Chapter 176

I reread the letter, wondering whether Madam Jegal had gone down to the Bamboo Sea with them, but from the context, “Madam” definitely referred to the Ghost-Hand Divine Physician.

I had never heard that Madam Jegal possessed any particular knowledge of medicine. Besides, there couldn’t be many eminent physicians in the Central Plains who owned secluded caves stocked with precious elixirs they could pull out as casually as pocket change.

Just thinking about the Ghost-Hand Divine Physician made my neck ache where Ho-taeng had once pinned me down.

I rubbed it and rolled the letter back up.

The Ghost-Hand Divine Physician had treated me like some newborn scrap of flesh barely worth acknowledging. I couldn’t imagine her seeing Tang Un much differently.

So what in the world had happened between those two?

Uncle Geunmyeong hadn’t said anything either—

“Well, Un... I think he may have feelings for the Divine Physician...”

Wait.

He had tried to tell me something, hadn’t he?

The memory of Uncle Geunmyeong trailing off and hurriedly changing the subject flashed through my mind, and the room seemed to spin.

There must already have been signs before he came to see me.

I gnawed on my lip as I stared down at Tang Un’s letter.

The explanation for why the Ghost-Hand Divine Physician was suddenly being called “Madam” was probably written somewhere inside.

But I was too scared to open it.

As I sat there fiddling with the letter in a daze, Jinseong asked worriedly,

“Miss Tang, are you all right? Was there bad news?”

“I haven’t opened it yet, but I have a feeling I’m not going to be all right.”

“Pardon?”

“What if they’re serious enough that Grandfather keels over from the shock? What happens to the Tang family genealogy if they actually get married? Can this family become even more of a disaster than it already is? It’s already a disaster.”

Jinseong blinked at my rambling, then gently tried to calm me.

“You should have something warm. Would you like some tea?”

“Maybe I should.”

“Yes. I’ll prepare it.”

While Jinseong put the water on, I grimaced and cautiously unfolded the letter.

My teeth kept clicking together from nerves.

Let’s see.

The first line was an ordinary greeting.

The second was about the Bamboo Sea.

The third...

Thank goodness.

It was about his health.

I read the rest with my heart in my throat, then finally set the letter down in relief.

There was nothing about the Ghost-Hand Divine Physician.

Okay. I must’ve misunderstood. Gyeonga probably mixed up the word.

Nearly gave me a heart attack.

“Here you are.”

“Thank you.”

I sipped the tea Jinseong handed me and rubbed my chest, finally beginning to relax.

Then the sudden feeling that I had missed something came over me.

I unfolded Tang Un’s letter again.

At the bottom was a postscript I hadn’t noticed.

And the moment I read it, I wanted to cry.

Seoryak’s messenger hawk is quite the troublemaker. If it plays a prank on you, don’t get angry. Be patient with it.

Seoryak?

You’ve got to be kidding me.

Why was he casually calling someone that much older by her given name?

The Ghost-Hand Divine Physician was probably older than Grandfather!

Was there really something going on between them?

I pressed my throbbing temples and looked at the hawk sprawled across the floor.

Apparently that unruly messenger bird belonged to the Ghost-Hand Divine Physician.

Seeing my expression, Jinseong cautiously spoke.

“If my presence makes it difficult for you to write your reply, I can step outside.”

“No, it’s fine. I can answer later. It just looks like something may have happened back home, so I was thinking about it.”

I waved him off, sighed heavily, and neatly stacked the letters together.

If I ask Brother Un what exactly is going on with the Ghost-Hand Divine Physician...

He’ll probably tell me everything without leaving a single thing out.

Which makes me even less willing to ask.

I’ll just pretend I never noticed.

Thinking about it, the other person was startling, but the news itself should have been something to celebrate.

It meant Tang Un had found a reason to keep living.

Those eyes that had given up on everything and merely waited for winter to end—

if they had regained their light, perhaps that alone was enough.

And if he had found someone he wanted to spend his life with, then as his sister, I should gladly support—

I should...

But isn’t this path a little too treacherous, Brother?

Jinseong silently watched me clutch at my hair, then refilled my empty cup as if urging me to calm down.

I wrapped both hands around the warm teacup and steadied my breathing.

Then Songhwa’s cheerful voice rang out from outside.

“Miss Tang! May I come in?”

“Yes, come in.”

“The weather is wonderful today. If you have the time... Oh, Elder Jinseong is here too. But what is that messenger hawk doing there? Is it dead?”

“No. It should wake soon.”

“I see.”

Songhwa nodded at Jinseong’s answer, then turned to me and got to the point.

“Anyway, I came to ask whether you might like to get some fresh air. On a day like this, the view from the summit of Tianzhu Peak is magnificent. The flowers are in full bloom as well. Would you care to take a short outing?”

“Oh, are you offering to show me around? I’d love to. But am I allowed that far inside?”

“As long as we avoid the places where the sect elders train, it’s fine. I know the mountain quite well. I can take you by a route where we won’t meet anyone. Elder Jinseong, you’ll come too, won’t you?”

Songhwa grinned and gave Jinseong a mischievous look.

Jinseong, however, looked distinctly reluctant.

“Come with us, Daoist Jinseong. If you’re there, we’ll get yelled at less if we accidentally wander somewhere we shouldn’t.”

I added my own teasing remark.

After a brief hesitation, Jinseong answered,

“Very well. But I cannot stay longer than two hours.”

“Oh, two hours is plenty. Shall we go now?”

I sprang to my feet and pointed outside.

Jinseong stood as well.

See? Once you get him to agree, he goes along with things just fine.

Chuckling, I glanced at him and followed Songhwa outside.

Just as Songhwa had said, the weather was beautiful.

The sky was an unbroken blue, and the peaks that were usually buried in mist stood clear beneath the sunlight, revealing the village far below.

The open, sweeping view seemed to wash away the worries that had been crowding my mind.

Even Songhwa seemed unusually excited by the brilliant weather.

“Wow. I don’t think I’ve ever seen it this clear myself. I knew the view would be spectacular, but I never expected this. We’re lucky.”

He clapped his hands in admiration, then casually addressed Jinseong.

“Wouldn’t you agree, Elder Jinseong?”

“...Yes.”

“Then I’ll leave the two of you here to—”

“Songhwa.”

Songhwa flinched at the warning in Jinseong’s voice and hastily changed course.

“—have a pleasant conversation while I continue guiding you, since I was the one who brought you here in the first place. Miss Tang, this way... Ah.”

Still smiling brightly, Songhwa examined the path ahead, then scratched his head with an awkward expression.

Wondering what was wrong, I craned my neck and frowned as well.

Part of the staircase descending the mountain had collapsed.

To reach the intact section below, we would have to cross a steep cliff face.

“I’m sorry, Miss Tang. I’ll take you another way—”

“It’s fine. I’m good at climbing cliffs.”

I shrugged, climbed down without much concern, and stepped onto the intact stairs below.

Jinseong followed lightly and landed behind me.

Songhwa, on the other hand, took his time crawling down the cliff with movements that looked precarious enough to make me nervous.

After finally reaching the bottom, he collapsed onto the ground, breathing hard.

Then he looked at me with fascination.

“Miss Tang, are you practiced in the Gecko Wall Art?”

“What? This counts as martial arts? Grandfather just made me do it every day until it became second nature.”

Songhwa’s expression turned knowing.

“You did not even realize it was martial training. I suppose there is a reason you are so extraordinary. What else did you do?”

“Nothing special. Climbed mountains, scaled cliffs, stuck my hands into jars of venomous insects to practice handling poisonous energy, ate plant poisons and mineral poisons to learn how to distinguish between them...”

“...The mountains you climbed. Were they by any chance the Shu Roads?”

“Maybe? I don’t really know. I just followed Grandfather around without knowing where we were. Oh, I also practiced stitching human skin from time to time. I may not be good at much else, but I’m excellent at sewing. I can join skin back together very neatly.”

“Tang Clan training is... extraordinary...”

Songhwa looked like he might throw up.

“The martial world is vast and full of extraordinary people. Tang Clan training is pretty ordinary.”

“It is not ordinary at all.”

“Says the Wudang Daoist who practices swordsmanship on mountaintops. You’re hardly normal yourselves.”

“When you put it that way, I suppose I have no answer.”

Songhwa scratched his head and chuckled.

While the two of us chatted, Jinseong looked at the sky to judge the time, then spoke in his usual curt tone.

“Two hours have passed. I should go.”

“Elder Jinseong, couldn’t you stay a little longer?”

Songhwa tried to stop him, looking disappointed.

Jinseong shook his head.

“I cannot. My eldest senior brother told me to gather with him in the late afternoon.”

“What? Then you need to go! You can’t be late, can you? Why didn’t you tell us that from the beginning? Hurry!”

Startled, I jumped up and began pushing Jinseong from behind.

He gave a small nod, then raced down the stairs so quickly that my eyes could barely follow him.

“Should we head down too?”

“Yes, Miss Tang. But could we rest just a little longer first?”

“Of course. Catch your breath.”

Songhwa looked genuinely exhausted, and I let out a quiet laugh as I sat on the stairs.

He wiped the sweat from his forehead, then cautiously broached a subject.

“Miss Tang... tomorrow, it would probably be best if you did not leave the guest quarters. Things may be somewhat unsettled.”

“Tomorrow? Is something happening?”

“It is the anniversary of my elder’s death. There are circumstances surrounding it, so none of us will likely be able to visit you tomorrow.”

“Ah... I understand. I’ll stay in.”

At the seriousness in Songhwa’s voice, I nodded without argument.

Whatever the story was, it apparently wasn’t something they could easily discuss with an outsider.

*****

By the time I returned to the guest quarters, the Ghost-Hand Divine Physician’s messenger hawk had regained consciousness.

The instant it saw me, it flapped its wings and charged.

“Skree!”

Cane smacked it once.

The hawk immediately wilted, retreated into a corner, and curled up miserably.

“Cane. You know that bird?”

“Kii.”

Cane nodded and proudly puffed out its chest.

It seemed to be declaring that its rank was higher.

Come to think of it, both of them had been handled by the Ghost-Hand Divine Physician.

“You understand people too, right? I’ll write the reply tomorrow. Stay the night.”

After giving the bird that vague instruction, I washed my face and flopped onto the bed.

The evening air had grown heavy, as if the clear sky had never existed.

Late that night, rain began to fall.

The drops tapping lightly against the roof became a torrential downpour almost instantly.

Rumble—BOOM!

The thunder was so violent that Cane leapt in fright and threw itself into my arms.

For a while, I covered my ears against the roar of rain that sounded as though the sky itself were collapsing and burrowed beneath the blankets.

Then I sensed someone outside.

Rubbing my eyelids, I sat up.

Someone was standing in front of the guest quarters.

In the rain.

Who?

I threw on an outer robe and stepped outside.

When I looked over the wall, I froze and sucked in a breath.

Madam Ma stood motionless beneath the pouring rain.