Today, Darling and I went out horseback riding. Darling had Jane ride in front of him on his horse, Luca.

Darling sat behind Jane, holding the reins. Jane's small body was nestled in Darling's embrace.

"From this place to that distant, gently sloping hill near the bamboo forest, that's our wedding gift."

Darling pointed at the rice paddies as he spoke. Every time Darling spoke, his warm breath brushed against Jane's nape.

"500 acres is a lot, Darling. What are you planning to do with it?"

"Hmm."

Darling fell silent, as if he was thinking about something. 

When Jane turned to look at him, Darling's eyes were narrowed, and his lips were slightly pursed as he seemed to be formulating a plan.

Jane giggled, her small teeth showing. Darling seemed to like this too, as he smiled, revealing his teeth.

"I'll plant 200 acres with rice for your favorite dish."

"Mmm-hmm."

Jane nodded in agreement.

"And on the other 300 acres, I'll plant only the flowers you like. What kind of flowers do you like, Jane?"

Jane burst into laughter at Darling's words.

"What? Don't you believe Darling's words?"

Darling pouted like a child, pretending to be upset. Then he smiled at Jane.

"I know Darling loves Jane, but someone like Darling wouldn't actually do that."

"Look at that. Darling's wife knows his heart so quickly."

"Of course, Darling. Jane loves Darling so much that she watches his every move."

"Alright, alright. As Jane says, we'll plant rice on 200 acres, and on each of the 100-acre plots, we'll plant beans, wheat, and corn."

Jane held Darling's hands and gently stroked his slender fingers.

"Our region can't grow crops during the winter. We need food supplies for the entire winter. But we can find game in the forest."

It seemed like Darling only had his territory in mind.

Darling was a warm person, especially when it came to his territory.

"Darling, I love you so much."

Jane kept murmuring "I love you" to Darling, but Darling never said "I love you" even once.

However, Jane knew Darling loved her through his attentiveness.

Jane and Darling entered the bamboo forest. The sounds of tailorbirds chirping, the rustling of bamboo leaves swaying in the breeze, and the sound of horse hooves stepping on dry leaves were the only noises in the bamboo forest.

"This place is lovely, isn't it, Darling?"

"Hmm. Yes, Jane. This is Darling's favorite place."

"Darling's favorite place?" Jane liked it too.

Reaching a fork in the road, Darling turned onto the right path.

Darling greeted some people who were cutting bamboo along the way.

Leaving the bamboo forest behind, they reached a slightly higher hill. Darling rode the horse through the trees.

Reaching a certain spot, Jane saw a traditional house nestled among the trees.

Jane knew that this was Darling's destination.

Darling stopped the horse before reaching the front of the house and dismounted.

Jane hadn't gotten off yet, waiting for Darling to carry her down.

Darling held Jane's waist and lifted her down. Jane held both of Darling's shoulders to make it easier for him.

Darling's face and Jane's face drew close.

Jane's heart was pounding. Darling was probably the same; he lowered his head slightly.

When Darling entered the house, an elderly woman who looked to be over 70 was weaving a rattan basket.

"Grandmother."

At Darling's call, the grandmother looked up from her work. A smile spread across her face.

"Young Lord, you've come to visit?"

She looked at Jane curiously and said in a soft voice, "This must be the Young Mistress."

Darling took Jane's hand and led her in front of the grandmother.

"Isn't my wife beautiful, Grandmother?"

Jane smiled, pleased by Darling's words.

"Beautiful indeed, Young Lord, beautiful. You two are a perfect match."

Darling liked the grandmother's words and laughed like a child. Then he turned to Jane.

"This is Grandmother, the midwife who delivered me. I used to live in the manor when I was young, but she wanted to come back here, so I let her."

"Yes, it's a pleasure to meet you, Grandmother. I'm Jane, Darling's wife."

The grandmother held Jane's hand.

"Do you love Darling very much, my dear Jane?

The grandmother looked at her with a dazed expression, but her eyes were deep, almost pleading.

"Yes, I do, Grandmother. I love Darling very much."

The grandmother sighed softly, as if relieved.

"Never leave Darling, my dear. Your Darling is pitiful."

Jane didn't understand what the grandmother meant. When she looked at Darling, he was looking at Jane with an unreadable expression.

"Jane will never leave Darling, Grandmother."

The grandmother patted Jane's hand, touched her forehead, and then murmured a prayer, as if blessing something.

"Jane, let's have lunch here."

Darling said unexpectedly. As far as Jane could see, Darling didn't have any food with him.

However, Darling sat down firmly on the wooden platform in front of the house.

What was Darling waiting for?

Lost in thought, Jane looked in the direction Darling was looking and saw a person riding a horse towards them at full speed.

As they got closer, it turned out to be Roza Beni.

"Yaa! Didn't I tell you not to let anyone know if you came near our territory?"

Roza jumped off her horse and yelled at Darling. Jane was startled. Darling, however, smiled charmingly, revealing his teeth, as usual.

"I came secretly, you know. I didn't even meet anyone on the way."

"Secretly, my foot! The villagers have been packing food bundles since they heard you were coming. Our house is overflowing with them!"

Was Darling such a beloved leader?

As Roza spoke, she unloaded bundles wrapped in cloth from the horse. Jane saw that there were many bundles.

After unloading the bundles, Roza sat down on the wooden platform and roughly tore off the straw wrapping.

Looking at what was wrapped in the cloth, Jane saw four bundles of rice topped with meat curry, one bundle of fried vegetables, two bundles of rolled omelets, and a whole fish grilled with salt.

The food was still piping hot. As soon as the bundles were opened, steam billowed out.

Darling watched with a big smile as Roza eagerly unwrapped the bundles.

"Alright, start eating! I'm going to eat too. Jane, come on."

Darling held Roza's hand, stopping her as she reached for a rice bundle.

Jane watched Darling's actions with surprise.

Darling glanced at Roza's horse.

Roza's tense face immediately turned into a flattering one.

Jane laughed, amused by Roza's change in expression.

"That's the fee for bringing you the food bundles, ha!"

What was Roza talking about? Jane was enjoying the interaction between the two siblings.

Darling seemed to feel sorry for Roza's pitiful face.

"This is the only time, okay? Next time, I'm reporting you to your village."

Roza grinned, showing all 32 of her teeth.

"Alright, alright. This is my chance to appease her anyway."

Jane didn't understand anything.

After laughing at Roza, Darling took a rice bundle topped with curry and offered it to Jane.

Roza took a rice bundle and started eating quickly and greedily.

Darling was carefully removing the bones from the fish in Jane's rice bundle.

"You like this fish, don't you, Jane?"

Jane was happy. Darling paid attention to even the smallest details about her.

Just then, the grandmother came out carrying three bowls of soup. Darling respectfully took them, picked one up for Jane, and placed it in front of her.

Roza snatched a bowl, blew on it loudly, and then gulped it down.

Jane tried a mouthful of rice, and it was delicious. Darling seemed to know that Jane liked it.

"That's chicken curry with a little bit of spice. Can you eat it, Jane?"

Jane's cheeks were puffed out as she was eating. She nodded at Darling. Darling touched Jane's chubby cheek.

"Jane is so adorable."

Jane was overjoyed by Darling's words.

After finishing her meal, Roza scooped water from the water jar in front of the house and washed her hands. She took a big gulp of water. Her wavy, light golden hair danced with every movement she made.

A lovable girl like Roza was lovable no matter how rough she was.

"I'm leaving."

"Tell Sister Jisu that I said hi!"

Jane didn't know if Roza could hear Darling's shout.

Roza had already gone far.

Every time Jane ate, Darling took care of her, putting food on her plate. Because of Darling, Jane didn't even realize how quickly she finished her meal.

"What were you two communicating with in code just now?"

Darling was wiping Jane's washed, damp hands with a cloth given by the grandmother.

When Jane said she would do it herself, Darling insisted on doing it for her.

"That girl is going to try and appease Sister Jisu."

"Huh?"

"Oh, Jane hasn't figured it out yet. You know the left fork in the bamboo forest we passed? That's Kenji's territory."

"Oh, it's so close."

"Yeah. Roza secretly took the whole roasted chicken that the village packed for Darling and went to Sister Jisu with it."

Jane finally understood. Darling and his sister had a silent understanding.