Bachelor [EN]: Chapter 366

“Qingniu Town?”

Han Li, a blue light emanating from his entire body, floated in the air with a strange expression.

Although the town was small, only a few *li* [approximately 0.3 miles] in size, it was completely different from the small alley he remembered. Yet, the location itself was definitely the same.

Over a hundred years, the small village had prospered and grown significantly.

Han Li, who had been floating blankly, hesitated before using his stealth technique to land in a narrow alley where people rarely passed. Then, he boldly revealed his face and walked out towards the main street.

“It looks like a completely different place.”

None of the buildings or inns lining the street looked familiar.

If he went a little further southwest, he would reach the small village where he was born and raised, but for some reason, he felt compelled to look around Qingniu Town first.

On the outside, he appeared calm, but inside, he was filled with anticipation, hoping to encounter something familiar.

Han Li slowed his pace and stopped at a three-way intersection.

The small, old tavern in front of him had a yellow plaque that read ‘Chunxiang,’ the place where he had spent two days with his Third Uncle before entering the Seven Mysteries Sect.

Seeing the Chunxiang Tavern, which his Third Uncle had managed, long-forgotten memories gradually began to surface.

His round-faced, plump Third Uncle, the small garden behind the tavern, the unfamiliar room in the tavern with its dim light, the delicious food with hot steam rising from it, the black carriage with the flag symbolizing the Seven Mysteries Sect… everything vividly replayed as if it were unfolding before his eyes.

A complex look appeared on Han Li’s face as he stared at the tavern, unable to hide his troubled gaze. People who saw him glanced at him as if he were a strange young man.

It was understandable, since the young man was standing still, looking at the old tavern, lost in reminiscence. Regaining his composure, he returned to his usual calm expression and strode towards the tavern.

When he reached the front of the small tavern, a neatly dressed waiter greeted Han Li.

He didn’t take a room on the second floor but simply sat at a corner table on the first floor, ordered a few dishes, and looked around.

The tavern was filled with all sorts of people. The only ones who stood out were the burly men in light armor sitting at one table.

They all had long bundles placed within reach, which were clearly swords and sabers, even without using his spiritual sense to check. Moreover, their unified attire suggested they were members of the same gang.

This scene felt very familiar to Han Li.

Listening to their conversation, it was all about power struggles and fights with other gangs. Han Li lost interest and shifted his spiritual sense to others.

At that moment, two young scholars walked in from outside the tavern.

“I heard that Sir Han is returning to his hometown to hold a memorial service. The governor of Gyeongju is personally attending to pay his respects, and the Beom and Lee families are also sending congratulatory envoys. The Han family will be bustling this time!”

“I heard that too! For this memorial service, the Han family sent letters to all branches, gathering all family members from nearby areas. It seems that even local dignitaries with some influence will be attending, so it’s only a matter of time before the Han family becomes one of the three great families of Gyeongju, along with the Beom and Lee families.”

“Haha… to grow their family’s power like this in just a hundred years is truly remarkable!”

“It’s not strange. Ever since a top graduate of the imperial examination came from the Han family, they have been making contributions to the court for generations, and the family has benefited from it. More than that, we should also try to attend…”

The two scholars took a seat at the table right next to Han Li.

‘The Han family!’

Han Li was about to listen more closely, but the topic had already shifted to another story. After thinking for a moment, he suddenly stood up and approached the two scholars.

“Excuse me, may I ask you something? My name is Han Li, and I was wondering which Han family you were talking about earlier? I received a letter from the main family to attend the memorial service, and this is my first time here. I grew up in a foreign land, so I have no contact with the main family. Could I ask for your help?”

Seeing Han Li approach with a smile, the scholars, who had been wary, heard his scholarly attire and refined tone and answered without suspicion.

“Ah, the Han family? We apologize for our rudeness. If you’re talking about the Han family around here, it’s naturally the Han family of Origu!”

‘Origu!’

The small village at the foot of the mountain where Han Li had lived as a child was also called this by others. It was given the local name ‘Origu’ because it was located in a small valley about five *li* wide.

The Han family the scholars were talking about seemed very likely to be related to him. Han Li spoke calmly and gently.

“If it’s the Han family of Origu, then that’s the main family I’m looking for. Could you tell me more about the family’s situation? I’m worried that I might make a fool of myself if I go there without knowing anything about the main family.”

“Ah… well, the general situation is known to almost everyone, so of course, we can tell you.”

The two exchanged glances and hesitated for a moment, but there was no reason to refuse.

“I would be grateful to hear it.”

“If you’re here to attend the memorial service, then don’t go to Origu for now. They built a manor called Hanga Fort decades ago and moved several tens of *li* away. They will probably gather at the old residence in Origu on the day of the memorial service. And the Han family…”

Han Li’s heart was pounding as he quietly listened to the scholar’s words.

* * *

Two hours later, Han Li was quietly gazing down from a familiar small mountain.

‘Is this really the mountain village from my memory?’

Instead of the small alleys where yellow dust would rise when playing, the low thatched houses, and the hungry children, there were large tiled houses and neatly paved stone paths. The previous appearance had completely disappeared.

Shaking his head, he was about to leave this place when he suddenly descended to a pavilion in the very center of the manor.

It wasn’t a huge structure, but it stood out because all the other buildings were single-story.

The door of the pavilion was tightly closed, and a plaque with the silver letters ‘Han Family Shrine’ was hung on it.

A shrine for the Han family, it felt strange. A few burly servants were guarding the door, but they couldn’t detect Han Li.

In the blink of an eye, he entered the shrine.

As soon as he entered, hundreds of wooden memorial tablets were placed on long side tables along a long corridor. The empty spaces seemed to be for future generations.

Han Li scanned the tablets, but the names of the hundreds of people with the surname Han felt unfamiliar.

He immediately headed to the second floor.

There were also some memorial tablets on the second floor, but they exuded a much more solemn atmosphere. The side tables where the tablets were placed were luxurious, and in the middle, a huge bronze cauldron was melting fragrant oil, emitting a rich scent.

However, these were not what caught Han Li’s attention.

“Han Ju, Han Cheol, Han Seonsaeng [a respectful title for a teacher or scholar], Han…”

It pained him to see familiar names remaining only as cold, black memorial tablets.

In the mortal world, those who cultivate the Dao [the Way, a spiritual path] are said to be emotionless, but how can one live a life without even the slightest emotional fluctuation? Even divine beings who can collapse mountains and part seas in the eyes of mortals are not without desires and emotions.

‘They just suppress and hide them to survive.’

He, who had been as still as a stone statue, finally took a step and approached the memorial tablets placed in the very center. It felt like he was traveling back in time to the warm days with his family.

After a while, the tightly closed door of the shrine opened, and Han Li woke up from his reverie. He heard the voices of two middle-aged men from downstairs.

“Brother, aren’t you being too impatient? I told you I would bring the letter directly after the memorial service. Why do you have to…”

“Hehehe! I heard that the letter has an unknown technique left by our family’s ancestor? No, how come I’ve never heard of a martial art created by our own ancestor! You know I can’t stand being curious. But to put such a precious thing in the shrine, what if someone steals it?”

“Oh, who would come into someone else’s shrine where memorial tablets are placed to steal something? Besides, even if our Han family’s shrine isn’t a dragon’s den or a tiger’s lair, there are old servants who are well-versed in martial arts guarding it day and night, so ordinary people can’t even get close. And even if they did steal something, would it be worth facing the Han family’s retaliation?”

“That’s true!”

Tap, tap, tap.

As the two men climbed the stairs, a seemingly weak scholar and a bearded giant appeared, one after the other.

Originally full of laughter, the two froze when they saw Han Li standing with his hands behind his back in front of the memorial tablets. The giant was startled and blocked the middle-aged scholar, shouting.

“You thief! How dare you chase us to the shrine and try to take our lives? You’re a dead man.”

Before he could even finish speaking, the giant clenched his fist and leaped towards Han Li.

The surrounding atmosphere changed due to the inner force emanating from the giant’s body even before he got close, but Han Li still stood there without even looking at them.

Thud!

With a dull thud, the giant’s huge fist fiercely aimed for Han Li’s back.

“……!”

The giant was about to grin, thinking his attack had succeeded, but he was greatly surprised and his face changed.

A blue light flashed, and he was bounced back as if he had hit a giant bell with a bat. The giant’s huge body was flung back like an arrow, but suddenly slowed down and landed lightly on the floor.

The middle-aged scholar, who had been watching, had a sudden change in expression, then looked at him with an astonished face.

“Brother Ryeo, are you okay! Are you not injured internally?”

“I’m fine. The opponent is a master whose level I can’t even guess, but he doesn’t seem to have any ill intentions towards us.”

The giant also took a long breath, checked his body, and whispered softly. At his words, the scholar also relaxed a little and looked at Han Li again.

The scholar maintained his composure and asked.

“Esteemed warrior, I am Han Cheonso, the head of the Han family. Were you waiting here to meet me?”

“Family head?”

Han Li finally slowly turned his body to face the two men.

“Y-you are…”

“Huh?”

Before Han Li could even say anything, the middle-aged scholar and the giant were startled by his appearance. However, the scholar’s expression became ominous, as if he had thought of something.

“What is the meaning of this?”

The scholar’s negative attitude made the giant’s face harden as well.

“…Do you know me?”

Han Li narrowed his brows and carefully examined the two men, but he couldn’t find anything remarkable about their appearances.

“How could we not know you? What is your intention in appearing with the same face as our family’s Fourth Uncle’s portrait?”

‘Fourth Uncle’ usually refers to the fourth uncle of one’s father. Han Li didn’t know whether to laugh or cry, and he showed an ambiguous expression. He didn’t know which generation the middle-aged scholar was from, but since he was the fourth child in his family, the Fourth Uncle they were referring to must be him!

The only thing he didn’t understand was how there could be a portrait of him when he had left home as a child and even his family wouldn’t know what he looked like as an adult.

# 368