The filming proceeded along the viewing route.
Starting from Donhwamun, we passed Geumcheongyo, Injeongjeon, Seonjeongjeon, and Daejojeon, filming my appearance, and then headed towards Huijeongdang.
Spring was budding on the trees surrounding the buildings, making it feel more like a stroll than work.
So, with my hands behind I my back, I was slowly walking along with the filming crew when I felt a strange gaze as I got closer to Huijeongdang.
I wondered if someone had entered, so I looked around.
Soon, I realized it was a sensation I had felt before, the same as when I sensed Jang Ha-woon’s spirit.
So, I looked around Huijeongdang.
{Jaga, what’s wrong?}
I quickly looked at Kim Woo-jin’s sword. There was no light.
“Is something the matter?”
Following Baek-mung, Kim Woo-jin also asked, but I couldn’t say anything definite, so I just kept looking around Huijeongdang.
“Lee Young-ssi, we’re ready!”
At the staff’s call, I postponed finding the source of the gaze and approached Huijeongdang.
But the sensation grew stronger and stronger.
“Starting the shoot. Action!”
The interior of Huijeongdang had been reconstructed in a modern style, so we decided to only film the exterior.
So, I just had to stroll in front of Huijeongdang.
Despite the simple shoot, I was nervous because of the suspicious sensation.
Trying to appear calm, I slowly crossed in front of Huijeongdang.
But as soon as I saw the stone supporting the stairs at the entrance of Huijeongdang, in the middle of the route, I almost stopped walking.
The stone pillar at the entrance of Huijeongdang was emitting light as if it had been waiting.
‘That’s it!’
{Jaga, is it a vengeful spirit like Jang Ha-woon?}
However, I didn’t stop walking as if nothing was wrong, and the shoot was completed in one take.
“Cut!”
“The moving distance to Nakseonjae is a bit long. Let’s get going.”
It seemed like no one else had seen that light.
I became anxious, worried that a vengeful spirit might suddenly pop out like Jang Ha-woon. There were too many eyes watching now. {I’ll suppress it.}
Baek-mung had already transformed into a doll and was in my hand.
Can it also block the energy of a spirit coming out?
Anyway, I placed the Baek-mung doll on the stone pillar at the entrance of Huijeongdang and headed to the next filming location.
* * *
After finishing the filming at Nakseonjae, when Kim Woo-jin and I returned to Huijeongdang because I had left the doll behind, the doll Baek-mung and two spirits were in a confrontation.
One spirit was Jang Ha-woon, and his expression wasn’t good.
“Aren’t you being too obvious?”
At my words, Jang Ha-woon rushed over, delighted.
“Young master!”
“Hey, Woo Si-jik!”
Oh, this pattern is too similar to last time.
How dare a mere Jeong8-Woo Si-jik treat His Highness like this…”
Leaving the new spirit who was getting angry behind, I looked at Jang Ha-woon.
“Who is that person? “He is a Jeong5- Ikwi of the Crown Prince Guard.” He is a second cousin to His Highness.”
“I told you, I’m not that Crown Prince. But a second cousin?”
“He is a sixth cousin of the same generation.”
“A distant relative of the Crown Prince means a Royal Family member, or since it’s Joseon, a member of the Royal Family, right?”
“That is correct. Originally, Grand Princes and Princes were forbidden from taking official positions, but it is known that Grand Prince Yeongmin’s academic achievements were so high that he was given the position of Ikwi.”
“Yeongmin-gun, huh? So, he’s like Jang Ha-woon-ssi’s direct superior?”
Jang Ha-woon closed his mouth. Social life must be hard, then and now.
But why do they both think I’m the Crown Prince they served?
Anyway, since the filming crew hadn’t completely left yet, I had to quiet the new spirit down.
“You said Yeongmin-gun, right?”
“Your Highness, haven’t you always called me Geon affectionately since we were young? Please call me that comfortably.”
“So, your name is Geon-ssi.”
“I am deeply moved that you, in your benevolence, call this disloyal subject so kindly.”
“Let’s talk in detail later, but for now, shall we hide before people come?”
“Jaga, that vengeful spirit started picking a fight with me as soon as he came out. Jang Ha-woon also thought this was his chance and…”
“Baek-mung is a doll right now, so speak in your mind.”
“…..”
Baek-mung, with a sulky expression, closed his mouth.
I felt like I had become a kindergarten Sunflower Class teacher.
* * *
As Kim Woo-jin started the car, Jang Ha-woon appeared in the passenger seat.
Following him, Lee Geon appeared next to me.
If Jang Ha-woon’s attire was that of a military officer, Lee Geon’s clothes were official robes.
The kind often seen in historical dramas, the ones that seemed to assert ‘This is the chest!’ with a belt.
And even the Samo, the official hat of Joseon.
If there were any sightings in this outfit, I wouldn’t be able to explain it unless it was for a historical drama shoot.
Lee Geon was too busy looking around the car.
He touched the seat he was sitting on, and his hands and eyes moved busily as he looked at the steering wheel and dashboard that Kim Woo- jin was holding.
“This car is something that combines a palanquin and an ox cart. Instead of palanquin bearers, round wheels move it.”
Jang Ha-woon’s excited explanation didn’t seem to reach Lee Geon.
* * *
I needed to have a serious conversation with Jang Ha-woon and Lee Geon, so I returned home as soon as filming was over.
Kim Woo-jin, as he entered the National Intelligence Service, showed signs of unease about the newly appeared spirit.
“I’ll send a few agents.”
“Those agents could be possessed by a Demon, right?”
Thinking of the hotel chef who attacked me at the press conference, I didn’t know who might attack me.
Unless they were holding the Four Evil Beheading Sword like Kim Woo-jin.
“It’ll be okay since Baek-mung is here.”
I shook the doll in my hand and sent Kim Woo-jin off.
Lee Geon, who had been busy looking around the accommodation, knelt on the living room floor as soon as I sat on the sofa.
“Please sit comfortably.”
“This posture is very comfortable for this subject.”
Posture wasn’t important, so I put it aside and decided to hear the story of why Lee Geon was there.
“After the Crown Prince’s passing, His Majesty, who lamented with grief that seemed to sever his intestines, ordered a re-examination. He believed that the Crown Prince, who had been healthy, could not have passed away so futilely. I believed that the cause was poison, and…”
“Is there a reason why you suspected poisoning?”
“I witnessed His Highness suffering from stomach pains for several days, and his lips and fingertips turning blue. Also, a eunuch whispered that he had vomited blood.”
“If the evidence is clear, shouldn’t the police, or the Capital Defense Command? Investigate the case instead of the Crown Prince Guard?”
“A serious crime that occurred within the palace could be handled by the Uigeumbu, but the royal physician who attended His Highness at the time said there was no evidence of poisoning.”
However, the king, unable to trust the royal physician’s words, ordered the Crown Prince Guard to investigate the cause of the Crown Prince’s death.
They investigated not only the Crown Prince’s actions before his death and what he ate and drank but even his clothes.
“In the meantime, Woo Si-jik’s whereabouts became unknown. Someone who had entered the palace in the morning suddenly disappeared, and no trace of him could be found within the palace. Therefore, His Majesty ordered the investigation to be conducted secretly.”
“That’s me.”
As Jang Ha-woon interjected, Lee Geon asked Jang Ha-woon.
“What happened to Woo Si-jik?”
“Actually…”
“Ah, let’s hear it after I tell His Highness first.”
Stopping Jang Ha-woon, who was eager to speak, Lee Geon continued.
Personnel changes in the Crown Prince Guard were underway for the appointment of a new Crown Prince, but Lee Geon remained to continue investigating the Crown Prince’s death and Woo Si-jik’s disappearance for the sake of the secret investigation.
“In the meantime, I learned that there was a poison that left no trace. While trying to find that poison, I received a letter saying that someone knew about the poison and wanted to meet quietly at the hour of the Rat.”
“Isn’t that a trap?”
“As expected, Your Highness’s insight is profound. That’s right. This subject, being ignorant, rashly believed it and waited at Huijeongdang as written in the letter.
But unknowingly, a fire demon covered me. I escaped through a gap where the door was broken, but I lost consciousness. Then, I regained consciousness at the sound of Your Highness calling me.”
“Is that the day we met?”
“That is correct.”
“So, you don’t know anything that happened in between?”
“That is correct.”
“I’m the same. The last thing I remember is seeing someone stabbing me in the back and burying me under a tree.”
“Buried you?”
Lee Geon asked in surprise at Jang Ha-woon’s words.
“Yes. As soon as I fell, several people started digging the ground and buried me.”
“Did you see their faces?”
“They were all covering their noses and mouths with cloth.”
“What kind of people would do such an outrageous thing…”
“Didn’t Jang Ha-woon-ssi find something? Like a decisive clue.”
“It’s not a clue, but I found out that a laundry maid had disappeared and was looking for her whereabouts, wondering if there was a connection.”
“Ah, the decisive evidence was the clothes…”
It was clear that Jang Ha-woon and Lee Geon were killed while investigating the Crown Prince’s death.
It was unfortunate, but it was difficult to reveal the culprit now, and even if they did, the statute of limitations, or the culprit, would already be dead.
So, now the remaining questions were why those two knew me as the Crown Prince and what to do with those spirits.
These were the two things.
“Why do you think I’m the Crown Prince?”
“Uh…”
“That’s…”
Lee Geon and Jang Ha-woon suddenly couldn’t continue speaking.
“Is there a restriction on speaking?”
I wondered if there was a device that prevented them from saying certain things since they were spirits.
“It’s not that…”
Behind the hesitating Lee Geon, Jang Ha-woon shouted.
“Since you are the Crown Prince, I called you the Crown Prince, and if you ask why you are the Crown Prince, it’s because you are the Crown Prince…”
“Jang Ha-woon-ssi, have you seen the historical drama with the chef?”
“…Yes.”
So, that was the historical drama he was watching at that time.
“Your Highness’s name is also the same.”
{Hamja is a respectful way of referring to a name.}
At Baek-mung’s words, I remembered that I hadn’t asked my grandmother about the Chinese characters of my name.
I have to apply for a correction of my resident registration, so should I get a copy of my family register while I’m at it?
“When I think about it, your face and voice are different. But the first sound I heard after collapsing was Your Highness’s call. I regained consciousness after hearing that call, so I was convinced that you were the Crown Prince.”
“I’m the same. So, the moment I saw my younger brother, I thought you were His Highness.”
“But Woo Si-jik, how dare you commit such rudeness to His Highness?”
“That’s because my younger brother…”
“It’s because I’m not the Crown Prince.”
I answered instead of Jang Ha-woon. I sighed at the thought of explaining everything to Jang Ha-woon from the beginning again.
“Jaga, it hurts.”
Baek-mung, who had been in the form of a doll, suddenly revealed its true form. Long white hair was wrapped around my fingers.
“Ah, I’m sorry.”
While I was untangling Baek-mung’s hair that had been wrapped around my fingers, Baek-mung looked at the two spirits and continued speaking.
“Your Crown Prince’s circumstances are pitiful, but this person is just a distant descendant of your king. Since the Crown Prince you served died young, he wouldn’t even be a descendant of that Crown Prince.”