Fake Concubine 7

The ​next ​day, ​Moon ​Hae-min left his ​quarters ​feeling ​as ​if ​he were heading out ​for ​a spring outing.

In ​reality, far from ​spring, ​it ​was ​the ​dead ​of winter, though ​the ​weather ​had been relatively ​mild lately. They say ​there are ​three cold ​days and ​four warm ​days ​in ​a cycle, and ​it seemed ​they were currently in ​the warm period.

“I shall ​lend you a horse.”

“Thank ​you….”

As soon ​as ​he met Song Seol, the latter ​held out the reins. ​While ​readily ​taking ​them, ​Moon Hae-min swallowed ​a sigh.

‘What ​do ​I do?’

Moon Hae-min ​had ​never learned how to ride. ​At best, ​he ​had barely acquired ​the ​basics ​from ​the ​journey from ​Hanseong ​to Songdo.

He ​should have been raised as a nobleman ​to act like ​one, but every ​habit ingrained in his ​body remained ​that of a ​commoner. ​Resenting Lord Moon ​for forcing him ​to impersonate ​‘Moon ​Hee-yul,’ Hae-min ​with ​great difficulty ​mounted ​the saddle.

“Let ​us ​go.”

As ​he pulled the ​reins, ​the horse ​began ​to ​walk. ​It seemed to be a well-trained animal, moving forward smoothly on its own without Hae-min having to do much. However, unable to hide his clumsy riding skills, Song Seol brought his horse alongside.

“Is riding difficult for you?”

“…A little.”

Since the real Moon Hee-yul was also not proficient in riding, he figured this wouldn’t arouse suspicion.

“Even so, you must not show signs of fear. Horses are intelligent animals; they keenly sense when the person carrying them is frightened.”

“What happens if they notice?”

“They begin to ignore the rider.”

“….”

In that case, he was likely already being ignored by the horse. If it ended there, it would be fine, but he prayed the animal wouldn’t suddenly bolt or run wild.

“It will be alright. The horse you are riding has a gentle temperament.”

“Is that so….”

At Song Seol’s words, Hae-min relaxed his grip. He hadn’t realized he had been clutching the reins so tightly. At this rate, the horse would have no choice but to see through his fear.

“Endure it a little longer. Yesong Port is not far.”

Leaving those words behind, Song Seol shot forward like the wind. Moon Hae-min marveled as he watched the black horse vanish ahead in the blink of an eye.

With its sleek, glossy black coat and a lush tail, it was a fine steed even to someone like Moon Hae-min, who knew little about horses. He felt a surge of admiration that Song Seol could handle a horse that likely had such a temperamental nature so effortlessly.

Though he was far from catching up to Song Seol’s riding skills (and didn’t even dare to try), Hae-min braced himself and urged the horse forward.

The scenery blurred past. After passing through the bustling streets and exiting the city gates, a vast field of reeds unfolded before him.

As he rode through the reeds, Song Seol occasionally looked back, seemingly checking to see if Moon Hae-min was following properly.

‘If Song Seol were alone, he would have arrived at Yesong Port long ago.’

It was a plausible assumption.

Regardless, though somewhat delayed, Moon Hae-min and Song Seol arrived at Yesong Port.

“The wind here smells salty.”

“Because it is the seaside.”

Song Seol replied as if it were obvious. But common knowledge that might be obvious to some was not so for Moon Hae-min.

“Ah… so this is what the sea smells like.”

Hae-min took a deep breath, filling his chest. Song Seol turned to him and asked.

“Have you perhaps never seen the sea?”

“No.”

“You have never seen the sea?”

“No, I have not.”

This time, Moon Hae-min replied as if it were obvious. Song Seol looked incredulous for a moment but soon nodded.

“I suppose that would be the case if you grew up only in Hanseong your entire life.”

“That is correct.”

Moon Hae-min answered nonchalantly. In truth, the real Moon Hee-yul had also never once stepped outside of Hanseong.

And it wasn’t just him and Moon Hee-yul. Unless one was a peddler wandering here and there, most people never left their home region until the day they died.

That was why Moon Hae-min never imagined he would see the sea. Of course, he had wished, ‘I must see the sea at least once before I die,’ but that had been a distant dream he could hardly imagine. Yet, having come to see it through an unexpected opportunity, he realized how mysterious the ways of the world could be.

“Is that the sea?”

In the distance, he could see the undulating currents. He couldn’t yet tell the difference between this and a river, but he figured it would be different up close. Unable to contain his sudden excitement, Moon Hae-min pulled the reins.

“Uh, whoa!”

Suddenly, the horse that had been so gentle began to move of its own accord. As he froze, stolen contentclutching the reins [stolen content]and unable to control the horse walking [Read on Read BL Novels]in the wrong direction, Song Seol rode over.

He snatched the reins from Moon Hae-min’s hand. As he spoke to the animal in a low, soothing voice, the creature calmed down as if it understood human speech.

“I can’t believe it didn’t listen to me, but it listens to him….”

Do horses also pick and choose who they listen to? As he grumbled softly in bewilderment, Song Seol let out a low chuckle.

“You will need more practice on how to change direction.”

“Yes….”

“Dismount.”

Song Seol climbed down first. Moon Hae-min tried to follow quickly, but he hesitated, his tension not yet fully dissipated. Noticing this, Song Seol reached out his hand.

“Thank you for your help.”

In a small voice, yet clearly enough not to be rude, Hae-min thanked him and took Song Seol’s hand. His hand was unexpectedly warm.

“My Lord, you have arrived.”

Just as Moon Hae-min’s feet touched the ground, a group of people approached and bowed their heads. They seemed to be workers at Yesong Port. Song Seol asked them.

“Is the preparation for departure proceeding smoothly?”

“Yes, it is nearly complete. We should be able to set sail as scheduled.”

“I must inspect the goods.”

“I shall guide you, My Lord.”

An elderly man stepped forward. Song Seol followed him. As Hae-min walked along, he felt glancing stares coming from all directions.

At first, he thought he was imagining it. But it was certain. Everyone they passed looked at Moon Hae-min. Even the man leading the way kept glancing back.

‘They must be curious about who Grand Prince Byeokran’s companion is.’

That was the only reason he could think of. Sure enough, the man asked very cautiously.

“My Lord, if I may ask, who is that gentleman? It is [unauthorized copy]just that we cannot allow just anyone on the stolen contentship… Read on Read BL NovelsOf course, as he is the companion of Grand Prince Byeokran, his status must be certain, but we must still go through the verification process.”

He acted flustered, as if he were terrified to even bring it up. Song Seol, however, seemed unfazed and replied indifferently.

“He is my concubine.”

“Ah…! Is that so!”

The man let out an exclamation as if he had finally realized, and looked at Moon Hae-min again. There was something strange in his gaze. Or perhaps it was just his imagination. The moment the word ‘concubine’ was uttered, Moon Hae-min felt a wave of humiliation.

However, that unpleasant feeling vanished the moment he stepped onto the ship.

“Wow…!”

The only boats he had ever been on were small ferries crossing rivers, but this ship was gargantuan by comparison. Accordingly, it carried a vast amount of goods. And the sea was so wide it felt impossible to take it all in.

“Is it that fascinating?”

“Yes, it is truly marvelous.”

Pure wonder appeared on ‘Moon Hee-yul’s’ face. He looked around eagerly, as if everything his eyes touched was a miracle. Yet, to Song Seol, Moon visit our site[Read on Read BL Novels]Hee-yul’s reaction was the most fascinating thing of all.

Song Seol watched Moon Hee-yul as he gazed at the sea. Unaware of that blatant gaze, Moon Hee-yul cast his eyes toward the distant horizon. The sea filled his jade-colored eyes. It seemed as if even Moon Hee-yul’s gaze was shimmering blue.

Just then, Moon Hee-yul nearly collided with a laborer carrying luggage. Song Seol quickly pulled Moon Hee-yul’s sleeve.

“Be careful.”

“Th-thank you.”

Having avoided the collision by a hair’s breadth, Moon Hee-yul breathed a sigh of relief. He seemed quite startled, his already large eyes widening further.

“What were you thinking about that you couldn’t see what was right in front of you?”

“I apologize….”

“I am not scolding you; I am asking because I am curious.”

“I… I was wondering where that ship is headed.”

Moon Hee-yul answered sheepishly. Indeed, there [unauthorized copy]was unauthorized copya merchant unauthorized copyship in the direction he had been looking.

“It looks like a trade ship from the Kingdom of Michang.”

“Ah, the Kingdom of Michang.”

Moon Hee-yul nodded.

“I once transcribed a travelogue about the Kingdom of Michang. I read that the natural scenery there is different from our country. For instance, the mountains are not shaped like a ‘siot’ but are pointed like candlesticks. And they say unique animals live in every deep valley….”

As the story grew longer, a faint joy blossomed on Moon Hee-yul’s face. Just as it had when he saw the sea, he had a face that made it very easy to discern his interests.

“Grand Prince, I have brought the items you requested.”

Had the scribe not interrupted, Moon Hee-yul’s chatter might have continued. However, he snapped his mouth shut like a clam.

Come to think of it, Moon Hee-yul seemed to be naturally shy. He had been awkward even with Song Seol, and it was only today that he had finally opened up. Enjoying a sense of pride similar to that of a wary kitten finally approaching its owner, Song Seol took the documents from the scribe.

It was a document summarizing the items and quantities of the exchange goods. Every item was organized clearly and concisely, making it easy to read. It was Moon Hee-yul’s handiwork.

“Would you like to check it as well?”

Song Seol felt it would be wrong to exclude the person who had organized the documents after coming all this way. Strictly speaking, it was giving him more work, but Song Seol was certain Moon Hee-yul would be pleased. As expected, Moon Hee-yul took the paper, his eyes sparkling with curiosity.