Chapter 16
-ˋˏ ༻❁✿❀༺ ˎˊ-
After that day, the concubine shut herself in her room and didn’t move an inch. She couldn’t get Dongbaek’s menacing demeanor out of her mind.
‘He said he’d acknowledge me as his mother before the ancestral tablets if he wins the bet? That means he intends to kill me either way!’
She was so frightened by Dongbaek’s threat that she didn’t even dare report it to Zhang Rang.
Just because the concubine kept quiet didn’t mean the events in the estate wouldn’t reach Zhang Rang’s ears. People started betting on how Zhang Rang would react.
Even though Geum Danyo, his adoptive mother, monopolized Zhang Rang’s favor, Dongbaek, who was merely her adopted son, was too arrogant. Everyone believed without doubt that Zhang Rang would cast Dongbaek out. As a result, no bets were actually placed since everyone expected the same outcome.
However, everyone’s expectations were wrong.
“Dongbaek did that?”
“Yes. Even though you adopted him, wasn’t his behavior excessively arrogant…?”
Hearing the story through Elder Hwang, Zhang Rang instead let out a hearty laugh.
“That boy? The one who hissed like a wildcat even in front of me whenever Geum Danyo was involved? Naturally, he’d be worse with a mere concubine.”
“…You seem pleased, my lord.”
“It’s better than him submitting passively.”
Zhang Rang sneered. That child would become his heir. With the groundless malice and hostility that would unfold in the future, he would have been disappointed if the boy had quietly submitted to abuse in the inner court.
Elder Hwang cautiously observed Zhang Rang’s mood before inquiring further.
“But does this not tarnish your reputation, my lord?”
“My reputation, sullied by the mischief of a ten-year-old child?”
“Of course not, my lord. Forgive this foolish old man for spoke thoughtlessly.”
Elder Hwang hastily bowed his head. Zhang Rang leaned back in his chair and waved his wrinkled hand dismissively. Noticing that Zhang Rang wasn’t particularly angry, Elder Hwang slowly raised his head.
“Rather, it’s a good thing that the child cares so much for Geum Danyo.”
“This foolish old one doesn’t understand what pleases you so much about a child who disregards even his father’s honor for his mother’s sake.”
“If he cares for Geum Danyo so devotedly, as long as I hold his lifeline in my hands, he won’t betray me. Isn’t that right?”
A horse without reins is difficult to control, but it’s different when the reins are in one’s grasp. Eventually, it will have no choice but to follow its master’s commands.
“Even if that child grows up and gains power, it will still be power built upon your influence, my lord. Without a solid foundation, isn’t it just a house of cards? How could he dare to betray you?”
“That might be true in 10 years. But what about in 20 years? In 30 years?”
In 30 years, Zhang Rang would be nearly a hundred years old, but he believed without doubt that he would live until then.
“That’s why I’m winning the child over early. It’s going to be a long relationship after all.”
“He’s a cunning child. He won’t be easily fooled.”
“Just making him let his guard down is enough. First… yes, I’ll make Geum Danyo my legal wife. After all, being the adopted son of a concubine isn’t sufficient justification to make him my heir.”
“But, my lord!”
It wasn’t like giving another piece of rice cake to a crying child—to give such an already arrogant Dongbaek an even greater position. Elder Hwang jumped up to dissuade Zhang Rang. But Zhang Rang had made up his mind and was resolute.
“Do it.”
Afterward, news spread throughout the estate that not only did Zhang Rang not scold Dongbaek, but he also elevated Geum Danyo from concubine to legal wife. When everyone in the inner court heard from Elder Hwang that Zhang Rang had supposedly raged upon learning about other concubines bullying Geum Danyo, they trembled in fear.
Who knew Zhang Rang favored Geum Danyo this much!
With this incident, the balance of power clearly tilted to one side. After that, people didn’t dare say a word about Dongbaek’s actions. Behind Dongbaek was Geum Danyo, and behind Geum Danyo was Zhang Rang.
-ˋˏ ༻❁✿❀༺ ˎˊ-
The library’s air was cool. Its design allowed for proper ventilation to prevent moisture from damaging the books, which made the air feel crisp. Dongbaek strolled through the library with a familiar ease, though a faint scowl tugged at his brow—evidence of her dissatisfaction at being dragged here against her will.
The faint smell of dry, aging paper lingered in the air.
Dongbaek brushed her fingers idly along the shelves before plucking out a book to glance through. It was a military code—dull and uninspiring. She snapped it shut and slid it back into its place with a sigh.
“Ah, how about Gamakwi?”
“It lacks freshness, tsk tsk. I know you’ll just say, ‘It’s hard to pronounce Gamakwi, so let’s just call you Crow again.’”
“Tch.”
Dongbaek clicked her tongue. That crow truly, sincerely, and frighteningly understood her well.
“Can’t we just keep it simple? It’s all Chinese characters anyway, isn’t it good enough if the meaning roughly fits?”
“The sound is important too! Don’t name me carelessly just because it’s not your name.”
The crow narrowed its eyes into sharp triangles, scolding her fiercely. Dongbaek reluctantly flipped through the book, pretending to read, slightly amused by the crow’s stubborn passion about names.
Time passed. Long enough for a yawn to creep in. The book she was reading was about folk tales. Resting her chin on one hand, Dongbaek lazily let her eyes wander down the text. How convenient it would be to have a search function here, she thought wistfully.
Halfway through the book, Dongbaek’s eyes suddenly sharpened like a predator spotting its prey.
“Oh, this looks good.”
“What is it?”
“Jao. ‘Ja’ for purple, ‘O’ for crow.”
[The Korean word for purple is 자주색 (jajusaek), and “Ja” could be referencing the beginning of that word.
The Korean word for crow is 까마귀 (kkamagi), which starts with a “K” sound, but in this case, it seems Dongbaek is simplistically using the letter “O” as a stand-in for the crow sound.]
“What’s with that brutally simple name?”
“Simple is best, you know.”
“Where did you get that from?”
Dongbaek held up the passage she was reading to the crow’s eyes. Whether the crow could read Chinese characters or not, Dongbaek didn’t care as she traced her finger down the relevant section.
“Here. It says something about crows being the only filial ones, and therefore they’re called Jao. Originally, it used the character for ‘love,’ but since that doesn’t suit you, I changed it to a homonym.”
[Dongbaek replaces “사랑할 자” (love) with “자줏빛 자” (purple) because she thinks “love” doesn’t suit him, but the sound of the name is kept the same.]
At Dongbaek’s snickering explanation, an invisible vein bulged on the crow’s forehead. What’s wrong with me?!
“Isn’t that name a bit too haphazard?”
“Well, who cares? It sounds good. Better than just being called Crow. Jao. Jao. Hmm. Anyway, this name is just for formalities. Let’s be honest. Do you think I’m suddenly going to start calling you something sweet like ‘dear Jao’? No way. Most of the time, I’ll just call you ‘you,’ ‘hey,’ or ‘bird bastard,’ like always.”
The crow—no, now officially Jao—was bristling with indignation at the casual dismissal. But upon reflection, Dongbaek wasn’t wrong. Dongbaek had never addressed him by anything other than those generic (and often rude) nicknames.
Still, he had his own name now! Jao started grinning with overwhelming joy. Jao, Jao. Hmm, the more he said it, the not-so-bad it seemed.
Watching Jao’s pout morph into a grin so quickly, Dongbaek couldn’t help but chuckle.
“Well, then, let’s name the horse next—”
“Yeah, the horse… Hey, you! You just quickly gave me a name but you’re going to put real effort into naming that horse! No way!”
“What do you mean ‘no way.’ Besides, I already named it long ago.”
Dongbaek’s sudden declaration hit Jao like a bolt from the blue. He was left gaping like a fish, unable to form words.
“You… you…!”
Jao stared at Dongbaek, betrayal written all over his face. Dongbaek, on the other hand, simply shrugged with a cheeky grin.
“How about Bidan (飛湍)?”
“Bidan? Like silk bidan?”
“Different characters. ‘Bi’ for flying and ‘dan’ for rapids.”
[Bidan (飛湍) literally means “flying rapids” or “swift currents that fly.” It can symbolize something fast-moving, powerful, or unstoppable, much like rushing waters or something soaring in the air.]
It was a fitting name for a horse that moved freely like swift currents, following Dongbaek’s intentions.
“Geum Danyo uses the character for silk in her name, right? Did you plan this? Or is it coincidence?”
“Do you think it’s a coincidence?”
“Sheesh. You’re using Geum Danyo’s surname for a horse that Zhang Rang gifted? Is that okay?”
“Why wouldn’t it be? By showing such respect for Geum Danyo, Zhang Rang will pay more attention. Look at what happened last time. After I put on that little sword dance, he immediately elevated her from concubine to legal wife. Really. Honestly, he could’ve done that ages ago.”
Dongbaek clicked her tongue in disapproval. She’d thought eunuchs couldn’t have wives and only kept concubines, but that wasn’t even true. If he had made Geum Danyo his wife from the start, there wouldn’t have been such unnecessary power struggles.
Perhaps he had wanted such conflicts to arise from the beginning.
‘He was watching to see how I would react.’
Dongbaek’s lips curved into a crooked smile.
Jao watched Dongbaek with unease. Was it really okay to provoke Zhang Rang’s temper like this? But since Dongbaek had chosen such a name, he must be confident in handling whatever comes. Jao decided not to think too deeply about Dongbaek’s decisions.
Now that they had settled on the names, their business in the library was done. Rising to his feet, Dongbaek returned the book to its shelf and playfully called out.
“Come on, let’s go, Jao~”
“W-what! What’s with that creepy tone!”
Jao got goosebumps all over from the unusually cute voice, which was so different from normal. Dongbaek chuckled, watching Jao rub his wings against his sides. Jao shook his head and stuck out his tongue.
“Ugh, so creepy. If you call my name like that two more times, I might die from the shivers.”
“Then should we go back to calling you crow?”
“Absolutely not! This humble creature is honored by the noble title bestowed upon him. Please, use it graciously.”
Jao completely flipped his attitude like turning over a wing. Dongbaek snorted and left the study. Playing hard to get when you clearly like it.
As soon as Dongbaek walked out, Jao hurriedly followed behind. Dongbaek glanced sideways at Jao. His black face was visibly beaming with joy. Could he be that happy? Having some sympathy, Dongbaek took a moment to reflect on having put this off for so long. Of course, his feeling of remorse would remain a secret from Jao.
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Thank you for reading! ♡
