C1734. What is the Right Thing? (4)
“What?”
Yoon Jong's eyes widened as he looked at the person who had burst through the door.
“...What did you just say?”
Jo Gul, who was standing in front of the door, stammered, his face completely pale.
“Did you hear that Sasuk has been expelled?”
“What nonsense is that?!”
A rare curse word escaped Yoon Jong’s mouth.
“There are rumors all over the Wudang Sect right now!”
“That’s absurd! If it were true, we would be the first to know. How can we hear something like this from others?”
"Ah, that's true, but what I heard..."
Jo Gul's face remained pale.
Yoon Jong could understand the situation a little better by seeing that expression. It meant that the rumors had spread so much that they couldn't be ignored.
Yoon Jong jumped up from his seat.
“Let’s go.”
“Where to?”
“We need to confirm it. Let’s see the Great Sect Leader.”
“...”
“This kind of situation needs to be handled quickly. What will happen if these rumors reach Sasuk’s ears? Let’s go!”
“Yes, yes!”
Jo Gul nodded vigorously. Yoon Jong pressed his lips together at his expression.
‘I won’t let this pass.’
Whoever spread this absurd rumor, he would find them and make them pay. He would use every means at his disposal, without fail.
But Yoon Jong’s resolution crumbled before the calm voice of a person.
“It’s true.”
“...What?”
Yoon Jong’s expression went blank.
Had he heard it wrong? Or had he phrased the question incorrectly?
It was neither. That’s why Yoon Jong couldn’t understand the situation. And it seemed that he wasn’t the only one who didn’t understand the answer. The expressions of the other disciples next to him were no different.
Yoon Jong looked ahead.
In front of them were Hyun Jong, with a rigid face, and the two elders of the Mount Hua Sect, who had arrived at Wudang that very morning, with inscrutable expressions.
Involuntarily, Yoon Jong swallowed hard.
Though it was not uncommon for the disciples of the Mount Hua Sect to face the elders, Yoon Jong was tense. Probably because he felt something in the elders’ gaze that he had never felt before.
“Great Sect Leader... what you just said...”
At that moment, Hyun Jong's eyes penetrated Yoon Jong.
Yoon Jong shuddered involuntarily.
He had heard about this.
In the past, when the disciples of the Mount Hua Sect suffered under the trap of the Evil Tyrant Alliance in Jiangnan, it was said that the eyes of the Great Sect Leader were so cold and sharp that no other disciple of the Mount Hua Sect had seen them like that.
Since he hadn’t seen it personally, he had just smiled upon hearing it. But now, Yoon Jong understood why the disciples had told that story. Hyun Jong’s eyes were equally cold and dispassionate now.
That’s why he could intuitively understand. All of this was an undeniable reality.
“Sect Leader...”
“Why?”
Yoon Jong’s voice interrupted Baek Sang’s faltering words.
It might not have been the only question he needed to ask, but his confused and chaotic mind could only form that question. And that question perfectly reflected the hearts of everyone present.
“Why?!”
Yoon Jong had never raised his voice to Hyun Jong. But at that moment, he didn’t realize that his voice had risen.
“Are you asking why?”
“Yes, Great Sect Leader. Why...?”
“Abuse of power.”
“...What?”
Hyun Jong’s eyes darkened.
“The Deputy Sect Leader only holds the position to represent the Sect Leader.”
“...”
“That position does not grant him the power to decide on the lives and deaths of the disciples. The Deputy Sect Leader only fulfills the functions of the Sect Leader in his absence.”
Yoon Jong blinked in bewilderment.
Who didn’t know that?
“But the first disciple of the Mount Hua Sect, Baek Cheon, forgot this fact and endangered the disciples. He led the unprepared disciples to a cliff occupied by the enemy, putting them at risk.”
“Great... Great Sect Leader. That’s...”
“Yes!”
When Yoon Jong tried to say something, Hyun Jong interrupted him with a shout.
“If they had taken a little longer to escape from the cliff, the Mount Hua Sect would have faced its destruction.”
It was an indisputable fact. Especially the fact that all the disciples of the Mount Hua Sect would have met a tragic death on that cliff if they hadn’t escaped in time.
“But that was something we had to do...”
“Had to?”
Hyun Jong looked at Yoon Jong with eyes filled with anger. That gaze made Yoon Jong shrink once again.
“Do you really think putting the disciples in danger for a sense of heroism is a decision you had to make?”
“...”
Yoon Jong's and the other disciples' eyes were filled with confusion.
“But it wasn’t a decision made solely by the Deputy Sect Leader, right? It was at the request of the Heavenly Comrade Alliance...”
“Who has the authority to accept or reject that request?”
“That’s...”
Yoon Jong pressed his lips together.
He believed that the authority lay with Baek Cheon. But now he understood that Hyun Jong had also been present in those decisions.
“Sect Leader...”
Among those present, Hyun Jong was sitting on one side.
Un Am.
Though he had practically ceded all authority to Baek Cheon and only supported him, in name, Un Am was the current leader of the Mount Hua Sect.
And Yoon Jong realized that Baek Cheon had never consulted Un Am about any of the decisions made in Wudang.
“But still, expelling him? Great Sect Leader, this is...”
“Is it too much?”
“I...”
“Is it too much after endangering all the disciples of the Mount Hua Sect?”
“...”
Yoon Jong couldn’t say anything.
“They were lucky not to lose anyone. But could you say the same if they had lost disciples?”
“...”
“Risking one’s own life is bravery, but risking the lives of others is arrogance. Is it too much to punish that arrogance with expulsion?”
Hyun Jong’s face twisted as he continued speaking.
“You might think it’s too much. But can you guarantee that something like this won’t happen again if we let it pass?”
It was an irrefutable argument.
But Yoon Jong couldn’t accept it. After all, Hyun Jong was the one who appointed Baek Cheon as the Deputy Sect Leader knowing how he was.
“There are other punishments that could be imposed. Is it necessary to impose such an extreme punishment as expulsion...?”
But Yoon Jong couldn’t continue speaking.
‘Is it possible?’
His eyes trembled as if an earthquake had occurred.
“Great... Sect Leader. Could it be?”
“Leave.”
“......”
“No matter what you say, my decision won’t change. So leave.”
“No! No matter what you say!”
When Jo Gul was about to explode, Yoon Jong firmly grabbed his shoulder.
“Sahyung.”
“Let’s go outside.”
“But Sahyung, if we back down now...”
“I understand, now go out!”
Yoon Jong squeezed Jo Gul's shoulder harder as he pulled him out. Baek Cheon, Yoo Iseol, and Tang Soso, having no other choice, also bowed their heads and followed.
At the last moment, Yoo Iseol cast an unreadable glance at Hyun Jong, but Hyun Jong didn’t respond and only looked at his empty teacup.
When the Five Swords left, Hyun Sang, who had been silent, spoke.
“Sahyung.”
“......”
“Is it really necessary to go this far?”
Hyun Jong closed his eyes at those words.
“I understand your feelings, Sahyung, but there might be another way...”
“Yes. Maybe.”
“......”
“But it would take more time.”
Hyun Jong’s eyes showed bitterness.
“We are at war now. Who can guarantee that he will survive until after the next battle?”
Hyun Jong had already heard everything.
He would prefer to keep Baek Cheon tied here and go to battle only with the others. But that was no longer possible. He had already heard that those from the Blood Palace, who held a grudge against Baek Cheon, had reached the grounds of Wudang.
The Blood Palace is known for its ghastly and supernatural techniques, incomprehensible to the martial artists of the Central Plains. If they have set their sights on him, even the rear would not be safe for Baek Cheon.
'And besides...'
If Hyun Jong knows Baek Cheon, he knows that he will never stay behind, no matter the situation. As long as he is the Deputy Sect Leader of the Mount Hua Sect, he will always face mortal dangers.
“Sahyung...”
“I will take full responsibility.”
“......”
When Hyun Sang gave up trying to dissuade Hyun Jong with a sigh, this time it was Hyun Young who spoke.
“The children will be greatly affected.”
“......”
“Baek Cheon is still Baek Cheon. No matter that Chung Myung and Yoon Jong are present, he is still important to the disciples of the Mount Hua Sect...”
There was no need to hear the rest to understand.
The expulsion of someone who was a symbol for the Mount Hua Sect. No one could foresee what effect this would have on the sect, but everyone knew it would not be positive.
Everything they had worked so hard to build could collapse. Baek Cheon was a fundamental pillar for the Mount Hua Sect.
“Still, will you really... not change your mind?”
Hyun Jong silently nodded.
Perhaps this was stubbornness on his part. But Hyun Jong didn’t want to back down, even knowing he was being stubborn.
Several belated decisions. Several attempts to shirk responsibilities. And several times of looking the other way.
In his attempt to think about future generations, he had lost many things. But this time, Hyun Jong didn’t want to lose. Even if this decision deeply impacted the Mount Hua Sect.
He couldn’t close the future of the child who had opened the doors of the Mount Hua Sect that day.
“Heavenly Lord...”
A low sigh escaped Hyun Jong’s lips.
“Why do you hesitate?”
“......”
“Come on. What the Great Sect Leader is saying doesn’t make sense. If they expel him for this, how many of those who wear the uniform of the Mount Hua Sect would stay here without problems?”
“......”
“It’s true that Sasuk is more troublesome than others, but still...”
“Gul.”
“No. I can’t accept it. I’ll go talk to him again...”
“Gul!”
Yoon Jong shouted, looking at Jo Gul.
“...The Great Sect Leader is not trying to expel Sasuk.”
“What...? What do you mean?”
“He wants to send him to the Southern Edge Sect.”
“......”
Jo Gul's face twisted. When the blood that had rushed to his head calmed down, he understood what Yoon Jong had said.
“Oh...”
He understood. But he didn’t comprehend.
“No... I understand what you’re saying. But, isn’t that expulsion?”
“......”
“Can an expelled disciple return to the sect?”
“Impossible.”
“Then... it’s different, isn’t it? If they expel him, he will have to live as a disciple of the Southern Edge Sect forever. Then, Sasuk...”
Jo Gul’s voice weakened.
“Sasuk...”
He couldn’t help but understand. He had had a hunch.
There’s no normal way to send Baek Cheon to the Southern Edge Sect. Because he would reject it in every possible way. Convincing him with gentle words was unthinkable. They had already seen Baek Cheon’s firmness.
“Still...”
“The Great Sect Leader seems to think there is no other option.”
Jo Gul’s face contorted in pain.
“But what about Sasuk?”
“......”
“I understand the logic. But what about Sasuk? How will Sasuk feel being expelled from the Mount Hua Sect without having done anything wrong? Is this really the right way?”
Yoon Jong closed his eyes.
“Do you really think that, Sahyung?”
What is the right thing?
Yoon Jong still doesn’t know. Perhaps living is an endless quest for what is right.
At that moment, Jo Gul’s hand painfully gripped Yoon Jong’s shoulder.
When Yoon Jong opened his eyes and was about to say something, he realized that Jo Gul’s gaze wasn’t on him.
He hadn’t grabbed his shoulder just out of frustration.
“......”
Yoon Jong slowly turned his head.
And he had to see it.
People who were completely bewildered by the situation. Among them, one person was slowly walking towards them.
“Sasuk...”
The Deputy Sect Leader, dressed in the white uniform of the Mount Hua Sect, was heading towards them with an expressionless face. Or rather, he was heading towards the hall where Hyun Jong was.
