The Morning Star Baby Wants a Family - Chapter 14

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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 14
“Of course. Are you very hungry? Shall I bring you something else?”
“No!”
I chewed and swallowed the remaining dried persimmon thoroughly, then sprang up from my seat.
The Kitchen was as bustling a place as the Laundry Room. Beyond the Cook who prepared the meals, there were many Servant Girls needed to prepare and carry ingredients.
“Chung-yeon. May I go to the Kitchen?”
I asked with bright eyes, and Chung-yeon’s expression grew puzzled.
“The Kitchen? Why? If there’s something you’d like to eat, I can bring it for you.”
“No, that’s not it… I thought there might be work I could help with.”
I mumbled and held out my hands, which were dusted with white flour.
“I’m good at this work. Or even if I’m not very good, I won’t be in the way. Whatever you give me to do, I’ll work hard at it.”
It was something I’d said with considerable courage. But Chung-yeon’s face grew strange at those words.
“Young mistress. Has someone been saying odd things to you?”
Chung-yeon knelt to meet my gaze and asked gently.
“Why are you suddenly trying to work? You don’t need to do such things.”
“No, that’s not right!”
I cried out without thinking, biting my lower lip hard.
Chung-yeon’s face grew even more serious.
I couldn’t tell her that I’d overheard what Seowan had said.
Whether she took my side or not, it would feel sad either way.
“It’s just… I feel like I need to do something. I want to stay here, but I feel like I’m just eating without contributing…”
I stammered out an excuse. Contrary to my intentions, Chung-yeon understood the situation to some degree from my words.
Chung-su was Chung-yeon’s younger brother. Since Chung-yeon herself managed the household affairs close to Seowan’s side, she had a general sense of what conversations took place within the Residence.
‘No wonder that Chung-su fellow was asking me about the young mistress’s wellbeing.’
It was clear that I had overheard Chung-su and Seowan discussing my future.
‘He’s not trying to send me away because I’ve done something wrong.’
It was obvious what the child was thinking. But those weren’t words Chung-yeon could say.
Chung-yeon swallowed a sigh. She wished her master had been a bit more eloquent.
‘And a little less stubborn too.’
Already several times, Chung-yeon had said it would be fine for me to grow up in the Yul Household.
But Seowan was obstinate. No matter that she was an old friend, she was Chung-yeon’s master, and Chung-yeon could only obey her commands.
“Eating without contributing? Young mistress, you eat barely a mouse’s tear. To bankrupt the Yul Household’s grain stores, you’d need to eat ten times what you do now.”
In the end, Chung-yeon playfully poked my cheek and spoke.
Then she popped a rice cake into my mouth.
“Mmph, why…?”
I chewed the rice cake with a bewildered expression.
Chung-yeon laughed and brushed the white powder from the corner of my mouth.
“Once you finish eating this, you may go to the Kitchen.”
At those words, my face brightened. Watching me earnestly chew and swallow, Chung-yeon smiled with a pitying heart.
‘Anyway, even if she goes, I won’t make her do anything difficult.’
All she could do now was lighten the burden weighing on this young lady’s mind, even if only by a fraction.
* * *
Hae-na had been somewhat nervous. Chung-yeon’s expression had grown far too dark.
Fortunately, however, Chung-yeon had imposed only a simple condition: finish the rice cake.
Hae-na chewed the cake thoroughly to avoid indigestion, then made her way to the Kitchen with Chung-yeon’s escort.
The Kitchen was somewhat larger than the Laundry Room and far more chaotic.
Something bubbled vigorously in a cauldron perched atop the great Hearth, while figures in aprons and head coverings moved about busily, carrying ingredients, slicing them, and preparing dishes.
Faced with such frenetic activity, Hae-na couldn’t bring herself to call out and ask for work.
Just then, a Servant Girl carrying a large basket brushed past her.
Thud, roll-roll-roll.
A plump carrot caked with soil tumbled across the floor. Hae-na instinctively picked it up.
“The carrot! Where did the carrot go!”
At that moment, a man working at the Hearth bellowed sharply.
Startled, Hae-na hurried toward him.
The instant she set the carrot down beside him, a basket brimming with carrots came crashing down next to her small hand.
“Slow as molasses! And you bring them now, of all times!”
“I’m sorry, it’s just been so busy!”
“Useless, the lot of you. What is this? You drop things and lose them as you go….”
The man’s anger flared, and his gaze lowered. His narrowed eyes slowly widened.
“Huh?”
The Goat-bearded Cook’s whiskers twitched. Hae-na carefully looked up at him and extended the carrot with both hands.
“H-here. The carrot.”
At her words, the Kitchen fell silent. The Goat-bearded Cook, the Servant Girl who had brought the carrots, even the other servants working nearby—all stared intently at Hae-na.
Sizzle.
The sound of ingredients burning on the fire crackled.
The Goat-bearded Cook stared through Hae-na as though he hadn’t heard it, then asked.
“You’re the newly arrived young lady, aren’t you?”
“Y-yes, that’s right.”
Unlike the Ham-an she had seen this morning, this man seemed frightening. He appeared exacting and sharp-edged.
“How did you end up in the Kitchen? Did you lose your way?”
“No. I came here on purpose. I-I even got permission….”
Hae-na swallowed once, about to explain why she had come to the Kitchen.
“Ah, now I understand why you’ve come!”
The Goat-bearded Cook’s voice rang out loudly.
Hae-na was so startled her shoulders trembled.
“You were terribly hungry, weren’t you? So hungry you couldn’t wait and came searching the Kitchen? Blast it all, you wretches! Because of you lot, the young lady nearly went starving!”
“N-not to that extent….”
“What are you all doing! Bring her something to eat at once!”
Hae-na’s faint protest was swallowed by the subsequent shout. Servants with determined expressions approached her.
“Miss. Come here and sit down.”
“Someone fetch a table! A small one—no, a large one!”
“Don’t we have something to lay on the floor? Hey, you there. Don’t bring that filthy thing in here!”
In the blink of an eye, I found myself seated in a warm, cozy spot beside the hearth.
A plush fur vest—whose, I couldn’t say—was spread across the floor, and a low table was set before me.
Steaming hot stir-fried meat and broth, fresh from the fire.
Rice heaped high in a bowl and an assortment of seasoned vegetables.
Candied fruits of every kind, dried strips of meat, the rice cakes and dried persimmons Chung-yeon had brought.
“Come now, eat quickly. Goodness, your cheeks are so hollow.”
“Look at your wrists. One gust of wind and they’ll snap right off.”
“Didn’t you say she had a good appetite? Why are you so thin?”
The Kitchen Servants, who had rummaged through the storage and pantry to gather food, clustered around me and murmured among themselves.
I looked up at them and spoke carefully.
“Thank you. But…”
“My, such polite manners.”
“I-I didn’t come here because I was hungry.”
“Is there something else you need? You should eat first anyway. As they say, even the most beautiful mountain looks better on a full stomach.”
They seemed determined not to let me speak properly until I’d finished every grain of rice.
With a spoon pressed into my hand, I had no choice but to take a bite.
My eyes brightened as I chewed the rice carefully. Truth be told, I hadn’t eaten a proper breakfast and was indeed hungry.
The Yul Family’s food had always been delicious, but eating it fresh from the kitchen made it even more so.
Every single grain of rice was sweet. The Kitchen Servants wouldn’t leave me alone as I ate earnestly.
With each spoonful of rice, they’d place a side dish on top, and the moment I seemed to have any difficulty swallowing, they’d thrust water at me.
Though I waved my hand in refusal several times, I only received dried persimmons in return. In the end, I had no choice but to obediently clean the table bare.
After considerable effort, only candied fruits and rice cakes remained on the table.
I resisted the fifth offer for more food and finally opened my mouth to speak.
“I came here to work. Is there anything you’d like me to do?”

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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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