Born As The Daughter Of A Lowly Concubine [EN]: Chapter 18

The sharp, distinct sound of a porcelain bowl striking a skull… or rather, the pig-slaughtering scream echoing through the quiet night sky was louder than expected.

“What’s all the commotion!”

“Where is that noise coming from?”

Voices of those trying to rest after finishing their day’s work, startled by the scream, could be heard from afar.

“Damn it…!”

And that must have been heard by Grand Prince Gyeong-eon as well, who was clutching his head, struck by the porcelain bowl, glaring at me with bloodshot eyes.

Instead of engaging in a staring contest with him, I opened my mouth and took a deep breath.

“Kkyaaaaaak!!”

“Young Miss?”

“Isn’t that the Young Miss’s voice? Young Miss!! Where are you?!”

Unlike before, the maids who recognized my voice began to move in earnest without hesitation.

“Tch…!”

Having grasped the situation, Grand Prince Gyeong-eon glared at me as if he would devour me, but hurriedly left the scene.

I watched his retreating figure and quietly raised my middle finger.

‘You’re not the only one who can lose your temper, kid.’

Of course, if that guy hadn’t run away and had desperately attacked me, my safety couldn’t have been guaranteed, but just taking it wasn’t in my nature.

“Hoo.”

“Young Miss! Young Miss!!”

As the voices of the maids and the sound of hurried footsteps grew closer, the thought that I was now safe made me lose strength and slump down.

‘What am I going to do with that hopeless elementary school brat?’

With my sigh, the peaceful atmosphere of the residence soon became unsettling.

The first to arrive were the maids who had left to get something to eat. Following them, the palace women in the residence appeared one by one.

“Young Miss!!”

“Oh my! What is this…!”

The palace women were horrified and rushed towards me, as my appearance was more serious than they had thought.

‘Ah, right. That guy threw that… thing at me.’

I was so angry that I had forgotten for a moment, but my current appearance probably wasn’t a pretty sight.

The palace women examined me here and there, and only after confirming that I was not hurt did they breathe a sigh of relief.

“Why was the Young Miss alone!!”

“We are sorry, Your Majesty!”

Those who had no idea of the truth could only tremble and beg for forgiveness.

Among them, the maid who was last with me looked at me with pleading eyes as if begging for her life, but I avoided her gaze.

‘Seeing as he appeared as soon as I was alone, there must be a collaborator inside, and she’s at least one of those involved.’

You might think he wouldn’t go that far, but a crazy person’s way of thinking is different from that of a normal person.

Judging by how she’s trembling, she probably didn’t think he would do something like this even if she had collaborated, but I, as the victim, have no reason to sympathize with her.

I sighed as I was embraced by my sister, who had rushed over in surprise. It was after the horrified maids had wiped away the filth that had splattered on me.

“Oh my, what on earth happened? You must have been scared.”

“Uuuuung.”

Well, I was scared because I was alone with a crazy person.

But I don’t think it would have been any different if there had been other people.

Perhaps the guy who was hit by the *sikhye* [sweet rice drink] bowl I threw would have a different opinion, but that’s none of my business.

My sister muttered softly with a pale face.

“It’s one thing to do this to a servant, but to do this to the Young Miss is unacceptable.”

My sister seemed more surprised than I was, so I patted her shoulder to reassure her, but it seemed to have the opposite effect.

“I will protect the Young Miss at all costs.”

“Huh?”

It wasn’t hard to guess what those words meant.

Not long after, my sister, having heard the news, appealed to the king with tears in her eyes.

Usually, she would greet the king neatly, and the two of them would chat while looking at me, but the changed atmosphere was somehow unpleasant.

‘Even when it comes to protecting one’s child, one has to appeal with tears.’

The king was greatly angered to learn that someone had done it intentionally, but it seemed impossible to reveal that the culprit was Grand Prince Gyeong-eon.

Grand Prince Gyeong-eon’s scream, before his voice changed, would not have been heard as a boy’s voice, and there was more than one palace woman who could be a suspect.

‘Even if I testified that Grand Prince Gyeong-eon did it, they would say that a baby who can’t even speak properly is not credible.’

Above all, if a commotion arises in the inner palace now that the Queen’s seat is vacant, it will ultimately strengthen the argument that a Queen must be appointed.

Would the king, who is reluctant to choose a Queen, take such action for the sake of a mere princess?

‘Besides, even if he knew that Grand Prince Gyeong-eon had done it, revealing it would be beneath his dignity, and it would be difficult to punish him.’

But if he didn’t do something about the person who committed such an act, this would happen again.

The problem was that there was no way to deal with him since the other party was a prince.

Although the king didn’t seem to favor her much, Royal Concubine Yeong was still the most likely candidate for the Queen’s position.

‘The most likely reason is her family, but also because of her son.’

In terms of age, he was the king’s second son. Although there was a Crown Prince, one of the important factors in choosing a Queen was how well she could bear children.

I heard that she had given birth to two princesses in addition to Grand Prince Gyeong-eon, although they had passed away early, so she was worthy of being a strong candidate.

On the other hand, Royal Concubine Seon, the mother of the third son, Grand Prince Gyeong-won, had a more gentle disposition than Royal Concubine Yeong, but her poor health was a major disadvantage.

‘But if Royal Concubine Yeong becomes Queen, I’m worried about my future.’

Everyone is keeping quiet about it now, but someday the king will find out about Grand Prince Gyeong-eon’s true nature.

‘But even if he’s not a Grand Prince, Joseon Dynasty [Korean kingdom from 1392-1897] princes didn’t receive much punishment for killing people, so just killing animals….’

Of course, there was no knowing how long he would only kill animals.

It’s not uncommon for stories to start with killing small animals and later harming people.

‘I wonder what he’ll do if he really becomes Queen and Grand Prince.’

As expected, the fact that Grand Prince Gyeong-eon was the culprit was never revealed.

Fortunately or unfortunately, the king ordered an investigation, but it seemed difficult to properly investigate the affairs of the inner palace. In the process, several innocent palace people suffered, and many of the maids in the residence were replaced.

Thanks to this, my sister, who was rather embarrassed, even pleaded with me to quit.

After that, the king strengthened the security again, increased the number of people in the residence, and visited the residence more often.

And my sister’s rank was raised.

“I am only ashamed that my rank has been raised when there has been such an unfortunate incident.”

“What is there to be ashamed of when Consort Yun did nothing wrong? His Majesty’s favor is so great, it is only natural.”

Royal Concubine Seon’s face was very bright as she said that.

“Royal Concubine Yeong was so furious when she heard that Consort Yun’s rank had been raised that the palace people are reluctant to even go near Chwiyeongdang [Royal Concubine Yeong’s residence], they say?”

The two, who had become much closer due to the existence of a common enemy, laughed in hushed voices.

After that day, no more unfortunate incidents occurred.

Who would dare to do such a thing in the residence of a royal concubine favored by the king? Moreover, if such a thing happened again when the king was visiting the residence, there was no way it would be quietly overlooked this time.

“What is so enjoyable?”

“We were talking about the Royal Princess, Your Majesty.”

And after my sister became closer to the king, Royal Concubine Seon and Grand Prince Gyeong-won were the ones who unexpectedly benefited from it.

“Brother.”

“Yes. Sia, don’t you miss your father?”

“Ung.”

Honestly, I see you quite often.

“Won’t you try calling me Father soon?”

“Euheng?”

I giggled and avoided answering.

And then I ran to Grand Prince Gyeong-won, who was standing there solemnly, unlike a child, and expressed my affection intensely.

It means he landed a body blow.

Now, as if used to it, Grand Prince Gyeong-won chuckled and held me.

“Sia seems to like Grand Prince Gyeong-won a lot.”

“It seems she feels close to him as he is the sibling closest to her in age.”

“How could it be only because of that? Gyeong-won cherishes Sia, so the child knows it and follows him. Indeed, Gyeong-won resembles Royal Concubine Seon in his virtue.”

“I am deeply grateful.”

Because of that incident, our mother and I became closer to Grand Prince Gyeong-won and Royal Concubine Seon, and naturally, their standing with the king also rose.

Royal Concubine Seon and my birth mother, whether they lacked ambition or interest, were generally friendly without trying to keep each other in check, so the king seemed at peace, and thanks to that, these amicable times increased.

At first glance, it seemed that day’s events turned out to be a blessing in disguise, but that wasn’t entirely the case.

“It seems you are weary with state affairs.”

“……What the officials say is always the same.”

As the king smiled bitterly, Royal Concubine Seon and my sister lowered their heads silently.

‘That incident put more pressure on the Queen.’

With the Queen’s seat vacant and a disturbance in the inner palace, as expected, the officials’ calls to appoint a new Queen gained momentum.

Royal Concubine Seon, one of the candidates for the Queen’s position, couldn’t speak up, and the concubine, who had only just received the rank of Suk-yong [a junior rank for royal concubines], couldn’t dare to interfere in such matters.

“Hehe, is this for me?”

“Ung.”

So, at times like this, I have no choice but to lighten the mood.

I picked up some refreshments and offered them to the king.

“It tastes sweeter because Sia is feeding it to me.”

“Ung.”

“Why don’t you try calling me Father once…….”

“Euheuung.”

As I stubbornly turned my head away from his persistent request, the king burst into hearty laughter.

‘I’m just a baby, why do I have to do this labor?’

It’s the cost of food, the cost of food.

I started self-hypnosis by repeating the phrase ‘cost of food,’ but it didn’t last long.

“Oh dear, this impudent one. How can you be so…….”

“Bbaeeaeeng……?”

Are you giving me, a young child, even more excessive mental labor than this? Am I going to cry? I’m going to cry?

As my face contorted, the king hurriedly placed a piece of apple in my hand.

“No, no. Here, eat this and play.”

“Ung.”

Holding the apple in one hand, I quickly moved away from the king.

‘I’ve done my part.’

Now, if I run around a bit and pretend to fall asleep from exhaustion, today’s cost of food is over.

And in most cases, I really did fall asleep.

‘Babies need to nap during the day anyway.’

When I fall asleep, the palace ladies take it upon themselves to take me to my chambers or somewhere to rest.

Having realized that I kept tossing and turning when there were people around, the palace maids would quietly lay me down on the blanket and disappear when they thought I was about to fall asleep.

And that was the case today as well.

These days, it’s so unsettling that they usually keep watch outside the room, but today, when I woke up from my nap, for some reason, no one was to be seen.

‘It’s still broad daylight, and it seems they’re patrolling regularly these days, so maybe it’s okay.’

Everyone’s not stupid, so they were wary of Grand Prince Gyeong-eon’s people.

As if no one was around, I opened my mouth and practiced vocalizing.

“Anada-”

“What are you doing there?”

“Oh?”

“Yes. It is your older brother.”

Fortunately, it was Grand Prince Gyeong-won who suddenly appeared.

‘I couldn’t see him because he was small.’

No wonder none of the palace ladies were around; it seemed this child had insisted on staying.

“Last time, it seemed like you were speaking properly.”

“Babu.”

“Where did you learn such words…… No, you’re still not speaking properly. Why don’t you speak in front of Father?”

“Heung.”

“Oh, you stubborn one. Fine, don’t speak if you don’t want to.”

Grand Prince Gyeong-won found something so amusing that he pinched my cheeks again and laughed.

“Has Grand Prince Gyeong-eon been bothering you again, by any chance?”

“Woong?”

“His Highness the Crown Prince is also worried.”

“Oh?”

It’s been a while since I’ve seen the Crown Prince these days. Is he busy?

“And I was wondering if that incident happened again because I… caught Grand Prince Gyeong-won here last time.”

“Gaenchanha [It’s okay].”

I ended up speaking again because of the little one who was unnecessarily blaming himself.

Ugh, what a mess because of one crazy guy.

As I patted his shoulder, Grand Prince Gyeong-won also stroked my head and whispered.

“His Highness the Crown Prince said that someone will always be watching over you. So don’t worry. If anything happens, His Highness will protect you.”

“!!”

What is this? Did he assign someone to me?

“Eueung?”

“It’s okay since you won’t be alone for a while, but it’s best not to go to the pond if possible. Grand Prince Gyeong-eon… No, never mind. Anyway, it’s dangerous, so don’t go to the pond. Do you understand?”

“Woong?”

“……I don’t know what I’m saying while holding you. No, is it right that you understand?”

He’s just a child, but he already has to live with so much worry.

‘The Crown Prince seems to have a lot of worries too. Well, he’s kind, but he doesn’t seem very decisive. But it’s not like I can plot schemes just because I’ve seen some historical palace dramas…….’

Trying to think with such a small head made my head feel like it was about to explode.

It really wasn’t a concern that a baby who was just running around should have.

‘Sigh. This is the time when I should be happy just eating and sleeping.’

But things can’t go on like this.

I couldn’t rest easy knowing that the guy who threw such a sinister thing at me when I was so young was just left alone.

Of course, I retaliated a bit with the sweet rice drink bowl that day, but who knows when he’ll come and cause trouble again.

It’s too much for me to handle, now that I’m just barely starting to talk.

Grand Prince Gyeong-won, who is younger than Grand Prince Gyeong-eon, is also out of the question; in fact, it would take someone like the Crown Prince to stop him.

Honestly, even if I reported it to the king, I don’t think anything would happen to him.

It’s not uncommon for princes to get away with even major wrongdoings.

‘He’d have to commit something like patricide.’

Wouldn’t it have to be like Prince Sado, who threw his own infant son into the pond?

And the important thing is that the king, as well as many other people, have to know about it.

‘But how can I do that? The conditions are too strict.’

Dealing with Grand Prince Gyeong-eon was something that anyone would think was close to impossible.

Therefore, the incident that occurred some time later was by no means something I orchestrated, but a product of coincidence.