I have absolutely no idea what’s going on. (3)
“Forfeit? S-So suddenly?”
Flustered, Jwa Gohak looked at those standing behind Baek Cheon. He wanted to see whether this was something they had agreed upon among themselves.
But their reactions were not much different from Baek Cheon’s.
“A wise decision.”
“A quick surrender is the cleanest option.”
“W-Wait a minute!”
However, Yu Hanbin, who was not a disciple of Hwasan, seemed unable to accept the situation.
“Forfeit? You’re suddenly forfeiting? No, you should at least give it a try. You might win if you try.”
“Hmm, true. So… I suppose the odds would be about the same as a mouse defeating a tiger.”
“Honestly, isn’t comparing this to a mouse far too generous? I think an earthworm would be more appropriate.”
“A valid point.”
Hearing that, Yu Hanbin spoke as though he found the whole thing absurd.
“You said that no matter how high a mountain is, giving up without even trying to climb it is a bad thing.”
“That is certainly true.”
Jo Geol nodded approvingly.
“So…..”
“But that only applies when the thing you have to climb is a mountain.”
“Huh?”
“It’s sheer stupidity for a person to struggle desperately to reach the heavens themselves. Don’t you think?”
At those words, the disciples of Hwasan all nodded vigorously in agreement. They nodded with such sharp precision that the sight almost seemed solemn.
“….Weren’t we talking about arithmetic just now? Does arithmetic really warrant all this talk about mountains and the heavens?”
“Ahem.”
Looking embarrassed, the disciples of Hwasan discreetly turned their gazes away, avoiding Yu Hanbin’s eyes.
“But Jo Geol, you come from a merchant family. How can you be bad at arithmetic? You already competed in the horsemanship event anyway, but it still seems strange.”
“What’s so strange about that? There’s someone who was born in Jongnam but can’t even use Jongnam’s sword techniques.”
“Ah. That makes sense.”
“…Don’t let that convince you, you bastards.”
After hurling a curse at those behind him, Baek Cheon turned back to Jwa Gohak with a look that said, ‘What do you expect me to do about it?’
“Anyway, that’s why we forfeit.”
“…”
“What? Why are you looking at me like that?”
“…No, do you people have no pride? Forfeiting a contest like this.”
“Ha. What a strange thing to say.”
Baek Cheon snorted and proudly squared his shoulders.
“Hwasan’s pride is not so insignificant that we would stake it on a mere arithmetic contest.”
At that very moment, whispers came from behind him.
“It sounds incredibly convincing when he puts it like that.”
“It still makes us look a little pathetic, though.”
Jwa Gohak stared blankly at the disciples of Hwasan whispering among themselves, then shook his head. What kind of people were these?
“Are you truly forfeiting?”
“Yes.”
“Really?”
“Oh, come on. Why do you keep asking? I said we forfeit.”
“…”
Jwa Gohak nodded weakly. He had wanted to create a scene in which they won the contest fair and square, but how could he hold a contest when the other side refused to participate?
“Then this contest goes… to the Confucian scholars.”
“Wow….”
The scholars exchanged awkward glances before applauding.
It was certainly a situation that should have called for cheers, but somehow all the energy had drained out of them, making it difficult to react with any real enthusiasm.
“We won.”
“Wow, great.”
The scholars, who had won yet somehow felt uneasy about it, and the pathetic Taoists, who had lost but managed to preserve their pride, found their joys and sorrows strangely reversed.
⠀
“So it appears the contest has ended in a draw.”
“So it does. Since they forfeited, each side has taken two victories.”
“…It does feel somewhat anticlimactic. Still, is not the result what matters?”
The old scholars stroked their beards as they gazed at the Confucian students and the disciples of Hwasan.
“To compete in the Six Arts and still fail to secure victory – surely this is, in truth, a disastrous result.”
“Is there any need to go that far? These were the Six Arts without Poetry and Music, so they were able to compete on relatively even terms. Had those two disciplines been included, could such a result ever have occurred?”
“Can that truly serve as an excuse? The Six Arts are the domain of gentlemen. On the other hand, if those children were competing in fields suited to the Taoists, do you honestly believe we’d still be looking at a result like this?”
“Indeed… If they were judged on matters such as cultivating one’s mind or comprehending the ways of the Heavens, there wouldn’t even be a meaningful contest.*”
In truth, the disciples of Hwasan knew close to nothing about strengthening their minds either, but there was no way for these men to know that.
“I had thought them people who squandered their lives on petty dubious arts.”
As a peculiar emotion began to creep into the old scholars’ voices, So Jung-gyeong smiled bitterly.
“Did I not tell you? They are no ordinary people.”
“Ahem. Even so…”
The old scholars stubbornly shook their heads, looking disgruntled.
“They have not yet passed the test.”
“Why must you be so obstinate? Surely you have appearances to maintain.”
“It is precisely because we have appearances to maintain that we cannot acknowledge them. Even if we recognize their abilities, can we now go back and change the conditions we set at the beginning?”
So Jung-gyeong clicked his tongue at the old scholars’ stubborn attitude.
There was nothing wrong with what they said. Principles were important, after all. But So Jung-gyeong knew that even the truth that principles were important could produce entirely different results depending on when one chose to invoke it.
One more move was still needed. To break through the wall surrounding these men, a wall built from stubborn conviction. But…
So Jung-gyeong’s gaze shifted elsewhere. Their thought process had grown far too rigid. But what about the students, who still had room to accept more of the world?
So Jung-gyeong looked at them with an intrigued expression.
⠀
“At least we managed to secure a draw.”
“That is fortunate. We saved face, at least to some extent, did we not?”
When the Confucian scholars approached and offered words of relief, Jwa Gohak’s face twisted hideously.
“Are you celebrating a draw right now?”
“Pardon?”
“We are Confucian scholars, yet we failed to gain the upper hand over Taoists in the Six Arts. And you expect me to dance with joy? You pathetic fools!”
“F-Forgive me. That was not what I meant.”
“Silence!”
“……Yes.”
Jwa Gohak’s face trembled with anger.
And it was not even an ordinary draw. They had nearly lost and had only barely managed to claw their way back to an even score. Worse still, their final victory had practically been handed to them when the other side forfeited, leaving them to pick up those scraps.
What kind of utter humiliation was this?
This could not stand. At this rate, he would be unable to escape responsibility either. No, this went beyond responsibility. It was a matter of pride.
Jwa Gohak abruptly turned his head and looked towards the disciples of Hwasan.
“So this makes it a draw, right?”
“It is a little disappointing.”
“Still, a draw is better than nothing.”
“We would have won if you hadn’t fallen off your horse, Jo Geol.”
“How long are you going to keep bringing up something that’s already over…”
As he listened to their casual chatter, Jwa Gohak’s expression hardened further, as he clenched his jaw.
‘They actually held us to a draw, and they are not even pleased about it?’
That fact wounded Jwa Gohak’s pride more than anything else.
Step.
Having made up his mind, Jwa Gohak strode straight towards the disciples of Hwasan. Then, wearing a radiant smile, he addressed them.
“So it is a draw.”
“Hm, so it is.”
Jwa Gohak’s smile broadened further as he spoke.
“Congratulations. You may rejoice openly.”
“Huh?”
A vein rose faintly on Baek Cheon’s forehead.
“What exactly do you mean by that?”
“Ah, I apologize if that offended you. But that was not my intention. I merely said it because I naturally assumed you would be pleased.”
“Naturally?”
“Is that not so?”
Jwa Gohak smiled brightly for all to see.
“Though it may have been merely a pastime, those who study the Tao managed to compete evenly with Confucian scholars in their own fields. Hahaha. It seems I underestimated you, Taoist Masters, far too greatly. I naturally assumed we would win overwhelmingly. How embarrassing.”
Grind.
Baek Cheon ground his teeth so violently that they seemed ready to crack. Yet the expression visible on his face remained a gentle smile.
“Ah, well, would it not be far too embarrassing for us to rejoice without reservation? After all, this result was only possible because you Confucian scholars went easy on us. Is that not right?”
“……Pardon?”
The smile on Jwa Gohak’s face twitched and stiffened. Baek Cheon sneered with a satisfied grin.
“Why, of course. Had all of you truly set your minds to it, how could we possibly have achieved such a result? Hahaha. It would be unthinkable. If our positions were reversed and we had achieved a result like this in events that favored us, we would have drowned ourselves in a pudde out of shame by now**. Hahahahaha.”
“Hahahahaha.”
“Haha……”
“Hahaha…..”
After laughing for a long while, the two suddenly glared at each other as though they meant to kill one another.
“You damned Taoist bastard…….”
“You ink-stained bastard…..”
The two ground their teeth for a moment before arriving at the same conclusion.
“Want to settle this?”
“Gladly.”
“What event?”
“I don’t know why we’re wasting our breath talking when we have perfectly good swords.”
“For once, we agree. I was getting frustrated myself.”
“But…. are you sure? It would be quite the disgrace if that precious scholar’s cap of yours were split in half.”
“Well, well. Are you worried about me? Why not spend that time worrying about yourself? Once word spreads that you were beaten by a Confucian scholar and sent rolling across the ground, you will not be able to show that handsome face anywhere in Gangho.”
The two glared murderously at each other once more, then turned around sharply at the same time.
“Attention!”
The instant Jwa Gohak turned, he shouted with a roar.
“The contest of the Six Arts has ended in a draw, with no victor!”
The Confucian scholars kept their eyes fixed on Jwa Gohak as they waited for him to continue.
“But while a contest may end in a draw, pride cannot.”
“Oooooooooh!”
The moment Jwa Gohak finished speaking, the scholars erupted into frenzied cheers. They, too, had been unable to accept such a result.
“Therefore, we will determine the true victor with one final contest. And the event for that final contest will be…!”
Jwa Gohak declared in a powerful voice.
“A sparring match!”
“Waaaaaaaaaaaaah!”
A thunderous cheer erupted.
Hearing that cheer, the disciples of Hwasan realized one thing.
Those people were convinced that victory in the sparring match was already theirs.
“Why are they so happy?”
“They’re acting like there’s no chance they could lose to us.”
“Where is all that confidence coming from?”
The expressions on Hwasan’s disciples’ faces began to turn sour.
“They might have reasons to be confident. But this is a sparring match. And we’re the disciples of Hwasan.”
“Those people have spent their whole lives studying books, and they think we’re pushovers?”
“Those bastards. Do they think Hwasan is a joke?”
This was not horsemanship, calligraphy, or arithmetic. It was none other than a spar.
And yet they dared to be certain of victory?
The irritation that had been slowly building finally burst into outright fury. Jo Geol shouted at the top of his lungs.
“Are we going to stand here and let them look down on us? Chung Myung!”
“Huh?”
“You go out there! Kill them all!”
“What are you talking about? I’ve already competed in the calligraphy event.”
“Ah…….”
“Then let’s send Monk Hye Yeon. He could crush every last one of them!”
At those words, Yoon Jong waved his hand and stopped him.
“….Forget it. Hwasan is the one they looked down on. If we send Monk Hye Yeon, it’ll make us look a little pathetic. Besides, those people have been criticizing Taoists this whole time.”
“Hmm, that is true.”
If they sent Hye Yeon, he could dispose of someone like Jwa Gohak as easily as polishing off a snack after a meal, but that would do nothing to soothe their present indignation.
In that case…
The gazes of Hwasan’s disciples all turned towards one person. Preparing himself to receive those gazes, Baek Cheon proudly straightened his back.
At last, the time had come for him to display the dignity of the Head Disciple…
“We are counting on you, Sago.”
“Huh?”
Baek Cheon’s head snapped around.
“If it’s Sago, we can trust her!”
“Show them what Hwasan is made of!”
“Amitabha. If it is Yu Iseol Dojang…”
“Leave it to me.”
“W-Wait!”
Baek Cheon hurriedly reached out to stop Yu Iseol.
“I-I should go.”
“Why?”
“What do you mean, why? It looks like their highest-ranking one is coming out, so naturally I should be the one to face him!”
“Do you have to?”
“I do not think there is any need for that…”
“Why don’t you just rest, Sasuk?”
These bastards… Trembling with rage, Baek Cheon turned around.
“Normally, I would yield. But not this time.”
Sparks flew from Baek Cheon’s eyes. At the end of his gaze stood Jwa Gohak, staring back at him with that obnoxious face.
“That bastard….”
Gripping the scabbard so hard it looked ready to shatter, Baek Cheon’s eyes blazed with fury.
“I’ll kill him!”
Special Spinoff Chapter 49 >>>
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*There was no hanja provided but i think by 연단(yeondan) biga means鍊鍛 – tempering/strengthening body and mind. By ways of the Heavens it’s most likely 천도(天道) – laws of nature; laws of heaven.
**He is using a Korean idiom here, that literally means: to drown oneself in a water dish (small basin of water, like small plate, saucer etc).
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Even someone angry with him, can’t deny the fact that Baek Cheon is handsome. But Baek Cheon was still immediately humbled, when all the disciples assumed Yu Iseol will be the one to compete ㅠㅠ
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