Chapter 137
Chapter 137
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Translator: uly
Chapter: 137
Chapter Title: A Child of Great Expectations
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The Tang Clan had reigned as the longstanding overlord of Sichuan for hundreds of years. This storied clan possessed vast tracts of land to match its traditions and prestige. There were many Tang Clan members, but the land was far too expansive even for them.
It couldn't be helped. The Tang Clan's symbols were two: poison and hidden weapons. Everything was produced not from outside lands, but on the Tang Clan's own territory.
There were two kinds of people in the Tang Clan.
Martial artists and non-martial artists.
Martial artists trained in the Tang Clan's martial arts. That was why they were martial artists. Non-martial artists handled everything else outside of martial arts.
The Tang Clan had been able to make its name over hundreds of years thanks to the efforts of such people. They crafted hidden weapons, cultivated poisonous herbs, and raised venomous creatures.
Mines that extracted minerals for hidden weapons and workshops that smelted them, fields that grew poisonous plants, breeding grounds for venomous creatures.
All the non-martial artists who did such work were called craftsmen in the Tang Clan.
Strictly speaking, they were not of the Tang bloodline. Most had been outsiders who, after verification, received the Tang surname.
As a result, even if they married into the Tang Clan and bore children, they could not be considered direct descendants.
Dang Heeran's mother had been from the side branch.
"A child of great expectations."
The woman opened her mouth.
"Even among the side branch, her skills stood out. I wondered if it was because of her birth. She was born in a workshop thick with hot winds from the bellows, playing with iron from her infancy."
She was a child brimming with talent.
"If she had lived on, that child would have rewritten the history of Tang Clan hidden weapons. But in the end, she didn't. Things between men and women are just unavoidable. That nephew of mine couldn't keep his lower half in check, and she ended up pregnant."
Irritation crept into her voice. The woman rolled her thinly opened eyes and looked ahead.
"Your birth is no sin. The damnable part is that my nephew's wife was so narrow-minded. Even on her deathbed, no less."
Dang Heeran said nothing and bowed her head deeply.
She had long known the story about her mother. Her mother, a side-branch artisan, had caught the eye of the family head, Poison Righteousness Dang Tae-jin, and become pregnant with child.
Shortly after Dang Heeran was born, the family head's principal wife, blinded by jealousy, poisoned Dang Heeran's mother to death.
That was the whole story. The principal wife who carried out the poisoning was already suffering from an incurable illness with her life hanging by a thread, and not long after, she died with a satisfied expression. Outraged by the incident, the Tang Clan's great elder, the Poison Martial Marquess, commanded the family head to a marriage ban and accepted Dang Heeran into the family head's direct line.
"I didn't have great expectations for you."
The woman.
The Poison Martial Marquess continued. Dang Heeran could not dare raise her head under the sharp eyes of the grandmotherly figure staring at her.
"I didn't consider your origins lowly. It's just that you fell short of what I had hoped. Nor did I judge rashly. You know that well enough."
"......Yes."
Dang Heeran replied in a subdued voice. At her answer, the Poison Martial Marquess tilted her head ever so slightly.
"I've watched you since you were young. Bloodline is bloodline, after all—you were outstanding. But not quite on the level of your older sister."
"......I know."
Dang Heeran barely lifted her deeply bowed head.
Not far away sat the Poison Martial Marquess. The Tang Clan's greatest elder. A living legend of the Tang Clan, far senior even to the current family head, Poison Righteousness.
The Poison Martial Marquess of the Ten Heroes, Dang Sa-yeong.
She always resided only in her separate annex, so the Tang Clan members rarely saw her.
It was the same for Dang Heeran. She only saw her during New Year's greetings once a year.
The Poison Martial Marquess looked unchanged. Having achieved rejuvenation over fifty years ago, she appeared even younger than Dang Heeran or Dang Seona, who were of great-granddaughter age to her.