Oh My, Goodness. What On Earth Is Going On? (5)
This was Sahaesanghoe.
Maybe not across the whole land, but in Chengdu, its influence could be said to reach the heavens. To knock on the gates of a closed merchant guild in the dead of night was the height of rudeness. In Chengdu, there were only two kinds of people who would dare such a thing.
Those who were in such desperate need of a deal that they would swallow their manners and come anyway. And then there were the other kind…
Those who didn’t think twice about insulting a merchant guild.
The first could be anyone, but the second belonged to only one place in Sichuan.
"Who is it?"
"Well, that is…"
From the servant’s voice, trailing off ever so slightly at the end, Jo Pyeong could guess who the visitor was.
Just then, there was a sudden commotion outside.
"You can’t come in."
"Please wait. You must not go that way as you please."
Jo Pyeong’s face hardened at once.
It seemed his guess had been right.
Of all times.
Sensing that things were beginning to go wrong, he sprang to his feet.
"Bring the guests to the reception hall."
"Yes!"
Jo Pyeong hurried to the door and opened it.
Sure enough, he saw servants packed together in a crowd—and a few people forcing their way through them by brute force.
Only three.
Three people, who did not seem old, were strolling forward as if there were no one else in the world, brushing aside the many servants in their path.
Green robes.
And slightly darkened hands.
Just those two things were enough for anyone who had spent time around the martial world to guess their affiliation without difficulty.
"Step back!"
"Yes, Guild Leader!"
Only then did the servants scatter left and right, making a path. With the way cleared, the three walked toward him with calm, easy expressions.
"Greetings to the leader of Sahaesanghoe."
As the one in front cupped his fists, Jo Pyeong returned the salute. Then, once he saw the young man’s face clearly, his eyes widened.
"Aren’t you Young Hero Tang?"
The man in the lead was Tang Jan, one of the young masters of the Sichuan Tang Family.
Tang Jan. The fifth son of the Tang Family head.
In any other sect, the fifth son of the family head would be little more than a side branch, removed from real power.
But the Sichuan Tang Family was different. In the Tang Family, where blood ruled all and everything was inherited by lineage, the fifth son of the family head was practically at the very core of power.
He was still too young to hold an important post, but in ten years’ time, he was likely to become one of the Tang Family’s pillars.
And such a man had suddenly come barging into Sahaesanghoe in the dead of night.
Jo Pyeong’s face darkened.
So this definitely isn’t a good visit.
When no real answer came from the other side, Jo Pyeong swiftly took the initiative.
"It is an honor to meet heroes of the Tang Family. However, since you have come without notice at this late hour, I am concerned that our hospitality may be lacking."
It was a roundabout way of criticizing their appearance at this hour.
But Tang Jan only smiled as if that sort of thing meant nothing to him.
"My competitive spirit would not settle, and so I was rude. Please do not blame us too harshly, Guild Leader."
"…Competitive spirit, you say?"
"Yes."
Tang Jan casually glanced past Jo Pyeong’s shoulder. Realizing that he was looking into the inner hall, Jo Pyeong hurriedly changed the subject.
"At any rate, please come inside. I’ll have tea brought at once…"
"I heard that the second young master of Sahaesanghoe has returned after going far away to seek instruction."
The interruption was as rude as anything, and Jo Pyeong clenched his jaw.
Has that news already reached the Tang Family?
Jo Gul had returned only half a day ago.
No matter how much of a city Chengdu was, the fact that the news had already reached them so quickly showed just how completely the Tang Family controlled it.
"Is that not so?"
At Tang Jan’s mildly probing words, Jo Pyeong’s brows twitched.
"Yes, it is. My foolish son has just returned home."
Rather than saying anything else, Jo Pyeong waited for Tang Jan to continue. He needed to figure out the purpose of their visit.
"Haha. The second young master of Sahaesanghoe, Jo Gul, was a talent even the Tang Family coveted. So when you sent the young master elsewhere, the head of our family was greatly disappointed."
At the mention of the family head, Jo Pyeong flinched.
This is bad.
Bringing up the family head meant this wasn’t some petty act by the younger generation alone.
They might not say it outright, but the fact that they had come here meant this was the Tang Family’s intention.
"Which is why I’ve come to confirm a few things."
"Confirm, you say?"
"Yes."
Tang Jan smiled faintly.
"As far as I know, Young Master Jo Gul entered Mount Hua, did he not?"
"…He did."
"That is why I’ve come to confirm it. That is, what exactly he gained from entering Mount Hua instead of coming to Tang Family Villa to learn martial arts. Surely Young Master Jo Gul must have returned with great lessons to make up even a little for our disappointment, mustn’t he?"
"…"
Jo Pyeong bit his lip.
I knew something like this would happen someday, but I never imagined it would come so quickly…
All the prominent families in Chengdu usually sent their children to Tang Family Villa to learn the Tang Family’s martial arts.
Of course, they were never taught the true core arts of poison or hidden weapons. The Tang Family’s secrets could only be learned by the Tang bloodline itself. In fact, because they feared leakage of their techniques, even daughters who bore the Tang surname were forbidden from learning them.
Only male heirs with the Tang surname were allowed to learn the family’s hidden weapon arts.
In other words, the prominent families’ children who entered Tang Family Villa spent years learning only the shallow outer shell of the art.
Through that absurd arrangement, the Tang Family kept every influential household in Chengdu from fully devoting themselves to martial training. In this way, they made those families depend on the Tang Family while also instilling in them the sense that they were part of the Tang branch.
After more than a hundred years of that process repeating itself, the Tang Family came to completely dominate every merchant house in Chengdu.
And Jo Gul had refused to take part in that game.
— Why should I be made into a scarecrow?
And Jo Pyeong had, in his own way, quietly supported that opinion. He did not want his son becoming a puppet of the Tang Family.
But if he sent Jo Gul to some prominent sect outside Sichuan, it was obvious he would incur the Tang Family’s wrath.
So after much agonizing, the place he chose was Mount Hua.
It had fallen so far that there was no chance of offending the Tang Family’s pride, and though it once had some fame, if his son worked hard there he might still be able to build his skill. Above all, it was far away from Sichuan.
For Jo Gul, it seemed like the perfect place.
"As you know, my child entered Mount Hua. And Mount Hua is, plainly put, a fallen sect, is it not? I sent him there simply because the boy loves swords so much."
"Haha, yes, of course. I understand. However…"
Tang Jan’s eyes turned a shade colder.
"It would be a little misleading to say Mount Hua has fallen. Their reputation is shaking all of Sahae, is it not?"
"…Pardon? What do you mean?"
"Dear me, dear me. For a merchant to be so behind on the latest information. Right now, the reputation of Mount Hua Sect is spreading throughout all of the Central Plains. Among them, the names of Mount Hua’s third-generation disciples Jo Gul and Yoon Jong, as well as the second-generation disciples Baek Cheon and Yu I-seol, are constantly on the lips of martial artists everywhere."
Jo Pyeong’s eyes wavered.
Of course it must be an exaggeration. They were here to pressure him, after all.
But didn’t the names Tang Jan had just spoken match perfectly with the people who had come here with his son?
Even if it’s the Tang Family, there’s no way they could have identified everyone who came here in such a short time.
Then, even if not to the degree they were claiming, it must be true that Jo Gul’s name was spreading through the martial world.
"Especially…"
Tang Jan’s eyes gleamed with both interest and caution.
"I hear the Mount Hua Divine Dragon, said to be the greatest among the younger generation under heaven today, has come here. I would never dare compare myself to such a reputation, but how could I neglect to pay my respects when the greatest of the younger generation is visiting Chengdu?"
Huh?
Mount Hua Divine Dragon?
What a grandiose name.
Jo Pyeong knew as well that the people who were given such lavish titles were all formidable experts. And in his mind, there was only one person in that inner room who could possibly deserve such a name.
"Do you mean Young Hero Baek Cheon?"
"Hahahahaha."
Tang Jan laughed as if he couldn’t believe what he was hearing.
"Guild Leader? Are you really going to play it this way?"
"…I beg your pardon?"
"You’ve been wandering only through Yunnan and Sichuan, so perhaps your information on the Central Plains has gone stale. Or maybe you’re trying to deceive me."
"Deceive you? Surely not."
Tang Jan looked steadily into Jo Pyeong’s eyes, then nodded. He found no sign of deceit in Jo Pyeong’s face.
"Well, never mind. That isn’t what matters right now."
Then Tang Jan cut straight to the point.
"As a member of the Tang Family, I’d like to meet the Mount Hua disciples who are visiting Chengdu. Could you bring them out? That includes your family’s young master as well."
Jo Pyeong’s gaze drifted slightly backward.
What should I do?
As someone living in Sichuan, especially in Chengdu, he could not simply ignore a request from the Tang Family.
But the Mount Hua disciples inside were guests of Sahaesanghoe, and also Jo Gul’s seniors from his sect. To present those honored guests before the Tang Family, who were already baring their teeth so openly, would be something he absolutely could not do.
As for Jo Gul, he might refrain from making too much trouble out of consideration for the guild leader’s face, but who knew what would happen to the others?
Knowing better than anyone just how fearsome and vicious the Sichuan Tang Family could be, Jo Pyeong had no choice but to hesitate.
"I understand what you’re saying. However, it is far too late tonight, and our guests have already retired. Would it not be better if you returned tomorrow?"
"Haha, already retired? The Mount Hua disciples must be terribly lazy."
"They’ve been weary from a long journey…"
"Guild Leader."
Tang Jan suddenly lowered his voice.
"This is a Tang Family affair. Are you saying you intend to interfere with a Tang Family affair right now?"
"I would never dare."
Jo Pyeong’s face turned ashen.
Anyone who understood what it meant to defy the Tang Family in Chengdu would have reacted exactly as he did.
Tang Jan smiled faintly.
"This has awkwardly become a situation where I’m putting you under pressure. I apologize for that."
"N-no, not at all."
Tang Jan glanced past Jo Pyeong again and said,
"The Mount Hua disciples don’t seem to have much pride. I’m sure they heard my voice by now, and yet they still continue hiding behind Sahaesanghoe…"
That was when it happened.
"Hey! Hold on! I said hold on!"
"This is Sichuan, idiot! The sect leader told us not to cause trouble, so…!"
"Aaaaaaah! Grab him! Grab him!"
Huh?
From inside, a tremendous racket suddenly burst out in the form of shouting. And then—
Bang!
With a fierce crash, a door panel shot up into the air.
Thud.
Tang Jan blinked as he looked at the door panel lying right beside him, then lifted his head.
Glug, glug, glug, glug.
A young man with a liquor bottle in one hand was gulping straight from it, then wiped his mouth with the back of his hand.
Drunk?
He looked exactly like a drunkard.
Even so, Tang Jan did not miss the plum blossom pattern embroidered across the chest of his martial robes.
Just as he was about to speak in a puzzled voice—
"And who the hell are you, barging in here in the middle of the night looking for trouble?"
"…Huh?"
"You wanna die?"
"…"
Of all the things Tang Jan had heard in his life, that was by far the most absurd.