Chapter 11

Sehun's grandfather stared at Kyungsoo, mouth slightly agape. He could not believe it. He gritted his teeth. Never. He would never allow his grandson to be with a commoner, and a painfully obnoxious one at that. He would make sure to do everything within his power to avoid the disaster.

Kyungsoo placed the dishes on the custom made dining table. The Oh family had changed their table setting into the western style, hence dinner would not be served in Traditional Korean way, the Surasang setting, which should be served with three tables and a hotpot.

Even so, the food arrangement followed after the traditional way.

Sehun’s grandfather watched the new maid serving the dishes like a hawk, but he could not find a single thing to be complained. Kyungsoo did his job perfectly; he placed the main bowl, soups and stews, red Sura, Gomtang, Goldongban, and a hotpot heated with charcoal correctly, with suitable manner despite the shocking entrance he made.

Master Oh narrowed his eyes to look for any flaw, anything he could use to scold the maid, but nothing could be complained regarding the maid's table arrangement. He diverted his attention toward the food, staring at the dishes as if they were poisonous. Finally he was able to notice something different from the usual dinner they usually had. Some of the dishes clearly were not made by their usual cook.

"Who made the dish? I don't need anyone to ruin my appetite. I don't believe food made by a commoner could meet my taste." He glared at Kyungsoo.

Kyungsoo chirped, clasping his hands over his chest. "Mrs. Cho made almost everything, but she let me make some of the dishes. I didn't have the courage to make anything made out of meat yet, master. I haven't seen that much meat in my life, I nearly passed out in the kitchen." The boy shook his head in disbelief, his braided hair bounced left and right.

"So I made the Domimyeon instead." Kyungsoo pointed at the noodle soup made with pan-fish excitedly.

"And the Seon also," he went on cheerfully, shifting his attention toward the steamed vegetables made with cucumber, eggplant, zucchini, and tofu.

"I'm good with vegetables, Master Oh." the boy nodded, feeling proud of himself.

"I don't believe a thing," Sehun's grandfather retorted back in a sharp voice.

"But I really do, Master. Believe me; I eat vegetables every day." Kyungsoo nodded in assurance, eyes shone in determination as if his reason was completely relatable.

Master Oh gazed at the dishes the maid made. They did look delicious, but they could be bad in taste. He stared at the fish dish; it was simmering, looking delicious with its colorful vegetables and potato starch noodles. He decided to have a try, so that he could find a reason to scold the maid.

He dipped his chopsticks into the fish, and realized that the dish was cooked perfectly he could easily separate the flesh fillet using the tool. Taking a deep breath, he put the food in his mouth. He knew the food was a first rank the moment he had the first taste.

Mr. Oh chewed slowly, feeling the luxurious taste spread throughout his mouth. He wanted to cry. It was so tender, so rich in taste he could feel his taste buds explode. Only his late wife could ever create this kind of delectable taste. He could almost hear the dynamic beauty of the Gayageum instrument being played at the background, celebrating the heavenly taste. Master Oh mentally gasped. No. He could not be defeated by food. He had to be strong. He should not lose his resolve by a mere dish.

Master Oh scolded himself, battling with his own mind that was screaming for more food. He stomach rambled, begging for more. It growled, demanding to be filled with the delicacies served in front of him, but he rejected in his attempt of maintaining his Oh pride. The smell danced around his air passages seductively, luring him to succumb into the temptation. He gritted his teeth, grasping his uncooperative hand holding the chopstick.

His stomach growled louder. He never thought that he had digestive system of a commoner.

He could not dive into a battle with an empty stomach, Master Oh decided. He mentally nodded. He could find another reason later, there was no need to torture himself. His health was the most important thing, after all. He gave himself the final decision and began to have more of the delicious food, ignoring the rest of his family members who were staring at him emptying his bowl fast, and taking more into the bowl.

Master Oh kept filling up his stomach, finishing the dishes Kyungsoo made until the last bit. He sighed in satisfaction, rubbing his abdomen elegantly. He had just realized that his family members were still staring at him by then.

Master Oh cleared his throat and stood up from his seat. "Not bad. Could have been better." He turned around and without looking back, he left the dining area gracefully, as smooth as the most respectable Royal Noble should be.

***

And so was the battle began; Sehun's grandfather considered Kyungsoo as his archenemy while the latter did not even realize he was being disliked. Kyungsoo was just too artlessly naive, Sehun wondered how he could keep up with his life all this time with his child-like innocence, unpretentious toward the world.

Sehun must admit that it made the one-sided battle very interesting to watch. Sehun's grandfather was losing an essential amount of his elegance, whilst Kyungsoo was not affected a bit.

***

One day, Sehun's grandfather handed Kyungsoo a large box made of Paulownia wood, marked with the Oh family emblem on the center. Kyungsoo took the heavy box hastily, wondering what he should do with the box.

"Fix that," Master Oh commanded him.

"Fix the box?" Kyungsoo cocked his head to a side, staring at Master Oh questioningly.

"Of course not. Why would I need you to fix a box," Master Oh scolded Kyungsoo, jabbing the boy his piercing glare as if Kyungsoo just asked the dumbest question.

"Fix what's inside. I wish to see it the way it should be by tomorrow. Do not let me down." He left Kyungsoo grandiosely after he made sure he had let out a sufficient menacing threat to make the maid shivered in fear (sadly not).

Kyungsoo dropped himself on the wooden floor. His chima was spread around his petite body, draping the floor around him with the pearlescent-blue fabric.

"What did grandpa ask you to do?" Sehun asked him as he approached the boy. He had seen everything from the beginning, and now he was filled with curiosity.

"Don't have any idea. Let's see what's inside," Kyungsoo answered lightly, his small hands began to untie the rope on the box and opened the lid. He sighed as he saw the beautiful fabric inside; pure white cloth decorated with simulated pearls. There was a subtle pattern of phoenixes on the light material.

Sehun took a short glance and knew immediately what the fabric was.

"It's a Holy Robe. Yae Bok. A formal ceremonial robe, symbolically to purify us externally."

Kyungsoo didn't seem to be paying attention at what Sehun was saying. He carefully took the robe out, spreading it wide to see anything that needed to be mended. The boy giggled cheerfully as he spotted the problem. "It's indeed a 'holey' robe, Sehun-ah," Kyungsoo laughed as he took a peek through a big hole on the robe.

***

The next morning Kyungsoo gave the robe back to Sehun's grandfather, tucked neatly inside the large wooden box. Sehun's grandfather looked so pleased and smug. Kyungsoo had to be desperate by now, he thought. No one could fix the robe, not even his most trusted person. The intricate phoenix embroidery that was missing on the hole-area made it impossible to repair.

A corner of his mouth was slightly raised as he opened the box and lifted the fabric inside. The smile ceased as fast as it formed. He could not believe that the robe was perfectly mended. He looked over the area where there should be a big hole in it, but all he could see was a flawless piece of clothing. The phoenix embroidery stood tall and proud, looking gorgeous as new.

"How..." he whispered weakly. He strengthened his tone and repeated his question,

"How did you fix it?"

Kyungsoo gave him a bright smile. "I asked aunty Oh to give me some silk threads and the silk fabric similar to the robe, and then I mended the tears with tiny running stitches," he lightly said.

"But the phoenix?"

Kyungsoo's smile dimmed a little. He twiddled his fingers in shame.

"I... I made that. I'm so sorry Master... I couldn't find any other way," he mumbled, embarrassed of himself.

"You... made the embroidery yourself?" Sehun's grandfather could not believe what he just had heard. He looked at the maid, who was nodding his head weakly. He ran his gaze over the fabric, straight to the phoenix embroidery. He failed to distinguish a difference. It was so well-made he could have sworn the robe did not have any flaws to begin with. He stared at the robe, deadpanned. After some moments of disbelief he averted his gaze toward Kyungsoo. He sighed. Without saying anything Master Oh left, leaving a confused Kyungsoo behind.

***

Master Oh woke up feeling a sensation of dryness in his throat. There was this unpleasant feeling of prickling that needed to be eased. Since it was in the middle of the night, he decided to not make a ruckus and get the drink by himself. He walked toward the kitchen, passing hall after hall soundlessly. He heard voices coming from the kitchen as he approached further. Someone was inside the kitchen, doing something he could not point out yet. He tip-toed into the kitchen.

A maid was doing something with pans, bouncing here and there while humming a song softly. He could recognize the bouncing braided hair from a mile away. And the bouncing petite body of the maid.

"Soo Kyung, what are you doing?"

Kyungsoo turned his back, and quickly bowed his head as he saw the person who was inside the kitchen.

"I'm deeply sorry to bother you, Master Oh. I'm making rice cakes," he apologetically said as he pointed to the steamed rice.

"There were many leftovers from the dinner tonight, and it is such a waste to throw away good food, so I thought to make rice cakes out of them."

"Rice cakes?" the leader of Oh family frowned.

"Ah. Not the kinds of rice cakes we usually have, Master. I learned how to make this kind of rice cakes from the television. We steam rice, and leave the rice to cool until it's good and sticky. And then we form the rice flat and round and again let them to cool and eventually dried. And we bake or fried them afterward; add just a hint of salt or sweetness, and delicious rice cakes are ready to be served as snacks, yum yum...!" Kyungsoo finished his long explanation with a raised voice filled with excitement.

"I don't believe you." Sehun's grandfather uttered the sentence Sehun often said with an identical tone as Sehun's. Kyungsoo giggled, showing the Oh family leader the brightest smile. He clasped his hands together when something crossed his mind,

"please wait here, Master. Let me go get something." he ran toward the other side of the kitchen, taking something from the pantry and quickly went back to his master.

"Here, please have a try. I made this last night," he chimed as he gave his master a jar of the rice cakes.

"Food from the leftover? It cannot be good," Master Oh retorted.

"Just try a bit," Kyungsoo said with a smile.

Master Oh opened the lid and took one of the rice cakes hesitantly. He stared at the food and took a deep breath before finally having a bite.

It was crunchy and delicious. master Oh had never tasted something like this, but it was tasty for sure. He took bite after bite, enjoying the crunchiness. The food was simple, but he could feel the sincerity of the maker.

"It... It is delicious," he admitted.

Kyungsoo smiled broadly, his eyes turned into crescent shapes.

"Thank you, Master. I don't have the heart to throw the goodness away." He looked at the rice cake jar in his hands and went on in a softer tone,

"I remember a tale about a dutiful daughter, living a poor life with his blind father. In the end she gave up her life to the Dragon's watery realm, trading it for three hundreds bags of rice to save his father from his blindness. What a sacrificion a person made to help her beloved one. We could not waste any effort no matter how small it is, and moreover, there are people who are willing to sacrifice their life to earn it, don't you agree, Master?"

Master Oh stared at Kyungsoo with an unreadable gaze. He sighed. "I lost." The soft smile on his face did not represent someone who was being defeated at all.

"I'm sorry, Master?" Kyungsoo tilted his head, giving Master Oh a quizzical look. Master Oh patted the boy's head gently.

"Go get me a glass of water, Soo Kyung," he asked softly.

"Right away, Master Oh!" Kyungsoo bowed and went to do the task hurriedly.

Sehun's grandfather watched the long braided hair bouncing as its owner prepared him the drink. He just realized that he had become so used to see the bouncing maid around him.

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