Born As The Daughter of a Lowly Concubine - Chapter 97

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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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Born as the daughter of a lowborn concubine.
Chapter 97
“What brings you here?”
“Ah. I’ve come to ask a favor of Your Highness.”
“A favor from you? That’s rare indeed.”
The Crown Prince looked tired as always, so I moved straight to the matter at hand.
“There are not many young boys at Siyeongwon, are there?”
“That’s so, or so I’ve heard.”
“Yet the ones responsible for their education are palace women.”
“And?”
“While strict instruction is good, the Sex Education they receive is weighted toward the feminine perspective……”
“Ahem!”
From various corners within the Gyujanggak came embarrassed coughs.
“We need someone to provide proper instruction in these matters. A virtuous married couple would be ideal—a husband who doesn’t frequent pleasure houses and keeps no concubines. But might such conditions be too difficult to meet?”
“Well……that is to say, what do you gentlemen think?”
“Ahem. Hmm.”
At the Crown Prince’s words, everyone cleared their throats and seemed to mull the matter over carefully.
Some of the younger scholars even raised objections.
“Why would Your Highness think such men are rare?”
“How could young scholars already be lustful at their age?”
“Yet I have seen Confucian scholars harassing and tormenting courtesans in broad daylight, right there in the middle of the street.”
“……!”
Shock washed over everyone’s faces.
Their expressions betrayed it—what madman would commit such a shameful act before a child’s eyes?
“When I tried to stop them, they threatened me. If such scholars are common, is that not a grave concern?”
“Your Highness, how could you compare us to such disreputable characters? We are wounded by the suggestion.”
“Yet they were all boasting of being scions of noble houses.”
“Ahem. Cough.”
Several of the noble-born scholars cleared their throats awkwardly and turned away. If you’re going to react like that, don’t defend them in the first place.
“I thought they would conduct themselves properly, having received considerable moral instruction. But one never knows. Even scholars who have studied extensively behave this way, and if any of them should stray somewhere and do wrong, what becomes of my reputation?”
“Hmm. There is truth in that.”
The Crown Prince, who had been nodding, asked as though remembering something.
“But doesn’t your academy already have a scholar teaching the children?”
“He is still unmarried.”
“Ah……but how did that scholar come to teach there in the first place?”
“Did I not tell you? Once, on the way to Siyeongwon, I found him collapsed on the roadside. He had fallen from heat exhaustion and starvation. I had him brought to Hye Minser for treatment. When he awoke and I questioned him, he said he had come up from the countryside hoping to stay with relatives, but their house had moved and he could not find them. He had no money, so he wandered the streets.”
“So you took him in?”
“When I spoke with him, I found his learning serviceable.”
“……You rarely call anyone’s learning serviceable, do you?”
“He has enough sense not to say anything strange, at least.”
Incidentally, that very scholar was the reason I went wild at Hye Minser back then. At the time, there were many heat exhaustion patients, and we had run short on medicinal supplies.
“Very well. I shall look into the matter.”
“I am grateful, Your Highness.”
The children are getting to an age where mischief is a concern, and it keeps me busy.
But if I leave everything to Abbess Min alone, they’ll all grow reluctant to marry without reason.
Youth being youth, eyes will meet between young men and women. It seemed better to teach them properly than to clumsily prevent something inevitable.
‘Goodness, I wish I could rest.’
But today was when the wives of the Royal Relatives Clan were visiting, so I had to go to Junggung-jeon.
I would have preferred to skip such gatherings, but if I did, rumors would spread, so I had to attend, tiresome as it was.
‘I ought to support the Queen Consort’s position a bit. After all, she is my mother……’
We were both in positions where we had little else to rely upon.
***
Only after the refreshment hour with the ladies of the Royal Relatives Clan was I finally able to return to my Residence.
Today Song Bi had accompanied me to Junggung-jeon, as she had prepared the delicacies to present to the ladies. Though even when going to Junggung-jeon, Song Bi had to wait outside for me to emerge, so there was little benefit for her.
Still, the breads Song Bi made were always delicious, and today too everyone praised her skill, so naturally I relayed their compliments to her.
“With my humble skill, I am satisfied if it brings joy to Your Highness.”
“You work so hard—is there nothing you wish for?”
“Lately Your Highness has been so busy. My only wish is for Your Highness’s good health.”
“You worry too much. Next time, why don’t you come with me? Have you ever been to my Sa-ga?”
“Yes. Seeing the spacious and beautiful palace estate, I could tell how much His Majesty cherishes Your Highness.”
“Song Bi will live there with you too.”
“Hehe. I look forward to it.”
After spending such a warm time with Song Bi, I was heading back when I encountered some unexpected faces.
They weren’t particularly welcome ones, either.
“Papyeong Buwon-gun, Yeongcheon-gun, and Uncle Hwaecheon-gun—is it not you?”
The three men bowed respectfully upon seeing me.
Though they held a higher generational rank than I, my status placed me above them, so we exchanged courtesies with appropriate formality.
“Is this not the young lady herself?”
“We have been remiss in our visits. I trust you have been well?”
“We were just returning from an audience with His Majesty.”
Papyeong Buwon-gun was the maternal uncle of the late Crown Prince Seongwon.
He was not a particularly remarkable man, but neither had he done anything notably wicked. Both the King and the Crown Prince treated him reasonably well out of respect for the memory of the late Crown Prince, yet something about him never quite invited warmth.
As for Yeongcheon-gun—well, I’d seen him once before at the marriage of Song-an, the daughter of his brother Hwaecheon-gun, and I’d noticed then how he’d seemed more concerned with checking up on the groom’s family than worrying about his own niece. Later I heard it was Yeongcheon-gun himself who had arranged the match.
Apparently this had made things awkward between him and his brother Hwaecheon-gun, and from the way he watched me, he seemed to hold me responsible for it.
There’s an old saying: matchmaking done well earns three cups of wine; done poorly, three beatings with a staff. And he’d gone introducing his niece to a bridegroom without proper investigation—so what could one expect?
Finally, Heunghwa-gun was someone with whom I had a somewhat peculiar connection.
I had no direct dealings with him, but the connection had arisen at the funeral of my birth mother, So-i.
Normally, concubines would have their bodies laid out at their natal homes and their funerals conducted there, but So-i had been a foundling with no family to speak of. So arrangements had to be made elsewhere, and it was Heunghwa-gun who stepped forward first, offering his own residence as the place for her funeral rites.
It was only the funeral of a former court maid turned concubine—most others wanted no part of it—but he was the sole royal clansman willing to volunteer. Because of him, while I lay senseless and collapsed, he conducted the rites on my behalf, and for that I owed him a considerable debt.
‘If I end up never marrying, never bearing children, and die young, I imagine I’ll adopt one of Heunghwa-gun’s descendants as my sacrificial heir to perform my rites.’
As a prince, royal male, princess, or princess royal, I am designated a Perpetual Ancestor, which means regardless of the ordinary four-generation rule for offerings, I must have rites performed on my death anniversary each year. Having already received the title of Princess, someone would have to perform my rites eventually.
Truthfully, if the Crown Prince had multiple sons, one of them would be the most likely candidate, but before that comes even appointing a sacrificial heir, there’s not even a sign of the Crown Prince’s son being born yet.
‘And infant mortality is still high, after all.’
The King could appoint one, certainly, but if I lived long enough, it would be by my own choice, and either way, if I were to adopt someone from the Royal Relatives Clan, it seemed clear I’d choose from among Heunghwa-gun’s descendants since we had a connection—which seemed to rankle some of the clansmen.
To be appointed one’s sacrificial heir meant inheriting one’s wealth as well.
Everyone knew I’d received no small amount of property from the King, and on top of that there was the wealth I’d accumulated through my own ventures.
“It must be painful for you, young lady, to remain unmarried and live this way, but I hope you will bear it with strength. We are family, after all. Should you face any difficulties, you need only call upon us for assistance.”
“Ha, but the young lady is counted among the wealthiest persons in the Capital, and you have His Majesty and the Crown Prince to rely upon—what troubles could you possibly have? Of course, it must be inconvenient to remain a child in years, but surely that too is heaven’s will, is it not?”
Yeongcheon-gun and Papyeong Buwon-gun traded remarks back and forth before me, spinning out an endless string of empty pleasantries.
‘How much time have they actually spent with me? What is this? Are they picking a fight?’
“As you say, I am blessed with more favor than I deserve from His Majesty and the Crown Prince, so what troubles could I have? Having received much, I simply labor to ensure there are no starving commoners. Is that not service to His Majesty and the Crown Prince? Recently I’ve heard there are children going hungry even near the Capital. Thinking myself perhaps lacking the means to help alone, I was worried—but now that you’ve stepped forward first with such generous offers, my heart is set at ease.”
‘You said you’d help, so let’s see—how many sacks of rice can you contribute?’
‘You just said you’d help, didn’t you?’
As I posed the question with as earnest and grateful an expression as I could muster, the certainty with which they’d been criticizing me evaporated, and both quietly averted their eyes.
‘Ugh, these people.’
In the awkward silence that followed, only Heunghwa-gun responded with easy composure.
“Ha, indeed, the young lady is truly compassionate. With you drawing upon your personal wealth to provide for the hungry people, surely that brings great fortune to the realm, does it not? Is that not so, Buwon-gun, Yeongcheon-gun?”
“Ahem.”
As Heunghwa-gun concluded with a smile, the two men hastily took their leave.
“Well then, we shan’t keep you as you must be busy. We shall withdraw.”
“Yes, do take care.”
‘What in heaven’s name were they after?’
Though Heunghwa-gun bore no blame in the matter, I found myself unable to shake off the unpleasant mood that they had, however inadvertently, stirred up by the time I returned to my residence.
“How could Buwon-gun speak so carelessly to you, young lady?”
“Now, now. Mind your tongue.”
“Yet that was disrespect to you. What is Buwon-gun but a man who never passed the civil service examination, bearing only the title? What sort of standing could he possibly have?”
Lack of ability was unfortunate, certainly, but not something to hold against a person. What was truly troubling was when someone lacked both ability and basic sense.
Though Buwon-gun bore the title, the Crown Prince merely extended courtesy to him without truly believing he’d be of use, so we kept a careful distance.
“Not all of the royal clansmen are like that, of course.”
It wasn’t strange to encounter clansmen by chance, and there were plenty of decent people among them, yet why was it I had to run into such disagreeable ones?
Most everyone concealed their concern about my not growing, but it was rare to find someone who mocked me so openly.
“Perhaps tomorrow I should go out for a change of mood.”
“Would you, young lady?”
So-i, who would normally have nagged me about going out again, remained quiet this time, apparently displeased as well.
‘I heard some interesting news from the wives of the royal clansmen anyway, so I should stop by my estate and visit that place as well.’
***
The next day, as promised the day before, I left the palace for the first time in a while, bringing Song Bi with me.
Our destination was my estate.
And today, Seong Gyeom-sabok accompanied us as well.
‘I promised him lifelong employment upon his retirement, but since I couldn’t manage my household affairs, it’s been held in abeyance—I do feel rather bad about that.’
Since things had come to this point, I’d suggested she just stay at my residence, but she declined, saying her current place was more convenient for her duties as a Gyeom-sa-bok.
Was she planning to come once she truly retired?
Everyone had seen my residence before, but none had wandered through a masterless house, so I led them around to show them various corners of it.
And of course, my collection as well.
“My goodness, it seems your collection has grown even more during my absence.”
“Ah, yes. Those are gifts.”
Whether word of my tastes had spread or not, most of the gifts I received seemed to pass through my aesthetic eye, and they were now displayed throughout my residence like this.
“If I may say, several antiquities dealers came calling while you were away.”
“Antiquities dealers?”
“Yes. They said they have items not only from the Goryeo period but also from Silla and Baekje.”
“Hmm. What was your impression? They didn’t seem like swindlers?”
“I cannot claim to know much of such matters, but none of them appeared to be impoverished.”
Hmm.
Yeong-seon, with whom I was currently speaking, was one of the nobi the king had more or less forced upon me, and when we were discovering each of their special talents and aptitudes, she had raised her hand for nearly every field.
After that day, seeing she seemed to have many skills, I found myself conversing with her about this and that, and she turned out to have considerable knowledge of fine arts as well, so I brought her to my own residence rather than Siyeongwon to manage my collection. Of course, since she would feel lonely separated from her family alone, I allowed her family to live with her at the residence.
‘Such a talented person—what a waste.’
Even if she hadn’t become a nobi, would a well-born yangban daughter with such superior knowledge have had anything she could actually do?
She was usually quiet and sparse in her expressions, but whenever she spoke to me about my collection, her eyes would light up and she would reel off explanations without hesitation. Particularly fond of Goryeo Celadon, her tastes were quite similar to my own.
Thanks to this, managing the antiquities now seemed to be something she genuinely enjoyed—there was a quiet satisfaction in her expression, and watching her made me happy too. I had truly been fortunate to meet such a capable overseer.
Because Yeong-seon’s reaction seemed to carry a hint of anticipation, I too found myself growing curious.
Moreover, one of the antiquities dealers Yeong-seon had mentioned was a place one of the Royal Relatives Clan wives had also told me about yesterday.
Among the antiquities merchants, there were apparently some who introduced a separate, discreet shop exclusively to their VIP customers, and collectors gathered at such places.
“All right then. Shall we seek out that place today?”
I’d come out for a change of mood anyway, and this seemed perfectly timed.

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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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