Three Thousand Court Ladies - Chapter 82

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

Chapter Eighty-Two
Was there something smudged on her face?
She ran her fingertips across her cheeks, but felt nothing amiss. Besides, Irae would have told her if there was.
Sam-cheon quickened her pace, moving toward a less crowded section of the street. Once she’d confirmed no one was nearby, she asked Irae the question.
“Irae, is there something on my face?”
[No. Why?]
“People keep staring at me as they pass.”
[I felt those looks too. Haven’t you heard the rumor? Word’s gotten out that you saved the prince.]
“I hope the rumors don’t spread too far.”
When they reached the Byeolgung, Arang came scurrying over.
“You’re back? Why did the noblewoman summon you?”
“She gave me a gift.”
When Sam-cheon opened the Silk Pouch, a brush emerged into view. In the sunlight, its jade tone gleamed even more beautifully, luminescent and pure.
“Wow, that’s a treasure!”
“It’s far too precious to accept.”
“If you hadn’t been here, things would’ve ended badly—so you absolutely should take it. She’d probably let you uproot the pillars if you asked.”
Sam-cheon felt a creeping dread that if she stayed much longer, she really might find herself doing just that.
“We leave for Sabi tomorrow. The prince has arranged for soldiers to be sent to us.”
“That’s a relief. I was wondering if we’d need to request support from the Gyeonhwon Army.”
“Before we go, I need to stop by a merchant’s shop. Bring Sancho to me.”
“Yes, ma’am!”
Arang answered cheerfully and returned with Sancho in tow.
Sam-cheon led the way, and the two followed close behind. As they walked toward the shop she’d scouted earlier, something felt off about the street’s atmosphere.
There was a strange unease in the air.
“Something’s happened.”
“You’re right. It feels chaotic.”
Arang sensed it too, glancing around nervously.
People were hurrying in one direction, their expressions a mixture of anxiety and anticipation.
Sancho stepped forward.
“Should I go find out what’s going on?”
“Yes.”
Before Sam-cheon’s reply had fully left her lips, Sancho vanished into the crowd. When he returned a short while later, his face looked strangely peculiar.
“The Baek Clan has opened their Relief Grain stores. With winter nearing its end and many people struggling, they’re rushing to get their share.”
“They’re distributing relief grain in the middle of all this turmoil?”
Arang murmured in disbelief.
Sam-cheon shared the sentiment. She’d heard that the Baek Clan did many charitable deeds, but to continue such generosity even while their internal troubles festered seemed remarkable.
“But that’s the thing. It’s a bit…”
Before Sancho could finish, a conversation between passersby caught their ears sharply.
“Say, who is this palace maid Sacheon?”
“Not Sacheon—Sam-cheon. You know, the palace maid who the Undefeated General saved by using the Amnesty Authority?”
“What? She’s the one who saved Prince Hui?”
“So they say.”
“She must be quite skilled in martial arts.”
An elderly woman at the back of the crowd tapped her sack of grain as she spoke.
“Well, what does it matter? We got this much barley. She’s clearly a noble person.”
“That’s right.”
Another voice chimed in.
“Remember that man at the South Gate who lost his son? That palace maid’s the one who found his boy.”
“Oh, how grateful we are.”
“She’ll surely be blessed for it.”
Sam-cheon’s head turned toward Sancho with an awkward jerk.
“What is all this?”
Sancho scratched his cheek with a finger before explaining.
“The Baek Clan has released the Relief Grain under your name. You’ve become a deity here in Ungjin Fortress now.”
Sam-cheon closed her eyes slowly, then opened them.
‘Relief Grain distributed in my name…’
The noblewoman Baek understood what Sam-cheon needed. This would quiet some of the unfortunate rumors about the Amnesty Authority. But suddenly, exhaustion washed over her completely.
She’d come out to buy gifts for Gye-san and Buyeo Hui.
“Let’s go back. It’s better we don’t leave the Byeolgung until we depart.”
Sam-cheon turned her steps homeward.
When she arrived at the Byeolgung, a refined woman was waiting in the front courtyard.
The woman spotted Sam-cheon and approached with delicate steps, stopping at a distance that was neither too near nor too far.
“Are you Palace Maid Sam-cheon?”
Her voice was refined and graceful.
“Yes… I am Sam-cheon, a palace maid of Mokseo-gung, serving Princess Gye-san.”
Sam-cheon answered cautiously, unsure who this woman was, and the stranger smiled.
“I wanted to thank you before I left.”
Sam-cheon blinked, not understanding.
“I’ve gained my freedom. My divorce from Prince Tae has been finalized.”
Now Sam-cheon could place her. The problem was that concealed blades might be hidden in her words.
“Since you’ve met Prince Tae, you can surely imagine what my marriage was like—a punishment unto itself.”
Sam-cheon grasped her meaning at once. Though their encounter had been brief, she could picture how Tae had treated his wife.
“Thanks to you, I was able to escape without bringing harm to my family. I thought I would have to die for this to end.”
“Various circumstances converged to make it happen. You owe me no thanks for it.”
“Gratitude grows into a greater debt with time, so I wanted to express my thanks and be free of it before starting anew.”
The woman offered one more smile and passed by Sam-cheon’s side. In that moment when their sleeves brushed, a soft voice pierced her ear.
“Prince Gyeol has visited in secret several times. Though his stays were brief, Prince Tae’s mood would improve for days afterward.”
Startled by information she hadn’t expected, Sam-cheon turned her head, but the woman had already crossed the threshold of the Byeolgung. Sam-cheon wiped her expression clean and entered the inner quarters.
Once the door was closed, Irae spoke.
[That’s the one who was on the roof.]
“So it seems.”
Their meeting at the inn truly hadn’t been a coincidence after all.
[The one who shoved someone in a jar—could it be the same person?]
“It’s possible. I can’t be certain yet.”
[Anyway, tell the prince when he comes.]
“I don’t want to drag the prince into this. I just need to be more careful.”
[The prince will be upset if he finds out.]
“That’s exactly why.”
[What? You want him to be upset?]
“After nearly dying together, things between us have become overheated. Once I return to Sabi, the prince will cool down.”
[Or?]
“I’m sorry?”
[What if he keeps looking at you in Sabi the way he does now—like you’re the most precious thing in the world?]
“He doesn’t look at me like that now.”
[He does. If you don’t know it, you’re a fool; if you do know it and still run, you’re a coward. Though with the Baek Clan name and a prince’s status, that’s quite the burden.]
Sam-cheon forced a smile to keep her complicated thoughts at bay.
A curse wouldn’t fail to recognize what Buyeo Hui surely already understood.
“He’s mistaken my gratitude for something else.”
[Let’s call it that.]
“Yes. Please let it be that. I don’t want things to become awkward between the prince and me.”
The moment she finished speaking, Sam-cheon reached out her hands.
She unfolded the Wrapping Cloth and carefully folded her clothes, organizing her belongings to one side. She’d arrived empty-handed, yet somehow her luggage had grown. As she packed methodically, the Silk Pouch containing the brush was next.
She opened it slightly to check, and the delicate carvings of the Jade Brush Holder came into view.
The brush was indeed far too precious for her. Sam-cheon wrapped it carefully in the Silk Pouch again and slipped it between her clothes.
Her hands moved with an urgency that bordered on panic.
On a branch of the three-hundred-year-old zelkova tree, Yongyong lay gazing absently at the sky.
“…Why did I run away?”
For a moment, indignation flared in him. He’d been shocked to realize that the little thing had grown, now towering over him.
But that was no reason to flee.
Suddenly, the urge to leave that place had become unbearable.
It was all because time had frozen while he was still incompletely grown.
If time flowed again, perhaps he’d grow a little more.
Then he might be taller than Gye-san and Buyeo Hui, or even Wolya.
If only he could remain here until then.

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