Chapter 18………………………………………………..
The remaining time slipped by quickly, and before they knew it, the day of the ladies’ gathering had arrived.
A sturdily built man dressed in a light gray three-piece suit stepped down from a rickshaw and offered his arm to his wife.
The woman, wearing a pale yellow dress, leaned into him as she took his hand and almost fell into his arms while getting down from the rickshaw.
The place where the two disembarked was a residential district in Sinŭiju reserved exclusively for high-ranking Japanese residents.
Beside the massive gate in front of them, a nameplate read “Minamoto.”
The man bent slightly and brought his mouth close to the woman’s ear.
“So we’re finally here.”
Down pulled a pair of glasses from his pocket and put them on. He had been constantly taking them off when he was with Chohui, only to put them back on again.
If he wanted to hide his sharp eyes, glasses were the perfect solution.
Beside him, Chohui stood straight, repeatedly biting her lips as if her throat were dry.
“Are you nervous?”
“…Of course I am.”
“Still, stop biting your lips. You’ll make them bleed again.”
At Down’s words, Chohui blushed and quickly relaxed her lips.
When she looked up at him, her large eyes were filled with fear.
“What if I make a mistake?”
“Didn’t we prepare thoroughly?”
“Still…”
“Even if you do make a mistake, I’ll find a way to cover for it. So don’t be nervous.”
Chohui swallowed hard and nodded reluctantly. Taking that as his cue, Down pressed the doorbell.
Creak—
As if they had been expecting them, the gate opened with a loud sound.
Down felt Chohui clutch his suit jacket tightly.
She must be very tense.
To ease her nerves even a little, Down placed his hand over hers and gave it a gentle pat.
Led by a maid of the Minamoto household, they entered the inner garden behind the house.
In the Japanese-style garden, several women were already seated, chatting among themselves.
One woman who had been watching the two from afar stood up. It was Mrs. Minamoto.
Just like in the photograph, she exuded a cold, unapproachable air. Even under her sharp gaze, Down remained unfazed. Instead, he wore the familiar smile he always showed to Japanese people, projecting ease and confidence.
Though she was rumored to be cold-hearted, she was a woman who found it hard to refuse a smiling man.
And Down knew exactly how to use that to his advantage.
Sure enough, upon seeing his smile, a hint of warmth appeared on her otherwise icy face.
{Good morning, Mrs. Minamoto. You look as beautiful as ever today.}
{Mr. Lee. I heard from Mr. Shige. You have an appointment with my husband today?}
{Yes, ma’am. I wanted to show him the item I mentioned last time.}
{But I didn’t hear anything about you bringing company…}
Trailing off, Mrs. Minamoto shifted her gaze to Chohui beside him, clearly wary of the unfamiliar woman.
Down had arranged a visit with Mrs. Minamoto but had not mentioned bringing Chohui along.
If he had said they wanted to attend the ladies’ gathering, he would surely have been refused, so he had deliberately avoided mentioning her.
Their strategy was to use the visit to Mrs. Minamoto as a pretext and naturally introduce Chohui into the ladies’ gathering.
{It was rather sudden, but it was a good opportunity, so we came together. I also thought I’d take the chance to greet you properly, Mrs. Minamoto.}
Despite her displeased gaze, Down continued to reply with a bright smile.
{Allow me to introduce her. This is my wife, Lucia Lee.}
At his words, Mrs. Minamoto’s eyes widened. Then, even more openly than before, she scanned Chohui from head to toe, appraising her.
{Your wife? I had no idea you were married, Mr. Lee.}
{In truth, it hasn’t been long. There have been many things going on recently, so I wasn’t able to greet you sooner.}
{Hmm, is that so?}
{Mrs. Minamoto, if you don’t mind, while I speak with Mr. Minamoto, would it be all right for my wife to spend some time talking with you? There are some matters best discussed among men. I apologize for the imposition.}
He slightly bowed his head and asked in a near whisper by her ear. At the same time, he maintained the utmost courtesy without seeming distant.
Acting as though making a personal request within an intimate relationship made Mrs. Minamoto raise an eyebrow.
{Hmm. Very well. It would have been better if you’d said something beforehand, but I can’t very well leave a guest alone.}
{Oh, thank you so much, Mrs. Minamoto. As expected, your generosity is as great as your beauty.}
Down deliberately broadened his smile in satisfaction.
Mrs. Minamoto cleared her throat awkwardly, her cheeks reddening.
Pleased that things were proceeding according to plan, Down smiled at Chohui as well.
With how smoothly things were going, surely her nerves had eased a little.
But contrary to his expectations, Chohui was still completely stiff.
Rather than smiling, she stared blankly into space, as if distracted by something.
{Lucia.}
Down called to her, but there was no answer. Perhaps she still wasn’t used to her alias.
{My wife.}
Only then did she meet his eyes.
{Are you all right?}
{…Yes.}
{Then stay with Mrs. Minamoto. I’ll go speak with Mr. Minamoto.}
{All right.}
Damn. She must be more nervous than I thought.
Down squeezed the hand he had been holding, urging her to pull herself together.
Chohui nodded resolutely. At her gesture, as if telling him to trust her, Down swallowed hard.
Right. There was nothing more he could do now.
All he could do was trust her.
Chohui released her arm from his and turned her back to him. Watching her walk away with Mrs. Minamoto, Down couldn’t shake the twisting feeling in his gut.
Though she tried not to show it outwardly, Chohui felt as if her heart might burst from the tension.
The pressure of having to lie and pretend to be “Lucia” after entering a den of Japanese people.
The intimidation she felt upon seeing the formidable Mrs. Minamoto in person.
And on top of all that, learning Down’s true identity only made her thoughts more chaotic instead of clearer.
Let’s focus on one thing at a time.
For now, her goal was simply to introduce herself at today’s gathering without incident.
The ladies’ gathering was one that officially required Mrs. Minamoto’s approval to attend.
Today, she was only being included reluctantly; under normal circumstances, she would have needed a formal invitation.
So her objective was simple.
To gain the favor of the ladies—especially Mrs. Minamoto—and secure an official invitation to the next gathering.
Mrs. Minamoto prefers British-style English, likes Jane Austen, and dislikes people who lack tact.
She had memorized Mrs. Minamoto’s profile over and over again.
Reorganizing her thoughts, Chohui stepped forward cautiously, one step at a time.
As Mrs. Minamoto and Chohui approached, the women sitting in the cool shade sipping tea all turned to look at her at once, scanning her appearance from head to toe.
Under their hostile, piercing gazes, Chohui swallowed hard and forced a smile.
{Who is this, Mrs. Minamoto Sakura?}
A plump woman sitting farthest away asked sharply. Referring to a person as “this”—such blatant rudeness. Chohui composed her expression and turned her gaze toward the woman.
The moment she saw her face, she recognized her.
Daiichi Keiko. The wife of the second son of Daiichi Corporation.
She recited inwardly.
{Sakura, you’re not planning to let just anyone into our gathering, are you?}
{Calm down, Ms. Keiko. Mr. Lee is speaking with my husband at the moment, and out of concern for his wife, he asked that she spend some time conversing with us.}
{Mr. Lee’s wife?}
At Mrs. Minamoto’s words, the women murmured in surprise. Their gazes grew even more guarded as they whispered among themselves.
{Mr. Lee is married?}
{That can’t be true!}
{To that scrawny, unimpressive woman? Nonsense!}
Blatant evaluations of Chohui were tossed around. Normally, she would have snapped back immediately, but she held herself in check and lifted the corners of her lips.
{Pleased to meet you. I’m Lucia Lee, ladies. I asked my husband to bring me because I wanted to greet all of you here.}
At her words, their eyes widened in surprise. Perhaps they hadn’t expected her to respond with a smile.
Another woman, gently fanning herself nearby, posed a question.
{When exactly did you get married? I never heard any news of it.}
Recognizing her face, Chohui quickly reviewed her profile.
Hiranishi Satsuko, wife of the eldest son of Hiranishi Construction.
Without flinching, Chohui replied according to the scenario she and Down had prepared.
{We’re both at an age, and our elders wanted the ceremony done quickly. Given the timing, we decided on a small, simple wedding rather than a grand one.}
{Oh my, if the elders wanted it, does that mean it was an arranged marriage?}
{You could say that.}
{If you ended up with a husband like Mr. Lee through an arranged marriage, isn’t that a bargain? Ho ho ho.}
At Mrs. Hiranishi’s words, the other women nodded in agreement. Only Chohui tilted her head, not understanding.
{A bargain?}
{Of course. Ms. Lucia Lee, there’s no man like Mr. Lee in all of Sinŭiju. That face, that body… ho ho, your eyes must be very well-fed, Ms. Lucia.}
{Come now, surely Ms. Lucia Lee must be incredibly wealthy.}
At the subtly demeaning remark, the other women laughed and chimed in.
{If she weren’t rich, how could she ever dream of becoming a pair with our Mr. Lee?}
{And Mr. Lee hasn’t met many women, has he? That must be why he lacks discernment when it comes to women—how unfortunate!}
Listening quietly, Chohui easily grasped what they were implying.
So they thought I bought my way into becoming the wife of Sinŭiju’s most handsome man?
Watching the women who pretended to be polite while openly insulting her, Chohui scoffed inwardly.
How childish.
But there was no need to react to their belittling. None of it affected her in the slightest.
With a faint smile, Chohui took a small sip of the tea before her.
After sending Chohui to join the ladies, Down headed alone toward the Minamoto family’s study.
I hope she does well.
He believed they had prepared thoroughly over the past two weeks, but theory and practice were not the same.
Was I too reckless?
He knew that using Chohui was the best option. But now that he was in this situation, he couldn’t help wondering if there might have been another choice.
Especially now, when his comrades were watching with bated breath, praying for their success—if even the smallest mistake were made…
{What are you pondering so deeply?}
At the familiar voice, Down turned his head.
