Daehung County.
It’s a county located about 3-4 days away from Chilgok County. Unlike Chilgok County, which has developed its comrce due to its location on the road to Anhui Province, Daehung County doesn’t see a large transient population.
And yet, soone ca looking for there.
Having lived as a storyteller in Chilgok County for several months, I wonder if my reputation has reached Daehung County.
Sohee and I followed a man who claid to be a servant from the Sung Family of Daehung County and entered the guest room of the inn where the man was staying.
“There was already a guest here.”
In the guest room, there were sturdy n who seed adept with a sword, waiting around.
It reminded of the ti I went to conduct a second-hand trade, and the other party brought so friends who looked like gangsters.
I would have been a bit nervous if I had co alone.
I subtly glanced at Sohee. She showed a slightly cautious look but didn’t seem too nervous. Reliable, that Heavenly Death Star.
“These are just people who ca to escort . Please, take a seat here.”
The man, who introduced himself as a servant from the Sung Family, invited to sit across from him at the table.
“Did you co all this way from Daehung County just to invite ?”
“Of course. It’s the first birthday of our family head since he beca the head of the Sung Family, and we were contemplating whom to invite for the occasion. Then I heard about you. I haven’t seen anyone who can tell stories better than that Joseon storyteller recently. Everyone who went to Chilgok County praised you highly.”
To think they ca all this way just to invite .
It seed like my ti as a storyteller was building my fa. It’s gratifying to think my hardships weren’t in vain.
A birthday feast, huh. Naturally, there weren’t many forms of entertainnt in this world.
A feast was a rare event where one could enjoy those few forms of entertainnt.
Rich hoowners didn’t just serve delicious food to their guests on feast days; they also provided various entertainnts to showcase their generosity and wealth.
Storytellers, living day by day, hoped to be invited to such grand feasts, performing on the streets to make their talents known far and wide.
Once invited to a grand feast, they received generous rewards and treatnt, entertaining the guests on the feast day.
“It sounds like an overstatent. I only have just enough skills to make a living.”
“No need to be modest. I just heard your story. It was quite a heroic tale. I was deeply impressed.”
“Ha ha. Thank you.”
It’s nice to be praised, but it felt like they were laying it on a bit thick.
“What do you think? Would you like to co with us to Daehung County?”
He’s already asking about my intentions. Did he think I’d just agree because I thanked him?
Of course, there’s no reason to refuse. But agreeing right away would be amateurish.
An invitation to the birthday feast of the Daehung County Sung Family head. If they ca all this way just for , I can make a big deal out of it.
“I’ve just started a new performance in Chilgok County, and the audience response has been very good. But to ignore their expectations and go to Daehung County…”
I trailed off, intentionally leaving room for negotiation.
“Huh. Sounds like you’re doing well in Chilgok County.”
The man took a step back, assessing my response.
“It’s just sotis replacing porridge with rose sauce.”
It’s usually Sohee who got the rose sauce, but these days she leaves a bit for almost every ti.
“Rose sauce! You must be earning quite a lot! I didn’t invite you lightly. Would this be enough for an advance paynt?”
The man handed over a small pouch.
It’s not a thick pouch but a small one. Did he intend to give a stingy advance paynt? I opened the pouch to see its contents.
“Huh?”
The color was a bit strange.
“I’ll give you 1 gold as an advance paynt.”
I stared blankly at the shining coin inside the pouch.
Wow. So this currency really existed.
“1 gold for an advance paynt. After the feast, I’ll give you 2 more gold. What do you think?”
Three gold for inviting a storyteller?
Calm down. Settle the trembling in your heart. Maintain a poker face.
‘It’s too much money.’
It’s such a large sum that it’s suspicious.
I had never even seen a 1 gold coin, and now they were offering three.
The amount was so large that I barely managed to keep my rationality from being overwheld.
If I objectively assessed myself, I was not a storyteller of such renown. Did the Sung Family really have so much money to spend 3 gold on a foreign storyteller?
It’s possible. But sothing felt off.
‘It slls like a scam.’
It’s like the scent of a swindler who hid their dark intentions behind an enticing reward.
Like luring struggling small business owners with low-interest loans only to swindle their money, such captivating rewards can deceive soone naive like .
My experiences that had saved my life several tis were accelerating. Let’s think about the doubtful points right now.
Did it make sense to co all this way just to invite ?
Was 3 gold a reasonable price for the story of a foreign storyteller?
The man in front seed like a martial artist, so why did he call himself a servant?
Then there’s the natural disrespect that instinctively cos out. For a servant, the martial artists seed to regard him with respect, as if he’s a superior.
I couldn’t pinpoint it, but sothing felt strangely wrong.
‘An invitation from the Sung Family… Sothing rings a bell. Ah! Could it be?’
Suddenly, a story I heard in the past ca to mind.
“Is there a specific story I should tell if I go? Or can I choose any story I like?”
“The story of Prince Hamurin you told today was really interesting. I’d like you to tell the story of Prince Hamurin at the feast.”
So that’s what it was.
The puzzle pieces in my mind fell into place.
“I will decline the Sung Family’s invitation.”
I refused the Sung Family’s invitation with a serious expression.
“Why? 3 golds is a huge sum, isn’t it? The Sung Family has never spent 3 golds on a single entertainer for a feast day.”
Exactly.
It would indeed be a large sum for a storyteller.
I put the gold coin I had taken out back into the pouch and slowly placed it on the table.
“The amount is quite large for a storyteller’s story, but woefully insufficient for a storyteller’s life.”
I looked at the man with a smirk, as if to say I knew everything.
“… You knew?”
The man’s expression hardened, and he spoke in a stiff tone.
Just as I suspected.
“You’re not a servant sent by the family head, are you? What is your relationship with the late Sungjoru, the family head?”
“… He was my father.”
I thought so.
The story that ca to mind was one I heard when I first arrived in Chilgok County.
The Sung Family’s Sungjoru and Sungjiru.
The incident that led to tell the story of Prince Hamurin in Chilgok County.
Originally, the position of the family head should have gone to the deceased Sungjoru’s son, but due to the sches of his uncle and the uncle’s mistress, this man in front of didn’t inherit the position, and it went to his uncle instead.
“Inciting soone to do sothing (激將之計). Were you planning to accuse your uncle of murdering your father by having tell the story of Prince Hamurin at the feast?”
There can be no other reason for insisting on showing Prince Hamurin at the feast.
“Accusation! Those scoundrels killing my father is an open secret!”
The man slamd the desk in anger.
This guy had the nerve. He’s the one who should not be hitting the desk.
“But since there’s no evidence, you wanted to use , right?”
“… That’s right. I hoped to use his reaction to the performance as a pretext for my supporters to rise up.”
The man reluctantly nodded.
“Calm down before that happens. Kang Mo wouldn’t have been safe.”
There was no way the enraged head of the Sung Family would have left alone.
Of course, the enraged Heavenly Death Star wouldn’t have left the head of the Sung Family alone either.
“… I would have tried my best to protect you.”
The man, seemingly vulnerable when it ca to hitting the nail on the head, closed his eyes and spoke.
“Sure you did. I’m getting up now. And since my neck was briefly on Seong Sehwi’s scale, I’ll take this money.”
I picked up the pouch containing 1 gold, sending an angry glare as if to claim the price of my life.
You. If you refuse this, it’s a ninja massacre.
“The money doesn’t matter. Sorry for not explaining in detail. But my father died unjustly. Can’t you help for justice?”
“Coming with ulterior motives, cunningly tempting, and now you speak of justice? The world would laugh. Let’s go, Sohee!”
I called Sohee in Korean and then, rising briskly from my seat, went to the door with her.
“I’m sorry! If you change your mind, co back. I will treat you with great respect as a guest of the Sung Family!”
The man pleaded pitifully as we opened the door to leave.
I’m not going, kid.
I’ll safely make money here, telling the story of Prince Roo and Miss Ju.
I was almost about to sell my life for 3 golds.
A day had passed since I t people from the Sung Family.
Lying in bed, I stared blankly at the shining details of the gold coin.
“With this money, I could write a book.”
I had always thought it wasn’t the right ti yet, postponing writing a book that I had been thinking about. Now, it seems possible.
Naturally, writing a book cost a lot of money.
It’s not just expensive; for , it’s like throwing money into the sky.
When I first wrote ‘The Tale of Martial Heroes’, I sohow completed it using very poor quality paper and ink that was more like muddy water, and a brush that was falling apart. But the result was disappointing.
It wasn’t a popular genre, and no one cared for a book in such poor condition.
Even though it’s not like modern tis, where books must be sold at fixed prices due to the use of stone-mixed paper, here too, I need to use good quality paper and ink to write a book.
And one book was not enough.
A book might not get attention in one bookstore, so I needed to write at least a dozen books and distribute them to several bookstores.
And all of that required money.
“Ti was also an issue.”
Of course, writing new material requires ti. It took many plot revisions and edits to produce a single book. That alone took a lot of ti.
And it didn’t end with writing one book.
Copying dozens of books by hand would also take a significant amount of ti.
It’s like transferring data from decades-old docunts to Excel; it’s ti-consuming, let alone the task of hand-copying.
In other words, for soone like with nothing, writing a novel requires money to buy good quality paper, ink, and the ti to write and copy the book, as well as living expenses during that period.
“If the new work fails, I lose both ti and money.”
Failure ant losing both ti and money.
The funny thing was, even if the book was successful, it didn’t an I would earn a lot of money.
Of course, success brought fa. But unless I hit the jackpot and signed my next work for a high price, I might barely break even with just a dozen books or so.
If I were a fantasy noble or a family young master, I wouldn’t worry about this. I could just write and enjoy a slow life if I failed.
For , barely making ends et as a storyteller and investing my spare ti in martial arts training, writing a book is quite a risk in my current situation.
It’s bittersweet.
Here or in reality, the challenges of those who have nothing require risking everything. For so, it’s just a funny failure story to tell, but for others, a failure could an never getting back up again.
“With this money, I can try.”
I gazed at the unexpected golden opportunity before . With this money, even if I fail, I can get back up.
“When the water cos in, turn on the engine. Now is the ti to focus on the story of Prince Roo and Miss Ju.”
This story, too, will have its declining period, just like the Hamurin performance did, when people start to dwindle.
When that ti cos, let’s stop storytelling and start writing.
“But why isn’t Sohee coming?”
She said she’d be back soon after eating, but she’s been gone for quite a while.
After the Cheongsapa incident, Sohee has been treating more gently. If it’s not just simple guilt, maybe I’ve found a place in her heart.
She had been teaching martial arts, provided a house, and even took care of food deliveries.
‘I’m practically a supporting husband.’
Not exactly a provider, but I do feel a bit of a moral burden.
I’m curious about what she thinks of now.
Not quite at the level of acknowledging as a brother, but maybe so affection has grown from living together.
How did she view ?
“You’re back.”
Sohee entered the room.
“Welco back.”
Should we eat first? Or take a bath? I can’t drop those kinds of hints, so I greeted her with a smile as usual.
“……”
However, Sohee didn’t respond to my greeting and just continued to stare at silently.
“Sohee?”
Do you have sothing to say? She seed to be hesitating, slightly chewing on her lip.
Finally, Sohee spoke while continuing to look at .
“Yunho.”
“Yes?”
“Beco my husband.”
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