New Connections - Part 4
Seo Jun was bewildered by the unexpected scene unfolding before his eyes. His lingering doubts refused to fade, so he asked once more to be certain.
After receiving another firm promise from Seo Jun, Ju Wan dashed up the slope toward their nearby home as fast as his legs could carry him.
“Mother! Come out quickly! Hurry! Big brother’s back from hunting!”
Ju Wan burst into the house with a wide smile plastered across his face, shouting at the top of his lungs.
“Mother! I said come out right now!”
Perhaps hearing Ju Wan’s insistent calls, Seol Ryeon soon emerged from the kitchen, wiping her hands on her apron.
“Oh my! What is all this?”
Seol Ryeon’s eyes widened at the unexpected sight.
Seo Jun stepped up beside her, standing shoulder to shoulder, and calmly explained everything that had happened that day. As she listened to the full story, the long-standing worry finally vanished from Seol Ryeon’s face, replaced by a genuine, radiant smile.
“Oh my! You really were blessed with good fortune. Jun-ah, you’ve worked so hard.”
“Mother, seeing you smile like that makes me feel wonderful.”
Seo Jun gently took Seol Ryeon’s roughened hands in his own, stroking them tenderly before leaning close to whisper softly in her ear.
He now looked far more reliable and dependable than the husband who had left to wander distant lands. At the sweet words murmured against her ear, a thrill ran through Seol Ryeon’s chest, as if an electric current had passed through her body.
‘Aigoo, how shameful. What am I even thinking?’
Seol Ryeon felt embarrassed by the brief moment when she had perceived Seo Jun as a man, and she pressed a hand to her chest. Yet the seed of excitement that had taken root in her heart refused to settle so easily.
Thump. Thump.
‘What is happening to me?’
Whenever Seo Jun entered her field of vision, her heart would flutter wildly.
“Mother, I’ll butcher the deer and divide up the meat. We should share some with Aunt Yi, who has helped us so much, and also take portions to Uncle Dan and Uncle Po.”
“Oh, that’s a fine idea. We’ve received so much kindness from them over the years. Now that we finally have some breathing room, we should repay them even a little.”
Seo Jun drew on the organized memories within him to identify everyone who had helped his family and decided how to distribute the meat.
With a dagger in hand, he skillfully skinned the deer, then carefully separated one foreleg and two hind legs, placing them into a sack.
“Wan-ah! Hwi-ya! Take this meat and deliver it. Tonight we’ll feast on plenty of venison for dinner, so help Mother keep the fire going strong.”
“Yes, big brother!”
“Yes, older brother!”
The two younger boys answered energetically, already wiping away the drool that had begun to pool at the corners of their mouths. Smiling, they lifted the sack containing one foreleg and two hind legs and left the house.
Their first stop was the home of their youngest aunt, who lived at the entrance to the same neighborhood. The distance was short.
“Aunt!”
Seo Jun called out as he stepped into the yard.
Creak.
“Oh my! Is that you, Jun?”
The door opened and out stepped his youngest aunt, Yi Hyeon. She was tall with sun-kissed skin, striking features, and a voluptuous figure—full breasts and generous hips. She possessed a different kind of beauty from Seol Ryeon.
Yi Hyeon had also been known as a beauty in Hadong and Yanghyeon. Born into a martial family, she had trained in martial arts from a young age. Through those martial connections, she had grown fond of Seo Pyeong, whom she had known for a long time, and had turned down other marriage proposals to wed him.
‘What a glamorous MILF!’
“Haha! What brings our handsome Jun here? Did something happen at home?”
Yi Hyeon looked at Seo Jun with genuine curiosity.
“No, nothing like that. I went hunting today and had some good fortune, so I wanted to bring you a share, Aunt.”
Seo Jun pulled out one of the forelegs from the sack and offered it to her. Since Yi Hyeon was living alone while her husband was away, giving her the smaller but higher-quality foreleg seemed most appropriate.
“Oh my! Really? Are you sure I can accept this?”
“Of course. I know how much you always worry about our family and how much you help us.”
“Our Jun has gone hunting and is truly becoming a man now.”
The two stood facing each other and talked for quite a long while, something they hadn’t done in some time.
“Haha! Well then, Aunt, I still have other places to visit, so I’ll be on my way. If I succeed in hunting again, I’ll bring you more, so please enjoy it without holding back.”
“Alright. Thanks to you, Jun, I’ll finally get to enjoy a proper meat feast after so long. Thank you.”
These days Yi Hyeon spent most of her time alone and often felt lonely, but the unexpected warmth she felt now made her heart feel full.
After leaving his uncle’s house, Seo Jun headed toward the eastern gate. That was where Uncle Po’s forge and home were located.
Po Han’s forge was the only blacksmith shop in Shuofang County, and his skill was so excellent that he was popular throughout the area. Seo Jeong and Seo Pyeong had first become close to him while having their weapons repaired. The bond grew even stronger when Seo Jun began spending time with Po Han’s sons, Po Cheol and Po Won.
Clang! Clang! Clang! Clang!
The sound of hammering metal echoed through the surroundings.
“Uncle!”
“Haha! If it isn’t Jun! Come on in, my boy.”
The burly man with massive muscles, Po Han, spotted Seo Jun and burst into loud laughter as he approached.
“Father, did he come to repair a weapon?”
“No. Here, take this.”
Seo Jun pulled one of the hind legs from the sack and handed it to Po Han.
“Isn’t this precious venison! Cheol-ah!!! You rascal!!! Come out here! Jun brought us some meat!”
Even though the hide had been removed, Po Han instantly recognized the type of meat. He called loudly for his eldest son, Po Cheol, who was resting inside the house behind the forge.
Thud!
Thump thump thump!
Bang!
“White Dragon Brother!!!”
Po Cheol, who looked like an exact copy of his father and would be impossible to lose in a crowd, shoved the door open so hard it seemed it might break and burst into the forge.
Ever since meeting Seo Jun, Po Cheol had respected his more mature demeanor and treated him like an older brother. Though they had never performed a formal brotherhood ceremony, they regarded each other as true brothers. Po Cheol dreamed of becoming a general and trained diligently in martial arts under the guidance of Seo Jeong and Seo Jun.
“Cheol-ah, take this.”
“Brother, where did you get such fine meat?”
“I caught it while hunting today.”
“What? Why did you go alone? You should have taken me with you!”
Having not seen Seo Jun in a while, Po Cheol chattered away nonstop, his words completely at odds with his massive frame.
After meeting Po Cheol as well, Seo Jun realized that he was becoming more and more assimilated into the identity of Seo Jun of the Han Dynasty.
‘It seems everyday human relationships now feel as natural to me as my own emotions.’
While Seo Jun walked on, momentarily lost in thought, he arrived at the home of the man he called Uncle Dan—Dan Hoe—the final stop of the day.
Bang! Bang!
“Uncle Dan!”
Rattle.
“You little brat, you’re going to make me deaf. I just got off duty and was trying to rest a bit…”
The sound of the door bolt sliding open was followed by a man’s grumbling voice from inside, which soon faded away.
Once inside, Seo Jun approached the man sitting on a chair in the courtyard, watching him.
“Uncle, please take this.”
“You’ve brought quite the gift. I’ll gladly accept it.”
Dan Hoe, who served as the military administrator of Shuofang County, had already heard a rough summary of Seo Jun’s day through his subordinates.
He looked at Seo Jun once more with warm eyes. Tall, handsome, powerfully built, and possessing outstanding martial talent—Seo Jun was far too valuable a talent to remain stuck in a remote backwater like this.
“It was my own selfish desire that brought your father and uncle here, causing you so much hardship. I will try to create an opportunity for you to enter official service in the capital somehow, so keep training and wait just a little longer.”
Dan Hoe always felt guilty, wondering if his own ambitions had stolen Seo Jun’s chances. The path to official service had been completely blocked after his father became entangled in the Danggo purge. The first opportunity that arose after the Yellow Turban Rebellion pardoned the Danggo faction was this post as military administrator in Shuofang. Even though the purge had been lifted, the only positions available to those without money to buy office were places like this.
Yet to Dan Hoe, even such a humble position and opportunity were precious. That was why he had persuaded the Seo Jeong brothers—who possessed great skill but came from a humble family and were stuck as low-ranking officers—to come all the way to Shuofang and work together.
It was only after his initial excitement and clouded judgment had cooled and he came to understand the unchanging reality of Shuofang that he realized his decision had caused the rest of Seo Jeong’s family to suffer. Because of that, Dan Hoe felt especially sorry toward Seo Jeong’s family—particularly toward Seo Jun.
“Uncle, I’ll take my leave now.”
“I’ll enjoy the meat. If anything happens, come find me anytime.”
After bidding farewell to Dan Hoe, Seo Jun turned his steps toward home.
A long and eventful day in which the new Seo Jun adapted to this new era was drawing to a close.
After the success of his first hunt, Seo Jun began going out to hunt every two or three days, bringing back various spoils. As his hunting successes continued, his family’s life gradually became quite abundant. Before long, Seo Jun had become the undisputed head of the household.
On a cold winter night with less than a month remaining in the year, the family—having eaten their fill of dinner—sat around the table together for the first time in a while, chatting and laughing.