Framed Mother 2
“I owe Lady Jeong Hyang a debt of gratitude myself. If I backed out now, I wouldn't be able to sleep soundly with my legs stretched out. But as I said, finding something to topple that magistrate will take time.”
“Like the witness who falsely accused my mother of stealing valuables, for instance?”
“I thought you were just some clueless scholar, but your head turns pretty sharp. Exactly. That kind of thing. Or maybe something else. That magistrate's the type who'd shake out a ton of dirt if you rattled him hard enough.”
“Then I'll leave it to you.”
I told him I'd come back when the time was right and turned away without lingering, but Seo Yun-baek called me back.
“You know there's no one around here who can petition for Lady Jeong Hyang's innocence, right?”
I'd pegged him as a simple hunter stuck in the corner of the village, but his insight cut sharp. He hadn't read Chujeongjeon like I had, yet his mind worked at an extraordinary level.
“Yes. Looks like I'll have to head to the capital.”
“We might find decisive evidence before autumn ends, but even if we do, winter's right around the corner. And getting to the capital takes a hell of a long time.”
In the story, Jeong Yun had set out recklessly around winter and died of exposure on the road. I wasn't as green as him, but it wouldn't be much different for me. Traveling alone was a surefire way to meet the same end, so I stared pointedly at Seo Yun-baek.
He read the intent in my eyes and recoiled in horror.
“You mad bastard. You want me to go with you?”
“Are you saying I should brave that brutal road alone?”
“And what about your mother in the meantime?”
I clamped my mouth shut deliberately. I could already picture how my mother would be defiled all autumn long in the clutches of that lecherous magistrate. And now she'd have to endure the endless winter in his hands? The woman named Jeong Hyang's fate had been sealed the moment she was dragged to the magistrate's office—no, the instant that bastard arrived in the village.
“That rotten...”
Seo Yun-baek spat a curse, clearly imagining my mother's grim future.
Even if her son and I gathered evidence to indict the magistrate, petitioned in the capital, and an undercover inspector came down to set things right, it would take until late winter or spring at the earliest. In that time, her body and mind would be thoroughly trampled and violated by him.
For me, though, the longer she has to endure it alone, the better.
Starting now, I'd head to the magistrate's office to make her feel the biting chill of that winter she'd face 'alone' even more deeply. I said nothing more to Seo Yun-baek and turned toward the Gwansa.
As I reached the entrance, a stranger stood at the gate—not one of the usual constables.
He's filled it top to bottom with his own people, huh?
The magistrate seemed more cautious than his greedy, bloated exterior suggested, but it didn't matter anymore whether he had connections inside or not. What I had to do next was set.
“What business do you have?”
The constable bellowed at me intimidatingly as I approached the Gwansa.
“I request an audience with the magistrate. I rushed here upon hearing my mother was brought to the Gwansa today, to inquire about the circumstances.”
“Your mother? Ah...”
The constable pondered, then seemed to connect the dots, his face twisting uncomfortably.
“All crimes will be thoroughly investigated within the Gwansa. Go home.”
I sensed his half-hearted courtesy. But I couldn't let it end there, so I pleaded once more. He groaned in annoyance but finally relented.
He's not turning me away without cause, so they're at least pretending to function as a proper office.
If they ignored a citizen's petition without just reason, even with ties to local landowners and officials, an undercover inspector would come down eventually. Even if he dismissed it as nonsense like with Tteokjip I-ssi and beat me senseless to drive me off, the magistrate had to see me at least once.
Following the constable's lead inside, I scanned my surroundings.
Hardly anyone here.
The magistrate had apparently sent everyone packing except his trusted few. That way, we reached the hall where I'd meet him.
“Wait here.”
The constable vanished inside. The sun was already dipping low, painting the sky in twilight hues. How long had I stared at the drifting clouds?
Then came the heavy thud of footsteps—someone massive stomping forcefully across the wooden floor.
“Tch. Coming here for no good reason.”
The magistrate emerged, muttering to himself, but his voice carried loud enough for me to hear every word.
As the filial Jeong Yun, I bowed respectfully even to him.
He plopped arrogantly into his chair and demanded my business.
“So, what brings you here?”
He knew exactly who I was and why I'd come, yet his brazen attitude knew no bounds.
I kept my head low, solemnly petitioning that my mother had been falsely accused.
“That'll come out in the investigation. If she's innocent, she'll be released unharmed. Now leave.”
No room for negotiation—pure finality. He revealed nothing about the charges, who reported her, or any details.
Because it's a frame-up, of course.
No matter his rank, he couldn't imprison her on a mere frame-up. There had to be a false accuser claiming she stole valuables, but it couldn't be anyone from this village.
“My mother holds her head high to the heavens without a shred of shame. I have no doubt her false charge will be cleared in time, but as her son, worry drove me here.”
“What, you think I'm going to devour your mother? I don't know what you're so worried about.”
Like a thief with guilty feet, the magistrate flinched as if his lechery had been exposed and bellowed.
“Of course not from an upright magistrate like you, sir. But it's grueling for a lone woman to endure prison. So until her name is cleared, allow me to attend to her.”
“You, personally?”
“Autumn deepens, and the night air grows cold. Though framed, she's a prisoner's body now—unfree. Better a blood relative tends her than some stranger.”
“Hmmm...”
It made sense. A normal magistrate might suspect I planned to help her escape, but this one, blinded by lust, couldn't think straight. Instead, he schemed how to torment her using the 'dutiful son' card.
In the story, with all those violations, he's a sadist. He'll bite this bait.
The magistrate wasn't satisfied merely tasting her body or making her serve him. He relished a woman's agony, her mental torment—a top-tier pervert. He wouldn't toss away this juicy pawn that had rolled right to him.
Bite it. Bite.
Only then could I watch up close as she suffered humiliation and writhed in shame. Seeing Jeong Hyang's chastity snap and shatter right before my eyes—that was the whole point of transmigrating into Chujeongjeon.
Stroking his chin, the magistrate flashed a vile, sinister grin and began praising my filial piety.
“My, what a devoted son. It pains me to ignore such earnest pleading from a boy so full of piety. But your mother is a prisoner now.”
“I understand.”
“Thus, even while attending her, she remains bound. If she flees, you'll pay with your life. And once you start, you can't quit at will.”
He listed conditions, then craned his neck forward like he was asking if I'd still do it.
“Even not knowing what might happen?”
A normal magistrate might ask if I'd still serve after her guilt was proven. But not this one.
He's asking if I can stay cold and tend her even watching her abused in prison, defiled by another man's fluids up close.
I knew it. He'd ravish her himself and leave the marks of shame blatant for me to see. He wanted to shock both son and mother with it.
“Of course, sir. Since it's by my request, I won't stop of my own accord. And as proof of trust she won't flee, I'll stay in the Gwansa while attending her.”
“In the Gwansa?”
“With your permission, of course. And allow occasional outings to clear her name.”
I needed to procure Monghwancho and check progress with Seo Yun-baek—staying cooped up wouldn't do. I framed it as a filial son roaming to prove her innocence.
Staying in the Gwansa was no hardship. Meals and lodging sorted, and I'd enjoy her degradation by the magistrate right up close—what better setup?
The same image must have formed in his mind, for he snorted roughly and leaned back.
“Fine. Permitted to stay while attending her. But no gaps in your duties. And no approaching the prison at night.”
“I obey.”
The deal between the two men was struck. On the surface, a corrupt official tormenting a virtuous widow and her pious son. In truth, the reverse: a depraved son manipulating the lustful magistrate to defile his own mother, using him as a tool.
I'd lounge in the front-row seat, leisurely watching the dice roll as they would.
It's just beginning.
I gazed up at the sky slowly darkening to ink. Tonight promised to be quite the show.