Return of The Mount Hua – Chapter 1450. What Should I Do? (5)
Editor: Hoamzz
Co-Translator: Xoxo
“Do… as you wish.”
In the end, Hyun Jong raised both hands. Honestly, he had no grounds to oppose. How could one stop someone who says they'll try to persuade others and give up if it doesn't work?
“Thank you, Maengju-nim.”
Having extorted (?) Hyun Jong's permission this way, Tang Gun-ak put on an intentionally gentle smile. Then, Chung Myung asked.
"So, is Tang Family fully relocating to Shaanxi now?"
Tang Gun-ak glanced at Chung Myung and answered.
"That’s not quite it. We’ll have to return eventually."
"Huh? So you're spending all that money just to spruce up a temporary residence? You're excessively generous."
Tang Gun-ak responded to those words with a bitter smile.
"It’s not like I’m not reluctant to spend the money. And....”
Tang Gun-ak slightly turned his head to look at the family members following behind him.
"Even for them to adapt to Shaanxi, it's better to completely erase the two characters 'Sichuan.'"
“But why?”
"Once we drive out Evil Tyrant Alliance, Sichuan will become a completely ownerless land."
“....”
"Someone will have to manage it."
A strange pain flashed through Tang Gun-ak’s eyes. Seeing those look, Chung Myung knew what Tang Gun-ak was thinking without even having to hear it.
He couldn't help worrying about those who had served Tang Family for generations, the refugees relocated from the Yangtze River, and those he couldn't look after because things were too urgent.
"If that’s what you’re planning....”
"Don’t misunderstand. It’s not that I’m worrying ahead of time. It’s just....”
Tang Gun-ak's gaze sharpened.
"I’ve simply decided that now is not the time to be wishy-washy in dealing with Evil Tyrant Alliance. It’s best to be decisive in all things."
“Hmm.”
Chung Myung nodded. No one but Tang Gun-ak could have started this. Tang Gun-ak knows this fact too, which is why he pushed Hyun Jong by putting on a show that didn't match his temperament.
"Actually, I also think it's better for Tang Family to return to Sichuan. Whenever that may be."
“Why?”
"'Shaanxi Tang Family' just sounds weird! 'Sichuan Tang Family' is much better!"
Chung Myung chuckled as he watched the speechless Tang Gun-ak. And he thought to himself. Tang Gun-ak may fall short of Tang Bo in martial strength, but in decisiveness, he clearly had the upper hand. And more than anything.
‘He’s loaded.’
That bastard Tang Bo was a beggar. What kind of family elder can't even squeeze out proper funds, always...
Ah, I'm in no position to talk about others. That's right, he should give me more pocket money. That stingy Cheong Mun Sahyung...
- What, this punk?
“Ahem.”
Chung Myung coughed loudly and opened his mouth again.
"But it won't be as easy as you think. What's the plan?"
"As I said earlier."
"It won't be easy to prepare places for them to stay. There are lodgings built during the founding of Heavenly Comrade Alliance, but those are at best..."
"Are you really talking construction with me? With me, Tang Family patriarch?"
This time Chung Myung became as silent as a mute who ate honey.
"When I look at you sometimes, it's not that your nagging is excessive, it's that your confidence is excessive. You need to know your limits now and then."
"...Ugh. That's what I used to say to Dongryong."
Tang Gun-ak chuckled, but Chung Myung couldn't find words to refute.
Tang Family was home to the most skilled craftsman in the world. Many people think Tang Family's smithy is just a place to make hidden weapons, but Tang Family's craftsmen are multi-purpose handymen... no, workers who also have expertise in mechanical formations.
Didn't everyone's jaws drop during Heavenly Comrade Alliance's founding at their capabilities? Mobilizing them, constructing halls and housing people would be trivial. After all, even the martial artists of Tang Family were said to be better than average carpenters.
"So you'll expand the existing buildings?"
"That's the plan. For defense, building the headquarters near Mount Hua's summit would be ideal, but..."
"That's a pipe dream."
“Right. It’s a dream-like scenario. Even now, people say Mount Hua disciples are perverts who build palaces on clouds and live there."
"What? Which bastard is going around saying such things! Who?"
"It's not such a wrong statement, is it?"
"Why isn't it wrong! It's completely wrong. In the first place, Mount Hua....”
"Objectively speaking, if Mount Hua had established its sect in Huayin instead of that treacherous peak, it might have surpassed even Shaolin during its golden age."
“....”
"I saw last time that there’s not even any space left to expand the buildings. How many people do you think will actually come all the way up there to join?"
"Are you saying our ancestors were stupid?"
"What did you say about Tang Family ancestors again?"
“Ugh....”
Chung Myung trembled. So this guy’s getting back at him like this?
“Anyway, building the main headquarters where Mount Hua is now is difficult. So we need to build it centered around Huayin. We'll gather all the sects there and construct one fortress."
"...Huayin will become bustling."
"Indeed."
Having said that much, Tang Gun-ak glanced over at Chung Myung and spoke softly.
"You."
"Yes?"
“Could we talk alone for a moment?”
“Huh?”
Chung Myung blinked his eyes as he looked at Tang Gun-ak.
Five Swords watched Tang Gun-ak and Chung Myung as they gradually widened their distance from the others.
"...What do you think he wants to talk about?"
“It’s obvious, Sahyung. He’s probably going to ask for support for Tang Family going forward?”
“Gol-ah…. Not everyone in the world lacks thought like you. If he wanted to ask for that, he would have asked Grand Sect Leader, not Chung Myung."
"Oh, is that so?"
Jo-Gol scratched his head. Then his eyes suddenly lit up and he shouted.
“Uh? Got it!”
“Huh? What?”
With everyone’s attention on him, Jo-Gol puffed out his chest triumphantly.
“Think about it. What does Tang Family need most right now?”
"Poisons?"
“Hidden weapons?”
"Money?"
“Tsk, tsk. It's not that. What Tang Family needs to regain its glory is a strong force."
“...So?”
"By now, Gaju-nim must be desperate! So he's pushing for what failed before! He's probably trying to arrange a marriage between that guy and a Tang Family daughter again to create an inescapable trap... Kuaaack!"
Tang Soso kicked the back of Jo-Gol's head with all her might.
"I- I’ll die, Soso!"
"Please just die already!"
Baek Cheon let out a deep sigh as he looked at the group who couldn't even maintain peace for a single moment. When would these rascals ever grow up...
His gaze drifted toward the two figures walking away.
"Why such urgency to speak with me?"
"When we arrive at Huayin... No, when other sects join us, it might not be easy to bring this up, so I hurried."
“Hmm. Well, there are more than a few things worth rushing, but isn't this not exactly the time for Gaju-nim to be worrying about me or Mount Hua?”
"That’s exactly why it has to be now."
"Huh?"
“If we lose to Evil Tyrant Alliance, all is over.”
Chung Myung fell silent for a moment and then nodded.
He greatly trusts Tang Gun-ak. However, he trusts Tang Gun-ak as a human being, not as a comrade-in-arms.
No, it wasn’t just Tang Gun-ak. Perhaps Chung Myung doesn't trust any other sect in Heavenly Comrade Alliance as comrade-in-arms at all.
'They lack a sense of crisis.'
Those who have lived through times of peace lack the fear that a sword could be at their throat at any moment. So when decisive action was needed, they hesitated.
But now, Chung Myung clearly realized. If no one else, at least Tang Gun-ak had filled that lacking sense of crisis. And because of that, he needed to look at Tang Gun-ak with different eyes than before.
“So what is it you want to say?”
“We are not in a position to be defeated by Evil Tyrant Alliance.”
“...What?”
"...Pardon?"
"As skilled as Jang Ilso might be in strategy, if Heavenly Comrade Alliance moved as one and could gain the support of Ten Great Sects, we wouldn’t have been defeated like this by the likes of Sa-pa.”
"...Is that something someone who got thoroughly beaten should be saying?"
When Tang Gun-ak frowned slightly and glared, Chung Myung awkwardly averted his eyes.
"Timing and place, you....”
“Ah, I was wrong! I was wrong!”
“Hmph.”
Tang Gun-ak cleared his throat and continued.
“There’s only one reason we lost. We all have the heart to help one another, but there’s no system. When Jang Ilso makes a decision, Evil Tyrant Alliance follows the order and risks their lives whether it is right or wrong. That is the secret to Evil Tyrant Alliance’s strength.”
“....”
"But for us to decide on just one thing, everyone must share opinions, discern right from wrong based on those opinions, and go through the process of persuading those who will follow and those who won't."
Chung Myung looked at Tang Gun-ak with a hardened face.
“There’s no way an alliance like that can function properly.”
"...I get what you're saying, but it doesn't seem like something that should come from someone who just paved a new path through conversation, does it?"
"Of course, this approach has its merits. There are times when it's needed. But… Do you really believe that it is right to stick to this method even during wartime?”
Chung Myung couldn't answer.
He had already seen what kind of results a ragtag group of leaders and a coalition of dozens of heads could produce on the battlefield.
If Cheong Mun, who doesn’t even like taking charge, hadn’t stepped up to mediate and coordinate, they would have collapsed without even being able to properly resist Magyo.
“I’ve learned this through this incident. Heavenly Comrade Alliance must change. We should maintain our trust in each other, but... this situation with multiple heads must change. Whether right or wrong, once an order is given, it must be thoroughly followed."
“Like Evil Tyrant Alliance?”
"I hate to admit it... but yes."
Chung Myung exhaled long.
"I understand. You're saying it's difficult for Maengju-nim to take on that role?"
“That’s right. He's not lacking as Maengju, but he's also not someone who can push others when opinions differ. And he's not someone who can grit his teeth and accept the sacrifice of allies either."
“He's changed a lot now.”
“...He’ll collapse. He wasn’t that strong to begin with.”
"Hmm."
Chung Myung nodded as if there was some truth to that statement.
“I get what you’re trying to say. So in the end, Heavenly Comrade Alliance needs a proper head, and the rest of the heads must be subordinated under that one, right?”
“That’s right.”
"...I thought so."
When the half-ruined Tang Family said they would put forth everything they had left, it seemed a bit strange, but this was what they had in mind.
"I get it. What you're saying. So Tang Family can fulfill that role, is that it?"
At this direct question, Tang Gun-ak looked at Chung Myung silently. Chung Myung nodded as if he understood.
Indeed, if it went that way, even if their force weakened, their reputation could rise beyond what it ever was. It was a reasonable decision to aim for the revival of Tang Family based on that reputation.
"But you didn’t need to ask me for this. There’s no better candidate than you, Gaju-nim. I'll actively support you, so do well."
If Tang Gun-ak’s position as Maengju Deputy were made official and power was consolidated around him, Heavenly Comrade Alliance would surely become more organized. Of course, it would be somewhat different from now, but given the situation, that much should be endured.
After all, it was created for everyone to help each other. Changing for the better was natural.
But Tang Gun-ak's response was somewhat different from Chung Myung's expectation.
“You didn’t understand what I said, Mount Hua Chivalrous Sword.”
"Yes?"
“I am not the right person. Those who belong to Heavenly Comrade Alliance owe me nothing. They have no reason to listen to me. I would rather step down from the position of Maengju Deputy.”
“Hm? No, what do you....”
"You, it's time for you to stop doing the dirty work from behind."
Tang Gun-ak looked at Chung Myung with a firm gaze.
"Formally establish the position of General in Heavenly Comrade Alliance and assume that position. Tang Family will do its utmost to support you.”
Chung Myung's face went blank, as if struck by something.
|Note
Consider supporting me by subscribing on Patreon for 5$. The Patreon membership for Mount Hua and Infinite Mage is the same. The benefit:
Advance chapters of Mount Hua : 76
Advance chapters of Magic Realm Convenience Store Worker : 144 Chapters
Comment