Her sorrow fell to the dry ground below.
“Sniff….”
Yeon Woo’s slender shoulders trembled slightly.
Lotuses bloom beautifully, at least.
Her life, wallowing in the mud without blossoming, felt much like her own fate.
The once clear sky was now covered with dark clouds.
Perhaps due to the gloomy weather, the streets, usually bustling, were deserted.
Yeon Woo, now out of tears, roamed the empty marketplace with a dry expression.
Returning home meant an inevitable marriage to old Mr. Bae, but that was the last thing she wanted.
She detested the idea of marriage and her family now.
Yeon Woo wished to disappear to a place where no one would find her.
Then, she noticed a notice (榜文: a public announcement) on the wall.
The gist of it was as follows:
In response to the northern invasion by the Yeojin, the nation was recruiting patriotic soldiers, disregarding age and social status.
“Is this what Brother Biyeong was talking about….”
Yeon Woo recalled Biyeong’s words about recruiting soldiers as she read the notice.
“Volunteers are provided with one seok of rice and a monthly wage of two nyang?”
Yeon Woo’s eyes widened in surprise as she read the rest of the notice.
The offer of one seok of rice was generous, but a monthly wage of two nyang was astonishing!
Twenty-four nyang a year could easily buy a thatched house.
“Ah, I wish I could do this….”
Yeon Woo sighed in frustration.
As a woman, she couldn’t enlist as a soldier.
Then, she noticed something curious.
“Why is the treatment so generous for common soldiers?”
It was odd for such generous compensation for simple soldier recruitment.
Yeon Woo cocked her head, then noticed the seal on the notice.
“Oh, Lord of Gwangho….”
The bright red seal was unmistakably that of the Gwangho Lord.
Yeon Woo belatedly remembered that Biyeong belonged to the Gwangho military unit.
The rumors said the Gwangho Lord was a child abandoned by the king, and those involved with him never ended well.
Who would want to join his unit under such ominous rumors?
Only such generous compensation could attract recruits.
But to Yeon Woo, the monthly wage of two nyang was incredibly tempting.
With that money, she could live independently, free from her family, but there was a catch.
“How can a woman become a soldier? Unless she looked like a boy.”
Therefore, it wasn’t a position that anyone could simply covet and obtain.
As Yeon Woo was about to turn away, emptying her heart of the thought, an idea flashed through her mind.
“…What if I disguise myself as a boy?”
There were enough clothes for a male disguise at home, thanks to her brother Yeon Ho.
Yeon Woo, taller than most girls her age, could convincingly pull off dressing as a boy.
But she shook her head in dismissal.
“No, it’s ridiculous. If I’m caught disguising my identity, I won’t be able to escape punishment.
Deceiving the royal family about one’s identity is a military crime. Trying to earn money this way could cost me my life.
And if I return home as I am, I’d have to marry that old man, which is more detestable than death itself.
“Either way, it’s a death sentence…”
Yeon Woo stood rooted to the spot, deeply mired in thought.
If death was inevitable either way, she reasoned that taking a chance might be better than being forced into a marriage with the old man.
Reaching the end of her contemplation, Yeon Woo decided to gamble with her life.
Turns Out He’s Been Secretly in Love with Me
One-line summary: He acts like he doesn’t like her but is actually playing hard to get.
Synopsis:
Xu Muzhou like her. He has liked her for a very long time, and through repeated schemes, he finally closed the distance with her.
But this is still far from enough.
He wants to be the one who stands out among her many suitors, to fight for her attention, and to make her take the initiative to pursue him.
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