Chapter 79
Translator: penny
Chapter: 79
Chapter Title: A Visit to the Slum
This little punk definitely likes Moyong Hui.
Of course, given his age, he's probably not thinking about anything sexual, but there's no doubt he likes her anyway.
'Then?'
I yanked the arm of Moyong Hui, who had been pouting with her cheeks puffed out, and pulled her straight into my arms.
Then I whispered to her in the gentlest voice I could muster.
"Sorry, Hui."
I snuck a glance at Baek Rihyeon while I did.
As expected, jealousy had blinded him, his face twisting in a scowl.
'Pfft, where does this brat get off.'
But he wasn't the only one reacting to my sudden hug.
"Oh my…!"
"What a perfect couple!"
"A fine pair of beauties!"
The people in the market threw out comments as they watched us.
Moyong Hui's stunning looks already drew eyes wherever she went, and now we were putting on a public display of affection right in the middle of the market—it was bound to attract attention.
I didn't care one bit, but Moyong Hui's face turned beet red.
Eventually, too embarrassed, she gave my chest a light push.
"Gaga! Not here…"
She didn't seem to hate it.
She was just shy.
I was debating whether to hold firm and ramp up the affection when someone selling goods in the market suddenly piped up.
"Huh? Wait… isn't that lady Sword Phoenix?"
"Sword Phoenix?"
Only then did Moyong Hui startle and shove me away hard.
She hurriedly said to Baek Rihyeon,
"Rihyeon, let's go! Gaga will follow."
"Ah… yeah!"
Baek Rihyeon shot me a glare full of jealousy, but when his eyes met Moyong Hui's, he belatedly schooled his expression.
Moyong Hui, glancing around at the onlookers, seemed to miss it.
'How did the market folk recognize her, though?'
It wasn't strange that commoners knew the title Sword Phoenix.
The Five Dragons and Five Phoenixes were among the most famous titles among the masses.
But recognizing her just from her looks was another matter.
Not even in Shenyang, home of the Moyong family, had anyone singled her out.
It was odd to peg her as Sword Phoenix just because she was beautiful with a generous chest.
Yet these market people knew somehow.
A moment's thought revealed why.
'Right, this is where Hui earned her title.'
In the past, Moyong Hui had saved this Baek Rihyeon kid, gotten tangled with the Black Tiger Gang, and wiped them out, earning the name Sword Phoenix.
Given that, it made sense the locals would recognize her.
'It was only three years ago.'
While I sorted my thoughts, Baek Rihyeon packed up the herbs he'd laid out for sale.
With practiced ease, he stuffed them all into his bundle and took the lead toward somewhere.
I'd been distracted earlier and missed their talk, so I had no idea where we were headed.
I trailed loosely behind, asking Moyong Hui,
"Hui, where are we going?"
"Jeez, Gaga. You really didn't hear?"
"Sorry, sorry."
"I said we're stopping by Rihyeon's place."
I didn't dare ask why, lest I get an earful.
Instead, I sent a mental message to Cheon Woojin.
[Hey.]
[What is it, my lord?]
He jolted at the sudden transmission.
I got to the point.
[Did you catch what those two said? Why are we going to his house?]
[Ah… The kid's mother is sick, so they haven't been able to gather herbs lately. He was saying he doesn't know what to do with winter coming.]
A normal kid might say that out of pure worry for the future, but coming from Baek Rihyeon, it was just a roundabout way of asking for money.
Of course, if Moyong Hui wanted, I could toss them a few taels of silver.
It wouldn't hurt to earn some favor with the future pinnacle expert Baek Rihyeon.
But I still didn't get why we had to visit their home.
'It's not like she's going to verify if it's true.'
Moyong Hui wasn't the type to personally check if the boy's parents were really ill.
As I was about to probe Cheon Woojin further, a familiar sight caught my eye.
'Huh? This is the slum.'
Seungdeok's slum district, right behind the market.
Back when I was a low-rank Red Serpent Sect enforcer, I'd haunted the place collecting debts.
'So the kid lives here.'
That explained why he looked half-starved.
At his age, selling herbs in the market wasn't normal, either.
As we entered the slum, unlike the market, people started slinking away from us.
And for good reason—except for Baek Rihyeon, the three of us looked completely out of place.
Our striking appearances anywhere, plus our fine clothes.
Especially the swords at our waists—enough to make slum dwellers wary of trouble.
We arrived undisturbed at a half-collapsed shack.
A pitiful thatched hut where rain leaked through the roof and cold wind whistled through holes in the walls—barely qualifying as a home.
"This is it."
Baek Rihyeon flushed, embarrassed despite leading us there himself.
But Moyong Hui casually stepped into the tiny yard.
She knocked lightly on the rickety door.
"Hwajung sis~ It's me~."
She called out sweetly to someone inside.
Clearly not her first time here.
Moments later, the door creaked open, and a woman peeked out.
"Who is… Miss Moyong? What brings you all the way here… *cough, cough*."
The woman hacked violently, clearly unwell.
Baek Rihyeon called out to her brightly.
"Mom! I ran into big sis Hui at the market today!"
'Huh? His mom?'
I took another look at the woman.
Her face was gaunt and weary—no lie about her illness.
Like her son, she was skin and bones from missing meals.
However,
'Hmm… she's borderline doable.'
Even so, her looks were exceptional.
Once she recovered, she'd be a real beauty, no question.
'She can't fool my eyes.'
Baek Rihyeon was handsome too—must take after his mother's side.
Plus, she'd had him young; she couldn't be thirty yet.
As I sized her up inwardly, she looked at us and spoke.
"What brings you here, Miss Moyong? And who are these people…"
"I was passing through Seungdeok and stopped by. Oh! Hwajung sis, let me introduce. This is…"
Moyong Hui started brightly but suddenly glanced at me.
She clearly wanted to introduce me as her lover.
'What to do.'
I'd told her to call me Gaga, but we'd never promised to date.
We weren't even engaged. Tying myself to just Moyong Hui could complicate things with other women later.
But I couldn't just say we were traveling companions in front of her now.
I decided to play it natural, as usual.
"Hello. I'm Mok Jimyeong, third son of the Mok Family Clan."
Moyong Hui puffed her cheeks cutely, displeased with my intro.
I ignored her and introduced Cheon Woojin too.
"And this is my escort, Cheon Woojin."
"Ah, hello. Young Master Mok, Master Cheon. I'm Yang Hwajung, Rihyeon's mother. It's chilly out—please, come inside."
Yang Hwajung coughed again as she finished.
She mentioned the chill, but it wasn't that cold.
Early autumn—quite mild, really.
Yet she shivered constantly, her frequent coughs betraying her poor condition.
"Hwajung sis, are you okay?"
"I'm fine, just a light cold. A day or two of rest and I'll be good. Come on in, everyone."
The hut's interior was tidy after we followed her in.
Or rather, sparse?
No decorations, just a thick blanket spread on the floor—she'd probably been lying down resting before we arrived.
She'd let us in but bowed her head, embarrassed.
"You came all this way, but as you see, I have nothing to offer…"
"No, no. I just wanted to see your face after so long."
Moyong Hui and Yang Hwajung fell into easy conversation.
Starting with light greetings—how she'd fallen ill, how things were lately—the talk soon turned to Baek Rihyeon.
"By the way, Hwajung sis, Rihyeon mentioned earlier about this winter…"
At the mention of money, Yang Hwajung hung her head in embarrassment.
Then coughed for a long stretch.
"*Cough, cough*…"
Moyong Hui gazed at her with deep worry.
"Hwajung sis, have you seen a physician?"
"*Cough*, I told you, it's just a light cold. A couple days' rest and it'll pass."
Even if she said that, money was likely the real issue.
They could barely make ends meet— no way they could afford a doctor.
Her cough was severe; it might not be a mere cold but something like pneumonia.
'Whatever it is, I have an easy way to cure it…'
I saw Baek Rihyeon fretting over his mother's health.
Moyong Hui's worried face too.
And finally, Yang Hwajung—pretty even as a patient.
'Tch, this is tricky.'
My heart stirred a little.