Why did he not return?

Sung Tae started laughing which confused Yoon Shik and Sunwo. Even Lee Eunshi gazed at him confusedly. Stopping his laughter, Sung Tae, "Forgive me. Sunwo, he is not a girl who must not be stay outside even in the late evening. You are getting worried for no reason," Sung Tae told him and went to the bed.

"Sung Tae, you are not getting my point. Do Yeong never stays outside this late. You also know that," Sunwo told him and sat beside him. Lee Eunshi turned his back towards them as he was getting sleepy.

"Don't worry, he will come. Let's write the essays for tomorrow else marks will be deducted if we not complete them," Sung Tae suggested and then looked at Yoon Shik.

"Are your hands still bad? Do you want to help you?" Sung Tae offered his help to Yoon Shik who refused right away.

"No need. I can write myself," Yoon Shik said. He went to the floor desk and sat in front of it, on a mattress.

"See, if I try to help him, he gets rude to me," Sung Tae muttered. Yoon Shik glared at him and started making the ink on the inkstone on the table. Sunwo and Sung Tae too stood up from the bed, went to their respective desks.

"Eunshi, have you finished writing?" Sunwo asked.

"Yes."

Sunwo nodded and the trio started writing. Sung Tae was done with the essay when he saw Yoon Shik was struggling to write. He was not even half done. Moreover, his wound had opened up as blood stain appeared on the bandage.

"You must stop. Your wound is again bleeding," Sung Tae said worriedly. But Yoon Shik did not listen to him instead, he kept writing. Sung Tae stood up and went near Yoon Shik's desk. Bending on his knees, he snatched away the brush from him.

"What are you doing? Give my brush back," Yoon Shik angrily said. Sunwo put the brush down as he had also completed the essay writing and looked at them. "Yoon Shik, do you want your hand to stop working forever?" Sunwo questioned him out of sudden.

"No," answered Yoon.

"Then stop writing. You should not overuse it unless you want to lose it forever," Sunwo opined.

"You three cannot stop speaking," Lee Eunshi said as he sat up on the bed and turned to look at them.

"We are sorry for disturbing your sleep. We will not do anything like this anymore so, you should sleep," Sunwo stated with a tiny smile. He went near the window and looked outside.

"By the way night has fallen and Yeong has not returned," Sunwo told them.

"He had gone out earlier," Lee Eunshi replied.

"What? Where?" Sunwo asked him.

"I did not ask him. Like others he might have gone to the bookstore," opined Lee Eunshi.

"Shall we go there to find him?" Yoon Shik asked.

"Late night outs are forbidden on Friday. We might get punished," Lee Eunshi opined. "If he will not return before dinner time then his marks will be deducted," he further added.

"He will come back. Sunwo, you are thinking too much," Sung Tae proclaimed and went near him.

"You are not understanding. Yeong is not a careless person. If his father had called for then, his servant had told me but he did not." Sunwo anxiously told them. Yoon Shik got up from the mattress. "Let's go out and find him but, before that we will ask his servant then we will do anything further," Yoon Shik proclaimed.

"You two have lost your minds. Going out of Sungkyunkwan is not easy as it seems that too on a day when it is forbidden. Other days are fine but today if we will step out, we might get punished." Lee Eunshi tried making Sunwo and Yoon Shik understand.

"But why has not Yeong returned?" Sunwo questioned him.

"Ask his servant. He might know," Lee Eunshi muttered annoyingly.

"Don't start fighting. Listen, let's first ask his servant about his whereabouts then we will see what we have to do," Yoon Shik stated. Sung Tae walked out of the room and saw Yeong's servant standing there along with three others. "Come in," Sung Tae ordered him and went in.

The servant named, Mak Bo, came inside. His head was lowered as it was forbidden to look in the eyes of people who were higher in status. "Did Yeong-aa told you where he was going?" Sung Tae asked Mak Bo. Rest others also looked at him.

"Young master told me that he is going to the bookstore in the capital," Mak Bo replied.

"Then, why did you not go with him?" Sunwo questioned him.

"Young master said that he was just going to take a book so, he forbade me to accompany him," Mak Bo answered.

"You can leave," Sung Tae told him. Mak Bo bowed his head before leaving. They all looked at each other. "He has gone out to just take a book then he might have returned by now. Something is wrong. We have to go and find him," Sunwo told them.

"After dinner because attendance is also important. But if Yeong will not be there to give the attendance then, the head warden will come to the room to check him." Sung Tae said worriedly.

"One of us will lay down on Yeong's bed, covering from a blanket and will say to warden that he is sick," Sunwo opined.

Yoon Shik raised a question in that. "Why do we not just inform the Head Chief about it? That would be a best way to find him instead of going through all these things."

"He will be punished for not coming early. The punishment is more severe for this. Above all, his father will get angry at him for no reason," Sunwo asserted.

"The biggest question is why did he not return? If he had called by his father then his servant would have been informed. Sunwo, are you implying that someone has harmed him?" Lee Eunshi questioned him.

"I guess so as he has returned till now," Sunwo answered.

"Let's wait till the dinner time. After that we will see what to do." Lee Eunshi suggested. They all agreed with him. The three drum beats for dinner was played. They went to the cafeteria to have dinner and give their attendances there.