Chapter 43
As Namgoong Mucheon stepped out of Seolhwa’s pavilion, he suddenly stopped and turned his gaze toward a distant point.
Moments later, someone came running in that direction in a hurry.
It was Namgoong Cheongun—Seolhwa’s father—who had been searching desperately for her all through the night, even beyond the city of Hefei.
Pale and breathless, Cheongun came to a halt in front of Namgoong Mucheon.
He must have used light footwork, but he had still exerted himself so much that his breathing was ragged.
“Father.”
“Seolhwa is inside. I’ve told her to rest, so make sure she doesn’t leave her residence today.”
Cheongun lowered his head.
The guilt of once again failing to prevent his child from disappearing crushed down on him.
“Seolhwa said this: that if you tell her to starve, she’ll starve; if you tell her to take a beating, she’ll take it.”
“...What?”
“She said it like it was nothing. It’s hard to even imagine how she survived the past eight years.”