The Youngest Son of the Nanyang Jin Family - Chapter 88

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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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The Youngest Son of the Nakhyang Jin Family — Chapter 88

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Despite the late hour, the Imperial Palace blazed with light as if it were midday.
Countless masses gathered about, illuminating the surroundings so brilliantly that one could not distinguish whether it was day or night.
At the center of it all sat a figure, utterly composed.
The Crown Prince.
Though not yet formally enthroned, he had already ascended to the position of Emperor in all but name, and now gazed ahead with an expression of mild boredom.
“Aaaahhhhh—!”
“Ahhhhh!”
Anguished cries echoed from all directions, assaulting the ears relentlessly.
Those drenched in blood presented such a pitiful sight that one could no longer discern who was who.
Among them were surely those who had wielded power through the Former Emperor, and others who had merely done their duty as administrators.
Yet to him, it mattered not at all.
He had resolved from the start to sweep them all away.
To solidify his foundation completely, he had to uproot his enemies entirely, regardless of who they were.
Having observed this spectacle for hours now, the Crown Prince’s gaze finally shifted to one figure.
A man trembling violently, bleeding profusely.
Jin Baek-ryong.
He cried out for mercy and promised to reveal everything, but his voice never reached the Crown Prince’s ears.
Instead, he found himself thinking of another and smiled.
“So that Jin Cheon-u is the blood of such a man?”
“You speak of Jin Cheon-u, Your Highness?”
“Yes. When I told him to raise his head, the fearless wretch looked directly at me without hesitation. I was tempted to tear out his liver. Haha.”
“He seems to have pleased you, Your Highness.”
The Crown Prince did not answer, merely continuing to smile.
The image of Jin Cheon-u still flickered before my eyes.
In truth, I had wanted to see him before Jin Baek-ryong precisely so that if he displeased me even slightly, I could strike off his head first.
After all, the head of Young Master So would carry far more weight than that of Jin Baek-ryong, the administrator of Beijing, in preserving an Emperor’s dignity, would it not?
Yet I had not done so.
The confident bearing and expression of that wretch.
His gaze and presence.
They resembled what I saw when I looked upon myself.
That was one reason I had taken interest.
Moreover, in that very situation, the way he accepted responsibility without evasion, yet ultimately secured his family’s interests—it was so absurd that I could only laugh bitterly.
By virtue of my station as Crown Prince, I had met many, but never one so audacious.
Having pondered thus far, the Crown Prince wiped away his smile and cast off the thought.
“But what of the matter at hand?”
“If you’re referring to that physician… we haven’t found her yet.”
“Haven’t found her? You’re saying you haven’t even discovered a trace?”
“That is correct.”
At Chungho’s words, the Crown Prince’s brow furrowed.
Everyone who had guarded the Emperor in Dowon Village was dead. Yet the corpse of one person remained absent—the physician who had been healing the Former Emperor.
There was no trace of where she had vanished.
The Crown Prince had intended to tear that physician limb from limb as payment for destroying his carefully laid plan to dispose of the Former Emperor quietly. His frustration mounted at being denied this satisfaction.
Then, suddenly, a figure came to mind.
“Perhaps… there may be a connection to that man.”
“The one who revealed Dowon Village’s location to us?”
“Precisely. That wretch’s objective may have been the physician from the very beginning. It’s possible the chaos that erupted when we entered was orchestrated by him to make his task easier.”
“….”
Chungho’s complexion grew increasingly rigid at these words.
The implication was clear—from beginning to end, the future Emperor had been dancing in that man’s palm.
Sure enough, he could see the Crown Prince’s eyes blazing with fury as they fixed upon him.
“He is undoubtedly a martial artist. Find him.”
Snap—
“Understood.”

* * *

Meanwhile, at that very moment.
Jin Cheon-u, surveying the Unryong Inn devoid of a single guest, offered a bitter smile at the incongruous silence.
This place, which had always been teeming with people, now felt alien without the usual clamor and bustle.
It wasn’t merely the inn that suffered this fate.
The money exchange, escort house, and warehouse in Beijing as well.
With everyone detained and imprisoned, business was impossible.
Moreover, Jin Baek-ryong himself had been entangled in this rebellion of the Crown Prince.
Rumors had already spread with unstoppable speed, and it seemed the Beijing operations would not recover easily even if they resumed.
Time would be necessary.
Yet it wasn’t something to view negatively.
From the start, I had no intention of putting Jin Baek-ryong’s people back to work once they were released.
During the period of recovery, I could simply recruit and dispatch new personnel. In fact, this situation was more advantageous for the Nakhyang Jin Family.
“This works out well.”
I nodded and stood before a certain room.
None other than the space where my uncle Jin Baek-ryong had stayed.
Upon opening the door and stepping inside, I saw rare and precious items adorning the space.
Most were valuables worth considerable sums of money.
They appeared to be acquisitions from Dowon Village.
Without lingering on them further, I opened the drawers one by one.
The room contained many valuable-looking items, yet I searched for something entirely different.
I pulled the drawers completely open and checked every corner, but finding nothing there, I began examining beneath the bedchamber, the floor, and even the walls.
After some time had passed, I removed a painting and revealed an ordinary wall beneath it.
One.
Thump, thump—
When I tapped it, the sound indicated hollow space within.
Undoubtedly, there had to be some mechanism somewhere to open this.
Of course, I didn’t bother searching for it.
I simply clenched my fist and swung.
Boom—!
The wall shattered, revealing a hidden compartment.
My eyes fell upon roughly a dozen promissory notes hidden away for emergencies, several books, and letters.
I pocketed the notes and withdrew the books.
As I brushed away the dust, I read through them page by page.
They were ledgers showing where Jin Baek-ryong’s money had flowed.
Most entries in the ledger were connected to men of power.
But that wasn’t what captured my attention.
Bribes were something even my father gave and received.
What mattered was the connection to the Former Emperor.
And the letters.
The correspondence with those closely connected to the Former Emperor, including the deceased Ga Inhoo, clearly revealed an unmistakable intent to swallow the Nakhyang Jin Family whole.
This would be more than sufficient to strip Jin Baek-ryong of his family registry.
Though the Elders rarely intervened in other matters, they would oppose severing bloodlines without clear justification.
I collected those items and left the room.
Then, walking along the corridor, I surveyed my surroundings.
Despite the late hour, I spotted quite a few people. Most were Golden Armored Guards patrolling North Beijing Street, and the way they scanned their surroundings with cold eyes suggested they would draw their blades the moment anyone caught their attention.
Their objectives were simple.
First was maintaining order in the chaotic Beijing, and second was the missing Chaeseoha.
There were likely other priorities as well.
Finding the Former Emperor’s escaped associates, perhaps?
A faint smirk crossed my face as I turned toward the inn where my companions waited.
“You bastard, you finally showed up!”
Gu Gunbaek came thundering down the stairs.
His expression was fierce and his eyes murderous.
Even his clenched fists suggested he was quite furious.
Moreover, the anxious expressions on Chaeseoha and Jang Chuchyeong’s faces beside him made it seem unlikely they could easily calm him down.
I regarded Gu Gunbaek with a puzzled expression.
“What’s the matter?”
“What?! What’s the matter? You knew you wouldn’t get paid and handed it over to me anyway?”
“Ha, I wondered why you were so angry, but it was just that?”
“Just that? You dare mock me!”
“Wasn’t there an opportunity for you to accept, Elder? Yet you did not.”
“What…?”
“Furthermore, you said that if I obtained it, it would be yours. But you never said I was certain to obtain it. Wasn’t the decision yours to make?”
Gu Gunbaek stared at me with an expression of disbelief.
If he retraced his memories one by one, he would realize there was nothing wrong with my words.
From the beginning, I had attached the condition of “if I obtained it.”
Considering the high interest rate, I was confident he would not accept immediately, but there had been an opportunity nonetheless—and it was Gu Gunbaek himself who had rejected it.
It was strange for him to be angry in the first place.
Watching Gu Gunbaek stammer helplessly without finding words, I approached him slightly and drew something from my robes.
“Ah, a gift.”
“…A gift?”
At the sudden turn of events, Gu Gunbaek’s eyes widened in astonishment.
And the moment he recognized the object, not only his eyes but those of everyone present grew round.
What I had presented was none other than a Summoning Pill.
“You… surely you didn’t… intend to give this to me from the start…?”
“Isn’t it the perfect thing for restoring one’s vitality? You’ve endured much hardship, so you should certainly have this.”
Gu Gunbaek’s mouth fell open as he lost for words.
Just moments before, he had glared as though ready to kill, but now neither his gaze nor his intensity could be felt at all.
Instead, his eyes glistened with emotion.
Confirming this, I turned my head to look at Jang Chuchyeong.
“Pack your belongings and go sell the carriage we arrived in. Procure a new one—large and fine. The one we came in was far too cramped.”
“Are we returning now?”
“Yes, there’s no point in lingering further. On the way back… there are places I wish to visit.”
“Understood!”
Jang Chuchyeong nodded readily and hurried toward the rooms, soon to be busily occupied with packing and procuring a carriage.
“Ahem! If we’re heading back, I should gather my things as well.”
Meanwhile, Gu Gunbaek, who had been venting his anger moments before, carefully tucked the Summoning Pill into his robes and followed Jang Chuchyeong with an awkward expression.
The spring in his step as he climbed the stairs was unmistakably evident.
Pfft—
Laughter escaped me unbidden.
Turning my head, I saw Chaeseoha, still wearing her veil, regarding me with a sidelong glance.
“What is it?”
“Did you truly purchase that Summoning Pill intending to give it to the Elder?”
“Yes.”
She, harboring suspicion, let out a hollow laugh as though exasperated.
She could not possibly be unaware.
Gu Gunbaek was the man called the Demon King, one who approached the pinnacle of martial mastery.
What significance could a mere Summoning Pill hold for such a person?
It would neither enhance his inner force in the slightest nor even serve to restore his vitality.
I possess a body that surpasses its efficacy.
Then where will you use that summoning pellet?
I intend to use it on Chu Hyeongi.
Though he was born with divine power and possesses considerable strength, his inner energy remains woefully insufficient. If I can obtain the summoning pellet, I can resolve his chronic deficiency in inner cultivation.
Is that all?
With the Demon King at his side, fortune permitting, he might even experience a complete rebirth of body and soul. Even if not, he will become a vessel capable of properly receiving the martial teachings of Gu Gunbaek.
“You only give good fortune to the Young Master.”
“Why does it work out that way?”
“Because Chu Hyeongi is the Young Master’s servant, of course.”
Chaeseoha stared at me with an expression of exasperation, her tongue clicking against her teeth.
By giving the summoning pellet to Gu Gunbaek, I had appeased his mood, and as a bonus, I could elevate both Chu Hyeongi’s deficient inner energy and his martial prowess—two birds with one stone.
Without realizing it, I smiled and shrugged my shoulders as if it were nothing.
“I fail to grasp your meaning.”
“You are truly a Young Master who makes one’s teeth itch.”
“Stop your idle chatter and go pack the luggage.”
“Sigh—very well. But you mentioned earlier that there was a place to visit on the way. It seems you haven’t stopped by yet?”
“Yes, it’s farther than I anticipated.”
At my words, Chaeseoha regarded me with a puzzled expression. The route from Beijing to Hannam should be straightforward, yet if I called it far, she seemed unable to fathom just where I meant.
I gazed into her eyes and smiled softly.
Anhui.
I cannot keep the sleeping dragon dormant forever.

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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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