Chapter 1650. Let's Go, Quickly! (4)
“D-Did you hear the news?”
“Huh? What’s going on that you’re making such a fuss?”
“It’s the Second Unit, the Second Unit!”
“What about the Second Unit?”
The person listening tilted their head.
The five new Units of the Heavenly Comrade Alliance had not yet received official names, so for convenience, they were referred to as First, Second, Third, Fourth, and Fifth.
“They say the Dangju of the Second Unit has imprisoned the members of their Unit!”
“I-Imprisoned? W-Wait a minute. Is there a prison in the Alliance?”
“They must be using the prison of the Mount Hua Sect, right?”
“Oh, right... No, that’s not important now. What happened that they imprisoned people? Even when war is imminent?”
“They said they locked them up on charges of rebellion (hageuksang) against the Budangju. That’s why the whole Unit is in turmoil.”
“R-Rebellion?”
Against the Budangju? The person heard clearly but didn’t understand the meaning and asked without comprehension.
“If it’s the Budangju, are you talking about those guys?”
“H-Hey!”
The person who shouted was so surprised that they covered the mouth of the person in front of them. Anyone could see that the face quickly looking around was the face of someone scared.
“Be careful what you say! The situation has changed!”
“.....”
“If we’re not careful, we’ll go to jail too! We have to be cautious about what we say wherever we go. They say the number of people imprisoned this time reached twenty. It’s not unusual.”
The listener's eyes widened in disbelief. Once the hand was removed from their mouth, they spoke in disbelief.
“I-Is that true?”
Twenty. It was unusual for so many people to be imprisoned in one day. No matter which sect they came from, this was something that would create chaos.
“If you’re talking about the Second Unit…”
“That’s right. It’s Tang-Gaju.”
Those wandering around slowly approached the two. It seemed everyone was curious about this situation.
“Twenty, doesn’t that mean it’s not just from one sect?”
“Yes. They say that not only Jaegal and Moyong, but also the Beggars' Union, Namgung, and even Southern Edge are all mixed in.”
“S-Southern Edge too? R-Really?”
The face of the person who heard those words paled.
“Well, it’s already happened, hasn’t it? He even declared that any harsh treatment towards the Budangju would be considered a challenge to the Alliance. Even the Chief spoke.”
As the story continued, everyone’s faces grew more serious.
Of course, the Chief would side with the Budangju, but it was unusual for the Dangju to side with the Budangju.
Wasn’t it because of the belief that the power of the Unit ultimately lay in the hands of the Dangju that everyone was able to maintain an attitude of subtly ignoring the Budangju?
“Should we take this as the Dangju protecting the Budangju?”
“I think so. If not…”
“If not, what?”
The man put on a bewildered expression, as if he couldn’t understand.
The Heavenly Comrade Alliance was an alliance of many sects.
And the appointment of the Budangju had gone too far. From anyone's point of view, it seemed that one of the sects called Mount Hua had placed all those they liked in the position of Budangju.
There couldn’t be just one or two members who were secretly dissatisfied with this, right?
Therefore, although this wasn’t an open plan, there was clearly a tacit agreement and cooperation to suppress the Budangju.
But instead of protecting the members of the Unit, the Dangju, who were supposed to represent them, were striving to protect the Budangju?
From the perspective of the faction members who were secretly expressing their discontent, things were not going well.
“Isn’t it because the Tang Family has good relations with Mount Hua? Other Dangju might have different thoughts. The Dangju-nim of our faction might....”
“Don’t talk nonsense. If that were the case, they would have taken action already. Among those currently imprisoned, there must be disciples of our Dangju-nim!”
After hearing this, they realized he wasn’t wrong. Even the little hope they had left crumbled.
“So, what’s happening now?”
“What’s happening, you ask? Now, anyone who rebels against the Budangju will be imprisoned. From what I’ve heard, they don’t intend to release them until the war is over.”
“What? F-For that long?”
“Yes, that’s right! So now the Alliance is on thin ice, thin ice!”
Sighs were heard from various directions.
This meant that now they had to remain still and obey the young Budangju. If they were told to sit, they had to sit. If they were told to crawl, they had to crawl.
“Damn it... Why did this incident happen!”
“I knew this would happen!”
“Whatever they do, they should do it moderately!”
If things had gone calmly before the war started, things wouldn’t have deteriorated.
If there’s an imminent battle, it’s likely that the troops won’t be reduced to receiving punishments, so it may be difficult to punish them individually for minor protests.
However, as the work is completed while there is still time, the strength of the Budangju strengthens.
How many people accept this as a good thing?
“So, all we have to do is not protest?”
“It’s still a rumor, but…”
“Don’t beat around the bush, speak quickly! Anything else?”
“There are rumors that the Chief will grant the authority of immediate punishment, which includes the right to immediate execution of the Unit members within the power of the Budangju.”
“What...? O, immediate punishment authority? Are you saying that if you make a mistake, they’ll cut off your head immediately?”
“...It’s not just at that level that he said. Whether wrong or right, or even if the Budangju is wrong, they can still cut the necks of those who oppose them.”
“Does that make sense? Not even the Evil Faction would do something like that!”
“That doesn’t make sense. Of course not. But... isn’t that the 'Chief'?”
These words gave a momentary feeling of resigned acceptance.
Now it made sense among the people of Kangho that Chung Myung, the Mount Hua’s Chivalrous Sword, was crazy and worse than the Evil Faction. Was there anything normal about his actions?
“So, what about us?”
“Well, we’re really screwed....”
They already had to take a young man from a sect they didn’t even know as a superior, but now they even had power over life and death?
The phrase “going crazy with joy” was coined to be used in situations like this.
Just then, one of those listening to the conversation opened his mouth.
“After all, there are Dangju-nim and others, can they go that far? Surely they’ll stop it properly.”
Someone nodded and stepped forward.
“Yes. They’re not just scarecrows! No matter how cruel the Chief is, he won’t be able to defeat them all!”
That statement had some truth to it.
Amidst many complex concerns, everyone’s eyes naturally fixed on one place. It was the main meeting room of the Alliance, where the leaders of the Alliance were now gathered.
Inside the meeting room, Moyong Wigyeong cleared his throat and opened his mouth.
“So, that’s what happened, I... I feel guilty about what happened, but isn’t this excessive?”
“Excessive?”
“Being imprisoned for so long.....”
“Oh, right. It’s definitely a rather problematic solution,” said Chung Myung.
“Yes.....?”
“I should have directly cut their muscles and veins, and then thrown them as corpses into the street, but I thought short. Even now, I’m about to...”
“Oh, no! NO! When I said 'excessive', I didn’t mean that, it was...”
Moyong Wigyeong desperately changed his words and muttered. That’s right, looking at Chung Myung’s face. It seemed he was very sincere in his words.
“B-But there are still some concerns about giving too much power to the Budangju....”
“Too much?” asked Chung Myung again.
Sadness appeared on Chung Myung’s face. He was prevented from saying anything...
“From the beginning!” shouted Chung Myung.
Bam!
Chung Myung hit the table in front of him with the intention of breaking it.
“If the Dangju-nim had done their job well, this wouldn’t have happened! You were chosen to help the Budangju, but what do you do? You wander around anywhere but doing what you’re told!”
“Chung Myung-ah!... Dangju-nim doesn’t help the Budangju! ..... Budangju is supposed to help the Dangju-nim...”
“Ah, that’s just in name! In reality, Dangju is a position I gave to defend the Budangju’s position! If I gave a job to the old men in the back, at least they should do it well!”
Even if that were the case, he shouldn’t have said it out loud like that. In this world, there was something called “ethics” and “common sense.”
There were many things he wanted to say, but Hyun Jong was unable to say them out loud. Unfortunately, he was a man of common sense and ethics.
But Chung Myung, who had no common sense or ethics, was busy responding.
“Say something! What have you done to make the situation like this? Huh?”
“It’s not like that...”
“Were you busy?”
“N, no.... It’s not that I was busy....”
“Not busy? It seems like you were just relaxing, huh, is that what you’re saying?”
...Moyong Wigyeong, who was silent, looked at Chung Myung expressionlessly. Then, suddenly, he made a grimace.
No, wait a moment. Why am I apologizing like this?
As someone who joined the Heavenly Comrade Alliance, it was natural to respect the Chief. But, wasn’t it different from being crushed without being able to argue a word?
In the first place, he wasn’t the type of person to be treated like this. Even Beop Jeong in the past had never treated him so badly!
Sometimes he got angry and started a fight.
“Chief, now!”
“Sorry, Chief.”
Pungyeong Shingae, the Grand Leader of the Beggars’ Union, deeply bowed his head to Chung Myung.
“The Chief gave us an order, but I was incompetent and couldn’t fulfill it properly. I apologize for my negligence.”
“Is this a situation that can be called mere negligence?”
“...Even if I have ten mouths, there’s nothing I can say. Our role was to watch over the Budangju so they can do their job.... I apologize once again.”
Pungyeong Shingae. Pungyeong Shingae bowed his head and apologized.
Moyong Wigyeong suddenly froze like ice. No, not only Moyong Wigyeong but other people couldn’t hide their confusion either.
What kind of person was Pungyeong Shingae?
Although his true identity remained ambiguous, he had organized the Beggars’ Union for decades, and now he was retiring from the front line after passing it on to the next generation. With all his symbolism and authority, not even Moyong Wigyeong could compare to him.
But, did it make sense for such a person to bow his head to a young man so green?
“I have to say that I’m also sorry.”
Maeng So, with an embarrassed look on his face, supported Pungyeong Shingae’s position.
“There is quite a bit of opposition from the Beast Palace at the moment, so I’m trying to calm it....” defended Maeng So.
“Just excuses! Tsk.” continued Chung Myung’s insult.
Maeng So stopped talking and showed some humility. His face even turned red with embarrassment. With his large body, he seemed confused about what to do, and this even made Moyong Wigyeong feel uncomfortable too.
When the two people opened the conversation, the atmosphere became strange. Especially when Pungyeong Shingae, who didn’t seem to have a close relationship with Chung Myung, openly apologized, this had a great impact.
So, it’s hard to say that Chung Myung overdid it. It was natural that Tang Gunak was already involved with them, so only Moyong Wigyeong and Jaegal Jain remained.
“I’m not asking for a superficial apology, I’m asking for a clear explanation.”
Chung Myung reopened his mouth with a slightly softer voice.
“It’s good that this happened now. If something like this happened on the battlefield, it would be completely irreversible. At that time, I couldn’t do anything about it.”
“...That’s right.”
“Therefore, make sure you know what you have to do. Is it time for a clumsy power struggle? I formed Units to resolve conflicts between sects, but now they are fighting within their Units. Haa, the more I think about it, the angrier I get and find them disgusting! I’m really going to kill them all....”
“C, Chung Myung. Calm down.”
Chung Myung sighed and managed to calm down. And then he went crazy.
“Wake up Budangjus!”
The Budangju in the room gasped and bowed their heads.
“Because you look weak, that’s why these things happen! If those people tried to make a scene, you should have stabbed them in the stomach with a knife! Why you...?”
.....At this point, wouldn’t it be better to be in the Evil Faction, Sahyung?” - Jo Gul angry.
“I also think so” - replied Yoon Jong.
“You guys are noisy!”
Chung Myung was getting annoyed and his facial expression hardened.
“A leader who loses their authority loses everything.”
.....
“It may seem trivial at first glance, but don’t forget that those small cracks could eventually lead to everyone’s death. We are now at war.”
Everyone felt the weight of that voice. The weight made everyone nod their heads.
Then...
Brak.
The door opened abruptly and someone entered the meeting room.
It was Im Sobyeong, the Nokrim King. He spoke with a face paler and stiffer than usual.
“The Evil Tyrant Alliance has finally made its move.”
His voice was colder and heavier than his always pale complexion.