Return of The Mount Hua – Chapter 1357. That guy is coming (2)
Editor: Hoamzz
Co-Translator: Xoxo
"Supplies?"
Yoon Jong tilted his head as he swallowed a mouthful of meat.
"Do we really need supplies? We have a convenient guy who just hunts whenever we need food. Couldn't we just replenish through hunting along the way like now?"
Yoon Jong glanced at Chung Myung, who was tearing into deer meat nearby.
Chung Myung was the best hunter he knew. As long as he was around, a group of merely a hundred or so people would never have to worry about starving.
But Baek Cheon didn’t seem to agree.
"If the world worked that conveniently, we wouldn’t have anything to stress over."
Baek Cheon heaved a deep sigh before beginning his explanation.
"No matter how quickly he brings food back, hunting is still hunting. It inevitably takes time to find, catch, and return with prey."
“Well....”
Yoon Jong couldn’t exactly argue with that and gave a small nod.
No matter how fast Chung Myung hunts, it still takes time.
Moreover, there's no guarantee he could hunt as quickly next time, is there?
"I don't know now, but if the enemy gets close, we’ll have no choice but to hurry without resting. Do you plan on hunting even then?"
“That’s a fair point."
With enemies not just behind them, they couldn't know how many more chances they would have to rest and create distance like now.
"Hainan Sect disciples are already exhausted. And isn’t their burden doubled from carrying and running with the wounded?"
“Yes. Sasuk.”
"And if they don’t even get proper food, the result is obvious."
Yoon Jong's expression grew more serious.
"We need food that can be eaten while running. But in that case, wouldn’t it be better to dry some jerky in advance?"
"That won’t work. Drying jerky takes time… and do you expect unconscious men to chew on it?"
Yoon Jong let out a groan.
Among Hainan Sect wounded, there were countless who were barely conscious.
There was no way they could chew on tough jerky.
Even now, wasn't the meat Chung Myung grilled unable to pass the wounded's lips?
“In the end, we need grain.”
"That's what I think too."
Grain could be roughly chewed and swallowed while running, and if ground into powder and mixed with water, it could serve as makeshift gruel, making it suitable even for the wounded.
"But where in these mountains could we find grain..."
The first solution that came to mind was looking for a nearby village, but Yoon Jong had no choice but to shake his head.
Finding people this deep in the mountains was already difficult, but such people would usually be those who survived by hunting.
It was unlikely they had enough grain to spare.
Even if they did, it would likely be precious grain they couldn't sell even for money.
It wasn’t something worth considering unless they plan on plundering.
'But then how?'
Where in these mountains were they supposed to find grain?
"What do you plan to do?"
"We must choose. Either we take the risk and go down to the villages to try and buy some grain…”
"To get enough for everyone to eat until reaching the Yangtze, we can't avoid being noticed. Wouldn’t Evil Tyrant Alliance bastards be on us in an instant?”
"That’s a risk we’ll have to take."
“....”
Yoon Jong let out a long sigh.
Solve one problem and another appears, solve that and yet another emerges.
Going to war against the strong was like trying to carry water in a leather pouch full of holes.
"If we could obtain grain even taking such risks, it might be worth considering, but I doubt anyone would be willing to sell to us.”
“Why?”
“Isn’t here Gangnam? It’s a place ruled by Evil Sects, so they’re used to being careful in everything they do. They’re not going to sell grain to complete strangers who suddenly show up out of nowhere. They don’t know what kind of trouble that might bring later."
Baek Cheon tilted his head as if unable to understand. Seeing that, Yoon Jong gave a bitter smile.
Baek Cheon, who grew up without any lack and never feared those in power, must find this feeling incomprehensible.
He could never understand the way sheep had to perceive the world when forced to live among starving wolves.
"Anyway, buying grain all at once won't be easy. The only way would be to send people out separately and have them buy it little by little… but that would take too much time."
"Hmm..."
A look of deep sorrow settled over Baek Cheon's face.
Being in enemy territory turns even such trivial matters into serious problems.
It felt like he could understand a little bit why so many sects were trying to expand their sphere of influence.
"Then what should we do?"
It was when Baek Cheon frowned involuntarily.
“What’s got you thinking so hard?”
"Huh?"
Chung Myung strolled over lazily and tossed a polished deer bone onto the ground.
"If the problem is they won't sell grain, we just need to go to people who will."
Yoon Jong frowned.
“Weren’t you listening? There aren’t many people in Gangnam who’d sell that much grain to strangers. They'll test even stone bridges before crossing."
"No, that's why. Couldn’t we just ask people who aren’t strangers to us?”
“...Where in this Gangnam land are there people who aren’t strangers to us?”
Yoon Jong stopped mid-sentence and turned to stare at Chung Myung.
"Su- Surely you're not talking about Myriad Man Manor?"
At those words, all eyes snapped toward Yoon Jong. Yoon Jong flinched at the concentrated gaze and waved his hand.
"N- No, that's not what I..."
“Sahyung, have you gone insane?”
“...Tha- That’s not it, you rascal! I only said it because you always say crazy shits in times like this!”
"Even crazy talk has limits. Is suggesting buying grain from Myriad Man Manor something a sane person would say? Did you get stabbed in the head somewhere along the way?"
“....”
He could bear the reproachful gaze of Chung Myung.
What Yoon Jong found unbearable were the looks from others, heavily laden with the sentiment 'This one's lost his mind too'.
Jo-Gol gently pats Yoon Jong's shoulder, who had dejectedly lowered his head.
“I understand. Sahyung.”
"...Get lost."
Baek Cheon takes his eyes off the depressed Yoon Jong and asks Chung Myung.
“Then where are you talking about? Who in Gangnam do we have ties with?"
"Maybe not quite a tie, but I know people who have quite the grain and might sell it to us."
“So who exactly?”
"Sasuk saw them on the way here too."
"Hm? On the way?"
Baek Cheon thought for a moment before his eyes widened.
“Ah! Them!”
"That’s right."
Chung Myung says with a slight smile.
"The village we stopped at on the way to Hainan Sect had grain. The ones those Evil Tyrant Alliance bastards gave them."
“Right....”
They had even cooked meals for them using that grain. Not much time had passed since then, so it was unlikely that all of it had been used up.
“We might be strangers to others, but not to them. We’re at least somewhat familiar."
"And it’s not too far from here either?"
“Exactly.”
“Hmm.”
Baek Cheon nods.
This guy Chung Myung might call it ‘somewhat familiar’, but the bond between Heavenly Comrade Alliance and that village wasn’t something so casually defined.
They hadn’t expected anything in return, but didn't they do the villagers a favor by saving their lives?
It wasn’t like they were asking for grain for free, so buying it with money shouldn't be a problem.
"Ah, no. Wait."
"Hm?"
Jo-Gol speaks with his face filled with concern.
“But that village didn’t really have a lot of grain. What would happen to the village if we bought theirs?”
"Sahyung, are you stupid?"
"Huh?"
The villagers can just go down to the city and buy more grain. The merchant might not sell to us, but there's no reason they wouldn't sell to the villagers."
"Oh?"
That works?
“N- No. If those people buy grain in bulk, they’ll obviously draw suspicious looks..."
"Really, did this person leave his brain in Sichuan when he joined the sect! They don’t have to buy it all at once! We need a lot because we’re in a hurry, but those yangbans can just buy it little by little from different places."
“Tha- That’s right?”
Chung Myung clicked his tongue.
“Grain might be scarce in the market, but thanks to that bastard Jang Ilso throwing grain everywhere, even the hidden stockpiles must have surfaced by now. It'll be expensive, sure, but we can just pay more."
“....”
“We are happy because we can get the grain we need, and those yangban are happy because they earn enough money to buy more grain and still have some leftovers! It's eating a pheasant and its eggs!"
Baek Cheon stared at Chung Myung in admiration.
This guy was truly born with a knack for clever schemes.
To think that he would utilize the only connection they had in Gangnam... No, it was embarrassing to even call it a close connection, in such a way.
In any case, as long as they didn't leave traces of their visit to the village, it was a plan where both sides could benefit.
“But, Chung Myung-ah.”
"Hm? What now?"
"I feel a little awkward pointing this out, but there's a fundamental problem with your plan."
“What problem?”
Baek Cheon opened his mouth with an awkward expression.
"Well… To go through with your plan, we’ll need a lot of money, but unfortunately, we don’t have that much.”
“....”
Chung Myung looked at Baek Cheon with eyes that said, 'What nonsense is this bastard talking about?'.
“You didn’t bring money?”
“I took it with me when I left… But we gave that to the villagers then..."
Probably best not to mention that he had handed off most of his funds to Hainan people on the assumption they wouldn’t need money on the way back. The money ghost would absolutely lose his mind.
“You don’t have money?”
"W- Well, it's not that I have none at all..."
Just as Baek Cheon was scrambling for an excuse.
"What the hell are you even worrying about? Worrying about unnecessary things. It’s fine, it’s fine."
“Huh?”
Baek Cheon’s eyes widened. There was no way this money ghost was fine after hearing they had no money.....
“It’s not like we’re the ones paying for it."
"What?"
At those words, Baek Cheon's head naturally turns to Namgung Dowi.
But Namgung Dowi simply shook his head as if to say he hadn’t brought any money either., and Tang Pae shrugged.
Even Im Sobyeong flipped his sleeves inside out, baring empty hands with a grin.
"Are we seriously going to start robbing bandits now?"
"...It doesn't seem surprising anymore."
“Don’t you think that’s the bigger problem? Huh?”
Anyway, it didn’t seem like anyone had enough money to cover this expense.
"So what?"
"Really, you lot are as useful as dog shit for medicine."
"That idiom seems a bit twisted..."
"Who asked you for money?"
"Th- Then?"
"Why should we pay when the ones who'll eat are someone else? Look over there. The ones who packed up all the expensive and precious stuff when they left home."
"Hm?"
"There."
Everyone's head turns towards Chung Myung's chin gesture.
And they saw it.
Just as Chung Myung said, a wealthy man who had scraped together all his valuables just in case when leaving home.
“Yes.”
"Indeed he is."
“Fortunately.”
Geum Yangbaek, the sect leader of Hainan Sect who had just joined them, shudders at some chilling sensation.
"Wh- What?"
Pleasant smiles bloom on the faces of Heavenly Comrade Alliance members.
A smile that was exactly like the one worn by Chung Myung standing behind them.
|Note
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