Chapter 66
66
16. Betrothed
Snowflakes fluttered in the cool breeze. The boy gazed at the icicles hanging from the eaves.
It felt like only yesterday the world was covered in spring blossoms, but before he knew it, it was full-blown winter.
“Chief Steward, any letters arrived?”
“No, Young Patriarch.”
The boy’s face clouded with disappointment at the reply.
“It must take a long time to come from Sichuan, right?”
“Even with a Letter Carrier Bird, it takes five days and nights, Young Patriarch. If you send a regular bird, it will take much longer.”
The boy nodded, fiddling with his wrist as if to soothe his disappointment.
The boy, whose name was Namgung Hwi, wore a red knot on his wrist that didn’t quite match the jade-colored silk.
It’s much later than I thought.
Muttering to himself, Namgung Hwi recalled the letter he had painstakingly written last spring.
He had rewritten it several times, carefully selecting easy characters because she was still learning to read.
When will I get a reply? Will I have to wait longer before I can write a proper letter?
Has she grown taller? Is she free from pain?
Did she like the hairpin? I said I would bring her something even more beautiful and precious, but should I have asked what kind of accessories she likes?
He was full of questions.
“Our Hwi, are you waiting for a letter again today?”
“Namgung Ran, Eldest Sister.”
Lost in thought, Namgung Hwi was startled and looked up.
His sister was looking at him with a playful expression.
“Just what kind of Young Miss is it that makes our Hwi so anxious? This sister wants to meet her too.”
“You’ll like her too, Eldest Sister.”
Namgung Ran chuckled at Namgung Hwi’s confident reply.
“Oh, my. Our Hwi has grown up so much. I’ll have to tell them to pay more attention to next year’s gathering. That Young Miss will be coming to Hefei too, won’t she? Right?”
Namgung Ran was right.
The girl was a promising disciple being personally taught by the Poison King, so she would definitely participate in the Five Great Families gathering.
I’ll be able to see her again when spring comes.
If a letter doesn’t arrive by then, I can just sulk a little and hear the answer in person.
So, until then, a splendid hairpin that suits her…….
“Haha, what are you thinking about that makes your face so red? Go to the Clan Head Hall now. Father is looking for you.”
“Yes, Eldest Sister.”
Namgung Hwi, composing himself at Namgung Ran’s teasing tone, rose to his feet.
But even his stiff expression was fleeting, and a smile appeared on the boy’s face as he thought of the girl who was like a fresh peach blossom.
‘Haha, I’m just kidding, Young Patriarch.’
‘You’ll do well, Young Patriarch.’
‘Don’t scold me if I’m late.’
Her soft voice echoed in his ears. Namgung Hwi’s eyes crinkled with pleasure as he moved his feet.
\ \ *
Time flowed like water, and winter returned.
Perhaps it was because she had been eating well. She had grown a lot taller.
Dang-un had measured her at 5 ja 4 chi, so she had grown well over 10cm in a year.
Dang Jung was happier than anyone about my growth.
“It’s good to see you growing like a bean sprout. It would be even better if you grew just one more chi.”
Dang Jung, who was stroking my head with satisfaction, was standing on his tiptoes.
The height difference had begun to grow so much that he had to stand on tiptoe to stroke my head.
He estimated the length of my arms and legs and said with regret.
“But……. I guess you won’t fit snugly in my arms like before.”
He seemed a little sad. I quickly lowered my knees and snuggled into Dang Jung’s arms.
“Hey, we can just do this.”
Dang Jung chuckled at my flattery. He straightened my clothes with loving eyes.
“You’ve gathered quite a bit of Inner Energy too. Your eyes are so blue they look like a venomous winter snake, I like it.”
……Is that a compliment? Why does it sound like an insult?
As Dang Jung said, the color of my eyes had turned dark blue. The same color as Dang Jung’s.
Over the past two seasons, I had also been taught most of Dang Jung’s martial arts and medicine.
‘Now, we need to practice sewing up human skin. Human skin has a different viscosity than animal skin, so it’s a bit tricky. Come here and sew up your grandpa’s arm first.’
‘What? What are you suddenly……. Kyaaak! Grandpa! What are you doing! How can you cut open living flesh!’
It was a messy process that I didn’t want to remember, but it was definitely effective.
When a patient who needed sutures came to the Medicine Hall, Dang Juhee would rush to find me because my skills had improved so much.
As a result, my stomach had become stronger, and I could put my hand into a jar full of bugs, and catch snakes and poisonous spiders with my bare hands…….
I was doing things without a second thought that I couldn’t have imagined doing half a year ago.
It was true that you could do anything if you were faced with it.
“Young Miss, you’ll catch a cold. If you’re done tidying up, let’s go inside.”
“Yes.”
I had been gleefully rolling around in the snow until just now, but Dang Jung, as if nothing had happened, wrapped a fur coat around me, and I couldn’t help but smile.
“Aren’t your hands cold?”
“They’re cold.”
“Don’t exaggerate.”
“I’m not exaggerating. The Hidden Weapons are all frozen, so they’re really cold, Grandpa.”
“I’ll have to see if there’s any leather to make gloves. I can’t have my granddaughter’s hands getting cold.”
Dang Jung chuckled at my grumbling and rubbed my frozen hands, blowing on them. He stroked the calluses on my hands and muttered.
“Now that you’ve got the form down, you need to gain some practical experience, but I’m worried because you’ve never been outside the Tang Clan. So-hye, would you like to spar with the other families’ kids?”
“Spar?”
“Yes. When you go out into Jianghu, you’re more likely to meet someone wielding a sword than someone throwing Flying Daggers, so you need to know what it feels like.”
“Okay. But with whom?”
“I sent a letter to Paengrak to bring some kids your age. The banquet this year is being held at the Namgung Family, isn’t it? Grandpa will go with you, so let’s go to Anhui. You need to see the world.”
I nodded.
Come to think of it, Namgung Hwi had said the same thing. The next Five Great Families gathering was to be held at the Namgung Family.
“Go and rest. Don’t forget to practice fist fighting with Deokju when you warm up.”
“Yes, Grandpa. Go in!”
Dang Jung, having given me my homework, waved his hand and turned his back.
After confirming that Dang Jung had disappeared, I ran into my bedroom and hugged the hot water bottle that Songji had warmed up.
“Ugh, it’s warm.”
“It’s quite cold today. Oh my, Young Miss’s hands are red and frozen!”
“I didn’t think about the Hidden Weapons being metal……. I should have made gloves instead of being cocky.”
Deokju had suggested making gloves in early autumn.
I wasn’t worried about getting poisoned, so I refused, saying it was too much trouble to take them on and off, but now I saw that there was a reason why she had suggested it. Deokju knew my hands would get cold.
“Shall I call a seamstress now?”
Deokju shook her head at Songji’s question.
“Martial Artist’s gloves are made of specially treated leather. Even a little bit of Poison must not seep in. It’s a difficult material to handle, so the seamstress won’t even be able to stick a needle in it.”
“Still…….”
“You don’t have to worry. The Elder said he would look for leather, so he will make them himself soon.”
“Ehehe, Deokju, you know everything now.”
I burst out laughing at Deokju’s calm words. It seemed that Deokju had completely grasped what kind of personality my grandfather had.
I rolled around on the bed, pondering Dang Jung’s words.
Accompanying me to the Five Great Families gathering was as good as introducing me as Dang Jung’s disciple at the Gathering of the Five Great Families.
I’m a little worried about whether I can do well without embarrassing my grandfather.
Still, I guess it’s a relief that I know one face. I didn’t think I’d see him again.
The corners of my lips turned up on their own as I thought of Namgung Hwi, who had tried to flirt with me, saying he knew a place that served delicious minnow dishes.
I wonder if he’s grown taller too? I’ve grown almost a hand span, so Namgung Hwi might have grown even more.
I was estimating how much Namgung Hwi had grown from the image I remembered, but suddenly my heart sank.
I had just remembered the letter that Namgung Hwi had given me on the day he left.
That’s right, the letter! Where did I put the hairpin?
I had meant to read it later, but I had completely forgotten about it because of the Council of Elders and everything else. I jumped up from the bed.
“Songji, have you seen a paper and hairpin wrapped in silk? It’s about this big.”
“No? Was there something like that? Kyung-ah, have you ever seen it?”
Kyung-ah shook her head as if she didn’t know either.
I hurriedly searched the bedroom, but the silk bundle he had given me was nowhere to be found.
This is a disaster. I think I lost it.
The face of Namgung Hwi, who had earnestly asked me to reply, even if it took more than a year, flashed through my mind.
……He’s going to be so upset that I didn’t send a reply. I’ll have to apologize in person.
I smacked my lips and swept back my hair.
“More than that, have you seen Ju-ryeong? I haven’t seen her all day, where did she go?”
In response to my question, Kyung-ah took out a piece of paper and a charcoal stick from her bosom and moved her hands quickly.
[Dang Juhee took her.]
“What? Why did Ju-ryeong follow her there? I hope she doesn’t come back drunk again?”
[She said she was going to feed her the new Poison she made.]
“I have to go pick her up. Thanks for letting me know.”
Kyung-ah smiled brightly at my greeting.
Kyung-ah was now quite good at writing. She could write most of what she wanted to say, and her handwriting was better than mine.
She was even teaching Songji Elementary Learning, so I might have to learn from Kyung-ah in a few years.
Of course, Songji didn’t like it.
“What am I going to use writing for? People just get more tired the more they learn, right?”
[That way, you can be of help to Young Miss.]
“Okay, okay, stop nagging me.”
Seeing her obediently tracing the letters even as she grumbled, Songji might be able to write letters in a few years.
“Deokju, let’s go pick up Ju-ryeong.”
“Yes, Young Miss.”
I put down the lukewarm hot water bottle and slowly got up.
Just as I was bending down to put on my shoes, I felt an unfamiliar presence outside.
My brow furrowed at the presence of an uninvited guest who had entered the detached residence without my permission.
“Who is it?”
“It seems to be a Martial Artist from the Clan Head Hall.”
Deokju whispered.
With a hardened expression, I opened the door of the detached residence, and a Martial Artist with a face I had never seen before was standing in front of the door.
The Martial Artist bowed his head when he saw me.
“The Patriarch is looking for Young Miss.”
“……The Patriarch?”
I glared at him with a distorted expression.
Dang Mu-hyeok had called for me.
