SYM 67
by Emerlyn“Un, what are you saying…”
Eun-hyeon felt a wave of dizziness as he watched Cheong-un grin and open his mouth.
He didn’t know how his personality had become so twisted, but he clearly seemed to be planning a nasty prank.
“As expected of Green Forest Banditry, you have a keen eye. To recognize that we are in love at first glance. I am impressed. My wife is pregnant, and we have left to avoid the eyes of our family elders.”
At Cheong-un’s words, the Fan Lord burst into hearty laughter.
“Hahaha! Indeed, my words were all correct. When you experience the storms of the world, you can see a person’s life just by looking at their face! Your courage is commendable. Alright, I will make an exception and not take all your money.”
“Oh, Fan Lord!”
The bandits, who had been humoring the Fan Lord and teasing Cheong-un and Eun-hyeon, cried out in surprise. But the Fan Lord didn’t even blink an eye and shook his head.
“Didn’t you say she’s pregnant! Jangsu, you became a father last month, don’t be stingy.”
At the Fan Lord’s stern rebuke, the bandit named Jangsu hung his head.
“I understand. Then let’s keep this a secret from Chae Hwarim. Well, there are many things to prepare before the baby is born. Especially since you’ve left home. It seems like it’s early in the pregnancy since your wife’s belly isn’t big yet, so be careful now. If there’s anything she wants to eat, try hard to get it for her.”
Following the Fan Lord, Cheong-un nodded with a serious expression at the meddling bandit’s words.
“Thank you. I will take your advice to heart. She has severe morning sickness and doesn’t want to eat just anything, so I have many worries.”
Eun-hyeon was so dumbfounded that he let out a hollow laugh.
When he glared at Cheong-un, Cheong-un subtly pulled Eun-hyeon into his embrace.
Was Cheong-un originally this kind of person?
Eun-hyeon, who had suddenly become a pregnant woman with morning sickness, sighed.
But if no one died and the situation could be resolved by him pretending to be Cheong-un’s pregnant wife, it wouldn’t be such a bad thing.
After that, Cheong-un nodded and humored the bandits for a while. Then he took out a small pouch.
“Brothers of the Green Forest, here, take this. It’s part of our travel expenses. If you take this and let us go, how about it? This person is very weak, so even being startled is a concern. Please, let’s end this quietly.”
“Hey, what do you take us for? Do we look like people who would threaten a weak woman? We may be bandits, but we are Green Forest Banditry! We were all commoners before.”
“Then I will trust only the brothers of the Green Forest.”
The Fan Lord opened the pouch that Cheong-un handed him and his eyes widened.
The pouch wasn’t big, but it was full of gold ingots. This was enough to cover the living expenses of an average household for a year.
To give away this much money so easily. As he expected, they were definitely rich suckers from a wealthy family. If they could easily give away a pouch like this, how much money did they have? For a moment, greed surged up without him realizing it, but the Fan Lord shook his head.
Too much money is dangerous. This was the secret to how he had led Chae Hwarim without any major incidents while serving as the Fan Lord.
They might be able to capture them and take everything they had, but then they would have to deal with the consequences.
If these people could lightly throw away this much money even while fleeing in a hurry, they must be members of a Martial Arts family or of a considerably high status.
If they messed with such people, a more terrifying aftermath than money would follow.
After finishing these calculations in his head, the Fan Lord nodded with a benevolent smile.
“Go carefully with your wife. But where are you headed?”
Cheong-un glanced at Eun-hyeon once. Seeing him bowing his head with a resigned expression, he couldn’t help but think he was cute.
To think that he found his Master, whom he shouldn’t even step on his shadow, cute. Cheong-un momentarily folded away his impudent thoughts.
“We are going to Xi’an. We have distant relatives there and are planning to rely on them.”
“Xi’an, that’s a long way. Ah, didn’t I hear some rumors going around in Xi’an these days? Muil, what did that merchant who went to Xi’an say before?”
“Ah, they said people keep disappearing these days. And it seems like it’s not just Xi’an, but it’s happening quite often throughout Shanxi Province.”
“Tsk, tsk. The government officials don’t even care about the disappearance of commoners. They’ll just try to catch good Green Forest Banditry like us. Not long ago, they said that a family elder of the Namgung Clan colluded with evil sect members and harmed people. These days, you can’t trust anyone, whether they’re righteous or evil.”
Eun-hyeon involuntarily trembled at the words “Namgung Clan family elder” that came out of the Fan Lord’s mouth.
Judging by how it was known to the public, the Martial Arts Alliance seemed to be planning to keep the story related to the Hongbaek Sect a secret for now.
“In the end, the family elder committed suicide and the Namgung Clan closed its doors, but now what ominous things are going to happen again? Anyway, be careful.”
The Fan Lord gave advice as if he were Cheong-un’s close neighborhood friend, then waved his hand.
Cheong-un greeted the Fan Lord and the bandits, and slyly took Eun-hyeon’s hand.
“Wife, let’s go to the village now. We should buy a carriage in the village. Now that you’re not alone, be especially careful…”
Eun-hyeon raised his fist and punched Cheong-un.
Cheong-un could have easily dodged it, but he deliberately took the hit. If it would relieve his Master’s anger, something like this was nothing.
* * *
“But Master, what do you think about dressing up as a woman, as those bandits said earlier?”
“What nonsense are you spouting?”
Eun-hyeon was reminded of the words Cheong-un had said while teasing him.
Had he said that he dressed up as a woman and was called ‘my lord’ and ‘gaga’?
He couldn’t forget how wronged and absurd he felt when he heard those ridiculous words.
“I am not bringing this up with impure thoughts. Master, how could I? However, I am concerned about what the bandits said earlier.”
“What the bandits said?”
“Yes, didn’t they say that people are frequently disappearing throughout Shanxi Province? That matter is bothering me.”
Eun-hyeon frowned as he listened to Cheong-un’s words.
“Well, if even the bandits know about it… I should find out more about that matter when we enter the village this time.”
Usually, bandits who lived in the mountains often didn’t know much about what was happening down below. But if even those bandits knew about it, it meant that it was more serious than he thought.
“Don’t even think about looking into the disappearance of commoners yourself. The principle of non-interference applies not only to the government. It also means that martial artists cannot interfere in the affairs of the government.”
The non-interference between the government and the Martial World was an unwritten rule of the Jianghu.
Just as the government did not interfere in the affairs of martial artists, martial artists could not interfere in the affairs of the government and commoners.
“Who doesn’t know that? And I don’t know Martial Arts, so I can’t be called a martial artist.”
Cheong-un chuckled at Eun-hyeon’s words.
It seemed that Eun-hyeon wanted to dig deeper into the disappearance case.
“Yes, that’s good, Master. Do whatever you want to do, Master. I will do it for you.”
Cheong-un took Eun-hyeon’s hand again.
When they walked together as children, he would hold his hand like this.
His rough, large hand was always warm and careful. He always matched his pace and waited for him, even when he walked slowly.
He never rushed or scolded him. Even when he was in a hurry, he would carry him and run, but he never yelled at him.
How could he not love such a person?
“It’s good to have a capable disciple.”
“Of course. It will get better and better in the future.”
He held Eun-hyeon’s small hand tightly.
“Master, it seems like we need to hurry a little to get to the village before it gets dark. I will carry you.”
“Huh?”
Cheong-un lifted Eun-hyeon up in a flash.
Eun-hyeon seemed surprised for a moment, but soon leaned comfortably into his arms. Because he had been carried around so much when he was trapped in the formation, Eun-hyeon was no longer unfamiliar with being held by Cheong-un.
Cheong-un began to run while holding Eun-hyeon.
Looking at Eun-hyeon in his arms, his thirst soared. But he wore the mask of a polite disciple and skillfully hid his dark intentions.
He didn’t harbor these feelings thinking that he would be rewarded someday. So it was okay if Eun-hyeon didn’t do anything.
If it was a heart that would be extinguished by something like that, it wouldn’t have ignited in the first place.
…But until then, it would be okay to satisfy his small desires, right?
Cheong-un looked down at Eun-hyeon, who had fallen asleep in his arms, and gently kissed his forehead.