2
9
6.
Every time I washed myself with the powder made from ground red beans and mung beans, dirty water flowed out, and only after emptying the wooden tub three times could I change my clothes again and head to the banquet hall.
When I entered the banquet hall like that.
“Big Brother!!”
“Soun!”
The people of Taeeulmun, who had kept their distance at first, approached warmly and began exchanging greetings.
This is too much.
Still, I did take a bath in the stream before coming here.
Meanwhile, the Geum, Eun, and Dong brothers, who had been surrounded by their siblings, also approached their parents and bowed proudly.
“Haha… The fellows who went out as children have returned as men.”
“……
Sob, sob.
The children’s parents tried hard to hide their tears at how much their children had grown in the past year.
And next to it.
You’ve worked hard. You’ve really gone through a lot.
Even Hong Mun-gi giving Sa-ryeon a tight hug.
Touching encounters continued to take place throughout the banquet hall.
I feel a tickling sensation at the tip of my nose for no reason.
Just then, a welcome voice was heard.
“You’re just like that, whether you’re going or coming back… I simply can’t figure you out.”
I turned my head and saw Wang Geum-san approaching with Wang So-so.
Have you been well?
“Well… there’s just so much work, you know. It looks like I’m going to die sooner than my allotted lifespan.”
I have heard that the prosperity of the Wang clan is spreading beyond Gangnam to Gangbuk as well.
“Haha, don’t say that. Are you still having a hard time?”
Wang Geum-san looks at me with a strange gaze.
Then, soon after, he speaks subtly.
“So, you see… the dividends you’re bringing in are too big. Can’t you tone it down a bit now?”
For some reason, Wang Geum-san’s eyes were filled with earnestness.
But desperation is desperation, and a deal is a deal, isn’t it?
“Master Jang, that’s a bit…”
Before I could even shake my head, Wang So-so’s reprimand came flying in.
“Oh, Father! I heard your original dream was to build the greatest trading company in the world. Thanks to you, you’ve gotten one step closer to that dream, so how wonderful is that?”
“No… that was a dream of my youth. I guess you could say I just want to retire now and rest while watching my grandchildren play.”
Wang So-so pushed her father aside and stood in front of me.
“Brother, while you, Senior Sister, and Senior Brother Geumpyo were away, I worked hard to look after the people of Taeeulmun.”
I chuckled at Wang So-so’s behavior of sticking her head out like a child seeking praise and patted her head.
“thanks.”
“lol.”
Saryeon really hated this, so it’s strange.
The faces of the people I saw for the first time in a year were different from how they looked a year ago.
The anxiety has vanished, and a sense of ease is evident.
He was comfortably happy in the face of joyous events and did not force himself to hide his emotions.
It was completely different from this time in my previous life, when I was anxiously trying to appease the Gyeryong Merchant Group, which was acting arrogantly while gradually reducing support.
Does it look good to you, too?
I turned my head at the sudden sound of a voice and saw Hong Mun-gi looking at the same scene as me.
He raised the corners of his mouth as soon as our eyes met.
You made it. You achieved it.
What could I have done? It is all thanks to everyone’s hard work.
A slimmer figure compared to the previous life.
Solid muscles showing just how grueling the training has been.
And an intense gaze I had never seen even once in a past life.
He gazes at me warmly with those firm eyes.
It is changing.
I, and Taeeulmun, are changing.
I am definitely changing, unlike my past life.
Hong Mun-gi then looks around.
“Where has Taesan gone? My son has returned looking so tall and handsome.”
“I know, right. Such a fine son has returned.”
I had a rough idea where it might be, so I took a bottle of liquor and a glass and left the banquet hall. I walked to one side.
The night was dark and there was no light, but finding the way was not difficult.
Because it was the place I saw earlier while heading toward the bathhouse.
Sure enough. In the space landscaped around a small pond, Father was gazing at the pond where the moonlight had settled.
Are you already enjoying a hobby like this just because you’ve made some money?
Father, who had turned his head slightly toward my chest, looks at the pond again.
“This is for guests. You have to wait quite a while to see me. Wouldn’t it be boring to wait without even a small pleasure like this?”
Placing a pond in the Taeeulmun courtyard was also my father’s dream.
Because ponds cost a lot of money.
Being able to manage a pond was also a symbol of leisure.
And my father really wanted to have a pond.
“Right. Now we have enough leeway to build a pond at Taeeulmun.”
“We still have a long way to go. Each party needs at least one.”
My father, who had been looking at the pond, shifted his gaze to me and chuckled.
Is that so?
“Of course, I’m not saying you should actually make it. There’s nothing quite like a waste of money.”
“What do you think of the head of the outer clan?”
I examined my father in detail.
Like Hong Mun-gi, he has lost a lot of weight, but no muscles are visible.
He probably didn’t have time to take care of himself because he was busy working.
Why have you lost so much weight?
Suddenly, I became worried that my father might have been living too hectically over the past year.
My father answers my question playfully.
“They say losing this much weight is the trend these days, right?”
Lord Wang has a fine physique.
Because that gentleman is someone who doesn’t need to follow trends.
“Father, aren’t you at that level yet?”
That’s right.
You’ll have to try harder.
“yes.”
Although we exchanged trivial conversations, neither my father nor I regretted the time at all.
I handed the bottle of liquor I had brought to my father.
“Drink this together…”
“Is this damn bastard saying he’s going to drink openly now?”
“Um… I am an adult now, Father.”
Father’s eyes, which had been wide open, wavered.
I see.”
My father took the glass, gulped it down in one go, and then held it out to me.
How have you been?
I looked back on everything I had gone through since returning.
Maryeong Plateau, Murim Academy Jeongsi, Sicheon Blood Sect, the territorialism of the Nine Great Sects and the Five Great Clans.
There were countless times when I nearly lost my life.
This damn curse that remembers everything vividly makes all those events feel as if they just happened.
Recalling those vivid memories, I honestly spoke about the emotions I had felt.
Nothing unusual happened.
“…….”
Father’s hand, which was pouring alcohol into the glass, paused for a moment.
Father’s hand shook for a moment.
I said calmly.
Nothing really happened.
Is that so?
No matter how good you were in a mood, I don’t think you ever filled the glass to the brim.
Welcome back.
“Yes, Father.”
“Really… it’s good you’re back.”
We silently watched the carp splashing in the pond. After the banquet ended, most people returned to their respective homes and Taeeulmun.
And only six people remained in Jin Taesan’s office: Hong Mun-gi, Kang Chae-seok, Jin Taesan, Jin So-un, Sa Ryeon, and Sama Jeong.
Gulp. So… … this is uh… … .”
Hong Mun-gi swallows his words as if he were too careful to even speak them aloud.
It is Oryeong Seonhwayu. Father.
Right. You mean that thing shaking the world… … .”
I heard that the Zhongnan Sect missed this and blockaded Xi’an, causing a flood of complaints from the martial arts world… How did this item end up in far-off Hefei?
“What on earth are you guys wandering around doing……?”
Kang Chae-seok stared blankly at So-un and Sa-ryeon.
Then, suddenly, the image of the children who had returned in rags became connected to Oryeong Seonhwa Yu in my mind.
“Surely not… did you come back in that state because of this?”
Saryeon ran her finger across the bridge of her nose and let out a light cough.
“Isn’t the important thing that Oryeong Seonhwa Yu came to Taeeulmun?”
For now, I guess I need to pay attention to security.
A single precious elixir can ruin an entire village.
Historically, hasn’t blood flowed whenever treasures and elixirs appeared?
“Rather than making the elixir right away… I think I need to wait a little while.”
“What are you talking about, Senior Officer! We just went to the trouble of bringing in such a precious item! Didn’t I tell you back then? Immediately… to the children…”
Hong Mun-gi shook his head firmly.
If you move too hastily, rumors will spread.
Obtaining the precious elixir is important, but protecting it is even more important.
Kang Chae-seok also knew the nature of the martial arts world, so he pressed his lips together tightly with a face full of dissatisfaction.
Breaking the silence that had settled for a moment, Jin Taesan cautiously opened his mouth.
“For now, how about we hear Councilor Sama’s opinion first? Of course, since it is what the children said, it is likely true, but we might as well find out just what level of elixir it really is.……”
Then, he turns his gaze to Sama Jeong, who is sitting next to him.
As everyone’s eyes turned toward me, Sama Jeong placed his hand on the table.
Let me take a look.
When he took the canteen and opened the cap.
“……!”
Suddenly, a strange scent filled the entire office.
*Tear*
He then carefully tilted the canteen to take a drop of Oryeongseonhwa oil into a wine cup and examined its color.
The people of Taeeulmun examined Samajeong’s face with tense expressions, as if he were having a generational antique appraised.
I wonder how much time had passed.
Sama Jeong placed his wine glass on the table with an expression of admiration and spoke.
“It’s true… And it is indeed high-purity Seonhwa oil.”
What do you mean by high purity?
The Murim Alliance usually mixes Jangmok oil with Oryeong Seonhwa oil.
“The statement that it is not mixed with wood oil means…….”
Sama Jeong nodded and added.
It would be more effective, wouldn’t it?
At Sama Jeong’s words, Gang Chaeseok fidgeted with impatience.
“Brother, no, Sect Leader. Let’s just make it, please? Didn’t they say it’s a medicinal herb that even the Murim Alliance can’t easily use?”
“but…….”
Jin Taesan spoke to the conflicted Hong Mun-gi.
I also think it would be fine to make it right away.
“huh?”
Kang Chae-seok was even more surprised because he usually took a conservative stance on matters like Hong Mun-gi.
Jin Taesan taps the table and adds.
“After all, haven’t you been diligently gathering ingredients to feed the children? The rumor won’t spread too far. What do you think, Teacher?”
Sama Jeong nodded at Jin Taesan’s question.
“As the Merchant Guild Master said, we already have all the essential herbs, so even if we go out of our way to gather the remaining ones, they won’t attract much attention.”
“Is that so…?”
Soon, Hong Mun-gi’s eyes slowly turned toward Jin So-un.
“Soun, what is your opinion?”
Although it might have seemed strange to seek the opinion of a young disciple regarding the sect’s chief, no one in the hall questioned it.
I think it should definitely be made right away.
“Huh…? Why?”
Jin So-un pointed his finger at the bottle containing the Five Spirit Immortal Flower Oil.
There is a saying that if you hoard something, it turns into poop.
When Jin Taesan frowned, thinking, “I knew it.”
And isn’t Taeeulmun no longer the Taeeulmun of the past?
Hong Mun-gi, who had been wearing a blank expression for a moment at Jin So-un’s words, let out a chuckle.
“Right, you’re right. Taeeulmun is no longer the Taeeulmun of the past.”
Then, he looked at the people in the hall one by one and gave an order.
“Then let’s make it right away.”#After spending the night at the Daecheon Merchant Guild, I visited the Taeeul Gate the next day.
The very first person to welcome me was none other than… … .
“Hyung-eung-nim!!!!!!”… …
It was Jegal Cheon-gi.
Whether he had grown up in the past year or not, his former childlike appearance was nowhere to be seen.
However, his disheveled clothes and the oil stains on his face somehow reminded me of Zhuge Tianji from his past life.
How have you been?
Although he had already grown quite tall, seeing him nuzzle his head in like a puppy, I messed up his hair wildly.
Only after wagging his tail like that for quite a while did the little guy finally seem satisfied and let out a giggle.
I looked at the hammer in Cheon-gi’s hand and asked.
“Has the engine formation not been completed yet?”
The mechanical formation that was ultimately not completed in the previous life.
Zhuge Tianqi, who was trying to create it, was devising a new mechanical formation after meeting the sorcerers of the Moshan Sect.
“That’s impossible. We are currently setting up mechanical fortifications at Wangjiazhuang, which is why it looks like this.”
“At the Wang family’s house?”
“Yes. They saw the ritual installed at Taeeulmun and asked us to install one at Wanggajang as well. However, the site is so vast that it looks like it will take quite a while to complete the construction.”
If you are the head of the Wang clan, you could just directly hire the Zhuge Clan or the Moshan Sect to set it up…
Hearing that he had gone out of his way to install Zhuge Tianqi’s mechanical formation, I couldn’t even begin to guess just how magnificent a creation he must have made. ‘Anyway, a genius is a genius.’ Then, Yingying, who was standing beside Tianqi, bowed her head deeply.
I have heard rumors about Confucius.
I couldn’t help but be surprised by the unexpected appearance.
“Is it okay if I reveal my body now?”
Yeong-yeong looked at Jegal Cheon-gi once and nodded.
“yes.”
Doesn’t that mean that Zhuge Tianqi has risen to a level where he can protect himself?
This guy has grown quite a bit, hasn’t he?
“Hehe!”
Jegal Cheon-gi awkwardly rubbed the bridge of his nose.
I worked hard.
Seeing the little guy smiling brightly, I thought it was about time I returned his things.
Do you have time now?
“What? Now?”
“okay.”
“What is the reason for this?”
I patted his head one more time.
I have something to give you, you see.
I took Cheon-gi, who was tilting his head in confusion, and headed to the demilitarized zone.
“H-Brother… Even if I haven’t neglected my training, defeating you is,-impossible.”
Haha, that fellow has gotten arrogant after training a little. To think he’s already thinking about beating me.
I met the flustered guy’s eyes straight in.
Now the time has come.
I have something to tell you.
Zhuge Sanshi originally belonged to Zhuge Tianqi.
It is time to give it back to him.
Consider this as part of your learning process.
“yes yes.”
I held the Black Dragon Sword in my hand.
Just as he had said, he had not neglected his training, gripping his sword with an upright posture.
Trembling
However, the sword kept trembling as if afraid of something.
Alright, let’s begin.
“Yes, yup!”
And a short while later.
visor.
The Black Dragon Sword fell to the ground with a loud crash.
“Uh, oh?”
Jegal Cheon-gi, still gripping his sword, wore a bewildered expression.
Phew, I drank too much yesterday, so my hands feel weak…
“Ah! I’m sorry, Cheongi. I think I drank too much yesterday.”
Th-that’s right, isn’t it?
“Alright. Let’s… let’s try again.”
The fastest and most efficient way to teach the Jeogal Samsik is to have the student learn it by alternating between the original sword techniques and the sword techniques transformed into the Jeogal Samsik.
That is why I intended to first demonstrate the Socheon Sword Technique and Daecheon Sword Technique, the martial arts of the Taeeul Sect that he also knows.
Once again, the Black Dragon Sword fell to the ground with a loud crash.… …
what?
“H-Brother? You’re not sick, are you?”
Cheongi was already using the crushing method.
“older brother?”
Fuck. What the hell is going on?
