As True as a Dream

In fact, Hae-Joo picked up on Yi Ho’s dwindling mood and asked him if he wanted to leave, as if she were wandering.

 

When Yi Ho nodded, she clutched the plate she had been holding in front of him like a treasure chest.

 

She looked around cautiously, then picked up her fork.

 

She opened the lid of the plate slightly and used the fork to push the spider away with a jade ball.

 

After that, it straightened up as if nothing had happened.

 

As he watched, one corner of his mouth turned up in a pout.

 

Yi Ho wondered if this was what she’d been holding onto that spider plate for all this time.

 

He loved that Hae-Joo was as mean as he was.

 “Mr. President, I’m here to serve you.” 

A man in Song Yue’s staff uniform spotted them in the crowd and approached with a deep bow.

 

Yi Ho nodded and started walking.

 

Hae-Joo followed close behind.

 

Hae-Joo’s feet kept stopping as people shuffled frantically up and down the narrow street.

 

She even stumbled when someone bumped into her shoulder.

 

Yi Ho reached out and wrapped his arms around her shoulders as she stumbled, quickly pulling her to his side.

 “Why aren’t you running?”

He asks, and Hae-joo, pressed against his chest, stares into the distance as if in a daze, then laughs awkwardly.

 “I was trying to be noble, so I didn’t know whether to put the rice in my nose or mouth.” 

Feeling Hae-Joo’s hand on his arm, Yi Ho lowered his eyes.

 

He couldn’t see her face through the hat, but he could see that her ears and neck were pink.

 

‘Are you embarrassed? Why should you be’

 

He hadn’t let go of Hae-Joo’s shoulders because of the crowd coming and going.

 

There she stood, almost in his arms.

 

It was inevitable.

 

If he left her alone, she’d be thrown around again.

 

He looked down at the nape of her neck, where her head was lowered, and curled his lips into a grimace.

 

The hand that rested on her shoulder moved up and cupped the pink nape of her neck.

 

The dazed Hae-Joo immediately lifted her face.

 “What are you doing? Walk.” 

After a moment of strange sensation in her thin neck that felt as if it could snap with the slightest effort, Yi Ho put her arm around Hae-Joo’s shoulders again and walked forward.

 

When they reached the front of the car, Hae-Joo twisted her shoulders and slipped out of his grasp.

 

She opened the back door awkwardly and raised an eyebrow.

 “Ugh, there’s so many people, I guess they’re from the theater. Come in, boss, you’ve done a good job.” 

Yi Ho was still staring at Hae-Joo’s earlobes, his hands twitching for some reason.

 

He had the urge to pinch them.

 

He walked over to where Hae-Joo was standing, holding the door open like a personal chauffeur.

 

He leaned down and turned to look at her before getting into the car.

 

He reached out and took her reddened ear between his thumb and forefinger and rubbed it.

 “Looks like a bad case of iron poisoning. Can you just disinfect it?” 

Flinching, Hae-Joo looked up at him, then nodded like a feeding chick.

 “Don’t worry, it just needs a disinfectant.” “Yeah.” 

Yi Ho swallowed the grin that threatened to spread across his face and let go of Hae-Joo’s ear.

 

‘This is strange. Why did I want to touch it so much?’

 

***

 

The car sped through the colorful night streets toward the Iksunjeong.

 

Hae-joo was spread out in the back seat like laundry thrown across the room.

 

All the way to the party, she felt like a bird of prey, swooping down to imitate a tall crane about to have its legs torn off.

 

Her back was straight, her chin was up, and her face wore a constant smile the entire time.

 

In addition to being polite and speaking with a voice as soft as water, she also had to show Yi Ho proper affection as his fiancée.

 “…Even a good house girl can’t do it, I’m more tired than driving all day.” “You’re good.” “Because I really wanted to get caught with a book.” 

She didn’t know how to act like a good house girl at a housewarming party.

 

So she paid close attention to the girls her age around her.

 

She tried to mimic their posture, facial expressions, and vibe, and she thought she was almost successful.

 “I hope I didn’t bother the boss.” “You did well, from start to finish.” 

Vashish laughed at the clean, no-frills compliment.

 

Not that she doesn’t, she’s a quick learner at everything she does.

 

She’s quick on her feet and reads the atmosphere well, so she’s rarely criticized for anything she does.

 

This man had indeed found a pearl in the sands of Gyeongseong.

 

Hae-Joo leaned back against the back seat and squinted at Yi Ho, who had closed his eyes.

 

Outside the car window, Yi Ho’s face brightened and dimmed as the streetlights passed by.

 

As she stared at him, Hae-Joo’s eyes drifted to his red lips.

 

And his clean scent filled her nostrils.

 

The long lashes that tickled her cheeks.

 

The texture of his lips tasted sweet even though they didn’t taste of anything.

 

One thing after another filled her head, like a big hand pressing against her back.

 

Startled by her own rambling thoughts, Hae-Joo quickly turned away from Yi Ho and looked out the car window.

 

There was no time to talk about the kiss.

 

‘What am I really going to do about it?’

 

Hae-Joo pursed her lips and raised an eyebrow.

 

She had suggested it first and he had cooperated.

 

She tried to make a show of it, but then an accident happened and one thing led to another.

 

‘What was that guy really thinking?’

 

She didn’t know if she should just ignore it or question it.

 

Hae-Joo decided to ignore it because it wasn’t a big deal, but it was too hot to handle.

 

As Hae-Joo’s mind raced, the car slowed to a stop.

 

The car had arrived at the entrance of an alley in Iksunjeong.

 

When the car stopped, Yi Ho opened his closed eyes.

 “You did a good job. Go get some rest. We’ll talk about the princess’ descent later.” “Yes, boss. Thank you, boss.” 

Hae-Joo grabbed the handle of the car and opened the door.

 

But instead of getting out, she looked back at Yi Ho.

 “What?” 

He raised an eyebrow at her nonchalant attitude.

 “Boss, don’t we have something to talk about?” 

Hae-Joo glanced at the employee in the driver’s seat, then leaned closer to Yi Ho and whispered in a low voice.

 “About the fiancé setup.” “Oh, that.” 

Hae-Joo glanced back at the driver’s seat and pointed her finger at the streetlight outside the car.

 

She got out of the car first, then walked over to the light and waited for him.

 

When he finally approached, Hae-Joo cut to the chase.

 “What are we going to do now? By tomorrow, it could be rumored all over Gyeongseong that I’m your fiancée.” “Rumor that I’m what?” 

Yi Ho asked in a joking tone, as if her words were funny.

 “You may not be interested, but other people are interested in you, Ban Yi Ho.” “Really?” 

A few more people had asked since Yi Ho had declared her

“pièce de résistance”

to James at the party earlier.

 

He had introduced her to the crowd as his fiancée, and Hae-Joo had smiled in acceptance.

 

Suddenly, the stares that had ignored Hae-Joo at first were not only directed at Yi Ho, but at her as well.

 “Think about it. Anyone who’s interested in Mr. Ban could find out about me, and word will spread quickly about who I am and what I do. What should I do?” “That is certainly a possibility.” 

Yi Ho’s casual answer, as if he knew it was his business, made Hae-Joo’s chest tighten.

 

Surely this wasn’t something that could be fooled by Governor Saito and Mao alone.

 

If Governor Saito found out about Yi Ho’s engagement anywhere, the lie would be quickly exposed and Mao would continue her relentless offensive.

 

So it was better to take the opportunity and let as many people as possible know that they were engaged.

 

Yi Ho had guessed it would be this big when he introduced her to James as his fiancée, and he had prepared himself for it.

 

She was only afraid that someone would recognize her background.

 

She was a craftsman and taxi driver who had come to Gyeongseong to make a living after her parents died. 

 

Suddenly she became the fiancée of the owner of the famous Song Yue Pavilion in Jingsheng.

 

This story was very out of the blue and smelled fishy.

 

So now they needed a plan.

 

If they wanted to keep up the charade of being engaged!

 

It was time for Hae-Joo to voice her concerns once again.

 “It’s too late to ask you to agree to be my fiancée now, and there’s no turning back, so why don’t we make a contract?” Visit my Ko-fi for discounted advance chapters!!