Chapter 241 – What If You Don’t? (1)
Eun So-young looked outside, feeling the vibration of the shaking carriage.
No one would care about them, yet she couldn’t help but look around with the feeling of being caught red-handed.
“Why am I like this?”
Kang Yoon was riding ahead of her carriage, no one paying attention to them, yet she couldn’t shake off the thought of someone appearing and suspecting their relationship.
Meanwhile, Sibi, who seemed to know what she was up to, was laughing heartily as if he knew what she was thinking.
“It’s not just because I want to live together, but… well…”
Of course, regardless of whether it was apparent or not, she did enjoy it.
She thought she might live apart from him for a few years after having a child, but she was happy to be able to live together before the child turned one.
Eun So-young looked at Kang Yoon’s back, who was riding ahead of her, even though she wasn’t hungry.
He had a hard time riding horses on their previous trip, but now he looked relaxed and comfortable.
Suddenly, a man on horseback rode past them.
“Sir… Kang So-hyup? Where are you going?”
“I have someone I know to see. I’ll be back soon.”
Someone he knows?
Come to think of it, Eun So-young didn’t know who Kang Yoon knew.
She knew the woman he lived with, but she didn’t know who his other acquaintances were, where he was from, or anything about his past.
While lost in thought, the man rode far away, and Eun So-young instructed Sibi to follow slowly without rushing.
It wouldn’t be a problem since they were the only ones traveling together.
“But who could it be?”
That Kang Yoon could recognize someone from so far away and ride to greet them.
Eun So-young thought she should ask who it was when she met up with Kang Yoon.
I rode my horse a little faster and approached the person standing at the entrance of the temple.
It might have been a mistake at first glance because he had the same hairstyle and clothes as Sori’s lyrics, but there couldn’t be so many monks with long hair like that.
I knew that Sori didn’t receive female disciples, so I knew that he was a monk in the Gochu field.
But as I got closer, something seemed a little troublesome.
“You, who do you think you are to say someone’s a slut?”
A man was scolding her in broad daylight, but she replied calmly.
“This clothing is indeed Sori’s, as Shiju said. However, Binni is undoubtedly Sori’s…”
“Hey! If you want to deceive someone, at least do it properly! Where did you hear that there’s a woman Sori disciple?”
I get it. It seems like they misunderstood her as someone pretending to be a Sori disciple and scamming people.
If it had nothing to do with her, they would just pass by, but why did they have to pick a fight and insist that they were right?
“You guys like you cause trouble, and the real Sori disciples suffer. Do you even know what kind of damage you’re causing? Can’t you stop imitating them?”
“But Shiju, however…”
“Long time no see, monk.”
I stood next to them and bowed, putting my hands together. I don’t really believe in religion, but it’s easier to do it here.
“…Kang So-hyup?”
“Yes, Ho-yeon monk. Have you been well?”
“Hojabae?”
The drunkard looked at me with widened eyes. Is Hojabae a high rank? I heard that Sori’s head monk is called Hyunjabae.
“This guy is also a gangster! Hojabae means someone who has a relationship with Sori’s leader and is under the death penalty. I’ve never heard of a female Sori disciple anywhere! If you don’t get out of here…”
“If I don’t?”
I kicked a rolling stone with my foot and picked it up.
Thud.
The hand with my strength easily turned the stone into sand, and the drunkard, who saw it, clapped his hands in admiration while trembling and hitting his thighs.
“If I don’t?”
“So-hyup… why are you doing this…”
Ho-yeon seemed to scold me next to me, but the drunkard stumbled back and fell over while shaking his legs.
“If I don’t?”
“Uh, uh, ugh!”
Shh.
As I poured the sand that was still in my hand onto the ground, the drunkard sat on the ground and started to back away, turning his body to run away.
“Don’t run and be careful when you go in!”
“Ahhhh!”
Did I say I was going to kill him? I just repeated what he said.
“So-hyup…”
“Have you been well, monk?”
“Sigh… I’ve been well.”
Ho-yeon shook his head as if he was disappointed with me and exchanged bows with me. However, Ho-yeon’s bow was a half-bow with one hand, like a Sori disciple.
“It was just a misunderstanding, but do you have to intimidate me with power like that?”
“Oh my, power? I just tried to prove that I am a martial artist to increase the credibility of my statement to that person. I never had any evil intentions.”
“…I remember that So-hyup who helped me before was wiser and more reasonable…”
Stay in character.
“Everyone deserves to be treated according to their status. How can I be suspected without even being seen?”
“…”
“Stones are bound to turn into sand over time and return to nature. What’s the problem with bringing forward that natural process and enlightening the eyes of the living?”
Ho-yeon looked at me with a subtle gaze and nodded his head.
“Each person has their own enlightenment and path. I’m not sure if my attempt to fix that was arrogant.”
It wasn’t that grand, but I found myself caught up in Ho-yeon’s atmosphere and making a somewhat convincing argument.
“Anyway, it’s nice to see you, monk. I didn’t expect to meet you here, even though I haven’t seen you in Namgungse before.”
“I came to offer my congratulations to Namgungse and stopped by Guhwasan to deliver a letter to a friend who is facing execution.”
“Oh, you’re also a monk…? But I don’t think I’ve seen you before.”
“It’s difficult to sit with other Siju disciples… I asked for permission from Namgung’s family and stayed in my quarters.”
I briefly imagined that the person from Sori was Ho-yeon.
“Does Sori also send congratulations to secular weddings?”
“Yes…? Oh, no. It’s not something that happens often…”
Ho-yeon trailed off. What’s going on? He seemed hesitant to say something important. Since it wasn’t a significant issue, I changed the subject.
“Anyway, it’s nice to see you, monk. I didn’t expect to meet you here, even though I haven’t seen you in Namgungse before.”
“Oh, yes, So-hyup. Really…”
Once again, he seemed to be at a loss for words. Why is he like this? It’s just a harmless conversation.
But come to think of it, compared to Mong-ah who confidently spouts lies, he seemed like a fairy.
At that moment, I felt the carriage of Eun So-young, who had been following slowly, approaching from behind and turned around.
“Kang So-hyup. What’s going on?”
“Oh, Madam. I met someone I know for the first time in a while and hurried over with joy.”
“Oh, you’re from Sori. But…?”
Eun So-young also seemed to be suspicious like the drunkard earlier, narrowing her eyes slightly.
“Nice to meet you, Siju. Binni is Ho-yeon from Sori.”
“I’m Eun So-young from Namgungse. I’m the mother of the groom… But, by any chance, did you come here to see the Siju you met from Sori?”
“That’s right, Siju Eun. I stayed at your family’s estate until recently.”
Oh, I see. But even so, her gaze towards him wasn’t very friendly…
[So-young, I really didn’t do anything to this person.]
[We’ll do it later, okay?]
It seems like it was that kind of problem after all. Who can I blame but myself for not properly controlling my own damn head?
Honestly, if Ho-yeon’s mental state had been stable before, I might have already made a move.
After exchanging pleasantries for a moment, Ho-yeon bowed once again.
“Well then, I’ll be going now, Siju Eun, Kang So-hyup.”
“Just a moment, monk. Are you planning on leaving like this?”
I grabbed Ho-yeon, who was about to leave. It didn’t seem like the sun would be up for much longer, so it might be better to stay here for the night and leave tomorrow.
“Right, monk. If it’s not too much trouble, why don’t you stay at our estate and rest before you leave?”
“Um…?”
But before I could say anything, Eun So-young seemed to have misunderstood my words as an invitation to our estate.
“It’s alright, Siju. It’s not proper etiquette to send a guest from our hometown away like this. If it’s not too much trouble, please stay for the night.”
Ho-yeon hesitated for a moment before speaking again.
“Then, I will gratefully accept your kindness, Siju.”
As I helped Ho-yeon onto the carriage, Eun So-young glanced at me and nodded her head.
No, this isn’t the development I wanted…
“But wouldn’t it be better to take Gyeon with you? Is it really okay to take him?”
He’s still a baby who cries at the slightest disturbance. I couldn’t help but wonder what gave Eun So-young the confidence to invite Ho-yeon like this.
Ho-yeon submerged himself in the bathtub filled with lukewarm water.
Since the weather was hot, it didn’t really matter if the water was cold, but it felt like all the fatigue in my body was being relieved as I entered the warm water.
“Kang Yoon… So-hyup…”
They were quite memorable people.
The person who had treated me kindly like a virtuous scholar last time had now threatened a drunkard like a gangster.
I scolded him for suddenly changing like that, but I was grateful for his help.
“I didn’t expect to see you here.”
She was the same.
She didn’t need to come here, to Namgungse, or to Guhwasan. But she came here anyway, taking a slight detour.
At the Siju where they met.
I never found out where Kang Yoon was hiding or if he was someone who lived nearby.
But she came to this place where she wanted to take a step forward, and met me again like a liar.
Plop.
Ho-yeon realized that his heart was beating strangely at this coincidence and submerged his face halfway into the water.
