As soon as Lee Woon arrived at the guest house and saw Yoon Tae Soo, something welled up inside him.

Yoon Tae Soo sighed with an unpleasant expression, leaning his body against the back of the chair.

His shamelessness made Lee Woon’s stomach churn and feel nauseous.

“What is the reason for calling me at this late hour?”

“Judging by your expression, you seem curious about how I knew where you were.”

“Did you have me followed? I knew you were the type to go around womanizing, but I didn’t know you were the kind to have people followed. This is disappointing.”

“You smuggled out the woman who entered my room on my wedding night without fear. Of course I had to find out.”

“So, what is it you want to say to me?”

Lee Woon sat down leisurely in the chair and looked at Yoon Tae Soo. His coldly subdued voice echoed in the room.

“You must have heard what happened in the household today. Make sure you never call that person to that house again.”

“Ha, she was an unwanted child anyway. If that’s what you want, I’ll do so.”

His tone, as if he had no regrets, was ridiculous.

It was as if he had held the wedding, with no sign of trying to hide it.

To think such a person was a father. Lee Woon’s fists on his knees trembled.

“And give Yeori to that person. I heard she served by his side before the marriage, so you should be able to do at least that much.”

“Will that girl do?”

This must mean he wants me to turn a blind eye.

For some time now, Yoon Tae Soo has been hiding Min Ah in a separate house and abusing her, though not officially.

It was quite a sight to see him hiding and toying with a child-like girl, and a slave at that.

Lee Woon forced a smile while suppressing his rising anger.

“If you do that, I’ll have no complaints.”

“What is the reason for going this far? The prince could have many women if he wanted. I don’t understand why you’re so protective of such an inadequate woman. Someone might think the prince married her because he liked her.”

“Is that how it looks? Well, I suppose I’ve matured since getting married.”

“She’s not worth it. Don’t just discard her, keep her for yourself. You’re not satisfied with just one woman anyway, are you?”

It was clearly a sarcastic tone directed at him, who was rumored to be dissolute and lecherous.

A mocking laugh escaped, but he didn’t make excuses.

“She’s still your child. Your words are a bit harsh.”

“She was an unwanted child. That woman is the one blemish in my life. I gave her because the Queen Dowager wanted it, but I feel ashamed for pawning off an inadequate child to the prince. I won’t resent it even if you take several concubines.”

“I appreciate your consideration, but I have no such intentions at the moment.”

“What I still can’t understand is what the Queen Dowager saw in that woman to choose her as a daughter-in-law. When she asked for one of my two daughters, I thought she was just trying to fill a quota. When I heard she was chosen for the final selection, I was so flustered… I really have no words for the prince.”

“As you know, what family would send their daughter to someone like me? They say there were no families willing to put their names on the selection list. It seems they asked you because they thought they’d turn their grown son into a bachelor ghost if they left him like this. Fortunately, you readily offered your eldest daughter, and the Queen Dowager must have seized the opportunity. I don’t care either way. As long as appearances are kept up, anyone would do.”

There was no use in revealing his true feelings to the snake-like Yoon Tae Soo.

He knew well enough that the nonsense about feeling ashamed and having no words to say was just empty talk.

If he had intended to join hands with the Queen Dowager, he should have sent Eun Joo to him, not Eun Seol.

Neither the Queen Dowager nor he had been in Yoon Tae Soo’s ambitions from the start.

It was just a card too valuable to discard, so he was reluctantly holding onto it.

What Yoon Tae Soo was holding onto until the end was Left State Councilor Song Moon Sik.

It’s true that although he hasn’t had a son, there is currently no royal concubine to match Song Gwiin.

If the Gwiin gives birth to a son this time, that child will become wings for Song Moon Sik, who wants to fly high.

Yoon Tae Soo is not unaware of this.

It was natural that he wanted to send his second daughter Eun Joo not to him, but to Song Moon Sik’s son Song Seok Joo.

Thanks to that, he was able to keep Eun Seol by his side.

Lee Woon’s teeth gritted at Yoon Tae Soo’s shamelessness, pretending to be considerate of him.

“Prince, I say this out of concern, but don’t treat her too well. She’ll try to climb up without knowing her place. She’s a cunning woman, just like her mother. Ah, you know her birth mother is dead, right?”

“Yes, I know. Don’t worry. I’ll take care of my own people. It’s late, you should go now.”

Yoon Tae Soo stood up, brushing off his crumpled robe, and gave a wicked snake-like smile.

“Prince, you don’t want to take Yeori for yourself, do you? It seems too obvious, that’s why I’m asking.”

“Unlike some, no matter how desperate, I don’t sleep with female servants. And I warn you. She’s not a woman, she’s the princess consort. Be careful from now on.”

Yoon Tae Soo’s face twisted at the cold warning.

After Yoon Tae Soo left, Lee Woon slammed his fist on the table in boiling anger.

“If only I had recognized and remembered you a little earlier, you wouldn’t have suffered because of such a person.”

He got up and hurried towards the inner quarters.

* * *

From early morning, Geum Ok was making a fuss looking for her.

Her face was full of smiles, and her voice was higher than usual, seeming excited about something.

“What’s the matter… Yeori!”

As Yoon Eun Seol came out of the room and looked up absent-mindedly, she trailed off when she saw Yeori with Geum Ok.

In her joy, she went down to the courtyard without even putting on her shoes properly and hugged Yeori.

“I heard from the master. Thank you so much for yesterday. If it weren’t for you, I would have spent a terrible night.”

“What did I do? My lady, are you alright?”

“I’m fine. I never imagined I’d be able to live with you, it’s like a dream.”

Seeing Yeori showing tears, Geum Ok said a word.

“Now she’s not ‘my lady’ but ‘madam’. Not the young lady you used to serve, but now the princess consort. Understand?”

“Ah, right.”

“Have you two greeted each other?”

As she asked looking at the two, Geum Ok shrugged her shoulders. Then she linked arms with Yeori and laughed boisterously.

“It turns out we’re the same age. Madam, I’ve made a friend.”

“Is that so? That’s good. I hope you two get along well.”

“Yes, yes. Of course we will. Let’s get along well, Yeori.”

“Y-yes.”

After hearing the full story from the prince last night, Yoon Eun Seol felt for the first time that young Eun Seol’s world hadn’t been alone either.

Yeori was like family to her. She was a child who had been particularly attached to her since childhood.

When everyone else stayed away from her out of fear of her mother, Yeori was the one who stayed with her until the end.

To Yeori, who had no parents, she was family.

She had wanted to bring her along when she came to the prince’s residence, but Soon Young wouldn’t allow it, so she couldn’t come together – a precious child.

“Did nothing happen while I was gone?”

“Young lady Eun Joo bullied me a bit, but it was bearable. Oh, Min Ah hasn’t been seen since some day, I don’t know if she went somewhere else.”

“Since when hasn’t she been seen? Don’t you know where she went?”

“There was talk that after you left, the master was going to sell her off somewhere else. And then she really wasn’t seen.”

“…Is that so?”

Where could she have gone?

The last time Yoon Eun Seol saw Min Ah was on the morning of her wedding night.

According to the prince, nothing happened with Min Ah, but why did her mother send Min Ah somewhere else?

−I’m thinking of sending Min Ah as the prince’s concubine. He seems to like that child and is willing to buy her at a high price, so we have no reason to refuse, do we?
−Do you know where the prince is now? Tsk, not knowing he’s nestled in a woman’s arms having fun. As they say, a leopard can’t change its spots.

Why are her mother’s and Eun Joo’s words coming to mind at this moment?

Even though she knows it’s absolutely not the case, why does her chest feel so heavy?

She shook her head and composed herself.

She felt pathetic for doubting him even for a moment.

She felt foolish for acting as if she were something special, just as Eun Joo had said.

They say doubt breeds doubt.

She was about to let it go, but Yeori’s next words made her breathless again.

“People say she entered as a concubine for some high-ranking nobleman.”

“What, entered as a concubine?”

“It’s just a rumor. Min Ah is pretty enough for men to like her.”

“How beautiful must she be for a nobleman to take a slave as a concubine?”

Geum Ok, who had been listening silently, asked curiously.

“Whenever guests came to the house, they couldn’t take their eyes off Min Ah. Even as a woman, I thought she was pretty.”

“Our prince only has eyes for the madam, he’s completely smitten.”

“I’m so glad to hear that the madam is happy.”

Yoon Eun Seol tried to appear calm, but Yeori’s words kept bothering her.

Even after Yeori and Geum Ok left at Eom Sang Gung’s call, she couldn’t move for a while.

“Get a grip, Yoon Eun Seol.”

He clearly said nothing happened, and she believes it all, but she doesn’t understand why she’s becoming anxious again.

She thought she had improved a lot, but her self-blaming and shrinking nature hadn’t improved at all and remained the same.

It felt like someone was mocking her from the side. A bitter laugh escaped through her teeth.

* * *

As time passed, Min Ah was gradually forgotten as if nothing had happened.

There was no room for other thoughts due to the prince’s obsession, enough to make her mindful of the palace people’s gazes.

It was literally an obsession.

Despite Eom Sang Gung and Seo Yeom’s protests, he wouldn’t listen.

She finally succeeded in riding a horse alone after practicing with him every few days.

Now she had become greedy and often thought about wanting to gallop across wide fields.

When she opened her eyes in the morning, she thought about it, and before falling asleep at night, she fell asleep imagining riding a horse.

“My wife?”

The prince quietly called her as she was about to fall asleep from exhaustion.

Her eyes met his as he lay on his side, propping himself up on one arm.

He fiddled with the strings of his inner garment with one hand and rolled his eyes.

His voice was full of discontent.

“Are you getting revenge now for being left alone on our wedding night?”

“No, how could I do that? I’m just a bit tired.”

“It doesn’t seem that way. Are you making excuses about being tired every day to neglect me?”

“Neglect? That’s nonsense.”

“Then prove it’s not true.”

Though he said that, a mischievous smile spread across his face.

She turned to her side and burrowed into his arms.

The sound of his heartbeat was pleasant to hear.

The corners of his mouth curved up into a smile.

“Are you seducing me now?”

“If I seduce you… will you give in?”

“Of course, if you’re seducing me… my wife?”

No matter how many times he called, Yoon Eun Seol showed no reaction.

After a while, the sound of even breathing was heard like a lullaby.

Once again, Yoon Eun Seol had fallen asleep in his arms just like that.

Despite being told to practice slowly without overexerting herself, she wouldn’t listen and fell asleep exhausted every day.

Thanks to that, he was left alone every night.

“Ha, have I been neglected again?”