II - 30

The shrill voice made I-ryeong feel her eyes grow hot with suppressed emotion. 

She wanted to protest immediately, but her feet felt glued to the floor, and her lips refused to move. 

“Whether it’s ibaji food or anything else, get rid of these things that lower our standards immediately.” 

Yoojin’s words about “lowering standards” felt like they were pointed directly at her. 

“Why are you just standing there? Should I throw them away myself?” 

“But, Madam…” 

Even as the loud argument continued, I-ryeong couldn’t muster the courage to step into the kitchen. This unfamiliar space still didn’t feel like her home, and she lacked the confidence to intervene. 

As her dry lips trembled, clenched tightly between her teeth, her fists balled up in frustration— 

“Why are you just standing here?” 

I-jun appeared beside her without a sound. 

“Why are you…” 

He tried to lighten the mood with a casual joke, perhaps teasing her for freezing up in tension. 

“Throw it away, now!” 

“The master hasn’t checked it yet.” 

“That’s exactly why! Throw this trash away before Father sees it. Surely, you’re not planning to serve it on the dining table?” 

The argument between Yoojin and the staff reached I-jun’s ears. 

And naturally, he turned to observe I-ryeong’s expression. 

There was no sign of nervousness in her face. Instead, her empty eyes brimmed with barely contained anger, as if she were forcing herself to endure silently. 

“Then I’ll throw it away. Hand it over.” 

Yoojin stubbornly raised her voice, seemingly intent on making sure someone heard her. 

I-jun found his sister-in-law’s attitude irritating. Though he disliked jumping to conclusions, it seemed clear that the “someone” Yoojin was targeting was none other than I-ryeong. 

“Plug your ears until this is over.” 

I-jun lifted I-ryeong’s hand and placed it gently over her ear. 

Though it wouldn’t block out all the hurtful words, he hoped it would at least dull the impact. 

With heavy steps, he moved forward. He had somewhat anticipated trouble due to their hastily arranged marriage. 

But Yoojin was an exception. They had never been close to begin with. 

He couldn’t understand why his sister-in-law harbored such hostility toward I-ryeong. He had briefly warned the bride’s family in the bridal waiting room, but even that had only been verbal—not through action. After all, they had just returned from their honeymoon. 

Carrying unresolved questions, I-jun entered the kitchen. 

“What’s all this commotion about?” 

“Oh my, Young Master!” 

Yoojin greeted him with a bright smile, as if she hadn’t been shouting moments ago. 

“When did you arrive? I thought you were still in the reception room.” 

“Whether I arrived earlier or later isn’t the important issue here, is it?” 

“Why are you so upset, Young Master?” 

I-jun found her unusually familiar behavior unsettling today. 

His relationship with his older brother was distant, and by extension, his interactions with Yoojin, his sister-in-law, had been rare—countable on one hand. 

“I never gave permission to throw anything away.” 

Unable to suppress his rising irritation, I-jun snapped at her. 

“Did I say anything wrong?” 

Yoojin tilted her head as if genuinely confused, then crossed her arms and closed the distance between them. 

Smiling with crescent-shaped eyes, she feigned innocence. 

“But, Young Master, do you know something? A younger sister-in-law can only be favored when her husband plays his part well.” 

Only when I-jun saw her smirking, her lips twisted in mockery, did he realize the extent of his misjudgment. 

“If you treat me well, your younger sister-in-law will have it easier too.” 

It was clear that Yoojin harbored significant grievances toward her junior sister-in-law. 

At breakfast, the ibaji dishes I-ryeong had prepared were spread generously across the table. While Yoojin picked at her food, the rest of the family praised the sincerity of the bride’s family and enjoyed the meal heartily. 

I-ryeong felt both gratitude and discomfort during the meal. 

“Plug your ears until this is over.” 

Even though covering her ears with her hands didn’t make the hurtful words disappear, she pretended not to hear, grateful for I-jun’s consideration. 

“I never gave permission to throw anything away.”

He had kept his promise to be her ally when they were together, and for that, she was grateful. 

“You need to treat me well if you want your younger sister-in-law to feel comfortable.” 

But Yoojin’s warning, delivered after the prolonged argument, continued to unsettle her. 

If she hadn’t married him, I-jun wouldn’t have needed to hear such words in the first place—making her discomfort grow even more unbearable. 

“We’ll excuse ourselves first.” 

“I-jun, wait—I’ll just—” 

She was stopped mid-sentence as he held onto her hand, still gripping her chopsticks. She had intended to stay seated since the elders were still eating. 

“It hasn’t even been a full day since we returned from our trip, and it’s exhausting. I’m tired, so how must he feel?” 

He pushed firmly, as if desperate to leave the scene as quickly as possible. 

“That makes sense. There’s no way jet lag would adjust in just one day—we didn’t think of that. Don’t worry about us; go ahead and rest.” 

Her father-in-law’s gaze was warm as he looked at her. He gestured with his hand, signaling it was fine for them to leave. 

“Then, we’ll excuse ourselves first.” 

In the end, she rose from her seat, still holding his hand. 

Though she could feel Yoojin’s piercing gaze on her, the icy chill of I-jun’s eyes distracted her too much to care. 

The couple crossed over to the annex together. 

As they passed through the vestibule and approached the entrance, neither of them spoke a word. 

With the annex caretaker, Ms. Choi, absent due to the pile of laundry from their recent trip, the silence felt even heavier. 

“Are there any other places we need to greet?” 

I-ryeong finally broke the silence as she removed her shoes, her dry lips parting. 

“Not at all. Just rest until tomorrow.” 

“I’ll head inside and rest first.” 

She had worried there might be other plans, but thankfully, there weren’t. The thought of quickly shedding her cumbersome hanbok and resting made her feel lighter. 

“Where will you rest?” 

“Where else? Obviously—” 

She was thinking of the master bedroom—the sanctuary she’d long awaited since deciding to marry him, the only place where she could catch her breath. 

“Obviously the master bedroom, right?” 

I-jun preempted her answer. 

His response was natural. In a house meant solely for the couple, the guest room didn’t even cross his mind. 

“I was planning to rest in the master bedroom too.” 

“That works.” 

Since it wasn’t entirely her personal space, she didn’t dwell on it further. 

After confirming that he had taken off his shoes, I-ryeong turned around. 

Though it wasn’t yet fully “home,” she mulled over the idea of it being hers as she brought her hands to her head. Removing the hair tie and pins, she felt as though the headache that had plagued her all morning would finally lift. 

“You know, don’t you need some comfort?” 

Once again, he caught her. 

Tuk, tuk. The hair tie and pins she had dropped fell to the floor, making faint rustling sounds. 

I-ryeong glanced down at the floor before raising her head to look at him, silently asking with her eyes why he was doing this. 

“You’re doing it again. Stop looking at me with those sulky eyes.” 

Without asking permission, his fingers gently caressed her eyelids once more. 

This time, his touch was softer, more deliberate. 

“If I want to touch you, I’ll do it like this.” 

Adding warmth to his touch, he stroked her as if claiming her as his own. 

She wanted to yell at him to stop and push his hand away, but her body refused to obey. It was as if his touch had turned her into a helpless fool. 

“I know you’re hurt.” 

In the privacy of their shared space, he was gentle. When he acted like this, he resembled his father so much. 

But unwilling to let herself be deceived by his tenderness, she turned her head away with all her might. Thankfully, his hand withdrew. 

She should’ve simply walked past him and entered the master bedroom, but her feet wouldn’t move. It was as if something lingered, holding her back. 

Even though she had learned firsthand from him not to harbor unnecessary expectations, she had foolishly allowed herself to hope again. 

“…I’ll rest now.” 

She hadn’t wanted to show him her trembling emotions, but she couldn’t help but let them spill out. 

All the chaotic feelings weighing her down stemmed from one source: her feelings for him. Because she liked him, she had to endure it, and it was only natural that her trembling couldn’t be hidden. 

It was already too late to hide anything—it was an undeniable fact. After all, it was a one-sided love. 

Carrying that lonely realization, she tried to pass by him—

“I want to comfort you.” 

Her footsteps stopped as if they had been waiting for his words. 

How unexpectedly light her heart felt. Even though it was obvious he was toying with her, she couldn’t help but harbor hope. 

In that moment, her eyes sparkled foolishly as she gazed at him—only for her shoulder to be suddenly grabbed. 

“The only comfort I know how to give is physical.” 

The tassel on her fur vest fell off in an instant. 

Thump, thump. Her heart pounded violently, and a wave of nausea rose from deep within her chest. Forcing it down made her throat feel like it was burning. 

“If you’re okay with it, I want to comfort you in my own way.” 

She wasn’t unaware that all he wanted was sex. It felt as though her insides were being twisted apart. 

Her hair seemed to stand on end, and her toes curled tightly, refusing to unclench. 

Her mind grew hazy as if she were losing herself, just like someone who craved sex just as much as he did. 

“Anyway, it’s just the two of us here. You know that, right?” 

He leaned down and whispered into her ear. 

Even though he said it was just the two of them, she couldn’t escape his mischievous actions. The subtle heat of his breath against her ear sent shivers coursing through her entire body—and she liked it. 

“Hah... Don’t do this.” 

And yet, she rejected him. 

Her body screamed for him, craving the boundaries he drew, even as she resisted. 

“Are you unable to lie, or—” 

His hand aggressively pushed through the gap left by the fallen tassel. 

It slipped inside her bra, cupping her breast fully, and soon his fingers crushed her already hardened nipple. 

“—are you pretending you can’t?” 

Then, rip. Her vest tore open and dropped to the floor before she could stop it. 

Her bra followed, swiftly removed, leaving her pale breasts exposed. Her pink nipples stood erect, as if begging to be taken immediately.