Set in the early Goguryeo (AD30-35) during the era of the Three Kingdoms in Korea, this BinJin Sageuk tells the tale of love, trust and betrayal between a Goguryeo Crown Prince and a Nakrang Princess.
It is loosely based off the tragic Korean folkta...
Author's Note: Hwangjoga (황조가; 黃鳥歌) is the oldest known Korean song, written in Classical Chinese. It was written in 17 BCE by King Yuri of Goguryeo, to express his longing for his Han Chinese wife who left the imperial household after being insulted by another Korean wife of his. I am borrowing this song for this fanfic.
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The next morning, Yejin awoke to strains of the geomungo from the study.
The Crown Prince's geomungo - a six silk-stringed fretted zither of polished paulowin wood front and chestnut back - was already a masterpiece on its own, but the melody coming from it, even more so.
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Deep, muscular and rhythmic, the geomungo's husky, percussive sound and vigorous playing techniques had always come across as very masculine to Yejin.
The mental images that the geomungo conjured in her mind were always linked with themes of battle, victory, galloping horses and storms.
Yet right now, under the hands of the Crown Prince, there was a melancholic hue coloring the melody, made possible only by raw emotion.
From underneath the courageous, rugged, masculine facade, the tenderness of a loving heart shone through.
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Drawn by the beauty of the music, the princess slowly made her way to the study with gentle footsteps, out of fear of disrupting the moment.
Quietly, she opened the door by a fraction, before entering the study. Kneeling down on a fur rug, Yejin listened in respectful silence as Hyun Bin continued playing.
