STVS 22

Chapter 22

Soyeon-ri.

―Her real name was So I-Yeon (蕭邐緣).

I-Yeon was the only child of So Yeong-Yeong (蕭煐煐), the youngest daughter of the So family.

So Yeong-Yeong died giving birth to I-Yeon. Her body, weak from the start, could not endure the labor.

I-Yeon lost her mother the moment she was born. Her maternal uncle, So Cheong-ja, took her in. Since So Cheong-ja had no children of his own, he accepted I-Yeon as his own and cared for her with devoted attention.

I-Yeon was always grateful to So Cheong-ja. Alongside that gratitude came a growing sense of guilt.

Ever since she was young, I-Yeon had been sickly.

Her frail body from birth had almost stopped breathing due to premature birth. When she gained weight, she often had fevers or vomited, and she had frequent rashes that left her in agony.

When a dangerously high fever once threatened her life, So Cheong-ja brought a renowned physician. But the doctor could only shake his head.

“I cannot determine the cause. No method seems effective… I have never seen a case like this in my life.”

The next doctor, and the one after that, were no different.

Undeterred, So Cheong-ja tirelessly sought ways to cure I-Yeon’s illness.

He gathered all the rare medicinal herbs in the Central Plains and personally visited any physician rumored to be skilled. Yet, despite these countless efforts, I-Yeon’s condition did not improve.

The first clue came only when I-Yeon turned four.

“So Si-Ju’s body is on the brink of collapse.”

This came thanks to Yeong-Ro Dae-Sa, the abbot of Musang Temple (무상사) introduced by So Cheong-ja’s physician, Namgung Jeong.

So Cheong-ja, who had been unable to find a cure or even a way to slow her illness, felt as if he had found a savior. He asked eagerly:

“Please, Dae-Sa, give us your guidance.”

“It’s simple. Usually, all things in the world exist in balance between yin and yang. Yin exists because there is yang, and yang exists because there is yin. Each force opposes yet depends on the other.”

“Yes.”

“The human body is the same. Even if one force dominates, a healthy balance is maintained. In other words, no person is made entirely of yin, nor entirely of yang.”

“Then, the child…?”

Yeong-Ro Dae-Sa sighed.

“She is made almost entirely of yin.”

So Cheong-ja’s face went pale.

“People with this constitution are usually born female. But So Si-Ju was born male, which likely caused frequent illness from the start due to the imbalance of forces.”

“That’s right. She was sickly from early childhood…”

“Of course, similar constitutions exist in the world. In such cases, it is common to give remedies that strengthen yang to balance the body. But for So Si-Ju, even that is difficult.”

“Why?”

“Her yin force has exceeded the point where medicine can compensate, and above all… her yin disperses the yang within her body.”

When So Cheong-ja looked shocked, Yeong-Ro Dae-Sa continued knowingly:

“When I applied some internal energy to examine her body, some yang remained temporarily. But upon rechecking, the yang had noticeably diminished. It was as if her body treated the yang as a foreign substance and expelled it. That explains why many physicians struggled. No matter how much tonic they administered, the yang could not be replenished.”

So Cheong-ja was speechless for a long moment, then, gathering his wits, asked desperately:

“Then, is there really no way? No method to restore her yang…?”

“There is no complete cure. However… we might be able to help prolong her life, even slightly. That is likely why Namnap (the speaker himself) was consulted by Namgung Si-Ju.”

“Excuse me?”

“Because Namnap has mastered extreme yang martial arts.”

Thus, Yeong-Ro Dae-Sa proposed the following:

First, dress I-Yeon as a girl and raise her as one.

Typically, men are accustomed to yang energy and women to yin. Since I-Yeon was male with excessive yin, her imbalance worsened. Dressing her as a girl would help temporarily maintain equilibrium.

Second, Yeong-Ro Dae-Sa would visit the So family once a year to supplement her body with internal energy.

For someone with such strong yin, an immense amount of extreme yang would be needed at once to maintain daily life—but her body was too weak for that. Even ordinary people struggle with sudden influxes of energy; for I-Yeon, it could be fatal.

Thus, he would administer just enough once a year for her to survive.

So Cheong-ja was deeply grateful.

“Thank you, truly, thank you, Dae-Sa! How can I ever repay you for this favor…!”

“Not at all. My skill is limited; this is the most I can do. However, there is one concern…”

“What is it? Please tell me anything.”

Yeong-Ro Dae-Sa hesitated, then quietly added:

“There is… something peculiar about So Si-Ju’s eyes.”

“Her eyes?”

“Yes. I noticed it from the beginning. The longer you gaze into her eyes, the stranger the feeling becomes. It unsettles the mind…”

“I see?”

Yeong-Ro Dae-Sa only shook his head.

“Nothing more, but you should be cautious.”

So Cheong-ja was slightly unsettled by the word “peculiar,” but he smiled kindly. There was no need to speak harshly to one’s benefactor.

Returning to the So residence, So Cheong-ja dressed I-Yeon as a girl and gave her the name Soyeon-ri.

From then on, I-Yeon became Soyeon-ri.

Living as Soyeon-ri was not particularly inconvenient. She was very young, and due to her illness, she rarely left her quarters, so no one suspected anything.

She lived year to year, receiving Yeong-Ro Dae-Sa’s annual treatment, and all seemed well.

Or so she thought.

“Miss, you’ve been kidnapped!”

That was before Yeong-Ro Dae-Sa’s fears became reality.

In fact, there were signs from the start.

“Miss So’s beauty is unrivaled!”

It was because of I-Yeon’s beauty.

She had been born beautiful. Perhaps inheriting the looks of her mother, Shandong’s most beautiful woman, I-Yeon grew even more stunning over time, eventually surpassing her mother.

Everyone who saw her could not stop praising her. “I’ve never seen such beauty,” “There’s no one as beautiful as her.” The words flowed endlessly.

At first, I-Yeon was embarrassed, but hearing it often, she grew accustomed. She also knew herself—her reflection in the mirror confirmed it.

And she liked her appearance. She enjoyed how people treated her as a noble young lady even without her pretending to be female. Everyone seemed eager to please her. Sometimes, she felt as if she were the master of the world.

But young I-Yeon’s pride did not last long.

“Miss, please look at me. Only me…!”

People around her began to act strangely.

It started with the attendants closest to her. At first, they regarded her with respect and admiration, but over time, desire became mixed in, and they began crossing boundaries.

Some begged for her love, demanded her attention, or even tried to touch her body. Some even attempted to strip her clothes.

Repeated incidents made I-Yeon fearful. The longer someone gazed into her eyes, the more they lost control.

She thought:

‘Is this really because I’m beautiful? Is something wrong? This is too strange. Everyone close to me is like this. This isn’t normal…’

Even when she asked Yeong-Ro Dae-Sa, he only said he didn’t know for sure, though he suggested it might be due to her constitution. Her strong yin could influence those around her.

I-Yeon became despondent. She avoided making eye contact.

‘I just need to be careful. If I don’t look at anyone… then it will be fine…’

She thought if she exercised caution, there would be no problem. But it was all in vain.

“It’s all because of you, Miss! Because you don’t look at me, because you keep turning your eyes to others, I…!”

The one who kidnapped her was her attendant.

I-Yeon liked him. He was competent, attentive to her picky tastes, and perceptive enough not to anger her. Most of all, he was kind.

He approached her when she held herself back, treated her warmly, and gradually earned her trust.

Perhaps, she thought, this attendant was different, could be trusted, might not change…

“Miss, we’ll be together, just the two of us, forever.”

But when she let her guard down, I-Yeon found herself locked inside a large wooden barrel.