Chapter 61
Chapter 61
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 61
Chapter Title: Please Take Care of My Kitchen
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"Who are you talking about?"
The old man wore a resolute expression as he lightly slammed his fist on the table with a bam.
"To myself... and to my most precious person, I swore an oath. And... I cannot break that vow. So..."
Gu Jeong-deok stared at Han Ibi once more with an intense look and continued.
"...killing me and taking the item would be a fine method too."
Silence hung between the two men for a long while.
Han Ibi's awkward laughter broke the bewildered atmosphere.
"Ah... haha. Hahaha. Elder, come on. If you can't give it, just say so. Do you have to make such a terrifying joke?"
"It's no joke."
Han Ibi's expression hardened again.
Gu Jeong-deok said,
"Take this money, then, and search for Ihhamjonsu again."
"You know full well how rare Ihhamjonsu is..."
Han Ibi gazed at Gu Jeong-deok and said,
"...You're an experienced top-class herb gatherer, after all. I don't have time."
"I'm sorry..."
A deep silence fell for a moment.
Then Han Ibi's eyes caught sight of a single bottle of liquor placed in one corner.
Beside it sat a bowl of cold rice all by its lonesome, along with a plate of unidentified weeds.
It was hideous in both looks and smell. Even more so if you filtered out the herbal scent.
Han Ibi said,
"You were just about to have a drink, weren't you?"
The old man gave an awkward smile and replied,
"Well, it's always just me, so it feels a bit off."
"No other family members?"
In that instant, Han Ibi noticed it. A faint sadness clouding Gu Jeong-deok's eyes.
"Well, if she'd lived this long, she'd be an old hag by now, but she passed too soon... So in my heart, she'll forever be my beautiful young wife."
Ah... I just asked something I shouldn't have.
Han Ibi almost inquired about his children but stopped himself.
Damn it.
He needed to change the subject.
Han Ibi suddenly rubbed his stomach slowly and said,
"Aigoo, Elder. Got anything to eat around here? Now that I think about it, I've been busy all day and haven't eaten properly."
Gu Jeong-deok looked troubled as he said,
"Well... It's just an old man living alone, so nothing fancy... Would you like some cold rice?"
Han Ibi replied,
"If it's all right with you, Elder, I'd be delighted. And since there's liquor..."
"Qingcheng Sect Taoists don't touch alcohol..."
"I'm not from the Qingcheng Sect."
"Ah, right you aren't. Well then, no food to speak of, but... let's drink together."
Normally that would be polite deflection, but here there really was no food.
Han Ibi walked briskly toward the food and said,
"Hmm... Did I mention I'm a herb gatherer too?"
"You didn't last time."
"Ah, right, my memory. Yeah? Well, I have another profession."
The old man stared at Han Ibi with a look that said, What the hell is this out-of-left-field talk?
"I've worked as a waiter for a while, you see."
Culinary Skill
[Activating chef's specialty...]
* * *
Gu Jeong-deok's eyes went wide as saucers, leaving him speechless.
The magic of taste was so horrifically alluring that his tongue went numb.
The herb-gatherer old man stammered,
"This... this is truly... made from ingredients in my kitchen? A hotpot?"
Han Ibi grinned and said,
"To be precise, I threw in a few herb scraps too. Nothing expensive, of course. Plenty of stuff to sub for spices."
Gu Jeong-deok exclaimed in admiration,
"If I'd known Sky-Splitting Bear meat tasted this good, I never would've sold it. Should've just eaten it myself."
Han Ibi grinned and replied,
"Right? They must've paid top dollar at that high-class brothel. Maybe even bear bile prices."
Pffft!
Gu Jeong-deok spat out a bit of broth in shock.
The old man said,
"Aigoo, my apologies. But that money..."
"Money's fine. Just saying. Bear bile price is plenty for me."
"How'd you know I went to a brothel? Did you tail me?"
"Heavens no. Obvious, though. Unless it's the emperor, who else pays premium for top-grade meat outside fancy brothels? You'd need to scour everywhere."
"A-hem. Right... I thought..."
Glug glug!
Then Han Ibi picked up the liquor bottle, poured some into the old man's cup, and filled his own.
Gu Jeong-deok watched quietly, then raised his cup and said,
"Anyway, glad to meet you. If you weren't a herb gatherer, we wouldn't be sitting here like this."
"The honor's mine, meeting such an esteemed senior herb gatherer."
"Hahaha. Enough buttering up."
With that, Gu Jeong-deok downed his baijiu in one gulp.
But...
"Huh? What's this?"
He stared at Han Ibi again with bulging eyes and said,
"This cheap baijiu... why does it smell so fragrant?"
Seeing this, Han Ibi laughed and said,
"Hahaha. Hope I didn't overstep. I blanched some dorongcho in water and tossed it in the bottle."
"Dorongcho? That's for rhinitis..."
"Rhinitis herb, sure, but master chefs use it to mask bitterness and add a subtle aroma."
Hahaha. Cheat sheet from the Herbal Encyclopedia, actually.
The old man slapped his knee and said,
"Ahh, what a wasted life. Wasted! Had such good stuff at home and..."
"What'd I do? All thanks to you stocking such fine ingredients, Elder."
And so the two sipped liquor and shared the bear hotpot Han Ibi had made.
It was a 'supreme-grade' meal that even high-end inns would envy.
As the drinks flowed, so did the talk.
Gu Jeong-deok fetched another bottle unasked.
This time, he added the dorongcho himself...
As the mood warmed up nicely,
Han Ibi, passing through the yard earlier, finally asked what had piqued his curiosity.
"Elder, why'd you plant so many flowers outside?"
Gu Jeong-deok's face hardened.
Growing a bit somber, one might say.
"Not me... my son planted them..."
Han Ibi said,
"Ah, so you have a son."
"Yes. That child truly loved flowers."
"A rare man of refined taste."
Gu Jeong-deok smiled faintly and said,
"Indeed. Didn't suit him at all."
"But only three kinds."
Gu Jeong-deok's expression shifted subtly again.
"Yes... all flowers my son loved..."
Then Han Ibi realized it.
Every mention of his son's actions was in the past tense.
He continued,
"That boy always said he was like a buttercup."
Buttercups are small yellow flowers.
Unremarkable alone, but breathtaking in full bloom.
Their meaning: innocence.
Han Ibi said,
"Must've been a cheerful young man."
Gu Jeong-deok's face lit up.
"Yes. Full of mischief, but a very kind child."
Can't hold back anymore.
Time to ask.
"But your son, did he..."
"...passed first."
Gu Jeong-deok stared blankly at the ceiling for a moment before saying,
"Followed his mother... passed first."
As expected...
Han Ibi said,
"I'm sorry... I had no idea..."
"No need to apologize. Blame my heartless son for leaving his father behind..."
He closed his eyes briefly.
A face steeped in regret.
But he snapped them open and said,
"He's surely doing well somewhere. I know it."
"Yes. Definitely."
"Hahaha. Thank you."
Han Ibi figured a quick subject change was best and said,
"The pomegranate blossoms were really pretty, though."
Gu Jeong-deok perked up, pretending familiarity.
"Yes. Pomegranates symbolize many blessings and are beloved by beauties... but the flowers themselves are stunning."
Han Ibi chimed in,
"Right. Not many know, but pomegranate blossoms represent peerless beauty."
Herbal Encyclopedia cheat sheet again.
It worked on Gu Jeong-deok, who chuckled heartily.
"Yes, yes. Beauties love pomegranates. The girl he brought home was as lovely as those blossoms."
"Ah, so your son brought someone over?"
Gu Jeong-deok's expression grew subtle once more.
'Hope I didn't step in it again...'
Gu Jeong-deok closed his eyes in silence for a bit before speaking.
"Young hero, you say things just like my son would. Don't like thinking about it now, but..."
The mood felt off.
"...my son was a Qingcheng Sect disciple."
Han Ibi's eyes nearly popped out as he blurted,
"What?"
"That's right. Meant to raise him as a herb gatherer after me, but the boy was too talented... Caught a Qingcheng Taoist's eye, and off he went. Rare aptitude for martial arts, they said. Maybe from all the precious herbs I fed him since childhood."
At a loss for words, Han Ibi listened as Gu Jeong-deok went on.
"Qingcheng's a decent name in the jianghu, right? Worried at first it was a mistake, but he adapted like a fish to water and seemed well-regarded."
"I see."
Gu Jeong-deok closed his eyes, lost in thought.
The corners of his mouth twitched upward, as if reliving old memories.
He opened his eyes slightly and said,
"You asked who he brought earlier?"
"Ah, y-yes."
"A pretty girl. Exceptionally so. She loved pomegranates too."
"Had a sweetheart, huh?"
Gu Jeong-deok laughed heartily.
"Sweetheart? Hahaha. Bright, mischievous lad, but hopeless with women—unlike his old man."
Speaks for itself, if you ask me...
"But he kept bringing her around, so I figured he liked her."
"Had feelings for her, looks like."
(To be continued next time)