Surviving as the Sacheon Dang Clan’s Servant - Chapter 25

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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 25
A Jade Token carved with a tiger emblem.
I accepted the token from Peng Luo with a respectful bow. As I gazed blankly at the unfamiliar object, he chuckled softly.
“My name is written here. Keep it safe, and if you ever need my help, come to the Peng Family with this token. Or even if you don’t make the journey to Hebei, just show it to anyone bearing the Peng surname and they’ll take good care of you.”
I turned the smooth jade token over in my hands. The tiger, carved with such vivid detail it seemed ready to spring forth at any moment, felt crisp beneath my fingertips.
Dang Jung, who had been watching us, spoke with evident reluctance.
“I won’t stop you from giving it, but surely there’s no need to hand over a Silver Token as well?”
“What’s the harm? I nearly made my brother’s beloved grandchild cry—this much is hardly too much to give.”
“I wouldn’t give away such a thing even if your grandchild were crying.”
“……Is that so.”
Peng Luo’s expression grew sullen, his nostrils flaring slightly. Regardless, Dang Jung paid him no mind and opened his mouth to speak.
“So Hye. What you’ve received is called a Gratitude Repayment Token. It’s also known as a Silver Token.”
“A Gratitude Repayment Token?”
“That fool gave it to you without much thought, but it is a precious thing. It is bestowed as a token that one has received great kindness and will repay it in kind. The covenant remains valid even after his death. Whether ten years pass or fifty years pass, when you produce that token, the Peng Family must grant your request.”
“That’s right. Once you show that token, our family will treat you as our benefactor for all time. You may use it once, so use it when the moment is ripe. Ah-ha-ha-ha!”
So it’s like a wish token. Is it really all right to just hand something like that out?
Still, there was no harm in accepting it. I quickly tucked the token into my robes.
“Thank you, honored sir.”
“Thank me for what? Say, do you have any more of that Aged Wine? It really clings to the palate.”
A note of longing crossed Peng Luo’s face as he asked so casually. The broad-shouldered man gazed at the wine bottle—smaller than his own palm—and smacked his lips with audible anticipation.
“I’ll fetch some for you.”
I rose to my feet, stifling a smile. Lightened by the gift I’d received, my steps toward the task felt impossibly buoyant.
But the moment I returned to the sitting room with the wine bottle, something strange happened. Some invisible force seized the bottle from my hands.
As if drawn by an unseen current, the bottle soared through the air and came to rest gently in Peng Luo’s enormous palm.
What on earth?
I widened my eyes in surprise, and Peng Luo broke into hearty laughter.
“Have you never seen the Void Seizing Technique before?”
I’ve heard of it, but I’ve never seen it used for fetching wine bottles before.
Do old masters have power to spare? Dang Jung uses it to heat and freeze water, but Peng Luo uses it to pour drinks.
Peng Luo seemed pleased by my reaction and grinned continuously.
“Ha-ha-ha-ha, what else shall I show you? Have you ever seen anything like this?”
He flicked his finger, and wine droplets rose and floated free from the bottle.
Peng Luo swallowed the glimmering drops with a flourish and puffed out his chest proudly.
“How’s that?”
“Marvelous. Can you put them back in as well?”
“Of course.”
“Marvelous indeed.”
I clapped my hands in delight, and Peng Luo proceeded to draw pictures in the air with the wine droplets.
Watching us enjoy ourselves so heartily, Dang Jung let out a dry laugh.
“Having fun?”
“To marvel at the Void Seizing Technique—how adorably cute you are. Our family’s young ones lack your charm, you know. They’re all too serious and reek of sweat. Tiresome lot. Bah.”
Peng Luo grumbled and tutted.
Isn’t that a matter of heredity? The largest person I’ve seen from the Peng Family looks like you, honored sir.
As Peng Luo played with me, sipping drinks in small, steady draughts, his nose grew flushed in no time. The face of an affable drunkard, one that inspired a sense of closeness.
Staring intently at his weathered, bandit-like visage, I asked a question.
“Honored sir, may I ask you something?”
“Go ahead, what’s on your mind?”
“Why is there a tiger carved into the Jade Token?”
It was curious—Dang Jung had mentioned tigers in connection with Peng Luo, and I wondered what the connection was between the Peng Family and tigers. Was it some kind of family symbol?
My question seemed to catch Peng Luo off guard. His eyes blinked vacantly before he cast a sideways glance at Dang Jung.
“Huh? Ha-ha-ha! You don’t know the Peng Family well, do you? Brother, shouldn’t you tell your granddaughter something about our clan?”
“What is there to tell? We Pengs are crude folk who use the character for tiger.”
“How now, who’s calling whom crude? There’s no particular reason. It’s just that our Peng Family is known as the Tiger of Hebei. Some vain fellows probably wanted to show off a bit and had it carved in.”
……The Tiger of Hebei? Like the Blue Dragon faction or the Seal faction, I suppose?
“I see, that makes sense.”
I forced an awkward smile, and Dang Jung snorted with amusement. He clearly saw right through what I was thinking.
“It’s because of the Peng Family’s martial arts. Our fighting techniques draw heavily from the movements of fierce tigers, so we’ve been called that since old times. His own epithet is the Fierce Tiger Saber Sovereign.”
Now that he mentioned it, I felt I’d heard something similar before.
There’s a martial art called Animal-Mimicking Fist that imitates the movements of beasts, and it seemed the Peng Family’s techniques followed that same principle.
“That’s quite an impressive epithet.”
“Ahem, ahem. I cut quite a figure in my younger days, you know.”
At my praise, Peng Luo rubbed his nose with a faint smile. So this elder was susceptible to compliments as well.
“Well, since we’re on the subject, how about you tell me some stories from when you were young? It was a hundred and twenty years ago, and your grandfather—”
Peng Luo, who had been stroking his beard, opened his mouth, his eyes distant and nostalgic.
It was the moment a warrior’s version of “back in my day”—or rather, “back in our time”—was about to begin.
In exchange for the Silver Token, I found myself listening to the reminiscences of these two old men for the entire afternoon.
* * *
The banquet for the Five Great Families continued the next day as well.
Jin Lady seemed determined to keep me stationed at the feast hall at all costs, and judging by what Song Ji had said, she appeared intent on finding me a match.
She sent me only to the tables where young masters of suitable standing were seated, ostensibly to attend to them.
Jin Lady—realistically speaking, what distinguished family would take a servant girl from another household as a bride? And I’m only fifteen.
It was absurd, but Jin Lady seemed convinced that her actions were for my benefit. She flashed me a subtle smile, her eyes encouraging me to do my best.
To escape her burdensome gaze, I turned my attention to Namgung Hui, who was offering me a teacup. When our eyes met, he broke into a radiant smile, lifting the corners of his mouth.
Happy now?
“Mm. Pour quickly, would you?”
Namgung Hui tugged at my sleeve as he spoke, his excitement plain. And no wonder—he had a rare spectacle unfolding right before his eyes.
“Grand Elder. Marry me.”
“…Child. I have no intention of marrying.”
“Why not? There are so many benefits to marrying me. For one, it would strengthen the bond between the Dang Family and the Moyong Great Family. And in times of crisis, you could receive help from the Moyong as well.”
“As I said, I’ve given it no thought.”
“And another thing. I’m young, and I’m pretty. Well, they say I’ll become even prettier as I grow. Are you certain you won’t regret it once I’ve become a beauty?”
Moyong So Ye’s eyes sparkled as she enumerated the reasons why marrying her would be advantageous.
The child seemed to have decided that instead of trying to persuade the opposing adults of her family, she would first convince Dang Jung.
Does she even understand what she’s saying?
As the saying goes, you can’t even drink cold water in front of a child—that was precisely the situation. She wanted to marry this handsome older brother and was simply parroting whatever the adults around her had said.
What have these adults been saying in front of her? This is all their karma.
Dang Jung, pressing his forehead at the reckless little lady’s assertions, asked her a question.
“Child. How old are you?”
“Eight years old, sir.”
“And do you know how old I am?”
“Age doesn’t matter when it comes to love!”
Moyong Ki, watching this unfold, looked as though he might collapse to the ground in tears at any moment.
His precious only daughter, raised like gold and jade, wanted to marry a man older than her own grandfather. It was a pitiful sight.
Dang Jung heaved a long sigh and approached, patting Moyong Ki’s shoulder.
“Let her be. She’ll forget about it in a few years.”
“Oh, my lord… what if she insists on marrying him even then?”
“…Well, perhaps I’ll enter seclusion.”
“Grand Elder. I said marry me.”
This was a mess.
I withdrew my gaze from the three of them and surveyed my surroundings.
Dang Un appeared not to have come, while Dang Ju Hui sat resting his chin on his hand, looking bored as he sipped his tea.
Seated beside him was a boy who resembled Dang Ju Hui. I suspected it might be Dang Se Ho, said to be the youngest son of Dang Mu Hyuk.
If I recalled correctly, that boy was the same age as me.
Both are children of the same family head, yet one is recognized as legitimate and called “Young Master,” while the other serves as a mere attendant without even being granted the family name. How terribly unjust the world is.
I shrugged my shoulders and turned my gaze elsewhere.
Today’s banquet had a relaxed atmosphere, with many empty seats scattered about. Peng Luo also seemed to have stepped away.
I wish this would end quickly. My legs are starting to ache from standing.
As I lightly tapped my numb legs, Namgung Hui, who had been watching me intently, asked me a question.
“Does your leg hurt? Would you like to sit here?”
“Pardon? No, I’m fine.”
That would be disastrous. Pretend I didn’t hear that. If I sat next to the Small Family Head of the Namgung Great Family, I’d hear about it for sure.
At that, Namgung Hui’s expression grew sullen. Had he been hurt by the rejection? He was an incomprehensible creature.
I pretended not to notice him and busied myself with my duties. I refilled empty teacups with fresh tea, replaced empty dessert plates with full ones, and kept watch over the other guests’ tables.
Just as I was handing a dirty dish to an attendant who had come to help with the clearing, I heard a loud crash from somewhere in the distance.
Clang!
Startled, I lifted my head to see a man in a green robe grabbing someone by the collar and shaking them roughly.
“What the hell are you saying? Say it again.”
“It seems you have misunderstood my meaning, Small Family Head. I merely quoted the words of the sages: ‘Satisfaction avoids shame, and knowing when to stop avoids danger.’ Why do you take offense?”
“What? Do I look that stupid to you? You were saying I’m not fit for the Small Family Head position and should step down!”
“That is not my intention.”
“Don’t be ridiculous! You think I don’t know you despise me? You did it last time too! Every single time, treating people like they’re beneath you……!”
“Dang Young Ho! Let go of him this instant!”
Dang Mu Hyuk’s voice cracked like a whip, his face flushed with fury. But Dang Young Ho paid him no mind, shoving the man hard against the wall.
The onlookers gasped, stunned by a scene that looked plucked straight from a third-rate gangster film.
Unbelievable. That brute acting like a common thug—surely he wasn’t my elder brother?

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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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