The Love They Never Had: The Nam Mansion

Chapter 76: Peullei (Play)

As I made my way back to my bedroom, I was confronted by both my colleague who just wouldn't leave us alone and the concubine who looked like she was beginning to loose all composure. "Is Yeon ok? Did I tire her out? Can I apologise...." "Come over here for a second, let me talk to you." "Excuse me?" "Your pursuit of the girl has frightened her. Yes, she has my father's protection, but she is in fact a penniless orphan girl with epilepsy. Marriage isn't an option for her at all..." "What? Epilepsy? Isn't she a noblewoman...?" "I felt it was appropriate to dress her up that way as a favour for her. I have known the girl since she was little, and she does a good job of keeping me company, so I decided to reward her." "Company? You mean...do you intend to take her as your concubine? Have you...already..." "She has been living under my roof for two years already, what do you think?" I could only smirk in reply, already imaging Yeon's reaction if she ever knew about this conversation and how cute she was when she got angry. "No...no way, she isn't like those opportunistic maids...there is no way a pure girl like her would do that before marriage...not her...I have even asked my father to go and make a proposal this week..." "Yeon is the same girl who chased me around the village growing up. She isn't opportunistic, but she has been in love with me for over a decade now, so of course I am different for her." It was actually quite pitiful to see this man looking as upset as he was, but what on earth was he thinking? Everyone knew how she felt about me, so what on earth made other men thought that they had a chance with her? Even if her brother did find a way to take her back and away from me for a while, I knew that she would still always be faithful to me and only for me.

"You...you wouldn't consider...giving her up, maybe?" He had no chance of knowing what the answer to that question was, as he started screaming in pain the next minute when I had punched him square in the face and step on his neck, almost breaking it if the concubine hadn't stopped me. I completely forgot about her even being there until she screamed so dramatically that I had to cover her big mouth with my hand in case she woke up my entire household. "What on earth are you doing? Do you want to wake up my father?" "You...why did you...." "For how much longer are you going to interfere in my personal affairs?" "I have something to ask you about that..." 

She had the damned nerve to drag me into my bedroom of all places without a hint of shame at all. I tried to deter her, but nothing was working at all, so I had to really bite my tongue and hope that this ended soon so I can re-plan my work in the palace so I can have more time to watch out for Seo Hwi. "Let me pour you some tea first before we continue. I have made it myself for the very first time just for you, so..." "you must let me speak." I had no idea what the hell was wrong with the women around me, but they had all started acting like wild animals that were hard to control, and even Yeon herself wasn't an exception. But I needed to nip this woman's fantasies in the bud before she took over my entire life. Her plans for me were far too obvious not to see, and over my dead body was I going to let somebody else control me as my father did.

"May I ask why you must persist in meeting a low inspector general such as myself instead of a noble man with better standing?" "Because I do not care for your standing or your past..." I really could not help but scoff at that last statement; the way that she kept staring at Yeon, knowing that she was a lowborn and the stories of what she did to commoners to even stood too close to her were legendary. "The tea is going cold..." "you must be aware of my enmity with your family. And his intense dislike of my father? Your new connection with my family must be sowing discord between yourself and your older family, am I right? And unfilial piety is even considered to be a crime worthy of death, you are aware of this, are you not? We aren't even married..." "So we should change that, shouldn't me? You must use your nephew..." "My nephew?" "...to sway your father. Having an heir must be better than having nothing at all..." "Having an heir that isn't mine from a family of nobility that had just fallen from grace will serve me nothing! That child will be neglected almost as badly as i was." "That is not entirely correct." "What do you mean?" "I am now aware of your intentions for my family when you took me in. But you were wrong when you said that the entire family fell. The Big Madame's sister has returned to this village and she is willing to support us through this baby. Her husband still works at the palace court and the Big Madame's husband is scrambling for support ever since that day his wife killed his career. He was already a very prominent person, he just lacks a wife. So..." "Where exactly are you going with this?" "We can always marry Yeon off to him, don't you think?"