Chapter 25: Chapter 25
Across a vast plain lush with green, several dozen baggage wagons rolled onward. Atop them sat dozens of passengers, and escorting them were more than ten mounted warriors.
Upon the roof of the lead wagon, a banner bearing the two characters “Silver Lotus” fluttered in the wind.
“Waaah!”
A boy seated on one of the wagons in the middle of the procession let out a cry of wonder at the expansive plain.
He appeared to be only ten or eleven years of age. His face retained the softness of youth, with plump cheeks and a stocky frame to match.
The boy, who radiated an air of warmth at a glance, could not stop marveling at the sights unfolding around him.
The middle-aged man driving the wagon smiled at the sight.
“Jin-bo, is it really that wonderful?”
“Of course!”
“Were these not the same sights we saw on the way here? What is so remarkable about them?”
“But it wasn’t this green back then!”
“Well, I suppose…”
The middle-aged man driving the wagon, Bang Woo-gwang, nodded in agreement.
The boy who kept exclaiming in admiration was his son, Bang Jin-bo.
Bang Woo-gwang gazed at his son with eyes full of tenderness.
‘Poor boy! If only his mother were alive, he would not have to endure this hardship, trailing after his father.’
It was then.
“We shall camp here for the night. Everyone, prepare yourselves.”
From the front of the column, a voice rang out.
“Yes, sir!”
The wagon drivers answered in unison. Bang Woo-gwang’s voice was among them.
The dozens of wagons gathered in the open field.
As though by prior arrangement, they arranged the wagons in a circle to form a makeshift wall, and began preparing to camp.
Bang Woo-gwang parked his wagon among the others and hastily spoke to his son.
“Quickly, unload the cooking implements.”
“Yes!”
Bang Jin-bo began unloading the items from the back of the wagon.
The first to come down was a large iron wok, a shallow, wide Cantonese-style wok with handles on both sides, and a deep, round Sichuan-style pot, both lowered at the same time.
“Heave!”
Next, Bang Jin-bo brought down a massive iron cauldron. Bang Woo-gwang gestured to his son.
“Bring the cauldron over here.”
Bang Woo-gwang gathered nearby stones and constructed a makeshift hearth. He placed the iron cauldron his son had brought upon it.
“Bring the rest as well.”
“Yes!”
Bang Jin-bo unloaded the chopping knife and various steamers. The cooking implements were down, but his work was not yet finished.
He ferried large cuts of meat and vegetables that had been loaded on one side of the wagon. Though sweat dripped from his brow, Bang Jin-bo kept smiling.
In the meantime, Bang Woo-gwang had completed four makeshift hearths. Upon each he placed a wok or cauldron.
It was now time to light the fires. Bang Woo-gwang rummaged through a crate at the back of the wagon and produced something.
The hardened lumps were a mixture of dried dung and hay. When thoroughly dried, they produced almost no odor and burned with excellent heat, a material that Bang Woo-gwang favored.
He placed the dried dung into the hearth and set it alight. The well-dried dung caught fire instantly.
“Hoo!”
Only then could Bang Woo-gwang catch his breath briefly. But the respite was short-lived, and he was soon moving busily once more.
Before the hearth, a thick, long wooden board was set down. Its surface bore countless knife marks. The board was a cutting board.
Bang Jin-bo stood before it.
Bang Woo-gwang looked at his son and smiled warmly.
“Shall we begin, then?”
“Yes!”
With that answer, Bang Jin-bo picked up the chopping knife and set to work.
Thwack! Thwack!
The large blade sliced through the meat with ease.
The rectangular knife, heavy and imposing, was wielded by Bang Jin-bo with practiced ease.
He broke down the massive cut of meat in moments, trimmed the various vegetables, and cut them to bite-sized pieces.
“Heh heh!”
Laughter spilled from between Bang Jin-bo’s teeth. Bang Woo-gwang watched his son and laughed.
“You rascal!”
Now it was his turn.
He placed the ingredients his son had prepared into the searingly hot wok and began to stir-fry.
Sizzle!
White smoke billowed upward in an instant.
Bang Woo-gwang held a wok in each hand and worked them simultaneously. Even the most seasoned chef would rarely attempt to handle two woks at once over an open flame.
But on Bang Woo-gwang’s face, there was no sign of strain as he manipulated both woks in tandem.
Bang Jin-bo watched his father with eyes of admiration.
No matter how many times he saw it, his father’s skill with the wok was extraordinary. It was not merely the handling of the woks. In the intervals, he also added meat and various vegetables to the iron cauldron to prepare a stew, and the aroma was sublime.
Bang Woo-gwang cooked three entirely different dishes at once.
Golden Coin Beef, Roast Pork, and a stew brimming with pork.
Golden Coin Beef was a beef dish; Roast Pork and the stew were pork. Though all were meat dishes, the methods of preparation and the ingredients differed, making it exceedingly difficult to cook them simultaneously.
“Hoo!”
Bang Woo-gwang wiped the sweat from his brow with his sleeve and looked at his son. Bang Jin-bo smiled.
“The rice is already done! Heh heh!”
At some point, Bang Jin-bo had set a cauldron over the last remaining hearth and cooked the rice.
“You rascal! You no longer need to be told— you act on your own now.”
“Of course! My experience is considerable, you know. I’ve been trailing after you for eight years now. I am fully qualified to be a proper chef.”
“Ha! Has it really been that long?”
A shadow crossed Bang Woo-gwang’s face.
After his wife had died, he had wandered the land with Bang Jin-bo. That meant eight years had passed since her death.
“Just endure a little longer. When we return this time, we will settle down.”
“Then we will finally open our own tavern?”
“Heh heh! That is right.”
“Waaah!”
Bang Jin-bo bounced up and down in excitement. Bang Woo-gwang smiled at the sight.
The earnings from this journey were considerable. Combined with what they had saved, they could open a small tavern. When that time came, he intended to formally teach his son the culinary arts.
“But first, we must visit the Pavilion of Heavenly Cuisine at the Eastern Lake.”
“Finally, we will taste the food of the greatest chef in the world?”
“Yes! Your father will taste his dishes and then make the same for you later.”
“You promise?”
“Of course. Ha ha ha!”
It was as Bang Woo-gwang burst into hearty laughter.
“My, the aroma is exquisite!”
“As expected of Chef Bang! To have finished the meal already.”
At the smell of the food, people gathered around. They were the guards and merchants of the Silver Lotus Trading Company.
Bang Woo-gwang and his son were chefs employed by the trading company. On a journey lasting nearly a year, the company had specifically engaged their services.
Whenever they camped in the open, the father and son prepared food for the group. The merchants and guards, who subsisted on dry rations during their travels, greeted the meals that Bang Woo-gwang conjured with enthusiasm.
Bang Woo-gwang’s skill was on par with the renowned chefs of famous taverns. Already talented, his culinary abilities had deepened and matured over the course of the year-long journey. He had tasted and studied a vast array of spices obtained from the Western Regions alongside the merchants.
In the wagon that Bang Woo-gwang and his son rode, the spices he had personally procured were stored.
It was then that a middle-aged martial artist approached. The man with the unkempt beard was none other than Cho Su-gwang, the owner of the Silver Lotus Trading Company.
“What culinary delight have you prepared for us today, Chef Bang?”
“I managed to acquire some fine beef and pork from the village we stopped at previously, so I made Golden Coin Beef, Roast Pork, and a pork stew.”
“Oh! Golden Coin Beef? My palate is in for a treat today.”
Cho Su-gwang smiled.
He looked at Bang Jin-bo.
“Jin-bo, you should learn your father’s culinary skills quickly.”
“His sense for food surpasses mine.”
“Heh heh! I look forward to that.”
“You may well look forward to it.”
Bang Woo-gwang patted his son’s shoulder lightly. Bang Jin-bo looked up at his father’s face and beamed.
Cho Su-gwang clapped his hands and called out.
“Everyone, well done. Chef Bang has prepared a delicious meal. Let us all eat together.”
“Thank you for the meal.”
The guards and merchants answered and began eating the food that Bang Woo-gwang and his son had prepared.
Watching them savor the food with such evident pleasure, Bang Jin-bo smiled happily.
‘Ah, this is good.’
At dawn the next day, the Silver Lotus Trading Company broke camp early. They extinguished the campfires, packed the luggage, and the morning sun had barely risen.
Unlike the others, the father and son had a bit more leeway, for they had prepared the group’s meals in advance while everyone slept.
Breakfast consisted of porridge made from the previous day’s leftovers. Though a simple porridge, it was loaded with meat and made for a proper meal.
After everyone had eaten, the father and son hurriedly packed up. As they loaded the cooking implements onto the wagon, the Silver Lotus Trading Company set off.
Lying in the back seat of the wagon driven by his father, Bang Jin-bo gazed up at the sky.
‘Soon we will enter the Central Plains.’
Looking back, the past year had passed so quickly he barely remembered how. Bang Woo-gwang had found employment with the Silver Lotus Trading Company, and Bang Jin-bo, with no say in the matter, had been swept along to the Western Regions.
At first, Bang Jin-bo had resented his father, but now there was not a trace of that feeling.
Bang Jin-bo produced a small booklet from his bosom. It was a book in which his father had written down his culinary secrets whenever time permitted.
During the journey, Bang Jin-bo had studied the cookbook while riding in the wagon. Of course, it was still only theory, but once they entered the Central Plains, he would begin formal culinary training.
“Heh heh!”
It was as Bang Jin-bo let out a carefree laugh.
BOOM!
Without warning, thunder roared from a clear sky.
“Wh-what is it?”
“Whoa, whoa!”
The people of the Silver Lotus Trading Company calmed the startled horses and looked around.
In the distance, beyond a hill, a massive cloud of dust was rising.
“What is that?”
“What in the world is happening?”
The merchants and guards murmured among themselves.
Cho Su-gwang, the trading company’s master, looked at his chief guard, Oh Gi-o.
“What is going on?”
“Wait a moment. Yoo Pyo and Cheong-o will go with me to investigate. Everyone, remain on high alert.”
“Understood.”
Oh Gi-o led Yoo Pyo and Cheong-o toward the source of the dust cloud.
‘Has something happened at the Hell Gorge?’
He did not know when it had acquired the name Hell Gorge. What had once been a ravine had one day collapsed and become flatland.
Though the ravine had been leveled, people still called it Hell Gorge. It had been rendered a wasteland by massive boulders and earth, and even merchant caravans gave it a wide berth.
Yoo Pyo and Cheong-o were seasoned guards whom Oh Gi-o trusted. Having weathered every manner of hardship, they were fearless in the face of most events.
But when they arrived at the scene, their entire bodies trembled as though caught in a storm.
“What is this—”
The area around Hell Gorge had been devastated as though a volcano had erupted. The dust that had been kicked up hung in the air, leaving the entire vista shrouded in haze.
“Gasp!”
Oh Gi-o, Yoo Pyo, and the others suddenly gasped.
In the gray dust, two blue flames hovered.
Like hellfire blooming from the abyss, the twin flames stared directly at them.
“A… a person?”
Oh Gi-o realized that those were the eyes of a human.
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