Tap the text to show or hide reading controls.
“The promise will be kept.”
“Hmm.”
Taken aback by the unexpectedly compliant answer, Chung Myung nodded as if pleased.
“However, I’m going to say this just in case there’s any misunderstanding.”
“Hm?”
“We said we’d give you an opportunity if you passed this test, not that we’d grant that child immunity.”
“Wha—?”
Chung Myung scrunched his face and widened his eyes.
“What on earth are you old men saying now?”
“Well…”
“You put someone through this hell and then what—‘a test of the test’? Are you kidding? These gentlemen have spent their lives ordering others around with a flick of a finger, so maybe they can’t grasp the situation. Does a powerful man at least avoid having a knife in his belly…?”
“Ahahaha! I’m sorry, I’m sorry! Somebody gag this brat’s mouth! Please!”
“Mmph! Ughmmph! Mmph!”
Yoon Jong and Jo Gul seized Chung Myung with practiced hands and gagged his mouth.
“Whoa whoa. Now, Chung Myung. Peek-a-boo.”
“Look over there, look. There’s a lake and trees. This will be fun, this will be fun.”
The elderly scholars watching the scene cleared their throats awkwardly.
“I think there may have been some misunderstanding.”
“Krr?”
Chung Myung, gagged, reacted to the word “misunderstanding.”
Strange. His mouth was clearly shut, yet his eyes communicated unmistakably: “Misunderstanding? Misunderstandiiing? Did you say misunderstanding? Aha, shall I stir someone up with a misunderstanding too?”
“F-first, calm down a bit. Ahem.”
The old scholars cleared their throats again. They were used to dealing with wily foxes, but facing a crazed dog on a leash was a first and left them flustered.
“I can admit anger is understandable. So first, make a promise. Whatever we ask of you from now on, we will do our utmost to secure that child’s immunity.”
“……”
“You’re sincere.”
At that, Baek Cheon frowned slightly and asked, “You said you’d do your best?”
“Yes.”
“That’s strange. If I didn’t misinterpret you, does that mean that even if the three of you try, it might still be difficult to grant Han-Bin immunity?”
“……”
The elderly scholar to the left lifted his teacup in silence. After sipping the steaming tea, he set the cup down and let out a soft sigh.
“You’re right.”
“……”
“To be honest, the reason we’re about to ask another favor of you is precisely that. It’s something we cannot do on our own.”
“No, but…”
It was a hard thing to accept.
The three men before the Mount Hua disciples had once reached the pinnacle of power. Places many a scholar could never dare reach even with a lifetime of effort were trodden by them. And yet even they found this situation hard to resolve?
As Baek Cheon opened his mouth at the incomprehensible statement,
“Kkueng-cha!”
Chung Myung ripped the gag from his mouth in one go and clicked his tongue. Then he shot a sharp glare at the elderly scholars before him.
“So you’re saying it was all a lie.”
Looking displeased, Chung Myung glared at the three old men and said, “You said you didn’t know who toppled the Shandong Yu family, but actually you did. That’s why such words come out of your mouths.”
So Jung-Gyeong’s face stiffened slightly.
“That is…”
Just as So Jung-Gyeong was about to answer, the elderly scholar called Sang-seo stopped him and sighed instead.
“It may be a bit late, but I should introduce myself first. I’m an old man named Yeon Tae-ha.”
“Yeon Tae…”
The Mount Hua disciples did not recognize the name. Only Jo Gul and Dang Soso tilted their heads as if it sounded faintly familiar.
“Haha. I’m not as famous as Master Tang Baek, so it’s natural that those hermits half-turned away from the secular world wouldn’t know me. Just call me Elder Yeon. That’s enough.”
When the Mount Hua disciples gave awkward smiles, Yeon Tae-ha continued, gazing at them with his wrinkled eyes.
“Of those here, I’m the one who returned to the countryside last, so I suppose I know a little more about the current state of the court. To clear up a misunderstanding first: we truly do not know who toppled the Shandong Yu family.”
“No…”
Just as Chung Myung’s eyes were about to sharpen again, Yeon Tae-ha quickly added, “We merely have a guess as to who it might be.”
Yu Han-Bin tensed.
A guess. Only a guess. But a guess from men of such stature carries extraordinary weight. If Yeon Tae-ha pointed a finger, it would mark someone as the villain who ruined his family.
Yeon Tae-ha continued with a stern face.
“You may think otherwise, but toppling the Shandong Yu family isn’t as difficult as you imagine. For all their lofty reputation, they surprisingly did not possess much.”
“Do you mean they lacked wealth?”
“Their resources were lacking, and…”
Yeon Tae-ha sighed softly, embarrassed to say more.
“The court does not operate simply on merit as many think. To fend off attacks from rivals and realize one’s will, one must have corresponding power.”
“Hmm.”
“The Shandong Yu family produced countless talented officials, but they neglected to build their own power. Not because they didn’t know how, but because they believed it was right not to. So even if they suffered losses they couldn’t help, how could they do what was wrong?”
“Legal limits…”
Hearing this, Chung Myung suddenly clutched his chest and groaned.
“Why are you doing that all of a sudden?”
“W-water. My chest suddenly feels tight…”
“Here, this.”
“Oh. Thanks… Gwakk! It’s hot water! Who planned to kill me?”
Yeon Tae-ha, staring dumbfounded at Jo Gul and Chung Myung squabbling by the collar, shook his head in disgust.
“…I’m sorry. They don’t know the meaning of seriousness.”
“They’ve led different lives from us, so we must understand.”
Oh… so that’s how it is…
Baek Cheon subtly looked back at Yoon Jong.
‘It feels like we just formed a very bad stereotype about the Central Plains’ Taoists.’
‘What can we do…’
He felt oddly sorry for the great Taoists of the realm, but that wasn’t important now.
“So, who do you suspect is the villain?”
“Hmm.”
Yeon Tae-ha exhaled heavily and began to explain.
“As I said, toppling the Shandong Yu family itself isn’t that difficult. But to cut off their line and continue to suppress them even after this length of time is impossible for ordinary power. In the current court, there’s only one person capable of that.”
Yu Han-Bin swallowed.
Pausing briefly and locking eyes with the Mount Hua disciples, Yeon Tae-ha spoke with difficulty.
“Ceremonial Affairs head, Do-Hyeon. That man is the villain I suspect.”
Gulp.
The man who had swallowed dryly glanced ahead out of the corner of his eye.
A large, antique desk sat before a man unfurling a scroll of documents.
Even with the long scroll in his hands, the man’s shoulders and head still towered well above it.
He was so robust and towering, his trunk like a log and his height easily nearing seven feet—a man to whom the word “huge” fit perfectly.
Perhaps that was why the seat he occupied felt so natural for him.
His political savvy that seemed to control the court, his deft tact in pleasing his superiors, and his uncompromising temperament toward challengers were surely essential elements that made him who he was.
More than those praised qualities, perhaps it was this man’s sheer intimidating presence that mattered most.
Those few who could face him directly would find such a notion hard to deny.
Even now, just the fact that he sat before them made their limbs go weak and their bodies bow involuntarily.
Could such overpowering intimidation truly stem from that man’s official rank alone?
Thud.
At that moment, the man set the scroll down on the desk with a sound.
Though it was hardly violent, the man standing nearby flinched and trembled.
“An additional request for support to the north.”
“Y-yes.”
The man’s gaze sank.
“The Grand Scholars of the cabinet proposed rejecting it?”
The attendant dared not speak.
He could only remain silent. When the giant whale of power trembles, the shrimp beside it can only keep its eyes shut and not die.
“Listen.”
“Yes, Ceremonial Affairs head.”
Ceremonial Affairs head, Do-Hyeon.
He stared silently at the man before him.
With wire-like coarse hair and thick brows, eyes as if taken from a tiger, and above all a strong jaw and thick neck, the fact that this man was a eunuch seemed absurd.
If his chin weren’t smooth from lacking facial hair, no one would have believed it.
“So who verified the facts written on this memorial?”
“…Yes?”
Do-Hyeon’s brow twitched.
“If the situation in the north were bad enough to warrant rejecting their request, then it wouldn’t be so. If this is the cabinet’s opinion, someone should have confirmed the actual situation in the north. I’m asking who that person is.”
“That is…”
The man felt the blood in his body chill.
Confirm? How could that be done? The front and the capital were leagues apart. Who in the current court could travel that far just to verify reports?
“The one who confirmed it… is… none…”
A crooked smile formed on Do-Hyeon’s mouth.
“It would cost a thousand gold.”
“……”
“A thousand gold wouldn’t be enough to prepare the food and supplies they requested.”
With each word he uttered, the atmosphere around them seemed to heat.
“But a thousand gold is nothing compared to the fate of the nation at stake. And yet… do you decide such matters based on a few lines of writing?”
“Affairs Head, that is…”
“You seem to think the court is a joke.”
The Ceremonial Affairs head growled like an angry guardian king.
“Bring me all the members of the cabinet who were involved in reviewing this memorial. I will hold them directly accountable.”
The man’s whole body began to sweat cold. What should he answer? What on earth?
But whether fortunate or not, he didn’t have to answer.
“Yes, Affair head.”
The reply came not from the man but from behind him. There was certainly no one else in the room besides Do-Hyeon.
Hearing the reply, Do-Hyeon picked up another scroll from the piled documents and began to read silently.
The attendant froze with his head bowed. He could do nothing. Nothing. He could not even think of what he should do; his mind, white as a blank sheet, refused to function.
After focusing on the documents for a long while, Do-Hyeon looked up and suddenly frowned.
“You’re still there?”
“Yes? Yes, Affairs Head. That’s right.”
“Go.”
“G-go, thank you.”
The man bowed deeply.
Then he backed out of the room cautiously.
Thunk.
As soon as he stepped through the open door and turned the corner, the man collapsed and, with already damp hands, wiped his face.
‘…I can’t breathe.’
He was far too faint-hearted to live in such a hellish place.
Reading Settings