Monopolizing Fortunes (228)
Monopolizing Fortunes (228)
Ju Hyeong-seon was burning with impatience to see Do Tong-dal.
"You've only just finished a war. Wouldn't you need time to rest? I think I'll need about three days to think it over."
But just then, a eunuch's voice came from outside.
"Your Majesty! Her Highness the Second Imperial Princess, the Prince Consort, and Commander Jang request an audience!"
Ju Hyeong-seon shot to his feet, forgetting even the dignity of an emperor.
"Tong-dal is already here? Tell them to come in at once!"
Jeon Su-bang said with a smile.
"Heh heh! It seems Your Majesty missed that friend Tong-dal quite a bit."
A moment later the doors opened, and Do Tong-dal, Jang Yu-seom, and Ju Seo-in appeared.
"We come to have an audience with His Imperial Majesty......."
They were about to offer formal greetings, but Ju Hyeong-seon waved a hand.
"No need for ceremony. Between us, what's all that! Sit, sit. So, no one was hurt?"
"Thanks to Your Majesty's concern, everyone is unharmed."
"That's a relief, truly a relief. I was worried sick."
Ju Hyeong-seon nodded with a satisfied expression, then asked Ju Seo-in.
"Did you fight on the battlefield too?"
"I fought at my husband's side. Counting men and horses together, I must have cut down over two thousand."
Everyone present was startled.
"You killed over two thousand? Is that true?"
Do Tong-dal answered on her behalf.
"That's a modest answer. It was probably three thousand."
They had known Ju Seo-in's martial arts were high, but to have dealt with three thousand of those fierce Mongol cavalry was nearly the realm of the divine.
Yang Su-pan spoke.
"Hurry and open up that bundle of stories about how the fighting went. No, do tell."
Now that Do Tong-dal had become Prince Consort, even Yang Su-pan could not treat him carelessly. But that was Yang Su-pan's own thinking; Do Tong-dal found Yang Su-pan's formality awkward.
"Just treat me as you always have. It makes us feel like strangers."
Yang Su-pan glanced at Ju Hyeong-seon for his reaction, and Ju Hyeong-seon gave permission.
"Do so. Before he is the Prince Consort, Tong-dal is like a younger brother to Minister Yang."
"I am overwhelmed by Your Majesty's grace. Now, go on and tell us."
Do Tong-dal spread out the map he had brought onto the table.
"First, look at this. The truth is, I took it upon myself to conclude a peace treaty with the Mongol Khan."
"The Mongols agreed to a peace treaty? Those beastly barbarians agreed to a treaty?"
Barbarians were the sort who lunged to bite if you did not feed them, and once they lunged to bite, they never backed down.
Do Tong-dal pointed to the original border drawn on the map.
"This was the border between the Central Plains and the Mongols until now."
"I see. Then what is that line drawn above it?"
"That is the new border."
"Hm? Hmm? The Mongols handed over their own territory?"
"That is the condition of the treaty."
Jeon Su-bang asked with an expression of disbelief.
"They're a people who would sooner bite their tongues and die than give up a single span of land. Are you saying those barbarians really handed over land?"
"This time they had no choice. The twenty thousand Mongol cavalry who had invaded could have been annihilated. Here are the Mongol Khan's and Regional Commander No Song-guk's seals and signets."
Written densely upon it was clearly the content that they would cede to the Central Plains exactly as much land as the line drawn on the map.
"Heh heh! You've accomplished something truly unprecedented. How in the world did you fight that the barbarians surrendered?"
It was called a peace treaty, but the result was little different from surrender. Do Tong-dal pointed to Sapung Valley.
"The fighting took place here. I, Commander Jang here, and Her Highness the Princess blocked this point."
Jeon Su-bang was startled.
"With just three people? As far as I know, Sapung Valley is fifty jang wide. You're saying the three of you held that?"
"Of course there were gaps, but I judged we could stop more than half. We trusted our soldiers behind us to handle the Mongol cavalry that slipped through."
Ju Hyeong-seon urged him on to the next part.
"And then?"
The next part came from Ju Seo-in.
"The Mongol spear cavalry came rushing in first. There were about two hundred of them. Everyone knows how terrifying the Mongol spear cavalry are."
They knew from rumor. The Mongol spear cavalry had built such a fearsome reputation that it was said no living soldier remained on any road they had passed.
"But those spear cavalry all toppled over from a single kick from my husband."
"A kick?"
"There's a martial art called Earth-Shaking Step, where you stamp the ground with your foot to create a tremor. Actually, Commander Jang and I can do it too, but only enough to make pebbles hop a little. And it drains Internal Energy so severely that we hardly ever use it. But my husband's Earth-Shaking Step was on a different level."
"What level was that?"
"The very surface of the earth rose up and the axis of the world shook. Even we had trouble keeping our balance. So how could the Mongol spear cavalry's horses possibly endure it? They simply collapsed like autumn leaves in the wind. All we had to do was pick up the fallen ones."
Do Tong-dal waved his hands in denial.
"It wasn't quite that much. The two of you also fought hard against the spear cavalry who were still standing."
"Well, anyway, once the spear cavalry fell, the mounted archers came flooding in like a tide."
Yang Su-pan shuddered.
"It's horrifying just to imagine."
"I was a little scared at first too, but after I saw my husband cut down dozens of horses and soldiers with a single stroke, I became certain we could win."
"Dozens of horses and soldiers with a single stroke? Just how high is Tong-dal's martial art?"
Jang Yu-seom, who had received Yang Su-pan's gaze, answered.
"They say the martial world has eccentrics and extraordinary people as numerous as grains of sand, but it will be hard to find a master above Hall Master Do."
"Then you're saying Tong-dal is the greatest master under heaven?"
"That is my opinion."
Judging by the fact that the modest(?) Do Tong-dal did not bother to deny it, it was probably true.
"Oh! What in the world happened over the past three years? No, more importantly, what happened in the next battle?"
Ju Seo-in, having received Yang Su-pan's gaze, continued the story again. She had become quite eloquent at some point, and she described the battlefield situation vividly.
So the three listeners swallowed dryly and focused on the story.
"After we'd killed twelve or thirteen thousand men and horses like that, the Khan finally appeared."
"Heh heh! How could the three of you achieve such a feat...... If it weren't for the words of Her Highness, Tong-dal, and Commander Jang here, I would never have believed it."
Jeon Su-bang spoke.
"Then you could have killed the Khan on the spot?"
"We could have. But if we had, we would have had to fight the remaining Mongol cavalry to the bitter end. There was a high chance one of the three of us would have died."
"Ah! That wouldn't do. Absolutely not. You did well."
Do Tong-dal added an explanation.
"Even if we somehow annihilated the Mongol cavalry on the spot, they would eventually invade again. At that point, we would truly have become their sworn enemy. And if this battle happened to weaken the Mongol nation so much that it fell to another country, wouldn't that create a new calamity?"
To them, the Mongols were a familiar enemy, but the outside world was still an unfamiliar existence. They had no grasp at all of how strong those peoples were, what weapons and tactics they used, or how large their armies were.
So a strong enemy about whom they at least had information was better than an unknown enemy they knew nothing about.
"You thought that far. As expected."
Do Tong-dal spoke.
"Once the Mongols take away all their soldiers' corpses, we must build fortifications along the border as quickly as possible. Since it's mostly valleys, the construction won't be too difficult."
Ju Hyeong-seon nodded.
"We must. Who knows when the barbarians might change their minds."
"And I hope you will bestow generous compensation upon the soldiers who died or were wounded in this war."
"Of course. Minister of War, take special care that the soldiers feel no resentment."
Matters concerning the soldiers were the responsibility of Jeon Su-bang, the Minister of War.
"I shall carry out your command."
"It seems we really must hold a grand banquet. We can't simply let such a great victory over the barbarians pass."
Yang Su-pan chimed in.
"Of course. In the history of the Central Plains, such a one-sided victory in battle against the northern barbarians is truly the first of its kind, so we must hold a magnificent banquet. And this is a chance for Tong-dal's achievements to be properly recognized."
"No, there's really no need for that......."
Yang Su-pan cut off Do Tong-dal's words.
"Among the officials of the imperial palace, there are those who are displeased that you are the Prince Consort. His Majesty spoke so forcefully that they cannot show it openly, but inwardly they are dissatisfied. So we must use this opportunity to put that dissatisfaction completely to rest."
"Do as you please. It seems my opinion doesn't matter much anyway."
"Heh heh heh...... You just need to attend. Preparing the banquet will take about three days, so rest well in the imperial palace until then."
"Oh, no, I don't want to stay in the imperial palace. Even resting there doesn't feel like resting. And why does preparing a banquet take three whole days? Even my wedding was knocked out in a single day."
"Your wedding was the abnormal one! Shall we hold the wedding again while we're at it?"
"Forget it. I'll take care of some business outside and just show my face on the day of the banquet."
"Business? What business?"
"Now that we've stopped the northern barbarians' invasion, I need to deal with matters in the martial world."
Jang Yu-seom spoke.
"Didn't we agree to forget about matters of the martial world and rest for a while?"
"I'm not going to work hard at it, just look into things lightly. I'll only lift a finger."
"The Beggars' Sect Leader will have a hard time."
"Heh heh heh...... That old man is easy to put to work."
Ju Hyeong-seon and Yang Su-pan could not bring themselves to tell Do Tong-dal to come into the imperial palace and take up an official post. Putting a halter on a wild horse and saying, "I'll feed you well," is not truly caring for the wild horse.
Ju Hyeong-seon asked.
"You'll stay in Beijing, won't you?"
"Since the banquet is in three days, I'll have to."
"Then you'll be staying with Mistress Yeon."
The moment he said that, he thought, oh no! and looked at Ju Seo-in, but she simply wore a calm expression.
"I suppose so."
"What will you do?"
"Isn't it only natural for a wife to go where her husband goes?"
"It's a pleasure house......."
"Didn't Sis Seol-rin also practically live in a pleasure house in the old days? Following someone around."
"Sis Seol-rin?"
"She's older than me, so I should call her Sis."
He never expected the word "Sis" directed at a commoner to come from the mouth of Ju Seo-in, whose pride as a member of the imperial family had once pierced the heavens.
'Well, Tong-dal always changes the people around him like that.'
Ju Seo-in was no exception. After chatting a while longer, Do Tong-dal rose.
"We will take our leave now."
"Stay a little longer."
Ju Hyeong-seon was always reluctant to part with Do Tong-dal.
"You have work to do. Where would His Imperial Majesty find time to chat idly with a thug?"
"Tch!"
On the way out of the imperial palace to Yeonhyang Pavilion, Do Tong-dal sorted out the tangled thoughts in his head.
What he most wanted to know about was the woman who had killed Prince Yeonun. It was because he found it so astonishing that someone so young possessed martial arts surpassing the Ten Greatest Masters Under Heaven.
If Do Tong-dal had not encountered the fortuitous opportunity called Uhwadeungseondong, it would have taken him at least twenty years to reach that level.
'For now, I should assume she's an enemy.'
Her intention in killing Prince Yeongun had been good, but even when intentions aligned, people often became enemies.
"Wife."
"Yes."
Whenever Do Tong-dal used the title "wife," Ju Seo-in always answered with a beaming smile.
"It would be good for you to learn the Boundless Blazing Fire Art that I've cultivated. Protector Jang as well."
Now that the war was over, Jang Yu-seom had returned to being a Protector.
"It is a fortuitous opportunity that Hall Master Do obtained by nearly dying. I don't know if it's right for us to receive it."
"You all need to become stronger and save me."
Namgung Seol-rin, Ha Su-ran, Won Dae-yeon, and Jang Yeon-seon were his disciples, so of course he had to pass it on to them.
Family had to come together like that to grow stronger and become sturdy shields for one another.
When they arrived at Yeonhyang Pavilion, Yeon Ja-yeon, who had heard news of Do Tong-dal's visit, came running out in her stocking feet. She had always greeted Do Tong-dal composedly, but today she could not maintain that composure.
"I'm so relieved you're safe."
Well, she had sent Do Tong-dal off to the battlefield, so it was only natural for her to have been worried sick.
After greeting Jang Yu-seom and Ju Seo-in, Yeon Ja-yeon asked Do Tong-dal.
"Did you contact Su-ran and Seol-rin?"
"Not yet."
"What about Society Leader Wang Chil and Brother Jo Jin-ho?"
"Those two can wait......! Ow!"
Yeon Ja-yeon hit Do Tong-dal's arm with all her strength.
"You big oaf! They're probably losing sleep with worry, so you need to contact them right away!"
* * *