Chapter 51
Part 1: The Fourth Young Master
The boy was visibly nervous.
With fair skin, large and gentle eyes, and a rosy, cute face, the boy was the Fourth Young Master of the Luoyang Sword Clan, Yeon Bi.
“Eldest Brother will be coming soon.”
He stamped his feet.
The faces of the maids around him were full of smiles as they watched the adorable boy.
“Preparations! The preparations are all complete, yes?”
His chief maid bent her knees, met his gaze, and smiled.
“Yes, of course they are.”
The chief maid, a woman of soft beauty who looked to be in her early thirties, wore an expression that seemed to say she wanted to bite her master from sheer affection.
“Six varieties of the finest famous teas from different regions, assorted refreshments procured from the Tea Fragrance Guild, and fresh fruits…”
The Fourth Young Master clapped his hands and interrupted her.
“Exclude ordinary fruits. Wongakjeong must have plenty of freshly harvested fruit.”
“Yes, you need not worry. We prepared only rare fruits from the South. And…”
After listening for a while, the boy clapped his hands again.
“Come to think of it, what if Eldest Brother’s legs hurt while he is walking? Eldest Brother has no internal energy, does he? A palanquin! Has a palanquin been prepared?”
“Of course.”
When the chief maid pointed to one side, the maids stepped aside, revealing the palanquin bearers and the palanquin.
“It is a palanquin made by the finest craftsman with the finest materials.”
The boy nodded and examined the palanquin, then clapped his hands again.
“Ah! What if Eldest Brother feels burdened by outside gazes? There are many people who point fingers at Eldest Brother. Do we not have a palanquin with walls and a roof instead of one shaped like this?”
Once things went that far, even the chief maid could not help but sigh.
“We were unable to prepare such a palanquin, but if the warriors guard him sternly, no one will dare even look at the Eldest Young Master.”
“What if Eldest Brother dislikes those warriors…?!”
At that, the chief maid took hold of his shoulders.
“Now, calm down and take deep breaths. Follow me. One, two. One, two.”
The boy diligently took deep breaths as the maid instructed.
“You know the Eldest Young Master too, Master. He is absolutely not a fussy person. In fact, if you prepare too much, he will feel burdened.”
Thanks to the Fourth Young Master’s love for his eldest brother, the chief maid had accumulated near-expert knowledge about the Eldest Young Master, even though he was not the person she served.
“That is true. You are right, Chief Maid. I think I became too excited.”
He hugged the chief maid tightly.
The chief maid laughed, “Hoho,” and hugged the Fourth Young Master back.
“Uwah! I am jealous of the Chief Maid!”
“Please hug me too!”
Then the surrounding maids rushed in all at once and embraced him together.
It was a familiar sight in the Fourth Young Master’s camp, so the nearby guards paid it no mind at all.
“But those people are still doing that.”
The Fourth Young Master, who had finally managed to come back down to the ground, spoke.
At the end of his gaze, a group of young scholars were spitting at one another as they engaged in a debate that seemed almost like a physical brawl.
No, some of them were actually fighting physically.
Even that was, for them, a scene common enough to be called familiar.
“They are very serious people, after all.”
The chief maid straightened the Fourth Young Master’s disheveled appearance as she spoke.
“They too are merely working hard at their duties, so please do not hate them too much.”
The Fourth Young Master snorted.
“I do not hate them. I simply think of them as blockheads. In the end, they are only deskbound fools who know nothing of true reality, comparing acorns among themselves.”
In his eyes dwelled a profound insight that did not suit his age at all.
“Even if they call themselves strategists or schemers, in the end, they are nothing more than ordinary people.”
His closest aides were each busy with their own duties, so they could not be present here.
Instead, he had brought along the young working-level staff who were forming the core of this business.
That was something he secretly found regrettable.
“My closest aides should be the ones meeting Eldest Brother…”
The chief maid carefully soothed him.
“Master.”
The master she served was someone who possessed both the innocent face of a child and the mind of an extraordinary genius.
“They already know very well just how remarkable the Eldest Young Master is.”
She herself had often been astonished while studying the Eldest Young Master, who was looked down upon as Swordless.
“Simply knowing and seeing him in person are different.”
The boy let out a small sigh.
His gaze moved toward the group still engaged in heated debate.
“And those people know nothing properly about Eldest Brother.”
He clicked his tongue and said to the chief maid,
“Chief Maid. Shall I tell you in advance what those people will eventually say to me?”
“Yes, please tell me.”
The chief maid knelt and brought her ear close to his mouth.
Then, a short while later, when the young scholars who had finished their discussion approached and said,
“We were unable to understand the reason why the Eldest Young Master is necessary for this business,”
the chief maid unconsciously burst into laughter.
Feeling the gazes fixed on her, she lightly apologized and stepped back.
After clearing his throat several times, the scholar spoke with difficulty.
“The greatest issue is, as expected, how the Supreme Family Head or the Supreme Administrative Council will react to the Eldest Young Master, who is currently in seclusion, engaging in external activities…”
The boy clapped his hands once.
“That is not something people of your level should concern yourselves with.”
“My apologies.”
At the response, which seemed as though a cold wind had blown through, the scholar quickly moved on.
“To speak only within the business plan, there are certainly some details that leave room for understanding. However, when viewed as a whole…”
The Fourth Young Master clapped his hands again, cutting him off.
“In the end, what you want to say is that Eldest Brother is taking too large a share merely by participating as an advisor, is it not?”
The scholar, whose words had been stolen from him, bobbed his head.
“Yes, that is correct. You are exactly right. Of course, we do not believe that our lord has made a decision swayed by emotion.”
They too were already familiar with this boy’s wisdom and outstanding intellect.
“It is only that, when approached strictly from a business perspective, the Eldest Young Master is not personally making a financial investment. And yet, for him to take such a large share, from the perspective of the other investors…”
Once again, the sound of the boy clapping his hands rang out.
“I understand your argument.”
When the boy crossed his arms and stepped forward before them, everyone assumed a posture of listening carefully to his words.
It was one aspect that showed just how immense a presence this boy, the Fourth Young Master, was among them.
“First of all, more than anything, Eldest Brother is…”
At that moment, one of the maids waiting at the outskirts shouted in a loud voice.
“The Eldest Young Master of the main family has arrived!”
The boy immediately turned around and ran.
“Eldest Brother!”
His eyes were sparkling.
****
“Who is this!”
Yeon Sang-hyeon lifted up his adorable younger brother as he ran toward him.
Then he spun him around and around.
“Ahaha! Please stop, Eldest Brother! I am no longer a little child!”
Even as he said that, the Fourth Young Master could not hide how delighted he was.
“Haha, is that so? Then I suppose I should now treat you like a fully grown adult!”
Yeon Sang-hyeon began tossing the Fourth Young Master high into the air and catching him.
“Brother! So this is how you treat an adult! It is a whole new world! It is fun!”
“Is it?”
Every time the Fourth Young Master floated into the air, he squealed.
The maids watched the two of them with warm smiles.
The two brothers shared such a heartfelt reunion.
This boy…
From Yeon Sang-hyeon’s perspective, he was such a familiar blood relation whom he had not met in so very, very long.
***
“And so, and so, Eldest Brother, I finally read all of the True Scripture of Meridians and Acupoints that you wrote!”
“I see. But why did you choose to read a medical book?”
“Because I want to become like you, Eldest Brother!”
They had settled inside the tent and were enjoying tea, refreshments, and the like while exchanging small stories.
“And the Medicine King grandfather who visited this time even praised me! He said I would be good enough to open a clinic right away!”
“Haha, I see. If you open one, how about doing it together with this eldest brother of yours?”
“Oh my, it would be an honor. If I were together with Eldest Brother, the greatest divine physician under heaven, I would become the best physician in the Central Plains! Come to think of it, how would it be if Medicine King grandfather joined us too?!”
“Haha, that old man would be useless.”
Yeon Sang-hyeon kept stroking his cute younger brother’s head.
The boy, stuck closely to his side, poured out the stories he had accumulated without end and without pause.
Seeing Yeon Sang-hyeon continuously going along with his stories, the chief maid eventually had to step forward with a dry cough.
“Ahem, Eldest Young Master, and Master, they say the preparations for explaining the business plan are complete.”
At that, Yeon Sang-hyeon nodded.
“Good, good. Then how about we leave the rest of our conversation for after the work is finished?”
“Oh my! Is that all right?”
“Yes. Today, let us at least have dinner together at Wongakjeong.”
“Waaah!”
The Fourth Young Master sprang to his feet, spread both hands wide, and danced gleefully.
At that adorable sight, Yeon Sang-hyeon clapped his hands and enjoyed himself.
After acting cute in front of his eldest brother for a while like that, the Fourth Young Master said to his chief maid,
“You heard him, right? Cancel all schedules after this matter today.”
Though she sighed inwardly at the tremendous pile of schedules waiting for them, she could only keep a smile on her face.
“Of course.”
She stepped back and quietly greeted the chief maid who had come with Yeon Sang-hyeon.
“As things have turned out this way, we will be imposing on you today. I look forward to your care.”
“Not at all, imposing? Are we not all family of the Sword Clan?”
At the dazzling beauty of the Eldest Young Master’s chief maid, who smiled gently, the Fourth Young Master’s chief maid could not help but marvel inwardly.
“Then how about we discuss the details a little? First, as for the number of visitors…”
The two of them began coordinating plans together, never taking their eyes off the masters they served.
“Now then!”
The Fourth Young Master clapped his hands.
“Let us begin!”
At that, the audience instantly quieted.
One of the Fourth Young Master’s young scholars, who had taken on the role of host, stood on the temporarily prepared platform and offered his greetings to the audience.
After receiving applause, he cleared his throat several times, loosened his voice, and opened his mouth.
“First, I would like to begin this business briefing by offering our thanks to the Eldest Young Master of our Luoyang Sword Clan for attending today.”
Applause poured out from around them toward Yeon Sang-hyeon.
Yeon Sang-hyeon, seated comfortably with his body leaned back, answered by simply raising his hand.
At that, the applause grew louder for a moment, then naturally began to subside.
Seeing Yeon Sang-hyeon’s relaxed appearance, several of the scholars in the audience whispered among themselves.
“The Eldest Young Master really does seem different from what we heard. In the end, are rumors merely rumors?”
“You felt that too? Whew, it is still hard to express precisely, but just from the composure he shows before a crowd, I think we can forget the rumors we have heard until now.”
The Fourth Young Master’s maids also whispered.
“What should I call it? Confidence?”
“Right. When I once saw the Eldest Young Master from afar in the past, I felt he was merely a gentle person.”
At the audience’s positive reaction, Jeong-ah, who was waiting behind Yeon Sang-hyeon, smiled inwardly.
And at the same time, she looked forward to what would come.
This change in first impression was only the beginning.
“Before explaining the purpose of the current business, I would first like to speak about the background of the business.”
At that moment, the Fourth Young Master clapped his hands.
Everyone’s gaze turned to him.
“Why are there so many useless things in the order? Is there anyone here who does not know the background of this business?”
He sprang up from his seat.
“Is there anyone here who does not know of the Dragon-Phoenix Gathering?”