Please Understand, However (4)
Hye-pyeong, who had been watching the sun sink in the distance, let out an unconscious sigh. Lately, this suffocating feeling of his just would not go away.
I don’t know what the hell we’re doing.
He could not understand at all why they had left Mount Song and come all the way to this distant Yangtze River only to waste time here aimlessly. No matter how many times he heard that they were here to keep watch on the Evil Tyrant Alliance, it never really settled in his heart.
After all, all they had done since arriving at the Yangtze River was watch the events unfolding on Maehwado from a far-off distance.
It had been the Heavenly Friends Alliance, not Shaolin, that actually fought the water bandits. So even when people told him they could not leave the Yangtze River in order to deal with the Evil Tyrant Alliance, the words felt hollow.
Staring at the deepening sunset pouring across the river, Hye-pyeong sighed once more and finally spoke.
“Senior Brother.”
“...What is it?”
Hye-gong, who was standing watch with him, answered without even turning his head.
“Do you think Senior Brother Hye-bang made it safely to Mount Song?”
“... ...”
There was no immediate reply. Only after a moment did a heavy voice come back to him.
“Why? Do you want to return to Mount Song too?”
“That’s not it, but... it’s just...”
Hye-pyeong stopped in the middle of his sentence and drew a deep breath.
“I don’t know, Senior Brother. It’s true that Senior Brother Hye-bang was rude to the Abbot, but whether that was really enough to deserve being sent into the Repentance Cave...”
“Senior Brother Hye-bang chose to go into the Repentance Cave of his own accord. It is not something to be judged as right or wrong.”
“...Yes, that’s true.”
Only then did Hye-gong turn and fix Hye-pyeong with his gaze.
“Do you regret not following him?”
Hye-pyeong clamped his mouth shut.
To be honest, of course he wanted to go back to Mount Song with Hye-bang. The orders he had received from the Abbot after arriving at the Yangtze River were things he simply could not understand.
He understood.
He knew all of it was surely for Shaolin’s sake. No one doubted that Beop Jeong’s choices were made out of concern for Shaolin alone.
But...
“I was taught that a monk must not hesitate to become fertilizer for the sake of all living beings.”
“...”
“Then we...”
“That is enough.”
Hye-gong cut him off before he could continue.
“Even if you have doubts, do not voice them so easily. Once a word is spoken, you can never take it back.”
“...”
“If there is something you must think on, think deeply. And only when you truly believe your thoughts are not completely wrong should you let them out into the world. Otherwise, it is nothing but delusion.”
“I will keep that in mind, Senior Brother.”
A deep sigh slipped from Hye-pyeong’s lips.
Every so often, he found himself wondering whether the reason he had not followed Hye-bang was simply because he lacked courage. Whether he had only been afraid to defy the Abbot and act on his own judgment.
Maybe I’m the one without the right.
He was a monk who had vowed to give his body for the sake of all living beings, and yet he had been too afraid of the Abbot’s wrath to do what he believed was right. Did such a man have any right to question whether Beop Jeong was right or wrong?
It was just then that Hye-gong spoke.
“Someone is coming.”
“Yes?”
Hye-pyeong lifted his head and looked toward the figures approaching the estate.
Who...?
At this hour, with the sun already setting, who would bother coming here?
Remembering the saying that good men do not come, Hye-pyeong’s face stiffened.
“Huh?”
But then a baffled sound burst from his mouth.
The approaching group—more specifically, the one leading them—looked strangely familiar.
“Senior Brother. That man... no, that person is...?”
“...I think so.”
Hye-gong’s face had also gone rigid.
Why is he here?
The one approaching was none other than Hyun Jong, Sect Leader of Mount Hua.
Of course, there was no reason Hyun Jong could not come here. But given the current relationship between Shaolin and Mount Hua, it was undeniably an awkward visit.
“How...”
“Don’t rush.”
Hye-gong steadied Hye-pyeong.
“Welcome him properly.”
“Yes, Senior Brother.”
In those short words, one could hear Hye-gong’s respect for Hyun Jong. Though it was true that relations between Shaolin and Mount Hua had grown strained, Hyun Jong was unquestionably a man who deserved reverence and respect as a fellow martial artist of the Jianghu, regardless of sect affiliation.
When Hyun Jong reached them, Hye-gong greeted him with a neat salute, palms clasped.
“It is an honor to meet you, Sect Leader.”
Hyun Jong also clasped his hands and bowed deeply. It was the natural courtesy that came to him without thought.
“I am Hyun Jong of Mount Hua. Please understand my sudden visit without prior notice. I am truly sorry for the inconvenience.”
“Not at all, Sect Leader. It is no inconvenience whatsoever.”
Hye-gong shook his head and asked cautiously,
“May I ask what brings you here?”
Hyun Jong drew a short breath and spoke.
“I have come to discuss something. Please tell the Abbot that Hyun Jong of Mount Hua... no, Hyun Jong of the Heavenly Friends Alliance, wishes to see him.”
“...The Abbot?”
“Yes.”
A troubled look flickered across Hye-gong’s face.
At present, Beop Jeong was not receiving visitors from outside. But the one standing before him was not merely an outsider; he was not someone who could be dismissed so lightly.
If the Alliance Leader of the Heavenly Friends Alliance had personally come here, what use was there in clinging to rules?
After a brief moment of deliberation, Hye-gong nodded.
“I’m sorry, but could you wait here for a moment? The Abbot is not receiving outside visitors at the moment, so I will need to inform him that you have come and ask for his permission first.”
“I can wait as long as needed.”
“Thank you. Then...”
After giving Hye-pyeong a quick glance, Hye-gong hurriedly opened the gate and ran inside.
Watching him go, Hyun Jong gazed at the estate with solemn, calm eyes.
“Sect Leader.”
From behind him, Hyun Young spoke in a voice heavy with worry.
“Wouldn’t it be better to reconsider, even now? At the very least, you should have arranged an appointment first. Charging over here and throwing yourselves at their feet won’t look very good to anyone else. If they end up slamming the door in our faces, we’ll be the laughingstock.”
By Jianghu etiquette, it would be hard to complain even if they were turned away at the gate. But Hyun Jong, knowing that, had still chosen to rush here first.
“I know.”
“Then...”
“But this is not the time to worry about such things.”
Rather than look at Hyun Young, Hyun Jong kept his gaze fixed on the quiet estate.
Please understand.
When one understood, one could not concern oneself with face. When one understood, one could not afford to follow procedure. Whether he became a laughingstock or not was worth no more than a grain of sand compared to the sacrifices of those who might be losing their lives this very moment.
And...
“The situation in Jiangnan is one thing, but...”
Hyun Jong bit his lip lightly.
“I’m more worried about how much longer that child can keep holding out.”
“...You mean Cheong Myeong?”
“Yes.”
“No matter how special that brat is, he can’t go against the Sect Leader’s orders. If he does, he must be punished severely.”
Hyun Young, who usually spoiled Cheong Myeong no matter what, was unusually firm on this matter. This could, after all, shake the very foundations of the sect and the alliance alike.
But Hyun Jong saw it differently.
“To set a man in a situation he cannot avoid, and then test whether he obeys or not—that is not the work of a Taoist.”
“...That is true, but...”
“The best course is to find a better path for both sides. I do not want to become a Sect Leader who oppresses his disciples. I want to be a Sect Leader they can trust.”
Hyun Young nodded.
But however they felt about it, there was still the question of how Shaolin would respond...
Then.
Hye-gong returned at a brisk pace and respectfully clasped his hands toward Hyun Jong.
“The Abbot says he will see you. This humble monk will lead the way.”
“Thank you.”
Hyun Jong stepped into the estate with a tense expression.
His hands, resting on his knees, fidgeted slightly, as though they were uncomfortable.
Was it said that the nature of a relationship reveals itself when two people sit across from each other?
Then by that measure, the relationship between the man seated before him and Hyun Jong could hardly be called anything but the worst. Even if the Sect Leader of Zhongnan were sitting there now... no, even if it were Jang Il-so himself, Hyun Jong did not think he would feel this uneasy.
Yet the other man, despite facing Hyun Jong, did not seem particularly uncomfortable at all. His expression remained easy.
“So...”
The man seated before Hyun Jong, Beop Jeong, leisurely filled the tea cup in front of him and spoke in a relaxed voice.
“What brings the Alliance Leader of the Heavenly Friends Alliance to this humble monk’s door?”
Steam rose in curling wisps from the cup. Watching the pale vapor drift apart, Hyun Jong forced back the sigh that tried to escape him.
In truth, his relationship with Beop Jeong had not always been like this. When he first met Beop Jeong at the World’s Rising Talents Martial Competition, there had been no such hostility.
No, perhaps he had even admired him a little. Beop Jeong, the Abbot of Shaolin, the great pillar of the Jianghu martial world—Hyun Jong had looked at him as someone who managed the world from a place so high that ordinary men could not even begin to reach it.
But now...
“Hmm.”
Perhaps having guessed at Hyun Jong’s thoughts, Beop Jeong smiled faintly.
“It has already been several years since we first met.”
“...Indeed, Abbot.”
“Back then, I think I also sat across from you like this and poured tea for you.”
“You did. I still remember what you said then.”
“Hmm. What was it I said again...?”
Hyun Jong looked quietly at Beop Jeong and said,
“When you saw me feeling humbled by tea poured by the Abbot, you said this: Tea is simply tea. Tea poured by an emperor and tea poured by a common man are both just tea.”
Beop Jeong nodded heavily.
“Those words truly moved me at the time. Even the same words carry different weight depending on who says them. Hearing that from the Abbot of Shaolin made my shoulders feel just a little lighter.”
A faint twitch passed through the corners of Beop Jeong’s eyes.
Hyun Jong might simply have been reminiscing about the past. But to Beop Jeong, those words sounded almost like a question: Are the you of then and the you of now truly the same?
What did it mean? Was the Beop Jeong of then really the same person as the Beop Jeong now?
Beop Jeong had no intention of answering that question. He only said,
“A tree may stand where it is, but the wind never leaves it alone.”
Hyun Jong nodded as if agreeing with him.
“The affairs of the world are truly amusing, Alliance Leader.”
Beop Jeong smiled faintly and said,
“Who could have guessed back then that we would become such a pair as to sit here awkwardly over a cup of tea?”
“It is embarrassing, to say the least.”
After a brief, awkward silence, Beop Jeong looked down at his tea cup without speaking. The tea, which had risen hot with steam, was steadily cooling. It would be the same for people. Even if one did nothing at all, time would change everything.
“Very well. What brings you to me? It could not have been easy to come all this way.”
At the question, Hyun Jong let out a soft sigh.
“Have you heard what is happening in Jiangnan?”
“You mean the Evil Tyrant Alliance’s message.”
“Yes, Abbot. I mean the Demonic Sect’s resurgence.”
Hyun Jong put special emphasis on the words Demonic Sect. But Beop Jeong, upon hearing them, only smiled serenely.
“Have you come to discuss that matter?”
“Yes.”
Hyun Jong swallowed dryly.
After all, the very fact that he had come to the Abbot first already meant he had lowered himself from the start. For someone like Beop Jeong, this could easily become an opening to say whatever he liked.
But Beop Jeong’s next words were completely beyond Hyun Jong’s expectations.
“Then I’m truly glad you came.”
“...Pardon?”
Startled by the unexpected reaction, Hyun Jong widened his eyes slightly.
Beop Jeong only kept nodding with a warm smile.
“I was just thinking that I ought to come see you myself and discuss the situation, but I cannot tell you how grateful I am that you came here first. As expected, Alliance Leader, your heart is broad enough to deserve the title of Heavenly Friends Alliance Leader.”
“Ah... it’s not that impressive a thing.”
“Matters concerning the Demonic Sect are serious enough that the entire Jianghu must rise together to deal with them at any time. Of course we should discuss it.”
“Yes, that is so.”
For a moment, Hyun Jong found himself wondering if he had misunderstood Beop Jeong all along. The selfishness Beop Jeong had shown might have been nothing more than a misjudgment born from differing views on how to protect the safety of the Jianghu.
But then—
“However...”
A small smile curved Beop Jeong’s lips.
“There is one small problem, Alliance Leader.”
It was a strangely unfamiliar smile.