She couldn't believe her eyes. "These fools are going to get themselves killed!" she muttered under her breath, the attackers were from her village. And just when she thought it couldn't get worse, she spotted the ringleader—her father. "Oh my goodness…now this old man is in on it too?"
Just as the two factions were about to collide, Jin-Ri made a mad dash and made a hilariously dramatic leap toward her father. The stunned onlookers were so taken aback that the impending battle came to a screeching halt. Young-Sik stopped dead in his tracks befuddled by the events unfolding before him.
With a theatrical flair, she yelled to Young-Sik, "Your Highness, flee and run for your life!" Then, leaning in close to her father, she whispered, "Father? What on earth are you doing here? Didn't I tell you to stay at home? And seriously, who fired that arrow at me?"
"That's Chu, the recruit. Chief Bong told us to raid travelers since the village is running out of money" her father huffed, clearly exasperated.
"Your Highness, you must run now before it's too late!" Jin-Ri urgently called out to the prince. "I can't keep them at bay for much longer!"
Prince Young-Sik just scratched his head, looking completely baffled. She leaned in toward her father and whispered, "Are you crazy, old man? He'll turn you and your men into dog food! By the way, how's mom holding up?"
"You know, she's hoping you'll swing by for a family dinner. I've gathered thirty men here, but only fifteen are in your corner, including you, Jin-Ri," her father proclaimed, a grin spreading across his face as he relished the challenge.
Jin-Ri, channeling her inner superhero, yelled to the prince while pretending to karate chop the attackers, "Your Highness, they're about to get through me! Don't worry about me; save yourself!"
Young-Sik, looking as confused as a cat in a dog house, asked, "What on earth are you doing?"
Jin-Ri leaned closer to her father and whispered, "He took out twenty guys in thirty seconds! You think you can outlast him now that he's got back up?"
"Seriously? Twenty all by his lonesome?" her father gulped, eyeing Young-Sik who was twirling his sword like a baton.
"YUP! So scram before you end up in a neckless situation!" Jin-Ri whispered, then turned to Young-Sik, "I think they're about to pull a disappearing act. No need to chase after them!"
"Is that so?" the prince replied, his sarcasm thicker than a bowl of oatmeal.
"What on earth are we supposed to do now?" her dad asked her, stammered, his voice shaking.
"What if you took me hostage and demanded our leftover dinner?" Jin-Ri quipped, grabbing her dad's hand and dramatically placing it against her throat. "Oh no! I've been captured! They want the leftover deer, or I'm finished!" she whispered to him, "Make sure to tell Mom I love her, okay?"
Her dad joined in the fun, "I'll let her know you're doing great, take care of yourself, sweetheart," he whispered while pretending to choke her. "Now give us that juicy-smelling roast or she gets it"
"Quick, before he changes his mind!" Jin-Ri urged her dad. "Take the medicines I bought you, eat healthy, and cut back on the sweets, your foot is already looking like a giant marshmallow!" she added with a playful wink.
Young-Sik glanced back at his troops. "You fellas good with the meat?"
"We're stuffed, Your Highness!" Captain Gi chimed in, patting their bellies.
"Come on, just grab the whole thing!" Young-Sik exclaimed, throwing his hands up in the air.
Two bandits awkwardly stormed in like they were late for a buffet, snatching up the leftovers and disappearing into the shadows. Jin-Ri's father, clearly not a fan of sticking around, shoved Jin-Ri toward the prince like she was a hot potato and then bolted with his posse. The court maiden, holding the prince's hands, gushed., "Oh, my dear prince! Thank you for saving my life in exchange for our leftovers! How can I ever repay you? A lifetime of my grandma's secret recipes?"
Young-Sik uses an index finger on Jin-Ri's forehead to push her away "Explain yourself" he told his court lady
Jin-Ri nervously fidgeted with her hands and swayed slightly as she responded to the Prince's inquiry. "Well, Your Highness, I had a feeling you might have taken care of them. I don't want them to suffer; they were simply hungry. And I worry about the weight of more lives on your conscience."
"How could you even know that?" The prince asked, clearly crossed at his court maiden's foolishness
"They did not steal anything except for food Your Highness. I've been around hungry people for so long, that I can tell by simply looking in their eyes" She said modestly and with a humble voice
The prince exhaled slowly, saying, "Please don't do anything foolish again. I won't always be here to protect you."
Jin-Ri bowed respectfully, her voice trembling as she replied, "Sorry Your Highness." She followed his figure as he entered the tent prepared by the soldiers, whispering to herself, "I'm truly sorry, Your Highness... I can't let you harm my family."
The next day, back at the palace courtroom, the assembly was about to be concluded "Is there anything else that we need to attend to?" King Man-Ju asked the ministers
"Your Highness…I think we should discuss the need for a new Queen" The Your Majesty suggested
"Queen mother, I think it is too early for discussions regarding a new Queen" The King protested
"On the contrary Your Highness, It is not just about finding a Queen for you, but also showing that the line of succession is strong" Queen Eri reasoned, She looked at Minister Im a known scholar of Chiongsun laws "Minister Im, can you shed light to the situation?"
Minister Im, bowed to the two monarchs "Your Highness, the Queen is right, the law clearly states, that the current ruling King must produce an heir as soon as possible"
King Man-Ju remained quiet for a while, knowing that Minister Im, his former teacher was right about Chiongsun laws, he spoke "Very well, Queen Mother, I leave the selection process to you, but please include my and Prince Young-Sik's opinion of the matter" He stood up and left the courtroom.
Queen Eri then moved to the center of the courtroom "Dear Ministers please submit any candidate that you feel is worthy of becoming a Queen, I will review the names and their backgrounds and from there I will determine who will be included in the actual selection process"
The ministers all bowed to the Queen and in unison said "Yes Your Majesty"
As the Queen left, Minister Gi approached the High Minister "Lord Lim Is it done?" He asked
Minister Lim, turned to face the old sniveling Minister Gi "Yes, from the left only my daughter's name will be submitted for consideration. This means She will automatically have half of the minister's votes"
Three ministers from the right wing submitted names of their daughters as candidates for the Queen selection, while on the left only Lady Ji-Hye's name was submitted. Before noon the same day, the names were collected and brought to Your Majesty Eri's residence for review. The Queen not even looking at the list instructed her court ladies to make a letter of invitation for all the submitted names.
One of the court ladies asked, "Are we not going to review the candidates Your Majesty?"
"What for? I already know who is going to be the next Queen, it is just a formality" She said without care "Now finish the letters so those wenches can bow to me before Young-Sik returns" The Your Majesty's court ladies scrambled to finish writing the invitation so the Queen can start the selection process.
After almost a whole day of traveling, Prince Young-Sik and his group arrived at the village. Prince Young-Sik got off his horse first, then he carefully helped Jin-Ri get off as well. He surveyed the village and was captivated by its beauty.
"Everything is so green" Captain Gi stated, ash he looked around him
Another agreed "Indeed, but look at the state of the children" he pointed to two emaciated little boys, playing.
Jin-Ri hoped off the horse and approached the children "Where are the village elders?" she asked
The two children looked at each other and then ran away. "Hey wait! Where are you going? We are here to help" she shouted at the children
Jin-Ri was about to follow the children, but the Prince grabbed her by the arm to stop her. "What's wrong Your Highness?" She asked the prince
"Look over there," he said, pointing toward the village entrance. What she saw was shocking; the villagers had formed a blockade. She turned around and noticed even more villagers coming out from their homes and hiding spots. "We're surrounded," she said, panic rising.
"Nice catch. Can you figure out a way out of this mess?" Young-Sik asked his court maiden. The prince and his soldiers drew their weapons.