Born As The Daughter Of A Lowly Concubine [EN]: Chapter 19

I was born the daughter of a low-ranking concubine. (In some historical East Asian societies, concubines were secondary wives or partners of a man, often of lower social status than the primary wife.)

That day, I clung to my biological father, who rarely visited my chambers during the day, lost in thought.

“Oh, why are you trying to climb on my shoulders like this?”

“Woo-er.”

It’s climbable, so I’m climbing.

…But if you don’t like it, I don’t need to climb.

I frowned for a moment, stopped climbing, and plopped down.

My biological father, who had asked why I was climbing in the first place, looked a little disappointed when I didn’t and picked me up.

“Isn’t it about time you started talking?”

“Heu-eung.”

I turned my head away from my biological father, refusing to answer the question. My sister, who was watching, opened her mouth apologetically.

“The royal physician from the medical office has visited, but he said there is nothing particularly wrong, so please do not worry.”

My sister seemed to find it strange that I didn’t say a word except when I called her ‘Mom’ with clumsy pronunciation when we were alone, but she couldn’t bring herself to mention that I had called her ‘Mom’.

In the past, there was a concubine who was almost kicked out for calling herself the mother of a prince or princess, so it was not a topic that a court lady-turned-concubine, who had only just begun to receive favor, could dare to bring up.

“It’s a relief, but I want to hear you call me ‘Father’ soon.”

I feel a little guilty.

I didn’t want to say ‘Dad,’ so I ignored them both.

Okay, let’s give them some time alone… and I’ll leave.

It’s hard to know exactly what my sister is thinking, but the king’s favor was an unparalleled weapon in the palace.

I’m receiving favor now because I’m the youngest daughter, but the future is uncertain.

As I slowly moved my body, the two people who had been watching me chuckled.

“It seems like you want to go out.”

“Woong.”

Bye-bye.

As I was about to leave and waved my hand at the door, my biological father said something unexpected.

“Since I came all this way, it would be nice to take a walk together.”

“Ugh?”

“Does Sia dislike this father?”

“Eheu-eung.”

I thought for a moment and shook my head.

Well, I don’t particularly like you. It feels like you’re suddenly trying to get close to me these days.

“The Crown Prince told me to spend more time with Sia. He said he’s too busy learning state affairs to come and see you himself.”

“Oh.”

“Yes, your brother.”

My life savior, how thoughtful.

‘Isn’t he still young?’

I still don’t know the exact ages of the people here, but he was definitely younger than me.

Since a young child was thoughtfully concerned, I couldn’t let his expectations down.

Now that things have come to this, should I play house?

I stood between the two, holding one hand of each, thinking they might like it even though the king was quite stiff.

“Ah, little princess.”

“It’s okay. When Sia grows up, when else will I get to walk like this holding your hands?”

The two people, who were awkwardly bending over and walking because of me, were surprisingly friendly.

But where are we going? I don’t really have anywhere to go…

As I was leading the two people aimlessly, something suddenly came to mind.

‘Kyungwon-goon told me not to go to the pond.’

Because it’s dangerous.

That meant Kyungwon-goon, that rotten bastard, was doing something he shouldn’t be doing at the pond.

‘It’s worth a shot.’

I couldn’t miss this opportunity.

“Is there somewhere you want to go?”

“Yes!”

I retraced my memories and headed towards the pond that I hadn’t been to for a while.

And there, another unexpected person was pacing back and forth.

“Your Majesty!”

“Youngbin. What brings you here? Were you taking a walk?”

No, it wasn’t an unexpected encounter.

‘She should be happy to have met the king by chance or send subtle, unpleasant glances because my sister and I are accompanying him, but why does she look so uneasy?’

If Youngbin was so shaken, there was only one thing that came to mind.

‘Is Kyungwon-goon doing something at the pond right now that he shouldn’t be caught doing by the king?’

As they met Youngbin, the two naturally let go of my hands.

I slipped behind them, as if avoiding Youngbin. Everyone in the palace already knew that I disliked Youngbin, so no one would think it was strange.

And taking advantage of the fact that everyone’s attention was diverted by the conversation with Youngbin, I quickly ran towards the pond.

“No, Sia?”

“Your Majesty, I have something urgent to tell you.”

“What is it?”

As expected, Youngbin stopped the king.

My sister couldn’t easily leave the place where the king and Youngbin were, and her feet were tied.

‘And…’

After confirming that one of the court ladies following behind was following me, I ran without stopping.

‘I should roughly know where that guy often goes near the pond.’

After that day, I heard our court ladies desperately gather and share information to avoid running into him.

It seems like he often does such things near the pond.

Perhaps because it was a place where animals often gathered, and it was easy to clean up after committing the act.

“Ugh.”

Should I call this bingo?

Inside, in a corner where people wouldn’t come often, Kyungwon-goon was holding a small animal, as expected.

‘Once he catches it, it wouldn’t be difficult to do whatever he wants with the small animal, but the fact that he’s tormenting it like that is a matter of character.’

Perhaps he heard the groan that flowed out without my knowing; the guy who had been focusing on the animal in his hand turned to look at me.

But he’s covering his eyes with something like an eye patch. Does he have an eye disease?

“You, you little bitch, I’ve been waiting for you. Do you know what I went through because of you that day?”

Kyungwon-goon shouted in a furious voice and took off the cloth covering his eyes. Then Kyungwon-goon’s face, or rather, the blue bruise around his eyes, was revealed.

‘Is that why he hasn’t been walking around much lately? But why because of me… Ah.’

It was a bit dark, so I didn’t know, but it seemed like the Sikhye [sweet rice beverage] bowl I threw that day hit him directly in the eye.

No wonder the screams were so loud that day.

I was trying hard to hold back the exclamation of ‘Yay~’ that came out without my knowing, but fortunately, Kyungwon-goon didn’t seem to notice.

“I wasn’t satisfied with such a small thing, but you showed up just in time. I’m going to fix that bad habit of yours this time.”

I took a step back, keeping my distance from Kyungwon-goon, who was approaching with bloodshot eyes and a face like a madman, wondering what he had been doing all this time.

I saw earlier that the eunuch was following me well.

‘But will that person properly convey this scene to the king?’

I also heard that the Crown Prince had someone attached to me, but did he follow me all the way here?

I came all the way here on purpose, but I was still a little uneasy.

It’s not uncommon for the things that princes do to be covered up appropriately.

Besides, the target of the bullying is just an animal. In this era, they won’t even consider it a crime properly.

‘Of course, the suspicion that he’s the culprit who threw animal carcasses into our chambers will be solidified, but since he’s a prince and a child, he won’t receive a big punishment and will get away with it.’

Perhaps he thought I was scared when he saw me worrying like that.

Kyungwon-goon stroked his bruise and slowly approached me.

His eyes weren’t smiling, but his mouth was stretched wide.

“How dare you give me such humiliation?”

Isn’t that what you reaped as you sowed… saying that would be like pouring oil on the fire.

And the most dangerous thing is me.

The opponent is a vicious guy who mainly torments powerless small animals.

‘Someone will be looking for me soon.’

As I continued to step back and checked the direction I came from, I saw the figure of the eunuch over there.

It was one of the eunuchs who followed the king, a familiar face.

‘Such perfect timing. It seems like the heavens have abandoned you?’

A smile unknowingly appeared on my face.

“Are you daring to ignore me now?”

“Yeah.”

“This lowly thing dares… !”

Kyungwon-goon’s hand grabbed my collar. Although I run relatively well for my age, the body of a young baby who has only just mastered walking was easily lifted by the hand of a 9-year-old boy.

I thought this last time too, but do kids eat well these days? They’re so strong.

‘Should I take a bit of a dangerous gamble?’

The thought suddenly occurred to me because being held like this reminded me of the insults he had said that day.

“Hey.”

“What?”

“You think you’re going to be a Grand Prince? You didn’t become one, and your mother won’t be able to become a Queen, and of course, you won’t be able to become a Grand Prince either.”

I spoke as clearly as possible with my tongue that still didn’t roll well.

“What… are you saying?”

“It means you’re just a child of a concubine. This lowly concubine. Child. Of.”

Even I thought it was a pretty fiery insult.

But, you threw the first punch?

Whether she’s a selected concubine or a favored concubine, how different will her treatment be if her child can’t become the Crown Prince?

‘Even if I die, I can’t stand to see you become the Crown Prince, so I’m going to try to stop you.’

As a last resort, I gave him a bright smile.

And the next moment, my body spun around, and I was airborne.

Today, the sky was clear, a very good day.

“Sia!!”

I heard someone calling me.

‘Oh, is that Kyungwon-goon’s voice?’

And the next moment, all sounds disappeared for a moment.

Splash!!

I thought I could hear murmuring sounds amidst the sound of water, but I couldn’t guarantee whether it was really coming from outside the water.

‘I’ll be in trouble if they don’t save me quickly…’

This is a big problem.

Did that guy throw me too hard?

My body hurts because I hit the surface properly… I can’t move.

I thought I could swim, but my body is heavy because of my clothes…

I thought I would float if I just endured it and stayed still, but the impact was greater than I thought.

‘If I had known this would happen, I should have thought about dragging him in with me.’

But that seems impossible both realistically and physically.

While I was lost in such regrets and struggling weakly, something grabbed me.

And after a while, a strong force suddenly pulled me.

“Puhah!”

My breathing became easier, and the world that had been quiet suddenly became noisy. I could hear voices calling me from all directions.

As I blankly entrusted my body to them, the voices gradually became closer.

“Si, Sia!”

“Cough, cough, huh?”

When I opened my eyes, gasping for breath, it was Kyungwon-goon.

His face was wet; I wondered if it was water, but no matter how I looked at it, it seemed like he was crying.

‘Oh dear, what should I do? I didn’t mean to reel you in… why are you here?’

The arm that was holding me lightly lifted me out of the pond, and Kyungwon-goon caught me. Only then did I confirm the face of the person who had saved me, and I let out a small exclamation.

“Ah?”

“Yes. It’s your brother. Do you know how surprised I was?”

Where did you come from? I guess it’s true that you had someone attached to me.

It was my life savior after a long time.

“Cough, cough.”

“Si, Sia?!”

“Hoo.”

I tried to hold my breath when I fell into the water, but I was having a little trouble breathing because I had swallowed water as long as I had been submerged.

Seeing the handsome brothers looking at me, who was coughing and in pain, I felt a little sorry.

When I lifted my powerless arm and patted his head, Kyungwon-goon looked like he was about to cry again.

“Sia! Crown Prince! Are you unharmed!”

When I turned my head, I saw my biological father and sister with faces that looked like they were about to faint.

And Kyungwon-goon, who was sitting down in the back… had a stiff face and was holding one of his cheeks, as if he had realized something was wrong.

“Cough, cough… hah.”

“Sia, are you conscious!”

“Ah… yeah…”

I wanted to check something more, but seeing the people surrounding me, I felt relieved for some reason, and tears streamed down with relief.

‘Oh, something… I’m tired.’

Was the time I struggled in the water longer than I thought? I had no strength in my body.

But seeing the situation now, it seemed like my efforts were not in vain, so I was relieved about that one thing.