Chapter 83 : Sichuan Tang Family. -01
Chapter 83: Sichuan Tang Family. -01
‘It’s been a while since the Sichuan Tang Family.’
Ban Hojin, who had arrived at Tangga Town together with Damhyeon and Beopmu, looked around his surroundings.
However, there was not the slightest hint of curiosity on his face.
Although this was his first time in this life, he had visited several times in his previous life.
Of course, he had not been in such good condition back then, but even so, it was not all that different.
“So this is the famous Tangga Town.”
“They say the entire village is made up of people from the Sichuan Tang Family, right?”
“Yes. It’s also called Tangga Village.”
Unlike the indifferent Ban Hojin, Seo Joun and Jeong Iryong, who were visiting Tangga Town for the first time, had their eyes shining.
To the two of them, everything looked fascinating.
On the other hand, Seonu Bang and Moyong Cheok, who had visited the Sichuan Tang Family several times before, quietly followed behind the group.
“Welcome.”
“Amitabha. It has been a while.”
As Seo Joun and Jeong Iryong were once again astonished by the magnificent main gate and walls—more like a fortress than a manor—a neatly dressed middle-aged man appeared.
It was the chief steward who had been waiting for Damhyeon, offering his greetings.
As befitted the main gate of the Sichuan Tang Family, the surroundings were packed with all kinds of people, forming a sea of humanity, yet Ban Hojin passed through the gate immediately without having to wait.
“Thank you for accepting the invitation.”
“It is the Supreme Family Head’s seventieth birthday banquet, so of course we had to come. Hehehe.”
“First, I will guide you to your accommodations. Ah, before that, the Seonu Family Head and the Moyong Family Head have already arrived. How would you like to proceed?”
The chief steward’s gaze shifted toward Seonu Bang and Moyong Cheok.
Though young, both were heirs of the Seonu Family and the Moyong Family.
That was why the chief steward treated them with full courtesy.
“As we mentioned before, we will go to see our fathers.”
“We will see you later.”
Since this had already been discussed with the group beforehand, Seonu Bang and Moyong Cheok bowed in greeting and then followed a servant, heading off separately before the chief steward could even ask further.
After seeing the two off, Ban Hojin followed the chief steward past the outer court and into the inner court.
Living up to the reputation of Shaolin, the detached annex assigned by the Sichuan Tang Family was exceptionally fine.
“If you need anything, please let us know at any time.”
“Understood.”
“Then, I shall take my leave.”
When the chief steward withdrew with a brief bow, Ban Hojin casually chose any room.
As if they had been waiting for this moment, Seo Joun and Jeong Iryong took the rooms on either side of Ban Hojin.
Even though they each had separate rooms, they made sure not to be far from him.
“I felt it once again. To be treated well, you have to succeed. You need to be at least a prestigious family to receive an invitation.”
“Don’t think too pessimistically. Just because you receive an invitation doesn’t necessarily mean it’s a good thing. You can tell just by looking at Bangcheon Sect, right?”
Ban Hojin soothed Seo Joun, who had come to his room to vent right after unpacking.
He understood how he felt, but there was no need to be overly disappointed.
“If the Sichuan Tang Family knew about Bangcheon Sect, they would have sent an invitation, right?”
“What do you think?”
“I think they would have sent one.”
At the conversation between Ban Hojin and Seo Joun, Jeong Iryong merely smiled faintly.
He neither affirmed nor denied it.
“What about you?”
“I think they definitely would have come. But my master and I probably wouldn’t have accepted. That was before meeting you, elder brother.”
“Then why do you call me elder brother too? Joun is three years younger than me, but you’re only a year younger.”
“It feels like there’s more than ten years of difference. Just look at Cheok—he doesn’t call Seonu hyung ‘elder brother,’ does he?”
At Jeong Iryong’s words, Seo Joun, who was beside them, nodded in agreement.
They were the same age, yet somehow Ban Hojin felt more like an older brother.
Judging by his words and actions, Seonu Bang was clearly the more mature one.
And yet, strangely, the one who felt older was Ban Hojin.
“You’re strange kids.”
“Isn’t it said that birds of a feather flock together?”
“Are you mocking me right now?”
“No. I truly meant it in a good way.”
“Hm.”
Ban Hojin’s eyes narrowed.
Nevertheless, Jeong Iryong stood confidently.
He had spoken only the truth, so there was nothing to feel guilty about.
“But why did you add the condition ‘before meeting elder brother’?”
“After you came looking for me, not only I but even my master changed. More precisely, his way of thinking changed.”
“Oh?”
Seo Joun’s eyes sparkled.
It oddly piqued his curiosity.
“My master is probably traveling the Jianghu right now as well.”
“What? He came out into the world?”
“Yeah. He said he would sort things out after I descended the mountain and then come down right away.”
“Then you’ll meet him someday, right?”
“Probably.”
Jeong Iryong nodded.
Since his master knew where he was, he would surely come looking for him when the time was right.
Or they might run into each other by chance.
“It sounds kind of romantic. Master and disciple walking different paths and then meeting at some point.”
“Does it?”
“Of course. It sounds like something straight out of a novel.”
“If you don’t want to get scolded, you should train diligently. He’s kind in everyday matters, but when it comes to teaching, he turns into a tiger.”
A slightly nostalgic expression appeared on Jeong Iryong’s face.
It hadn’t been that long since they parted, yet he already missed him.
He also worried about whether his master was eating well.
That was because, while Jeong Iryong could live without worrying about money thanks to Ban Hojin, Sang Il-gi was different.
“He’s surely doing well. He’s someone who has lived far longer than we have. It’s pointless to worry.”
“Is that so?”
“Yeah.”
Ban Hojin answered firmly.
It was natural to worry about one’s master, but there was no need to be overly concerned.
It would be more beneficial to devote that time to training instead.
“Elder brother. That place probably came too, right?”
“Probably. The Sichuan Tang Family must have sent an invitation. Whether they come or not is up to them. Still, there’s a high chance they did. It’s not just anywhere—it’s an invitation from the Sichuan Tang Family, and they’d be very curious.”
“They must be burning with frustration. Even if they want to investigate, they can’t move, and even if they secretly look into it, there wouldn’t be anything they could find out.”
Seo Joun chuckled.
He could guess what kind of state of mind it must be in right now.
But he did not feel even the slightest bit of pity.
Rather, he hoped it was suffering even more.
“They must have come just to confirm it. Since contact was cut off, they probably have a rough idea already.”
“But they won’t be able to understand it. Not just elder brother, but all of us are perfectly fine.”
“That’s exactly why we need to show them even more.”
“That’s right!”
Seo Joun answered loudly.
However, the look in his eyes was not ordinary.
For a brief moment, they flashed sharply, as if revealing what he was thinking.
On the first day of the seventieth birthday banquet, which lasted for three days, Ban Hojin headed to the banquet hall together with the group.
In his heart, he wanted to just stay in his quarters, but since they had come all the way to the Sichuan Tang Family, Beopmu insisted that they at least show their faces, leaving him no choice but to come along.
‘Since I’m here anyway, should I look for talent?’
When the rising juniors had visited Shaolin, the one he had discovered by chance was Seonu Bang.
Because of that, Ban Hojin had a faint expectation that the same might happen this time.
Since it was none other than the seventieth birthday banquet of the Supreme Family Head of the Sichuan Tang Family, it was certain that the rising juniors of most families and sects would all be present.
“The banquet hall is huge.”
“It’s also an occasion meant to display their prosperity.”
“If the Sichuan Tang Family is like this, the Namgung Family must be even more so, right?”
“Probably so.”
Seo Joun, who arrived at the banquet hall with Ban Hojin, widened his eyes.
He had already been amazed after seeing the Sichuan Tang Family and Tangga Town yesterday, but the banquet hall was on a completely different level.
It was decorated as if to show the pinnacle of splendor, and Seo Joun could not stop marveling.
“Our family could decorate things like this too if we really wanted to.”
“But isn’t it hard to gather this many famous people?”
“Tch!”
Moyong Cheok twisted his lips.
It was true, so he could not refute it.
However, Seo Joun was not done speaking.
“Still, don’t be too disappointed, Cheok hyung. I, Bang Yi hyung, Iryong hyung, and elder brother will all go. Especially if elder brother goes, the weight of it all rises instantly.”
“Are you giving poison and then medicine?”
“Come on. I’m just stating the facts. They say you have to see reality as it is to promise a future, right? It might be hard now, but it can be different later. I’ll make my main house like that myself, at least.”
“So there are already two competitors just at this table?”
“Hehehe!”
Seo Joun did not deny it.
In a way, it was no different from a declaration of war.
“It looks like they’re also divided by age.”
“Yeah.”
While Moyong Cheok and Seo Joun bickered, Ban Hojin and Seonu Bang were looking at something else.
Most were rising juniors, but there were also quite a few who could be called mid-generation masters.
Here and there were people recognized in the Jianghu as distinguished guests.
However, everyone was gathered with those of similar age.
“Let’s go over there.”
“I figured you’d pick a corner.”
“If there’s anywhere you want to go, feel free.”
“Hm. I don’t think there’s really a need.”
Seonu Bang smiled meaningfully.
There were many rising juniors in the banquet hall, but if you looked at the groups they were gathered in, it was obvious.
They were seated according to invisible classes.
The children of the Five Great Families gathered with the Five Great Families, while those belonging to the Ten Great Families below them gathered among themselves.
And the rising juniors of minor sects that did not belong to any of those groups gathered together on their own.
At the scene, which was not much different from the past, Seonu Bang let out a hollow laugh.
‘If there’s anything that’s changed, it must be my position.’
In the past, he would have sat among the minor sects or the children of families that were prestigious in name only, but now it was different.
Those from the Five Great Families, an even higher tier than them, were sneaking glances in this direction.
Of course, it was not toward him but toward Ban Hojin, yet the important thing was that they were peeking at this table.
“They’re really sneaking a lot of looks.”
“Accept it. Geniuses naturally draw the attention of the masses. Most of it is envy and jealousy. But you have to endure those jealous gazes to become a true master.”
Unlike Seo Joun, who spoke as if somewhat uncomfortable, Moyong Cheok was shameless.
Back when he was at the height of his fame, he had received even worse stares than this.
And at that time, he had been younger than now and all alone.
“Looks like hyung couldn’t endure it?”
“Oh? You’re getting bold now?”
“What do you mean getting bold? I’m just stating the facts as they are. Sarcasm and mocking are clearly different things.”
“If I feel bad, then it’s all the same.”
“Oh. So you’re saying you prefer honeyed words from a treacherous official over blunt advice from a loyal minister?”
Moyong Cheok glared fiercely, but Seo Joun did not back down.
Rather, he looked Moyong Cheok straight in the eye and talked back.
At that sight, Moyong Cheok wore an exasperated expression.
“I’ve spoiled you too much.”
“Hey. Maybe for elder brother or Bang Yi hyung, but not for you, hyung.”
“I can’t even hit you.”
Moyong Cheok thumped his chest.
However, he did not lay a hand on him.
No matter how cheeky he was, he was still a younger brother he cherished.
That was why Moyong Cheok might glare, but he did not resort to violence.
“Hehehe! Once you use violence, you’ve lost. You have to win a war of words with words.”
“You don’t act like this toward Iryong or the other hyungs, so why only me?”
“I’m just speaking the truth.”
Seo Joun put on an innocent expression.
As if to say the cause lay with Moyong Cheok.
At those words, Moyong Cheok looked dumbfounded, but the reactions of the rest of the group were the opposite.
Jeong Iryong and Seonu Bang nodded their heads.
Slurp.
And Ban Hojin did not concern himself with what the youngsters were doing.
Instead, he slowly scanned the banquet hall while sipping the tea that the maid had brought.
He was checking to see if Sangguan Jeok was there.
“Elder brother.”