Chapter 164 – Hoping to Get Closer (6)

There’s a saying that a wordless horse travels a thousand miles.

It’s a truly amazing saying, isn’t it? Information in a time without the internet, phones, or even newspapers and radios could spread so far and fast.

But having actually lived in that era, it seemed entirely possible.

In a world with little entertainment, interesting rumors were excellent diversions in and of themselves.

Of course, those who worked in the prestigious three families like the Pang family had to be careful with their words. If they made a mistake, it wouldn’t just end with being chased out.

“Why? Isn’t this surprisingly not a big deal? We just need to follow up on the argument from earlier and be careful with our words.”

“Ugh…this idiot Geomryong! Did you forget who the owner of that argument from earlier was?”

“Ah.”

The reason why they had to be careful with their words was that they couldn’t disclose any information that could harm the Pang family to the outside world.

That’s right. It’s because the Pang family manages it. The subject is the Pang family, after all.

If I were to personally investigate, the owner of the argument from earlier wouldn’t reveal what they saw so easily.

Instead, they would carefully consider and eventually inform either Pang Ojin or Pang Soso.

I, too, came to a conclusion after much thought with a clear head.

“This is fucked up.”

“Huh? There was a bit of a problem, but it’s not that bad, is it? It’s just a simple misunderstanding. If we explain properly, it should be fine…”

“If only that were possible.”

The Pang Ojin I know isn’t that rational of a person. At least not when it comes to anything related to Pang Soso.

Last time, didn’t he try to make Samamaeng his third wife under the guise of personally verifying her skills at the peak of her powers?

It was derailed by a betrayal brought by something Pang Soso brought in and news of Samaryeon’s unification of the Sabas, but that was just putting off the problem for a while.

“It doesn’t matter if this is a misunderstanding. To the master, this will be just a simple opportunity.”

“That can’t be…the Pang family head I saw wasn’t that reckless.”

“Well, maybe he acted that way when he was dealing with you or Samamaeng in an official capacity.”

In private, he’s quite a hot-headed person. In both good and bad ways.

“Well, he won’t blame you knowing it’s a misunderstanding. This is a problem I have to solve, so for now, put on some proper clothes. We have somewhere to go first.”

“Oh, right. We’re going to where Cheonmabin is, right?”

“Acting like nothing happened, huh? Yeah, we should explain it to the master or spread the word before he hears it from someone else. Let’s stop by Samamaeng’s room on the way and go together.”

Samaryeon nodded her head and started fixing her clothes.

…I couldn’t help but think it would be nice if she pulled up her short deer-like legs and untied the ribbon that was tied up high.

Anyway, I also put on my outerwear again and left the room looking neat.

***

Now it’s Pang Soso’s room, which is as comfortable as my own room. Five men and women gathered in the center.

Me, Hong Yeon-hwa, Pang Soso, Samamaeng, and Samaryeon.

No matter how spacious the room is, it can’t help but feel cramped when five adults are gathered.

But no one complained about it in this situation. There was something more important.

“It’s the start of the second family meeting!”

“Wow!”

Hong Yeon-hwa, who raised the magpie stick and put on a strict, dignified, and serious expression, declared it, and Pang Soso clapped her hands and played the tambourine.

Hong Yeon-hwa smiled satisfactorily and continued speaking.

“Do you know what the agenda is this time?”

“It’s about Jin Gaga, who spent the night in the Sa-hwa room!”

“That’s right. Of course, I trust my husband…but what if something unexpected happens? There’s already a precedent.”

Hong Yeon-hwa puffed up her cheeks and protested, tapping her foot.

It was a threat at the level of a hamster that had its delicious sunflower seeds taken away.

But maybe Samaryeon felt it fiercely with her eyes. Startled, she reflexively hid behind me.

“Come here, Yeoryeong.”

“Huh, Mom?”

She was led out by Samamaeng’s hand right after.

Samaryeon, who said confidently just a moment ago that she didn’t do anything wrong, seemed uneasy under Hong Yeon-hwa’s intense gaze.

“Stay still. This is just a confirmation.”

“What? What do you mean…?”

Samamaeng grabbed Samaryeon’s arm and brought her face closer. More precisely, she brought her nose closer.

Sniff, sniff.

Samamaeng started to smell Samaryeon’s scent.

“Um, I can faintly smell the scent of the upper body from the neck and behind the knees, but that’s all.”

Hong Yeon-hwa and Pang Soso also came closer to me and sniffed.

Sniff, sniff, sniff.

The two people turned around my body with their noses, like a carnivorous animal looking for a gap before hunting its prey.

After a while of leaning on Hong Yeon-hwa and Pang Soso, did they come to a conclusion? The two of them smiled satisfactorily and stepped back.

“It looks like there was nothing to worry about.”

“That’s right. I can smell the scent of Sa-hwa on her hands, but…the smell of alcohol is stronger. If we combine it with what Mang-unni said, maybe Jin Gaga was too drunk to control herself and someone had to take care of her?”

I knew she was sensitive to smells, but I didn’t expect her to be this good. As I was admiring her, Samaryeon, who was sitting next to me, asked with a frightened expression.

“Mom, did your other senses become more sensitive instead of your sight, and since Cheonma-nim is at a high level, maybe that’s why…but what about Mang-yeon-dobong?”

“I don’t know. Maybe it’s just something she was born with?”

If we only consider the sense of smell, Pang Soso is much more sensitive than Hong Yeon-hwa. Maybe she’s on the same level as Samamaeng.

Pang Soso laughed and scratched her cheek as if she had heard our conversation.

“Oh, it’s just something I was born with. I can only smell the scent related to Jin Gaga.”

“That’s still scary…”

Samaryeon stepped back, looking scared. She doesn’t know anything. That’s why she’s so cute.

I shrugged and spread my arms slightly.

“Well, anyway, this issue has been resolved, right?”

An unspoken request for a hug. But if it were a normal day, Hong Yeon-hwa would have rushed over, but she was still staring at us with puffed-up cheeks.

Of course, Pang Soso and Samamaeng were also staying put, watching Hong Yeon-hwa’s every move.

“Yeon-hwa?”

“Not yet. The family meeting isn’t over yet.”

“Wasn’t the misunderstanding cleared up? There really was nothing, right? She just drank too much and fell asleep in the middle.”

“I don’t doubt that part either. I can see through anything you do, so I knew everything from the beginning.”

Then why did you smell her…? How can you see through everything? Is that even possible with your level of enlightenment?

As I made a mental note to never hide anything from Hong Yeon-hwa again, she pursed her lips and drew circles on the ground with her toes, speaking in a low voice.

“You. Aren’t you being too careless with Bonnyeo these days…?”

“What?”

“Think about it. How much time have you spent with Bonnyeo since you and Mang went back to your hometown?”

The time spent devoted to training to reach the peak, the time spent for Samamaeng who lives separately, and the time recently invested to improve the relationship with Samaryeon.

Considering that Hong Yeon-hwa has also started to devote time to her own training lately, the time spent with her has decreased. Of course, the same goes for Pang Soso.

“Of course, I know that you didn’t really want to distance yourself from Bonnyeo. And I know it couldn’t be helped. But…it still hurts, doesn’t it?”

“….”

This time, instead of spreading my arms, I approached Hong Yeon-hwa and hugged her.

“I’m sorry.”

“It’s Bonnyeo who’s throwing a tantrum. You don’t have to apologize.”

“Still, I’m sorry.”

Hong Yeon-hwa looked at me directly after quietly admitting her true feelings.

Pang Soso approached us stealthily and hugged Hong Yeon-hwa from the side.

Then she gestured towards Samamaeng, and soon enough, we felt her touch from the opposite side.

How long had we been standing there as one unit? When Samaryeon couldn’t intervene because she was left out, she started to feel awkward.

Samamaeng opened her mouth with a determined voice.

“If I merge with all of you, we can spend more time in the sky.”

“Hmm? I appreciate the thought, but didn’t you say that you’re not used to Mang yet?”

“It’ll be okay soon. I think it’s more important to prevent the seeds of discord from being sown early on than to feel a little embarrassed.”

“Soso’s right. Then how about this? We’ll share the same room as usual, but we’ll use separate rooms only when we sleep. Once we get used to it, we can sleep together next time.”

“Thank you for your consideration, Lady Jeongsil.”

It was a sleeping plan that was decided without my opinion…I don’t hate it, but something feels off.

For a moment, I absentmindedly played with Hong Yeon-hwa’s hair, feeling a strange sensation.

Suddenly, a familiar voice was heard with a strong presence.

“I have something to say to my son-in-law, can I come in?”

It was Pang Ojin’s voice. He finally came.

No matter how much he was Pang Ojin, I couldn’t greet him in this state, so I finally let go of the hug.

“Come in, Father-in-law.”

Swoosh.

As soon as Pang Soso gave her permission, Pang Ojin looked around the room.

“It seems like the conversation is already over. Tsk!”

“Why are you clicking your tongue like that?”

“Even the master of Pangga only had one wife. How can a son-in-law…ugh.”

Pang Ojin grumbled, and Pang Soso defended me.

“That’s just because Father-in-law likes Mother so much, isn’t it? And Jin Gaga also liked us so much that it couldn’t be helped.”

“What…?”

It seemed to have the opposite effect.

Pang Ojin was momentarily moved by Pang Soso’s casual response, but soon let out a sigh and lowered his head.

“Well, it’s okay. We didn’t come here for that kind of thing. If the conversation went well, it was probably just a misunderstanding or something. Don’t worry about the fight, we’ll handle it well.”

Pang Ojin spoke directly to Samaryeon, not Nanapang Soso. He must have been considerate of Samaryeon, as even if it was just a misunderstanding, it would still cause her trouble if it spread.

Samaryeon silently nodded her head.

What’s this? Unexpectedly, Pang Ojin is too docile. I thought he would give me a hard time or challenge me to a duel in the training ground.

Pang Ojin chuckled at my puzzled expression.

“I told you before. I’ll entrust Soso to you. I thought that if Soso was happy, it wouldn’t be my place to tell her what to do. What I think is Soso’s happiness and what Soso thinks is her happiness may be different. …Of course, if Soso is even a little upset, then the conversation will be different.”

Pang Ojin, who said that much, scratched his head roughly as if he was cool and then spoke.

“Ahem. Anyway, I came to see you for a different reason.”

“You mean it’s a different reason?”

“Let’s have a duel.”

“Is it really for a different reason?”

At my uneasy reaction, Pang Ojin nodded his head seriously.

“Yes. It’s a different reason. Isn’t there a war with Samaryeon coming up soon?”

“Just in case, we have no intention of participating.”

“I know that, you brat. You’ve already had a close call with kidnapping, and there have been too many bad connections with Samaryeon so far. So it’s better to prepare as much as possible before going.”

“Prepare?”

“Practice for the mid-level battle.”

“Ah.”

It was time to challenge the mid-level battle. Pang Ojin was going to help with that.

When I looked back, Hong Yeon-hwa nodded her head calmly.

“Bonnyeo thinks it’s a good opportunity. If the lower-level battle is about internal energy, the mid-level battle is about the body, and the upper-level battle is about the mind. Bonnyeo is confident that her martial arts skills are not inferior to the history of the Pang family, but she feels a little lacking in physical strength. After all, Bonnyeo focused on learning Qigong to supplement her weak body.”

“Really?”

“That’s right. Isn’t your body as strong as the direct descendants of the Pang family? Bonnyeo thinks it’s right to receive the teachings of the Pang family this time.”

After a short hesitation, I bowed my head to Pang Ojin.

“Thank you, Father-in-law. When are you planning to start?”

“Right now.”

“Huh?”

“I told you to follow me to the training ground right away.”

As I raised my head, Pang Ojin was laughing softly. It seemed like he was looking forward to the duel.

…So that’s why he acted so nonchalant earlier.