Three Thousand Court Ladies - Chapter 33

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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 Thirty-Three
“Please help. Deoksim is gravely ill.”
Before he could even ask what had happened, a woman named Geum cried out in a pleading voice.
But who in the world was she?
“Who is Deoksim?”
“She’s the one who oversees the kitchens of Mokseo Palace…….”
Her voice trailed away until the latter half became inaudible, but the mention of Mokseo Palace alone jogged his memory. It seemed that the palace woman with the excellent cooking skills bore that name.
“You can simply summon a physician…….”
Hui, who had been about to dismiss the matter carelessly, stopped mid-sentence. She had realized that Geum was of a station that could not simply summon a court physician.
She had been bored enough anyway; it wouldn’t be so bad to go take a look. The venison served at Mokseo Palace was exquisite, after all.
Hui gave an instruction to Juhong.
“Bring the Palace Physician to Mokseo Palace.”
Then she strode forward briskly.
“Since when has she been ill?”
Geum followed close behind and answered.
“She seemed strange since yesterday evening. When I went to say goodnight, she didn’t answer. The window was open, so I looked in and saw her lying down. She seemed to be sleeping, so I didn’t wake her.”
“And then?”
“Today she was still lying there, which struck me as odd. Even when I called, there was no answer……. I went in and tried to wake her, but her eyes wouldn’t open. Heat rash had broken out all over her face. The Princess herself asked me to look after her well, and because I was so slow to notice…….”
Geum looked ready to dig herself a hole and lie down in it. Hui suppressed the urge to bury her under the soil and spoke.
“You’ve done all that was required of you by coming to find me.”
“I am sorry. I was so bold as to seek out Your Highness.”
Geum bowed her head deeply.
This was why Hui disliked Geum. The way she flinched at every glance, the way she shrank and cowered whenever she sensed displeasure—all of it grated on her nerves.
“You apologize for everything, and in doing so you make me out to be a villain.”
“I’m so, so sorry.”
This was truly exasperating.
No further words passed between them.
When Hui pushed open the wooden gate of Mokseo Palace and stepped inside, she was struck by the silence.
There was no Samcheon to greet her with a smile, no Gyesan peeking her head out and waving her hand playfully. And the faint, sweet and savory aroma that usually lingered was nowhere to be found.
“Where could she be?”
“This way.”
The place Geum led her to was the room next to Samcheon’s. From the small, intimate chamber emanated a nauseating odor.
Upon observing the state of Deoksim, who lay on the bed, Hui’s brow furrowed.
Heat rash covered her face completely. Spots on her neck and the Scent of Death pervading the room.
Hui had received education in poisons from an early age. Born into privilege, she had many natural advantages and thus needed to be prepared against threats such as abduction and poisoning. So she could state with certainty:
“It’s poison.”
“What?”
“Was it Hae’s doing?”
As Hui’s expression darkened, a sniffling sound came from behind her. She turned to see Geum’s eyes glistening with tears like pearls.
It was fortunate that Samcheon wasn’t here; otherwise she would have had to endure that slack-jawed stare again.
“Don’t cry because it annoys me.”
“Yes, sniff.”
Watching her struggle to hold back the tears made her feel wicked again.
“Listen, half-wit. If you were fortunate enough to be born with such a face, then hold your head high when you walk.”
“Yes? Yes.”
Hui’s scowl deepened just as Juhong arrived. The moment the Palace Physician entered, he recognized the symptoms.
“It’s Hongbakcho poisoning.”
“Physician, your assessment.”
At Hui’s command, the Palace Physician immediately felt Deoksim’s pulse. He rolled back her eyelids and examined her tongue with a medical instrument, then spoke.
“It is indeed Hongbakcho poisoning. I shall prepare a medicinal decoction. She will make a full recovery within three days.”
Hongbakcho is a poison that is not difficult to treat. Any antidote in circulation can cure it. But Deoksim’s station changes the matter entirely.
Had Hui not come, Deoksim would have died.
A single bowl of medicine would have solved it, but had they known her fate hinged on something so simple and no one had saved her, Gyesan might have shattered.
What of Samcheon? She would weep for three days and nights. And considering how plain she already was, Hui had nearly been spared the sight of her with swollen eyes.
Merely imagining it kindled her anger.
“I must find the culprit who attempted such a vile scheme with this cheap poison.”
She could not entrust the investigation to others. A commoner had been poisoned in the palace while the master was away. A proper investigation was unlikely, and mishandled, it could implicate Geum.
Besides, she had grown bored—now she had something to do.
“Make sure she’s restored to health.”
Having issued her command to the Palace Physician, Hui turned to Geum.
“Half-wit, come with me.”
“This is it. Our one shot. Let’s go.”
Chunbae spoke with grim resolve, and his younger brother immediately echoed his sentiment.
“Right. Let’s turn our fortune around once and for all.”
Chunbae and his brother took up their sickles and headed into the dark alley.
Since yesterday, two kids they’d never seen before had been wandering through the village. Their father seemed to be a merchant stranded in Jeonghyeon-seong. Judging by their lavish spending, they clearly came from a wealthy household.
Chunbae adjusted his grip on the sickle.
He planned to seize the children, collect a ransom, and flee this place. If necessary, he could even sell the girl. There were plenty of buyers for pretty young girls.
He was lost in fantasies of a prosperous future when his brother whispered to him:
“Brother, that window.”
The children were sleeping in a small room attached to the shop. He signaled with his hand, and his brother positioned himself in front of the window to block any potential escape.
Chunbae approached the shop’s front entrance. Breaking the lock would be as easy as eating cold gruel. But he had to be careful not to make a loud noise.
If the children woke and screamed, it would become a hassle. As he carefully picked the lock, a rough hand clamped shut over his mouth.
In the instant his eyes went wide, his neck twisted.
His body went limp with the sound of bone dislocating. Before Chunbae’s body could hit the ground, someone quickly caught him and hoisted him onto their shoulder.
“They’re asleep, so move quietly.”
At Wol Ya’s instruction, his subordinate bowed and walked off. The other subordinate, who had been carrying the younger brother, followed in his wake. They moved with light steps even while bearing a grown man on their shoulders.
As the subordinates disappeared into the darkness with the brothers, Wol Ya surveyed the shop where the children slept. Dam No, his deputy, approached and reported.
“There are no other suspicious individuals.”
“There will be further danger.”
Wol Ya, who had sent two Wolrang Organization members as escorts, remained in Jeonghyeon-seong to continue his investigation.
Then word came that Samcheon and Gyesan, who had been heading toward Sabi-seong, had returned to their previous village. When he heard they were sharing stories about a nightmare, he gathered more members and went to meet them.
But the skills of these two he encountered here were far too trivial. They were not the sort to figure in the nightmares of the Heaven-Viewing Woman.
“It seems this night will be long.”
Moonlight brushed across his profile.
Samcheon and Gyesan, who had risen before dawn, left the village as soon as the sun appeared. And so their journey resumed.
After walking for some time, a narrow path emerged between the trees.
Gyesan strayed from the path and stepped boldly into the forest. As she looked up at the sky framed by the trees, a gasp escaped her lips unbidden.
It might have been mere fancy, but the breeze seemed to carry a fresh fragrance.
“Be careful not to get scratched by the branches.”
“Samcheon, look there!”
Just as Gyesan was about to point out the delicate flowers blooming nearby, a gruff voice sounded from behind them.
“Don’t move. It’s a snake.”
Gyesan and Samcheon reflexively froze and turned their heads toward the source of the voice.
A hunter, leaning on a wooden stick like a walking staff, approached with an unsmiling face.
“A snake?”

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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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