I Thought the Youngest Daughter of the Sichuan Tang Family Was Hated - Chapter 20

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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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“….”
Dang Seo-o’s gaze grew even more piercing.
How could Gwi-heon maintain such an expressionless face while bearing the full weight of that stare?
I found myself impressed by Gwi-heon’s composure.
“Elder, what are your thoughts? Speak.”
The Elder Brother Faction Deputy pressed Dang Seo-o for an explanation.
Father too waited for Dang Seo-o to open his mouth.
Whatever excuse he offered, Dang Seo-o’s faction wouldn’t escape the Elder Brother Faction’s investigation.
Not unless he severed ties.
But he couldn’t abandon his beloved granddaughter so easily….
“This child acted on her own initiative.”
Dang Seo-o spoke while gripping Gyo-gyo’s shoulder.
At that, Gyo-gyo flinched and shrank back.
“G-Grandfather…!”
“I gifted her many treasures to raise her well. It seems she sold them to purchase poison.”
Dang Seo-o’s expression didn’t waver as he cast Gyo-gyo aside.
‘My prediction was wrong.’
He severed the tie. Just like that.
“Interrogate this child. You may discover how she obtained the poison.”
And without stopping there, Dang Seo-o dragged Gyo-gyo before the Elder Brother Faction Deputy.
“Grandfather….”
Gyo-gyo grasped at Dang Seo-o’s sleeve, but he coldly brushed her hand away.
“Tsk! Where do you think you’re touching?”
As I watched Dang Seo-o return to his seat, Gyo-gyo’s eyes were utterly hollow.
The Elder Brother Faction Deputy exhaled sharply, as if he’d expected this all along.
Then he turned his head and looked up at Father. When Father nodded slightly, he ordered the soldier standing at the door.
“Take her away.”
“What? No, no, I can’t. I… I…!”
A soldier seized Gyo-gyo’s arm and led her out of the Council Chamber.
Even as she was dragged away, Gyo-gyo’s gaze remained fixed solely on Dang Seo-o.
“Grandfather! Grandfather!”
Her desperate cries grew distant.
When the door closed, even those faded from hearing.
The Council Chamber fell silent.
A faint murmur rippled through, but overall, the atmosphere remained subdued.
‘I was the only one shocked. Only me.’
I never thought Dang Seo-o would abandon Gyo-gyo.
How could he do it so readily the moment an investigation loomed? She was his granddaughter, family in name at least.
Had he never truly considered her family to begin with?
My heart felt heavy.
The last expression I’d seen on Gyo-gyo’s face bore an uncanny resemblance to my own from years past.
The visage of a child who’d outlived their usefulness, confronting their final reckoning.
“Now we can end this, can’t we!”
Dang Seo-o’s voice rang out with irritation, yet without a trace of genuine distress.
It seemed only his pride had been wounded—and grievously so.
“I never said you could end it.”
Father continued with unshakeable composure.
“Only the Family Head possesses the authority to dissolve the Family Council Meeting.”
“Ha, ridiculous!”
Dang Seo-o let out a hollow laugh, as though utterly exasperated.
“Next you’ll demand I seek permission before I open my mouth!”
“Yes. You must.”
“What did you—!”
Unable to contain himself any longer, Dang Seo-o shot to his feet.
Was it merely my imagination, or did Father’s relentless, measured tone only fuel his rage further?
“Family Head! Show proper respect to your Elder!”
“How dare you speak so insolently to the patriarch of our clan!”
Those gathered around Dang Seo-o rose as one, their voices swelling in protest.
Their tone was sharp enough to suggest they might dissolve the entire Council Meeting on the spot.
“We cannot endure such humiliation. We’re leaving. Now!”
“Agreed. This meeting was absurd from the start!”
Dang Seo-o seized the momentum and began rallying his followers.
It was the moment he turned to lead them away.
He’d clearly believed Father’s words to be mere bluster.
At least, until they came face-to-face with the armed force surrounding them.
“Gasp…!”
A sharp cry pierced the air, and silence fell over the Council Chamber.
Dang Seo-o’s forces moved with such speed and silence that they’d had no chance to react.
“The Wee-shin Guard….”
“It’s the Wee-shin Guard.”
Whispers rippled through the room.
‘What? Truly…!’
I’d heard rumors of this earlier.
If Dang Mu-seon were to attend the Council Chamber, one might glimpse the armed force under his command.
That was the Wee-shin Guard.
Though I knew little of their reputation or martial prowess, the reactions of everyone present spoke volumes.
They were the Dang Family’s greatest military strength. Undoubtedly.
It appeared that Dok-jon had transferred authority to the Elder Brother Faction Deputy and tasked the Wee-shin Guard with protecting the Family Council Meeting.
“This… wasn’t discussed beforehand….”
Those encircled by the Wee-shin Guard pressed their backs together, their bodies shrinking inward.
“I never said you could stand.”
Father suppressed Dang Seo-o’s momentum with an unyielding tone.
“Sit down.”
“….”
Dang Seo-o swallowed hard and glared fiercely at Father.
Their gazes locked in the empty space between them.
Dang Seo-o never broke eye contact as he carefully moved to his seat and sat down. Father did the same.
Once the commotion subsided, the Wee-shin Guard withdrew.
Only then did Father break the silence and speak.
“…I am adjourning the Family Council Meeting. While the matter has not been entirely resolved, I am doing so out of caution. You are dismissed.”
Dang Seo-o’s eyes flew wide open.
In a way, it was a natural reaction.
Moments ago, he’d been threatened that he absolutely could not leave without permission, and now he was being told to go.
‘In common parlance, this is what they call a dog-training tactic.’
Moreover, Father looked down at Dang Seo-o and raised his eyebrows.
His gaze seemed to say: you wanted to leave so badly, so why aren’t you going?
“…!”
Trembling with indignation, Dang Seo-o shot to his feet and stormed out of the Council Chamber.
Following his lead, the Collateral Faction filed out, and our faction also bowed to Father before hurrying from the Council Chamber.
Soon, only we three siblings, the Family Head, and the Chief Steward remained in the Council Chamber.
I looked up at Father.
My throat tightened involuntarily.
‘It’s truly been so long.’
Did Father know that we were meeting after such an immeasurable span of time?
“Let’s go.”
As I stood there dazed, Dang Lim took my hand and rose.
Dang Lim, I, and Gwi-heon walked together toward the Family Head’s seat of honor.
The Chief Steward standing beside us quietly stepped back.
“Father.”
Gwi-heon bowed first.
“You’ve arrived, Father.”
Dang Lim greeted him next.
I merely blinked in the meantime, wiping the sweat pooling in my palms onto my skirt.
When my turn came, my elder brothers looked down at me.
Father gazed at me as well.
“Ah, Father.”
“…Yeon-ah.”
I was startled, my eyes widening.
Father’s weary voice carried my name. It was like cold water splashed upon me, clearing my mind instantly.
“Um… that is….”
What should I say first?
That I missed you?
That I’m so glad to see you?
That I love you?
Was there a single word that could encompass all of those feelings?
My lips merely trembled as words spun uselessly on the tip of my tongue.
Then Father extended his arm and grasped my fidgeting hand.
“?!”
Very gently, Father drew my hand toward him.
With my hand resting in his large palm, it looked exactly like a chick’s footprint.
As I moved my fingers, I felt countless calluses embedded deep within his skin.
“I saw it in your letters.”
Father spoke, his gaze fixed on our clasped hands.
“Did you truly cry every single day?”
At Father’s question, I nodded blankly.
Then Father closed his eyes.
“…So you did.”
With his thumb, Father caressed the back of my hand, keeping his eyes closed for a long while.
Perhaps it was only my perception, but Father appeared to be suffering.
His shoulders rose and fell, and his parched lips trembled especially so.
“I don’t cry anymore now.”
The words tumbled out abruptly.
Ah, I’d meant to say I missed you first.
I hated seeing Father in such pain.
I didn’t want to resent him. We’d been apart for a year. We’d been separated for far longer than that.
I hoped that now I could finally bare my heart to him without reservation.
“Because I’ve seen you!”
I answered brightly.
Then Father’s eyes slowly opened.
His pupils, shrouded in a thick haze, trembled.
Ever so slightly, the fog seemed to lift.
My radiant smile was faintly reflected in his eyes.
“You’re happy too, aren’t you? Because you’ve seen me.”
I shook Father’s hand as I asked again.
“You’re just as happy as I am, aren’t you, Father?”
Then Father suddenly pulled me into his arms and settled me on his lap.
[My child.]
Father’s voice resonated within my mind.
It was a telepathic transmission.
[I was the one who gave you your name.]
Father answered my question with those words.
A joyful fate. That was the meaning of my name.
Suddenly, a distant memory surfaced, hazy and tender.
In those days when I could barely hold myself upright, I nestled in Father’s arms.
Whenever I wiggled my plump little hands in front of him, Father would beam with such radiance, as though nothing in the world brought him greater delight.
“My little joy. Come here to me.”
The Father of those days was vastly different from the one before me now.
It didn’t matter. I preferred him as he was now—here, beside me.
“Father….”
I had missed him.
I was grateful to see him.
I loved him.
There was a single word that could hold all of these feelings.
“Welcome home.”
With those words, I pulled him into an embrace. I felt his body stiffen.
The more he tensed, the deeper I buried my face against his chest.
In my mind, Father’s voice echoed like a distant refrain.
It felt as though I were welcoming him back on the day he returned from the past.
Only now did that feeling wash over me.
I had come home.

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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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