Grandpa Has Something To Say (1)

Kaifeng. It sat adjacent to Luoyang, a transportation hub where land and water trade routes converged, making it the most economically and culturally developed city.

Yu Seol held her grandpa’s hand and constantly tilted her head.

High-rise buildings in the area and all kinds of people filled the streets.

The bright lights around them caught the attention of every child.

“Wow… It’s so amazing. Grandpa, have you been here before?”

Perhaps it was because he finally had something to brag about? Yu Jinsam stood tall.

“Well, of course, I’ve been here! There’s no place your grandpa hasn’t seen. Can you see that building there?”

It was a very large building made up of three huge, three-story buildings connected by bridges.

His granddaughter couldn’t take her eyes off it.

“Wow… What is that place for?”

“Inside, there’s everything. There are theaters, tea houses, and gift shops. They even sell food.”

“Really? Then shall we go there and have fun? I want to see them.”

Yu Jinsan couldn’t hide his laughter at his impatient-looking granddaughter.

“Fine. Let’s finish our work first, and I’ll show you around.”

“Promise?”

“When has your grandpa ever lied to you?”

She was at an age where she was curious about everything.

Yu Seol was happy, jumping up and down with her grandpa’s hand in hers.

“Exciting. Haha.”

Thus, they passed through the bustling area and entered a quieter section.

Reaching a corner within the city, a two-story building surrounded by walls came into view.

“I think it’s right here.”

The first thing that caught his eye was the phrase “Snow Mountain Escort Services” on the board.

“Grandpa! Your and my names are in there!” ¹

“Our Seol can read now? This is amazing.”

Although he knew that she could, Yu Jinsan still pretended to be surprised.

And as expected, the child’s dimples deepened as she received the compliment.

“I know how to write. Auntie Maeng taught me.”

While staying with Baek Gyu, it seemed his wife, Maeng Ryun-hwa, had taught her.

Yu Seol, who had swift learning skills compared to others, could already read.

And the appearance of this escort service wasn’t much different from what he had imagined.

Workers organized goods in carts lined up here and there, and messengers in training could also be seen.

As soon as they entered the manor, someone quickly approached them, and seeing that the person was dressed well and even had a cloth wrapped around their head, he seemed to be the leader.

“You’ve traveled a long way. Please, come this way.”

Without asking, he invited them to follow, as if he had been waiting for them.

Was it odd to bow down to kids who weren’t even up to his waist? The escort service men looked at each other.

Yu Jinsan, observing, smiled meaningfully. At that time, the person who seemed like the leader pointed to the disciples and diverted their attention.

“Check the goods carefully. It’s an important shipment!”

“Yes!”

The warriors all replied in loud voices.

Yu Jinsan and his granddaughter followed him inside.

‘Being an escort service is a perfect disguise to handle information from various places without suspicion. It’s a perfect camouflage too.’

If they didn’t know better, the interior seemed completely ordinary, except for the unusually large number of clerks.

Moving deeper inside, they reached a room guarded by messengers.

It seemed to be an ordinary place where study books were stored, but there had to be something more to it.

As expected, the moment the leader touched something, a machine-like thing activated.

Drrrr-!

In the space revealed through the gap in the bookshelf, there was a staircase that led them to the basement.

“Wonderful. I cannot believe that such a place exists in this manor.”

“This is a secret place I discovered by chance while looking through old books. It’s the reason we purchased this property, which is out of sight.”

“Isn’t it too deep for a secret place, though?”

“It’s probably a secret passage that used to lead to the entrance of the palace. Right now, we’re stuck in the middle.”

“I see. But should you be telling me this?”

The leader looked down at Yu Jinsan and smiled.

“Don’t you remember me?”

Yu Jinsan smiled in response, an entirely different atmosphere emanating from him than before.

“How can I not know? You’re Mansu, the brat from the Black Mountain Blade.”

“…Elder.”

The Black Mountain Blade was a band of bandits made up of soldiers who had formed strong ties with Yu Jinsan while he was hiding in the Yangju mountains, raising the infant Seol.

Who would have thought they would have grown so much by stealing the assets of the merchant union, which was known for its strength in Shaanxi?

This was something he couldn’t have believed until recently.

Mansu’s eyes welled up with tears, as if he were touched by the remembrance of his name.

“Do not cry, brat. I am right here. What about Pungho?”

The name of their leader. He should be the leader of the Black Night Clan.

Mansu cried, then wiped the tears from his eyes with the back of his hand.

“We’ve arrived. He is right there, waiting for you.”

As they turned the corner, a plaza opened up, spanning a good 300 meters.

The place where the Black Night Clan hid for so long was bustling. Dozens of people were moving between the countless piles of items and documents.

As they appeared, everyone stopped what they were doing and fell silent.

“……”

From the gap in the crowd, a familiar man and woman approached, their steps a bit awkward, but their faces lit up with happiness.

It was Pungho, the leader of the Black Mountain Blade bandits, and Hyun-hee. Hyun-hee’s stomach looked a bit bloated, suggesting she might be pregnant. It wasn’t hard to guess who her partner was.

As they faced Yu Jinsan and his granddaughter, their eyes were as red as Mansu’s.

Even though Yu Jinsan had become younger after undergoing Body Reformation, his facial shape and features remained the same. They recognized him at once.

And there was a pretty girl with unusually large eyes and a clean look, unmistakably Seol.

“Child, didn’t you say you wanted to see Hyun-hee Unnie?”

“……”

When his granddaughter faced the woman, she blushed, probably out of shyness. Meeting after more than five years must have been somewhat embarrassing for her.

“Seol! Do you remember Unnie?”

Without a second thought, Yu Seol ran towards Hyun-hee as she initiated the conversation.

“Hyun-hee Unnie!”

Yu Jinsan smiled as he watched the two embrace each other with affection.

‘This is it. Anyone who sees this would think they were mother and daughter reuniting after being apart.’

He remembered clearly how Hyun-hee came every day to visit the child, taught her martial arts, and carried her on her back when Seol was around 2-3 years old.

He couldn’t help but smile, watching his granddaughter remember all those moments and call out to her.

Yu Jinsan and Pungho, embracing each other, left the two people they cherished most behind.

“I knew I would see you again, Elder. You seem much better now.”

“Your skills at flattery have improved. I see you’re still trying to maintain that good personality of yours.”

“Haha. You haven’t changed a bit.”

“But what’s this? You people are the true identities behind the Black Night Clan. Since when did you become so resourceful?”

Pungho grinned and replied,

“The end was a bit rough for us, but I was still an official in the Central Plains, right? And this could turn into a rather lengthy conversation, so why don’t we sit down for a moment?”

“Right.”

Meanwhile, Hyun-hee and Yu Seol had gone off somewhere. They seemed to be exploring the manor.

As Yu Jinsan sat down, Pungho filled his teacup.

“There are many stories to tell. When we moved to Hunan, all we had was money.”

“Right. And with the Murim Alliance coming after you, normal activities must have been difficult to undertake.”

“Yes. So, we took control of whatever shadowy and behind-the-scenes forces we could find.”

“The type of people who would do anything for money?”

“Yes, it started like that. And in the process, we attracted more skilled individuals and then expanded our services. However, it was only after we signed the agreement with the Sun Moon Clan that we really started to grow.”

Yu Jinsan recalled that the Evil Faction person he met by the river had introduced himself as a member of the Sun Moon Clan.

“Sun Moon Clan. They seem skilled. Otherwise, I would have found it odd for that man to be there running errands.”

“Right? They wanted to gather information and a source of money, and we needed strength for our troops. After allying with them, we made every effort to expand our forces.”

“I guess you achieved good results.”

“As you can see. After that, we acquired several merchants and sellers, and there was no stopping us.”

The Sun Moon Clan belonged to the Evil Way Alliance. They must have their own intelligence network, but they didn’t achieve enough with it.

Well, whatever the case, it could be said that, compared to the Murim Alliance, the information-gathering skills of the Evil Way Alliance were clearly inferior.

‘Perhaps the Evil Way Alliance is trying to develop the Black Night Clan into an organization that can stand against the Beggars Union.’

It was clear that there was something invincible at work. Otherwise, it could not have grown so rapidly.

If the Evil Way Alliance were involved behind the scenes, then everything would fall into place.

Yu Jinsan took a sip of his tea and asked,

“Has there been any request for you to join the Evil Way Alliance?”

“Not yet, but we know a few of their contacts. We exchange information when necessary.”

“Right. What would you do if the goal of the Evil Way Alliance were to raise you and then devour the clan? I’m not saying it will happen, but I am saying there’s a possibility.”

Pungho’s face darkened at this.

“Have you already guessed that much? Actually, I’m worried about it too. There have been a couple of instances where our clan’s rivals have vanished without a trace. It’s clear that they are intervening more than necessary.”

“I guess there are just two ways. You either get eaten, or you become big enough that they won’t even consider it.”

“Right. So, we are putting our lives at risk to build our connections with the officials. Although we have to invest more, the results aren’t that bad.”

Yu Jinsan clasped his hands and gently shifted the tone of the conversation.

“Well, it is a world where there is nothing you cannot do as long as you have money. But how did you know we were the Yin Yang Twin Monsters?”

“Has there ever been a time when two warriors who underwent Body Reformation moved together? After hearing about the Yin Monster, I wondered since it seemed to be about Seol’s age.”

“And?”

Pungho smiled.

“The elder gave us a clue at the meeting spot. I heard that the children of the Dong family were known as San and Seol, and they are the Yin Yang Twin Monsters. What more confirmation did we need after that? I was convinced the moment I got that information.”

“Right. Then our true identity hasn’t been revealed to the Murim Alliance yet, I guess.”

“I am sure of it. So, what information do you need? At least in Hunan, there is no place beyond our reach. Just ask anything.”

Yu Jinsan took out a bunch of coins from his pouch and placed them on the table.

“Can you tell me how much this would be?”

“Ugh, what do you mean? How many times have we owed our lives to the elder? I am sad to see you come here like this.”

When Pungho waved his hand, Yu Jinsan smiled and pulled back the coins.

“You are a friend who doesn’t get along with jokes. Have you ever heard of a secret force in Murim known as the Blue Dragon Troops?”

“Blue Dragon Troops?”

He asked just in case, but it seemed there was no information about them. It was natural since it was an organization that even the forces of the Evil Way Alliance would not know about.

“Those people devastated my family. I need information from the Shaolin Temple. There’s a guy there connected to them.”

“We also have a branch near Mount Song, where the Shaolin Temple is located. There is probably information there.”

With a snap of his fingers, Pungho summoned a lean man, who came over and stood beside him.

“Yes, Leader?”

“Bring me all the information about Shaolin.”

After a while, documents and books began to pile up on the table where they were sitting.

There was so much material that it was impossible to read it all, even if one tried to do so all day.

When Yu Jinsan looked overwhelmed, Pungho grinned.

“If you’re not planning to check all the documents, you’ll have to be more specific.”

“Hmmm. Is there information about Monk Won Gang?”

After a while, the man Pungho called began to search through the materials.

A moment of silence passed, and then the expression on his face brightened.

“Here it is. It was confirmed about a year ago.”

Yu Jinsan looked somewhat relieved.

“Can you tell where he is now?”

The answer that followed was not very good news.

“It says Repentance Cave.”

“Repentance Cave? Why is he there?”

Where was this Repentance Cave? It lay far within the Shaolin Temple, maintained like a prison for monks and others who had committed sins.

He couldn’t understand why he was there.

“The reason is unknown, but it is written that he went there of his own volition. Beyond that, there is no additional information.”

Yu Jinsan placed his palm on his forehead as if it hurt him.

How could he meet such a man out when he was locked there?

“This is a mess.”

“If you want to meet him, then you will have to disguise yourself as a monk and enter the Shaolin on your own. We will find a way for you to enter if you wish.”

This was shocking.

“You’re telling me to shave my head to disguise myself as a monk?”

What was Shaolin? A place ten times more dangerous than the Southern Edge Sect that Yu Jinsan had infiltrated in the past.

Surely, there had to be many monks with strong martial arts skills throughout the area. It was too dangerous without the help of his granddaughter.

But now, it wasn’t possible to force a young girl to shave her hair and make her look like a monk.

“There is another way.”

A deep sigh escaped Yu Jinsan’s lips.

“Phew.”

He hesitated, seemingly frustrated yet uncertain.

After a moment of silence, from somewhere, his granddaughter came walking, hand in hand with Hyun-hee.

It appeared she had followed her after seeing the underground maze.

“Seol.”

“Yes.”

“Come here for a second.”

Yu Seol, oblivious to the situation, approached them with a happy and innocent smile.

“Why?”