🔊 TTS Settings
Chapter 14
Choi Giman and Nahee turned around at the same time.
Choi Giman frowned, while Nahee’s face immediately brightened.
“Attorney Ahn!”
Nahee instantly got to her feet, shoved Choi Giman aside, and ran toward Hari.
Hari caught Nahee by the wrist and gently pulled her behind her.
“Are you all right?”
Nahee nodded.
Relieved, Hari turned her gaze toward Choi Giman, who had stepped out onto the wooden porch.
“An attorney? Our sister-in-law knows an attorney? Why’s that?”
Choi Giman cocked his head to one side.
Hari examined him with sharp eyes.
The whites of his yellowed eyes were streaked with red veins.
His skin was rough and dry, his lips cracked and peeling.
His hands were nothing but skin and bones, yet his belly bulged like a mountain.
‘Looks like he’s spent his life drowning in alcohol.’
Getting out quietly may be difficult.
“I’m still waiting for an answer. Has our sister-in-law glued her lips shut? Then you answer instead, Attorney. I’d like to hear your voice. Let’s see if it’s as pretty as your face.”
Choi Giman chuckled lewdly as he flirted shamelessly.
“I have nothing to say to you, sir. Please excuse us.”
“What? You’re nothing but a lowly attorney, yet you dare run your mouth? Now that I think about it, what kind of woman becomes an attorney? Ah! You’re that wench who’s been making a scene at the marketplace. You shameless bitch who destroys other people’s families!”
So he had heard the rumors.
Apparently he’d only heard the insults.
Without realizing Hari was the daughter of the Daesagan, Choi Giman continued shouting boorishly.
Letting out a quiet sigh, Hari took Nahee’s hand.
“Let’s go.”
“Go where?”
“First, let’s go to my office.”
“Right now? Without asking Mother for permission?”
Hadn’t they become strangers the moment she decided to divorce?
Even now, Hari shook her head at Nahee, who was still thinking about her mother-in-law.
“I’ll explain later. Ah… no, that won’t be necessary. There she comes—your mother-in-law.”
Madam Choi, the wife of Choi Champan, strode into the courtyard of the detached residence with blazing fury.
“What is the meaning of this commotion?!”
Hari pressed a hand to her forehead.
Every time I enter this house, things escalate.
‘This place has terrible feng shui.’
Releasing Nahee’s hand, Hari bowed politely.
Considering they would likely confront each other again later, it was best to make a good first impression.
‘If one side behaves reasonably, the other usually maintains at least basic courtesy.’
Of course, if the other side behaved like dogs, Hari had no intention of staying silent.
But there was no need to become a dog first.
‘Those lofty judges absolutely hate watching people fight like animals.’
“Greetings, Madam. I am Ahn Hari, Attorney for Madam Kim.”
“Attorney?”
Madam Choi looked back and forth between Hari and Nahee.
No matter how long she stared, she couldn’t understand how the two had become acquainted.
“My child, tell me. What relationship do you have with this attorney?”
“Mother…”
Nahee’s voice trembled softly.
Though she was a strong woman, Nahee had been born and raised in Joseon. Faced with the stern presence of her mother-in-law, she instinctively shrank back.
“Don’t say anything. From this moment on, every word Madam Kim says could be used against her.”
After warning Nahee, Hari spoke in her place.
“Madam, I intend to take Madam Kim with me.”
“What?”
“If you wish to speak with Madam Kim from now on, you’ll have to come through me.”
“Giman, I honestly can’t understand what this woman is talking about.”
Choi Giman stepped down into the courtyard and grasped his mother’s hand.
“It seems Sister-in-law intends to give up being part of the Choi family.”
Though her surname wasn’t Choi, having married into the Choi household meant Nahee was considered one of the Choi family.
Madam Choi had lived her entire life believing that once a woman married into a family, she should remain there even after death.
Even after hearing Giman’s explanation, she couldn’t comprehend it.
Or rather—
She refused to accept it.
Several long seconds passed before Madam Choi began trembling violently and spoke.
“How dare you… are you saying you intend to divorce?”
Her eyes rolled back in fury.
The hand clutching her skirt shook violently.
“How could you harbor such a monstrous thought? I cherished and loved you as though you were my own daughter! Aren’t you ashamed before our ancestors? Your husband is surely watching you from heaven!”
Madam Choi screamed herself hoarse while pounding her chest repeatedly.
She staggered as though she might collapse at any moment, and Choi Giman hurriedly held her up.
‘If that’s what she calls cherishing someone, another dose of that and she’d lock them in a cave.’
Hari sneered inwardly and tugged on Nahee’s hand.
“Let’s really go now.”
Nahee hesitated for a moment before following Hari.
“Oh, my son! Catch that bitch! Catch her!”
At Madam Choi’s command, Choi Giman lunged forward.
His pot-lid-sized hand shot toward Nahee’s hair.
But Hari moved first.
Turning around a step ahead of him, she raised her arm and blocked his hand.
Ugh.
A dull thud echoed as bone struck bone, and pain shot through Hari’s forearm.
Grinding her teeth against the pain, Hari stared directly into Choi Giman’s eyes as she stepped closer.
“This is as far as your reckless behavior goes. If you continue any further, you’ll have to pay the price. Can you bear the consequences?”
It was too polite to be called a threat.
And yet, despite lacking any obvious force behind it, Hari’s imposing presence overwhelmed Choi Giman, causing him to instinctively take a step back.
One corner of Hari’s lips curled upward.
Behind the fuming Choi Giman, Madam Choi had collapsed into loud sobs.
“Oh, what will I say to our ancestors when I die? Oh… my poor second son…”
Watching her stomp her feet and shriek like a wild beast was surprisingly entertaining.
“Don’t look back. Let’s leave. This family’s already doomed.”
Hari urged Nahee onward as her steps began to slow.
As they walked out of the detached residence, servants and family members stole glances at the pair.
Their eyes were full of curiosity.
But no one dared block Nahee’s path.
The two quickly left the estate.
Even after they passed through the main gate, Hari continued holding Nahee’s hand for quite some time.
Nahee’s hand was trembling ever so slightly.
She had resolved to get divorced, but now that everything was actually happening, fear had naturally set in.
Many women experienced the same thing.
Not because they regretted deciding on divorce—
But because of the emptiness and uncertainty that followed.
Only after they had walked far enough that the Choi estate was completely out of sight did Hari finally let go of Nahee’s hand.
Hari stopped and turned to face her.
As their eyes quietly met, Nahee’s trembling gradually subsided.
Having escaped the prison without bars, warmth welled up inside Nahee’s chest.
Along with it came a deep, unwavering trust in Hari, the one who had led her outside.
“Thank you.”
Those two simple words carried all the sincerity she had been holding back.
Hari smiled faintly and lifted her chin.
“You don’t have to thank me for something like this. If you’re thanking me already, you’ll probably bow to me after we win the case.”
“If it’s necessary, I will.”
“That’s enough. I’ll accept your gratitude as my success fee. Speaking of which…”
Hari stepped closer to Nahee.
After looking around to make sure no one was nearby, she whispered,
“Did you find the item I told you to look for?”
“Make way, please.”
Gong Chilbok pushed through the sea of people gathered before the government office.
Un followed behind him.
There was only one reason the usually quiet government office was so crowded.
“Is it true that the second daughter-in-law of the Choi Champan household filed for a divorce lawsuit?”
“If it weren’t true, why would she be here? Dressed in mourning clothes, no less. I heard she’s a widow before consummating her marriage (Mangmun Gwabu), so she’s pitiful… but divorce? That’s simply impossible.”
Today was the day of the trial that had thrown the marketplace into an uproar over the past several days.
“Kang Attorney, what do you think? Whose side do you suppose Lord Panyun will take?”
The people chatting were attorneys active throughout Hanyang.
“Obviously Elder Choi Champan’s. What about you, Attorney Yoon?”
“I agree.”
The attorneys all expected Ahn Hari to be utterly crushed today.
Deep down, they were hoping for exactly that.
The sight of a woman swaggering around calling herself an attorney disgusted them.
“When the hen crows, the household falls into ruin. Looks like both the Choi Champan household and the Daesagan household are headed for disaster.”
Attorney Kang clicked his tongue and muttered something that sounded more like a curse.
Into the group of attorneys standing with folded arms stepped a well-dressed, handsome man with a sturdy build.
It was Un.
“I think differently.”
Attorney Kang looked up at Un with annoyance.
The two were both men, yet Un stood a full head taller than him, which irritated him for no reason.
“And who might you be, sir?”
His tone was anything but polite.
“You don’t need to know that. Care for a wager? I’ll put ten nyang on ‘Attorney Ahn wins.'”
The men snorted and laughed mockingly.
“Sir, there’s never been a case where a widow was granted a divorce. That’s Joseon’s law.”
“So you’re refusing the bet? Afraid you’ll lose?”
“That’s not it!”
“Or perhaps you don’t even have ten nyang?”
“Hah! Fine then! Let’s do it! I’ll take your ten and make it twenty!”
“One more condition. If I win, you’ll apologize to Attorney Ahn.”
“Hah! Unbelievable. Fine. Deal!”
Attorney Kang accepted the wager.
Just then, Lord Panyun made his appearance.
