Chapter 47: City of Peace and Love (4)
Chapter 47: City of Peace and Love (4)
"Is the young master a scholar? Your hands are so delicate!"
"Ah, it's best not to speak to that one. They suffered a high fever as a child and lost their voice."
"Oh my... how tragic."
"Because of that, they have a very prickly personality, so don't get too close."
"Yes, young master!"
Murong Cheong pushed away the courtesan who was incessantly pouring wine and giggling, then glared at Peng Hyeon-hwi.
She had heard that these women were the noble, refined 'Pure Courtesans' who sold their art but not their bodies, but looking at how they treated Peng Hyeon-hwi, that didn't seem to be the case.
As if perfectly accustomed to such situations, Peng Hyeon-hwi burst into laughter repeatedly, leisurely plucking the zither or playing the pipa while sipping his wine.
[You seem to be enjoying yourself.]
When she tossed that remark at him via sound transmission, he didn't even turn his head. He simply rolled his eyes to look at her and let out a smirk.
She felt like her insides were about to burst.
"Are you going to stay grumpy like that? Even though I'm showing you the true scent of Tianjin today?"
"Oh my, what is the true scent of Tianjin, young master?"
"Is not the essence of this city to cherish wine, befriend flowers, and enjoy the melody?"
As he spoke, he took a drink and dropped a silver tael into the courtesan's hand.
The courtesans laughed brightly at his playful attitude and joined in the fun.
[Are they members of the Hao Clan?]
When she asked just in case, he shook his head. It meant he was simply, purely playing around with the courtesans.
Her fingers kept twitching toward the hilt of the sword she had placed beside her under the table.
Her throat felt parched from irritation, so she found herself gulping down the wine.
To her annoyance, it was delicious.
"Up we go. Shall we move on to the next?"
"Next?"
"I've spent money at the courtesan house, so now I have to earn some."
Peng Hyeon-hwi lightly cracked his neck.
With a sharp crack, his True Qi flowed naturally.
Soon, the pungent scent of alcohol filled the room, and Peng Hyeon-hwi waved his hand to dispel the toxic vapors of the liquor.
It was a natural gesture, as if he had done it a thousand times before.
"If you're just going to dispel the alcohol like that, why on earth are you playing around so extravagantly? Do you have a spending problem?"
"Does one drink wine just to get drunk?"
"Isn't that usually the case?"
"A gentleman enjoys his drink but does not let it master him (Analects: Xiangdang Chapter). One should not refuse even a gallon of wine, but a true scholar is one who does not get drunk even after five gallons."
"Do you have money to burn?"
"It's not my money, so why care?"
"…?"
After that, Peng Hyeon-hwi stopped by a gambling den and cleaned out another seven taels of silver.
Every time he clapped his hands, the palanquin bearer standing behind him would bow deeply as if in great apology, pull out silver, and hand it over—a cycle of squandering.
One tael of silver was a bundle of ten qian.
Commoners usually spent money in units of single copper wen, and even for large expenses, it was common to use 'broken silver' (shredded silver bits).
The Murong Family was a very wealthy Great Clan, and Murong Cheong had lived without ever wanting for anything, but honestly, even she felt that the money Peng Hyeon-hwi was throwing away on gambling was a waste.
After watching this seemingly meaningless luxury and hedonism with cold eyes for a long while, Murong Cheong finally spoke up once they were alone in their room at the inn.
"What was the point of everything that happened today?"
"Hmm?"
"I thought we were making contact with the Hao Clan, but we didn't! You just drank wine at the courtesan house! You fiddled with dice until late at night! What use was any of this? I feel like I've wasted my time following you!"
At those words, Peng Hyeon-hwi looked out the window for a moment.
He seemed to be listening to the boisterous noises of Tianjin's brilliant entertainment district in the deep of night, and the melodies flowing from the cluster of pavilions where the courtesan houses were gathered.
Then, he smiled deeply.
Since arriving in Tianjin, I had visited a courtesan house every day, except for the first.
As long as I was a direct descendant of the Peng Family—and as long as my eldest brother didn't openly try to suppress me—money was not an issue.
Even if I spent the whole day scattering silver, it wouldn't even make a dent in the wealth the Dragon Slaying Alliance raked in.
Most of that money would flow back into the government anyway, so if I requested funds, they would just pop out of my eldest brother's pocket.
So, I spent it lavishly.
What? Isn't the Hao Clan wealthy too? That's a foolish thought.
I'm not some unfilial monster; how could I lay a hand on my Master's wallet?
Moreover, frequenting courtesan houses and gambling dens had another effect.
—Again? He's going again today?
—Are you sure he's not a Hao Clan member? Those guys, are they really not Hao Clan?
From the third day onwards, I could hear my 'guides' and 'drivers' falling into confusion.
In the current situation where my information was being fed directly to my brother's ears, I was intentionally hanging around places where Hao Clan members were likely to be and scattering money.
But ta-da! None of them were Hao Clan members.
Mafia, please raise your head.
To get a score of zero, one must know how to solve every problem.
Since I had already received the personal details of the Tianjin Hao Clan members and memorized them all, avoiding the businesses they ran was as easy as flipping my palm.
"Young master! The pipa! Please play the pipa for us today!"
"Hmm, bring it here."
Ignoring Murong Cheong's gaze, which looked at me with utter patheticness, I took the pipa and began to play.
Pretending to tune the strings, I used leisurely finger movements—deeding—letting my Qi flow and repeating it five times.
[Murong Family. Cheon Ju-eun. Elder level. Track movements.]
After melting away some time with the courtesans and drinking a moderate amount of wine, a familiar tune would drift back.
[Received. Executing.]
Honestly, isn't the status of being the direct disciple of the Hao Clan Leader much better than being the youngest brat of the Hebei Peng Family?
While I was at it, I used the gambling den to fleece my brother's pockets a bit more to show off my prestige, and then returned in a good mood.
"I feel like I've wasted my time following you!"
Ignoring my Murong 'niece's' angry voice, I opened the window, and from across the night street, the low sound of a zither being plucked reached my ears.
[Seven days ago. Location confirmed. Boarded the Zhongri Family's Black Ship.]
The Zhongri Family? Tsk, I felt a bitter taste in my mouth. They belong to the Chongqing Ten Thousand Ghosts Alliance, so they're a bit troublesome to touch.
Furthermore, a 'Black Ship' is a smuggling fleet operated by the Zhongri Family.
Once you're on that ship, it's impossible to track whether you've gone from the Yellow Sea to the South Sea.
Neither the Hao Clan nor the beggars of the Beggars' Sect would be able to get onto a Zhongri ship.
Should I give up here? But then what about Ann?
Just as I was thinking that, the melody continued.
[Black Ship location confirmed. Anchored in Qingxian County, Hejian Prefecture.]
As soon as I decoded the cipher, a map of Northern Zhili unfolded in my mind.
Hejian Prefecture was south of Tianjin, a border area at the edge of Northern Zhili.
If you went just a bit further down from there, you'd hit Southern Zhili, which was the territory of Jiangnan's Yingtian Prefecture.
It was a land where a miniature Righteous-Demonic War broke out every other day.
Not only was it right under Northern Zhili's chin, but the Namgung Family and the Zhuge Family, who split the hegemony of the Jiangnan Murim, were within spitting distance of Yingtian Prefecture.
Just as the Hebei Peng Family reigned over all of Northern Zhili from near Beijing, the Namgung Family was doing the same there.
It meant it was near the territory of the Jiangnan White Forest Association.
'The person who stole the Murong Family's secret manual boarded a Zhongri ship and headed for the Jiangnan border?'
What the hell is this guy thinking?
As I tapped the tea table, lost in thought, Murong Cheong's brow began to furrow even more menacingly.
"How about you just go back?"
"What did you just...? After dragging a noble lady through courtesan houses and gambling dens all day, you're telling me to go back now? Are you human trash? I suppose I expected too much from a Han. By nature, Hans are nothing but despicable, spineless, lecherous trash...!"
"I've located your uncle, but it's too dangerous."
"You should have said that first!! It was the Hao Clan after all, wasn't it?! You were contacting the Hao Clan members earlier!"
Murong Cheong shouted and quickly packed her bags.
She even put on the bamboo hat I gave her at a jaunty angle, acting as if she were ready to bolt out the door this instant.
"I don't want to stay in this filthy city for even one more day. Tell me the location immediately. I am leaving."
"I'm telling you, if you go, you'll definitely die."
"Did he join the Tianshan Demonic Cult or something?"
"That would actually be better."
Since that's my fiancée's place.
If I asked, they'd at least listen to me.
"It seems he traveled on a Zhongri Family ship, and right now, he's on the path to Jiangnan."
"The Zhongri Family...? Jiangnan...?"
Murong Cheong fell into confusion.
It was even more so because the Zhongri Family was famous for being particularly nasty, even among the Ten Great Sects of the Black Dao.
As is typical of the Black Path sects belonging to the Chongqing Ten Thousand Ghosts Alliance faction.
How should I put it? They're a bit different from our side.
If the Hebei Dragon Slaying Alliance feels like wholesome youths who settled near Beijing, actively interact with the government, and willingly belong to the social system (despite having a history of starting a Righteous-Demonic War)...
The Chongqing Ten Thousand Ghosts Alliance are natural-born gangsters who picked up swords because they thought, 'Man, I really want to be a criminal.'
If we're the Mafia, they're closer to a Mexican drug cartel.
There's the Ghost Gate Meridian, who took the Left-Path tech tree from the Quanzhen Sect and then fell into demonic corruption.
There's the Ten Thousand Swords Hall, where friends who just love stabbing things gathered to research how to slice people up.
And the Zhongri Family, the 'Tooth Fairies' who spend their days wondering what kind of mischief (plotting civil wars, inciting rebellion, sect-extermination matches) they should pull today.
Chongqing is the land where these kinds of people are the bosses.
If Northern Zhili is a 'travel advisory' area among the friends of the Orthodox Faction, Chongqing is a 'travel ban' country.
And a seed from that Black Path demon realm has parked their smuggling ship in the hottest conflict zone between the Orthodox and Demonic factions? And a mid-level member of the Murong Family ran away with a secret manual to join them?
In modern terms, it's like a director-level executive from a top-10 conglomerate stealing internal data, contacting a North Korean agent, and then heading to Iraq.
'And the third-generation chaebol daughter wants to go alone to get it back.'
She'll die if she goes. Guaranteed.
"Think about it. Your uncle ran away with the family manual and joined hands with the Zhongri Family. If you go there alone, do you think they'll welcome you warmly, serve you a hearty dinner, and give the manual back?"
"I never expected such a thing in the first place. But... but if it's near Jiangnan, couldn't I send word to the Namgung Family? I was quite close with Namgung Jeong-ha of the Namgung Family."
"That's even more of a problem."
"Pardon?"
"If the Zhongri Family showed up in Jiangnan, where they have no ties, with a Black Ship, it absolutely means they're up to something right now. Targeting the Jiangnan Orthodox sects."
If those mischievous friends even brought a Black Ship, it's a certainty.
The fact that they turned a Black Ship out into the Yangtze River is already suspicious as hell, but if they're even anchored near Jiangnan, I already don't even want to associate with them.
Requesting support from the Namgung Family while the Zhongri Family is working against the Jiangnan Orthodox sects? That's just a recipe for disaster.
Stepping into that will inevitably lead to a bloodbath.
This naive, rich girl from the countryside will definitely die.
"Just bring the adults. If the Murong Family moves their martial units in earnest, the Zhongri Family won't be able to move rashly."
"Then my uncle will surely die..."
"You know it too. Your uncle can't be innocent."
"I don't know how they teach in the Peng Family."
Murong Cheong said, looking at me with sharp eyes.
"But I was taught that at any moment, a person must have one last chance."
"A last chance?"
"A chance to explain what circumstances he had, why he did such a thing, and if he truly betrayed us."
Even if all the circumstances and circumstantial evidence were clear, the last chance to defend himself with his own mouth.
The look in Murong Cheong's eyes as she spoke of this was surprisingly brilliant.
"You may think it's frustrating. But that is how we were taught, and that is how we lived. The family... will not give him a chance. Unlike an individual, a family cannot consider such things one by one. I understand that too. That it's more efficient, and that from the family's perspective, they cannot be obsessed with such things.
Because this region is too dangerous for us."
Very haltingly. In unfamiliar Han Chinese, not for the sake of persuasion, but simply...
Simply, about what she herself believed.
If one had to call this a process of persuasion, it was closer to her persuading herself.
"But I have to do it. We do not do at night what we cannot do during the day. If the family is about to do something that isn't right, at the very least, I must do the right thing first. Before the family acts."
Murong Cheong lifted her bamboo hat slightly and smiled at me.
"I am not asking for help. Just tell me the location. With that alone, you have already helped a lot, and I am sufficiently grateful."
For helping her when she first arrived in Tianjin.
For protecting her in the territory of the Black Path Murim where she had no connections.
If all that kindness was merely a favor for having acted together for one night in Shanxi in the past, she had already received more than enough.
"The mission I received from the Hao Clan Leader was to check on the Hao Clan members in Tianjin..."
"Yes?"
"It was really no big deal. Personally, I still have some business left in Tianjin, though. It seems this side might take a bit more time anyway."
It seemed the Hao Clan's intelligence hadn't yet fully grasped the link between my eldest brother and the White Lotus Cult.
Since the Hao Clan's influence wasn't that large, and it would obviously take a very, very long time to grasp the internal affairs of the Dragon Slaying Alliance's headquarters.
So, I made the cold and rational judgment that I could spend a few days elsewhere.
"Qingxian County, Hejian Prefecture. It's a five-day journey from here if we ride horses on the official road."
If we take paths other than the official road, we can shorten that time.
For someone like me who obsessively memorized all the geography of the Northern Zhili region over several years, finding a path was nothing.
So.
"Are you any good at running?"
"The Murong Family's Lightness Art is not significantly inferior even compared to the Kunlun Sect's Cloud Dragon Eight Forms."
"Then I might be the one who's lacking. I'll be in your care."
"Are you coming with me?"
"Then I should let you go alone? When it's obvious you'll die."
"Why?"
Murong Cheong looked genuinely bewildered.
I was a bit at a loss for words to answer her question.
In truth, it had nothing to do with me, and it was even incredibly dangerous.
There was not a single reason for me to help.
It was just an instinct that if I helped, a kid like this wouldn't die.
And a calculation of how much profit it would bring in the future if I helped the daughter of the Murong Family Head and recovered their secret manual.
And as any 21st-century modern person would empathize...
While listening to plenty of ridicule about an era where martial arts had forgotten chivalry and chivalry had lost martial arts...
I thought it might be quite nice if kids like this lived a little longer. Adding just a tiny bit of that thought.
"So you can pay me back later," was all I could say to summarize.
Murong Cheong was speechless for a long time after hearing that, then she soon gave a bright, pure smile and nodded vigorously.
"I definitely will."
It was the most brilliant, clear, and upright smile I had seen since falling into this era.
"Then, are we friends now?"
"What are you talking about, niece?"
It hasn't even been a month since I decided to be brothers with Murong Seo-jeong. How dare she ignore the strictness of generational hierarchy?