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All eyes were on Minister Kim, who was barely standing straight on the barrel. 

Everyone stares at Minister Kim quietly. The solemn atmosphere forbids them from gossiping among themselves. The only way to express themselves is through their facial expressions. They gaped when they heard Minister Kim's shocking confession.

The King was stunned. He stood awkwardly, his hands not sure where to place. In the end, he hanged his hands awkwardly on both sides. 

All this time, he denies the fact that the Crown Prince was his son and had wished that that was a lie. Now that he finally heard what he had always wanted to hear, he is not sure how to react. 

He looked at Joy, who gave him a small nod to show her assurance. The King glanced up and noticed the far distance between him and Minister Kim. "Bring him nearer," he ordered. "And get Lady Jang here."

Minister Kim breathe out in relief when he heard the King's command. He had just managed to escape from the hell's gate by a foot. He watched the Head of Guards and another two guards walked towards him and helped him get down. They dragged him -- which he strangely allowed them to, for he thinks that as long as his life is spared, he doesn't care if they dragged or escort him-- and placed him before the King. 

Minister Kim automatically knelt down, swallowed his pride and literally begging for his life.

"I demand the whole truth." 

Minister Kim looked up for a second before lowering his head. "Your Majesty, the truth is, Lady Jang did not bear your child. Nothing happened that night. The Crown Prince is actually a child that I have brought in from outside."

Joy stares at Minister Kim from her seat. Her eyes trembled as she listened attentively.

"What really happened that night?" The King asked, his voice raised as he became even more eager to find out the truth. 

Minister Kim suddenly became conscious and hesitated, fearing that his life might get taken away instantly if he said anything wrong. 

What if he said the truth and angered the King? He is sure by the next minute, he will be back on the barrel and suffered the same ending as Prime Minister Heo if he does that. Thinking about this in his head makes his mouth scared to voice out any words. The long string of words that he was prepared to say before was suddenly stuck in his throat.

"SPEAK OUT THE TRUTH THIS INSTANT!" Everyone was startled by the King's shouting. 

Knowing that he was trapped and had no other way out except speaking the truth, Minister Kim quickly bowed and had his head touch the ground. "Your Majesty, it was all Prime Minister Heo and Lady Jang's plans. That night, Prime Minister Heo ordered Lady Jang to spend a night with you and bear your child!" 

Minister Kim raised his voice as he panics. He spurted out the truth as fast as his tongue could. "On the night of the birthday banquet, we purposely had you drunk and brought you to an empty quarter at the back of the palace." 

Joy watched Minister Kim as he said. After so many years, finally, she knew the truth of what happened that day. 

"However, Lady Jang did not manage to do as she was told. She got scared and ran out. We were scared that Prime Minister might find out so Lady Jang and I lied to him."

"Then how did that child came about?" Joy asked after keeping her silence for such a long time.

"The day that Lady Jang was supposed to give birth, I secretly left the palace and brought back a child from the nearby market. His biological family were too poor to take care of him and so they sold him. I brought him back to the palace and we pretended that Lady Jang gave birth to that child."