Butterfly Girl

Against The Grain
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When Queen Joohyun and Princess Nongyu met up, their respective guards were present too, trailing a number of steps behind.

Joohyun had heard from her brother that Nongyu was a bit shy, but she turned out to be even shyer than the Queen had expected.

“Do I intimidate you?” Joohyun asked lightheartedly, although she quickly realized that asking this question might have ironically made her even more intimidating. She had a reputation of being scary and aloof, and she wondered if her new sister-in-law also thought of her that way.

“I wouldn’t put it that way, Majesty,” Nongyu answered artfully. “Your Majesty has a dignified way of walking and talking which inspires great respect from me. My brother told me a lot of things about you, including how venerable a monarch you are, even though it’s just the beginning of your reign. Now that I have had the honor of seeing you in person and becoming part of your family, I would say I regard Your Majesty with reverence, rather than feeling intimidated.”

This made Joohyun smile in approval. “Surely the first thing you’ve heard about me is that I managed to turn down a marriage proposal from the Crown Prince of a powerful empire.”

Nongyu smiled too and nodded. “That’s true. My brother has never been rejected before — it’s always been princesses and noble ladies fighting and competing to become his consorts.”

“No doubt your brother is very popular with the ladies. He’s so good-looking that even some of my own handmaidens were quite mesmerized,” Joohyun commented. “And you, equally charming. Although surely you hear these praises a lot.”

“Indeed. Back then, at the imperial court where I grew up, people around me would tell me that I was the prettiest flower,” she replied, taking a pensive glance at the flowers around her. “But deep down, I would rather be grass.”

“Grass?” Joohyun asked, becoming more and more curious. “What makes you say so?”

“Because then I wouldn’t catch anybody’s attention,” Nongyu explained ruefully. “I wouldn’t have to compete with other flowers. And more importantly, no one would try to pluck me or harm me.”

Joohyun agreed that being the center of attention could at times be more of a curse than a blessing. Especially as members of the ruling family, they could easily become targets of assassination attempts or other plots that could bring harm to them. She could imagine that Nongyu must have also endured a lot of this kind of pressure.

“Despite the misfortunes you’ve had in the past,” said Joohyun. “I certainly hope that you can feel safer here, especially now that you and Jooyoung are legally wedded.”

“I am thankful to Your Majesty for orchestrating this marriage.”

“How has Jooyoung been treating you these days?” She asked. “I know he can be such a child at times. He always expects people to look after him. I do sometimes worry he isn’t taking good care of you.”

“The Prince is very kind to me,” Nongyu answered meekly. “He never gives me a difficult time. I can tell that he makes efforts to make me happy. I can’t ask for better.”

“No, you should always keep asking for better,” Joohyun stated. “Men demand too much from us and provide too little in return. Within reasonable bounds, I don’t see why you shouldn’t push — or to put it more softly, encourage — him to constantly strive to do better.”

“Is that why Your Majesty has been nurturing him to become an assiduous scholar and politician?”

“Partly,” answered Joohyun. “But it’s also because I wasn’t the least bit ready when I came to take the throne. Or should I say, when the throne was passed down to me. The crown was never meant to be mine to wear,” she explained. “So now, I can only hope to prepare him the best that I can. I am going to give him a huge responsibility, after all.”

“Then I hope I can assist His Highness in meeting Your Majesty’s expectations. I’ll contribute in whatever capacity,” Nongyu offered. “This way, he won’t let you down. I’m confident that he would like to become someone you can be proud of.”

“In that case, I should be the one thanking you,” Joohyun replied. “There’s no way you haven’t realized that you mean a lot to him. This implies you have a lot of influence over him, just as our cousin Jongin does. Whereas Jongin gets him into all sorts of trouble, I would like you to use your influence wisely. You understand what I’m saying?”

Nongyu nodded obediently. “Yes, Majesty. I will do my best.”

Quite some time had passed since the archery contest that Queen Joohyun held and won. But her courtiers had not forgotten about the purpose of that contest: for their Queen to be courted by one of her suitors. However, she was still single, and this did not sit well with some members of her council. One of them was her uncle, Lord Kwon, whose voice had never failed to generate echoes from other advisors on the council.

“Majesty,” he began solemnly. “Please understand that it is in the nation’s best interests for you to get married and beget an heir. If the men wh

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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 35 streak #3
update please author nim 🥺🥺
Oct_13_wen_03 35 streak #4
update please author nim🥺🥺🥺🥺
Oct_13_wen_03 35 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🤩🤩