Chapter 23
Chapter 23
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 23
Chapter Title: It's a Kidnapping!
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"This is kidnapping!"
The single line spat out by Moyong Hak after a long silence was more than enough to turn the atmosphere in the family head's quarters deadly serious.
"Kidnapping?"
"More precisely, it can be seen as kidnapping through blackmail."
Kidnapping.
The danger that word carried.
Moyong Guk pressed Moyong Hak with a grave expression.
"Explain in detail!"
"We need to focus on the phrase 'flowers don't bloom for more than eleven days' that Hye-ah wrote. There could be many interpretations, but for now, at least, we must take it to mean 'a flashy appearance doesn't last long.'"
"Why?"
"Because that phrase itself points to Yi Se-woong."
Flowers don't bloom for more than eleven days.
It wasn't simply a wish to marry before she grew too old?
"Think about Yi Se-woong's looks. He has the face of a gisaeng's pretty boy. He's a guy without even a fingernail's worth of manly spirit, but isn't it a face perfectly suited to bewitching women?"
"What are you saying?"
"The phrase 'flowers don't bloom for more than eleven days' here means we must not be fooled by a man with a flashy appearance. In other words, Yi Se-woong was deceiving our family!"
Moyong Hak spoke with utter conviction.
"Can you take responsibility for that claim? The Yi Se-woong I've seen is an upright young man, considerate of others."
"That's exactly why I said Hye-ah mustn't fall for it! Why else would she put her age in the letter? Twenty-four. And the 'ten' in 'eleven days.' Don't the two 'ten' characters cross right next to each other? Even this scribbled handwriting. It all matches the code format I taught her long ago!"
The handwriting was messy from being written in haste.
Moyong Hye's letter held only its literal meaning, but the belief that she would never abandon her family and run away was breeding wild speculation. Despite subtle differences from the code structure Moyong Hak had taught her.
"This letter must mostly be interpreted in reverse. Except for 'I want to live.' This is Hye-ah's cry for help!"
"......"
"Yi Se-woong threatened me! Mobilize the full power of the family to come find me! We need to form a pursuit team right now and bring Hye-ah back!"
Moyong Guk couldn't believe it. The image of Yi Se-woong being considerate toward him was still vivid in his mind.
"Why on earth would he kidnap Hye-ah?"
"There are plenty of reasons. He beat up Cheon-i and shamed our family from the start, didn't he? He could be after our family's wealth. Or sowing chaos in the family might be the goal itself. Haven't you ever seen him eyeing our household treasures covetously?"
As if there had ever been such a thing.
'Wait.'
A memory flashed through Moyong Guk's mind.
-Why not just hand over a chest of Snow Spirit Plum Blossoms or something? Let him take it and figure out the secret formula himself.
That one line from Yi Se-woong, which he'd taken as consideration. What if it had been a slip revealing his hidden greed?
'I trusted you!'
"Looks like you have some suspicions. Family Head, we must send the pursuit team immediately!"
The firm belief that Moyong Hye would never run away.
A bit of misunderstanding and excessive speculation combined, and Moyong Guk suppressed his doubts, forming a pursuit team to find Moyong Hye.
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇ Shaanxi Province.
Home to major sects like Huashan and Zhongnan, it was bustling with visitors seeking instruction.
Where there are many people, commerce inevitably thrives. Lines of travelers stretched long.
'Arrived sooner than expected.'
Even leisurely traveling and enjoying the sights along the way, he'd arrived a bit ahead of schedule. Shaanxi's noodle dishes were supposed to be delicious; if time remained after handling business, it wouldn't hurt to look around a bit.
"Oh my, Young Master. Fancy meeting you in a place like this."
While browsing nearby shops and checking out thriving businesses, someone tapped his shoulder and spoke.
What?
No one around here should know me.
"Miss Moyong?"
His mind blanked for a moment.
It was someone who shouldn't be here.
Why are you here with me?
"To think I'd run into you again in far-off Shaanxi."
"Miss Moyong. Weren't you supposed to be in Liaoning Province? What brings you here?"
"Business, of course. What a coincidence, really."
"Coincidence?"
"Yes. Co-in-ci-dence."
Moyong Hye grinned as if she were incredibly lucky.
As if it could be a coincidence.
Even at farewell, she'd been dripping with lingering attachment.
'Sachet.'
The gift she'd given him came to mind.
The sachet still tucked in his bosom.
Moyong Hye, struggling to speak without seeming pathetic.
Not being able to refuse her then had been the problem.
She'd prepared a way to track the scent, no doubt.
"Is it alright leaving your family unattended?"
"Of course. A little vacation after so long?"
Business, then vacation.
Her words didn't line up.
And Moyong Hye avoiding his gaze like someone with a guilty conscience.
This woman is lying right now.
"I see. Rest well and head back."
"Wait, Young Master!"
Interrogating her now would yield nothing proper. Better to show disinterest.
Let her get anxious first.
"Right, you enjoyed noodle dishes too, didn't you, Young Master?"
Afterward, Moyong Hye doggedly followed him.
"The pavilion, huh. You really know how to appreciate refinement."
At first pretending coincidence, now openly showing herself.
"Oh my, Young Master. Even the inn overlaps—fate is truly frightening."
"......"
She'd followed him all the way to the inn he'd booked.
Moyong Hye naturally sat beside him, her innocent smile infuriating.
"This place is too humble for a young lady like you."
"Come on, who nitpicks on a trip? It's just another memory."
Dodging the innkeeper's sharp glare, he tried persuading her, but Moyong Hye wouldn't budge.
"What's the reason for going this far?"
"Oh dear. Anyone hearing might think I've been following you all day."
That's exactly it.
She answered with a straight face, but wilted at his stern expression.
"Miss. Will you keep brushing this off as a joke?"
"I-I'm not..."
"I think I've answered your feelings sufficiently. Haven't I?"
In a way, it was his fault for not clearly ending things.
That sentiment crept in, making his tone rigid without realizing. He couldn't accept her heart, so he'd softened his refusal, and Moyong Hye had seemed to accept it.
Yet here she was, chasing him with the sachet.
"I'll return this."
"Pardon?"
"I never imagined you'd use the scent to track me. Hiding such a trick in a farewell gift... I'm honestly disappointed, Miss."
He pulled the sachet from his bosom and handed it to her.
It was a symbol of refusal.
Moyong Hye trembled, clutching the sachet.
She looked pathetic, but there was no helping it.
"What are you even saying?!"
Moyong Hye suddenly shouted.
"Tracking with scent? Do you see me as some scheming, treacherous woman?"
"?"
"This was just a sachet I favored. A gift so you'd think of me now and then! To twist it like that..."
Huh.
That wasn't it.
"You were like this before too. I know Moyong Cheon left a bad impression on our family. But this is too much. Just say you hate me outright. Did you have to crush my heart so cruelly to feel better?"
"Miss, that's not..."
"How did I know your whereabouts? Obvious. You said you had places to visit on the Alliance Leader's orders. You're set to marry Namgoong Yeonhui."
Forcing him to say that much!
Moyong Hye flushed red, as if he'd gone too far.
"Shaanxi has Immortal Sima Hyung. Everyone knows the Alliance Leader has him read fortunes before bringing anyone into the family. As his future son-in-law, you didn't even look into that?"
How was I supposed to know?
Namgoong Hyeok, you jerk.
Shouldn't you have mentioned that in the letter if so?
"I know. You have no feelings to give me. So while you stayed at our sect, I just wanted to be near you, even briefly. I only regretted that time ending so suddenly."
"......"
"To scatter my lingering feelings, I wanted just a bit more time with you, so I came here. To etch you in my eyes a while longer. But if you're going to misunderstand me like this, see me as shameless..."
Moyong Hye rose and said lowly.
"You should have just told me to get lost back then."
The cold voice he'd heard once before.
Directed at him for the first time.
'Did I read it wrong?'
The result of meager imagination.
No, lack of information, rather.
"Damn, profiting off his looks!"
"Making such a pretty young lady cry!"
"Boo, trash."
Murmurs rose.
The surroundings grew chaotic.
People who'd overheard his conversation with Moyong Hye, however vaguely.
In an instant, he became the trash slandering a woman!
"Miss, wait. We should at least finish the meal!"
"No appetite."
"My mistake. So, uh? Let's clear the misunderstanding over food."
He grabbed Moyong Hye's wrist as she tried to leave. A brief stiffening. Good she didn't shake him off immediately. Pulling her gently, she sat back down reluctantly.
"The rigors of travel must have disordered my mind and body. Please forgive my error?"
"...One condition."
"Condition?"
"Call me 'oraboni.'"
She turned her head primly and said.