Chapter 571. Which Bandit Dares Make Eye Contact With Me? (1)
Swish. Swish.
A thin brush danced across the pure white paper.
Letters sprang into being at a speed almost impossible to believe, quickly filling the broad sheet until the page was dense with black ink.
The middle-aged man in a jade-green robe that was elegant at a glance sat at a wooden desk, wrestling with a mountain of documents.
"Clan Lord!"
The sound of writing, which had gone on for quite some time, came to a halt at the voice from outside the door.
The middle-aged man stared at what he had written for a moment, then lifted his head and turned his gaze toward the door.
"What is it?"
"A guest has come to see you."
"A guest?"
The middle-aged man—Tang Gun-ak—slightly furrowed his brow, clearly displeased.
"A guest while I'm in the middle of work? That can be handled by the elder hall."
His tone was a little sharper than necessary, and the one standing outside the door flinched.
"Th-that is, it's a message from Mount Hua...."
At the mention of Mount Hua, Tang Gun-ak's eyes changed.
"Mount Hua?"
"Yes."
Thud.
He set down the brush without the slightest hesitation and rose to his feet.
"Come in."
"Yes!"
The door flew open, and Tang Pae entered and bowed respectfully. Behind him followed a beggar whom Tang Gun-ak had seen on a few occasions.
The beggar stepped forward and clasped his hands in salute.
"I am Ju Pung, branch leader of the Beggars' Sect in Chengdu."
"The Beggars' Sect."
Tang Gun-ak's sharp gaze swept over the visitor once.
Under that icy, oppressive stare, Ju Pung swallowed dryly.
My heart's pounding like crazy.
He had come to the Tang Family with business to attend to, but he had never imagined he would be facing the clan lord in person.
No matter how important a branch leader he might be, there was a gulf as wide as heaven and earth between a mere branch leader and the lord of the Sichuan Tang Family, who ruled over the world.
Normally, he would have handed over the letter at the front gate and left, or at most caught a fleeting glimpse of the clan lord from far away....
Who knew they'd drag me straight into the clan lord's office?
Ju Pung wiped his palm against his trouser leg and took out the letter from his robe.
"This is a letter from Mount Hua in Shaanxi, sent through our sect for you, Clan Lord."
Perhaps because he was so tense, he went on babbling things he had no need to say.
"T-this letter was carried by a hawk called Blue Hawk, which the Beggars' Sect uses to send our most important reports. There may be a slight delay, but it shouldn't have been more than two days since the letter left Mount Hua."
"Hmm. Bring it here."
"Yes!"
Ju Pung began to hurry over, sweat pouring down his face. But before he could even take a proper step, Tang Pae's outstretched hand blocked him.
"This way."
"Ah.... It's, it's here."
Tang Pae took the letter from Ju Pung and respectfully offered it to Tang Gun-ak.
Tang Gun-ak silently opened the letter and checked its contents.
"Hmm."
The expression that had remained cold and rigid all along twitched slightly.
During the brief moment he spent reading the letter, his face changed several times. Watching from the side, a wry smile formed on Tang Pae's lips.
It was only when Tang Gun-ak heard something about Mount Hua—or came face-to-face with that Mount Hua Divine Dragon—that his expression tended to change like that.
"Hmmm."
Once he had finished reading, Tang Gun-ak scratched his chin and asked in a strange tone, "This letter was to be delivered to me?"
"Yes, that's right!"
"I understand."
"Yes! If you have anything to say to Mount Hua, then...."
"No need. They're not the sort to sit around waiting for my reply with that impatient temperament of theirs while guarding the mountain."
Though the words made little sense, Ju Pung bowed all the same.
"Then...."
He turned on his heel at once.
Honestly, he did not want to remain in this place even a second longer. The Sichuan Tang Family was already a source of subtle fear even among the righteous sects. And this was the clan lord's office, the deepest heart of all that power.
Anyone without a backbone would be afraid.
Still...
Right before leaving, Ju Pung glanced back without thinking and swallowed dryly.
Everyone knows Mount Hua and the Tang Family have some kind of relationship, but I never imagined they'd take it this seriously.
He did occasionally deliver news to the Tang Family. But even when bringing reports from Shaolin or Wudang, he had never once been allowed to see the office, much less the clan lord himself.
Yet now, all it took was a single letter to gain a direct audience with the Tang Family's lord.
Maybe their relationship is closer than we thought.
Deciding he absolutely had to report this, Ju Pung quickened his pace.
Watching his figure retreat in a flash, Tang Pae clicked his tongue.
"If he walks like that, he's going to sweat through his feet."
"Hmm."
But by then, Ju Pung had already vanished from Tang Gun-ak's mind. His attention was fixed entirely on the letter sent from Mount Hua.
"Clan Lord, may I ask what the letter says?"
"Read it yourself."
"Thank you."
Tang Pae received the letter again and quickly checked its contents. Before long, his face contorted as well.
"Grr.... What is that bastard planning now...."
"As expected of the Mount Hua Divine Dragon."
A faint smile touched Tang Gun-ak's lips.
Normally, those preparing for a major event would lie low and keep themselves in check, careful not to upset what might follow.
But Mount Hua—or rather, the Mount Hua Divine Dragon—seemed intent on making the stage even bigger.
"Will this be all right? The Green Forest is still...."
"It is troublesome, that much is true. If things don't go smoothly, there'll be plenty of problems afterward as well."
"Yes. That's what worries me."
"But it'll be fine."
"Pardon?"
Tang Pae blurted out the question before he could stop himself, then hastily added, "This son of yours doesn't quite understand what you mean."
"The Mount Hua Divine Dragon would not stir things up without reason. On the surface, it may seem as though he acts on impulse, but by the time he moves, the calculations in his head are already finished."
"Ah...."
Tang Pae stole a glance at Tang Gun-ak.
Reading the intent behind that brief look, Tang Gun-ak gave a small laugh.
"Do you think I'm overestimating the Mount Hua Divine Dragon?"
"...How could I, a mere son, dare question the clan lord's judgment? Still, while no one can doubt the Mount Hua Divine Dragon's martial prowess, it does seem a little strange to speak of schemes at such a young age."
"Reasoning over it is something one does only when there are no results to look at."
"...."
"When what you see with your own eyes does not match the common sense you know, a foolish man doubts his eyes. A wise man doubts his common sense."
Tang Pae shut his mouth.
"You, too, must not let yourself be trapped by what you already know."
"I'll keep that in mind."
"Spread the word throughout Sichuan exactly as the letter says. It may be a little blatant, but that doesn't matter."
"Yes, Clan Lord! I will do so at once."
With no further objection, Tang Pae quickly left the office. Tang Gun-ak watched his back for a moment, then slowly stepped outside and looked up at the sky.
It's getting more and more interesting.
But....
What was the meaning of the line at the end of the letter: And just so you know in advance, you'd better prepare a lot of money.
For some reason, Tang Gun-ak was beginning to feel a little uneasy.
* * *
Chung Myung's original plan had been to make sure the rumor was already spreading well by the time they reached their destination.
But contrary to his expectations, the rumor spread astonishingly fast.
Part of it was because the standing of Mount Hua in the eyes of the world was higher than Mount Hua itself had imagined, and part of it was because everyone had been hungry for a major incident ever since the Heavenly Comet Martial Tournament.
But the biggest reason was....
"Hey, throw it higher! Higher! Higher!"
Hong Dae-gwang was barking orders from atop a pavilion that seemed to pierce the sky.
One of the beggars seated in a huddle, writing letters as fast as they could, finally lost his temper and shouted back, "Damn it! Because of you, we haven't been able to do a single other thing and have been writing the same letter hundreds of times, and now you're saying that?"
"You lot never have anything to do anyway! At best you're just feeding pigeons!"
"Y-you.... What kind of bastard are you!"
Hwang Gu-gae, an elder of the Beggars' Sect, glared fiercely. But Hong Dae-gwang did not back down.
"It's what the King Beggar ordered!"
"Grrrr...."
Hwang Gu-gae let out a heavy sigh and looked around at the other beggars.
"Write faster! Faster!"
"Aigoo."
"Damn it!"
The beggars writing the letters were at the point of losing their arms. Those not holding brushes gathered the letters, tied them to the legs of pigeons in cages, and repeated the process over and over again.
Dozens of pigeons took flight all at once.
Some would go to the Beggars' Sect's various branches, while others would head to the other pavilions scattered across the Central Plains.
"Do we really have to go this far?"
"Elder, you don't know the kind of treatment I get over there! Do you know how much that bastard keeps nagging at us, calling the Beggars' Sect useless?"
"That bastard? Who exactly are you talking about?"
"Grr.... That's a little hard to say...."
Hong Dae-gwang mumbled incoherently, unable to answer.
A man had his pride.
How could he admit with his own mouth that a brat more than twenty years younger than him was putting him down?
"Anyway, this time we absolutely have to show Mount Hua Sect what the Beggars' Sect can do!"
"Grr...."
Hwang Gu-gae let out another long sigh.
Once he's said it like that, I can't exactly refuse.
He understood the situation well enough.
Hwang Gu-gae was the one who had spent his entire life gathering information from across the Central Plains and relaying orders based on that information. There was no way he wouldn't realize how important Mount Hua Sect had become.
Rumors spread faster than anything, but they're always a step slow too.
The Central Plains' assessment of Mount Hua Sect had risen to extraordinary heights of late, but they still had not fully grasped the sect's influence.
To exaggerate only a little, Mount Hua's influence had already long since surpassed that of a sect on the level of the Nine Sects and One Gang, and given its growth and tireless activity, it would soon become one of the sects that moved the world itself.
"Let me ask you one thing!"
"Yes?"
"You have properly built up ties with Mount Hua, haven't you?"
"...."
"After making us do all this, if the day comes when Mount Hua kicks the Beggars' Sect aside and allies with someone else, I'll grind you up myself and feed you to the pigeons."
"Hah, ha.... Hahaha! Why would you say something so obvious? The Mount Hua Divine Dragon from Mount Hua calls me Uncle and treats me like a nephew!"
"The Mount Hua Divine Dragon?"
"Yes!"
"...Is that really true?"
"Do I look like I go through life getting fooled?"
Hong Dae-gwang thumped his chest and spoke proudly.
Well... it wasn't entirely a lie. It was true that Chung Myung called him the beggar uncle. It was just that the meaning of that "uncle" was a little, well, very different from what Hong Dae-gwang imagined.
"Mount Hua is firmly in my hands, so don't worry and just keep writing the letters."
"Grr. I can't bring myself to believe that."
Though he shook his head, Hwang Gu-gae obediently began writing the letter again.
"Dae-gwang."
"Yes?"
"I'm saying this because King Beggar isn't here."
"Yes, Elder."
"If you truly have Mount Hua firmly in hand, then becoming the chief of the Beggars' Sect is not just a dream. As far as the state of affairs goes, am I not the one most familiar with how things turn in the Beggars' Sect?"
"Of course."
"But.... if you fail to properly bind Mount Hua to us—"
"...."
"King Beggar will probably roast you whole and feed you to the dogs. So think carefully."
Cold sweat began beading all over Hong Dae-gwang's body.
"D-don't worry. It's certain!"
"I'll believe you."
He nodded vigorously, then quietly stepped backward.
"Then please take care of the rest."
"Where are you going?"
"I need to hurry and follow Mount Hua Sect. Someone has to go there and make a show of it, or how will they know it was us who did the work?"
"...."
"Good luck!"
Hong Dae-gwang leapt down from the pavilion and vanished like a bolt of lightning. Watching him disappear, Hwang Gu-gae clicked his tongue.
"What a man full of nothing but talk."
Then he turned his gaze toward the pigeons flying in every direction.
"They say no one can predict what the world will do."
Who would have thought Mount Hua would one day be able to direct the Beggars' Sect with only a few words?
"You live long enough, and you see everything. Tsk tsk tsk."
Smiling as he shook his head, Hwang Gu-gae quickly resumed writing the letters.
Just as Chung Myung had planned, rumors of Mount Hua spread throughout the world. Very quickly, and to an astonishing extent.