22. Light the red lanterns.
Cha Seong-tae suddenly looked at the knife that had come up under his chin and replied, "Why are you doing this all of a sudden? These guys have nothing to do with me. They were always hanging out with Ugeum and Jun-gu. You saw that I killed them with my own hands. I didn't expect this to happen either."
I responded, "Think carefully. Is there anything that could be your fault...?"
Cha Seong-tae, who had been lost in thought for a moment with a serious expression, replied in a subdued tone, "There wasn't... but there is."
"What is it?"
Cha Seong-tae spoke frankly, "…The two of them suddenly became stronger. I think I've warned everyone to be careful a few times. I was really being careful, but it seems they didn't take it seriously. Now that I think about it, I do have some blame."
Cha Seong-tae knew exactly what he was talking about.
I asked, "What will you do from now on? At this rate, it seems like I have to kill half of the men from Il-yang-hyeon to prevent this from happening again. Can you do that for me?"
"There's no need for that. What should I do? Please tell me."
I replied, "I told you before. Don't speak to me informally. Not just in front of me, but also in front of others. Everyone from Il-yang-hyeon knows that I am the one called Jeom-soi at the Jaha Guesthouse. I'm planning to establish the Hao-mun, but if you act like this from the start, I might have to keep cutting down people day after day. I don't care. I won't die at the hands of such people. But it seems that those who shouldn't die are becoming corpses because you take me lightly first."
"That's right. I will admit it."
"From now on, wrap me up as best as you can. A truly terrifying man... After all, all those who have fallen out of favor are dead."
"That's true."
"Make it sound more exaggerated. More wicked than known, merciless, and insane. Stronger than you perceive. And that is the truth."
"Yes."
"You should be the first to fear me so that the lower ones will also fear me. Even now and in the future."
"I completely understand now."
"My actual strength doesn’t need to be shown in this town. If you don’t want to live your life just cleaning up corpses, let’s do well."
"Yes."
"Let’s do well."
"I will."
Only then did I sheathe my sword and say to Cha Seong-tae, "Give me a coat."
Veins bulged on Cha Seong-tae's forehead.
"Yes?"
In that moment, realizing that such a mistake had led to this situation, Cha Seong-tae hurriedly continued, "Ah, I understand. I should take it off. I keep getting sidetracked."
Cha Seong-tae slapped his own cheek and then handed me his long robe.
As I put on Cha Seong-tae's robe, I spoke towards the corpses, "…They are such low-level beings that they don't even know what happens when they fight."
Cha Seong-tae asked, "What happened to Ugeum and Jun-gu?"
"It seems they had some business in the afterlife. They left in a hurry."
"Oh, I see. They are busy fellows."
Cha Seong-tae mourned the death of those he knew.
"Ugeum and Jun-gu once talked to me about gathering people to kill the Jo brothers. If I hadn’t stopped them, they would have died back then."
"Is that so?"
"Yes, this time we didn’t even discuss it and just went through this chaos among ourselves. This is proof that I wasn't close with them."
"Excellent."
After a moment, Cha Seong-tae, who arrived with me at the Mei Hua Tower, said, "Go inside and rest. I will gather the others and handle the corpses. If this continues, a plague will spread. There are too many corpses."
"This much won't spread."
I looked around the disordered Mei Hua Tower as I climbed the stairs.
Fights had been breaking out continuously, and customers had stopped coming altogether.
Perhaps it was partly my fault.
However, it was also a necessary pain to endure.
As I climbed the stairs, everyone who had been cleaning or removing corpses stopped and looked at me.
I paused at the railing of the stairs and spoke to those working in the Mei Hua Tower, "Why?"
"Nothing."
"Tell everyone you know. Even if they come at me again, this is what will happen. At least in Il-yang-hyeon, they should not think of doing anything to me. As you can see, this is the result. Close the business for today. Don’t sell alcohol either. If you want to mourn the dead, you should be quiet."
"Understood."
The Mei Hua Tower fell silent.
Before going up to Jo Yi-gyeol's room, I washed myself again.
I still thought of this place as Jo Yi-gyeol's room.
I was planning to return once the burned Jaha Guesthouse was restored.
Sitting cross-legged with my eyes closed, I heard a song that started somewhere in the Mei Hua Tower.
The tone was beautiful.
It was a song I had heard before, and the owner of the voice was Chae Hyang.
The title of the song was "Cheongcheong Habanchao" (清清河畔草).
A beautiful woman in a pavilion was applying red powder by the moonlit window, extending her white hand.
She had been a courtesan in the past and was now the wife of a prodigal son... but now even that prodigal son had not returned, making it difficult for her to keep the empty bed alone.
The lyrics included expressions like Cheongcheong (清清), Ulul (鬱鬱), Yeongyeong (盈盈), Gyogyo (皎皎), Aah (娥娥), and Seomseom (纖纖).
These are not peaceful words.
When combined with the tone, they evoke images of a woman's skin, the curves of her body, the atmosphere of the night, the subtlety of union, and the woman's gentle seduction.
Of course, one could interpret it differently.
However, the phrase "Gongsang Nandoksu" (空床難獨守) emphasizes the meaning.
If one sings beautifully about Cheongcheong, Ulul, Yeongyeong, Gyogyo, Aah, and Seomseom, and then says it is difficult to keep the empty bed alone, what could that mean?
This is a song of temptation, akin to a "Mihonsul" (迷魂術) in the martial world.
In reality, pretty monkeys belonging to the "Sapa" often painted their faces and sang "Cheongcheong Habanchao" to lure innocent men, robbing them.
If they only robbed, it would be fortunate, but of course, they were killed.
Regardless, since the beauty trap does not work on me, I focused again on my breathing and energy cultivation.
And in my view, Chae Hyang was not a beauty.
Only a kind heart makes one a beauty.
Just as I thought the song would end with "Cheongcheong Habanchao," another song followed.
For a moment, my mind wandered, and as soon as I opened my eyes, I shouted loudly, "Shut up!"
My voice, mixed with internal energy, echoed throughout the Mei Hua Tower, cutting off the song.
In the same tone, I commanded from the top floor of the Mei Hua Tower so that everyone in the building could hear me clearly, "Lower the blue lanterns and hang up the red lanterns."
Just then, Cha Seong-tae, who had returned after sending his subordinates to work, heard my words from the first floor and shouted repeatedly, "Lower the blue lanterns and hang up the red lanterns."
I issued another command, "The courtesans can stay as they are, but the women who worked as prostitutes should now find other jobs. The Mei Hua Tower, Ihwa Tower, and Shihwa Tower will now operate as Honglu (紅樓). If any guests try to act like they are in the Cheonglu, they should report to me."
Cha Seong-tae repeated the last part, "From now on, we will operate as Honglu."
The meaning varies by region, but generally, the rules of "Maiyeobulmaeshin" (賣藝不賣身) are more strictly observed in Honglu.
I may be a madman overall, but I have never been crazy about money.
There was no need for women to work as prostitutes where I stayed.
"Seong-tae..."
Cha Seong-tae, who answered briefly from downstairs, quickly ran up the stairs.
After swiftly climbing the high stairs four times, Cha Seong-tae spoke at the door, "Did you call for me?"
"What about the corpses?"
"I told them to handle it, and I have returned."
"Operate Ihwa Tower and Shihwa Tower as Honglu as well."
"Yes."
"Those who have a place to return to, take the retirement pay from the Jo guys' property and give it generously. Especially the girls who worked as prostitutes, send them all away. Only those who want to learn skills or do odd jobs should remain. I don’t want to see them."
"Understood."
"Make sure to tell the working men specifically. If they cause trouble, I will come to kill them. I repeat, quickly restore the Jaha Guesthouse. There’s a strange smell in the room, and the bedding is too expensive, making it uncomfortable to sleep."
"I will convey that."
"Get lost."
"Yes, I will leave."
As soon as I sent Cha Seong-tae away, I entered into my breathing and energy cultivation.
In an instant, I forgot everything.
The black cat room, the black ship, the Twelve Divine Generals, the master of the Twelve Divine Generals, the dead three brothers, and the twin scimitars flashed through my mind, but I soon tore them apart with my mental sword and erased their presence.
I repeated the "Ilju Cheon" until dawn, and just as the sun was rising, I lay down on the bedding to sleep.
I thought I could sleep comfortably today.
Gongsang Nandoksu is useless in the face of fatigue, so I slept until noon.
In my dream, I briefly met an unidentified man who was imprisoned.
I don’t remember the conversation, but one thing was clear.
The man had to stay in prison for a long time because of me.
Anyway, I woke up with a feeling of guilt towards the man.
It was only after more than thirty days that there was progress in the foundational construction of the Jaha Guesthouse.
Since the site was large, the scale of the guesthouse was quite substantial.
In the meantime, the construction manager had changed, but I hadn’t bothered to meet him.
However, just looking at the newly laid foundational work for the partitioning, I could envision the structure that would rise above it, as it was intricately well-organized.
It felt like a capable person had finally gotten involved.
The Jaha Guesthouse, which had once smelled of mold, was disappearing, and now the largest guesthouse in Il-yang-hyeon was being built.
The guesthouse would also serve as accommodation.
The Jaha Guesthouse had only a cheap room occasionally rented to traveling merchants, but the one being built now was large enough to accommodate a large group of travelers.
Moreover, this place would become the temporary headquarters of the Hao-mun.
I stood in the still empty lot, imagining such scenes.
I envisioned the Hao-mun members gathering to share food and drink.
Among those Hao-mun members would be former rivals, opponents, and sometimes even those who had been enemies with me.
I planned to gather all these crazy monkeys and have them stay as members of the Hao-mun.
I intended to change the fate of the monkeys and flip the balance of power in the martial world.
"What are you thinking so deeply about?"
Cha Seong-tae approached me from behind as I gazed at the empty lot.
I asked, "When will it be completed?"
"The scale of the construction has increased, so no matter how fast we go, it won't be less than a year, right? Is that too slow?"
"What if we hire more people?"
"Just throwing more people at it won't necessarily speed things up. It will depend on who the construction leader is. You should meet the new leader at least once."
Cha Seong-tae called out to a man who was mixed in with the construction workers.
"The lord has arrived. Come here and greet him."
As I confirmed the face of the approaching man, a smile appeared on my lips.
'It's Yeon Ja-seong, it's been a while.'
Even during my time as the Hao-mun leader, he was a famous architect, now approaching with a much younger face.