”

Tax Minister Kim was quiet, contemplating about the deal offered on the table.

“So do you want to stay loyal to Prince Jung or save your own head?”

“How do I know if you will punish me together after I submit the evidence against His Excellency to you?” asked Tax Minister Kim. The Crown Prince smirked, Tax Minister Kim finally dropped the act that he is innocent and indirectly admitted his involvement in the assassination.

“I can see that you were just working under Prince Jung’s orders. And it will be your last chance to protect your family from execution. Use it wisely.”

***

“You promised me that you will teach me how to ride a horse. You can’t back out now.”

“It is dangerous.”

“I need to learn how, so that if my life is in danger, at least I can ride a horse and escape without you.”

“Without me?” he cocked an eyebrow at her.

“You can save yourself,” she joked, and chuckled lightly.

Taeyeon gazed at the horse with a mixture of anticipation and excitement. Her eyes sparkled with a blend of curiosity as she prepared to embark on this new adventure.

“This is Beom. He is quite intelligent and can easily find his way home no matter how far away it is,” Baekhyun started to introduce his horse to her. Then he started to talk about Beom’s temperament, his likes and dislikes, and how to approach him with respect.

Taeyeon listened intently, impressed by Baekhyun’s deep knowledge of this noble creature.

“I will ride with you first. When I feel that you are ready, then I will let you ride alone.”

“Alright,” she nodded.

After helping her onto the horse’s back, with a graceful swing of his own leg, he mounted up behind her. Her cheeks flushed red when she felt him steadying himself behind her, before brushing his hands across her waist to grab the reins from her hands. She felt him scoot a little closer to her until his chest touched her upper back.

When Taeyeon wanted to learn how to ride a horse from him, she didn’t think that he would teach her in such close proximity, she assumed that he would teach him riding on his own horse and let her ride her own.

How else do other people learn to ride horses?

She gulped nervously, looking down at his hands that are in front of her, resting them on her lap.

“Nervous?”

He asked, his cold breath gently blowing on her right ear, making her blush even harder.

“Nope, let’s go.”

They set off together, with Baekhyun leading the way by holding the reins. The rhythmic sound of hooves against the earth created a soothing symphony that echoed through the meadow.

With a calm and steady hand, he taught her how to maintain balance, and how to communicate with Beom through subtle cues. His instructions were patient and encouraging, fostering a sense of trust between Taeyeon and his steed.

Being in close proximity with him, feeling his soft breaths on the back of her neck as he spoke, made her feel things inside her heart. The simplest of gestures could stir her emotions and make her heart swell with affection. It was in these moments that she realized the profound impact he had on her, how he could make her feel things she had never dared to express.

“I am going to hand you back the reins, and you can try to ride. Are you ready?” he asked her.

She nodded as he pulled the reins to pull Beom to a stop, and handed the reins back to her. Taeyeon took a deep breath, and started to apply what Baekhyun just taught her on the horse. As they rode, her initial apprehension gradually gave way to confidence. When she found herself getting the hang of it, she increased the speed slightly and felt the cool wind blowing onto her face.

As she rode the horse in a steady pace, she could feel the hesitance in Baekhyun's hands in gripping her waist for support. He only grabbed onto the hem of the fabric of her robe to steady himself a bit before letting go.

Baekhyun then got off the horse and let the Crown Princess ride the horse by herself. She rode around the meadow as the Crown Prince rode another horse, following her from behind.

“You are a natural,” he said once their horses were walking side by side.

“That’s what you said before with archery. Are you trying to tell me that I have a great teacher?” she joked.

“Can’t I fish some compliments for myself for once?” he retorted, a playful smile tugging at his lips.

It was getting late, so they decided to stop the horse riding session. Baekhyun got off his horse swiftly to go to Taeyeon’s side to assist her down, but as she got off the horse, she mistakenly took the wrong step and fell off the horse.

She winced in pain as she tried to get up from the ground. The Crown Princess’ servants and Hui immediately rushed towards her, but the Crown Prince shot out his hand to stop them from crowding around the Crown Princess.

“Can you get up?” the Crown Prince crouched down beside her, his voice filled with worry.

“I think I twisted my ankle,” she replied, gesturing towards her right leg.

Without any hesitation, he shifted his posture and offered her his back as support. “Climb on, I will carry you back to your room. Then we will have the Royal physician take a look at it.”

Taeyeon’s eyes widened in surprise, but quickly climbed onto his back. Baekhyun rose to his feet with her securely perched on his back, her arms instinctively wrapped around his neck for balance.

As he carried her, the Crown Prince moved with a careful grace. He walked slowly and steadily, his strong legs carrying them both effortlessly. Taeyeon smiled, nestling her head against his shoulder, finding solace in his warmth.

“Hyun.”

“Hmm?” he hummed back in response.

“Why hasn’t my brother been brought into court? Are you trying to gather more evidence to punish him for his crime?”

It has been a few days since they last spoke about Kim Min Jun’s involvement in the late Crown Prince’s and her father’s murder, she thought that the Crown Prince would have brought it up in court by now, to punish her brother for his crimes.

“I already have enough evidence to punish him, but I struck a deal with him. If he provides with the evidence that Prince Jung was the mastermind behind the assassination, I will exclude him from the punishment.”

Taeyeon propped her chin on his shoulder thoughtfully. After a silent moment, she diverted her gaze to him before asking quietly, “Are you doing this to protect me? I don’t want you to, I want to bring my brother to justice.”

He swiftly glanced at her before looking away. “It is a deal your brother cannot back out from. If all goes according to plan, Prince Jung will be arrested first. Then after all is settled, your brother will be punished for the crime of murdering your father.”

She nodded, resting her head back on his shoulder.

Ever since that day, she has been thinking of ways to save her family from getting punished together for her brother’s crimes. If The King wanted to punish her family for his crimes, she hoped that she would be able to appeal to The King that their father had also been murdered by her brother, so they decided to remove him from their family registry and as the Head of the family.

But the Crown Prince has already thought of a plan on how to exclude her brother from the crime of murdering the late Crown Prince, which was an even bigger crime than the murder of a former minister of the government.

Usually treason committed against the Royal family will be an automatic execution for the criminal and his whole family, so that when they get executed, their family members won’t come back for revenge.

“Can you trust me?” he asked.

“Yes,” she replied with no hesitation.

“Then please continue to trust me.”

Taeyeon nodded, deciding to trust the Crown Prince in what he was going to do.

***

Taeyeon stood from afar as she watched Tae Ah Ra, striding through the palace doors, she had been brought in as a concubine for the Crown Prince. A proud smile plastered across her face as the servants she passed by bowed down to her in respect.

The Crown Princess still hasn’t come to terms with the news that it was the Crown Prince’s idea to bring in a concubine.

Although Baekhyun had told her to trust him three days ago, she didn’t expect it to be this. She tried to distract herself by going to the library to read, but she could hear the court ladies gossiping outside about how the Crown Princess was infertile, so the Crown Prince had to bring in a concubine to help him bear a child.

Rumors started to fly around the palace that the past rumors surrounding the Crown Prince and his wife’s romance were just made up by the Crown Princess to maintain her position as the Crown Princess. That the Crown Prince was just toying with her and never developed any romantic feelings towards her.

That’s a thing about rumors, stories can be easily spinned out of control from one single rumor, and soon everyone will actually believe that the romance they thought the Crown Prince and Crown Princess had, was just a ruse.

Princess Byun Sora was delighted that her best friend, Tae Ah Ra had come to the palace as well. They had afternoon teas at the pagoda near the river, letting everyone see how close they were. When they saw Taeyeon passing by, they simply casted her a nasty look and ignored her as if they didn’t see her.

Taeyeon tried to piece the puzzles together about how her brother’s crimes have something to do with the Crown Prince bringing in a concubine, but it was a puzzle she simply couldn’t figure out.

She straightened her back when she saw the Crown Prince coming out from the room, the room where Tae Ah Ra just left, the room where they just officiated Tae Ah Ra’s position as the Crown Prince’s concubine.

That was quick.

Taeyeon thought to herself. She thought there would be a grand ceremony in the palace to welcome the concubine, but it seemed like they rushed through the process of making it official.

She gathered up her courage to walk towards the Crown Prince, hoping to talk to him about it, but when he saw her, he walked further away from the path and closer to the side, avoiding the path she was on. She stopped walking, standing there dumbfounded as he strode past her without a glance her way.

Then her ears perked up when she heard someone striking up a conversation with the Crown Prince. She turned around to see Prince Jung standing in front of the Crown Prince, blocking his way.

“Brother, I didn’t expect you to bring in a concubine. How about my sister-in-law? The way you have been acting, I thought you grew fond of her,” said Prince Jung, mockingly.

“I didn’t think that you were capable of saying something that cringy. And what about her?”

Prince Jung smirked, his eyes meeting Taeyeon’s, before diverting his gaze back at his brother. “Shouldn’t you care about her feelings? She’s your wife.”

“Why should I care? It had always been a diplomatic marriage from the start. You of all people should know, there’s no feelings involved in bethrotals.”

That last sentence was a dagger through her heart, a sudden and searing pain that seemed to swallow her whole. Her heart, once a flutter with the hope of love, now ached with a profound sorrow.

She tried to hide her anguish behind a forced smile, but the tears welled up in her eyes, threatening to spill over.

When she was finally back in her room, the tears that had threatened to spill, finally flowed down her cheeks and landed onto the ground in a small puddle. She felt a lump in , a physical manifestation of the pain that seemed to choke her from within.

A sense of inadequacy washed over her, as if she were somehow lacking, unworthy of the love she desperately desired. She questioned her own worth, wondering what she lacked that had led him to do this.

She couldn't escape the images that played in her mind – the memories of their moments together now seemed futile and meaningless.

After she calmed down, she lied down on her bed and stared at the ceiling.

So this is what heartbreak feels like.

He had told her to trust him, but what he said still hurts, she doesn't know what to believe in anymore.

She took a deep breath and wiped away the tears that had stained her face.

Kim Tae Yeon, let's calm down and think rationally. Your heart might hurt, but you can only trust him blindly.

In the days that followed, she distanced herself from the places the Crown Prince would go, she never stepped foot into the library again and would spend most of her time in her room. She isn't sure how long she has to endure this, but Baekhyun is the only person she could trust in this place, she must stay strong.