Book 17 Chapter 6

The Fate of the Zhongyang Marker

-Byuliyon, visiting the Zhongyang Repository

"Huh? What was that?"

He Xiangdu, the senior bureau chief of the Nanchang branch of the Zhongyang Bureau, who was now well established on this floor, was on his regular afternoon patrol. He quite liked patrols. It wasn't that he cared about the state of the bureau's operations. It was just that it was the best way to show off his status to those below him. He was a snob who enjoyed looking down on those lesser than him. Being a snob, he never looked up. Perhaps he was deliberately ignoring them, for if he thought they were looking down on him and laughing at him, he would not be able to do so casually. Ahead of him, the figures of the sentinels guarding the main gate caught his feral eyes. Taking his usual perverse pleasure in watching his men cringe like frogs at the sight of a snake, he crept toward the gate, fangs flashing with malice like a wolf hunting a hare.

He was the most experienced of the ten headmen here, with over a hundred swipes under his belt. With a few more years of hard work, it was not out of the question for him to be promoted to head master, though it would be a nightmare for his subordinates. As a young man, he was quite confident in his abilities after meeting Qi Yan. There was only one resident representative in the South Chang Branch, and with the title of senior representative, he was practically the third in command of the South Chang Branch. In recent years, the strength of the Bureau had been increasing day by day, and he felt a sense of pride. He felt that he had somehow become great. So it was only fitting that the arrogant eyes of these three great men should be raised to a humble, unremarkable-looking child who wore shabby black robes and carried no weapons. Anger surged through him at the insolent brat who dared to interrupt his joyous display!

"This is not a children's playground! Go away! Shhh!"

Besides, if you don't keep your hair properly groomed, those long bangs are a real eyesore!

"Tsk, tsk, tsk!"

At times like this, it was best to scare him off a bit. With a gesture, the two gatekeepers quickly lowered their spears and pointed them directly at the young man, who still hadn't stopped walking. They were quick on their feet.

"Stop! What kind of a man are you, that you cannot hear the words of the Senior Venerable?"

Bi Ryuyeon's brow furrowed slightly at the spear-crossed gatekeeper's shout. She tried to think of all the ways in which she deserved to be treated with such disrespect.

It's probably not the most common excuse for being old. Could it be that you're under the illusion that the wall behind you is thick enough to cover your rudeness? If so, all due respect to your workplace, but you might want to work on your ability to face reality first.

If you think that because you're old you can talk back to anyone younger, you're sorely mistaken. He has seen as many people as there are grains of sand on the beach who waste the time they have been given to live for nothing. Why should he have to listen to a man who didn't know what he was missing or what he was living for? Didn't he think he was a martial artist because he wasn't wearing a sword or carrying a weapon? And what was that worm who seemed to be the boss of the two, let alone the gatekeeper? He was ugly, and his mind seemed to be blank.

I've never heard of a state working at a loss for loyalty and cooperation-both of which are obscure value judgments. It would be unreasonable to expect that of a mere reich, a business, when no one in even the most prestigious families practiced it. They demand from others what they can't do themselves……. A greater self-deception would be rare.

"What. What. is. this. guy?"

At least to be able to talk back to yourself, you had to qualify it. He couldn't allow someone he didn't approve of to talk back to him.

"Guess who!"

In an instant, the threat in his voice was picked up by the two rude gatekeepers. Without fear, the young man tapped his finger against the window in front of him.

"What are you going to do with this toy?"

In an instant, their hands tingled and burned, and they lost their grip on the spear.

"Aaaahhhh!"

Dang!

Both spears fell to the ground at the same time.

"These guys are out of shape!"

The only time a man loses his grip on his weapon is when he dies. He was about to admonish him, but the moment he saw the grip of his two subordinates, his words were shoved back down his throat.

It was charred as if it had been on fire, and blood was dripping from its torn hand. With two simple motions, he spun the spear at high speed, inflicting lacerations and burns.

"More… more… more… more… more……."

Even the slow-witted Heo Sang-doo realized something.

Something was going terribly wrong.

"Hey, where do you think you are, doing this… are you in the city… are you… counting?"

A mild (?) threat was all it took to go from half-hearted to respectful.

"Hustling? Visiting as a guest, or threatening a guest with a spear, which one are you talking about?"

The intangible flesh that flickered like black flames was too much for the three unskilled men to bear. Cold sweat trickled down their bodies like a waterfall as they stiffened like frogs in front of a snake. Especially for He, who had always played the role of a snake, the psychological impact of being forced to play the role of a frog was great.

These people needed to be kicked in the ass. They would never look down on people again. This was the kind of race that would immediately snap at any human being who looked weaker than them, and would try to take them down, eat them, and put them on their backs. It was good for him and good for the well-being and welfare of society to teach him a lesson before he became the last of his kind.

She vowed to engrave kindness and service so deeply in her heart that she would never forget them again. The surest way to do this was to carve them into her bones. She had tried many methods, but nothing as effective as this remained an unexplored area of human wisdom.

Boom!

As she curled the right corner of her lips beneath her bouncy bangs, her smile drew a smooth curve and spread like red paint.

Mr… Profit…….

Was there some kind of attraction to his smile? The mouths of the two gatekeepers, He Xiangdu and He Xiangdu, also moved as if they were being manipulated. It was a very awkward and awkward scene.

"Heh."

The three of them laughed out loud. Bi Ryuyeon laughed too.

Ahhhhhh!

Bi Ryuyeon clenched her fist and literally carved the eight characters of politeness and kindness deep into the bones of the three of them.

Toosh! Toosh! Toosh! Toosh! Toosh!

Three black sheep were sacrificed as usual today, leaving behind their miserable terminals, under the auspices of the Three Strikes Law.

The name of the offering on the altar was "blood sacrifice.

By the time Zhang heard the commotion outside the door, the situation was already over. The two gatekeepers and one senior marker, who had been judged to be lacking in hospitality, were rolling around on the floor. Apparently, the trick was to beat them enough to knock them out, but not enough to make them pass out. Jang Woo-kyung pressed his thumb and forefinger to his temple, momentarily annoyed by the mess his men had made, but he quickly recovered his composure and addressed the offender with a commanding gesture.

"You've come, Non-Confucius. I've been waiting for you. Apparently your servants don't recognize Confucius and are out of line."

Senior Pyo-doo Heo Sang-doo and two gatekeepers whose names I can't quite remember, said Jang Woo-kyung.

"No, you know, sometimes you make mistakes like that in life. It's no big deal, I'm not…tongue. I don't care."

Bi Ryuyeon replied with a wide smile.

"Well, okay, that's not a big deal."

Zhang Wuqing swallowed hard and replied. You say it's no big deal, but what are you talking about, barely maintaining a human form on the dirt over there? That's the result of not caring! A cold sweat broke out on my furrowed brow. I wanted to scream that it was a lie, but what was actually more frightening was that there was a grain of truth to it.

I was too afraid to ask, "Then what happens if I care?" It was not a wise course of action for a soldier to take.

"The important thing is not to make the same mistake again, because you know what they say about the boss of sick leave - it's common."

Her smile was so bright and clear and peaceful.

"Well, yeah, it's important not to do the same thing twice."

Given the current situation, it seemed likely that if he was a general, there would be no soldiers left under him. There was a lot of risk of common death.

"Huh huh, but why is it so hot when it's still windy, this is a bitch."

Wiping the sweat from his face, Zhang Wuqing said in a troubled tone. Her body's physiology was going against the grain of the season.

"Whenever you're dealing with dangerous goods, you should always be as careful as if you were walking on ice. Especially when you're dealing with him, it's not ice! Think of it as walking on water! Remember, brother, your life is not on loan. Always keep that in mind, always keep that in mind, always keep that in mind!"

At the time, I didn't understand why my brother was so intimidating, but now I feel like I can see where he's coming from.

I had heard such a stark warning from my brother, and I blame myself for not paying attention to it.

-Good thing the sign is still hanging!

That's what my brother would have said.

"Uh-huh! Well, follow me then."

Bi Ryuyeon was led from building to building by Zhang Wuqing. The sound of cheers from the performance hall rang in his ears, and he could see several padded carts lined up side by side in the center of a large courtyard. There were at least a dozen, if not more. Here and there, laborers bustled about with loads on their shoulders; their job was to load the empty, lonely carts generously. Just enough to keep the cart from breaking, and just enough to keep the horses going. No greed was allowed.

If you put too much weight on them, the horses will tire early. Sometimes oxen were used, but the Zhongyang Post Office used pack horses. And if you load too little, you have to use extra carts. More carts means more drivers and more people to guard them, which is a recipe for waste. Naturally, the journey is also delayed, so it is a loss in many ways. It's a loss this way and a loss that way. Therefore, it was better to prevent such unsavory things early on.

As they walked by, people at work stopped to say hello to them. Of course, it wasn't because of her personality. The people who stopped to greet her were the ones who were politely escorting her. It was clear that their greetings were not directed at her.

"This is the place, Non-Confucius. He is waiting in there."

He was shown to a room in the deepest part of the manor. And the person who had served him with the greatest politeness, courtesy, and sincerity up to this point was Zhang Wu-kyung, the bungeukju of the Namchang branch, the first branch of the Zhongyang branch and the largest after the main branch. Therefore, for such a person to use honorifics meant that the person in there was at least higher than the bungeukju of Namchang.

"Well, I'll leave you two to talk."

When we parted ways, as we did when we met, he said goodbye with a polite bow and disappeared. He was avoiding me. In fact, I don't know if he didn't want to be involved anymore and was just taking his chances.

"Great job!"

Bi Ryuyeon responded with a small nod.

Drrrrr!

Bi Ryuyeon opened the door without hesitation.

"You're here earlier than I thought, I thought it would be another two or three days."

At Bi Ryuyeon's first words, the scruffy-looking man who had been waiting just inside the door gave a small nod.

"Three horses are dead."

The fact that three of his horses had died when he could have changed horses at the stables along the way speaks volumes about the harshness and ruthlessness of this man's journey. His hollow eyes, haggard features, sunken cheekbones, erosion, and lack of rest must have made him run this far.

"She's overworked, and it's going to cost me a fortune to compensate her, and I'm sure it's going to cost me a fortune to compensate her… tsk tsk."

As if it were a pity, Bi Ryuyeon clicked her tongue. Even though it was an animal that couldn't speak, it was used and thrown away as it pleased……. It was clear that humans were still a creature that needed to evolve a lot more. However, even though it was an honest opinion, it wasn't something she could say with confidence, not even thinking about cats and mice.

And since it wasn't his own money, it didn't seem very sincere. At least that's how it felt to this man.

"I was told that the future of my country was at stake."

The letter that had been sent by express had clearly said so, and he wanted to speak to her face-to-face. Since Bi Ryuyeon was unable to move, he had to sacrifice three animals to come to her.

"It's a small price to pay for the future of my country."

If your foundation is at stake, and the future of your company is more important than your life, you are not taking ownership.

All three were first-class horses, and the reward would not be cheap, but the future of the country was more important than the three horses.

Surprisingly, the man was using a series of honorifics for Bi Ryuyeon, who is much younger than him. The person who listened to the honorifics of Namchang Bun Guo, Zhang Wuqing, was honoring Bi Ryuyeon again. As the de facto head of the Zhongyang Bureau, there was only one other person who would call Zhang Wuqing 'he'. It was Zhang Wuyang, the rising sun, the new giant of the current stronghold, formerly known as the Eighteen Swords, and now more famously known as the Representative Girl.

"Yes? What did you say?"

She felt a little bad about being so blunt about her own hearing situation, so she thought about trying to be kind again, even though she always told herself that her weak (?) and gentle (?) heart was the problem. However, repeating herself would not only be a pain in the ass for her, but also for the two pairs of ears that were keeping the other person's performance intact. She couldn't be so rude.

"I don't want to say it twice. If I say it again now, it would be disrespectful of your excellent hearing. I don't want to commit such a rudeness. I've given you a chance, and hearing it again as if you didn't hear it isn't going to change your mind. The opportunity to fulfill your dreams is yours to take or not to take, and if you choose to refuse, I cannot help you. Alas, I cannot help you if you choose to give up the chance to leap, nay, soar, above the Middle Kingdom to the First Kingdom of the Heavens because of a momentary internal conflict over money."

Shaking his head in disbelief, he stood up, and as he turned around to leave the room, a pair of hands grabbed his crotch.

"Now, wait a minute, Non-Confucius!"

I looked down and saw the face of Zhang Wuyang, the owner of the Zhongyang Repository, crying and eating mustard, his facial muscles twitching in panic as he forgot to break a sweat.

Ouch.

Bi Ryuyeon laughed.

Ouch.

Zhang Wuyang laughed along with her, like a puppet being controlled by an invisible thread of strands hanging from her body as if it were contagious. But it wasn't as natural as Bi Ryuyeon's. It was a foolish laugh, but Bi Ryuyeon, who claimed to be a kind and gentle person, was a sovereign, so she didn't say things like, "You're on the same level as the head of the family. For a man who is a master of sarcasm and sarcasm, that was very unusual.

"Now, Non-Confucius, I've done everything wrong. Why don't you go back to your seat, and we can talk calmly again after you're seated."

Without brushing Zhang Wuyang's hand away, Bi Ryuyeon sat back down.

"I hope there will be no such wastage of time in the future, don't you think, Lord Zhang? Not only for those in business, but for all of us humans in our finite lives, isn't time gold?"

"Of course. You have my word that it won't happen again."

Zhang Wuyang nodded vigorously.

"Sure."

Bi Ryuyeon's trademark intangible gaze locked onto Zhang Wuyang's face. It was her way of asking him to prove that he remembered. Zhang Wuyang had to let out a deep sigh inwardly.

"I believe that there is a great ambition in your heart, waiting for its moment to rise, and this is perhaps that moment, the kind of opportunity that, once it passes, will never return as it has in the past. Will you give it up for the sake of a small gain?"

Obviously, Bi Ryuyeon's words had ignited Zhang Wuyang's dreams. He said with a trembling expression.

"Surely you wanted a share of the profits from that, a third of the total income of your country?"

"That's right. That's great."

"What? What do you mean, glad?"

"I was really worried about what would happen if something really happened to Zhang Guozhu's hearing."

With a smile on her face, Bi Ryuyeon replied.

Clearly, there's nothing wrong with your hearing, but is it your head or your partner's mind?

"I do not bluff in matters of money, and I have never forgiven myself for bluffing in monetary transactions, where credit is supposed to be life."

It's the kind of thing that seems very polite, but when you flip it around, can be the scariest threat.

"Are you telling me to be careful too?

If you've been in business long enough, you'll realize that the only thing that slows you down is your eyes.

"Fuck your personality for once.

Zhang Wuyang is the kind of person who can't say it out loud, but says it anyway.

'Who knows what I was thinking, it's not like I've mastered the art of mind reading…….'

"You thought you were getting a personality makeover, didn't you?"

Bi Ryuyeon smiled brightly and threw in a casual comment, which was enough to make him fall in love.

"Cuckoo! Cuckoo! Kulkulkulk!"

I was so surprised that I couldn't stop coughing. Even if I denied it, my whole body was admitting it.

"Hmmm, based on your reaction, that's definitely the case, isn't it?"

A smile still tugged at the corners of his mouth. It was like that of a Zen monk who had mastered immobility. But Zhang Wuyang was more afraid of that. He knew what this man was like. It had only been a few brief encounters, but the intensity of the shock he'd received had been enough to shave years off his life, and how could he forget it. The memories were burned into his mind like a fire stamp. Moreover, every now and then, he would have a dream in his sleep, and he would always find himself standing over the ruins of his family home. The dreams always ended the same way.

There is no such thing as oblivion when things are like this. There are also memories that cannot be captured by the medicine of time.

"Non-Confucius, are you sure you know exactly what your plan actually means?"

"Sure. Do you think I would have walked in here without knowing that?"

In a slightly angry tone, Bi Ryuyeon said.

"What do you make of me, Lord Zhang? Do I seem to you to be some kind of lunatic who has no vision, and who rambles on about vain fantasies? If so, I am sorry to disappoint you."

"No… that's not……."

Zhang Wuyang desperately stopped himself from nodding unconsciously, and then quickly threw up his hands in embarrassment. Zhang Wuyang was constantly losing control of the situation.

"It means to dethrone Zhong Yuan Peking from the position of first man."

She knew more than he expected. How could she speak so confidently knowing that?

"How?

Without some kind of power, she couldn't even make a plan, and she was going to do it. It wasn't just a matter of being a strong martial artist.

This strained my cervical spine and neck muscles. My neck was stiff as if I'd been stuck with an iron core, and I knew I'd have to visit a doctor tomorrow.

But I still couldn't believe it. I felt like I would be labeled a lunatic if I jumped to conclusions.

But given his organized and tight-knit nature, I'm sure he's thought about sharing the profits, so he's not walking away empty-handed. Maybe.

"Are you saying that Confucius has a secret formula that can elevate our Zhongyang marker to the top of the heavens? If so, I'd like to hear it."

It couldn't hurt to try it out. He could make a judgment later. He didn't have the power to drive her away anyway.

"Sure. It's a win-win strategy."

She began to tell us what she had been planning.

"That, that's impossible!"

Zhang Wuyang's jaw dropped when he heard the plan. Of course, if that happened, the Zhongyang Clan would be able to gradually encroach on the territory of the Zhongyuan Clan little by little. Of course, this was assuming everything went according to plan, but it was possible. However, it was reasonable to assume that there were no miracles in this world where things would go according to plan.

"Oh no, not again. Why is it so easy for humans to determine their own limits? How do you know without trying? How can you be so confident that you know yourself, the possibilities within your heart, and your future perfectly?"

Zhang Wuyang shook his head and replied.

"Nothing."

His life was too busy to reflect on himself, so his mind was focused on what was happening around him. Self-exploration was none of his business.

"And yet you're already surrendering from the heart? Heaven forbid you should do that, and if you don't trust yourself, who will trust you?"

There are too many people in this world who don't know how to properly respect themselves. They put themselves down, they demean themselves, they undermine their character. Is there some unknown pleasure to be had from being put down? Is there some perverse pleasure to be had from being put down? If there is, it's not here.

It's the weakness of wanting to settle into the mold of our minds rather than break through our limitations that creates a giant wall that prevents us from taking a step forward.

Even if you look at the heavens and complain about why you can't develop, you can't help but feel sorry for the innocent heavens. Not even a heavenly god has the power to take away your freedom if you don't want it. The right to create one's own future, the right to set one's own limits, is entirely in the hands of humans.

The teaching that all things are created by the action of the mind alone is not false.

"Whether the well is deep or not, whether you can see the surface or not, if you want to draw water, you have to throw a durevak into it to draw water."

"That's right."

"Are you going to drink the water without throwing in the tureen, and expect someone else to do it for you, now?"

Ryuyeon pushed Zhang Wuyou with such force that Zhang Wuyou was overwhelmed. Bi Ryuyeon spoke again.

"Of course, if the rope is short, you won't be able to get the water, so do you know what the rope is made of?"

"I'm embarrassed to say, I don't know."

Zhang Wuyang replied.

"That's what faith is, faith! Firm belief in yourself, absolute certainty, and the conviction that you must cross the water! You don't know how deep it is, so you have to throw it out there and wait. You have to wait with your whole heart, with your whole mind, with your whole being, with your whole effort, with your whole being. The difference between those who can wait and those who can't is that those who have faith and patience get to drink the water, and those who don't get to breathe the air in the empty scroll. That's what one of the three stages of change in the Chinese zodiac represents: the village changes, the people change, but the well is always there."

"……."

"Now, what are you going to do? Are you thirsty? If so, throw the stave in. You can't have someone else fulfill your dreams for you, so either throw the stave in desperation and draw water, or die of thirst, the choice is yours, and it's yours alone."

"Whoa."

Zhang Wuyang sighed inwardly.

A bad kite is a kite. Even though he'd been tangled up with Bi Ryuyeon a few times, the entire Zhongyang Bureau had grown rapidly. It was now incomparably larger than it had been three years ago. When did the change begin?

This was after a man named Da Nosobu had invaded his kingdom with a group of disciples.

How he got here remains a mystery, but he realized the time had come to gamble with his life.

If he lost his money here, there was no turning back. Then a strange excitement washed over him. He had always thought that a man who was given the chance to wager his entire life on a game of chance was a man chosen by God.

"Yeah, I'm taking a chance, I'm gambling with my life, it's all or nothing!

This guy, Bi Ryuyeon, is not an easy guy, so he must have something up his sleeve. This time, the stakes were too high to just take her word for it. But the temptation was even greater.

I finally made up my mind. A third of the profit was a high price to pay, but it was worth it to be the best. He pressed his hand against the pain in his stomach, even though it actually made him sick to his stomach.

"Very well. If things come to pass as Confucius predicted, I'll join hands with you, and we'll be good to go, right?"

Finally, Zhang Wuyang chose an unknown fate.

"Sure, we're already set."

Bi replied confidently.