Chapter 9
Return
Unedited as of 9/15/2023
Yeon Myeong=Yeonmyung
I made a late-night spelling-chek error early on in the translation. I edited in Docs and I used FIND AND REPLACE to correct the spelling of Yeonmyung’s name and it somehow ended up as Yeon Myeong. I accidentally posted it without realizing my error. However, I was too lazy to go back and fix it so I just continued on with that incorrect spelling. I am now making an effort to re-edit and fix previous errors and this is one of them. Sorry for any confusion this may cause.
1
Zeo had been the most vast and fertile land since the time of the Five Kings of Zhongyang. Its mighty grain belt was bordered by the feet of the Baekgan Mountains and the tributaries of the Bomunha River, and its rich soil was fertile all year round.
Zeo was arguably the region Wonje Ja-Horyung coveted most when he conquered the Zhangyang.
Zeo had lost more than half of its lands to the Imperial Court. It was a land of such immense riches and it seemed to others that its wealth was synonymous with the Nam-Yeon clan, however, the bigger the beast, the harder it was to hide its weakness.
🌿🌿🌿☀🌿🌿🌿
“He drew a boundary around the same piece of land that had been theirs, and made sure there’s no road through it…… must be like the bitter aftertaste of chewing on a wild apricot¹.”
T/N
1. Wild apricots, or Manchurian Apricots look appetizing on the outside but are sour, astringent, and tasteless. Figuratively, it is a word that compares something that is appealing on the outside but has no substance, such as in the case of a wild/Manchurian apricot.
He muttered to himself over the map of Zeo that he had completed in his spare time.
He had traveled as far as Dalpo in the time he had been in Zeo.
It was not uncommon for the children of the Five Kingdoms to travel to and from each other’s lands as a rite of passage, but it was different when they stayed with marriage in mind. Even when they were served meals, they would evaluate each other down to the basis of which side dishes they picked up first.
At first, Gok Jinsung felt a shiver run down his spine at the sight of those dagger-like eyes. But eventually, he got used to it. Above all, he was not someone who could be easily intimidated.
During his time as a guest in Zeo, he noticed many things that were being hidden from him. One of which was a road that split in two.
It was back in the days of the first Emperor Wonje, that Zeo had given this rich land over to the Imperial Family.
Emperor Wonje condemned the Five Great Families for their crimes. When the other families who had sided with Tohwa showed signs of opposition, he personally(親征) put them down.
T/N
親征 – It means the person personally led the troops as opposed to sending a subordinate i.e. a General or Commander.
Mungang was the first to be sacrificed. Wonje rode for three days and three nights without sleep and laid waste to Mungang.
The three direct branches that formed the Yi main family which controlled Mungang, from the elderly to the newborn infants, were all reduced to headless corpses. When the only surviving direct family member surrendered, Wonje chopped off his limbs instead of his head.
His four limbs were each sent to the four other families of the Tohwas, the Zeo, the Hangcho, and Hang-jin.
Worse still, Wonje, who had not been able to rein in his temper, rode all the way to Zeo faster than the severed leg could arrive.
On the same day that Mungang surrendered to Wonje, Nam-Yeon, who did not expect to be able to turn around and return to Zeo, was so desperate that they decided to give away half of her land rather than risk the same fate as Mungang. Wonje accepted, and only cut off one of each limb, considering it as half the price.
The Emperor didn’t even consider turning his troops back until the Tohwa, the land at the heart of the dispute, the firstborn son’s throat was cut, and Wonje was sent a letter of apology written with his blood.
It was no secret that the man named Gok Yeo-Heun had become the stuff of nightmares for all of the Odaesae. However, the nightmare was nothing compared to Wonje and his Imperial descendants which followed.
As far as Gok Jinsung knew, the Five Great Families had never truly welcomed the Imperial Family. At the first sign of trouble, they would immediately sink their claws in.
Right now, looking at the situation in Zeo, where they can’t even travel on the same road that was right before them, even though it was once their own that had to be sacrificed to Wonje, their claws would never have stopped growing even if their power was limited by the opportunities they were presented with.
Besides,
knock. knock.-
“Greetings, it’s time to have a drink(酬酌: pour and receive drinks).”
The presence of those claws became even more pronounced when he considered the one who was now knocking on the door of the detached house in which he now resided.
“I’ve been waiting for you.”
Gok Jinsung stood up, put the map away, and opened the door.
A woman dressed in a demure light-colored everyday(常服袍)robe² stood before him, accompanied by two servants. Although it was a normal robe, the silk and the decorations used were all uncommon.
When their eyes met, the woman bowed low. Without missing a beat, Gok Jinsung clasped his hands together in front of him and followed suit.
“Please come and have a drink, Lady Nam-Yeon Chwijin.”
“Of course.”
The young lady of Nam-Yeon flashed a glance at the servants before crossing the threshold. Once the servants had quietly bowed and retreated, she entered the room. Gok Jinsung led her to the tea table. His servant, who had come with him from Tohwa, quickly brewed a fresh pot of tea.
After Nam-Yeon Chwijin was seated, he moved the teapot to serve the tea.
“Is the tea to your taste?” he asked.
Nam-Yeon looked at the steeped tea and gave a nod.
“It’s Junshan Silver Needle Tea, I can’t help but be impressed that you purposely served me something that’s not available even in Zeo. The water is clear and the leaves are green in color, however, with just a touch of brown, so I am sure you’ve taken the best care of it and prepared it properly. I’m sure it’s suitable to Sogaju³ Gok’s tastes.”
T/N
3. Sogagu: Younger Lord of the land/Successor
The unexpected barb was greeted with an indifferent politeness.
“Let us not speak of useless things.”
“The trivialities of tea have become something we can exchange a few words about when we can’t avoid conversing. I can count on my ten fingers the number of times we’ve exchanged pleasantries in the lead-up to the marriage contract, and I don’t know how much longer we’re going to waste time on this. A man who’s good at keeping up appearances may make for a good guest, but he’s not the kind of man I would wish to have as my husband.”
“Of course, I understand.”
After swallowing the tea in an aloof manner as though he didn’t even taste the tea, Nam-Yeon Chwijin looked like she was about to snap.
It wasn’t difficult to understand given that she was a mature woman of twenty-six years of age.
Contrary to the stories that suggested she was only a very young girl, she was older than Gok Jinsung. The family had deceived the world for more than a decade in order to keep their only daughter from becoming a forced concubine.
This wasn’t the first time Gok Jinsung had come to Zeo, but he’d been oblivious to the existence of Nam-Yeon Chwijin for so long, he could only imagine how much her claws had matured and how strangely they had twisted to the point of digging into his flesh.
“However, that’s just my opinion, but I cannot know what course the marriage that is about to take place will take.”
A marriage among the Five Great Families was not merely a marriage; it was a murky bond, a safeguard against the Imperial Family.
No one in the Five Great Families’ direct line was ever free from it. From the day his name was changed to Gok Jinsung his marriage with Zeo had been a foregone conclusion.
It would have made no difference whether she was six or twenty-six years old, nothing would have changed the fact that the only daughter of the Zeo main family was going to be the first wife of the Tohwa, so there was no point in pretending otherwise.
Gok Jinsung asked her without a trace of anger,
“Are you saying that you don’t like me?”
“I couldn’t even tell you that. You’ve been wasting all of this precious time on this kind of nonsense.”
“Then what more do you want to do?”
Nam-Yeon Chwijin looked up.
The darkness that bound her, brought about because she was the only daughter, wasn’t suitable for one bearing the name of Nam-Yeon, and it was as though it had stagnated in the shade. She vaguely suspected it was because she had to live in hiding like this for her entire life, but she couldn’t bring herself to think any further than that.
“Perhaps you’re just not good at interacting with people.”
Gok Jinsung then blurted out causing the tea Nam-Yeon Chwijin was cooling with her breath to form ripples,
“Ever since I was a child I’ve had to live like this; like I was dead, so I’m not very good at interacting with people, but I’m very good at recognizing how people behave toward me.”
“……I see.”
Having replied just enough to keep up with cordiality, Gok Jinsung wondered if he should call for someone to bring back the tea. Strangely, the tea felt like it was cooling down too quickly.
“So, I already know what Master Gok thinks of me.”
“I see.”
“Don’t you feel any curiosities ⁴?”
“Should I be currious⁴?”
T/N
4. Eager for gratification. I felt that it was obvious from the context that this is a euphemism, but I felt like I should put this here just in case I’m wrong.
The word used is 궁금하다, 궁금 curious/ravenous + 하다 “to do” ( light verb), this can mean both ‘to be curious’ or ‘to be ravenous’
“Then you were going to receive a woman you knew nothing about simply because she is the Lady of Nam-Yeon. Aside from your disregard for me, you don’t even have the heart to do your duty as a Gok Lord. Is it because you don’t like me, or are you treating Zeo so lightly?”
“I’m not sure why you would think that.”
To Gok Jinsung, there was no difference between frivolous formalities and these questions and answers over tea.
“It may be that Lady Chwijin doesn’t like tea, but instead, she prefers to have liquor, and she may dislike poetry in favor of calligraphy. Zeo is the land of medicine(醫), and here you may cherish the sick more than the healthy, but that is none of my business; likewise, it is none of your business to know that I prefer the color blue to the color gray, or that I cherish flying creatures more than land animals. Regardless of such things, isn’t the marriage covenant between the Zeo and the Tohwa set in stone? In the same sense, I think that discussing tea flavors would be a little more beneficial between us than anything else, for I can only assume that Lady Chwijin, who is to be the first wife of the Gok family, has the taste and temperament to match. And you are wrong about one thing. The brownish color at the tips of the leaves amid the green leaf is also produced when the best Junshan silver needle tea is picked and then stored properly allowing it to age for a year, then carefully steeping the leaves in water that is at a lower temperature.”
“…….”
He watched as the straight long slender eyebrows of the woman who had lived three years longer than he had, furrowed. Her eyelashes quivered with her wounded anger.
Gok Jinsung lifted his cup with an indifferent grasp and turned toward the door.
“Hello. Take the tea back. The water has been cooled, and now it will be astringent not only in my mouth but also in the mouth of the Lady Chwijin.”
“Yes, My Lord Gok.”
There was the rushing sound of footsteps outside the door. Gok Jinsung clicked his tongue in displeasure and stood up.
“Tsk. I’ll be back in a moment, I’ll go rein in the noise. I’m afraid they’re showing disrespect in the presence of Lady Chwijin, so please excuse me.”
He turned his back to her with such ease. Nam-Yeon Chwijin’s next words stopped him in his tracks.
“Is it also unnecessary for me to know that the man who will soon become my husband…… has someone else in his heart?”
“…….”
Gok Jinsung spun his head around. Nam-Yeon’s eyes met his clearly.
“As I said, I’m not good at dealing with people, so I’m quick to pick up on what their eyes are saying. Eyes that harbor someone are different from eyes that don’t.”
“What?”
“Don’t try to tell me otherwise. I already know that you have sent your people out several times already, since coming to Zeo.”
Gok Jinsung curled his fingers into a fist and squeezed.
“I think you’ve misconstrued the messages I sent to Tohwa. I’m the Sogaju of Tohwa.”
“If it was just a message to Tohwa, then why did the messenger of Great Master Gok remove the messenger cylinder halfway through and bury it in the ground?”
“……What, what?!”
Gok Jinsung’s eyes widened.
“What have you been up to?”
“This is Zeo, and everything that happens in this land passes through the eyes of the Nam-Yeon family. If you didn’t want that, you should have chosen a more discreet messenger(使人: errand boy).
With those words, Gok Jinsung became a completely different person.
The indifferent stranger who had been acting as if it was none of his business suddenly became the one who was letting his emotions pour out
“You……saw that.?”
“Yes.”
It wasn’t a love letter. He didn’t write a single line like that.
He just picked out precious medicines, which were the specialty of the Nam-Yeon of Zeo, and packed some materials⁵ worthy of reading.
T/N
5. The word used means ‘publications’ not necessarily a bound book i.e. could include: a book, codex, papyrus, scrolls, parchment, etc. but giving the contextual clues it should be scroll(s).
He thought it would be better to send more than he had already packed the day before, so he sent another parcel the next day. His heart was breaking day by day, knowing that a reply would never come.
Sometimes he wished that he could write.
Brother. How are you doing? Your brother is spending this whole season in the land of Zeo. Compared to Tohwa, the wind is more humid which is said to be more beneficial for one’s health. It’s a pity because I think it would be more helpful for you if you came here too.
Brother. Are you doing all right? Are you ill?
Brother. How are you doing? Are you holding on?
Brother. I would like to ride my horse to visit you even now.
Brother. I want to know if you miss your brother, too. I know you don’t, so I don’t need your answer. However, I miss you terribly…….
He didn’t write because he felt like it would all end up being words that would just torment Heun even more.
He said that he hated him. Although he felt resentful because of it, he choked down the pain alone knowing that Heun must have been suffering while hating him all these years.
Brother. Did you ever once not see me as an enemy?
He didn’t ask the question he most wanted to hear the answer to. He wanted Heun to be a little less sick. He wanted Heun to be a little less empty and less lonely…… He wanted Heun to be a little stronger.
That was all.
He could no longer even see his dreams anymore. His dream of going home and taking Heun and running away together, forever. Where he would crush anything that stood in their way with his horse’s hooves and ride over them. Where they would find a place at the end of the world where no one knew them and they could be alone together for the rest of eternity.
However, his fiancé, who didn’t even care about Heun, saw his heart. It was beyond maddening.
How? Why?
Why was this woman able to recognize it, but not the one who was supposed to see it?
Why was the wrong person listening? Why? Why?!
Nam-Yeon Chwijin clenched her jaw tightly, but as her gaze met with Gok Jinsungs, whose eyes were screaming all manner of tirades, her eyes widened.
“I have no intention of avoiding the inevitable marriage. However, even if it is a political marriage of Tohwa and Zeo, I am the one who is going to be the wife. Isn’t that so? I’m not an unreasonable woman who has to save face. I am also not an uncharitable woman who would be upset about her husband’s having a concubine, however, how can you hold on to a lingering attachment⁶ from the land of Tohwa and take from the land of Zeo? How can you not see that this is beyond outlandish and disgraceful(非禮)?”
T/N
6. So the word used/phrasing here has a connotation of being foolish that isn’t obvious when translated into English. It doesn’t have to be in a romantic sense, but in this case, it means; foolishly holding on to feelings for an Ex you’ll never get back, futilely holding out hope for an old lost flame, etc.. But I couldn’t think of a word for it.
“Who says that it is a lingering attachment?!”
The uncontrolled shout rang in her ears. Nam-Yeon Chwijin was stunned into silence.
“Who says it’s a lingering attachment……hah, who says it’s a lingering attachment?! How can you, who know nothing, say it’s a lingering attachment?!! How dare you say it’s a lingering attachment?!! What do you know……!!!”
Bang!
Clattering- ching!
And when he struck the table, the tea service turned every which way and mixed together, such as the tea leaves and tea water. They became a mangled, homogeneous mess.
“What the devil……!”
His uncontrollable fury slithered out of him like a snake thrusting its head out of its burrow.
He felt like he had become a snake. He had only meant to talk, but speaking of Heun was a sore spot that made him react with a bite like a venomous fang.
“Who says it is……,……It is not a lingering attachment, it is not a foolish lingering……,”
As Gok Jinsung staggered to his feet, Nam-Yeon Chwijin leaped to her feet as though she were fleeing from a drunkard.
“I’ll see you later, I don’t think this is the best time to talk about this.”
He would marry the daughter of Zeo as his family wished. On the day when his father died and he became the Head of the Family, he would bring Heun out of that prison. He would seize and suppress those who opposed Heun, and he would establish Heun as Gaju.
He would return what was taken from him against his will. And he will finally be accepted into Heun’s heart.
It shall be like that!
Gok Jinsung squared his hunched shoulders. His eyes changed. He opened his closet, took out his sword, and left the room that way.
“You told me to choose my messenger carefully.”
The sword in its scabbard clanked as though in response.
“I appreciate the advice, Lady Chwijin.”
His steps led him straight toward the nangha(廊下: servants’ quarters) where his escorts would be.
Nam-Yeon Chwijin, who left the guest house where Gok Jin-seong stayed, immediately visited Nam-Yeon’s Gaju.
When it comes to Nam-Yeon’s Gaju, Nam-Yeon Bang, some people said he was too guarded, while others said he was overly suspicious and skittish like a cockroach.
Judging by the fact that he kept his daughter’s existence hidden for over a decade, there was no doubt that he was worse than a toad that had lived for a thousand years.
He had a total of seven wives. Two of them had died and another was blind.
After his fourth wife suffered a throat injury and became mute, the other wives learned to keep their mouths shut, and the children born to them didn’t dare speak out either.
However, Nam-Yeon Chwijin’s situation was a little different, as she had been forced to live in hiding because of her father’s greed since she was a child, but she was one of the few in the Nam-Yeon family who made her voice heard.
“What are you doing here at this hour?”
Nam-Yeon Chwijin opened the door with her own hand and stepped inside the threshold.
It didn’t take long for Nam-Yeon Bang to realize that his daughter, who takes after him in this one thing if nothing else, was uncharacteristically out of sorts.
“Come here and sit down. What is the matter with you? You ought to be singing and playing your music by now.”
“Father.”
Nam-Yeon Bang took the seat she was offered. Nam-Yeon Bang looked at Nam-Yeon Chwijin. Outwardly he looked like an affectionate father who was only concerned.
“All right, then. Tell me what’s going on.”
“This marriage…… is too difficult for me to handle.”
“……Huh?”
Nam-Yeon Bang paused for a moment and then stroked his black beard, but once he had done so, the concern and tenderness were washed away.
“The eldest son of Tohwa has been staying in Zeo for nearly a month. As a man who can decipher the paths, he must have already realized that Zeo is only half what it first appears to be. But you want to break off the marriage, is that what the Lady of Zeo is saying?”
She shuddered slightly so he wouldn’t see her. It took quite a bit of courage to open her mouth again.
“He is…… strange, father. When I told him I knew he had sent medicines to a lover back home, he knocked over the tea table before my eyes. How can such a man be of any use to Zeo?”
“Foolishness! He is the firstborn of Tohwa.”
“But to me, whoever’s first-born son he may be, he is only a man. I am not capable of…… with such a man……father,”
“Jin-ah.⁷”
T/N
7. -ah is used at the end of a name when you directly, informally, address someone younger, i.e. someone you know.
Nam-Yeon Bang took the hand of his daughter that rested on her lap.
When he finished calling her “Jin-ah,” her face turned the color of clay.
He wasn’t just squeezing her hand, he was pressing on her Hegu acupuncture point(虎口穴). Pain shot through her entire artery system, from her arm to her shoulder.
“Jin-ah. This is disgraceful! No matter what a man does, how can you intrude on his affairs, and even worse, reveal that you have intruded with your own mouth? What do you think the Gok Gaju will think of this?”
“Ah, ah,……ahhh……”
“Foolishness! Whether it’s a paramour or whatever, who cares if it’s sending a few medicinal herbs to aid them? If you really didn’t like it, you could have chosen a suitable poison and mixed it with the medicines and sent it on its way.”
“Ah, fa……ther, aghh!”
“Oh, ……, but you couldn’t picture that. The thing was never meant for Tohwa in the first place. Well, then, it was all for naught, for you dug a hole for nothing and forced the snake to slither forth…….tsk tsk. How could you be so stupid, even though you’re my own daughter?”
“……!”
Nam-Yeon Bang let go of his daughter’s hand, which he had been gripping tightly. After gritting his teeth and swallowing a groan, Nam-Yeon Chwijin looked up.
“Father.”
“Stop looking at me like I don’t know where you are. If you understand, get out of here.”
“Father!”
Nam-Yeon Chwijin knew how the women of the Nam-Yeon family lived, including herself. It wasn’t enough that she had to live as though she were dead, she had to pretend like she was an illiterate ten-year-old. When the topic of the Tohwa marriage came up, she thought she would finally escape this hell.
On the day Tohwa’s firstborn son arrived,
She saw that he was big, tall, and had deep eyes. Her heart swelled in her chest. She would have been content to simply leave Zeo, but day by day, she veered off course.
When she woke up, she found herself unable to take her eyes off him.
For the first time, she resented her perceptive nature.
Why did she have to recognize it so quickly?
No matter what she did, no matter if they married, he would never be hers, he would always be someone else’s.
Leaving Zeo was already no longer paramount in her mind. As she watched him, her heart pounded, and she knew she couldn’t take it anymore.
Finally, she couldn’t bear it any longer and she snapped. If it were still like this, and they were officially married and she was his wife, she might lose her mind.
“I…..won’t see him again. In Zeo, I had already seen what a hell it is to live with a heartless husband. Father, you want even his one daughter to live like I’m blind and deaf all on her own. I cannot do it, Father, unless he agrees to put that person out of his sight, I will never be able to take him as my husband.”
“Tsk. Tsk tsk…… In the end, you found me just so you could use me to be a pest. Tell me, when the hell did you get so clever?”
Nam-Yeon Bang knew what his daughter was talking about. She wasn’t saying she couldn’t marry, she was asking him to help her get married her way.
“To desire a man who is blind to other partners is a vicious trait of all the wenches in the world, but it is not a terribly wicked thing to desire if you are driven to it.”
Nam-Yeon Bang stroked his beard. His expression changed again. His dark eyes swept across the room like a toad’s tongue on a worm.
“Father…….”
“If you are determined enough, this father will grant you a favor. I will blind the firstborn of Tohwa.”
Nam-Yeon Chwijin’s mind flashed back to her first mother, who had hanged herself, and her second mother, who had drowned herself in a well. There was also the third mother who poked her eyes out with a knife and the fourth who cut out her tongue with a pair of scissors.
Only Nam-Yeon Bang knew how such a feat was possible.
Nam-Yeon Bang clicked his tongue as though he could see what his daughter was thinking.
“Tsk. It’s not that easy. You’d have to be willing to do a lot of things to make it work. In return, he will do whatever you want. What do you say, do you believe your father?”
“Ah……,”
Nam-Yeong Chwijin wanted to ask, was that how my father blinded Zeo?
No. Was that why he was content to do it?
“The forced labor has begun. They’re going to rebuild the capital city and make the waterways flow. It will take another decade to finish the construction, and it will be up to the five families to pay for it. The Emperor has already seized a tremendous amount of supplies from Tohwa, and it’s only a matter of time before he looks over what’s left of the Zeo lands. Didn’t you know that because there was a sick person in the palace we sent more medicine. Then, the Imperial Court sent out a proclamation to increase their rank by one more level of seniority. He’ll use any excuse he can find to destroy the Five Great Families.”
Nam-Yeon Gaju’s voice was now soft and tender like a child’s.
“How could Zeo face such a fate? The Imperial Family and the Five Great Houses are incompatible. Too much has already been taken from us. That’s why you should marry the first-born son of Tohwa as soon as possible. The stronger the Five Great Houses are bound together, the faster we can drive the Yi clan back to the north, where they belong.”
Nam-Yeon Bang took her hand in his again with a gentle touch.
“As long as you were born of Zeo’s seed this marriage is inevitable. You really only have one choice. You can either embrace the man who holds your heart, or you can embrace the man who has torn it from you.”
His fingertips rested on the acupuncture points he’d pressed earlier, her body reflexively recalling the pain and complying.
“That…… ! Yes……, I will, Father. I will do that.”
“Yes.”
Nam-Yeon Gaju let go of her hand. He smiled with satisfaction at his daughter’s terrified face. That smile answered her question, and Nam-Yeon Chwijin understood.
“Okay. I can teach you how it’s done.”
If you’re reading this anywhere other than Foolishtranslationss.wordpress.com, it was stolen from the translator’s website. Reading this anywhere other than the translator’s website ensures that the translator may never translate any other works. Thank you.
2
“This man has committed a sin worthy of death. L,Lord Sogaju, Lord Sogaju!”
There were twelve men who had been traveling with Gok Jinsung from Tohwa, eight of them were escorts, and four of them were servants. One of the servants was the most skilled in the art of horsemanship, and he was the one who packed the packages to be sent to Heun.
He had set out two days ago, so he should be halfway to Tohwa by now. Gok Jinsung gave up his own horse to him to make the journey faster.
But the servant, who was as quick of mouth as he was heavy of foot, hid the goods he should have sent to the Heun somewhere and then hid himself in the land of Zeo. Gok Jinsung wanted to tear his mouth off with his bare hands when he thought of all the times he’d told him to go to Tohwa, and how he’d tricked him like this.
“Perhaps this is the time for you to speak.”
He raised his sword himself.
“You are no longer one of my people, and I will not grant you recognition in my presence. I will cut off your hands and feet and use them to suffocate you to death.”
The next moment, the raised sword and cleaved the servant’s ankle in half,
“No, Lord Sogaju! No! Even if I had gone to Tohwa, there would have been no way for me to deliver it!”
The servant, who had already shed a stream of tears and drool, let out a pained cry to escape death.
“Don’t be ridiculous. Whether you have followed your Lord’s command or not, there is no way you will escape by deceiving me.”
“It is not a lie, my Lord! It was not because I disregarded my Lord’s orders……! No matter how hard I rode the horse……., there is not a place for me to carry the burden to……! Aghh…….”
Those words were enough to stop the slashing. Gok Jinsung staggered back a step.
“What……? There’s no place……?”
“That…… is right.”
Bang!
Throwing down his sword, Gok Jinsung lifted the servant up by the collar.
“What do you mean there isn’t a place? Then where is my…… brother?!”
“Ga,Gaju…… told me…… to burn the shrine, and……so I did.”
“You burned……it?”
His mind went blank. For a long time, he couldn’t think of a reason for burning the shrine.
Why did Gaju do that, and what was he doing now?
He was ordered to marry the Zeo daughter. Gok Jinsung swore before him that if any other woman tried to interfere with the marriage, he would seize her and cut her throat.
On that day, he sought out Heun and asked what he should do about the marriage.
He wanted Heun to tell him that they could run away together. Heun threw him out without a word, and he went on his way to Zeo feeling all lost.
His father patted him on the back as though he understood how he felt. His father told him to hurry as fast as he could, and he said that he would. His father said things would be different after he got married.
He said that what needs to be buried, will naturally be buried. As though he knew there was something to bury.
You mean you knew what to bury……is that what he meant……?
His legs gave out and he fell to the ground.
“Lord Sogaju!”
One of his escorts helped him up. But there was no strength in his legs. He sagged like a sheet of paper that had been soaked in water.
What would happen to Heun now? Would he be decapitated as his father had threatened?
“……N,No!”
Gok Jinsung stood up, shoving his escort out of the way.
“We should go back to Tohwa.”
Not surprisingly, the attendants were stunned.
“Lord Sogju, if you leave now, you will not be able to continue your marriage with Zeo.”
“I have to go back!”
Gok Jinsung pushed aside any lingering doubts that might have held him back. Turning, he led the way, his escorts following close behind.
“Lord Sogaju!”
No matter how loudly they shouted, the words seemed to have fallen on deaf ears. The disheartened warriors of Tohwa soon followed after him.
🌿🌿🌿☀🌿🌿🌿
However, leaving the land of the Zeo family was not an easy task.
“I have not received any orders, so I cannot be of service to the Tohwa.”
Gok Jinsung and his attendants were nervous as they looked at the men of Zeo who outnumbered them by several to one, and the tension in their eyes was palpable. The same was true of the men who surrounded the entrance to several rows of Tohwa horses.
Judging by the fact that Gok Jinsung had rushed straight to the stables without bothering to pack, Nam-Yeon Chwijin’s statement that there were eyes on every inch of the Land of Zeo he stepped on was not an exaggeration.
“Get out of the way. There’s no reason for someone from Tohwa to be treated like this in Zeo. Is this how guests are treated in Zeo?!”
“I’m afraid I can’t answer that question. We simply follow our Master’s orders, and we can’t anticipate the behavior of our guests.”
“Then go and inquire who this guest is. Then I’m sure I’m not one you would dare to block the way of.”
Even with his mind racing, he struggled to control his breathing.
The worst thing he could do was slash through them.
The spacing, the number of steps, and the length to draw(拔劍)his sword were all clear to him. Even if he was outnumbered, the advantage was on his side. But with his marriage to Zeo on the horizon, a sword fight was not only unnecessary, it was foolish.
“Didn’t you hear, go ask him.”
However, the delay was grating on his nerves. He had to hold back the urge to draw his sword.
“Go on!”
The warriors of Zeo exchanged glances and finally nodded. It was a known fact that Gok Jinsung was a guest they could not treat lightly, so they could not make excuses.
“Wait, just a moment then.”
One of them headed toward the main house. Gok Jinsung rested his still trembling hand on the hilt of his sword, and the tension grew sharper as the blade flexed in the breeze.
“……Hurry up.”
Curling his lips, he spoke to no one in particular.
“It’s too late to get an answer just now.”
The road to get to Heun will also be treacherous. The sword clanked uneasily as Gok Jinsung’s hands trembled.
The answer didn’t follow even as the tension surrounding them pounded like the horse hoof on the ground.
🌿🌿🌿☀🌿🌿🌿
“Our Lord did not hear of your departure, and he told us not to disturb him with our words.
“…… What? What does that mean!?”
“We are only servants who receive orders, and we cannot give you an answer.”
“What nonsense! Can’t you even see with your own eyes that the one who asks you to speak to him is the Lord of the Tohwa?”
“The master of this land is the Lord of Zeo.”
The ensuing verbal exchange became as meaningless as the chittering of an angry insect.
“Get out of the way.”
Gok Jinsung said, waving away the escorts that surrounded him.
“Lord Sogaju…….”
Gok Jinsung bit his dry lips. He hadn’t drawn his sword until now, for one reason: he didn’t want to create one more trap on the road he had to run through.
“If we can’t ride, we can walk. Consider these words the Tohwa’s thanks for your hospitality. If you ever find yourself in Tohwa, I give you my word that the same hospitality will be extended to you.”
“Lord Sogaju, how can you walk that long way?”
“I will seek help along the way.”
Having made up his mind, he wasted no time. Without hesitation, he turned away from the entrance to the stables. He had to get out of the land of Zeo first.
Behind him, the warriors from Tohwa followed. But as they walked down the path that led from the stables to the main gate, something even more bizarre happened.
This time, the gate was blocked. No amount of explanation could disguise the intentions of these men. There were now several times the number of people who had been blocking stables gathered in rows.
“What are your intentions by using force to block the road?”
The man who seemed to be the leader of the warriors spoke briefly to Gok Jinsung.
“The Gaju asked you to wait for seven days and nights. He was afraid that if you left, you might disrupt the momentum of the Tohwa and the Zeo. If you grant us the seven days and seven nights, we will use it as collateral for the permanent goodwill of the two families. Please wait for seven days and seven nights.”
It was a ridiculous statement. It would have made more sense if he had said to wait until the wedding was completely over. However, seven days and nights were neither here nor there.
“So if I bind my feet here that is the only way to avoid offending Tohwa and Zeo’s righteousness?”
“I am a man of messages and a man of orders. Forgive me if I cannot give you an answer.”
Gok Jinsung gripped the hilt of his sword with all his might. He stopped trembling as his knuckles grew white, as though he were about to disperse his blade at any moment.
He was ready to strike. He was now in a position to slay those within his reach with a single blow.
The people of Zeo were not unaware of this.
“If I have chosen not to draw my sword until now, it is not for fear of your numbers, but because I am a guest here. If Zeo doesn’t wish to muddy (濁流) the waters with their guests, neither will we. Get out of the way. This Lord will not hold you responsible.”
“There is only one master. Forgive me.”
“Do you mean to say that you will go all the way?”
The thick, well-defined eyebrows seemed to tremble. The next moment,
Bam!
Gok Jinsung lunged, his sword flashing with cold light. It was not a man he slashed, but the strap that held the scabbard to his back.
Pow!
The man’s sword fell still sheathed to the ground. The faces of the warriors of Zeo changed color as they realized that the Tohwa Swordsmaster was not to be trifled with.
Without sheathing his sword again, Gong Jinsung spoke.
“I’ve waited twice, so I’ve fulfilled my duties as a guest. This time, I will ask the master of Zeo directly.”
He spun the blade around and pointed it at the main house.
“You guys hold the road here. I will travel alone.”
No one could fail to recognize what he meant by ‘hold the way‘. The third time meant that he would not accept this unjustified challenge(惹鬧).
The warriors of Tohwa tightened their grip on their swords.
“Don’t worry, Lord Sogaju.”
With a single nod of his head, Gok Jinsung rushed to the Nam-Yeon family’s residence.
If you’re reading this anywhere other than Foolishtranslationss.wordpress.com, it was stolen from the translator’s website. Reading this anywhere other than the translator’s website ensures that the translator may never translate any other works. Thank you.
3
“This……is this what you meant?”
Nam-Yeon Chwijin stared at the bowl of clear water that Nam-Yeon Bang held out to her. It was eerily clear, but if you looked closely, the water was quivering slightly without anyone touching it.
“It takes a lot of work, so few people know how to handle it properly.”
Nam-Yeon Chwijin held out her hand. She rolled up her sleeve and offered him her hand. He stabbed the tip of her index finger with a small knife, causing it to bleed.
“Over here.”
Following his lead, she held her bleeding finger over a bowl of water.
Drip, drip-drip!-
Deep-red blood dripped onto the water, scattering into amorphous stains. The clear water twitched once. The next moment,
“……!”
Nam-Yeon Chwijin’s eyes widened in surprise. The water had turned clear again, as though nothing had happened.
“This is Nam-Yeon’s Gu (巫蠱)⁸.”
Nan-Yeon Bang lightly touched the bowl of water. The water, which was now clear with no blood, suddenly splashed and splattered as though it were angry.
“The Bloodless Gu is a Gu that has been fed with blood. People mistakenly think it’s a form of poison, but it’s not. A person who has imbibed the medicinal formula made by Nam-Yeon can then place a Gu that has fed on their own blood for seven days and seven nights into their victim’s stomach to control their body and mind.”
As he spoke, bubbles rose steadily to the top of the bowl of water. Upon seeing that, Nam-Yeon’s Gaju flashed a broad smile.
“The most important thing in raising a Gu is the heart of the one who feeds it. The greater the desire to possess your victim’s heart or mind, the stronger the Gu will become in their stomach.”
The tiny insects were impossible to see with the naked eye unless placed in a separate bowl, they were originally parasites that attached themselves to poisonous insects that lived in the water.
In the season of frost’s descent(霜降), when all living things are in a state of rest, poisonous insects that were supposed to be cocooned under the cover of fallen leaves would suddenly begin to crawl up the trees.
They would climb up the tree and nestle in a circle around the spot where fruits had dropped, this coincided with the resting juncture of migratory birds that were traveling south for winter. The birds would then swallow the worms along with the fruit unknowingly.
The birds that swallowed the poisonous insects were already lost. They would abandon their migratory route and would circle the nearby mountain and rummage through the fallen leaves, burying their heads in the newly frozen ground.
It was all because of the Gu.
It was Gu who sent the poisonous insects to eat the fruit, and it was Gu who caused the death of the bird who ate the fruit causing them to go mad.
In the cold forests of early winter, as wild animals rummaged through the dead leaves foraging for the last of their food, the eggs that the Gu had laid in the bird’s belly began a new life in a warm, fleshy host.
Nam-Yeon Bang took her hand and opened the wound, squeezing out more blood. Nam-Yeon Chwijin swallowed her protests of pain and squinted her eyes.
The bowl of water became completely turbid with the addition of more blood, but only for a moment. With a single gurgling bubble the water became clear again.
“He’ll grow up to be a ravenous creature⁹.”
And the Nam-Yeon Gaju’s eyes seemed to say as they watched her,
Just like you are so ravenous.
She didn’t deny it.
“How much blood do I need to feed it?”
“It depends. The hungrier it is, the more it must be fed regardless, which is why it is so difficult to raise.”
The drug that the person raising the Gu must take beforehand was in fact actual poison. Since the Gu’s first host was a poisonous insect, they had deliberately dissolved the poison in order to make their blood similar to the food source.
“During the seven days of raising a Gu, many people give up and others die. That’s why you can only raise one Gu at a time. Above all, you must have a determined heart and a great desire for the other person.”
He was implying that it is one’s insatiable greed and the desire to be satiated that defeats the poison.
Nam-Yeon Chwijin now opened her own wound and squeezed the blood out.
“I understand what you mean, Father.”
Midway through, she imagined Gok Jinsung’s voice asking for explanations.
Unlike Nam-Yeon Chwijin, whose complexion was changing with worry, he clicked his tongue and told her to keep her feet bound for the next seven days.
When she asked him how they could deal with Tohwa’s Sojaju like that, he told her that as long as he could consume it after seven days, it wouldn’t matter, however, if she failed, this would cause the Tohwa and Zeo would be irrevocably divided.
So this wasn’t about keeping him close for her own greed.
She told herself,
It was for the sake of Zeo, not because she had become a slave to him.
She repeatedly nodded to herself, deluding herself as her eyes focused on Gu, who was greedily feeding on her blood.
“A Gu will only die if it is very far away from its master up until the time it has taken up a position in the belly of its victim. You have to keep it within hearing distance of the master, and keep an eye on it at all times.”
“Once it has established itself in the victim’s stomach, is it safe?”
“Yes. But the farther away you are, the farther away the master’s will is, so it’s best to keep your distance as close as possible.”
“What is the best way to get it inside the body of the vessel?”
“If you get it in their mouth, no one will know.”
“Even if it can’t be seen, if it gets into his mouth it will move, and he might spit it out.”
“Once it touches flesh, it knows it’s there, and will change its behavior. That is its nature.”
“Yes, father.”
It was at that moment that she got a strange feeling.
“Then all you need to do after the seven days is to put it in some water and feed it to them?”
The father and daughter turned their heads at the same time.
Gok Jinsung approached silently, as though his grip on his sword could seep into their panic-stricken gazes.
She didn’t make the slightest sound. She was more frustrated than afraid by this situation.
Why now, why?!
Why now? In only seven days, he would be…….
“Among the Five Great Families, it has always been said that Zeo was the most terrifying place. I wondered why Zeo, which had now lost half of its land to the Imperial Family. Why would it be terrifying, but it was hiding such a thing…”
Nam-Yeon Bang stood up. His eyes were wide with rage.
“What are you doing here with a sword, Gok Sogaju?”
“I have come to ask you a question, Nam-Yeon Gaju. But since I’ve already heard the answer, I don’t think I need to ask.”
His words were polite, but his eyes were not unlike a ruffian’s. His demeanor was polite, but his upright blade was anything but respectful.
The tip of his blade pointed at the Gu.
“Instead, I’ll have to see for myself what that thing is.”
The eyes were moving in a terrifying way. He realized he had seen the watery creature somewhere before.
Not now, but somewhere in the vastness of time, over a hundred years ago…
If you’re reading this anywhere other than Foolishtranslationss.wordpress.com, it was stolen from the translator’s website. Reading this anywhere other than the translator’s website ensures that the translator may never translate any other works. Thank you.
Foolish Translations 
Those five families are ful of disgusting scums! ><
Thank You for the new chapter ( ˘͈ ᵕ ˘͈♡)˚๐*˟ ♡
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You’re not kidding :{
and Your welcome
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