Chapter 72
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Translator: 8uhl
Chapter: 72
Chapter Title: The Watchers from the Bridge
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Though New Year’s Day had passed, Muwei was still brimming with a festive atmosphere.
The celebrations for the new year didn't just end on the day itself but continued for a fortnight until the Lantern Festival.
The streets were lined with rows of red lanterns, and every house had spring couplets posted to wish for good fortune.
Of course, the area was decorated with paper cuttings—red paper cut into auspicious shapes—and at the temple fair, a marketplace event, a lion dance was in full swing.
Occasionally, firecrackers would go off here and there to drive away the spirits that brought plague.
The overflowing crowds in the marketplace enjoyed the bustling holiday spirit, exchanging blessings with one another.
There was someone watching the sea of people from a distance.
An elderly man, clad in rags so tattered it was impossible to count how many times they had been patched.
He had a short stature and ordinary features, but his aura was unique.
His complexion was unusually healthy, a ruddy face the color of a well-ripened jujube.
He was completely bald, and his calm, deep eyes held a dignity and majesty that were hard to imitate.
Even a world harsh to beggars became more generous than ever during this season.
“It’s the peak season. Heh heh.”
I Rip, also known as Hongduta, revealed his yellowed teeth and began to walk with a swagger.
After walking for some time, he reached the vicinity of a hovel under a bridge on the outskirts of the village.
“Tsk.”
I Rip clicked his tongue.
His gaze fell upon a spot right next to the hovel.
In a sunny patch, a beggar lay sprawled out, covered by a straw mat.
“How’s he supposed to beg for alms like that?”
I Rip approached him.
However, the beggar under the mat didn't move an inch.
I Rip nudged his side with the tip of his foot. A gruff curse immediately flew out.
“Damn it all. What kind of mongrel dares disturb an old man’s rest?”
A scrawny hand shot out from between the gaps in the mat.
“If you’re giving alms, just leave it and get lost.”
Only when I Rip silently stared down at him did a gaunt face emerge from the mat.
He was a beggar with completely white hair, as thin as a mummy.
“Huh?”
As their eyes met, a look of bewilderment appeared in the lying beggar’s eyes.
I Rip shot him a pathetic look.
“What are you doing?”
“Can’t you tell? I’m begging.”
“Looking like that?”
“What’s wrong with how I look? I look plenty like a beggar.”
“Hardly. I thought you were the frozen corpse of a beggar. Who’d be brave enough to get close to give you alms?”
At I Rip’s scolding, Hong Jeok-mun reluctantly got up, his face clearly showing his annoyance.
Then he immediately started grumbling at I Rip.
“Sect Leader, aren’t you being too harsh?”
“Ahem. Where are your manners? You should show respect when you see the Sect Leader.”
“Cut the crap. Right now, I’m questioning you as a friend, not a subordinate.”
I Rip smirked.
“Is that so? Then go on, keep questioning.”
“How much longer do I have to stay here? Do you know how old I am? You said you’d treat me like an elder! Look at me. Does this look like the treatment of an elder? I should be in the council of elders, not begging on the streets. Does that make any sense?”
“Are you done?”
“No, not even close. As a senior, shouldn't you give hope to your juniors? But what dreams and hopes will the young beggars have when they see my state? Even an elder is wandering the streets like this!”
“Tsk. Are we the Beggar’s Sect for nothing? If we were just a group of beggars, we wouldn't have lasted this long. We are the very definition of chivalry…”
“Chivalry my ass! I’m about to die here!”
Hong Jeok-mun’s whining made I Rip frown.
“Still, you received something, so you must give back. It's obvious the Unorthodox Faction will target the Divine Physician’s son. Shouldn't we at least step up to protect him?”
At the mention of the Divine Physician, Hong Jeok-mun flinched.
For him, in a way, it touched upon his most painful memory.
“We’ll be officially setting up a branch here soon, so just bear with it a little longer.”
“A branch? Are you kidding me? You want me to work on the front lines again?”
“What can I do? You’re the only one I can trust.”
“Damn it! Stop trusting me so much! I’ve roamed every corner of the Central Plains!”
“Hey, hey, the kids are watching.”
“Let them watch!”
Seeing Hong Jeok-mun stubbornly act out, I Rip let out a soft sigh.
“If you keep this up, I might just make you the Sect Leader.”
“Huh? What kind of nonsense is that?”
“I’ve already written my will. It says to make you the next Sect Leader after me.”
“...!”
“How can I live out my full lifespan when you keep tiring me out like this? Oh… My blood pressure is rising… Hey, I think I’m having a stroke.”
Hong Jeok-mun heaved a sigh so deep it seemed the ground would collapse.
He knew better than anyone how tiring the position of Sect Leader was.
“No, I was just saying. When did I ever tire out the Sect Leader…?”
Seeing Hong Jeok-mun’s spirit break, I Rip chuckled.
“Here, take this.”
“What is it?”
“A red envelope. It is the New Year, after all.”
Receiving the red packet from I Rip, Hong Jeok-mun’s face immediately brightened.
By tradition, one should receive a red envelope after bowing to an elder and receiving their blessings.
“Please accept my bow, Sect Leader!”
Hong Jeok-mun prostrated himself and tried to recall a New Year’s greeting.
‘Let’s see. For a beggar, wishing for a hall full of gold and jade is out of the question…’
A simple ‘Happy New Year’?
Or perhaps ‘Welcome spring and receive blessings’?
Then, a suitable greeting came to mind.
“May all your wishes come true!”
“And may you always have a Swift Hand As You Wish.”
Swift Hand As You Wish was the title that symbolized Hong Jeok-mun.
Though his appearance was shabby and his personality eccentric enough to be called the ‘Little Sea Madman’, he was, by his own and others' admission, the top master of the Beggar's Sect. He was even skilled enough to be ranked among the top three fist masters in the Central Plains, albeit at the bottom.
Alongside the Absolute Fist Cho Ak-ryang and Faliao, the Head of the Disciplinary Hall of Shaolin.
The moment he opened the red envelope and checked its contents.
Hong Jeok-mun’s smiling face contorted into a frown.
“Is this all? Who’s this supposed to feed? There’ll be nothing left after buying a few dumplings!”
“The sect’s finances are tight…”
“When were they ever not? When will they ever not be?”
“If we had plenty, would we be beggars?”
“…”
“…”
As if on cue, both men grew sullen.
After a moment.
I Rip suddenly held something out to Hong Jeok-mun.
Recognizing it as a liquor bottle, Hong Jeok-mun’s face lit up like never before.
He was a man so mad for alcohol that he boasted of having drunk enough to fill a small sea.
It was no wonder his nickname was the ‘Little Sea Madman’.
“It’s Shanxi Fenjiu. I got it directly from Xinghua Village.”
“From the Liu family?”
“Yes. I thought of you and went through a lot of trouble to get it.”
Before he even finished speaking, the liquor bottle was already in Hong Jeok-mun’s hand.
His movement in snatching the bottle was imperceptible.
It was a speed befitting his title, Swift Hand As You Wish.
“Huh?”
Shaking the bottle, Hong Jeok-mun gave I Rip a quizzical look.
“A sip is missing.”
“That’s how much was in it when I received it.”
Hong Jeok-mun stared intently at I Rip.
Under his silent, pressing gaze, I Rip finally confessed.
“Fine! I had just one sip! It was hard to get, so I just had a little taste!”
Only then did Hong Jeok-mun’s expression soften.
He uncorked the bottle, stuck his nose to the opening, and sniffed, letting out a sound of admiration.
“Hah! This is good! Truly Shanxi Fenjiu! It’s incredible!”
After savoring the aroma several times, Hong Jeok-mun didn't drink but closed the bottle again.
“Why aren’t you drinking?”
At I Rip’s question, Hong Jeok-mun replied with a shameless look.
“If I drink now, I’ll have to share. I’m just going to save it and drink it all by myself in secret.”
I Rip burst out.
“You, who doesn’t have a shred of loyalty!”
“Loyalty? A man who lied about a single sip of liquor dares to speak of loyalty?”
Left with nothing to say, I Rip turned his gaze to the distance.
Then, as if a thought suddenly occurred to him, he spoke.
“We spent this year like this, but let’s stay up together on the coming New Year’s Eve.”
The last day of the year is the most important day of the New Year’s celebration.
On this evening, also called the Night of Passage, the whole family gathers to eat a meal called the New Year’s Eve dinner and stays up until the dawn of the next day. This is because one must not fall asleep before bowing to the gods who descend in the middle of the night.
This practice of staying up all night is called ‘shousui’.
“Forget it. If it’s just the two of us drinking, we’ll only talk about depressing things.”
At those words, the faces of I Rip and Hong Jeok-mun turned grim. They had remembered someone who was no longer with them.
In the past, the three of them would enjoy drinking all night long together.
It was then.
“Huh?”
A look of bewilderment crossed I Rip’s face.
A lion dance procession was just passing over the bridge.
The lion dance, said to bring good luck, was an excellent performance to liven up the holidays.
It mimicked the form and movements of a lion, with two or three people dancing inside a costume made of an intricately crafted lion mask with moving eyes and a leather hide.
One person controlled the head, and the others controlled the tail.
Another person would use a ball attached to a pole to tease the lion.
But the problem was that the movements of the warriors performing the lion dance were anything but ordinary.
“Isn’t that the Divine Hundred-Change Movement?”
No wonder it seemed unusual.
The Huashan Sect's signature movement technique was being used in a lion dance. Hong Jeok-mun replied nonchalantly.
“It’s been about a fortnight. The Huashan Sect also sent a few of their Plum Blossom Swordsmen here.”
“Why?”
“Why do you think? For a similar reason as us.”
“Then why didn’t you report it?”
“You think I didn't? The pigeon carrying the message should have reached the main headquarters by now.”
It was Hong Jeok-mun’s roundabout way of chiding the Sect Leader for showing up unannounced. As I Rip let out an awkward, dry cough, Hong Jeok-mun continued.
“As I watched them, I noticed a difference between them and us.”
“...?”
“The Huashan Sect disciples rotate every ten days. They only have to endure for ten days. Unlike some beggars.”
“We don’t have the manpower. It can’t be helped…”
“Ha! Are you saying the Beggar’s Sect lacks manpower now? In terms of numbers, we’re the largest sect in the Central Plains.”
“Ahem, lower your voice. Why don’t you just advertise it? That the Beggar’s Sect has put this place under surveillance?”
“Tch.”
“Anyway, how is the Divine Physician’s son?”
Hong Jeok-mun shook his head with a listless expression.
“He must have read the mood here, because he rarely shows himself. I haven't even seen his face yet.”
“Are you sure?”
“Are you saying I’m lying now?”
“Then who is that?”
“Huh?”
Following I Rip’s gesture, a cry of astonishment escaped Hong Jeok-mun’s lips.
A boy was strolling through the market.
His face and features perfectly matched the portrait of Dan Ak-seon he possessed.
But…
“Huh?”
“Gasp!”
A sound of bewilderment and a sharp intake of breath escaped the two men’s mouths. It was right after they spotted a woman silently following Dan Ak-seon.
I Rip and Hong Jeok-mun’s gazes were fixed on her, unable to look away.
“So the Ice Jade Fairy really was alive.”
“Why don’t you go and say hello?”
“Get out of here! You might as well tell me to just eat poison and die.”
“Seems you have some bad memories, eh?”
I Rip retorted to Hong Jeok-mun, who was smirking and teasing him.
“I don’t think you’re one to talk, of all people.”
Hong Jeok-mun smiled bitterly.
“I don’t particularly want to acknowledge her either. I had to wash ten times just to greet her once.”
Han Seol-hwa, with her pathological pursuit of cleanliness and neatness, was the complete opposite of beggars like them.
Besides, they couldn't compete with her in terms of martial arts or fame, so there was no other way.
They could only quietly avoid her.