The Five-Year-Old Baby Princess Rules the Palace - Chapter 4

—————
This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
—————

#4. Encountering Lady Gyeongbin

Having safely passed through the back gate of the Princess’s Quarters, Eunhye was moving her short legs busily, running earnestly toward the Crown Prince’s Palace.

It was quite far from the Inner Palace to the Library of the Crown Prince’s Palace. Usually when she went with Crown Prince, it was a path they walked while chatting pleasantly, but now running alone with all her might like this, she was getting quite out of breath and struggling.

But no matter how difficult it was, she would be safe once she reached that place…

Eunhye was running earnestly while only looking at the ground, afraid she might encounter someone who would recognize her or face the ghost that had been attached to that stranger.

But suddenly, the tip of red silk shoes and the hem of a navy blue skirt adorned with splendid gold leaf came into Eunhye’s view.

“Huh?”

Unable to stop her steps in time, she bumped her head with a thud against the fully puffed navy blue silk skirt.

“Oh my! Well, who might this be? Isn’t this the Princess?”

Ah, it’s Lady Gyeongbin…!

Eunhye squeezed her eyes shut tight at the unwelcome voice she heard from above her head.

Of all places, to encounter Lady Gyeongbin here.

Among Father’s concubines, she held the highest rank of Senior First Rank, and having given birth to two princes, her influence was tremendous.

Moreover, her temperament was so cold that rumors spread throughout the Palace that even Lady Gyeongbin’s two prince sons were very afraid of their own mother.

Strangely, that Lady Gyeongbin particularly disliked her.

Though she didn’t know the reason, Eunhye could clearly tell. Ever since she was even younger than now, Lady Gyeongbin had always been insolent and disrespectful toward her and Crown Prince.

After bumping into somewhere around Lady Gyeongbin’s legs, Eunhye gripped her skirt tightly and stood frozen.

Just a little further and she would reach the Crown Prince’s Palace, so why did she have to encounter Lady Gyeongbin here of all places?

Lady Gyeongbin’s voice, mixed with cold laughter, came down over Eunhye’s head as she unconsciously bit her lower lip.

“Even though this is the Palace, Princess, where are you going all alone like that? Running around without a single attendant – if strangers saw this, they might mistake you for some commoner from the marketplace.”

How dare she!

Eunhye clenched her molars tightly at Lady Gyeongbin’s harsh words coming from above her head.

No matter that she was Senior First Rank Lady Gyeongbin who bore two princes, how dare she compare this country’s legitimate Princess to a commoner!

Gritting her teeth, Eunhye opened her tightly shut eyes and looked up at Lady Gyeongbin.

“Please watch your words!”

“Oh my, it seems what I said has angered you. Don’t misunderstand, Princess.”

Lady Gyeongbin made a mocking expression and lowered her body to peer into Eunhye’s face.

“I was worried seeing this country’s legitimate Princess wandering around this vast Palace alone, so those words came out.”

Eunhye lifted her small chin proudly and looked straight at Lady Gyeongbin.

“I have urgent business and am hurrying to the Crown Prince’s Palace, so Lady Gyeongbin should also continue on your way.”

That gentle puppy-like thing knows how to show her claws too.

Lady Gyeongbin raised one corner of her mouth crookedly with a mocking expression.

“By the way, did you get into a scuffle with someone? Scratches on this precious face. His Majesty the King would be greatly disappointed if he saw the Princess’s face right now.”

Eunhye frowned at the strange fragrance that wafted from Lady Gyeongbin. At the peculiar body scent mixing floral fragrance with a sour smell, Eunhye unconsciously let out a shallow breath and slowly opened her mouth.

“Unless one doesn’t value their neck, who would dare get into a scuffle with a princess of this nation?”

Ha, won’t back down from a single word?

Lady Gyeongbin glanced at the small fist Eunhye was clenching tightly and chuckled.

“Ho, yes, I misspoke. But what exactly are the servants of Hyesin Palace doing to let such a young Princess wander around alone? This won’t do – I must petition Queen Mother to immediately replace the palace servants of Byeolgung.”

“No!”

At Lady Gyeongbin’s venomous voice, Eunhye spoke loudly and opened her eyes wide. Despite being a young child, the anger faintly contained in her eyes was quite something.

“Lady Gyeongbin should not interfere. I will take care of my own servants.”

‘Ho, even if she’s half-witted, she’s still the legitimate Princess? This child’s gaze is not ordinary.’

Lady Gyeongbin chuckled with interest.

Eunhye’s black pupils looking straight at her were radiating a firm will telling her not to touch her people.

‘Look at this?’

At the small head raised toward her and Eunhye’s gaze reaching her directly – though trembling, it was straight – Lady Gyeongbin chuckled once more.

“Ah, is that so? Since the Princess’s will is so firm, I’ll pretend I didn’t see anything today. But if the Princess continues wandering the Palace alone like this, someday those who serve the Princess will surely be punished.”

Though it was a voice full of mockery with one lip twisted up crookedly, Lady Gyeongbin’s words weren’t entirely wrong, so Eunhye had no choice but to press her lips tightly and lower her gaze.

“That… that is something I will be careful about from now on.”

“Ho ho ho, yes. Since the Princess says so, I’ll trust you. But do you really need to go to the Library of the Crown Prince’s Palace right now?”

At Lady Gyeongbin’s question, Eunhye’s pupils shook left and right.

What should she answer? She couldn’t say she was running away to escape the ghost attached to the new nain.

Lady Gyeongbin’s voice, pretending to be concerned, settled down over Eunhye’s head again.

“Actually, the reason I walked this way today was because I have a gift for the Princess.”

A gift?

At Lady Gyeongbin’s sudden and mysterious words, Eunhye’s head tilted to one side.

“I heard that our Princess still frequently faints even though it’s been two years since recovering from smallpox.”

Lady Gyeongbin continued her words while looking mockingly at Eunhye’s puzzled expression.

“And it just so happens that precious ingredients have arrived at my quarters.”

Precious ingredients?

Eunhye’s white, round forehead wrinkled slightly at Lady Gyeongbin’s words of unclear intent. Seeing this, Lady Gyeongbin twisted up one corner of her mouth and continued with gleaming eyes.

“This is supposedly so good for the body that it can make even the sick jump right up. Moreover, its appearance is so unique that I thought a young Princess would find it very interesting to see, ho ho ho.”

What is it?

At Lady Gyeongbin’s voice that seemed to be coaxing and tempting a young child, Eunhye’s pupils were wavering. Seeing this, Lady Gyeongbin smiled slyly, lowered her body, brought her lips to Eunhye’s ear and whispered.

“So I brought it to the Princess first, before the Queen Dowager’s Residence.”

“What?”

A sound escaped from surprised Eunhye’s mouth without her knowing. Precious ingredients, but she brought them to me first instead of offering them to Grandmother? Lady Gyeongbin? Why?

Watching such Eunhye, Lady Gyeongbin narrowed her eyes cunningly, made a pitying expression by turning down the corners of her mouth, then continued.

“The Princess should recover quickly so His Majesty the King will be pleased too.”

Having finished speaking, Lady Gyeongbin straightened her lowered body.

As if a cold wind had blown, Lady Gyeongbin instantly changed her expression and spoke to the tense Eunhye with a coquettish laugh.

“Ho ho ho, Princess, why are you so tense? You look like you can’t believe I’m giving you a gift. Well then, Princess, please take a look for yourself.”

Then she personally took a fairly large wooden box from the hands of Lady Seo, who was bowing beside her while holding it.

“I’m also seeing this miraculous ingredient for the first time myself. This is supposedly called octopus, which is so good for restoring energy.”

Lady Gyeongbin twisted her lips mischievously, lowered the wooden box to Eunhye’s eye level, and opened the lid wide.

Wriggling live octopi were entangled with each other’s bodies in a brass bowl filled with ice water.

“Eek!”

At the bizarre-shaped creatures she was seeing for the first time in her life, Eunhye’s eyes grew as big as plates. The strange creaking sounds they made while entangling their large and small bodies with each other were also terrifyingly awful.

“What are these things!”

Lady Gyeongbin smiled mischievously at Eunhye, who asked her in a voice full of fear. Then she pushed the box containing the wriggling octopi closer and said.

“Amazing, isn’t it, Princess? Their energy is so good that supposedly even when cut into pieces alive, they keep wriggling. If you pick up those wriggling pieces and dip them in oil sauce to eat, they taste so good and are excellent for recovering vitality, so please do try them.”

Eunhye backed away as if having a fit at the sight of the octopi wriggling right in front of her and shook her head.

“L-Lady Gyeongbin, I’ll just accept the thought. So please t-take this back.”

But before Eunhye could even finish speaking, Lady Gyeongbin grabbed her small, soft hand.

“Princess, would you like to touch them directly?”

Then she thrust Eunhye’s hand into the wooden box she was supporting with one hand.

“Ugh… I don’t want to!”

Terrified Eunhye forcefully shook off Lady Gyeongbin’s hand that was trying to put her hand into the box.

Crash bang clang!

Though she was a young child, at Eunhye’s gesture of shaking off with all her might, the box that Lady Gyeongbin had been supporting with one hand fell to the ground and rolled around.

“Princess!”

At the shrill scream that burst from Lady Gyeongbin’s mouth and the sight of the bizarre creatures spilled onto the ground wriggling wildly, Eunhye’s small heart began beating as if it would burst.

“Waah!”

Stepping backward unconsciously and stepping on her skirt hem, Eunhye ended up sitting down on the ground mixed with fishy water and dirt. And the tears that burst out then were not those of the princess she had maintained dignifiedly until now, nor of royalty, but exactly those of a five-year-old child.

“Hic hic, it’s scary, Mother…”

The fishy water that flowed when the brass bowl containing the live octopi overturned was soaking Eunhye’s deep red skirt completely.

Lady Gyeongbin glared at that sight with piercing eyes and harshly brushed off the water that had splashed on her own skirt.

Then she looked down disdainfully at Eunhye, who was crouched down crying with her ears covered, and shook her head.

“Oh dear! Were you so frightened by such a trivial thing? Seeing you so scared makes me feel bad too.”

Then she whirled around toward her own palace servants who stood there not knowing what to do and shouted.

“What are you doing! Quickly help up the precious Princess Eunhye! And clean up that disgusting mess immediately!”

“Yes? Yes, yes! Lady Gyeongbin!”

She was furious.

Eunhye’s eyes blazed with anger at Lady Gyeongbin who mocked her so, and she clenched her small fists tight with the indignation that naturally surged up.

Amid Lady Gyeongbin’s shouting, the court ladies picked up the scattered wooden box and brass bowls, and Lady Seo approached Eunhye and roughly grabbed her arm.

“Princess Eunhye, please get up now.”

Then Eunhye sprang up with her fists clenched and spoke in a rather sharp voice.

“How dare you! Step aside! How dare you grab me so carelessly!”

No matter that she was Lady Gyeongbin, how dare she treat me, a princess of this nation, so carelessly – I will never forget what happened today.

Eunhye’s chubby cheeks became even more puffed out as she clenched her molars tight.

Watching this, Lady Gyeongbin twisted up one corner of her mouth and gestured with her chin toward Eunhye’s skirt that was soaked with water.

“Oh my, your skirt is completely soaked. You should return to your quarters immediately and change clothes first. No matter how young the Princess may be, how can you wander around the Palace in such a state?”

Then she even shook her head as if finding it pathetic and let out a snicker.

Eunhye stared daggers at Lady Gyeongbin.

Lady Gyeongbin was known to constantly watch for opportunities to push aside the Queen Mother and ascend to the position of Queen.

Knowing that she must not give such a woman even the smallest excuse, Eunhye suppressed her sense of injustice and put even more force into her glare.

Lady Gyeongbin glanced at the court ladies who had gathered up the wooden box along with the writhing live octopus and brass bowls, then opened her mouth toward Eunhye.

“It seems I have unintentionally committed a breach of etiquette toward the Princess today. Next time I will come bearing a gift that will surely please the Princess’s heart, so please let go of any anger you may have.”

Eunhye glared at Lady Gyeongbin without giving any response. She was certain the woman had come all this way to mock and ridicule her, but she was too young and powerless.

Lady Gyeongbin gave a slight bow to Eunhye who was glaring at her, then let out a derisive snort.

“Well then, I shall take my leave. Princess, you should also return to your quarters quickly. The lowly servants are watching improperly. Ho ho ho.”

Before Eunhye’s response could even fall, Lady Gyeongbin turned coldly and began walking away while muttering to herself as if for others to hear.

“What good is a half-wit princess who knows nothing of dignity? Why does His Majesty dote on her so?”

—————
This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
—————