As the Heart Leads
Didn’t you ask me to teach you?
“Very well. Since you are all instructors, it’s only natural you should know. Starting tomorrow, head over to the Amun or Jeommun training grounds and learn there. Though I’m not sure if Sir Hanwolgeom and Sir Go Geom-haeng will be comfortable using blades instead of swords.”
At that, Hanwolgeom spoke up.
“Sword or blade, when you get down to it, they’re not so different. If there’s no sword, people even use tree branches. A blade is a hundred times better than a tree branch.”
“Oh-ho! As expected of someone from the Five Great Sword Schools. That’s quite profound. If the two of you are interested in Haomun’s martial arts, feel free to join in. As you said, all three of you are now part of the Haomun family.”
“Thank you.”
“We appreciate it. We’ll come and learn properly. Just don’t chase us away for being a nuisance.”
Unjung-gaek and Hanwolgeom left with unusually humble attitudes.
Setting everything else aside, it was simply because Dan Bul-wi and Dan Yeop’s martial prowess far surpassed their own.
Once the conversation had mostly wrapped up, Dan Yeop rose from his seat first.
The bizarre footwork he had witnessed earlier had left his mind unsettled, and he wanted to go home and rest.
As he crossed the front courtyard to leave Hwawolru, Dan Yeop ran into three young men.
All of them were dressed in fine silk robes, suggesting they were the sons of wealthy families gathered for a social outing.
When his eyes met one of them, an awkward smile rose to Dan Yeop’s face.
Na Bu-gang?
64. As the Heart Leads
Na Bu-gang, the eldest son of the Jinbo Merchant Guild, was spending the New Year with his fellow students from the Four Gates Academy.
It was what people called a New Year’s greeting party.
Every participant came from either a high official’s household or one of the great merchant guilds.
They had clearly been drinking elsewhere first; all of them had flushed faces and loud voices.
“The wine at Hwawolru is way better than at Jaun-gak.”
“People only go to Jaun-gak for the courtesans. Who goes there for the drinks?”
“Hey now! Hwawolru’s Okhwan is just as good as any courtesan. Trust my eye for quality.”
“Did you make a reservation? You can’t even get a glimpse of her without one.”
“Of course I did.”
“Ooh! So today’s the day we finally meet Lady Okhwan?”
“They say even the birds fall silent when she plays the lute and sings. Has anyone actually seen her perform?”
“I once listened from below the pavilion. It was mesmerizing.”
As Na Bu-gang walked along listening to his friends’ empty chatter, he spotted Dan Yeop a moment too late and froze.
Ju Seung-yong, the eldest son of the Joyang Merchant Guild, noticed and asked him,
“What’s wrong? Do you know him?”
“Ah, well…”
Na Bu-gang stammered, unable to find the right words to introduce Dan Yeop.
At that moment, Dan Yeop clasped his hands together first and offered a polite greeting.
“Young Master Na, how have you been? It’s been a while. Last year, I sold you a dragon robe. That’s how we became acquainted.”
Ju Seung-yong stared at the beautiful youth and said,
“So your family runs a fabric shop? Where is the store located?”
The moment Dan Yeop mentioned selling a dragon robe, Ju Seung-yong immediately switched to informal speech.
“It’s not my family’s shop. I was just working temporarily at a fabric store in Posi-bang. That’s where I met Young Master Na.”
“It sounds like you’re doing something else now. Am I right?”
“Yes. I’ve definitely quit working at the fabric shop.”
Dan Yeop gave a vague answer because he couldn’t reveal that he was now with Haomun.
Ju Seung-yong asked half-jokingly,
“You’re not working here, are you? With a face like that, it wouldn’t be surprising.”
For a brief moment, Na Bu-gang looked at Dan Yeop with a startled expression.
It occurred to him that since Dan Yeop was part of Haomun, it wasn’t entirely impossible.
When the young men all turned to look at him, Dan Yeop quickly waved his hands in denial.
“No, not at all. I was attending a New Year gathering and was on my way out. Well then, I’ll be on my way. Young Master Na, I hope the New Year brings you many good things.”
Dan Yeop gave Na Bu-gang a farewell greeting and walked past the group of youths.
Na Bu-gang never said a single word in response.
He had nothing to say.
Last winter, his younger sister Na Geum-ryeong—under the pretext of protecting her brother—had ended the connection with Dan Yeop in his place.
Na Bu-gang had quietly accepted her decision.
And ever since, he had avoided setting foot in Posi-bang as much as possible.
Right now, his heart was indescribably heavy.
Memories he had tried so hard to forget were resurfacing one by one, and regret slowly began to creep in.
Was it truly the right choice to distance himself from Dan Yeop simply because he was part of Haomun?
Seeing how respectfully Dan Yeop had behaved today, it somehow felt like he was the one who had done wrong.
When Na Bu-gang’s expression remained grim, Go Seon-ji asked this time,
“Bu-gang, what’s the matter? Did that fellow do something wrong to you?”
The sharp question from Go Seon-ji, son of the magistrate of Mannyeon County, made Na Bu-gang flinch.
“Wrong? Nothing like that.”
“Your face says otherwise.”
“I told you, it’s nothing. Why don’t you believe me? Stop talking nonsense and keep talking about Lady Okhwan.”
“Why? Did you suddenly get interested? They say she doesn’t just sing well—she composes poetry that could rival even Li Bai.”
These days, the empire was swept up in a poetry craze.
From scholars to courtesans, anyone who couldn’t compose poetry was treated like a barbarian.
A sigh of admiration escaped Ju Seung-yong’s lips.
“She writes poetry too? Now I’m really looking forward to this. I’ve always had a weakness for women who compose good poetry. Lady Soyo’s verses are excellent, but I wonder how Lady Okhwan’s will be.”
Just then, a worker from Hwawolru came out and escorted the three young men into the main building.
When the three entered the room they had reserved and began drinking, the courtesans and Okhwan entered as well.
Soon, Okhwan’s lute playing and singing began.
Ju Seung-yong and Go Seon-ji kept nodding their heads in admiration.
But Na Bu-gang could not enjoy the sound of Okhwan’s lute or her singing.
The words “Young Master Na” from Dan Yeop kept stabbing at his heart.
He drank continuously, barely listening to the performance.
Noticing that Na Bu-gang was acting strangely, Go Seon-ji probed,
“Bu-gang, what’s going on? You’ve been acting weird ever since you ran into that friend of yours.”
“I don’t know… I really don’t know.”
Slightly tipsy, Na Bu-gang cautiously revealed what was truly on his mind.
They weren’t close enough to be called best friends, but if he didn’t tell someone, he felt like he would explode.
“What is it?”
Go Seon-ji looked at him with curious eyes.
Na Bu-gang was usually an aloof, refined gentleman skilled in both literary and martial arts.
For someone who rarely showed emotion to act like a completely different person today was unusual.
Na Bu-gang smiled bitterly and said,
“There’s this person. If you look at him alone, he’s truly decent. But his family and surroundings have a lot of problems. If it were you, what would you do? Would you judge the person alone and continue the friendship? Or would you keep your distance because of the problematic surroundings?”
Go Seon-ji asked back,
“Wouldn’t it depend on what the problem is? If it’s something as dangerous as treason, of course you should cut ties.”
“Ah, it’s not that serious. It’s just… not particularly honorable.”
“Ah, if that’s the case… hmm, that’s tricky.”
Go Seon-ji, who had seemed ready to answer easily, tilted his head.
After all, many people valued honor as much as their lives.
At that moment, Ju Seung-yong chimed in.
“Really? I think it’s fine. You said he’s a decent person, right? It’s not like he’s involved in something as dangerous as treason. As for honor, isn’t that up to the individual? Even prestigious families have trash among them, while there are decent people even among butchers and coffin makers. Since I’m from a merchant guild, as long as it’s not some messy money issue, I’d say it’s fine.”
Go Seon-ji burst into laughter.
“Hahaha! Only caring about whether there’s a money problem—how very like the eldest son of the Joyang Merchant Guild. Still, we have to consider our noble Na Bu-gang’s dignity. He’s not the type who only cares about money like you.”
At his friends’ words, Na Bu-gang felt even more stifled.
Dignity, huh…
In the end, the reason his younger sister had stepped in to cut ties with Dan Yeop was for the sake of his dignity.
While all this was happening, the song came to an end.
Okhwan smiled gently and showed interest in the young men’s conversation.
“What could be such an interesting story that you wouldn’t even listen to my song?”
Ju Seung-yong, the host of the gathering, spoke as if making an excuse.
“Ah, we listened to your song very well. It’s just that my friend suddenly asked a question. ‘If the person is fine but their surroundings are bad, should one keep their distance?’ What do you think, Lady Okhwan?”
‘Is he talking about me?’
Okhwan was slightly flustered but didn’t show it.
She had seen plenty of men pretending to be moral gentlemen in the brothels.
“I see. That really is a difficult question. Before I give my answer, I’d like to hear the esteemed opinions of you two young masters first.”
“Go Seon-ji said one should keep distance if dignity is at stake, and I said it’s fine as long as there’s no money problem.”
“Hey, when did I say that? I said it would be difficult because Na Bu-gang values dignity so much. I don’t care about what other people think.”
In front of Okhwan, Go Seon-ji actively expressed his true thoughts.
Listening to them, Okhwan smiled slyly and said,
“In my opinion, ‘in the end, one ends up following where the heart leads.’ If something could be stopped just because someone tried to prevent it, there would be no difficult things in this world. Don’t you agree?”
In other words, it was a cunning way of saying, ‘If you have feelings for me, don’t give up.’
The three young men each fell into their own thoughts and nodded.
A short while later, only the courtesans remained as Okhwan picked up her lute and left.
While emptying his wine cup, Ju Seung-yong suddenly asked,
“What was that friend’s name earlier?”
“Why?”
“Well, you said he was a decent person. It looked like he does odd jobs here and there. I thought I might run into him again someday. He has a very striking face, after all.”
“His name is Dan Yeop.”
“Dan Yeop, huh. Do you know what he’s doing these days?”
“I haven’t seen him in months either, so I don’t know. And I’m not particularly interested.”
When Na Bu-gang strongly denied it, the corner of Ju Seung-yong’s mouth rose.
Irritated, Na Bu-gang asked,
“Why are you smiling?”
“Don’t you realize? All we’ve talked about since we met today is Dan Yeop. And you’re still going to insist you’re not interested?”
“I told you. His surroundings are a mess. The water we swim in is completely different from someone like him.”
“That bad? Hey, ladies. Is there a beautiful youth named Dan Yeop at Hwawolru?”
At Ju Seung-yong’s question, the courtesans giggled and answered.
“There’s no one named Dan Yeop at Hwawolru.”
“Is he really that handsome?”
“We did hear that there was an incredibly beautiful youth among the guests in the separate building today.”
At the last courtesan’s words, Go Seon-ji quickly asked,
“What kind of people were they?”
“I’m not sure, but I overheard something about it being a gathering of people from the Murim factions.”
At that moment, both Ju Seung-yong and Go Seon-ji turned their gazes toward Na Bu-gang.
Na Bu-gang shrugged as if he knew nothing.
Then Go Seon-ji, true to the son of a magistrate, struck right at the heart of the matter.
“Surroundings are a mess, and the water we swim in is different? Yet it’s a Murim faction? Then he must be from the Evil Faction or Haomun. How did you, a disciple of the Hyunmu Pavilion, end up knowing someone like that?”
“I told you. I bought clothes from the fabric shop where he worked.”
“So you became close because of that, then distanced yourself after you found out which sect he belonged to. Right?”
Na Bu-gang could not lie to Go Seon-ji, who spoke as if he had seen it with his own eyes.
“That’s right. There’s nothing more to it, so stop asking. Now tell me. If you were in my position, what would you have done?”
The courtesans watched the young men with faces full of interest.
Ju Seung-yong spoke first.
“Your master is the Pure Void Sword, Yu Mu-sang, right? That man supposedly trembles with disgust at the mere mention of the Evil Faction. It would be absolutely impossible.”
Then Go Seon-ji said,
“Considering the Pure Void Sword, it really isn’t easy. I think I understand why you’re trying to distance yourself from that friend. Suddenly, what Lady Okhwan said earlier—”