Chapter 4
“Although we’re grateful that you’ve come all the way to this rural backwater, we truly have nothing left to offer as tribute, even if we starved ourselves to death. Haven’t we already held rituals twice a week since your arrival? And that’s not all. You keep building new shrines every other day, and now we can barely put food in our mouths….”
“Watch your mouth, you bastard.”
The village head raised his hand. His fist struck the man’s cheek with a dull thud.
“Uncle!”
Idam instinctively tried to run forward, but Rayeon grabbed him.
They had heard that Seochang’s governor had been replaced. So this new one was from the Jang clan.
The position of provincial governor was one of the most coveted posts. It allowed the holder to squeeze taxes out of the people through all kinds of authority.
One of those rights was ordering villages to build shrines and hold rituals. Taxes were collected for constructing shrines, then again for conducting ceremonies.
“Let’s go.”
Rayeon turned away. Unlike Ihan, who followed her without hesitation, Idam kept glancing back.
I hope Uncle will be okay.
Was this country ruled by the Yu clan, or the Jang clan?
The emperor was always a Yu. But from the empress to the concubines, every woman granted a royal title came from the Jang clan.
The former emperor had died young without an heir. The empress at the time, Lady Jang, adopted a distant royal relative and placed him on the throne. Then she selected the new empress from among her own relatives.
And this had continued for three generations already.
As with any hereditary power, it grew stronger and more cunning over time.
Every aspect of state governance now served only the interests of the Jang family. Even the emperor himself was nothing more than a powerless puppet beneath their influence.
The Jang clan was the one dragging the nation into ruin.
“Father….”
And they were also the ones who had framed her father as a traitor. Those who accused the man who had devoted himself solely to the emperor and the country and drove him to his death—every one of them belonged to the Jang clan.
A shrine appeared in the distance along the road home. One, two—Rayeon counted silently. Four shrines were clustered together. With the one currently under construction, there would soon be five.
“There are way more now.”
Idam muttered. Rayeon glanced at him.
“How many were there before?”
“Just one, before you came back.”
There had indeed been only one before she left for the capital. Back then, she used to sneak in with Idam and Ihan to play.
“So the rest were built recently?”
Since she didn’t believe in gods, she had no reason to visit shrines. How often rituals were held or how many shrines were built had never interested her.
“Probably after the new governor arrived.”
“Calling him ‘sir,’ seriously?”
Clicking her tongue, Rayeon strode toward the shrines.
“Hey, where are you going? To the shrine?”
While Idam scratched his head in confusion, Ihan followed after her. Like thread to a needle, he followed wherever she went. Though, to be fair, Idam wasn’t much different.
“They’re all wooden.”
Rayeon knocked on the wall of one of the new shrines. A clear, hollow sound echoed back.
The new governor hadn’t even been in office for six months, and already four shrines had been built. There was no way they were carefully constructed. He probably never intended them to be. The goal was simply to pocket whatever money remained.
She knocked again. The same hollow sound rang out.
“Are shrines usually built with wood?”
Idam tilted his head.
“The first one was built of stone. Don’t you remember? We helped make it when we were kids.”
Ihan replied calmly, and vague memories resurfaced.
“Let’s go home.”
Ironically, all these shrines existed solely for the benefit of those people.
Shouldn’t have looked. Now I’m just annoyed.
Rayeon quickened her pace.
Damn it.
Yungi wasn’t a strict man. If he were, Idam wouldn’t have been able to run around so freely.
Still, there was one rule he never compromised on: everyone ate dinner together.
Tonight, it was just the three of them—Yungi, Idam, and Rayeon. Before Rayeon returned, it must have been only Yungi and Idam. Still, Idam talked enough that the house probably never felt too quiet.
“So it really upset me. Uncle Cheon’s such a good person. He even helped with Mother’s funeral…”
Yungi quietly listened to his son chatter. He truly was a good father. Sometimes, Rayeon saw glimpses of her own father in him.
“So, Father… could we help him somehow?”
“We? How?”
“It seems offering tribute every time is too much for them. We have some room to spare, so maybe…”
“And what do you think, Rayeon?”
Yungi slowly stroked his beard and turned to her.
“Should we help?”
Idam’s eyes sparkled with hope. But Rayeon was not someone who would bend just because her younger brother wanted her to.
“No. We shouldn’t help.”
“Why not?”
“The Baek family is an old and respected household in Seochang. We can’t help some people and not others. If we do, we’ll lose public trust for being unfair. And if we help, it would have to be everyone. But even if Uncle has some wealth, that’s impossible.”
As if satisfied with the answer, Yungi slowly nodded. Idam, meanwhile, pouted.
“She’s right. Even if our family has some means, we can’t help everyone.”
“So there’s nothing we can do?”
“I’ll speak to the governor about it, so don’t worry too much.”
As if they’d listen. They were the Jang clan, after all. If they listened to reason, her father wouldn’t have died unjustly.
Rayeon scooped up a spoonful of glossy white rice.
“You’re so heartless, sis.”
After dinner, Idam kept grumbling. They were only a year apart, but moments like this made him seem like a child.
Well, he still is one.
“What’s heartless?”
“Uncle Cheon’s really a good man.”
Rayeon didn’t know Uncle Cheon well. She didn’t feel any urge to help him. And even if they did help, wouldn’t it only end up filling the pockets of the Jang clan?
Yes—she simply didn’t want to benefit them. She already wanted to burn down everything they owned; there was no way she’d willingly give them more.
“Hey.”
Startled, Idam’s sharp eyes widened.
“Do you really want to help Uncle Cheon that much?”
“Of course! He and his wife have always been so kind to me.”
“Then go get Ihan.”
“Now? At this hour?”
It was already quite dark outside. Rayeon knew that, but still…
“You said you want to help. Go.”
Five words were all it took to get Ihan moving: Your sister is calling.
At that, he immediately went to Yungi’s house. It wasn’t far anyway.
“Let’s burn it down.”
She wasn’t sure why the thought struck her so suddenly. No—correction. She’d been thinking it since earlier. Ever since she saw how shabby and cheaply built the shrines were. If a fire broke out, there’d be chaos, she had thought.
“Burn it down? What are you talking about, sis? Where? The shrine?”
Idam looked shocked. Not horrified—just shocked, Rayeon noted.
“I already said we can’t help only Uncle Cheon. Others will come asking for help too. What will you do then?”
“I get that, but how does that lead to burning the shrine? Father said he’d speak to the governor—”
“They won’t listen. This isn’t something the law will solve. If it were, this wouldn’t have happened in the first place.”
“So?”
“Rituals are held in shrines. If there’s no shrine, there’s nowhere to perform them. Then they can’t keep demanding tributes.”
“Won’t they just demand more money to rebuild them?”
Ihan remained calm, as if the thought of offending heaven itself didn’t bother him at all. Well, none of them really believed in gods anyway.
“I’ve been thinking about how to make them unable to use shrines and rituals as excuses.”
“And?”
“A shrine is a place to pray to heaven and earth. So what if heaven sent a revelation telling them to stop building shrines and stop holding rituals?”
Idam frowned.
“A revelation?”
Rayeon continued explaining.
“Like a letter appearing in the burned ruins or something. Make it feel mystical. Then even the Jang clan won’t dare build another shrine.”
And that corrupt governor would lose his chance to line his pockets.
“That’s why I called you. To see if you had any good ideas. A way to create a convincing ‘revelation.’”
Idam, who had been scratching his head, suddenly clapped his hands.
