The Ignored Granddaughter of a Murim Family - Chapter 304

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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 304
* * *
I surveyed the chamber. Everything had been arranged with meticulous care.
Over the past few days, I had organized the Residence Quarter thoroughly—securing valuables in locked boxes, gathering my clothing and coin.
Geum-swe entered the chamber and bowed respectfully to me.
“Miss, I have completed all the tasks you requested.”
As Geum-swe rose from her position, I noticed her hesitation and wondered if there was something more she wished to say.
Geum-swe asked carefully.
“Are you truly leaving?”
“Yes.”
“Then when will you return?”
“I don’t know.”
I smiled faintly. Another figure entered the chamber behind Geum-swe.
“Miss, it’s me.”
It was Jin-jin.
Upon entering, Jin-jin immediately whispered something in my ear.
I nodded and spoke to Jin-jin.
“Yes. Now go to Father. And do exactly as I instructed. Do you understand?”
“Yes, I understand.”
Jin-jin quickly departed, and I followed with Geum-swe close behind.
I stopped at the threshold of the doorway.
“Ryu-cheong, what are you doing here? Haven’t you left yet?”
Namgung Ryu-cheong regarded me with an expressionless face, then turned sharply and departed without a word.
I tilted my head slightly.
* * *
The rhythmic sound of hoofbeats was swallowed by the clamor of the bustling street.
Those riding with their wide-brimmed hats pulled low proceeded toward a massive gate, through which countless people moved in and out.
“Shim Bu-gwan, take this.”
Shim Ji-pyeong accepted the object his superior handed him, and his eyes widened in shock.
“This is….”
“An access token for the Baek Li Estate.”
Shim Ji-pyeong could only blink in bewilderment.
After the Gatekeeper had mistakenly blocked Namgung Wan when he arrived with a formal invitation, the Baek Li Estate had presented this token to Namgung Wan as an apology.
“What are you waiting for? Take it.”
“Ah, yes. But why are you giving this to me…?”
An ominous premonition seized me, though I desperately hoped my suspicions were wrong.
My superior, Namgung Wan, replied.
“Why do you think? Go in there and drag that bastard out. Let’s see if he dares to defy us even now.”
“…So Ga-ju, aren’t you going inside?”
“Why would I enter that household?”
Shim Ji-pyeong widened his mouth blankly, contorting his face into the most vacant expression he could muster. He desperately hoped his superior would find him unreliable and cancel this command.
“I have no intention of causing a commotion. You’ll go in quietly and bring him out.”
“….”
There was no hope.
Shim Ji-pyeong offered a feeble objection.
“How am I supposed to enter the Baek Li Estate alone…?”
“That’s why I gave you the access token. Besides, you stayed at that house for a while with Ryu-cheong, so you know it better than I do. What’s the problem? Stop making that foolish face and go now.”
“….”
Shim Ji-pyeong had once visited the Baek Li Estate as Namgung Ryu-cheong’s aide during the celebration of the Baek Li Family Head’s eightieth birthday.
Various incidents had erupted then, causing him to stay considerably longer than planned. Thus, no one had more familiarity with the Baek Li Estate than he did.
‘Ah, why must I endure such a trial.’
Namgung Wan had frantically urged Namgung Ryu-cheong to return with letters full of reproach, yet when the moment came to fetch him personally, he had dragged his feet terribly.
So Bu-in had essentially driven the perpetually dawdling Namgung Wan out the door.
As Shim Ji-pyeong gazed upon the approaching Main Gate of the Baek Li Estate, he gathered his courage and spoke.
“So Ga-ju, we’ve come this far—shouldn’t you at least see his face before we leave?”
“Shim Ji-pyeong.”
“Yes.”
“Did I ask for your opinion?”
“…No, sir.”
“Then keep your mouth shut and do as I command.”
“Understood.”
This won’t work. This simply won’t work.
This was not a matter that would resolve easily.
Namgung Wan was close with his subordinates and treated them like friends, yet he was surprisingly firm about boundaries.
He never revealed his true feelings to his men. Or rather, it wasn’t limited to just his subordinates.
Though he appeared fiery and temperamental, the emotions that could truly shake him were precisely those he never displayed outwardly.
Yet somehow, one could sense that Baek Li-ui-gang’s deception—uttering not a single word—had dealt him a profound blow.
That was what made it all the more frightening.
Since learning the truth about Baek Li-yeon’s biological mother, Namgung Wan had not uttered a single word about Baek Li-ui-gang to his subordinates.
He seemed to have spoken with his own son, the young master, though even that took the form of something closer to quarreling. In any case, that had been the last time he had raised his voice about Baek Li-yeon’s biological mother.
And that very son had now barricaded himself within the Baek Li Estate, sending not a single letter.
Yet having come to visit the Baek Li Estate like this, they would surely face each other, and he had harbored hope that an honest conversation might resolve things.
‘He had no intention of even meeting him!’
As Shim Ji-pyeong pressed his chest in frustration, the horse of Namgung Wan at the front suddenly slowed its pace. Shim Ji-pyeong followed suit, pulling back on his reins.
Wondering what had happened, he heard a crystalline voice, clear as rolling silver beads.
“Hello.”
At that refreshing voice, Shim Ji-pyeong felt his frustration sweep away in an instant.
“….”
“…So Ga-ju.”
As a long silence stretched on, another subordinate to Namgung Wan’s left cautiously called out, his eyes asking what they should do.
Eventually, Namgung Wan spoke in a low, measured voice.
“Why are you out here? Ah, I see. You must have known I was coming.”
“Yes, sir. It’s been a long time. I heard you were injured, but I’m relieved to see you looking well.”
“And yet I hear you’ve been unwell, though it seems you’re healthy enough to venture outside like this.”
The atmosphere grew frigid.
Shim Ji-pyeong found himself glancing at the gatekeepers of Baek Li Estate without realizing it.
The gatekeepers’ wide eyes suggested they too had caught the barb in Namgung Wan’s words.
Namgung Wan continued.
“Well then, perhaps it’s fortunate. If you knew I was coming, surely you understand why I’ve come?”
Shim Ji-pyeong squeezed his eyes shut and interjected.
“So Ga-ju! Perhaps we should dismount first and discuss this matter….”
“….”
Namgung Wan glared at him.
For a moment, my knees nearly buckled, but eventually everyone managed to dismount.
After dismounting, Namgung Wan swept his gaze over Baek Li-yeon, then paused abruptly.
“That box….”
The words seemed to escape unbidden, and Namgung Wan clamped his mouth shut without finishing.
“It’s a gift.”
Shim Ji-pyeong quickly accepted the box. It was made of dark wood, ornately decorated with mother-of-pearl inlays depicting butterflies and grass patterns.
Shim Ji-pyeong promptly offered the box to Namgung Wan as if urging him to open it.
Namgung Wan spoke as though amused by nothing.
“Baek Li-yeon, this is pointless.”
A soft voice followed.
“It’s been so long since I’ve come out here. Nothing has changed at all. When I first entered through this gate holding my father’s hand, it felt like I was dreaming.”
A bittersweet smile lingered at the corners of Baek Li-yeon’s lips as she gazed at the gate.
“Come to think of it, this is where I first met you, sir.”
“….”
Namgung Wan opened the box forcefully, his manner suggesting that whatever lay inside would be of no consequence.
The moment he opened it, a cool, refreshing fragrance rose up and dispersed.
“This is….”
A sachet embroidered with blue pine needles.
Shim Ji-pyeong stole a glance at Namgung Wan. The sachet he had once received from Baek Li-yeon and boasted about for ages had mysteriously vanished one day.
How did she know about it and create a new one?
The question was answered immediately.
“I heard that Ryu-cheong’s sachet—the one I gave him—was taken from him.”
“….”
“Do you like it?”
Shim Ji-pyeong arranged his face to show no expression whatsoever.
‘Sigh, I should have just gone about my business without overthinking things.’
Yes, yes. If I can win over the children first, the rift with Baek Li Dae-hyup will eventually heal.
So does this mean the young master will marry Baek Li-yeon? What happens to the family then?
Just when I thought one worry might be resolved, another endless problem emerged.
“You really do have a talent for leaving me speechless.”
After a long silence, Namgung Wan reached for the sachet.
That was when the sound of hoofbeats approached from behind where they stood on the street.
Namgung Wan’s demeanor, which had softened, turned sharp again. I could tell from his reaction alone who it was without even looking.
Shim Ji-pyeong turned his head and was startled to see Baek Li-ui-gang. He had already heard the rumors, but the man’s hair was truly bleached white. Combined with his white robes, there was something almost otherworldly about his appearance. Yet Baek Li-ui-gang looked flustered.
‘Did Baek Li Dae-hyup not know that So Ga-ju was coming?’
Baek Li-ui-gang dismounted from his horse with a rigid expression.
Baek Li-yeon, who had been standing ahead, rushed over and threw her arms around her father.
“Father, Uncle Namgung Wan has arrived!”
Baek Li-ui-gang caught his daughter naturally and straightened his posture as he spoke.
“What brings you to these parts?”
“I didn’t come to see you, so don’t concern yourself.”
….
Oh, So Ga-ju.
The atmosphere that had been loosening suddenly turned rigid and tense.
“Then….”
“Did you come to see me?”
“What?”
Namgung Wan’s eyes widened, but unable to bring himself to speak harshly to Baek Li-yeon, he clenched his teeth tightly.
Shim Ji-pyeong observed the taut tendons in Namgung Wan’s jaw and reflected.
Yes, if he spoke harshly to Baek Li-yeon, what kind of person would that make him?
Baek Li-yeon, her face radiant with smiles, linked her arm through her father’s and pushed Namgung Wan toward the entrance.
“Uncle, it’s been so long. Come inside quickly. Let’s talk inside.”
“I….”
Shim Ji-pyeong stepped forward swiftly with a bow.
“My goodness, thank you so much, Miss. My throat was parched anyway. Let us go inside at once.”
“Shim Ji-pyeong!”

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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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