Chapter 93 : The Slacker Makes a Move (1)

Chapter 93: The Slacker Makes a Move (1)

“The road’s quite fine, isn’t it?”

“……”

“If we have some time, why don’t we stop somewhere along the way? It’s been so long since we’ve traveled with such peace of mind, don’t you think?”

“……”

“Darling?”

“Say one more word and you might never use that mouth again for the rest of your life, so watch yourself.”

Wi Jeonghan clamped his mouth shut. His wife had been visibly in a foul mood for a while now. In such times, the best course was to shut his mouth like he was dead. Speaking carelessly could mean he wouldn't even get a meal later.

Having committed far too many sins, Wi Jeonghan couldn’t lift his head in front of Han Sang-a. And ever since Wi Yeonho had gone missing, he’d become no better than a mouse before a cat.

After all, it had been Wi Jeonghan who had convinced the reluctant Han Sang-a to enroll Wi Yeonho in the academy.

Knowing full well the extent of his guilt, Wi Jeonghan had taken to withdrawing his neck like a turtle whenever Han Sang-a so much as opened her mouth. By now, he couldn’t even make a peep in front of her.

'To think the Righteous Hero Sword is a henpecked husband…'

Mosan-a watched Wi Jeonghan and Han Sang-a with amused eyes.

'Would this be useful as information?'

Even if it were, most people wouldn’t believe it. The Righteous Hero Sword was a chivalrous warrior known among the righteous, but to those who followed demonic paths, he was more terrifying than the Grim Reaper.

Wasn’t he the one who famously said that one must not hesitate when practicing justice? The number of demonic cultivators who had met their end at his hands must be well over a hundred.

Even if they were demonic practitioners, they were still people.

And yet, the very man who had sent over a hundred people to the afterlife in the name of justice was now cowering at his wife’s every word.

It was simply unbelievable.

“Why is this carriage so slow?”

“Have you already forgotten how many of our horses collapsed foaming at the mouth?”

“Seems like the horses weren’t very good. I’m sure I told them to prepare only the highest quality.”

“They weren’t legendary Cold-Blooded Horses, but I made sure to get ones that rivaled them.”

Especially in price—they definitely rivaled them in price.

Had his patience been just a little thinner, he would’ve grabbed the carriage supplier by the collar and shouted, “You frauds! I’ll kill every last one of you!” That’s how close he’d come to throwing a fit.

“Everything you handle turns out like this.”

Wi Jeonghan looked sullenly down at his own feet.

Seeing him act so sheepishly, Mosan-a found it hard to believe this was Wi Jeonghan’s usual demeanor.

'What on earth is the Grand House of Wi in Guangdong?'

The Wi Sanho she had met was the very embodiment of a martial artist. Though still young, he’d left such a strong impression that she thought someone from the Grand House of Wi might become the Greatest of All Time in a decade.

So naturally, Mosan-a had assumed Wi Jeonghan, who raised him, would be an even greater martial artist. But now that she’d met him, there wasn’t a more pitiful henpecked husband in all the world. And that might’ve been tolerable if he simply feared his wife, but his conduct showed no dignity or authority befitting the Clan Head of the Grand House of Wi.

'And on top of that…'

Her head began to throb at the thought of Wi Yeonho.

Ever since she had taken charge of the Kaifeng Branch, the one person she couldn’t understand was Wi Yeonho.

It was common for renowned clans—so-called Great Clans—to have at least one eccentric in the family.

But a clan having three of them, all too ridiculous to even call mere eccentrics? That, to her knowledge, only applied to the Grand House of Wi in Guangdong.

'Is it cursed land or something?'

With all three direct bloodline members acting abnormally, there was no better explanation than a misfortunate lineage or ill-fated ancestral ground.

“What’s got you so lost in thought?”

“Huh? Oh! No, nothing!”

Mosan-a immediately straightened up, stiff with tension. The one speaking to her was the woman who ruled over the Righteous Hero Sword, the greatest prodigy under heaven, and an unknown young martial master—Han Sang-a, the ruler of the Grand House of Wi in Guangdong.

Sweat beaded and trickled down her back.

'Even meeting the Alliance Leader of the Righteous Martial Alliance wouldn’t make me this nervous…'

Traveling in a carriage with someone like that was a torment beyond torment.

If she had known any martial arts, she would’ve ridden a horse or used movement arts to travel all the way to Hubei. But Han Sang-a, though technically a martial artist, was so lacking that she herself would be embarrassed to say she’d learned martial arts.

Not that being a woman with weak martial skills was a flaw in itself.

“I was just lost in thought for a moment.”

“Bored?”

“Not at all.”

Mosan-a waved her hands quickly. That gesture alone seemed to please Han Sang-a, who smiled contentedly.

How beautiful she looked.

From the very first meeting, Han Sang-a had struck Mosan-a as a sharp and precise woman. But the more she saw of her, the more fondness she felt. Her background wasn’t great, and she was a bit older, but those were minor flaws.

'Compared to my son’s flaws, that’s nothing.'

Even a porcupine finds its own child adorable, but cute was cute—and hopeless was hopeless.

Han Sang-a still found Wi Yeonho adorable, but she was also coldly realistic. To her, he was no more than clearance stock that needed to be gotten rid of. Left alone, he would only gather dust in the warehouse forever.

Whether through discount, coercion, or trickery—one way or another, he had to go. Otherwise, he’d never be sold.

'So by any means…'

Just then, the carriage slowly came to a halt.

“Huh?”

Mosan-a’s eyes sharpened. There was no reason for the carriage to stop now. She rose from her seat and opened the small window that connected to the coachman’s bench.

“What’s going on?”

“Young Mistress, some men are blocking the road ahead.”

“Who are they?”

“They appear to be bandits…”

“Bandits? Are bandits a problem?”

She wasn’t just the Kaifeng Branch Leader of the Hao Clan—she was also the daughter of the Clan Leader of the Hao Clan. The coachman who served her was also a well-known master within the Hao Clan.

Even those who knew little about the Hao Clan had heard the name Night Guest. No further explanation was needed.

And such a person had stopped the carriage because of mere bandits?

“It seems they’re from the Green Forest.”

“The Green Forest!”

Mosan-a’s expression hardened as she opened the carriage door.

If it were the Green Forest, this wasn’t going to be easy. While it was full of riffraff like the Beggar Sect, that very fact made them all the more troublesome—one careless move could create enmity.

Bandits were one thing, but if one of the main mountain keeps of the Green Forest got involved, it would turn into a serious problem.

Upon stepping out, she saw that the men blocking their way weren’t the typical ragtag bandits clad in leather. These were sharp-eyed martial artists wearing green robes.

'Green Forest, then.'

The 林 character embroidered on their chests clearly marked who they were.

“What seems to be the issue?”

The Green Forest men didn’t respond. Instead, they slowly scanned the group and began surrounding them without a word.

“Does the Green Forest have no manners?”

Mosan-a’s voice rang out sharply, causing flickers of surprise to appear in their eyes.

“If she recognizes us, she must not be an ordinary woman. What’s your identity?”

“I am Mosan-a, Kaifeng Branch Leader of the Hao Clan. The Hao Clan and the Green Forest have maintained a good relationship until now, so there’s no need to create conflict. I don’t know the reason behind this, but if you explain, we’ll cooperate.”

The man at the front narrowed his eyes.

“The Hao Clan, huh…”

He looked at Mosan-a with clear displeasure before finally speaking.

“The Hao Clan… If you’re from the Hao Clan, then you have the right to speak like that. Fine. Go back. If you descend the mountain, we won’t stop you.”

“We need to pass through this mountain.”

“Not allowed.”

His voice was firm.

“The Green Forest King has ordered the mountain closed. Due to a recent unfortunate incident, no one is to pass through this area.”

“……”

Mosan-a’s face darkened.

With the Green Forest King’s name invoked, negotiation was no longer an option. No one who relied on mountain resources could afford to disregard that name.

At least in the mountains, the Green Forest King, ruler of the Seventy-Two Keeps of the Green Forest, held authority akin to that of the Emperor.

“You’re saying we have to turn around and descend the mountain?”

“Yes. Normally, you’d have to surrender all your belongings to pass, but for the sake of the Hao Clan’s reputation, we’ll let you go this once. Don’t expect any more generosity.”

“Hmm…”

A wrinkle formed between Mosan-a’s brows.

Turning back wasn’t difficult, but taking a detour would cost them time. This was the only passable path for a carriage in the area, meaning a detour would significantly delay them.

And if that happened…

“What? Take a detour around the mountain?”

A sharp voice rang out from inside the carriage.

Mosan-a let out a sigh.

Han Sang-a, already full of complaints over the slow pace, was unlikely to accept this situation quietly.

“Looks like you’ll have to clear the road.”

“Did you not understand what we said?”

“Oh, we understood you. But we have our own circumstances.”

“Circumstances?”

Han Sang-a had no desire to create conflict with the Green Forest. The Hao Clan, as an organization that thrived on information gathering, couldn’t afford to make enemies.

But the people inside the carriage had no such concern.

“I’ll step aside. Why don’t you speak to the person concerned directly?”

“You dare ignore the name of the Green Forest King just because we showed you leniency!”

Just as the Green Forest men were about to explode in anger, a deep voice echoed from within the carriage.

“Well, you talk a lot for bandits.”

The Green Forest men’s eyes turned toward the carriage door.

Then, a slightly disheveled middle-aged man slowly stepped out.

“Times sure are nice. Engaging in affairs inside a carriage, are we?”

It was a misunderstanding, but Mosan-a at least knew that the disheveled look wasn’t from any illicit affair. Rather, it was because Han Sang-a had shaken Wi Jeonghan by the collar and roughed him up.

'She grabbed the Righteous Hero Sword by the collar.'

Men may rule the world, but women rule men—Han Sang-a was a prime example for all women.

“The Green Forest King, huh… That name brings back memories.”

The Righteous Hero Sword smiled faintly.

“I wonder if that fellow’s side is still intact. My sword went in quite deep that time.”

“You bastard!”

Just as the Green Forest man at the front was about to lose it, another man behind him grabbed his shoulder and forced him down.

“What is it?”

As the confused man turned around, the Green Forest man behind him, staring at Wi Jeonghan with trembling eyes, spoke up.

“It’s… the Righteous Hero Sword!”

“What?”

All the Green Forest men stepped back several paces.

“The Righteous Hero Sword?”

“I heard the one who left a deep sword wound on the Green Forest King’s body was none other than the Righteous Hero Sword.”

“The Righteous Hero Sword…”

The impact of that name was overwhelming. Just moments ago, they had been threatening with the name of the Green Forest King, but now they were trembling as if they’d seen a demon.

“I’m not usually the kind to let bastards like you go…”

Wi Jeonghan clicked his tongue with mock regret.

“But I’m in a hurry today, so I’ll forgive you this once. Now get out of the way.”

It was the moment the greatest henpecked husband under heaven transformed into the greatest scourge of the demonic path.

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