A Grave Site for the Northern Frontier
When the guard asked, Jeong Ho-chan answered breezily.
"I'm going to look for a good grave site."
"A grave site, for the northern frontier?" The young officer furrowed his brow.
The older officer trailing behind burst out laughing. "Living folk can't even bear to go up north, and you're sending a dead man there? That's a bit much."
Jeong Ho-chan was utterly composed. "These days Hanyang is in such turmoil that if one wishes to escape calamity, one must place a grave site in an auspicious location."
"What's that supposed to mean?" The young officer narrowed his eyes.
"Well, you see, calamity isn't something that can be avoided by human effort alone. It must be warded off through the harmony of Heaven, Earth, and Man."
"Hm. And how does one avoid this calamity, then?" The older officer showed genuine interest.
Jeong Ho-chan smiled faintly. "If one wishes to escape calamity, one must devote oneself to self-cultivation and abstain entirely from deeds that invite misfortune. That is the subtle principle of seeking fortune and avoiding disaster. Fortune, of course, refers to the Five Blessings named in the Book of Documents: long life, wealth, health, the accumulation of virtue, and dying a natural death—though the Xinlun of the Han dynasty substitutes a multitude of descendants in place of a natural death."
"Hmm..."
Jeong Ho-chan's eloquence flowed like a clear mountain stream. The older officer listened to his explanation with rapt attention, and even the young one, though his expression remained sour, seemed to be lending an ear.
"As for misfortune, it means calamity that strikes without warning. To avoid it, one must take precautions the moment an ill omen appears, and even in good fortune one must never fall into excess or arrogance. Thus Laozi said that misfortune is that upon which fortune leans, and fortune is that beneath which calamity crouches..."
"Enough, enough of that."
Seeing Jeong Ho-chan's speech threaten to stretch on forever, the young officer finally gagged in exasperation.
By then a crowd had gathered behind them without anyone noticing. Jeong Ho-chan spoke with a smile.
"If you'd like, I'll read the fortunes of you gentlemen and everyone here, and write each of you a talisman to help you seek fortune and ward off misfortune. How does that sound?"
"Sounds good to me."
Before the young officer could object, the older one had already stepped forward. The other soldiers present wore expressions of keen interest as well. In these restless times, even such dubious sweet talk could sway a man's heart.
Jeong Ho-chan read their fortunes on the spot, then produced brush, ink, and paper and began writing talismans for them one by one.
"Now, keep this talisman on your person at all times. It is a thing that drives misfortune far away and calls fortune near."
"Much obliged."
The attitude of the older officer and the soldiers had softened considerably from before. The young officer kept to the back, perhaps out of wounded pride, but Jeong Ho-chan went out of his way to write a talisman for him as well.
"Your fortune in your early years may be unremarkable, but from the age of forty onward, you shall enjoy blessings and prosperity."
"Well, I'll be... Regardless, thank you. Travel safely, and do find yourself a fine grave site."
"Thank you kindly."
Jeong Ho-chan smiled guilelessly. He even exchanged cordial farewells with the soldiers, and they waved back warmly. Having waved Jeong Ho-chan's party through, they turned to the people who had been waiting all the while and resumed their inspection with stony faces.
"It's a real comfort to be able to read fortunes and misfortunes, even roughly," Jeong Ho-chan said. "Wherever you go, you never have to worry about going hungry."
"Truer words were never spoken. All I can manage is clowning for a handout or playing at being a traveling medicine peddler—but I suppose I can't match the talents of a trained man."
Cha Gyeong-yeon grinned. They quickened their pace.
There were inspections like this all along the road, but Jeong Ho-chan sweet-talked his way through each one with the same masterful eloquence he'd shown at the capital's gate.
"If you're bound for the northern frontier, you'll be taking the Uiju Road, I take it?" Cha Gyeong-yeon asked.
The Uiju Road ran from Hanyang through Pyongyang all the way to Uiju. Since it was the route used by envoys traveling to and from Ming China, it was extremely well maintained.
But Jeong Ho-chan shook his head. "Not this time. We'll be taking a rather different route."
At those instructions, Cha Gyeong-yeon's eyes went round. "The route you mean is rough going. Why on earth would you leave the fine Uiju Road of Pyongan Province and detour through Hamgil Province over such hard terrain?"
"It's a road worth surveying at some point, that's all. You could be dropped anywhere in the wilds and still find your way, but it wouldn't hurt to have a look ahead of time while we're at it."
The answer was characteristically cryptic. But Cha Gyeong-yeon, long accustomed to this man's manner of speaking, merely shrugged. He knew well enough that Jeong Ho-chan was a man who saw not a few moves ahead but dozens, and that if such a man deemed something necessary, it must be necessary.
"Then off we go. Since we're choosing the hard road, I suppose I'll have to lead the way."
They pressed north. First they passed through Gaepyeong County in Gyeonggi Province, then joined the Uiju Road at Yangju Prefecture. It was a well-kept highway befitting the route of Ming envoys, and followed to its end, one could cross the Amnok River at Uiju and pass into Ming's Liaodong territory, into the lands of the tribes, or into Jianzhou.
Yet at Yeongbyeon they turned the road eastward and entered Eocheon-do. This was the route into Hamgil Province, and it was brutally difficult. It was the domain of the Gaema Plateau—the roof of the Korean Peninsula, averaging fifteen hundred meters in elevation, so harsh that in the Joseon era it saw virtually no traffic and had never even earned a proper name. Eocheon-do was a mountain pass that cut across the Nangnim Range, connecting Ganggye of Pyongan Province, perched at the plateau's foot, to the Four Garrison Districts pioneered in the days of King Sejong.
Jeong Ho-chan had Cha Gyeong-yeon meticulously survey every stretch of the route ahead and commit it to memory. Whenever Cha Gyeong-yeon asked why, he would only flash a faint smile and say it would all prove useful in time. Though he tilted his head in puzzlement, Cha Gyeong-yeon did as he was told.
Only after a few dozen days had passed did they finally arrive at Ganggye. They were to wait here.
Cha Gyeong-yeon seemed a little anxious. "It took longer than expected. I wonder if the elders won't have something to say about it."
"There's a reason for everything, so don't fret too much." Jeong Ho-chan smiled faintly. He was organizing in his mind the route from Hanyang to this place. "We made the journey on foot, after all. For someone who's never walked such a distance, wouldn't it take somewhat longer?"
"I suppose that's true."
"Then if they depart in summer, we should expect them to arrive before the first frost." Jeong Ho-chan stroked his beard. Despite the grueling journey, he had lost none of his tidy, dignified appearance.
"I'll go carry word to the elders, then."
"Do that."
Cha Gyeong-yeon went straight to the hidden quarter where the smugglers of Ganggye gathered. Ganggye had a Prefect commanding a garrison, and it might properly be called the home base of the officials charged with cracking down on smuggling—yet the smugglers themselves were holed up here of all places. It fit the old saying about the darkest spot being right beneath the lamp, but in truth, in this cold and remote land where human life was barely sustainable, there existed a strange camaraderie: official and outlaw alike were all scraping out an existence in the same brutal country.
Cha Gyeong-yeon found the boatman he was looking for. "Is Brother Jang about?"
"Eh, what brings you?" Conversations among smugglers were comparatively terse. A letter was handed over on the spot. Smugglers rarely asked questions about what they were given to carry. The only exception was metal or weapons—contraband for which, if one were caught crossing into the tribes' territory, there would be no leniency and only the harshest punishment.
After Jeong Ho-chan and Cha Gyeong-yeon had waited some two days, word came. After the sun had set, a man came to the house where they were staying, dressed in a black overcoat with a straw hat pulled low over his face.
"Did Elder Brother Yeol Se-ho send you?"
"He did."
The hatted man gave a short nod. Jeong Ho-chan nodded back and rose to his feet, and Cha Gyeong-yeon followed him out. The hatted man recognized Cha Gyeong-yeon and bowed with respect.
"An honor to meet you."
"You're newly sworn into the brotherhood, I gather? How long has it been?"
"Half a year now."
Cha Gyeong-yeon smiled faintly. "Let's be off."
They melted into the darkness like cats. It was a moonless night, the new moon leaving scarcely any light, and there was no one to mark their passage. The hatted man led them along, slipping past the night patrol with practiced ease, as though he had come and gone through this place many times before.
Once clear of Ganggye Prefecture's walls, three horses stood waiting. The man glanced back at Jeong Ho-chan. "Are you comfortable on horseback, sir?"
Instead of answering, Jeong Ho-chan gently stroked the horse's neck. When it snorted softly and calmed, he swung himself into the saddle with practiced grace.
Cha Gyeong-yeon laughed. "Well, I never knew that about you. I'd heard the gentleman once served in our brotherhood himself, and that he and Elder Chapter Leader Yeol have always been especially close."
"I hadn't the honor of knowing."
"Come, let's hurry. The elders will be waiting."
Even in the darkness, the three men urged their horses on diligently, guided by the starlight. The hatted man rode at the head, leading the party with an unshakable, practiced steadiness.
Before long, reed beds thickened all around them. Seen from a distance, the reeds swaying in the wind were like the sea itself. The man looked around, then at length dismounted. Jeong Ho-chan and Cha Gyeong-yeon followed. The horses, seemingly accustomed to such work, held their positions.
Jeong Ho-chan closed both eyes. His sight was of little use out here anyway; his hearing, touch, and smell were far more dependable. He surrendered himself to the rustling whisper of the reeds and the distant murmur of the river's current.
Four or five of them, perhaps. Though he could not see them properly, Jeong Ho-chan could sense the presence of men surrounding them with perfect clarity. One of them appeared to be collecting the three horses they had left behind; the rest were closing around the party.
The man spoke. "This way, please."
They pushed through the sea of reeds. After walking some distance, a small clearing suddenly opened before them. At its center stood a man who appeared to be in his forties, hands clasped behind his back. He too was dressed head to toe in clothing black as ink.
Jeong Ho-chan went straight to him and offered a respectful bow.
"You've come, Ho-chan."
"Yes, Elder Brother Yeol Se-ho."
The man called Yeol Se-ho nodded without a word and turned to face Jeong Ho-chan fully. It was dark, but his eyes alone gleamed with remarkable clarity, and from his grave, measured voice one could feel the steadiness of a man in complete command of himself.
"You came out to meet us yourself, Elder Brother?"
"When it comes to escorting the elders, it's only right that I come myself."
Having answered so bluntly, Yeol Se-ho strode toward Jeong Ho-chan—then stopped dead. The next instant, the two men embraced.
"You rascal! Have you been well?"
"And you, Brother, are unchanged as ever."
"How long has it been, anyway? Ten years?"
"About that, Elder Brother! It feels like only the day before yesterday that we first met beneath Master's roof—and yet so much time has passed already."
A look of deep feeling crossed Jeong Ho-chan's face as well. "I remember it still. Too late now to say it, but back then I was all but driving you out, wasn't I? It was sheer providence that Master Joeui happened to be returning just then and witnessed the scene. Then again, he's an extraordinary man—he may well have known in advance that you would come seeking us."
"How could I ever forget, Elder Brother? Is Master here at today's gathering?"
At those words, Yeol Se-ho's expression clouded slightly, and he shook his head. "He is not. He's always been impossible to pin down... There's no telling where he is now. It wouldn't surprise me in the least if he were in the Jianzhou Guard, or in Moryeonwi, or gone clear off to the Haeshi Guard far beyond."
"I see. I had hoped to behold my teacher's face today. A pity."
Jeong Ho-chan was genuinely disappointed. Had Master Joeui been present, they might have gained his counsel at tonight's gathering.
"Oh—Brother! Is Se-chang faring well?"
"Ah, our Se-chang? Well enough. He serves under me now, standing watch over the elders. Why not meet with him a while before you go?"
"Gladly. Tonight I can finally untangle old threads after all these years."
"That's the spirit. Of course you should—it's been a good ten years... And speaking of which—here, you! Gyeong-yeon! I've had this fellow standing here without so much as a greeting!"
Yeol Se-chang turned to Cha Gyeong-yeon with a bright smile, and Cha Gyeong-yeon returned the bow in kind.
"It's been far too long, sir."
"None of that, none of that. You're looking after our Ho-chan well, I trust?"
"I'm a poor servant—I only hope I haven't been a burden to my master."
At Cha Gyeong-yeon's modest words, Jeong Ho-chan burst out laughing. "Looking after me well, he says. Thanks to Elder Brother's assigning him to me, I've been solid as a rock. He's become as my own hands and feet—we're practically one body now."
"Well, I'm glad he's proved useful to your work. Men like this are truly rare. Between us, now that the times have grown so treacherous, I find myself rather reluctant to spare him!"
Yeol Se-ho smiled wryly. "The situation in Hanyang is no laughing matter, but it seems matters here on the northern frontier are no easier either."
"When you're squeezed in among the wild tribes, scraping out survival day by day, when has it ever been otherwise?" Yeol Se-ho knit his brow slightly. "The shockwave of the coup Suyang staged in Hanyang has come crashing all the way here. Losing old Yi Jing-ok—that was the bitterest, most grievous blow in decades past counting. But what can be done? What's done is done."
Yeol Se-ho sighed. "I too was bound to him in deep friendship. When word came that something had broken out in Hanyang, I sent our Se-chang to tell him not to act rashly... I never dreamed he would pass so suddenly, so emptily."
"There was nothing to be done. Suyang is not so dull-witted as that. But then, Lord Wonbong was never a man to bend his knee to Suyang either."
"True enough. Still, a terrible loss. And this affair has handed Yi Man-ju of Jianzhou the golden opportunity of a lifetime. I've been wary of that man for years now, and yet..."
"Yi Man-ju, the Dudu of the Jianzhou Guard? He must be well advanced in years by now. Is he still such a thorn in our side?"