TMTISTBH CH 4

‘You’re the most wicked person in the world! How could you be so cruel?!’

The last words of Myeon Yu-won, who had cursed me in grief as he held the bodies of his father and brother, were completely different from the quiet young man before me now. It didn’t feel like it was the same person at all.

‘I’m sure there were only two people who would pass the civil service exam are those two.’

At this academy, the only successful candidates were Kim Nam-won, a close friend of Bae Hon-young, and Seobang-dae’s eldest daughter, Seo So-jeo. Everyone else had failed, and from that moment on, Bae Hon-young’s cruel behavior became worse, which I clearly remember.

‘But there’s no way Myeon Yu-heon’s younger brother would be foolish enough to fail the exam.’

Finding it odd, I tried to recall my past memories. However, back then, Myeon Yu-won was nothing more than “Myeon Yu-heon’s younger brother,” and nothing else stood out about him.

“In-ho, are you there?”

Inho, lost in thought, quickly entered Study Hall when he heard a voice calling out to him. Seeing the students’ eyes on him, it seemed like Bae Hon-young had said something. As he stopped behind Bae Hon-young, and on the opposite side, Park Su-won waved a book and asked, 

“Did you really transcribe this?”

I had no idea what he was talking about. As I watched, Lady Young, standing next to him, covered her mouth and laughed.

“Why is Su-won asking about that? Surely, Hon-young wouldn’t lie, would he?”

“I’m just curious. Young master Hon-young is virtuous, so it’s not surprising that he has many servants who could write, but this transcription is so neat it looks like it was bought from the library.”

Hearing the word “lie,” Hon-young flared up. Park Su-won must have felt he had been disrespected, as Hon-young’s face showed clear tension.

“Su-won, your servant can write too, right? Then how about this—we’ll have a competition in calligraphy. The loser will take ten strikes of the cane.”

“A competition?”

“What? Are you scared?”

“Why do you speak like that?”

Su-won, who appeared somewhat troubled, briefly glanced at In-ho and then called out to his servant with ease.

“Geon-hye! You come in.”

Things were escalating. In-ho sighed inwardly and slightly bowed to ask Hon-young,

“May I briefly look at the text?”

“Sure.”

In-ho received the thin book and quickly flipped through the pages. In-ho clearly remembered that, at this time, Bae Hon-young had known he had started to learn to write by watching others. And Bae Hon-young had made In-ho copy materials from the past civil service exam. However, In-ho had no memory of a bet like this…

As Inho examined the text, he frowned slightly at the poor handwriting and uneven spacing. He had never thought of himself as a poor writer, but seeing this old trace of his handwriting, it was a mess.

They wouldn’t make the servants answer questions. Most likely, the servants would just be told to copy. In-ho handwriting had changed entirely since then, but forging another’s handwriting had always been his specialty.

Inho glanced at the female servant whom Park Su-won had summoned as his opponent.

‘To have a woman involved in a wager with lashes at stake… That’s simply shameless.’

Inho wasn’t the only one thinking this. The other students, including Myeon Yu-won, had uncomfortable expressions as well.

“At this point, no amount of last-minute studying will help with bad handwriting. The writing materials are ready, so prepare yourselves.”

Three sheets of paper were already set out. Someone might demonstrate first to prevent In-ho from imitating the original handwriting.

Inho folded the paper in half and, pretending not to notice, turned to look at Bae Hon-young.

“To whom should we hand the text to?”

“Well…”

Bae Hon-young hesitated for a moment. Taking advantage of the opportunity, Inho pretended not to know and added one more word. “Why not have Master Sang-won, the teacher, decide?”

“Hah, what…! It’s not something that should bother the teacher over such a small matter!”

“Perhaps Hon-young should be generous enough to overlook it if a servant makes a mistake.”

“Well, then, how about the new Young Master Myeon here decide? Since we don’t know each other yet, surely no one would be more impartial?”

Everyone agreed with Park So-jeo’s suggestion, and before long, Myeon Yu-won stood in the center holding the text.

“Choose any of them.”

Myeon Yu-won paused when he opened the book. His gaze fell on Inho, kneeling below.

“Young Master Myeon, have you decided?”

“… Let’s go with this one.”

Myeon Yu-won closed the book and picked up the brush. His bold strokes danced across the white paper. Several students exchanged looks as they watched what he wrote. Inho stood silently, watching him, and then dipped his brush.

Geon-hye was the first to start writing, followed by Inho. Geon-hye was undoubtedly a talented servant, as Park Su-won had confidently claimed.

Soon, the two completed pieces of paper were examined by everyone, and there was no disagreement.

「君子無所爭 必也射乎 揖讓而升下而飲 其爭也君子^[1]」

“He has talent. To do this without formal learning is impressive.”

“Not quite. Rather than writing, he merely imitated. It’s more like a drawing than proper calligraphy.”

“But still, having a servant who can transcribe quickly is an advantage for studying for the state exam.”

Bae Hon-young enjoyed the envious looks coming his way and cast a disdainful glance at Park Su-won.

“What do you think, Su-won? I don’t think we need to see anymore.”

“… Your servant is quite skilled. I apologize for my earlier suspicion.”

“It’s fine. But a bet is a bet—your servant must be punished. Since she’s a girl, a cane will do.”

“Hon-young!”

“Young Master Bae…”

At the mention of punishment, Geon-hye trembled, looking pitiful. Bae Hon-young was ruthless when it came to punishing his servants, and he seemed prepared to carry out his promise again.

Just when Park Su-won was about to command Geon-hye’s punishment, Seo So-jeo, who had been watching quietly, spoke up.

“‘君子無所爭’ (군사무소쟁) — what a fine quote. The two Young Masters should treat Young Master Myeon to a drink.”

“Hon-young, your servant won, so why keep fighting? Be generous and let it go.”

“That’s right. Servants don’t know much about writing, but it would be embarrassing for us, the learned ones, to continue like this.”

Kim Nam-won and other students also intervened, and Hon-young, who was enjoying the victory, for the first time showed interest in the meaning of the written words.

‘君子無所爭(군사무소쟁), A nobleman does not fight.’

Realizing the true meaning of the quote, Bae Hon-young’s eyes shifted to Myeon Yu-won, who was standing quietly behind.

‘Did he choose this on purpose?’

Feeling that a mere nobody dared to interfere in his matters, he was displeased. However, if he insisted on punishment in this situation, he would only make a fool of himself. So, for now, even Honyeong had to take a step back.

“Of course. It was just a joke.”

“Thank goodness Hon-young was merciful. But now that it’s over, I’ll say it: Su-won, you went too far.”

“Indeed.”

At Nam-won’s playful reprimand, others also added their comments.

“How can you send a female servant for punishment like that?”

“Young Master Bae clearly mentioned the punishment first. Hmmm…”

“We almost ended up looking foolish in front of the Young Master Myeon.”

Blushing in embarrassment, Park Su-won told Geon-hye to leave. In-ho, who was about to quietly retreat, suddenly felt Hon-young’s hand grip his wrist.

In the unpleasant silence, Hon-young smiled and patted his back.

“Good job. Go get ready; we’ll leave early today.”

“Yes.”

For Inho, who had personally experienced succession struggles and palace intrigues, the bullying from the academy students was hardly something to fear. Compared to the imperial court members, these boys were neither as harsh in their words and actions nor particularly sharp-witted. Most importantly, they had no reason to harm one another.

However, his own circumstances had changed. He was no longer Prince Tae Inho, but merely Baek Honyeong’s servant. Even speaking a single word required careful consideration. Fortunately, the more perceptive individuals caught on quickly, preventing unnecessary trouble.

As Inho exited the Study Hall, he saw Geon-hye sitting on the ground, her face pale. She was being tossed around by her masters’ words and actions—pitiful, but wasn’t his situation much the same?

Letting out a small sigh, he headed toward the stable, but suddenly, someone called out to him urgently from behind.

“Stop right there!”

When he turned around, Myeon Yu-won approached, slightly breathless.

“Did you do that on purpose?”

“Young Master Myeon, do you have something to say?”

Inho took a step back, pretending not to know, and lowered his head.

“I’m talking about the book. The page was folded in half, positioned so that it would be the first thing seen when opened. You deliberately made sure a specific passage was visible, didn’t you?”

“I’m not sure what you’re referring to.”

With no change in his expression, Inho remained impassive, prompting Myeon Yuwon to clutch his chest in frustration. It was a slightly different side of him compared to his usual quiet demeanor at the academy.

“Moreover, you deliberately mentioned the teacher, prompting Park Sojeo to ask me a question. Are you saying that wasn’t intentional?”

What a troublesome person. In-ho had only planned to make use of Myeon Yu-won, but for a moment, he had forgotten just how clever he was.