Surviving as Jang Hee-bin's Child Court Lady - Chapter 27

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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 27. A Good Night
“His Majesty the King has arrived!”
The day had finally come.
The day that everyone at Chwisuondang had been waiting for with bated breath.
It was the King’s visit.
Chwisuondang had been in an uproar since morning, for King Sukjong’s visit had been officially announced.
Thanks to the advance notice, there was time to prepare, and Jang Hee-bin had adorned herself so beautifully that the palace attendants wept with envy.
Of course, the final approval of her appearance fell to me, as always.
And I too became a sacrifice to the labor of beautification.
I was given clothes far too fine for a junior maid—a silk-quilted vest and even a decorative belt.
If I were to describe my appearance as I went out to greet King Sukjong with my hand firmly grasped by Jang Hee-bin…
I was nothing but Jang Hee-bin’s personal accessory.
“Your Majesty. I am deeply grateful for the honor of your visit after so long.”
Jang Hee-bin spoke with a radiant smile playing at her lips.
This was the moment I had been waiting for.
I was desperately curious to see the King’s reaction upon seeing Jang Hee-bin with her heavy makeup removed, her face now fresh and innocent.
My prediction proved correct.
“….”
The King fell silent for a moment. His gaze lingered on Jang Hee-bin’s face, wavering softly.
Even with my inexperienced eye, I could tell.
‘It worked.’
At the very least, it was certain that he had been struck anew by Jang Hee-bin’s beauty.
“…It has been quite some time since I last visited Chwisuondang to see you.”
Even as he spoke softly, his eyes remained fixed on Jang Hee-bin.
Jang Hee-bin performed her role flawlessly.
Long lashes trembled slightly above her bashfully downcast eyes.
Indeed, Jang Hee-bin was a woman who knew precisely when she was most beautiful.
“Your Majesty. The night is cold. Please, come inside.”
The King nodded at Jang Hee-bin’s words, then suddenly addressed me.
“Hwang Bong-bong.”
“Yes, Your Majesty?”
“Geum-deok was already growing bored. You should visit the Royal Chambers again soon.”
“Yes. I understand, Your Majesty.”
This alone was quite an extraordinary gesture.
The King had directly invited a junior maid in front of Jang Hee-bin and many other palace attendants.
But the King went even further.
“Now do you understand?”
“…Understand what, Your Majesty?”
“That I am a man who keeps his word.”
“Of course! I understand completely, Your Majesty.”
My heart began to race.
As my conversation with the King stretched on, I noticed Jang Hee-bin’s lips trembling faintly beneath her strained smile.
“Then, have a good night!”
…Was this really something even a four-year-old could say?
I held my breath for a moment, but fortunately, the King burst into hearty laughter.
“Yes, I understand.”
Immediately after, Jang Hee-bin approached the King’s side, armed with a dazzlingly radiant smile.
“Then, shall we retire inside, Your Majesty?”
“Let us do so.”
Watching King Sukjong and Jang Hee-bin head toward the Private Chamber, I prayed silently with all my heart.
‘Buddha, God, Grandfather Dangun, Grandmother Mago, and all the deities of this world. Please help that middle-aged couple overcome their monotony and reignite their marital harmony. I beseech you, I beseech you….’
May they have a good night indeed!
***
“His Majesty has visited Chwisuondang, they say.”
“It’s been a full six months since Jang Hee-bin last attended to the King.”
“Could it be that His Majesty’s affections have returned….”
The rumors spread in an instant.
The whispers of the Palace Maids who witnessed the King’s procession to Chwisuondang rippled through the Inner Palace in moments.
“That seductress has finally managed to bewitch His Majesty again. How infuriating! How unjust!”
That night, Queen Inhyeon refused all food and wept bitterly.
“Clear this away! Clear it at once!”
Rumors spread through the Palace Maids that an enraged noble consort had overturned her table in fury.
“….”
Word circulated that upon hearing the news, Suk-bin’s face had gone terrifyingly rigid, and she had remained utterly silent.
The King’s visit to Chwisuondang.
It was far more than a single night’s indulgence.
It was a night when the fortunes of the Namin Faction, which backed Jang Hee-bin, and the Seo-in Faction, which supported Queen Inhyeon, diverged sharply.
And it was a night that heralded the scales of power shifting once more.
***
The next day.
King Sukjong left Chwisuondang at dawn, but Jang Hee-bin’s spirits soared to the heavens for the entire day.
“Oh my, our Jang Hee-bin has finally blossomed with joy.”
“His Majesty sleeping at Chwisuondang and staying the night—it’s been nearly half a year since that happened. I’m moved to tears, truly.”
“Did you notice the lamp went out the moment the two of them entered the private chamber?”
“The lamp went out immediately? If that’s the case, then his body moved faster than his words…!”
The Palace Maids’ laughter suddenly ceased with a sharp intake of breath.
They had only just noticed me sitting in the corner of the veranda, sucking on a piece of taffy.
Why. Keep going. I’m old enough to know everything you’re hinting at.
In truth, for Palace Maids trapped within the Royal Palace, running endlessly like hamsters on a wheel, this would be extraordinarily entertaining gossip….
‘But I’ll pass on the oversharing.’
I left Chwisuondang, leaving behind the Palace Maids whispering and giggling amongst themselves.
Thanks to Jang Hee-bin’s excellent mood, the Palace Maids were equally excited on this bright, sunny morning.
I quietly made my way to a sunlit corner.
I spread open a Korean language book and pretended to read, organizing my tasks like the methodical child I was.
‘First, a visit to Hee-jeong Hall.’
Though it would be my second time meeting him, facing the King was something that demanded unwavering focus.
Yet there was also a sense of anticipation. There were still stories I hadn’t heard from him.
There was no need to be afraid beforehand.
And after that….
‘The full moon approaches.’
In other words, Suk-jeong’s arrival was not far off.
The warning from the wall poster and the grave desecration incident had clearly frightened Suk-jeong.
The terror that froze her face when she saw the character ‘Hwang’ was genuine fear.
‘But Suk-jeong has a powerful motive. She won’t stop easily.’
The curse incident involving Queen Inhyeon.
I had staked my life on preventing that tragedy.
And it was the same for Suk-jeong.
Suk-jeong had her own compelling reasons for needing the Queen dead.
Jang Hee-jae, Suk-jeong’s husband and Jang Hee-bin’s brother, remained in exile, and his banishment grew longer with each passing day.
There was only one way to restore him to the center of power.
The Queen had to die soon, and Jang Hee-bin had to reclaim her position.
‘Suk-jeong will certainly return fully prepared.’
I steeled my resolve, counting down the days until the full moon.
I was already locked in direct confrontation with Suk-jeong, so there was no reason to hesitate.
‘I’ll see it through.’
I clenched my fists with determination.
Suk-jeong. This time, I’ll see this to the very end.
“Sigh….”
I’d only been sitting here thinking, yet why did I feel so drained?
I pulled out a single piece of candy from my pocket and popped it into my mouth, deliberately steering my thoughts in a different direction.
‘Think of something good. Something good….’
For instance….
‘The Crown Prince?’
Thinking of the Crown Prince brought a sense of peace to my heart.
‘I wish I could do something for the Crown Prince.’
My initial feelings toward the Crown Prince had been closer to pity, but now I had grown quite fond of him.
This ‘fondness’ was entirely pure in nature. The Crown Prince was truly a virtuous person, after all.
Moreover, I felt genuine gratitude for his gift of the doll.
The more I examined it, the more I could sense the extraordinary care that had gone into its creation.
‘Of course, it was the work of the chambermaid’s hands…. But if the Crown Prince hadn’t requested it in the first place, there would have been no reason to craft it with such devotion.’
I was lost in these musings when it happened.
“Hwang Bong-bong! There you are!”
The one calling me was Sun-rye, a palace maid.
Sun-rye was Seol-hyang’s older sister, a maid of considerable stature and impressive strength.
The official ‘glutton’ of Chwisuondang. That was Sun-rye’s nickname.
“Yes, Sun-rye. What is it?”
“Take this to Jeoseungjeon, would you? You’re strong enough to carry it, aren’t you?”
“What is it? Um….”
I stared blankly at the small table Sun-rye held out.
More precisely, at what lay neatly arranged upon it….
‘Dried persimmons….’
To the Crown Prince, who would one day be branded with the epithet of a king who died after eating persimmons, I was being asked to deliver dried persimmons?
“D-dried persimmons? For His Highness the Crown Prince?”
“Why are you so startled? Yes. Take them to His Highness. See that large persimmon tree over there? We picked persimmons from it last autumn with the other palace maids and dried them ourselves.”
Sun-rye leaned in close to my ear and whispered.
“You can sneak one if you want. They’re absolutely delicious.”
As I glanced to the side, I finally noticed the persimmon tree I had somehow overlooked until now.
A massive persimmon tree planted outside the Chwisuondang walls, its branches stretching all the way into the Inner Courtyard.
From the very top of the tree hung several plump persimmons that had survived the winter.
‘The dried persimmons aren’t the issue…. Now that I think about it, there are persimmon trees scattered all throughout the Royal Palace.’
Even if the story of King Gyeongjo’s ‘persimmons and salted crabs’ was merely historical fiction rather than truth, I couldn’t shake the uneasy feeling.
“Hwang Bong-bong. Why do you keep looking away? Are you alright?”
“Ah, yes. I’m fine. I’ll take them.”
I carefully accepted the small table.
“Then I’m counting on you! Thank you, Hwang Bong-bong!”
After Sun-rye disappeared, I stared at the nine dried persimmons arranged neatly upon the table.
Nine of them…?
One had clearly already made its way into Sun-rye’s stomach.
‘But what am I supposed to do with these dried persimmons?’
Well, there’s no need to overthink this.
There’s only one way forward.
I hurried toward Jeoseungjeon, and when the entrance came into view from a distance….
“Oh! My goodness. What’s wrong with my feet?”
I flailed my fists at empty air, performing an exaggerated stumble, then deliberately collapsed onto the ground as if I’d tripped over a stone.
The dried persimmons scattered across the dirt.
‘I can’t present soil-covered persimmons to the Crown Prince. Absolutely not.’
All that remained was to squeeze out some tears and enter Jeoseungjeon sniffling apologetically about the dropped fruit.
‘I’m so sad. I’m incredibly sad right now….’
I was composing myself emotionally and preparing to shuffle into Jeoseungjeon when it happened.
Tap.
Tap.
Someone tapped my shoulder from behind.
Simultaneously, a shadow fell across my surroundings.
“Hwang Bong-bong. What are you doing?”
“…Eek.”
The last person I wanted to encounter….
And you saw my entire act, didn’t you?
‘…I’m finished.’
Caught red-handed.

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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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