The Youngest Son of the Nanyang Jin Family - Chapter 72

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

The Youngest Son of the Nakhyang Jin Family — Chapter 72

* * *

“Good heavens, what is this… Hong Gu-hyeon is dead?”
“It’s not just Hong Gu-hyeon. Among the Sega Warriors, the dead are not one or two.”
“Sigh… for such a thing to happen on a festive day… truly….”
An untimely funeral was held at the Nakhyang Jin Family.
To mourn the deaths of Hong Gu-hyeon and many warriors, people were gathering from all directions.
Those who came to pay their respects were diverse.
Not only those who had been close to the deceased, but also those who had come for the feast the previous day stopped their journey home and returned once more.
Thanks to this, the Nakhyang Jin Family compound was filled with people.
The funeral, conducted far grander and more magnificent than the Family Head’s birthday celebration, left even those who came to pay respects speechless.
It was not a direct bloodline who had died, merely a servant, yet the grandeur of the funeral was incomparable to that of ordinary families.
Because of this, the maids and servants who worked alongside them had no choice but to be occupied with receiving guests rather than surrendering to sorrow and lamentation.
Father and Chief Administrator Yu Hyeon were leading the funeral.
With the highest figures of Sega conducting such a grand funeral for a mere servant, this matter would spread far throughout the Central Plains, and the name of the Nakhyang Jin Family would rise even higher.
For they treated even servants as they would treat their own clan.
I observed this scene quietly, committing to memory the faces of each person who came to pay respects.
Some were familiar, others were not.
Most appeared ordinary, yet I was certain that among them were surely those connected to them.
This matter would certainly reach their ears, and it seemed the attention of those bastards could be redirected as planned.
“He’s arrived! He’s here!”
At that moment, a voice came from somewhere.
Turning my head, I saw Chu Hyeongi approaching urgently, clutching a letter in his hand.
Unable to run due to the pain radiating through his entire body, he moved carefully yet as swiftly as possible.
I examined the letter in his hand and asked.
“Who is it from?”
“It’s from the First Young Master, sir.”
I nodded and accepted the letter.
The handwriting was unmistakably my elder brother’s.
I had sent an urgent message asking him to return, and this was his reply.
Since Sanghang’s destination was the Western Regions, I had judged the response would be slowest, but seeing the letter arrive so quickly meant he must have already traveled several days’ distance in that direction.
I smiled faintly, picturing my elder brother’s face.
In the past, at this time, I had not even seen my brothers’ faces.
Sega had already burned and vanished, and they were hunting down the remaining bloodline.
Jin Ga-ryang, my eldest brother, was the first victim.
I think I finally understood the reason.
Unlike me who had fled, he was returning to the Nakhyang Jin Family, and thus could not escape their gaze.
“Inform Baek Chong-gwal of this matter and have him assign additional guards.”
“Understood.”
I turned away after confirming Chu Hyeongi’s hasty departure.
Only then did my gaze fall upon Gu Gunbaek, who sat perched upon a massive boulder in the courtyard, regarding me with an indifferent expression.
He released a wide yawn, as though exhausted by the entire affair.
“When are we leaving? Are we actually going or not?”
“We shall depart shortly.”
“I don’t understand what any of this is about. That’s an empty coffin, isn’t it? Why are those people weeping over there?”
Gu Gunbaek’s gaze turned toward those drowning in sorrow.
The bodyguards standing vigil around the coffin.
With tears streaming down their faces, they clenched their fists in apparent resentment—as though they might draw their blades and charge forth for vengeance at any moment.
Yet they too understood the truth.
That the coffin was empty.
Most of the dead had fallen by their own hands in the first place.
There was no reason for them to grieve, nor any cause for indignation.
One cannot exact vengeance upon oneself, after all.
I gazed upon the scene and let out a soft chuckle.
“The performance grows more elaborate with each passing day. Quite the spectacle.”
As I spoke with a bright smile, Gu Gunbaek looked at me with an expression of utter disbelief.
He then shook his head in disapproval, grasped the gourd flask hanging from his waist, and took a long swig.
“If I were in their position, I’d have goosebumps all over. Don’t make an enemy of Namman. Actually, the moment you did, I’d snap your neck first. Only then could I sleep soundly.”
Gu Gunbaek clicked his tongue, his expression one of utter weariness.
He seemed entirely uninterested in who these people were or what grievances bound them to me.
Rather, he appeared to view each unfolding moment as nothing more than a ploy to toy with them.
I neither affirmed nor denied his words, simply laughing.
This conflict with them was my affair, not his.
There was no need to burden him with lengthy explanations.
After all, despite having entangled him with them countless times while instructing Chu Hyeongi in the past, Gu Gunbaek had shown little interest in them, and eventually departed for parts unknown.
“Kha—! Excellent! More importantly, aren’t we going to find So-ha? I think that would be far more entertaining.”
“I intend to depart soon… but are you truly determined to accompany me?”
“You said it would be an interesting place! Not like last time! You said it would be genuinely fun! Of course I’m coming.”
Gu Gunbaek’s eyes gleamed with the innocent brilliance of a child.
Though he knew not what would transpire there, he seemed confident it would prove more entertaining than the previous conflict.
Yet suddenly, as though recalling something, his eyes narrowed with suspicion.
“Could it be… that those people are involved in this matter as well?”
“They are not.”
“Truly?”
“Yes, it is unrelated.”
This was merely a matter of locating and retrieving Chaeseoha—it had nothing to do with them, nor did it concern the Jade Orb’s whereabouts.
Of course, it would prove somewhat troublesome, with considerable ripples to follow.
The skirmishes with those thugs were being resolved with nothing more than unidentified corpses left behind, but this incident would certainly not end so cleanly.
Yet this was always meant to happen.
I was merely accelerating the timeline.
Of course, it would send shockwaves throughout the entire Central Plains.
As I smiled faintly while contemplating the chaos to come, I noticed Gu Gunbaek’s gaze growing progressively more penetrating.
I quickly composed my expression.
“Is something the matter?”
“No, it’s just… your face looked rather… well, suspicious. You’re not plotting something strange, are you?”
“How could I be? Do I really strike you as someone who schemes and connives?”
“Scheming would almost be preferable.”
Gu Gunbaek gestured with his chin toward where the funeral was taking place. The Imperial Guards still swallowed back tears, and the wails of the mourners continued to echo without cessation.
I listened to it and gave a light shrug.
What was I supposed to do about it?

* * *

Clatter—clatter—
A dilapidated carriage where not even light could penetrate.
In the thick darkness, I could not tell whether my eyes were open or closed.
There were only two things I knew.
The carriage was moving somewhere, and I was bound hand and foot, tumbling about inside it.
“This is terrible…”
Chaeseoha smiled bitterly.
She had remained confined within the underground organization as Jin Cheon-u had instructed, never venturing outside.
No one could have known she was staying at the Nakhyang Jin Family, yet like all secrets, this one could not remain hidden forever, and now she found herself in this predicament.

“Save us! Please! Is there a physician? A physician! Our child is dying!”

A voice I had heard from somewhere still echoed vividly in my ears. The problem was that I had responded to the desperate plea of someone searching for a physician.
When I cautiously went out to investigate, it turned out to be someone from the slums.
In the figure covered in blood and desperately seeking a physician, there was not the slightest hint of deception or malice.
But it did not take long to realize that it was a trap.
On the orders of Grand Chamberlain Ga Inhoo, his guards had drawn their blades against the poor, and those wounded by the steel had desperately sought a physician.
As a result, Chaeseoha, unaware of the situation, had been captured by Ga Inhoo’s guards.
From the sequence of events alone, it seemed that Ga Inhoo already knew that Chaeseoha was somewhere within Luoyang City.
Or perhaps he knew she was at the Nakhyang Jin Family.
Either way, the situation was far from favorable.
“Somehow… I have to escape.”
Chaeseoha gritted her teeth and moved her hands and feet.
I had to free myself from these ropes and get out.
Since Jin Cheon-u had started this, he must have pushed himself hard.
I could tell without even thinking that he must be gravely injured.
After all, the Young Master would not look at any other physician.
I was certain he would move to find me, dragging his still-unhealed body along.
Because of this, Chaeseoha’s heart grew even more urgent.
With more violent movements, I tried to loosen the rope, but it was tied so tightly that my skin tore and blood flowed, yet the rope showed no sign of coming loose.
“Sigh…”
Chaeseoha finally let out a resigned sigh and pressed her forehead against the floor.
Countless thoughts raced through her mind.
From childhood until now, but among them all, what occupied the greatest space in her heart was merely a few months—the days spent at the Nakhyang Jin Family.
The thought that she could never return to those days again filled her with an inexplicable bitterness, leaving her heart hollow and empty.
But could she simply give up like this?
Then, for a moment, she recalled a conversation she had recently had with Jin Cheon-u.

“What if something happens?”
“Yes, if something happens that I cannot handle, what should I do?”

She had not asked with the current situation in mind. Rather, knowing that someday she would have to leave the Nakhyang Jin Family, she had asked out of fear for that distant future.
To her eyes, Jin Cheon-u was always someone who possessed the answers.
His expression and voice from that time came back to her with perfect clarity.

“First, survive.”
“Survive?”
“Yes, cling to life with all your might. If you do that, I will surely find you and save you.”

It was never a honeyed word meant to win a woman’s heart.
After all, someone like Jin Cheon-u could never fall for her in the first place.
Yet his earnest gaze and expression had shaken her soul, and even now the memory remained vivid and unmistakable.
Therefore, she would survive.
No matter what.
Even if Jin Cheon-u never appeared to offer his aid, she would grit her teeth and cling to life with stubborn determination, waiting for better days to return.
She forced herself to rise in the invisible darkness and pressed her ear against the carriage wall.
Voices from outside drifted faintly to her.
She clung to a threadbare hope—if she could glean even the smallest clue, it might aid her survival.
The carriage continued its journey for some time longer.
Between the rumbling of the carriage and the sound of hoofbeats, she occasionally caught fragments of people’s conversations, but they were swallowed by the other sounds and remained indecipherable.
Soon, the carriage came to a halt.
Whether they were preparing to camp for the night or readying a meal, she could not tell, but she sensed the people around the carriage dispersing.
It was then that voices became distinctly audible.
“Congratulations, Grand Chamberlain. You have finally found what you sought.”
“Hehehehe— this is all thanks to your efforts. Indeed, I have a keen eye for talent.”
“I merely investigated based on circumstantial reasoning. If she had entered Luoyang City, the Jin Family could not have failed to notice her. It seems this woman had caught the eye of Cheon-u, that boy.”
“Hoho— thanks to you, we found her well. I was beginning to think we might have to give up. His Majesty will bestow a great reward upon you. Is there anything you desire?”
Anything I desire?
Jin Baek-ryong fell silent for a moment at the question, lost in thought.
But knowing that only one thing ever came to mind, he gazed at Ga Inhoo with a faint smile playing at his lips.
“The Nakhyang Jin Family. If His Majesty would only grant me his support this time, I believe that would be sufficient.”
“Hehehehe—.”
At the sound of Ga Inhoo’s laughter, Chaeseoha’s body went rigid.

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