That very same day, Young-Sik was summoned by the King. With Jin-Ri in tow, the pair arrived at his brother's residence. The pair respectfully bowed to Man-Ju, and after standing up in attention, the prince asked, "You summoned me, your Highness?"
"As you know, the Guiong emperor's birth celebration will be in four days. I want you to lead a special envoy to present our gifts," The King told the prince, "Guiong? If I were to make it there within four days, it means that we have to leave by tomorrow," Young-Sik exclaimed, surprised by the sudden task given to him.
"Exactly! I need you to prepare the gifts and offerings personally." The King instructed his brother, "So go now and prepare and represent Chiongsun with dignity."
With no other choice but to obey, Young-Sik bowed to the King and hurriedly left. Outside, he gave instructions to Jin-Ri: "Captain Gi is at the southern gates, tell him to go with you to the Cherry Blossom and wait for me there."
"What will I tell them?" She asked the prince
With a stern expression and a serious voice, the prince responded, "We're executing our plan tonight."
"Yong, are you sure?" Jin-Ri asked nervously
"We have no other options, it has to be tonight, so go now and tell them to prepare, I'll be there shortly." The prince kissed her and then hurriedly went to the treasury minister to prepare the things they would bring to Guiong.
Jin-Ri's eyes grew large at what the prince had done, She touched her lips as she looked around, hoping that nobody saw what had just transpired. After snapping out of the shock and smiling, she ran towards the southern gates to collect Kwan.
On the eve of their journey to Guiong, the five reconvened to go through the details one last time. "You're going to Guiong, Your Highness?" Kwan asked the prince
"Unfortunately, we're going to Guiong," Young-Sik replied with a voice filled with worry
"Then what about our plan? Shall we abandon it?" Mun-Hee asked the prince, hoping he would agree
The prince, however, shook his head. "No, we move our plan one day ahead."
"Listen, Yong, our operation is already fraught with peril. To push it forward now would be courting catastrophe," Jin-Ri urged the prince.
"Your Highness, Jin-Ri has a point. We can't stake our entire mission on the slim chance she's not working alone," Kwan interjected. "Patience is key; we must allow events to play out."
"Play it out? If we do that, then those who are to blame for everything will get away without as much as a slap on the wrist." The prince shot back at the three. The thought of them trying to convince him not to go with their plan hurt him deeply
"Are you sure it's about catching them or is this a personal vendetta?" Yeng asked the prince
"Does it matter? Whether this is vendetta or justice, I can't let those involved be free of responsibility!" Turning his back on the three, he said, "If all of you won't help me...then I'll do it myself!" Young-Sik said, expressing his disappointment.
Jin-Ri quickly ran after Young-Sik and held him by the arm. "Yong...I can't let you do this."
"Are you stopping me?" The prince asked the court maiden, his voice marked by disappointment and sadness
"Just the opposite, I can't let you do this alone, I'm going with you," She said, assuring the prince that she would help him.
Feeling his beloved's heartfelt words, he embraced Jin-Ri and uttered two words, "Thank you!"
Sighing deeply, Mun-Hee shook her head and said "Damn it, you two are meant for each other...you're both crazy. Count us in, I'll regret it if I let the two of you walk into certain disaster."
Smiling, the prince hugged Mun-Hee, "Thank you, Lady Hu, Captain...I knew I could always count on you two," he expressed to his friends
"So do we stick to the plan or make adjustments?" Captain Gi asked
"This is how we are going to do this!" the prince answered
As the hour of the rooster heralded the night, Jin-Ri arrived with a food cart cloaked in fabric, a secret delivery for Lee Eri. The guards at the prison entrance clustered around, eager to inspect the goods. "I overcooked," she said with a wink. "Take the leftover spring rolls and braised beef. There's more than enough—call the others!"
One guard, spotting the feast, bellowed, "There's food here! Grab your share before it disappears!"
"Don't finish it all!" shouted the guards inside, racing toward the cart. "Save some for us!" cried the others, their voices rising as they caught wind of the bounty. Within moments, the scene was chaos, with guards swarming around Jin-Ri's cart, and she took her time dishing out the food, savoring the delay.
As the guards abandoned their posts for a taste of the free feast, Young-Sik and Kwan sprang into action. Clad in black to merge with the shadows, they slipped out from the underbrush and scaled the prison walls. Young-Sik leaped into the prison complex, while Kwan remained on the wall, keeping a vigilant watch.
With a keen eye on the surroundings, Young-Sik stealthily approached Eri's cell. Meanwhile, Jin-Ri took the pot of braised beef and the platter of spring rolls, handing them off to two guards. "Here, make sure the new guys get their share, all right? I'll take care of Lee Eri's portion," she instructed, as the guards waved her off, too engrossed in their meal to pay her much mind.
As Jin-Ri made her way to Lee Eri's cell, Young-Sik suddenly appeared from the shadows, expertly working the lock. "How did you manage to get a key?" she questioned, her curiosity piqued.
"Just one of the perks of being a prince," Young-Sik replied with a confident grin, pushing the door open.
Lee Eri jumped at the sound of the door swinging wide. "What's going on?" Her heart raced as she recognized the two. "Prince Young-Sik? What brings you here? Oh no... you're not planning to kill me, are you?"
Young-Sik's gaze was intense as he spoke. "Listen closely, Eri. I'm not here to set you free; I'm here to extract the names of your co-conspirators. I can promise you'll live, but you'll still face the consequences of your actions against the crown." Eri trembled at his words.
"You're lying! You want me dead! Don't come any closer, or I'll scream!" Eri shouted, her eyes darting around for any sign of guards. "Where are they? Why isn't anyone here?" Her voice rose in desperation.
Jin-Ri quickly placed her hand over Eri's mouth. "Hush! We're trying to save you from execution, so stop resisting and follow us," she insisted, urgency lacing her voice.
The former Queen had other ideas in mind. She clamped down on Jin-Ri's hand, forcing her to release her. "Son of a..." Without hesitation, Jin-Ri threw a punch at Lee Eri, landing it squarely and knocking her out cold.
"What the hell? Why'd you do that? Now we can't get her out!" Young-Sik asked, shocked by the sudden chaos.
"She bit me! What was I supposed to do?" Jin-Ri looked down at the unconscious Eri, scratching her head. "The plan was for her to leave with you. How do we carry dead weight now?"
The prince wasted no time in altering their strategy. "Grab the decoy from the cart and set it up."
As Young-Sik lifted the unconscious woman, Jin-Ri retrieved the decoy from the hidden section of the food cart and placed it in the cell, She lay it on the floor facing the wall as if it were asleep. Young-Sik then attempted to cram Eri into the secret compartment. "Crap...she's not going to fit," he muttered, frustration evident in his voice.
"Step aside, I'll handle this," she instructed the prince. With a determined shove of her foot, she forced Eri into the compartment until the flimsy wooden door could finally close. "Ugh... I think I just heard something crack."
"You need to move before they catch on. I'll handle things here," Young-Sik urged Jin-Ri.
She nodded, but not before stealing a quick kiss from him. "Be safe out there," she whispered, then pushed the cart toward the prison exit.
Young-Sik silently closed the cell doors, attempting to secure them, but the lock was jammed. "What the hell? Why won't this lock?" Panic surged as he heard footsteps approaching. With no time to lose, he wedged the shank into the lock and sprinted toward the southern walls, where Kwan awaited.
"Where's Eri?" Kwan asked, his voice shaky as he assisted the prince in scaling the wall.
"She's in the food cart; Jin-Ri knocked her lights out," Young-Sik replied, and they both jumped over the wall, landing in a patch of bushes.
"She's what?" Kwan said, stunned. "Did you guys really shove her into that cramped food cart?"
"Yeah... I'm pretty sure we heard some bones break." Young-Sik replied with a grin
While the two men made their escape, Jin-Ri had already gotten out of the prison complex, just as the new guards had taken their posts. She was having a difficult time pushing the heavy cart through the dirt. "Common, you stupid cart move...I swear after this night I'm laying off the midnight snacks, I don't want to be as heavy as you, Eri!" She grumbled while straining to push the cart.
The guards noticed, how slow the court maiden was moving, as opposed to how easily it was for her to push the cart on the way to the prison complex "Hey you! Why are you still here? Move it along!" One of the guards shouted at her.