Secret of the Red Lotus Flower (빨간 연꽃의 비밀)

Chapter 10

"So you're my nephew's new bride," said the distinguished-looking middle-aged woman seated beside Soo-yun at the small table in her chambers. "I am glad that my sister-in-law finally did something right for that boy."

Most of the other elder female relatives that the new Crown Princess had visited that morning had treated her with polite disinterest. Soo-yun had started to think that, once again, she would be living in a friendless environment. However, Princess Chae-Yeong greeted Soo-yun with a smile and genuinely appeared to be happy to see her. The older princess didn't seem to mind having to come all the way to Donggung to visit her new niece.

"It's a pleasure to finally meet you," Soo-yun said as she presented her new aunt with the customary gift of dried beef known as dansupo. She remembered how he had told her that first night at the archery field that the princess was his favorite relative. "The Crown Prince spoke quite highly of you."

"Oh? I would have thought that he had better things to talk about during his wedding night than the old women in his life, especially when he had such a pretty, young new one to keep him company." Soo-yun must have turned pale when she realized that she had nearly revealed that she had met Ha-neul before their wedding day because Chae-yeong laughed again. "Relax, my dear. I was merely joking."

Soo-yun took an instant liking to Ha-neul's aunt, Princess Chae-yeong. As a married princess, Chae-yeong no longer considered part of the Inner Court nor lived on the palace grounds. Her father, the late king, had built her a new home outside the walls of the palace prior to her wedding. He had wanted to make certain that it was close enough that his favorite daughter could visit for important feasts and ceremonies as was her right as a member of the Outer Court. Still, the princess could have waited until the Baekgwan Hweui banquet to meet the Crown Prince's new bride along with the rest of the court but had instead traveled all the way to see Soo-yun in person.

"I was worried that my dear sister-in-law was going to pick one of the other girls in the gantaek. They seemed so... pretentious," said Princess Chae-yeong bluntly. "I've known the Crown Prince since he was young and I could tell that you were exactly what is needed help bring him out of his shell."

As much as it still hurt to talk or think about Ha-neul, Soo-yun couldn't help but blush at the Chae-yeong's praise. If she had heard those words before these past two days, she would have been over the moon. Now all it did was remind her of what could have been.

Soo-yun quickly realized that this was the perfect opportunity to discover more about her husband. Everything that she had learned about him prior to the weddings had been gossip and rumor. While knowing more about his true character would not have prevented the marriage from happening, at least she could have shielded her heart better.

"Please, tell me more about Ha-neul. Was he a cute baby?" Soo-yun probed.

"Honestly, I don't know," Chae-yeong replied. "I got married a few years after my brother married the queen and left the court before my nephew was born. My father had wanted me to marry one of the minor officials that frequented the palace. However, a young naval captain had come to the capital to advise the Minister of Military Affairs on the state of our coastal defenses and he caught my eye.

"After confirming that he felt the same, I begged my father to allow us to be wed. Initially, my father refused since that would require me moving to Busan to live with my late husband. I was his only surviving daughter and he couldn't bear to see me leave. Still, my father had never been able to deny me anything for long and eventually agreed to the marriage. It was probably one of the happiest days of my life."