Chapter 289
Chapter 289
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 289
Chapter Title: Shanxi Wine King Victor
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The winner of the Shanxi Wine King Contest had been decided.
But Byuk Jangho, the man at the center of it all, still stood there awkwardly in disbelief even after hearing the announcement.
Then.
"What are you doing?"
Cheon Sumyeong's words snapped him out of it.
"Off you go now. All these cheers are for you."
Only then did it finally sink in for Byuk Jangho.
That this massive crowd's cheers and applause were all for him.
Finally moving his legs, Byuk Jangho headed to the center and exchanged greetings with Mak Rinpyeong.
"Congratulations. Among all the liquors I've savored in recent times—no, in my entire life—this had the most memorable flavor."
"Th-thank you."
"I thought most of Shanxi's brewers knew I loved my liquor, but I never imagined a talent like you was still unknown."
"It's not been long since I inherited my father's brewery. It's only natural you wouldn't know, Lord Mak."
"A newcomer, eh? That explains it."
Mak Rinpyeong nodded, then suddenly backtracked on his words.
"Wait. Your father's brewery? Does that mean your father was a brewer too?"
"Yes."
"Mind if I ask his name?"
"Byeok Gye Ja Ju."
Mak Rinpyeong's eyes widened as he slapped his palm with his fist in admiration.
"So the Spring Season Brewer was your father!"
"He was sometimes called by that title."
"Kuhahaha! Of course! They say there's no pup from a tiger sire, and now a new tiger has emerged in Shanxi!"
Byuk Jangho waved his hands embarrassedly at the praise.
"You're too kind. I still have much to learn..."
"Have some confidence. I've tasted most of the liquors your father brewed, yet none moved me like that Sogyo Brew."
Mak Rinpyeong beckoned to the beauty, who respectfully brought something over.
He took it and promptly handed it to Byuk Jangho.
It was a wooden plaque engraved with "Shanxi Wine King."
"From this day forward, you are Shanxi's foremost brewer. Representing Shanxi Fortress, I expect great results at the Manchu Grand Banquet."
Byuk Jangho expressed his gratitude, still staring dazedly at the plaque.
'A win...'
It was still hard to believe.
After his father passed, he'd spent long days worrying if he could truly carry on the brewery that felt so empty.
But brewing was all he'd seen and learned his whole life, and nothing brought him more joy than crafting liquor and seeing the delighted faces of those who savored it. That left him no choice but to walk this path.
Truth be told, he hadn't had much confidence.
The brews he'd made since weren't plentiful, shared only with the tiny village folk.
They might praise him, but the wide world's reactions could be ice-cold.
Yet the spark that filled that lack of confidence had been...
'Hero Hyeok's words.'
The first from the wide world beyond the village to taste his liquor was Hyeok Mulin.
Byuk Jangho could only be grateful.
The encouragement and support he'd never forget in his lifetime had followed.
Without meeting him at that inn, he'd probably be in the crowd now, clapping dryly with a bitter face.
So in this moment, he sought out Hyeok Mulin—the first person who came to mind, the one he was most thankful to.
"Hero Hyeok, thank you for the help beyond words."
"This is solely the result of your own skill."
"No. I know well that if I'd stayed here alone, I couldn't have achieved anything. The grace you've shown me, I'll repay without forgetting it my whole life."
Byuk Jangho's bowed head held no false humility—only sincerity.
As a faint smile touched Hyeok Mulin's lips, Cheon Sumyeong cleared his throat with a loud ahem.
Byuk Jangho hurriedly looked his way and continued.
"Of course, I received so much help and wisdom from Elder Cheon too. Thank you once more!"
"Mm. Indeed."
Only then did Cheon Sumyeong nod with a satisfied expression.
Byuk Jangho let out a breath of relief from his chest and fiddled with the plaque.
"Um... If it's not too impudent, there's one more thing I'd like to ask of Hero Hyeok and Elder Cheon..."
Hesitating to speak, he finally squeezed his eyes shut and blurted it out.
"Would you accompany me until the Manchu Grand Banquet?"
Byuk Jangho knew he had no grounds to complain if refused.
He'd already received more help than he deserved in Shanxi Fortress. Asking them to escort him all the way to the banquet...
For two men of such unimaginable status, it might feel burdensome.
If rejected, he'd accept cleanly without asking again.
"We'll do it."
"Pardon? Truly?"
"Yes. It's no trouble."
"Hurray!"
With Hyeok Mulin accepting so readily, Byuk Jangho thrust his hands skyward in ecstasy.
"Thank you! Thank you!"
He poured out thanks repeatedly, but Hyeok Mulin's thoughts differed.
'That's my line.'
He thought we'd been invited to the Manchu Grand Banquet, but we actually had no entry rights.
Yet here he was offering it first—we should be grateful.
Seeing him so overjoyed...
'A win-win for both sides.'
Thus, Hyeok Mulin and Cheon Sumyeong gained entry to the Manchu Grand Banquet as his entourage.
As Hyeok Mulin watched him jumping about, someone caught his eye.
A man slumped on the ground, staring blankly in shock.
It was Pyo Cheong.
Hyeok Mulin gazed at him steadily, then chuckled softly.
He pointed him out to Byuk Jangho.
"Go say a word to him."
"Ah..."
Only then did Byuk Jangho notice Pyo Cheong lost in despair.
His rival to the very end.
The world of competition was cruel; for every victor basking in joy, another suffered bitter pain.
Feeling pity, Byuk Jangho nodded.
"I'll be right back."
Approaching Pyo Cheong, he knelt carefully and spoke.
"Are you all right?"
Pyo Cheong looked up sharply at the voice.
"You!"
Startled by the hostility, Byuk Jangho soon praised him calmly.
"You brewed an excellent liquor. It was truly a close fight. Had the judges' tastes differed even slightly, the outcome might've been reversed."
But those words only deepened Pyo Cheong's misery.
The judges' initial split choice had been his doing, bought with bribes.
A vast, uncrossable gap had existed between the two brews from the start.
"You pity me?!"
"Pity? Perish the thought. How could someone as lacking in skill and experience as me think that?"
Each innocent word from Byuk Jangho stabbed like a dagger into his chest.
To lose to someone so inferior in skill and experience—what did that say about him?
The unintentional provocation made Pyo Cheong's neck tense.
But he knew it wasn't deliberate mockery, so he waved him off dismissively.
"Go. I lost this time too, but next time, I'll win for sure."
Byuk Jangho tilted his head at that.
"This time too...?"
Pondering deeply, he soon asked curiously.
"Have we met before?"
Crack—
Pyo Cheong's gaping mouth wouldn't close.
Not even remembered.
From the start, he hadn't registered in his eyes.
Overwhelmed by shock, Pyo Cheong froze rigid as stone, speechless.
"Heh heh heh!"
Cheon Sumyeong laughed from afar, watching them.
He turned to Hyeok Mulin beside him.
"You've got a wicked sense of humor. You foresaw this and sent him over?"
"Sometimes purity conquers evil."
"He's taken quite the mental blow. Won't be easy for him to recover."
"He reaps what he sowed. If he stooped to cheating, he was prepared for the price."
"Heh heh heh heh!"
Cheon Sumyeong laughed in satisfaction.
Soon, his laughter cut short, and he spoke lowly.
"Now that you've secured entry to the Manchu Grand Banquet, be honest. What's your true aim in meeting the Manchu Assembly?"
Hyeok Mulin didn't dodge.
He answered with his usual impassive face.
"Watching your duels made my hands itch."
"The one with Sword Sage?"
"Yes."
Hyeok Mulin had witnessed Sword Lord and Sword Sage's duel up close.
How could a martial artist's blood not boil seeing such a wondrous clash?
"So I sought someone worthy to test my arts against, and found the perfect one."
Someone he could fight without impacting Central Plains politics, to freely test his skills.
"The Manchu Assembly's Lord, Chwi Paegwang."
Unaffiliated with the orthodox sects, tied to the Four Black Alliances yet not fully subservient.
This journey was to test his martial arts against Chwi Paegwang.
Hearing Hyeok Mulin's goal, Cheon Sumyeong burst into hearty laughter.
"Heh heh heh heh! So my sword stirred your heart too! Can't blame you, I get it!"
He didn't hide his pleasure that Hyeok Mulin had been moved by his duel.
You watched mine; what's to stop me from watching yours?
Cheon Sumyeong understood and supported it.
Anyway, he'd long decided to follow Hyeok Mulin, and enjoying Heavenly Demon duels and liquor along the way was hitting three birds with one stone.
For him, it was pure delight.
With Cheon Sumyeong's doubts resolved, Byuk Jangho returned.
"Before attending the Manchu Grand Banquet, there's a place we must visit."
A place they had to stop.
Hyeok Mulin nodded, realizing.
"I see."
The liquor to bring as Shanxi's representative to the Manchu Grand Banquet.
The place to brew it.
"I'll take you both to my brewery."
North of Shanxi Fortress.
A forested mountain thick with underbrush.
Hyeok Mulin and Cheon Sumyeong arrived at a small village, Byuk Jangho's hometown.
The villagers welcomed him warmly, but only briefly.
"This way."
He soon veered to the village outskirts, into woods devoid of human traces.
Parting vines expertly, he walked a shichen before halting.
In a chilly mountain valley corner stood a modest log brewery.
"Oh ho..."
A stack of firewood on one side.
Bamboo pipes halved lengthwise, forming a water channel.
Empty casks under the eaves welcomed his return.
Glancing over them, they entered. Inside divided into three rooms.
One for brewing, one for blending and experimenting with new liquors, and one storing large and small casks.
Hyeok Mulin spoke upon seeing it.
"You truly live for liquor alone."
No needless ingredients, tools, bedding, or even a proper bed.
Just space to research liquor, nap amid it, brew, nap again—a brewery filled with such.
Byuk Jangho scratched his head sheepishly.
"Since I inherited my father's brewery, it's lacking in many ways."
A life immersed in one pursuit, and he'd continue so—a true artisan.
Swoosh—
Having looked around, they followed Byuk Jangho's lead to the final room: cask storage.
Something different about its structure; upon entering, Hyeok Mulin and Cheon Sumyeong felt a cool sensation.
Large casks lined the floor; smaller ones in bottles on shelves.
Each labeled simply to avoid mix-ups.
Flower liquor, white liquor, red liquor, yellow liquor, rice liquor, bamboo leaf green—nearly every type present.
Cheon Sumyeong let out a soft exclamation, then asked.
"So, which of these many will you take to the Manchu Grand Banquet?"
"About that, I have something to say..."
Trailing off, Byuk Jangho soon bowed deeply, raising his voice earnestly.
"Please help me!"
"...?"
Their puzzled gazes met at his desperate plea.