The Little Baby Snake of the Vermilion Bird Family - Chapter 40

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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 40
The small baby snake Ju Jeokseo had picked up and brought home one day.
When the truth came to light that the baby snake was actually Ju Myeongyeong’s daughter, the Vermilion Bird Family was sent into a massive uproar once again.
“To think the Spiritual Treasure responded to the young lady…!”
“You have a new name now, so call her Baeksa from this moment on.”
Ju Jeokseo spoke tenderly as he stroked Baeksa’s head.
“Baeksa! Which Chinese characters did you choose for it?”
“The ‘Baek’ for white, and the ‘Sa’ for lotus.”
Baeksa replied with a shy, subtle smile.
Sirang clapped her hands together, her face bright with a grin.
“A white lotus, how lovely! It suits you perfectly, young lady. I suppose I should call you Miss Baeksa now.”
Sirang, who had come out to greet Baeksa, cast a lingering glance behind Ju Jeokseo’s back, noticing the difference in the group’s composition compared to when they left.
She was looking for Ahee.
Since word of what happened had not yet reached the Vermilion Bird Family Estate, it was only natural for Sirang to wonder about Ahee.
“Ahee is currently undergoing investigation for the crime of impersonating Myeongyeong’s daughter.”
“Impersonating her…?”
“The child must have been deeply hurt by this ordeal, so look after her with even greater care than before.”
“Yes, Family Head. Please do not worry.”
Sirang answered robustly.
“At any rate, you seem to have adjusted a bit to the estate now, so I shall assign a few more servant girls to assist you.”
“Oh, Family Head, I can take excellent care of her all by myself…”
“Trying to handle everything alone always leads to trouble. Why such a reaction when I am trying to lighten your load?”
Ju Jeokseo gently chided Sirang.
In truth, he knew exactly why Sirang was reacting that way.
There were still several servants in this Vermilion Bird Family Estate who harbored a negative impression of the baby snake.
Because it was difficult to weed them all out, he had initially expelled those who showed overt hostility and left the rest, but Sirang seemed concerned about the ones remaining.
If people like that were brought in as servant girls, the young lady would surely suffer emotionally again.
Ultimately, Ju Jeokseo took special measures.
“Do not pull such a long face. In return, I will raise your weekly wages and allow you to handpick the servant girls who will assist you.”
“Gasp, really?”
“Yes, go and choose them. You will have a busy day if you wish to finish before dusk.”
“Understood! I will follow your command! Young lady, I will pick the most clever and hard-working girls. Do not worry at all!”
Sirang beamed and quickly dashed out of the room.
Baeksa smiled at the sight.
“Do you like Sirang?”
“Yes, Sirang is very kind. She has been consistently good to me from the moment we first met until now.”
“Sirang will continue to attend to you, staying by your side. And…”
Ju Jeokseo gestured, and Doeui stepped forward.
“You called, Family Head?”
“Doeui is Hwaryeong’s bodyguard in name, but he is practically like a brother to him. Doeui’s Supernatural Ability is excellent for guarding and staying alert. Whenever you go out, Doeui will protect you.”
“Should I start addressing her as young lady from today onward?”
“Wh-what? No!”
Baeksa hurriedly shook her head. As the child shook her head frantically, Ju Jeokseo chuckled and poked Doeui’s forehead.
“You mischievous brat, stop teasing her.”
“But Hwaryeong calls me that sometimes.”
“That is only in front of others. Do you think I do not know that you two act comfortably when you are alone? Treat Baeksa with the same ease.”
“Understood.”
Doeui nodded. Baeksa let out a long sigh of relief.
She had genuinely worried that Doeui might start addressing her formally as a young lady.
‘Young lady… that would be so strange.’
She had been getting along with Doeui just like a good friend all this time.
If he suddenly kept his distance and called her young lady, it felt as though her heart would grow a little heavy for some reason.
“Baeksa.”
Ju Jeokseo called out to the baby snake affectionately as he picked up a sweet confection.
Pop, he placed it right into her mouth and whispered.
“Now that we know who you truly are, try calling me Uncle.”
“Ah, oooh…”
Her mouth was so full of the sticky treat that she could not answer right away.
Baeksa chewed diligently on the sticky sweet with an embarrassed look on her face.
At that, Hwaryeong raised an eyebrow.
“Father! How can you stuff her mouth with a treat like that and then expect her to speak?”
“I did not realize it would be quite this sticky… Do you want to spit it out?”
He offered his hand beneath the baby snake’s chin, looking equally flustered.
The girl shook her head in horror and chewed the snack thoroughly before swallowing.
Then, gently tugging at Ju Jeokseo’s sleeve, she spoke hesitantly.
“Un… Uncle…”
“Good girl, I am your uncle.”
He smiled radiantly and stroked the baby snake’s round forehead.
He looked so blissful, as if he possessed the entire world. Watching him quietly, Baeksa spoke up with caution.
“Um, but… I do not have any memories of my mother.”
It was an obvious truth, but she felt it was something she needed to say.
“The Emperor never spoke of my mother even once… So I have never seen her, nor have I heard where she went after giving birth to me.”
The only thing she had ever heard from the rumors was that she had died.
That her body had grown weak after giving birth to the princess, and she had passed away. And that the Emperor hated his own daughter enough to kill her precisely because of that.
However, Baeksa did not have the courage to mention that part.
To tell her uncle, who had searched so hard for her and was now so happy, that her mother might be dead.
‘That would be too cruel.’
As Baeksa dropped her head low, Ju Jeokseo gently poked the child’s soft cheek.
“Baeksa, for the past ten years, I have searched high and low for nothing but news of your mother.”
There was no one in Namto who did not know that fact.
“Yet, while I could not find so much as a single Feather, you appeared. So you can imagine what a gift your existence is to me. I will investigate your mother’s whereabouts, so do not trouble yourself with worry.”
“Yes, Uncle.”
Hwaryeong, who had been listening quietly to the conversation, suddenly chimed in.
“Then the baby snake is my cousin, not my little sister? I was really hoping she would be my sister!”
“What difference does it make whether she is your sister or your cousin? All that matters is that you cherish and love her like family, like blood siblings.”
Ju Jeokseo broke a sweet confection in half and popped it into Baeksa’s mouth.
It was a considerate gesture from Ju Jeokseo, who had noticed just a moment ago that Baeksa struggled to chew the whole treat.
The child beamed happily with the sweet snack in her mouth.
***
“We have been discovered, sir.”
At the concise report, the man clicked his tongue.
“Useless fool. I knew this would happen.”
“What shall we do now?”
“What do you mean, what shall we do? Cut the tail. Ensure there are no links back to us.”
At the man’s command, his subordinate bowed deeply. The subordinate immediately exited the room.
After sending him away, the man stared blankly into the empty space and muttered to himself.
“To think he couldn’t even utilize the blood I provided properly. He was never meant for greatness to begin with.”
There was no one around the man, so he was the only one to hear his own muttering.
From afar, the ominous hooting of a wood pigeon echoed through the air.
***
Afterward, not much changed in the baby snake’s daily routine.
If one had to point out a change, it was that Ahee was no longer in this estate.
From what she gathered, Ahee had been banished to a very distant place. Therefore, she would likely never return here.
Furthermore, most of the servants who looked upon the baby snake with disapproval had vanished.
In their place.
“Hello, young lady. My name is Nahyun.”
“I am Boyu. From today onward, I will be assisting Sirang to attend to you, young lady.”
Two more servant girls had been added to help Sirang.
Though the number of servant girls had only increased by two, the Residence where Baeksa stayed felt much more bustling than before.
It was all thanks to the servant girls moving busily to clean and helping Baeksa tend to the Rear Garden.
Moreover, now that the Divine Beast Festival had concluded, Doeui and Hwaryeong were able to visit the Residence during the Hour of the Sheep just as they used to.
Everything was going smoothly.
Sitting in her room, the child quietly organized and pondered over everything that had transpired so far.
‘It feels like a dream.’
It felt as though she were experiencing a wonderful dream.
To the point where, if this were indeed a dream, she never wished to wake up.
To think that the place where she had come to seek refuge in this distant Namto was actually the very estate where her mother had lived during her lifetime.
She recalled the time when everyone believed Ahee was Myeongyeong’s daughter, and she had tended to the garden wishing to give Ahee a better living environment.
The garden she had cultivated so carefully had ultimately become not for Ahee, but for Baeksa herself.
As that fact struck her with wonder from time to time, the baby snake felt as though this entire reality was an incredibly sweet dream.

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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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