Monopolizing Fortunes (59)
Monopolizing Fortunes (59)
Words alone could hardly describe Namgung Baek-jung's astonishment. Namgung Cheol-hyeon had won the spar, but Namgung Seol-rin had drawn closer to him in far greater strides than before.
"Well...... you've improved quite a bit. If you'd put that effort into the clan instead of that trash heap, you'd have improved even more."
Those words finally made Namgung Seol-rin explode.
"Do you know what that trash heap Father mentioned is like? It's a place where there are people who stake their own lives to keep a friend's secret! Is there a single chivalrous hero in this Namgung Clan with that kind of righteous spirit? It's a place with the compassion to never pass by someone in need! Is the Namgung Clan that kind of place? The Red Tiger Society is a trash heap? Then the Namgung Clan is a sewer far worse than that!"
"You go too far!"
"I met Great Hero Won Dae-yeon, the Life-Stealing Twin Swordsman."
The name alone was enough to startle everyone.
"There'd been no word of him for over a year, so I thought he was dead."
"He was standing at death's door, addicted to opium."
"What? Won Dae-yeon became an opium addict?"
"Yes. The opium had gnawed into his very marrow, to the point that he wished for death. He became my enemy and tried to kill me."
Namgung Seol-rin spoke of Won Dae-yeon in a calm voice.
"Those trash Father spoke of took in Won Dae-yeon, whom they had met as an enemy, and are treating him. He was someone they could simply have killed, but they looked not at his outer shell but at what was inside him. Do you think that was all? To find Won Dae-yeon's enemy, Ju Ja-bang, they brought a full three thousand nyang of silver to the Hao Sect."
"Three thousand nyang?"
"Yes. They did it without a single day's hesitation. What did our Namgung Clan, what did Father, do for the greatest chivalrous hero of the martial world? Did you spend even a hundred nyang of silver for him? Everyone just ran their mouths, saying how regrettable it was and how they wanted to avenge him. Even the orthodox sect members who had received Won Dae-yeon's kindness merely put on a show of barely helping. All the while, a chivalrous hero who had made chivalry his life's work was becoming an opium fiend and killing himself. But those people Father calls trash—the ones who trade in women, trade in liquor, and collect protection money—they did not turn their backs on chivalry. In the present martial world, who is a more righteous hero than they are? Name me a single orthodox sect member more righteous than them. Just name one."
No one could answer her.
"Now who is the trash?"
Namgung Seol-rin, who had turned away, continued speaking.
"I still thought of myself as a member of the Namgung Clan. I believed that even though my body was in the Underworld, I was a proud child of the Namgung Clan, and therefore special. But the truly special ones turned out to be them. Compared to them, I was nothing but a hypocrite who only talked about chivalry with my mouth. So I'm going to try. So that I can become like them too."
Now there was no Namgung Seol-rin of the Namgung Clan. Only Namgung Seol-rin of the Red Tiger Society remained.
Namgung Cheol-hyeon came after her and put an arm around her shoulders.
"Let's go together. To Hangzhou, where Tong-dal is."
* * *
Go Seong-cheol spoke.
"There's a slaughterhouse called the Won Butchery in Eungseong County, Hubei Province. He's working there as a butcher. His name is Yeo Gye-myeong."
"Are you certain?"
"I checked repeatedly. There's no mistake."
Do Tong-dal felt like planting a kiss on Go Seong-cheol's cheek.
"Old man, you've saved my life. Heh heh heh......."
"Then the gold ingots really belong to the Hao Sect now?"
"Do whatever you want with the gold ingots."
Now that a pointless lie had left his life dangling by a thread, money was no problem at all.
Do Tong-dal dashed straight to Won Dae-yeon. The opium treatment had already ended a fortnight ago.
All the poison energy in his body had been expelled, and it was a time for recovering his vitality. Whether he would sink back into opium or not rested entirely on Won Dae-yeon's will.
When Do Tong-dal visited the physician's clinic, Won Dae-yeon was in the middle of energy-circulation breathing exercises.
While Do Tong-dal kept putting off telling him Ju Ja-bang's whereabouts day after day, Won Dae-yeon had been pouring his strength into recovering his martial arts.
Do Tong-dal repeatedly confirmed with the physician in black that all the opium energy had left Won Dae-yeon's body.
"How is your arm?"
Do Tong-dal said, rotating both shoulders outward in circles.
"I think it's completely healed now."
"Is that so? Whether it's fully healed depends on your own senses, so if you say you're all better, then you're better."
"Then I don't need to receive treatment anymore?"
"You don't need treatment, but......."
"What's with that lecherous, sinister look?"
The physician in black suddenly showed a smile.
"No, I was just wondering if there might be some sort of performance bonus, since my treatment was perfect."
"This fellow, really! I blew three thousand nyang and my stomach is still churning, and now you're talking about money......!"
Just then the treatment room door opened and Won Dae-yeon came in. His skin had regained its original color, and the bloodshot veins no longer showed in his eyes.
He was still gaunt, but now he looked human again. His bearing was solemn and weighty, like a boulder pressing down on Mount Tai.
Won Dae-yeon, having come inside, simply looked at Do Tong-dal without a word. Do Tong-dal also watched Won Dae-yeon for a moment, then took five nyang of silver from his breast and held it out to Won Dae-yeon.
Won Dae-yeon accepted the silver and asked.
"What is this money?"
"He's at the Won Butchery in Eungseong County, Hubei Province."
Won Dae-yeon's eyes flew open wide.
"A-are you talking about Ju Ja-bang right now?"
"His alias is Yeo Gye-myeong, apparently. Use that money for travel expenses."
"Yeo Gye-myeong...... Yeo Gye-myeong......."
Won Dae-yeon repeated the name several times, then started to leave the room but stopped and looked at Do Tong-dal. He seemed to have something he wanted to say, but only his lips twitched; no voice came out.
"Once you've avenged your enemy, go sightseeing around the Central Plains. The world is full of good places."
At Do Tong-dal's words, Won Dae-yeon could not manage a single word in the end and only nodded.
Once Won Dae-yeon had disappeared, the physician in black spoke.
"You managed to find him in this wide world."
"They say money can even command ghosts, so finding a person is nothing."
"So about that performance bonus......."
"All right!"
* * *
Do Tong-dal and Namgung Cheol-hyeon, who had been about to enter Cheonsangru shoulder to shoulder, turned to look behind them. Right behind them, Namgung Seol-rin was following.
"You don't have to come."
When the two men said it in unison, Namgung Seol-rin walked into Cheonsangru and replied.
"I'm a guest today too."
"Huh? A guest?"
"There's no law saying only men can come to a pleasure house."
Do Tong-dal asked Namgung Cheol-hyeon.
"Did something happen at home?"
"If it's something at home, you'd know better. Seol-rin's home is here now."
"What do you mean?"
"As long as Seol-rin doesn't sit at our table, it's fine."
Naturally, she joined their table. She even seated a courtesan beside her.
"No need for any men. Tonight, Su-yeong and I are drinking till dawn."
"Good. Let's see what happens when we get plastered!"
When Ja Su-yeong, seated beside her, egged her on, Namgung Seol-rin eagerly played along. Namgung Cheol-hyeon whispered to Do Tong-dal.
"Did Seol-rin learn to drink too?"
"Who teaches drinking? It's self-taught. Self-taught."
"What about her drunk habits?"
"If she has any, they probably won't be ordinary."
Fortunately, there were no particular drunk habits. Talking and laughing more was a good drunk habit.
"I'm going to go take a piss."
Namgung Seol-rin staggered a little when she stood, but soon steadied herself and left the room.
She was walking down the long corridor when a man appeared from the opposite direction. The middle-aged man, who looked to be in his early forties with a face flushed red as if he had been drinking, kept staring intently at Namgung Seol-rin's face.
She was thinking, 'Is he trying to pick a fight?' when the middle-aged man, now close, grinned.
"There was a pearl in the mud here."
'Huh?'
The middle-aged man's hand, as he passed by, suddenly grabbed her buttocks.
"Let's go to my room over there."
"You son of a bitch!"
She spun and struck his face with her elbow, then kicked the collapsing man in the bridge of the nose.
She was drunk and angry, but she had not completely lost her reason, so she avoided killing him.
"Ughhh......."
Blood streamed between the fingers of the middle-aged man clutching his nose. Namgung Seol-rin, who had been about to hit him a few more times, muttered, "I shouldn't ruin the good mood," and went on her way.
When she returned after relieving herself, the middle-aged man was gone and the blood had been wiped clean.
"The workers are diligent."
The mood in the room she returned to was still warm and cheerful, boisterous and merry.
"You won't last."
"Oh-ho, are you looking down on me?"
"Aren't you the one looking down on the Young Head of the Namgung Clan? If you can last ten moves against me, you're a first-rate master in the martial world!"
"Just watch! I'll beat you within a year!"
"If you beat me within a year, I'll marry my little sister off to you!"
"You'd better keep that prom— what did you say?"
"But if you can't win, you take my little sister. Deal?"
"Whether it's heads or tails, it's the same thing!"
Namgung Seol-rin reached out with both hands and grabbed Do Tong-dal and Namgung Cheol-hyeon by the collars.
"What kind of bet are you making right now!"
Do Tong-dal pointed at Namgung Cheol-hyeon.
"I-it wasn't me. It was that guy."
Namgung Cheol-hyeon, receiving Namgung Seol-rin's gaze, said.
"I-I thought you'd like it."
Namgung Seol-rin, who had been glaring at Namgung Cheol-hyeon, smiled slyly.
"Fine. How can I wait a whole year! Have that spar right now!"
Just then, the door suddenly burst open.
"Which bastard broke my little brother's nose!"
The ones who strode in with an overbearing air were four burly men.
"Boss! It's that bitch!"
The middle-aged man covering his nose with a cloth pointed at Namgung Seol-rin.
"You stupid fool. Getting beaten up by a slip of a girl."
"I was ambushed so suddenly."
"Pretty-faced girl, if you broke my little brother's nose, you ought to take responsibility, shouldn't you?"
Do Tong-dal and Namgung Cheol-hyeon looked at the four burly men who had barged in, then turned their gazes to Namgung Seol-rin.
"What happened?"
"What he just said means I'm pretty, right? The bastards have good eyes."
"What about breaking his nose?"
"He suddenly grabbed my butt."
The moment those words ended, Do Tong-dal and Namgung Cheol-hyeon shot to their feet.
"What! He dared touch our Protector's butt!"
"The son of a bitch touched my little sister's butt!"
"You mean you let the bastard who touched your butt go unharmed?"
"Right!"
"He's not exactly unharmed. Can't you see the blood coming from his nose?"
Do Tong-dal and Namgung Cheol-hyeon glanced at the man with the bloody nose, then shouted.
"He's completely fine!"
Boom!
The burly man who had entered first stomped the floor with his foot. Judging by the vibration that reached even them, he had apparently used Internal Energy.
"You've got some nerve. Daring to joke around in front of me, the Heaven-Shattering Divine Sword, No Du-bong."
When Namgung Cheol-hyeon and Namgung Seol-rin looked surprised, Do Tong-dal asked.
"Someone you know?"
"No."
"Then why are you surprised?"
"He said Heaven-Shattering Divine Sword. Have you ever heard such a terrifying epithet?"
Namgung Seol-rin sneered.
"He's plastering his own face with gold."
"You brats! I have my dignity as a martial artist, so I was going to let this pass with a proper scolding, but that won't do! If you don't kneel this instant, I'll break every one of your legs!"
Yeon Ja-yeon, unable to watch any longer, stepped in.
"No Du-bong, please calm yourself."
"Who are you?"
"I am the owner of this pleasure house."
"Oh-ho! A young and beautiful woman owns the pleasure house. But the owner serves drinks herself?"
"Because they are special guests."
A wary light rose in No Du-bong's face.
"Who are they?"
"They are members of the Red Tiger Society, the largest Underworld organization in Hangzhou."
"Underworld?"
"That is correct."
"Puhahaha—! You mean they're nothing but thugs? Mere thugs dare to disregard me, the Heaven-Shattering Divine Sword? These bastards have only ever dealt with petty gangsters, so they don't know the true terror of a martial artist!"
"Fuck, you're obnoxiously loud."
The person who turned to face No Du-bong was Namgung Seol-rin.
"So what? Are you trying to get revenge for that bastard's broken nose?"
The two men in their thirties behind him stepped forward.
"Boss, do we need to use a butcher's cleaver to kill a chicken? We'll handle that wench."
"Yes, I can't very well fight a woman and keep my dignity."
"What a load of horseshit. Fucking bastards."
Namgung Cheol-hyeon whispered to Do Tong-dal.
"Why is her cursing so damn satisfying?"
"That's just how Underworld thugs are."
"Protector Namgung, the person who should be protecting my pleasure house is talking about fighting?"
Namgung Seol-rin, who had been about to head toward the men, flinched and stopped at Yeon Ja-yeon's words. They were Underworld members who protected the pleasure house, not thugs who caused trouble.
Yeon Ja-yeon continued.
"There is only one person in this room who is not Underworld, but......."
Namgung Cheol-hyeon, suddenly realizing, eagerly stepped forward.
"Heh heh heh...... I'm the only one here to fight."
* * *