* * *
Perhaps because of his son’s sudden behavior, Han Heeseong’s father, Han Sungyoon, pulled out a handkerchief and wiped the sweat constantly flowing from his forehead.
Unable to stop his son, he looked back and forth between the Queen Mother and me with a worried gaze as Heeseong stuck tightly to my side.
These four people were in a rather uncomfortable relationship.
Han Sungyoon was closely linked to the Queen Mother, and she was the one who had actively recommended Han Heeseong as a candidate for the Emperor’s concubine.
Han Sungyoon was also one of the few who had remained loyal to the Imperial Family until the end.
But now, the situation was a bit awkward.
Far from falling in love at first sight, the Emperor and Han Heeseong were busy keeping each other in check. All because of me.
So, imagine how uncomfortable the Queen Mother and Han Sungyoon must feel right now—though I was the most uncomfortable of all.
Why did she call me?
As if sensing my thoughts, the Queen Mother sighed and frowned at Han Heeseong, who was clinging to my arm.
“I’m sorry for bringing you to such an awkward spot. I heard about the time Heeseong… jumped on the Great Consort. The Emperor was so furious that I had a very difficult time dealing with it.”
“I see…”
‘So that’s what happened. Thanks to Han Heeseong, we safely spent our first night together, Your Majesty.’
“A lot of time has passed, but the Chief Prosecutor insisted on apologizing to the Great Consort, so I had no choice but to call you here.”
“Ah…”
I looked at Han Sungyoon with pity as he struggled to pull Han Heeseong off my arm.
What did this poor man do to deserve this?
How terrified must he be, seeing his son act like this toward the Emperor’s concubine instead of the Emperor himself?
“The Chief Prosecutor had business with the Emperor today, so I called you both as a favor. I know he only recently finished his house arrest and should be staying quiet, but an apology is only right, isn’t it? Although the Emperor will throw a fit if he finds out.”
As soon as the Queen Mother finished speaking, Han Sungyoon stepped in front of me and bowed his head low.
This was truly embarrassing to talk about anywhere else.
A dominant Omega, who was almost the Emperor’s official spouse, was begging for affection from the Emperor’s concubine.
“A hundred apologies would not be enough. I am truly, truly sorry, Palace Master. This child has had a peculiar personality since he was young… I am so sorry for making you uncomfortable with such nonsense.”
Since it felt wrong for me to scold him, I laughed awkwardly and told him it was fine and to have a seat.
As I tried to stop Han Sungyoon from apologizing over and over, my eyes fell on Han Heeseong’s hands.
Both hands were still wrapped in bandages.
He was covered in blood last time; it seemed he hadn’t recovered yet.
“Young—Heeseong, are your hands still like that from the injury back then? There was so much blood.”
“You remember? Yes, yes, that’s from back then. My forehead is fine, but since I keep using my hands, the wounds got worse. That’s why I have them like this on both sides.”
What on earth did he do…? I recalled what Han Heeseong said at the time.
“I think you said you broke a window to get out. Is that how you got hurt? Why didn’t you just use the door? You could have been seriously injured.”
“It’s my fault, Your Highness. I forbade him from going outside. Isn’t that right? Since he had the audacity to tell the Emperor himself that he wanted the Great Consort… He kept repeating the same thing without reflecting on his actions, so I locked him in to prevent any trouble. Then he went and broke that thick window…”
“He probably didn’t break it with his bare hands…”
Curious about how he did it, I let my voice trail off, prompting an answer.
“I broke it with a dumbbell, Your Highness. If you hit it with the end, it breaks easily. I just got scratched a bit by the glass. I didn’t know you were leaving, and when I just rushed out, there you were. I was so happy to see you that I acted that way.”
“…It was rude. The guards could have killed you. You must be careful.”
“You were going to treat me back then, weren’t you? You don’t know how touched I was.”
‘Well, your face and hands were a bloody mess; was I supposed to just leave you like that?’
I was speechless seeing Han Heeseong look at me with such an innocent smile.
For someone who caused this whole mess, his expression was far too pure.
Was it because of his large eyes without double eyelids?
Or was it because he was a year younger than me?
Every time I saw this baby-like innocent face, my heart softened.
It made me think of Seojoo, too…
The relationships here are truly ruined.
In the original story, we were rivals!
And even here, I really tried my best to set up Joo Minhyuk and Han Heeseong.
Though it ended up like this.
I looked at Han Heeseong, who was rubbing his face against my arm, and seriously wondered what to do.
Joo Minhyuk’s obsession with me is worse than I thought.
If he’s this bold even in front of the Queen Mother, Joo Minhyuk might actually kill him if he sees this.
While I was debating how to advise him, the atmosphere grew awkward, and the Queen Mother suggested we have some refreshments.
Right, eating is the best thing to do when it’s awkward.
Let’s eat a piece of fruit and think.
But suddenly, Han Heeseong started making a whining sound. What is it now?
“Oh, man… My hands are like this, so I can’t even eat anything. Mmm, Great Consort.”
Why, why are you calling me?
What now?
What kind of bomb are you going to drop?
The Queen Mother and Han Sungyoon watched him tensely, unsure of what he would do next.
When I looked at him with a skeptical face, he grinned.
“Can’t you just feed me one bite? Ah—”
……?
“Heeseong!”
Han Sungyoon called his son’s name in horror, but Han Heeseong was already holding his mouth open for me to feed him fruit.
This kid is really crazy.
I am the one and only concubine of the high and mighty Emperor.
In this society where the status of royalty and nobility clearly exists, Han Heeseong is technically in a position where he shouldn’t even look at my face directly.
Yet, he hugged me in the middle of the street, and today, he has the nerve to open his mouth for me to feed him.
This is an act of deception and disrespect that could lead to punishment even without the Emperor present.
But he’s doing this not just in front of me, but in front of the Queen Mother without any hesitation. Wow, he really is unique!
Then again, if he were a normal-thinking person, he wouldn’t have asked the Emperor to give him his concubine in the first place.
With Han Sungyoon rushing over and the Queen Mother looking like she was about to faint, I decided to just put something in his mouth to calm the situation.
It didn’t look like he would back down until I fed him.
Just as I quickly picked up a strawberry and was about to put it in his mouth—
I heard heavy footsteps from behind, and the strawberry in my hand rose into the air.
‘Huh?’
The strawberry was lifted by someone’s hand, and at the end of my gaze following the fruit stood Joo Minhyuk.
‘Damn it!’
At Joo Minhyuk’s appearance, the Queen Mother looked down at her teacup with a look of total defeat.
Han Sungyoon was at a loss, looking between me, Joo Minhyuk, and the Queen Mother.
We’re doomed.
As soon as Joo Minhyuk arrived, Han Heeseong muttered something small, closed his mouth, and reluctantly let go of my arm.
Joo Minhyuk didn’t take his eyes off Han Heeseong as he threw the strawberry to the floor.
Watching the strawberry burst into a shapeless mess upon hitting the ground made my heart throb.
It reminded me of when he blew away half of my pavilion recently.
“Hey. Han Heeseong.”
“…Greetings, Your Majesty.”
“What do you think you’re doing right now?”
The muscles in Joo Minhyuk’s jaw tightened, and the veins in his neck popped as he looked at Han Heeseong.
I couldn’t tell if Han Heeseong didn’t know the gravity of the situation or if he was just too young to care, but he just looked indifferent.
‘I’m the only one taking this seriously!’
I quickly stood up and tried to smile, hoping to soothe him as I always did.
But Joo Minhyuk’s sharp gaze turned toward Han Heeseong’s father, Han Sungyoon.
As Joo Minhyuk walked toward him, Han Sungyoon bowed his head in extreme tension, and this time, the Queen Mother stood beside the Emperor to stop him just in case.
“Mother, setting that aside, why is the Great Consort here? I wasn’t told she would be here.”
“I called the Great Consort. The Chief Prosecutor insisted on apologizing, so I asked the Consort to come. Since it was my mistake to call her, why don’t you let go of your anger and sit down?”
Joo Minhyuk gritted his teeth, referring to Han Heeseong as “that.”
Having asked the question, it seemed he had no intention of listening to the answer as he turned his gaze back to Han Sungyoon.
I was terrified and quietly moved behind Joo Minhyuk.
‘Augh!’
I came because the Queen Mother called, but what’s the point of an apology? I should have just let it go.
“Chief Prosecutor, this is like this: It’s as if I asked for your wife right in front of you. Is that what they call a ‘makjang’ drama? It’s a truly trashy situation.”
“I am sorry! Your Majesty, I am sorry. I failed to educate my child properly.”
“It’s unbelievable… Even when he hugged and molested the Great Consort in the middle of the street, I let it slide with house arrest out of respect for the Chief Prosecutor’s face. How much more do I have to tolerate? The Great Consort is the primary concubine of this nation. For someone to stick to her like a neighborhood friend and open their mouth to be fed… if that isn’t a death wish, what is? Right?”
Joo Minhyuk’s murderous final words were directed at Han Heeseong.
I knew this would happen, which is why I tried to make him be careful.
Joo Minhyuk had already looked the other way twice.
He had endured it out of respect for the Chief Prosecutor and his family, who always supported the Imperial Family.
But since he saw Han Heeseong clinging to me again, he won’t let it go anymore.
I have no choice.
I have to get Han Heeseong out of here.
* * *
YAYY AN UPDATEE