Chapter 7
Taken Away…
Not long after, they arrived at the entrance of the village. From afar, they could see Mother Jang standing by the main gate. She was gazing anxiously toward the village road, her face full of worry. When So Cheong-young saw her, it felt as though one side of her chest melted softly.
The moment Cheonghaeng spotted their mother, her eyes sparkled. She let go of So Cheong-young’s hand and dashed forward at full speed. Her thin legs moved quickly, yet she hugged the bag of snacks in her arms as if she would never let it go.
Only after confirming that the children had returned safely did Madam Jang finally smile in relief. She hurried forward a few steps to greet them.
From a distance, So Cheong-young saw Cheonghaeng lifting the snack bag high and chattering excitedly. Madam Jang followed her gaze and looked over as well. When her eyes met So Cheong-young’s, Cheong-young smiled lightly in greeting. Then, in a gentle voice, she said to So Dae-ho,
“Brother Dae-ho, we’re home now, so you should head back.”
She told Cheongyang to give him a bag of snacks, but So Dae-ho firmly waved his hands away. After politely greeting Madam Jang, he lingered for a moment, gazing at So Cheong-young, before quietly turning to leave. Cheong-young watched his retreating figure for a long time before finally looking away.
Madam Jang sighed deeply as she watched him go.
“Dae-ho helped your father and me in the fields all afternoon. When he heard you’d gone to the market town, his mind seemed completely elsewhere. When you didn’t come back even by evening, he insisted on going to the town to look for you.”
Hearing this, So Cheong-young fell silent for a moment. Then, looking toward the direction So Dae-ho had disappeared, she let out a soft sigh. He was diligent and good-looking—surely, one day, a good match would come his way.
After collecting her thoughts, So Cheong-young headed home with her mother and the twins. But the moment they stepped inside, Yubok and Yugwi—the two young sons of the third uncle—darted over and blocked their path.
“You went to the market town? Why didn’t you take us?”
“Huh? What’s that in your hands?”
The two brothers sniffed the air, then shouted,
“Wow! Those are snacks and rice cakes! Hand them over!”
Before the words had even finished leaving their mouths, they reached out to snatch the food. But there was no way Cheonghaeng would give up the snacks she had protected throughout the long journey! She quickly twisted away, clutching the bundle even tighter and running off. Cheongyang also moved to protect the snacks alongside his sister.
And so, a tussle broke out between the twins and their cousins.
“Don’t fight. You can all eat together!”
Madam Jang hurriedly tried to stop them, but Yubok and Yugwi refused to listen.
When they failed to get the snacks, they spun around and shouted at the top of their lungs,
“Grandmother! Come quickly! Cheonghaeng and Cheongyang bought snacks from the market!”
So Cheong-young froze for a moment at this sudden turn of events. Before she could even react, the step-grandmother, Madam Wang, came striding out of the main house and, in one swift motion, snatched the snack bag from Cheonghaeng’s arms.
Seeing Madam Wang approach, Cheonghaeng instinctively shrank back. She had always been afraid of her, and her body reacted before her mind could. With no chance to resist, the snacks were taken from her.
Tears immediately welled up in the child’s eyes, and she looked up at So Cheong-young with a deeply aggrieved expression. When Cheong-young stepped closer, Cheonghaeng threw herself into her arms, her small shoulders trembling as she sobbed. Beside her, Cheongyang clenched his fists, his face flushed with anger.
Patting Cheonghaeng’s frail back, So Cheong-young firmly held her hand and headed toward the main house.
Meanwhile, So Dae-hae had been relieved and happy to see that the children had returned safely. When he noticed Cheonghaeng holding a large bag of snacks, he was about to ask what had happened—only to see his stepmother, Madam Wang, suddenly reach out and snatch the food from the child’s arms.
A bitter expression flickered across his face.
He knew all too well that his stepmother would never leave anything whole for the children of the main branch. This meant his children would once again have to swallow their resentment in silence.
It was nearly time for dinner, but since it was the second branch’s turn to cook, the courtyard was empty of Madam Feng and her daughter, Xia He. Only the third branch’s family sat around cooling off in the yard. Qiujü, the daughter of the third branch, followed Madam Wang and her younger brothers into the main house.
So Cheong-young swept her gaze quickly across the yard. Her third aunt, Madam Zheng, glanced at her with a faint smile before following her children inside. Cheong-young didn’t care about her reaction. When her third uncle awkwardly greeted her, she didn’t respond, instead taking Cheonghaeng’s hand and heading straight inside.
“I said I’d give it to you after dinner.”
“But Grandma! I want to eat it now!”
Inside the inner quarters, Madam Wang was busy placating her grandsons while simultaneously searching for a place to hide the snacks. Yubok and Yugwi were seven and five years old respectively. The younger one, Yugwi, was actually six months younger than the twins, yet he was much sturdier and stronger than them.
The two boys bounced around Madam Wang, demanding snacks immediately. Unable to withstand their pestering, she finally gave in and opened the bag, about to tear off a piece for them.
At that very moment—
So Cheong-young strode forward and snatched the snacks straight out of her hand. She cast Madam Wang a brief, indifferent glance, then turned around without a word.
Madam Wang was stunned.
That wretched girl—she actually dared to snatch something from my hand?!
Coming to her senses, Madam Wang stomped her feet and screamed,
“You ill-mannered brat! Where did you learn such behavior? How dare you snatch things from an elder’s hands?!”
She lunged at So Cheong-young again, trying to seize the snacks back.
Holding the bag high, So Cheong-young dodged several times, leaving Madam Wang unable to even brush her clothes. Enraged, Madam Wang hurled a stream of foul curses. When she still refused to give up, Cheong-young cast a quick glance around the room. Her eyes landed on a small stool to the side.
Hooking it with her foot, she dragged it over and kicked it hard toward the door.
Bang!
The door rattled violently, and the small stool shattered into pieces.
Yubok, Yugwi, and Qiujü—who had been about to rush forward—froze in shock at the sudden noise. Madam Wang herself flinched and stepped back, then stomped angrily when she saw the broken stool.
“You damned girl, you’ve completely lost your mind today!”
She screamed at the top of her lungs, but no longer dared to rush at So Cheong-young. She could only glare viciously as Cheong-young calmly took Cheonghaeng’s hand and walked out of the main house with the snack bag.
Drawn by the commotion, Old Master Su and the third uncle, Su Sanxi, arrived and glanced at the shattered stool, exchanging puzzled looks.
That girl Cheong-young has become more and more fierce lately. Ever since her marriage was arranged, she doesn’t listen to elders and even openly rebels…
Su Sanxi hesitated, wondering if he should step in to scold her. But then he remembered that his mother had arranged for Cheong-young to marry a man soon to be dragged off to the battlefield. No one knew whether a conscripted soldier would return alive—if he died, Cheong-young would become a widow at a young age. Worse still, rumors said the man had poor conduct and indulged constantly in women and drink.
And since this marriage had been arranged by his own sister, Su Boju, Su Sanxi felt even more uneasy. So although his two sons cried about having their snacks taken away, he couldn’t bring himself to intervene. Instead, he held Madam Wang back when she tried to chase after Cheong-young.
So Cheong-young took the twins back to the eastern side house, the residence of the main branch. She paused briefly in front of her parents’ room, then went straight into her own. Sitting the two children on the bed, she placed the snacks before them.
There were two bags—one small, which she had bought herself, and one large, which Ye Bosheng had given to the twins.
She opened the large bag first, curious about what was inside.
The twins watched with sparkling eyes, staring intently at the bag. Having rarely ever eaten snacks in their lives, they swallowed unconsciously at the sight of rice cakes and sweets.
“Wow! They all look delicious! Mother, Father, come quickly! These are all expensive things! Even Big Sister didn’t dare buy them earlier!”
Cheonghaeng exclaimed loudly, calling out to their parents as they entered.
Madam Jang looked at the snacks on the bed and asked in confusion,
“Didn’t your sister buy these? Who bought them then?”
“Brother Bakseung did!”
Cheonghaeng replied loudly.
Some of the snacks were ones they had sampled earlier; others looked expensive just from their aroma. They hadn’t even dared to ask for them—yet Brother Bakseung had bought them all.
Madam Jang looked even more puzzled.
“Brother Bakseung?”
“I mean Ye Bosheng,”
So Cheong-young added. Madam Jang gasped.
“What? You met him? How did that happen?”
Their father, So Dae-hae, also came closer, listening intently. Cheong-young was about to explain when she noticed Yubok and Yugwi peeking in from outside, so she held her tongue.
“I’ll explain tonight.”
Cheonghaeng also hurriedly covered the snack bag when she spotted the brothers.
“They look really tasty! Can’t you give us just one piece?”
“Uncle, Yugwi wants some too.”
Yugwi sucked on his finger while looking at So Dae-hae, drool almost spilling out. So Dae-hae looked helplessly at his wife. Madam Jang sighed softly, portioned out some snacks, wrapped them separately, and led the two boys outside.
Seeing the twins’ unhappy faces, So Dae-hae coaxed them gently,
“You can’t keep everything to yourselves. You should also bring some to Grandpa and Grandma. Otherwise people will say you’re unfilial.”
Cheonghaeng looked as if she might burst into tears when she saw that nearly half the snacks were gone.
So Cheong-young gently stroked her youngest sister’s head.
“Keep these and eat them slowly with Cheongyang. Don’t give them to anyone else.”
Cheonghaeng wiped her tears and picked up a piece, offering it to her father.
“Dad, you eat too.”
So Dae-hae shook his head.
“No, you eat.”
“Please eat some, Father. There’s still a lot.”
At Cheong-young’s insistence, he finally accepted and tasted it.
Mm, this is good… But Ye Bosheng bought all this? How on earth did the kids meet him?
He glanced at his daughter, curiosity burning, but could only suppress it for now.
Just then, Madam Jang returned.
So Dae-hae beckoned her over.
“This is really tasty. Come and try some.”
After the family sampled the various rice cakes and sweets, Madam Jang said dinner time was near and carefully packed the remaining snacks away for later.
