Chapter 160
Chapter 160
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 160
Chapter Title: Butterfly Effect (5)
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Yun-young Uncle's polite bow left my classmates fidgeting uncomfortably.
Well, it wasn't hard to understand.
A person as benevolent as he was didn't show it outwardly, but strictly speaking, Yun-young Uncle was senior even to my father, Eon Jeong-ung.
When such a man bowed so respectfully, the younger generation, raised on teachings like the Elementary Learning and the Three Bonds and Five Relationships, couldn't help but feel flustered and restless.
Even accounting for that, my classmates seemed excessively embarrassed.
Yong-myeong and So-reung were prime examples.
"U-Uncle!"
"P-Please don't do this."
Jeong-hyeon and Je-gal Seol-ji weren't much different.
"Little heroes? That's too much, Leader of Anmin Hall. We only survived thanks to Young Master Yong-un."
"Exactly. We're just people who were saved by Young Master Eon's ingenuity and camaraderie. Calling us heroes doesn't diminish the word, but it's embarrassing for us to hear it."
Their attitudes weren't incomprehensible.
Hm.
They seemed to think they'd survived because of me, so having Yi Yun-young—my uncle by marriage—express gratitude to them felt quite awkward.
But that bow wasn't from Yi Yun-young to us; it was from the Yi Family Manor to the Righteous Martial Academy.
So we need to accept it with dignity.
To do that, I first had to correct the misguided notion underlying their mindset.
"If I saved you, then you saved me too."
I spoke up immediately to shift the mood.
"And for me and Yong-myeong, this was family business. You're the real heroes and knights for risking your lives for strangers."
Before they could humbly demur, I cut in sharply.
"Uncle's bow is as a representative of the Yi Family Manor. We must receive it proudly as members of the Righteous Martial Academy."
At my words, my classmates straightened their backs.
Confirming that, I stepped forward and accepted Yun-young Uncle's bow.
"We merely did what needed doing."
With the greetings exchanged...
Yi Yun-young slung an arm around Eon Jeong-ung's shoulder and let out a hearty laugh.
"Hahaha! If word gets out that the chief mourner laughed during the rites, I'll be pointed at, but seeing my upright nephew like this, I can't help it. What do you think, Brother Eon?"
"Pardon?"
"Didn't I tell you time and again? Even if Yong-un seems like a troublemaker, he'd find his way as he grows up."
In truth, that troublemaker's soul had vanished, and the original Yong-un had become a demonic cultist, so Uncle Yun-young's thinking was completely off-base.
"Yes, Little Brother-in-law was right. I have no memory of being a proper father, yet somehow he's grown so much."
"But why's your face like that?"
"What's wrong with my face that you say such a thing...?"
"It's all twisted up grotesquely, like a poorly fired ugly vase. Either cry or laugh—pick one. It's too good to keep to myself; I want to call a painter and have your portrait sent to Young Lady Forever."
"......"
The mood seemed to lighten, so I decided to let it slide.
...A poorly fired vase? Heh. Khk. But with Master at my waist chuckling, I had to bite my lip with all my might to avoid catching the laughter.
'Eutjimuseumgyo.'
While I was doing that...
Yun-young Uncle formally delivered the mourning notice and spoke again.
"Then shall I assume you'll come to the altar soon? I'll head back now."
But he'd been talking with Eon Jeong-ung first.
I glanced at Eon Jeong-ung for silent permission.
At my look, Eon Jeong-ung—with the face Uncle had likened to a poorly fired vase—nodded firmly.
"Go ahead. The rest can wait; it's spilled water anyway. We'll talk later."
Wrapping up with Eon Jeong-ung, I turned to Yun-young Uncle and replied to the notice.
"Then we'll tidy our appearances and follow shortly."
"Good. I've had the bathhouse in the rear garden heated. Servants will show you on your way out."
"I'll head to the guest seating near the altar too. Ah, I was with Brother Yi and Professor No—they were both very worried about you. Professor No especially tended to you despite his internal injuries. Handle it well, but pay your respects after you're done there."
With that, Yi Yun-young and Eon Jeong-ung left the room.
We followed the summoned maids to the bathhouse.
Je-gal Seol-ji, being of the opposite sex, went to a private room.
The rest of us entered a bath with five wooden tubs prepared.
As we soaked in the hot water, Cheon-gang-ho groaned and recited a poem.
"Aaaah. Even in clear mornings...
Clouds and rain in the peach blossom cave."
I gaped in disbelief.
"...What are you, an old man?"
"Isn't this how you're supposed to bathe in hot water?"
"Says the guy who's probably barely bathed before."
"...I've bathed more following Brother Yong-un than in my whole life. Actually, I remembered Professor No-sam doing this before we left the academy for the mountains, so I tried it."
"Tell me about the professor. What's this about internal injuries?"
"I'll explain that."
The talk turned to the battle at the Yi Family Manor while I was in my room.
"...And that's how it happened."
"If Father and Uncle Mu-hyeok hadn't come, it would've been really close. But how did Father get here? Last time Uncle Jung-young sent a letter saying not to get involved in his wife's family matters. He's not one to move after that, right, Yong-myeong?"
"He must've been worried when we were ambushed by assassins. So he went to Luoyang and..."
From the continuing story, I learned how No-sam got internally injured shielding So-reung...
And the circumstances that brought Paeng Mu-hyeok and Eon Jeong-ung here at this moment.
A father's worry for his child...
Grateful aside, it was an unfamiliar feeling.
I buried my itchy heart in the soothing hot water and turned my thoughts elsewhere.
Come to think of it, butterfly effects like this can happen.
When I first possessed this body, I thought butterfly effects just ruined my foreknowledge of the original plot.
No-sam's company, Eon Jeong-ung and Paeng Mu-hyeok's arrival...
Without even one, the incident wouldn't have ended with such minimal losses.
And since the Shanxi events had deviated entirely from the original flow, similar things could happen anytime.
In the end, I have no choice but to build my own strength and gather my people's power.
It was then.
As I reaffirmed my resolve amid these thoughts...
One name I'd neglected to ask about flashed in my mind.
"What about Uncle Kwon-young—no, that bastard Yi Kwon-young?"
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇ After bathing, we changed into clean clothes and headed to the Yi Family Manor's main hall, where the altar was set.
The funeral was being held lavishly.
On the way, I heard they'd set up an incense station at the main gate for local residents to pray for the deceased.
An incense station might seem minor, but in the Central Plains, returning gifts to funeral guests was virtuous.
Even a single iron coin each added up enormously.
I thought that alone was generous...
But in the main hall, ice surrounded the coffins.
Ice in summer.
It was the kind of lavish funeral seen only when a family head passed.
One might say treat them well in life, not death, but it wasn't that simple.
They say funerals are for the living.
Warriors lived bearing death.
Bereaved families used the deaths' meaning to ease grief.
Surviving warriors and manor members took pride in belonging, becoming devoted.
And the world learned the Yi Family Manor and Tae-won Merchant Group endured unprecedented calamity intact.
It might look like wasted money, but not a penny was squandered.
Grandfather's temperament shows even here.
As I pondered...
My white-clad grandfather, holding a staff and mourning band, spotted us and spoke.
"The young heroes of the Righteous Martial Academy who saved the Yi Family Manor have come to see off the deceased. This old man bows in thanks as chief mourner."
At his voice...
The other chief mourners and bereaved families lining the hall's sides stopped wailing and solemnly bowed, sleeves together.
Unlike Yun-young Uncle's thanks, a solemn thrill coursed through us.
Having experienced something similar with Yi Yun-young earlier, my classmates and I received it steadily.
"Our condolences."
We then went forward to offer incense and paper money.
Coffins ringed with ice surrounded us; among them was Yi Kwon-young's—the youngest uncle by genealogy.
Spotting it recalled Yong-myeong's words from the bath.
...Uncle Kwon-young passed. Early in the fight, to Chief Steward Geum. Officially, he died fighting for the Yi Family Manor. You'll probably see at the altar.
How long had I been lost in thought?
Yun-young Uncle spoke to Grandfather.
"Father, thanks to these little heroes, many Yi Family members survived, and they've come right after recovering to see off the deceased. As manor lord, you should personally thank them—it's proper."
The others in mourning echoed support.
"Yes, sir. Leader Anmin is right. Please receive them in your chambers. Otherwise, the world will point fingers at the Yi Family Manor for lacking manners."
Feigning reluctance, Grandfather handed his mourning band and staff to Chief Steward Geum and spoke.
"Then Chief Steward Geum will oversee the altar. Yun-young, bring the guests."
Despite being present, handing them off reddened Great Uncle Yi Jung-young's face.
"Any complaints?"
He could only mutter at the retort.
"None."
In the inner chamber...
A modest funeral meal followed, and Grandfather poured drinks for each classmate with thanks.
When my turn came, he asked a question.
"I saw you deep in thought at the altar. What were you pondering?"
I answered honestly.
"I was thinking about Uncle Kwon-young."
"Kwon-young?"
"Yes. He went too easily for his crimes, and his death was whitewashed."
Those knowing Yi Kwon-young betrayed the manor to the demonic cult inwardly agreed; voicing it sank the warm solemnity.
Grandfather addressed me.
"...Yong-un, follow me a moment. Yun-young, entertain the cadets in my stead."
"Yes, Father."
I followed Grandfather as he walked ahead.
Room to room, then another—finally, in one room, he pulled a flower vase.
The floor clicked down, revealing a basement.
Descending, Grandfather asked again.
"So, what would you have done?"
"Anything but place him on the altar."
At my reply:
"Frankly, I thought the same."
Curiosity flickered—what did that mean?—but advancing revealed the answer.
"Father! What did I do so wrong? I knew long ago you meant to pass the Yi Family Manor to that bastard Yi Yun-young!"
Yi Kwon-young was alive.
...!? The old man couldn't bring himself to kill his own son after all? I corrected Master's guess.
...No. The funeral's already underway. And he just said he thought the same as me.
He'd decided to end him secretly and kept him here.