Chapter 258: Chapter 258

“But are you really going?”

Gwon Mu-jin looked at Jang Sam-tae with a somewhat anxious expression. It was nice that he had been coaxed into coming all the way to Yueyang, but no matter how much he thought about it, he felt this was a bit too unreasonable.

Glancing over, Ma Jang-gang was not speaking either, but the anxiety could be felt from his expression.

“Ah! I told you really not to worry! It’s fine!”

“If we get caught by the Lord…”

“Hey! Who is our master? He doesn’t care about things like that, so don’t worry. I’m just receiving the payment for following him to Jilin, so he won’t say anything, you know?”

“Mmm…”

Jang Sam-tae pounded his chest as if frustrated.

How could men be so full of fear?

Of course, the biggest worry would be whether Dan Woo-hyun would get angry, but Jang Sam-tae was one who believed he knew Dan Woo-hyun better than anyone.

He wouldn’t get angry over a minor thing like this.

We could just buy a bottle of good liquor and go, couldn’t we?

“We are here!”

Soon, Jang Sam-tae looked at the place before his eyes and grinned.

Looking at the large signboard that read ‘Yueyang Prefecture Office’, his heart seethed in spite of himself.

“Let’s go!”

Soon, he took a step forward without hesitation.

The guards who knew Jang Sam-tae did not even think of blocking him as he entered confidently, and cleared the way for him. Although they hesitated slightly, it was because he was someone that perhaps even Hong Won-chang could do nothing about.

“Lord Hong, are you there?”

Jang Sam-tae looked around here and there, searching for Hong Won-chang. Ma Jang-gang shook his head at the sight of him putting on such airs.

“Is it really okay to behave like that?”

“For now… let’s watch.”

Gwon Mu-jin sighed and watched Jang Sam-tae’s actions.

For some reason, he was incredibly confident. Of course, since he had no need to bow his head to Hong Won-chang, it was only natural, but he was arrogant to a degree that could not even be compared to usual, as if something had happened between the two.

“Hmm? What brings you here?”

“Ahem! Lord Hong, what other reason would this Sam-tae have for coming to find Lord Hong?”

“Huh?”

‘What is this guy?’

Looking at the somehow arrogant appearance, Hong Won-chang swallowed a groan.

By the looks of it, he seemed to have come with a certain purpose, but he could not guess what it was at all. While he was doing so, Jang Sam-tae, who was putting on airs, sat on the veranda.

“I heard that the matter in Beijing was resolved well?”

“…Uh… Ye-yes, that is so…”

“It seems you also received a very good reward.”

“…”

Only then did Hong Won-chang guess what that fellow was trying to say. The incident that occurred in Beijing was credited entirely to Hong Won-chang, and thanks to that, he received quite a large reward from the imperial court.

At this rate, the day he would actually go to Beijing was not far off.

Jang Sam-tae had come seeking to exploit that now.

“Did… the Lord send you?”

“Hey, would our master tell me to go receive something like that or not? You should give it on your own.”

Jang Sam-tae rubbed his fingers together and wore a bright smile.

It was undeniably a wicked smile.

Hong Won-chang had indeed received help from Dan Woo-hyun, and thanks to that, he had also obtained a massive reward. Even without this, he had planned to go express his gratitude to Dan Woo-hyun soon, but he was flustered by Jang Sam-tae’s untimely visit.

“Even without this, I was going to the Lord…”

“Ahem!”

Jang Sam-tae cut him off with a dry cough and sat with his legs crossed. Raising his chin slightly, he curled up the corners of his mouth with a smirk.

“Give that to the master on your own, and I should receive mine separately.”

“What?”

“Or should I spread some rumors? You, come here for a moment.”

He suddenly called out to a passing guard and stopped him.

The guard, who could not understand the reason, approached with a puzzled expression. Watching that, Hong Won-chang was startled and grabbed Jang Sam-tae by the collar.

“You…!”

Unable to handle the rising anger, even his hands trembled.

“Do not do useless things!”

“Uh-huh, are you grabbing the collar of an innocent commoner? This is really…”

In an instant, Hong Won-chang slowly let go of the collar and smoothed his expression. He patted Jang Sam-tae’s chest as if dusting it off, and laughed.

“Right, right, what do you need?”

His tightly clenched fists trembled.

Jang Sam-tae wore a smile as if looking down on a person.

“First, bring out a grand feast.”

* * *

“Mmm…”

“I’m… hungry…”

Namgung So-hye and Zhuge Yeon had headed to Jangsa to get some fresh air after a long time.

Hence, those who remained in the clan were only a few, and among them, the only one who could cook was Dan So-mi.

However, since allowing Dan So-mi to cook while Dan Woo-hyun was present was unacceptable, they ended up starving.

Because of this, Namgung Cheon, Sa Do-hak, and Dan Woo-hyun were in a very bad mood.

Zhuge Un broke out in a cold sweat.

To make matters worse, the three of them had come back from playing hard outside. Although they might not be physically exhausted, since they hadn’t even eaten lunch, it was natural for them to be hungry.

However, Jang Sam-tae, who was supposed to make food, was not present, and even So-hye had gone out, so there was nothing they could eat.

“Should… So-mi do it?”

“No.”

Dan So-mi, who was glancing at them, muttered softly, but Dan Woo-hyun rejected it flatly and shook his head.

Aside from the amount being too much to task a young child with, handling fire was dangerous.

“Just where and what on earth is that fellow doing?”

Sa Do-hak clutched his hungry stomach and grimaced.

Gwon Mu-jin, Ma Jang-gang, and Jang Sam-tae.

Usually, those who never hung out together had gone out together and there had been no news for several hours, which was frustrating.

At that moment, the main gate opened with a creak.

People’s gazes poured toward that place all at once.

Mae-hyang, who was entering, flinched in surprise.

“Did you find them?”

The first to ask was Dan Woo-hyun.

Since she had gone to Yueyang to find Jang Sam-tae, he was asking for the result.

At this, Mae-hyang turned her head with a somewhat troubled expression. Sighing as if she knew it would turn out like this, she muttered in a small voice.

“About that… you see…”

“What is it? Speak quickly.”

As Sa Do-hak urged with shining eyes, Mae-hyang, who was extremely frightened, closed her eyes tightly. She wanted to cover for Jang Sam-tae somehow, but the situation did not seem to allow it.

In her heart, Mae-hyang prayed for Jang Sam-tae’s soul.

* * *

“Bwahahaha!”

“This is so good, so good!”

“…”

Shouting loudly, Jang Sam-tae was running wild with joy. Following behind, Ma Jang-gang drank heavily and danced joyfully.

Having rented out the entirety of a place that was reputedly expensive even in the red-light district of Yueyang, the four men sat with courtesans and were gulping down liquor repeatedly.

As if they thought it a waste to disperse the alcohol’s effects using internal energy, their faces had turned bright red.

Even.

“As expected, a man should play boldly like this!”

Even Hong Won-chang, who had wanted to tear Jang Sam-tae to death just a moment ago, was completely drunk, hugging a courtesan and drinking continuously.

Truly like men fallen into pleasure, the liquor kept coming, and the room was filled with the thick scent of women.

“It has been a long time since I played like this, so I feel good! Isn’t that right, Guard Gwon?”

“…I do not know well, but it is indeed good.”

Gwon Mu-jin, who usually maintained a serious attitude, was not much different.

Drinking repeatedly, he turned his gaze away as if he were uninterested.

It was truly a mess.

“Puhaha! What did I tell you! I said it would be fine, didn’t I?”

Jang Sam-tae laughed loudly, putting his arm around Hong Won-chang’s shoulder.

It was a sorry thing to say to Dan Woo-hyun, but wasn’t gathering like this among men occasionally the very opportunity to build a deep friendship?

Having fully old geezers around would only be a hindrance.

“Hic! But I wonder if it will be fine. If the Lord finds out…”

“Even so, we couldn’t call him, could we? Those old fossils would only come and get in the way, right? Young guys should hang out with young guys.”

“The Lord is also young, though?”

“Hahaha! Even if his bones were rotting, that skeleton would have rotted long ago!”

To those who did not know at all that Dan Woo-hyun was the Martial God himself, he could only look young. However, to Jang Sam-tae, who knew all the facts, he was already not the same human.

“To call me a skeleton, your words are harsh.”

“No, did I say anything wrong! A long… long… time ago…?”

For an instant, time stopped.

Everyone froze in their seats, unable to move.

Not to mention Gwon Mu-jin who was drinking, even Ma Jang-gang and Hong Won-chang, who were digging into the arms of the courtesans, became like stone, and not even a single sound of breathing was heard, as if time had truly stopped.

At the end of their gazes, there were three people.

Dan Woo-hyun, Namgung Cheon, and Sa Do-hak.

Looking around the room casually, they stared at the luxurious feast and let out exclamations.

“Wow… some people are on the verge of starving to death, yet you guys are picking and eating only delicious things.”

Sa Do-hak quietly tore off a chicken leg. Perhaps because a high-quality chicken had been cooked, the meat was quite tender.

Taking a bite of it, he looked at Gwon Mu-jin, who was holding a wine cup blankly.

“You have a piece, too.”

He forced it into his mouth, which had nothing but bones left.

Without even being able to resist, Gwon Mu-jin had to accept all those actions.

“How is it? Even if it’s only bones, it’s delicious, right?”

“Ye-yes, it is…”

“Eating what has only bones is also tolerable, right?”

“Yes…”

“Then even fully old guys must be useful, right?”

Gwon Mu-jin nodded his head like crazy.

The moment he tried to channel his internal energy to disperse the drunkenness, Sa Do-hak smacked him hard on the head.

“Argh!”

“Who told you to move your internal energy?”

The one who flinched at those words was Ma Jang-gang, who was beside him. He had also been channeling his internal energy to disperse the drunkenness, but seeing Gwon Mu-jin get hit, he hastily settled his energy.

In the meantime, Dan Woo-hyun looked around at the four men and sat down.

“Bring out the liquor.”

At his single word, the courtesans rushed to bring the liquor. Having noticed that the atmosphere was strange, they seemed to think they had to obey.

“Bring more.”

One by one, liquor bottles began to be laid out around them. Seeing the room filled with them, they had surely brought all the liquor in the courtesan house.

The four men looked at Dan Woo-hyun with anxious expressions.

Surely, he had not asked to bring it to drink together with them in this situation…

“Drink.”

At that moment, Dan Woo-hyun lightly flicked his finger. Four bottles of liquor that were on the floor landed in front of the four men. Those who slowly picked them up wore ominous expressions.

Gulp, gulp!

However, since the command had fallen, they could not not drink.

Soon, when each of them had emptied a bottle, Dan Woo-hyun flicked his finger again.

“Drink.”

At that single word, everyone looked at Dan Woo-hyun, turning pale.

Only then did they realize his intention. Without a doubt, Dan Woo-hyun did not seem likely to let them return until they drank all the liquor in this place.

“Drink.”

At the single word heard once again, everyone’s complexion turned yellow.

“If you raise your internal energy, you die. If you understand, keep drinking. I will let you drink the liquor you like so much to your heart’s content.”

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