"Is that not so, Mistress?" This was the first time seeing my husband flared up like this and I had to admit that it was putting butterflies in my stomach and my knees were going week. This is why Yeon revered her brother so much, this was the man that he truly was, and he was going to be the best father to my children as he possibly could be. He defended his loved ones to death, he had the common sense to stay out of trouble when it wasn't needed and he was a considerate husband; they just didn't make men like this anymore.
"…but I suppose that this could be seen as an oversight due to your noble status that you have managed to cling onto throughout the years and I am pretty sure that you can get anywhere without a care for manners and decorum at all." "You make it sound so ugly, and yet you young folk seem to forget the grace that your elders bestow on you…" "How could we possibly remember when the Nam Clan themselves never bestowed such grace to their own descendant and yet here you are making a speech about such things to his oldest friend?" "…and you should have invited us along with you, his oldest friend." "And why should I when you have been absent for all of our lives? Seon-Ho…is my family and I will never invite anyone who makes him feel uncomfortable." "Is that the pathetic excuse that you have to upset a family of nobility?" "I have upset many families she carry such statuses, and yet here I am, alive and well and expecting a child on the way." "Well isn't that a lack of courtesy? No wonder you married a noble woman yourself, to become a social climber, but you might want to remember who you want to cross and who you should stay away from. And I know that you are both orphans, so I shall teach your new wife who knows no courtesy for you! Someone! Hold her down and…"
"…and what exactly are you going to do to that pregnant woman! Hw dare you give the man who serves your most powerful in-law absolutely no face at all!" I could have passed out in relief when I saw Seon-Ho almost smash our doors down to get to me and protect me in my time of need, just like I had alway imagined when I asked Yeon to describe him to me. "Even if you have managed to retain your noble status, it is purely thanks to me and my efforts in the palace! Sister-in-law Hwa-Wol, may I ask you to assist my newest sister-in-law back to her quarters in case something should happen to her in her delicate condition?" He was bigger than ever, angry as ever and he was clearly looking for new victims to vent his rage on as always, and I could only give thanks that it wasn't my family he was doing that to.
"So, you wish to go after powerless women in front of the families of officials of The Royal Court? Then why don't you punish me instead? Well? If you so insist on acting on your will to punish her for following my orders, then just go ahead and punish me, right after I have just come out of a meeting with The Emperor himself!" "The Emperor still shows our family respect, so everyone else should as well!" "Your lives are hanging on a thread due to my new position in the palace, and I will make you pay for this if any harm comes to the Seo's!" "It is giving the orphan's face to discipline them on their dead father's behalf! How can anyone call that bullying?"
I could hear things being smashed around right after she said that, and I could hear my husband and Moon-Bok trying to hold him back, but they were facing miserably. And as for myself, I could see every single wound of torment in that man's eyes without his beloved to heal him. I could only hope that he wouldn't vent it out on Yeon, before he lost her for good, and her brother.
"…someone hold him down!" "Let me see who dares!" "Who dares to hit my people! Hw dare you shame us so openly like this! I will make your clan answer for this!" "You can do that, but let me ask you this before you come after the Seo's in such a vulgar way with no curtsey at all. What will your family do after the fall of The Third Princess Consort?" "what…what do you mean?" "Are you telling me that you have no idea? She was caught causing the miscarriage of his Mistress Han of the Ihwaru brothel, whilst The Lady Min's Royal Advisors were slaughtered for being her kept men, as well as minting new coins for The Third Prince, which is a blatant act of uprising against our current Emperor! Hw can such a crass family even think to insult the Seo's when your clan is on the very brink of destruction!" "We may be vulgar, but we are at least acquainted with humility; unlike a certain Mistress amongst you who is well-known for climbing into her cousin's marriage bed." "How dare you slander us like this, Seo Hwi!" "That is Young Master Seo to you, Mistress! And I have been am orphan for a very long time and I claim no elders in my family, thank you very much!" "This is absolutely outrageous! Who can stop me from teaching this entire family a lesson now!"
"Young Master Seo! The Third Prince's eunuch has arrived and he has words for his wife's clan who are causing a scene at this very moment!" "Very well, let them in immediately." "They require a private room to converse with the family." "Very well, follow me." I should have been resting in that moment, buy myself and Hwa-Wol couldn't help ourselves but to eavesdrop onto their conversation so that we could prepare ourselves for what was to come.
"Kim Hyeon has always been reputable, kind, vitreous and generous, and The Third Prince will not allow slander of any kind against The Seo Family, is that understood? You behaved overbearingly wanting to take a pregnant bride into your custody. The Third Princess Consort only has her title and duties temporarily returned to her so that she can help out with the plague and nothing more, do you understand? This can has lost it's primary backer and if you continue to act out of sorts again, then you will endure serious punishment that nobody can help you get out of." "But we were only teaching them to be filial to their elders!" "…and as a punishment for his unsightly mistake on your part, you are to surrender 1/3 of your yearly income to The Seo's until The Third Prince says otherwise!" "The Seo family went too far in ignoring us, shouldn't they be punished for that! That is absolutely unfilial!" "Mistakes are bound to be made when couples are holding their first banquets; but if the Royal Family is not picking up on that mistake, then who is your family to do so and make a huge scene out of nowhere?" Tell me?" "Punishing a younger is only a trivial matter, are we really going to trouble The Royal Family over this?" "The Seo;s have The Emperor's proaction, unlike yourself anymore. The Third Princess Consort will be deposed and divorced by the end of this year." "What?" "And as a reminder to everyone else; the plague is spreading, so curfew shall be enforced and everyone should stay in their homes as much as they can until we sort out this issue once and for all."
I couldn't hear anything more after that and I decided to duress myself and take a rest and just wait for my husband to come for me as the guests still stayed on to enjoy the banquet I guess. But then I stared to feel badly for my husband and guests for leaving them all alone without me. So I proceeded to get dressed after I had taken a nap in the summer's blazing heat once again, only to almost run straight into Nam Seon-Ho, who looked drunk beyond belief. "Young Master1 Are you quite alright? Here, I have chambers made up for you…" "thank you sister-in-law, I shall only stay for a few days before I go and find her…" "You always have a home here with us, along with my sister-in-law…" "Kim Hyeon, please do me a favour." "Of curse, what is it?" "Keep breeding for husband and raise your children well, for I have a plan for all of Seo Geom's grandchildren." "What does that mean? Will you…take my children away from me?" "No I will not, but they have much bigger destines that even your own husband is unable to imagine for them. I shall be responsible for their education alongside my own children, so you do not need to worry about that. Just raise them well for me and I shall take care of them for the rest of my life…"
I really couldn't get much out of him after that, so I decided to just bring up some food for him and leave him alone to sleep whatever issue was troubling him off, although I still couldn't help but to worry about my sister-in-law now more than ever. She was broken at this point; she had to be, she also had to be relieving her nightmares every single night as I was, although I had my husband by my side whilst she was all alone and probably convinced that her lover had left her forever. Seo Yeon, please do not push that man away, otherwise it shall bring the end of you and my husband, and I need you all alive to be a part of my children's lives. And Nam Seon-Ho, do not make Yeon break, otherwise she cannot handle herself, because her biggest weakness in this life is yourself, and she really has so much to do even if you do break her heart. And no matter what, do not bring in other partners into this feud that you both have going on, otherwise there would be no telling how this all would end for all of us.