Monopolizing Fortunes (205)
Monopolizing Fortunes (205)
"What did they say about His Majesty's condition?"
"According to the physician in black, he's past the worst of it and should regain consciousness before long. You put the Third Prince on the throne and now you've saved his life, so a great reward is likely coming your way."
"As I said last time, the greatest reward would be for you to just forget about me. Please, just let me drift along as a thug. And what about the matter I asked you to look into before I left?"
"You mean Gwon Cheol-hyeon? As you said, his hometown is Sichuan Province, and his military service was all done there as well. He's a Sichuan native, and he even has ties to the Sichuan Tang Clan, the largest martial sect there."
"Specifically."
"He's the son of the Clan Head's maternal cousin's younger brother, so that makes him a nephew."
"Hm. So Gwon Cheol-hyeon is the link to the Sichuan Tang Clan."
"The Sichuan Tang Clan is famous for poison and hidden weapons. Did the poison that afflicted His Majesty come from the Sichuan Tang Clan?"
"That will require further investigation."
Jeon Su-bang said.
"Investigation is simple enough—just round them all up and squeeze them."
Do Tong-dal nodded.
"Overturning the whole board from the start isn't a bad method either. Let me think it over."
As Do Tong-dal sprang to his feet, Yang Su-pan asked, already alarmed.
"Where are you off to now?"
"Since there's nothing to do right now, I'm going to stop by the Imperial Palace Secret Archive. On my way back from the Southern Barbarians, I felt my Lightness Art was a bit lacking, so I'm going to learn a movement technique."
Yang Su-pan and Jeon Su-bang were dumbfounded.
"Is that something a man who made a round trip to the Southern Barbarians in ten days should say?"
"I'll be at the Imperial Palace Secret Archive, so contact me as soon as His Majesty or Jeon Jin-gu wakes up."
Do Tong-dal went to the Imperial Palace Secret Archive. Before, he had simply thought of it as a place holding various things, including rare martial arts manuals.
But as he recalled Won Jung-bang, who had chewed over his resentment in this place, all sorts of thoughts passed through his mind.
Every book on the shelves, every sword hanging on the wall, must have its own story for having ended up here.
As Do Tong-dal scanned the shelves of secret manuals, he pulled out a book titled One Step, Hundred Li Walk.
The basics of Lightness Art are to lighten the body and strengthen the force of kicking off the ground to move forward quickly. With those two fundamentals, the excellence of a movement art is judged by how freely one can control height, depth, and direction.
And one of the most important factors is the consumption of internal power. Lightness Art fundamentally requires long-distance running. No matter how fast a movement art is, if its internal power is exhausted in a mere one ke, no one would bother learning it.
That was the case with One Step, Hundred Li Walk. As its name suggested, it could not actually cover a hundred li in a single step, but it was that fast. However, its internal power consumption was immense.
Because it burst out condensed internal power all at once, like an explosion, it could not be sustained for long. But in terms of sheer speed, it could be called the best among movement arts.
"Hm. This one looks good."
Do Tong-dal possessed internal power that allowed him to run for six shichen without rest. In fact, those six shichen were closer to the time his stamina gave out rather than his internal power.
"For long-distance running, I can just run normally, so I should learn this one with its killer speed."
Having chosen a secret manual, the next matter was a weapon. The blade he currently used was an ordinary saber he had picked up carelessly. Until now, he had not coveted a famed blade because he had thought a good blade was unnecessary.
But after obtaining the Boundless Blazing Fire Art, things had changed. An ordinary saber simply could not withstand the Boundless Blazing Fire Art. Even if he drew up only about sixty percent of the art and clashed blades, it would shatter into pieces.
The locust swarm had not been sturdy, so it had been fine, but if it had been an enemy's weapon, the blade surely would not have held up.
"The Makya Blade would be perfect, but there's no way the Alliance Leader old man would give it up......."
So he decided to choose one of the blades in the Imperial Palace Secret Archive. But having once held the Makya Blade in his hands, no other blade could possibly catch his eye.
Even blades renowned as famed weapons seemed little better than kitchen knives compared to the Makya Blade.
"How can I snatch the Makya Blade away from the Alliance Leader old man?"
A faint smile crept onto Do Tong-dal's lips as he racked his brain.
"Right, that method will work. That old fellow is so simple-minded, after all."
Still, since he had come to the armory, he picked up any random blade. It would surely be far better than any ordinary blade bought outside.
While Do Tong-dal was practicing the movement art in the Imperial Palace Secret Archive, word arrived that Ju Hyeong-seon had regained consciousness.
When he went to the emperor's bedchamber, only Yang Su-pan and the physician in black were attending Ju Hyeong-seon. Despite his clearly haggard appearance, Ju Hyeong-seon smiled brightly when he saw Do Tong-dal.
"You only show me that face when I'm on the brink of death."
Do Tong-dal, having offered Ju Hyeong-seon only perfunctory courtesy, grumbled.
"You nearly died right when I finished my closed-door training."
Do Tong-dal took the hand of Ju Hyeong-seon, who was sitting up in bed.
"The emperor should eat well and live well. What is this sorry state?"
"Calling the emperor 'sorry'? You really are consistent. I like that."
As Ju Hyeong-seon drew a labored breath, the physician in black spoke.
"Please lie back down now. You still need to rest."
"I'm fine. More importantly, have you found the culprit who did this to me?"
Yang Su-pan said.
"As soon as Tong-dal arrived, he conducted an interrogation and narrowed it down to one person. That person is currently unconscious due to the torture he endured."
"His condition?"
The physician in black said.
"I took a brief look, and he should wake up before long."
"Then Tong-dal will find out who's behind it."
"What am I, some kind of god?"
"I trust you more than the gods. Losing my own life is a small fear, but if I think of the calamity that would befall this nation through my death, I would not be able to close my eyes even in death."
"Your Majesty will not die young. So stop being dramatic."
Ju Hyeong-seon smiled faintly.
"Hearing you say that puts my mind at ease."
Ju Hyeong-seon's smile turned to worry.
"I heard that war will break out soon."
It seemed he had already received a report.
"Yes. But Your Majesty should focus on recovering your health before worrying about such matters."
"How can an emperor not concern himself with war?"
"You have to be healthy to do anything. Can you work properly while wheezing and groaning? For now, while I make plans, Your Majesty should rest well and focus on recovery."
"Then I will rest, trusting only in you."
"No, don't push all the work onto me alone......."
Ju Hyeong-seon cut off Do Tong-dal's words.
"Having you here makes me feel very secure. I should get some rest now."
'Damn it!'
From the look of it, he was about to be buried in work here too. Do Tong-dal grumbled as he left the emperor's bedchamber.
"I told him to take care of his health, and it comes back as 'You handle the work.' People really have no conscience, no conscience at all."
"Since things have turned out this way, why not just enter government service?"
At Yang Su-pan's words, Do Tong-dal shouted in irritation.
"Don't say such horrible things! Once this matter is resolved, I really! Truly! No matter what happens, I will devote myself to being a thug!"
"I think you made the same promise during the Revenge Society incident......."
"Ugh...... I can't just quit this right now either."
Though he grumbled, Do Tong-dal's mind was busily working to find a clue to resolve this mess.
"First, send a letter to that person called Prince Yeongun."
"With what content?"
"Tell him to come to the Imperial Palace right now. Threaten him grandly that if he does not come, he will be considered to harbor treasonous intent. Make it clear that excuses like illness will not be accepted."
"So suddenly?"
"There are several things to resolve. Do I have time to waste on a bastard like that?"
"What if he doesn't comply? No, he surely won't come."
"Then I'll go and kill him."
"Huh? Why are all your solutions so abrupt?"
"Prince Yeongun is the face of those plotting rebellion. Historically, rebellion requires a justification, and eliminating that justification is the top priority."
"Then His Majesty will be branded badly. They'll say he killed his uncle after the First and Second Princes."
"Don't worry about every bit of public criticism. If you don't want to be cursed at, you shouldn't become emperor. Isn't that right?"
"That's true. I'll speak to His Majesty. But do you have a way to kill Prince Yeongun?"
"I'll go and kill him."
"It won't be that simple......."
"Whether it's easy or hard, I'll do what needs to be done. Ah! And in a few days, someone will come from the Southern Barbarians. His name is No Song-guk, and he was the commander there. Since I summoned him, give him a suitable post and send him north."
"What will he be used for?"
"As a commander. From what I saw, he seemed quite capable."
"Since you recommended him, I can trust him."
The martial world matters were urgent too, but stopping the war was the most pressing task. If war broke out, the damage would reach hundreds of thousands, even millions of people.
And most of those victims would be powerless commoners. Just then, the physician in black came out of the bedchamber. Yang Su-pan asked the physician in black.
"When will His Majesty be fully recovered?"
"He should be able to attend to affairs in three or four days. Of course, he must not overexert himself for a while."
Yang Su-pan's gaze turned to Do Tong-dal.
"We should inform His Majesty about Prince Yeongun in advance, right?"
"The letter must be written by His Majesty himself. No matter how sick he is, he should have the strength to write one letter."
"And what else needs to be done?"
"First, we need to send a large force north. That matter should be left to experts rather than me, but one thing to ensure is that the numbers are large enough that the Mongol army cannot recklessly provoke us."
"Understood. You look like you're about to go somewhere."
"You can lay out a mat. I'll make a quick trip to Shanxi Province. I'll leave tomorrow and return the day after."
Yang Su-pan asked in a suggestive voice.
"Shanxi Province? Are you going to the Northern Unorthodox Alliance? To see the Second Princess?"
"Ah! Damn!"
"Hm? Why the face like you bit into something bad?"
"I completely forgot the Second Princess was there."
"She would be hurt if she heard that."
"Sigh—! Still, I have to go. There's something I absolutely need there. While I'm gone, please investigate Prince Yeongun thoroughly. Especially the security of where he's staying."
Yang Su-pan's voice lowered.
"You're going to move personally?"
"Because that's the surest way."
"There are plenty of people around you with higher martial arts than you. Why not send them? Rumor has it Prince Yeongun has even recruited martial artists."
"I'll handle Prince Yeongun myself, so the Imperial Palace should focus on the north. The best outcome is that war doesn't break out, and the second best is that even if the Mongol army invades, we stop them with minimal damage."
"Understood."
Do Tong-dal spoke to the physician in black, who was standing idly nearby.
"The eunuch Jeon Jin-gu needs to be awake when I return."
"I'm not some divine physician......."
"Now is the time to become one. If I have no information at all, there's nothing I can do."
"I'll do my best."
He had no choice but to be satisfied with that answer.
"If you leave tomorrow, what will you do today?"
"I should have a drink with you, sir."
Yang Su-pan let out an "Ah!" of admiration.
"Now that you mention it, I haven't stopped by to see Mistress Yeon yet."
"When His Majesty was poisoned, I had an excuse, but if I just leave again this time, I might get nagged for the rest of my life or kicked out."
"That's true. Heh heh heh....... Then shall we taste some fraud wine for the first time in a while?"
Do Tong-dal gave him a suspicious look.
"Is it really the first time in a while?"
"Do you know how busy I am with state affairs! I don't even have time to piss and shake my thing!"
"Then I'll......."
As the physician in black tried to join in, the two men spoke at the same time.
"Just take good care of the patient."
"Tch!"
Even though the sun had not yet set, Do Tong-dal and Yang Su-pan headed for Yeonhyang Pavilion.
"It's not even time to leave work yet. Is it all right to go to a pleasure house?"
"What could be more important than entertaining you? Shouldn't we call Society Leader Wang as well?"
"We should."
"Conveniently, the Daltong Society headquarters is on the way, so we can stop by and go together."
"It seems Brother Wang Chil has settled into the Underworld in Beijing."
"Hmph! I pulled some strings."
"But the name is Daltong Society?"
"Originally I was going to call it Tongdal Society, but it seemed too blatant."
"Tongdal Society or Daltong Society, it's the same thing! I'll have to tell him to change the name immediately."
They entered Yangju-ro, where the Daltong Society was located. With several fairly large restaurants and shops that looked prosperous, along with a pleasure house on the main street, it was a prime location from the Underworld's perspective.
"Oh ho, they've set themselves up in a pretty decent spot."
* * *