"…But My Lady, you are in high favour right now, so why should you have to bear such blatant disrespect from the likes of a widow who is hanging onto her brother-in-law's wealth, is she not fearful of behaving rudely under a roof that does not being to her? She is becoming intolerable now, even more so in the face of her sister's death! She was just a maid before and everyone knows that Dal only took her in because of you…and now she is a jackal relying on a tiger…" "Just listen to you Dae-Jung, your tongue has become so unsparing as of late and your temper just as short. Can that accomplish anything for me though? And being silent now does not mean that I shall not take action in the future; she only dares t one arrogant because my fiancé nodules her for these of her son and his nephew. But what power does she have, inside and outside of the palace? Too capture an army, one needs to shoot their horses. And to take down an enemy, we need to eliminate their ruler…."
"…and for an enemy like her, you would not need to do anything yourself. She will soon become a thorn in the harem's side with her grand delusions. And if one were to confront an enemy on their own, it wouldn't be nearly as impactful as making your enemies your husband's enemies also." "Imperial Concubine Park…do you think that I have given up on my fiancé?" "I think that you are far from thinking that if you followed him all the way here in the palace. But what is stopping you from visiting him more yourself like you used to? Your quarts have become lifeless like The Cold Palace where Commoner Choi will have her last day of freedom before tomorrow." "He will come to me when he is willing, but I cannot change anything if he does not, especially when we are under the glare of so many in the palace." "You both have a deep affection for each other that will continue to be suppressed until you marry, which should happen soon. You are already in your child-bearing years and it shall not last forever…" "Neither will his affection, which is why I am distancing myself a little again to see how this man can function during his break from the palace."
"And with The Mistress Nam's words mismatching her deeds, the last thing that wither of us want to think about is competing for favour all over again, especially after everything we have been through. Especially after you both did everything to help her gain favour in the palace in the first place, but that doesn't mean that it is your fault if she herself cannot keep it up." What abut her so-called favour with The Third Prince?" "Yeon, he was only asking her for updates abut you since your accident, that was all. But with the small minds and petty jealousy in the palace, everyone misread the situation and she didn't do anything to untangle herself from the rumours of her becoming a new concubine…" "With the enmity of The Third Prince and Seon-ho, The Third Prince is most capable of doing such a thing, the only problem is that Mistress Nam has jumped the barrel with her delusions, thus lessening the probabilities of this happening with every move that she makes and everything that she says." "You both have done everything for her that you can, but what has she done for any of you? And she dares to be brazen enough to ask for more?" "I can forgive her n the account of her son, but I cannot do that forever. She also speaks with such confidence that is a shame that she is an untitled woman without a husband to support her family. I must ask you to suggest with your own husband that her status be elevated to suit the noble air that she carries around her." "As long as you understand that he has not lost affection for you after all, and make use of it during your marriage."
"My fiancé has been acting so suspiciously for some time now, I wonder if he will be erratic enough to break his promise to me and take in more women for what ever plan he has going on now." "Yeon, I can assure you that you will never need to compete for favour when it comes to him. And even on the occasion that you do have to fight for it, you should never give up, not on somebody like The Lord Nam…" "This is a lifetime of marriage that we are talking about; surely he will favour other people in the upcoming days." "I understand that fighting more meagre favour isn't something that you would do Yeon, but you wouldn't even bother with any of this if your heart had already died for him." "Since the day I had to disguise myself as a naive disabled little girl well into my teenage years, I had only dreamt of having a shred of live and tenderness from Nam Seon-Ho. But now myself have no idea what I have gotten myself into…" "There are already a lot of broken hearts here in the palace, do not become one of them and just appreciate what you have, even if it isn't perfect." "I will, but now that you are here, I d have a favour to ask of you…"
",,,My Lord, I have made you lunch after your were busy with the funeral and…." "Come here Yon, come and sit besides me for a change, for I have something that I need to discuss with you." "What is it? Has something happened? When can we leave this place so that we can…." "Hopefully, we can leave in a few days time after you listen to what I have to say as you get me ready to take a nap. I will have my lunch later on and then…." "And then what? Do not keep me in suspense?" "Listen to me….I know that I have acted in ways that I cannot explain myself to you just yet, but I know that you have done your best to tolerate me as well as everything in the palace. But now it shall all come to and end with the excuse that my sister-in-law has given us." "Are you talking about her complaints of being disrespectful towards her when we fund out the news about her sister's death? She must be using grief as an excuse I guess." "She s crying endlessly to the whole harem; but we both know that it is in her nature to be strong-willed stubborn." "You do not believe her, do you?" "What do you mean? I was there when you both had that little fight…" "So what do you intend in doing about it?" "She is becoming more and more presumes after failing at the one job that she had here to support herself and her son that she barely looks after, and I have no more tolerance for her at all." "My Lord?" "Since the knife has been in your heart for some time now it is best to remove it…or remove ourselves from this place. Do you understand me?" You must promise me to follow me, do not leave me behind or expect me to wait for you anymore, I am sick of it all now." "Is your impatience a sign that you agree to the marriage? Willingly?" "Well, you cannot expect me to stay a spinster all of my life do you." I grumbled quietly whilst hiding myself from him by embracing him from his back. "So…now that we have come to an agreement on something…" "Oh, for goodness sake husband!" "What! It has been a long time, hasn't it?" "Well… I suppose…"
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"My Lady, I do resent mentioning it, but we did make the other concubine give your sister such a hard time before we…" "We all humiliated her intensely during her last hours, which I am more than satisfied with." "But the whole point of that was to bring down Seo Yeon, as servants usually represent their masters. But Seo Yeon allowed your sister to help out so many others, which just made her regain more favour after her death. The Lord Nam still has a hard time on focusing on anything else when she is around, will there be any good days for us at all?" "Every woman experiences favour and losses; despite Seo Yeon having a higher rank than myself, I am sure that I can do something to make her loose it all so that I can have a permanent place here in the palace. And I do rank above her in one thing; my marital status, so it is perfectly reasonable for me to discipline her at times." "I am afraid that it will not be a peaceful night for sleeping after all, My Lady…My Lady? I can see The Lord Nam making his way over here!"
"My Lord Nam? You seem to be visiting me a lot more often recently, and much later at that. Are you not tired of the meals here?" "You have never asked me these questions before, but very well, if I am becoming an inconvenience to you, then I can just leave…" "My Lord!" "You are having flash notions today, So tell me, what is on the menu today? My meals are not the same since Yeon insists on keeping her distance from me…" "You will know what I have for you as soon as you make yourself comfortable…"
"…My Lady, yule entire household is happy that you have managed to re-establish relations with The Lord Nam and have restored peace wih yourself." "Nothing is secure yet servant, and most especially another income for myself." "There are still officials who desire The Chung family's favour if you wish to collaborate with them…" "I am not sure, I really cannot tarnish my brother-in-laws good name after he even turned in his own father to The Emperor himself. And it wasn't easy to gain this favour again, look what I have put myself through because of it. I must act with more caution whilst I still carry The Nam name with me, The Lord Nam could be the only solid backer than I can rely on for the rest of my life, even my son's life." "But his behaviour hasn't changed towards you at all, My Lady." ""That isn't entirely true, although I cannot fully explain it; I cannot be at peace until he elevates my status as well." "But as long as he keeps visiting us, it should only be a matter of time…" "Just go and see if the nourishing stew is ready to send off to The Lord Nam. And you may as well feed my son whilst you are at it, I cannot remember if I gave him his lunch today or not."
"You have thought of The Lord Nam day and night, and your sincerity must have been seen by higher powers. If only The Third Prince can relent and favour you again also, then we should never have to be looked down upon ever again." "Do you really think that is possible? Even with all of the letters that I have sent to him?" "He surely wouldn't fail to acknowledge you despite your relation to his enemy, otherwise he would never place you in his harem alongside his women, isn't that so My Lady? He just must be busy with his task with General Choi, there is no saying when he will return to the palace either despite the rampant rumours of The Changes family decline because of it." "But the clouds have dispersed for now, long enough for you to catch a glimpse of the moon for a while at least." "I am always swayed by gains and losses, so much so that I cannot truly see into anyone's heart, I just care about being in the hearts of others…will I really survive in the palace this way?"