Is There Anyone in the World Who Knows Me? (2)
Is There Anyone in the World Who Knows Me? (2)
The Venerable Geumbok sat hunched in a lavishly ornate room. Unlike the well-groomed attendants and guards who walked upright, his frame was small and his face soft, lacking any sharpness. Yet his wrinkled face brimmed with something beyond mere intelligence—worldly desires that surged and churned.
Obsession and desire. And rage and inferiority.
Petty, filthy emotions had coalesced to create the man called the Venerable Geumbok. Those who saw him for the first time all said the same thing. He was never a man befitting the title 'Venerable One.' The words most fitting to describe him were harsh, insidious terms like rakshasa or asura.
Opening his deeply sunken eyes, the Venerable Geumbok flicked his hand. It meant "enter." His arrogance oozed from even the smallest gestures.
"It has been a long time."
Zhuge Yeong-yu of the Zhuge Family felt the desire rippling across the Venerable Geumbok's face and stiffened. Though he had not learned martial arts, there was something about his spirit that resembled a man of the martial world.
******
"So, to what do I owe the direct visit of the Zhuge Family's precious son?"
The Venerable Geumbok's manner of speech was distinctive. Each word carried a resonance that made it easy to understand, and his low timbre brought comfort to the listener. Now, in his old age, with his greed laid bare, an ugly countenance had gnawed away at that virtue; but in his younger years, the Venerable Geumbok had been a man whose generous appearance alone possessed the charm to put people at ease.
"I was deeply moved by the work you are undertaking, elder, and so I have come to pay my respects."
The Venerable Geumbok appeared unmoved by Zhuge Yeong-yu's words. With an impassive face, he turned his neck and rubbed the desk with his fingers as he spoke.
"As I understand it, the Zhuge Family has always been on the side of the imperial household. When the imperial tyranny reached its peak, they were cowardly scoundrels who, under that protection, roamed freely across the martial world and seized their gains. Though we happen to be standing shoulder to shoulder for now over the matter of the Crimson Ring Sect, I cannot help but doubt the sincerity of those words."
Zhuge Yeong-yu did not care for the expression "standing shoulder to shoulder." From the Zhuge Family's standpoint, the Venerable Geumbok was nothing more than a mad old man merely borrowing the tiger's might. But Zhuge Yeong-yu chose not to reveal his discomfort and pressed on.
"Even the bonds of loyalty between individuals are hard to tie and sever—how then could the affairs of family and nation be so easily bound and cut? If one strays, it is only proper to wait for their eventual return. Until now, the imperial household and the Zhuge Family have been mutually..."
"What did you come here for?"
The Venerable Geumbok cut Zhuge Yeong-yu off. Zhuge Yeong-yu smiled as he spoke.
"As I said, I was so deeply moved that I wish to offer myself to aid your great undertaking, elder."
Zhuge Yeong-yu's proposal was extraordinary, but the Venerable Geumbok did not so much as blink. He stroked his beard as he spoke.
"From the Zhuge Family's standpoint, the work we are doing cannot be particularly welcome. How strange. Did the deal not already conclude with the opening of an advance route into Hubei Province once the Shaanxi matter is settled? The Zhuge Family no longer owes any debt to the Zhongnan Sect or to me."
Zhuge Yeong-yu found the arrogance of equating the Zhongnan Sect with himself utterly absurd. He could also read that, even without direct intervention, the Venerable Geumbok would one day be destroyed by that very arrogance. But there were far too many suffering people to simply sit back and wait for one man's ruin.
Zhuge Yeong-yu spoke.
"Elder, you will remember the great upheavals that shook the nation in your younger days."
The Venerable Geumbok stopped stroking his beard. For a fleeting moment, a glimmer of sharp intelligence returned to those eyes steeped in greed and suspicion. A hint of moisture flickered in them, and he drew a breath. Zhuge Yeong-yu continued calmly.
"When the emperor's tyranny and drought coincided, the realm trembled. Revolts erupted in all directions, and corrupt officials busied themselves lining their own pockets. Sects from every region rose up to quell the revolts and bring the provinces under control, and in those days, the men of martial world cried out for righteousness and chivalry. Decades have passed since then. And what is the state of things now?"
The Venerable Geumbok opened his mouth. It was the complete opposite of the cold, indifferent demeanor he had shown moments before. His voice carried force and emotion, and there was a tremor in it.
"The imperial household remains incompetent, and the officials remain too corrupt to perform their duties. Therefore, it is only just that those who can govern better take control."
Part of it was true, he thought. The fact that such words flowed so naturally from the mouth of a man steeped in greed made Zhuge Yeong-yu's eyes grow heavy with sorrow. Decades were more than enough time to reshape people's perceptions.
The Venerable Geumbok did not notice the melancholy creeping into his eyes.
Zhuge Yeong-yu spoke.
"The Zhuge Family has, all this time, denied that truth and remained loyal to the imperial household. But even as the era changes, the world does not. The corrupt still torment the people. Someone must act."
Zhuge Yeong-yu hardened his expression. Even as he spoke the words himself, the fact that they were true disgusted him. The Venerable Geumbok's face, by contrast, flickered with delight. The mere fact that the first son of the Zhuge Family was uttering such things pleased him beyond measure.
The corners of his mouth rose, and his eyes gleamed. Zhuge Yeong-yu continued.
"Who can act? Who will lead this realm in the right direction?"
Petty, filthy emotions had coalesced to create the man called the Venerable Geumbok. Those who saw him for the first time all said the same thing. He was never a man befitting the title 'Venerable One.' The words most fitting to describe him were harsh, insidious terms like rakshasa or asura.
The Venerable Geumbok's mouth split into a wide grin.
********
"Greetings. Are you the Great Hero Docheol of the Crimson Ring Sect?"
Not long after agreeing to commence joint operations with Zhuge Yeong-yu, another guest arrived at the Crimson Ring Sect. He was a man with a square jaw and a menacing impression. Following behind him, several men dressed in similar attire stood arrayed before me in orderly rows.
Watching their disciplined bearing, I felt a swell of pride, as if I had become the leader of a secret society or the commander of an army, and I straightened my shoulders.
"I am he."
The man bowed his head and spoke.
"I came as reinforcements after hearing Great Hero Zhuge Yeong-yu's account. We plan to establish a temporary outpost nearby to receive and relay reports on the operations led by Jong Yuseop going forward."
"You are not men of the martial world?"
No matter how I looked at them, they did not seem like men of the martial world. Martial artists who live the rigid life under a sect possess a peculiar shrewdness for reading others' intentions rather than military discipline—but these men exuded the sternness of regular soldiers forged by martial order.
"...We are, we are men of the martial world. Very thoroughly trained in the martial world."
He said it in a flustered tone.
"I see, understood."
There was no need to press him for details right now about whom he had spoken with in the Zhuge Family and how he had brought these fellows along. Judging by their expressions, they didn't seem likely to answer just because I probed a little.
What mattered now was not their identity, but how efficiently I could obstruct the operations commanded by Jong Yuseop. The men who had come through the Zhuge Family to assist me had menacing faces, and they seemed correspondingly well-versed in illegal matters.
I asked.
"And how do you plan to obtain that information?"
"Follow me."
He gave me no concrete explanation. After saying that with an earnest face, he pointed toward the mountain. As I stared at the back of his head with a bewildered expression and then glanced toward the house, I saw Sannyeo nod before moving first in the direction of the mountain the man had indicated. It meant she would protect me if things went wrong, so for now I followed the man up the mountain.
********
We walked quite a ways up the mountain, but no destination came into view. As a martial artist, I did not tire, but boredom found me quickly. Before I could ask how much farther we had to go, the man spoke.
"I mention this only out of an abundance of caution, but the terrain is rough, so please be careful."
"More to the point, where are we going?"
Since this was originally a region teeming with the Green Forest, dense woods appeared after only a short walk, and ordinary people would easily lose their way. The man walked silently forward, then pointed to a cave hollowed out beneath the ridge.
"There."
He spoke like a medium pointing to where a dead person lay. I frowned again at his gaze fixed distinctly on the empty air, then followed his finger down the mountainside. From a distance, concealed by the forest, it had looked like nothing more than a small pit, but up close, the entrance was wide—it had simply been hidden by the thicket.
"I had no idea such a place was nearby. So, what's in here?"
I said that and turned to look back. I could see the entire village where I lived in a single glance. Given the considerable distance from the village, it would be difficult for an ordinary person to approach on foot.
"These bastards, right here."
"These bastards?"
The man was already holding a torch and illuminating the cave's interior. Squinting, I followed his gaze and strained to make out the darkness within the cave.
"Mmph...! Mmph...! Mph...!"
"Mmph-mmph...! Mmph...!"
"What the fuck."
Several men, smeared in blood and tightly bound with ropes, were trapped in a corner of the cave.
The man spoke in a flat tone.
"These are the ones who served as the communication network for the Zhongnan Sect. They aren't martial artists belonging to the sect proper—originally men who worked for the Hao Sect before falling under the Zhongnan Sect."
"But if you capture them like this, won't they realize something's wrong?"
The man shook his head.
"They only ever communicated by letter anyway. Once we figure out the handwriting and cipher, we can disguise ourselves and take over the communication network."
"Seeing as they're still alive, you haven't cracked the cipher yet."
The man nodded. He said,
"Once we shake these bastards down and figure out their cipher system, finding Jong Yuseop's next destination will be only a matter of time. But, being martial artists of a sort, they haven't opened their mouths easily."
I looked around.
The cave was fairly large.
Inside, there was a cauldron for cooking, plenty of firewood, and on one side, stores of provisions and weapons, as well as sleeping rolls for rest.
I spoke.
"I'll handle it. I'll make them open their mouths before the day is out."