Bachelor Swordsmanship Remastered [EN]: Chapter 176

176. An Unexpected Reunion

The next day at dawn, the group departed from the inn.

In front of the massive city gate, people and carriages were already lined up, waiting.

After placing their carriage at the end of the line and waiting, the city gate finally began to open.

“Oh, it looks like it’s starting now.”

Clatter, clatter.

It was then.

Seeing carriages blatantly cutting in line, Zhuge Giho frowned.

“They’re cutting in line so openly.”

Yunhyun was equally displeased.

However, no one protested.

The gate guards also allowed those carriages to pass first, as if it were natural.

Zhuge Giho couldn’t hide his annoyance.

“How can things be right with this much corruption…”

“Oh, don’t say such things.”

Zhuge Giho turned his head.

The speaker was a middle-aged merchant standing next to his carriage.

He, too, had been waiting in line for some time.

“This is mild compared to what it used to be. Back then, they wouldn’t let you pass at all unless you handed them money.”

Zhuge Giho frowned, and Yunhyun asked,

“Is that so?”

“Of course.”

The middle-aged merchant nodded and said.

“Things have gotten better recently because a new upper-level military officer came. The previous one was extremely ruthless. Well, who knows when this one will change, though.”

“I see. Thank you.”

The merchant shrugged instead of replying.

Yunhyun, feeling complicated, was lost in thought when Binghon’s voice came from the front.

“They’re coming.”

Thud, thud.

A soldier with a long spear approached and shouted with sharp eyes.

“Stop! Where is this carriage headed!”

Clunk.

The carriage door opened, and Zhuge Giho stepped out.

“Good work.”

Zhuge Giho said with a smile.

“We are affiliated with the Murim Alliance [a coalition of martial arts clans and sects]. Is there a problem?”

“Murim Alliance?”

The soldier’s expression changed slightly.

His momentum seemed to falter, and he glanced inside the carriage before saying,

“Wait here for a moment.”

The soldier quickly ran off somewhere, and Zhuge Giho turned to Yunhyun with a triumphant smile.

After a while, the soldier returned with a lower-ranking officer.

“T, this is the carriage.”

At the soldier’s words, the lower-ranking officer frowned and looked at Zhuge Giho.

“You’re affiliated with the Murim Alliance?”

“That’s right.”

“Do you have something to prove your identity?”

The lower-ranking officer’s attitude was rude.

Even if he was a government official, such an attitude towards someone from the Murim Alliance, especially on their first meeting, was not typical.

“Here it is.”

Zhuge Giho handed over a letter bearing the name of the Murim Alliance.

The lower-ranking officer opened the letter and glanced through it carelessly.

“Hmm.”

Thud.

Folding the letter, the lower-ranking officer said,

“We have something to investigate. Come with me.”

He was already turning away.

“Just a moment.”

“What is it?”

“Is there something wrong with the letter?”

Zhuge Giho’s voice was also stiff.

It was impossible for kind words to come out.

The lower-ranking officer frowned.

“That’s what I’m going to investigate now. Come with me.”

“Call the person in charge here.”

“What?”

The lower-ranking officer frowned.

However, Zhuge Giho did not back down either.

“Before being affiliated with the Murim Alliance, I am a member of the Zhuge Clan. I will not comply with an investigation without a reason.”

“Zhuge Clan?”

The lower-ranking officer looked surprised.

Zhuge Giho said with a triumphant smile.

“That’s right. The Zhuge Clan you know.”

“Ah, is that so?”

The lower-ranking officer smiled brightly.

However, before that smile disappeared, Zhuge Giho realized that things had gone wrong.

“So what if you’re from the Zhuge Clan, you bastard? Did you think I’d bow down to you just because you’re from the Zhuge Clan?”

The lower-ranking officer, with his face close to Zhuge Giho’s, said in a growling voice.

“That name is worth less than dog poop here, you got it? Got it!”

The lower-ranking officer’s forcefulness was quite impressive.

He spat on the ground and said to the surrounding soldiers,

“Bring all these disrespectful bastards here!”

“Yes, sir!”

“Please wait a moment.”

Click.

The person who opened the door and stepped out was Yunhyun.

He had no choice but to step out.

If things continued this way, the Bukhae group might attempt a forced breakthrough.

In fact, Binghon was ready to charge the carriage at any moment.

“Who’s this bastard now?”

The lower-ranking officer turned around, annoyed.

Yunhyun clasped his hands together and bowed politely.

“I apologize for unintentionally obstructing the official’s duties.”

A strange light flashed in the lower-ranking officer’s eyes.

Seeing Yunhyun, dressed as a scholar, speaking politely, he couldn’t treat him carelessly.

He might be someone with connections to the government.

“Apologies are unnecessary. Come with me.”

The lower-ranking officer did not relax his expression.

However, his tone was definitely more subdued than before.

Yunhyun continued in a gentle tone.

“As you have already seen, that letter bears the seal of the Zhejiang Province Administration Commissioner.”

The lower-ranking officer flinched.

For non-governmental martial groups to exist, they had to have some kind of relationship with the local government.

The Murim Alliance also maintained close ties with the local officials of Zhejiang Province, mainly in the form of financial contributions and government approval.

The result was the seal of the Administration Commissioner, the highest local official overseeing the administration of Zhejiang Province.

“Even with the guarantee of the Administration Commissioner, you say an investigation is necessary, so isn’t it only natural to ask for the reason?”

The lower-ranking officer was speechless at Yunhyun’s logical words.

It didn’t make sense to let merchants pass while inspecting those from the Murim Alliance, especially those with a letter bearing the seal of the Administration Commissioner.

“W, well, that’s…”

It was then that the lower-ranking officer hesitated.

Binghon, sitting in the driver’s seat, glanced at Yunhyun.

That look clearly showed his intention to force a breakthrough.

‘No, you can’t.’

Yunhyun quickly shook his head.

The lower-ranking officer saw that.

“You bastards! What are you trying to do!”

As expected.

The experienced lower-ranking officer immediately grasped the situation and drew his sword.

Clang.

The soldiers standing behind him quickly aimed their spears, and the other soldiers around them all looked this way.

Tension filled the air in an instant.

“Drop your swords and come with me immediately! Otherwise…”

“What’s going on?”

A heavy voice echoed.

The officer immediately turned his head.

Thud, thud.

The person who appeared in armor was a young military officer with intense eyes.

Judging by his attire, he seemed to be the upper-level military officer in charge here.

The lower-ranking officer took a sharp stance and saluted before answering.

“These people are refusing to cooperate with the investigation, so I was about to take them away.”

“Refusing to cooperate with the investigation?”

The young upper-level military officer’s eyebrows twitched.

At that moment, Zhuge Giho whispered to Yunhyun.

“This is good. It seems that military officer is the one in charge here.”

Zhuge Giho handed Yunhyun a small wooden box and continued.

“Secretary Yun, assess the situation and then…”

“No.”

Yunhyun did not accept the wooden box.

“It seems things will become difficult. That person…”

With a bitter expression, Yunhyun looked at the upper-level military officer.

Only Dokgo-rang could notice the faint longing in his eyes as he looked at the young upper-level military officer.

Thud, thud.

Meanwhile, the upper-level military officer, having heard the situation from the lower-ranking officer, approached Yunhyun.

“I’ve heard the story. However…”

“It’s been a while.”

The young upper-level military officer flinched.

He looked at Yunhyun again and said with an incredulous expression.

“Could it be, Scholar Yun?”

“That’s right. It’s me, Instructor Gwan.”

The young upper-level military officer was none other than Instructor Gwan Cheolhun.

He was the very person who had entered the Golden Guard as the top graduate of the military examination, had issues with Bang An, and later became an instructor.

After being unable to hide his surprise for a while, the young upper-level military officer soon bowed respectfully to Yunhyun.

“It’s been a long time, Scholar Yun.”

His intense eyes were still filled with surprise.

How could he not know Yunhyun?

Yunhyun was the person who, despite being a scholar, came to the Golden Guard training grounds every day.

He was not only close to the other instructors, but also helped many trainees with his advice.

Above all, he was the sworn brother of Instructor Ilchunghyun, who was the object of respect for the trainees, and the person who stood by him until the end.

Yunhyun was someone that anyone from the Golden Guard could not forget.

“Have you been well?”

After asking, Yunhyun realized his mistake.

The meaning of a former Golden Guard instructor being in this remote area was clear.

He had been demoted.

“So-so.”

Gwan Cheolhun gave a bitter smile.

“Instead of being here, let’s go together. How have you been all this time…”

“By any chance.”

Yunhyun’s voice cut off Gwan Cheolhun’s words.

“Have you received orders to detain us here?”

Gwan Cheolhun’s expression hardened.

He turned his head and said to the lower-ranking officer.

“Dismiss the surroundings.”

The lower-ranking officer immediately bowed his head and obeyed the order.

The soldiers who had been aiming their spears returned to their positions, and the lower-ranking officer also left.

Gwan Cheolhun quietly opened his mouth.

“Orders to detain someone who is not a criminal are not officially issued.”

Yunhyun fully understood what he was saying.

“But unofficially, they are.”

Gwan Cheolhun’s expression was complicated as he spoke.

Yunhyun also couldn’t hide his bitter feelings.

“Scholar Yun.”

Gwan Cheolhun said.

“Come with me. There will never be any disrespect towards your group.”

Yunhyun gave a bitter smile.

“For the past few days, we have been relentlessly pursued and obstructed by groups of bandits.”

Gwan Cheolhun’s eyes changed.

As expected, he was quick to understand.

“Then the rumored White Treasure Cart [a carriage rumored to carry valuable goods]…”

Yunhyun nodded.

“That’s right. Of course, it’s not loaded with treasure as the rumors say, but they have been trying to stop us at all costs. And now they have even extended their reach to the border guards.”

With a serious look, Yunhyun continued.

“Do you think they will be satisfied with detaining us for a few days? If they know our feet are tied, they might even try to take our lives next.”

Gwan Cheolhun closed his eyes.

He couldn’t dismiss Yunhyun’s concerns as unfounded.

If they were systematically moving groups of bandits and exerting pressure on the border guards, there was no guarantee that things wouldn’t turn out as Yunhyun said.

Moreover, Gwan Cheolhun knew another fact.

“Go.”

Gwan Cheolhun said.

Zhuge Giho’s face immediately lit up.

“Thank you.”

Fearing that he might change his mind, Zhuge Giho quickly expressed his gratitude and got into the carriage.

However, Yunhyun couldn’t be completely happy.

“Will you be alright?”

“Scholar Yun may not know this, but individuals presumed to be martial arts experts entered this city this morning.”

Yunhyun’s expression hardened at those words.

“Orders have been given, also unofficially, not to impose any restrictions on their actions. I heard that they were asking about this White Treasure Cart.”

Gwan Cheolhun continued with a serious expression.

“So please leave quickly. You must not delay your journey. I no longer have the justification or the power to stop them.”