So What Am I Supposed to Do? (5)
Nam Jamyung glared at Baek Cheon with cold eyes.
"What is?"
"I asked what you were doing."
Nam Jamyung let out a faint snort as he looked at Baek Cheon.
"Tell me, Daoist."
"Yes."
"And why exactly should I answer that?"
"……."
Baek Cheon was briefly at a loss for words at that shameless reply.
Nam Jamyung’s lips curled with a faintly vicious smile as he spoke at a leisurely pace.
"Hah. Have the people of Mount Hua been shut away in the mountains so long that they can’t tell when to step forward and when to keep their noses out of things?"
Baek Cheon’s eyes narrowed slightly.
"Are you saying that even intervening in someone else’s one-sided use of force depends on status and situation?"
"How could that be? If one is talking about righteousness, then of course this can’t be ignored."
"Then why are you speaking like this?"
At Baek Cheon’s question, Nam Jamyung’s mouth twitched upward.
"Because, Daoist, you are still young."
"……."
"Do you not realize that buried in what you just said is the implication that I may be committing some sort of outrage?"
"That’s……."
Baek Cheon shut his mouth.
"I am the head of Seowol Gate, a branch sect of Zhongnan. Do you really think someone like me would commit an act that strays from the path of righteousness in the middle of Xi'an?"
Nam Jamyung’s eyes curved thinly like a crescent moon.
"Or perhaps……."
With a grin, he looked over the disciples of Mount Hua.
"Are the disciples of Mount Hua saying that I seem to be oppressing ordinary people here? How disappointing."
Baek Cheon bit his lip hard.
This bastard…….
If he answered carelessly here, he would hand the branch sects of Zhongnan in Xi'an a reason to openly treat Hwayeong Gate as an enemy.
Worse, it could look as though he was trying to smear Nam Jamyung, the representative of Zhongnan’s branch sects in Xi'an, as a thug committing atrocities in broad daylight.
So every word had to be careful…….
"But."
"Eek!"
Baek Cheon jumped and spun around.
Chung Myung was sneaking forward with a sulky expression.
What are you doing?
Baek Cheon shot frantic looks at Yoon Jong and Jo Gul, but they were just as troubled.
How are we supposed to stop him with all these people watching?
You still have to try!
But before they could do anything, Nam Jamyung spoke first.
"Oh? The Mount Hua Divine Dragon is speaking directly to me? How honored I am. I suppose this is something I can boast about in the future?"
It was thick with exaggerated mockery. Anyone hearing that would have stiffened on the spot.
Yet Chung Myung’s reaction was nothing like what he expected.
"Hehe. You’re making too big a deal out of it. Now I’m embarrassed."
"……."
Nam Jamyung stared at Chung Myung, dumbfounded.
Does he not understand sarcasm?
No, that couldn’t be.
A fool with strength might exist. But a fool with real martial skill could not. To learn any martial arts worth speaking of, one had to possess a certain level of intelligence and comprehension.
The famous Mount Hua Divine Dragon of the martial world being stupid would be no different from a scholar who had passed the highest imperial examinations being an idiot.
But…….
No, does he actually seem happy?
He even checked the Mount Hua Divine Dragon’s expression again, in case he had misread a return barb.
But no matter how he looked at it, that wasn’t an act. If the awkward, pleased expression on Chung Myung’s face were a performance, the man could walk straight onto a stage and drag crowds after him like clouds.
"……Hah."
What an utterly impossible fellow.
Nam Jamyung cleared his throat once and rearranged his expression.
"Very well. What is it the Mount Hua Divine Dragon wishes to ask?"
"Well, I understand that the respectable head of Seowol Gate’s Zhongnan branch would never do anything against righteousness. But you can at least tell us what this whole scene is about, right?"
And yet, despite having controlled his expression, his brow furrowed again.
"As I said just now, what reason do I have to explain that to you?"
"You don’t have a reason not to explain it either."
"Hm?"
Chung Myung shrugged.
"If it’s something you can stand behind, there’s no reason you can’t say it. So I don’t get why you’re making such a fuss about not saying it. And……."
Mid-sentence, he glanced around casually.
More and more people had gathered to watch, and before they knew it, they’d multiplied like a cloud massing overhead.
"Looks like we’re not the only ones curious about what’s going on."
At that, Nam Jamyung frowned faintly.
Those gathered kept looking back and forth between him and the man sprawled on the ground, each wearing a sour expression. If he brushed it off carelessly, bad rumors would spread without end.
Under normal circumstances he wouldn’t have cared, but the timing was terrible. He absolutely could not hand a good opening to these Mount Hua disciples now.
Having made up his mind, Nam Jamyung jerked his chin toward the man lying on the ground.
"This man borrowed a great deal of money from our Seowol Gate."
"……Money?"
At those words, Baek Cheon frowned before he could help himself.
He’d thought there might be some grand backstory, but the reason was so crude and nakedly selfish that it was almost insulting.
"So…… you came here to collect a debt?"
"Exactly."
"……And you handled it this aggressively? For a man of your standing as the head of Seowol Gate to act like a street thug from the dark side of the market over money……"
"Hah hah hah hah."
Instead, Nam Jamyung burst into loud laughter.
That blatant laughter made Baek Cheon’s face crease in annoyance.
"What are you laughing at?"
"Isn’t it funny?"
"What is?"
Mockery filled Nam Jamyung’s face.
"You people came all the way to Xi'an to earn a few coins, even staging a sword demonstration that any great clan would never dare to do even in a dream, and yet you speak as though money is nothing. How could that not be amusing?"
Baek Cheon’s face flushed slightly at the remark.
On this point, Nam Jamyung wasn’t wrong.
"Maybe it sounds different to those who cultivate the Dao high in the mountains, but for people who live in the world, money is a serious matter. Of course they’d be sensitive about it, wouldn’t they?"
Baek Cheon clenched his lips hard at Nam Jamyung’s slick, needling tone.
"But this is……!"
"Well. He’s not wrong."
Then Chung Myung cut off Baek Cheon’s words and said in a bored voice,
"Still, I do think you’re being a little too rough for a man who came to collect money. Unless the Seowol Gate master was running a loan business, you two can’t be strangers who’ve only just met, right?"
"Oh? You’re sharper than you look."
Nam Jamyung looked at Chung Myung with interest in his eyes.
What a hard one to pin down.
Just moments ago he had looked like an idiot who couldn’t find his own feet, and now he had pointed straight at the heart of the matter with no trouble at all. Thanks to that, Nam Jamyung no longer needed to circle around the issue.
"Of course I know this man very well. So why wouldn’t I have lent him money?"
"And yet you’re acting this cold, so I’m guessing he hasn’t paid it back in a pretty long time."
"Not exactly."
"Hmm?"
Nam Jamyung shrugged.
"It’s true that a fair bit of time has passed since he borrowed the money, but not so much that my patience would run out. I’m actually far more benevolent than you seem to think."
"Then why?"
"Why don’t you hear it straight from the man himself?"
With a tilt of his chin, Nam Jamyung pointed at the man lying on the ground.
By now, Yu I-seol had moved to his side and was helping him sit up, but he seemed already unconscious, his body hanging limp.
"Ah!"
Then, at that moment, Yoon Jong let out a cry of shock.
"What?"
"That, that man……."
Yoon Jong’s face twisted as he pointed.
"……He’s the one who came to enroll his child in Hwayeong Gate."
"Hm?"
Chung Myung and Baek Cheon both froze at once.
They understood immediately how the situation was unfolding.
Baek Cheon shot Nam Jamyung a glare full of fury. Nam Jamyung, for his part, only smiled calmly in response.
"What? Are you going to condemn me?"
He shook his head with a pitiful look.
"Listen, I’m not such a harsh man. That’s why I lent this fellow grain and money. Is that not right?"
"……."
"The one who violated the proper order is this man."
His cold, piercing gaze shifted to the man struggling to stand.
"He’s lived off the kindness of Zhongnan’s branch sects, and yet he would send his own child to enter Mount Hua’s branch sect. Even beasts know gratitude. What this man has done is truly worse than what a beast would do."
Yoon Jong bit his lip hard and asked,
"So how much money did this man borrow?"
"Oh? You’re saying Mount Hua will pay it back for him?"
Nam Jamyung laughed heartily, as though amused.
"Good. That wouldn’t be bad either. But would that be all right?"
There was laughter in his voice.
"How many people in Xi'an do you think owe money to Zhongnan’s branch sects?"
"……."
"And how many more do you think have received kindness from Zhongnan itself, not just its branches? I’ve heard recently that Mount Hua has come into some money, but can you really shoulder all of that?"
"You……."
"I, as the representative of Zhongnan’s branch sects in Xi'an, am now trying to collect their debts on behalf of a Zhongnan that has closed its gates."
"By doing it this way?"
"And what exactly is wrong with this way?"
At that shameless response, Baek Cheon’s expression hardened completely.
"If there is a financial dispute, the proper place to resolve it is the magistrate’s office. How can someone leading a Zhongnan branch sect settle matters like this, instead of following the laws of the land?"
"Hahaha. This is why those who sit on mountain peaks and cultivate the Dao……."
"……What did you just say?"
With a click of his tongue, Nam Jamyung looked at Baek Cheon as if he were hopeless.
"Do you think this would end with them simply being dragged to the magistrate’s office?"
"……."
"The moment they’re hauled in, they’ll be beaten senseless and forced to surrender every bit of property they own. You’ve probably read too many stories in books about benevolent officials who put the people first, but the world is not that kind."
He glanced down at the unconscious man.
"If I were wrong, that man would wake up and rush straight to the magistrate. But think about it again. Does he really seem like he would do that?"
Just as Baek Cheon was about to bristle and fire back, Chung Myung lifted a hand and stopped him.
"Chung Myung."
Baek Cheon called his name under his breath, his voice tight with anger. But Chung Myung didn’t back away; instead, he curled one corner of his mouth and looked at Nam Jamyung.
"Do you think this will stop Hwayeong Gate?"
"Well. That I don’t know."
Nam Jamyung smiled faintly.
"And don’t misunderstand me. I’m not doing this because I specifically want to stop Hwayeong Gate. I’m merely speaking of human duty."
"Human duty."
Chung Myung’s eyes narrowed.
"Doesn’t sound like words that should come from the mouth of someone doing this sort of thing."
"Hah. That’s your opinion. Isn’t that how opinions work? Everyone has a different one."
"That……."
"Enough talk. We’re not close enough for me to be exchanging so many words with you in the first place."
Nam Jamyung waved a hand, as if this conversation had already become unworthy of his time.
Then, just in time, he turned to the man who had finally let out a faint groan and come to his senses, and spoke coldly.
"Ju Tae. I’ll keep this short. By tomorrow, repay everything you borrowed from Seowol Gate. If you cannot, then you will be punished."
"M-Master…… please……."
"I won’t say it twice."
The man called Ju Tae twitched helplessly, pleading over and over despite his body refusing to move properly, but Nam Jamyung merely looked down at him with a chilling indifference.
Then he addressed Chung Myung’s group.
"I wish Hwayeong Gate prosperity. That is my sincere hope."
With that, he laughed heartily and turned away.
The Seowol Gate disciples waiting nearby followed behind him like escorts. With their shoulders squared and chests puffed up, they began to walk, and the crowd that had gathered hurriedly parted for them like a current splitting around a rock.
Baek Cheon bit down hard on his lip.
"……He really is disgusting."
"Sasuk."
"Hm?"
Jo Gul approached with a face full of worry.
"This is no ordinary matter."
"Hm?"
Everyone looked at him, puzzled by the seriousness in his tone. Jo Gul let out a deep sigh.
"Ordinary people are basically afraid of martial artists. And yet the only reason they can still live alongside us is one thing: they believe that disciples of famous sects would never raise a fist against ordinary people without a very good reason."
"……True."
"But now Zhongnan’s branch sects have crossed that line. Once that happens, the people of Xi'an will be terrified in no time. Normally, if a branch sect crossed the line like this, the main sect would step in and fix it, but Zhongnan has closed its gates, so that’s difficult now."
"……True."
It certainly was no ordinary matter.
The most troublesome part was that money was involved. If it were a matter of force, then force could simply be used to settle it. But when money entered the picture, strength alone was no longer enough.
For now, I’ll have to discuss this with the elders.
Having steeled his resolve, Baek Cheon suddenly turned back toward Chung Myung at the strange sense that something was off.
But…… why is this bastard being so strangely patient?
If this were any other day, Nam Jamyung would have had the hilt of a sword driven into his head a hundred times over before they’d even finished half that conversation.
And yet today, astonishingly enough, Nam Jamyung had walked away on his own two feet.
"Chung Myung. What do you think……."
"Sasuk."
"……Hm?"
"You take the kids and head back first. I’ve got somewhere I need to stop."
"Where are you going?"
"A cloth shop. I’ll catch up later."
"A cloth shop? Why the hell are you going to a cloth shop all of a sudden……."
Chung Myung didn’t even answer the question before starting off at once. Baek Cheon’s face turned pale in an instant.
"Hey! Stop him!"
At his shout, the disciples of Mount Hua pounced on Chung Myung without asking a single question. Chung Myung began thrashing furiously.
"No! Let go for a second! I said I was going to a cloth shop, so why the hell are you all clinging to me like this!"
"You’re trying to make another mask, aren’t you! No, damn it! We are not solving this kind of problem that way!"
"Is there some other way to solve problems?! You just go and smash the guy who’s causing trouble! If the problem-maker disappears, the problem disappears with him!"
"I’m telling you, absolutely not!"
Baek Cheon lunged at the struggling Chung Myung and clung to him with all his strength.
"If that Seowol Gate bastard gets dropped right now, who do you think people will suspect? No! This absolutely cannot happen! Monk Hye Yeon! Don’t just stand there, help us!"
"……Pardon?"
"Hurry!"
Hye Yeon, who had been standing blankly in place, didn’t understand what was going on, but he rushed in anyway and helped pin Chung Myung down.
"P-Please, benefactor. Calm yourself first."
"Grrrrowl."
Chung Myung made a beastlike sound and glared at Nam Jamyung, who was already far away. The grinding sound of his teeth leaked out in harsh clicks.
"Fine. You want to do this, huh?"
All right.
Then let’s see it through to the end.