This Time, I Stood Up in the Selection Hall novel · Chapter 23 of 24
Chapter 23: Plum Tea for the Councillor
Soyul looked at the Queen Dowager's hand on hers.
Then at the guards holding her brother at the door.
"A box of plum tea, Your Highness," she said.
Her eyebrows rose.
"Poisoned?"
"No."
The Queen Dowager looked at her for a long moment.
Then the corner of her old mouth moved.
"Cruel girl," she said, and let go of Soyul's fingers. "Take it to him yourself."
They kept Councillor Jo in his own State Tribunal for four days, while the court argued about him.
On the fourth day the Queen Dowager signed the order with her own brush.
His rank, his house and his lands to the crown.
Exile for life to an island off the south coast, where the boats come twice a year.
On the morning the boat was to take him, Soyul went to his cell.
It was a better cell than the one at the Inner Gate.
There was a mat on the floor and a brazier, because he was still the Queen Dowager's brother.
He sat on the mat in a plain grey robe with no crane on it.
Without his red silk and his fan, he was only a thin old man with a long white beard and hooded eyes.
The rest of this chapter is part of the paid portion of the series. Chapters 1–12 of This Time, I Stood Up in the Selection Hall are free to read — start from the beginning, then unlock the rest with coins in the app.
← Chapter 22 · All chapters · Chapter 24 →
Want to keep talking to characters like these? Chat with AI romance characters: AI Boyfriend · AI Girlfriend · Dark Romance · Fantasy Romance · BL (Boys’ Love) · Billionaire Boyfriend · Mafia Boyfriend · Possessive Boyfriend · Hockey Boyfriend · Older Boyfriend · K-Drama Boyfriend · Anime Boyfriend · Vampire Boyfriend · Werewolf Boyfriend · Demon Boyfriend · Fae Romance · GL (Girls’ Love) · Anime Girlfriend · Goth & Alt Girlfriend · Gamer Girlfriend · Tsundere Girlfriend · Fantasy Girlfriend