Unleashing the Clan's Storm
"Let's release volume one of Dangga Pungun into the Sichuan Dang Clan."
I spoke while gazing at the towering stacks of Dangga Pungun piled in one corner.
There were so many of them. When we combined the copies Dang Pae's group had brought to show the Dang Clan people, the sheer volume was staggering. To think they had hauled every last one of them here.
Even the peddlers who shuttled goods back and forth between Korea and China by boat probably never carried this much at once.
"This contains content related to the clan's secret history. Only someone of the Medical Pavilion Head's caliber would even notice it, but are you certain it's wise to release it so freely?"
Dang Pae asked me in a worried tone.
"After the Dang Geoho incident, the secret history itself spreading throughout the entire clan is only a matter of time."
The affair Dang Geoho had stirred up was far too massive. In particular, the dozens of the Lust Demon's illegitimate children who had died in the experiments could never be covered up during the investigation of those involved.
Quite apart from whether the outside world ever learned of the Lust Demon incident, within the Dang Clan itself, at least a rough outline of the events from twenty years ago would inevitably circulate.
"Yes. Then, as Young Master Kang suggests, we will recommend Dangga Pungun through the Medical Pavilion members currently receiving treatment outside. But there is one thing I am curious about."
Dang Pae looked at me with open curiosity.
"What is it?"
"Why release only volume one of Dangga Pungun?"
There was a reason for everything, of course.
"Just how entertaining can it be that the Medical Pavilion members are reading nothing but that book even from their sickbeds?"
"The title is Dangga Pungun? Another gloomy, sharp-edged protagonist from the Dang Clan, I suppose?"
"It's so popular in Yichang that you can't even get a copy? An erotic novel is still just an erotic novel."
"Did you hit your head or something? Don't you know that novels about the Murim are never any good?"
"We're stuck inside anyway. Might as well read it to kill the boredom."
The reactions of those who had been recommended Dangga Pungun by the Medical Pavilion members were mostly the same. Stories of the Murim had never been popular, or else it was merely another sensational erotic tale. No one expected much.
Would people actually read Dangga Pungun? Kang Yunho spoke to the puzzled Medical Pavilion members.
— Even on a busy battlefield, people look for diversions. Inside the sealed Sichuan Dang Clan, refusing Dangga Pungun will be difficult.
Under normal circumstances, most would have declined even if recommended. But right now the gates of the Sichuan Dang Clan were tightly locked, and a bloody wind was blowing inside.
Even the innocent had to hold their breath and watch their every step within their rooms. And for passing the time in those rooms, nothing beat a novel.
"A chivalrous hero who risks his life to protect a woman!"
"If it's Dang Jeong, no wonder the Greatest Beauty of Sichuan falls for him!"
"With nothing left, he drives the Lust Demon away with a single word! Isn't that even more magnificent than Zhuge Liang forcing Sima Yi to retreat with nothing but a zither—the famous Empty Fort Strategy!"
"Ahem. I need some tissue."
Kang Yunho's prediction hit the mark perfectly.
"Volume two! Where's volume two!"
"Give us the Greatest Courtesan of Hubei!"
"Medical Pavilion! You've seen the next volume, haven't you? The Greatest Beauty of Sichuan appears in the next one, right? Tell me she does!"
Countless members of the Dang Clan swarmed toward the Medical Pavilion members who were still under treatment. So many people poured in that the ward became as chaotic as a battlefield.
The Medical Pavilion members watched the spectacle with dazed faces, yet inwardly they smiled, thinking that of course Dangga Pungun would provoke exactly this kind of reaction.
It was all going according to Young Master Kang Yunho's plan.
Dang Pae recalled Kang Yunho's words as he addressed the throng of Dang Clan people who had gathered.
"Volume two of Dangga Pungun is currently in the possession of Author Hopil."
"Are you playing games with me? Of course the author has the next volume. What I'm asking is whether the next volume is here in the Sichuan Dang Clan right now!"
"Of course it is here in the Sichuan Dang Clan."
"Th-then hand it over already!"
"Author Hopil has it."
"Do you want poison mixed into your medicine instead of medicine?"
When a Dang Clan member delivered a threat that was not quite a threat, Dang Pae gave a bitter smile and continued.
"You're so impatient that you aren't understanding. Author Hopil is currently inside the Sichuan Dang Clan. He is right over there in the Guest Reception Hall."
"The Guest Reception Hall? That's the place the Outer Hall has sealed off. You're saying Author Hopil and volume two are there?"
"Yes. Author Hopil is being detained in the Guest Reception Hall."
"Why on earth would the author of such a magnificent novel be detained?!"
"I don't know the reason myself. Please return all the volume ones you've finished. We need to lend them to others."
The Dang Clan people, wearing bewildered expressions, had even the few remaining copies of volume one confiscated by the Medical Pavilion members.
Dang Pae shrugged once to emphasize that they had no other options, then redistributed the copies of Dangga Pungun to those who had not yet read it.
"No—Author Hopil is being detained! And he has volume two!"
"Volume two! Give us volume two!"
"You! You've read volume two, haven't you? Tell me what happens!"
"Read it yourself."
"Aaaaaaargh!"
In the end, the screams echoing through the ward belonged not to the sick, but to those starving for the next volume.
"Young Master Kang. Dangga Pungun is rapidly gaining popularity within the clan."
Dang Pae reported to me, unable to hide his smile.
"So it seems."
I spoke while watching the Dang Clan people who had been appearing outside the window with increasing frequency over the past few days. The rumor that volume two was in the Guest Reception Hall had spread remarkably fast.
"Stand back. The Guest Reception Hall is off-limits."
"I just have a small matter to attend to. Can't I stop by for a moment?"
"Only those with permission may enter."
"The Outer Hall must free the Greatest Courtesan of Hubei!"
"In this sealed Dang Clan, the medicine that eases our sorrow—no! The only drug the Sichuan Dang Clan has authorized! Let us read Dangga Pungun!"
"We want to read volume two of Dangga Pungun!"
This was the Sichuan Dang Clan, yet it felt exactly like being back at Daseogak.
The Outer Hall forces spent the entire day busily driving away the people who kept coming.
"There are more than a few people wondering why on earth Author Hopil is being detained within the clan. Releasing only volume one so that everyone focuses on the fact that we are detained in the Guest Reception Hall—truly an outstanding scheme."
"Because people other than the Elder Council need to know that we are here."
The fact that we were detained in the Guest Reception Hall was known only to the Clan Leader and the Elder Council, more or less.
I needed to overturn the board. And to overturn the board, people had to understand why I was overturning it. If I simply appeared out of nowhere and flipped the table, I would just look like a madman.
The Elder Council has detained the Clan Leader's illegitimate son and a Poison Human. Author Hopil is here. Why are they being held there? We want to read volume two. Why are they being held?
I had to keep stoking their curiosity.
"What should we do now?"
"This is only the groundwork. Release the next volume. Then proceed according to the plan."
"Volume two of Dangga Pungun! I've been waiting for this! Keuhuhuhk!"
"There's going to be a night with the Greatest Courtesan of Hubei, right?"
On Kang Yunho's orders, volume two of Dangga Pungun began to circulate through the clan.
"Welcome to my poison-killing space!"
"You've read volume two of Dangga Pungun too! That's what they mean by spine-tinglingly magnificent."
"Triple poison! Who on earth is this author to come up with something like that!"
"Sword-swingers just draw their blades and that's the end of it, but our Dang Clan can make the opponent lose the moment we choose the battlefield—and it showed that beautifully!"
"Why does this Dang Jeong fellow abandon all these beauties and leave on his journey?"
"Isn't that the path of a chivalrous hero?"
"Isn't the Greatest Beauty of Sichuan's role far too small? The Greatest Courtesan of Hubei appeared throughout an entire volume—this is discrimination against the official wife!"
"The Greatest Courtesan of Hubei is the official wife."
"Are you looking for a fight right now!"
"Stop fighting, all of you! More beauties! More chivalrous deeds! Volume three has two sister-like female heroes fighting over love—I can't wait!"
"Mommy! When I grow up I'm going to be a chivalrous hero like Dang Jeong!"
"Husbannnnd! This man has gone mad! What are you showing our son!"
"Ahem! Shouldn't our son grow up to be a man like Dang Jeong! Dangga Pungun is precisely the educational text every man of the Dang Clan should read, so stop nagging!"
"Is that sooo? Then I'll have to check tonight whether my husband is like Dang Jeong as well."
"Honey, I'm sorry. I was wrong."
It was only natural that Dangga Pungun, which had already succeeded in Yichang, would continue its triumph inside the Sichuan Dang Clan.
The difference from Yichang was that as volume two gained popularity, strange rumors began to spread.
"Hey, have you heard that rumor?"
"What rumor?"
"The one that says Dangga Pungun is based on a true story."
"Dangga Pungun is a true story?"
"The children sacrificed by that bastard Dang Geoho this time. They're said to be the illegitimate children of a Poison Human. And that Poison Human is supposedly the Lust Demon who appears in the book."
"Was the Poison Human from twenty-odd years ago the Lust Demon? I see. So that's what that incident twenty years ago was about."
"I thought it was just a novel, but looking at it now, it was a true story."
"Wait a second. Then the Dang Jeong who appears here is...?"
"Who else would it be?"
"Dang Jeong is the Clan Leader?"
"It seems Dangga Pungun is a book that contains the secret history from twenty-odd years ago."
"Just who is Author Hopil? To know a secret history from twenty years ago that was only recently uncovered..."
Amid the popularity of Dangga Pungun, curiosity about Author Hopil within the Sichuan Dang Clan only grew stronger.
"It's so popular that there's hardly anyone left in the clan who hasn't read Dangga Pungun."
"It's a true story—and a book that contains the very reason the clan is currently sealed—so of course it would become even more popular."
Exactly as I had aimed for. There was a reason faction novels, mockumentaries, and true-story marketing were so popular.
The biggest topic in the Dang Clan right now was the Dang Geoho incident.
Under ordinary circumstances it would have been merely popular, but under the special conditions of Dang Geoho and a sealed Sichuan Dang Clan, it had become a novel you would be a fool not to read.
"People are dying to know who wrote something like this. Is it finally time to execute the plan?"
Dang Pae spoke to me with an expectant face.
The time had come. I nodded and opened my mouth.
"Reveal my identity."
Author Hopil, imprisoned in the Guest Reception Hall. The author who had written the secret history of twenty-odd years ago.
It was time for the people to learn who he really was.
"Did you hear? They're saying Author Hopil is the son of Du Eunghyang."
"What are you talking about? Author Hopil is Du Eunghyang's son?"
"Before Dang Jeong left, he had relations with Du Eunghyang, didn't he? She got pregnant."
"Hold on. Dang Jeong is the Clan Leader, right? Then does that mean Author Hopil is the Clan Leader's illegitimate son?"
"Shh! Keep your voice down!"
"Your voice telling me to be quiet is louder. Good heavens. Then Dang Jeong didn't take Du Eunghyang with him at the end?"
"I can't understand it. A man of the Clan Leader's stature could have had ten wives and no one would have said a word—why abandon Du Eunghyang?"
"Exactly what I was thinking. A man taking three wives and four concubines is a sign of ability; no one criticizes it. So why did he do that?"
"Then does that mean Dangga Pungun is a work Author Hopil wrote to ease his wronged mother's resentment?"
"It could be."
"Then what happens to the succession? The Young Clan Leader is in critical condition after falling into qi deviation, and now an illegitimate son appears..."
The popularity of Dangga Pungun became one rumor, that rumor became a great secret history, and that great secret history fed back into the popularity of Dangga Pungun.
Inside the sealed Sichuan Dang Clan, the popularity and rumors surrounding Dangga Pungun spread beyond all control.
"One of the warriors guarding the Guest Reception Hall is a friend of mine, so I found out the reason. They're saying Author Hopil is being detained because of the Lust Demon's illegitimate children issue."
"The Lust Demon's illegitimate children—you mean the kids sacrificed by Dang Geoho?"
"Right. One of those children is supposedly the only one still alive. But the Elder Council is refusing to treat that child."
"Refusing treatment? Dozens of the clan's illegitimate children died! Shouldn't they at least save the one child who has come into the clan's embrace?"
"I don't know the reason either! And the even more shocking news is that they say volume three of Dangga Pungun will never be released to the world."
"What? Why?"
"I don't know the details, but apparently Dangga Pungun wasn't written because of his mother—it was written to save his Poison Human friend. Since the friend is about to die, there's no longer any reason to write."
"Volume three of Dangga Pungun! Aaaaaaargh!"
"What on earth is the Elder Council doing!"
"Aren't those Elder Council bastards in cahoots with that son of a bitch Dang Geoho?"
"I don't know about being in cahoots, but they're definitely the same kind of people!"
A massive scandal caused by a direct-line member of the Sichuan Dang Clan. Dissatisfaction with the Elder Council that had sealed the Sichuan Dang Clan.
Ordinarily people would have held their breath and waited for the storm to pass, but once it looked as though the Elder Council itself was at fault, the people of the Dang Clan could no longer endure it.
"Give the Human-Faced Spider's Poison Core to the child of the Dang Clan!"
"Give us volume three of Dangga Pungun!"
"Elder Council, free Author Hopil!"
"Do not ignore the child who has entered the embrace of the Dang Clan!"
"When you want something hidden, you have to make sure everyone knows about it instead."
I watched the uproar unfolding outside the window and smiled faintly.
The Elder Council had probably thought of us as nothing more than two illegitimate children. The succession issue was tangled up in it, but we were two bastards with no backing whatsoever.
If they simply kept us hidden from the clan's people, they might not be able to kill us outright because of the Clan Leader's eyes, but they could still wither us away just by leaving us alone.
Of course, not everyone on the Elder Council shared that view, which was why they were still locked in a tense tug-of-war over the Human-Faced Spider's Poison Core. But that was a fight among the Elder Council alone.
Hwarin and I had looked like nothing more than chess pieces they could move however they pleased on their board.
So then, what did I have to do to stop being a chess piece?
"Overturn the board so it isn't theirs anymore."
Make sure everyone knows that the Clan Leader's illegitimate son has appeared.
The Sichuan Dang Clan was an orthodox sect. The Greatest Courtesan of Hubei, Hyang-a, abandoned twenty-odd years ago; the abandoned child Hopil; Dang Hwarin, sacrificed by the Dang Clan and now hovering on the brink of death.
If the illegitimate children received no attention at all, they could be placed on the board and left to wither.
But if public opinion formed that even within the family could not be ignored—because as an orthodox sect they valued justice and morality—then what would happen?
Once everyone was watching, it would become a board they could no longer move as they pleased from behind the scenes.
Well then, Elder Council. What will you do now?
"Young Master Kang! Someone from the Elder Council has arrived."
Yes. Of course they would have to show their faces.