Chapter 453: A Connection from the War

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Distant past.

The so-called Warring States era, going back over a thousand years.

It was when the sixteen kingdoms that had existed before went through prosperity and decline through struggle and eventually transformed into nine kingdoms.

Though it seemed the nine large and small countries thus established were maintaining peaceful relations, it was no different from dangerous tightrope walking.

History repeated itself.

Once again, the bloody winds and wailing of war covered the continent.

Indeed, human greed is endless.

The lust for power and conquest of each monarch of the nine countries ultimately brought about a New Age of Chaos.

Cho-hui was a princess of a fallen kingdom.

At the time when her country was swept up in a great war and fell to ruin, she was thirteen years old.

She was too young to comprehend why countries had to shed blood and take lives.

All Cho-hui could do was cry in terror.

Just before the royal palace fell, her mother, the queen, gave her instructions.

-Hui-ya. Go quickly now. Court lady Dong will help you escape. And you must never let go of the hand you’ve grasped. Understand? Now, there’s no time left! Go quickly!

The thirteen-year-old young princess Cho-hui clung to her with vague fear, crying and pleading.

Because she felt that if she parted here, she would never again be able to see her father and mother.

But in the end, she was led out as if seized by the court lady’s hand.

Several days passed from then.

Cho-hui heard the news that her country had fallen.

Moreover, she even heard that a king of another country had razed the palace and killed her parents……

For Cho-hui, it was a reality difficult to accept.

Thus she became a princess of a fallen nation and an orphan.

The only person she could rely on was the court lady who had accompanied her.

-I…… Am so scared. What do we do now? We have no home to return to. Sob……

-Don’t worry too much. I’ll attend to you to the end.

-Sob…… Sob sob…… I…… Miss father and mother.

-Yes…… I well understand how you feel. I lost my parents when I was young too. But…… Those who live have no choice but to keep living. Let’s go to my hometown. The road is long, but if we get there, we can live quietly avoiding the war.

-R…… Really?

-Of course.

-Thank you. Sob……

-Don’t say such things. While living in the palace, the queen treated me like a daughter. Now I must repay that grace to the princess.

The court lady headed toward her distant hometown while caring for Cho-hui like a birth parent.

But their journey didn’t last long.

Because it was truly an age of chaos where warring lords contested for supremacy, dangers lurked everywhere.

The court lady was killed by a gang of bandits that suddenly appeared.

She didn’t simply stop breathing.

She was gang-raped and then strangled to death.

In that process, Cho-hui miraculously survived.

Because she had fled without looking back and hidden under a rock.

From that time, Cho-hui, having lost her way, walked and walked along the narrow path without purpose.

She starved for many days while crying and crying again.

Then she finally collapsed, losing consciousness as her strength was exhausted.

When she woke up after a while, she found herself in someone’s home.

The owner was a local man of influence in a small village.

But he was generally greedy and of bad conduct.

From that day on, a harsh reality came to Cho-hui.

She became a servant of that house, living almost as if confined while taking on all sorts of menial tasks.

Sometimes she was beaten on trumped-up pretexts, but still she endured and held out.

Thus three years of unfortunate life passed.

When Cho-hui turned sixteen, her beauty was in full bloom.

A heavenly woman’s appearance that couldn’t be hidden even by shabby attire.

The owner’s son, who had been eyeing her beauty, harbored lustful intentions.

Then one night, trouble erupted.

The owner’s son secretly entered the room where Cho-hui was sleeping, covered her mouth, and attempted to rape her.

Badly startled, she resisted desperately, and in doing so struck his head with a whetstone that happened to be beside her.

The loud scream that burst out threw the household into an uproar.

Cho-hui thought that if she just stayed there, she might be beaten to death by the owner, so she attempted to escape with all her might.

Thus she barely managed to escape that house and ran without rest.

From that time, she spent over ten days on the run with nothing to her name, and then happened to spot a carriage passing along a forest road and asked for help.

That was the starting point of a new connection that would change her unfortunate life.

The owner of the carriage was a madam of courtesan origin who ran a famous tavern in a city called ‘Lizhou.’

Having heard the circumstances, she pondered for a while and then made a proposal to Cho-hui, who had nowhere to go.

-Tcha, poor thing…… So you were in the middle of running away after going through such a thing. From now on, you’ll have no need to live as a servant in another’s house. Because you met me here. If it’s fate…… It’s fate. Will you come with me? Then I’ll take responsibility and make you into the finest courtesan.

-B-but……

-Hut, I can tell what you want to say from your eyes. Don’t worry. There are no customers who would carelessly demand someone’s body from a courtesan. We’re different from prostitutes. We only sell wine and song, dance and laughter. Of course, if that customer is royalty or a high official, it’s hard to refuse their request. Even so, I promise you. That your integrity of not selling your body…… I will definitely protect.

-A-are you really telling the truth?

-I’ve done business solely on trust all this time. Come, let’s go together. Go and diligently learn dance and song to become lizhou’s finest courtesan. Then your life will completely change too.

-Your words are too generous, but…… Since I’ve only lived as a servant until now, I have no confidence.

-Nonsense, confidence can be cultivated. Besides, you have the greatest weapon called beauty. If you wash up cleanly and properly adorn yourself, you’ll be able to bewitch men’s souls. Even if your dancing and singing skills are lacking.

-……

-Alright, I’ll give you time to think. For now, let’s go to my establishment. You’ll need to fill your hungry stomach first.

-Sob…… I will never forget this kindness.

-Cry to your heart’s content. Holding back tears becomes an illness too. As you know…… This is an age where war and violence are rampant. Surviving as a woman in it is no ordinary hardship. The reason I struggle to keep my tavern going is because of that too. I consider it a refuge and final haven for powerless, poor women caught up in war. I too in the past…… Lived an unfortunate life like you. No, it’s the same for all the courtesans staying in my establishment. By the way…… Did your parents pass away long ago?

-Ah…… Yes. That is……

-My…… Never mind. Don’t say anything more. I won’t ask further…… Hu-hut, your eyes are quite honest. Just looking at them, I can tell you have some secretive story you can’t speak of. From now on, I’ll teach you how to hide your heart too.

From that day on, Cho-hui came to live at the tavern the madam ran.

And when she turned nineteen, she made her name known throughout Lizhou as the finest and most ravishingly beautiful courtesan, proficient not only in singing and dancing but also in musical instruments and calligraphy.

Along with it, the tavern’s reputation also rose to another level, and despite it being an age of chaos where the concept of national borders was meaningless, customers’ footsteps never ceased.

During the three years, the political situation of the continent also changed.

The nine countries had before anyone knew it shrunk to six countries.

Such chaotic fighting showed no sign of ending.

Even the relatively safe city of Lizhou faced upheaval as the unpredictable war continued.

When Cho-hui turned twenty, the city’s master finally changed.

Because the king who had ruled Lizhou and its surrounding area publicly declared surrender after losing a great battle with another country.

But the madam’s tavern still operated normally.

As always, soothing the hearts of those exhausted by the long war with wine and song, dance and laughter……

One day, rumors about the recently changing political situation of the troubled times circulated here and there in the city.

-Two young dragons who appeared some years ago are causing waves while leading independent armies.

-They’ve said to have already toppled one country and seized its royal power.

-Perhaps the master of Lizhou, which isn’t geographically far, might change again soon.

-The name of he who sat on the throne is Huan hou, the name of the brave general who assists him is Bai Chu.

-The storm those two men have newly raised will before long transform into a great typhoon.

In that midst, the tavern the madam ran was facing an unexpected problem.

The king who had taken Lizhou and its surrounding area had issued an order to his military officers to find beautiful women from various places and bring them to the palace.

-We cannot be satisfied with the existing Palace women. We need new playthings to spend the night with. Status doesn’t matter. Also, it doesn’t matter whether they’re married. If their beauty is outstanding, drag them all to the palace. If there’s a husband who resists, make her a widow…… Do you understand? In that process, I permit violent means transcending national law.

Because of that, the madam’s tavern, famous for having many beautiful women, naturally became a target too.

In front of the tavern’s main gate, a woman and about twenty military officers and soldiers stood facing each other.

JJAK… !

The sound of slapping a cheek.

The madam’s head snapped harshly to the side from the blow of the bearded man wearing armor.

“How dare a lowly wench ignore a royal command!”

He was Han-jong, one of the generals under the king, famous for being violent.

The madam was dripping bright red blood from her split mouth.

Still, she didn’t easily back down and stood blocking the military personnel gathered at the tavern’s main gate.

“Everyone, how can you act like this! Forcibly recruiting Palace women this way is something that will lose the hearts of the people! Can a country that has lost the hearts of the common people truly be called a proper country! Please reconsider!”

“Haah…… Have I ever seen such an insolent lowborn bitch.”

When Han-jong gave a chin gesture, the soldiers behind him moved, assaulted the madam, and dragged her inside the tavern.

UDANGTANG… TEOLPEODEOK!

The madam’s body, thrown carelessly by rough hands, slammed hard into a nearby table and collapsed on the wooden floor.

The customers and courtesans inside the establishment, seeing that sight, each cried out with aghast expressions.

“Kyaaak!”

“Eoeok! Soldiers……?”

“Th-that……!”

“Madam!”

“Wh-what do we do!”

Han-jong drew a sword and let out a voice laden with fierce murderous intent.

“We’ve come here because we have business with the courtesans of this place. So everyone scram .”

While the terrified customers hurriedly fled out of the tavern as if running away, a woman hugged the fallen madam and shot a sharp gaze.

“What is the meaning of this! Treating an innocent person like this……!”

In the instant the soldiers were about to move.

CHEOK.

Han-jong stopped them with a hand gesture and then wore a repulsive smile.

“Hu-hut, What’s this? They said there was a courtesan here who’s a beauty that could overturn Kingdoms…… So it was you.”

After briefly smacking his lips, he flashed his eyes and spoke again.

“There is a royal command to mobilize all beauties in the domain. Meaning you are a tribute to be offered to his majesty starting today. But before that…… This body must first confirm whether the quality is good. Everyone, strip that wench’s clothes.”

Several soldiers forcefully grabbed Cho-hui’s body and stood her up, then BUUUUK! Ripped off her outer garment.

“Kyaat! Let…… Let go of this!”

As her fair bare skin and undergarments were thus exposed, Han-jong’s repulsive smile became even more distinct.

“Keukeu, the more I look at that wench, the more appetizing she looks.”

Right at that moment, an indifferent voice flowed out from over there.

“While you look truly filthy. Enough to make one’s gorge rise just looking.”

Simultaneously, the gazes of all present concentrated in that direction.

The owner of the voice was a man in his twenties wearing plain clothes and carrying a sword.

Those present here were utterly unaware.

That he was none other than Bai Chu, one of the two dragons recently causing a storm across the continent.