Episode 118. The Burning People
Hanamseong.
Lan’ao County.
A four-horse carriage is running calmly and clattering along the highway above the yellow Yellow River. It is the carriage carrying Yeonjeokha and his party to Taishan Guangpungchae.
The six people in the carriage sat three at a time, facing each other, their shoulders pressed together. It would have been hard to bear in the summer, but fortunately it was winter, so it was perfect for sharing warmth.
An exclamation escaped Jin Seol-ha’s mouth as she looked at the yellowish water flowing gracefully outside the window.
“Wow! That’s amazing. It seems like there’s a lot to see even in the winter. It’s a shame. If I wasn’t busy, I could have parked by the river for a bit and had a drink.”
Yoo Geun-sik, who had been standing next to the horse saddle and then switched places with Seol Cha-su and came inside, said.
“Sister, you’re thinking like that because you’re in a warm room. Go outside. You’ll freeze to death. You won’t be able to see anything. It’s just cold. I bet Brother Seol is just hoping to get there quickly.”
“Oh, I didn’t think of that. I’ll take over next time.”
Yeonjeokha, who had been listening with an indifferent face, said something.
“I will take turns with you, Mr. Shim.”
“Okay. Then let’s take turns going out.”
Yeonjeokha shook her head at Namgungcheon’s words.
“Then please only change the position for hyung. No, noona.”
“why?”
“Because it’s cold.”
“… … .”
When Yeonjeokha spoke as if it were so obvious, Namgungcheon suddenly became speechless.
It’s cold so everyone is taking turns, but Namgung Yeon is the only one who can’t do it.
I was grateful for his consideration for his younger sibling, but at the same time, I could see Jin Seol-ha’s expression.
At that time, Namgung Yeon spoke briefly.
“are you okay.”
Since the parties were okay with it, the couple no longer objected.
I just let it go, thinking that other people were like that, but I felt bitter when I saw it.
I recently found out about the relationship between Yeonjeokha and Namgung Se-ga, but I still felt strange.
Could it be the bitterness of not being treated with consideration, unlike Namgung Yeon?
This incident made her decide to become closer to Yeonjeokha.
The carriage stopped at the riverside, as if the wind from Jinseolha had passed.
At lunchtime, the coachman stopped the carriage at an open-air inn with no name.
The group of Yeonjeokha entered the inn, ordered food, and then each sat down. They were resting their tired bodies from the long ride in the carriage.
After a while, a hot fish soup made with fish caught in the Yellow River, stir-fried pork, green vegetables, rice, and even steaming noodles arrived.
“Yeon So-hyeop, please try this.”
Jinseolha poured some fish soup into a plate and handed it to Yeonjeokha.
Yeonjeokha, who had accepted it without thinking, expressed his gratitude with an awkward expression.
After that, they put an appropriate amount of stir-fried meat and vegetables in front of the table.
He was kind and polite, just like a host would be to a distinguished guest.
Seol Cha-su and Yoo Geun-sik glanced at Yeon Jeok-ha several times as if they were envious.
Yeon-eok was so embarrassed by the treatment he received for the first time in his life.
When Simtong saw that and burst into laughter, Yeonjeok glared at him for no reason.
As Namgungcheon was slurping down fish soup without thinking, something suddenly came up in front of him.
Namgungcheon’s eyes widened as he looked down, wondering what was going on.
Namgung Yeon pushed the stir-fried pork in front of him like a platter.
‘omg!’
Namgungcheon blinked in surprise at his younger brother’s unusual behavior.
Although I was moved, I couldn’t shake off the feeling of doubt, ‘What is this all about?’
Namgungcheon, who had been hesitating, just reached out with his chopsticks for the stir-fried pork.
Namgung Yeon was eating when he suddenly snatched the plate away from her.
‘huh?’
Namgung Cheon just scratched his head at Namgung Yeon’s whims.
I can’t understand why my brother, who has never been so irritable, is acting like that today.
After finishing their meal in a slightly tense atmosphere, Yeonjeokha and his party returned to the carriage.
It was only after the carriage they were riding started moving that they realized that Namgung Yeon was missing.
There was a sense of uneasiness in Namgung Yeon’s place.
Come to think of it, Seol Cha-soo, Yoo Geun-sik, and Jin Seol-ha are all sitting side by side in the front row. It seems that Namgung Yeon, who said it was okay, switched places with Seol Cha-soo without anyone knowing.
At that time, Jin Seol-ha, who was sitting across from Yeon Jeok-ha, smiled brightly and asked.
“What is your favorite food, Yeon So-hyeop?”
“I don’t have a particular favorite. I just eat everything without being picky.”
“Oh, I see. Then what is your favorite season?”
“autumn?”
“Why do you like fall?”
“Because it’s neither cold nor hot.”
When I was in the warehouse, hot days were hard because they were hot, and cold days were hard because they were cold. That’s why I think I liked the fall season when it gradually got cooler.
“Huh? Since Yeon So-hyeop is so incompetent, don’t you feel neither heat nor cold?”
“I liked that when I was young.”
“ah…….”
He nodded without thinking much about what was being said.
If she had known about Yeon-jeok-ha’s past, she would have gone into it a bit more deeply, but that was where it ended.
Meanwhile, Namgung Yeon, who volunteered to sit next to the horse, was frozen like a stone statue.
She felt uncomfortable with the fact that she was conscious of Jin Seol-ha.
No, the correct answer is that it is not convincing.
It’s not Jinseolha’s fault.
She is a beautiful and cute woman.
She is a flawless woman with a good heart and good manners.
Cheerful, kind, and even caring.
If you think about it, it seems like the complete opposite of myself.
I went outside feeling frustrated, but nothing changed.
‘Ha! Why did that happen!’
All of his incomprehensible actions came to mind one after another.
I tried to imitate Jinseolha, but I felt so ashamed of myself that I stopped right away. It must have seemed strange to other people, too.
***
Shandong Province.
Mt. Taishan.
Dujiazhuang Village
Around noon, about fifty armed Green Foresters appeared on the road leading to the village.
The leader, Gwangpungchae Chaeju Guiyeongdosal Samadan, shouted to his subordinates who were following him.
“Go! Kill those who are in your way! Sweep up everything that is of value!”
“Kil kil! Got it!”
“Hehehe.”
The green forest people ran forward with sinister laughter.
Soon after, villagers came out of their houses screaming and running around.
In just one meal (about 30 minutes), Dujiajang Village was reduced to ruins.
Flames erupted everywhere, and dozens of corpses were piled up in the streets.
After a while, the bandits who had finished looting gathered again at the entrance to the village.
Some were carrying bundles of bags, others were holding women by the hair, and there was even one who tied up a man and dragged him around.
A satisfied smile appeared on Samadan’s face as he looked around at his subordinates.
“let’s go!”
As Sima Dan took the lead, about fifty bandits followed him, each carrying or dragging their own loot.
Among the thieves, the only one who was empty-handed was a man in his fifties, walking slowly behind him. He was Taesan Ilgwae Gu Moon-beom, the owner of Gwangpungchae until three years ago.
He glared at the back of Sima Dan’s head as he walked ahead with wide eyes.
‘That’s crazy! Even if there’s no income in the winter, he still ruins a village near the mountain. He’s not in his right mind.’
In winter, when the weather is cold, they sometimes raid villages.
But it also has its own rules.
For example, raiding distant villages from the mountains or minimizing looting as much as possible.
If you lose the favor of the villagers near the mountain village, you will face various inconveniences. First of all, it will be difficult to procure daily necessities, and if they complain to the government, even the government troops will be mobilized.
But that guy named Samadan was pillaging the villages around Sanchae. He wasn’t just stealing their treasures, he was also not afraid to commit murder and arson.
‘I’m not even asking for the punitive force to come… … What the hell are they thinking?’
Samadhan makes no preparations for tomorrow.
If you look at what he’s doing, he’s a guy who only wants to live for today. Thieves may feel good about cutting things down and plundering property right away, but if they keep doing that, they won’t last for many years.
‘You fucking idiots. Are you going to live and die just for today? Stop it. How can you live with so much anxiety? … .’
I just hope that the chieftain, Pacheonma-gun, will take care of it first before the government forces destroy him.
***
Mid-February.
Shandong Province.
Taean.
At dusk, the carriage carrying Yeonjeokha and his party finally arrived in Taean. It takes half a day to travel from Taean to Taesan by carriage, so they were almost there.
The group rushed to a nearby inn.
After Namgungcheon took over all three empty rooms as the representative, he divided the rooms among Yeonjeokha, Simtong, men and women. This was a consideration considering that Yeonjeokha and Simtong were from Nokrimdo.
Yeonjeokha and Simtong unpacked their bags and went down to the restaurant.
Other people must have been out and about, as they had already come down to the restaurant and taken their seats.
Because of the regular guests, the three members of Jeong Ui-maeng and the Namgung-cheon siblings seemed to be sitting apart.
Jin Seol-ha, who had discovered Yeon Jeok-ha, smiled and gestured.
However, Yeonjeokha and Simtong passed Jinseolha and went to the table of Namgungcheon siblings.
Seolchasu said something to Jinseolha, who suddenly became exhausted.
“Sister. There’s no room here. Considering Senior Sim, it would be better to go over there.”
“Oh, I guess so.”
Only then did Jin Seol-ha’s face brighten up a little.
Yoo Geun-sik said with a sly smile.
“If you show your love too obviously, things won’t work out. You need to know how to push and pull.”
“I don’t like you yet?”
“What? That’s not true, but it’s to that extent? If you like someone, you’ll cause a lot of trouble.”
“Huh! It’s obvious that something big is going to happen. If young men and women like each other, is something big going to happen?”
“Hey, hey. Don’t say things like that with that pretty face. I’m really worried.”
Yoo Geun-sik shook his head.
“Priest, don’t get involved. It keeps happening because you accept it. Just leave the priest alone. Then it will burn out on its own and go out on its own.”
It’s time for three young men and women at the Justice League to pass the time with pointless conversations.
The nearby guests were muttering with serious faces.
“Did you hear the news? I heard that Du Ga Jang Village was hit yesterday.”
“Is this the work of those Gwangpungchae guys again?”
“Then who would be there? This time too, they killed everyone who resisted. It seems like quite a few men, as well as women, were taken away.”
“No, are they crazy? Why are they doing something they’ve never done before? How many times has this happened near Mt. Taesan? Five times?”
“It’s been seven times since yesterday. I think Chae-ju has gone crazy since he changed.”
“You’re just watching from the coffin? It’s been like that since last spring, right? You said you were going to suppress them a lot last summer, so why didn’t you do it then?”
“Jegal Se-ga, who had said he would help, suddenly backed out. That’s why it all just fell through.”
“Why did those people just put in so much air? If they hadn’t stepped forward from the beginning, the magistrate would have pushed through on his own.”
“I don’t know. These days, the Justice League members are so vacillating, how can you tell?”
A bitter smile appeared on Seol Cha-su’s face as he listened.
Certainly, the Justice Alliance has lost much of its momentum compared to before. With the Nokrim Alliance even taking sides with the famous religion, the Justice Alliance is taking too long to consider.
Seolchasu glanced at Yeonjeokha.
Even though he is within touching distance of Mt. Taishan, he looks calm and composed.
‘Are the rumors about the famous church exaggerated?’
I wonder if people are freaking out and making a fuss about the Milky Way. Anyone who looks at his face would think so.
Wuxia,
