The Hwangbo Clan’s Beloved Live-In Son-in-Law - Chapter 5

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Chapter 5

He couldn’t meet Yulhee.

Because she had left home.

Rather, he felt calm.

It was like the feeling when you break your master’s cherished bowl and leave the house, only to return and find the master absent.

It was a strange feeling.

Relief mixed with regret.

It was always like that.

It’s better to take a beating sooner rather than later.

***

“Damn it. Of all times for Dongpae to show his face.”

“How many years has it been… I was sure something had gone wrong.”

“Enough. Now we know he’s fine, so that’s settled.”

People gathered again in the depths of Taean Gate.

There were seven in total: Household Head Wei Jeok, his son Wei Sheping, Chief Administrator and Advisor Doguangxu, the captains of each military unit Chutaesan, Bangchureon, and Seolminjae, and even Busojeong.

“He didn’t look completely fine though.”

“Right. He looked old. There must be a reason he hasn’t shown himself.”

“Hah. It’ll be soon, very soon. Then all that golden land on Daming Street will be ours.”

They poured alcohol from whole jugs and drank deeply, while a whole large pig and several small dishes were laid out.

It was meant to reduce eavesdropping ears, but they were also accustomed to eating voraciously.

Anyone who saw them would have thought: Those bandits can’t forget their mountain stronghold days.

“Those high-nosed bastards barely charge any rent, making it hard for us to make a living.”

“It’s already tough with the Taishan Sect bastards, the E Family, and Pahosam Gate extending their reach.”

“That’s exactly why we should have taken that Hwangbo Ok. What do we do now!”

Alcohol overflowed and bones flew around.

For the heads of a sect that was supposedly building its reputation, they seemed excessively frivolous.

But that’s precisely why they were honest and close-knit. It was their way.

However, there was one who couldn’t eat properly.

“Hey, Sojeong. Did you get indigestion? Why are you picking at your food like that!”

“No, Captain.”

Busojeong wasn’t yet qualified to be included in this gathering.

It wasn’t that such scenes were unfamiliar to him.

As someone who remembered the bandit days, he had witnessed this many times from afar.

Normally, he would have been proud to be sitting in this place.

But today, he couldn’t feel that way.

“…That bastard. We should have killed that bastard.”

“It couldn’t be helped. That old man came out.”

“But even if it was risky, we absolutely had to. That bastard is…”

“Hey. I told you to stop. Are you still going on about that, you fool! I watched carefully because you were making such a fuss, but he’s just a crippled invalid with war trauma! We can send a few kids to quietly kill him! Stop talking nonsense and just shut up and eat.”

Attacking Dongpae wasn’t part of the plan. Wei Jeok was good at hit-and-run tactics.

These were men who had saved their lives countless times following his orders.

So waiting for another opportunity was their standard practice, and Chutaesan had no regrets about it.

He was just getting angry because his first disciple was cowering like a coward.

But for Busojeong, he had no choice.

What he had felt from him during the day was.

Like.

Like what he had only felt from that Dongpae.

“But… that bastard is.”

“Actually, it worked out well.”

Suddenly, Wei Sheping interrupted Busojeong’s words.

As Wei Jeok’s son, his martial prowess and cruelty were said to resemble his father’s, but that was as far as it went.

“Let’s find another way. Or we could launch a night raid. If we kill them all, who would know?”

“Young Master. That’s not an easy matter. Though their numbers are few, it’s the Huangbo Family. In Jinan, it’s not a place to speak of so lightly.”

“And what about Dongpae? I’ve seen him before, and whew. He’s not called Dongpae for nothing. Even though he’s aged, his presence is quite…”

“That’s true too. Well. If we force it, it’s not impossible… But. Rather than needlessly stirring up a hornet’s nest, wouldn’t it be better to kill that Jin Baek-whatever when he comes out, as Chief Administrator Do said.”

“I don’t want to! I!”

Clang. A wine cup rolled on the floor.

The moderately noisy gathering fell quiet.

The eyebrows of those who had been with Wei Jeok for a long time twitched.

Though his father was their leader, he had never behaved like this before.

“Now, now.”

At that, Wei Jeok gently chided him.

“Didn’t you also agree that we should take Hwangbo Ok?”

“That was because they said she was a beauty!”

Wei Sheping opened his mouth petulantly despite the atmosphere.

“But they said she’s not! I don’t want her. Even if her face is decent enough. They say she’s nearly 6 feet tall. And her shoulders are broader than most men. No matter how I think about it, I hate strong-willed women. Did you see that bastard Jin? He didn’t look human!”

“…Well, he did wander foreign lands for several years.”

“Whatever! That fierce woman has the fate of devouring men!”

It was truly a tantrum.

At eighteen years old, a tantrum that showed his age exactly.

Everyone’s faces showed bitter smiles.

Yet he continued spouting unspeakable vulgar jokes about preferring gentle women, young women, then stood up with a huff as if making a great resolution.

“Father. In my opinion, you’re too soft! What’s so scary about those Jinan bastards! Beating is the medicine! Even when we took over the Third Family a few years ago, everyone was trembling as if disaster would strike, but look now! Everyone’s living just fine without any problems. In the end, bowing before strength is the absolute law of this martial world. Isn’t that right?!”

He picked up another cup and filled it with alcohol.

Even the men who had been frowning at his spirited words nodded, thinking he had a point.

Wei Sheping’s youthful vigor had stirred their own ambitions.

Only Wei Jeok, Chief Administrator Doguangxu, and Busojeong remained sitting with stern faces.

“Now, there will be no Huangbo in Jinan. When people think of Shandong, they’ll think of Jinan, and when they think of Jinan, only Taean Gate will remain. We’ll push aside the E Family, Pahosam Gate, and Taishan Sect! Taean Gate will devour Shandong. For that, we must be first! Before anyone else takes that high-and-mighty Huangbo Family! Who will? We will!”

Alcohol and bravado rose together.

Wei Sheping raised his wine cup high.

“Who will?”

“We will!”

“Too quiet. Who will?”

“We will!!”

With the shouts came boisterous laughter and noise again.

Though Wei Sheping was often criticized for lacking strategy, right now he seemed naturally destined to stand above others.

His words were grandiose, but his spirit was so impressive that even Wei Jeok felt somewhat proud.

His thought that he’s still an immature boy changed to.

Right. Even at eighteen, heroes shake the world.

And he was also slightly shocked.

What had always saved him was caution.

He had come this far because he knew when to show his fangs and when not to.

But for Taean Gate to grow larger, to become the hegemon of a region!

Perhaps what was needed wasn’t caution.

He was pleased that his own son stood at the end of that thought.

Right. That would be good too. The criticism of mere ignorant fools.

He was nodding proudly when.

Crack.

“But… huh?”

Busojeong, who still had a troubled expression, made a stupid sound.

A blade had sprouted from the head of Seolminjae, who had been raising his wine cup alongside me just moments before.

The scene of blood spurting like a fountain before his eyes left him dazed as if it were a dream.

The door of the Inner Chamber, with a small hole in the center, opened smoothly.

A man strode in and pulled out his sword.

Then he naturally slit the throat of Bangchureon, who had been sitting beside him.

By then, Seolminjae’s body was tilting toward Busojeong as he collapsed.

Soon, the blade split Busojeong’s crown.

He hastily tried to block with the bowl he was holding, but it was impossible.

Busojeong, his arm and face sliced lengthwise, screamed and collapsed.

“Wh-who are you!”

“Xie Baowei.”

Even while answering, his sword moved toward the next target.

Chutaesan survived only because the guards Wei Sheping threw small knives at Xie Baowei.

However, his right hand was completely ruined.

“Y-you bastard! Did the Huangbo Family send you!”

“No.”

Ah. He died in the end.

Chutaesan collapsed, clutching his throat.

Next was Doguangxu.

His spine was pierced while his back was turned.

Life and death happened in such an instant.

A few who barely clung to life writhed on the floor.

It was hard to believe these were the same people who had been laughing and chatting just moments ago.

Only the Guard and Wei Sheping remained. Just the two of them.

Still, in that time, both men had grabbed harpoons.

“…What ghostly skill.”

“Thank you.”

The Guard said while looking up.

Xie Baowei was standing on the table.

The distance was two steps.

The knife he had thrown was still embedded in Director Do’s back.

He was empty-handed.

There was room to breathe.

“Did you come alone?”

“Yes.”

“Impressive.”

Pain flickered in the Guard’s eyes as he looked around at the fallen men.

Among them were those he had been with for over twenty years. Even Busojeong, who had joined latest, he had known for nearly ten years.

They weren’t just old connections either.

These were all the core and leaders of the organization.

Fifty percent of their strength? No. It wouldn’t be an exaggeration to say eighty percent.

Was it fortunate that at least his son survived?

Belated fury began to rise.

“What shall I do with you? Shall I flay you starting from your toes? Shall I roast you alive? No. It would be better to let you watch sharks tear off your limbs directly.”

The cold voice was filled with seething anger.

The words were all the more chilling because they came from someone who truly had the power and will to carry them out.

However, threats only work if the listener feels threatened.

“Oh my. I should have done the same.”

“You bastard!”

At that, the Guard moved, unable to contain himself any longer.

Thud!

As soon as the words ended, his foot shattered the floor.

Despite the narrow gap, his harpoon flew like a tuna cutting through water, aiming for Xie Baowei’s legs.

Crack!

As if the harpoon had split, it extended and struck the table.

It was indeed a move worthy of someone who could aspire to rule a region.

Deeply carved wood chips scattered.

Xie Baowei leaped up lightly.

“Jiping!”

The Guard shouted once more.

A beat later, a harpoon flew and pierced through Xie Baowei’s body as he hung in midair.

It was a perfect combination attack between father and son.

No, it should have been a perfect combination attack.

But it was the Guard who fell instead.

“Huh.”

Tap.

At the same time as Xie Baowei’s light footstep touched the ground, the Guard exhaled sharply and collapsed.

He looked back and forth between the blade embedded in his chest and Wei Sheping with disbelieving eyes.

His son’s terrified, trembling eyes came into view.

“…Ah.”

You stupid fool.

I raised you as an idiot who can’t even throw at the right time.

With trembling hands, the Guard tried to stop the blood flowing from his heart.

Though there was no way to stop it.

“…P-please spare me!”

As the Guard collapsed, spitting blood, Wei Sheping fell to his knees and bowed his head.

Where had his earlier gone? He couldn’t even follow in his father’s footsteps.

Xie Baowei looked at him with indifferent eyes.

Should he cut off his limbs and leave him to crawl around like a worm?

Should he cut out his tongue and gouge out his eyes, making him a cripple?

However, this bastard wasn’t worth that much effort.

“I-I was just following my father’s orders…”

“Enough.”

Xie Baowei sighed and pulled out the sword embedded in Doguangxu’s back.

Wei Sheping watched with frightened eyes.

“I have no interest in Miss Huangbo…”

“That’s exactly the point.”

Stab.

“Ugh.”

“That’s the problem. How can you have no interest?”

Xie Baowei stabbed Wei Sheping’s back without hesitation.

With precise movements, Wei Sheping trembled and then went limp.

The Guard’s corpse, having lost both his cherished subordinates and his son, stared at the scene with eyes that couldn’t even close.

His face was exactly like Wei Sheping’s, as if asking what the hell he was talking about.

Xie Baowei merely shrugged as if answering him.

“Isn’t that right?”

Xie Baowei muttered this and quietly looked around the room.

The place that had been noisy and bustling had become quiet as if it had never been otherwise.

The smell of blood filled the air.

Ah. There’s still work left to do.

***

Busojeong lay still with his eyes closed, holding his breath.

The long gashes on his arms and face throbbed, but his desire to live overcame the pain.

“Actually, your rampage on Daming Street meant nothing to me.”

Thump. Thump.

His own heartbeat felt deafeningly loud.

He regretted not learning the Ghost Breath technique earlier, but it was useless now.

The footsteps grew louder and louder, then.

Step.

Ah.

They stopped.

There was no need to worry about his heartbeat.

It would stop soon.

“Even your attack on the Huangbo Family didn’t mean much either.”

Then why.

Busojeong barely managed to open his heavy eyelids.

An indifferent face was right in front of him.

“I came here because of you.”

Me? Busojeong asked with his eyes.

The man continued speaking.

“Her flaws are mine to bear. So your words weren’t entirely wrong.”

-Well past her prime, nearly thirty years old, that’s a flaw in itself. A widow who’s been touched by a filthy, lowly man, and sickly too? What is Hwangbo Ok thinking. It’s the Huangbo Family’s fortune that our young master is so naive.

Ah.

“…Just, just because of that?”

Six people had died in an instant.

They too had been bandits, living rough and brutal lives.

They killed to steal money, raped for beauty.

They took what they wanted and destroyed what didn’t please them.

So they should have expected such an end.

But still, it felt unfair. Just. Just because of that?

That impressive-looking sect leader and captains, and himself who would have become one.

Just because he had insulted one woman?

No matter how noble her family, wasn’t it a declining house anyway?

And the one who had left her was this very man before his eyes.

Xie Baowei knew nothing of Busojeong’s sense of injustice. He simply looked at Busojeong with a strange expression.

For the first time, emotion showed on his face.

It was incomprehension.

“Do you need another reason?”

“You’re the one who left.”

“Haven’t I returned?”

Slash.

Busojeong’s neck was severed.

The expression of someone looking at a madman remained vividly on the face that fell to the floor.

Even in his dying moment, he couldn’t understand Xie Baowei.

The feeling was mutual for Xie Baowei.

The scent of blood filled the room full of corpses.

It was too hollow an end for the notorious Guiyusha bandits of the East Sea and the remnants of Taean Gate.

Should he call it lucky?

It had been easier than expected.

The surprise attack had worked well, but it was largely thanks to the enemy’s excessive carelessness.

Indeed, this place was different from the frontier. Different from the frontier.

Xie Baowei let out a sigh-like breath.

Then he quietly stared at the blood covering his hands and shook his head.

Something felt broken, and he felt strangely unfamiliar to himself.

‘I must do what needs to be done.’

He briefly went outside to survey the surroundings, then took out a pouch and carefully, lightly scattered the powder inside.

Soon he came outside, took out flint and lit a fire. With crackling sounds, flames instantly caught and spread through the room.

Soon a great fire arose and spread to the hall.

People shouted and gathered.

The thick scent of blood in the deep night was consumed by the flames.

Xie Baowei quietly hid and watched people rushing in, then silently climbed over the wall just as he had when arriving.

Belated firelight flickered against the moon-ringed sky.

Shadows fell thickly.

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