The Two Things Moyong Juhee Desired Most
At the Dragon Phoenix Gathering, Cheong let out a snort of laughter. It seemed her little brother had gone running to her with a complaint. “Why? What did she say?”
“Some woman suddenly picked a fight, humiliated her in front of everyone, and even hit her so hard it hurt.”
“Huh? Hit her? Where’d she get hit?”
“I don’t know that part.”
Dang Nan-a let out a choked “Ha!” as if she’d been struck speechless. Then, in a tone of pure disbelief, she said, “So now she’s even lying to her own little brother? Hey. Picking fights and humiliating people is your noona’s specialty, you know? Your noona starts trouble with anyone who so much as catches her eye. Not exactly, but pretty much that.”
“Our noona does that?”
“Yeah. Everyone just sighs and says ‘poor thing’ and lets it slide, so now she thinks it’s fine to act however she wants. She just happened to mess with the wrong person and got a taste of her own medicine, that’s all.”
Moyong Jun’s eyes trembled. “Is it true? Is it really true? Cheong noona, Dang noona—is what you said really true? Our noona…”
“Hmm. From what I’ve seen, she did seem like that kind of person. San, do you know anything about this?”
“I don’t. No interest, either. I just thought she was a mildly annoying woman.”
“Does she sneak out alone? Yes or no?”
Cheong poked Paeng Daesan in the side, then pulled the confused Moyong Jun—who had just learned the truth about his sister—into a hug. “No matter what kind of person Jun’s noona is, since she’s family, you have to take her side. Not with that ‘how could she’ look on your face.”
“Ah! Yes!”
“Cheong really has such a good heart. I’m moved.”
When Dang Nan-a chimed in, Paeng Daesan clicked his tongue. “You’re teaching the child some excellent lessons. Shouldn’t family be the ones to speak more sternly to her?”
“That’s only for when she’s done something seriously wrong. If she stood as someone’s guarantor or whatever, sure, you’d break her legs to teach her a lesson. But for small things, it’s right to take her side, isn’t it?”
“That’s right. Cheong is correct.”
“Don’t small things add up into bad habits?”
“Hmph. Hmph indeed.”
“Small things pile up and become resentment. People who feel wronged won’t listen to the truth anyway, right? For something like a mere argument and a little embarrassment, if even her family says it’s her fault, it only makes her feel more upset.”
“That’s right, that’s right. Everything Cheong says is correct.”
“…Isn’t the result of all that indulgence sitting right next to you?”
“What!? You wanna go?”
Dang Nan-a’s eyes blazed as she slipped her hand into her bosom. Cheong shook her head. “Nan-a. Put the poison away. Use words. Words.”
“Ugh. What a waste…”
“San, you watch yourself too. She really does use poison.”
“Hmm. You speak as if our dog bites.”
Dang Nan-a growled. “Hah, you think I can’t bite? You’d better stay away from Cheong before you really get bitten. No—since I’ll bite the moment I see an opening, just prepare yourself. Hmph.”
Watching the scene, Cheong thought to herself, Hmm. She really does give off a bit of a dog-like, pet-dog vibe.
In truth, the martial clans of Murim each had distinct physical characteristics that tended to appear. It could almost be called hereditary. Training in martial arts from a young age shaped the body into an ideal form suited to those arts. In long-established clans, those traits were passed down through generations and gradually solidified into distinctive features.
For example, burly builds were rare in the Jegal Clan. Jegal Ihyeon was a very special case; they hardly gained muscle or even fat, and their skin had a sickly pallor. The Hebei Paeng Clan, who wielded long blades, tended to be tall with bodies that weren’t thick but had dense, sharply defined muscles. The Hwangbo Clan pursued heavy weapons and fist techniques, so they possessed large, thick bodies. The Black Dragon Clan were simply from beyond the borders, so their skin carried a healthy brown tone.
And the Moyong Clan was characterized by short stature, slim upper bodies, and sturdy lower bodies. It was a physique perfectly suited to the Moyong Clan’s specialty—extremely fast dual swords.
Moyong Juhee had inherited that direct bloodline very thickly. Really, extremely. Insanely thickly.
That was why Moyong Juhee had already given up on her chest long ago. There were Fairy Arts that could help cultivate a voluptuous figure, but they carried a cold yin nature. They were the complete opposite of the Gongmu Yangshin Gong she practiced, so she would have to scatter her internal energy entirely just to learn them.
But she couldn’t abandon her family’s martial arts, so there was only one hope left: reaching the Transcendent realm and undergoing Body Reconstruction. It was also why Moyong Juhee was surprisingly regarded as someone serious about the sword.
Thus, there were two things Moyong Juhee desired most in the world. One was a voluptuous—no, at least a modest—chest. The other was the heart of the world’s most handsome man, the Jade Qilin, as all daughters of Murim clans wished for.
And so, upon hearing the very rare news that Paeng Daesan had appeared at the Dragon Phoenix Gathering, Moyong Juhee had rushed over like a woman possessed.
Then she heard news like a bolt from the blue.
The news that both of the things Moyong Juhee wanted most in the world had been taken from her.
“That can’t be! It’s a lie!”
“They say the Jade Qilin has been completely caught. He’s being nagged like a henpecked husband—apologizing nonstop, not even able to make eye contact, doing whatever she asks. Aigoo, even watching it made my stomach hurt… really…”
Her eyes actually grew moist. She seemed genuinely heartbroken.
“There’s no way! No way! What could Young Master Paeng possibly lack that he would serve such an ugly masked bitch!? Hah, I don’t believe it.”
She strode up the stairs almost at a run.
The moment she reached the top, she heard it—the enchanting low, deep voice of the Jade Qilin.
What Moyong Juhee saw after pushing through the crowd of women was—
Cheong sitting shoulder-to-shoulder with Paeng Daesan, Moyong Jun comfortably perched on her lap.
“Ah, no…! Jun…!”
Moyong Juhee’s voice trembled.
Just how much more did this bitch plan to steal from her?
On her right was the Jade Qilin. On her left… wait, who was that? And with her little brother on her lap, the three of them—plus one extra—were chatting away happily.
Moyong Juhee collapsed right where she stood.
“Ah! Noona!”
Moyong Jun, spotting his sister, jumped down and scampered over.
He had been about to hug her when he met her tear-filled eyes and froze awkwardly.
“You—Jun, you! How can you be with that woman!? What is this!? Who said it was okay for you to be with someone like her?!”
“W-well, Father said she’s a good noona, so we should get along well from now on…”
“What? Say that again. What did you just say?”
“Father said…”
“What! You! Why would Father… you bitch like that.”
It sounded like Moyong Juhee’s heart was shattering.
Cheong answered on her behalf. “If you’re referring to Moyong Seong-ik Daehyeop, I met him once while playing with Jun and greeted him. It seems he took a liking to me.”
“How… how…”
Moyong Juhee muttered, then suddenly turned to Paeng Daesan with desperate eyes. “Young Master Paeng, how could you do this? If it were one of the other Five Flowers, fine—even that Tang Clan wench over there! Then—”
“What!? That slick pretty-boy face is something I absolutely despise, you know? Who are you trying to pair with who? What did I do?!”
Dang Nan-a exploded, leaving Moyong Juhee blinking in confusion. Why is the woman who was talking about being the main wife and spraying poison getting angry?
“A-anyway. Why, of all people, are you so hung up on that ugly woman who can’t even show her face? Is it… is it because of her chest? Do you prefer women with big breasts, Young Master Paeng?”
Paeng Daesan let out a deep sigh. In truth, whether Cheong revealed her face or not, either option would only fuel more scandal. Even after the rumor that he was involved with a beggar, women had still loitered in front of him dressed as beggars.
No matter what lover-like appearance he showed, it would only make Cheong share some of the attention directed at him—except hers would come in the form of hatred.
“It seems there’s a misunderstanding. I am merely friends with Lady Seomun. Please refrain from saying anything that could harm her reputation.”
At those words, sighs of relief filled the entire hall at once.
Whispers spread like wildfire. So they weren’t in a relationship. Thank goodness. Indeed, aside from that one moment, there wasn’t any lover-like atmosphere at all. It must have been a joke. After all, it makes no sense for the Jade Qilin to be with a woman like that.
Emboldened, Moyong Juhee pressed further. “Is that the truth? Can you truly say there isn’t even the slightest, not even a speck of other feelings?”
Paeng Daesan’s eyebrow twitched. Still, it was the perfect question to end the scandal.
“Yes. It is pure friendship.”
Paeng Daesan continued. “By the way, are you my mother? In all my years, I’ve never heard such things. I’m truly at a loss. What qualification do you have to ask me that?”
“Ah. This maiden was just… well, I was simply worried about you, Young Master Paeng…”
“Worried? What worry?”
“That if rumors spread that you’re associating with such a woman…”
“I don’t see how who I associate with is any of your business. And didn’t I just say Lady Seomun is my friend? It seems you have a hobby of recklessly slandering other people’s friends—and doing so right in front of the person herself. Don’t people usually talk behind someone’s back when they’re not around? Is that your true nature?”
Moyong Juhee’s face turned deathly pale.
“That’s not—that’s not what I meant. This maiden just…”
But there was no excuse to be found. Moisture gathered in Moyong Juhee’s eyes. The sense of injustice and grievance made tears rise on their own.
Then Moyong Jun stepped squarely in front of his sister and shouted, “Don’t bully my noona!”
Cheong let out a deep sigh. She wasn’t exactly a stranger to Jun or his father; she couldn’t just stand by and watch him get crushed.
“Enough. Lady Moyong and I are simply the type to bicker and throw around rough words, so it was just something said without thinking. Don’t push her like that. Nan-a says all sorts of things to you too, but it’s not like she’s doing it because she’s completely ill-mannered, right?”
“No. That is ill-mannered. She’s been indulged so much that she’s completely spoiled.”
“What!? You wanna go at it?”
“See? You throw rough words at Nan-a too, don’t you? Lady Moyong and I originally exchange rough words like this. If you get to know Lady Moyong, she’s actually nice? Hmm? Nice? Well, she’s not a bad person, at least?”
“Didn’t you sound unsure just now?”
“That’s why we have this kind of relationship. Right, Lady Moyong?”
“Y-yes. We are the type to speak roughly to each other.”
Paeng Daesan watched them with suspicious eyes for a moment before letting out a deep sigh. “It seems I misunderstood because I didn’t know the situation. Lady Moyong, I apologize.”
“N-no, it’s fine. I also spoke without thinking and caused a misunderstanding. Ha, hahaha…”
Moyong Juhee laughed awkwardly.
Cheong spoke again. “I still need to finish my unfinished rough talk with Lady Moyong. San, can you wait here for a bit? Lady Moyong, I’d like to have a word with you on the seventh floor. Would that be all right?”