Chapter 45
45
Had about an hour passed like that?
Just as I was getting used to the ear-splitting flute sound, the door opened.
"Father."
"Beep!"
Dang Juyeop, who was hurriedly putting down the flute, made a sharp sound.
"Father, you're here?"
When I raised my head, Dang Mu-hyeok was entering the dining hall with an expressionless face.
Dang Mu-hyeok looked around at those sitting at the table and frowned.
"Hwa-yeop and Cho-hee are not here."
"Brother Hwa-yeop went to Mount Qingcheng. He said he was meeting a friend. Cho-hee must be in the Iron Workshop."
Dang Juyeop, holding the flute in his hand, answered. His voice was surprisingly clear.
"Seho?"
"He went out to play with Ran. I think he's going somewhere with Dang Gak."
Dang Ju-hee, who answered, transferred the squeezed snake venom into a small bottle.
"I see. Ju-hee, put away the snake. Let's eat."
Dang Mu-hyeok waved his hand, and the Maids began to bring out the food.
At the same time, I felt suffocated.
"……."
"……."
"……."
They said this was a place to strengthen our brotherly love. Why isn't anyone talking?
There were six people, but there was no sound except for the clinking of tableware.
Even Dang Ju-hee, who was usually so talkative, was quiet like everyone else.
Does Dang Mu-hyeok dislike talking during meals? Or are they just not on good terms?
I felt self-conscious and couldn't swallow my food.
Just as I was about to put down my chopsticks, feeling like I was going to get indigestion, the entrance door burst open.
"You're late."
Dang Mu-hyeok said nonchalantly.
When I raised my head, an exclamation naturally came out.
Even if you didn't know her identity, anyone would think, 'She's the Patriarch's daughter,' looking at her face.
Is this the mystery of genetics? She looked exactly like Dang Mu-hyeok, as if she had been stamped out of a mold.
Her sharp eyes, raised eyebrows, and the chilly atmosphere were all one hundred percent Dang Mu-hyeok's daughter.
Where did her mother's genes go?
"Sit down."
At Dang Mu-hyeok's gesture, Dang Cho-hee silently sat in the empty seat.
"Did you go to the Iron Workshop again?"
Dang Mu-hyeok asked with a dissatisfied face. When Dang Cho-hee didn't answer, Dang Mu-hyeok clicked his tongue as if he expected it.
"How long do you plan to play the blacksmith? You are the Patriarch's daughter. You shouldn't tarnish your father's face."
"Then kick me out. You're good at treating your children as if they don't exist."
Dang Cho-hee, who retorted with a rebellious voice, glanced at me. Dang Mu-hyeok, who was at a loss for words, twitched his eyebrows.
I almost spat out the lamb I was chewing.
"Cough."
...Why is the fire spreading to me?
Dang-un, who noticed my expression, quickly handed me a handkerchief. I wiped my mouth and glanced sideways at Dang Cho-hee.
I was too surprised by her face to notice it earlier, but now I saw why Dang Mu-hyeok didn't like her.
Her clothes were shabby. To put it nicely, she was simple, but to put it badly, she was dirty.
Unlike the other siblings who wore wide-sleeved Long robes, Dang Cho-hee's sleeves were tightly tied to her wrists.
Her tanned face had no makeup, and the tips of her fingernails were black with iron powder.
The difference was even more noticeable when she sat next to Dang Ju-hee.
Dang Ju-hee wore a fancy hair ornament and three jade rings, as well as pure gold earrings, while Dang Cho-hee didn't have a single common bead ornament.
If you didn't know she was the Patriarch's daughter, anyone seeing her for the first time would mistake her for a Maid doing odd jobs.
Honestly, even the Maids dressed up more than her. The Maids of the Tang Clan were relatively well-paid.
"Dang Cho-hee."
"What?"
Even at the warning-filled call, Dang Cho-hee didn't back down and glared at her father.
As the atmosphere was about to turn ugly, Dang Juyeop quickly intervened.
"Sister. What did you make today?"
"A sword."
"Are you satisfied with the result?"
"Not bad."
"Then, a Poison Needles that I can use..."
"No."
Dang Cho-hee, who refused before he could finish speaking, put a dumpling in her mouth and chewed. Dang Juyeop shook his head.
"Our Cho-hee has a very bad personality."
She seems to.
It's not just her face that's a carbon copy of the Patriarch, but her personality too.
"Get lost."
"Get lost? Why such harsh words? My heart aches. Please treat this older brother kindly."
Why does he talk like that again?
Looking at it, their conversation was also strange to hear.
Dang Juyeop was probably older, but everyone seemed to take it for granted that he was politely addressing his younger sister.
Is he always like that?
Dang Juyeop, who noticed me glancing at him, smiled, narrowing his slender eyes.
"Oh, I'm late in greeting you. I hope our youngest sister had a peaceful night."
...This guy's concept is no joke.
Our playboy was starting to examine me with eyes that had discovered a new toy.
"Is the meal to your liking?"
"Yes, yes."
Don't talk to me, I feel like I'm going to get indigestion.
"Here. Try this too."
Dang Juyeop gave me a kind smile and put food on my plate. I was sweating from the burdensome kindness.
"It's okay. I'll eat it myself."
"I thought you weren't eating well, so I did. Do you have indigestion? If so, try this."
"What is it?"
"It's good for your body."
Dang Juyeop took out a canteen and poured the contents into a small glass. The black liquid with an ominous color sloshed.
It doesn't look good for my body at all. Is it Poison? It looks like Poison?
At my suspicious expression, Dang Juyeop smiled and shook his head.
"It's a digestive medicine. I drink it often too."
"Really?"
Half in doubt, I accepted the glass he handed me. It looked unsettling, but I couldn't really refuse.
Just as Dang Ju-hee had shown some kindness, I thought that Dang Juyeop might also be showing clumsy kindness.
And since no one was stopping me, it probably wasn't Poison.
I glanced at Dang-un, and he nodded as if it was okay. I slowly tilted the glass.
The taste, which was like a bitter tea or a mushroom decoction, made me naturally frown.
After rinsing my mouth with plain water, Dang Juyeop stared at me with a curious face.
"How does it taste?"
"It's bad."
"...You're honest."
Dang Juyeop scratched his head as if he was surprised.
Did he want me to say it was delicious even if it wasn't?
I avoided his persistent gaze, and he asked as if it was strange.
"You're alright?"
"Yes?"
"Hmm. Or is the mixture wrong?"
Dang Juyeop, who was muttering, looked back and forth between me and the canteen, then tilted the canteen and swallowed it down.
"It's not. It's definitely highly poisonous... Cough, cough!"
Then he foamed at the mouth and fell backward.
...What is this guy?
He did give me Poison, didn't he? He gave me Poison, and when I was alright, he thought it was strange, so he drank it himself?
"Hey, hey? Brother Juyeop? Hey. Are you dead?"
I stared with blurry eyes at Dang Juyeop, who was trembling and spewing foam.
Dang Mu-hyeok, who had put down his chopsticks as if he had lost his appetite, said something.
"How many times do I have to tell you not to take out Poison at the table? You're not a child."
Dad, is that the problem now? More than that, you knew he was giving me Poison, but you just let it happen?
My sense of betrayal reached its peak when I saw Dang-un's calm face. Even at my resentful gaze, Dang-un was calm.
"We left it alone because So-hye is immune to Poison. Isn't what Juyeop is doing cute?"
Where is it cute? Giving Poison? Or fainting after drinking Poison?
"Let's clean it up."
Dang Cho-hee said sullenly. Her tone was as if she was telling them to clean up an object, not a person, but no one pointed it out, as if they all thought similarly.
I blankly watched Dang Juyeop being carried away.
As expected, the Tang Clan was definitely a den of madmen.
* * *
Dang Juyeop, who was carried to the Medicine Hall, did not regain consciousness even after taking the antidote.
The Chief of Medicine brought a medicine bottle to his nose, and he briefly opened his eyes.
"Ah, ...Oh, Jongju of Medicine... Me..."
But he soon uttered unintelligible nonsense and fainted again.
Can we just leave him like this? Why isn't anyone worried?
Unlike me, who was worried that he might die like this, no one seemed to take Dang Juyeop's condition seriously.
I was the only one who followed him to the Medicine Hall.
I paced around Dang Juyeop's bed with an anxious face. I felt uneasy about just leaving when someone had collapsed.
The Chief of Medicine, who couldn't stand it any longer, clicked his tongue and gestured to me.
"A fainted person won't wake up just because you're pacing around like a puppy that needs to pee. Just go."
"He's really not going to die, is he?"
"I told you he's not going to die. He'll be lying there for two hours anyway. Don't waste your time and go take care of your business."
Geun-myeong Uncle said he would oversee the afternoon training, so I had to get up soon. Hesitating, I put on my shoes.
At that moment, someone burst into the Medicine Hall.
"Patriarch! Is Brother Juyeop here?"
"Don't run. How many times have I told you to be quiet in the Medicine Hall?"
The boy, who lightly ignored the Chief of Medicine's scolding, strode onto the floor. He was holding an inkstone and a brush in his arms.
After pondering over his familiar face, I realized that he was Dang Seho, the Patriarch's youngest son.
"Tsk, tsk, thinking of drawing on a patient's face."
"Last time, Brother drew a beard on my face. I have to pay him back the same way."
The Chief of Medicine, who clicked his tongue at the childish words, turned his back.
"I don't know anything about it. Do as you please."
...They're playing in an interesting way. Even elementary school students wouldn't play like that.
Looking at the way things were going, I had a feeling that getting involved with that guy would lead to troublesome things.
I pretended not to notice Dang Seho and passed by him...
"Wait a minute."
I tried to leave, but failed.
Damn it. I'm doomed.
When I slowly turned my head, Dang Seho's eyes narrowed as he grabbed my shoulder.
"Are you her?"
"Yes?"
"The youngest one that Jonghyeonjo brought. Is that you?"
Dang Seho glared at me with wary eyes.
I awkwardly rolled my eyes.
