Book 21 Chapter 7

Honoring contracts is a worker's life

-Strange contracts

"Well, is that okay?"

From beyond the bushes, Nangong Jin asked the person next to him, who was clearly not well, in a somber voice: "I don't think so.

"You should be fine now."

An earth-shattering sigh followed. Namgungjin sighed inwardly as well.

Seocheon's work was done in secret, so no one except Nabekcheon and Namgungjin knew who killed Namgunghyun. When word spreads that the Martial King's brother is Seocheon, Kang Ho is caught in a bloodbath.

Sichuan Governor Nam Gung-hyun is killed by unidentified assailants, and Vice Governor Nile Chen goes missing.

When the family received this brief news, they hoped that Namgung-jin would return to Nan Gungse with his brother's coffin. He was now the next head of the Nan Gungse family. But knowing what was going on, he flatly refused and remained in Sichuan. He had vowed to himself that he would not drink the kool-aid in front of his brother. "I will protect Nie Tian with my life.

His place, then, was not beside his brother's chilled corpse, but where the enemy would surely come one day, where he had vowed to lay down his life: beside Nabaxian. And so, as he and Nabaxian were dismissing some visitors who had come for Namgung-hyeon's autograph, they encountered Yunbi, who was heading for the palace.

Nangong Zhen knew enough about Na Yerin's affairs to understand why Nai Bai Tian hadn't restrained her. There was a good chance he wouldn't see it, but just in case, he hoped that the beautiful dance of courtesy would bring some solace to his broken heart. But just in case, the guard Nam Gung-jin had given special instructions to came rushing back with outrageous news.

We've heard that they barely made it, but the first thing he saw when he arrived was a distraught Nai Bai Chen and Na Yerin's fever. It was Na Yerin's silent frenzy in front of Yan Bi, who was in distress. Even without the words of the guards, Nai Bai Tian and Namgung Jin found it difficult to move forward.

"Yes, now you're crying, now you're crying, now you're crying."

Bai Xiaochun's eyes narrowed as he spoke words that would be misunderstood by anyone who heard them. Tears shed by those who have suffered terrible things often contain all sorts of terrible things. The things they hold tightly inside will one day oxidize into deadly poison, consuming their owners.

The little girl had stopped shedding tears. She had probably torn her own heart out and stuffed all sorts of wounds into it. As a result, the girl who had once shone with a beauty that anyone would covet was now a completely different person. The sight of her choking and trembling and fretting made even Namgungjin's heart ache. He wondered what her father's heart must be like.

"…Behind you, please. You'll have to bring him to my office later."

Bai Chen left with those words and quietly walked away. Of course, 'that kid' was referring to Yan Bi. Nam Gung Jin decided to stay and observe the situation and sat down.

After a while, when the sobbing had subsided somewhat, Yunbi soaked a handkerchief in water and handed it to him.

"Put it on your face, it'll feel cool."

Lin wiped her face and took the water from Yeonbi and drank it. Cool water. A breeze blew in from somewhere, cool as water.

"I've never seen a girl cry like Lin before, haha, I was hoping she'd have the rare experience of drowning in tears, but hey, at least she didn't die, right?"

A smirking tone. Rin smiled weakly. It had been a while since she'd laughed, but it was good. She leaned back against a tree, letting her Yeonbi carry her, and caught her breath. She could barely lift a finger now. Her whole body melted with a sigh. Still, it was somehow relaxing.

"It almost became an ugly… monster."

"Yes… yes?"

Yunbi was about to respond to the casual remark when she was suddenly surprised: what kind of nonsense is this? Looking at the girl named Rin, she seemed to be surprised. Or is she surprised by the words that came out of her mouth?

"Oh, you mean the reason you jumped?"

Lin looked thoughtful for a moment, then nodded.

"Okay, I'll admit that's a bit of a creep, but that's not a monster. You don't think it's got a giant mouth on its back and eats chickens at night?"

Lin was momentarily unable to respond to Yanbi's bizarre fantasies. But a huge question soon made her speak up.

"Guilty as charged?"

My Yeonbi was dismal. My mind was a jumble of thoughts.

"Ugh, I cried for a long time after I said the wrong thing the other day. I'd rather get a few slaps from my master… No, that's not right, let's not make that ominous comparison!

I quickly shook off the thought of Yeonbi and decided to rephrase it more euphemistically.

'He's so skinny, his eyes are glassy, and his complexion is so pale, he looks like an old man who's been hiding in the corner of his room…….'

"Oops!

Yunbi broke out in a cold sweat. As he repeatedly protested and pointed out that he wanted to live with dignity in the face of the truth and not give in to his master's domination, he had lost control of his mouth.

I hadn't washed my face or eaten in days, and my jewel-like eyes had turned dull. And a cut on his lip hadn't healed.

"Sneaky, sneaky, sneaky……."

Yerin smiled lightly as she muttered to herself. It was a hundred times better to be called a creep than to be called a creep by a slimy beast that coveted her. Yan Bi seized the opportunity and quickly changed the subject.

"But why did Lean feel like he was going to be a monster?"

"I can… see it… no, it flows into me, the sticky, mushy minds of the chicaneers. And then… I realize I'm like that……."

"……."

Yunbi didn't say a skeptical, "Hah, are you sure? Normally, I would have laughed it off or assumed she was a liar, but she thought about it before blindly disbelieving. There was nothing in her facial expressions or circumstances that suggested she was lying. Maybe he really does have such a mysterious ability. I suddenly became curious about Yeonbi.

"What about me, am I a seeker?"

As she stared into the blurry, glassy eyes of the watery Yunbi, Rin realized that something inside of her had shattered, something had closed.

"Ah! Now… I don't know, nothing is flowing in."

It was as if one of my senses was missing. I wondered if this was why I felt so comfortable being with the girl named Yunbi.

"Hmmm, too bad I don't know what it is, that's an interesting ability."

"It's not. It's a monster, the human mind."

Tap.

Yunbi lightly placed a honey balm on Lin's forehead.

"That's too much. I'm a person, too. Does that make me a monster?"

"That's……."

Rin blurted out, and Yunbi laughed softly.

"I'm sure there were a lot of bad people around Lean, but what about parents, or people who like you, or pretty babies? That must feel really good. Oh, and you don't get fooled by bad people, which is a handy ability in many ways."

"But when the gooey stuff starts flowing in……."

"Cleaning, that's what you do when you have trash in your house, you sweep it out, right? So you get the slimy people out of the way, and you fill it with fresh people."

Rin's eyes widened. She had never thought of it that way before.

"Uh, how do you do that, the cleaning?"

"Hmmm, if she's strong, we can kick her ass, if she's rich, we can pay someone to clean it up for us, if she's good with words, we can use mental attacks… What is she good at?"

"Good at what?"

It never occurred to me. It's something I hadn't thought about until now.

"Yeah. There's got to be something, and if we find it and hone it, it'll give us power, and if we have power, we'll have a way to use it."

Lin blushed, she couldn't explain exactly why, but she felt so ashamed of herself.

"Well, that's something you can take your time with, and I think it's time to get back to your parents, and I think there's someone over there who just picked you up."

Before she could finish her sentence, Namgungjin had risen from his seat and stepped over the bush. As he approached, trampling the grass, Lin unconsciously reached out and grabbed the hem of Yanbi's robe.

"Huh? You don't know him?"

"No, I'm going to……."

Lin shook her head and nervously mumbled something unintelligible. Yun Bi laughed softly and said.

"Rin, when you're dealing with people, you need to be clear so they know what you want."

The tone was not rebuking, but the intent was clear.

"Come with me, Yeonbi."

Lin mustered up the courage to speak. It was the first time she had ever said someone's name. It was the first time she'd ever had a real conversation with another person, and the first time she'd ever felt ashamed of herself. Most of all, it was the first time she had ever selflessly supported someone who had jumped from the depths of abject despair.

If the dragon's eye were open, he could feel a cool, warm glow coming from the girl named Yanbi. For now, it seemed like she couldn't let go of this hem. She hadn't realized it, but the pieces of her mind that had been shattered by the darkness were just beginning to see the light.

"Come with me, Miss Lin's father would like to see you."

Namgung Jin politely requested, even using respectful language. As he watched the situation and listened to their conversation, he couldn't treat her lightly. She might only be a young dancer on the surface, but she was already the most important person in Na Yerin's life, the most important person in Nai Bai Tian's life.

"Well, that's a little awkward, because if I don't hurry up and get to work, I'll be late. So, Rin, have a good night."

Yunbi smiled and bowed her head slightly. It was clear that she meant to leave, but Lin tightened her grip on the hem of her dress. Seeing the pale expression on Ye Lin's face, Namgungjin quickly added, "I'm sorry.

"We'll leave that for another time, but first, Miss Lin's father wants to talk to you about……."

For a moment, Yunfei's eyes turned cold.

"No, thank you, there's no reason to meet with him in the first place, and honoring contracts is the lifeblood of a worker, so I'm sure you'll understand if you're not one to take contracts or promises lightly."

Namgungjin was left speechless by Yun Bi's cold response. Even though he had Meng Zhu's people, forcing someone who refused would only make things worse. Moreover, the other party was a benefactor of the Forbidden Jade Leaf.

"Well, then… me too, no, contract with me, Yeonbi."

"What?"

At her out-of-the-blue remark, not only Yeonsu, but also Namgungjin, looked back at her with a dumbfounded expression on his face.

"So, can I see it again?"

The sight of Rin clutching at the hem of her dress in desperation dumbfounded him for a moment.

"Oh, no?"

When there was no answer, Lin asked again. Namgungjin spoke up from the side, looking perplexed.

"Well, miss, that's usually a promise rather than a contract……."

"No, but what will Lean give me if I sign a contract?"

Yeonbi asked with a serious face.

"Well, what do I have to give you?"

Lin was puzzled. Even though she had spoken up in the heat of the moment, she still didn't know what a 'contract' was. Since she had grown up as a Forbidden Jade Leaf and never left Nie Bai Tian's arms, she had never been exposed to worldly concepts like money and contracts.

"Foot, foohoot!"

Yun Bi chuckled, and Namgung Jin turned his attention to the distant mountains for a moment to stifle his laughter and sigh.

"Okay. In the future, if Lin hangs a red string or towel on the window, I'll come over in two days at the latest, because I have a tricky situation and getting out of it won't be easy. In return, Lin will do me three favors. I'll think about the details and tell you later. What do you think?"

Namgung Jin was nervous as the words poured out of his mouth. Nabaxian's true identity hadn't been revealed in the Heavenly Pavilion for security reasons, so none of the staff besides the owner knew who he was. Apparently, Yan Bi didn't know Ye Lin's identity either, and even though the promise was more like a child's prank than a contract, he felt a little uneasy. But before he could protest, Ye Lin opened her mouth.

"Is that it, contract?"

"Yes, we have a deal!"

Yunbi replied with a broad smile.