Chapter 242 – So What? (2)
“Please, eat a lot. You need to be well-fed if you’re going to leave.”
“Thank you, Madam.”
After washing up, Ho-yeon was invited to a meal.
He sat in front of a table that was richly laid out, even without meat, and expressed his gratitude with a pious attitude before starting to play with his chopsticks.
Un-so-young also began to play with her chopsticks and started to observe her from time to time.
“As expected…”
Even when she was wearing a shabby and humble dress, he knew she was a considerable beauty.
When she wore Un-so-young’s clothes, which were forcibly put on her due to the quarrels over laundry and repairs, her beauty was even more pronounced.
She was a woman who could stimulate a man’s protective instincts with her fleeting atmosphere, even though it was clear that she possessed considerable skill.
That was Ho-yeon.
Un-so-young glanced at her husband, who was eating next to her, and then opened her mouth towards Ho-yeon.
“What position do you hold in Soryim?”
“I am in charge of managing the penitential hall.”
“The penitential hall…?”
The penitential hall was a place where those who had committed improper acts as Buddhists were confined. It was a kind of prison.
Even though they were Buddhists who practiced asceticism in Busa, there were still people who caused accidents and were confined there.
But Ho-yeon was assigned to be like a room manager.
Such a trivial matter would usually be handled by a disciple or a senior disciple, not by someone of his rank. Why…?
“I am doing it at my own request.”
“Oh, I see… Sorry, Master. Did you get in trouble?”
“No, everyone was curious about it. They wondered why I was doing such a thing in my position…”
Meanwhile, Ho-yeon was also observing Un-so-young naturally.
Although she was about the same age as Ho-yeon, Un-so-young’s elegance was truly impressive.
Moreover, there was a charm about her that was hard to express in words, something that was vivid or refreshing.
“Why am I having these thoughts…?”
He had no reason to be interested in worldly beauty, but Ho-yeon forcibly stopped his wandering thoughts and opened his mouth again.
“Although it is truly embarrassing to say as a Buddhist, I had personal matters to attend to and needed to stay in a remote place to calm my mind.”
“Oh… I see.”
Un-so-young thought it was a pointless question. If a monk of Ho-yeon’s rank needed to calm his mind, it was certainly not a small matter.
Chapter 242 – So What? (2)
It made her uncomfortable to hear intimate details from someone she wasn’t close to, but Ho-yeon’s words didn’t end there.
“Thanks to Kang So-hyeop, I was able to sort out my thoughts. I was planning to resign from my position soon, but I’m really glad to have the opportunity to meet again.”
“Oh…? Kang So-hyeop?”
As Ho-yeon’s gentle gaze fell on Kang-yoon, Un-so-young quickly turned her gaze to him.
Kang-yoon, who was slurping his noodles, suddenly felt a surge of attention and stopped.
“Cough, cough…”
“Oh dear, take your time. Here’s some water…”
Although Un-so-young was taken aback by Ho-yeon’s meaningful gaze, he had already handed Kang-yoon a glass of water and he was drinking it.
There was something going on.
Un-so-young was bothered by Ho-yeon’s gaze towards Kang-yoon.
It was not the gaze of a man looking at an ordinary friend, nor was it the gaze of a woman admiring her husband. It was something else entirely.
“As So-hyeop said, you need to eat well and rest to calm your mind. Don’t rush, take your time.”
“Yes, thank you, Master.”
They even had a conversation that only the two of them could understand.
Although Ho-yeon was a monk, Un-so-young, who knew her husband’s tastes well, couldn’t let her guard down.
Once they were in the same fence, there was no choice but to compromise and get along as a woman who served her husband.
But if she hadn’t yet decided to become the man’s woman, Un-so-young was determined to do her best to restrain herself.
Considering that Kang-yoon had already slept with a monk without her knowledge, it was a perfectly appropriate judgment.
I felt like Un-so-young’s sharp gaze was piercing my skin.
“I haven’t done anything yet…”
Of course, there was a hope that someday he would have that kind of relationship with Ho-yeon. So Un-so-young’s suspicion could be considered valid.
She was wearing a rather plain outfit from her wardrobe, but it suited her incredibly well.
“But why is So-hyeop traveling with Lady Namgung?”
“Oh, that’s…”
I explained the external setting, and Ho-yeon nodded as if he understood.
“I see. So you have a close relationship with Lady Jemal Yeo-hyeop… Then, was it last fall?”
“Yes. My mother happened to visit for a greeting, and it seemed that the two of them got along quite well at that time.”
They got along well enough to have a threesome.
Chapter 242 – So What? (2)
“It might be better for you to stay at the mansion instead of here. It would be even better if you stayed at Namgung Mansion, but…”
“Well, yes. But I might be a burden to the household if I stay there…”
“But from the perspective of being the Lord of Namgung, wouldn’t it be even more unsettling for your mother to be somewhere she can’t reach?”
It was a logical argument.
Based on the setting that Un-so-young strongly avoided staying at Namgung Mansion, the argument that they should go to the mansion was convincing.
If they didn’t consider this part, there would be nothing to say about why Un-so-young was being stubborn.
But the reason why this was not considered was that Kang-ho usually didn’t show too much interest in other people’s movements…
Fortunately, Ho-yeon realized late that he had interfered too much and bowed his head to Un-so-young.
“I’m sorry, Lady. It wasn’t my place to interfere. I apologize.”
“Oh, no, it’s okay.”
Un-so-young, who was sweating bullets, managed to respond to Ho-yeon’s apology.
But it didn’t end there.
After that, Ho-yeon poked holes in the setting, saying things like “Jemal Yeo-hyeop isn’t here, so can you just take her wherever you want?” and “Wouldn’t it be better to have Namgung Mansion’s guards accompany you on your way?”
Un-so-young secretly sent me a resentful look, but I felt unjustly accused.
“I didn’t invite him here, I was clearly planning to send him to the guesthouse…”
In the end, Un-so-young and I had to work together to withstand Ho-yeon’s barrage of questions, sweating profusely as we tried to eat our food without choking.
Still, it was a relief to see Ho-yeon enjoying his food so much, even if it was the only good thing about the situation.
After dinner, Ho-yeon returned to his room.
The food was delicious, and the conversation with someone he wanted to meet and hadn’t seen in a while was enjoyable.
“He was more casual than I thought.”
Seeing Kang-yoon follow Un-so-young, Ho-yeon asked if Kang So-hyeop’s residence was in that direction, and then chuckled at the thought of scratching his head, thinking he had misunderstood.
Although he had regained some energy since meeting him, Ho-yeon wasn’t the type to meddle in other people’s affairs to this extent.
He just thought it was Kang-yoon’s business, and before he knew it, he was already meddling by continuing to speak.
“Young people these days…”
He wouldn’t be too pleased if an old man like him showed too much interest in a young man like Kang-yoon.
He had just come to reminisce for a moment, and it was just a chance encounter, nothing more.
Previously, she had told him to come to Soryeom if he needed help, but after finding out who he was, she didn’t think he needed her help.
‘But still, I have to repay the favor.’
Kang-yoon might not need her help unless it was something significant, but Ho-yeon wanted to do whatever he could to help.
Even if it meant going against the Buddhist principles to some extent…
“Hmm?”
She sensed someone moving outside discreetly.
The massacre at Namgung Mansion flashed through her mind, and Ho-yeon immediately opened the window and jumped outside.
“Who are you?”
Ho-yeon, who had found a man dressed in all black, immediately raised his martial arts skills.
As he was about to use his powerful Diamond Sutra technique to subdue the man, he belatedly recognized his face and quickly dispersed his skills.
“Kang So-hyeop… What are you doing here?”
“Master… Well, you see…”
Kang-yoon was at a loss for words.
His martial arts had undoubtedly improved significantly.
Even when he was still at the first-class level, he had followed Mong-ah for a while without being caught, and his hiding skills had become even more proficient. Yet, he was still exposed like this.
He thought it was impossible, even though the distance between the two places was not that far, but there was a reason for it.
Ho-yeon, who had been avoiding a comfortable life due to his guilt towards his husband and son for a long time, had not stayed in a guesthouse for a long time.
As he often slept rough, he had developed a habit of periodically raising his guard against his surroundings, and unfortunately, Kang-yoon had fallen into that trap.
“I wanted to see the moon, um, the moon is beautiful tonight, but I was afraid I might disturb you, Master…”
“The moon…?”
It was only after Ho-yeon saw the round moon shining brightly in the sky that he understood.
“You didn’t have to be that careful, but…”
“But Master, you’re leaving on a trip tomorrow, and I didn’t want to disturb you while you were sleeping.”
Of course, there was a completely different reason, but Ho-yeon had no way of guessing what it was.
As long as he thought of the man in front of him as a member of the virtuous sect, it was an answer that he would never be able to reach.
“You must know the pleasure of looking at the moon, too. If it’s not a bother, would you like to enjoy the moon together? There’s a good spot for viewing in the courtyard. The view is excellent, and the atmosphere is quite pleasant.”
“Mas, Master?”
Ho-yeon grabbed the man’s black sleeve and walked briskly.
This shouldn’t be happening. Whenever she’s with this man, she feels like she could burst into song.
Come to think of it, it’s been a while since she’s enjoyed the moon like this. Ho-yeon looked up at the full moon with delight and smiled.
