Chapter eighty-two: Twist of fate

Stillness enveloped the hall at the crown prince's hesitation. The fathers of the selected ladies held their breath in anticipation. ' Is it my daughter? ' they asked themselves in their mind. Becoming the father-in-law of the crown prince is a very high leap in the career of any minister and the pinnacle of success.

The man of the hour felt the anxious gazes raining on him but didn't make haste to uncover the veil on the lady's face. His eyes gazed over at the prime minister's face to ascertain his expression, the irritating smug expression seemed to be bigger, mocking him.

He exhaled deeply so as to calm his palpating heart all to no avail. This choice he has made is making him doubt the credibility of his senses. 'Is it possible?' he asked himself. He turned to his royal father and made a request.

"Royal father, If by chance I pick the lady I don't like __can I make another choice?". The prime minister fisted his hands into a ball and gnashed his teeth. The emperor answered "Yes my Seja, I guess when that happens... the credibility of wearing a veil will be lost".

"No way!" the empress interrupted "An emperor's word is as good as the law__ The emperor asked me to do anything I like with the selection process except selecting the final lady. Your Majesty, you should honor your words" she exposed.

"Is that so ?... Then I guess the veil will be maintained and your choice will be final" the emperor replied nonchalantly shattering the final piece of hope the crown prince had. The prime minister raised his hands and sought the emperor's permission to say something. Permission granted, he spoke out his thoughts.

"Your highness should just unveil the lady and stop stalling out. Every father here came with the hope that their child will be selected, why do you want to shatter the pride of the lady's father you selected with the desire that you don't fancy her? Think of the lady's reputation and the dignity of the royal family!" . The ministers nodded and agreed that the prime minister made a complete sense. The rejected lady will be mocked for the rest of her life even if she is later promoted to the highest level of rank. "So I hope that this lucky lady will be crowned alongside your highness with the biggest celebration of the century" he concluded before bowing to the throne platform, a satisfied smile glowing on his face.

"Seja, please don't keep us waiting" the empress said. He bowed to his parents then took the lady's hand slowly__ The birds sang, the flowers waved in the wind , the wind whispered around them , the flowers bent their heads as though in sheer pity, his heart surged with emotions and his hands trembled.

The moment the veil was gone completely from her face, she wept. Slowly, she opened her eyes to behold the face of the man encrypted in her mind, the face that gave her sleepless night . The thought that her actions and commitment had been given in vain had made her broken until this morning when they brought her to this place. She recalled the event that happened earlier.

She had gone to the flower garden located near their artificial lake to grieve over her predicament. The sudden passionate cry of a broken heart startled the birds and sent them scattering. She felt so terrible that remorse was greatly intermixed with it. "What was I expecting? It is too late for remorse right now". Rising up to submerge herself into the lake for a short swim , someone called out to her.

"Miss, please follow me ... the empress is waiting for you and the final selection will begin in a jiffy" . A veil was placed on her and a ring slipped on her finger.

The crown prince voice brought her back to the hall . "I knew it was you, my lady" . He looked up from her face to see the ashen face of the prime minister and the boisterous laughter of the dowager empress.

With a mocking smile etched on his face, he gently interlocked his fingers with the lady's and raised it for the whole world to see. "I announce once more that my crown princess has been selected __ Jang Eun-hye is my crown princess!".

The prime minister lost his sense of reasoning and roared in the hall forgetting that the emperor is still present . "Seja! What type of nonsense are you spewing right now?".

The crown prince flared up too and shouted "Minister Choi, aren't you the one spewing nonsense right now?". The shock unsettled him and glued his mouth tight. The other ministers woke up from the stupor of surprise and did the right thing that should be done.

"Congratulations, your highness the crown prince of the nation"

"Congratulations, your highness the crown princess of the nation"

"A thousand blessings to the crown prince and the crown princess of the nation"

"A thousand blessings to our beloved nation".

The newly selected princess and her husband bowed to the parent-in-law for the first time as a daughter-in-law.The rage on the prime minister's face became visible as it turned scarlet. He clenched his robe in his hands tightly while directing a heated gaze at the minister of finance, the father of the bride.

The finance minister who wanted to remain invincible couldn't stay still under such gaze ."I am as surprised as you, my lord" he blurted out hoping the man will remain calm till after the gathering.

The disappointed man turned his eyes to the empress who was already expecting it. "Unveil the rest of the ladies" she commanded making the prime minister red in anger. He couldn't bear looking at the disgraced and disappointed look of his beloved daughter but his disappointment turned to panic as he couldn't find her, he gave a questioning look at the empress who signaled that he should see her later.

Seja and Eun-hye bowed before the finance minister in acknowledgement as the father-in-law of the crown prince making blood spurt out from the prime minister's fingers. 'Seja, dare not think you have won... I will pay back this disgrace a thousand time' he swore in his heart.

The crown prince looked at him with a hint of mockery at the corner of his eyes ' You lost completely this time around Choi sang-min, she couldn't even become my concubine' he gloated while smiling sinisterly at him.

Moving closer under the guise of speaking with him , he asked him a question. "Minister Choi, do you remember all the rules guiding the selection of the crown princess?". It turned a rhetorical question as the crown prince drew back immediately he blurted out the question leaving him alone with his thoughts.

LATER IN THE DAY ( THE EMPRESS PALACE)

Hiding an illness while vying for the seat of a crown princess is treason that can lead to the extermination of the whole family down to the fifth generation.

' How will he react when he finds out he is about to be charged with treason?' she thought. It seemed almost like an answer when a courtmaid announced the arrival of the prime minister.

"Let him in" she said in her clear rich voice , the prime minister with a sullen face entered while looking defeated.

"Why, Your Majesty?" he said looking at her like a child deprived of his toy discarding all appropriate formalities.

In a dignified manner, she threw back his question at him. "Why would you hide such thing from me , minister Choi?__ Do you think my protection will save you from treason?"

The cheerless gloom and desolation on his face vanished with the manner and the question asked to him. One keen look from the empress showed her that the prime minister seemed oblivious of the event, if not he wouldn't dare appear before her .

"That child is gravely ill __ you should go see her at home" she sighed. "I kept my servants quiet so I made it look like she gave up on her own" she said.

He stood up and bowed low before the dignified lady . The empress didn't mention anything but from her tone, it is a serious matter yet she covered up for him. Such devotion moved him and smothered whatever angst he had.

"I should get going, your Majesty" he swallowed back the lump on his throat and rushed out from the building. In his haste, he was unable to see the evil glint on the face of the crown prince who watched him from afar.