NOVEL NEXT Chapter 55
I want to become a woman.
I understood the Emperor’s true feelings.
Of course, as a physician treating patients, I could say this one thing with certainty based on my experience.
‘As for the part of “why,” it’s a bit vague.’
Why does he want to become a woman?
When I asked that “why” question, the Emperor simply replied, “Just because.”
It’s not a strange answer.
Just because he wants to.
It’s not a problematic statement at all; rather, the answer became quite straightforward.
However, I could see the multitude of reasons underlying that simple answer.
Beneath the strong assertion of wanting to become a woman, dozens and hundreds of other reasons clung together to form one powerful claim.
“I understand, Your Majesty.”
But I wouldn’t provoke him.
“I will prescribe the Extreme Yang Reversal.”
Ultimately, what I desire is the support of the Mo Yong Family as they resolve any issues that arise in a way that benefits our family as much as possible.
“However, we need to discuss the timing of the dosage.”
“Timing of the dosage?”
“Yes, Your Majesty.”
The Emperor and Taehwan-gong frowned for a moment, but this is indeed a significant issue.
“Are you thinking of publicly declaring that you have become a woman?”
“No. I will die.”
“Regarding that, I wish to ask about the ’empty throne.'”
“Indeed. Are you worried that chaos will arise in the world?”
The Emperor stood up and clasped his hands behind his back.
“Discuss that with Taehwan-gong. I will have a moment’s conversation with the Sword Saint.”
The Emperor nodded at Taehwan-gong and left.
As he smiled gently at me one last time, I instinctively felt that this was the last glimpse I would have of this country’s Emperor.
When we meet again, will he still be an Emperor?
No, he won’t be.
It will likely be an unidentifiable beautiful girl.
Maybe she will have long black hair, or perhaps it will be another form with white hair mixed with the color of inner energy, commonly seen in patients like Mo Yongseol who suffer from Absolute Meridians sickness.
In whatever form, she will embody what the Emperor imagines to be the “most beautiful girl.”
She surely wouldn’t be this country’s, this era’s Emperor.
“Alright, then… shall we slowly start discussing the real matters?”
Taehwan-gong straightens his posture.
“I know well what you are worried about. If chaos arises in the Mo Yong Family, I wish to utilize the royal power to quell that chaos; however, if there is even greater chaos in Beijing, that would be disastrous.”
“Yes, Taehwan-gong.”
Perhaps he was relieved to have solved the Emperor’s concerns and worries.
“Therefore, I will propose all my cards to you. Among them, you should select the ones that benefit you the most, the safest options.”
Taehwan-gong began speaking much more bluntly than when I mentioned I would provide the Extreme Yang Reversal.
“One. The Emperor has been assassinated.”
“…….”
“Immediate chaos may arise, and that calamity would be the Demon Cult. If the White Path’s Martial World steps in to assist, the government and the martial artists can join forces to eliminate the Demon Cult and restore peace to the Central Plains Martial World.”
“The Demon Cult would be destroyed.”
“Right.”
I quietly lifted my teacup.
“What’s the second option?”
“Two. The Emperor is alive.”
Alive.
This is equivalent to saying ‘there are no issues.’
“There are various methods for that. There could be a substitute, or a way could be found to have the Emperor be ill for a time and then pass away three years later.”
“Not switching the Emperor all at once, but gradually changing him, then.”
“That’s correct. And then the next step…”
Taehwan-gong opens his third finger and looks at me.
“For now, this part is something I can resolve independently, to be precise, something the imperial country can handle on its own. But the next method I will discuss requires your necessary assistance.”
“Referring back to the case when the Extreme Yang Reversal is used.”
“…….”
“Am I mistaken?”
“No. Um.”
Taehwan-gong stroked his beard a couple of times, then tilted his head, studying me intently.
“Seeing you suddenly display such capability, I can’t help but want to think that you resemble me.”
“Excuse me?”
“You mentioned you are an orphan? Might I ask where you spent your early years… hmm.”
Taehwan-gong’s gaze turned toward Mo Yongseol, next to me.
“Mo Yong-soja, be sincere.”
“…What are you attempting to do by interrogating the physician’s background?”
“It’s not the dangerous thing you’re thinking. I was merely… considering how Mo Yong-soja would fare if your husband became an ‘imperial court physician.'”
“What?!”
Perhaps because he has risen to the peak of the eunuch hierarchy.
“The royal court physician? Even a temporary one…?”
“That’s right. Normally, you would stay with the Mo Yong Family, but when the royal court ‘requests,’ the couple would come to the Imperial Palace, reside there, and regularly examine and treat the royalty.”
They know very well who to target for their gain.
“As the imperial court physician, your husband would enjoy power comparable to that of Taehwan-gong, and your wife would stand as the most beautiful woman in the world, the daughter of the Mo Yong Family, basking in glory, and they would become a couple remembered in history.”
“In history….”
“What do you think?”
“……Physician?”
Mo Yongseol looks at me with subtle eyes.
“What do you think?”
“Of course, I will do whatever you desire, Soja.”
“And if I were to say I don’t want to become an imperial court physician?”
“From the beginning, I was your physician, not the imperial family’s.”
“Huh.”
At my words, Mo Yongseol smiled faintly, and Taehwan-gong clicked his tongue in admiration.
“I knew you were that kind of person, but to say it in front of the parties involved.”
“I’ve already given the Extreme Yang Reversal to His Majesty. To be precise, what I gave to Taehwan-gong has now ended up with His Majesty.”
“…….”
“Various variables might exist, but since the head of the family is watching, I have no worries.”
Like having siphoned off part of the Extreme Yang Reversal.
Or splitting it in half to reuse later.
Or maybe holding back immediate desires for a realistic reason to use it later.
All those issues are fundamentally blocked by Sword Saint Mo Yongcheon observing and watching over everything.
And all these ‘manipulations’ require the Extreme Yang Reversal.
“Thirdly, who do you intend to give the Extreme Yang Reversal to?”
“…It could be considered an extension of the methods I just mentioned.”
Taehwan-gong lifts his teacup.
“Did you know? There might be only one person in the world who wishes to become a woman like the Emperor, but there are countless others who would sacrifice themselves to become Emperor.”
“……!”
No way.
“You could make someone the current Emperor, or perhaps one day I might wake up and find myself as the current Emperor.”
“…….”
“Of course, this is something that could happen even without the Extreme Yang Reversal. Once a substitute for the Emperor is established, you merely have to wait for the right time to set forth the next Emperor.”
“Could that person be… Taehwan-gong?”
“What? Hahaha!!”
Taehwan-gong burst into laughter.
“Do I look like someone who covets the Emperor’s throne?”
“You have no greed for the Emperor’s position, but you might think of the last method as ‘for the sake of this nation, I shall become Emperor.'”
“…It’s not that I’ve never thought of such a thing, but I have no intention of relinquishing my position as Taehwan-gong. If I were to carelessly pass the highest position of power in the state to the next person, no one knows what they might do.”
Taehwan-gong drummed his fingers on the table and paused for a moment.
“I wish for the Emperor to live the life he desires. That is the last wish of this old man, and my pride.”
“…….”
“Because of that, I will do my utmost for your future, where you live in a new form. That is the way I repay my ‘original sin’ and the atonement I must pay for forcibly dragging you onto this iron-blood path.”
Taehwan-gong gently closed his eyes.
“Do you know who the beautiful girl the Emperor wishes to become is?”
“…Do I have a guess?”
“From the very beginning, it has been only one person.”
Taehwan-gong turned his gaze out the window.
“The one lost in childhood due to political enemies, the sister I raised to the position of Crown Prince, who was poisoned by those same enemies.”
* * *
[Deep within the Mo Yong Family, the Sacred Garden.]
Step, step.
The Emperor stands before a tree with a white flower, placing it on a nameless grave.
Kneeling directly in front of the grave, the Emperor bows his head and wishes long for the deceased.
“…Mo Yong Head.”
“Yes, Your Majesty.”
“Really, do you speak like that?”
The Emperor smiles warmly at Mo Yongcheon standing behind him.
“When I hid my name and temporarily sought refuge in the Martial World, you treated me like a close friend.”
“If I treated you like that as before, it would be rude and obvious that you would find it troublesome.”
“Haha, truly. You haven’t changed at all.”
The Emperor shook his head.
“Do you know, Seoli? The relationship between you and me.”
“I don’t. But, you will know soon. Taehwan-gong will have spoken.”
“…….”
“We could still stop it now if we wish…”
“No, please don’t. It would complicate things unnecessarily. I just… feel like I owe you an apology.”
The Emperor smiled shyly.
“Now the world will come to know the beauty of my sister who died young, won’t it?”
“…….”
“My sister shall take the throne of the most beautiful in the world.”
The Emperor covered his face with his hands.
“I will make it so. The world already remembers me, and now it is time for the world to remember my sister.”
The Emperor opened the box containing the rare medicine.
“My sister is truly the greatest beauty in the Central Plains.”