The Seventh Floor Fashion Show from Hell
As soon as Cheong stepped onto the seventh floor of the Yongbong Jihoe, the first thing she felt was, of course, sheer extravagance. It was like a grand retrospective of two thousand years of Chinese fashion history. There were neat cross-collared upper garments paired with waist-tied skirts, the same style but with chest-binding wraps, and ornate outer vests with sleeves that drooped dramatically by a full handspan. Some wore the relaxed Ming-style robes with the short jacket removed, while others sported loose, flowing scholar’s gowns that covered them from head to toe.
Amid all this splendor, Cheong finally spotted Jin Seol. And there she was, rising awkwardly from her seat—and wow. As expected. She never disappoints! I believed in you, Understanding White Lily!
Jin Seol had thrown a vest over her upper garment, the collar crossing right beneath her sternum, leaving her cleavage completely exposed like some actress at a red carpet event back in Cheong’s old world. This was the early Tang style, the original form of the revealing “dangxiong” fashion. Yesterday it had been forcibly pushed up into an artificial, voluptuous shape. Today, without any support, it displayed its natural glory in all its shameless honesty.
In that moment, Cheong completely understood Dang Nan-a. When you could see everything like this, the urge to just grab them was… yeah. It was genuinely hard to control the impulse. But since Cheong was a person of common sense, she kept it strictly to herself.
“She’s showing it all off again…”
“Why? It looks good. Shouldn’t the women of the Central Plains take this as the proper standard of dress?”
“Then do you want to try wearing it too, Cheong? I’ll make you one…”
“No, why do you keep offering to make me clothes? And how could a Taoist wear something that provocative?”
“Hmph. Says the one who walked around the Goddess Sect completely naked.”
“What are you talking about? This is slander against an innocent person. The only times I was undressed were when I was bathing or sleeping, okay?”
“Normal people wear clothes even when they sleep…”
“Well, I’m not a normal person. I’m special. This is the sleep technique practiced only by the top one percent of sleep masters—no, the absolute supreme sleep masters.”
Cheong spouted whatever nonsense came to mind. Dang Nan-a, long since used to this, simply burst into laughter and gave Cheong’s shoulder a light smack.
Then a woman quietly slipped in front of Cheong. But the distance… wait, what the hell? It was like those martial artists she’d seen before coming to Murim, staring each other down before a match. She was practically pressed right up against her. It was closer than a packed subway during rush hour.
Isn’t this a bit too close?
The woman standing practically glued to her—Gongson Yoye—grabbed both of Cheong’s hands and spoke.
“Ah, Lady Seomun. Did you return safely yesterday? And did you sleep well last night? Oh, and did you eat a proper breakfast this morning? There weren’t any inconveniences on the road today, were there? I was so grateful and sorry about yesterday, ah, now that I think about it I didn’t even apologize properly, so if you have time, I would like to treat you this time, if it’s alright with you, perhaps this evening…”
“Lady Gongson. Calm down first.”
Cheong stopped Gongson Yoye, who was pouring out words like a broken dam. Gongson Yoye flinched and took half a step back.
“I’m sorry. This is my first time making a friend, so I didn’t know what to say and prepared everything in advance, but I got nervous and it all came out too long—”
Seeing that the rambling was about to start again, Cheong squeezed her hands tightly and said,
“Lady Gongson. I’m glad to see you too.”
“Ah… Me too. Very much. So this is how it’s done.”
Gongson Yoye gave a small, delicate smile like a wildflower, somehow tinged with melancholy.
Then a hand pulled their joined hands apart.
“What the—? What’s with this atmosphere?!”
“Ah. This is Lady Gongson. Lady Gongson, this is my friend Nan-a, Dang Nan-a. From the Sichuan Tang Clan, you know?”
At that, Gongson Yoye’s eyes widened, and then she spoke in a deliberately deep voice, imitating a man’s mannerisms.
“It is an honor to meet you. I am Gongson Yoye of the Gongson Clan. I have long heard of your distinguished family’s reputation, so it is truly an honor to meet you like this.”
“W-what is this all of a sudden, so formal…”
Dang Nan-a whispered, hiding behind Cheong’s back.
“Isn’t she a little weird?”
“Don’t say that. Lady Gongson is a complete newcomer to the Jianghu. Before this, she was practically in closed-door training, only cultivating the whole time.”
“Even so…”
Gongson Yoye hesitated for a moment, then timidly spoke again.
“By the way, Lady Seomun. About the way we address each other… since we’re friends, wouldn’t it be better to use something softer, more comfortable like how you call Lady Dang over there? Of course I’m not forcing you, and you don’t have to feel burdened, it’s just my small thought—”
“Alright. Yoye… hmm, that pronunciation is a bit tricky. Then how about Ye? Is Ye okay?”
Officially there was a seven-year age gap, which was why she had used “Lady,” but Cheong didn’t really care about age unless the other person was an actual adult. If her first friend wanted to be closer, there was no reason not to accommodate her.
“Ah! Yes! Please, I would be grateful…”
“You don’t have to be that grateful. And Ye, you can speak casually too.”
“I see. No, yes. Um, it still feels uncomfortable, so would it be alright if I continue to use polite speech with you, Lady?”
“Sure. I permit thee to use polite speech.”
“Ah, yes. Thank you… Huh?”
Cheong giggled mischievously.
“Just do whatever’s comfortable for you, Ye. I don’t really care anyway. Being with friends should make your heart feel at ease. If it makes you uncomfortable, can you really call that friendship?”
“Ah. You’re right. Lady Seomun, somehow… yes, you feel like an older sister to me. Of course, I don’t have an older sister, so it’s just a feeling. Maybe that’s why I can’t speak casually with you.”
“Oh. Yeah, that makes sense. There’s definitely that vibe.”
From behind, Dang Nan-a nodded in agreement. Cheong gave a proud little smile. After all, she had lived longer, so it was only natural.
Jin Seol was still sizing things up. Since she had more or less reconciled with Dang Nan-a, there was no reason to be hostile toward Cheong. Of course, the grudge from that hellish stomach pain during the Go Hui-yeon incident wouldn’t disappear easily, but maintaining a good relationship with a skilled female physician she could rely on in emergencies wasn’t a bad idea.
Besides, what the hell? She completely won over that Gongson girl? Well, even if no one paid her any attention, the skill involved was impressive. Among the stiff, upright martial artists who would snap at the gathering, “Stop fawning over men and train your martial arts, you pathetic wenches,” she was one of the most hardline ones. Yet here she was, acting like an obedient, gentle maid, smiling softly with her eyes. It made one want to ask exactly how she had melted her down.
Then a thought occurred to her. Ah, she said she was a disciple of the Goddess Sect. If an entire sect consisted only of women, they must engage in this kind of power struggle every single day. (No, they don’t.) She was undoubtedly a supreme expert and giant who made no distinction between life and politics when it came to women’s power struggles! (That’s not right either.)
At this point, Jin Seol decided to swallow her pride. It was frustrating, but one must bow before a true master. Moreover, by observing from the side, she might be able to learn that mysterious technique. If she could build enough rapport to form an alliance, that would be even better.
With both arms held by the two women, Cheong realized she had no hands left to eat with. But if she shook off Gongson Yoye on her right, the girl would probably be very hurt. On the other hand, forcibly removing Dang Nan-a to eat with her left hand felt unnatural too. She was pondering what to do when suddenly, a pure white valley unfolded right before her eyes.
“Ahem. Lady Seomun. You only showed your face briefly yesterday, didn’t you? I wanted to talk with you too, but I was quite disappointed.”
“Ah. Lady Jin.”
“Oh, now that I look, you’re carrying two swords. Do you practice dual-wielding? I heard dual swordsmanship is originally a very difficult art.”
“Ah. I can do it, but I don’t use it. Dual swords are personally a bit…”
“Lady Seomun? Um. I can’t see your eyes, but… where exactly are you looking? Your head seems to be tilted slightly downward…”
“Ah. Sorry. It’s not that I have any impure thoughts. It’s just that they’re so pretty I couldn’t help myself.”
Jin Seol’s eyes widened. Then, pretending to be embarrassed, she subtly adjusted her elbow, which made Cheong’s eyes widen too.
Whoa, what the hell. The valley suddenly disappeared.
Cheong almost lost her mind, but Dang Nan-a’s words from her left snapped her back to reality.
“Look at that, look. She acts like she’s not doing it on purpose, but she’s clearly dying to show them off.”
Normally, when talking behind someone’s back, one would be careful not to let the person hear, but Dang Nan-a had no history of following such social etiquette. A vein bulged on Jin Seol’s forehead. She had gone out of her way to approach first and suggest becoming friends, only to be treated like this.
But that only lasted a moment.
“You shouldn’t say that. And what’s wrong with it? It’s something to be proud of. They look good, so what’s the problem? Sorry, Nan-a has a bit of a crooked personality. Her true nature isn’t that great either.”
“Pardon?”
“You know what I mean, right, Lady Jin?”
“Ah. Of course. I know very well. She’s incredibly nasty.”
“Hey! I even took your pulse for you!”
“I’m grateful for that, but if you’re going to be grateful, couldn’t you at least speak nicely? You ruin all your good deeds with that mouth. I thought you were doing this because you felt sorry about what happened before.”
“Sorry? What am I sorry for? And who do you think gave you their precious time out of the goodness of their heart to take your pulse? I was just checking whether anything was wrong or not, um, no. Actually, I did show a little kindness. You’re welcome?”
Dang Nan-a started saying something incomprehensible before hastily changing her words. For someone who would rather die than back down from her own statements, this was quite rare.
“Ah. Let me introduce my close friends. This is Lady Seo Rin-rin from the Haweon Seo Clan, and…”
After that, it was just like any ordinary banquet. In her heart, she wanted to devour everything in sight, but since she was attending as the representative of the Goddess Sect, she had no choice but to maintain the elegant Seomun Su-rin-style beauty act. That was the only regrettable part.
Contrary to Dang Nan-a’s assessment that Jin Seol was a vicious woman with nothing but her face to offer, she turned out to be surprisingly sociable and pleasant. After the usual exchange of ordinary conversation as they searched for common topics, the discussion naturally turned to martial arts, as was inevitable among martial artists.
The Gwangdong Jin Family was the origin of the famous Tai Chi. Their ancestor, Master Jin, created Tai Chi and spread its name across the world. A passing Taoist named Zhang witnessed it, marveled at its profound principles, and asked to learn it, committing it to memory. Later, Taoist Zhang used those same principles to create a sword art, which eventually became the unrivaled divine skill known as Tai Chi Wisdom Sword.
For reference, Taoist Zhang settled on Wudang Mountain and established a temple. That very temple would later become the world-renowned Wudang Sect.
“Therefore, the true origin of Tai Chi, its authentic form, is our Jin Family’s Tai Chi. However, for some reason these days, many people consider the Zhang Family’s Tai Chi to be the original, which is quite upsetting.”
When Cheong searched for Tai Chi in her martial arts window, a long list popped up. Tai Chi had a red border. Ah, this must be it. She discovered the radiant purple-bordered fist technique called Tai Chi Infinite Fist and quickly closed the window. She wasn’t interested in fist techniques anyway. Unlike palm techniques that could be used alongside a sword, fist techniques were created under the assumption that the practitioner had no weapons at all.
Hadn’t her master said so as well? Never even think about learning fist techniques. The fact that humans have four long fingers and one short one was a consideration from the goddess Nuwa when she created people, allowing them to grip tools firmly. Therefore, it was only natural to hold a weapon in the right hand while the empty left hand assisted with palm techniques. Unless one was going to shout “Do not kill” like those bald monks of Shaolin, there was no need to learn fist techniques.
And so, it seemed peace had come to the seventh floor.
Although there were many factions, the three major powers of the Phoenix Association were fundamentally the White Lily, Sword Flower, and Black Flower, engaged in a three-way struggle. However, with both the Sword Flower and Black Flower absent, the remaining White Lily had no choice but to be the ruler of the seventh floor.
And when the White Lily extended her hand to Cheong, it seemed as though all conflict had vanished—
“Ah, did I come to the wrong floor? Oops.”
With a voice full of vitality, the woman who had climbed the stairs said, ‘Sorry, it seems I entered the wrong building,’ and immediately turned around and went back down the stairs.
What’s with her now?
Cheong tilted her head in confusion when she heard the sound of grinding teeth beside her. It was Jin Seol’s teeth clenching.
Cheong wondered what was going on, but she soon found out and stopped being curious. It was because of what the woman who had gone down earlier said after coming back up.
“Ah, so this is indeed the highest floor of the Yongbong Jihoe. I saw someone dressed like a gisaeng trying to seduce men with her flesh completely exposed, so I thought I’d come to a brothel instead of the Yongbong Jihoe banquet hall.”
“That damn flat-chested bitch…”
“No, who would dare bring a gisaeng to this precious gathering for the honored members of the Phoenix Association? Oh! Now that I look closely, it’s not a gisaeng but a White Lily. Hehe, sorry. I got confused just by looking at the outfit. A proper, virtuous woman would never expose her flesh like that, so I made a mistake. Hehet.”
Whoa. Personal attack. That’s pretty savage.
Cheong was impressed.