A Tale Of A Scribe Who Retires To The Countryside [EN]: Chapter 189

189. So That There Are No Regrets

Dang Baek-ho was keenly aware of his younger sister’s change. Already rising as a key figure in the Dang Family, he pretended not to notice.

He knew what his sister, Dang Un-yeong, would do if he openly opposed the two of them.

She would probably abandon the family altogether. And that was not what Dang Baek-ho wanted.

“One day, Dang Baek-ho secretly came to me and challenged me to a duel, saying he would test my worthiness. I naturally accepted.”

Clink.

Old Gun poured wine into a small cup. A sweet aroma spread through the night air.

“The result was my defeat. Dang Baek-ho had already reached a realm beyond the peak at that time. But he was rather impressed with me. He even praised me, saying that I was worthy of entrusting his younger sister to.”

Nogun said with a bitter smile.

“Ironically, I believed those words. I even thought he was the only one who could help us. How foolish of me.”

Although he had lost to Dang Baek-ho, Nogun’s skill, having reached the peak at a young age, was also remarkable.

Nogun thought that someone of his caliber would be readily accepted even within the Dang Family. Moreover, if Dang Baek-ho helped, it would be even better.

—But the family’s thoughts are a little different.

Dang Baek-ho said with a troubled expression.

Even though he was the one effectively determining the ‘family’s thoughts,’ he continued with a look of regret.

—It seems your marriage partner has already been decided by Father with another martial arts family… I don’t know what to do about this…….

What the Dang Family, or rather Dang Baek-ho, wanted was power. And to Dang Baek-ho, who had already surpassed his peak, Nogun’s skill was not particularly impressive.

At least, not enough to give away the Dang Family’s precious daughter.

—I will do anything.

The young Nogun said so. Dang Baek-ho wore a satisfied expression, but Dang Un-yeong, upon hearing those words, firmly opposed it.

In fact, it was something she had tried to hide from him, but strangely enough, Dang Un-yeong knew something was up just by looking at Nogun’s face.

—No way.

Dang Un-yeong knew the inner workings of the family better than anyone.

—The Dang Family will never change. If it’s already been decided like that, there’s only one thing we can do.

Suddenly, Dang Un-yeong decided to abandon the family and elope with the young Nogun.

Nogun was utterly bewildered. Moreover, Dang Un-yeong even warned Nogun.

—Never trust my brother.

“I didn’t heed her advice. Perhaps it was because Dang Baek-ho’s martial prowess that day impressed me so much. I thought of him as a true hero.”

Dang Baek-ho’s outward appearance was that of a true gentleman and hero.

Nogun told Dang Baek-ho what Dang Un-yeong had said and sought his wisdom on what to do. After all, Dang Baek-ho was the one who knew the Dang Family better than anyone.

—Is that so? If that’s what she’s decided, there’s nothing we can do. It’s a shame she’s leaving the family, but Young-ah’s happiness comes first.

Dang Baek-ho said with a wistful smile. Nogun’s heart was touched.

Dang Baek-ho gave Nogun a considerable amount of money for the two of them. He even told him not to worry about the aftermath.

Soon after, as Dang Baek-ho had said, Dang Un-yeong’s wedding date was set. It was a typical political marriage where the person’s wishes were not considered from the beginning.

—Our family has a custom where women who are about to be married perform ancestral rites for three days. After completing those rites, they ride in a flower palanquin to the other family’s home to hold the wedding.

Dang Un-yeong said.

—For three days, no one except the attending maid can come near the shrine. So, I’ll sneak out on the night of the third day.

—Are you really going to be okay? Your family is…….

It was none other than the Dang Family. The overlords of Sichuan, proudly bearing their name among the Five Great Families of the world.

To the anxiously asking young Nogun, Dang Un-yeong smiled.

—I don’t need anything as long as I have you, Soon-rang.

The young Nogun was deeply moved. The title ‘rang’ meant that she had already accepted him as her husband. Of course, he also wondered why it had to be ‘Soon,’ but his joy was greater than that.

—Then I will definitely protect you, Young-mae. Even if the opponent is the Dang Family, or even the whole world.

Dang Un-yeong smiled and leaned into Nogun’s arms. Nogun held her softly.

—You didn’t tell my brother, did you?

—I didn’t go into detail. But shouldn’t we not suspect Dang Dae-hyeop [Great Hero] too much?

—You still don’t know my brother.

“I didn’t realize the meaning of those words back then.”

Nogun bit his lip slightly.

“And what happened?”

At Son Bin’s words, Nogun slowly continued.

“On the first day Young-mae entered the shrine, I received an urgent message from Dang Baek-ho. The wedding date had been postponed by one day due to the other family’s circumstances.”

Son Bin also realized that something was amiss.

“Was it true?”

The young Nogun also suspected something upon hearing those words. He immediately went to the Dang Family.

Nogun couldn’t enter the Dang Family, but he could check the news through people coming and going.

“It was true. At least, the entire Dang Family knew it. But I couldn’t rest assured.”

He couldn’t meet Dang Un-yeong, who had already entered the shrine.

Instead, Nogun stayed up all night, watching the Dang Family’s movements from afar. He thought that Dang Un-yeong might leave the Dang Family at any moment.

And on the morning of the fourth day, the young Nogun saw a sight he couldn’t believe.

With the sound of loud instruments, the wedding flower palanquin carrying Dang Un-yeong left the Dang Family.

∴

‘It wasn’t postponed?’

Nogun was confused.

Then why didn’t Dang Un-yeong leave the Dang Family last night?

He had watched all night, but no one had come out of the Dang Family from night until dawn.

“So, you were here.”

Dang Baek-ho appeared behind the confused Nogun. He couldn’t hide the sneer on his face.

“Why didn’t you come last night? Young-ah waited all night.”

Nogun could tell from his bitter smile. The words that it had been delayed by a day were indeed false.

Dang Baek-ho had deceived the entire Dang Family. Except for Dang Un-yeong and her attendant who had entered the shrine.

The Dang Family members were simply bewildered. The wedding, which had been said to be delayed by a day, suddenly proceeded as originally planned on the dawn of that day.

However, with Dang Baek-ho’s command, that level of confusion was not a big deal.

“How…….”

The young Nogun couldn’t speak. He had watched the Dang Family for the past three days in case something like this happened.

But yesterday, no one had clearly left the Dang Family.

Dang Baek-ho’s sneer deepened.

“How could I hide from your eyes and ears? Deceiving someone like you is nothing to me. Or are you asking how I knew the promised date? If you think about it a little, that level of deduction is simple.”

Nogun couldn’t fully understand what he was saying. But one thing was clear.

Dang Un-yeong was in that flower palanquin leaving the Dang Family. She would be blaming him for not showing up and shedding tears.

The young Nogun’s eyes rolled back.

“Uaaaaa!”

Dang Baek-ho blocked Nogun, who was trying to rush out while screaming. And immediately, a powerful palm force poured towards Nogun.

Bang!

“Keuk.”

Nogun, who had already lost his composure, spat out blood and flew away.

Dang Baek-ho walked towards Nogun, who was lying on the dirt floor.

“Young, Young-mae…….”

Nogun reached out towards the receding flower palanquin. But Dang Baek-ho’s foot pressed down on the young Nogun.

Crack.

“Keheok.”

“You should be grateful.”

Dang Baek-ho said in a cold voice.

“Young-ah said she would bite her tongue if I killed you. To be alive barely clinging to a woman’s plea, I would have committed suicide if I were you. Tsk tsk.”

But Nogun couldn’t hear anything. Only her shrinking flower palanquin flickered in his tear-stained vision.

“Watch carefully.”

Dang Baek-ho’s whispering voice fell from above.

“That child will never be yours. This is your reality. A reality that can never be changed.”

Dang Baek-ho smiled as if savoring the young Nogun’s despair.

“I’ll accept revenge anytime. Isn’t that great? I can’t kill you, after all. That’s a privilege befitting a worm. Hahahaha.”

Dang Baek-ho’s humiliation pierced Nogun’s heart.

But what hurt more was that he couldn’t protect her because of his own foolishness and incompetence.

In front of Nogun, who was shedding tears of blood, her flower palanquin slowly disappeared.

At that moment, it felt like the whole world was turning its back on him.

∴

“I didn’t have the courage to go find Young-mae. But I could never forgive Dang Baek-ho.”

Nogun poured the wine into his mouth.

“So, I practiced martial arts like crazy. I had lucky encounters, and I had near-death experiences. When I was convinced that I had surpassed the peak myself, I went to find Dang Baek-ho again.”

Clack.

Nogun said bitterly, putting down the wine glass.

“But I couldn’t beat him. At that time, Dang Baek-ho had already inherited everything from his predecessors and had become an Outer Saga level master.”

Of course, Dang Baek-ho had become the ruler of Sichuan’s martial arts world. Apart from his martial arts, there was no way to beat him.

“He told me as I lay on the ground like a beast. You can never surpass me unless you become the sky above the sky. So, in a way, I can say that I was able to enter the Outer Saga thanks to Dang Baek-ho.”

Son Bin couldn’t ask what happened next. By the time Namak Nogun had entered the Outer Saga, Dang Baek-ho would already have been called the Fierce Tiger among the Heavenly Outer Sages.

“I confined myself to Namak. And after a long time, I heard a rumor. That the Dang Family’s tribute dares to pass through Namak.”

Nogun continued with a hollow smile.

“I was going to kill them all. Looking back now, I think meeting you there was probably thanks to heaven’s guidance.”

Nogun raised his head and looked at Son Bin. His old eyes were moist.

“Thank you.”

“No. I…….”

Son Bin couldn’t finish his answer. Tears were already welling up in Son Bin’s eyes as well.

Rustle.

Clasping his hands, Son Bin bowed to Nogun. That was the best he could do to repay Nogun’s gratitude.

∴

Nogun went into the room after a while. But Son Bin didn’t lower the lamp nor clear the table.

Rustle.

“Welcome.”

Son Bin bowed. The person who entered the Seowon [private academy] from the darkness was none other than Old Madam Dang Un-yeong. There were clear traces of tears in her eyes.

Nogun couldn’t have not known that she was outside the Seowon, so Nogun’s words were also directed at her.

“Can I have a drink too?”

Old Madam Dang Un-yeong said.

“Of course.”

Son Bin tried to bring a new glass. But Dang Un-yeong shook her head.

“This will do. No, this is better.”

Dang Un-yeong carefully held the small wine glass that Nogun had been drinking from.

Clink.

The small wine glass was filled with fine wine. Looking down at the shimmering wine, Dang Un-yeong said in a quiet voice.

“Actually, I liked Soon-rang from the first time I saw him.”

Son Bin was slightly surprised. Nogun had said that their first meeting wasn’t very good.

Dang Un-yeong smiled as if recalling that.

“If that weren’t the case, I would have just ignored him no matter how much he provoked me. If he kept bothering me, I could just suppress him with the family’s power. The reason I kept challenging him was because I actually had feelings for him.”

Son Bin inwardly clicked his tongue. In the end, the only one who didn’t know was the man.

“But as you know, Soon-rang is clueless about relationships. So, when he said he liked me, I was so surprised. I was so happy that I couldn’t think for a moment. That’s when I knew. ‘Ah, I really like this person.’”

As if recalling that time, a blush appeared on Dang Un-yeong’s face as she caressed the wine glass.

“When he bought this jade ring as a gift, I was speechless. I guess he thought I would like it as long as it was big. But this rough jade ring looked so pretty at the time.”

Dang Un-yeong’s expression suddenly hardened as she smiled.

“On the third night I promised him, my brother was standing there when I was leaving the shrine.”

Dang Un-yeong said quietly. Son Bin was quite nervous. She was talking about what happened that night.

“At first, I thought he was going to stop me. But he said he would rather help me. I was suspicious, but I couldn’t refuse.”

—If he has the courage to accept you even while turning the Dang Family into an enemy, I will acknowledge you too. This is the only chance I’m giving you.

Dang Baek-ho said with a serious expression. But Dang Un-yeong couldn’t believe his words.

—How can I be sure that my brother hasn’t already killed him?

—It’s truly sad that even siblings can’t trust each other.

—Shut up and tell me quickly.

—I didn’t lay a finger on him. I didn’t even instigate anyone to harm him. If he shows up at the promised place today, I will continue to do so in the future. If my words are a lie, you can have this.

What he handed to Dang Un-yeong was a sacred object symbolizing the head of the Dang Family. It was surprising that he already had this, but it was even more unexpected that he handed it over to Dang Un-yeong so willingly.

“I waited for him until dawn. But he didn’t show up. I desperately repeated that something must have happened, but I couldn’t help but feel like my heart was collapsing.”

Dang Un-yeong’s eyes were getting moist as she spoke. The sadness of that day seemed to be resurfacing.

Anxiety erodes the soul. And worst of all, Dang Baek-ho was by her side.

—Tsk tsk, it seems he chose something other than you. Well, with the money I gave him, three generations can live comfortably for the rest of their lives.

—You gave my brother money?

—Didn’t he tell you? That’s strange. I gave it to him just a while ago.

She couldn’t believe those words.

But Dang Un-yeong’s heart was already weakened.

Looking intently at Dang Un-yeong, who was biting her lip, Dang Baek-ho said secretly.

—Shall I go and kill him? That bastard who betrayed you?

—If you kill him.

Dang Un-yeong said, looking straight at Dang Baek-ho.

—I will bite my tongue immediately.

From her eyes, blue murderous intent was radiating in streaks. Even Dang Baek-ho flinched.

—Okay.

Dang Baek-ho said with a displeased expression.

—I’ll do as you wish.

Looking at the rising sun, which was like despair, Dang Un-yeong returned to the shrine. And according to Dang Baek-ho’s wishes, she boarded the wedding flower palanquin.

“I couldn’t think of anything. I couldn’t eat or drink for three days, and I just sat there blankly. Looking back now, I should have looked for another way, but at the time, it really felt like everything had collapsed.”

Anxiety erodes the soul, and despair makes you give up everything. Son Bin could empathize with her feelings.

“Then…….”

Son Bin asked carefully.

“Are you wondering why I’m still in the Dang Family? Maybe even Soon-rang didn’t know this.”

Dang Un-yeong continued with a bitter smile.

“The flower palanquin I was in turned back halfway. The man I was supposed to marry suddenly died.”

The word ‘suddenly died’ means that he died suddenly from an unfortunate event. Son Bin’s expression hardened.

“It seems that man’s usual behavior was bad. He abandoned a woman he had promised to marry, who was even pregnant, and tried to marry me. He was stabbed to death by that woman’s knife in a brothel while trying to marry me. It’s funny that he was in a brothel before the wedding, but it’s even more absurd that there were more than one or two such women. Well, it’s not just that man who is a brat who has the family’s power behind him.”

Son Bin gave a bitter smile. It was rather surprising that she could tell such a story so casually.

“I felt sorry for that woman who took her own life, but thanks to her, the wedding was canceled. As I returned to the family in the flower palanquin that had lost its meaning, I thought of Soon-rang.”

Biting her lip, she said.

“When he saw me in the flower palanquin, about to marry someone else, how much pain would that innocent man have been in? Maybe he was in so much pain that he wanted to die like that woman?”

Tears flowed from Dang Un-yeong’s eyes.

“Only then could I realize. The one who didn’t keep the promise was him, but the one who didn’t trust him until the end was me. What I did…… was like stabbing a dagger into his heart.”

Slowly, Dang Un-yeong continued.

“Only then did tears flow. I just cried all the way back.”

Son Bin couldn’t say anything. He could see the image of the young lady sobbing in the fancy flower palanquin.

“After returning to the family like that, I had to live like a sinner for several years. Even though it wasn’t my fault, everyone treated me like I didn’t exist. Ironically, the reason I started to be recognized again was because of my brother.”

Dang Un-yeong said, forcing a smile with wet eyes.

“He didn’t trust anyone and never revealed his true feelings. So, people had no choice but to be anxious and watch his every move. Then they came to me. They thought that maybe I would know his true feelings.”

Dang Un-yeong wore a hollow smile.

“Wouldn’t I know my brother? I gave them advice. After that, people flocked to me. They said that I was the only one in the Dang Family who knew Dang Baek-ho’s true intentions.”

She was silent for a moment. The wine glass had been in her hand since earlier, but she hadn’t drunk any of it.

“Now there’s no one to watch. There’s no one to say anything to me. Now I want to live the rest of my life without regrets.”

Son Bin smiled. He seemed to know what she was going to say. Old Madam Dang Un-yeong also smiled at Son Bin.

“Thank you.”

Dang Un-yeong said to Son Bin.

“If it weren’t for you, Soon-rang and I would never have met.”

On the first day she came to the Seowon, Dang Un-yeong could tell.

Who was the center of this Seowon, and who was the person who made Nogun have such a natural expression.

“I’m sorry to ask, but can I rely on you in the future?”

Dang Un-yeong smiled. Son Bin thought that her wrinkled smile was really beautiful.

“I’m the one who should be asking for your help.”

Son Bin replied with a happy heart.

∴

After Dang Un-yeong left, the Seowon was silent again. But Son Bin didn’t go inside.

After standing there for a while, Son Bin finally sighed softly and went into the room and closed the door.

Click.

No one appeared in the Seowon. Only one lamp left by Son Bin guarded the Seowon lonely all night, waiting for a guest who did not come.