MOSC 33

The household affairs were handled as naturally as flowing water.

“Make sure to record it in the ledger after each task is completed. Record meticulously, down to how many nails were used and how many sheets of floor paper were used, so that it will be easy to manage later on.”

“Yes, madam. I will keep that in mind!”

“Recycle any losses that occur during the work without waste, and organize and store the remaining materials in the warehouse. This is the way to save the family’s budget and ensure there is no shortage.”

“I understand, madam. Don’t you worry. I’ll take care of everything meticulously!”

“I will personally check all work processes to ensure that no one tries to personally appropriate materials like Go Naegwan and the court ladies. If necessary, I will go around the site and supervise.”

“Yes, madam. I understand everything!”

The satisfaction of the household members reached the heavens.

On’s instructions were very detailed. And they were clear.

Paradoxically (?), the harsh years of hardship had endowed her with systematic leadership.

At first, the household members did not know that the princess who had married into the family would give such meticulous instructions.

They honestly just thought the new bride was trying to live up to her name as a princess and had whispered amongst themselves.

However, their expectations were completely wrong.

‘I thought she wouldn’t get a single drop of water on her hands, but she’s working so hard….’

‘I know, right? She’s really good at her work, isn’t she?’

‘But for someone who looks so dazed, isn’t she surprisingly meticulous and not harsh with her words?’

At first, the servants simply moved as they were told.

But as her instructions became reality one by one, the situation was gradually improving.

The warehouse was organized under On’s direction, and the veranda was covered with new floor paper.

The ondol floor was repaired, and new manpower was hired.

A strange sense of anticipation was blooming among them.

‘Ah… this is rewarding.’

Meanwhile, after all this boisterous commotion had settled down, On stood before the ninety-nine-room residence, looking at her work.

In truth, while it was called a ninety-nine-room residence, for On, who had worked in a palace that was a step above, it was honestly easier than eating cold porridge.

The Shim family’s servants also expressed their satisfaction with On without reservation.

“Now that the madam has hired new people, the work has been reduced a lot. The chaos is gone, and things are going smoothly!”

“Madam, the books are now organized without a single speck of dust. Thanks to you fixing the library’s paper windows, no insects are getting in, and the books will probably be preserved for a long time!”

“Thanks to you, madam, the veranda has become sturdy. It doesn’t creak anymore, and it feels solid under my feet, which is great!”

“Madam, the floor is warm now, so we don’t have to shiver all night anymore. Thank you so much! I never dreamed we’d be this warm in the winter!”

On felt a little embarrassed by their enthusiastic reactions.

She wondered if it was okay to be acknowledged so easily.

‘I just did what I always did….’

Well, it was true. Compared to the palace, managing any large household was bound to seem like playing with dolls.

She had only handled the household affairs according to the habits of her tough court lady days in a daze, but she had managed to sort out the messy inner household in one go.

As a result, she also seemed to have inadvertently overpowered the palace officials sent from the royal family and, in addition, succeeded in gaining the trust of the household servants.

‘I never thought the experience from my court lady days, when I only suffered to death, would be helpful in this way….’

A person really has to live diligently.

On’s eyes grew moist with a sense of pride.

‘…Should I be grateful to that person for this?’

Her feelings renewed, On glanced in Princess Bonghwa’s direction.

…While On had been working her butt off, Princess Bonghwa was spending her days more leisurely and lazily than ever before.

It was a sight that perfectly fit the description of someone living a life of ease.

While she was diligently organizing the ledgers, Bonghwa was holed up in the side room, sitting on two layers of silk cushions and munching on jujubes with one hand.

‘What.’

Before Princess Bonghwa’s gaze could reach her, On quickly turned her head away.

Sob.

‘My life.’

On had an intuition that she would never be able to shake off the tag of a court lady for the rest of her life and shed a tear.

She realized she still could not defy Princess Bonghwa.

It was when she was about to turn her attention back to the ledger.

The realization that immediately followed froze the corners of On’s mouth.

‘Come to think of it, Mr. Wigyeom told me never to touch the household affairs….’

The face of Wigyeom, who had repeatedly requested this, came to mind.

On suddenly froze like ice and mulled over this fact.

‘Still….’

She began to think, as if to console herself.

‘I didn’t ruin the house, I fixed it like this, so wouldn’t it be okay…?’

Hehe.

On began to run her hope circuit.

Besides, Princess Bonghwa was playing and eating in the side room in On’s stead.

‘One of the two of us isn’t lifting a finger as he said, so isn’t that good enough…?’

Hehe.

On thought with a good-natured smile.

Wasn’t it all about getting to the capital, no matter which way you go?

…Of course, it was not okay.

If Wigyeom had known this fact, he would have had a showdown with Princess Bonghwa.

Not just a showdown, he would have taken off his rank insignia and fought Princess Bonghwa.

Who do you think you are to play and eat in place of my wife?

Of course, On had no idea of this fact.

‘I just hope he doesn’t get angry….’

Conscious of Wigyeom, On suddenly felt a cold sweat break out.

But at the same time, she felt another emotion.

‘Huh? Is this heart failure?’

Why is my heart pounding.

As if I am waiting for him.

On hurriedly corrected her thoughts.

‘No, that can’t be. He is not mine but….’

She turned her head and looked at the princess.

Princess Bonghwa had caught a passing cat and was playing by teasing it.

‘That person’s husband.’

On thought wistfully.

…Of course, he was not.

But On did not know.

She rubbed her nose slightly and thought self-deprecatingly.

‘Still, I can miss him, can’t I?’

After all, she was also Wigyeom’s concubine. And hadn’t they spent the night together?

At that thought, her nose turned red with embarrassment again.

‘Well, a concubine is a wife too….’

On achieved a mental victory that way.

…No one here thought of her as a concubine, but On alone thought so.

She turned her gaze back to the ledger.

She was still struggling to correct the messy ledger left by Go Naegwan.

While carefully reviewing each item, she discovered something.

Her brows furrowed as she looked at the series of abnormal expenditures and shoddy income records.

“Wait. What is this again…?”

On tilted her head and looked at a spot in the ledger. An entry that read ‘External loan amount: three thousand nyang’ caught her eye.

“…Three thousand nyang? A loan amount?”

What kind of a dog’s name is three thousand nyang.

‘Are you saying the family has debt…?’

On clutched the back of her neck.

Horrified, she hurriedly flipped through the ledger and found additional records.

The moment she found the place where the details of the debt were recorded, her hand stopped.

‘In the previous generation, due to successive droughts and poor harvests, the farmland became desolate, and tenant farmers left in droves, resulting in a severe shortage of tax revenue.’

‘To maintain the farmland, a loan was taken out to procure farming tools and pay taxes to the government office, but soon only the interest piled up.’

On let out a light sigh.

It seemed that Gyesaeng, who had been in charge of finances, had recorded what had happened in the past.

She read the following content.

‘As the previous generation’s master fell ill frequently, the cost of expensive medicinal herbs and doctors increased significantly. The illness, which caused him to lose his hearing and be bedridden often, lasted for a long time, and the debt grew even larger, especially due to the difficulty in procuring expensive herbal medicines.’

Feeling her heart grow heavy, On turned the page of the ledger again.

‘In order to carry on the family line, it was decided to send a descendant to take the civil service examination. A boy named Shim Jian, the son of the young master’s paternal cousin, was considered. It was said that his future was promising as he was a talent who would be noticed by the court for his upright character and academic attainement. However, the master lamented that he could only support him by taking on additional debt due to the heavy burden of education expenses.’

On’s face instantly turned pale.

How on earth had this family managed to survive until now.

No matter how much she dug, there was no end to the financial problems.

With a sigh, On opened the ledger again and calmly began to organize it.

Next to ‘External loan amount,’ the name of the moneylender and the interest rate were also written.

“A moneylender….”

She touched the ledger with her fingertips and put a hand to her forehead.

The ninety-nine-room grand mansion seemed meaningless.

‘Did Mr. Wigyeom know all this and not say anything? No, that can’t be. But how was he planning to solve this?’

Of course, Wigyeom knew all of this.

And he had a solution for it too.

However, On was completely unaware of that fact.

‘What should I do. That innocent gentleman must have been taken for a ride.’

…On was gravely mistaken.

The first impression of the thatched-roof house was too powerful.

On still misunderstood Wigyeom as someone slow when it came to financial matters.

Of course, if Gyesaeng had heard this, he would have foamed at the mouth.

Because the man named Wigyeom was a monster farthest from the word ‘innocent’ in the world.

She quietly clasped her hands and fell into thought.

‘First, I need to meet the moneylender. I need to check how high the interest rate is. And it would be good to look for more medicinal herbs that might improve my father-in-law’s condition.’