A Tale Of A Scribe Who Retires To The Countryside [EN]: Chapter 470

470. Special Secret Inspector

After leaving Namgyeong’s Pungwol Pavilion [a high-end courtesan house], Son Bin and his party headed to Hapbi, going against the current of the Jang River. This was due to Shinui’s suggestion to first check the damage to the Gongson family and the condition of the dead before heading straight to the Jegal family.

“Tsk.”

On the large boat going up the Jang River, No Gun frowned and clicked his tongue.

“They’re all dead and burned to a crisp anyway. What’s the point of going there?”

“The dead often speak more than the living,” Shinui replied with a calm expression.

“You may not like it, but this is something I must do as a doctor.”

No Gun, who really didn’t seem to like it, held his teacup and looked around at the others.

“Wow, I wonder what this tastes like?”

Seorin looked at something like candy and said. The madam of Pungwol Pavilion, Hyoseol, had gifted Seorin a large box filled with all sorts of delicacies from Namgyeong. Seorin was holding back, planning to eat them with the Seowon [private academy] children, but she had been preoccupied with looking inside since earlier.

“Hmm, should I just have one?”

As Seorin was struggling with her decision, Sasuyeon, next to her, lifted a small jade bottle and asked Dang Wora.

“How do you use this?”

Hyoseol had gifted Sasuyeon and Dang Wora precious cosmetics. Each one was in a luxurious porcelain bottle or a small jade box, making it seem like they had laid out precious treasures. But for Sasuyeon, these were things she was seeing for the first time, so she had no idea how to use them.

“…I don’t think you’re supposed to eat it,” Dang Wora replied quietly. She didn’t know anything about cosmetics either. Sasuyeon looked perplexed at that obvious statement.

“If I had known this would happen, I should have learned how to do makeup from Madam Hyoseol.”

“I asked,” Dang Wora said, causing Sasuyeon’s eyes to widen.

“Really? Then…”

“But she didn’t tell me.”

Sasuyeon was slightly disappointed, but Dang Wora continued.

“Madam Hyoseol said that their makeup techniques are for professionals only.”

“Professionals?”

Sasuyeon tilted her head.

“Is it that difficult?”

“I guess so,” Dang Wora replied, nodding. It was at that moment.

“That’s not what she meant,” Princess Gyeonghui, who was sitting at the next table, said with a slight sigh. She put down her teacup and turned to look at Dang Wora.

“Madam Hyoseol’s makeup is what the entertainers at Pungwol Pavilion wear. If you do your makeup like that, people will mistake you for an entertainer or a courtesan.”

Sasuyeon finally understood. But Dang Wora didn’t.

“But Madam Hyoseol didn’t look like a courtesan.”

“That’s because you don’t know. Most women can tell right away,” Princess Gyeonghui continued with a serious expression.

“Madam Hyoseol’s makeup looks fancy, but it’s actually a slight modification of the old palace etiquette. That’s what makes her so amazing. It’s not something anyone can just copy.”

That was something Sasuyeon and Dang Wora were hearing for the first time. Like novice martial artists who had just picked up a sword, listening to the story of a master, Sasuyeon and Dang Wora were listening to Princess Gyeonghui’s words with sparkling eyes.

Son Bin, who was listening next to No Gun, blinked, wondering, ‘Is that how it is?’ Women can tell at a glance, but he doubted it.

“…Um, then what do we do with this?” Sasuyeon said with a troubled expression, holding up the jade bottle with the gold tassel. According to Princess Gyeonghui, they had received treasures that they couldn’t even use properly.

“I’m sorry,” Sarasvati said, meeting Sasuyeon’s gaze.

“I don’t know much about the makeup techniques here, so I can’t teach you.”

Sarasvati and Princess Gyeonghui had received something else instead of cosmetics. It was information about the Upper Realm, which was more valuable than gold to them, as they were planning to run a trading company.

“…I wish we had gotten snacks instead,” Dang Wora said, looking at Seorin enviously. Princess Gyeonghui’s eyebrows twitched at those words.

“Snacks? Are you serious right now…?”

To Princess Gyeonghui, who knew the value of the cosmetics, it was an absurd thing to say. The cosmetics, which looked precious at a glance, were the kind that the imperial concubines would fight over if they ever entered the palace. To exchange such cosmetics for snacks was unbelievable.

But what could they do if they didn’t know how to use them?

“Haa… really…”

Click.

Princess Gyeonghui sighed and stood up. She said to Sasuyeon,

“If Miss Sa is okay with it, I can teach you the basics.”

Princess Gyeonghui’s tone towards Sasuyeon was definitely more polite than it had been towards Dang Wora.

“Ah, thank you,” Sasuyeon said with a slightly surprised expression at the unexpected favor. Seeing that, Princess Gyeonghui frowned again.

‘I have to teach makeup to women who are prettier than me,’ she swallowed the words. Even if it was true, it was too humiliating to say.

“Let’s go.”

“Where to? Just here…”

At Sasuyeon’s question, Princess Gyeonghui smiled faintly.

“Do you want to learn in front of Young Master Son?”

At those words, Sasuyeon and Dang Wora’s gazes turned to Son Bin. Son Bin pretended not to hear out of courtesy, but their eyes had already met.

Click.

“Y-yes, that’s right,” Sasuyeon said, flustered, and quickly stood up. Dang Wora also quickly packed the cosmetics into a large box and stood up.

“We’ll be back in a bit,” Sasuyeon said, and No Gun grumbled.

“It’s not ‘back in a bit,’ that’s your cabin. Why are you all here?”

No Gun, who was saying that, also had his own separate cabin. This cabin originally belonged to Son Bin and Seorin.

But Sasuyeon, Dang Wora, and Princess Gyeonghui didn’t answer No Gun and left the cabin. The maid, Hang-ah, carried the rather large box of cosmetics and followed them.

“Are you okay with this?” No Gun asked Sarasvati. Sarasvati, who was holding a teacup, smiled faintly.

“I don’t need it. Or do you have a problem with my makeup?”

“No, that’s not what I meant…”

No Gun scratched his head.

“You and Princess Gyeonghui didn’t have to come along. Besides, you don’t have any guards.”

Right now, Sarasvati’s guard, Rahman, and Princess Gyeonghui’s entourage were not here. They had left to finalize the deal with the Imperial family. Only the maid, Hang-ah, remained.

“Thank you for your concern,” Sarasvati said with a smile.

“But it’s not dangerous with you all here. I personally wanted to see more places. Especially with Young Master Son.”

Son Bin cleared his throat. But Sarasvati’s next words were unexpected.

“Princess Gyeonghui is the same. She doesn’t seem to have traveled much, surprisingly. It’s strange that she doesn’t know her own land very well, don’t you think?”

Sarasvati said, fiddling with her teacup. Her clothes were still in the style of Tianzhu [ancient name for India], but the fabric had been changed to something warmer as she came north.

“Really? Well…”

No Gun nodded. Not to mention Dang Wora, Sasuyeon and Seorin were also unfamiliar with most places. Since Princess Gyeonghui and Sarasvati were also like that, No Gun and Shinui were the only ones who had traveled to various regions.

“Come to think of it, I’m the same,” Shinui suddenly said.

“You?” No Gun frowned.

“Didn’t you say you’ve been everywhere in the world looking for medicinal herbs?”

“It’s different.”

No Gun was speechless at that firm answer.

“…Well, working and traveling leisurely are a bit different. So, is there anywhere you want to go?”

It was a casual question. But Shinui answered without hesitation.

“The Northern Sea.”

‘Ah.’

Son Bin seemed to understand the meaning of Shinui’s answer. He remembered that Shinui had shown interest in the Northern Sea’s outer envoy, Seomoksu Orhan.

“The Northern Sea… Then let’s go when the Bi Geom thing is over,” No Gun’s reaction was surprisingly serious. No Gun stroked his beard and said,

“Yeongmae would like it too, and Yeon-ah would want to see her grandfather. While we’re there, let’s buy some Northern Sea horses.”

Shinui nodded silently. No Gun looked at Son Bin and asked,

“Do you want to go too?”

“Of course,” Son Bin replied without even thinking.

“The Northern Sea, that sounds nice. Should I take my maids with me then?” Sarasvati said as if it were obvious. But No Gun didn’t say anything anymore.

“Oh, but…” Seorin, who was counting her snacks, suddenly muttered.

“I heard that people who talk about things like that before a fight always die before they can go.”

No Gun’s eyebrows furrowed. But Seorin, unconcerned, was counting her snacks again, lost in a happy expression.

***

“Tsk,” No Gun clicked his tongue. But no one said anything. The sight before Son Bin and his party was that miserable.

“So it has come to this,” The appearance of the Gongson family, once called the Five Great Families, was a monstrosity in itself. The burned buildings were left as they were, and the remains of the fire were scattered everywhere.

Not only were there no people passing by, but even stray dogs didn’t come near, making it feel eerie even in broad daylight.

“Why are they just leaving this here?” Sasuyeon frowned.

“This is the middle of a big city. Isn’t anyone cleaning it up?”

“They’re scared,” No Gun said bluntly.

“They don’t want to get involved. And I heard that all the Gongson family’s blood relatives died with their blood dried up? They probably think they’ll be cursed too.”

Looking at the Gongson family with a bitter expression, No Gun continued.

“Besides, the one who did this was Bi Geom…”

It would be a story that the people of Hapbi couldn’t understand or even believe. The fact that Bi Geom, the former head of the Gongson family, had committed such an act.

However, people who worked in the Gongson family had clearly witnessed Bi Geom mercilessly killing his own blood relatives. As a result, the Gongson family, which had once flaunted its power in the middle of the big city of Hapbi, was now abandoned in ruins.

“No one would want to get close,” No Gun muttered with a bitter expression. Shinui, who had been examining the burned debris, stood up.

“What is it?” At No Gun’s blunt question, Shinui shook his head. He rubbed his fingertips slightly and said with a serious expression,

“I need to see the bodies.”

“The bodies are being kept separately at the local inspector’s office,” Princess Gyeonghui said with a calm expression. No Gun asked with a puzzled expression,

“At the inspector’s office? They didn’t burn the bodies and left them there?”

“Yes. I ordered them to do so.”

That was a strange thing to say. No matter how much of a princess Gyeonghui was, she couldn’t order a local official to do such a thing.

No Gun frowned, wondering if she had asked an imperial eunuch to do such a thing. Princess Gyeonghui suddenly turned to Son Bin.

Sarak.

Princess Gyeonghui took out a small plaque from her bosom. It was a rather large and very antique plaque with a red tassel.

“Young Master Son,” Princess Gyeonghui said, holding the plaque in her hand and looking straight at Son Bin.

“This is a plaque sent from the Imperial family. It is a plaque that proves the position of Special Secret Inspector, equivalent to the Left Censor of the Office of the Inspector General [a high-ranking official in charge of investigating corruption].”

Son Bin was startled. Only then did he notice that the Imperial family’s crest was engraved on the plaque in Princess Gyeonghui’s hand.

“The Left Censor of the Office of the Inspector General?”

The Office of the Inspector General is an extrajudicial inspection agency that can exercise supervisory authority over all matters, including the inspection and impeachment of local officials.

Although its power is gradually decreasing due to infringing on the authority of the local governor-general, it is still the best inspection agency. Moreover, being on par with the Left Censor means that it is the same rank as the highest official in charge of the Office of the Inspector General.

“When I informed the Imperial family of your return, the Emperor gave me this plaque through an imperial eunuch,” Princess Gyeonghui continued with shining eyes.

“This means that the Imperial family will not interfere in the affairs of the Jianghu [martial arts world]. And at the same time, it is a reaffirmation that the Emperor’s trust in Young Master Son has not changed.”

The reason why the local government did not take full action despite the terrible events of the Gongson family being burned and people dying was precisely because of that.

“The Emperor trusts Young Master Son.”

Those words sounded strangely ominous.

In fact, the Imperial family was watching. Perhaps if Son Bin had not returned, the Emperor would have moved the imperial army without hesitation the moment it was judged that the affairs of the Jianghu martial world had crossed the line. As a result, of course, much blood would have been shed.

Seuk.

Princess Gyeonghui respectfully handed the plaque to Son Bin with both hands. And she smiled faintly and continued,

“And so do I.”

Son Bin gave an awkward smile. But the plaque in front of him clearly showed him what he had to do.

“I understand,” Sarak.

Son Bin said, accepting the plaque.

“Thank you.”

Princess Gyeonghui smiled.

“You’re welcome.”

Son Bin looked at the plaque in his hand for a moment. It was a dream of a government position that he had already let go of, but it felt strange to have the plaque in his hand like this. Of course, it was not a formal position, and it was only temporary.

Seuk.

Putting the plaque in his bosom, Son Bin looked back at the others.

“Then I will go to the local inspector’s office with Elder No Gun and Shinui. The rest of you, please wait for me in Daru for a while.”

“Can I come with you?” That voice was Sarasvati’s. Son Bin was puzzled for a moment, but he remembered that she was originally a demon god and nodded.

“Please do. Then I’ll be back.”

“Do a good job!” Seorin waved her hand vigorously. Son Bin smiled and moved towards the local inspector’s office in Hapbi.

***

There was a brief commotion at the entrance of the local inspector’s office, but Son Bin and his party managed to meet the local inspector safely.

The elderly local inspector, with sharp eyes, simply groaned for a moment after seeing Son Bin’s plaque, and silently guided Son Bin and his party without any questions.

“This is the place.”

The place that the local inspector had personally guided them to was a small detached building located in a remote part of the local inspector’s office. Surprisingly, there was no stench or rotting smell in that small, dark room. It was surprising for a place where bodies were kept.

“These are all that’s left.”

The number of bodies stored was less than ten. Son Bin asked back with a puzzled expression,

“Is that all?”

Even if it was just the blood relatives of the Gongson family, the number couldn’t be this small. But the local inspector shook his head with a dark expression.

“From the beginning, there were not many bodies that maintained their shape properly. And as time passed, they would break or be damaged on their own. These probably won’t last long either.”

Son Bin could understand what ‘break’ meant. The dried-up bodies were literally crumbling.

“Can I take a look?”

“Of course,” The local inspector said to Son Bin with a serious expression.

“The public sentiment in Hapbi is very turbulent because of this incident. I hope that the inspector will resolve this well. Please tell me if you need any help.”

“Thank you,” Son Bin bowed, and the local inspector bowed back and went outside. In the meantime, Shinui had already turned on the lights and was examining the bodies. Judging by his dark expression, the situation seemed more serious than he had thought.

“I see,” Sarasvati suddenly said. Even with the gruesome bodies in front of her, she didn’t even frown.

“This is a trace of the sacred object that the Demonic Sect had.”

“Sacred object?” At Son Bin’s question, No Gun also turned his head towards Sarasvati.

“What is it?”

“In this place, it would probably be called ‘Blood Jade.’ I thought it had disappeared a long time ago, but I didn’t expect it to be here…”

“Blood Jade? But I don’t feel any demonic energy?” No Gun couldn’t have missed the demonic energy. Sarasvati shook her head at No Gun, who was frowning.

“Blood Jade is a sacred object of the Demonic Sect, but it doesn’t contain demonic energy. Blood Jade contains the blood of many, many people.”

Son Bin’s face hardened. Sarasvati continued quietly.

“The one who takes the power of the Blood Jade becomes a Blood Demon and craves blood. But the Blood Jade no longer does anything for them. In the end, all they can do is take the blood of their closest blood relatives. Like this.”

If what she said was true, it was a terrible curse.

“What happens after that?” No Gun asked with a frown.

“What happens to the Blood Demon after taking all the blood of their blood relatives?”

“They destroy themselves,” Sarasvati said quietly.

“Originally, the Blood Jade is not meant to give power. It is only a tool to dye the world with blood and eventually create a monster called the Blood Demon that destroys itself.”

Sarasvati looked at Son Bin with sad eyes.

“I’m sorry, Young Master Son.”

“It’s not your fault,” Son Bin shook his head. Her apology was probably because she knew the feelings Son Bin was feeling now.

Quietly lowering his eyes, Son Bin looked at the bodies of the Gongson family. Standing in front of those bodies that were still crumbling little by little, Son Bin said nothing.

(Author’s words)

It’s a little late, but Happy New Year.

I hope you all have a happy 2018. I will continue to write hard in 2018…

Below is a New Year’s greeting card sent by illustrator Dhalephin. The Nurungji is especially cute. ^^