Spring Snow - Chapter 1 Part 3

The owner of Huirak Palace, known as Queen Dowager Gyeongsun or Queen Dowager Ye, was the empress dowager of the Emperor of the Wu Dynasty and the principal consort of the late Emperor Deokhye. She had two sons and four daughters with her husband, Emperor Deokhye, but none of them were her biological children.
Eunhwan blinked and looked at the Biluochun tea that the Empress Dowager had served. The clear, pale green tea filled his mouth with the scent of fruits and flowers with just one sip. The tea that the late Emperor enjoyed the most during his lifetime was the one grown only in the western mountains owned by the Ye family of Yeochok, the Empress Dowager’s family.
How the Empress Dowager used this tea during her time as Empress was unclear. Eunhwan held the round teacup under the gentle gaze of the Empress Dowager. The lower part of her body, which she thought would only throb a little at dawn, was now throbbing so much that it felt like it was going to tear apart.
As Eunhwan began to think that enduring the pain might not be enough, she started to feel a growing sense of fear. The movements were rough and fierce. The sound of the blows was chilling, as if they could tear through the h*le. Eunhwan recalled how she had cried uncontrollably in the man’s arms. It was impossible that it hadn’t reached the Empress Dowager’s ears.
No, but still, she was a consort who carefully observed the emperor’s nights. Since the time the emperor was the crown prince, she had been watching who entered and left the inner palace, and whether the crown prince cast his gaze upon any woman. Whenever the crown prince was to receive the crown princess, he would twist his previously gentle face into a fierce one in front of the empress, so she couldn’t help but be concerned.
For various political reasons, the emperor was always reluctant to bring in a crown princess. Although a fiancée had been decided long ago, if she was not appointed as empress, she would just be a pretty ornament. Even if he were to bestow favor upon a humble maid of the palace, the crown prince did not cast even a single shadow of a woman in his inner palace.

However, the emperor embraced the woman. He neither grabbed the hair of the palace maid he had brought in and dragged her around, nor did he order the palace guards to beat her to humiliate her. The empress dowager’s gaze towards Eunhwan was strange.
At the master’s intense gaze, Eunhwan trembled. After lowering Byeoklachun, the Empress Dowager did not even part her lips. The h*le that the Emperor’s member had entered was wet and swollen. Thinking that blood or s*men might be oozing out, chills ran down her spine.
“I heard that the Emperor embraced you.”
Since she was let in, it was only natural for him to do so, and the other party was the emperor. It was only natural for the empress dowager to truly want to confirm it. Eunhwan clicked her dry lips and made a sound.
“Y-yes, Your Majesty. You have bestowed your grace upon the servant…”
“Let’s check it out.”
The slender eyes curved slightly. Startled, Eunhwan lifted her head. Two court ladies who had been standing by the Empress Dowager’s side approached Eunhwan. Their eyes, as stern as the Empress Dowager’s, were utterly devoid of warmth. It was when Eunhwan, with her shoulders hunched, was at her most vulnerable.
“Ma, Mama! Huh…”

A scream erupted in surprise at the hand that untied the strap around the chest. The Empress Dowager raised her hand in response to Eunhwan’s resistance.
“Will you show up in person?”
“Mama. The servant…”
“Take it off.”
The empress murmured with a face that did not smile. Eunhwan trembled as she looked up at her, and the court lady began to remove the clothes that had been partially taken off. The bre*st strap fell to the floor. The bre*sts that the emperor had sucked on were revealed. The empress’s gaze was fixed on the slender female form. The scarlet bre*sts and ni*ples. The round and full bre*ts, like bowls turned upside down. The delicate shoulders and narrow waist reminded her of someone.
‘Wasn’t it just the face that resembled?’
The once calm gaze of the Grand Dowager Empress turned strange. The chest, soaked with saliva, was filled with dirty bite marks. The image of the man, who was not present, thrusting his waist was vividly drawn. In fact, what the Grand Dowager Empress had seen was the scene of that man’s father entering his concubine’s h*le.
“Did the emperor really spill his seed on you?”

The Empress Dowager, who had scrutinized Eunhwan’s body as if savoring it, looked at her with colder eyes than before. Eunhwan, covering her chest, quickly nodded her head. Her eyes burned with heat, and she felt dizzy. With a pale face, she just nodded her head, and the Empress Dowager gestured to her court lady.
Suddenly, two court ladies pushed Eunhwan down and tried to put their hands on her ankles.
“Ma, ma’am! Hic, hic! How, how could this happen? Sob…”
“What is there to hide among women? There is nothing to fear.”
The Empress Dowager whispered softly. Startled, Eunhwan screamed and struggled. One of the court ladies watching Eunhwan from behind the Empress Dowager frowned. It was a sight to behold, Eunhwan, who had cried and screamed even in the Emperor’s embrace, now unable to maintain any dignity in front of the Empress Dowager. While the court ladies were roughly trying to force her legs apart, the Taewon-gun began to stir. The Taewon-gun guarding the front of Huirak Palace announced the Emperor’s arrival. Eunhwan gasped and closed his legs. The Empress Dowager, sitting far away, had a look of bewilderment on her face.
Eunhwan, not knowing what was happening, sobbed and trembled. Before the court lady could take her hands off Eunhwan, heavy footsteps were heard. Eventually, the man who had roughly violated and mocked her the previous night appeared.
“Sniff, sob…”
The body trembling like a quaking aspen could not remain still. The emperor was dressed in a black ceremonial robe with a deep green hue. The silk, glistening and taut, was tied in a straight line, and the topknot was perfectly arranged without a single strand out of place.
The court lady, who had removed her hand from Eunhwan at the emperor’s command, bowed her head and returned to the empress dowager’s side. Eunhwan, in a daze, gathered the torn clothes to cover her chest, but the half-torn silk was of no use, merely hanging limply.
“Oh my. My busy son has come all this way. It would have been nice if you had informed your mother in advance.”
“I didn’t expect to be walking to Huirak Palace at this hour.”
“Oh my. Really?”
The Empress Dowager smiled benevolently. It was a smile too firm to be one directed at a son. No one could see it as a mother’s smile towards her child. Eunhwan, trembling like a sick dog, was crouched down, blinking her eyes.
Swoosh—A cool fabric was draped over her shoulders. The scent covering her nose was familiar. Eunhwan, afraid to lift her head, only looked at his feet, which were not wearing the ceremonial shoes. It was the emperor’s ceremonial robe. It should not be used to cover the naked body of a lowly court lady.

Nevertheless, the hand clutching her chest did not let go. The marks left by the emperor were too filthy. Even during the early hours, while she had fallen asleep, he had woken up and had been toying with her bre*sts, making it even more so.
“Will the queen mother be so worried about the child’s night that she will rummage through the maid’s private parts?”
“Your Majesty.”
The empress’s round smile had thorns. The emperor’s face remained expressionless. His face, neither smiling nor frowning, was pale and cold. The gazes of mother and son intertwined in the air.
“Since the time I was the empress dowager, I have always been like this towards you.”
“Your Majesty!”
“However, I am not a traitor, but rather a witness to the queen mother’s embarrassing actions.”
“How dare you, how dare you…”
“Isn’t there a reason to endure?”

The emperor smiled faintly. The empress dowager glared at him with bloodshot eyes. Her face was completely distorted. She no longer looked like a bodhisattva. She didn’t even look like a mother to her son. It was strange. They looked completely like strangers. At least, that’s how it appeared to Eunhwan.
A tense silence descended. Eunhwan’s body floated into the air. Startled, she huddled tightly and stared at the man who was holding her. Unlike Eunhwan, who seemed drained and withered, the man showed no signs of being harmed.
It was when I found it too difficult to meet his gaze and kept my eyes averted, staring only at his pale chin. The emperor left Huirak Palace without a word of farewell. Eunhwan, stepping outside, rustled as she adjusted her attire.
“Don’t you have any guts?”
“Yes?”
“What kind of woman is this, exposing herself without any shame, anywhere she pleases?”
“That, that, the Grand Dowager Empress will, will check it…”
“Truly a loyal servant.”

The emperor lifted his head. After mocking in a curt voice, he adjusted Eunhwan and then stepped into the sparring match. The distance between Huirak Palace and Hwasimjeon was quite far, making it difficult to walk. As a result, Eunhwan was sitting on the emperor’s thigh, ready for the match. She should have asked to be put down, but her lips wouldn’t move.
He was a man, after all. The emperor’s arrogance was barely contained. It was fortunate that the emperor was a tall and robust man; otherwise, it would have been a disaster. Eunhwan bit her lips, fiddling with the ample fabric that covered her entire body. The carriage carrying Eunhwan and the emperor left Huirak Palace and arrived at Hwasimjeon. The emperor silently embraced Eunhwan’s waist and disembarked from the carriage.
Eunhwan, unable to even whisper a request to be let down, arrived at Hwasimjeon, cradled in the Emperor’s arms. Hwasimjeon, which they had left before dawn, was now completely cleared out. Although the guards had changed, it was essentially the same as before they left, and the Emperor was no different.
“Who is your master?”
“···‥.”
“Asked.”
“Your Majesty, Your Majesty…”

The man who laid her down on the bed asked in a voice as cold as ice. Although he was usually gruff, he suddenly looked at Eunhwan with a gaze devoid of warmth. Eunhwan looked at him hesitantly. She couldn’t understand why he was asking about her master. Everything in the palace belonged to the emperor. Even the weeds that grew thick in the abandoned palace courtyard were the emperor’s property. So was Eunhwan. Eunhwan was a palace maid in the inner court, and the inner court existed for the emperor and his family.
“Your Majesty, Your Majesty.”
“How dare you leave my side without permission?”
The slow yet heavy voice was fierce. Eunhwan quickly blinked her eyes while bowing her head. Although no anger was felt, the gaze was piercing. Why was he angry? It was unthinkable for Eunhwan, who had not even received the status of a concubine, let alone the Empress, to dare lie in the Emperor’s bed.
I thought it was even more outrageous that a woman without the rank of a court maid was occupying the emperor’s side until dawn. Moreover, I had to meet with the head of the Hwasimjeon to scrape out the semen right away. I was bewildered that I was being blamed for something that should have been taken care of as a matter of course.
“I, I am deeply sorry, Your Majesty. Please, kill me.”

With a clear blush of embarrassment, Eunhwan got off the bed and prostrated himself. Kneeling, she pressed her forehead to the ground and trembled. Thinking that she had incurred the emperor’s wrath due to last night’s incident, she was simply terrified. How dare she cry in the emperor’s embrace and push him away… She had piled up enough offenses to deserve punishment. She bit her lip.
“Get up.”
It was a low voice. The tears that welled up again made her eyelids hot. Eunhwan, whose ears had turned red, kept trembling her shoulders without hearing the emperor’s voice.
“I told you to get up.”
“I, I apologize, Your Majesty.”
Startled by the sudden voice, Eunhwan lifted her head. Should she dare to rise and look up? Eunhwan, who had been biting her lips in worry, suddenly felt a hand on her shoulder.
“She’s really a bothersome woman.”
“Ah…”

Eunhwan, who was abruptly lifted by her shoulders, was once again dangled in the air. The emperor, who had laid her down on the bed, looked down at Eunhwan with a somewhat irritable gaze.
“Isn’t it? Are women really such bothersome beings?”
Eunhwan, with tear-filled eyes, looked at him. She had forgotten that she shouldn’t gaze at the emperor so easily now. As she pondered over the emperor’s mysterious words and actions, she was staring at him. The hand that had held her shoulder touched her chin. The gaze that swept over her here and there, shaking her, did not show any affection. Yet, he was gentle. No, he was somehow soft and fragile. Each of his actions made Eunhwan anxious, yet her heart raced.
“Even though it’s this annoying and useless, it still manages to leave me dumbfounded…?”
A question that didn’t seek an answer was heard once more. Noticing Eunhwan’s puzzled gaze, he slid her lips. The hand that had been holding his chin fell away.
“From now on, don’t easily bow down.”
“Yes, yes. Your Majesty.”
It was a command whose intentions were hard to fathom. Nevertheless, Eunhwan nodded without questioning. While nodding, he could only say that she would follow unconditionally.

“Just because the Queen Mother calls, it doesn’t mean you have to comply every single time.”
“Yes, Your Majesty.”
“It’s not like we’re going to the Hwasimjeon.”
“Yes, Your Majesty. As you wish…”
With her head bowed and mumbling repeatedly, Eunhwan lifted her face. Their gazes intertwined. The emperor’s lips, which had curled up slightly, returned to their original position. His lips, which accentuated his slow demeanour, were red. “I will do anything,” Eunhwan, who had been answering, trailed off. The smile at the corners of the emperor’s eyes was faint, but it wasn’t so weak that it couldn’t be read.
“Answer.”
“Yes, yes.”
A barely audible response escaped from the blocked throat. The emperor, who had been smiling, cupped Eunhwan’s cheek. As a shadow loomed, the man drew closer. Eunhwan stared at him, her face tense.
“I will grant you a concubine.”

“···‥.”
“It means becoming Jim’s wife.”
“Your Majesty, Your Majesty…”
“Every night is supposed to be like last night.”
“···‥.”
“Just like my mother and father did. Shall we try to stick together and eat?”
The murmurs mixed with warm breaths were subtle. The h*le, which only throbbed with pain from the sweet voice that made it tingle, twitched. Eunhwan instinctively grabbed his shoulder and gasped. Tingly. The sharp pleasure seemed to seep out from the h*le where Taegam had scraped out the s*men in the morning.
“Then wait for the night. Noble one.”
The emperor pressed his lips against hers. The sweet, soft skin was indeed as beautiful as it was sweet and delightful. Eunhwan shivered and let out a faint whimper. The emperor’s long arms embraced her slender form once more. The long robe that had been draped over her shoulders fell to the bed, revealing her bare body. The word ‘favorite’ lingered in her mind.

***