Chapter 27
Chapter 27
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 27
Chapter Title: When I'm Sad, I Play the Guqin
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Expensive silk poured in endlessly, while on one side, musicians and dancers swirled to the music.
The drinking and revelry went on for quite a while.
“Huu…, Young Master….”
The courtesan named Sohyang was already thoroughly drunk and kept burrowing into my arms.
She’d only drunk the sweet liquor I gave her, but that was because I’d deliberately handed her the stuff that was sugary yet packed a serious punch.
“Bring three more bottles of Dragon Poison Wine.”
“But courtesans aren’t supposed to order drinks on their own….”
“Courtesan, I wanna drink more.”
“Got it—! Bring everything the Young Master wants—!”
“You heard her? Three bottles of Dragon Poison Wine. And a few plates of the priciest side dishes too.”
That’s how I got to enjoy the booze on Sohyang’s tab without a care. She’d freak out over the bill once she sobered up, but hey, that wasn’t my problem.
A glance sideways showed the kid getting along fine with Sohyang’s little sister.
“Um…, Hee-ya…? Y-you’re, like, super drunk….”
“Young Master….”
“Eeeek…!”
Hmm….
They were getting real cozy. The sister didn’t seem the type, so she must’ve been bolder than she looked.
The kid looked all teary-eyed and troubled, but whatever, not my issue.
“Young Master…, hehe….”
Sohyang, drunk as she was, sidled up and clung to me, but this level of skinship didn’t bother me at all.
If anything, knocking back drinks with something soft in your arms felt kinda special.
Still, she seemed pretty wasted, and I didn’t want her puking in my lap, so I stopped her from drinking any more.
“Courtesan, that’s enough.”
“Aww, why….”
“You’re drunk now, courtesan.”
“Me, drunk? Nooo~? I’m totally fine?”
Your tongue’s slurring already, you idiot.
I clicked my tongue inwardly and brought my cup to my lips. Sohyang watched me intently and remarked.
“Young Master…, you sure can hold your liquor.”
“Well…, it comes with the job.”
“Oh…, yeah, figures.”
Truth was, my actual job was bandit, not host, but I couldn’t exactly say that, so I brushed it off.
That got Sohyang digging deeper.
“How’d you end up doing this?”
“Hmm….”
What should I tell her…? Annoying.
But a true gentleman turns crises into opportunities.
“Might be a tough story to hear. You okay with that?”
“…As long as it’s not too hard to talk about, I wanna hear it.”
I poured another cup, slipping on a wistful expression.
“I was born the son of poor tenant farmers. Our family struggled to even eat one meal a day.”
“Oh….”
“Father worked the fields tirelessly, but most of it went to the landlord. He spent his days lamenting that he didn’t own his own land.”
Truth was, my dad was a bandit.
Had he ever farmed? Hell, was he even still alive…?
A faint memory surfaced of Dad, back before I left home as a kid, just telling me to live normally as a bandit.
So even though this whole tale was bullshit, I could still get into it emotionally.
“Then a moneylender showed up. Offered cheap loans to buy land, he said. Ahh…, Father never should’ve signed that contract….”
“What happened in the end…?”
Sohyang’s face was already dead serious. I put on an even graver look and continued.
Drip.
A single teardrop finally fell from my eye.
“Sniff…, we ended up buried in debt…, Father fell into despair and took ill…! Mother…! Sniff…, Mother—!!”
Truth was, my mom died of puerperal fever giving birth to me. Growing up without a mom wasn’t great, but it was common enough in this era that I just had to accept it.
And right now, the important thing was Sohyang in front of me.
“Aah….”
She looked like she believed my fake sob story hook, line, and sinker—hell, she was on the verge of tears herself.
For the grand finale, I gave her a bittersweet, wistful smile, like it was all okay now, and said.
“So at twelve, I had to leave home and start working at a brothel…. Been ten years now, so I’m used to it.”
“Huu…, suffering like that since you were twelve….”
“I’m okay now. The brothel owner and manager are pains, but the work’s fun, and I meet great people like you, courtesan. It’s just….”
“Just…?”
“Ah, our family still has that debt…, sniff…. I send every coin I earn, but Father and Mother… Aigoo…!!”
“The debt’s still there…? Those evil bastards…! H-how much is it?”
“Aigoo…, five nyang of gold left, so Father…! Mother…!”
“F-five nyang of gold…?”
At that, Sohyang checked her pouch, like she was seeing how much she had.
Her face crumpled, and she pulled out a stack of banknotes worth three nyang of gold.
With a teary, apologetic look, she handed them to me and said.
“I-I’m so stupid, didn’t bring enough money…. This is all I have left. But…, if it can help pay off your debt….”
“Sniff…, it’s not quite enough, but…, thank you anyway, courtesan.”
“I just want you to be happy, Young Master…. Sniff….”
Sohyang hugged me tighter as she said it. I hugged her back—or pretended to—while slipping her banknotes into my pocket.
‘Fuck, what is this? Jackpot.’
Sure, it was peanuts compared to what I had, but three nyang of gold out of nowhere?
Damn profitable.
I stroked the head of the sniffling Sohyang in my arms with one hand while drinking with the other.
But hearing a girl cry kinda killed the vibe. It was so quiet I glanced over—the musicians had noticed and stopped playing on their own.
I was about to tell them to start up again….
“Hey, you lot, it’s fine here, so play some more….”
…Then I spotted the guqin in the musician’s hands and froze.
Maybe it was the buzz, or maybe recounting that fake past even half-seriously….
“No, wait a sec….”
Something clicked, and I gently pushed Sohyang off me before standing up.
“Young Master…, where are you….”
“Just a moment…. Old memories hit me.”
I gave Sohyang a smile, then headed toward the musicians.
“I’ll show you something fun.”
Payment for the booze, call it.
Step-.
I walked right up to the guqin player and held out my hand.
“Lend me this for a bit. Let me play it once.”
“Ah…, sure….”
The musician handed it over, flustered.
Twang-.
It looked nice, and plucking it once gave a beautiful tone. The owner must’ve taken good care of it.
Twang-twang-.
It’d been ages since I’d touched a qin. But the moment my fingers hit the strings, my trained hands moved on instinct.
Even if I hated it, someone had forced me to keep at it.
‘Fuck no. Why the hell am I doing this?’
‘Sharpness and softness are key to wielding a sword—I’ve told you a million times. Nothing beats the qin for cultivating qi. And if you curse again, I’ll snap your windpipe….’
Booze is good, music’s good.
Once you’re lost in it, all memories and emotions fade, leaving only the buzz and the thrill.
Twang-twang-.
But those vanished emotions don’t just disappear—they melt into the melody.
And that melody resonates with the listener’s feelings.
Was it yesterday’s booze still lingering, or was I still drunk?
Old memories I’d avoided the qin to forget were bubbling up.
Right now, I recalled them all, forgot them again, and poured both past and present emotions into the tune, letting it all flow out.
Twang-rang-.
I finished the short performance, lifted my hands, and raised my head….
“…….”
“…….”
Everyone in the place stared at me, dumbfounded.
“Sniff…, huu….”
The only sounds came from Sohyang, who’d heard my fake backstory earlier. Contrasting it with the music, she was wiping away nonstop tears.
“Huu…, Young Master….”
I don’t know love.
But anyone could see those tears and that gaze….
“I want you to be happy, Young Master…! Sniff!”
…Belonged to a girl in love.
…Uh. Is this okay?
**
“Young Master…! Huu…, that performance was so beautiful and sad. It’s because of your parents’ debt, right? Give me the list of those evil moneylenders…! I’ll tell Father, and we’ll make sure…!”
“Got it, just go already…!”
That’s how Sohyang sobbed in my arms for ages until closing time at Cheongwol House, and I finally got her out.
She’d begged to come home with me, but I shoved her and her sister into a carriage and sent them off. Then Munseok appeared behind me.
He eyed me with a surprised look. Kinda pissed me off, so I snapped.
“What, old man? Why’re you staring like that?”
“Heard everything from outside. You…, got a real talent for the qin, huh?”
“Learned from some old guy.”
“Huh…, didn’t sound amateur at all….”
Munseok pondered a moment, then asked.
“Hey, you ever think about working here as a musician?”
“Pay me three hundred nyang of gold a month, and I’ll play with my teeth.”
I brushed him off and walked past. Partying till dawn had me beat.
But….
“I’ll crash in that guest room from yesterday, right? Don’t wake me, I’m exhausted….”
“Hold on….”
Grab.
“…?”
Munseok stopped me as I tried to pass.
With a troubled expression, he said.
“Could you…, play that piece one more time?”
“Yeah, right.”
“Knew you’d say that, but…, I’m begging you…! I told someone about it, and now they really wanna hear it in person….”
“If they wanna hear, tell ’em to drag their ass here. Why order around a creaky old geezer? I’m going to bed….”
“The one who wants to hear is the Hao Gate Leader.”
“What…?”
Munseok’s words halted my steps dead.
“What? The one who wants my music is the Hao Gate Leader? Then lead the way.”
“Really? You’ll actually play the guqin?”
“Yeah. I’ll bash it out real good. That shameless bitch. I’ll smash her skull in with the damn guqin.”
“…….”
Munseok’s face went white at that, and he grabbed me tight like he was trying to hold me back.
“…Forget what I just said. I’ll show you to the guest room, so rest up….”
“Let go. You gonna let go? My left hand doesn’t discriminate between men and women, but my right? It don’t give a shit. I’ll smash her good with my right hand, fuck! Bring out the Hao Gate Leader—!!”
“Aaah—! Sorry I said anything, so calm down—! Not here, pleeease—!!”
And so, our scuffle right outside Cheongwol House dragged on for quite a while.