Chapter 7

Shin was sitting in the garden, facing the pond, and watching the colored koi fish swimming gracefully through the water. A cold gust of wind blew a few rebel strands of hair into his eyes. He let out a deep sigh and pushed a hand through his hair.

He kept thinking about the recent scene and his annoyance only grew bigger. Normally he would not have been so riled up. Even with his temper, he should not have acted so impulsively.

There was something about this Yoon-Yi girl that upset the balance he had fought so hard to obtain. There was one thing to get upset at an enemy who pointed the sword at you, and another thing entirely to act like that towards a girl who did not even seem to know the bloody calendar.

Shin let out another huff, hot steam escaping between his lips. The evening was bringing a cold chill in the air.

"What has gotten you in such a brooding mood?" a deep voice said from behind Shin, startling him out of his thoughts.

"My Lord Kim." Shin said quickly, bowing his head in respect.

"How many times have I told you not to call me that, especially when we are alone?" the man said, smiling indulgently.

"I'm sorry, sir." Shin said apologetically, looking at the man's feet instead of his face.

"Better, though I am not completely satisfied. I guess there's just no way of winning with you, now is it?"

Shin didn't reply, instead he bowed his head deeper, a small smile forming on his lips.

"Walk with me."

Without waiting for a reply, the man started heading towards the small stone bridge that crossed the pond. Shin followed him closely, careful to remain just half a step behind.

This was Kim Jong-Seo, seventy years old and one of the greatest men Shin had ever known; a reputable warrior, who had fought many times against the barbarians on the northern borders and who always came out victorious; a fearless general and a brilliant politician; but above everything else, Kim Jong-Seo was a loving husband and father.

Due to his kind heart, he had taken Shin under his wing, adopting him as his own when the boy was barely five years old. He had raised him with care and attention, teaching him the arts of war, and even how to read and write. Despite being low born, he had never treated Shin like anything else than a son. For that, Shin owed this man and his family, his life. He would do anything in his power to protect them, even if that meant giving up his very soul.

With a troubled mind, Shin was now following the man who he secretly called father in his mind. When they reached the highest point of the bridge, Kim Jong-Seo stopped and turned to look at the young man.

"Jun-Ho has told me the girl you two found is quite a handful." the general said casually.

"That is an understatement, sir. She is wild and rude and…" Shin stopped abruptly.

Kim Jong-Seo was smiling, the large sleeve of his dress robes covering half his face.

"And judging by the redness of your cheek, she is also violent, I take it?" he said in a teasing voice.

Shin looked flustered for a moment. Both his cheeks were now tinged with pink and he looked away, though the one that Yoon-Yi had slapped was slightly darker.

"I'm surprised you let anyone get past your defenses." Kim Jong-Seo continued in the same light manner, though something flashed in his eyes as he watched Shin carefully.

"She just took me by surprise." Shin grumbled, crossing his arms, still looking away in embarrassment.

This was the man who taught him how to fight and having been seen by him after getting slapped by a girl was definitely not a fun experience for Shin. He looked ready to melt into the ground if possible. Apparently, Kim Jong-Seo understood the young man's feelings because he stopped the teasing.

"I'll give you another lesson you should remember if you want to survive in this life, my boy."

He paused for a moment, stroking his silver-grey goatee with slow movements as if pondering something. His serious tone and expression made Shin lose all of his former bashfulness and he became fully attentive.

"Never contradict a woman unless you are prepared to face the consequences. That, or maybe put as much distance as possible between you two." Kim Jong-Seo finished, the corners of his mouth rising into a smile.

Shin's shoulders drooped slightly. He had expected something serious, something about life-or-death situations and instead he got teased again.

"Now, on a more serious note, I'd like to talk to you about something." Kim Jong-Seo said quickly, arousing Shin from his dejected thoughts. "Jun-Ho has told me you do not approve of the girl staying here for now. May I ask why that is?"

"I did not mean to be presumptuous and to… that is to say I…" Shin fumbled with his words.

"My dear boy, I may not have given you my name, but I consider you my son in every other respect. Please speak freely." Kim Jong-Seo said, nodding slightly.

Feeling his heart leap, Shin bowed his head and cleared his throat.

"I do not trust her."

"Any reason in particular?"

"We found her in a place quite far from the city, which is suspect in itself. We know there are a lot of spies sent by Prince Suyang in order to gather information against the Ministers."

"And you think she might be one of them?" Kim Jong-Seo asked calmly, eying Shin attentively.

"It is a possibility, yes." Shin stated simply, looking Kim Jong-Seo in the eye.

They remained quiet for a few moments, then Kim Jong-Seo broke the silence, shifting his gaze towards the pond below them.

"Then I might be able to ease your mind regarding this girl."

"Sir?" Shin asked in confusion.

"This morning I received news from the Northern region of the province. Two days ago, the household of an estranged family branch living in Jecheon burnt down entirely. The head of the family, along with his wife and son died. However, they did not find the body of his daughter."

"And you think she might be her?" Shin asked, skepticism all over his face.

"It is a possibility, yes." Kim Jong-Seo returned Shin's words. He was looking pensively into the water, watching the koi fish glide underneath the bridge. "I have sent one of my men to investigate. We shall have an answer soon. Until then, she will stay here with us." He concluded.

Shin nodded without saying a word. He knew Kim Jong-Seo would not have taken such a decision lightly, and therefore decided to trust his judgment.

Thinking the discussion was now over, Shin turned to leave when Kim Jong-Seo stopped him.

"One more thing, before you leave. Make sure you tell Jung-Hee that I would like to meet the girl tomorrow morning after breakfast. Hopefully by that time she will feel better and… calmer." The general finished with a pointed look at Shin's cheek. The redness had subsided, but it was still visible due to the whiteness of his skin.

Shin made a deep bow as a means of saying he understood and left. Kim Jong-Seo watched his retreating back and smiled to himself. His second son was finally starting to show emotion to someone else besides the family.

'He is finally growing up. Yes, he will make a fine man, a fine man indeed.' The old general thought to himself, a smile spreading across his face.