Chapter 40
Chapter 40: The Envoy (2)
The man with a sharp gaze, his head wrapped in a turban, had never forgotten a single moment.
‘The Sichuan Tang Clan was annihilated.’
The Tang Clan, which once dominated the Sichuan region.
They were once one of the so-called "Martial arts clan," a powerful clan that managed the security of the southwestern frontier, where the government's administrative power did not reach.
‘Well water does not mix with river water. [Well water does not interfere with river water]'
Until this unspoken rule, represented by this one sentence, which meant that the government and the martial world would not infringe on each other's territory, was maintained.
That unspoken rule became a dead letter overnight with the enthronement of the powerful Emperor Yongle, who possessed absolute power.
That monstrous ambitious man, who sent expeditions as far as Africa to the west, conquered Vietnam to the south, and the Mongolian plains to the north, could not have left the armed groups within the continent, the Martial arts clan, alone.
After the fall of the Sichuan Tang Clan, its bloodline became refugees and wandered the continent.
Their descendants, no matter how talented, had no choice but to hide from the eyes of the government.
‘But, I will not live like that. Why should I live wretchedly with such talent?’
This man, Dang Baek-ryong, a descendant of the Sichuan Tang Clan, dreamed of traveling the continent and making a name for himself since he was young.
However, the descendant of a Martial arts clan that had already been destroyed could not take up a sword and appear in the world.
Instead, what he held in his hand was a broad Chinese cooking knife, a 'Caidao'.
‘The Sichuan region is famous for the best food in the world! In addition, the Tang Clan's unique method of processing Poisonous herb, passed down through generations! I have the power to conquer the world with cooking!’
It had been over ten years since he wandered the continent with only a cooking knife.
Around the time he won countless duels with Knife master and made a name for himself as the best Chef in the continent.
What appeared before Dang Baek-ryong, who was thirsty for greater success, was Liu Jin, the powerful eunuch of the imperial court.
"If you want to fly higher, I will give you wings."
Liu Jin gave a crooked smile.
"...Let's go together. To Joseon."
The Royal Kitchen.
Provision officer Yoon Nae-gwan, looking grim, was scolding Ji-young.
"I hear that the envoy from the Great Ming has already passed through Yeongeun Gate and arrived at Mohwa Hall. Seong Hui-an, the Vice Minister of the Ministry of Personnel, has personally stepped forward as the reception officer."
I vaguely remember seeing it in a history book.
The Ming envoys, guided by the reception officer at Mohwa Hall near Seodaemun, would soon enter the capital.
It was customary to welcome the envoys by decorating the main streets of the capital with colorful silk called 'Colored canopy' and showcasing the skills of Clown troupe around it.
"I hear that Gong-gil and the mask Clown troupe have prepared the Bukcheong Lion Dance for today. Those guys seem to have their uses too."
Yoon Nae-gwan muttered as if it was nothing special.
However, when the envoys actually entered the palace, the Royal Kitchen would be the busiest from then on.
Because from the first evening, a 'Dismounting banquet' would be held in welcome.
"First impressions are half the battle. We must make a deep impression at the Dismounting banquet."
'Then why don't you cook it yourself...'
Ji-young barely managed to hold back the words that were rising to her throat.
Whether he knew her feelings or not, Yoon Nae-gwan's explanation continued at length.
"The next day, the 'Following day banquet' will be held immediately. And finally, on the day the envoys leave, it is customary to hold a 'Farewell banquet'."
So, a total of three grand banquets.
Ji-young already felt dizzy.
Welcoming Ming envoys in the court was no ordinary task.
Not only did the official receptions drain the national treasury enormously, but the bribes that the envoys personally took amounted to hundreds of chests.
In the end, those bribes came from the Joseon people, so when a Ming envoy came once, it was like being sucked dry by leeches, and in the end, only the powerless people suffered.
"But I heard... the envoy who came this time is doing something strange."
Yoon Nae-gwan, an informant within the palace, lowered his voice again, as if revealing a secret that only he knew, and began to whisper to Ji-young.
"Strange things?"
"They say they are holding a cooking competition at the banquet under the pretext of entertainment. Moreover, they are accompanied by a Royal Cuisine Master with tremendous skills."
Ji-young blinked her eyes, not understanding the words.
A cooking competition at a reception for envoys?
"I hear that Uiju, Pyongyang, and Gaeseong have all been publicly humiliated so far."
"No, why on earth are they doing such absurd things?"
At that moment, a familiar and dizzying voice suddenly came from the entrance of the Royal Kitchen.
"It's probably because they want us to eat shit!"
When the people gathered in the Royal Kitchen turned their heads, it was Yeonsangun, a man wearing a red Dragon Robe, who strode in.
'Hiek-'
Yoon Nae-gwan, wondering if he had been too outspoken about the affairs of the court, trembled, tightly shut his mouth like a mute who had eaten honey.
However, Yeonsangun ignored such trivial matters and walked past Yoon Nae-gwan straight towards Royal Cuisine Master Ji-young.
"They want to show that this country's food, no, this entire country, is beneath their feet."
It seemed that Yeonsangun had come straight to the Royal Kitchen as soon as the morning assembly was over.
His face was already full of anger.
"W-Well, I don't know. Isn't that a bit of an overthinking? Maybe they just want to have cultural exchange? Communication? Through cooking, or something..."
Yeonsangun snorted as if it was impossible at Ji-young's words, who was trying to make her voice sound bright.
"Diplomacy is not that easy. They are clearly trying to demand something under the pretext of food. Once a wrong precedent is set, it will become another evil and a burden to future generations!"
The demands of the Ming Emperor were always persistent.
Sometimes it was thousands of Jeju Island stallions, sometimes it was the precious Gyrfalcon Boramae, and sometimes even women to be offered as Tribute women.
Weren't they all evils that had to be cleared away?
"...I will never tolerate the act of squeezing the blood of the people just to serve the Great Ming."
Yeonsangun's voice was lower and more solemn than usual.
'...Y-Your Majesty?'
Was Yeonsangun such a king who cared for the people in his heart?
Just as Ji-young was about to admire him inwardly, Yeonsangun's voice continued again.
"The people of this country must devote their bodies and minds solely to me! Are those bastards daring to interfere with the people's devotion to me!"
...Well, that's right.
It was, as expected, an idea that was extremely like Yeonsangun.
A childish anger at the fact that the people he should be exclusively exploiting were being exploited by the Ming envoys.
At that time, the voice of Provision officer Yoon Nae-gwan was heard.
"Your Majesty, I have just received a message from the envoys' side from Mohwa Hall."
A messenger was gasping for breath at the entrance of the Royal Kitchen.
He must have been diligently wandering around Geunjeongjeon or Sajeongjeon, not imagining that the King would be in the Royal Kitchen.
"Read it."
At Yeonsangun's words, Yoon Nae-gwan unfolded the scroll handed over by the messenger and read aloud.
"We have received the courteous greetings of the reception officer, and the sincerity is commendable. We also have high expectations for the Dismounting banquet this evening, and we ask that the ingredients to be used for the banquet be prepared with 'four-legged meat'. And..."
"And?"
"A-Apologies for the disrespect, but... this time, please prepare something edible... instead of food waste..."
"Keuk."
The moment he heard those words, Yeonsangun's blood pressure rose, and a blood vessel bulged on his forehead, and at the same time, a grotesque smile faintly hung on his lips.
A smile that perfectly blended anger, murderous intent, and fighting spirit in an exquisite ratio, revealing complex and subtle emotions.
"I don't know how great a Royal Cuisine Master they brought..."
Yeonsangun turned his head slowly towards Ji-young and continued.
"...I am not worried. You are there, the Royal Cuisine Master from a strange place. Break his nose properly this time."
I don't know if that's a strong sense of trust or just irresponsibility...
Ji-young sighed deeply inside at the tremendous pressure that was coming again, but for some reason, she didn't want to disappoint Yeonsangun with those strange eyes.
"Four-legged ingredients... four... legged..."
Unlike Jang-geum, who couldn't stay still for a moment and paced around anxiously, Ji-young's mind was already racing.
'It means red meats excluding poultry. It's safe, but at the same time, it's an ingredient that can most clearly reveal the bottom of a chef. So, let's face it head-on.'
If you cook with good ingredients and stay true to the basics, meat dishes won't be a complete disaster.
'...But that's why meat dishes are even more difficult. If you're not careful, it'll become a common dish that you can eat anywhere.'
In a situation where foreign envoys are being welcomed, it is not enough to simply cook well and deliciously.
Cooking itself is already a highly political act.
It must be able to reveal the unique environment and climate of a country.
Isn't that the element that has the greatest impact on the quality of wine, called 'terroir' (climate and soil) in French?
At that moment, an idea flashed through Ji-young's mind like lightning.
"Chef Jeon, do we still have the Brindle cattle ribs and rump that we brought from Butcher Village last time? We'll be using that today, so please remove the blood and dice it."
"I understand, leave it to me without worry."
While Chef Jeon nodded and skillfully prepared the meat, Ji-young called Jang-geum, who was pacing around anxiously.
"Do you happen to know what kinds of alcohol are stored in the palace?"
"It seems like we have most of them. Samhaeju, Munbaeju, Sogokju, Yigangju, Gamhongro... what else..."
She hadn't been in the palace for long, but she already seemed to know quite a few types of alcohol.
'I'm sure Jang-geum has an absolute sense of taste. That means her sense of smell is also developed.'
In fact, about 70% of the taste that humans feel depends on smell, so saying that you taste well means that your sense of taste and smell are both developed.
"...Instead of staying here like this, we need to check it out ourselves. We don't have much time, so we need to hurry!"
Ji-young grabbed Jang-geum's wrist and ran somewhere without hesitation.
"R-Royal Cuisine Master? Where are you suddenly going?"
Instead of answering, Ji-young arrived, panting, at the palace's liquor warehouse.
As soon as she threw open the wooden door of the tightly closed warehouse, the scent of alcohol mixed with the strong smell of yeast pierced her nose like old perfume.
'Ugh, too strong a scent. I have no choice but to check them one by one.'
Ji-young pointed to one corner of the liquor warehouse with her hand.
"Jang-geum, check the alcohol in the jars one by one from that side. We have to find the alcohol I told you about earlier!"
"Yes. Royal Cuisine Master."
Jang-geum nodded with a determined face.
Ji-young and Jang-geum soon began to open the lids of the jars filled with alcohol in the warehouse one by one and smell them.
How many times had they repeated this?
Jang-geum's eyes suddenly widened as she opened the lid of a small pot and smelled it as if fanning it with her hand.
"T-This... I think this is the alcohol you were talking about, Royal Cuisine Master."
Ji-young put her nose to the small pot that Jang-geum was holding out and smelled it.
Ji-young, who had been a chef in France for a long time, could not have missed that scent.
The subtle sweetness of the remaining fruit and the scent of rotten fallen leaves in late autumn.
"That's it! It's all thanks to you, Jang-geum!"
Ji-young held the small pot in her arms and started running back to the Royal Kitchen in a hurry.
"B-But why are you looking for that alcohol in particular? There were plenty of other alcohols besides that..."
Even while running in surprise at Ji-young's relentless appearance, Jang-geum seemed unable to resolve her curiosity.
However, instead of answering, Ji-young poured the alcohol in the pot into an iron pot as soon as she entered the Royal Kitchen.
As the light purple liquid fell, a subtle scent of alcohol spread throughout the Royal Kitchen.
"Kyaa! This precious thing..."
Jang-geum screamed in surprise at the sight of her suddenly pouring alcohol.
But Ji-young's face was only bright.
"There's no need to be surprised. The real cooking will begin now."
Ji-young smiled lightly as she looked at the liquid that was starting to simmer in the pot.
The legendary French culinary researcher 'Julia Child' once described the dish that Ji-young was about to start as follows.
"The most delicious beef dish that humans can make."
Boeuf bourguignon.
Ji-young's eyes began to shine like stars again.
※Author's words
The Sichuan Tang Clan, which often appears in martial arts novels.
Of course, it is a fictional group that appears in novels, but it is not that there is no model for it in history.
Scholars believe that the Tang Family Fist remaining in Kai County, Chongqing, is the model for the Sichuan Tang Clan. (Chongqing was formerly classified as the Sichuan region, that is, 'Pachok')
The earliest record of this Tang Family Fist dates back to the Ming Dynasty.
In addition, according to 'Martial Arts Compilation' written in the 1920s, there was a master from Sichuan Province who handled Five Venoms and used the Tang surname.
By combining these various elements, the image of the Sichuan Tang Clan in martial arts novels, which uses 'poisonous skills', was created.
I would like to inform you that this work's 'Sichuan Tang Clan' and 'Martial arts clan' are borrowing the terms and images that appear in martial arts novels, but are not accepting the fantastic settings of the martial arts novel world.
Rather, considering the circumstances of China, where civil disputes such as Gye-tu were frequent, it would be better to think of them as powerful clans leading vigilante groups in the frontier.
