My Father Is the Number One Under Heaven - Chapter 79

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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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Episode 79. Three Nights of Sleep
A drowsy afternoon.
Two men met beneath a sprawling zelkova tree.
Jin Sobaek, master of the Haowen, had sought out Yeo Unhui again after two days, as promised.
In one hand he carried a thick bundle of documents.
“You’ve timed this perfectly.”
“Ha! Those of us in this business live and breathe by punctuality. It’s only natural.”
In matters of intelligence, timing was everything.
One might even call it a race against time itself.
There were occasions when information of immeasurable worth became utterly worthless the moment time slipped away.
Without exception, this held true for all intelligence.
Thus, among the most critical duties of an information organization was delivering the client’s requested intelligence punctually, without delay.
It was the foundation of the trade.
Yet as in all things, the foundation was often the hardest to maintain.
Fail at it, and you simply didn’t survive.
And the Haowen was an organization that had succeeded brilliantly in that difficult world, claiming a position at the very apex.
Rustle. Rustle.
Yeo Unhui turned through the bundle of documents Jin Sobaek had handed him, moving slowly.
A smile spread across Yeo Unhui’s face.
As expected of such a man.
The materials were exactly as splendid as Jin Sobaek had promised—impressive enough to boast of confidently.
“Starting from the very front, I’ve arranged the academies that enjoy the highest public regard in order. The ones I’ve marked in red are those we particularly recommend.”
The Azure Dragon Academy, the Infinite Academy, the Myungseong Academy, and so on.
As the pages rustled, Yeo Unhui began methodically reviewing the information on the famous academies listed first, followed by those Jin Sobaek had especially recommended.
As Yeo Unhui studied the materials, Jin Sobaek added his commentary.
“The specially recommended academies are places of considerable scholarly depth—institutions that have earned renown not merely in Hebei, but throughout the Central Plains. They’re well-suited to instilling strict discipline and order in a child.”
“I see.”
For some reason, Yeo Unhui’s response felt lukewarm.
Jin Sobaek was puzzled.
He’d thought these would be the very places to capture a parent’s attention.
Then—
Hmm?
As Yeo Unhui flipped through the papers, a particular academy’s name caught his eye.
“Sowol Academy?”
For some reason, the name appealed to him.
“Ah, that academy has a completely different character from the ones I recommended. It doesn’t have any particular renown, either. However—”
“However?”
“The local reputation is quite good. From what I learned, they accept any child without regard to family background or circumstances. Their fees are less than half what other academies charge.”
Moreover, for poor children, they even provide separate meals and refuse payment altogether.
Though they keep that part quiet, apparently.
“And surprisingly, despite accepting such a diverse range of children, the atmosphere there is remarkably pleasant. It feels less like an institution focused on academics and more like a place devoted to helping children grow healthily.”
It’s certainly an excellent place—almost ideally so.
But for the child of a prominent noble family like the Hebei Peng Clan, it seems rather too free-spirited.
One wonders why private tutoring wasn’t employed in the first place, though that’s a matter of personal preference, not for him to judge.
In any case, Jin Sobaek believed that for deep scholarly learning and proper education befitting a prominent noble family’s heir, the specially recommended academies he’d mentioned earlier were the most suitable.
And yet—
“Hmm. So that’s how it is.”
“What? Surely not—”
Yeo Unhui’s reaction seemed unusual.
It was different from the lukewarm response of moments before.
“Yes. This one will do nicely.”
Yeo Unhui smiled.
Jin Sobaek’s prediction had been entirely wrong.
***
Haha!
Yuli was spending a joyful time with grandfather and grandmother.
The Main Hall, unusually, was filled with Peng Mugang’s laughter.
“Grandfather, grandfather!”
“Yes?”
“I saw Uncle passing through the hallway earlier, before I came here!”
“Oh, is that so?”
“Yes! That’s why! I hid real quick, and then—wham!—I jumped out! And Uncle just stared at me like he’d lost his mind, then he was like ‘Oh my!’ and jumped back. Hehe. Uncle was really startled.”
“What?”
At Yuli’s words, Peng Mugang and Dan Heeyoung exchanged glances and burst into laughter once more.
Pffft, puh-hahahaha!
And no wonder.
Their laughter had nothing to do with the punchline itself.
It was the image of Peng Sejin struggling to feign surprise for Yuli’s sake that had undone them.
Truth be told, what else could they do?
These days, when Yuli would suddenly pop out like that with a sharp “boom!” while Peng Mugang was walking, he’d strain every nerve to give the same startled reaction.
This little one had cooked up such an adorably charming prank because she wanted to play with the adults, and once you understood her heart, there was simply no way to refuse her.
But honestly, it was far from easy.
Her clumsy attempts at hiding were visible from a hundred paces away, and from that moment on he found himself calculating how she might emerge next, and what response he ought to make.
So when Peng Sejin’s blank expression was mentioned, Peng Mugang understood perfectly—and found it nearly impossible to stop laughing once he’d started.
Just then, Peng Seoyeon entered the Main Hall with Yeo Unhui.
At that,
Ahem.
Peng Mugang hastily swallowed his laughter and feigned an innocent cough.
Though his booming laugh had already echoed all the way outside the Patriarch’s quarters—so he was caught long ago anyway.
Despite being caught more than once wearing this unguarded face in front of Yuli, he still felt embarrassed about his daughter seeing him this way.
But for some reason, Peng Seoyeon and Yeo Unhui exchanged a glance, and presently Yeo Unhui took Yuli out of the room.
Then Peng Seoyeon turned to Peng Mugang and Dan Heeyoung and spoke.
“I have something to tell you both.”
“Hmm? What’s the matter?”
Dan Heeyoung, puzzled by her daughter’s unusually solemn expression, asked.
And what followed from Peng Seoyeon’s lips was something entirely unexpected.
“I want to send Yuli to an academy.”
“An academy?”
“Yes.”
“An academy, all of a sudden? What’s this about?”
Dan Heeyoung’s face showed her bewilderment.
Peng Mugang felt the same way.
“If it’s just for scholarly studies, we could simply hire a tutor as we’ve been doing. Why the sudden change?”
“If it were only for study, that would certainly be better. But I think Yuli needs… friends.”
“Friends?”
“Yes. Actually…”
Peng Seoyeon recounted to her parents what had happened at the market.
And she laid bare, honestly, what feelings had stirred in her as she watched Yuli.
“Yuli wasn’t born and raised in the Peng house from the start, like me and Sejin. She was born and raised in Sodam Village.”
There, she had grown freely and without constraint, surrounded by love. And she’d played without limit alongside children her own age.
But here, there were no playmates.
No matter how much the adults doted on her and played with her, how could that be the same as playing with friends?
So she had come to feel that keeping Yuli confined within the Peng house this way would be wrong for such a young child.
Peng Seoyeon continued carefully.
“And more than anything, I want Yuli to meet and befriend many people naturally, rather than only the friends the adults choose for her.”
She herself had been born into the Hebei Peng Clan, a prominent noble family, and had grown up wanting for nothing.
And from that position, she had made connections with the children of other prominent families of her station.
But if someone asked her honestly how many of those connections had become true friends, she could not confidently name even a handful.
Generally, children of noble families saw each other not as friends who cheered one another on, but merely as rivals.
Most relationships were jagged things—when you fell, they wouldn’t rush to help you up, but rather snicker behind your back.
So Peng Seoyeon harbored a deep wish to give Yuli true friends, rather than rivals she’d have to compete against.
The kind of real friends who could be there beside her in hardship or sorrow.
……
At Peng Seoyeon’s candid words, Peng Mugang and Dan Heeyoung fell silent.
How could they not understand what their daughter was saying?
Both of them were born to prominent families and had lived through the same things.
And since it concerned their granddaughter—whom they held infinitely dear, dearer than life itself—they understood all the more deeply.
Having grasped the true meaning behind her daughter’s wish to send Yuli to an academy, Dan Heeyoung nodded and asked.
“I see. Very well. Which academy have you chosen?”
“He already knew about such matters well enough and looked into it all. I chose from among his recommendations.”
“That’s true. Yeo will know what to do. You made the right choice.”
“…….”
Peng Mugang’s silence suggested his approval as well.
“When were you planning to leave?”
“I was going to tell Yuli today. If she agrees, I thought we’d take her in three days.”
“Good. Good. That’s the right call. Well done.”
Dan Heeyoung squeezed Peng Seoyeon’s hand warmly and nodded.
She understood how much Peng Seoyeon’s heart must have ached watching Yuli like that—a mother could see another mother’s pain. It was clear she’d agonized over this decision.
There must have been so much deliberation before arriving at this answer.
In moments like these, silent support and encouragement were what mattered most.
“Thank you.”
Peng Seoyeon smiled faintly.
With that, she rose and left the room.
Once Peng Seoyeon had gone, Dan Heeyoung let out a heavy sigh and spoke.
“Oh dear. How lonely that child must have been. Watching her friends play like that—it breaks my heart. Don’t you think, husband?”
“…….”
Peng Mugang gave no reply to Dan Heeyoung’s words.
But then his whole body began to tremble.
“Husband?”
Sensing something amiss, Dan Heeyoung tilted her head and studied him closely.
But then—
“W-will she be all right?”
“What do you mean?”
“Sending that precious child out into the world? Into this harsh world? She’s too small, too precious to let go!”
What on earth was he talking about?
Dan Heeyoung could only stare at her husband in exasperation.
***
“An academy?”
Late into the night, as Yuli was preparing for bed, she tilted her head at the news her mother had just shared.
Peng Seoyeon smiled and explained.
“Yes, Yuli. You can study your letters there and make new friends.”
“Friends?”
At the word “friends,” Yuli’s interest sparked.
“Really? Are there lots of friends there?”
“Of course! So many you won’t believe it!”
“Then I want to go! I do!”
“Really? You mean it?”
“Yes, yes!”
Yuli nodded eagerly, her eyes bright.
“Then that settles it—our little Yuli wants to go.”
“Hehe! So? When do I go? When?”
Yuli bounced with excitement as she asked.
“Well. After just three more nights of sleep, Mom and Dad will take you there.”
“Yay!”
At Peng Seoyeon’s words, Yuli’s face lit up with delight.
Thump-thump.
She wished that day would come quickly.
Night after night, she counted down the days on her small, delicate fingers before drifting to sleep.
Three days passed more swiftly than expected.

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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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