Beloved Sisters
Tang Hwi, whose acupoints had been damaged after taking a palm strike straight to the solar plexus, was not admitted to the infirmary. After all, if word got out that Tang Ga-hui was the one who had struck him, neither of them would hear the end of it, whether from inside the clan or out.
Tang Suryeon, who had rushed over the moment her eldest daughter delivered the news of her son's injury, quickly examined him. She concluded that his condition was not severe enough to warrant admission to the clan's Poison Medical Pavilion. While it was true that his damaged acupoints required careful recuperation, Tang Ga-hui was also her child. Though she felt sorry for Tang Hwi, she decided it would be best to nurse him within the Patriarch's Pavilion for the sake of Ga-hui, whose reputation had already hit rock bottom recently.
Casting a gaze mixed with guilt at her son, who lay unconscious on the bed, she spoke to her daughters, who were waiting for her word.
"It seems Hwi has been overexerting himself in his training lately. With his acupoints already weakened in various places, a single palm strike was enough to inflict internal injuries all at once. He will recover naturally with time, but until then, he will need someone to tend to him."
Hearing this, the two sisters flinched.
Twitch.
...Twitch.
Tang Ga-hui trembled out of intense self-reproach, being the very culprit who had struck him. Meanwhile, Tang Ga-in felt a prick of conscience because a rather lewd thought had crossed her mind. If Tang Hwi's internal injuries had flared up again, it meant she would have more opportunities to couple with him. For a split second, she had almost rejoiced, only to feel a pang of guilt upon realizing she was celebrating the fact that he was hurt.
"Ga-hui."
"Yes, Mother."
"Even if it was an accident, Hwi-ah was injured because of your mistake. You must take responsibility and nurse him. I shall punish you by having you perform the duties of a maidservant in his stead."
"I understand."
Just then, Tang Ga-in, who had been standing quietly to the side, raised her hand high. Since she was so obviously signaling that she had something to say, Tang Suryeon had no choice but to ask.
"Ga-in. Do you have something to say?"
"Yes, Mother! Even if it is a punishment, I think it will be too difficult for Sister to act as a maid all by herself. Nursing someone takes a heavy toll, even disrupting one's sleep."
"That is true, but what is your point?"
At Tang Suryeon's prompting to stop beating around the bush and get to the core, Tang Ga-in made her case with vigor.
"As her younger sister, I want to at least ensure she gets some sleep. I will look after Brother from the Hour of the Boar to the Hour of the Rabbit."
"...But wouldn't that be invading Hwi's privacy?"
"What if he needs to relieve himself in the middle of the night? Wouldn't it be even more embarrassing if something happened then?"
"Hmm."
Tang Suryeon fell into thought at Tang Ga-in's surprisingly logical explanation. Though they were supposed to nurse him, her daughters had no real experience in caregiving anyway. At best, they would only be running simple errands. But if, by some chance, an accident occurred while Tang Ga-hui was away and he ended up wetting the bed, the clan's maidservants would be the ones stuck washing the sheets. That would be a massive blow to Tang Hwi's dignity. He might be a foolish son, but a parent always dotes on their child.
'Perhaps... it would indeed be better to split the shifts as Ga-in suggested. At least we won't have to worry about him wetting the bed.'
After some deliberation, Tang Suryeon reached a decision.
"Very well. Ga-in shall watch over Hwi from the Hour of the Boar to the Hour of the Rabbit, and Ga-hui will take care of him for the rest of the day. This arrangement will continue until Hwi's internal injuries are fully healed. Can you both manage that?"
"Yes."
"Yes, Mother!"
Seeing her two daughters confidently volunteer to care for their brother, Tang Suryeon wore a pleased smile as she left the room in high spirits. However, she would never have guessed in her wildest dreams...
'Whew! Thank goodness. Now I can stop Brother's wicked hands from reaching Sister.'
...that her cute youngest daughter had actually hatched a devious plan. She couldn't even begin to suspect it.
'With his internal injuries flaring up again, there's no telling when his Heart Demon might act up. I can't possibly leave Ga-hui-eonni by his side. Nope. I'm the one responsible for keeping Brother's cock in check.'
In the first place, how could anyone else perceive her true motives when she herself refused to face her own feelings—namely, her jealousy of Tang Ga-hui being alone with Tang Hwi? She was actively suppressing the fact that she had fallen for him.
Using the excuse that 'Tang Hwi might lose control to his Heart Demon and ravish Tang Ga-hui,' she had intervened without a shred of hesitation.
Once Tang Suryeon left, Tang Ga-hui immediately turned to Tang Ga-in and apologized.
"Ga-in, I'm so sorry. Because of me, you have to..."
"Oh, don't say that, Sister! If anything, we should blame our useless brother for getting internal injuries from a single palm strike."
She glared at the unconscious Tang Hwi as she spoke. To anyone else, it looked like the classic, exasperated glare directed at a pathetic sibling.
"Besides, it's only natural for family to support one another."
"...Yes. It is only natural for family to support one another."
Completely oblivious to the truth, Tang Ga-hui felt a wave of deep emotion, touched by how much her younger siblings cared for her. In reality, her little sister was just a jealous squirrel guarding her territory, viewing her well-endowed older sister as a sly vixen.
Tang Hwi, who had been using the Turtle Breathing Technique to maintain his unconscious facade, felt like bursting into applause at how things were unfolding. His deliberate self-inflicted acupoint damage—originally meant to deceive Tang Ga-in—had ultimately succeeded in fooling even Tang Suryeon, a supreme master of the Transcendental Realm. On top of that, she had practically set the stage for him to spend intimate time with Tang Ga-hui. As her son, he felt a sudden, overwhelming surge of filial piety.
Tang Ga-in's interference was a minor hurdle, but Tang Hwi actually preferred it this way. After all, he could continue to ravish Tang Ga-in regularly while simultaneously working to make Tang Ga-hui beg for his cock.
'In fact, Sister might fall for me even faster than Ga-in.'
Unlike the slippery yet strong-willed Tang Ga-in, Tang Ga-hui was a woman starved for human warmth. Whatever the case, the current situation was a golden opportunity for him.
"What exactly am I supposed to do to nurse someone who can't move?"
Tang Ga-hui tilted her head, pondering deeply over what her duties should be. Having always been on the receiving end of such services, she only had a vague idea. But watching others do it over the shoulder was entirely different from doing it well yourself. As she tried to think of simple tasks she could easily mimic, her eyes swept across the room.
Her younger brother's room was incredibly ordinary. Aside from a few throwing weapons, poisons, and a single sword, it was just a typical, roughly organized young man's room. He seemed to have cleaned it to some extent, but from a woman's perspective, there were bound to be untidy spots.
"Since Ga-in will be staying here too, I should start by cleaning up."
Deciding to tidy up beforehand since Tang Ga-in would be spending the nights here, she stood up and began moving things around. She neatly stacked the miscellaneous items scattered about, dusted off the corners with a feather duster, and even timidly searched his drawers to see if he kept any of those erotic art books popular among young men of his age.
'Hwi has a weak spot for women, so he must have one.'
Women are highly sensitive to gazes. Tang Ga-hui, in particular, was acutely aware of them ever since her face was scarred, as she had become hyper-sensitive to how others looked at her. She knew all too well that whenever they shared a meal at the same table, Tang Hwi's eyes would occasionally lock onto her breasts. If he was bold enough to steal glances at his own sister's chest, he had to be quite lustful. Yet, there wasn't a single erotic book in sight. Unwilling to admit her assumption was wrong, Tang Ga-hui cleaned even more thoroughly, refusing to abandon hope of unearthing her brother's hidden stash.
Perhaps it was because their relationship had recently begun to heal. Tang Ga-hui childishly wished to find an erotic book just so she could tease her younger brother with it. She longed to return to the days when they teased and cared for each other purely, without worrying about heavy burdens like the succession of the Young Patriarch. Having lost him once, she now understood the weight of his presence. To her, Tang Hwi had become someone she absolutely could not lose.
Her world had crumbled once, only to be rebuilt anew. The ambitious heroine who once dreamed of shaking the Jianghu was gone. In her place was simply a young woman whose sole desire was to live happily and peacefully with her family.
"Ugh... ah..."
"H-Hwi?!"
She flinched violently. As if proving the old adage that a guilty conscience needs no accuser, Tang Ga-hui trembled, fully aware that snooping around for erotic books was hardly normal behavior.
"...Are you awake?"
Realizing she had no reason to be so terrified, she cautiously spoke to him. Approaching the bed and looking down, she saw Tang Hwi's eyelids fluttering as if he were about to wake. As he slowly opened his eyes, just as she expected, Tang Ga-hui asked in a voice thick with worry.
"Hwi-ah. Are you alright? Can you hear me?"
His pupils, trembling aimlessly as if unable to focus, slowly drifted toward Tang Ga-hui upon hearing her anxious voice. As his confusion gradually subsided, his gaze locked onto her. Seeing this, Tang Ga-hui concluded that he had regained consciousness.
"Hwi-ah. Mother said you suffered internal injuries because your recent training put too much strain on your body. She said natural recovery is best, but you might find it hard to move your limbs for a while. Until then, Ga-in and I will—"
"Sister..."
The very first words out of Tang Hwi's mouth as he regained consciousness...
"Who... are you, Sister?"
...shook Tang Ga-hui's world to its core for the second time.