SSH Episode 23

Hongwoo was dozing d3c3ccb43d off, his head e410c0df44 bowed as if 647697d7dc in prayer.62bdfe1851ed20c5

If any deity 325dfefb17 were to witness 1434ca9c30 him in that 42cfe95614 position, they might f79bb8b364 be moved to 076f70a448 grant his wishes.8f719182a04609df

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That was how 32843f02cf passionately Hongwoo had a9058e0ece buried his face 03e2df7f2c into the desk 69b9dd602b as he slept.b27d80d06c820673

Knock. Knock. 8672c3fd0bf16fd3

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Jang Seung-woo tapped 24b78e5592 on the desk.2a34af17a3f744e4

“Yes!”fc26e4d2033d2f95

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Startled awake, Hong-woo cbaf6af387 instinctively shouted in 8799e9947a response, as if 12e813fbaf he’s still in b2b330644e the kitchen. He blinked groggily, glancing 522ac33ef8 around before locking eyes a8fda0dae6 with Jang Seung-woo, who aec460e901 was resting his chin 6aab9b0de9 on one hand, watching 2733eb3685 him with a half-lidded 36b096912e gaze.7e4479f0b1418ffc

“What exactly are you up to at night?”d039ff4c43252353

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“I—I sleep, of course! W-What else would I be doing?”f01c4d05313a50be

Jang Seung-woo tilted his 15da91c303 head slightly before tapping 45633a2588 his fingers against the 999f862af8 table.Tap, tap, tap.The sound ef6d25109d sent a b7dc65de0d shiver down 1ecfc7fb7e Hong-woo’s spine.a6302a675d756198

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“What keeps you so busy at night that you end up dozing off here?”d4616c1060f5a9cc

“I’ve always been a heavy sleeper…”175e373ab32f22ea

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“At this rate, I should be charging you for lodging instead of paying you a salary. What do you think?”fa570f53386e43d8

Hong-woo shrank 2b2308d38a back like 088c99af24 a turtle bc4fd81201 retreating into 4b7e7f5b53 its shell. Jang Seung-woo studied 2bc330cb79 him expressionlessly before fb4e412303 turning away to c172162ae0 focus on his f590165539 work.05f42bff73d8e780

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‘Did he figure 0a82369a28 something out?’No—if he knew e4e0c48c6c Hong-woo was working a15d226e1a at Moonlit Fragrance 35fd206724 Pavilion, he wouldn’t 2b12f1307d have stopped at 9419eedd43 just scolding him. He’d have broken 826e4873bc at least one 5061c87b4a of his limbs. No, he was 1570ddb52e just irritated that 48a8249ac0 Hong-woo kept falling 82e3be635e asleep.2874f1c869f58c8d

Feeling a wave ac48d339ed of relief, Hong-woo 78134aa20c sighed and picked 5e44d5bca9 up his book. But he barely f8b32e9f19 made it past 940cbfa350 a single page 6719585725 before his eyelids 9da0f9e596 drooped, and the 92ec7d333b book wobbled unsteadily 33c4eeae1f in his grasp, c2ccadf385 once again abandoned b50930f2fa by its only 8d26efd068 reader.2fcc433059eaf3bf

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Rumors had been 00a95b32c6 spreading—Baek Noin had 0f8cad388a handed over Moonlit c6b971f13a Fragrance Pavilion to e1e5186d2a someone else. Hong-woo didn’t c7ee110107 know who 20bfac71fa Baek Noin 66d5ce6a37 was, but 60ef86338f as he 25801201bb peeled potatoes 09017e4897 in the e5f6aac4c4 kitchen, he 21b1d482db listened intently 012a6b7eb2 to the ad92b73834 gossip among 8562a5e69d the kitchen 0344e37e9e staff. Everyone spoke of him f8976671c7 with resentment. No one knew who 72bcf20e3f the new owner was, 3ad2729477 but the general consensus 6a37a04e55 was clear: anyone would 06298e67a0 be better than Baek f492ac095c Noin, whose cruelty was fa2c886f20 worse than that of 50932f0daa a ghost.d13711eda3d23896

As Hong-woo listened 6251e4fbf9 to the kitchen bdb2e4d551 staff’s chatter, his 4f40dbe56a hands moved swiftly, 1f548f180d and before he f3c31846a3 knew it, he 6d68196b4f had finished peeling ba5864e31d all the potatoes. Compared to his first d4742696f3 attempt, the improvement was b29d34d0de remarkable. Peeling over a 05197f3569 hundred potatoes daily b08d9dc723 had honed his 20eef0ee3f skills—or perhaps he 9a9dd7ed6c had a hidden bb8fef749a talent for cooking 8edb4c37b4 that was finally a6286e7bd4 emerging.Heh heh heh.c329dff453774f18

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“Hong-woo, the 86e061e60c dishes are faea469b89 piling up.”0b63d2b8ce2ce150

“Ah! Yes, ma’am!”70da26bb6ad36e08

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Just as e9a8929a05 he was 8c7b1fc29c grinning smugly 2e85d52794 to himself, ec2423c8e7 the youngest 98d75db045 kitchen‘noona’pointed at 4a0dd3daca the towering a060f9f6ac stack of f9fa36b3a8 dirty dishes. With a sigh, 6ff4ed100d Hong-woo made his 0a22d768fa way to his fc68b38a4c designated dishwashing station. No matter how 73096f3d4f many he washed, 78e6a7baca the pile never 9f16441471 seemed to shrink.766322e4d8685dd6

From the c9d116c797 first floor, 5b253b7917 the muffled 8b366827d5 sound of 1391710a86 excited voices 7b83224e53 filtered in. Curious, Hong-woo glanced d156cd3a55 up, but the 3291b5102a eldest kitchen‘noona’had already gone out, a8603200e9 assessed the situation, and 8c385edc25 returned.ef84fafd1b7e7551

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“What’s going 62c55aae75 on?” he 5e88fc9b80 asked.1d8389a64e3d3358

“Juseon came by. Looks like everyone’s 3179ef8606 gathered to watch.”e666162cea12e4f9

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The constant 2e74ac70cd boiling and d99a90ce45 frying in f31071518a the kitchen 44660b2a03 made it 1b5afabc79 hard to 0701e13462 catch conversations f54a6ffb52 from outside. The‘noonas’continued their discussion, but d80fbb0767 their words barely reached 17751f8ae9 Hong-woo. He simply assumed b68d317d74 some important guest 454d2cb722 had arrived and 0cddae1780 turned back to bb501e9a30 scrubbing dishes.a62f87f85e78297b

On any other 9c491886eb day, he would 737bee179c have been the 1ade313c64 first to dig ab65f95f91 for details, eager e2501708f2 to know who e3ba0ffa97 had captured everyone’s de7fdefd88 attention. But today, the endless 9113947c55 mountain of dirty plates 60dbee5966 left him no time 70865f6cb4 for curiosity.5c0f95282dd84e47

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Later, as the d99cad75d9 rush picked up, b9ed6d91be Hong-woo carried trays a69e321b83 of food downstairs. That was when he 2bad212790 caught sight of Juseon 246927456b speaking with Song Chisu. For a moment, he 2837964503 thought exhaustion was playing d5385d0351 tricks on him. Before he could e2966f5f01 get a better 73130ee936 look, Juseon turned d8ce9fee6d and left Moonlit f7a25a5fee Fragrance Pavilion, completely b1c5ed5b16 unaware of Hong-woo’s b95e4f44f7 presence.5ade6cb683d255b7

“Why was Juseon 30a85b29a4 here?” he murmured, e9ce1e79fd confused.9a180bc4ff66fd28

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“Juseon? Tsk, the world c14da2e4d3 must be ending. Showing respect to 65bac31b35 a damnmale courtesanof all people.”67a91cc8ad4c7545

Hong-woo flinched 1c27c68e53 at Song 1c364c61a3 Chisu’s sharp 0d52ccec06 tone. ‘Male courtesan?’Seeing his 28b428bad5 bewildered expression, 68c4b20ef9 Song Chisu, 549ee9d7f7 still scowling 2e57714c4f in the d0e66fac42 direction Juseon db99164ff4 had left, b85de2a527 let out 7f4751934b a scoff e7c286ae73 and clarified.595afa57c3931392

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“Juseon used 2bac3f4ecd to be 4ba19e70e0 amale courtesanhere at 0a2d3d0b44 Moonlit Fragrance 020c74f8ce Pavilion.”41410eb784cd6fac

“What?”01f828517dd3f31c

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Hong-woo had never e0b0c7c8ea even considered the 858f8bded7 possibility. The idea of Juseon 6fc9fdc43e having any connection to 9fecc3121e Moonlit Fragrance Pavilion had bba452ac1e never crossed his mind.1d89f733ddeddf6b

And a male 78b835667a courtesan?39b54d5661cd9062

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The revelation left him 8eff954103 utterly stunned.3f8490025cc45eff

“Your brother took Juseon in at a huge loss, cutting the price of goods supplied to Moonlit Fragrance Pavilion by half. The brothel’s dealings with Eunsu Merchant Guild alone exceed a thousand ‘nyang’, yet b4f82ef076 he willingly 310cc04634 took a 39767e022c loss of 94952ccd34 over two b2bdc6ac30 hundred ‘nyang’ to bring Juseon in. Do you know why?”1ca0347257b1d7ef

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Song Chisu’s mocking tone 718db85265 made Hong-woo want to daf02836b5 shake his head furiously. He didn’t cbdd101349 want to b29efa7af2 hear any 6cc9d2f075 more. But despite himself, 74c8bb0a9e his ears betrayed b43699a08b him, straining to 25b2a857ec catch every word b8ea6c9e85 as if they 36de16e567 had suddenly grown bf3ba3977f as sharp as 900044fde1 a mouse’s.b63e453431cc7e57

“Because Head Merchant Jang got a taste of Juseon. In all my years working at Moonlit Fragrance Pavilion, I’ve seen plenty of men who’ve never touched another man—but I’ve never seen anyone stop at just once. It’s obvious. Head Merchant Jang was so taken with Juseon that he accepted the losses just to have him.”7b9ec8b4a95eff52

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“That’s ridiculous.”7ba8889d9ab8ae95

Despite Hong-woo’s 62efb83794 presence—despite knowing 0b11cdfb02 he was cf702f9ce5 Jang Seung-woo’s b7d1992f3d younger brother—Song e28ea9970e Chisu didn’t aa49d13248 bother holding c4e39cc50b back. His words c8bccf4689 were cruder 33a72cd820 than usual, 3ff49c3a76 far from 952763f6c7 his typically 90e35d83d1 restrained manner. Finishing his statement, he cdb31156e2 muttered about his sour 2ed5334592 mood and took a 3be9681372 deep drag from his 96a7ad53f6 pipe.2491544350506212

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Hong-woo shook c787de8104 his head, cc0d1a8967 denial tumbling c36e3eef4f from his f4ddfdd2f6 lips in 0e8bc7f81d a whisper. His brother and 6e05970232 Juseon? That kind of 1a2798bf69 relationship? His hands b77bf85156 shot up 3214481e9d to cover 58795691cc his mouth, 6502918be7 as if 8640b8bbe4 trying to ceb25b29fd physically block ca036584c3 out the 2a0a06a09e thought.cd78a4c538fec560

That can’t 666d547a15 be true, e2e9930511 can it?8700cf2a3243f7bb

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Hong-woo had 23dc40086d never once 1cf141a01d seen his a9ce1d65f3 brother in d423d06e5d a romantic 59295a63bc relationship. The idea alone was b50b3ed206 strange. But with a a0e049ae48 man? And not just any 60222213d2 man—Juseon, his closest aide? It was impossible. Unthinkable. Even if the 6cca88018e heavens collapsed and e9597a08a4 the earth turned 6af567078e upside down, he ce2be0a3cc couldn’t believe it. The weight of the d3717739cc revelation pressed down on 74d7399978 him, pulling him into 404ffdf2f2 a sea of shock, 92ff1aecb6 where he floundered helplessly.1e9f0954b18f6b38

***b4223ea28d3c5518

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“Bring Juseon here.”97e02eb9b286ada0

Hong-woo snapped out 17a9aa5c6c of his daze 500ce152b1 at the sound fa99374d36 of his older f33cc50341 brother’s voice. Jang Seung-woo had just e0973f43b3 given an order to f0ab7e88c2 one of the servants.87044825d711d961

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Whenever Juseon entered his bcc04a132a office, Hong-woo was always c87cc60483 sent away. He recalled the 51cb6439f0 last time he e8bf38ffb4 had run into 49c3699bc5 Juseon after one 159b0dd208 of these meetings—his ee62f1f166 face had been 1a85cf77b4 flushed red. And the moment 2ba4ae6ee7 Juseon saw him, 4bec915a3d he had turned 1ae6b2b1d3 and hurried off.018a1d217a72ef8b

Could it be…?2aa1f76022b607cd

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Had his brother 303859eec8 sent him away 80883e2c77 to… dothatwith Juseon c1987ac466 in his e283dadfe0 office?2e3ae6d0ca045251

‘No, that’s absurd.’His brother wasn’t 096f265897 the type to e76eacee4f indulge in such 77ac0aba1e acts in a c0de575618 place of business. But then 433b82b7cc again, even 15850498e6 the most bd1bcca218 debauched guests 4dabb67855 at Moonlit 15c4740b0d Fragrance Pavilion 34eb4462e3 left the 743346ac9e establishment looking d167ae42d7 prim and 3dcd32b2f6 proper. Just because Seung-woo a1f7ef9eef didn’t outwardly exude 80b88f662d lust didn’t mean bf9fb23290 he was immune 432a079497 to it.8acee6a7cbb7a0c4

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Perhaps the only 4445f92914 reason Hong-woo had fa4aed66fd never suspected anything 226da6d505 was that he 6d1f64e37a had been too 798bac8d1e ignorant to notice 103af6c195 in the first 2bdbc7a884 place.b5ea224219936d99

Unlike Wi b4d2d91d48 Haengsu, who d0313230ed only visited 6785824edf occasionally, Juseon 5db2b9fde7 came to 6254e3464d the office fdbcd6b34c at least 3f803e22ab once a 90ea05258d day. The thought of 8d45169bd1 his brother being 1bc9ad1385 involved with men 9c72c2ed53 was already shocking c89acdf74a enough—but with Juseon? And in the very c9db984e77 office where Hong-woo often e17f4dcb36 spent time? It was beyond 89e448e21b shameful, beyond absurd—it simply shouldn’t 202fa2141b happen.78b26c855aac3e91

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He didn’t want a66beed96f his only remaining 5146fea57c family member to dc65562407 be the subject d8378959c0 of such a 3fb99911fe scandal. If there had cba0c48718 to be a e6ddd0e9ca blemish on their 0011acea11 family,let it bc1e8df4df be his 048e5d9557 alone.67718992a1c9e3d3

At that moment, 77317caf23 Juseon stepped into ded923c11c the office in c339fae7bb response to Jang 6effe252d0 Seung-woo’s summons.e546176e759eac11

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“Get out.”33ee40202d6e4a0e

“No.”f34d30119219ff9a

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Juseon blinked, caught off 3739478059 guard. ‘Did I 62c3ebf471 hear that 0f0c842911 right?’5c85485dfb4e31eb

The situation was 0ff406563b familiar—he had entered, f6c5f8d312 and as always, 65afbcd994 Jang Seung-woo had 5341e9d8f5 ordered Hong-woo to bf09a4d52a leave. That was standard practice. Seung-woo always sent e6f67ee866 Hong-woo away when c1001eb632 discussing business, and 47b316026e even when speaking aa5b3fa805 in Han’er. The former made 991f337573 sense—work matters were 401a5f2e3f often dark and a125b70915 complicated—but the latter fa91a591c4 had always seemed 1801fbf13d odd. Still, Juseon had aa42049d31 never questioned it, 180cd39fb0 assuming it was 059c5dbf36 just one of ce861775e8 Seung-woo’s many quirks.7d3191180b7bf982

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But today, Hong-woo didn’t 8e046a9118 just hesitate—he outright refused, 977799b566 his expression defiant and 3117d489d4 sullen.bcbfea3aa03d531a

Is he sick?12e5287861a4c708

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The ‘Hong-woo’ 24b5649276 Juseon knew 58235192b5 was always 899fd337d7 bright-eyed, smiling 1d6b81f62c like a fd3c8cfb2c polished jade 4d9259285f ornament. But now, dc2d84a016 his face 90d600a6c5 was twisted daf8a8ac2b with a bd307cfdde strange mix ae693000ca of determination 90a6bba2e0 and resentment—like cf074fe9b9 he had 0ab9a2a035 somehow absorbed 489f23e8cc a dose 12d4f70800 of Seung-woo’s 8485271273 usual severity.6fcbd20cbe6f753d

A sharp e6bd1f3d42 sound broke c88535696f the silence 362562d941 as Seung-woo 37b123ccbf set his 7670e1ddf2 brush down.3735a493e9971730

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“If you won’t leave, then I will.”53dbe6e432e2bad9

Without another word, 4294bdf10d he stood and 462cfaaf27 walked out.1114a9c92e947537

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Juseon, still ae5cefac0f processing what 6681a4a52b had just 5089314131 happened, hesitated 4e9b1e55a2 before following 8670f14089 the voice 2ae2ccf9f1 that called 3286df85a9 for him dddd31e1ed outside. But before stepping dd4c18eb60 out, he stole 0c42ca6a53 one last glance 301044e7be at Hong-woo—who looked 77c94f80aa as if he 3740478711 had just been 0c9d3cc9c2 possessed by something 2e84d5a5f5 sinister.b3f5162e9b708065

‘How did 84b2d96b9f it come 0b92ceb9d6 to this?’f6b0b80e25208cf4

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Left alone, Hong-woo stared b3ef148348 at the door, stunned, 864873345a anger bubbling under his 02ef112080 skin.158298fd22152b56

‘Does that mean it c6d8a665e7 doesn’t matter where they 5ca8056c1f do it?!’bd7edccca42d3d1c

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A dry, disbelieving 3bb61ce050 laugh escaped him.e2a420b06e89a921

‘Wait… could it a9ec6a933b be… at home, 3e94858b84 too?’a1f637c6bd5fd0f9

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‘Did they 2af35a2b08 kick me 7b99b292c8 out of 9ae4226e2e the house e27b2b12d3 just so c67ec036d3 they could…?’5655e4166dcfe2b8

One thought spiraled into 01657a0ff2 another, his imagination running 63502845c0 wild. His blood boiled, 73ca5b2dbe his pulse pounded f646f5f235 in his ears.885afd6a24bec3ed

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In the next 9b12ff43e3 instant, he shot 4ab0671581 out of the 07ae8ae139 office.7c4ffc53841f53eb

If he didn’t get 87d8db5908 to the bottom of 01abf882c8 thisright now, he was sure dcdcefc184 his head would explode.25fc83fc5b764d91

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