Surviving as a Maid of the Sichuan Tang Clan

The one who decided the Water Dragon King’s punishment was Jinseong.

He agonized until the morning star vanished between the dawn skies, fingering his ritual instrument, and finally reached a decision.

“I will escort the man called Chiyong to the Alliance. The grievances of the innocent commoners must be resolved.”

“So that’s what you decided. Do as you see fit. And?”

“We also cannot avoid holding the Water Dragon King accountable for her crimes. Punishment is necessary.”

Beopgong nodded as if he understood. It seemed he intended to respect Jinseong’s decision.

“So there is one thing I would like to ask of you.”

“Yeah. Say it.”

“You told me to give her a chance, Master, but I cannot simply let her go. I believe she must be kept somewhere close and watched.”

“You mean to take her to the Alliance?”

“That is not what I mean. I want to provide an environment where she can live like a human being.”

At Jinseong’s words, Beopgong crossed his arms and grinned.

“You brat. I thought you were completely rigid, but you’ve got a soft spot after all. Fine. What are you going to do? What do you want me to do?”

“I intend to have the Water Dragon King personally compensate the sacrificed commoners. Money cannot be exchanged for human lives, but it can serve as lifelong atonement.”

“That one won’t have money, though.”

“So the Alliance will pay compensation first, and the Water Dragon King will gradually repay it.”

“Ah-ha. So you’re telling me to create an environment where she can blend in among commoners and earn money honorably?”

“Yes. I want to show her enough of how ordinary people live before sending her into the world.”

“......Hey, you bastard. That means you’re telling me to find someone to babysit her.”

Beopgong’s expression turned sour. He let out a sigh, scratched his head roughly, counted on his fingers for a bit, then opened his mouth.

“How about the Wang estate? It’s the closest from here. I can ask them to find a house nearby and give her some work. That Wang bastard has a small merchant company, and he farms on a fairly large scale. They’ll only give her odd jobs, but she’ll be able to learn how the world works.”

“That will be enough. Thank you, Master Beopgong.”

At Jinseong’s courteous thanks, Beopgong smiled in satisfaction and thumped his back.

“Looks like you spent the whole night thinking hard. Good work.”

Then he called the Water Dragon King.

“Hey, kid! Come over here! ......She’s limping. Forget it. I’ll go.”

Striding over, he looked down at the Water Dragon King and asked,

“Can you write?”

“Yeah. I learned from Limp-Leg.”

“Limp-Leg?”

“The man who kept the ledgers. You threw him into the river earlier, mister.”

At the answer that came back, Beopgong froze for a moment. Then he groaned and smacked his lips.

“......Is that so. Anyway, that’s good. I’ll write you a letter.”

“A letter?”

“Yeah. If you go to Huangmei County, there’s a fellow named Wang Giyeol, a lay disciple of Shaolin. If you say you’re looking for Master Wang’s house, everyone will know what you mean. I’ll arrange a few carriages, so take your people and go to him.”

“Who is that? Your friend, mister?”

“A brat I taught. If you show him my letter, he’ll find a house for you to stay in. He’ll give you work too. So don’t even think about doing anything bad. Work honestly and live off what you earn.”

“......What does that mean?”

The Water Dragon King’s eyes shook in confusion, but Beopgong ignored it and continued.

“In return, send thirty percent of the money you earn every month to the Martial Alliance. It’s the price of the lives of the people you killed. They’ll tell you how much of the balance remains each time they receive money, so work hard and pay it back.”

“......I don’t understand what you’re saying at all, mister.”

“And send me a letter once every three months. Write about what you did that day, what the weather was like, what happened, how you’re getting along with your people. Even petty details are fine, so write them and send them. If you don’t, I’ll assume you went off to do river banditry and come after you.”

“......”

“If you want to do business, learn business. If you want to farm, learn farming. You have a lot of women, so you could even weave cloth and make a living. Anyway, do whatever you people feel like doing. As long as you decide what you want to do, that Giyeol brat will help you.”

“I, I have no idea what any of this......”

The Water Dragon King stammered and clutched her own hem with an anxious face.

“You’re helping us?”

“Yeah.”

“You’re really going to help us?”

“I said I am.”

As if she could not believe it, she moved her lips soundlessly and stared at Beopgong.

“Why? What’s the reason? You get nothing out of this, mister. What do you want?”

“Hey. What could I be lacking that I’d try to take advantage of a kid like you? I don’t want anything.”

“That’s why I understand it even less. ......There were plenty of people who said they would kill me, but no one ever said they would help me.”

“Of course not. River-bandit bastards aren’t human. But I’m human. It’s only natural for a human to help another human.”

Beopgong replied as if it were nothing, then looked at Chiyong. His expression turned cold.

“In return, this one has to die as the Water Dragon King.”

“N-no! Not Chiyong!”

“No. You and this river bandit are different. He’s stained his hands with blood countless times. I’m taking him with me.”

“No! Don’t touch Chiyong!”

The Water Dragon King, her face white, stood in front of Chiyong. She bared her teeth fiercely as if she might attack Beopgong at any moment.

Beopgong clicked his tongue and looked at Chiyong.

“Good grief. She’s no different from a stray cat. Hey. You know better than anyone what kind of chance came to that kid. You deal with it.”

“......Yes. Thank you for your mercy, Master.”

Chiyong deeply cupped his fist and moved the Water Dragon King back as he persuaded her. The Water Dragon King, who had been shouting something, soon began to sob loudly.

I pretended not to notice and moved away from the Water Dragon King’s group.

As I silently looked out at the Yangtze River stained by the dawn light, Yeon Ryang quietly approached and stroked my head.

“Our little sister’s heart is so soft it’s a problem. You care this much about someone else’s business.”

“What do you think, Brother?”

“Hmm?”

“The decision those two made.”

“Does letting her go leave a bad taste?”

“A little. I do think she should be given a chance, you know? But when I think about the people who died...... I also wonder if the punishment is too weak. But it’s not like I can tell her to pay for lives °• N 𝑜 v 𝑒 l i g h t •° with her life either. It’s hard.”

“......At times like this, little sister, you’re strange in a subtle way. Blood repaid with blood is the law of the martial world, but you say that won’t do. You’re more like someone raised in a temple than the daughter of a martial clan.”

“That’s because I stayed in a temple for a long time thanks to someone.”

“Oh dear. So it’s all my fault. Anyway, those two already made their decision, so don’t worry about it anymore. There’s no such thing as a perfect answer in this world anyway.”

Yeon Ryang laughed playfully and patted me as if soothing me. I wanted to laugh along with him, but no laughter came out.

Remembering the woman who had handed me the veiled hat, the woman who had lost her husband, I let out a deep sigh.

I knew this was not a world where one could live kindly just because one wished to.

It was a world where a knife swung for my sake stabbed some innocent other person, where revenge gave birth to revenge.

But I did not want to be swept away by that current.

I wanted to remain unshaken and protect my daily life. I wanted to remain myself.

......I want to become strong.

As I watched the flowing water, a thought suddenly brushed through my mind, and I let out a sound of realization.

“Ahh, so that’s what those words meant.”

At my mutter, Yeon Ryang asked,

“Hmm?”

“A long time ago...... someone said something to me, Brother.”

“Yeah.”

“That the martial world follows the rule of the strong, and in a world where the powerful are the law, no one listens to the words of the weak.”

“That’s right.”

“So if there’s something you want to protect, you have to build strength. Back then, I didn’t really understand what that meant. I thought it was just the principle itself.”

Yeon Ryang tapped my head lightly with his fingertips, as if telling me to go on.

“But I think I understand a little now. It meant you have to build strength and protect yourself first before you can look after the people around you. No matter how strong I become, if I lose myself, if I can’t remain myself...... I won’t be able to protect anything.”

“Whoever it was, they said something good.”

Yeon Ryang answered softly and smoothed my tangled hair down with his fingers like a comb.

“Our little sister is growing day by day. It feels like only yesterday I was wondering how I could ever leave you alone when you knew nothing......”

“Of course. Whose little sister do you think I am?”

I answered slyly and smiled brightly at him. Yeon Ryang let out a small laugh and lightly brushed off my clothes.

“You’re covered in mud. You should wash before it hardens.”

“Yeah.”

“Aren’t you tired? Want me to carry you?”

“Brother, really. Am I a child?”

“You are, of course.”

Chuckling, he stretched my cheek out. The warmth of his large hand made my heart ripple.

How had Yeon Ryang not lost himself in a world like this?

How had he been able to be the first to reach out and say he would help me?

I realized once again what the hand he had offered me meant.

“You know. I also......”

“Yeah.”

“I want to become like you, Brother.”

At my whisper, Yeon Ryang was horrified.

“What? You’re saying something dangerous. Sohae, you must not live like me.”

“But you’re strong, Brother. I want to become strong too. I want to become strong and do what I believe is right without wavering.”

For a long time, Yeon Ryang opened and closed his mouth as if he could not think of what to say. Then he smiled bitterly and turned his head.

“......Your brother isn’t that kind of person.”

“You are.”

“......”

A tendon stood out on Yeon Ryang’s neck as he avoided my gaze. The moment I opened my mouth again, Beopgong’s shout rang out.

“Hey! You lot, stop slacking off and come help! We need to launch the boat!”

“Yes! Coming! Let’s go, Brother.”

I waved to Beopgong and quickly pushed Yeon Ryang’s back. His fingertips seemed to tremble a little as he began walking as if he had no choice.

*****

Jinseong’s plan to escort Chiyong all the way to the Martial Alliance fell through.

That was because the commoners who saw Chiyong dragged in with his limbs bound began hurling curses and rushed at him.

Their fury was so fierce that even Beopgong could not stop the crowd that surged in, and he gave Chiyong over.

Under the rain of blows, Chiyong did not last long before he died.

It was a miserable death.

“Ptui! You bastard worse than pigs or dogs!”

“Mother...... I’m scared......”

“That’s not something you should look at. Let’s go.”

Chiyong’s head was hung at the dock.

He had paid the price he deserved, but seeing the corpse that everyone pointed at left my heart uneasy.

A different situation though it was, anxiety swept over me that Yeon Ryang could also end up like that.

No matter what kind of person Yeon Ryang was, in other people’s eyes, he would look like a sinister Demonic Sect member.

Could we leave the Martial Alliance without any trouble? Would Beopgong’s guarantor status be enough?

Did Jinseong sense Yeon Ryang’s demonic qi?

Since he had seen Yeon Ryang, who had been acting like a wandering martial artist without internal energy, running wild in coordination with Beopgong, he must have felt something suspicious.

Seeing as he said nothing, perhaps he was only holding his tongue until he could secure clear evidence.

If Jinseong did something to Yeon Ryang......

“Young Lady Tang.”

“......”

“Young Lady Tang. Are you all right?”

“Yes? Ah, yes.”

I jerked in surprise and raised my head, and saw Jinseong looking at me.

He was awkwardly holding one hand out toward me. It seemed he had been debating whether to touch me and call me or not.

He must have called me for quite a while.

“I’m sorry. I was thinking about something else.”

“It is all right.”

When I apologized with an awkward smile, Jinseong bowed his head slightly and opened his mouth.

“There is something I wish to ask.”

“Yes. Go ahead.”

Then Jinseong looked around and narrowed the distance between us.

I flinched at the excessively close distance and twisted away, but Jinseong instead pressed his shoulder to mine.

As he moved closer, almost as if shielding me, Jinseong slowly lowered his head. He was close enough that I could almost feel his breath.

He whispered,

“Are you, by any chance, under threat from your family?”