Chapter 136

“Oh, Prince.”

That was Qing’s observation.

In fact, Ja-yoo wasn’t really trying to hide the fact that he was the son of a well-to-do family.

Qing didn’t particularly care about that either.

It was more of a silent agreement to pretend not to know each other, and Qing thought he hadn’t really done anything wrong.

The unfamiliarity of the title “Prince” contributed as well.

When the Han people came to the medieval martial world, the idea of a ruler just meant, “Wow, the Emperor!” and that’s pretty much it.

He didn’t really get the whole concept of royal families actually holding power over local areas or commanding troops of a specific city, or being at the forefront of the royal hierarchy beneath the Son of Heaven.

No one from any ethnicity in the world seems to care about medieval China.

Even the descendants, the Chinese, didn’t care enough to burn their history, so saying that they knew more would just be outright strange.

The only real demand is for the era when Yu Bi and his brothers were frolicking in ancient China.

(That is, unless it wasn’t for the medium of comics, it wouldn’t even be considered.)

So, Qing’s reaction was pretty lukewarm.

“Uh, um. Prince? How should I address you?”

“How dare you! Don’t you know how to show proper respect!”

Lady. What is this guy blabbering on about?

Qing shot a glare at the noisy woman before looking back at Ja-yoo, Prince Deokhyeon.

“Just call me Wang Ya.”

“Ah. Wang Ya.”

“But what’s going on? Why were you playing dead? Wait, wasn’t that when I heard you were having dinner?”

“No, you little! This is Wang Ya! You should be dressing properly and bowing respectfully! Do you really think having a tiny friendship with Wang Ya gives you the right to act like that?”

The woman was frothing again.

But thinking about it, she wasn’t entirely wrong.

After all, the King was just hiding his identity for fun, so being a little chummy doesn’t mean they could remain friends forever.

To put it in more relatable terms, it’s like a wealthy heir who just came to hang out with the factory workers for a bit of excitement.

This whole auto-hunting game with bizarre factory culture might seem ridiculous from the outside.

As such, Qing felt a bit offended.

Didn’t Ja-yoo expect people to applaud and cheer when he suddenly said, “Bam, I’m a Prince!”?

Was he perhaps hoping there’d be some crumbs of money and power he could gather from the crowd?

If he were a proper person, even if his identity was exposed, he would say it happened due to circumstances and that he’s grateful for the friendship, or want to keep being friends—properly arranging their relationship, wouldn’t he?

Besides, Wang Ya didn’t stop the woman.

Usually, someone of high status would have others speak on their behalf to avoid saying things they don’t want to.

Qing straightened his posture right away.

He immediately adopted a refined and somewhat demure demeanor as if he wasn’t two people in one body.

“I, a mere woman, have offended Wang Ya due to my ignorance. Would you kindly forgive me?”

“You see, I came out in disguise, so it’s only natural that you wouldn’t know. I wouldn’t mind, so there’s no need to worry about it.”

“Yes. Thank you very much, Wang Ya.”

“No. Ahem.”

Prince Deokhyeon looked at the woman with a flustered expression.

The woman also looked taken aback.

“Thank you,” is typically a phrase marking the end of a relationship.

“Cough. Courtesan Chang.”

Courtesan Chang felt a wave of despair.

It was Courtesan Chang who insisted on verifying Qing.

With Old Dog nearing his end, just having a lady like Wang Ya by his side would cause a commotion among the lower ranks with all sorts of fuss about serving the young master.

Yet that wasn’t the opinion of all the Wang’s servants.

Courtesan Chang had heard they were just women looking to latch onto a powerful son.

Once Wang Ya revealed his true identity, wouldn’t they pretend to be close while trying to vie for a position of favor?

Well, that was the verification.

Meanwhile, Qing was in shock.

Huh, how could someone’s name be Courtesan Chang?

Especially for a woman!

No way, right? It must be a nickname or something.

But how on earth could a personal nickname be Courtesan Chang?

That sounds almost like a tragic name for an unfortunate woman.

Just then, the poor woman with a pitiful name or nickname, Courtesan Chang, spoke up, appearing a bit embarrassed.

“Ah, cough. Um. Was it Seo-mun So-ja? How can we be so coldly dismissive of human connections?”

“A forced connection really seems like just begging for pity, doesn’t it? It’d be better to take pride in just having been called a friend of Wang Ya back in the day.”

“No, that doesn’t have to be the case.”

“Everything’s fine. If you have something to say, say it yourself. What’s with standing in for someone else and making it embarrassing for me? Just because you’re someone important doesn’t mean you think everyone’s going to come running at your command.”

The people of the Tang family turned pale at that.

Sure, Qing’s comparison to a wealthy heir worked, but there is no perfect analogy in this world.

It felt utterly sacrilegious, and having relied on the Prince to be the one to set off the fuse was just absurd.

“Um… I’m sorry. I didn’t mean for it to go this far. I wasn’t hiding on purpose, so please don’t be angry.”

The Tang family members watching carefully finally took a deep breath again.

He’s apologizing so calmly!

“If it wasn’t on purpose, then why did you stay silent until things got out of hand? A simple word from you saying you were alive would have avoided this chaos, right?”

“Well, you heard I passed away, right? The people who took my place when I was absent collapsed, so there would have had to be time to recognize the mess…”

Qing narrowed her eyes.

Ja-yoo was sweating profusely; he suddenly realized.

But why was he acting like a criminal?

“Ahem, I’m the Prince.”

“Yes, your Highness. And this is the underground of the Tang family which took quite a beating.”

Ahem. The Tang Chief coughed awkwardly, muttering to himself that it wasn’t really that bad.

“…Don’t view me as too cold-hearted.”

Ja-yoo shrank back.

The Tang family members thought silently.

This guy’s seriously trapped. Like really trapped.

He’s completely at their mercy.

Feeling their stares, Ja-yoo made an awkward face.

“Um. We should probably change the subject.”

—–

The Emperor despises the martial world.

The hatred that has been passed down since the Great Master Mucheondae has exceeded common sense; he’s even to the point of handing the throne to the child who despises the martial world the most.

No matter how strong a martial artist is, unless they’re a giant like the Great Master Mucheondae reaching the heavens, they can’t survive against hundreds of thousands of warriors.

Military men may not always be adept at martial arts.

A Master’s inner strength is not infinite.

Once the true energy is depleted, they are just regular people who can fight well, and even if they are numerous, it’s not impossible to wipe them out by brute force despite the damage they’d take.

However, that potential damage is precisely why they can’t just charge in recklessly, as it might result in a shift in the imperial dynasty afterward.

So they kept an eye on things, deciding to remove the most dangerous elements first.

And that was the Sicheon Tang Family.

They produced biological weapons capable of turning one martial artist into an overwhelming force.

“No wonder my elder Brother sent you to Sichuan. After all, I am the Prince.”

Wise people always assume the worst.

The Deokhyeon Royal Family’s inception was over a decade ago, so if one considers that from that time onwards they’ve been contemplating handling the Tang Family post-assassination, it became paramount to avoid exposing themselves and getting into a dangerous situation.

“I thought I was careful enough not to draw attention, but it seems I’ve still been marked for removal.”

Thus, acting like a nonexistent person became the best option.

A good Emperor is merely an illusion.

They only refrain from gathering wealth to avoid bothering anyone, even going as far as buying grain for the poor to throw at them.

They shove their puppets in prominent positions, driving out corrupt officials while making a fuss, as if they actually govern.

The truth is, they just don’t show their face out of fear of the Emperor.

“Well, then. Guess it can’t be helped. If it’s about survival. But why are you here?”

“From this opportunity, I might as well seek the Tang Family’s cooperation to take full control of Sichuan. If the officials and martial artists of Sichuan join forces, I imagine even the Emperor may not have a solution. But…”

“But?”

The Prince corrected his posture.

Immediately, an air of dignity emanated around him, despite lacking any martial skill.

Qing realized again that a royal title isn’t bestowed just on anyone.

“Is there really a reason for the martial world to exist? The Emperor, as the Son of Heaven, rules the land with the divine decree bestowed upon him, and that strict law stems from him. How can armed groups dare to call themselves the masters of the land, robbing from the common folk?”

The fact that Prince Deokhyeon stood by the Sicheon Tang Family was no trivial matter.

Since the Emperor had already sent Door-sa and the Golden Guards to eliminate the Tang Family, it meant the Prince was in direct opposition, and this could be considered treason.

Of course, the Emperor tried to kill the Prince.

But didn’t the Emperor have the power to decree death to the common folk?

Thus, the reason the Prince was asking wouldn’t simply be out of curiosity; it’s because he had been the only one pondering if the martial world was indeed necessary.

He was contemplating whether it would be right to share ruling power with them.

This was the final question regarding an irreversible decision, asking if the prince of Sichuan should join forces with the martial sect to raise his sword against the imperial family.

So, Qing answered.

“Why are you asking me?”

Ja-yoo frowned deeply.

“Um. Didn’t it feel like I was asking you something tremendously important? You, or rather, my friend also aided the Tang family, so as a part of the martial world, you should do your duty. So I have to ask my friend in the martial world instead of a commoner.”

“A part of the martial world? I just thought the people of the Tang family were good folks, and that’s why I lent a hand. They provided free medical services and had a great reputation.”

“Providing? Weren’t you just working to evolve our medical skills? The favorable outcome for your own benefit doesn’t make it a good deed.”

Qing chuckled lightly and said,

“As long as the outcome is good, then all’s fair. If everyone thinks it’s a good thing, isn’t it? To me, the Tang family doing free medical work is far more beneficial for the people than the infamous Emperor.”