Body & Soul 🇰🇷 Part 2

Chapter 199: Seon-Ho/ Seo Yeon

I had been going out of my mind with my daughter who seemed be in and out of recovery. I had to wait for the Royal family to come back to the palace. I kept my daughter as close to me as possible but somehow Nam-Kyu seemed to be intent on harming her! I had lost count of the number of times I had come home to my girl either throwing up from eating bad food or half-starved. I could only feed her and myself from inns so many times until eventually I had to find ways to secretly take her to her mother...who had now moved in with Hyun-Ki of all people! I could see through her little plan right away...and the fact that I wasn't completely sober was not helping me at all, but of course she knew that. The fact that she was...helping this bastard with his family affairs made me so angry that she herself provoked me into visiting when I could under Nam-Kyu's nose. I kept a close eye on her behaviour as I spent most of my time with my children. She went our of her way to take care of his parents the same way she used to care for me, settle down his children, keep his concubines on a short leash whilst Hyo-Sonn just whither away more than usual in palace, forgotten by everybody as that bastard watched her every step with widened eyes...and I couldn't do anything about it. Hyuk was still a little more quiet than usual but at least he talked to me again, although he ignored everybody else. We had practically picked up where we had left off, whilst Hana only seemed to be healthier when her mother tended to her.

But then strange things kept on happening with Hana and Nam-Kyu, the more I distanced myself from her, the more our of control she got. Every time I left them alone my girl got sick, Nam-Kyu became just as...obsessively jealous over my daughter just like she had been over my wife. I kept catching her make comments under her breathe whenever my daughter was in a crowd; about her talents, her looks and her popularity that kept pissing me off. How could a grown woman continuously compare herself with a 10 year old girl? The very thought of it was sickening; in every praise my daughter continued to get Nam-Kyu tried to put her down, but Hana always had an answer ready just like her mother. Even Chul was acting the same, he was staying with us until he fully recovered as well but he seemed to be getting...weak under her care. He was lacking in his training, he seemed to be eating less. I felt like I couldn't even answer Hwi when he came storming around and had a rowing match with Nam-Kyu of all people. Chul had to almost physically wrestle his father away from her before I got there in time but he refused to leave Hana's side for some reason. They were getting pretty close now and hard to tear apart; he watched over her like a hawk, followed her instructions, barely left her alone when she was feeling well enough in the palace and always waited for her after classes had ended...in fact I couldn't help but notice how protective he was getting to her. Truly in my heart I adored my nephews, not just because they were my best friend's sons, but because they just reminded me of how we were back in our youths when I only had the Seo's to rely on. Geon was more like his father, although he was such brighter but Chul reminded me of how...bot-blooded I used to be, how bold I used to be when everyone around me tried to tear me down. He knew how to stand up for himself at such a young age...in fact there wasn't much difference between himself and Hyuk. I started to get the feeling that something...could be blooming between them. God knows, Yeon pointed it out enough to me excitedly and I always shrugged it off like she was out of my mind. But now they my family was basically falling apart...who else could I trust with my baby girl than Chul?

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I had truly raised my children well; and that was clear to all who had met them. Now, even in their young ages I was able to rely on them when I needed to. My baby Hwan was a little terror in his father's absence, so I had my hands full with him and I decided to follow the twins lead's in their little plan to reunite our family. Hana was going to stay with her father whereas Hyuk was going to make our situation known to the one person who could provoke my husband into snapping out of his stupor and bring us back home himself.

Soon enough I ran into Hyun-Ki in the market on my first trip out with my baby who was starting to give everyone else a hard time unlike the twins. He had 'coincidentally' heard all about what had happened to us and kept inviting me to stay over at his place with my son, who had basically dragged me out of the hideout and dragged me along the market by my hand. He not only agreed immediately on my behalf, but he also asked if his cousin Geon could stay with us as well. I raised my eyebrow at him but he just squeezed my hand and I just rolled up my eyes in response. Before I could get a word in edgewise he had already drawn up a carriage for us...even a couple of luggage bags! I couldn't help but to laugh quietly about my husband's reaction...before my laughter came to an end when I remembered how...capable he was...and soon enough within the hour I was on my way to the Bong family once again after promising Hui-Jee that I would look after her baby Geon as if he was my own. It hadn't gone unnoticed how inseparable they had become; it was usually Hyuk and Chul you couldn't tear apart but I had to trust that the twins knew what they were doing as I had raised them I guessed.

I couldn't help but notice how unusually excited these boys were getting; I had always heard that the Bong family had been reduced to town gossip due to my husband's actions, so I could only image the gossip these children had learnt, even from the palace. I tried to look stern at them for the first time in my life but all I had done was reduce them into fits of laughter. I had never been strict with children in my life, in fact I always acted like I was one of them, it was always my husband who was a disciplined in his parenting style. But as we drew closer and closer to the Bong mansion, I missed my husband dreadfully.