If You Claim the Fallen Heiress - Chapter 115

Yanghui placed the teapot she had brought on the desk and changed the subject.

“Your complexion looks pale today, so I made some jujube tea. I put in a lot of honey, which you love, so it should suit your taste.”

Slurp-slurp. The jujube tea began to be poured into the teacup. The fragrant scent of jujube tea helped Yuseol relax.

Yanghui then dipped a brush into the seashell powder she had prepared. Yanghui’s plain eyes sparkled with anticipation.

“First, I’ll just apply a little to your eyes. I just hope it makes you as radiant as it looks.”

Yuseol closed her eyes as if telling her to experiment as much as she wanted. Yanghui cupped Yuseol’s chin with her hand and began to paint her eyes. Swish-swish. The brush made a soft sound as it moved along the texture of her skin. Just as Yuseol was feeling languid, Yanghui spoke carefully.

“Um… Lady.”

“Yes.”

“I was going to say this earlier, but I think you should know.”

Yuseol slowly opened her eyes. Yanghui dipped the brush into the powder in the small bowl again and continued.

“It seems a strange rumor is circulating in the palace. That… you came to the palace with the ambition of enchanting His Majesty the King and seizing the Queen’s seat.”

Yanghui bit her lower lip, as if the thought of it was unpleasant.

“I heard the court ladies whispering about it yesterday, and I screamed at them to stop slandering an innocent person. It was settled for a moment, but I keep feeling like it wasn’t a rumor that just spread by chance.”

Yuseol, who had briefly widened her eyes, just touched the hot teacup. A feeling of being isolated on a lonely island and a sense of injustice surged inside her chest.

“I want to find the person who started the rumor so badly.”

Even so, she wanted to make it known that it was a groundless rumor, but she had no time to waste her energy now. Yuseol let out a long sigh, as she had a feeling she knew the source of the rumor.

“The trail probably leads to Meisa. It seems she wants to tarnish my reputation before I can reveal my identity.”

When a rumor spreads in the palace, people tend to get together and curse, rather than discerning the truth. They would do so even though criticizing someone else’s morality didn’t make them a better person. As a result, the rumor would inevitably be exaggerated, and the person involved in the rumor often had to leave the palace. Yuseol held the teacup with her two hands, which had turned pale.

“But I don’t know why they would spread such a rumor. It’s strange.”

If it were her, she would have spread a rumor questioning Sahwa’s identity. That way, she could expose her identity as soon as possible.

Could there be a more important purpose? Yuseol, who had been thinking deeply, looked at Yanghui.

“Could it be that she wants to prevent me from moving freely with this rumor?”

This would be possible if Meisa was more afraid of Kim Seon and Sahwa meeting. But wouldn’t that be impossible, considering they had already exchanged talks of marriage?

“I want to check on that.”

Since she was already under the cloud of an unpleasant rumor, she felt a vague sense of courage. She wanted to know what Meisa was afraid of, rather than just sitting here.

Yuseol nodded, as if she had made up her mind.

It was around the time the sun was setting.

She put a lot of effort into her makeup and arrived at the rest area next to the central library. It was a place where Kim Seon used to spend a lot of time when he was young. Kim Seon would mostly sit on the swing, and she would watch him from the grass, making a flower crown.

No, the expression “watched him secretly” wasn’t right. She had never watched him secretly for a single moment. She had only been told not to hang around him because it bothered him. Yuseol, who had sighed at the bitter memory, sat on the swing.

It was time for him to finish his day. If he was tired, he would go straight to his bedroom, but if not, he would come here to read a book.

She sat on the swing, hoping he wouldn’t be tired. It was a place she dared to sit on for the first time. Looking at the flower beds where fresh buds were sprouting, she felt she could understand why he liked this place so much.

She slowly began to swing. The flower beds, bathed in the sunset, rushed toward her and then faded into the distance. The cool breeze felt good on her cheeks each time. A thought suddenly occurred to her that she hoped he wouldn’t pass by this place today.

At that moment, she heard footsteps. Yuseol’s gaze turned to the path next to her. Kim Seon was walking toward her with his eunuchs. When he saw Yuseol, he pretended not to see her and looked at the library.

His quick steps began to slow. Before long, he came to a complete stop and headed toward where Yuseol was.

For the first time, Yuseol learned what it was like to “watch secretly.”