Woman

Against The Grain
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Lady Jung Yerin had gracefully accepted the Queen’s invitation to return to court. She never thought this day would come, seeing as two years ago the Queen Mother had issued an edict to banish her from court once her betrothed, the late Crown Prince Joohyeong, passed away. But now, here she was once again, stronger than before.

She decided to take a walk around the palace grounds to familiarize herself with the environment. A lot had changed over the past two years; the buildings were mostly exactly where they were supposed to be, but the inhabitants had entirely different roles to play now that they were under the reign of a different ruler.

While she remained cautious the whole time, she could see that evidently some people felt very comfortable in the palace. Approaching from the opposite end of the corridor was Lord Kim Jongin. He had grown a lot taller since she last saw him, but unfortunately might not have grown a lot wiser.

When the two of them got nearer to each other, Yerin’s maids bowed at Jongin whose attendants did the same with the noblewoman. However, the two aristocrats had yet to greet each other.

“Ya!” Jongin piped up and frowned at the lady, eyeing her from head to toe. “Why are you so impolite? Don’t you know who I am? I’ll have you know, I’m the Queen’s cousin. Who do you think you are? Why aren’t you greeting me first?”

Yerin was speechless for a moment, taken aback by just how brash and discourteous the Queen’s cousin could be. “I know who you are,” she answered calmly even though she was displeased. “Your lord father is a second-rank official in the government, isn’t that right?”

“Exactly! You should mind your manners and follow the rules!”

“That’s exactly what I’m doing,” she stated confidently. “My grandfather is a first-rank official in the government. Between us, I do believe it’s you who should be greeting me first.”

Jongin glowered at her and was about to open his mouth to retort. But then he saw someone coming their way, which made him change his mind. He decided that he did not even have to bother to say it himself — someone else was going to do it for him.

He, Yerin, and all their attendants bowed at Prince Jooyoung who was making his way over to where they were. Beside him were two of his tutors, who had just finished a whole morning’s worth of lessons with the Prince. Yerin could recognize both tutors — they used to be her grandfather’s pupils as well.

“Lady Yerin, I didn’t realize you had returned to court. It’s nice to have you back,” said one of the tutors.

“How have you and your lord grandfather been doing?” The other chimed in. “It’s been a while since we last had the chance to see him.”

“Thank you, my lords,” she replied with a polite smile. “We’ve been well. I will certainly send your regards to my grandfather.”

Jongin looked on as they conversed, continuing to glare at Yerin even after the two tutors had excused themselves. He could see that she could command a certain degree of respect at court. He would never admit it to anyone, but he was jealous.

“Ha!” He piped up afterward. “Do you think you’re better than everyone? They only cared to greet you because of your grandfather, not because of you yourself.”

“Of course, a lot of credit goes to my grandfather and his contributions to the country over the past few decades. What about you, though?” She questioned without raising her voice. “Do you think people bow to you on your own merits? Or is it simply because you’re the Queen’s relative?”

Once again Jongin looked as if he was about to fight, but Jooyoung intercepted and stopped him. “Oh goodness, stop arguing, both of you. This is making my head hurt,” he complained. He sighed at his cousin and then turned to Yerin to say, “noona, welcome back to court.”

“Thank you, Your Highness,” she replied. “I’m very pleased to be back.”

“I hope you get banished again,” Jongin cut in once more. “I don’t want to see you around.”

“Aigoo!” Jooyoung gave his cousin a shove in disapproval. “Is this necessary? Can’t you just keep your mouth shut for one moment? Don’t be so petty. Come on, let's go eat. I'm hungry,” he added emphatically, and then tugged at Jongin’s arm. Only then did Jongin agree to leave and be on their way to the dining lounge. Once they got seated, their attendants hurried to prepare cutlery and serve their food.

“Seriously, why do you bother trying to be nice to her?” Jongin folded his arms across his chest and stared at his cousin in distaste. “Didn’t you see the way she behaved? She walks around with her nose in the air and she thinks she's superior to all of us.”

“I don’t think it's as dramatic as you make it out to be.” Jooyoung shrugged. “Besides, my late brother seemed to quite like and respect her, so she can't be that bad. You know the one thing he can't tolerate is arrogance.”

“I thought your mother doesn't like her, so why should you?” Jongin questioned, but it only made Jooyoung sigh.

“Look, if I'm going to make enemies with everyone she dislikes, I wouldn't have any friends or allies anymore,” he stated. “Is there anyone at all that she genuinely likes, anyway? Apart from our relatives, that is.”

Jongin said after a pause, “you’re right. I can't think of anyone.”

“Exactly. So, I will not adopt her standards.”

“Huh, that's funny,” Jongin uttered. “I thought you've always been inclined to do as she says.”

“Well, I'm a grownup now, so I should have my own beliefs and opinions too, don't you think?”

“Hhmm, I don’t know,” Jongin replied with a shrug. “I just think it's wiser to side with whoever is in charge.”

“So, my sister? But you never listen to her.” Jooyoung giggled. “Especially when she tells you to study and read books.”

“Because that's so boring!” Jongin whined loudly. “Besides, what would I need that kind of stuff for? It's not like I’m ever going to be the one ruling the country, so it's none of my business. She should just let me do whatever I want; it's not like I'm getting in her way or anything.”

Jooyoung could only shake his head at that. “Good luck tr

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dtaylorz
#1
Chapter 14: Ow, what happened with the actress? :o
Jensoo4everlove #2
Chapter 30: Please update Author!!! This is so well written , please don't leave it incomplete😭
Oct_13_wen_03 36 streak #3
update please author nim 🥺🥺
Oct_13_wen_03 36 streak #4
update please author nim🥺🥺🥺🥺
Oct_13_wen_03 36 streak #5
update please author nim 🥺
lalalalisa13 #6
Chapter 1: awesome story! hope to read more soon🥰
Xa1jie11 #7
Chapter 30: Always hwaiting otornim. 👏
hotdog007 #8
heheheh still here authornim 😌😌 waiting with respect pi😎
LassKicker03
#9
Chapter 30: i have a horrible feeling that something bad is going to happen between joohyun and jooyoung. jooyoung's mother is deviously smart in that aspect but i just hope that jooyoung doesn't turn on his sister. thanks authornim for another great chapter
hotdog007 #10
still waiting pi, hope you are doing alright authornim🤩🤩