-21-
East Wind
相 思 不 夜 眠 (Thinking of you, I cannot sleep at night)
Jeonggwan was blowing on the ink to dry the neat calligraphy written on white paper, so hard that his temples throbbed, since the letter could only be folded properly and delivered once the ink had dried. This was already the third love letter expressing his longing for his beloved that had been returned without reply, but Jeonggwan’s feet showed no sign of stopping their journeys to deliver them.
“Ugh, if I get rejected again this time, I’m going to lie down in the Military Minister’s courtyard.”
“Then I’ll lie down beside you, young master.”
“Why would you?”
“My legs are killing me. It takes three meal times to go there and back, and how many times has this been now?”
“That’s why I’m giving you dried persimmons and rice cakes.”
“And that’s why I’m going. Otherwise, I would have told the master long ago. But lately, the rice cakes aren’t enough.”
“Huh! Look at this guy?” Jeonggwan continued blowing on the ink with a grumble, and Juhwan watched him with eyes full of disbelief. Jeonggwan, born to a male servant who had worked at Juhwan’s house for a long time and a female servant of low birth who used to draw water, had been clever since childhood. The Minister of Justice Kyung Munhwan had assigned him as a personal servant to his second son, Juhwan. The two had grown up like brothers, sharing joys and sorrows, and so despite their master-servant relationship, they had an unusual bond. Because of this, while an ordinary nobleman would have been highly offended by Jeonggwan’s current behavior, Juhwan was merely bewildered, thinking, “So now that he’s grown up, instead of just accepting food and doing everything without complaint, he’s even starting to blackmail me?”
Still, Juhwan was the one in need. These days, he was completely infatuated with the Military Minister’s second son, Park, who was so manly and handsome that Juhwan couldn’t forget the sight of him in the marketplace a month ago. He had already sent four love letters through Jeonggwan. Unable to go in person due to social propriety, he was sending his letters through his servant Jeonggwan. If Jeonggwan refused to go anymore, he would have to send the letters through Maksamyi, the gatekeeper’s son, but Maksamyi’s mouth was lighter than the feathers of the guinea fowl raised in the backyard. Sending a love letter through Maksamyi would mean everyone in the household, including all the servants, would know about his desperate one-sided love.
Therefore, Juhwan had to deliver his letters through Jeonggwan, and until he received a reply to his love letter, he needed to coax Jeonggwan to go. It was undeniably annoying to see Jeonggwan blackmailing him by mentioning his father and demanding more food. Juhwan looked at Jeonggwan up and down with an irritated face. With his fair complexion that didn’t look like a servant’s, his eyes shining with intelligence, and his round, plump cheeks like cotton balls from eating the bean powder Juhwan gave him, Jeonggwan hardly resembled a servant.
“By the way, you should stop eating rice cakes. You’ll be rolling around soon.”
“Is it time for the master to return from the palace…?”
“Eat candied nuts instead of rice cakes. Do you get tired of just eating rice cakes?”
“Then I would like sesame, please, young master.”
“Sesame candied nuts at that. He’s been calculating all along.” Juhwan shuddered, looking with exasperation at Jeonggwan, who was smiling brightly. This cunning fellow who could see several moves ahead. It was fortunate he was born a servant; if he had been born a nobleman like himself, he could have been a formidable rival. Not just a rival—if it were him, he might already be receiving training to become the Crown Princess before the first selection had even taken place, claiming he would become the Crown Princess.
“Ah, come to think of it, the order for the Crown Prince’s bride selection will be issued soon.”
“Will you put your name on the register too, young master?”
“Are you crazy? I only want Park. That’s why I need to get married quickly before the marriage ban is issued, but that Park won’t reply…”
“But young master, at this point, the Park young master…”
“I know what you’re going to say, but I don’t want to hear it, so just go deliver the letter.”
“…Yes.”
Jeonggwan, who was about to deliver a piercing comment with just one word, was immediately stopped by Juhwan. Pouting, Jeonggwan carefully folded the now-dry letter, put it in his sleeve, and left Juhwan’s room. The thought of walking for over two meal times again made him feel overwhelmed. Why won’t this chubby face go away despite all this walking? No wonder father scolds me for stealing the young master’s food. Jeonggwan grumbled as he headed to the back door to leave quietly.
“Jeonggwan.”
At that moment, someone called out to Jeonggwan from behind. Recognizing the familiar voice, Jeonggwan stopped and quickly turned to see who had called him. It was Jeong Taekun, the eldest son of Jeong Yunsik, the deputy minister who assisted this household’s master, Minister of Justice Kyung Munhwan. Taekun often came to the Kyung family’s house in place of his father.
“Young master…!”
“Where are you going? It will be dark soon.”
As a result, he often ran into Jeonggwan naturally. Whenever he saw Jeonggwan, he would say that Jeonggwan reminded him of his youngest brother who had died early from measles, and he was very fond of him. Because of this, Jeonggwan would sometimes act coquettishly toward Taekun, and instead of getting angry at a servant for such behavior, Taekun seemed to secretly enjoy Jeonggwan’s familiarity.
“Ah… I’m going to the marketplace on an errand for our young master.”
“Doesn’t it take at least one meal time just to get to the marketplace?”
The words “That’s true, but if I don’t go, all that’s left for me is two hours of nagging, so I must go” rose to Jeonggwan’s throat, but for the sake of his young master’s dignity, Jeonggwan forced a smile as if it was fine.
“I can go and come back quickly.”
“…Don’t do that. Come with me. I’ll take you there.”
“Gasp! Is that allowed?!”
Jeonggwan was so surprised that his body almost jumped into the air, but gravity existed even in the Joseon Dynasty, so it did not allow Jeonggwan’s body to float. Jeonggwan’s extreme surprise wasn’t just because Taekun was offering to take him. Taekun’s offer meant putting him on the horse that Taekun rode, and since those of non-noble status were not allowed to ride horses within the capital, Jeonggwan was shocked, wondering if this was actually permissible.
“Everyone does it secretly, so don’t worry. I’ll let you off in a quiet alley, and when your errand is done, come back quickly. Then it won’t even take two meal times. You are of low birth, so you should be careful on the night roads.”
Ah, if only I were a nobleman. No, I don’t even wish to be a nobleman. If only I weren’t a lowly servant but just a commoner, I could have begged and pleaded to be accepted even as a seventh concubine. Thinking that he could only look at but never have this young master with his handsome face and kind heart, Jeonggwan couldn’t help but sigh.
“Just in case, wear this.”
While Jeonggwan was untying Taekun’s horse from the front gate after going out through the back door, Taekun brought a straw raincoat called a dorongi from somewhere. Not a single raindrop was falling, so it seemed he had obtained it to cover Jeonggwan’s face. Jeonggwan covered himself with it up to his face, then grabbed Taekun’s outstretched arm and climbed onto the horse. Riding a horse for the first time in his life, Jeonggwan let out continuous exclamations of admiration at the height.
“…I’m letting you sit here because it’s your first time riding.”
“Yes!”
“…I need to hold your waist so you don’t fall off, so don’t misunderstand.”
“Yes!”
Since it was Jeonggwan’s first time riding a horse, Taekun had him sit in front of him. Although this was normal, for some reason he kept adding excuses as if he felt guilty about something. If Jeonggwan had been his usual self, he would have noticed something different about Taekun’s heart, thinking, “Why is the young master acting like this? He’s very different from usual,” but now he was completely engrossed in experiencing horseback riding for the first time and didn’t notice at all.
“Thank you for bringing me, young master.”
“…Sure.”
“Then I’ll be going now. Please be careful on your way back, young master!”
“…Um,”
“Yes?”
“…”
“What is it, young master? Ah, should I return the raincoat?”
“…Nothing. Later, I’ll tell you later.”
Taekun seemed to have something to say and hesitated momentarily, but since it was a matter with no possibility anyway, he postponed the conversation and got back on his horse. Jeonggwan bowed his head slightly to see Taekun off, then waved his hand lightly. It wasn’t appropriate behavior for a servant toward a nobleman, but Taekun found Jeonggwan’s innocent demeanor cute and smiled. As Taekun left the alley, leaving Jeonggwan behind, he thought that his recent worry had indeed been unnecessary.
Kyung Juhwan would put his name in the selection box for this bridal selection. And barring any unforeseen circumstances, Kyung Juhwan would be selected as the Crown Princess. It was already a foregone conclusion at the palace for political reasons, which was why Military Minister Park Daeup was in a difficult situation. The Crown Princess designated by the higher-ups kept sending love letters to his son, so all he could do was burn each letter as it arrived, unable to say anything. This was information he knew from his father.
Because of this, he had been a bit worried. Worried that when Kyung Juhwan entered the palace, he might take Jeonggwan, his cherished servant, with him. This wasn’t usually possible, but there were occasional exceptions, so he couldn’t be at ease. It was anticipated that Kyung Juhwan’s resistance would be severe, and if so, the Minister of Justice might exert his influence to have Jeonggwan enter the palace as well. However, seeing Jeonggwan’s reckless behavior today, that possibility seemed very low.
As Taekun left the alley, he looked back once more. True to his impertinent nature, Jeonggwan had already turned his body and was walking away, even though the nobleman hadn’t completely disappeared from sight.
“…”
Indeed, Jeonggwan could never enter the palace.
But why did he feel so uneasy about it?
Author: Hyacinthus B
Hyacinthus
