Is There Anyone in the World Who Knows Me? (17)
Is There Anyone in the World Who Knows Me? (17)
Venerable Geumbok was not tortured in Chang'an.
He did not even receive a proper investigation.
He was confined to a clean room, took regular walks for his health, and ate three good meals a day. But he could learn absolutely nothing of the news outside, nor was he permitted to meet anyone.
Given the circumstances, Venerable Geumbok figured that the officials, finding him and the Zhongnan Sect's influence burdensome, were merely conducting a formal investigation for show. The incident was certainly a major one, but the disciple who had been captured was low-ranking even within the Zhongnan Sect, and there was nothing anywhere that could tie that disciple to him.
Venerable Geumbok was confident.
In Shaanxi, he was the king. Even if his standing had fallen because of the past few incidents, the Zhongnan Sect still stood firm behind him, and the officials were nothing but incompetent, corrupt bastards. Even now, the Zhongnan Sect and his own attendants would be using bribes and connections to pressure them into getting him out quickly.
In truth, the officials' people were exceedingly courteous, and whenever he asked when he might leave, they always gave him only positive answers.
And so Venerable Geumbok did not worry.
The moment he got out, he intended to show the people of Chang'an Fortress that he was still alive and well. The instant he left this place, a magnificent carriage would greet him. He would climb proudly into that carriage and demonstrate that in Shaanxi, the name of Venerable Geumbok stood higher than the officials.
He would show them that even amidst all those countless controversies and scandals, the name Venerable Geumbok still held sway in Shaanxi.
Venerable Geumbok repeated this to himself, over and over.
*******
The day Venerable Geumbok was to return to Zhongnan Mountain.
The corridor was gray and gloomy, the light blocked by the high walls. A middle-aged man in a splendid official's robe walked side by side with Venerable Geumbok. Venerable Geumbok's gait was confident, unbecoming of a criminal who had come to be investigated.
"You have endured much hardship, Elder."
The officials' people remained kind. With courteous smiles, they assisted him on his way out. Leaning on his cane, back straight, Venerable Geumbok wondered what might have happened outside during his absence.
Falling behind on information is fatal for a merchant. Once he got outside, he planned to mobilize his informants first and scrape up all the outside news. Lately, the Hao Sect had been bustling about for some unknown reason, so it would be faster to go out and gather intelligence himself.
"You have also worked hard. I am grateful for all the trouble you have taken to help a foolish old man like me."
The official laughed. He was quite old, and his attire was immaculate and of a high-ranking color. His actual rank in Chang'an was high, and Venerable Geumbok recognized his face. Seeing a man of such high station come out to see him off only strengthened Venerable Geumbok's conviction.
That the officials had realized they could not wrench Shaanxi free from the grasp of the Zhongnan Sect and himself—that to offer some kind of apology for the 'rudeness' of unreasonably seizing and confining him this time, they had now sent this man before him.
The official's face was all smiles. He made no effort to suppress his laughter, nor to stop scrutinizing Venerable Geumbok. He stared intently at Venerable Geumbok's face as if he would never see it again, nodding his head as he spoke.
"You say more than is necessary. Well then, take care as you go."
The official bowed his head to Venerable Geumbok.
Seeing him even bow his head with a smiling face, Venerable Geumbok felt a peculiar sensation. No matter how you looked at it, wasn't this going too far?
An official openly bowing his head to him?
The door opened. The low-hanging light that had been blocked by the high walls of the government building seeped inside. A boundary line of light fell between Venerable Geumbok and the official. Staring at that line of light, Venerable Geumbok's mind churned, wondering if he had made an error in his thinking.
Something was off.
If they truly were trying to gauge his mood, why had they suppressed information?
Why was there no word of the Zhongnan Sect or his connections protesting?
If they truly feared him, what was this behavior the official was showing now?
"Open the gate."
The light spread. The official's face, which had been smiling in the gray shadows, now shone brightly. The noise of the lower city began to filter in—the murmur of people, the cries of hawkers, and the voices of guards restraining movement.
Venerable Geumbok frowned, dazzled by the light. Dimly, he could make out figures standing in the light. A carriage was parked there, and three or so men stood looking straight at him. The shadows made their faces unrecognizable, but their stern, rigid bearing told him they were not on his side.
Once his eyes grew accustomed to the light, he made out the flag planted on the carriage.
It was the crest of the Zhuge Family. The very same crest of the Zhuge Family that had been helping him early on, proclaiming they would open a new era.
Had his fears been unfounded after all?
Swallowing the twitching of his lips, Venerable Geumbok raised his head. Guards controlling the crowd stood in a circular formation, and people milled about outside the perimeter, watching. There was no sign of Zhuge Yeong-yu.
Had they come to escort him in a Zhuge Family carriage?
Venerable Geumbok found the situation strange. Where were the carriages and escorts of the Zhongnan Sect, and what were the Zhuge Family's people doing here? And what was this chilling, stern atmosphere, if they had come to escort him?
Venerable Geumbok looked around.
Something was off.
The people had formed a circle. If they had come to see his triumphant return, the road should naturally have been kept open. Instead, they were gathered in a circle, casting curious glances at Venerable Geumbok. This was no triumphant return. It was like a crowd of onlookers who had come to see a criminal executed.
Venerable Geumbok saw the man from the Zhuge Family pulling a document from his waist.
His posture was as rigid as if he were reading a royal decree.
Unflinching as the paper was unfolded, Venerable Geumbok opened his mouth.
"....Where has the Zhongnan Sect gone, and why are the Zhuge Family's people here?"
"Uwahahah...!"
"Hahahaha..!"
"What a shameless bastard, truly."
The reaction was strange. Venerable Geumbok had only asked where the Zhongnan Sect was, but the crowd acted as if a criminal had just spouted nonsense. Like derisive laughter and anger bursting out at a condemned man's impudent remark, jeers and insults poured in from all directions.
"A man grown old and truly doesn't know his place!"
"Did you actually think you were the king of Shaanxi?"
"Bearing the title of Venerable, you must have found the world quite laughable indeed!"
He could not understand.
Venerable Geumbok could not understand the situation.
What on earth was going on?
Had the Zhongnan Sect collapsed in that short time? Or had some great upheaval occurred in the martial world? The man from the Zhuge Family shouted.
"Silence, please!"
Infused with inner energy, his voice boomed and echoed in all directions. The noise of the lower city was swallowed up and vanished beneath that resonant voice. The hawkers, the jeering people, even the guards—all fell silent and stared at the man from the Zhuge Family.
He raised the unfolded paper high and proclaimed.
"I am Zhuge Yeong-ha, attached to the Inspection Department of the Murim Alliance Shaanxi Branch! Concerning this incident, the will of the Murim Alliance and our Zhuge Family has been decided! Listen well, you vile, filthy old monster!"
"Wha, what?"
Venerable Geumbok's eyes went wide as he stared at Zhuge Yeong-ha. Yeong-ha, eyes glaring and teeth clenched, began to read the text aloud.
"The martial artists of the sects have always respected those unlearned in martial ways, and the opposite has likewise always held true. However, not long ago, a creature ignorant of righteousness and chivalry, dissolute and overflowing with greed—who calls himself Venerable Geumbok—committed the horrifying act of sending an empty meal tray to the martial artist he had raised as his own son, casting him out!"
Venerable Geumbok could not understand what was being said. An empty meal tray? Cast out a martial artist raised as a son? Unable to follow what was happening, he could only blink his eyes and listen to Zhuge Yeong-ha's words.
"What must the heart of a son disowned by his father feel? Even between master and disciple, the word 'cast out' is spoken with caution and mutual respect, yet by betraying righteousness and inflicting the pain of severance, the crime of stripping away a young martial artist's future is grave and vicious! The Zhongnan Sect and numerous other sects held Venerable Geumbok in respect, valuing his financial power and the contributions he had made to the martial world until now! But Venerable Geumbok acted as if he were the king of Shaanxi, and at last, he has committed the sin of a moral degenerate!"
"Wha, what are you saying? Wha, what on earth are you saying!"
Venerable Geumbok's eyes went wide as he shouted. The sin of a moral degenerate? Disowned? A story he knew absolutely nothing about kept unfolding. What on earth was this all about?
But no one explained it to him.
If he looked back, the gate of the government building was already closed; if he looked at the people, they only sneered at him.
Zhuge Yeong-ha, too, simply stared straight at him with eyes full of fury and continued reciting the text.
"Venerable Geumbok! Though held in respect, he did not possess even the barest minimum of courtesy! He behaved as though he were the king of this martial world! And he went so far as to toy with martial artists like chess pieces, to be used and discarded at his whim! The Zhongnan Sect, the Zhuge Family, and all the sects of Shaanxi and neighboring regions resolve, in the name of the Murim Alliance, that there shall be no trade relationship with Venerable Geumbok! Henceforth, the name Venerable Geumbok shall never drift through this martial world again!"