The Hated Male Concubine

#33 

It was Jeongbin, Songhyun, who never had a conversation with Hwawoon before. As Hwawoon turned his head at the voice that strangely sounded thorny, there was Jeongbin with a cute face continuing her words.

“Well, no doubt you must be happy because you stopped His Majesty from his way to my residence last night.” 

“Your Highness…”

The court lady next to her worriedly called Jeongbin, but Jeongbin, who was completely mad, ignored her and glared at Yeonbin. 

Sukbi was the concubine who had the worst relationship with the original Yeonbin, but actually, the one who was ignored the most by Yeonbin was surely Jeongbin. Yeonbin always looked down on Jeongbin, who had the same rank, but her family was far lower than him. He wasn’t the one to hesitate to do verbal abuse if the emperor’s concubines weren’t so few by saying a barely successful person became a concubine, so he didn’t bother to talk with her. 

Yeonbin had such a strong spirit, so it was rare for Jeongbin to pick a fight first. However, perhaps because the attitude that Hwawoon had shown lately affected her, Jeongbin looked very determined today.

Therefore, Yeonbin, who wasn’t the original Yeonbin, asked Jeongbin with a bit of a flustered expression—didn’t know what she meant. 

“Stopped His Majesty…?”

“Don’t act like you don’t know. Last night, His Majesty clearly said he was on his way to have tea in my residence, but you brought him to Jeongan Palace, didn’t you?”

Hwawoon finally could roughly understand what Jeongbin was talking about. It seemed like the emperor, who suddenly visited Jeongan Palace yesterday, was on his way to Jeongbin’s residence. Hwawoon quickly looked straight at Jeongbin and said,

“It was true that His Majesty stopped by Jeongan Palace for a moment yesterday, but that was also a surprise for me. I didn’t lead him deliberately.”

It was a very normal and nonchalant answer. However, Jeongbin rather became more flustered because of that ‘normal and nonchalant answer.’

Although she came confidently, Songhyun actually was prepared to hear him speak loudly. She predicted that at least the words, “How dare you to come to argue when you couldn’t serve His Majesty because of your lackness?” would spurt out.

Songhyun inwardly wanted to test the rumors about Yeonbin having changed, which recently had been making a lot of noise in the whole palace. Yeonbin’s figure that she saw at the Empress Palace in the last days was clearly far different from before, but it was not easy to believe the almighty Yeonbin.

However, right now, Yeonbin, who was clearly in front of her eyes, was talking to Songhyun with a calm attitude and didn’t raise his voice at all. 

“His Majesty only stayed for a very short moment in Jeongan Palace and left. I didn’t know the exact reason, but he looked very troubled. I guess he suddenly got reminded of something if he didn’t go to your residence.” 

“No, that…”

“In addition, as you know…”

While Songhyun was perplexed by Hwawoon’s answer, which was so polite and so plausible, Hwawoon continued in a very calm voice.

“Even if I want to stop him, is it possible for me to stop His Majesty from coming to you, Jeongbin?”

That was true. Yeonbin was the only one among the current concubines that was hated by the emperor, so even if he yelled at Songhyun for being nothing from an ordinary family, Yeonbin wouldn’t win against Jeongbin in front of the emperor. Everyone would think the same. 

The problem was the one who said that was Yeonbin. The one who said that fact was no one else, but Yeonbin. He didn’t get angry, feel regret, or upset, just calm. Like someone who wasn’t bothered by that fact.  

“I’m sure His Majesty would come to you again and cheer you up.”

Eventually, there was nothing much that could be said by Songhyun who was surprised, flustered, and even wondered if she was being mean to Yeonbin, who unbelievably said that with a very calm face. 

“Tha-thank you for saying that, Yeonbin…”

The court lady next to her looked at her master with a dumbfounded expression. In the first place, Songhyun had no talent for arguing. 

***

“Is there anything else you have to say?”  

The empress asked, looking at Sukbi, who stood absentmindedly. Sukbi opened her eyes prudishly and stared at the empress, then said,

“I think your treatment of Yeonbin isn’t like the usual, Your Majesty… Did I read that wrong?” 

The empress laughed lightly at that. 

“I think I should be the one to ask that… Sukbi, weren’t you the one who couldn’t say anything to Yeonbin today?”

Sukbi pouted her lips at once. She then approached the empress, sat in her original seat, then talked in a sulky voice as if she was complaining.

“Please don’t get me started. No matter how much I sarcastically picked a fight, he accepted it by saying “Yes, Your Highness” with his head down and didn’t even look at me. That rather makes me feel like I’m the bad one, so I don’t want to talk with him anymore.” 

This time, the empress’s laughter rang a bit louder. Despite that, Sukbi continued.

“Do you think it ends there? Let’s say he could hold on by pushing down his fiery personality, but… if I look at his face, I strangely feel like I’m looking at a different person.”

“A different person, huh…”