Her Poison His cure: Behind The Mask

The sky was clear that night and the moon was perfectly round, shaped like a big round bulb. it was night full of star that shine brightly

In his dimly lit, quiet room, Prince Kang Sohyun sat beside the window staring at the bright moon. After a few seconds he averted his gaze away from the moon.

I wondered what could be the answer” The now twenty five year old man stared at the paper in his hand curiously.

Shortly the door opened revealing the princess as she walked elegantly toward her brother who hasn’t notice her presence yet as he seemed totally in his thoughts.

“Brother” She called but the prince didn’t flinch as he was engrossed in his thoughts.

“Brother” she called again and tapped him lightly which got his attention.

“Huh,” He said, rubbing his forehead.”when did you come”

“Brother, are you okay?” She asked worriedly.

“Is it already our reading hour?” He ignored her questions.

“What book did we agree to read today? He smiled barely. “Is it history or a Chinese anecdote?”

But giving to the kind of person she was. The princess pressed forward with her questions.

“You looked deeply worried,” Her voice was neutral but there is a thread of underlying concern in it.

“Do I?” The prince mirrored his own worry and concern.

“Did something happen at the palace today which I’m not aware of? or maybe…” She trails off. The prince looks up expecting her to continue.

“Is your teacher giving you a hard time?”

He laughed.

“No, that’s not it, but he has caused me a rather difficult task” he speculated.

“What’s it? Tell me perhaps I can help.”

The prince stood up and walked toward the wooden chair in the middle of the room with the princess behind him. He sat down. Not wasting time, the princess also joined him on another chair.

“Will you help?” he asked, leaning his arm on the table.

“With pleasure”

“Father has deeply misunderstood me and the cause of it is my literature teacher,” he sighed deeply. “I am not sure how to get him to open up to me.”

“A misunderstanding?” The princess’ brows creased in confusion.

“That’s not all. Understandably, he might not be comfortable with me since I am the crown prince but he doesn’t have to put me in a tight spot” he injected.

The princess’ face flushed in sadness hearing her brother’s situation. There was slightly ting of pity in her eyes

Seeing this the prince laughed lightly. “I have made you worry over nothing.”

He said in a whisper “Do not worry. A knot can always be undone.”

The princess raised her head up and looked at her brother with a confused look.

“He gave me a riddle to solve and I was unable to get the correct answer. because of that he went ahead to report me to father”

“I am sure he isn’t interested in teaching me to begin with,” he added.

“Brother” she called with her gaze down.

“I am listening,” the prince replied.

“You wish to win his trust, am I right”

“Do you know a way?” he replied eagerly.

“Any heart can be won through flattery and leniency. no matter how lax his teaching attitude is, you can give him the best score.”

He was rendered in awe.”What a simple solution”

“But favour won through flattery doesn’t last. And what is the point if his affections are not sincere?”

The princess added before he could conclude his thinking.

He nodded

“Well said,” he smiles with gratitude.

The princess returned his smile before continuing.

“It’s easy to be a false student and difficult to be true, but first you should consider what is best for your teacher” She said compassion filled her eyes.

“Rather than used flattery to win false affections. Give him good advice no matter how harsh to the ear?” His heart was filled with happiness as he said those words.

“I guess I will be the teacher for a while then” he added and laughed lightly.

“He misunderstands you now, but some day your sincerity will get through to him. Do not give up brother” She encouraged with a wide smile spread on her lips.

Unknown to them the king was at the door listening to their conversation. He smiles happily at his daughter’s intelligence.

She raised his gaze up incredulously. “But come to think of it, how can he bodily go ahead to report you. We’re talking about my brother? the great crown prince himself and you surrendered to him.” She japes, teasing her brother.

“He must be bold because father gave him the right to scold and report me if I committed any crime or slack in my studies” the prince replied with a deep frown on his face.

The princess laughed out loudly and the prince looked up at her wondering why she was laughing.

“What’s funny?” He asked

“I was just awe what a remarkable young man he is to be able to make you surrendered like this”

“I’m not doing anything because his Majesty ordered me not to try and use my authority on him. If not, who the hell is he?” He defended himself.

“Really” The princess replied teasingly.

“You carried water in one hand and fire in the other. You are too much” he replied pretending to be annoyed.

Her laughter enrode louder than before and the prince glared angrily at her.

The king smiles at their bond and leaves with his eunuch and maids.

“Okay I am sorry” She apologized after laughing to her heart’s content.

“My next problem is how to solve the riddle, and he says if I didn’t get the answer correctly he would resign from teaching me. And I also accept to stop learning literature if I didn’t get the correct answer”

“What is the riddle?” The princess asked.

“This can light up the world in a moment. Yet can also darken the world just as quickly”

“I have a condition if I help you” she replied

“You will get anything you want. You have my word, don’t worry.”

The princess placed her hand on her chin thinking. After a few seconds she banged her hand on the table.

“Let me help you with that. Here” she motions for him to move closer.

The prince leaned closer and the princess whispered something in his ear.

The prince broke into a smile and nodded his head.

★★★

The moon petals flower scattered all over as the cool breeze blew on it. Some of the moon petals landed on the prince where he sat down in the palace pavilion.

In front of him are his teachers sitting a few meters away from him on the neatly laid covers, accessing his books one after the other.

The king sat next to him as he listened to the teacher’s report.

The maids and eunuchs lined perfectly outside the bridge leading to the pavilion with their head bow.

“It is a pass,” The head eunuch announced loudly as one of the crown prince teachers placed a piece of wood on the table to indicate his failure or success.

The prince smiled happily when he saw that his teacher gave him a pass.

“In such a short time, you have mastered both Eojesanghun and Eojejuhun. I am just impressed” his history teacher’s compliment.

“It is all thanks to you, master,” he replied.

“hem” his political teacher cleared his voice and smiled at him as he checked his book.

He stared at the book and read it out. “Politics is like fame that you can gain and lose at any time.” The political teacher read out before returning his gaze back to the prince.

“I am satisfied with Your highness’ answer. You are just amazing. He complimented him and placed a wooden pass on the table.

“It’s a pass,” The head eunuch announced again.

The king smiled proudly.

“Since we haven’t started anything on literature. I will just like you to provide an answer to yesterday’s riddle”, his literature teacher stated.

“Forgive me” he twisted his lips slightly

“I didn’t know the answer” The prince replied heedlessly.

“Hmm” The teachers sighed deeply because of his behavior.

“Please let me know the answer to the riddle” The prince demanded.

“Zisi’s doctrine of the mean states that with perfect balanced heaven and Earth will be at peace and all will make progress.” he replied, intuition coloured his features.

“Therefore if the king rules with benevolence and virtue, and achieves a perfect balance, his subject life will be brightened. And if he does the opposite their lives will be darkened.

He raised his head up proudly. “Therefore the answer is sovereign rule.” he finished.

“But that’s not the answer I was looking for.” The prince replied, which earned him a glance from his father.

“That’s not the answer. Then what is the answer?” The teacher petitioned.

“The answer is…. eyelids” he replied and everyone looked at each other in confusion.

“Is this some kind of joke?” The teacher replied enraged.

“Mind the way you talk to me” he fired back at the teacher.

“I am Sorry Your highness” he apologized but one could still see anger lingering in his eyes.

“If you do not like an answer to a question, does it make it a joke?” he replied, answering his questions.

“What did you say?” The king asked beside him.

“If the answer is not found in a book does it make it foolish” the prince replied, answering to his father’s questions but his gaze is not leaving his teacher alone.

“Then is that childish wordplay the correct answer?” The teacher quizzed.

“Through the eyes of a child the world is filled with problems. And the solutions are also found in that same world” he pauses his eyes and bore Into his teacher’s own.

“There are two pitfalls in teaching. One is arrogance in thinking that you knew every answer to a question. The other is prejudice and judging by your own standards.” He said in a challenging tone, mock sweetness coloring his voice.This belongs © NôvelDra/ma.Org.

“Your arrogance and prejudice are clouding your eyes and mind. That’s the truth. You talk of sovereign’s rule? What you said is true. But, how will you look after your students with your eyes closed tightly? How will you teach those students?”

The king gives the prince a scrutinized look amuse at how he is handling the situation.

“Being a king is similar to being a teacher, because they both had something alike. They must listen attentively to their people and students like a mother listening to a child whining, in order for them to rule and teach them peacefully” he replied, raising his voice a little.

“First and foremost, you must be willing to teach,” he concluded.

A deafening silence fell upon as everyone including the maids and eunuchs looked at the prince with amusement.

The literature teacher stood up and folded his hand tightly together, clasping it on his stomach.

“After our lesson, I would like to chat with my student and just to get to know him, I would like to pay my respects and apologize. Please forget my past behavior and accept my respects” he said and went down on his knees bowing.

My son has grown up. The king thought showily, staring intently at the prince with a smile tugged at the corner of his lips.