I Became the Eldest Daughter of a Fallen Family - Chapter 14

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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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Episode 14. Close Neighbors
In any case, loose words are the source of trouble.
Why had she brought up hot dogs in the first place?
Unable to bear the bright gleam in her younger brother’s eyes, So Yeon-hui turned away.
But what could stop a child’s curiosity once it had been ignited?
So Yeon-u had managed to extract a promise from his sister that next time she made Fragrant Sausage, she would let him taste this “hot dog” as well.
His persistence was such that So Yeon-hui came to regard it as divine mercy that she hadn’t mentioned cheese hot dogs.
For some time afterward, she found herself endlessly interrogated about dishes that could be made using sausage.
The person who rescued her from the Question Mark Murderer was someone she had never anticipated.
“Is anyone home?”
The visitors who appeared with that timid greeting were none other than Song, the second daughter-in-law of the neighboring Shim Family, and a small girl who appeared to be her daughter.
And a little girl who seemed to be her daughter.
Just as So Yeon-hui had been meaning to share some Fragrant Sausage, Song’s arrival was perfectly timed, and she rose from her seat with a bright smile.
But remarkably, So Yeon-u’s reaction was just a touch faster.
“Oh? Shim Wan-ui, what brings you here?”
Could he have known the girl? So Yeon-u leaped to his feet with an unusually flushed expression.
Without being asked, he stepped forward and began introducing their visitors to his family.
“Father, Mother! This is Shim Wan-ui. She’s the granddaughter of Grandfather Shim who lives in the house below. And this is her mother, Lady Song.”
“My, relatives of the Shim Family! How delightful to meet you.”
Since coming into exile, the So Family’s human connections had dwindled to nearly nothing.
When a girl who might be their son’s friend and her mother appeared at the door, Jang’s expression brightened noticeably.
It remained so until a shocking revelation came from the girl’s lips.
“Yesterday, because of me, Yeon-u got into a fight with Wang Dae-seok and took quite a tumble on his backside. I came to apologize.”
“What? What are you saying?”
“N-no, it’s nothing serious! That Wang Dae-seok fellow was being crude and saying improper things to Wan-ui. So I just gave him a piece of my mind about how to conduct himself properly, and we had a brief scuffle. That’s all.”
Ah! That explained why he’d been rubbing his backside so much yesterday.
In the So Family, who were martial folk, boys roughhousing and growing through fighting was hardly remarkable, so the So household simply nodded their heads calmly.
But if the cause of that violence stemmed from a girl of their son’s age, the matter took on different shading.
So Yeon-hui’s eyes gleamed with mischief as she questioned her youngest brother.
“Wang Dae-seok—that would be the Village Head Wang’s grandson?”
“Yeah. That bastard even spouted nonsense about how Father would be dragged to the Labor Camp and die. I should’ve beaten him a few more times.”
Ah, so it was that kind of scoundrel.
So Yeon-hui quickly grasped the situation from her indignant brother’s words.
A boy who would spout such insults to someone’s face hardly seemed the type to behave decently otherwise.
‘He beat someone who deserved beating, so it wasn’t for that girl’s sake that he acted…’
Just as she was beginning to think it was simply a fortunate coincidence and the Shim household had misunderstood—
So Yeon-u straightened up stiffly and spoke to Shim Wan-ui.
“In any case, it wasn’t your fault. Besides, it didn’t hurt much.”
“You’re lying. Your nose even bled.”
“That—that was just a small scratch. It didn’t hurt at all.”
Yet that attitude was precisely that of an adolescent boy showing off in front of a girl who interested him.
The So household could not help but smile quietly among themselves.
‘Good heavens. Is Yeon-u’s face turning red all the way to his ears?’
‘And he’s barely at a tender age. What does he know about love games? This is hilarious.’
Without speaking aloud, they all shared the same thought.
A child who, at an age meant for carefree play, had been forced to grow up too soon by family circumstances.
Especially watching him deliberately wear a cheerful mask to care for his family’s feelings, their hearts ached.
Yet now that child was finally acting his age—and all for a girl who happened to be rather prettily made.
‘The little rascal. So you’re a boy after all, are you?’
So Yeon-hui let out a pleased laugh and felt her heart lighten at last.
Perhaps because the So Family’s reaction was so warm, Song too seemed to relax, her expression brightening.
Though she and So Yeon-hui had some familiarity from their visits to the Five-Day Market, she remained somewhat awkward with the other members of the So household.
Moreover, the So Family were scholar-officials.
Exile did not erase that fundamental status.
She could only spend the night worrying whether she might fall out of favor with them.
‘These confounded Wangs, causing all this trouble.’
It was common knowledge in the village that the men of the Wang household had vicious dispositions and harassed women whenever they saw them.
Yet because the Village Head’s family wielded such power, no one dared stand against them.
They controlled nearly half the land in the village, and to make enemies of a family connected to the County Magistrate of Jinseong would bring complications.
But there was one exception: the So Family.
The Village Head dismissed them as a family of criminals and kept them at arm’s length—though that was only half the story.
Being sentenced to Exile Punishment rather than execution or beatings meant one had been a scholar-official of some renown.
Though their fortunes had declined now, one never knew what the future might hold.
Song had made up her mind to present herself well to the So household, preparing for that distant possibility.
“Our Wan-ui has incurred a great debt to your son. That Wang boy’s mischief nearly damaged her reputation, and I am truly grateful you prevented it.”
“Not at all. From what Yeon-u told us, it was simply the right thing to do. I’m just relieved that young lady Wan-ui came to no harm.”
“Still, we’ve received a kindness and cannot simply pretend otherwise. Here—I’ve prepared a small gift.”
She bowed deeply enough to seem excessive and expressed her gratitude to the So household, then nudged her daughter to hand over the token she had brought along.
“I—we made these together with Mother. They’re Millet Rice Cakes.”
“My goodness, what’s all this…”
So Yeon-hui accepted the bowl on her mother’s behalf and demurred politely.
The ceramic dish, slightly larger than a palm, was full of appetizing Millet Rice Cakes.
Since the harvest hadn’t yet come in, grain prices would be high; the fact that she had prepared so many cakes was remarkable.
Grateful for Song’s thoughtfulness, So Yeon-hui quickly seized her grandmother’s arm and asked:
“Grandmother! Lady Song here has helped me greatly at the Five-Day Market before. Would it be all right if I gave her some Fragrant Sausage to show my thanks?”
“Do as you wish, child. It is your own cooking—why ask us?”
“Yes. Yeon-u’s first friend to visit our home—how could we let her leave empty-handed?”
“Oh, no—please, I didn’t bring this hoping for a gift. We only wanted to express our gratitude…”
“We understand your heart well enough. Still, please accept our goodwill gladly. Though our fortunes have declined, a scholar’s household never sends its guests away without gifts.”
Indeed, a scholar-official family would never receive a commoner as a guest.
But in this exile land with no connections to anyone, how else could the So Family survive except by maintaining good relations with their neighbors?
So Yeon-hui hurried back to the kitchen, transferred the cakes to a bamboo sieve, and brought out about half a pound of Fragrant Sausage from where it hung carefully in the corner, placing it in the Shim household’s bowl.
As she handed it to Lady Song, the woman’s eyes widened.
“What…is this?”
“It’s called Fragrant Sausage. It’s a meat dish similar to Preserved Meat. You hang it somewhere with good air circulation, let it dry, then slice it thinly and stir-fry it with vegetables—it’s an incomparable delicacy. You can also eat it with rice.”
“You’re giving me meat as a gift? Surely you don’t mean the meat you bought yesterday?”
When So Yeon-hui gave a small nod, Song’s expression turned to amazement. At the same moment, she became certain her judgment had been sound.
That cheap scrap meat had become such a delicious-looking dish. If she sold this in Jinseong, the profits would be enormous.
‘I definitely need to stay close to the So Family. Father-in-law wasn’t wrong to keep them near.’
Of course, her father-in-law’s intention was merely to repay a debt of gratitude to the previous So Family Head, but now that Song had glimpsed the So Family’s true capacity, it mattered little to her.
She simply congratulated herself inwardly for having grasped the right rope.
“Such a precious gift! I am truly grateful! Wan-ui, what are you doing? Come pay your respects at once.”
“Great Lady, Uncles, and Aunts—Wan-ui gives you her thanks!”
The So household watched the bright expressions of the Shim mother and daughter and simply smiled with satisfaction.
Three months since settling in this place of exile.
Now, for the first time, they had neighbors worthy of genuine connection.

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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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