Chapter 2 – Laws of the Jianghu

Chapter 2 – Laws of the Jianghu

The Jianghu.

A world where one could accumulate the qi flowing in nature within the body and utilize it in the form of internal energy.

Walking in the void, returning to youth from old age, and kindling the Samadhi True Fire were actually possible things in this world.

So, for me, who had normally liked martial arts novels, this place could be called romance itself. The martial prowess blossomed while wandering the Jianghu doing righteous deeds, and the martial arts and loyalty of mysterious masters… Isn't that cool?

Of course, if there were good things, there were bound to be bad things as well.

For instance, a person's life being similar to a fly's life, or the law being far away while fists were close… and of all things, the case where I was the weak one.

‘Ugh, I thought a second life would be a bit easier.’

Therefore, to survive in this brutal and interesting place, a few steps were needed.

The first was knowing one's place.

"So, you're saying I have a weak body and have rarely ever gone outside the annex?"

Sawol dragged me here and there around the house, saying he would help me find my memories. There was no way anything would come to mind, but to stay here, I had to gather as much information as possible.

If there was a saving grace in this crazy situation, it was that there was no big problem in understanding the language of the Central Plains. If I knew nothing and couldn't even communicate… Just imagining it made me dizzy.

"I have an older brother above me."

"Yes, Young Master Hae-soo will soon turn twenty. Do you remember a little?"

Since I knew nothing, there was no way I would remember.

I smiled awkwardly and changed the subject.

"It… feels like that, and yet it doesn't, haha… Right, what kind of person is older brother?"

"Young Master Hae-soo is truly a perfect martial artist of the Tang Clan. If it's poison, it's poison; if it's hidden weapons, it's hidden weapons! In addition, he has a good character and is knowledgeable. Is that all? He is also so extremely devoted to you, Young Master."

"To me?"

"Yes. He obtains spirit pills for you every time and takes care of precious medicinal herbs."

They said that this body I occupied had tangled qi and blood vessels from birth. Because the energy that should flow could not, let alone proper martial arts, my health also deteriorated day by day.

‘If it had gone according to its original lifespan, it would have eventually failed to wake up and died.’

A soul forms a pair with the body. That meant two souls could not enter a single body. Therefore, the fact that I woke up in this body…

‘…Your life was also quite unfortunate.’

I muttered to myself while looking at the face reflected in the pond.

‘I will make good use of this body from now on. You might not like it, but… please go easy on me since I didn't end up here by choice either.’

Was it because our names were similar? Somehow it didn't feel like someone else's business, so my mouth felt bitter.

But what could I do? The living me had no choice but to keep figuring out how to survive.

Since I woke up in an unhealthy body, recovering my health was the priority.

‘Although they said I almost died, for that, my body is extremely light?’

A healthy skeleton with no turtle neck, herniated disc, or carpal tunnel syndrome, which were chronic illnesses of modern people. For me, who had suddenly woken up in a fifteen-year-old's body, it felt like a very light physical condition.

‘…Well, there are some good things.’

I would have to experience it to know the details, but at any rate, it was certain that this life was more affluent than my previous life. First of all, just waking up in the body of a direct descendant of the Tang Clan rather than a beggar of the Beggars' Sect meant my luck was better than in my previous life.

Just then, Sawol, who had been staring blankly at me, poked my side.

"But Young Master, do you really not remember? Is it not a lie?"

"Why would I make up such a lie?"

I was the one who wished all of this were a lie, Sawol…

"Come on, it's not like I've only known you for a day or two, Young Master. What kind of circumstance is it? Be honest and tell only me. Yes? What is it because of?"

"What do you mean, circumstance? I really don't remember."

Sawol, who had been questioning me persistently, clapped his hands as if something had occurred to him and spoke.

"Did you gamble somewhere? Oh, by any chance, did you sneak into the Forbidden Weapons Storehouse again? Or was it that you got caught stealing the elders' secret manuals…"

"……?"

"Heavens, surely you weren't sharing an secret tryst?"

…What on earth did the owner of this body do? Didn't you just say he was a patient?

"Ah… Was I originally that kind of… that kind of kid? Constantly causing trouble, having a bad personality?"

When I asked in a flustered voice, Sawol pondered for a moment before answering.

"Huh? It's not that, but…"

"……but?"

"You once tore a fan gifted by the sect leader of the Wudang Sect, though of course it was an accident. And you also picked fights with martial artists. But you have been quiet lately."

…What do you mean, it's not that, exactly?

My head began to throb again. I had thought he was a sickly young master, but it was a big misunderstanding. Tang San-ho was quite a troublemaker, contrary to his quiet appearance.

"Ah, Young Master. Would you like to return to the annex first? I need to stop by the Medical Hall for a moment."

"Then I will look around a bit more and come back."

After sending away Sawol, who said he was going to fetch the medicinal tea, I walked around the vicinity.

‘Since it is the place where I will live from now on, it would be better to get to know it.’

The Sichuan Tang Clan.

A place referred to as one of the Five Great Families representing the Jianghu, and the progenitor of poisons and hidden weapons.

‘Repaying favors twofold, and repaying grudges tenfold’ was famous as the family tradition, and as the inheritance of martial arts was thoroughly centered around blood relatives, it was a closed-off and brutal place.

And I was the weak youngest son of such a Sichuan Tang Clan.

Having finished knowing my place, it was now the next turn. The second step to survive in this rough Jianghu.

‘I must become strong.’

Why were martial arts novels romantic? It was precisely because the protagonist was strong.

It was gratifying when the protagonist chopped off the limbs of enemies and smashed their heads while talking about the laws of the Jianghu. Of course, a martial art for the sake of clear grudges and favors, and righteousness and chivalry was also romantic.

But were there only experts in this Jianghu? That wasn't the case. Not to mention ordinary people who hadn't learned martial arts, waiters, third-class martial artists, and me…

…From the perspective of a weakling like us, the laws of the Jianghu. There was nothing more terrifying than that.

Eating well and living well, my foot, it was a relief just to keep one's neck intact. Therefore, to live a romantic life, it was necessary to become strong.

Because in this life, I wanted to properly enjoy a gold spoon life without worrying about my neck.

‘Tch, what do I need to do to learn the Tang Clan's martial arts? Nominally I'm the son of the family head, but will they just teach me if I ask?’

While I was lost in deep thought, an unfamiliar voice drifted from behind.

"You didn't die and were still alive."

Looking at the place where the sound came from, a perfect martial artist stood as if drawn. A neat handsome man with a sharp nose and long, slender eyes.

‘Oh, he must be a martial artist of the Tang Clan. Dark green martial robes with wide sleeves. I didn't know I would get to see this in person.’

Seeing a martial artist of the Tang Clan in reality, whom I could only see in novels, my heart began to flutter a little, forgetting even my own situation.

"Ah, hello."

"Hah. They said your memory isn't intact, but did you seriously forget who I am too?"

……Who was he again?

All the information Sawol explained to me was in my head. The problem was that it had not yet been connected to a face. By feeling, the martial artist in front of me did not look to be in a good mood.

"I'm sorry. I still…"

"Forget it. Rather, it turned out well. Since you didn't know manners, it wouldn't be bad to learn from the beginning."

"……"

A frown naturally formed between my brows as someone who looked younger than me talked about manners and cut me off. Moreover, although I was a bit confused just now, seeing that crooked corner of the mouth and arrogant eyes gave me a clue. He was trying to intimidate me because I was young and weak.

"…If you tell me who you are, I will not forget it."

"Why would I hold onto a sick person and do that? Since the master is in this state, where is that fellow Sawol? I must thoroughly correct his habits first."

Romance, my foot… There are guys like this even in the Jianghu. Bastards who bully the weak and think they're somebody.

‘Did this body originally receive this kind of treatment?’

The treatment that the sickly young master would have received in a world that valued becoming a high-level martial artist as the supreme value was vividly painted.

I stood crookedly and asked the martial artist in front of me.

"As you said, my memory is not intact, so I am asking, are you indeed someone I should show manners to?"

"What?"

"You could have kindly told me, so I don't know the reason why you are going out of your way to get angry."

I always had bad relations with guys like this. Perhaps it wasn't the expected response, as the martial artist glared at me with an absurd expression.

"It seems you have nothing in your eyes after stepping on the threshold of the underworld. Did you like the scenery of the underworld so much that you want to see it again?"

"Next time I almost die, I will look at it in detail and tell you."

"Why, you…!!"

When I talked back word for word without losing a single line, the martial artist raised his voice and strode closer.

It was then.

"What is this commotion?"

As a martial artist with a solemn atmosphere walked over from the side, the martial artist who had been picking a fight bowed his head and showed respect. Judging by the atmosphere, he was clearly the highest authority in this household.

"Clan Leader."

Indeed. If he was the current clan leader of the Sichuan Tang Clan, he was my father and Tang Hwa-seon, who possessed the title Ten Thousand Poisons Divine King.

I walked over next to the martial artist who had picked a fight and showed respect in the same way while reading his expressions. When confused, imitating is the best.

Tang Hwa-seon, who looked back and forth between the martial artist and me, opened his mouth with a solemn expression.

"Not just anyone, but two fellows who are nominally direct descendants of the clan leader are doing a fine job. Seeing you raise your voices like this, what would the family members think?"

‘The clan leader's direct descendant? Then was he my brother?’

Good grief, Sawol. Isn't this too different from what you told me? Did the kind brother who has a good character and cherishes his younger brother die on his way here?

"I apologize."

"…My thinking was short-sighted."

"How on earth are you two so immature? I don't want to hear any more. Just as I mentioned before, San-ho should also accompany this search."

"Father!"

"It is an order as the clan leader. Do you intend to disobey?"

"San-ho has not even been awake for a day. He is not even in his right mind yet, so a search, please withdraw your words."

Tang Hae-soo spoke while looking at me with a tone filled with worry.

What on earth are they going to find for him to act like that?

‘What, are they looking for some spirit medicine? Something like He Shou Wu or Ten-Thousand-Year Snow Ginseng?’

"What are your thoughts, San-ho? Do you also think you cannot make it?"

The clan leader's gaze looking at me was strange. A gaze mixed with suspicion, anxiety, and a sliver of expectation. It was a question with an underlying intention.

What would the original owner of this body have answered? Would he have said he couldn't go? Or would he have thought of this as an opportunity?

Even if I pondered, there was no way to know. Because I was not Tang San-ho.

"No, I can do it."

Then, I'll just do it according to my own personality.

It is polite to respond to expectations.

Above all, if I received the clan leader's recognition, it would also be easier to learn martial arts. I died young in my previous life, so I couldn't die young here as well, could I? Wherever they were going, I had to go along to at least eat a single fine root.

"Where do you think you're going when your body is so weak!"

Look at this guy? When did he ask if I didn't die and was still alive, and now he was pretending to be nice in front of the clan leader.

"Since older brother is here, what worry would there be? Fortunately, my eyes are bright, so I will be of help in the search."

Seeing Tang Hae-soo's face gradually crumple, I felt slightly satisfied.

‘Even if you hate it, what can you do, I also have my own circumstances.’

Just then, behind the wooden pillar, the figure of Sawol, who had said he was going to the Medical Hall, came into view.

But, something was strange.

‘…Why is his face like that?’

Sawol, who had turned pale white, was staring at me while desperately shaking his head.

‘No!!!’

In his shaking eyes, it felt like I could hear a scream that should have been inaudible. While I tilted my head in confusion, goosebumps suddenly broke out along my spine.

Why, what.

……Where am I going?