Born As The Daughter Of A Lowly Concubine [EN]: Chapter 309

Born as the daughter of a low-ranking concubine [a woman of lower status than the primary wife, living in the royal household] (309)

To be honest, I thought it would start later, but it suddenly happened after that tiger incident, maybe due to stress or something, which surprised me.

Of course, it usually happens suddenly, but I thought I would have had some warning since I wasn’t inexperienced, so I was a little taken aback.

I was also a bit disappointed because they say you don’t grow taller after you start menstruating.

‘Hiding it wasn’t difficult.’

The palace maids in my residence are all on my side, and it’s a space only for women, so it’s not hard to conceal.

Of course, I told Sehwa not to tell anyone either. She seems to have noticed something since she checks my pulse every day, but she’s kept her mouth shut too.

From Sehwa’s perspective, things weren’t settled yet, and she isn’t the type to pry when I want to keep something private.

‘I feel a bit uneasy because she probably thinks I’m hiding it because I don’t want to leave home, but I have to accept that.’

I wonder when Seong Gyeom Sabok will return. It should be sooner than last time.

Hiding the fact that I started my period isn’t difficult, but the cramps can be hard to hide, so I hope he comes as soon as possible.

Why are period cramps so awful even if you’re reborn?

I’ve been eating well and living comfortably, but whether it’s a side effect of growing up too fast, a natural predisposition, or really due to stress, the cramps are no joke.

Even though I already feel terrible and my body isn’t in good condition because of PMS (premenstrual syndrome), or is it PMS? Anyway, if I think that this person in front of me is the reason why I had to ride a horse and gallop, I want to grab him by the collar, but I decided to endure it for now, considering Crown Prince Seongwon’s social standing.

“You make people suffer like this and then tell me to stay here quietly? Do you think I’ll listen to that, brother?”

“Didn’t I say I was sorry?”

“If you’re sorry, explain properly. You also said it was because of Yeongbin [Royal Noble Consort] and Gyeong’eon-gun [Prince Gyeong’eon] that day, right?”

Crown Prince Seongwon sighed at my questioning.

“It’s not a pleasant story.”

“Right. They’re people who even poison others.”

“……”

Why are you suddenly distinguishing between good and bad stories in front of me now?

That’s what I thought, but Crown Prince Seongwon covered his face with both hands and bowed his head deeply, perhaps because the impact of my words was too strong.

Aigo. Now I have to comfort him, great.

“You grew up well even after being poisoned. And they’re no longer in this world.”

“……I’m sorry.”

I patted Crown Prince Seongwon’s shoulder and sighed.

“Brother, how old do I look right now?”

“……I wanted to see you one more time when you were younger if possible.”

He seems okay if he’s talking nonsense like this.

“Enough, just tell me quickly.”

“Well, I just heard from Yeongbin that I’m not qualified to be the Crown Prince.”

“Says who?”

“Pfft.”

Crown Prince Seongwon burst out laughing at my words, which came out almost reflexively as soon as he finished speaking.

“No, let’s be honest.”

“Well, that’s true.”

“Do you believe what Yeongbin says?”

Crown Prince Seongwon, who had been laughing and panting for a while, caught his breath and replied.

“There are too many things that bother me for me to dismiss it.”

“Did you check what those ‘things that bother you’ are?”

“Yes, I did.”

“What are they? Let me know too.”

“……”

“I’m asking what they are.”

“I don’t want to show my younger siblings my pathetic side.”

“I think you’ve already shown it enough.”

“Our youngest has become scary while I haven’t seen her.”

“Do I look like I came here to joke around, brother?”

The Crown Prince quickly surrenders when I stare at him, but this one doesn’t give in easily, perhaps because of his age or because he doesn’t have any trauma.

“I…… I’m too ashamed to explain properly.”

He seemed about to clam up again, so I quickly gave up and decided to find another way.

“Then I’ll bring Yeon Jwaseo [a close aide]. He’s a close aide, so you know him, right? Let’s have him speak instead.”

“No, no, no, wait a minute, I’ll do it. I’ll do it, Sia.”

Crown Prince Seongwon, realizing that I wasn’t going to back down, finally gave up and opened his mouth.

“So, it’s because of my late mother.”

“?”

“Gyeong’eon-gun, Gyeongwon-gun, and even you, Sia, I have quite a few siblings. I heard the reason from Yeongbin.”

I replied based on my experience.

“Wasn’t it Yeongbin who killed them?”

“No……”

“Or Gyeong’eon-gun killed them.”

“What?”

My memory is hazy, but I think the palace maids there said something along those lines.

‘Gai might know something, but I don’t think he has good memories of living there, so I’ve never asked him.’

There would have been a chance to speak at the time, but since he didn’t say anything, there must have been a reason, so I gave a reasonably convincing answer.

“You tried to kill me too, didn’t you?”

“Who told you such a story?”

Crown Prince Seongwon’s face looked serious, so he seemed to be misunderstanding something.

“Who would dare to bring up such a grim story in front of me? I just remember it, brother.”

“How…… can you remember such a thing?”

“Because it was a shocking event?”

Crown Prince Seongwon drooped his shoulders as if shocked by my words, which followed without much thought.

“I’m sorry. Back then too, if I had known sooner……”

“How would the Crown Prince know about the affairs of the inner palace? Even Father probably doesn’t know.”

Maybe even the current Crown Prince wouldn’t know at all if I didn’t tell him.

Of course, the inner palace is quiet these days without any major incidents.

“Yes. It’s an affair of the inner palace that men can’t easily know. But there are things that can’t be overlooked just because they don’t know, wouldn’t you agree?”

“……It was said to be related to the deaths of the royal grandchildren, right?”

Crown Prince Seongwon nodded when I brought up the topic first, thinking it would be difficult for him to explain.

‘Could it be that Crown Prince Seongwon’s birth mother, Queen Seonghyeon, was involved?’

I heard that Crown Prince Seongwon was born after a difficult birth. Of course, there were children who were lost before that too.

I think there were also children of concubines among them.

If it was to solidify the position of the Queen and the Crown Prince to be born…… it wasn’t entirely impossible.

“I couldn’t be sure if my late mother was directly involved, but when I questioned Court Lady Im, she didn’t deny that she had done it.”

“!”

Court Lady Im looked a bit ruthless, but she was on par with Yeongbin?!

“Rather, she thought I should reward her for her loyalty regarding that matter.”

The Crown Prince’s face was stained with pain and shame.

“So you ran away.”

“The word ‘run away’ is correct. How can I, as the Crown Prince, hold my head high and live proudly in this pool of blood?”

“It’s not your fault, brother.”

“It’s my sin because it was my close aide who committed the act for me. Besides, unless I cast them out, they might repeat such acts again.”

Crown Prince Seongwon’s flaw was that he wasn’t ruthless enough.

“I even learned that Grand Prince Yeongwon, no, His Highness the current Crown Prince, could have suffered terrible things at the hands of those I trusted, so how could I continue to act as the Crown Prince?”

“Brother.”

I took Crown Prince Seongwon’s hand and patted it to comfort him. It was me who told him to speak, even though I knew there must be a reason why he couldn’t bring himself to say it.

But I couldn’t tell him to stop.

“Court Lady Im denied the connection between my mother and the actions they committed, but it was clear that publicizing their sins would tarnish my mother’s reputation.”

He had a hard time opening his mouth, but once he started pouring out the past, the Crown Prince recounted the past relatively calmly.

“Besides, seeing them think that I would treat them even more preciously if I knew the truth, I realized that if I were to become king as I was, I wouldn’t know what they would do.”

“Can’t you just punish those people?”

“They were my hands and feet who had taken care of me since I was young. I can’t cast them out without a reason, and they wouldn’t understand either.”

If that were the case, they might not keep their mouths shut willingly.

“I wasn’t decisive enough to kill them either. That is my sin.”

“Brother.”

He meant that he chose to disappear because he couldn’t kill them, but he couldn’t keep them by his side either.

“You said it wasn’t planned.”

“I had the urge to disappear. I made various preparations to run away. But I couldn’t easily find the courage to put it into action.”

Crown Prince Seongwon held my hand tightly and gently recalled old memories.

“But that day, I encountered a tiger while briefly leaving the training grounds. At that moment, I thought it was natural for me to die like this.”

“!”

Crown Prince Seongwon smiled bitterly as strength entered the hand I was holding.

“But I survived, a life gained by owing someone else’s life, but I still survived. And when I got the chance to run away, I thought it was an opportunity given to me by heaven.”

“……”

Looking at Crown Prince Seongwon’s face, I couldn’t say anything more either.

“That’s all I can tell you. Now, will you understand?”

“……”

“Will you stay here safely until the work is done?”

“Brother, why did you come back after running away on your own?”

“Although I ran away, I was the Crown Prince of this country. Now that I knew there was work left for me to do, shouldn’t I finish it?”

“But that means……”

Crown Prince Seongwon didn’t listen to my words and just poured out what he wanted to say.

“I only feel sorry for you. Ten years ago, when the palace people of Donggungjeon [the Crown Prince’s residence] dared to act presumptuously, I didn’t punish them severely, which troubled you. Besides, because I didn’t properly deal with Yeongbin and disappeared, you and Yoon Suk-ui [Royal Consort Suk] went through such terrible things.”

“It’s not your fault, brother.”

“It’s my fault. If I had been more determined back then, if I had acted sooner……”

Crown Prince Seongwon bit his lip as he reminisced about the past.

Crown Prince Seongwon had a painful expression, but I couldn’t help but feel relieved as I looked at him.

‘As expected.’

How could a guy who blames himself for not being qualified to be the Crown Prince commit treason?

Crown Prince Seongwon wasn’t shameless enough to do such a thing.

The reason why Crown Prince Seongwon did this.

The finishing touches he’s been talking about since earlier.

‘Those who were cruel enough to kill the royal seeds in the concubines’ wombs still haven’t given up their greed and are hindering the reign of the new Crown Prince, so he wants to give them a chance to clean them up.’

As long as Crown Prince Seongwon was alive, he couldn’t escape this rebellion anyway.

At the center of the rebellion was Crown Prince Seongwon’s maternal uncle, Papyeong Buwongun [Marquis Papyeong].

Crown Prince Seongwon himself knew that better than I did.