Chapter 02
02. The Seed【序幕】
That’s how Dongbaek came to stay at Geum Danyo’s house, though both needed a few days to adjust. While Danyo was wise, she had never dealt with children before, and though Dongbaek was clever, adapting to the new environment wasn’t easy at all.
The biggest problem was the food. Thankfully her parents had blessed her with a strong stomach—if she had been any more delicate, Dongbaek would have spent all day vomiting or in the bathroom. She even felt amazement at how her body could handle such oily foods without issue.
‘Mom, Dad, although your daughter has fallen into another world, I’m surviving well. Thank you for giving birth to me with such a sturdy constitution.’
Living under Danyo’s care wasn’t bad. Danyo didn’t ask anything about Dongbaek. Beyond initially asking her name, she never questioned anything about her background, which made Dongbaek relieved. If she had asked about other things, Dongbaek would have had to struggle to make up lies. She might have even resorted to using the very classic and useful excuse of partial amnesia if she had been too overwhelmed.
‘It’s fortunate I don’t have to tell unnecessary lies.’
Moreover, she didn’t make Dongbaek do any work. At first, when she offered to let her stay, Dongbaek thought she wanted to make her a servant. For a child with nowhere to go, just providing food and shelter was already a great kindness. Dongbaek didn’t dare hope for more. That’s why she had planned to do her best within her capabilities.
But she just let Dongbaek be free. Apart from having tea with Danyo once a day and sharing dinner, the rest of her time was her own.
‘Is it normal in this world for servants to have tea and meals with their masters like this?’
This was a natural question for Dongbaek, who had no idea that Danyo was considering adopting her as a foster daughter.
But there were too many other things to think about to dwell on this deeply.
After a few days of living there, she realized she couldn’t just sit around doing nothing.
It was probably the third day when Dongbaek followed Housekeeper Wang to the marketplace.
“This time, Changshi Zhang Rang of the Ten Attendants…”
Dongbaek was startled when she accidentally overheard a passing conversation. The Ten Attendants (十常侍)?
Housekeeper Wang had mentioned that this was the Han dynasty. The Ten Attendants and the Han dynasty—it was a connection she couldn’t ignore.
‘Of course, I can’t jump to conclusions based just on that but…’
Zhang Rang of the Ten Attendants wasn’t an unfamiliar name.
Dongbaek wasn’t a liberal arts student and didn’t know much about Chinese history or literature. What little she knew came from dramas and novels, and the only thing she could even pretend to know well was the Romance of the Three Kingdoms.
And for better or worse, Zhang Rang of the Ten Attendants appeared in the Romance of the Three Kingdoms.
‘If this really is the world of the Three Kingdoms…’
Though it was too early to be certain, thinking of it that way helped explain why everything around her seemed so backward. If this was the end of the Later Han Dynasty, it would be around the 3rd century at the latest.
Even knowing that this might be the setting of Romance of the Three Kingdoms, countless questions remained unanswered.
Dongbaek only knew the basics about the Three Kingdoms.
As an old story, interpretations varied depending on the version and medium. She didn’t know if the Three Kingdoms of this world followed the historical records, the novel version, comic book, games, or some alternate history novel… It made her head spin.
Among all the different interpretations of the Three Kingdoms period, there was one definite common thread—it was an era of “great” chaos where people died left and right in every version.
A world where monstrously strong individuals could wield 82-pound crescent blades with ease might not be everywhere, but such figures weren’t entirely uncommon either.
And here she was, in Luoyang—the capital where much of the carnage would eventually unfold.
The crow that presumably brought her to this world was nowhere to be seen, so she had no idea how to return to the real world. Therefore, she needed to make a lifelong plan for this world as a backup to feel secure.
If there was anything fortunate, it was that the Ten Attendants were still in power. The Ten Attendants were ten eunuchs who held power, infamous for manipulating the emperor and contributing greatly to the beginning of the country’s dissolution. Since the chaos truly began after the death of the Ten Attendants, there was thankfully some time before the bloody wars would break out.
Dongbaek was grateful that her 10-year-old body wouldn’t have to face the full brunt of this turmoil just yet.
But there was still a significant problem.
In this world, women’s status wasn’t exactly favorable. To put it bluntly, it was downright terrible.
From what little exposure Dongbaek had to Romance of the Three Kingdoms—through games and comic books—it was mostly a male-dominated story. Women were scarcely mentioned.
And the few women who did appear were usually daughters of influential families or someone’s wife.
‘Even the most famous woman in the Romance of the Three Kingdoms, Diaochan, was eventually the adopted daughter of Minister Wang Yun.’
Moreover, Diaochan was a famous beauty. One needed to be beautiful enough to be counted among China’s Four Great Beauties to leave any impression in the Three Kingdoms.
It wasn’t an easy world for a woman like Dongbaek who had no connections. She sighed deeply.
Some might think this was a hasty judgment, but what could she do? The situation wasn’t optimistic enough to live with hopeful expectations about the unknown.
Since becoming a noble family’s daughter was already impossible, the remaining option was to find some promising man and become his wife.
But even if she wanted to, Dongbaek couldn’t do that.
It wasn’t because she couldn’t identify who these promising men were, nor did she feel particularly repulsed by the idea of choosing a husband she didn’t love just to survive. When survival was at stake, what wouldn’t one do?
The truly unfortunate reason Dongbaek couldn’t snag a man to advance in life was her appearance.
Dongbaek examined her face in the bronze mirror from different angles. Though it wasn’t as smooth as modern mirrors and seemed slightly clouded, it still showed what she needed to see.
Despite her baby fat, her sharp jawline and keen eyes were already apparent. Judging by the mole on the back of her hand, no matter how she looked at it, this was exactly how she appeared in her childhood photos.
‘Which means… when I turn 18, I’ll look exactly the same as I did before.’
Dongbaek’s appearance had a peculiar trait—she was handsome.
Plus, she was tall with a solid build. Whenever she went downtown, her pockets would be stuffed with business cards from entertainment agencies who mistook her for a man.
“Haaaaah…”
Seducing men with her looks was impossible. Having known this through years of experience, Dongbaek let out a heartfelt sigh.
It felt like the will of the world was dragging her toward a clear destination.
A world where women had to work themselves to the bone to survive. Me, knowing I’ll grow up to be a tall and handsome youth anyway. Combining these two factors, there’s only one conclusion—the cross-dressing command!
Would you like to cross-dress?
- Yes
- Absolutely
She could even hear an illusory notification sound. While being mistaken for a man was unavoidable, having to cross-dress to survive was utterly depressing.
If she only looked masculine, there might have been various minor difficulties, but for better or worse, Dongbaek had never lost to anyone in anything from arm wrestling to drinking capacity. Even as a child, she dominated her local gym.
Since she was confident she wouldn’t lose even against ordinary men, as long as she handled various physiological issues well, she wouldn’t easily be discovered as a woman. Regardless of whether she liked cross-dressing or not, the success rate would be quite high.
“Romance is out of the question…”
-ˋˏ ༻❁✿❀༺ ˎˊ-
Knock knock.
Just as Dongbaek was pulling at her hair, deep in thought over whether she really had to make such a decision, someone tapped on the window.
If someone had business, they would normally call out or make their presence known at the door, so why the window? Though puzzled, Dongbaek tidied her disheveled hair and asked.
“Who is it?”
“Open up. I can’t get in if you don’t open it.”
The voice coming through the latticed window was very familiar. She couldn’t possibly fail to recognize a voice she’d lived with for years. As soon as she realized who the voice belonged to, Dongbaek quickly ran to the window.
Clatter, bang!
Dongbaek opened the window somewhat violently. There was a crow perched primly on the windowsill with its wings folded, looking up at her.
“You!”
“Hello. Long time no see.”
-ˋˏ ༻❁✿❀༺ ˎˊ-
-ˋˏ ༻ 𝚃𝚛𝚊𝚗𝚜𝚕𝚊𝚝𝚘𝚛 𝙽𝚘𝚝𝚎 ༺ ˎˊ-
The Ten Attendants, also known as the Ten Eunuchs, were a group of high-ranking eunuchs who had significant influence over the imperial court. They served as attendants to the emperor, but their roles were more powerful and political than typical eunuchs.
-ˋˏ ༻❁✿❀༺ ˎˊ-
Thank you for reading! ♡
