Chapter 31
Pressure Peng Muwei
“What should we do now?”
After narrowly escaping the crisis, Hwangho turned to Ihwan and asked. It was a moment that reflected Ihwan’s newly elevated stature.
So, how did Ihwan respond?
“Let me think.”
“……”
* * *
“You mean you faked a natural death using poison?”
“Yes. Even I was impressed by how flawless it looked. There’s no chance it’ll be exposed.”
“My lord, I didn’t know you had such a strange skill. But how did you even think of that? I really thought we were done for, but you ended it all in one blow.”
Smack!
“Argh!”
“He’s our lord. Of course he should be that capable.”
Iron Muok, having smacked Gongsontae on the head, sat down to appease his hunger with the freshly cooked meal.
Hwangho had provided the best meat and fish for Ihwan’s quarters, and the chefs had prepared a superb dish with it.
Ihwan dined in his tent with Songhoe.
“There must’ve been heavy security. How did you pull it off?”
“Despite his title, the Commandant was weaker than I expected. So it wasn’t all that difficult.”
“Could you please just tell me how? I’m dying of curiosity here, my lord.”
“Just eat.”
“……”
“And be careful not to let anything slip. There might be enemy spies in the camp. More wine.”
“Yes, my lord.”
Pour…
After draining his wine cup, Ihwan set down his chopsticks and sipped some cold water.
“Already finished?”
“If you eat too much, your senses dull from feeling full. Try to get used to eating moderately.”
“Generals usually eat a lot, you know. We believe that strength comes from food. Plus, after going back and forth across a rough camp, you get hungry fast.”
“Do as you please.”
Ihwan rose from his seat and moved into the adjacent room. A military doctor was tending to Cha Jungyeong.
“How is he?”
“Fortunately, the medicine worked well, and the internal injuries are mostly healed. But the external wounds are an issue. He’ll need time to rest and recover.”
Ihwan looked down at Cha Jungyeong.
Cha Jungyeong forced a smile, pretending to be okay.
“I’m fine.”
“Control your temper. Learn to judge people better. If your opponent had been an enemy, you’d be dead.”
“Yes, sir.”
“Take good care of him.”
“Yes, my lord.”
After instructing the military doctor, Ihwan stepped outside. At the same time, Song Cheonmu, just finishing his meal, approached.
“Shall I bring tea?”
“Sounds good.”
Ihwan sat in his favorite chair and gazed across at Pengga’s camp. Smoke was rising from their side too, as they prepared their meal.
The trust of the warriors is most important.
Recalling Hwangho’s words, Ihwan narrowed his brows slightly.
‘Peng Muwei has already lost any hope of gaining trust. Someone else might be sent in his place—and they’d probably be more competent.’
Peng Muwei had already made several mistakes during operations. Though he had recently performed well by stopping the retreating enemies and saving many warriors, his contributions were overshadowed by the stellar performance of Iron Muok and Gongsontae.
‘Whoever comes, they won’t get past me.’
Since he had resolved to help Iso, he had no intention of doing anything halfway.
A moment later, Song Cheonmu returned with tea. At the same time, Iron Muok and Gongsontae stepped outside after finishing their meal.
“Captain.”
“Yes, my lord?”
“Starting today, both individual training and group drills for the Dragon-Tiger Unit will intensify. Muok will assist you.”
“Understood.”
“Let’s all have a cup of tea.”
“Yes, sir!”
“Sir!”
* * *
Yeong Hochung stared silently through the window at Ihwan and the others. His gaze lingered on Iron Muok and Gongsontae.
He still found those two unsettling.
‘They’re not regular army officers. That would make them martial artists… but when did the prince acquire such followers? They weren’t mentioned in any of our intel.’
And just as unsettling as those two… was Ihwan himself.
The Ihwan he had seen here was nothing like the man he had read about in reports or heard about through rumors.
He hadn’t yet witnessed Ihwan’s martial skills, but after the incident between the subordinates, the personality he displayed was beyond cold—it was downright ruthless.
‘Prince Hwang treats him like dirt under his fingernails. But…’
Yeong Hochung had a strong feeling that was a mistake. He had already sent a secret letter to Prince Hwang, warning him to be cautious of Ihwan.
There was another thing.
‘As Left General, Hwangho can’t be surpassed. So if their faction wants to take control, they’ll need someone even more capable.’
He had included that suggestion in the letter too.
‘I need to find out who those two are. If, by any chance, the Crown Prince placed them with Ihwan… all our plans may need to be revised from scratch.’
While Yeong Hochung was lost in his thoughts, a subordinate entered the room.
“The Commandant from the Zhao army is dead. That’s probably why they suddenly retreated yesterday.”
“What? The Commandant is dead?”
“Yes. I overheard some generals talking about it near the command post.”
Yeong Hochung furrowed his brows.
“He died at such a convenient time.”
“Exactly. If the Zhao Commandant hadn’t died, things could’ve gotten much worse.”
“Did you hear the cause of death?”
“I didn’t get that far.”
“If you didn’t, then make sure to find out.”
“Yes, sir.”
Once the subordinate left, Yeong Hochung put on his overcoat and stepped outside. As he walked out, he glanced back—only to see Ihwan looking in his direction.
He quickly averted his gaze, instinctively.
Soon after, he sat across from Peng Muwei.
“How are you feeling?”
“It was just a scratch. Don’t worry.”
During yesterday’s battle, Peng Muwei had sustained a minor wound. It was the result of overexerting himself to show off his skills in front of others.
Unfortunately, Iron Muok and Gongsontae had left a much stronger impression, rendering Peng Muwei’s efforts meaningless. He was understandably in a foul mood.
Yeong Hochung narrowed his eyes as he watched Peng Muwei’s emotions clearly written on his face.
‘This man isn’t fit to lead the Southern Army Corps. Why did Prince Hwang consider him a replacement for Hwangho?’
Just then—
“General.”
Peng Muwei’s aide entered.
“What is it?”
“The prince is requesting an audience.”
“Again?!”
Crash!
The teacup toppled over and spilled onto Yeong Hochung’s robe.
Startled by Peng Muwei’s outburst, Yeong Hochung was left confused, unaware of what had happened between the two men.
‘What’s gotten into him?’
* * *
“You summoned me?”
“I thought we could share a cup of tea.”
“As I mentioned before, I’ve given up tea.”
“I thought you said your stomach wasn’t well last time.”
“I’ve decided to quit completely.”
“Is that so? Then have a glass of cold water.”
“What’s the reason you called me, my lord?”
“Nothing urgent. I was just impressed by your splendid performance yesterday and thought we could chat. Am I interrupting something?”
“I do have some duties to attend to, but—”
“Oh, then I won’t keep you. You may go.”
“……!”
“The Left General is busy. Open the door for him.”
Bang!
The door slammed open.
Peng Muwei returned before the tea had even cooled, shocking Yeong Hochung.
“Why are you back so soon?”
Bang! Bang!
Without answering, Peng Muwei slammed his fists onto the table.
Yeong Hochung shot up in alarm.
“General! What are you doing?!”
“That bastard! I don’t care if he’s a prince—I’ll kill him!”
Bang! Bang! Bang!
* * *
“Seems he’s pretty pissed.”
“He’s smashing all his furniture.”
Song Cheonmu and Gongsontae leisurely sipped their tea as they watched Peng Muwei’s tent.
“Why do you think the prince keeps provoking him?”
“Beats me. I’m curious about that too.”
Just then, Ihwan’s voice rang out from inside.
“You planning to slack off again?”
“No, sir! We were just heading to the training grounds!”
“On our way!”
* * *
Meanwhile, in the Crown Prince’s palace.
Now recovered enough to walk, Prince Iso sat in the artificial palace garden, sipping his favorite Dragon Well tea.
Clink.
“They say the second prince’s faction has taken over the tea market?”
“Yes. The Song family has suffered considerable damage as a result.”
“As expected. Even they can’t beat a competitor backed by the Empress and a prince. The princess must be having a hard time.”
“……”
Letting out a quiet sigh, Iso changed the subject.
“How are things with the Southern Army Corps?”
“General Hwang has sent a report.”
The officer handed over a sealed letter, which Iso opened immediately.
As he read through the letter, a smile slowly spread across his face.
“Good news?”
“He’s accomplished a great feat.”
“You mean the prince?”
“Yes. Want to read it?”
Iso handed over the letter. The officer’s face turned pale as he read it.
“I can’t believe it. The prince killed the Zhao Commandant…?”
“I found it hard to believe too. Not just the fact that he killed him, but that he had the presence of mind to even conceive the idea under such pressure—that’s what truly astonishes me.”
“Indeed.”
“This must be kept absolutely secret. If word gets out, the other side could use it to slander him.”
“Yes, Your Highness.”
“And now Yeong Ho’s faction has joined the second prince. That’s troubling. Their leader is said to be a cunning serpent with great martial strength.”
“Worse still, there are rumors that guards from the Embroidered Guards (Geumuiwi) will be sent to the Southern Army Corps. If they assist Peng Muwei with their intelligence network, General Hwang could be in trouble. Shall we dispatch our own intelligence experts?”
“Who do we have?”
“Send Biwol. With Wolju Gomi’s skill, they can handle the Embroidered Guards.”
“Biwol, huh…”
Iso furrowed his brow, then stood up.
“I need a walk.”
He strolled through the garden filled with exotic and rare flowers. The officer quietly followed behind.
Iso walked in silence for a long while.
Eventually, he stopped and turned around.
“Send Biwol to the Southern Army Corps. Tell them to leave today. A small elite unit with Wolju in the lead would be best.”
“Yes, Your Highness. I’ll see to it immediately.”
The officer departed the garden.
Iso sat on a rock, exhaled deeply, and murmured to himself.
“So you’ve been hiding your true abilities all this time? If I’d known, I would never have left you there.”
The image of Ihwan surfaced in his mind. A faint smile crept to his lips.
You won’t let yourself be toyed with by mere jackals, will you?
“…Fine. I won’t lose either.”
* * *
Later that evening, Jeong Cheon visited Ihwan’s quarters.
He handed over a secret letter from the Crown Prince’s palace.
Ihwan opened it slowly and read the contents. As he reached the end, his brow furrowed slightly.
‘Biwol is coming?’
That’s what the letter said—along with a suggestion to use them well.
“Did General Hwang see this too?”
“No, sir. It was addressed to you, so I didn’t dare.”
Ihwan finally noticed—the name embroidered on the silk covering wasn’t Hwangho’s, but his own.
It was another clear sign of his rising status, though Ihwan didn’t seem to care.
‘Well, that’s new.’
Jeong Cheon asked cautiously.
“Forgive me, but… may I ask what it says?”
“Read it.”
Ihwan handed him the letter. As Jeong Cheon read, his expression darkened.
“The second prince is sending the Embroidered Guards? But they won’t be able to do much at the front lines.”
“To scheme from the shadows, you first need information.”
“Still, why send Biwol instead of Dongchang? Biwol’s a subordinate agency.”
“They must have their reasons. Regardless, Biwol specializes in covert operations. Plus, they’re rivals with the Embroidered Guards. That alone should motivate them.”
Clink.
Ihwan set down his teacup and asked another question.
“What about the Zhao side?”
“They hold a ten-day mourning period for generals of commander rank or higher. So we likely won’t see any retaliation for now.”
“But don’t let your guard down. They’re known for their underhanded tactics.”
“Understood.”
“It’s late. You may go now.”
“Then rest well, my lord.”
After Jeong Cheon left, Ihwan leaned back in his chair and smiled faintly.
He thought of Gomi, who had coldly rejected his request by claiming to separate personal and official matters.
‘This is going to be fun.’
