“Master Kang, please come in!”
“You’re here? What did grandfather say?!”
Miss Zhuge and Jeon Gil-san greeted me with eager expressions as I returned to the mansion.
“I heard that your cousin died. He asked me to investigate a bit. He also wants me to check in on Auntie.”
Both of them were probably excited, but it felt a bit awkward to announce a relative’s death right after arriving.
“He said he feels sad.”
Before getting to the point, I brought up my conversation with Jang Noya.
“Did grandfather really say that?”
“I asked him if he felt sad too. That made him laugh.”
“Wow!”
Miss Zhuge covered her mouth in shock at my words. Jeon Gil-san clenched his fists and opened his mouth with an excited expression.
“It’s over! It’s done! My intuition was right! The gem I selected is finally shining! Wow!”
“Who chooses? I was here from the start.”
“Even if there’s a gem, it has to be polished and shown to others to be recognized! Seriously, you guys worry about petty things! By the way, how did you manage to pay everything back? I didn’t catch it before; explain it to me.”
“I used a little trick.”
I briefly explained how I moved the officials using the relationship between the inspector and head of guards.
“You should have told me something interesting in advance! I wasted ten days dealing with that overdue inn work!”
Jeon Gil-san complained, looking angrier that he missed out on the fun.
“If you were backed up, just handle it.”
I didn’t mind because it helped. But your inn isn’t a martial artists’ inn.
“I get things done, you know! But seriously, why didn’t you tell me? You didn’t even tell Hyang, did you? Was there a reason to keep it a secret from both of us?”
Jeon Gil-san asked, tapping his chest with curiosity.
“Well…”
There is a reason, but it feels a bit awkward to say it.
I could say I didn’t know if it would work.
“Hehe.”
“Miss Zhuge?”
As I fumbled for my words, Miss Zhuge looked at me while covering her mouth.
“Hehe! Master Kang, could it be…?”
The corners of Miss Zhuge’s eyes curved like a crescent moon.
“What? Did Hyang notice something?”
Miss Zhuge nodded and came closer. What’s going on?
“Because it’ll look cool, right?”
She got close and spoke as if she knew everything.
“Oh.”
Caught.
“Of course! If I reveal it all at once, it’ll be super cool. I’ll be in the spotlight!”
When I made a face like I just got hit, Miss Zhuge put her hands on her hips and confidently declared.
“What are you talking about? Hyang, explain it understandably.”
“Hehehe! What I mean is this! An unknown painter rising in fame in Wuhan! Famous for being the artist who understands the world of Ho Pil better than anyone else! When his painting is revealed, the crowd lines up to see it first!”
“A crowd?”
“In a corner, there’s a disheveled woman, sitting as if she’s not interested. She’s not using hidden body technique, yet her presence is faint. People passing by whisper.”
Miss Zhuge spoke brightly and without hesitation.
“What are they whispering about?”
“They’re saying, ‘Does she know what day it is? Just sitting there drinking tea as if pretending to be a fan of Ho Pil? Look at her! It’s the day his painting is unveiled, and what is she doing holding a brush? Is she writing something in front of Master? People laugh at her and go check out the painting. Then, as the woman tries to sit back down, she finds a piece of paper and is shocked!'”
“Shocked?”
“This painting is a mini version of the one I just saw! No way! That means! The artist of Ho Pil?! Was here?! Oh my! The woman was the artist of Ho Pil all along! Look around! How could we not recognize the artist right in front of us? All the attention shifts to the disheveled woman! Just like how you, Master Kang, drew attention!”
Miss Zhuge pointed at me, as though she knew everything.
“Hahaha, that’s right.”
“Hehe! Just as expected from Master Kang!”
Miss Zhuge raised her thumbs up, sparkling with admiration for me.
How embarrassing.
Yeah. I thought it would look cool if no one knew about it, so I kept it a secret. But I didn’t think someone would catch on.
I felt more bashful under Miss Zhuge’s adoring gaze. Miss Zhuge, compliments are nice, but now that I’ve been found out, I wanna hide even more.
Turning my head in embarrassment, Jeon Gil-san nodded as if he understood, then spoke to Miss Zhuge.
“Hyang. But do you usually imagine such things?”
“Ah…!”
————
“Brother Yang-baek jumped into the water?”
“They found him by the water this morning.”
I barely stopped Miss Zhuge from getting into a box she pulled from somewhere and continued the next story.
“That can’t be…!”
“Tsk tsk. It turned out like this after all.”
Jeon Gil-san clicked his tongue and sighed with a worried expression.
“Do you know anything?”
“Right before the successor exam, Brother Yang said such things from time to time.”
“What did he say?”
“He essentially expressed that he should be the eldest grandson of grandfather now. He showed signs of greed for the successor position.”
“That must’ve been a huge shock.”
With the death of the only son, the succession of Man Geum-jeon was cut off. If it was the daughter’s son, he wouldn’t be the eldest grandson but might aim to perform the rites instead.
Naturally, this would mean he would be the successor of Man Geum Battlefield.
If he was eyeing the successor position and then suddenly got eliminated in the first round of exams, that would be quite a shock indeed.
“Grandfather is amazing. How he manages to gain favor from Auntie in this opportunity.”
“He told me to look into the incident closely. I’m not sure. Should I go console them or something?”
According to Jang Noya, I should be the investigator and comfort the family.
I didn’t have a clue about what to do when visiting a house where a child has died. I muttered with frustration.
“Auntie must feel like ripping out all her hair. You will too, and so will grandfather.”
“Master Kang…”
The two looked at me worriedly.
“It’s okay. Even if I’m just gathering information on the case, I should visit.”
I needed to show that I was making an effort to earn some points.
“Ah! Right! I forgot that! About Brother Yang-baek.”
Jeon Gil-san smacked his palm as if he just remembered something and turned to me.
“What? What is it?”
Did he suddenly think of a clue related to the jumping incident?
When he saw my surprised expression, Jeon Gil-san scratched his head as if embarrassed, then revealed an important fact.
“He was missing for a month.”
—————
“He had been missing for a month?”
“Everyone thought he’d gone on a trip in silence after failing the exam. That’s happened more than once.”
Jeon Gil-san shrugged and added to the story.
“Really? Is that so?”
The deceased had gone missing after the first exam ended. Something feels off. I headed straight to the government office.
“Constable Ho Pil! What brings you here?”
A constable I was on friendly terms with approached me with a warm expression.
“Did you find the corpse this morning?”
“The corpse found this morning?”
“Can I get any related records?”
“Well…”
The constable avoided eye contact, looking troubled.
“Why are you uncomfortable? Is there a specific person in charge?”
Since it’s the government office, does it have to go by the procedure? But it takes too long, which is inconvenient.
“Last night, there were three incidents involving martial artists. Two among commoners, and three at night. Three from the water, and other miscellaneous incidents…”
The constable began to spit out cryptic words in response to my question.
“What are you saying?”
“I’m just listing the incidents that came into the office this morning. Only those involving corpses. It’s fairly quiet today.”
Right. This is Wuhan, Hubei Province. In a world where martial artists roam freely, reactions to reports of corpses might understandably be nonchalant.
“The name you’re looking for is Ma Yang-baek.”
I mentioned the name of the deceased.
“You should have said that earlier! He’s listed among the drowning victims.”
The constable took out the paper from his pocket.
“Is there detailed incident information?”
“Determined to be a drowning, concluded to be a suicide by jumping. I’ll bring it right over.”
The constable quickly retrieved the documentation.
“Ma Yang-baek. Drowning. Assumed to have jumped last night. It’s a bit weird.”
I frowned as I read the report on the incident.
“What’s weird?”
“There are no eyewitnesses.”
“What?”
“No witnesses around when he drowned. No one around the nearby areas saw Ma Yang-baek’s face.”
Finding witnesses after a body appears is the first rule.
The report had no mention of anyone seeing the deceased heading toward the lake or flailing in the water.
“If he jumped, isn’t that irrelevant?”
“If someone missing for a month suddenly shows up as a corpse, without any witnesses…”
That’s suspicious. Very suspicious.
“Could it be that he was so heartbroken he made an extreme choice?”
It’s not impossible.
“If he decided that after being heartbroken, you might be right.”
From what I’ve heard about his usual conduct, the likelihood of a jump is higher. But at the same time, there’s too much that seems very strange about the incident that it can’t simply be brushed off.
I turned on my heel immediately.
“Where are you going?”
“To your auntie’s house. I think I need to find out more details.”
Whether it was a suicide or not, I needed to resolve the doubts.
Even if it turns out to be a suicide, it doesn’t matter. I could show my hardworking side to my aunt.
“You’re one of the people who despised Barbarians, you know. Think she won’t receive you well?”
When Jeon Gil-san pointed this out, I halted my steps briefly and gave a wry smile.
I distinctly remember the face of that aunt. She was one of those who vehemently cursed me as a Barbarian when I mentioned that I was a candidate for the new successor of Man Geum Battlefield.
“Then I’ll just have to make her open the door with a smile.”
There are plenty of ways to accomplish that.
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