When the Black Moon Rises - Chapter 74
Chapter 74
Following their lady's orders, the three sisters only added the most basic items like bedding and pillows to Sehwa's room.
It was for the Baek Clan Chancellor who would be sleeping in this room.
The expressions of the three sisters were burning with murderous intent.
"...We absolutely won't let this slide."
"His name is Baek Manyong? Just because he's a Chancellor he thinks he's everything? Looking like a horseshoe attached to a hoof."
"Exactly. No one invited him, yet he comes begging for food and lodging, and then has the audacity to spout nonsense about our household affairs?"
"My Lady, even so, giving him a room seems too much. Should we kill him? Should I just kill him?"
Youngchae, who had been the angriest, added while breathing heavily.
Sehwa, who had been gazing at the garden bathed in warm sunlight, shook her head with a smile.
"No, it's fine. When I can't hold back anymore, I'll kill him myself, so don't get blood on your hands. I'll handle things like that."
"...My Lady."
Youngmu, her expression becoming solemn, approached Sehwa.
"If you truly intend to kill him, just say the word. Today, I'll finish off that half-grown rice grain of a man."
Sehwa laughed once more and pulled Youngmu close by her shoulder.
"Don't worry. I won't let him off easy. I couldn't tolerate him touching me, but he dared to criticize Father - we can't let that pass."
The three sisters' eyes sparkled for a moment.
They immediately rushed forward and knelt before Sehwa.
"A wise decision. I'll put the sack over his head."
When Youngsun offered her suggestion first, Youngmu shook her head.
"A sack is too comfortable. We should bind his hands and feet, gag him, then cover his face with a wet cloth pierced with needle holes. He'll somehow be able to breathe so he won't die, but he'll struggle in agony all night."
Youngchae pushed her sisters aside as if telling them to move and muttered coldly.
"If you'll permit me, I'll embrace that hateful Baek Clan Chancellor's waist and jump into the lake with him."
Youngchae was someone who could dive deep into the muddy lake to cut lotus roots.
Her words meant she would tie the Chancellor's feet to the lake bottom and leave him there.
"Haha. Alright. I'll definitely ask when needed. By the way, did you look into what I mentioned?"
"Yes, you mean about the Yehwa silk ceremonial robes?"
Sehwa nodded.
The attire Sa Yeonju wore on the day of the Mystic Ruler's banquet was splendid enough to make her appear as the Young Lord's betrothed.
The Yehwa silk used for the outer garment was a Ju Clan specialty, with clearer red colors fetching higher prices when free of blemishes.
The silk Sa Yeonju wore wasn't of that caliber.
Judging by how the embroidery was scattered across the entire ceremonial robe, there must have been yellow weft thread blemishes underneath in various places.
It was a factor that lowered the grade of Yehwa silk.
Nevertheless, it was still far more precious than other silks.
"According to Manager Muk, making Yehwa silk requires many strong hands, but with young mystic clan members being mobilized for the long war, production volume has drastically decreased."
"Even blemished silk is so hard to obtain that there's no need to look for separate buyers. Everything is being supplied to the Mystic Ruler's residence."
"Among those, the Young Lord said he doesn't mind even if there are many flaws, so they're keeping even the batches that would normally be discarded to maintain quality standards."
"The request came from the Young Lord's side, not from the Mystic Ruler's wives?"
"Yes."
"..."
Lady Yeo, who was the Young Lord's mother and the Mystic Ruler's wife, had passed away from illness when the Young Lord was young.
After that, the Mystic Ruler didn't remarry but took eight concubines, simply calling them First Lady, Second Lady, Third Lady...
'Since blemished Yehwa silk requires lots of embroidery, men rarely use it. Especially prideful ones like the Mystic Ruler or Young Lord would never use it.'
Yet it didn't seem likely the Young Lord would try to curry favor with the Eight Ladies by giving them silk.
'Then perhaps, does the Young Lord have a concubine?'
Sehwa's eyes narrowed.
She too had been quite surprised by Sa Yeonju's attire at the banquet.
There was no way the Young Lord would have directly ordered such an elaborate appearance.
Either he entrusted the adornments to someone else, or Sa Yeonju had borrowed that ceremonial robe from somewhere.
If someone else had chosen that splendid attire, then she must already be receiving great enmity from someone.
At banquets attended by the Mystic Ruler, no one but those of the Ju surname could be seated.
Dressing a Sa clan child who should stand by the wall in such splendid clothes was tantamount to a declaration exposing an unruly nature that didn't know its place to all.
'But even if Sa Yeonju didn't know much about the Mystic Ruler's banquets, she must have felt uneasy about wearing such eye-catching red silk.'
So, whoever made her wear those clothes to humiliate her must have convinced her well.
'Who could have done that? I need to figure it out before it interferes with my plans.'
She had traced the source of the silk ceremonial robes to find out, but with everything lumped together at the Mystic Ruler's residence, it wasn't easy to make conjectures.
Just then, a knock at the wooden door, tap tap, broke her train of thought.
It was Baek Giha.
"I have something to say. Could we talk for a moment?"
"Sure."
Before stepping out, Sehwa turned to the three sisters and instructed:
"The Chancellor is a tiger spirit, so his eyes are sharp - put up blackout curtains on every window. He must be tired from the long journey, so he should be able to sleep well at night."
"Yes, My Lady. Should we move the Dragon Spirit Orb that the Mystic Ruler sent to your new room?"
"No. Leave it here today. It has the effect of enhancing spiritual power, so it will help the Chancellor recover from fatigue. Put it at the head of the bed. And..."
After pondering briefly, Sehwa added:
"Find out if the Young Lord has any concubines. If he does, how many and who they are."
After giving her final order, Sehwa followed Baek Giha who was waiting for her and went out the door.
Baek Giha looked around tensely before hiding among the garden's abundant winter jasmine flowers.
"What's wrong? Did something happen? Why are we coming here?"
"I'm worried the Elder might be more upset if he sees me with you. He seems quite angry right now."
"Ah..."
"The Chancellor may be a bit tactless, but he's not a bad person. If you handle him well, he'd give you his liver and gallbladder. So could you perhaps put in a good word that there was no ill intent? For both the Chancellor and me."
"You too? Why you?"
"Well, he might misunderstand that I've been sharing such malicious thoughts about the Ju clan with the Chancellor before."
"I could, but don't worry for now. He's not angry at you or the Chancellor."
"He seemed angry at me though."
"No. Father is angry at himself."
"Himself?"
"Yes. Though unintended, it's a necessary process, so... it's fine for now."
"What do you mean by necessary?"
Sehwa replied with a slight smile:
"Would a Chancellor who meticulously knows the prices of all items really fail to properly grasp the Ju clan's situation and say such things? Rather, I think he said those things to us precisely because he understands the flow and whereabouts of each family's specialty products better than anyone."
"..."
"The Chancellor even knew that Father was living frugally to support the battlefield situation. Despite that, he was truly shocked by the items we're using. He couldn't believe it, so he blurted out those words."
"...That's."
"It means no other household in the Ju clan has ended up like ours. Considering that before the war, our household was second only to the Mystic Ruler in wealth and power, it means only our household properly took responsibility and provided the allocated reparations. No one else. Not even the Mystic Ruler."
"..."
"Father realized that too. That's why he was shocked."
"...Will he be alright?"
"He's lived his entire life for the Mystic Ruler and the clan, so it might feel like the sky is falling as he gradually discovers that old man's true nature."
"..."
"But it will be different from before. As my attitude changes, the Mystic Ruler and Young Lord's attitudes will change drastically too, so Father will realize sooner."
"Still, the heart isn't something that's easily given up."
Baek Giha added in a lonely voice.
"Hatred is also a kind of strong feeling... Like how you see the Young Lord."
"What did you say?"
"Well, he's been in your heart for such a long time."
Sehwa raised her eyebrows at Baek Giha, who was subtly asking about her curiosity regarding concubines.
Really absurd.
"What are you saying? You did this last time too - why do you keep putting that bedbug-eaten chaff of a man next to me? I told you clearly. Getting back together with him? Am I crazy?"
"Chaff?"
"Right? How can you compare? You're much-"
"Much?"
"..."
"Much what?"
"..."
"Much what, I asked."
"Why are you asking? Much... you already know what I mean."
"I don't. Tell me directly."
"Oh forget it. Anyway, about Father's matter, just let him contemplate for a while. Don't interfere."
"Alright. But what were you going to say after 'much'?"
"I said stop it."
Sehwa ran through the winter jasmine flowers in the garden, trying to avoid Baek Giha who kept following and asking.
"What comes after 'much'?"
"Ah, I said stop!"
Before they knew it, their dark expressions had disappeared, and both pairs of elegant eyes were curved into round crescents.
Though it wasn't a full moon, the moon was bright.
Baek Manyong sat quietly by the open window, gazing at the moonlight softly illuminating the night garden.
The sound of insects was pleasant.
However, his inner thoughts were actually in complete turmoil.
This room now belonged to the Ju clan Elder's daughter.
It was already pathetic that he had taken a woman's room, but looking around the room, that young lady's words weren't wrong.
Though all the items in the room seemed to be carefully managed, they weren't of particularly good quality.
To think the Ju clan Elder was living like this.
'But according to my understanding, the quality of items flowing into the Ju clan hadn't changed much compared to before the war.'
In any case, after seeing this room, he seemed to understand what that young lady had meant.
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