A Greater One Remains
There was something bigger left.
“Waiters make more money than constables.”
“Huh? For real?”
“For real.”
“No way. Even the innkeeper treats you with respect, sir. How can a constable earn less than a waiter?”
“It makes perfect sense. I get five taels of silver a year. It’s manageable because I’m still single, but if you stay a constable, marriage gets tough.”
“No way! Then I definitely shouldn’t become a constable.”
“Right. Work hard as a waiter instead.”
“Yes! Hearing you say that actually makes me feel motivated.”
“Does it? I just feel depressed. I should get going.”
Dan Yeop rose from his seat and trudged out of the inn.
Chang’an Castle. An undisclosed location.
On the top floor of a tall pavilion, an old man and a middle-aged man sat facing each other.
The middle-aged man glanced at the old man’s expression before continuing.
“…Both Mieldo and Bul-yeom are dead. The Mannyeon Cheoljang we used as a base is currently under investigation.”
“You’re telling me those two masters only managed to kill Wang Mun and Choe Eon before being finished off?”
“There is one exceptionally skilled constable at the Jangan County Office. Both men were caught by him.”
“Who is he?”
“Do you remember a man named Dan Yeop?”
“You mean the constable who chased the culprit all the way to Hadong and killed Seok Jung-ok?”
“Yes. We thought Haomun had simply planted him in the government office, but it appears there is more to him than we knew.”
“You’re saying Mieldo and Bul-yeom were killed by a mere Haomun dog? Did I hear that correctly?”
“It is the truth. Mieldo was killed by the Cloud Sword Guest of the Zhongnan Sect, but Bul-yeom met his end at Dan Yeop’s hands.”
“There cannot possibly be anyone of such caliber in Haomun! He may be an unnamed disciple of the Five Great Sword Sects.”
The old man refused to accept reality easily. To him, Haomun was nothing more than a garbage collective.
“No. He is a survivor of the Byeongmachong, the secret training ground Haomun operated in Guannei Circuit.”
“Then another master must have helped him in secret.”
“There were many witnesses, and all of them claimed Dan Yeop was the one who killed him. They say that despite his young age, he has already reached the level of Sword Qi Emission.”
“That alone makes no sense. Bul-yeom was a master on the verge of mastering Igi Eogeom. How could such a man lose to someone who merely emits sword qi?”
“He must have used some underhanded trick that left Bul-yeom no choice. Constables are naturally sneaky creatures, aren’t they?”
The old man remained silent for a long time, deep in thought, before finally speaking.
“Suspend all operations in Chang’an for now and investigate Dan Yeop. Look into his family, his background—uncover everything about him.”
“Understood.”
“Also, assign someone to watch him. We need to determine whether he is an enemy that must be eliminated or someone who could become an ally.”
“It shall be done as you command.”
The middle-aged man bowed respectfully to the old man and withdrew.
Left alone in the pavilion, the old man let out a long sigh.
“Haa!”
There were mountains of tasks to complete, yet they were critically short on talent.
He hoped the constable named Dan Yeop would prove to be a proper person.
Just like the other Thousand Buddhas within Cheonlyeon.
Jangan County Office. Constable barracks.
Around dusk.
As Dan Yeop was finishing his patrol log before leaving for the day, a young constable burst in, panting.
“Constable Dan!”
“What is it?”
“Someone’s here to see you outside.”
“Me?”
“Yes. They asked specifically for Constable Dan Yeop.”
“A complainant? It’s almost time to go home.”
“I’m not sure if it’s a complainant or not, but you really should go meet them.”
“What kind of nonsense is that? Why must I meet them no matter what?”
“She’s an incredible beauty.”
“……”
For a moment, Dan Yeop recalled the beautiful women he knew.
The first person who came to mind was Son Yeon-hwa. She could visit the barracks without hesitation.
Next was Soyo, the gisaeng from Jaun-gak. He hadn’t heard from her since introducing her to the head of the Gakmun branch, so it was possible she might come looking for him.
The last face that surfaced made him shake his head. That person would never willingly set foot in a constable station unless she had lost her mind.
“She’s waiting at the main gate. Please hurry out.”
“Ah, right.”
Dan Yeop quickly finished his log and stepped outside.
When he reached the main gate a short while later, he stopped short at the sight of the woman.
It was someone completely unexpected.
“Constable Dan, thank you for coming out. I came to express my gratitude. I hope I’m not holding you up when you’re so busy.”
“No, I was just on my way home, so it’s fine. What brings you here?”
Dan Yeop stared at Ok-hwan.
He had seen her singing at Hwawolru once from a distance. That was the extent of their connection. He couldn’t imagine what she had to thank him for.
Ok-hwan smiled brightly and answered.
“I used to suffer quite a bit from the warriors of Janwol-gak. It always left me feeling stifled… but after seeing you discipline the Blood Rakshasa a few days ago, all that pent-up frustration vanished. So I came to thank you properly.”
Of course, it was an excuse. It was true that the Janwol-gak warriors had pestered her, but it had never been bad enough to cause actual indigestion.
“It was nothing. I simply did what any constable should do.”
“I’m just so grateful. If you don’t have any plans after work, I’d like to treat you to dinner.”
Ok-hwan gazed at Dan Yeop with eyes that burned with heat yet carried a touch of desperate appeal.
Ok-hwan led Dan Yeop to Hwawolru under the pretense of treating him to dinner.
Just because it was a gibang didn’t mean they didn’t serve meals. Many of the side dishes that came out were substantial enough to count as a full dinner.
The establishment offered most dishes except for those reserved exclusively for military officers. Even though it was meant to be just dinner, their seats were in the best spot on the second floor with the finest view.
At first, dishes appropriate for a meal appeared—dumplings, stir-fried chicken, lamb skewers, tiger bone soup, five-spice pork, smoked pork, and three-delicacy noodle soup.
But as the hour of the boar (between seven and nine in the evening) arrived, grape wine began to appear little by little under the excuse of accompanying the meal.
By the time they had emptied two bottles of grape wine, Ok-hwan had stopped calling him “Constable” and started calling him “little brother.”
“Why did you become a constable, little brother?”
Dan Yeop let out a small chuckle. He had heard that question countless times since becoming one.
“Someone asked me to help catch bad people.”
“And that made you become a constable?”
“I also hated seeing bad people running rampant.”
“You could have taken the civil service exams and become a royal inspector or joined the Ministry of Justice instead.”
“What’s wrong with being a constable?”
“Constables… well, people curse at them a lot. Noble families supposedly disown their children if they become constables. Didn’t your family say anything?”
“I’m fine. I don’t have a family to disown me.”
“Ah, I’m sorry. I didn’t know.”
“What are you sorry for? It’s not your fault I don’t have a house.”
“Then… are you an orphan? I am.”
Ok-hwan looked at Dan Yeop with sorrowful, lonely eyes.
“Something like that.”
“What do you mean, something like that? If you don’t have parents, you’re an orphan. If you do, you’re not. From the way you’re talking, it sounds like you do have them?”
For some reason, when Ok-hwan said she was an orphan, Dan Yeop felt he shouldn’t lie to her.
“There was a beast of a man who violated a maiden he had never met before and then ran away. The maiden gave birth, but even though it was her own child, she hated it so much. Every time she saw the child, she tried to kill it. In the end, the child ran away from home in secret to survive. Then the child met an adoptive father on the streets and is now living well.”
“Don’t tell me… that’s your story?”
“Yes.”
“……”
Large tears welled up in Ok-hwan’s eyes.
“See? It’s similar to being an orphan, right?”
“I’m sorry for asking something so pointless… I keep doing things I should apologize for.”
“It’s fine. It’s an old story. I don’t feel much about it anymore.”
“Still…”
“Why don’t you tell me your story instead? How did you end up becoming a gisaeng?”
“After my parents passed away, my uncle sold me to a gibang.”
“I see.”
It was short and simple, but Dan Yeop could easily picture the circumstances, so he didn’t ask any further questions.
After the grape wine came Okrochun, Manrichun, and even Wolha-eum.
The two of them drank while listening to the gisaengs’ songs as accompaniment.
Because they had mixed completely different types of strong liquor, both Dan Yeop’s and Ok-hwan’s faces had flushed red from intoxication.
At that moment, the sound of a bell announcing the closing of the city gates drifted in from afar.
“Oh? It’s gotten late. I should get going.”
When Dan Yeop stood up, Ok-hwan grabbed his hand.
“Just stay the night. I don’t want to send you away like this.”
Dan Yeop gently removed her hand and said,
“Weren’t you the one who suggested we be like older sister and younger brother earlier? If I sleep with you tonight, we become a gisaeng and a constable. I’m leaving.”
Dan Yeop turned and descended the stairs without looking back.
Ok-hwan, who had been sitting there in a daze, suddenly burst out laughing. “Pfft!”
She had thought it was all over once the drinking naturally took over the dinner.
She never expected him to refuse using the older sister and younger brother line.
“How interesting.”
Various expressions flickered across Ok-hwan’s face before vanishing.
Chang’an Castle. An undisclosed location.
While the old man was examining a golden ancient game record in the high pavilion, the middle-aged man approached, making his presence known.
“Your Highness, the investigation into Dan Yeop is complete.”
“Speak.”
“His family history is rather complicated. It seems a maiden was violated by an unknown man and gave birth to Dan Yeop. Out of resentment toward the man, the woman tried to kill young Dan Yeop. He ran away from such a mother, was taken in by Dan Bul-wi of Haomun, and that brings us to the present.”
“So Dan Bul-wi sent him to the Byeongmachong.”
“Correct.”
“How did a Haomun member end up becoming a constable?”
“The Jangan County Magistrate, Jo Mu-jin, asked Haomun to recommend someone familiar with the situation in Chang’an so he could catch the culprit behind the Nakan County Office incident. The person Haomun sent at that time was Dan Yeop.”
“Tsk! So that’s how it happened. Then what kind of person is Dan Yeop? Is he the type who would willingly become the emperor’s dog for the sake of success? Or is he a hero who wishes to overturn this unjust world?”
“People around him urged him to enter government service, but he refused. It seemed he valued Haomun more than official positions.”
“At least he won’t become the emperor’s dog.”
“That is true for now, but it is difficult to say what the future holds.”
“Why?”
“If the imperial family offers him exceptionally generous terms, there is a chance he might accept.”
“The current emperor would never make such an offer to a Haomun member.”
“However, if someone continuously whispers in the emperor’s ear, it is not entirely impossible.”
“Is there such a person?”
“The former governor of Sichuan, Son Yu-baek, has taken it upon himself to be Dan Yeop’s patron. He has already submitted a memorial to the emperor urging him to use Dan Yeop importantly.”
“Son Yu-baek… why must he, when he could have quietly lived out his remaining years…”
When the old man’s expression darkened, the middle-aged man asked cautiously.
“Your Highness, shall I add Son Yu-baek’s name to the Punishment Record?”
The old man did not answer immediately.
The Punishment Record was a book in which Cheonlyeon recorded the names of corrupt officials who deserved death.
However, Son Yu-baek was a clean-handed man popular among the common people.
As the old man’s deliberation grew long, the middle-aged man hinted,
“If Son Yu-baek continues to recommend Dan Yeop to the emperor, eventually Dan Yeop will end up working for the emperor as well.”
“Foolish! You have confused the means with the end. Recruiting Dan Yeop comes first. If he cannot be persuaded, then add his name to the Punishment Record. Without Dan Yeop, Son Yu-baek is nothing but a retired old man in the back room, so we need not concern ourselves with him.”
“It shall be as Your Highness commands.”
“Is there a suitable person to persuade Dan Yeop?”
“Among the Beop Hwa Ja, the Blood Maitreya Hong Jin would be good.”
The Beop Hwa Ja were the enforcers, mysterious beings unknown to the outside world.
“Since we are sending a Beop Hwa Ja anyway, wouldn’t the Pure Land Practitioner be better than the Blood Maitreya?”
The Blood Maitreya had a cruel disposition, while the Pure Land Practitioner was gentle.
For resolving matters through conversation, the Pure Land Practitioner would be—