#CoreaFiction

[valiantwarrior37]

Don’t read if you plan on watching The King - it contains spoilers. But ugh, this is just what I needed 🥹😭🤍

Inside Joke

The inside story on Gon and Tae-Eul’s “melodrama.”  

1500 words. All the domesticity we thirst for. 

Gon knew immediately that things weren’t right when he came out of the obelisks and saw Tae-eul’s face. She had that sullen expression she wore back when she thought he was a ridiculous bum with a costume and a horse and without a home. 

“What’s wrong?” He took her hand and it was a little warm. Almost without thought his feet moved to lead her back to her world, to get her somewhere secure and safe. 

She let him lead her, still looking sullen. “My back hurts. This happens every month. Why couldn’t it have happened during the week?”

They drove to Seoul in silence. She kept fidgeting in her seat trying to get comfortable. Once at their long-term lease in the hotel, Tae-eul stomped inside the suite and promptly dropped on the couch. 

“What do you need? I’ll get it for you.” 

“I already took my medicine,” she said, closing her eyes and dropping her arm across her face.  “It really works, but it takes a while. I don’t get miserable by choice, you know.” 

Gon saw pink creep up from her neck to her partially obscured face, so he knew he wasn’t the only one struck by the double meaning behind her words. 

“All right, we don’t have to leave. We can stay here.” 

Still covering her face with her arm, she nodded. With her free hand, she patted the space on the sofa. He smiled automatically and answered the summons of that simple, soft gesture. He scooped her up and sat down, settling her head and shoulders on his lap. 

He reached for the remote controls for the air and diffusers. He wasn’t sure if he should humidify– would that help? But he did so anyway. For scent, he chose eucalyptus. He felt her relax further against him. 

He didn’t know how long they stayed like that. He was occupied with stroking her hair, digging his fingers in to massage her scalp. Her right arm came up to hug him loosely, her hand patting his lower back, and he smiled again. He lived for these affectionate touches and he’d missed her all week. 

Keep reading

[di-elle]

I played around with some pics and I’m pretty happy with these manips... I hence present you The King and Queen of the Kingdom of Corea: candids, official and private portraits.

Heavy watermarked because I’ve noticed there’s a lack of fandom etiquette and people just grab other people production and spread without credit.

Note: these are a present for @coreastories and @coreanroyal to use however they wish

because they have been single handed got the fandom going.Thank you so much for all your post and fics. <3. I feel your frustration for the lack of material, I hope you’ll find more inspiration in these, so message me to have the files without the ugly fat watermark.

[coreastories]

The Queen’s Jewelry and Her Best Beloved Treasure

Her Majesty’s birthday passed quietly, without the expected revelry dedicated by the king for our beloved queen 

The entire kingdom agrees this is very much in character with Her Majesty, who had an almost-permanent blush and shy smile during the Queens Day celebrations

Although of course that had everything to do with the King’s  unabashed affection rather than shyness at being the center of everyone’s attention

June passed without much buzz for royal watchers

The King had quietly returned to his duties, photographed in meetings and appearances close to Busan

Now, in a surprising turn of events absolutely staggering both in their lack of fanfare and the stunning beauty of the content, the Royal Public Affairs Office released portraits of the Queen. 

Portraits. Of. The Queen. 

“In celebration of Their Majesties’ first anniversary, the Royal Court is pleased to present Her Majesty’s portraits. 

“Exhibited to the Corean public for the first time, these portraits also unveil and chronicle new collections in the Crown Jewels, commissioned by His Majesty for the queen. 

“The Plum Blossom of Corea, aligned with the Royal Court’s insignia and illustrating Her Majesty’s beauty and courage, the Plume of Corea representing Corea’s national bird, the magpies, and their famed legend of reuniting star-crossed lovers, and the Lion of Corea, designated as the emblem of His Royal Highness, the Prince Yeong-hwan.”

You could have knocked me over with those white gold and diamond-encrusted feathers in the Plume of Corea! 

It’s our first ever glimpse of her since she gave birth to the prince. The queen looks entirely breathtaking in these portraits. 

According to my team’s research (and my circle of ahjummas’ enthusiastic contributions, of course), the previous queen also sat for portraits with her own especially commissioned jewelry shortly after the current king was born. 

These portraits show off both queen and jewels, a loving, if formal, testament to the kingdom’s continuity and prosperity. 

Royalty around the world have always done the same, though I must say these portraits are nothing like the ones we’ve seen. 

The queen looks particularly regal in the first photo. And then your eyes move down and you hear a soft gasp– yours– at the queen’s show of skin in that glimpse of her knee and leg. 

Rather than immodesty, you only think of a woman of her times, sophistication, and refinement. It’s in character with the queen’s boldness and refusal to be slated in the outdated (and hypocritical) rules other royals are supposed to follow. 

In this second photo, her smile speaks of her love for her baby. That’s the Lion collection commissioned to represent the little prince. 

Again, that lovely smile, in more of the pieces in the Plum Blossom of Corea collection. I love that cape and that cuff. 

The previous queen, the king’s mother, also had her own Plum Blossom pieces. Among the Crown Jewels, every specific Plum Blossom collection is known by the queen’s name. 

We are quite mesmerized at this first sight of Her Majesty’s hair sleeked back. She looks good in any hairstyle, does she not? She’s almost like Audrey Hepburn here, wearing the Plume of Corea collection. 

I’m quite certain there are more photos... and more gifts showered by the king on his queen while they celebrate this first anniversary. 

Happy anniversary, Your Majesties! 

I’m always in raptures when I’m reminded I’m here witnessing all this. Modern royals with good heads on their shoulders. A whirlwind romance, a baby, and a kingdom more in love with them than ever. 

Especially when the queen seemed to want to flip the switch and turn our attention away from her and to the real treasure of the palace! 

I must admit I screamed. Dignity, be damned. 

Look at that full head of hair! And those chunky hands and legs! 

This post had no caption, only the Queen’s laughter and love in emojis. 

And that marks the little prince’s Baek-il, or 100th Day! The Royal Public Affairs Office said our favorite royal family is celebrating in private, and thanks everyone for their continued well-wishes for His Royal Highness, the Prince Yeong-hwan.

Baek-il is still very much in vogue in modern-day Corea, although bigger parties– i.e., one of the wealthiest countries in the world flaunting their wealth– is reserved for the doljanchi, the first birthday, instead.  

Stay tuned! The queen is after all very much a mom in love with her baby, and that means we get royal baby photos, don’t we! 

------------

Because these photos scream Her Majesty The Queen. This post just spilled out of me so easily. My goodness gracious. She is stunning. 

Baby photos have been saved for so long for Corea Baby News lol. I just needed to open the right folders. Aaaah. And perfect timing for Baek-il and the anniversary too. :) I’m tying this up neatly soon. 

[coreastories]

Introducing the Prince Yeong-hwan

The king and queen of Corea welcomed their first child, a son, on April 18. 

It seems only yesterday when this author first reported on the mysterious new queen of Corea

Now I must admit my eyes are going misty that we have come along since then, we have met the queen, she’s no longer mysterious. Her Majesty is, in fact, quite marvelous

And now the kingdom is rejoicing at the birth of the Prince Yeong-hwan

The prince royal of Corea was born on April 18 at 4:27am. The king was present at the birth, and the queen was attended by her appointed surgeons. 

No traditional easels were propped up here in this kingdom. Gwangyeongjeon Palace in Busan will not be thronged by crowds of well-wishers wishing to take a photo of a piece of paper framed on an easel. 

No, the announcement was simply released by the Royal Public Affairs Office, hand-delivered in luxurious cream cardstock to all establishments of the press. 

That’s the cardstock Corea’s newspapers have published. All the papers were late and had cream and blue front pages today. Once that cardstock was on hand, it was a race to the printers.

Needless to say, I’m going to have mine framed. 

His Royal Highness the Prince Yeong-hwan: what’s in a name? 

Yeon. What a lovely name. I’ve been told that the hangul of Yeon means several things like kite and year? And the hanja means “beautiful” and “graceful.” 

It’s pronounced “yun.” But never mind, we’re not going to use that name. We’re just lucky they shared the name, and so soon! When I was fortunate enough to interview the queen last October about the Eomoni Foundation, I knew the Her Majesty was already prepared for her baby. Name included!

And they don’t need to appear like they’re considering the name carefully: they’re the king and queen. They only need to please themselves. 

The Royal Monosyllable

Unlike their European counterparts and their three to four names, Corean royalty traditionally have monosyllabic names. 

Since the Goryeo dynasty, monosyllabic names were used by (and at one point restricted to) the royal family. 

But it has since been more used, though still uncommon. Parents simply prefer two syllables to one for their child’s given name. More options for the hanja characters. 

Some celebrities and idols have monosyllabic screen names. However, if you do come across a Corean with a monosyllabic name, it’s very likely it’s a family tradition, and also very likely a family tradition proudly continued because it was a granted royal privilege for service or contribution as vassal. 

The prince’s title and historic name

Every single one of us will refer to the little prince by his title, the Prince Yeong-hwan. 

Yeong means perpetual, eternal, brave, glory, honor, hero. It’s the first name of Jo Yeong, the king’s Unbreakable Sword and Captain of the Royal Guard. There’s a reason that name is popular, usually combined with another character, and not just because the mother was crushing on Jo Yeong. 

Hwan means shining, brilliant, lustrous, understandably a traditional addition for royal titles, and often given to first sons. Before he became king, His Majesty’s title was Prince Dae-hwan, as was his father’s before him. 

Popular speculation is that the little prince’s title honors Jo Yeong. 

Yeon is also the personal or birth name of Jangsu of Goguryeo, who reigned in a golden age when Goguryeo was one of the great powers in Asia, a veritable empire he expanded by conquest and ruled with justice and diplomacy. Jangsu successfully perpetuated what his father Gwanggaeto the Great started: a loosely unified Three Kingdoms. 

He perfected and innovated many of the kingdom’s political, economic and institutional systems. 

He also had the longest reign in East Asian history, ruling for 79 years until he died at age 98. 

And best of all, it was Yeon, or Jangsu, who shortened the kingdom’s name from Goguyreo to Goryeo, which evolved to how we know it today: Corea. 

Now I’ve seen some papers say the little prince royal has quite big shoes to fill. I say, his parents simply gave him a good name. 

And with parents like that, I’m sure His Royal Highness will be well-equipped to be a great king like his namesake, like his father, when he’s conferred as Crown Prince. 

A kingdom rejoicing

This is the first baby born to the royal family of Corea since His Majesty himself was born thirty four years ago. Sadly, the late queen had been in poor health, and soon passed when the king was only three years old. 

The whole kingdom held its collective breath when the queen was flown to CorGen. Though the media was promised a press conference, none came. 

The palace website banner has been updated about the queen’s health and the newspapers fairly flew off the stands at the announcement. 

We still wait to hear from Their Majesties, but everyone is content to know the queen and baby are safe and healthy. 

The Royal Public Affairs Office did give us a few tidbits. The palace had received 5734 gifts from friends of the royal family (royalty, aristocracy and democratic leaders of the world), Corean organizations and citizens, and international well-wishers.  

Corea also woke up and spent the day being serenaded by bells. There is still no standard for the bell ringing, but all proposals have been reviewed and approved by the palace. The result was an experience I won’t soon forget. It was like an all-day concert! Who knew bells could sound so lovely? 

Corea’s towns and cities coordinated with each other so that their bell ringing would be a veritable symphony. I've seen some social media posts of people who "followed the bells" and enjoyed their drive. 

Come evening, LED and clever engineering lit up several buildings and entire blocks across the cities of Corea. Blue for the prince, blue for the queen, and black and gold to celebrate the royal family. 

And if you drive around, you might feel overwhelmed at all the flags. Every home, every establishment flew the flag of Corea. 

Needless to say, the flower festivals are gearing up to become a celebration of the prince's birth. But I have a feeling this contingency has already been in the plans long ago! 

I am so tremendously happy. Congratulations, Your Majesties! 

“It seems only yesterday when this author first reported on the mysterious new queen of Corea” 

On this day last year, in fact! Corea Stories is one year old today! 

It’s been crazy! Thank you all for your reviews and notes, here, on AO3 or on Twitter, you awesome people. 

[coreastories]

Corea News: The Queen Expectant and Radiant

APRIL 14, 2021

We are counting down the days to the queen’s due date. We haven’t seen her around much. 

Her last public appearance was on White Day, in March, when she and the king attended the UAAC Baseball season pre-opening friendly match

We weren’t given permission to publish those photos, and many of them have been taken down because of the kerfuffle over the queen’s watch. See our report here. 

It seems Corea is much more conservative about protecting their queen than we thought.

The palace website’s static banner is still up, saying the queen and the baby are both well, and that Their Majesties are thankful for everyone’s concern and well-wishes.

No word about where the queen is currently residing. We do know they’ve left Pyeongchang. And we also know that there’s a tradition that the heir is born in Gwangyeongjeon. 

VIP 7, the royal wing recently reopened (and unexpectedly used in November during the queen’s accident) in CorGen, is now completed and sealed, should Her Majesty choose to have her delivery there  

It’s also another tradition that media photos are now cropped. 

While lucky Corean citizens and I (I live here with a working visa, so I count myself lucky) have seen the royal baby belly on television, international people who are also in love with these royals would see nothing. Nada. Zilch. 

The queen would only appear in print and online in cropped photos. 

Something about protecting the baby from evil eyes.

And if you want to test the terrifying efficiency of the Royal Public Affairs Office, be my guest. We’ve had reports that disallowed photos of the queen disappear in less than ten seconds.

Corea is one of the most modern and advanced in its technology and tolerance, but it does still have these charming quirks, and we respect them! 

The king is currently away. Along with the king and queen of Bhutan, the sultan of Brunei, and the agong of Malaysia, these royal heads of Asia are going to the United Kingdom to pay their respects to the queen of the United Kingdom on the passing of Prince Philip, the Duke of Edinburgh. 

The funeral will be held on April 17. See our report on the expected royal guests here.

Because we miss her so much, here’s a recap of all our Queen Sightings. 

Read on AO3. 

Who could forget this? Corea was stunned at the queen showing more leg than she had ever done. Her Majesty was spotted arriving at Cheongwadae for the Prime Minister’s private party last winter. 

It’s testimony to the queen’s popularity that she got zero criticism. If she did, no one was brazen or bold enough to make it public. 

Royal watchers (and ahjummas, elite and non-elite), say this is still perfectly within the unspoken royal proprieties and the fingertip rule applied to schoolgirls (the fingertip rule: your hemline shouldn’t be shorter than your fingertips). 

The queen also only went to a private gathering among friends, which the king also attended. The press had been allowed to take photographs but it was not a public event. 

Her Majesty in the Winter Palace. Released by the Royal Public Affairs Office in January. 

This is the last, full-sized media photo we have before the palace quietly but efficiently released the request for the queen’s photos to be cropped. 

Also in January, a close up of the Queen’s perfect skin, also released by the Royal Public Affairs Office. Location unspecified. 

February 5: Her Majesty’s televised message for the Annual Children’s Ball in Busan, for the first time held as an actual ball for kids, bouncy castle and all! 

February 25: Several lucky students in schools around Busan were lucky enough to have been visited by Her Majesty before or during their commencement exercises.

March 1: The queen attended a panel for Zero Discrimination Day at the Royal Hall of Justice, the first panel of its kind pioneered by the Attorney-General, Gong Ae-ra.  

March 1: That evening, when Their Majesties attended a concert for Zero Discrimination Day

April 4: Their Majesties in their joint Easter message, both of them just looking so beautiful. Is it any wonder they’re the world’s most favorite royals? 

We hope the king comes home soon! This author understands social obligations, but Pyeha, with all due respect-- well, I’m sure you’re already impatient to be home and I don’t need to nag. Far be it from me! 

Let me know what you think! A lot of little details here meant as companion to Winter Palace 2. And the rest of what comes next :) 

And yes, it's backdated. I'd blame my job but I also love my job but yeah, I blame it. 

Credits to the Kahi photo (with watermark) from Kim Go Eun Philippines @/kimgoeunphofc on Twitter and IG

[coreastories]

Corea News: Another grey day in Corea

APRIL 17, 2021

The palace has confirmed that Her Majesty the Queen has been admitted to CorGen today at 10:17 A.M.

This follows nationwide curiosity when news crews now on round-the-clock surveillance of the palace and CorGen spotted one of the royal helicopters landing on the CorGen helipad

His Majesty the King is still in the UK 

The palace website has been updated with a note that His Majesty has been informed and is on his way back. 

Not mentioned in the note, but we can properly deduce the king is no longer attending the funeral of His Royal Highness the Duke of Edinburgh, scheduled for tomorrow, Sunday, April 17. If that confuses you, it’s still Saturday in the UK

Is the queen in peril?

Corea’s online communities are fairly screeching because the palace website has since removed the static banner saying the queen and the baby are both well. 

Why the brouhaha over that? After all, an update is imminent, isn’t it? 

This author, as should all of you, take comfort from the fact that if the queen had been in less than perfect health, the king wouldn’t have left her side. 

The queen is young and was a former officer in the police force, not counting her position in the kingdom’s classified investigatory services. Both posts have vigorous physical qualifications. That should assure us, too. 

Until we have statements from authorized sources, why should we conjure panic and outcomes none of us want? 

Well-meaning ahjummas I otherwise adore and respect are understandably shaken after the queen’s accident in November. (See our coverage here and here). They wonder if the queen was injured somehow in the palace or elsewhere. 

Several spring and flower festivals are ramping up across the country in conjunction with the Royal Horticultural Society’s Annual Flower Show. (See the royal floral mystery attached to the Show here). Her Majesty’s last public appearance was on White Day, but today’s report had Corea’s citizens posting their photos of the queen with messages of support hoping she’s okay. 

Here’s one such photograph from user JungjeonTaeEulah, posted on the palace website’s update comment section, and with 450,000 hearts as of this writing

It turns out the queen had popped up for a surprise incognito visit here and there, and it really drove up morale-- and the Corean spirit of excellence. 

Not only is the kingdom absolutely bananas over their king and queen, they’re also excited about this royal baby. Add to that a queen whom you never know might drop in on your town’s festival preparations and I’ve never seen a lovelier country in all my years as a nomad correspondent. I might stay here. 

But I digress. Aside from acknowledging that this is a day of suspense for all of us, this author will refrain from--and condemns-- sensationalist hysteria. 

Don’t think I’m made of stone. I’m barely hanging on to my training as a journalist by my fingernails. And I just had them done. 

Is the queen delivering the heir?

The Royal Public Affairs Office has declined to give any statement at this time, except for announcing that Mo Jin-ha, the private secretary to the sovereign, will hold a press conference, time to be determined. 

The media and all members of the press (and all Corean citizens) are requested to stay clear of the roads between CorGen and the airport. (My team is stationed in several spots with telephoto lenses the size of small cannons). 

CorGen and the office of Doctor Chae Song-eun, the queen’s OB, also decline to comment. 

This is speculation on this author’s part and by no means should my dear readers take this as reliable information even if we do have confirmation from past releases: The queen is within thirty-five to thirty-six weeks. At most, barely thirty-seven weeks. 

If she delivers, the royal prince or princess will be considered late preterm or early term. 

As far as we’ve been told, the queen reaches full term in the first to second week of May. This means the baby would be born 3 to 4 weeks early. 

A kingdom expectant

As we wait with bated breath for updates, here’s what we know: 

This is the kingdom’s first royal baby since the king himself was born in 1987, also earlier than his due date, but only by four days. 

This baby will immediately bump the Lady Se-jin from succession, and if a princess, will not be displaced as heir apparent by male siblings. The king has done away with male primogeniture in succession, recognizing it unconstitutional alongside the country’s laws on equality. 

Across the kingdom, bets have been placed on the baby’s gender. Boy and girl have equal odds, with some bets on multiple births (twins). 

Unlike in other royal pregnancies you might know of if you love royals, the name has been left well alone in Corea. No bets about the names here. No Corean citizen is willing to place bad luck on the baby. In Chinese and Corean tradition, you call the baby by a “milk name��� to confuse evil spirits who might...well, spirit it away. 

We will receive an announcement within 24 hours of the birth, although the king and queen might decide to wait. It’s their prerogative. 

When the king was born, his birth was announced within the day. His name followed a day after. 

Because the king was the first Catholic heir apparent, the Catholic churches throughout the kingdom rang their bells on the day of his birth, ranging from peals that lasted three hours,  shorter songs that lasted five minutes, to joyful rings of three every minute. 

The current royal baby will also be Catholic. The Royal Court still hasn’t issued any standard protocol for the bell-ringing, but they do have specific rules for the gun salute, a long-standing tradition since the 1900s. 

If you want to go to one of the royal palaces and residences to watch the gun salute, see our report here.

Unlike other royal families, Corea doesn’t release portraits of their royal babies. 

Unless the current king and queen breaks tradition and recognizes our need to see their baby, we’ll see the prince or princess in the official portrait of the royal family when it’s released for the kingdom’s textbooks. 

FLASH UPDATE:

The king has arrived in the kingdom and is on his way to CorGen. 

Photographed here on his way to his car. His Majesty was immediately escorted to his awaiting convoy. (Telephoto lenses pay for themselves. This author is willing to do endorsements wholeheartedly).

It hasn’t even been six hours since we knew of the queen’s condition. Either the king’s jet made the flight in half the time, or the king had already been on his way before the queen was even taken to the hospital. 

Stay tuned for updates. Our thoughts and prayers are with Her Majesty and the baby. 

[coreastories]

The Winter Palace 2

Days and Nights of Forever Part 21

By insistent public demand, the continuation of The Heartbeat (and The Winter Palace 1, of course).

Their days and nights in Gyeoulgungjeon. A babymoon in the Corean Alps.

While Winter Palace 1 was The Arrival, this one is Warmth and Heat. This is fluffy fluff fluff and NC-17. 

Well, more than fluff. 

Sisterhood. Sibling shenanigans between two unlikely characters. Impertinent court ladies and cats. 

Read here. 

I’m glad to finally get this done. At least I’m only one season off. Lol. Sigh. 

[coreastories]

Modern Royals: The King’s White Day declaration

If you live in Corea and you’re a man, you probably have a burning resentment for the king always raising the bar when it comes to romantic gestures. 

For my international readers-- and let’s face it, most of my readers are international because I write in English, although some ahjummas have taken to using translation apps on my articles, just to make sure I’m accurate and/or have used what they “educated me about...”

Anyway, White Day is a special day you only see in a tiny portion of Asia

Japan started it, and Corea and Taiwan also do it. China, Vietnam and Singapore also do it to some extent

While the Western world pampers women on Valentine’s Day, it’s quite the opposite here, where men receive chocolates and confessions of love from women

It’s gotten so widespread that it’s become a standard in schools and workplaces, to the extent that “giri-choko” or obligation chocolates exist 

These are the chocolates you had to hand out to your male colleagues, relatives, friends

Apparently, you can give cheaper varieties for these people. The more expensive the chocolate, the more special the guy will perceive himself to be. It’s a game of finesse, of not leaving anyone out, making sure your recipient feels appreciated (especially the sunbaes and bosses) but making sure no one gets the wrong message either 

White Day is a reverse Valentine’s Day. It’s the women’s turn to receive chocolates and gifts from the men

And men are expected to give four times the value of what they received on Valentine’s Day

Many workplaces pool their money to buy packages of good chocolates for their women colleagues

In Corea, despite dwindling support for obligation chocolate, romantic chocolate persists. Chocolate sales reach billions of won on Valentine’s Day, and this triples on White Day.

Stores create special White Day chocolates, and advertisements and online reservations start as early as January.

White Day this year was full of queen-themed chocolates. Crown shapes, real gold flecks, the plum blossom inspired by the Royal Court’s insignia and Her Majesty’s necklace and signature forget-me-not blue color dominated the designs that flew off the shelves before they were even placed there.

Specific hashtags on Instagram were full of posts of these chocolates and photos of guys waiting in line to pick up their reservations for a Godiva box of Crown Jewels, a limited edition White Day 2021 box of chocolates quilted in the distinct Chanel pattern, which is now a trademark of the queen so often seen wearing her Coco Crush earrings or rings. 

Chocopologie’s House of Knipschildt also created Sa Majesté Truffle, very similar to their Guinness Record-holder La Madeline au Truffle, except this one contains a delicate strawberry and edible gold candy in the shape of the queen’s plum blossom pink diamond necklace. 

This is made to order, and sources say Chocopologie had to close orders from Corea when it reached 2700 pieces. That $350 per truffle. 

Delafee sold out their Plum Blossom Chocolate and Gold Lollipops in seconds, and their 24-karat Gold Chocolate Box with a collectible solid gold coin bearing the Royal Court’s plum blossom insignia, retailing at $899, sold out in one day.  

Coreans snapped them up. These were the gifts to be had. Men thought they were pretty much in the clear in pleasing their women. 

Until photos came out of the queen wearing the legendary J12 X-ray, made almost entirely in sapphire crystal. 

The J12 X-ray and its transparent sapphire crystal face and 5.46 carats of baguette diamonds, with the gear train seemingly suspended in midair

Aside from the watch hands, train wheels, mainspring, metal hinges and components, if the parts aren’t sapphire crystal, it’s diamond, and where it’s not made of diamond, it’s in white gold. The hour markers are diamonds. The bezel is diamond. The face and bracelet are all sapphire crystal. 

As it often goes in Corean media, the photos zooming in on the queen’s wrist were immediately taken down. For security purposes, and some ahjummas said it’s so the queen’s bespoke watch won’t be imitated. 

There are only twelve of these watches to be made in the world, and aside from the queen of Corea, we have not yet seen it on anyone else. The availability is still TBA. 

Sapphire crystal bracelet, plate and bridges. The luxury and rarity comes from the difficulty and expense of machining and working with sapphire crystal, the second hardest material next to diamonds.  

It’s so fitting that royalty is the first to be seen with this watch, and not just any royalty, but the queen of Corea, who does seem to like Chanel watches. 

See our Queens Day Recap, where the queen wore the Chanel Boyfriend watch. 

Here’s Her Majesty photographed wearing the J12 Phantom last year 

And I think the king’s in trouble, because I rather think the queen had no idea she was wearing $626,000 on her wrist when she and the king appeared at the UAAC Baseball season pre-opening friendly match.  

The Prime Minister was also there, along with CorGen Obstetrics Chief Chae Song-eun, the queen’s OB. 

The Royal Public Affairs Office declined to comment, but in his monthly televised panel today with the Ministries of Finance and Commerce, the press asked His Majesty about the watch as the meeting wound down, and the king answered it with laughter.    

“I did hear that men are furious with me? I’m sorry but the watch is very much the queen’s style. The sapphire crystal means the band and the watch face are indestructible. I happen to choose Her Majesty’s accessories in that criteria. 

“If you can afford to buy your wife and the mother of your child an expensive gift, why not? This country owes a lot to its women--don’t forget we have a Queens Day because we owe our queens so much-- give them expensive gifts! The most expensive you can afford without bankrupting yourself and getting yourself killed by your wife, of course.”

Seeing as the king is very much alive and his blissfully happy self as ever, we can assume the queen has forgiven him. 

And now I bet all the luxury brands in the world are gearing up with their own sapphire crystal and/or timepiece offerings. 

And while the J12 X-ray’s price is astronomical, I have to agree with the king that it’s definitely the queen’s style. That is to say, it’s absolutely wearable, unlike the million dollar diamond watches Harry Winston, Cartier, Chopard and their ilk have made. 

We do wonder what the queen has given the king for Valentine’s Day, but perhaps bearing the heir to the Corean throne is beyond enough. 

Our countdown to that happy day continues! 

[coreastories]

Corea News: Royal Wedding Postscripts and A Floral Mystery

Counting down to the royal baby’s arrival, we got gifts!

If my calculations (well, we can depend on the ahjummas for this) are correct, we are now at 34 weeks.

The Royal Public Affairs Office can probably feel the entire nation’s bated breath so they gave us delicious things to distract us

First, some context: Corea’s Royal Horticultural Society is ramping up to the annual flower show in May

Every two years, the flower show includes awards for the best floral arrangements, with plenty of categories and a grand prize to vie for

For close to two centuries now, the kingdom’s best florists show off their skills here and I’ve heard the competition is so stiff that the kingdom’s florist street had to be disbanded, each florist relocated. Until the 1930s, almost all cities in the kingdom had an ordinance that no two florists can exist within 1000 feet of each other

This law is no longer in effect, but florists still observe it. They say they like it-- it regulated their numbers especially in the capitals

It’s a pain when you’re shopping for flowers and don’t know what you want yet. You have to drive or add a few hundred to your step counter instead of hopping next door or just two to three doors down.  

Now to the juicy bits: The Royal Public Affairs Office released what we thought was a video of support for this year’s Flower Show and Florist Awards

50 seconds into the video, we discover we thought wrong

Well, it certainly is such a gorgeous highlight of Corea’s flowers and florist talent. But it was also so. Much. More. The ahjummas haven’t recovered yet. 

In September after the announcement of the queen’s pregnancy, we were given wedding portraits. 

Yesterday, the kingdom of Corea was treated to a rare glimpse into the private wedding of the king and queen. 

We still don’t know the full guest list, and of those present, no one has said anything, not even the Prime Minister, who was most certainly there.

The video is quiet and soft, each montage blooming into green and white images solidifying into flowers and greenery.  

It was all bouquets and candle light, really, and if you expected a procession of royalty, you’d be disappointed. 

Oh, don’t mistake me: we know royalty from other countries flew in and witnessed it, and we know the ceremonies were spread over several days, but aside from that, we know not much else. 

With these new crumbs, now we also know that this wedding is all elegance and zero pomp and pageantry. 

Not that there was any doubt on that score. 

We confirmed permission from the Royal Public Affairs Office to publish these screencaps of my favorite bouquets. 

None of that stiff and contrived symmetry you usually see. These arrangements are so much like the queen we’ve come to know and love in her casual style and sincerity. 

And then comes the surprise of this seemingly innocuous video of flowers: we hear the queen herself speaking.  

For my international readers who unfortunately can’t watch the video, we’ve been given permission to publish the queen’s vows. 

Yes, that’s right. It was the queen speaking her vows. 

From the official translated captions:  “I decided-- I decided to love the fate that chose us--but you made that decision easy. There’s a reason everyone loves you, though sometimes you’re a little too good, a little out of this world [laughter]. But you’re here with me. You came for me. And I’m here with you. I promise… I promise to stay with you always, no matter how far we need to walk. I’ve been given hints that you are my destination. You’re my... you’re my dream I couldn’t forget. I’ll be happy anywhere fate takes us. I love you.”

We are swooning. 

What I wouldn’t give to know every story behind those words! 

The kingdom’s royal watchers surmise that the Royal Court released the queen’s vows to underline her loyalty to the king, and by extension, the kingdom, especially with the impending birth of the heir. 

This child, boy or girl, will become Crown Prince or Crown Princess, according to the king’s edict last year when he named his distant cousin the Lady Se-jin his heir, after Prince Buyeong’s death and shortly before his marriage to the queen. 

The queen spoke her vows with a slight tremble in her voice. The way she hesitated and resumed with so much love in her words made this author sigh. 

What about the king’s vows? 

According to the Royal Public Affairs Office, the king and queen exchanged the traditional Catholic vows in their church wedding, promising faithfulness, for better or for worse, for richer or for poorer, in sickness and in health, til death. 

The queen’s personal vows were a surprise at the tail-end of her prescribed vows. 

Thank you for letting us in on that surprise! 

Though I’m so sure the king had his own piece to say. No one looks at his wife the way His Majesty does without vows that would have made us weak at the knees. 

The mystery pew

Another surprise came from keen-eyed ahjummas who pointed out that the video showed us two different sets of pew flowers. 

And indeed, two different pews. 

Here they are side by side: 

Left: hydrangeas, baby’s breath, camellias and begonias

Right: Two fat roses and a peach ribbon

So did Their Majesties have two different ceremonies in two churches? 

I’ve been to Munsan Church in Jinju, an hour from Busan, and I recognize the pew on the left. 

The pew in the right photo is a mystery. 

I’m sure ahjummas might discover where this pew can be found, but then it has to fit the story of Their Majesties having a wedding there. My team has also already been on a search, but so far, all the churches near us have dark pews. 

Even if the pew flowers were changed, were the pews changed, too? Some churches combine two designs of pews, especially if donations have been made for the purchase of new ones but the church doesn’t want to insult those who made donations for the still perfectly functioning pews. 

That’s not the case in Munsan. Neither the hanok nor the Gothic building have pews that match the one in the photo. 

We are harping on about this floral mystery and still impatient for the royal baby. 

Distraction failed. We can’t wait! 

[coreastories]

Modern Royals: Meet Tae Eul, the mysterious new Queen of Corea

Jeong Tae Eul, 30, married the King of Corea in July 2020 

The wedding followed Corea’s tradition of privacy for its royal family, with no photos released by the Royal Public Affairs Office 

We await the family photo instead, when the royal court publishes an official photograph showing off the royal heir. This photo is then updated into school textbooks across the country. 

The new queen has since made appearances, accompanying the king to small events in Corea, mostly in the academic field (the King of Corea’s love for math and sciences is well-documented) and for children’s causes  

The engagement shocked the country. Unlike the usual press conferences, the king declared the future queen in one of the capital’s streets, while riding to battle, just before literally cutting down supporters of the country’s most notorious traitor, former Prince Imperial Geum, Lee Lim

Real-life fairy tales still exist. Everyone around the world is charmed by this queen and her unique origin. She is not a celebrity nor a well-known beauty on campus, catwalk, or television who caught a royal’s eye. She’s a former detective, a lieutenant in Jongno. 

Corea’s Royal Public Affairs Office seems to prefer to let the country and the world speculate the rest. How she met the king, how they fell in love-- these are all still shrouded in mystery. 

The engagement was thus “announced” in early April. No further announcements followed until July when Corea rejoiced that their king, 33, was finally getting married. 

Unlike other current royals his age, the king grew up before the country’s eyes as king, not as prince. In tragic circumstances, he became the youngest reigning monarch of the modern world at age 8, until King Oyo of Uganda was crowned in 1995 at age 3. 

Asked about the palace’s traditionally strict reticence on the wedding, Corean citizens just shrug and say they’re happy to see the king and queen at events instead. 

Comments about the new queen are consistent. 

“They look really happy.”   “She seems very kind and warm.”  “We don’t really care about her history. The political parties want to dig it up because they want to know whose side she’d be on.” 

The king traditionally reads to children every month, and the queen has since joined him. Members of the media always try to get the kids to ask about the royal couple’s romance, but the king and queen skillfully deflect the questions with entertaining distractions, like what the king cooked for the queen that day, or the queen slowly filling the king’s dressing room with plants.  

The police of Jongno are also tight-lipped about their former colleague. Not a single source can be found among their ranks. The only comment anyone could get is that they’re unanimous in their love for their new queen. 

Speculation points to the king and queen’s whirlwind romance starting last year in October 2019, when the king repeatedly disappeared "in his study,” a common occurrence whenever the king was absorbed in a mathematical problem. 

In retrospect, it’s now apparent these disappearances might have involved the re-investigation-- and subsequent capture and execution-- of Lee Lim’s followers. Lee Lim, former Prince Imperial Geum, was executed in 1994, the current king’s uncle and half-brother to the previous king, who was murdered in Lee Lim’s attempted coup. 

(In full discretion, all unofficial press coverage of the Royal Court of Corea is requested to keep discussion of the betrayal in the royal family to a minimum. For more information, please visit the Royal Public Affairs Office website).

The queen being a detective at the time, this is the most plausible theory on the start of the royal romance. 

Born on May 27, 1990, the queen is 30 years old. 

In most photos, she doesn’t look a day over 20. Paparazzi and press alike are addicted to capturing that fresh, youthful face, and she looks even younger due to her very casual style. 

In a rare packet released from the Royal Public Affairs Office, we learn that the queen often chooses pieces from Chanel, Isabel Marant, Andersson Bell, Zimmerman, Ralph Lauren, Time and Uniqlo, among a large variety of designers and brands, at various price points. 

Corean citizens believe that this statement from the palace was to challenge the fashion industry to produce more accessible pieces, and to encourage the youth to aspire for comfort rather than luxury. 

It’s worth noting that Corea, with the 4th highest GDP in the world, is a huge market for haute couture. However, if you walk around the wealthiest neighborhoods and look at the high society photos in the papers, you’ll observe more relaxed, understated elegance as the current style. 

Loose or simply done hair, luxury pieces dressed down with more casual items, minimal jewelry. 

That’s the influence of the queen. With other female royals of the world perpetually in dresses, suits and hats, this author finds the queen of Corea even lovelier. 

We breathlessly await whatever crumbs the Royal Public Affairs Office deigns to give us. 

-----------------------------------------

(Yeah, I’m crazy) 

This is supposed to be a Daily Mail article. And yes, this article is from the future when everything’s all happy. Dammit. 

I’m now so scared about the finale so I’m distracting myself with this. 

Clickbaity Daily Mail title. Check. 

Kim Go Eun in her prettiest, “candid” photos. Check. 

No mention of Prince Buyeong’s death, since Gon might have fixed that. 

(Have you noticed Tae-Eul has a lot of plants in her room and in their living room too?) 

There are so many other gorgeous photos, but I picked the ones from events, or ones that look like it’s taken from afar by telephoto lenses haha (like the one where she’s wearing that soft white dress in the second collage). 

When they do a photoshoot, I hope it’s not overly styled. I don’t want the Vogue treatment. I just want them to look royal and happy. In other words, I hope they have photos I can use and say it’s from the Royal Public Affairs Office  hahahahahahahaha. 

[coreastories]

Abeoji’s Revelations

Little Bean Part 5 of 5-- Now complete~

This is how Jeong Do-in finds out about the little bean. Of course Tae-eul's father wouldn't cross the worlds unaware and unconscious. 

Sometimes the best-laid plans are just silly. 

Plenty of father-daughter banter, some cooking, and a handful of pills involved.

Read here. 

[coreastories]

The Sixteenth Rule

Something unexpected but also completely expected.  

When you have friends with money and a temper, and love so certain it's sanctioned across universes, you just go for it. 

Church booked. Go to church. Get married.

This follows:

The Clock

Pieces of Paper

The Fifteenth Rule

Goes with:

Corea News: Royal Wedding: We FINALLY have wedding crumbs

Corea News: Royal Wedding Postscripts and A Floral Mystery

READ HERE: Days and Nights of Forever Part 20

[coreastories]

The Scarf

Days and Nights of Forever Part 17

The Calm and the Fury

Episodes 11-12 in Gon’s POV

As requested by @pateetsie and Swoon Anon 

Part 1: The Scarf

He laid Tae-eul’s scarf on his bed. His eyes were drawn to the sword, the scarf and back. 

Two things that represented his fate. 

Making things right. 

Tae-eul. 

The same calm he’d felt when he was in Tae-eul’s arms came back to him. He knew what he had to do, and he would do it. God was on his side. He had to be. After all, He gave him Tae-eul.

[coreastories]

Greetings From the Winter Palace

FEB 12

Following the subdued elegance of the Corean Awards, we’ve seen and heard precious little of Her Majesty.

His Majesty the King’s office has also been quiet, although the king’s statements continue in the news. 

The palace website now has a static banner that the queen and the baby are well.

And then glorious day! The exclusive telecast message of Their Majesties’ holiday greetings. 

This is a late report about those messages, because unlike certain monarchies with territories across the world, Corea is a small (but wealthy) kingdom, and as such, the messages from their king and queen remain local. 

We were only allowed to publish certain photos. For complete disclosure, this author did scream in the powder room again, like usual, when confronted with these beautiful royals. 

Greetings came from the Winter Palace both for Christmas and the solar new year, and the Lunar New Year, Seollal, which has more significance for Coreans.

December 31st was rather mind-blowing. Previous holidays saw the king make his greeting from the throne room or the Audience Hall. 

But now Coreans would remember this beige couch forever. 

The King and Queen delivered their speech without fuss and without pomp, just two people so happy and also wishing their people the same happiness. 

Unlike Chuseok and Seollal, Christmas and New Year didn’t come with the usual formal greeting from the king and queen in their royal regalia. 

This one was sweet and very modern. It was published exclusively on the palace website with the very simple, “Have a happy Christmas and new year. We wish you joy and health.” 

This just whets our appetite and excitement for the family photos we’d get once these modern royals have children. 

And then just to mess with us, there was also this photo, venturing past sweet and into sizzling hot, which you wouldn’t get from any of the European royals in their stodgy suits and dresses. 

Whether this was a mistake, calculated or not, remains a hot speculation to this day. This photo disappeared from the website about an hour after it went up. 

We have sanction from the Royal Public Affairs Office to publish it here. But we would delete it if they change their minds, so save this photo if you haven’t yet! 

For Seollal, the king and queen published this intimate photo from Gyeoulgungjeon alongside their formal greeting in the royal regalia. Also exclusively posted on the website. 

Winter Palace tidbits

The people of Pyeongchang, particularly Gyeoulchon (literally “winter village”), the village adjacent to the palace, adore the queen. 

We’ve had reports that Their Majesties had excursions to the village, but if smartphones ended up capturing photos and videos, the villagers are being very possessive about them.

I suppose I’ll just have to visit to see any photos. Probably framed, I’m certain! 

We’ve heard talk of the king going to a public sauna. Now THIS is a crime for being undocumented in photographs, although I understand Corea’s men just sweat through their shirts instead of taking them off. 

I wonder if it was connected to the king being spotted several times running around the winter palace? Why? Photo below! 

We’ve also heard talk of the queen and several ladies having a moonlight sleigh ride. Why do these things happen when I’m not there? 

This time, the armed forces of Corea didn’t deploy (like they did when the queen was lost in Seoul-- see our report here) but light flooded the palace and Gyeoulchon, and the Air Forces have been called to assist. 

Introducing Soryeong (Major) Kim Jeong-han, who’s in charge of the ground combat force and military police under the Corean Air Force securing Their Majesties. 

In this photo, holding the gold plaque from Corean Century Awards for Excellence in the Armed Forces, which he received in 2019. 

We did get several delicious photos! Some from the villages, and some from the Royal Public Affairs Office. 

Go here for our report on the queen’s accident in November, which led to a shakeup in Corean laws and an old family going into exile. 

From the Royal Public Affairs Office: Her Majesty being shown Pyeongchang’s wildlife monitoring and preservation statistics for the winter.  

From an unverified source, circulating online: The queen spotted in Gyeoulchon

From an unverified source, circulating online: The photographer is apparently enamored of the queen’s face. I am, too. She’s flawless. 

On that note, while the villagers are keeping their royal photos to themselves, they did post about chatting with the queen. She asked about their children, their work, and they’ve asked her about her skincare. 

YES! Thank you, Gyeoulchon! 

Reports have been consistent that the queen’s answer to questions like this was washing her face with soap and applying moisturizer and sunblock. She also drinks a lot of water. 

I would love to get my hands on the queen’s dresser for a more specific dish on what the queen uses. Her Majesty’s soap is probably not like what we mere mortals know as soap. We have heard rumors of the organic, palace-milled soaps, formulated by the Lady Hae Soo, harking back to the reign of Gwangjong of Goryeo. 

Speaking of kings… here’s His Majesty looking very… well, fit, demonstrating the benefits of a fitness regimen. 

Ajhummas have told me that there’s a very archaic tradition of giving your wife your sweaty shirt to give her strength for her labor. 

Well, the king always looks like he smells good, even in this sweaty photo. And as someone who has reported on events attended by the royals, this author can honestly report he does smell good. 

And I think this is as good a place as any to end these tidbits. More to come soon! 

---------------

CoreaNews is back. Posting all the pent up posts. So sorry for being inactive. Hello, new followers! I’m more active on Twitter @CoreaStories, but also not much. I’m so awful with social. But I do reply there (takes me some time), and I’m still writing. I will finish these. Everything is outlined. Work just bit me in posterior hard. :) Check on CoreaStories on AO3 and Wattpad too. 

With very fond thanks to @di-elle​ for the image edits. 

Bonus points for everyone spotting the references to other K-dramas I've watched since I last updated. :) 

[coreastories]

Corea News Digest

A list of all the current updates on the world’s favorite young royals, the King and Queen of Corea. Check this post regularly for new editions, darlings! 

Modern Royals: Meet Tae-Eul, the Mysterious Queen of Corea

Modern Royals: A glimpse into the private residence of the king and queen of Corea (updated with newly released photos)

Modern Royals: Queens Day Q&A About the Queen of Corea

Modern Royals: The protocol of touch 

Modern Royals: 7 Times the Queen of Corea stole our hearts with her smile

Royals Spotted: Is that the King and Queen of Corea?!

Royals Spotted: Queen’s Unbreakable Sword Has Insta! 

Royal Scandal: Proof of the king and queen of Corea’s utter besottedness with each other

A Royal Twin! Meet the Most Honorable Lady Seo-gyeong

Royal Exclusive: the King of Corea bares his heart in a flash interview

Royal Exclusive: Their Majesties are sweet as cake and you need strong tea for this

Love in the Royal Kitchen: A scrumptious glimpse into Their Majesties' routine + a juicy reveal?!

Own A Royal Flat! The King and Queen of Corea in adorable photoshoot for a cause

Royal Triangle? Gong Shin will buy your house and touch your queen

Royal Panic: The queen was lost--and found--in Seoul

Royal Twinkle: The king and queen of Corea have a sweet secret, don’t they? 

The Royal Guard: Elite and formidable and just as soft for their king and queen

Happy Queens Day! The king's cake, the queen's portraits, and a stunning photograph

Queens Day Festival - First Day: The king and queen were late because... shenanigans

Queens Day Festival Recap: Where is the queen?!

Palace Announcement: WE HAVE A ROYAL BABY!

Royal Wedding: We FINALLY have wedding crumbs

Royal Baby’s Fierce Circle: The Queen, Her Majesty’s OB, and the PM

Modern Royals: 10 Times the King and Queen made ahjummas ugly-cry over their romance

The Corean Awards: A reunion of the royal love triangle

Romance and Rowing: The 2020 Rowing Competition for the Children's Cancer Fund

International Day for Climate Action, Daesang Medical Group, and Queenly Impatience

Modern Royals: The queen bares her heart about her new project, her queenship, and the king

Outstanding Royals: The King's Birthday

Outstanding Royals: The King's annual support and promotion for Adoption Awareness Month

The Queen of Corea stuns in London

A Dark Day for Corea (continues with The Heartbeat)

Queen in recovery, villain in prison (follows the Heartbeat)

Corea Fiction 

Inside Joke (Standalone, canon) 

That Situation (Standalone)

The Conversation (HEA With Queen; Read after Corea News: The protocol of touch and The Most Honorable Lady Seo-gyeong)

The First Friday (Standalone, canon)

The Morning After (Standalone, canon)

That bastard, Gong Shin (spinoff for Corea News Own A Royal Flat and Royal Triangle)

Three Hours for Chicken (Companion to Corea News Royal Panic)

Seo-ryeong vs Lady Noh (Companion to Three Hours for Chicken)

The Thirteenth Rule

Favorite Color (snippet)

His Majesty's Favorite Color (full-length)

The Queen's Horse

The Towelette

The Clock

The Talk

Little Bean: Mrs Jang’s Advice

Little Bean: Lady Noh's Tea

Pieces of Paper

The Morning Before

The Ribbon

The Queen's Dresser

The Heartbeat

RPF 

A Ride Along the River (inspired by July 2)

A Drive Around the Coast (Inspired by July 13)

[coreastories]

The Winter Palace 1

Read here: Days and Nights of Forever Part 19

By insistent public demand (lol), the continuation of The Heartbeat. 

Their days and nights in Gyeoulgungjeon. A babymoon in the Corean Alps.

Like all one-shots in Days and Nights, this stands alone, but best with:

Corea News: The Queen of Corea stuns in London

Corea News: A dark day for Corea 

The Heartbeat (duh) 

Corea News: Queen in recovery, villain in jail

Corea News: Corean Awards Night

Little Bean Part 3: A Gift From the Koos

Happy new year! 

I realized I had enough to release so I polished these bits and here they are. 

I feel bad that this has been in draft since September. For those who aren’t on Twitter where I’ve whined about it in replies to people, my work came back with a vengeance in September, and then kept going until the insane holiday rush of Thanksgiving and BFCM and then Christmas. I think I've moaned about this here, though, right? 

I’m thankful for the work, but man. 

I went full hermit for Christmas. I only talked to a few people, and all the Christmas greetings from family and friends are still unread in my inbox. I slept a lot. 

Do let me know if you’re still there and still enjoying this. I put a lot of effort into these. Probably too much, but it’s good practice. 

A few notes: 

Lady Han is Youn Yuhjung in my head. KGE’s grandma in Canola.

The cats are ragdolls. My dream cats. They’re so sweet and they’re gorgeous.

Tae-eul’s cape is inspired by R.E.D Valentino capes so look those up for the visual, but Tae-eul’s is custom-made by the Royal Wardrobe.

The pajama top outfit is inspired by THIS. I love KGE in jeans. Images of KGE in jeans from @/love_goeun on IG

DO NOT take any of the clinical advice here as advice. This is a work of fiction, and while I did research what I mentioned here, this is fiction. Consult your therapist (or OB-gyn-- I feel silly for having to include this one).

Winter Palace 2 of 2 coming soonish!