Abolition of the Wicked - Chapter 15

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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#015

Do Pyeong-su stood with his arms folded across his chest, leaning against the wall where the Government Office was barely visible in the distance.
Growl.
His hunger was so fierce that his belly and backbone might have kissed.
“If only I had another double hour.”
He didn’t even have the strength to stand anymore.
He slid down into a crouch, burying his face between his knees, when something fell at his feet with a distinct clink.
He lifted his head and saw a grimy coin lying before him.
That was it—a whole coin!
Like lightning, Do Pyeong-su’s arm shot out and grabbed it, then he lifted his head further.
“A perfectly able-bodied man begging for alms… tsk, tsk.”
The old man who had tossed the coin shook his head disapprovingly and walked away.
“Wait!”
The old man flinched at the menacing look on Do Pyeong-su’s face.
“W-why? What is it?”
Do Pyeong-su held the coin between his index and thumb and asked, “How many dumplings can I buy with this?”
“One, probably.”
Suddenly Do Pyeong-su’s back bent slightly, and a shameless grin spread across his face.
“Hehe! Honored sir, might you possibly spare just one, no—just one more coin? A single dumpling doesn’t seem quite enough, you see.”
He wanted to beg for a hundred, but some instinct within Do Pyeong-su suddenly awakened to what shame meant.
Though he could not read, Do Pyeong-su learned quickly.
“You’re quite the shameless beggar, aren’t you?”
Fortunately, the old man tossed another coin and hurried away.
He had never known that holding merely two coins in one’s palm could bring such happiness.
Just as Do Pyeong-su was about to dash toward the Restaurant visible in the distance, Kang Chan-sik appeared.
Behind Kang Chan-sik, who had someone by the scruff of the neck, three thugs were following.
‘Should I meet with Kang Chan-sik first? But I’m so hungry?’
Torn between Kang Chan-sik and dumplings, Do Pyeong-su ultimately chose Kang Chan-sik.
When Do Pyeong-su suddenly dropped down in front of him, Kang Chan-sik was so startled that he fell on his rear.
“G-great warrior!”
“You wait here for a moment.”
Then he went to the Restaurant and bought two dumplings.
Ah! The dry flour spread across his tongue, the cheap, fishy tang of mung bean sprouts without a trace of meat—the vegetables in the middle seemed barely seasoned.
“Urgh!”
After finishing his satisfying meal, Do Pyeong-su let out a hearty burp in front of Kang Chan-sik.
“Did you bring in the criminal?”
“Yes? Ah! Yes, of course!”
Kang Chan-sik forced a man who appeared to be in his mid-twenties to kneel.
The man had eyes that tilted upward at the corners, thin lips, and a small frame.
“His name is Yeo Pil-sang, twenty-five years old. A layabout with nothing to do, frequenting gambling dens. He had no intention of killing—just wanted to steal some money. But somehow his belongings ended up in the victim’s private area, and through a series of misfortunes, he wound up killing her.”
“Accidental rape and murder? Is such a thing even possible in this world?”
Yeo Pil-sang trembled and pleaded.
“I truly had no intention of rape or murder!”
Judging by the considerable wounds on his face, it appeared he had already been beaten with a cudgel by Kang Chan-sik once.
“What evidence?”
Kang Chan-sik pulled a blue circular jade ornament from his pocket.
“The ornament the victim was wearing that day. I believe her parents would recognize it.”
“You speak just like a government official.”
“Hehe! I’m a quick learner…”
Do Pyeong-su grabbed Yeo Pil-sang by the scruff and hoisted him up, then turned to leave but paused.
“He’s really the criminal, right? You didn’t fabricate this?”
“How could I do such a thing? He really is the culprit!”
Do Pyeong-su’s true thoughts were these: even if Kang Chan-sik had fabricated it, there was no harm in eliminating one worthless human being and earning an honest bounty for it.
That was what his heart believed.

If they hadn’t caught the actual criminal, they would have certainly seized Kang Chan-sik and made him the culprit.
“I’m a man who knows the value of his own life — how could I possibly deceive the Provincial Governor? Hehe!”
“If this bastard gets taken to the Government Office and then claims he’s not the criminal, you and I will meet again.”
“Yes? Wait, could I borrow that fellow for a moment?”
For some reason, Do Pyeong-su found himself wondering if Chan-sik might not be the real criminal after all. Kang Chan-sik led Yeo Pil-sang aside and whispered something to him.
Do Pyeong-su, with his sharp ears, caught every word — it was a stale, hackneyed threat, nothing more. Of course, classical threats often work best.
There’s a reason the classics remain classics.
“Hehehehe! This one won’t dare change his story once he’s in the Government Office.”
Do Pyeong-su took Yeo Pil-sang to the Government Office.
After going through the proper procedures, when it was confirmed that Yeo Pil-sang was indeed the criminal who had murdered Cha Dae-in’s daughter, the Government Office erupted into chaos.
The Provincial Governor had been breathing down his officials’ necks every day to catch the criminal, and at last the culprit had been brought in.
Of course, there was still a process to verify the suspect’s identity.
One of the officials took the jade ornament that Do Pyeong-su had brought as evidence to Cha Dae-in’s house.
In the meantime, Do Pyeong-su had to fill out the paperwork.
“What am I supposed to write?”
“Fill in his name, address, and occupation.”
He wrote down the name.
Even though Geom U-bin hadn’t taught him much yet, at least he could manage three characters for a name. Then he set down the brush.
“You’re the one who has to write the rest.”
“Yes?”
“Why are you so startled? Haven’t you ever seen someone illiterate before?”
“Ah, I see. Then please, tell me what to write.”
As the official began to recite the address and occupation, he paused and asked hesitantly.
“Is it true you produce Fraud Liquor……?”
“I make the Hwagok variant.”
The official was taken aback all over again.
It was only natural — the liquor master famous throughout Hangju for making Hwagok Liquor, one of the notorious Fraud Liquors, had brought in a criminal. The rumors spoke of this master draining Hangju’s silver coins entirely.
The fact that a liquor master who allegedly depleted the city’s silver coins had caught a criminal meant this certainly wasn’t a fraud aimed at stealing ten silver coins.
Just then, the official who had gone to Cha Dae-in’s house returned and confirmed that the jade ornament indeed belonged to the victim.
When Do Pyeong-su left with his reward of ten silver coins, all the officials came out to the gate to see him off.
“Not a bad day’s work at all. Hehehehe…….”

***

“Where did you steal that from?”
At Yeon Geum-hong’s question, Do Pyeong-su burst out loudly.
“Steal? I earned this money fair and square through honest work!”
“I’m sure you did. Even though we have no sense for money, we know perfectly well that ten silver coins aren’t something you make from a day’s labor on a construction site. Tell me the truth. If you do, I’ll make a deal — you can become the youngest disciple, and I won’t tell your senior. How’s that?”
If this had truly been stolen money, he might have wavered at her sweet whisper, but this time he stood firm.
“It’s a bounty.”
“A bounty?”
Do Pyeong-su launched into the whole story of how he’d earned the ten silver coins.
He told it like a feat of valor.
When the three of them had heard the entire account, they stared at Do Pyeong-su in stunned silence, then burst into laughter all at once.
“Bahahaha! So Pyeong-su, you’ve become a bounty hunter?”
“Hehehehe! Even if you slapped the faces of the mighty Bloodwind Four Lions, it would be excessive, but collecting bounties from the Government Office? What’s there to boast about so proudly!”
“From now on, we’ll call you the bounty hunter! Hahaha!”
“Kehehehe!”
Even Jang Man-dok, who spoke so little, had an odd laugh.
“You lot! Do you have any idea how hard I ran to earn those ten coins!”
At that moment, the door flew open and Geom U-bin poked his head in.
“Second Disciple, you have a visitor.”
“Me? A visitor for me?”
The Bloodwind Four Lions’ face went rigid. Good people do not come easily; those who come are not good.
It was an old saying: those of noble intent rarely show up at your door, and when someone does, their intentions are rarely noble.
Especially if they’d come looking for one of the Bloodwind Four Lions, their purposes were almost certainly sinister.
Yeon Geum-hong reacted fastest.
“Man-dok, you protect our senior!”
The moment the words left her mouth, Jang Man-dok grabbed Geom U-bin and the three of them bolted out to the courtyard.
What awaited them in the courtyard was a young man and a young woman.
A middle-aged man with a gentle face and a beautiful woman of similar age stood with their hands folded neatly before them.
“Who are you?”
Yeon Geum-hong’s sharp question startled the middle-aged man, and he bowed low.
“My name is Cha Seong-ro, of the Yangga Road.”
None of them had ever heard of an epithet like “Yangga Road” or a name like Cha Seong-ro.
‘Have I ever made an enemy of someone with such a strange epithet?’
There had been so many incidents over the years that most of them had faded from memory.
“Wait — Cha Seong-ro of the Yangga Road? Could you be Cha Dae-in?”
At Do Pyeong-su’s question, Cha Seong-ro smiled and answered.
“Yes. I am humbly known by that title, though I hardly deserve it.”
Yeon Geum-hong whispered.
“Isn’t he the father of the murder victim that you caught?”
“Ah, well, it seems he is. But why have you come looking for me?”
The reason soon came from Cha Seong-ro’s lips.
“I cannot thank you enough for avenging my poor daughter’s death. My wife and I have both been unable to eat or sleep, consumed by the grief of her unjust passing. By settling her karmic debt, you have given us back our lives. Truly, I cannot thank you enough. Truly, I cannot thank you enough.”
The couple bowed repeatedly, tears streaming down their faces.
“No, well, it wasn’t… I only did it for ten silver coins….”
The Bloodwind Four Lions, who could slay a thousand but could not console two souls, stood at a loss. Then Geom U-bin stepped forward.
“Now that her karmic debt has been settled, your daughter can rest peacefully in the Western Paradise. Please, let her go.”
“Yes, yes, you’re right.”
After bowing in gratitude once more, the couple left behind a bundle of gifts and departed.

***

Rip!
A chicken leg was torn apart in Geom U-bin’s hands. The fierce contest among the Bloodwind Four Lions had begun.
When a whole chicken was caught, one leg naturally went to Geom U-bin. At first he refused it, but now, exhausted by the argument, he simply claimed it as his due.
The remaining leg sparked a four-to-one competition.
In truth, none of the four particularly loved chicken legs. Yet somehow, whoever secured the leg seemed the victor, and so they all scrambled for it with stubborn determination.
‘Today, it will be mine.’
They all harbored such thoughts when Geom U-bin’s hand, holding the chicken leg, extended toward Do Pyeong-su.
“Today, our brother Do shall have one….”
The second leg was then placed in Do Pyeong-su’s bowl.
“And this one too is our brother Do’s.”
The warmth in Geom U-bin’s gaze as he looked at Do Pyeong-su was unmistakable.
“Brother, why do you favor Pyeong-su like this?”
At Seo Seok-san’s bitter question, Geom U-bin laughed brightly.
“Our brother Do caught a vicious criminal and avenged two innocent people. I wish I could give him something greater, but right now, a chicken leg is all I have.”
Do Pyeong-su’s mouth stretched from ear to ear.
“Heh heh heh! When there’s a wicked man, of course a warrior must strike him down! Isn’t that the way of a martial person?”
“So you speak of the warrior’s way? Let’s be honest — did you really do it for virtue? Ten silver coins…!”
In a flash, a chicken leg shot across the space and struck Seo Seok-san’s mouth silent.
“Yielding a chicken leg to your brother? Our Do has truly become a noble soul.”

***

The Orphanage Director wept with gratitude upon receiving ten silver coins.
Though she cared for homeless orphans, she struggled daily to find enough for their meals.
And more children kept arriving, orphaned or abandoned, so her burdens only grew.
She had even sold the jade ornaments she’d brought with her at marriage, and had nowhere left to turn when Geom U-bin appeared.
“This is from my uncle and aunt.”
“Please convey my deepest thanks to them.”
Geom U-bin did not stop at the orphanage alone; he visited every shelter for the disabled and the destitute, donating ten coins to each.
Adding the forty coins he had received from his brothers to his own fifty, he was able to make nine donations in total.
Of course, all the donations were made in his brothers’ names.
“It’s time to head to the Seoyang Pyo House.”
He still couldn’t understand why the Seoyang Pyo House had specifically requested him for this delivery.
Shouldering the bag containing the Fraud Liquor, Geom U-bin quickened his pace toward the Seoyang Pyo House.
As the finest pyo house in Hangju, the Seoyang Pyo House occupied a vast space in the heart of the city—so grand that it alone was the size of ten surrounding houses combined. Today it was crowded with people.
It was the proprietor’s birthday.
The Seoyang Pyo House alone commanded considerable prestige, but when the karmic ties of the Namgung Family were added to it, customers traveled all the way from Anhui Province to visit.
Geom U-bin, who had gone to the person recording names in the guest register, stated his business.
“I’ve come to deliver Fraud Liquor from Wolha Pavilion.”
He’d expected to be simply directed to where he needed to go.
“Ah! So you’re the liquor merchant Geom U-bin, are you? Come this way.”
The man at the guest register personally led Geom U-bin forward, but it was immediately clear this was no place for him.
Before the raised platform lay dozens of tables draped in crimson cloth—the distinguished guests’ section.
“I’m only here to deliver the liquor.”
A man with a goat beard left only the remark ‘I’m just following orders’ before departing.
Surrounded by people dressed in finery, Geom U-bin stood among them like an island unto itself.
“Why are you making this so awkward for me?”
Wasting time in a place like this made no sense—he’d be far better off going home to practice Martial Arts. Just as he began to rise, the people around him stood first, and then applause erupted.

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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