Bachelor Swordsmanship Remastered [EN]: Chapter 404

404. Lao Tzu Hid Under the Pillar of History

After confirming the contents of the letter, Unhyun immediately left the room with Gaekong and went down to the lower floor of the brothel.

After finding Wolhyang, Unhyun confirmed a few more details about the letter with her and left the brothel.

The next morning, Unhyun, Gaekong, Jogan, and Hang Jang-ik were in a carriage heading north.

“My lord,” Jogan said quietly.

Unhyun, who had been lost in thought, raised his head.

“What is the reason for urgently wanting to meet with Eunuch Park?” Jogan’s expression was worried as he asked.

Only then did Unhyun realize he had been wearing a stern expression, and he gave a light smile. “It’s nothing special. It’s about time I formally reported on the collapse of the League of Heroes…”

Clatter, clatter.

Unhyun said, the sound muffled by the swaying carriage.

“I have a hunch about the identity of Ileun.”

At those words, not only Jogan but also Gaekong’s eyes lit up.

Unhyun had clearly caught a clue from Wolhyang’s letter and words.

However, Gaekong, who had seen and heard the same things, had no idea at all.

“You have a hunch?”

“Yes, that’s right.”

“Did you realize something from the contents written in the letter?”

Unhyun nodded.

He had checked the details with Wolhyang, but her meeting with Ileun was purely coincidental, and she did not know Ileun’s whereabouts.

Still, he wondered if she might have noticed something since she had seen him in person, but she said that he was such a mysterious figure that she could not even guess his identity even when he was right in front of her.

It was only natural since even Gaekong in the past had not seen Ileun’s true nature.

“Then what does it mean to say that he is not even a minor hermit, let alone a major hermit?”

“He expressed it that way, but if he is neither a major hermit nor a minor hermit, then that means he is a middle hermit.”

Gaekong frowned.

“A middle hermit?”

“There is a saying in old poems: ‘Minor hermits hide in forests and hills, major hermits hide in the court and marketplace.'”

“I have heard that saying before,” Jogan said.

“It means that true hermits are among ordinary people, and it is a famous phrase often quoted to mean that the light is dim under the lamp [the obvious is often overlooked],” Unhyun explained.

“That’s right, Jogan. And another poem from later generations says this,” Unhyun continued quietly.

“I cannot become a minor hermit or a major hermit, so I would rather become a middle hermit and hide as a historian.”

A historian (司官) generally refers to a low-ranking official.

Gaekong’s eyes lit up.

Gaekong could also understand what Unhyun had realized.

“So you’re saying Ileun is in office?”

“Yes. I think so.”

Clatter, clatter.

The sound of hooves echoed in the carriage.

Gaekong was lost in thought with a look of regret.

Suddenly, Jogan said, “So that’s why you’re trying to see Eunuch Park, my lord. Investigating all the low-ranking officials in the world would be an enormous task.”

The world is vast and immense.

The number of high-ranking officials is not small, but the number of low-ranking officials in the world would be as numerous as grains of sand.

“No,” Unhyun said with an awkward smile. “There is no need to investigate all the low-ranking officials in the world.”

“What are you talking about?” Gaekong asked.

“The old poem I mentioned earlier has another phrase. It is the phrase ‘Lao Tzu hid under the pillar of history [Lao Tzu, a famous philosopher, held a minor position as a historian].'”

“Pillar of history?”

“It is one of the names of old government posts. It is the position in charge of the royal library during the Zhou dynasty, which was not a very important position at the time, but…”

“Just get to the point,” Gaekong said, frowning.

Unhyun quickly replied, “In today’s terms, it is the position in charge of the Muyeongak, the imperial palace library.”

“The imperial palace!” Gaekong said with a sigh, and soon nodded. “I see. If he’s in such a place, no one would know. Moreover, managing the imperial palace library…”

“Then we should immediately inspect all the scholars and officials of the Muyeongak,” Jogan suggested.

Unhyun shook his head at Jogan’s words. “We can’t do that.”

“Right. If we did that, Ileun might hide somewhere else,” Gaekong also agreed with Unhyun.

But Unhyun’s intention was not that.

“It’s not that…” Unhyun said with a bitter smile. “Just because there is such a phrase in an old poem does not guarantee that Ileun is necessarily there. These are all just my guesses. No, in fact, they might be just wild guesses.”

The words major hermit and minor hermit are commonly used expressions.

So, giving unintended meanings to each phrase of the old poem was artificial and hasty.

Disappointment crossed Gaekong’s face.

“Still, isn’t it worth trying? We have no other clues…”

“I said earlier that I had a hunch about Ileun’s identity, didn’t I?” Unhyun continued in a calm voice. “Those who hide in the court are called major hermits, but those in unimportant or low-ranking positions are also called middle hermits separately. So, this is just my guess, but…”

Unhyun’s eyes shone strongly.

“I think Ileun is someone I know.”

At Unhyun’s sudden words, Gaekong frowned.

Ileun’s identity is someone Unhyun knows?

Jogan also looked at Unhyun with a puzzled expression.

Hang Jang-ik, who did not understand what he was saying, simply remained silent.

“Besides the Muyeongak, there is another library in the imperial palace.”

A small and insignificant library came to Unhyun’s mind.

At the time, he thought there were only terrible books there, but he could not dare to ignore it.

Because that library was the Crown Prince’s personal library.

“It’s the Changryong Hall.”

“Is that the place where you were a scholar?”

Unhyun nodded at Gaekong’s words. “Yes, that’s right.”

It was a long time ago now, but the events of that time were as vivid as yesterday.

How could Unhyun forget that place?

“When I left the imperial palace, a senior scholar from the Changryong Hall said this to me.”

Unhyun said in a low voice, “Hiding from the world doesn’t necessarily mean being in a deep mountain valley.”

Silence fell in the carriage.

Like Unhyun said, it might be a wild guess or a coincidence.

But Gaekong and Jogan were thinking the same thing as Unhyun.

That the person was Ileun.

Clatter, clatter.

Unhyun quietly recalled his memories.

The countless days he spent in the imperial palace flashed before his eyes.

And among them, one person’s name stood out clearly.

Changryong Hall, which was in the center of power, the Forbidden City, but was so unimportant that it was openly despised.

He was one of the only two scholars in the Changryong Hall and Unhyun’s only senior, Scholar Sa Ilcheon.

***

The signboard engraved with ‘Changryong Hall’ was visible.

The letters engraved on the large signboard as if they were flying evoked special emotions in Unhyun.

He had seen it countless times and even become indifferent to it, but those three letters were once his pride.

And for a long time, it was a yoke and a shackle, and now it was an unforgettable bond.

The title of Changryong Sword Lord was also taken from here, so it could not be said to be a truly deep bond.

After being immersed in emotion for a while, Unhyun moved his feet.

Step, step.

Click.

Passing through the not-so-large door, Unhyun entered inside.

Somewhere unfamiliar yet familiar feeling embraced Unhyun.

And he was in front of him.

The scholar, Sa Ilcheon, was sitting in his usual upright posture, looking at a book.

The person who had been with him for over ten years and was not easy to deal with until the end.

He was still here in the Changryong Hall.

Swish.

Sa Ilcheon raised his head.

He was not surprised or puzzled to see Unhyun.

“It’s been a while,” he said. His voice, which was even calm, was exactly the same as before.

As if time had gone back to the past.

Unhyun let out a slight chuckle.

“It’s been a while,” Unhyun said, looking straight at Sa Ilcheon. “Sir Ileun.”

He couldn’t help but chuckle.

How could he not recognize such a person?

How could he not have noticed anything while seeing this person every morning for over ten years?

Unhyun even felt a sense of futility.

Sa Ilcheon, who was visible in his eyes now, was even chilling as if he was seeing an incomprehensible wonder.

“There’s no need to blame yourself,” Sa Ilcheon said with a faint smile. “Even Sword Saint and Dokseon couldn’t see through my true nature. If you hadn’t left this place, you might have noticed my identity.”

Sword Saint Lee Geomhak, whom he met after leaving the imperial palace, was the first person Unhyun met who he could acknowledge as a true master.

Even Lee Geomhak could not know Ileun’s identity, so it was natural that Unhyun did not notice.

“More than that, what brings you here?” Sa Ilcheon continued. “You must be busy standing tall as a leading figure in the Jianghu martial world [world of martial arts and chivalry], traversing the world, and whispering sweet nothings with peerless beauties.”

Unhyun gave a bitter smile. “Where did that story come from?”

Sa Ilcheon said, pretending not to know.

His words were not entirely wrong if you thought about it.

But were the many things Unhyun had experienced something that could be said so simply?

“I…” Unhyun opened his mouth in a low voice.

But when he tried to speak, he suddenly felt choked up.

What should he say about those many times, those precious and heartbreaking relationships?

“…I just, got by.”

Neither Unhyun nor Sa Ilcheon knew the weight of the story contained in those words.

A moment of silence passed.

Unhyun, who had calmed his mind, suddenly asked, “…Did you happen to recover the body of Bulyeong?”

Zen Master Wabool said that an old man with a divine appearance had delivered the body of the divine monk Bulyeong to Shaolin.

Unhyun was guessing if that old man was Ileun.

As expected, Sa Ilcheon quietly nodded.

“Unfortunately, it was already too late when I found him,” Sa Ilcheon said in a low voice. “But he was smiling, saying that he had finally won. Really…, that’s just like that friend.”

The divine monk could not escape the hands of the two Grand Masters.

But he succeeded in stalling for time until the end, and even in a dying state, he did not hand over his body to them.

In the end, the divine monk made the two Grand Masters leave empty-handed, without even the sense of accomplishment of having killed the divine monk.

All to save Unhyun.

“…I see,” Unhyun couldn’t speak properly and lowered his head.

However, the sadness that welled up in his chest soon became hot tears and flowed down Unhyun’s cheeks.

How much time had passed?

Unhyun quietly wiped away his tears with his sleeve.

And he raised his head.

“Have you been watching me all along?”

“I was just checking the news from time to time,” Sa Ilcheon said with a calm expression. “People call me ‘Ileun,’ but I also have duties to fulfill. But I was listening carefully about you. How could I not?”

Sa Ilcheon continued with a smile, “You are the only person who has found Scholar Yang of the White Tiger Hall’s book.”

Unhyun’s eyes widened.

It was clear what ‘book’ Sa Ilcheon, or rather Ileun, was talking about.

[Report on the Holistic Approach to the Origins of Martial Arts Transmitted in the Murim Factions.]

Unhyun could immediately recall the title, which was difficult to even read properly.

He had read it so much in the Muyeongak, where it could not even be borrowed, that he could recite the contents in his sleep.

Wasn’t the book that recorded the Twelve Forms of the White Tiger Training Sword, which was initially called the ‘Report Swordplay,’ that ‘report’?

Sa Ilcheon gazed at Unhyun intently.

That look was no longer that of Scholar Sa Ilcheon, but the look of Ileun himself.