The Burning Letter
Five days had passed since Ju Untheon arrived at the Danga Manor.
Eun Doyun listened with rapt attention to his stories.
They were tales of the past that Uncle never spoke about. Even when he did mention them, he always chose his words carefully and downplayed everything. Now those same stories flowed freely from Ju Untheon's lips.
“After rescuing a traveler, I chased the fleeing bandits and ended up at their mountain stronghold. In the blink of an eye, three hundred bandits had me surrounded. You can imagine how startled I was.”
Uncle had told him it was only thirty bandits.
“We fought a bloody battle against the Myeongryun Blood Cult. Fifty of them surrounded us, and there were only two of us. We barely drove them off, then tracked them to their lair—four hundred more were waiting. It turned out to be the cult’s main base, and the cult leader himself was there. Haha.”
The death struggle against the Myeongryun Blood Cult. Uncle had said forty.
He downplayed it so much it’s almost funny. The difference is tenfold…
Covered in blood, he had cut down all four hundred.
And in the end, he dueled the utterly vicious cult leader. He truly believed he was going to die that night.
The Myeongryun Blood Cult.
Eun Doyun knew that name. In fact, there was probably no one across the entire central plains who didn’t. Though the cult had vanished before he was even born, parents in the central plains still frightened disobedient children by saying the Myeongryun Blood Cult leader was coming for them.
That was how wicked and tenacious the cult had been.
Yet the entire Myeongryun Blood Cult had been wiped out in a single night. Why it disappeared and who had slaughtered them remained one of the central plains’ greatest unsolved mysteries.
And Uncle was the one who destroyed them?!
Eun Doyun was stunned. A surge of pride swelled in his chest. Uncle was a true hero of the righteous path.
There were more stories—water bandits, mountain bandits, human traffickers. People so vile they didn’t deserve graves had drowned in their own blood.
“I had no idea Uncle was that strong,” Eun Doyun said.
Ju Untheon smiled. As if that was even close to the truth. The nightmare known as the Northern Heavenly War. When hundreds of thousands of invaders had brought defeat, Dan Hyunwoo had turned the entire war around by himself.
“It’s late. You should get some sleep.”
“Thank you for sharing more stories today.”
There was no need for thanks. Ju Untheon had simply told a few tales in return for the extraordinary hospitality he had received at the Danga Manor.
After Eun Doyun disappeared into his room, Ju Untheon turned his gaze to the night sky. It was the same sky, yet the starlight looked completely different here than it did from the imperial palace.
While he stayed at the Danga Manor, his heart could rest easy.
Just then, Dan Hyunwoo arrived carrying a tray of drinks.
“Don’t tell Doyun too many stories.”
“I couldn’t speak about the Mumyeongdae anyway. Everything I told him was only the smallest fraction of the truth.”
Dan Hyunwoo poured Yeo-ah Hong into Ju Untheon’s cup. After draining it in one go, Ju Untheon spoke with a bitter expression.
“Five days went by in the blink of an eye. Tomorrow I must already leave. I never imagined it would feel this regretful to depart from this place.”
“Thank you for arranging the supply of Danhwa Silk Shop fabrics to the imperial palace. My parents are overjoyed. As their son, it feels like I’ve finally shown them proper filial piety after so long.”
“Let’s call it payment for the sin of holding you back. Also, my own parents…”
They had shown him no affection. The father and mother who hadn’t even cared when he wandered the dangerous rivers and lakes were easier to deal with when he simply treated them as Emperor and Empress.
Ju Untheon filled Dan Hyunwoo’s cup in return.
“Hyunwoo. You understand the meaning of the Six-Horse Golden Plaque better than anyone. If anything happens to me, come to the palace. As someone with authority equal to my own, I entrust the future to you.”
“You’re speaking ominous words. Has something happened?”
“…No. It’s nothing like that.”
Ju Untheon let his words trail off. Dan Hyunwoo’s eyes scanned him carefully. Given his personality, pressing the matter would yield no answers. A quiet sigh escaped.
“Call me before anything happens. Don’t make me read a letter after you’re already dead.”
“I won’t.”
A faint smile crossed Ju Untheon’s face, but a bitter shadow flickered across it.
The Six-Horse Golden Plaque, personally commissioned by the founding Emperor Ju Wonjang, symbolized ultimate authority—it was the Emperor himself. He had created a twin plaque and given it to Dan Hyunwoo, along with a golden identity tablet.
The golden identity tablet signified imperial lineage or equivalent status. Dan Hyunwoo knew exactly what those two items meant.
Ju Untheon raised his cup.
“Shall we drink through the night like old times?”
Cup after cup was exchanged. The jar of Yeo-ah Hong soon ran dry. The alcohol tasted good. The night sky was beautiful. Having a true friend was a joy.
Yet before they knew it, dawn was breaking. The time to part had come.
Ju Untheon left.
Dan Hyunwoo stood like a statue beside his family, watching him depart. Everyone looked reluctant to see him go, but Yu Sucheon, standing at the back, let out a deep sigh of relief.
Finally, he’s gone. That damn bastard. I really thought I was going to die.
Simcheon, that cursed man. He had nagged endlessly—Dan Gongja-nim this, Dan Gongja-nim that. Are you his damn confidant? Just drop dead already!
Every single day he had tormented him, beaten him, kicked him, rolled him around. A vicious bastard. Until just the day before yesterday Yu Sucheon had barely held on while tattered; now he had reached his limit. He was a walking rag.
Fuck. Never come back.
Ptui!
Dan Hyunwoo spoke to the trembling, hollow-eyed Yu Sucheon.
“Our guest has left. Start cleaning up.”
“…Yes.”
Yu Sucheon grumbled. He had barely survived, yet they wouldn’t even let him rest. He went inside to find Jeon Akgwan and Cheon Ilseong.
Dan Hyunwoo turned to Moyong Sehui.
“Get some rest.”
Leaving only those words, he entered the manor. It was as if he had noticed how exhausted her face looked after attending every guest reception.
As Moyong Sehui headed to her room, she heard Yu Sucheon sigh about the mountain of chores still waiting. Under normal circumstances she would have helped the hollow-eyed man.
But she had not forgotten the grudge from when they had kicked her out of the kitchen. Locking the kitchen door—those traitors.
Moyong Sehui entered her room, lay on the bed, and closed her eyes. Songin, Simcheon, the branch leader, and a dozen guards. The conclusion was already clear. They were undoubtedly people with immense influence in the imperial palace. Yet they treated Dan Hyunwoo with utmost deference. Moreover, Songin—who was close to the Emperor—was an inseparable friend of Dan Hyunwoo.
The more she thought about it, the more Dan Hyunwoo seemed closest to being the owner of the Six-Horse Golden Plaque.
It was time to report.
To her father. After all, the reason he had sent her to Hangzhou was exactly this.
Yet for some reason she hesitated. Today, especially, the reluctance was overwhelming. She sank deep into thought.
Blink.
When she opened her eyes again, darkness had already swallowed the outside world. Without a lantern, nothing was visible in the pitch-black room. She must have dozed off.
Moyong Sehui lit a lantern, picked up a brush, and began writing down the thoughts she had organized in her head, one character at a time.
Father,
The son of the Dan family, Dan Hyunwoo, appears to have been a high-ranking official who participated in the Northern Heavenly War. Additionally, the man named Songin—whom Dan Hyunwoo calls a close friend—visited the Danga Manor accompanied by one supreme expert and ten high-level experts as guards. After observing him over five days, I have concluded that the possibility he belongs to the imperial family is extremely high. Compiling all this information, the greatest likelihood is that Dan Hyunwoo possesses the Six-Horse Golden Plaque…
Her brush stopped.
Her fingers trembled faintly. Only a few more characters remained. It was such a simple task—just finish writing and send it by carrier pigeon—yet she could not complete it. She did not know why.
She sat there a while longer.
Crinkle!
Moyong Sehui crumpled the letter in her hand and stepped outside. Breathing roughly, she looked toward the wooden veranda where Dan Gongja always sat. Sure enough, he was there today as well.
She walked toward him without thinking. Then, not fully aware of what she was doing, she thrust the letter at him.
“Are you the owner of the Six-Horse Golden Plaque, Dan Gongja?”
Her voice shook. She was not in her right mind. Asking so abruptly would change nothing. She knew that perfectly well. She knew this was a foolish act.
Yet she asked anyway. It did not matter that her voice trembled or that meeting his calm eyes was terrifying. The letter shook in her slender, trembling fingers.
But Dan Hyunwoo paid it no mind and turned his gaze to the letter. After reading all the way to the final line, he spoke.
“A letter you intended to send to your father, the Murim Alliance leader. Why show it to me?”
“……”
“Because I wish to live quietly, were you trying to be considerate?”
“I don’t know. I was going to send it, but… I just…”
Perhaps he was right. The moment this letter was sent, Dan Hyunwoo’s current quiet life would become a distant memory.
What did that matter to her? Whatever happened to him had nothing to do with her. She only needed to complete her mission.
Yet what she understood least was why she had shown him the letter at all. She simply could not write that final line.
Hiding her trembling eyes, she stood facing him.
Swoosh—!
Dan Hyunwoo reached into his sleeve. For some reason, that ordinary action made her face stiffen with tension. The moment Moyong Sehui swallowed dryly—
“…?!”
The golden plaque engraved with six running horses—the one only the Emperor could possess—appeared before her. The cold sweat sliding down her temple was no illusion.
“Dan Gongja… really is…”
Dan Hyunwoo handed her the Six-Horse Golden Plaque. It felt heavier than expected in her shaking hands. With this single plaque, the boundary between the court and the martial world collapsed. It was only a slightly heavy tablet, yet it carried such weight.
Moyong Sehui drew in a breath.
“I… was searching for this on my father’s orders. From your perspective, Dan Gongja, I am no different from a spy. So… you should have denied it. You should have said it had nothing to do with the Six-Horse Golden Plaque… If you had said just that one thing, I would have believed you. Even if I couldn’t believe it, I would have pretended to.”
It would have been better that way. Even if it was a lie, it could have ended there. Even if the owner of the Six-Horse Golden Plaque was not in Hangzhou, she could have continued staying at the Danga Manor under the pretense of searching.
Dan Hyunwoo reached out. Normally she would have dodged the hand that always ruffled her hair. This time, however, she stayed still, feeling his long fingers slip through her hair.
“Do as your heart desires. I did not bring you into this Danga Manor to force you.”
“……”
Fool. The thought rose unbidden. Idiot. Why was this man always like this? This person who always left her feeling confused…
She thought she understood now. Why she could not write that final line. It was because he was this kind of person.
She bit her lip hard enough to feel pain.
Moyong Sehui took out a fire talisman from her sleeve and set the letter ablaze.
Fwoosh—!
It did not take long for a single sheet of paper to burn. The letter scattered into the air as black ash. She could not know what consequences this decision would bring. But for now, this was fine. She did not regret it.
Watching the letter turn to ash, the trembling in her body finally stopped.
“I’m going to stop acting as a spy.”
“Do as you wish.”
“If I’m found out for disobeying Father’s orders and get kicked out, I’ll cling to the Danga Manor and live here for the rest of my life.”
“It doesn’t matter. You’re already part of this household anyway.”
“…Ah!”
So that was what Sister Yuhwa had meant. The meaning behind the words “You’re part of this house now.”
“Go to sleep. It’s late.”
Dan Hyunwoo went inside. Even in this situation, he remained utterly calm. Moyong Sehui brushed back the hair he had tousled. There was still ink left in her room.
She sat at the desk and began writing again, filling the letter paper with characters one by one. This time there was no hesitation at all.
Father, I have not yet located the owner of the Six-Horse Golden Plaque. Should new clues arise, I will write again.