Chapter 234 – What did you say? (1)
Namgoong Hak was absent, so nothing happened for a day.
This time, since Eun So-young would have given a heads up, I confidently made my way towards Gajujun.
“Good morning, Madam.”
“Did you have a peaceful night?”
As I arrived at the exact time and joined Eun So-young, I greeted the guards and stepped inside.
I had decided to sell the name of the mother with whom I had (externally) built a friendship with Eun So-young, and sell medicine, saying that it would be safer to be in the clan than in the Jangwon, where unknown attackers were rampant.
Of course, if you look at the exact place where Eun So-young is going, it wouldn’t be the clan, but I wouldn’t bother to contact the clan to confirm that.
“Please report to Gaju.”
As I stood in front of the office and spoke, the guards immediately relayed my arrival inside. But their expression was strange.
It was like seeing someone who had appeared in a place where they were all gathered…?
“Come in.”
Namgoong Hak’s thick voice rang out, and I realized that my legs wanted to take a step back for some reason.
What’s wrong? What’s the problem?
Swoosh
“Why are you like that? Why don’t you come in? Oh, your mother is here too. Please come in together.”
While I hesitated for a moment, Namgoong Hak opened the door himself and came out. But it was a scary expression that didn’t contain an ounce of welcome.
Now that Namgoong Hak’s face, which was originally thick-skinned, had become like that, amidst my intuition screaming ‘you’re screwed,’ I glanced inside the door.
Hwang Bo-jun and Namgoong Hye were hanging their heads like criminals and glancing over here, and I roughly figured out what was going on.
‘What the hell did they get caught doing…’
Now that I had planned to take Eun So-young and go back to Lulu Lala Sachon, I followed Namgoong Hak and walked into Gaju’s office.
Eun So-young’s expression was quite dark, but my expression didn’t seem to be much different.
But since Namgoong Hak wasn’t rushing in with a knife to cut his throat, it was clear that not everything had been revealed.
Let’s just hold on as much as possible. If we come to our senses, we can survive even if we go into a tiger’s den.
Namgoong Hye sighed as she saw the two people who came in following Oraabi as if they were being arrested.
Why did they come to find Oraabi now? Seeing that her mother had accompanied her, she could guess roughly what was going on, but the timing of their visit was not good.
Last night, Namgoong Hye talked to Hwang Bo-jun.
Chapter 234 – What did you say? (1)
It was Namgoong Hye who first admitted her fault. She couldn’t bear to spend another night without physical intimacy, and Hwang Bo-jun remained silent.
Should he tell her that things could get better? Should he tell her what he was thinking?
He wasn’t worried about the hateful glares that would be directed at him. It was just that he knew Namgoong Hye would suffer more if he revealed the truth.
In the end, Hwang Bo-jun couldn’t bring himself to tell Namgoong Hye the truth.
“It’s all my fault… I… I…”
“No, it’s all my fault.”
Hwang Bo-jun cowardly apologized, taking all the blame upon himself.
The two of them had come to Gajujun to inform Namgoong Hak that they would annul their marriage. Only one person had fully revealed the truth, and the other was hanging their head in shame.
“Now, Kang So-hyeop. Why did you come here?”
But Namgoong Hak didn’t simply accept their reason for wanting to annul the marriage due to Hwang Bo-jun’s physical problem.
If they covered up Hwang Bo-jun’s problem externally, it would be Namgoong Hye who would be left with a scar.
Namgoong Hye herself didn’t know, but the fact that Hwang Bo-jun, who cherished her so much, had allowed it meant that there was no need to worry about that problem.
“Kang Yoon, it’s you.”
The next part was an easy guess.
The few men who had a deep relationship with Namgoong Hye and the handful of customers who had remained in Sae-ga.
There was only one person who fulfilled both of those conditions.
“Why can’t you speak? Is it something you can’t say in front of others?”
When Namgoong Hak gestured with his eyes, Hwang Bo-jun had no choice but to leave the room, and Namgoong Hye felt her mouth go dry.
Before Oraabi arrived, Namgoong Hye had tried to casually brush off his sharp guesses like a knife, but it had failed.
As a result, Namgoong Hak was now openly interrogating Kang Yoon. Fortunately, Kang Yoon wasn’t completely clueless and wasn’t bringing up his own business right away.
“…”
“If it’s difficult for you to speak, then I’ll have to speak for you. What happened between you and Hye-a?”
“Father…”
“Hye-a, stay quiet. Kang So-hyeop, I’ve never heard of such an irrational situation. Surely, So-hyeop, you didn’t come here just to congratulate Hye-a on her wedding?”
“…That’s correct.”
Despite Oraabi’s sharpness, Kang Yoon calmly answered as if he had worn a mask.
Chapter 234 – What did you say? (1)
“How can someone like that even think about stealing a bride? Are you saying that’s something that can be done even if you follow the rules of the martial arts world?”
“Father, Kang So-hyeop has nothing to do with this. It’s a misunderstanding!”
Namgoong Hye’s voice denying it lacked conviction. She herself couldn’t discard the speculation that Kang Yoon had proposed to her.
Meanwhile, Namgoong Hak sent a burning gaze towards Kang Yoon without responding to his younger sister’s words.
“Now, speak up! What do you plan to do with Hye-a? Surely you’re not planning to just leave her alone like this!”
But in reality, Namgoong Hak wasn’t as angry as he appeared to be on the surface.
He also saw Kang Yoon in a relatively positive light. It was just that the marriage between Hwang Bo-jun and Namgoong Hye was already underway, so even if he was a demon, it would be okay.
He felt this way especially after seeing his younger sister and mother doing their best to protect each other.
He knew about Hwang Bo-jun’s problem and that the marriage could proceed without any major issues. But he couldn’t just let it go like this.
It was clearly wrong to play a trick on his already-married younger sister, and as a senior member of the martial arts world, Namgoong Hak felt that he needed to give a warning.
So he was just pretending to be angry and was willing to accept a delay tactic if Kang Yoon apologized and promised to take full responsibility for his younger sister.
Namgoong Hak thought that if he pressured him this much, Kang Yoon would surely take responsibility for his younger sister.
“I’m sorry. It seems difficult to answer right now.”
“…What did you say?”
That’s why Namgoong Hak doubted whether he had misheard something. But the man’s answer remained unchanged.
“I said it’s difficult to answer right now.”
Only then did Namgoong Hak clearly understand the man’s intention, and he began to step into the next phase as a fiery anger swept over him.
He didn’t know where, what, or how things had gone wrong, but Namgoong Hak seemed to think that his younger brother was expecting him to take care of things after divorcing Hwang Bo-jun.
‘Why did they suddenly decide to divorce in the first place?’
It seemed certain that they were going to divorce based on their simple words, but if they were going to divorce, they shouldn’t have involved me in the first place.
It wasn’t that Namgoong Hye disliked him. If she hadn’t met Eun So-young, she might have fallen in love with him, even if it was a secret love.
Moreover, if it was a woman who would bear my child, it would be better for me to live with her.
‘But an official marriage is a different matter.’
Chapter 234 – What did you say? (1)
“If I say I’ll take Namgoong Hye away like this, I’ll have to hold a modest wedding with her, and she’ll become my official wife in the martial arts world.”
What about the other women?
It would be better to keep them like sex slaves in the corner of my house, and my plan was to grow my own harem and make it recognized by the entire martial arts world in the long run.
There were only my father and my good mother who were exceptions.
But if I married Namgoong Hye, there was a high possibility that the women who had a relationship with me before Namgoong Hye would intervene later like relatives.
Moreover, Namgoong Hye would be recognized as my wife externally, but I couldn’t ignore the sense of deprivation that she would secretly hide.
“Huh… I must have misheard. You must have said that you’ll cherish my sister.”
But Namgoong Hak’s boiling energy showed that he couldn’t accept my answer.
Why did Namgoong Hye say such a ridiculous thing in the first place? She knows that I’m the bastard who impregnated her mother, right?
I’m clearly denying Namgoong Hak’s claim that I played a trick, but I didn’t even consider listening to his words without any evidence.
I glanced at Eun So-young. She seemed to be very surprised, but she couldn’t intervene in the situation between me and my son.
‘I thought I managed my likability well.’
She seemed to have some affection for me, but the current Namgoong Hak was looking at me as if he was looking at his mortal enemy.
If I had a sword in my hand, I wouldn’t be surprised even if he aimed at me, but I couldn’t do that. Maybe everyone will understand, but I can’t make a decision unilaterally.
“I think I’m not feeling well, so I can’t hear So-hyeop’s voice well. Come to think of it, I haven’t been training regularly lately. Can So-hyeop help me?”
If you’re not going to change your words, let’s fight?
It was practically a request for a martial arts match, and Namgoong Hye and Eun So-young stood up in surprise.
“Oh, Father!”
“Hak-ah, aren’t you being too hasty?”
“I don’t know how long it’s been since Mother called you like that.”
Namgoong Hak smiled broadly at Eun So-young’s response, then pulled the sword hanging on the wall with a swoosh.
His pressure on me doubled and became more fierce and sharp, but I let out a sigh of relief.
Chapter 234 – What did you say? (1)
As expected, it was clear that Namgoong Hye and I had already had our fair share of intimacy. At least that was a relief.
“But how do I resolve this situation?”
If Hwang Bo-jun doesn’t take Namgoong Hye away now, I’ll have to take responsibility for her.
If I leave her here, her belly will soon start to swell, and Namgoong Hak will flip out.
Hwang Bo-jun probably thought that since I was unmarried publicly, I would take responsibility if he backed off… What should I do in this situation?
As Namgoong Hak’s agitation grew, I couldn’t help but feel a sense of distance from him.
His clothes fluttered as he couldn’t control his emotions, and I felt a sudden sense of emptiness.
