Chapter 276
Chapter 276
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 276
Chapter Title: Return (2)
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Mo Yong-sang's face had aged at least a decade in that brief moment.
It seemed the anguish from his deliberations had been immense.
He had forgotten how I entered the Family Head's quarters and called out the name of the guard outside the door.
"Hak-a."
I cautiously opened my mouth.
"Family Head. Didn't I put the guard to sleep when I came in, since he looked so exhausted?"
"...Ah."
"It looks like you need brush, ink, paper, and inkstone. I'll prepare them for you."
Thinking I had read his mind, Mo Yong-sang flinched in surprise.
I flashed him a grin, fetched the writing implements and paper, and laid them out one by one before the trembling Mo Yong-sang.
Scrape— Scrape—
As I threateningly ground the ink, my master posed a question through transmission.
- ...How did you know just now? That the Mo Yong fellow was looking for writing tools.
'Obvious, isn't it? Once someone decides to let go of what they're holding, they need writing tools.'
- So you guessed roughly. But that guy's face is pale because he thinks he's right in the palm of your hand?
'Roughly? When people face a major crisis, they first deny it and get angry, but when they see no way out, they try to negotiate. If that fails too, they fall into depression and eventually accept it. This disciple grasped that psychology...'
- ...Fine. You've got guts.
In the meantime,
Mo Yong-sang began writing with trembling hands what the Mo Yong Clan would yield.
Swish— Swish—
The first item Mo Yong-sang wrote was the transfer of the Mo Yong Clan's speaking rights in the Baekbon Association's upper council to the Pearl Eon Family.
- Ho? Doesn't this mean your Pearl Eon Family returns to the Five Great Clans?
'The Five Great Clans grouping is a bit abstract, but having a seat in the Baekbon Association's upper council is one of the criteria, so you could see it that way.'
- But your tone doesn't sound all that welcoming?
'Returning to the Five Great Clans was one of the Pearl Eon Family's long-cherished wishes, alongside restoring the corpse soldiers.'
Having a voice in the Baekbon Association, the central pillar of the righteous Murim, would provide a foothold for dealing more smoothly with the crises to come.
The content itself was something to welcome with open arms.
- But?
However, there had to be a reason Mo Yong-sang wrote that first.
'...However, it seems our Family Head is using it as a last resort, gauging the situation.'
In a situation where they were about to become enemies of both the officials and the martial world, he must have thought they'd have to give up the Five Great Clans seat anyway.
With that in mind, he probably wrote it first to appease me and preserve as much of the Mo Yong Clan's size as possible.
So I couldn't show any emotion here.
I put on a stern face and spoke.
"I thought you'd start by writing about spitting out the exorbitant profits you took while blocking the Han Iron Road, but this is unexpected. Well, there's plenty of space on the paper?"
"......"
"Write the next item. Also, include a proviso entrusting the management of the Han Iron Road in the Liaodong region to the Murim Alliance."
"Th-then what are we Mo Yong Clansmen supposed to live on?!"
"You're talking like the Mo Yong Clan only relies on the Han Iron Road, like the North Sea Ice Palace. Aren't you the hegemons of this vast land encompassing Yoseo and Liaodong?"
"That's..."
"And there will be a place for the Mo Yong Clan under the Murim Alliance's management. You know the Alliance Leader and Grand Marshal aren't the types to ignore local circumstances?"
Blocking Mo Yong-sang's wriggling protests like that, I warned him once more.
"Family Head. It's only because I'm stepping in that you can even say this much and decide the Mo Yong Clan's future yourself. Would you like to face the Alliance Leader or the Eastern Depot's eunuch?"
"......"
"You need to show sincerity in persuading both the officials and the martial world."
Only then did it seem he could finally give up everything.
Mo Yong-sang let out a faint sigh with a resigned expression and began wielding the brush again.
Swish— Swish—
The items that followed included the Mo Yong Clan's misdeeds and abuses that were hard to grasp from ledgers alone,
as well as the shops and military officers they had secretly planted in the northern regions.
By the time the once vast white paper was filled densely,
Mo Yong-sang whined as he opened his mouth.
"...Isn't this enough? You, who's got me right in the palm of your hand, should know better than anyone that this is sincere."
I paused for a moment, playing along with Mo Yong-sang's misunderstanding.
"Hm."
"Asking for more here would be telling me to tear down Mo Yong Manor itself, which is the same as stripping the Mo Yong Clan of its plaque. Seeing as you're giving me this chance, neither you nor the Alliance Leader wants that, right?"
Once his lament ended, I spoke in a dry tone.
"Seal it and hand it over for now. We'll review it positively."
* * * Having obtained a sort of surrender document, I left the Family Head's quarters and asked Pang So-jin.
"Sister So-jin. Did So-rung say where to go?"
"The young ones went to the lodgings we were using, and the Alliance Leader is probably at the inn the Late Autumn Music Troupe used."
"Let's go to where the Alliance Leader is."
Arriving at the inn where he was staying, I saw the Alliance Leader deep in conversation with Lord Eun Se-pyeong.
"The Late Autumn Music Troupe..."
"You've heard of them, my lord?"
"Of course. Along with the Eastern Spring Music Troupe, they're one of the few music troupes renowned across the land. To think they were closely tied to the Heavenly Demon Divine Cult."
The Alliance Leader spotted us first and waved.
"Yong-un. So-jin."
I went over and performed a fist salute.
The Alliance Leader then cut straight to the point.
"You've heard from So-rung, but things here are wrapped up for now. No more infiltrators seem to be hiding. Yong-un, did you accomplish what you were confident about?"
I nodded and handed over the document from Mo Yong-sang.
"Yes. I made the Mo Yong Family Head fully understand their precarious position on the brink of collapse and got this pledge."
"Pledge?"
The Alliance Leader tilted his head, unfurled the document I handed him,
then gaped in astonishment and passed it to Lord Eun beside him.
"...Lord Eun. Take a look at this."
"Pardon? Ah, yes."
Lord Eun, who received the document, furrowed his brow deeply and examined it meticulously.
At one point, he exclaimed in admiration toward the Alliance Leader.
"Heavens. If they spit all this out, the Mo Yong Clan's clock will turn back a century. The chronic issue of the Han Iron Road blockages in Liaodong won't be a worry anymore."
Gazing at me, he spoke again.
"...No matter how I look, it's the Mo Yong Family Head's handwriting and seal. You didn't write it yourself and just get the stamp—this is how you made him write it personally?"
The Alliance Leader nodded in agreement.
"Indeed. He wasn't someone you could resolve things with without force? What did you do?"
I chuckled and brushed off the two men's questions.
"That's a trade secret. What matters is that I got it, right?"
"...Back when you came to my house because you had nowhere to stay. I should have kept you by my side even if it cost me billions. Looks like I cheaped out even on tea money."
"This feels like I've been possessed by a ghost. I've always held you in high regard, Yong-un, but this time everything was resolved by your hand before I even had a chance to step in. Haha. Does this mean the Grand Marshal was right?"
"Pardon? What did he say?"
"That you're better than me. Why not take the Murim Alliance Leader seat? If you're willing, I'll yield it to you."
Even becoming the Righteous Martial Academy's chairman drew talk of inexperience, and here he was making such a savage joke.
I waved it off.
"Nah, I'm bad at smiling in front of people I dislike and buttering them up. My fist comes out first."
"You did fine yesterday? Didn't you soothe the Tai Family Head, who was fuming over Senior Pang?"
"That was me holding back in anticipation of getting a document like this. With you solidly backing me, Alliance Leader, I can rampage like this."
"Haha. You have a talent for making even the same words feel uplifting."
"Truthfully, I got lucky. The groundwork I laid was to dig into the Mo Yong Clan's shadows, but I didn't expect the Demonic Cult bastards to walk right into it. Thanks to that, everything fit perfectly."
"Indeed. I never imagined the Demonic Path would dare any tricks with all these righteous Murim notables gathered."
As the talk shifted to the Demonic Cult, the Alliance Leader stopped joking and furrowed his brow.
"They exploited preconceptions. Can't let our guard down around them."
At that sight, a sudden curiosity arose, and I sent a transmission to the Alliance Leader.
[But handling things this way—do you have anything to say to His Highness the First Prince? Your tone was firm when you took on this task.]
[His Highness the First Prince believes less blood from imperial footsteps is better. This resolution is exactly what he hoped for most, so no worries there.]
[I see.]
[Yes. Keeping the atonement measures under wraps will exert stronger deterrence on the Second Prince's faction. He'll be pleased. He's thorough with rewards and punishments, so expect a big one for you.]
With my curiosity sated, I nodded, and the Alliance Leader grinned, patting my shoulder.
"Anyway, good work. Go back to So-jin and the others for now."
* * * In the clear situation where the Demonic Cult had targeted Liaodong,
the Alliance Leader promptly executed the items from Mo Yong-sang's document list that could be acted on immediately.
With the news of the Demonic Cult's disturbance leading to the Alliance Leader's measures,
the cloud-like guests who had flocked to the Mo Yong Clan ebbed away from Shenyang like the tide within days.
A few days passed like that.
The aftermath of the octogenarian feast being forcibly concluded even affected us.
The guest treatment had become utterly abysmal.
"...Cold rice with soy sauce? Not just the expression—actual cold rice?"
"Nitpicking side dishes in this situation?"
"No, Brother Yong-un. I chased off the Demonic Cult guys too, so I thought the treatment would improve—I'm just bewildered."
Cheon Jang-ho's face turned ashen at that, and Namgung Yun grimaced as he spoke.
"Even if the Tai Family Head is bedridden, isn't this too much? This is insulting not just the Righteous Martial Academy but our families."
As U So-rung nodded in agreement to Namgung Yun,
"Exactly!"
Jeong Hyeon added her piece.
"The Tai Family Head was so hale just days ago—claiming he's bedridden doesn't add up. It's essentially issuing an expulsion order... Young Master Eon said most of the promises he obtained need to be fulfilled while staying at Mo Yong Manor, so everyone, stay calm."
Yin Ha-yeon chuckled as she spoke then.
"Honestly, I get why the Mo Yong Clan is doing this. No matter how it was acquired, once wealth and power are in your hands, it's hard to let go. The Mo Yong Clan had their Five Great Clans status and accumulated wealth stripped by Young Master Eon in this incident, so of course they're not pleased. This must be the sourest meal they've served here."
As Cheon Jang-ho rolled up his sleeves at her words,
"Sister Ha-yeon might say that because looking at the gold voucher Brother Yong-un got fills your belly. But I live on rice power! I can't live like this. We have to go complain."
I stood up too and opened my mouth.
"Yeah."
"Pardon?"
"We're going to complain, right? Let's go."