Chapter 1357: So He’s Coming, I See. (2)
“Supplies?”
Yoon Jong swallowed the meat in his mouth and tilted his head.
“Is it really necessary to talk about ‘supplies’? We have a handy fellow who hunts on his own when we need meat. Can’t we just make do by hunting now and then like we are?”
Yoon Jong glanced at Chung Myung, who was tearing into venison beside him.
Chung Myung was the best hunter he knew. With him around, the hundred or so of them shouldn’t have to go hungry.
But Baek Cheon didn’t seem to agree with that.
“If the world ran that conveniently, there’d be no need to rack our brains.”
Baek Cheon sighed deeply and began to explain.
“No matter how fast he catches game, hunting is still hunting. It inevitably takes time to find, kill, and return with an animal.”
“Well...”
Yoon Jong nodded; it was hard to argue with that.
No matter how quickly Chung Myung hunted, it still took time.
And there’s no guarantee he can hunt as quickly next time, either.
“Even if it’s fine for now, if the enemy comes within close range we’ll have to hurry on without rest. Do you expect us to hunt then?”
“You’re right.”
The enemy wasn’t only behind them, so there was no telling how many chances they’d have to put distance and rest like now.
“Southern Island’s disciples are already very exhausted. Carrying the wounded on their backs doubles the burden, doesn’t it?”
“Yes. Sasuk.”
“If they can’t even eat proper food on top of that, the outcome is obvious.”
Yoon Jong’s expression turned a little serious.
“We’ll need food that can be eaten on the move. But in that case wouldn’t it be better to make jerky in advance?”
“Impossible, drying jerky takes time... Besides, are you going to feed jerky to unconscious patients?”
A pained sound escaped Yoon Jong’s lips.
Among Southern Island’s wounded now, there are plenty who are barely conscious.
Such people couldn’t be expected to chew hard jerky.
Even the meat Chung Myung had just grilled wasn’t getting into the mouths of the wounded, was it?
“In the end, we’ll need grain.”
“I think so too.”
Grain can be roughly chewed and swallowed while running, and if ground into powder and mixed with water it can substitute as porridge, so it could feed the wounded.
“But where in these mountains would we get grain...”
The first idea was to look for nearby houses, but Yoon Jong had to shake his head.
Finding people living this deep in the mountains isn’t easy, and those who lived there usually made a living by hunting.
They wouldn’t possess the amount of grain we need.
Even if they did, it would likely be precious grain they wouldn’t sell for money.
Unless they planned to pillage, it wasn’t even worth considering.
‘But then how?’
Where, in these mountains, would they get grain?
“What do you intend to do?”
“We must choose. Either risk going down to the foot of the mountain to try to get grain from a village...”
“If we try to obtain enough to feed all these people down to the Yangtze river, we can’t avoid being noticed. Won’t the Four Sects Alliance pounce on us?”
“We’d have to take that risk.”
“...”
A deep sigh escaped Yoon Jong.
Solve one thing and another problem arises; solve that and another appears.
Waging war against the strong was like carrying water in a leaky leather vessel.
“If that was the only way to get grain I’d consider the risk, but I don’t think there are people who would sell us grain.”
“Why’s that?”
“Isn’t this Southern region? It’s ruled by the Evil Sect, so people are used to being cautious in everything. They wouldn’t readily hand grain to strangers who suddenly appear; they expect trouble later.”
Baek Cheon tilted his head as if he couldn’t understand. Seeing that, a bitter smile crossed Yoon Jong’s mouth.
Baek Cheon, who had grown up without want and never feared the powerful, would find it incomprehensible.
He couldn’t understand what it’s like to face the world as sheep living among hungry wolves.
“Anyway, buying all the grain at once is not easy. We’d have to split up and buy small amounts... that would take too much time.”
“Hmm...”
A look of worry settled on Baek Cheon’s face.
Being in enemy territory made even these small issues serious.
He could somewhat understand why many sects strove to expand land within their influence.
“Then what should we do?”
At that moment Baek Cheon frowned.
“What are you worrying about like that?”
“Huh?”
Chung Myung ambled over and flicked a now-smooth deer bone in front of them.
“If the problem is they won’t sell grain, why not go to people who will sell?”
Yoon Jong frowned.
“Didn’t you hear me? In this Southern land there’s no one who would sell large amounts of grain to strangers. They’ll test the waters before crossing.”
“No, I mean, why not ask people who don’t find us strange to sell it for us?”
“Where are there people in this Southern land who aren’t strangers to us?”
Yoon Jong paused mid-sentence and looked at Chung Myung.
“You wouldn’t mean the Ten Thousand People Clan, would you?”
Everyone’s eyes turned to Yoon Jong at those words. Startled by their stares, he waved his hand.
“Ah, no, that’s not it...”
“Sahyung, are you mad?”
“No, I mean, you idiot! Aren’t you always spouting crazy talk at times like this?”
“There’s a limit to crazy talk. Who in their right mind would go to the Ten Thousand People Clan to buy grain? Did you get a blade stuck in your head on the way here?”
“...”
He could endure Chung Myung’s reproachful gaze upon him.
What Yoon Jong found hard to bear was not Chung Myung’s look but the looks from others that screamed ‘He’s lost it too.’
Jo Gul gently patted Yoon Jong’s shoulder as he hung his head listlessly.
“I understand, sahyung.”
“...Get lost.”
Baek Cheon tore his gaze from the dejected Yoon Jong and asked Chung Myung.
“Then who are you talking about? Where in this Southern lands are there people familiar with us?”
“They may not be close acquaintances, but I know people who have surplus grain now and would sell it.”
“So who are they?”
“Didn’t sasuk stop by as well?”
“Huh? On the way?”
Baek Cheon seemed to ponder, then opened his eyes wide.
“Ah! Those folks!”
“Yes.”
Chung Myung snorted and said.
“There was grain in the village we passed on the way to Southern Island. It was the grain the Four Sects Alliance had given.”
“Indeed...”
They even cooked rice with that grain for them. Not much time had passed, so it was unlikely all of it was gone.
“Others might find us strange, but those people wouldn’t. They’re roughly acquaintances.”
“And it’s not that far from here?”
“Yes.”
“Hmm.”
Baek Cheon nodded.
Chung Myung dismissed it by saying they were roughly acquainted, but the relationship between that village and the Heavenly Friends Alliance wasn’t so simple.
They hadn’t expected payment, but they’d done them a life-saving favor, hadn’t they?
They’re not asking for grain for free; buying it with money shouldn’t be a problem.
“Ah, no. Wait a moment.”
“Huh?”
Jo Gul said with a worried look.
“But that village didn’t exactly have grain to spare. If we buy up their grain, what will become of the village?”
“Sahyung, are you an idiot?”
“Huh?”
“The villagers can go down to the city and buy grain. They might not sell to us directly, but there’s no reason they wouldn’t sell to themselves.”
“Oh?”
Would that really work?
“Ah, no. If the villagers buy grain in large quantities they’d draw suspicious attention...”
“Man, is this guy crazy? They can just buy in several places. We’re the ones in a hurry and must buy a lot, but those villagers can gather small amounts from many places.”
“Th-that’s right?”
Chung Myung clicked his tongue.
“You said the market had no grain, but that bastard Jang Ilso scattered grain everywhere, so the grain they’d tightly hidden will have come to market. It will be a bit pricey, but we can pay up.”
“...”
“We get the grain we lack, and those gentlemen earn more than enough to buy grain again—everyone benefits! It’s a win-win!”
Baek Cheon looked at Chung Myung in admiration.
Anyway, that man really has a knack for cleverness.
He’d actually use the only acquaintance we had in the Southern Lands... no, an embarrassingly slight acquaintance—in that way.
Anyway, as long as they didn’t leave traces of their visit to the village, it was a plan that could benefit both sides.
“Um, Chung Myung.”
“Hm? What now?”
“This is a little embarrassing to say, but that plan has a fundamental problem.”
“What problem?”
Baek Cheon said awkwardly.
“Well... if we do as you say, we’ll need quite a bit of money, but unfortunately I don’t have that much right now.”
“...”
Chung Myung looked at Baek Cheon with eyes that said, ‘What the hell is this guy saying now?’
“You didn’t bring money?”
“I took some when we left... but that money was given to the villagers then...”
Better not say he handed it out to the Southern Island people, thinking they wouldn’t need money on the return. That money-obsessed fellow would surely flip out.
“You have no money?”
“Ah, it’s not that I have none at all...”
It was when Baek Cheon tried to come up with an excuse.
“What nonsense are you talking? You worry about everything. It’s fine. It’s fine.”
“Huh?” Baek Cheon widened his eyes. There’s no way that money-crazed man would stay so calm upon hearing we have no money...
“We’re not the ones paying anyway.”
“Huh?”
At that remark Baek Cheon’s gaze naturally turned to Namgung Do-Wei.
Namgung Do-Wei shook his head as if he too had brought no money, and Tang Pae shrugged his shoulders.
Even Im So-Byeong turned his sleeve inside out to show it.
“Are you now going to even fleece mountain bandits?”
“It’s not even surprising anymore.”
“So you don’t think that’s more of a problem? Huh?”
In any case, none of them seemed to have money to pay.
“They say so.”
“In short, they’re good for nothing.”
“That phrasing seems a bit tangled...”
“Who told you to pay them?”
“Then, what?”
“The ones who will eat are separate—why should we pay? Look over there. Those who left home brought all manner of expensive and precious things.”
“Huh?”
“There.”
Everyone turned their heads toward Chung Myung’s chin gesture.
And they saw.
Exactly as Chung Myung had said: the rich man who had scraped together all his precious things when leaving home, just in case.
“There he is.”
“Seems so.”
“Fortunately.”
Now, having finally joined them, Southern Island’s sect leader Geum Yang-Baek shivered with a creepy feeling.
“W-what?”
Smiles of satisfaction spread across the faces of the Heavenly Friends Alliance members.
A smile that was exactly like the one Chung Myung wore behind them.