Episode 1341 I’m going to save you. (1)
A night of deep darkness. A faint moonlight fell on the window of the still-lit building.
Sarah. Sarah.
The sound of an ink-soaked brush moving across paper came through the window. What stopped the sound of brushes that had continued for a long time was a voice coming from outside the door.
“Matriarch.”
“Please come in.”
Tang Gunak put down the brush in his hand and raised his head. Soon the door opened, and Tang Ik, the guardian of the Tang family, carefully entered inside.
“Have you gone to bed yet?”
“It’s still too early.”
Tang Gunak shook his head with a blunt expression.
“So what’s going on?”
“The poison and memorabilia sent from the main family arrived a little while ago.”
“Thank goodness. “What about the report that came with it?”
“Yes, matriarch. It is said that all the refugees sent to Sacheon settled down well. “I was thinking of giving you a report tomorrow…”
Tang Gunak nodded slowly.
“The family may not have many hands, but they must have had a hard time.”
Those who remain in the party now cannot be particularly effective in terms of inaction. Of course, within the Tang family, making poison and memorizing weapons cannot be said to be less important than martial arts, so it cannot be said that they are idle.
“What if the people left in comfortable Sacheon don’t even do that?”
Tang Gunak laughed softly at Tang Ik’s words.
If it were him in the past, he wouldn’t have laughed at jokes like this, but now Tanggunak is much softer than before.
However, Dang-ik did not miss the strange bitterness in that smile.
“⋯⋯Have you heard any news from those who headed to Haenam yet?”
“It’s not a place where you can easily convey news. Especially in the current situation.”
“That’s true, but…”
Dangik sighed, trailing off his words.
On this trip to Haenam, Dangpae, the owner of the Dang family, also accompanied him.
He also agreed to the party’s move to Haenam as a way to protect the party. In any case, it was a mission in which all major members of the sect named Cheonwoomaeng accompanied the mission, and it was impossible for the Tang family to be left out.
“Don’t worry too much, matriarch. Lord Soga will do well.”
“I’m worried…”
“⋯⋯Yes?”
Tanggunak chuckled.
“Those words are too much for me right now.”
He left his unintelligible words and stood up.
“Matriarch?”
“You too, take a break. “I will have to start training again tomorrow morning.”
Then he left the door and left. A long sigh escaped from Dangik’s mouth as he looked at the back.
The sound of grasshoppers is echoing here and there.
Tanggunak felt a strange feeling, as always.
By nature, grass bugs are wary of people. When there are people nearby, they usually hold their breath and stop crying.
But where that person is, the grass bugs don’t stop crying. It’s not like that person is hiding his presence.
It is something that cannot be explained in the realm of martial arts, and perhaps cannot be understood in the lifetime of Tang military music.
Hyeonjong. He was standing by the river and looking at the distant land of Gangnam.
Tanggunak, who was looking at his back in silence, soon shook his head.
He sent his son and daughter to enemy territory. However, even his worries and concerns cannot be said to be greater than that person.
That person would have sent everything I had to the enemy.
“hmm?”
Hyunjong noticed that the sound of grasshoppers had stopped and turned his head. When our eyes met, Tang Gunak slightly lowered his head. King Hyeonjong also greeted him with a light bow.
“It’s late at night, Lord Maeng.”
Hyunjong grinned.
“I can’t sleep easily, so there’s nothing I can do, matriarch.”
Tanggunak sighed softly. I didn’t know what to answer.
The two stood side by side on the riverside and looked across the river. The river, which I could cross whenever I wanted, now seemed infinitely far and wide.
Only the faint sound of insects in the grass and the sound of waves crashing into the river continued.
Just when I opened my mouth to bring up a topic about Tang military music, King Hyeonjong spoke first.
“Have you ever regretted becoming the head of the family?”
Tang Gunak’s expression hardened slightly. Depending on how you think about it, this is a sensitive question that could be quite rude.
However, the question was accepted because it was King Hyeonjong. This is not because Hyeonjong is in a position where he can be rude to Tanggunak. Because there can be no malice in his words.
“Regret…”
Tang Gunak quietly looked at King Hyeonjong, wondering what to answer to that question.
In fact, his answer to this question is meaningless. Because this isn’t a question in the first place. So he rather asked.
“Do you regret becoming a volcanologist?”
Hyeonjong smiled.
“It used to be like that often.”
“⋯⋯.”
“But not now. “I am a poor person, but I think becoming a member of Hwasan’s journal was the most rewarding thing in my life.”
“If you do…”
Hyeonjong’s eyes turned to the river that embraces the moon.
“I just had that thought once in a while. “What kind of person was I?”
Tang Kunak frowned slightly.
“What are you saying…?”
“Isn’t the head of the family like that too? Of course, this is the case in everyone’s life, but especially when you live as a long-time writer, there are many times when you have to hide your true feelings.”
Tanggunak nodded in sympathy.
“It is a position of great responsibility.”
It was the same with him. Before meeting Cheongmyeong, Tang Gunak, who was subject to excessive checks by the Presbytery, had no choice but to become a cold-hearted person beyond his nature. Because I shouldn’t have given them a chance.
Now I’ve regained some composure, but back then, things really weren’t easy.
“At first, I just thought I would do it to the best of my ability.”
The voice was calm. But the reason it didn’t just sound peaceful was because of Hyeonjong’s deep, dark eyes.
“But it didn’t work out that way. I am not that tall, but people kept wanting me to be tall. “If you are a scholar of Hwasan, you should be like that.”
Tang Gunak nodded slowly. Anyone who has ever been in a position of responsibility for someone will agree with this.
“So I just pretended. “Pretending to be bold when you’re not, pretending to be kind when you’re not kind, pretending to know something when you don’t even know what it is…”
“⋯⋯.”
“I have been living like that for decades and acting out what I think is the ideal long-winded award. It was hard at first, but at some point it got a little better. And then at some point you got used to it.”
Tang Gunak closed his eyes.
I think I understand. Thoughts govern actions. But sometimes actions dominate a person’s thoughts. Just as if you change your thoughts, your actions will change, if you change your actions, even your thoughts will change.
“It all feels natural now. “I thought like the Jang writer I wanted to be and acted to look like that, and I thought I came a little closer to becoming the kind of person that Hwasan’s Jang writer would be.”
Hyeonjong smiled. Then he looked back at Tanggunak and gave him a gentle look.
“But at some point, this thought occurred to me. What kind of person was I originally? “I’m not sure about that anymore.”
“Lord…”
“I think I have become a better person. I became a little less embarrassed by the name Hwasan Jangmun. But… I often think about it. Was that really a good thing?”
Hyeonjong’s voice contained emotions that were difficult to express.
“Was it truly a good thing…?”
Tang Gunak didn’t say anything.
Although it is difficult to put into words, I can understand it deep in my heart. I can relate. That’s why his speed is so impressive.
There was a short silence. Hyeonjong opened his mouth again.
“The children have grown up wonderfully. “Now they have become such great people that I cannot even dare to compare them to them.”
“There is still a long way to go. “How can those guys be compared to the leader?”
King Hyeonjong felt aggrieved at Tanggunak’s words.
“But I also think so. Did that growth really make those children happy?”
“⋯⋯.”
“As we take on more responsibilities, aren’t we losing more things? “Aren’t those kids just desperately trying to suppress themselves and become what someone wants them to be, just like I did in the past?”
A small sigh escaped from Tang Gunak’s mouth.
“Isn’t that how all people live?”
“That’s right. “I guess so…”
The reason why the sadness did not go away even after knowing that fact was because I thought that he, too, might have been forcing the life he lived on those children. Hyeonjong said.
“I think I know one thing.”
“⋯⋯What do you mean?”
“What should I have done?”
Tang Gunak stared at King Hyeonjong with questioning eyes. However, it was not easy to find out Hyeonjong’s inner thoughts from his calm sleep-like expression.
At that time, Tanggunak, who was about to say something, suddenly shifted his gaze.
‘Something…’
Something was approaching at high speed from the river. I squinted my eyes and looked for a moment, and I saw the object approaching through the water a little more clearly. Why is it white…
“weasel?”
Tanggunak’s eyes widened.
That must be the weasel that Cheongmyeong used to wear around. Of course, it is difficult to recognize the appearance of a weasel, but common sense suggests that there is no other ferret in the world that would cut across the Yangtze River at night?
Kiiiiiii!
Baek-ah, who discovered Tanggunak and King Hyeonjong, let out a sharp cry and increased her speed to the limit, swimming almost as if she were flying.
Ta-da-da-da-da!
Baek-ah, who arrived on land, kicked the ground violently in an instant with his short feet. Without even thinking about shaking off the moisture, Hyeonjong’s body burned up all at once, and he untied the bundle tied around his neck and held it out.
Kiik! Kick!
Rough breathing and coughing broke out one after another. Just by looking at her small body shaking, I could clearly feel how urgently she had rushed to get here.
But Baek-ah held out the bundle again as if that was nothing to worry about. It seemed like he was begging me to check it out right away.
Hyeonjong unwrapped the bundle Baek-ah held out and took out the letter it contained. Although the edges were a little wet, it didn’t interfere with reading the content.
King Hyeonjong, who read the letter without changing his expression, calmly handed the letter to Tanggunak.
“Is this a letter from the Hwasan Swordsman Association?”
Tanggunak also snatched the letter and read it without waiting for a reply. However, unlike King Hyeonjong, his eyes were very agitated while reading the manuscript.
The contents of the letter were beyond absurd to terrifying. The plan to break through Gangnam together with Haenam was briefly contained in the letter.
I’m talking about Gangnam, the headquarters of the SPA.
“What are you doing…”
Tanggunak was momentarily embarrassed and looked at Hyeonjong. However, there was no change in Hyeonjong’s expression. I just looked across the river like before.
‘Shouldn’t we do whatever it takes?’
Even though it’s Gangnam, we can’t just sit back and watch. If they all die like this…
Tang Gunak bit his lips.
But… it doesn’t work.
Invading Gangnam means starting a war. No matter how important they are, they cannot push the entire Cheonwoo Alliance into the flames of war just because of those few lives…
“Matriarch.”
“⋯⋯Yes?”
Hyeonjong asked with an expressionless face.
“Aren’t you curious what I was supposed to do?”
Tanggunak frowned at the unexpected question that did not fit the situation. King Hyeonjong said, casting a calm gaze at Tanggunak.
“This is an order given as a leader. “Please summon the heads of all factions belonging to the Cheonwoo Alliance to the Mengju Hall right now.”
Tanggunak’s eyes widened in shock.
“What are you going to do…?”
The eyes of King Hyeonjong, who looked across the river again, were infinitely colder than before.
An unwavering voice spread out.
“I’m going to save the kids.”
At that moment, Tanggunak realized that the sound of insects had already stopped a long time ago.
