There’s something I’d like to ask. (4)
“So, things like this shouldn’t be said as a joke…”
“I mean it.”
“You can’t be serious, Alliance Leader!”
Jongli Gok looked about ready to breathe fire.
“Is there anyone who doesn’t know Cheonumaeng was formed around Hwasan! I’m asking whether there’s anyone who doesn’t know that the sects belonging to Cheonumaeng have close ties to Hwasan.”
The center of Cheonumaeng was Hwasan. No one in the world could deny that fact.
There was no need to exaggerate. If Hwasan wished for it, it could mold everything, from the Alliance’s direction to its detailed rules, as if kneading dough. At the previous meeting, Jongli Gok had already confirmed that fact.
“And you want me? Me, the Sect Leader of Jongnam, who once stood as Hwasan’s enemy? You don’t truly think that makes sense right now, do you?”
“Heh-heh.”
“No, please don’t just laugh it off…”
Hyun Jong shrugged lightly, as though it were of no consequence, and said.
“As you said, Cheonumaeng was formed around Hwasan. It began with that goby* brat, and since he is the core of Hwasan, it’s an undeniable fact. That’s why it’s a problem.”
“……What?”
Startled, Jongli Gok looked at Hyun Jong.
“What do you mean by that…”
“I wasn’t the one who founded Cheonumaeng. However, I know well what the Alliance is. It is a place founded so that sects that have formed ties of friendship can help one another.”
On the surface, yes.
But, to be precise, a coalition centered around Hwasan, banded together to guard against enemies not foreign yet external to them, like Gupailbang and Sapaeryeon. That was the true nature of Cheonumaeng.
At least, that was how Jongli Gok saw it.
“And what part of that is a problem?”
“That is the problem. In a place where such sects have gathered, why would a leader or a central figure be necessary?”
“…..What?”
“If such a thing is needed between friends, then they are not truly friends. Setting other matters aside, only when they can look at each other with goodwill are they truly friends, don’t you think?”
If this were the old Jongli Gok, he would, of course, have already raised his voice here, saying, ‘What kind of delusional madman’s nonsense is that. Ideals are ideals and reality is reality. Planning to ruin a well-running alliance by getting lost in that sort of idealism.’
No, no. Rather than shouting, he would have mocked Hyun Jong for thinking this way – saying he was nothing more than a petty man who doesn’t even know how to look after his own interests.
But it was different now. Jongli Gok knew all too well that, even if Hyun Jong looked foolish, he was not truly a fool. Because of that, Hyun Jong’s words now sounded a little different.
“…Are you saying that a system excessively centered around Hwasan could become a problem?”
Instead of answering immediately, Hyun Jong lifted his teacup and quietly savored the aroma. Then fixed his gaze on Jongli Gok.
After a moment, Hyun Jong’s expression shifted slightly and he nodded.
“It could be so.”
“…..Huh?”
“Why didn’t I think of that?”
“What?”
“Hmm. Then shall we go with that?”
“No, Alliance Leader?”
Jongli Gok stared blankly at Hyun Jong, dumbfounded. Hyun Jong let out a soft chuckle.
“To tell the truth, every bone in this body aches these days.”
He even patted his own shoulder in an exaggerated manner and let out a groan.
“I’ve long wanted to step down, but the person I had in mind… well, he was in such a hurry that he departed far too soon…”
He must have been referring to Tang Gunak.
“So now I have to find someone else to hand it over to… and another person suited to the seat says he’s going off to Gangnam.”
That was clearly a reference to Pung Yeong Shin Gae.
“Then among those who remain… shouldn’t we choose someone suitable?”
Hyun Jong let out a light sigh.
“But everyone is busy just keeping their own sects in order. We can’t have Hwasan take the Alliance Leader’s position again. That leaves only one person.”
“Are you saying that is me?”
“Who else would it be?”
Jongli Gok couldn’t hold back the sigh that burst from his chest. At first glance it sounded plausible, but when he thought about it, no. That couldn’t be.
“Sect Leader. I am Jongli Gok.”
“…”
“I am well aware of the favor that Jongnam and I have received from you, Sect Leader. That is why I am striving, in whatever way I can, to repay it and stand upright.”
“I know.”
“But I am also Jongli Gok.”
Jongli Gok’s eyes darkened for a moment.
“People do not change so easily. The way I’m conducting myself now may, in truth, be because improving relations with Hwasan is advantageous to Jongnam. If the situation changes, I might again do something that harms Hwasan.”
Jongli Gok knew himself too well.
Some are moved by others and, taking that as a turning point, completely overturn their values. But Jongli Gok, by nature, was a man for whom that was impossible.
Had he been a merchant and not a warrior, he might have left a greater mark upon the world – that was how Jongli Gok thought of himself. But what would happen if such a man became the head of such a vast alliance?
“I thank you for the trust you place in me, but I am not someone worthy to receive such regard. Because there is still a lingering unease left within me, I am saying at least this much.”
Jongli Gok could feel it.
The thing that still stirred within him.
The void in the Central Plains. A world where the power and force that once filled everything had collapsed, leaving empty spaces. Not for a single moment had he failed to consider how he must move within it to bring the greatest profit to Jongnam.
Therefore, Jongli Gok must not ascend to the seat of a leader. Now is the time to decline that seat and withdraw.
Thus…
Tak.
Lost in thought, Jongli Gok looked down as Hyun Jong set before him a teacup filled to the brim with warm tea.
“Alliance Leader?”
“Do so.”
“…What?”
“You may do as you wish.”
Bewilderment rose in Jongli Gok’s eyes.
“What do you mean by that?”
Hyun Jong smiled faintly.
“Sect Leader. I am a lacking man.”
“…”
“I stood by and watched as Hwasan collapsed, and yet I could do nothing. Had Sect Leader Jongli been in my place, the sect would not have come to the brink of annihilation.”
“That is merely the past, is it not? The Alliance Leader of today is…”
“Do people change so easily?”
Jongli Gok fell silent. It was he who had just said that people do not change easily.
Hyun Jong smiled faintly.
“But even for such a lacking man… No, precisely because I am lacking, there is one thing I can do well. It is to learn.”
“What is it, and from whom did you learn?”
“Beop Jong.”
The Abbot of Shaolin. At the mention of his name, Jongli Gok flinched.
“Beop… Jong?”
“Beop Jong is an outstanding man. More than anyone else here.”
Jongli Gok could not deny this.
Though he is now the head of a Shaolin that has fallen and collapsed, how great had he been in the past? Beop Jong was the one who, with but a single hand, held and swayed the mighty sects of Gupailbang.
Truth be told, Jongli Gok still found it difficult to accept a world where Shaolin had fallen so low.
“Because even such an outstanding man failed to accomplish one thing, he faced a disastrous end.”
“What…. was it that he failed to do?”
“To let go.”
Jongli Gok’s gaze wavered faintly.
“To keep hold of that seat called the Northern Star of Gangho – a hollow title – Beop Jong tried to bend the world to his will. Because of it, Shaolin suffered perhaps an unprecedented disgrace.”
Jongli Gok stared blankly at Hyun Jong.
“Even a man so exceptional could not move the world as he wished. And could I do such a thing? Of course not. Therefore, I am merely choosing a simpler path.”
“Is that… to let it go?”
Hyun Jong slowly nodded.
“Become the Alliance Leader. And lead the Alliance as you see fit. Hwasan, too, as a member of the alliance, will do its utmost to assist the Sect Leader.”
Jongli Gok’s gaze grew rigid. That cold, cutting gaze seemed as though it would pierce through Hyun Jong.
“Is it because, that way, Hwasan will not become the next target?”
Jongli Gok’s question brought no change to Hyun Jong’s expression. However, a staunch silence fell between them for a moment.
“Well.”
Hyun Jong let out a dry chuckle.
“It would be more correct to say… so that the grievances hidden beneath the name of friendship may be allowed to flow out.”
“Before it festers and bursts from within, you mean?”
Hyun Jong silently nodded.
At last, a glimmer of admiration rose on Jongli Gok’s face. This man clearly understands. What kind of beings humans are. And that the feeling called gratitude always fades faster than one expects.
Where the gratitude towards Hwasan disappears, what would remain would only be discomfort at seeing Hwasan hold the world within its grasp.
“You mean, because you do not wish to shoulder the burden, you will not shoulder the authority either?”
“No.”
Hyun Jong shook his head firmly.
“I mean only that I will not do what I cannot bear.”
“…”
“Do what is necessary. But do not do what is unnecessary. Cast off what is excessive, fill in what is lacking. Thus, like flowing water, find the place where you ought to be.”
Hyun Jong’s gaze grew tranquil.
“That is the path of a Taoist.”
Jongli Gok was silent.
It was excessive. Within Cheonumaeng as it stood now, the presence of Hwasan was far too overwhelming. It has established a standing that cannot even be compared to what Shaolin once held among the great sects. This must, by rights, be deemed overflowing.
Therefore…
“…..To let go.”
How easy and simple an answer is that?
‘But how many in this world could act according to that answer?’
Who would cast aside wealth for being excessive, relinquish desire for being too great, or break their own ambitions for being too heavy?
Right now, Hyun Jong has presented the most perfect answer, both as a Taoist and as a Sect Leader. An answer that suited even Jongli Gok’s taste, an answer that perhaps only Jongli Gok could truly understand.
It is worthy of respect. Worthy of praise. But Jongli Gok was not such a man.
“Can you truly live without regret? I will covet and make use of it. I will wield it. For that is the sort of man I am by nature.”
Jongli Gok clenched his fist tight.
“If this choice of yours should bring harm to Hwasan in the end, will you still not regret it?”
Instead of answering immediately, Hyun Jong quietly drank his tea. Then, out of the blue, he asked.
“Isn’t the tea’s fragrance truly fine?”
“…”
“I have always known I was a lacking man. But others, to the very end, would not allow me to set down this seat.”
“So it is. That is because you, Alliance Leader, are the most…”
“But was it truly so?”
“What?”
Jongli Gok looked at Hyun Jong with puzzlement. What did he mean, ‘was it truly so’?
“If I had truly resolved myself to relinquish this seat, could they really have stopped me?”
“…”
“They could not. In the end, I simply could not cast off the greed lurking in a corner of my heart. Throughout this war, I have confirmed just how great a harm that greed has been to Hwasan.”
“Alliance Leader.”
“I told myself: there are still things I alone can do. There are still burdens I carry that might serve everyone better. There are still duties I must not abandon.”
Hyun Jong shook his head.
“All of that is nothing but the greed of one who cannot accept his own inadequacy and cannot let go.”
“…”
“As soon as I return to Shaanxi, I intend to hand everything over to the new generation and withdraw to the back room. Regret? Well. The wish not to regret is also greed. For now, simply, this is right. That feeling is all there is.”
In the end, Jongli Gok let out a laugh, as if it were absurd.
Not because Hyun Jong’s words were preposterous. It was because the man before him truly felt like a sage who had transcended everything. A living immortal – could there be a more impossible being?
Hyun Jong quietly continued.
“Of course, Sect Leader, you may do as you wish. Greed, too, is a part of a human being. Would that not be natural?”
“…Yet just now you said one must let go.”
At those words, Hyun Jong smirked. It was, quite literally, a smirk.
“That is why the Tao is difficult. Because it differs from moment to moment.”
Jongli Gok felt his vision blur.
“Will you accept it?”
“What about Hwasan?”
Jongli Gok asked, his breath slightly uneven.
“Does Hwasan agree with the Alliance Leader’s decision? In truth, this seat and status weren’t made by you alone…!”
“Oh, that’s what you mean?”
Hyun Jong rose to his feet. Then, quite suddenly, he bowed deeply to Jongli Gok.
“Alliance Leader…”
“As for Hwasan, it will continue to work alongside you in many matters. But as for me, I may no longer remain close at hand. So allow me to offer my farewell in advance. Please take good care of the Alliance. Sect Leader. No, Alliance Leader. Thank you for accepting such a burdensome request.”
“No, I…”
With that, Hyun Jong turned and walked towards the tent’s entrance without a moment’s hesitation, and with a hand neither hurried nor slow, he lifted the curtain hanging over the entry.
Watching this, Jongli Gok’s eyes slowly widened.
Through the slit of the opened tent, he saw them: Hwasan’s disciples, waiting for Hyun Jong, all preparations to depart already complete.
As if they knew everything already, not a trace of discontent, not a trace of concern could be found on their faces.
“Let this serve as my answer.”
“…”
“Well then.”
Hyun Jong smiled faintly and stepped out of the tent.
“Alliance Leader…”
Flap.
The lifted curtain fell, and Jongli Gok was left alone in the tent. After a long silence, he let out a hollow laugh.
“Really… we are not suited for each other.”
Jongli Gok quietly took the teacup set before him into his hand. Then, raising it, he drank the tea that had yet to cool.
The faint plum blossom fragrance he had smelled so often tickled the tip of his nose. Somehow, it felt as though this scent would linger for a long time.
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*망둥이 – gobiidae or gobies – is a family of bony fish in the order gobiiformes. In Korean this term is often used to describe a person with rash/aggressive/unreasonable behavior. It is used in idioms such as “like a goby eating its own offspring”: a metaphorical saying that describes conflicts or fights among those of the same group or family; and many others.
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Return of the Mount Hua 
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