Most of what the commoners around them were talking about was the tax they had to pay this time.
“Is there a law like that?”
“Of course there isn’t. It seems that bastard of a military governor made up the law however he pleased.”
“Right? Then if he collected that tax, whose money would it be?”
“What?”
“Obviously His Majesty’s, wouldn’t it? And if it belongs to His Majesty, then I, acting in His Majesty’s place, can use it however I want, can’t I?”
“Th-that would be true?”
“Good.”
Ye Yahyeon shook his head as he looked at Jeok Wigang’s grin, unable to tell what on earth he was thinking.
*****
“Ugh! What is that smell?”
“Why are you hauling rotten grain around on a cart?”
The guards covered their noses and staggered backward.
“We received grain, but they sent us rotten stuff. So we brought it exactly as it was to complain. Look at that. If it were a small amount, I would not even say anything. It is ten carts’ worth.”
“Grrk! Normally, we should collect a toll, but your situation is pitiful, so we will let you through this time. Pass.”
“Thank you.”
The scribe driving the cart at the front gave the guards a good-natured smile and thanked them.
“Enough thanks. Just hurry up and get through!”
“Understood.”
When they covered the carts with cloth again, the smell disappeared, and only then did the guards look relieved.
“Do not open that cloth until you get to that damned bastard’s house. Understand?”
“Yes! Of course. We do not want to smell that either.”
“Go already.”
“Yes.”
They passed through the gate and entered, but there was no vitality in the city at all.
The faces of the people passing through the streets were full of worry, and there were not many people in the shops either.
“Where shall we go?”
At the scribe’s question, Jeok Wigang said,
“Let’s go to the red-light district.”
“What? In broad daylight?”
“Yes. What are you doing? Hurry up.”
“What? Yes.”
The scribe shook his head and said to Wind-Heaven,
“Wind-Heaven, let’s go this way.”
*****
What greeted Jeok Wigang’s party when they reached the red-light district were touts.
“We’ll treat you well. Come this way.”
“We’re the best house in Cloud-Sea Fortress. Come on in.”
Perhaps business was poor, because all of them desperately tried to catch Jeok Wigang’s party.
Then Jeok Wigang said,
“I would like to see the moon reflected in the pond myself.”
At Jeok Wigang’s words, the expressions of the touts who had been calling for customers froze all at once.
“There is no pond here, and the moon has not risen yet.”
When the clueless scribe said a word, Ye Yahyeon, who was beside him, slapped him across the mouth and said,
SLAP—
“Ah!”
“Be quiet.”
“Yes...”
Then one of the touts asked with a serious expression,
“They say the ripples differ wherever moonlight shines. Which ripple are you?”
“The moon reflected in the great sea.”
The moon reflected in the pond referred to this place’s branch master, and the moon reflected in the great sea was a code phrase for the highest position in the Lower Gate.
The touts exchanged glances, then spoke respectfully.
“Please follow me.”
One of them stepped forward, gave a fist salute, and guided Jeok Wigang’s party.
After they followed him, a wide manor soon appeared.
The tout spoke to the martial artist guarding the gate.
“A black carp has risen in the pond.”
At that, one of the martial artists ran inside with a grave expression.
“Please wait a moment. We must send word inside as well.”
“Fine.”
A short while later.
A martial artist came out, gave a fist salute, and said,
“We will escort you inside.”
When Jeok Wigang rose and followed him in, Ye Yahyeon and the others tried to enter as well.
At that moment, the martial artists blocked their way.
“Only that gentleman may enter.”
Ye Yahyeon’s eyebrows twitched.
In the past, he would have cut off their heads the instant they blocked him, but he restrained himself.
Because Jeok Wigang’s voice came from ahead.
“Stay here.”
“Understood.”
When Jeok Wigang followed the martial artist inside, a wide garden appeared.
Dense killing intent could be felt throughout the garden.
Killing intent surging with hostility.
Because he knew very well why they were acting this way, he merely smiled.
The moon reflected in the great sea was a code phrase only the Gate Master could use.
So it was no wonder they reacted this way when someone who was not the Gate Master used it.
At that moment, a middle-aged man wearing dark-red silk robes rushed out in a panic and shouted urgently.
“Wh-what are you doing? Withdraw your killing intent at once!”
After shouting as if scolding them, he ran before Jeok Wigang and prostrated himself.
“This subordinate, Mun Yang, branch master of Cloud-Sea Fortress, greets the Supreme Gate Master!”
At Mun Yang’s shout, the martial artists who had been hiding emerged all at once and flattened themselves on the ground.
Supreme Gate Master.
That was Jeok Wigang’s position in the Lower Gate.
Since he had said he disliked being Gate Master, they had seated him in the position of Supreme Gate Master instead.
His authority was even stronger than the Gate Master’s.
A new law of the Lower Gate had been established, stating that every member of the Lower Gate, including the Gate Master, had to obey the Supreme Gate Master’s orders unconditionally.
In effect, he was the Gate Master of the Lower Gate.
“You raised them well.”
Mun Yang immediately understood Jeok Wigang’s meaning and bowed his head as he said,
“The situation here has been changing urgently every day, so I trained them with all my effort. If you need them, you may take them with you.”
“No. I was praising you for doing well.”
“Thank you. I will escort you inside.”
“Good.”
*****
Jeok Wigang obtained information about Cloud-Sea Fortress here.
“So the military governor has no ability, but he was able to grow this powerful thanks to the strategist beside him?”
“That is correct. The strategist’s ability is one thing, but that man’s martial arts are also strong.”
“He is a strategist, but his martial arts are strong too?”
“Yes. From what we have seen, his main strength is not his mind, but force.”
“Is that so?”
“Yes. Also, he has a brutal personality, and there are reports that he personally tortures or cruelly executes anyone who displeases him. Of course, this is not known to the outside.”
As Jeok Wigang continued reading, he found the reason they were collecting such excessive taxes as well.
“They are collecting excessive taxes for the purpose of forced conscription?”
“Yes. Most commoners cannot pay their taxes properly, so many end up performing military service in place of tax payment.”
“How many troops does Cloud-Sea Fortress currently have?”
“Officially, fifty thousand. Unofficially, one hundred twenty thousand.”
“So that is why they diverted so much military grain. To feed the unofficial troops.”
“That is correct. That is also why they sent rotten military grain to Dark Dragon Fortress, or did not send even that much while giving one excuse after another.”
Jeok Wigang nodded.
“What exactly are they planning to do after gathering troops?”
“We secretly dispatched agents to watch them, and they were not an ordinary army. Their training volume was three times that of a normal army, and they say dozens died every day during training.”
“What kind of training was it?”
“Spear arts and formations. According to the agent who watched them, it was a formation that was practically the natural enemy of anyone who had learned martial arts. This is it.”
It was not detailed, but from a rough look at the battle lines, Jeok Wigang thought he knew what kind of formation it was.
“They mixed the True Qi Return Formation and the Qi-Absorbing Ghost-Killing Formation.”
“What are those?”
“The True Qi Return Formation gathers an opponent’s true qi and sends it back at them, while the Qi-Absorbing Ghost-Killing Formation absorbs an opponent’s true qi and distributes it among the soldiers. The more troops there are, the more qi they can absorb or gather, so it becomes stronger with numbers.”
“The reason they are training in formations like that is...”
“It seems they intend to break noninterference between officials and the martial world and attack the martial world.”
“That is what I think as well. I cannot understand it. Things are this peaceful, so why would they deliberately try to go to war with the martial world?”
“Have you heard of White Horse Heaven?”
“This is my first time hearing of them.”
“There are people like that. People who covet the Central Plains. To them, martial-world people are thorns in their eyes. And not only martial-world people. The army is likely a thorn in their eyes as well. So they make them fight. They want the two thorns in their eyes to fight each other until both are worn down.”
“If people like that exist, should we not respond immediately?”
“There is almost no information. How should I put it? It feels like they operate in isolated cells.”
“Then again, even I, branch master of the Lower Gate, said to be the greatest intelligence organization in the Central Plains, am hearing of this group for the first time.”
Jeok Wigang closed the documents and rose from his seat.
“Still, now that we know people like that exist, we can prepare as we go, can’t we?”
“Then what should we do about what is happening in Cloud-Sea Fortress? Should we not inform the people of the Central Plains?”
“No. That would only increase the chaos. I will handle it.”
“What?”
The branch master stared in bewilderment at Jeok Wigang, who spoke as if it were nothing at all.
Was this a simple problem?
It was enough to make one wonder whether he was imagining things.
At that moment, Jeok Wigang rose and said,
“Thanks for the information.”
“Are you leaving already? You came such a long way, so please relieve your travel fatigue today before you go. We have prepared a meal as well.”
At the branch master’s earnest words, Jeok Wigang thought for a moment, then smiled faintly and said,
“Is that so? If you went so far as to prepare, I can’t just leave. Call in the people waiting outside too.”
“Yes. Understood.”
*****
The next day.
As they moved toward the military governor’s office where the military governor was staying, a low sobbing cry came from somewhere.
It was the sort of crying that seemed to hold some sad story.
Jeok Wigang was about to pass by, thinking it must be someone’s personal grief, when the low sobs gradually turned into wailing.
“Huuugh! Sob, sob! My granddaughter... What am I to do? Poor child... huuuugh!”
“Stop for a moment.”
At Jeok Wigang’s words, the carts following in a line stopped.
When he turned his gaze toward the sound of the crying, he saw a shabby house with its door half-open. Inside, an old man was sitting collapsed on the floor, pounding the ground as he wept.
Beside the old man was a girl staring blankly up at the sky.
The girl’s face was bruised, and her lip was split, leaving bloodstains behind.
When Jeok Wigang got down from the cart, Ye Yahyeon asked,
“What is it?”
“Hm? It seems there is a story here.”
Ye Yahyeon shook his head.
To think he had to concern himself with every minor thing like this.
But he was afraid of Jeok Wigang’s fist, so he quietly followed him.
“Excuse me.”
At Jeok Wigang’s voice, the old man raised his head.
He must have cried for a long time, because his eyes were swollen, and all the blood vessels in them had burst, staining them red.
“Who are you...?”
“I was passing by, but your crying sounded as though it held deep resentment.”
“Then... just pass on. Even if you know, this is not something you can resolve.”
“You never know. I may be able to help.”
The old man looked at Jeok Wigang with sorrowful eyes.
“Then... at least listen to this old man’s unjust story.”
“Yes.”
The old man’s story began.
*****
The old man ran a small inn.
Originally, there had been a woman who helped with the work, but after a death in her family, she was unable to come for several days. So his granddaughter had come to the inn, saying she would help in the woman’s place.
But by terrible luck, she caught the eye of a man named Im Baekmun, a notorious lecher in the area.
He kept making advances toward the granddaughter, and when the old man saw it, he sent his granddaughter home.
He thought that would be the end of it.
That had been his mistake.
The man named Im Baekmun followed his granddaughter home, and in the empty house, he raped her.
Enraged, the old man immediately went to the government office and accused Im Baekmun.
He believed the magistrate would redress his granddaughter’s grievance and punish Im Baekmun.
But reality was not like that.
Im Baekmun was the military governor’s son-in-law.
The magistrate did not have enough nerve to punish the military governor’s son-in-law.
Nor was he righteous enough.