They bowed respectfully to the King, before turning around and walking towards the courtroom doors, The three masters returned to their vacant positions among the right-wing ministers and cleared the way for the prince and her court maiden. Captain Gi opened the doors for the prince, he waited for the prince to exit before exiting himself, Jin-Ri the last to exit, closed the doors behind her.
Outside the courtroom, Young-Sik stopped walking. Jin-Ri and Captain Gi stopped as well, waiting for any instructions the prince might give. The prince suddenly turned around and faced Kwan. He handed him his sword much to his surprise. "Your Highness?" Kwan asked the prince
Young-Sik did not answer, instead, he took Jin-Ri's hand and ran off with her, leaving a perplexed Kwan to scratch his head "I'll...be waiting by the Cherry Blossom...okay?" he called out, but the prince and the court maiden were already too far to hear him. "Yup...a drink sounds nice" he murmured to himself.
Minister Go went out of the courtroom, he intended to tell the prince his discoveries, but alas the prince and his friends were long gone. Minister Go scanned the royal grounds but could not find the prince. He turned around to go back inside the courtroom, he was startled to see Minister Gi blocking the entrance. "The King is about to speak; all ministers must be inside" He reminded Minister Go.
Minister Go scoffed at the small minister before entering the courtroom. Minister Lim and Gi looked at each other, immediately they understood Go's intentions.
As Jin-Ri looked down at her hand clasped in the prince's strong grip, a radiant smile lit up her face. His expression brought her immense joy. "Finally, I'm with the man I cherish," she whispered in her heart. They dashed forward, hand in hand, completely unconcerned about the palace crowd. To Young-Sik, Jin-Ri was all that counted.
As they reached the serene palace garden, the pair came to a halt, breathless and enchanted. Young-Sik turned to Jin-Ri, his eyes sparkling with affection, and softly confessed, "I love you."
The court maiden felt a rush of joy flood her heart at his words, and she replied with a radiant smile, "...and I love you." At that moment, Young-Sik leaned in and pressed his lips against hers, a kiss filled with all the passion they shared, which she welcomed with open arms.
The two were interrupted when they heard the royal gardener shouting "You troublemaking kids...didn't I tell you the King's garden is not for making out!" he shouted, his voice coming from just behind some hedges. Young-Sik and Jin-Ri giggled.
Young-Sik grabbed Jin-Ri again "Let's go before that cranky old goat sees us"
"Where are we going this time?" She asked curiously
The two began running before the prince answered "I want to introduce you to someone special"
Jin-Ri followed the prince until they came to the royal burial grounds. Young-Sik led her to the burial mound of Queen Min-Ah. The two stood silently in front of the tomb to pray. "Mother..." Young-Sik said as he glided his hands over the snow covering the mound "This is Jin-Ri...she is my court maiden and one day I hope she will be more than that" he exclaimed while sneaking a meaningful look at her.
Join-Ri joined her hands together at her abdomen and bowed "It is an honor to meet you your Majesty" she said in a dignified and respectful manner.
"We hope to get your blessing Mother" Young-Sik exclaimed, He then led Jin-Ri to two joined burial mounds.
Jin-Ri read the names inscribed and instantly recognized them "It's the tomb of the previously crowned prince and his wife" she thought to herself
"Sister...meet Jin-Ri" Young-Sik introduced Jin-Ri while pointing at her, he continued to talk to the burial mounds.
Jin-Ri sensed something was amiss. "He only brought up the crowned princess... but what about his brother?" She turned her attention to the prince. "It's as if he's implying there's solely one person laid to rest here." Then, she slapped her forehead in a moment of clarity. "Jin-Ri, you dolt! Of course, there's just one person; the late prince's body was never found, duh!"
Still, an unsettling feeling lingered, scratching at her consciousness. "But shouldn't Yong acknowledge this as his brother's resting place too? He hasn't mentioned the crowned prince even once, and I know how much he cherished him... so why is that?" She looked back at the prince, her mind racing.
Just then, Young-Sik turned around, and Jin-Ri quickly plastered a smile on her face. "My mother and sister said, you look like a nice girl"
Jin-Ri bowed again to the burial mounds "I am honored by your kind words" she said happily, while giving the prince a meaningful glance.
After leaving the royal burial grounds, Young-Sik asked Jin-Ri "So where do you want to go?" The court maiden thought for a while, then her face lit up.
"I heard that there is a small festival in the marketplace, it is to honor your victorious campaign against the invaders, can we go?" She requested the prince, her smile and eyes twinkling at the prince.
Young-Sik shot Jin-Ri a smile, took her hand, and started to run. They reached the marketplace just in time to experience the festival. Fireworks adorned the sky with bright and colorful flashes. The streets were lined with various stores for clothes, toys, and food. Jin-Ri's eyes sparkled at the various sights the festival offered. She jumped from one place to another while the prince followed her, watching her contagious innocence with a smile.
When she lingered at some displays, Young-Sik could sense that she wanted it so badly. But because she does not have the means to pay, she would just walk away with a heavy heart. "Would you like some pork belly on a stick?" he asked the court maiden.
Jin-Ri beamed with delight at the prince's inquiry "Oh, I love pork belly! Can I have two?" she excitedly asked
"Have as many as you'd like," Young-Sik replied. "I think I saw some fruit juices there. Can you wait for our pork bellies while I get some refreshments?" Jin-Ri nodded as she watched their delectable food cook.
After a while, Jin-Ri watched paper lanterns being set afloat while holding four pork belly cubes on a stick. Young-Sik crept from behind her and startled her, making her almost drop the pork bellies. "Oh my gosh...Yong, you almost made me drop out our food"
Instead of apologizing, the prince held out in his hands a pair of colorful shoes on top of a pink and purple skirt and blouse, along with a jade hairpin and jade ring. Jin-Ri was rendered speechless as she looked at the gifts, they were the items that she was looking at just moments ago. She took the shoes and admired them. She looked at the clothes "May I?" she asked the prince
"Please" Young-Sik replied, eagerly waiting for her reaction to the dress he bought her.
Jin-Ri lifted the dress and admired the design and color. Her hands felt the soft and delicate fabric. "I never had beautiful things growing up," she said with a tear in her eye. She glanced at Young-Sik with the sweetest and sincerest smile she could muster.
"Tomorrow, when you meet my grandfather, I want you to be wearing those," He said to her.
"Your grandfather? Are you going to tell him I'm a princess?" Jin-Ri sadly asked, "Because, if that is what you need me to be I'm okay with that so that he won't be angry with you, for having affection for a...."
The prince gently placed his hand over her lips "I will tell him, exactly who you are. Who you are to me, how much you meant to me."
Jin-Ri bit her lower lips in a futile attempt to keep her tears from flowing "But I am only a commoner, a servant, I am..." Jin-Ri paused, as she suddenly remembered who she truly was "I am just a court maiden" She stepped back from the prince.
Young-Sik stepped forward to close the distance between him and the court maiden "I don't care about your status or your humble beginnings. What I care about is your heart"
Jin-Ri rested her head over his chest, elated at what she heard "What if he rejects me, what if he gets angry at you?" She started to babble and ramble out of control "W-what if he tells you to leave me, or what if he threatens me to leave you...or attempts to pay me to leave you?"
"Whoa...one question at a time, okay?" He hugged the hyperventilating Jin-Ri patted and gently caressed her back "My grandfather will not reject the two of us...you can be sure that everything will be fine"
The prince lifted Jin-Ri's face and planted a soft and gentle kiss on her lips. Jin-Ri embraced her beloved prince tightly, stared into his eyes, and whispered "I am so lucky to have you in my life" Young-Sik carried the items for Jin-Ri, while she pinched pork meat from their skewers and fed them to the prince. The couple strolled off taking in the wonderful sights of the festival.
The following day, Jin-Ri was with Yeng in Mun-He's quarters waiting for the Young-Sik and Kwan.
"I heard the prince is taking you to meet his grandfather tomorrow" Yeng opened up the conversation.
"I know and I'm nervous. I'm almost certain he will not like me" Jin-Ri lamented, fearful that she might be rejected by the prince's family.
"Well, not with that attitude, and if you meet him looking like that, he will throw you out," Mun-He told Jin-Ri without reservation "I mean look at you, truth be told you are not ugly, you just need to learn how to fix yourself up!"
Puzzled by what Mun-He said, Jin-Ri looked at herself "Whatever do you mean?" She asked innocently
"Like this" Yeng untied Jin-Ri's ponytail freeing her long black hair "A yarn is never used to tie our hair, we use this" Yeng presented Jin-Ri with a small box, filled with ribbons and she picked the pink ribbon. "Plus, you need to learn how to style and care for your hair."
"Good choice" Mun-He expressed "Now you have expressive eyes, but you always let your hair cover them, you need to let people see and appreciate your eyes" Mun-He explained "Plus your nose"
"What's wrong with my nose?" Jin-Ri asked, wondering if there was something wrong with it
"Your nose is uhm...okay" Yeng replied
"What's wrong with it, it looks, okay?" Jin-Ri wondered
"Okay is not good enough, it must be magnificent, it must be elegant" Mun-he expressed, as she explained how to do it "All we need is to apply a thin amount of face color on the ridge to make it look more raised and sharper. Then we also apply some on the sides and the tip"
"And your lips...they have a good hue to them, but it won't hurt to accentuate them even further with this" Yeng showed Jin-Ri some samples of lip colors.
"Okay? So how will I do them? Will you teach me?" she asked her two fashion guru friends
Mun-He and Yeng look at each other with knowing grins "I don't know how you will survive with the two of us" Yeng told Jin-Ri
Mun-he stood up and extended her hand to Jin-Ri "Common it's time for step number one"
Jin-Ri reached for Mun-He and asked, "What is step number one?"
"A bath" Yeng answered
"But I just had a bath" Jin-Ri protested, as the two started to pull her toward the bathing area
"Not like this!" Mun-He assured her, with her brows rising up and down
A few moments later, Jin-Ri found herself indulging in the exquisite beauty tub curated by Mun-He. With cucumber slices delicately placed over her eyes, she was immersed in the comforting warmth of the water. Mun-He and Yeng filled the tub with delightfully scented flowers and luxurious bathing salts. Two attendants were positioned beside Jin-Ri; one was skillfully massaging her legs and feet, while the other tended to her neck and arms. "You're so right! This is unlike any bath I've ever had!" she expressed in her elated voice a sign of her euphoric state.
"How long has it been?" Mun-He asked Yeng, referring to the time Jin-Ri was soaking in the tub.
"Long enough my Lady" Yeng replied "Okay Jin-Ri, time to get out of the tub!" She said clapping her hands to get her friend's attention.
Jin-Ri removed the cucumber slices from her eyes "What? So soon? I was just enjoying it" She expressed her disappointment with a pout of her lips.
"If you don't get out of the water now, your skin will wrinkle like an old prune," Mun-He said, informing Jin-Ri of what would happen if she stayed in the water longer.
Looking at her hands, Jin-Ri noticed the skin on her fingertips starting to wrinkle "Your right time to get out of the water" She quickly wrapped herself in a large white towel and got out of the tub "What's next?" she enthusiastically asked.
"Next is the fun part" Yeng exclaimed with a twinkle in her eyes