In the yard, Sang-jong sat in the shade, looking out over the view of Seoul below, and spoke.

"The view's really something from Seongbuk-dong. Pyeongchang-dong's nice too, but compared to here, it falls a bit short."

"The night view is first-rate, isn't it. I only understood why Seongbuk-dong's night view is so praised after I moved here myself."

Sang-jong nodded and enjoyed the view a while, and only once the Cheonan housekeeper had brought the tea did he begin talking in earnest.

"So what brings you here today? I doubt you came to see Dong-min."

Seong-ho lifted his warm citron tea, took a sip, and asked Sang-jong.

Sang-jong, too, sipped his citron tea before slowly opening his mouth.

"I came to see you about a different nephew, not Dong-min."

"A different nephew?"

"That's right. I came because of Seon-myeong."

Having said Seon-myeong's name briefly, Sang-jong set down the teacup he was holding and spoke.

"You've heard about Seon-myeong too, haven't you?"

"Yes."

Seong-ho answered with a troubled expression.

Sang-jong looked at Seong-ho's face quietly, then asked again.

"I hear it's not just that you've heard about it."

Seong-ho looked a moment at the view of Seoul below, then nodded.

"Yes. To be precise, I'm the one who handled it."

Satisfied at Seong-ho's ready admission, Sang-jong leaned in slightly with a smile and said, "I hear you gave Cha some advice."

"…At the time, I couldn't think of any way other than that. I'm sorry."

As Seong-ho bowed his head in apology, Sang-jong waved a hand.

"No, no. I'm not saying this to scold you, so you don't need to apologize like that. I meant it as praise—that you did well."

"That I did well?"

"Yes. You did well."

As if to show he meant it and not just words, Sang-jong patted Seong-ho's hand and grinned broadly.

Seong-ho wore an expression as if he couldn't understand why, but inside he knew exactly what had put Sang-jong in such good spirits.

He means to break the coalition.

More precisely, he'd caught on that Sang-jong meant to oust Mun-jong from the alliance. Watching…