Surviving as Jang Hee-bin's Child Court Lady - Chapter 59

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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 59. Ally or Enemy?
‘Run.’
Warning lights flashed in my mind, but Suk-bin and the noble consort had already spotted me.
The gaze Suk-bin fixed upon me was as cold as ice.
It was only natural.
I was the architect who had turned Suk-bin’s own schemes against her, trapping her in a corner, and I was also the witness who had seen her mask shatter into pieces.
The witness to a secret Suk-bin would have taken to her grave.
That was precisely who I was.
The noble consort’s expression was equally frigid.
She made no attempt to conceal her open disdain toward me.
“….”
I hastily retreated to the roadside and bowed my head respectfully.
I didn’t mind being regarded as an insect—I only hoped they would pass by in silence.
…Unfortunately, my wish fell spectacularly short of reality.
Rustle. Rustle.
The whisper of silk drew closer.
The shadows of two women fell across my head.
I lifted my gaze slightly.
Suk-bin regarded me from above, her emotions carefully restrained.
A familiar sneer played at the corners of the noble consort’s mouth as she looked down upon me.
I had certainly seen that expression on the noble consort’s face before.
On the day I first encountered her in the Back Garden, before she had hurled her venomous remarks about being “of the same generation as Jang Hee-bin,” that was precisely the expression she had worn.
“So you’re a maid-in-waiting from Chwisuondang. That child who used to linger about Prince Yeonning’s side, yes?”
“….”
The moment the noble consort uttered those words, Suk-bin’s eyes wavered slightly.
It appeared Suk-bin had been entirely unaware that any connection existed between me and Prince Yeonning.
Suk-bin opened her mouth.
“That’s quite surprising. Prince Yeonning is always occupied with his studies—how could this child have been hovering about his side?”
The noble consort responded with composure.
“You must find it bewildering. Nevertheless, it is an undeniable fact. The last time I encountered Prince Yeonning near Hongseogak, this child was clinging to his side.”
It was an outrageous fabrication.
From the start, the claim that I had “lingered about” Prince Yeonning’s side was a lie.
And now she was saying I had been clinging to his side?
‘Patience. Patience….’
I was suppressing the urge to seize her by the hair, transcending the differences of age and station.
“Thus, I gave this child a stern warning.”
The noble consort glanced sideways at Suk-bin.
“To know her lowly place and never dare to linger near a prince.”
“….”
It was unclear whether the noble consort’s words were an insult directed at me or a jab at Suk-bin’s humble origins.
Suk-bin seemed completely unable to manage her expression today.
I hadn’t wanted to take Suk-bin’s side, but honestly, she had every reason to be upset.
And as for the Gwon-ga…
‘She’s enjoying this.’
The way she kept glancing sideways at Suk-bin. Her lips curved upward in a crooked smile.
Gwon-ga’s gaze turned back to me.
“I made my warning clear, yet you dared to disobey my orders.”
“….”
“Did I not tell you to keep Prince Yeonning from lingering near you? And yet, how did you come to be at Park Suk-ui’s quarters with him?”
In that moment, words failed me entirely.
It wasn’t that Gwon-ga’s accusation was false.
It was the question that crashed down upon me because of her words.
‘…How does Gwon-ga know I was there?’
There was not a single person in the Royal Palace unaware of the ‘honey incident’ that had occurred at Sung-gyeong Hall.
But the fact that I was involved in that affair was classified information.
It had been a decision to prevent me, a child, from having to testify at Geumbu, and though I couldn’t be certain, I suspected there had been an order from the King.
And yet….
Gwon-ga appeared to know the full extent of the incident.
Meanwhile, Suk-bin’s face showed she had no idea whatsoever.
It was unexpected.
If it had been Suk-bin who possessed this knowledge, I would not have been alarmed.
Suk-bin was someone with a history of planting spies in Chwisuondang.
Moreover, Suk-bin could have learned of it from Prince Yeonning.
‘But that Gwon-ga would know this…. I never anticipated it.’
Honestly, I disliked Gwon-ga.
But I had never thought her capable of scheming.
Gwon-ga was far too emotional and transparent a person.
So I decided to test her.
“My being at Sung-gyeong Hall was…. The adults said it was a secret that must not be revealed to the outside world….”
In other words, I was asking: ‘How did you come to know this internal information about my presence there?’
As expected, Gwon-ga’s expression wavered greatly upon being caught in her own trap.
Yet Gwon-ga did not retreat.
“The Royal Palace has eyes and ears even in its walls! Does Jang Hee-bin truly believe that what is hidden can remain hidden? Is that not so, Suk-bin?”
“…Yes, that is so.”
Again, something felt suspicious.
The phrase ‘the Royal Palace has eyes and ears even in its walls.’
Could it be that Gwon-ga also knew of the humiliation Suk-bin had suffered, being struck across the face?
‘But those two…. Were they not on the same side?’
Historically, the two of them were certainly allies.
A relationship forged through shared purpose to place Prince Yeonning upon the throne.
In particular, Suk-bin was known to have treated her with considerable favor.
“Suk-bin. Though Prince Yeonning possesses wisdom, he is still young in years, so you must speak firmly to him about this matter. Tell him not to associate with those lowborn creatures from Chwisuondang. Such associations diminish a prince’s dignity. Do you understand?”
“Yes. I shall keep it in mind, my lady.”
‘Suk-bin holds the higher rank, yet the relationship has completely reversed…?’
The extraordinary sight of Suk-bin, a first-rank official, stammering before Park Suk-ui, a ninth-rank official.
Suk-bin was carefully managing her expression, but she could not hide the flush creeping across her face.
It was clear she felt humiliated, being spoken down to first by Jang Hee-bin and now by Park Suk-ui.
At that moment, Park Suk-ui turned her questioning gaze toward me.
“But why are you here in front of Hee-jeong Hall? What business does a maid from Chwisuondang have wandering about alone in this place? Does Chwisuondang manage its people so carelessly?”
What was this now?
It was unexpected in a different sense.
We were standing directly in front of Hee-jeong Hall.
Of course, I hadn’t been broadcasting “I’m going to see the King!” to everyone in the Palace.
But by this time, there was hardly a soul in the Royal Palace who hadn’t heard the rumors that “the King meets privately with a maid from Chwisuondang.”
Even the maids of the Yuk-cheo Office would whisper when they saw me: “Is that her? The one His Majesty calls for so often…?”
Yet Park Suk-ui didn’t know this fact?
Even though she seemed to know the affairs of Sung-gyeong Hall as if she’d witnessed them with her own eyes…?
‘What a peculiar person. Is she particularly interested in Sung-gyeong Hall…?’
As I was thinking this, I suddenly held my breath.
‘Something… is wrong.’
The Gwon Maid who had poisoned Yi Hwon’s rice porridge with honey had met her death.
The case remained unsolved, with the mastermind never revealed.
Park Suk-ui, who was so unfamiliar with Palace affairs that she didn’t know what every Palace maid knew, was remarkably well-informed about Sung-gyeong Hall alone.
And Park Suk-ui was….
‘Later, she would be suspected of attempting to poison King Gyeongjo.’
Though it remained mere suspicion.
Park Suk-ui would certainly—
‘Be branded as someone who uses poison.’
In that instant, a scene from Sung-gyeong Hall flashed through my mind.
The vivid taste of honey flowing into my mouth.
The anxious fidgeting of the Palace maid trying to remove the rice bowl.
‘That Gwon Maid was found dead.’
‘They say the dead maid’s tongue had turned black.’
Honey that acts as poison.
A maid dead from poison.
A person who would later be branded as having used poison.
Could it be…?
“Why do you not answer?”
At Park Suk-ui’s sharp voice, I flinched violently, my body trembling.
“Seeing how startled you are, you must be up to something underhanded. Could it be you were trying to spy on His Majesty’s movements?”
The noblewoman’s voice grew increasingly shrill as she continued her tirade about going to the mountains.
What was truly intriguing was Suk-bin’s demeanor.
‘A person of Suk-bin’s stature surely couldn’t be ignorant of why I’ve come to stand before Hee-jeong Hall.’
Yet she maintained her silence without uttering a single word.
As if… she were waiting for something?
“How audacious. How dare you claim ignorance. Just like those from Chwisuondang—refusing to answer the words of your superior and stubbornly holding your ground.”
Speaking with a cutting edge, the noblewoman continued to glance sideways at the entrance to Hee-jeong Hall.
Then the noblewoman’s gaze shifted.
What she was looking at was the silk wrapping cloth held in my hands.
It was something Sang-gung from the Royal Chambers had given me, as usual.
“This won’t do. This is far too suspicious. Show me what’s inside that bundle at once.”
“Ah, this is…”
My precious sweets…
But before that, they were a precious gift bestowed by the King himself.
I shook my head firmly and clutched the bundle to myself.
“I can’t do that. I cannot tell you what’s inside…”
“What? You cannot tell me? I’ve never seen such an insolent girl!”
The noblewoman seized the bundle with a rough, forceful hand.
Though I resisted with all my strength, a four-year-old child could never match the power of an adult.
Crash!
The wrapping cloth came undone, and the lacquered box inside tumbled to the ground.
In the same instant, the malt candies, honey pastries, and preserved fruits scattered across the floor.
It was then.
“What is the meaning of this commotion?”
The King’s solemn and weighty voice pierced through the frigid air.
Footsteps approached steadily.
He drew near.
The King, dressed in a crimson dragon robe, fixed his gaze upon the scene before him.
His eyes were fixed upon his gift, now scattered across the floor.

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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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