Blooming even in the mud - Chapter 81

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

Blooming Even in the Mud, Chapter 81

“Uncle Seog-seong, I heard some people took you away, what’s going on? And who are those people outside?”
The young man who was about to enter froze upon seeing Yoo Seo-hwa sitting opposite Cui Shecheng. His gaze shifted between the two before locking onto Yoo Seo-hwa, his face turning pale as if he had realized something.
“What is it? What’s going on?”
A young woman holding a child’s hand peeked out from behind the young man’s arm.
“Don’t tell me they’ve come to arrest you, Uncle…!”
Gyeong Won-yeong’s pupils dilated completely as she looked at the man who looked just like her. The first emotion that blanked her face was disbelief, which was soon swept away by astonishment and sheer joy. Her parted lips trembled faintly, and her strengthless legs buckled.
Gyeong Won-ui was not the only one astounded. Gyeong Won-ui also froze white before barely managing to squeeze out a voice.
“…Won-yeong, is it really you, Won-yeong?”
“B-Brother…”
“Won-yeong.”
“Brother!”
Which of the siblings was the first to run forward?
Enough time had passed for a young girl to become an adult woman. The brother had been sentenced to execution, and the sister had become a government office slave, parting ways without even being able to say goodbye.
It had been a long stretch of years where each believed the other was dead.
Running into Gyeong Won-ui’s embrace in a single breath, Gyeong Won-yeong sobbed uncontrollably, pouring out the sorrow she had swallowed for all those long years.
“You’re alive, Brother. I really… I thought I’d never see you again in this lifetime.”
“You were safe too.”
“Mother… Mother passed away. She couldn’t even drink a single cup of warm water at the end… Her eyes wouldn’t close, so with my own hands…”
“…I see. Thank you for staying alive, Won-yeong.”
“I just wanted to drop dead too, but…”
Gyeong Won-yeong wailed, her face drenched with tears and mucus like a child. The words wandering randomly in all directions without coherence were the immense resentment and sorrow she had kept bottled up inside.

Eulsu could not bear to keep watching his wife crying in her brother’s arms. A bitter taste lingered in his mouth.
‘I knew she was suffering because of her family, but…’
He had not known she was hurting to this extent. The long sorrow that overflowed like a burst dam was something of which he had only known the surface shell.
Even though he noticed she often stayed awake through the night consumed by grief, he believed time would be the medicine. He believed that if he just loved and cherished Gyeong Won-yeong so she would rely on him more, it would be enough.
That was his mistake.
At the very least, he should have tried to understand her deep-seated sorrow. He should have tried to embrace her pain.
‘I was truly acting worse than a beast.’
Yet, what had he been trying to do? Because of his wicked greed to make Gyeong Won-yeong rely on him, he had even tried to keep her brother’s survival a secret.
He had committed an irreversible sin against Gyeong Won-yeong. A profound sense of regret washed over him.
After crying for a long time, Gyeong Won-yeong finally calmed down, wiping her tears and forcing a smile.
“Brother, this is the man who saved me. He is my husband now. If it weren’t for him, I might have really died five years ago.”
“Thank you for saving my sister.”
Gyeong Won-ui, slightly surprised by the word ‘husband’, offered a faint smile. His face flushing with shame, Eulsu mumbled and bowed his head.
“Dong-i, come here.”
Gyeong Won-yeong picked up and comforted Dong-i, whose eyes had grown wide with surprise from watching his mother cry.
“Dong-i, this person is your mother’s brother. You must greet your maternal uncle.”
“Hello.”
Sucking on his finger, Dong-i gave a polite bow. A short gasp escaped Gyeong Won-ui’s mouth.
“He looks exactly like you did when you were young.”
“Haha, doesn’t he look more like his father? Look here, his nose is identical to his father’s.”
When Gyeong Won-ui reached out his hand, Dong-i giggled and tightly grabbed his finger. Even though the hand was covered in saliva, it was not unpleasant at all.
“You have made a family.”
While he had been consumed by hatred and revenge, even letting his beloved’s trust warp, Gyeong Won-yeong had loved and built a family.
If it hadn’t been for Yoo Seo-hwa, he would never have been able to harbor love in his heart for the rest of his life.
“Oh, right, Brother. Is Her Imperial Highness the Princess safe?”
When Gyeong Won-yeong innocently asked about Yoo Seo-hwa’s well-being, Gyeong Won-ui could not find an answer.

“In my heart, I want to take you with me, but…”
Gyeong Won-yeong gently caught hold of Gyeong Won-ui’s reluctant hand.
“Since I am a dead person on the mainland, it’s safer for me to stay here. I have a family too. Please finish your business first, Brother.”
“Will it be alright for us to be apart?”
“Of course. I’ve waited for over five years, so why wouldn’t I be able to wait a little longer?”
Instead, Gyeong Won-yeong smiled maturely, as if she were the older sister.
Even as time passed, his appearance was starkly different from hers, as his heart remained trapped in that imperial prison from five years ago. Gyeong Won-ui also carved a small smile.
Yesterday, they missed the timing for the boat to depart, so they stayed one more night on Eogu Island. Somehow, rumors had spread in the meantime, and the villagers were whispering while peeking toward the port.
“Are they trustworthy people? Is there no fear of them reporting to the government office?”
“They are good people who even believed the ambiguous lie that I had amnesia. Do not worry too much. I am a resident of this village now.”
“I will surely clear Father’s false charges and resolve your grievances as well.”
“I will be believing in you, Brother.”
Lingering reluctantly because the departure was bittersweet, Gyeong Won-ui finally let go of his sister’s hand and boarded the boat. Standing side by side with her family, Gyeong Won-yeong waved her hand until the boat became a distant dot and disappeared.
Even after Gyeong Won-yeong could no longer be seen, Gyeong Won-ui stood blankly at the stern of the boat.
Cui Shecheng, who had kept his mouth shut the entire time, murmured quietly.
“I am truly sorry. In my desire to save my own child, I did not realize that tears of blood were flowing from the eyes of others.”
It was an apology that had not come out even when confessing his cooperation in the perjury. Blinded by his son’s illness, Cui Shecheng finally realized what kind of deed he had committed.
Staring at Cui Shecheng for a moment, Gyeong Won-ui turned his head away.
“I cannot forgive you.”
“…I fully understand. How could you forgive your parents’ enemy? I will surely pay for my crimes.”
“That is one reason, but.”
Gyeong Won-ui laced his guilt into a sigh.
“It is because I am not an innocent person either.”
He pressed his hand against his chest. Along with the bundle of papers received from Cui Shecheng, there was the heart he had received from Gyeong Won-yeong.
There were many things to do on the mainland. First, he had to meet Yoo Seo-hwa.

The flow of time was too sluggish. Yoo Seo-hwa waited day in and day out for new news to be delivered.
“Since the General also took cavalrymen with him, it will take time for the courier horse to catch up. I will tell them to pursue as quickly as possible.”
Even hearing Wang Jeong-mun’s explanation did not dispel her anxiety.
‘Even if word reaches them, how will they find Won-yeong? It’s something from five years ago. I should have checked immediately upon receiving the letter from Moksa Han.’
It was also a worry that a young girl with no way to prove her identity had been dropped alone into the world. What dangerous days she must have spent.
‘Perhaps already… No, let’s not think like that. She must be alive and well.’
How many days passed soaked in fretfulness? Finally, the courier horse returned.
“Miss! It’s a letter from the master!”
Mang-a, who had been just as anxious as Yoo Seo-hwa, came running in a single breath. She quickly took it and opened the letter.
Reading it down rapidly, Yoo Seo-hwa let out a sigh of relief and sank into her chair. Kkot-bun asked subtly.
“What does it say? Does it say he’s tracking down the young miss’s whereabouts?”
“…He found her.”
“Huh?”
“He says he has already found her. He said she was living quietly on a small island.”
Her tension melting away, Yoo Seo-hwa murmured weakly. Kkot-bun and Mang-a were also overjoyed as if it were their own affair.
It was half a day later when Gyeong Won-ui, who had sent the courier horse ahead, returned to the private residence.
Rushing immediately to Yoo Seo-hwa’s quarters, Gyeong Won-ui hesitated in front of the door. Although he had come blindly with an urgent heart wanting to convey it even a moment sooner, wasn’t Yoo Seo-hwa avoiding him right now?
‘I should go back and organize it in a letter for her.’
As he tried to turn away while hiding his bitter heart, Kkot-bun and Mang-a stepped out from inside.
“The miss has been waiting for you continuously.”
The two bowed politely and withdrew.
“May I enter?”
“Come in.”
Inside the room sat Yoo Seo-hwa, looking as though they were meeting after a truly long time. The last thing he had captured in his eyes was her emaciated, gaunt appearance.
‘Thank goodness. She has gained a lot of flesh.’
Although not as much as before, she had put on some weight to a good degree, looking pleasant to the eye. Perhaps due to the excitement from the confirmation of Gyeong Won-yeong’s survival, a rosy color also swirled in her complexion.
As much as they hadn’t seen each other, he wanted to share many affectionate stories that couldn’t be conveyed through letters. He wanted to hold her hand, kiss her skin, and whisper his feelings of yearning.
Suppressing all his longing, Gyeong Won-ui brought up the time of the missing Gyeong Won-yeong instead.
“Five years ago, there was a young man who saved Won-yeong in Ganam Province.”
Opening his mouth like that, he continued the long story. The motive behind Eulsu and Gyeong Won-yeong’s meeting, their life on Eogu Island, their new family, Gyeong Won-yeong’s child, and finally, the reunion of the siblings they managed to have.
A time harboring a quiet but simple happiness overflowed gently.
Nodding her head or uttering low exclamations while listening intently, Yoo Seo-hwa gathered both hands in front of her chest. The corners of her eyes twitched faintly.
“Thank goodness… Truly, thank goodness she’s safe…”
Gyeong Won-yeong’s survival was a joy to Yoo Seo-hwa, and a source of gratitude.
Watching such a Yoo Seo-hwa, Gyeong Won-ui recalled the realization he had felt while talking through the night with Gyeong Won-yeong on Eogu Island. Perhaps what Yoo Seo-hwa needed was…
‘Wasn’t it the meaning that the suffering of the past five years was not in vain?’
Gyeong Won-ui handed the bundle of papers he brought to Yoo Seo-hwa. Upon checking the bundle of papers, Yoo Seo-hwa’s eyes grew wide.

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