WRL 8

Chapter: 8

“Try Nursing Him!”

“This is my home now.”

When Taeyeon got out of the car, both the driver and the housekeeper who had come out to greet her addressed her calmly as “Madam.” Before entering the front door, she took a moment to look around the beautifully maintained garden. At its center was a wide lawn, and along the fence ran rows of trees and flowers, arranged to make the space feel as open as possible.

On one side of the fence, roses bloomed thickly. Among them, one flower stood out—it was Juliet.

Is it really okay for Juliet to grow so freely along a fence like this?
It was such an expensive rose that even in a bouquet or floral arrangement, only one or two would usually be used.

“Oh dear, it’s not good to stand out here in the wind like this. Please come inside, Madam.”

The elderly woman who spoke must be Icheon-daek.

“Now let me see our young master. Oh my, he’s so handsome. He’s the spitting image of the Choi family. Just call me Icheon-daek.”

“Hello. I’m Min Taeyeon.”

“Oh no, I can’t call you by your name. I’ll call you Madam. Or rather, the Young Madam.”

Icheon-daek’s voice was bright as she carried the baby inside. As soon as Taeyeon entered, a delicious smell filled the air.

“They say women get hungry the moment they turn around after giving birth, so have some seaweed soup. I simmered the beef for a long time just for you.”

“I actually was hungry.”

She had eaten breakfast at the hospital, but whether because hospital food was unappetizing or because she had been too tense, it hadn’t gone down well. But the seaweed soup Icheon-daek made was truly delicious. As she mixed rice into it and ate it with kimchi, she suddenly thought of her mother. Her throat tightened for no clear reason, and she kept lifting spoonfuls of soup only to put them down again.

“After you eat, go upstairs and rest. You must feel awkward in a new place. Honestly, the Director is too cold-hearted. The Madam at the main house collapsed from shock. Still, she’s happy. They say Young Master Yunwoo looks exactly like him.”

Icheon-daek was smiling brightly while holding Yunwoo. She really seemed to love babies.

“Our Yunwoo is so handsome. The Madam was worried since he was born small, but look how fair and pretty he is.”

Taeyeon nodded.

“Yes… he really is handsome.”

“Oh my, Young Madam has fallen for Yunwoo already? Well, lots of women fall in love with their own sons. The more you look, the prettier and more handsome he gets, right?”

Yet ever since coming straight here from the nursery, Taeyeon hadn’t actually held him. When Icheon-daek was about to feed Yunwoo formula, Taeyeon stepped forward.

“Please give him to me. I’ll feed him.”

“Oh no, Madam. You mustn’t. If you don’t take proper care after childbirth, your body will be ruined. You don’t look swollen at all, but you can’t be careless. I’ll feed Yunwoo and put him to sleep. Just look at him little by little—you’ll be raising him for the rest of your life anyway.”

For the rest of my life… will I really be able to?

Taeyeon quietly watched as Icheon-daek fed Yunwoo. His neatly parted hair, his large eyes that seemed to fill half his face when open, the cute way he sucked eagerly on the bottle… Now she understood why people called babies “human flowers.” They were more beautiful than any flower.

Icheon-daek, watching Yunwoo drink, asked worriedly,

“Shouldn’t you go lie down? Is he really that cute to you?”

“Yes… he is. The more I look, the cuter he gets.”

The more she watched him, the more attached she felt. Every tiny movement and sound pulled at her heart. He was a baby who drew love toward himself.

Up on the second floor was the master bedroom. The bedroom itself, the attached dressing room, and the spacious bathroom beyond it—thinking that she would be living here with him made her chest ache. After looking around, she lay face-down on the bed. Everything felt unfamiliar and awkward. Until night fell, she lay there, not quite asleep, but unable to do anything else.

At least if she was going to pretend to be a woman recovering from childbirth, she should at least stay in bed.

When night came, Taeyeon grew restless.

Choi Hyunseo will come.

Will he sleep in this room with me?

Just thinking about sleeping with him made her body feel strangely damp and her heart pound. They had decided Yunwoo would sleep downstairs with Icheon-daek so Taeyeon could rest. Besides Icheon-daek, another worker came to clean and help with chores, but Taeyeon hadn’t even spoken to her yet.

It was late, but Hyunseo still hadn’t come. He was a busy man. And did she even have the right to be waiting like this? Still, since he was the Director, shouldn’t she greet him before sleeping?

Lost in such thoughts, she drifted off. Though she had been lying in a hospital bed for days, the tension had left her feeling even more worn out. Whether because of the soft bed or her exhaustion, she slowly relaxed. Thinking she would be living here from now on gave her a strange sense of relief, and sleep swallowed her whole.

She woke around midnight and saw the empty bed beside her. Reality settled in.

Taeyeon got up and went into the dressing room. There were long built-in wardrobes and a large mirror in front. It also served as a powder room. As she was looking into the mirror, a large shadow suddenly appeared behind her.

“Oh!”

“Why are you so startled? Didn’t you know this connects to my study?”

It was Choi Hyunseo. Wearing a comfortable sweatshirt, he looked very different from his usual self.

“Oh… I didn’t know. Director, when did you come?”

“Just now. You looked asleep, so I didn’t wake you. You should keep sleeping. Why?”

“No, Yunwoo drank his milk well today and did fine.”

“I heard from Icheon-daek. She said you ate your seaweed soup and your meal well too. Make yourself comfortable here.”

“Yes.”

“Min Assistant…”
Hearing herself addressed so formally felt awkward compared to when he had called her “Taeyeon” in front of her mother.

“I’ll mostly stay in the study. There’s a bedroom there too, so I’ll sleep there.”

“Then I’ll use the study—”

He looked at her as if she’d said something strange.

“There are confidential documents in there.”

“Oh… I understand.”

She had spoken without thinking. He had meant she should sleep comfortably in the big bed, but the study was clearly not a space he could give up.

“My parents think the wedding should be about three months after the baby’s born.”

“Yes.”

“We don’t really mind doing it sooner, but officially you’re a woman who just gave birth, so the elders say three months is proper for recovery.”

“Please speak more formally, Director.”

“Then you should too.”

“I can’t…”

“I’ll speak how I’m comfortable. That’s better for keeping some distance, isn’t it?”

“Yes… I understand, Director.”

“Then get some sleep.”

He said that and went into the bathroom. The sound of the shower started. Taeyeon imagined him undressing, and her body grew hot for reasons she couldn’t explain.

Am I the only one feeling this way?

A man and a woman alone at night, yet he casually goes to shower and tells her to sleep—even though they were bound as husband and wife in name. Still, there was a clear line. Employer and employee. To the world, she was Madam, but to Choi Hyunseo, she was only an employee. Being a “wife” was a job that extended even into the night.

* * *

A few days later, Oh Jinhui came to visit Taeyeon. To the outside world she was Taeyeon’s mother-in-law, but to Taeyeon she was only the Chairman’s wife.

As soon as she entered, she called out,

“Yunwoo. Is our Yunwoo sleeping? Grandma’s here.”

Taeyeon, who had been waiting nervously since morning, followed behind her. Oh Jinhui walked past without even greeting her, as if Taeyeon didn’t exist.

“Oh my baby. You’ve grown so much already.”

Yunwoo had become noticeably prettier in just a week. He ate well and slept well—it was amazing how much he grew just from drinking milk and sleeping.

“Has his day and night been reversed?”

“Oh no, he sleeps and eats wonderfully. He drinks a full bottle at night and sleeps, then wakes up right on time for his next feeding. He even sleeps until four in the morning—amazing for a ten-day-old.”

Oh Jinhui only looked at Yunwoo. She said not a single word to Taeyeon. Icheon-daek, unable to stand it, spoke up.

“Our Madam is so neat and gentle. Just being beside her makes me feel good.”

Oh Jinhui didn’t even respond. Then suddenly she said,

“Do you have enough milk? I value breastfeeding. I heard you don’t nurse him much. Show me your breasts.”

Taeyeon froze, unable to respond.

“What? I said show me. Nurse him in front of me. Let me hear Yunwoo swallowing your milk.”

Taeyeon stood there, unable to say yes or no. Oh Jinhui’s sharp gaze fell on her. But Taeyeon couldn’t bring herself to expose her chest and nurse in front of her—yet she also couldn’t directly refuse.

“Just a moment, Mother. Please… give Yunwoo to me.”

Turning her back to Oh Jinhui, Taeyeon took Yunwoo into her arms. With trembling hands, she unbuttoned her shirt and exposed her breast, guiding it into Yunwoo’s mouth.

Yunwoo latched on immediately and began to suck hard.