Surviving as the Sacheon Dang Clan’s Servant - Chapter 64

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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 64
My body, drenched in cold sweat, trembled violently. My vision darkened as though someone had their hands around my throat. I gasped and clawed at my neck, but I couldn’t breathe.
“Youngest, breathe. Come on, breathe.”
Dang Ju Hui, flustered, patted my back to induce retching. I gagged and scraped at the floor.
The acrid ghost of anesthetic. A faint metallic tang of blood drifting through the air. And beneath it, Gyeong Ah’s breathing—so fragile it seemed about to snap.
Everything surrounding me registered with a sensitivity I’d never experienced before, and my skin crawled with it.
“Miss, are you all right? Miss!”
“Stop calling her that and bring a damp cloth. Now.”
Song Ji’s footsteps hurried back and forth, growing closer and then receding. My vision blurred as though fever had seized me again.
It took more than half an hour before the retching stopped and I could steady myself. I lay curled on the empty bed, blinking slowly.
When Dang Jung’s inner force had crushed me into unconsciousness, or when I’d fallen from the cliff, I’d been startled only briefly before I could shake it off. I’d had faith, however subtle, that I would be fine.
But this was different.
I was afraid.
Fear kept my hands and feet trembling. I wanted to flee this place at once.
“Youngest. Are you calm now? Drink this. Why are you so fragile? Even timid Se Ho wouldn’t react like this. This is why your grandfather told me to keep quiet about it.”
Dang Ju Hui, who had steeped the tea herself, held out the cup and clucked her tongue.
“I’ve never seen someone flip over the sight of blood like this. Your grandfather said to hush about it for a reason.”
“Grandfather told you to keep quiet? About what?”
“Those children who used to bully you when you were young—your grandfather captured every last one of them and put them to death, then burned the bodies.”
“……What?”
I was too shocked to speak.
So the reason the Shimyang group had vanished was because they were dead?
“Your grandfather said you’d collapse from shock if you found out, so he made me keep my mouth shut. What I just told you stays between us, understood?”
Dang Ju Hui offered an awkward excuse and dried her hands. My lips trembled as I looked at Song Ji.
“Song Ji. Did you know too?”
“…….”
Song Ji lowered her head instead of answering. The way she averted her gaze and wrung her sleeves made a sigh escape me unbidden.
Intellectually, I understood. It was done for my sake, to eliminate any lingering threat.
Dang Jung was not a man to spare those who’d held a blade to his cherished disciple’s throat. That was the law of the Martial World.
But understanding something in my head and accepting it in my heart were two different things.
Even after spending half a year in the Murim, my common sense remained grounded in the standards of modern society.
I lacked the courage to brush aside such cruelty without flinching—cutting out tongues, discarding people like worn machinery, killing those who irritated you and erasing them from existence.
As my words died, Song Ji sniffled and whispered.
“Please don’t burden your heart with this, miss. Your grandfather made an example of Shimyang, so something like this won’t happen again. With your grandfather standing firm, who would dare lay hands on you?”
Her clumsy attempt at comfort felt like being struck with a hammer.
Yes, I might be afraid, but I could hide in Dang Jung’s shadow. Deok Ju had the strength to protect herself.
But Gyeong Ah and Song Ji? Where would they hide?
A heavy stone pressed against my chest. I felt suffocated.
I’d been preoccupied only with my own safety, never sparing a thought for the two of them. I despised myself for it.
I’d shared a little food with them and presumed myself generous, arrogant in my magnanimity.
The moment I recognized my own selfishness, clarity struck me. I set down the teacup with a clink.
“Thank you for the tea, sister.”
“You’re well enough to leave already? Rest a bit longer.”
“It’s all right. I should go now.”
“You never listen. Truly.”
Despite the irritation in her muttering, Dang Ju Hui was clearly worried about me.
She helped me up from the bed and pulled a heap of things from a drawer, pressing them into Song Ji’s arms.
“If your mistress vomits again, brew this for her. If she can’t sleep at night, burn incense in her room. This is a Vitality Supplement—give her one tablet every morning and evening.”
“Yes, yes! I understand, miss.”
Song Ji rolled her eyes, trying to commit the purpose of each item to memory.
None of it was of any use to me, but there was no need to expose my weakness by mentioning that the medicine wouldn’t work.
I nodded in gratitude and stumbled out of the infirmary.
Deok Ju, who had been waiting outside, hurried over and supported me.
“Miss, your complexion isn’t good. Let me take you back to Cheoso at once…….”
“Before we go back to Cheoso, I need to stop by and see grandfather. There’s something I want to ask—no, wait.”
I stopped myself and shook my head, pressing my hand to my brow.
Dang Jung wouldn’t understand me any more than Dang Ju Hui had. To him, Song Ji and Gyeong Ah were merely tools in my service.
If he sensed my confusion, he might separate the two of them from me.
As I deliberated, I thought of someone who might understand what I felt.
“Song Ji, bring my outer robe. Deok Ju, get ready to go out.”
“Miss. Your body is still unwell. Where are you going……?”
“I need to visit the Wol Hyang Ru.”
I answered, my gaze fixed beyond the courtyard wall.
* * *
Even without an appointment, Hwa Hong greeted me in bare feet, her seductive smile meeting my eyes.
“My, my. Young lady. I’m delighted you remembered this Hwa Hong and sought me out.”
“You said you would help me.”
The moment I spoke my business, I realized how thoughtless I was being, yet I lacked the strength even for pleasantries.
At the weakness in my voice, Hwa Hong approached softly and whispered.
“Something troubles you.”
“Yes.”
“Let this Hwa Hong serve you. Come this way, young lady.”
Hwa Hong settled me into a plush chair and brought a blanket to drape across my lap. Then she placed a warm cup in my hands.
“Now that you’ve come this far, you’ll grant me the pleasure of offering you tea, won’t you? Breathe in the fragrance, young lady. It’s a lovely quince scent.”
She even patted the back of my hand tenderly. Only then did I notice how pitifully my hands trembled.
I was shaking as if enduring the depths of winter in the middle of summer—anyone would assume something grave had happened.
I pressed my lips together and grasped the teacup. As I steadied my breathing and drew in the quince fragrance, the sweet aroma loosened the knot of tension.
My muscles began to relax, and my erratic heartbeat gradually found its rhythm. Warmth returned to my cold fingertips.
As my breathing settled, Hwa Hong smiled and spoke.
“Young lady. Your tea has grown cold. Shall I brew you a fresh cup?”
It was her way of asking if I felt calmer now. I nodded and opened my mouth.
“Ru Ju. I wish to speak with you alone.”
“If that is your desire, young lady.”
Hwa Hong answered and rested her elbows on the table, interlacing her fingers. At once, a great Qi veil rose up and enveloped her.
Deok Ju, pushed outside the barrier, stared at me with her mouth slightly open. Her brows were deeply furrowed—clearly displeased that I wanted to speak with Hwa Hong alone.
I shook my head to signal her to stay put, and Deok Ju swallowed her protest, obediently stepping back behind me.
Hwa Hong, observing our silent exchange, spoke with playful amusement.
“That young woman has uncommonly sharp eyes. A loyal escort.”
“Yes. My girl is quite good.”
“Your girl. You speak of your escort as ‘my child.’ An amusing way to put it.”
“Don’t you think of the people of the Wol Hyang Ru the same way? You are the proprietress of this establishment, after all.”
“Oh my.”
Hwa Hong’s eyes widened, and she laughed softly behind her hand.
“Of course I do. I alone can protect our children.”
With that gentle laugh came a certainty I needed.
Hwa Hong is not like the blood of the Dang Clan.
She calls the courtesans—women the world scorns and points fingers at—her own children.
If it is Hwa Hong, she will not find me strange, nor mock my words.
I swallowed hard and broke the silence.
“……Today, my handmaiden’s tongue was cut off.”
“My goodness.”
“She was told it was because she overheard something the Younger Madam said. The girl simply did her duty, and yet……”
“For the powerless, such sufferings befall with relentless frequency. It is a sad matter.”
Hwa Hong replied evenly, her long lashes flickering. Her expression asked what point I meant to make.
I asked quietly.
“Do you think the same way, Ru Ju? Is it sad but inevitable? Should I keep it quiet and let it be buried?”
Hwa Hong’s eyes narrowed.
“I am well aware of the Dang Clan’s nature—their grudges run deep and they do not forget. But if you’ve come seeking me to pursue revenge, you have sought the wrong person. Young lady. How could a lowly courtesan raise a hand against the blood of the Dang Clan?”
“……Revenge?”
“Your anger is understandable. You were raised in the Dang Clan hearing that you must repay kindness twofold and hatred tenfold—all the more reason this must cut deeply. But sometimes forbearance is the answer. Young lady. Now is not the time for revenge.”
Hwa Hong admonished me in a measured tone. She believed I sought to vent my anger on Jo Ssi, the Younger Madam.
I shook my head.
“Revenge holds no meaning. Revenge taken after losing everything becomes mere outburst. I came here because I wanted to know how to protect them.”
“You think I have the answer?”
“Yes. Because you do know, Ru Ju. You protect everyone here at the Wol Hyang Ru.”
……
I held Hwa Hong’s gaze directly and asked.
“How do I protect them? What must I do to keep my life, my people safe?”

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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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