The Youngest Son of the Nanyang Jin Family - Chapter 80

—————
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 141

The moment I returned to where the group was gathered, drenched in blood, Chaeseoha was naturally the first to rush toward me.
She hastily laid me down and began examining various parts of my body. Though the wounds were quite deep, she started treating them with practiced ease.
“What on earth do you keep doing to end up like this every time?”
“Still better than what happened in Anwhui, isn’t it?”
“Are you joking? Look at this wound and this one too. If it had gone even an inch deeper, it would have been serious.”
Chaeseoha examined the deep wounds and pressed her fingers around the surrounding area to check for pain as she spoke.
With each press, I felt a sharp pain and instinctively clenched my teeth.
Then her touch became gentler.
“We call this kind of luck heavenly fortune. Don’t expect the same outcome next time.”
“I’ll keep that in mind.”
I nodded and steadied my breathing.
After she had chattered away like a sparrow for quite some time, she fell silent and began concentrating as she started the proper treatment.
I couldn’t shake the thought that things would have been truly difficult without Chaeseoha.
“Young Master, who exactly were you fighting?”
“It doesn’t matter. Knowing won’t help anyway.”
I heard Namgung Yeon’s question from where she had been observing the situation.
She was the one who had watched my martial exchange with Moryeong Hyeok despite her injuries. Having witnessed my level firsthand, she naturally couldn’t gauge the strength of my opponent.
But soon she closed her mouth and abandoned her line of questioning.
It seemed she sensed this wasn’t something she should pry into.
Then.
After completing some of the treatment, Chaeseoha spoke up.
“You can’t ride a horse in this condition.”
“So it’s a carriage again? It’s so slow.”
“If you ride a horse with injuries like these, all the wounds will reopen. Though if you don’t mind that, it’s fine with me.”
She shrugged her shoulders in response, and I found myself frowning involuntarily.
The distance between us and those who had gone ahead was considerable.
Taking a carriage would only widen the gap further, but Chaeseoha’s words made sense.
Since we didn’t know what would happen at our destination, we needed to be in peak condition. I decided that focusing on treatment meant taking a carriage rather than riding—it was the right call.
I lifted my head and looked at Namgung Yeon.
She gave me a puzzled expression.
“If you travel about an hour from here, you’ll reach Lanzhou, the capital of Gansu.”
“Is that so?”
“Go there and buy a carriage.”
I pulled a money pouch from my pocket and tossed it toward her. Namgung Yeon caught the heavy pouch and swallowed hard as silver and gold coins spilled out from inside.
“You mean… alone?”
“Of course. I can’t go with you. Same goes for So-ha.”
At her absurd question, I let out a hollow laugh.
I was wounded, and Chaeseoha was a physician tending to my injuries. Both of us were in no condition to move about freely.
It was natural that Namgung Yeon would take action.
Yet for some reason, she merely blinked and remained motionless.
As if she hadn’t the faintest idea what to do or how to do it.
Only then did I grasp a certain truth, and I pressed my brow in exasperation.
“You’ve been sheltered, haven’t you?”
“…I haven’t been sheltered. My older brother simply handled everything for me.”
“That’s what we usually call being sheltered.”
“I share that sentiment.”
From childhood, Namgung Yeon had devoted herself to the sword.
Beyond that, her older brother Namgung Baek had taken care of everything else, so she had scarcely any experience doing anything on her own.
Much less handling something independently while separated from him?
She couldn’t have even imagined such a thing.
“What did you do when your older brother was away elsewhere?”
“My older brother would give money to others and ask for their help. The woman next door, the grandmother behind us… Oh! And the innkeeper who works at the inn—my older brother knew her too.”
I felt my headache intensifying and exhaled a long sigh. So in essence, she could do nothing except wield a sword.
Chaeseoha seemed to share the same thought, for she sighed, dusted off her hands, and rose from her seat.
“The urgent matters are settled, so I’ll go handle this. I’ve driven a carriage before, so you needn’t worry.”
At her words, I furrowed my brow.
But since I couldn’t go myself, someone had to move. And at this moment, Chaeseoha was far more dependable than Namgung Yeon.
Yet I couldn’t send her alone.
In the end, I sighed and spoke.
“Go together, both of you. I’ll rest here, so don’t concern yourselves with me.”
Isn’t it said that sleep is the best medicine?

* * *

The two women who had hastily ridden toward Nanjou on horseback arrived not in the one hour they had mentioned, but rather after nearly two hours had passed.
It was their first time on this route, and the geography proved far more complicated than anticipated.
Moreover, they had spent considerable time treating Jin Cheon-u’s wounds, leaving them without proper sleep or sustenance.
With both body and spirit exhausted and hunger gnawing at them, both women appeared rather fatigued.
But the troubles did not end there.
The moment they passed through the city gates, Chaeseoha suddenly realized what had gone wrong as the gatekeepers’ gazes poured down upon her.
“Ah… the travel permit.”
“You didn’t bring it?”
“I forgot.”
Chaeseoha offered a wry smile as she acknowledged her own oversight.
Namgung Yeon, having grown somewhat accustomed to such matters, thought it might not be a problem, but the moment they entered the city proper, she realized otherwise.
Every man’s gaze in the vicinity converged upon her.
It would be fair to say that Chaeseoha alone had captured the attention of every man in the city—pedestrians were stopping mid-stride to stare at her, some even stumbling and falling in the process.
For Namgung Yeon, experiencing such a thing for the first time, it was utterly bewildering.
Though she herself took pride in her own beauty and had walked the streets of Anwhui without drawing such blatant stares.
“Let’s hurry.”
“Ah… yes.”
Chaeseoha urgently seized Namgung Yeon’s hand and pulled her forward.
The men who had been staring blankly parted ways awkwardly, though some seemed eager to engage in conversation, their voices calling out from various directions—”Hey, over there!” or “Young lady!”
Namgung Yeon observed the spectacle with bewilderment and asked incredulously.
“Is this… something you’re accustomed to?”
“It used to be. Now it feels rather strange.”
“It used to be?”
Namgung Yeon, who had not seen Chaeseoha’s troubled expression, tilted her head in confusion.
But as if unwilling to answer further, Chaeseoha quickened her pace, and Namgung Yeon had no choice but to follow.
Then, suddenly seized by a curious thought, she asked.
“Shouldn’t we head that way to purchase a carriage?”
“We’ve already reached the city—why would we pay for a carriage now?”
“… The Young Master gave us money to purchase one.”
“He probably meant for us to buy food or supplies along the way.”
“What?”
Namgung Yeon, still unfamiliar with the Jin Family of Luoyang and Jin Cheon-u, tilted her head in confusion.
But Chaeseoha paid no mind and continued running.
She had sensed that several men had been following them for some time now.
This only made her move with greater urgency.
Her destination was the Yunlong Inn—a name borne by establishments found in every major city, whether as a relay station, merchant house, or marketplace.
Based on her experience thus far, the Yunlong Inn was always situated in the most bustling district of such cities.
And indeed, it was no different here.
In the distance, the silhouette of the Yunlong Inn came into view.
The moment she spotted it, she quickened her pace further, and upon arrival, pushed open the door without hesitation and stepped inside.
In that instant, everyone eating—including even the innkeeper—widened their eyes at the two women who had burst through the door so roughly.
“Hah, hah… I am Chaeseoha, sent here by the Young Master So of the Jin Family. Is there someone managing this place?”
“That would be me. You say you’re from the Young Master So?”
At the mention of the Jin Family’s Young Master So, one man snapped back to attention faster than anyone else and shot to his feet.
A middle-aged man with a generous, kindly appearance.
His belly protruded considerably, and his frame was well-padded.
He approached Chaeseoha with leisurely steps, his expression uncertain as he alternated his gaze between her and Namgung Yeon.
But his eyes remained fixed on Chaeseoha and would not look away.
Was that the reason?
Namgung Yeon stepped forward and positioned himself between them.
“I am Namgung Yeon, the Young Master’s escort. I’ve come to receive a carriage on his orders.”
“The Young Master wants a carriage? Where is he now? Why are only the two of you here?”
He was the manager of the Nanzhou inn.
No matter how legitimate the Young Master’s orders, without proof, suspicion was only natural.
The light in the man’s eyes that had been fixed on Chaeseoha vanished, replaced by a gaze that suggested they might be impostors attempting to exploit the Jin Family’s name.
This was what flustered Namgung Yeon.
Jang Chuchyeong wasn’t here, so there was nothing to prove their claim.
As anxiety crept in—what if they were dragged to the magistrate’s office—
Chaeseoha withdrew from her bosom an ornate jade token, exquisitely carved with the emblem symbolizing the Jin Family, and displayed it.
“This should suffice, shouldn’t it?”
“…That’s a token only the direct bloodline of the Jin Family possesses… How…?”
“The Family Head gave it to me.”
“The Family Head?”
The man’s jaw dropped in shock.
That token symbolizing the Jin Family could not be possessed by anyone outside the direct bloodline.
Which meant Chaeseoha’s position was equal to that of the direct line, and if it was given by the Family Head Jin Ga-muk himself, it signified she would become the future mistress of the Jin Family.
Though she herself seemed unaware of this, displaying only a puzzled expression at the man’s astonishment, those who witnessed it could not possibly overlook such a matter.
“What are you all doing! Bring out the finest and largest carriage! And… is there anything else you might need? Food or otherwise?”
“Ah? Now that you mention it, yes. And… if you have something to cover one’s face, I’d appreciate it.”
“I… I’ll prepare it right away!”
“Take your time.”
The man rushed madly toward the kitchen, urging the cooks onward. It seemed Jin Cheon-u’s meal would arrive before the other guests who were already seated waiting for theirs.
At this, Chaeseoha smiled faintly and glanced at the money pouch in Namgung Yeon’s hand.
“It seems it will take a while. Shall we go pass the time?”

* * *

Third floor of the Yunlong Inn.
The men drinking there sensed the commotion and glanced toward the window. Upon spotting two women rushing toward the Yunlong Inn, they widened their eyes in surprise.
One woman appeared to be the very embodiment of beauty itself, while the other possessed equally striking features.
Though not quite at the level of the Gongdong Sect, they were renowned figures of the Qilian Xuanjia throughout Gansu, martial masters distinguished enough to earn the epithet “Four Swords of Qilian.”
And the one leading them was none other than Hyeon Illyang, the Young Master So.
He too was counted among the finest talents in Gansu Province.
As one called the second-most powerful figure in Gansu, he wielded strength and authority with unparalleled skill.
Hyeon Illyang, the Young Master of the Qilian clan, watched as the women entered and then exited once more, a subtle smile playing at his lips.
“Those two women are truly like flowers.”
“Ha, indeed, Young Master. Especially that woman in the veil—doesn’t she seem like a flower meant to bloom at your side?”
The most beautiful shall be yours.
But the one beside her—give her to us.
As if they were speaking such words, their expressions drew only laughter from Hyeon Illyang.
Whatever he desired, he obtained.
In Gansu, the Qilian Xuanjia wielded absolute power and authority, leaving nothing beyond Hyeon Illyang’s reach.
Yet soon after, he swept the images of those women from his mind and shook his head.
From Qilian Mountain to this place.
He had not come merely to covet women.
Though the face of that woman lingered stubbornly, refusing to fade despite his efforts, now was the time to accomplish his true purpose here.
Hyeon Illyang set down his cup and rose from his seat.
“Let us go. Father’s birthday approaches—I must present him with a fine sword.”
“Understood. Ha.”

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