Blooming even in the mud - Chapter 68

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Chapter 68: Blooming Even in the Mud

Upon hearing that she had supposedly sent her on the errand, Deok-sun jumped to her feet and denied it vehemently.
“Me, Master? Absolutely not! I swear to Heaven, no such thing ever happened. Besides, all the banquet preparations were completed the day before.”
“B-but they definitely said it was a message from Deok-sun, Master. I-I am certain that is what I heard. That there weren’t enough hanging scrolls to place at the banquet tables…”
“Who was the person who delivered that message?”
“It was a slave named Kkeoksoe.”
Gyeong Won-ui signaled to the Butler with his eyes. The Butler quickly bowed his head.
“I shall capture the wretch immediately!”
However, the man had long since vanished without a trace. Not a single person had seen him since yesterday evening. It was clearly a planned case of arson. It was meant to kill Yoo Seo-hwa.
Gyeong Won-ui immediately hired slave hunters and distributed a wanted poster of Kkeoksoe. He also selected separate servants from the residence and ordered them to search the Capital City.
There was someone who had thoroughly planned to erase her from this world. Rage boiled within him.
Yet, what he could least forgive was the fact that he too had once resolved to kill her. A terrible self-loathing welled up, making him sick to his stomach.

The rumor that a fire had broken out at the Gyeong Clan Residence spread quickly. Because the fire was severe enough to almost entirely burn down the three-story pavilion, many people outside the residence had witnessed it.
No lives were lost, and since it was spring, a season when the weather became dry, no one found the fire suspicious—except Chu Se-gu.
This was because a rumor was circulating that Gyeong Won-ui had rescued a slave from the scene of the fire. According to what he had heard from Chu Na-yeon, hadn’t the reason for the annulment also been because of Princess Sukjeong?
‘That slave couldn’t possibly be the imperial princess, could she?’
If the slave Gyeong Won-ui rescued really was Princess Sukjeong, and if Princess Sukjeong happened to be the only one in the inner house that should have been empty, and if the fire happened to break out at that exact time… If that fire was arson…
‘Who would be the most suspicious person!’
He felt the blood drain completely from his face. It was the sort of thing he himself might do out of vengeance, and among his children, there was one who resembled his temperament the most.
Chu Se-gu urgently commanded that Chu Na-yeon be brought to him.
“Why did you call for me when I haven’t even fully recovered yet?”
Chu Na-yeon, who had been using her illness as an excuse to skip her morning greetings to Chu Se-gu the entire time, arrived reluctantly.
“Have you heard the news that a fire broke out at the Gyeong Clan Residence yesterday?”
“So I heard.”
“In my opinion, it seems to be arson, not an accidental fire.”
“Is that so?”
“What do you think?”
“I do not know. But what does that have to do with me? Now I am merely an outsider who has nothing to do with the Xichang Gyeong Clan.”
The way his daughter lied so composedly without a single change in her expression truly resembled him perfectly. Chu Se-gu was dumbfounded.
“Are you intending to lie even to your own father?!”
When he slammed the table and shouted fiercely, only then did a crack appear in Chu Na-yeon’s expression.
“What kind of answer do you wish for me to give?”
“If you were going to commit a deed, you should have done it properly! Do they not say Princess Sukjeong survived perfectly fine!”
Chu Na-yeon bit her lower lip hard.
“If only Gyeong Won-ui hadn’t stepped in, it would have succeeded.”
“Look at the result! The result! Besides, doing something so sloppily without weighing the consequences is worse than not doing it at all!”
“You were the one who taught me, Father.”
“What?”
“Eradication must be sought for any element that threatens one’s personal safety. Do not swallow your resentment; repay it. Those were all your words, Father. And as long as Yoo Seo-hwa has stolen my place, I will never be at peace.”
Dumbfounded, Chu Se-gu was lost for words.
It was true that he had doted on this daughter, who resembled him perfectly, unlike his somewhat lacking sons. There had been many times when he sat her on his lap and told her various stories about how to navigate life.
But this was not learning her father’s shrewdness properly; it was merely poking at the bushes clumsily and doing nothing but provoking the wrath of the great tiger hidden within.
“Did you forget that I told you to wait for an appropriate time when no one would suspect me?! How long has it even been since the annulment!”
“When would that appropriate time ever come for me!”
Chu Na-yeon shouted suddenly and stood up from her chair.
“No matter how late, before this year passes, I am to be married off to the Lao family! If that happens, I will truly be stuck in the inner house unable to do anything at all!”
“Talking back to your father until the very end, claiming you did well!”
Slap!
A sharp, cracking sound tore through the air. Chu Na-yeon staggered, cupping her cheek with her palm.
Even though she had been struck hard enough that her lip was torn and bleeding, Chu Na-yeon’s gaze did not waver, leaving Chu Se-gu speechless. In the past, he had lamented that it would have been better if his sons had been born with Chu Na-yeon’s mettle.
Not anymore. If the stubbornness and venom that did not even recognize what was wrong belonged to his heir, Chu Sim-yang, the Chu Clan would have been ruined long ago.
“I will not waste words. Tell me in detail how you committed the arson.”
“I bribed a few slaves at the Gyeong Clan Residence a long time ago. Among them, a fellow named Kkeoksoe seemed useful.”
While her expression hardened fiercely, Chu Na-yeon candidly confessed the circumstances.
Approaching Kkeoksoe to threaten Yoo Seo-hwa, taking his younger brother hostage to instigate murder once she learned of her deep relationship with Gyeong Won-ui, and even procuring the oil used for the arson for Kkeoksoe.
“Does the slave you used know your identity?”
The responding voice hesitated for the first time.
“Since the starting point for bribing the slaves at the Gyeong Clan Residence was the slaves my maidservant became acquainted with at Beopjisa, he might know.”
“You foolish girl! As if circumstantial evidence wasn’t enough, you left room for them to catch your tail!! What happened to that fellow Kkeoksoe!”
“I gave him funds to stay hidden for a while.”
“You should have silenced him by murder!”
“His younger brother is in my hands, so he will not be able to betray me.”
“In the face of one’s own life, things like familial affection are utterly useless!”
“I will keep your teachings in mind, Father, and I will not forget to silence them by murder in the future.”
“…….”
Having lost even the words to speak to Chu Na-yeon, who kept her head held high until the very end, Chu Se-gu waved his hand.
“Get out of my sight this instant and do not take a single step outside the inner house! I will send someone later, so convey Kkeoksoe’s appearance in detail!”
“I shall do so. Rest easy, Father.”
Even after Chu Na-yeon withdrew, Chu Se-gu could not contain his anger, panting as he slammed the innocent table.
“Not a single thing goes right! I haven’t even been able to deal with Cui Shecheng yet!”

Gyeong Won-ui, who was certain it was arson, also easily felt the shadow of the true culprit behind Kkeoksoe. There could be no one else who harbored enough resentment against Yoo Seo-hwa to instigate her murder, given her gentle nature.
Under the terrifying aura of Gyeong Won-ui’s direct interrogation, the slaves who were acquainted with Kkeoksoe racked their memories and spilled everything. From that, a single figure emerged.
It was Chu Na-yeon’s maidservant, whom they had come to know at Beopjisa.
‘It is either Chu Na-yeon or the Minister of State Affairs. It was my mistake not to foresee that they would resort to any means necessary.’
It was his fault for not cutting things off decisively the moment marriage talks with Chu Na-yeon began. Furthermore, fundamentally, it was his fault for treating Yoo Seo-hwa as a slave.
Everything was his fault.
If not for him, Yoo Seo-hwa would never have been in danger. She would never have tried to embrace death.
‘I was blinded by the facade of him being my father’s friend and failed to see the inner nature of the man. I must dig into the surroundings of the Minister of State Affairs.’
Although he had failed to capture Kkeoksoe, he was almost certain of the true culprit. In his heart, he wanted to lead his private soldiers and strike the Chu Clan’s residence this very instant.
The reason he did not was because of the one-in-a-million possibility that the true culprit might be someone else. If the true culprit who put Yoo Seo-hwa in danger slipped away while his eyes were turned toward Chu Se-gu and Chu Na-yeon, it would become a matter of lifelong regret.
“I will surely catch the culprit behind this. There will absolutely never be another foolish instance of putting you in danger again.”
“…….”
Yoo Seo-hwa did not answer, nor did she look at him with her long eyelashes lifted. Because facing her black eyes felt like something from the ancient past, Gyeong Won-ui swallowed a heavy groan.
His reason, which had been muddied as if stained with blood while vowing revenge, finally awoke clearly once Yoo Seo-hwa’s death was etched into his mind. As his mind cleared, he saw what he had ignored. He heard what he had not listened to.
The hardships of Yoo Seo-hwa, who had silently walked the thorny path alone, and her screams, which would never have leaked past her lips.
Hovering over the back of Yoo Seo-hwa’s hand, which was neatly resting on top of the blanket, Gyeong Won-ui withdrew his hand without even brushing against her.
He did not possess the right to caress her rough hand.
“I suppose I do not even have the right to guard your side while you are fast asleep, Your Highness. Yet, if I do not see your face, I cannot endure the anxiety.”
After the fire, Yoo Seo-hwa’s expression as she remained unopened to consciousness was serene.
“Since I have prepared a herbal decoction to counteract the fiery energy and toxins that permeated her body due to the fire, it is likely not a physical issue. Her pulse is also normal.”
“Then why has she still not recovered consciousness?”
The Doctor hesitated before asking cautiously.
“By any chance, did the patient suffer a great shock recently? For instance, a shock severe enough to make her resolve to end her own life.”
“…….”
“Perhaps the patient herself is refusing to wake up. It is a symptom that occurs, albeit very rarely.”

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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