Sir Nguyen Huu sits in the back seat, glancing at his son, as Huu Quan sits in the co-seat driver's and says nothing.
He has seen enough love scenes between his son and Hoang Chinh for more than a month, and he has also dimly realized that his son wanted to continue with the Emperor, and the Emperor also wanted to propose to Huu Quan.
All are genuine and not at all phony.
"Are you serious about marrying the Emperor?" Sir Nguyen Huu inquires.
Huu Quan can only sigh when he hears his father suddenly ask that question.
"Father, if you think you can talk to me and make me feel better, you are mistaken, I will never give up on that idea. His Majesty and I have already decided and no one can force us, even if it's God."
"You know you have to go through the Holy See to get married?"
Huu Quan gives a nod.
"I know. It must pass, but it almost certainly will not. But don't worry, many happy marriages are not blessed by the Holy See every year."
"What will people think about it? How can I face the Prime Minister now?" Sir Nguyen Huu sighs "Did you get sick when you were sold to Yen Hoa?"
Huu Quan's mood has initially been upbeat, but hearing his father mention Sir Pham is like being thrown into a bucket of ice-cold water.
"Could you please not mention that man, Father?"
Sir Nguyen Huu has never heard his son's voice so sad since he was discharged, and whenever he mentions Sir Pham, Huu Quan also shows a strange expression.
"What happened to you?" Sir Nguyen Huu asks "If you have something to say, say it."
Huu Quan doesn't say anything else, instead turning back to give his father the remaining files on his case.
"Then you should read this."
Sir Nguyen Huu moves slowly as he opens the file. For some reason, he has the feeling that he doesn't want to know what is written inside. Sir Nguyen Huu is concerned by the way the file heavily passes from Huu Quan's hand to his hand. When he finds out what is in that file, his anxiety turns to disappointment, humiliation, and anger.
That is the file that Huu Quan didn't hand over to the lawyer today.
Nguyen Huu can't imagine what that Sir Pham man has done to him, from harming himself to bankruptcy, harming his son to become a male substitute all his life, harming his daughter and son-in-law, and losing credibility with the French. That person has even sent someone to assassinate his son to shut his mouth. Nonetheless, he invited him into the mansion five or seven times, treating him as a guest. Sir Nguyen Huu is stunned as anger rises to his head.
"Is all of this true? Who told you that?"
"It was His Majesty who sent Khac Tuan to investigate this." Huu Quan explains "Until now, Khac Tuan had no idea that this is all his father's work."
Sir Nguyen Huu remains silent for a moment, unsure what to say.
"Father." Huu Quan says "the current relationship between me and the Emperor is not like that yet. But have you ever considered who would marry your son if His Majesty didn't reach out to me?"
Sir Nguyen Huu knows Huu Quan is correct. Even though Sir Nguyen Huu has been proven innocent, his old merchant friend refuses to see him.
Huu Quan will be unable to marry any girls after this. Sir Nguyen Huu is aware of this.
"Perhaps my relationship with His Majesty contradicts what God taught, but Father, God also brought him to me." Huu Quan responds "Won't God guide us if we do something wrong, Father?"
Sir Nguyen Huu sighs, but he can't bring himself to let his son get involved in things that people can't accept, so he tries to say the final sentence:
"If you marry His Majesty, you will be on your own in the future. Do you understand that I'm not going to show up for you anymore?"
Huu Quan nods and smiles at his father in the rearview mirror. Sir Nguyen Huu's final sentence implies a lot of concessions. And Huu Quan is more grateful to his father than ever before.
"Father, I understand."
…
"That's not entirely correct." Khac Tuan frowns "If you understand it differently, this poem has two interpretations."
Huu Quan looks back at the spot Khac Tuan has just marked, then at the pencil and fountain pen marks on the thin yellow-brown paper, puzzled. Huu Quan let out a loud voice as his eyelids suddenly relaxed.
"Oh, you're right."
"Isn't it true that after the death of a man, a woman becomes stronger, even though it appears to be ordinary love between a man and a woman? In a context where their child has not appeared, "he" is also a husband and a soldier. This, then, is patriotism."
Huu Quan nods, then frowns and inquires again.
"How do you know he's a wise Emperor's soldier? What if he's under a benighted Emperor? What if this isn't a battle against the enemy, but rather an insurgency against the government?"
Khac Tuan frowns as well, but quickly finds an answer for Huu Quan:
"Killing the benighted Emperor to protect the people is also patriotic."
Huu Quan pauses for a moment before nodding.
"Yeah, seems right."
Khac Tuan smiles as he closes the book and looks at Huu Quan:
"Don't worry, the high school program is supposed to take three years, His Majesty reducing it to one year is already difficult, you have to study while worrying about the Ministry of Justice problems, and to be able to do so is already exceptional."
Huu Quan shakes his head:
"No, how will I be motivated to study in the coming days if I haven't completed my first year on Ancestor Day?"
Khac Tuan chuckles, shakes his head and turns to face Huu Quan. If he couldn't find an excuse to divert attention away from the story, he'd probably just stay focused on it.
"I heard your parents sell the mansion to France?" Khac Tuan asks "Have you talked with your parents about His Majesty?"
"About what?" Huu Quan inquires.
"The marriage. Aren't you planning on marrying His Majesty?" Khac Tuan says, pointing to the Indochinese coin pendant. "That's why His Majesty gave it to you, to propose."
Huu Quan shyly hides the coin in front of his chest, but he refuses to deny his marital status and even asks Khac Tuan in return:
"Don't you think two men getting married is unusual?"
Khac Tuan gives a nod.
"Of course I do. You see, there are no two men around us who willingly marry each other."
Huu Quan keeps his head down and remains silent.
"In the past, people assumed that marriage meant having children. How can they be born despite being of the same species? As a result, that type of love is naturally very forced." Khac Tuan pauses "However, people forget that marriage must first be liked by each other, and there aren't many married couples who can do that these days. You and His Majesty are both men, and both want to be the controller, to be the pioneer, to be the lead. That is how nature works. But doesn't the fact that one of you can set aside his ego to support the other shows that the two of you are more compatible than a married couple?"
Huu Quan freezes, his gaze fixed on Khac Tuan. Khac Tuan simply smiles softly and continues:
"You didn't expect it? My viewpoint differs from that of others. If you say it out loud, it will be quickly dismissed, so you didn't expect it, did you?"
Huu Quan nods and confesses:
"You are very different from having a traditional father."
"Is being different a praise or criticism?" Khac Tuan inquires.
"It's a praise." Huu Quan says.
A maid comes in, stands to one side, and bows her head to indicate that she has something to report. Khac Tuan notices this and stands up.
"Well, today's session is over. I'll be back tomorrow. If you have work to do, do it. I'm going home first."
Huu Quan doesn't intend to hold back and simply nods to see Khac Tuan at the door. Before leaving, Khac Tuan takes a deliberate look at the maid's dragon seal letter, then smiles thoughtfully at her.
The maid is stunned, her hand clenches around the letter, and her face flushes.
"What's the problem?"
The maid is surprised and looks at Huu Quan, lowering her head:
"Your Majesty sent a bodyguard to give you this letter."
"Alright, give me the letter." Huu Quan nods and extends his hand.
The maid hands the letter to Huu Quan and steps back.
"Hey." Huu Quan says.
The maid, who is halfway back, freezes in shock when she is called suddenly.
"What's the matter, Sir?"
Huu Quan looks at the maid for a long moment, then asks:
"Do you like Khac Tuan?"
The maid raises her head.
"How dare I? He is the Minister of Rites. I don't dare because I'm just an uneducated servant."
"Why not?" Huu Quan continues "Like each other is a normal thing, why dare or not dare? If you are uneducated then just study more. Isn't that correct?"
"But, Sir, whoever let a maid like their master?"
Huu Quan sighs and sits in his chair.
"There will come a time when no one will be a servant or a master. So, how about that?"
The maid pauses for a moment before lowering her head.
"In that case, can everyone like anyone?"
Yes, everyone can like anyone, Huu Quan lowers his head. Then he can like Thai Thuy as well, right?
Huu Quan asks the maid, who is still standing there:
"What's your name?"
The maid responds with a bowed head.
"My name is Tu Anh, Nguyen Tu Anh."