Chapter 398

Today, there’s no need for patrols, so I heard to gather at the eastern side of the manor at a quarter past ten.

When Jin Seol stepped into Jin Seongchae, or rather, long before that, the lively chatter of family members could be heard.

It felt strangely like a sound I hadn’t heard in ages.

Without realizing it, a light smile crept onto Jin Seol’s face as she hurried her steps.

Right in front of Jin Seongchae.

A long banner, with letters inscribed one by one on a large cloth, caught my eye first.

The First Jin Gajang Restoration Contest.

However, even before I registered the content, my gaze was drawn to the grand calligraphy.

I may not know much about calligraphy, but it was something I had never seen before—what should I say, it was incredibly neat, strong, and full of vigor, like a magnificent square.

Then, I was once again surprised to see such precious writing on such a shabby old fabric!

Indeed, such fine calligraphy on such a worn-out cloth!

Just looking at it, it seemed like the letters were worth more than gold, so why were they wasted here?

“Ah! Is that Jin Sojeor?”

“Seomun Sojeor? No, what on earth is this!?”

Jin Seol was taken aback twice before she cried out in horror.

The members of the Dragon and Phoenix Association half-jokingly said that Baekhap had nothing to show for herself, so she went around baring her chest; in reality, there’s no woman who dresses better than Jin Seol among the female disciples of the orthodox martial sect.

In fact, Jin Seol’s White Lotus sect members were also a society that had a keen interest in clothing.

“I’m the Civil Engineering Fairy! How do I look? Like a shaman?”

“What on earth is this bizarre outfit? This isn’t right! This is absolutely ridiculous!”

“Ah, why not?”

“A woman should never dress in seven different colors at once! That’s something only a ten-year-old can pull off! What’s Seomun Sojeor doing? Is she wearing a rainbow outfit?”

“Oh, isn’t that against the national law?”

“It’s a matter of etiquette! Clothing is also a matter of propriety! Goodness! How can you! Besides, it’s so flowy! No way! What is this? Aaaah! And this is a single piece! I’m so stuffed already!”

Jin Seol was spitting fire.

“Calm down.”

“Calm down?! What is this? What should I even call this?”

“Um… a shaman robe?”

“Seomun Sojeor, you’ve never seen a shaman, have you? And what on earth are you wearing? Are you going to catch bees? Go get honey? Why are you using talismans like this?!”

Jin Seol pulled up A-Qing’s veil.

And there was A-Qing’s beauty—bam! A dazzling sight!

Jin Seol was momentarily at a loss for words.

Indeed, clothing’s essence is the face; even in the most absurd, unattractive attire, how does she look so decent?

“Hehe.”

A-Qing’s face lit up with a shy smile.

That embarrassing grin conveyed just one message:

– I truly have no idea what the problem is.

With that, Jin Seol sighed deeply.

“Haah. Have you been going around like that? I can’t stand it. I’ll make you something proper. This just won’t do. This is impossibly wrong.”

“Well, it’s not like the Civil Engineering Fairy will be needed for a few days anyway. It’s really not necessary.”

“Even for a single day, it’s unacceptable. I’ll sew you something even if it takes me all night. That bizarre outfit… I mean, even the sewing is annoyingly well done…”

“Hehe. I guess I’m pretty handy.”

“Don’t laugh. Um, but what in the world is going on? The Jin Gajang Restoration Contest?”

A-Qing grinned mischievously.

“Well, we need to fix the house. So, Jin Sojeor, do you prefer the Big Dipper or the Arum?”

Jin Seol’s expression warped in confusion.

The Big Dipper versus Arum?

The Big Dipper is a major star in the north, whereas Arum is a flower but resembling a deadly poisonous plant with a vile aura.

Pick one from these completely different options?

What on earth is this bizarre sound?

A-Qing didn’t give her time to think.

“Okay. You have five seconds to answer. One. Two. Three—”

“Big Dipper, the Big Dipper!”

“Wrong! Unfortunately, the Big Dipper is already full. Jin Sojeor is now an Arum.”

“……Then why did you even ask?”

“Because there are people who are looking forward to it? Congratulations! You’re part of the Arum faction, give a round of applause!”

At that, some members who had already arrived clapped half-heartedly, their smiles slightly distorted.

“What is happening here?”

“Oh, it’s a reconstruction contest. We’ll split into northern and southern teams, competing based on time, skills, and artistic scores. The northern group is the Big Dipper, and the southern group is the Arum.”

“Alright, put on the armband. Perfect fit. Jin Sojeor is the captain.”

“Me?”

“It makes perfect sense, right? The head of the family is a giant of the orthodox martial world, so he’s the captain of the Big Dipper, while Jin Sojeor is the flower of the martial world, so she’s the captain of the Arum.”

“Then doesn’t that make me an Arum?”

The Arum is a deadly poisonous flower, known for its ominous characteristics due to its color and peculiar appearance.

“Hey, don’t worry about the trivial stuff. Now, let’s kick off the First Jin Gajang Restoration Contest! Applause!”

With that, scattered applause echoed around, somewhat reluctant.

They began tearing down bricks and stripping the outer walls, while on one side, two teams mixed lime and ash to make mortar.

As they peeled back the floor, dark, rotten stains revealed themselves beneath the wooden supports.

Actually, these were remnants of decaying flesh, more horrible than mere bloodstains.

With this, the stench was unmistakable.

They carefully sliced through the seams to pull out the rotten wood and similarly removed the rotten soil from the foundation, replacing it with new dirt.

The people of the Jin family, although martial artists, are indeed part of the martial world.

This means they are strong physically.

People usually feel joy in new experiences, especially when their bodies don’t feel too fatigued.

And above all, it’s even more enjoyable when done together.

“I went over to patrol Sabanglu, and wouldn’t you know, they’re now openly talking. If they can’t manage it, why don’t they just sell it instead of sitting around? If it were up to me, I’d have wanted to roar aloud about the Jin family in broad daylight.”

“Hey, did you really just let that slide?”

“How could I do anything about the clueless common folks chattering? Getting angry there would just make me look silly.”

“Seriously, the world’s morale these days—”

Each busy with their patrol schedules, there hadn’t been much time for face-to-face conversation.

So, they took the chance to chat while removing bricks, mixing lime, moving wood, and just enjoying their own conversations.

Time passed uneventfully until it was past two hours, and soon it was after work time.

It was way past lunch, so hunger was creeping in on everyone.

Finally, the women, children, and old folks who hadn’t been able to work brought out refreshments to the crippled table.

They prepared simple meals like sticky rice with stir-fried vegetables, some fried fish snacks, and a big bowl filled to the brim with sweet yellow wine.

Is this a dinner table or a drinking table?

The yellow wine is sweet, and after labor, it’s even sweeter.

People oddly become more carefree once they take off their clothes, and despite their already messy attire caked in dirt and dust, the esteemed family members sat down unceremoniously and took big gulps of warm yellow wine.

“Wow! Was this wine always this good? I hadn’t even had a sip before.”

“Seems it’s cold outside? I’m really feeling the warm buzz going through me.”

Visually, it looked like they had just completed some sort of construction project.

Though it appeared more like they were all occupied with chit-chat, as martial artists, their hands never stopped working, so they were making decent progress.

Whenever they spotted a doodle, they’d rush over to speculate about who drew it and chat about it like it was the most interesting thing ever. Even if A-Qing had done it alone, it seemed it would have probably been more impressive.

“Uncle, does that taste good?”

“Why are you coming to me for this? Why don’t you grab something your dad made over there?”

“Oh come on. How much can a kid like me actually drink? It’s customary for grown-ups to teach the little ones. I’ve messed up my child-rearing, so take advantage of your uncle here.”

And so one serving of yellow wine reached the youngest ten-year-old Jin Choo.

With the adults watching on with expectant eyes, surprisingly, the little girl gulped it down decisively and wiped her mouth, providing her commentary.

“It’s good.”

Big trees are unusual even from the seedlings, so perhaps a great drinker will be born here.

As the ten-year-old girl turned beet red and stumbled about, everyone erupted in laughter, calling her to come over.

“Alright, alright. It’s cold, so let’s wrap things up. Let’s see where the Big Dipper’s bricks have gotten to? Have they reached forty courses? Oh. And the Poisonous Arum’s… Ah, yes, the Arum group. You’re going to have to step it up. At this rate, will you even reach the top by the end of today?”

After spending nearly half an hour playing around, they resumed work.

It wasn’t a massive job since it was originally a small annex, so tearing it off and refilling it didn’t take too much effort.

Before they knew it, the sun began to set, and almost all the bricks were laid.

A-Qing was focused on hammering down fresh wooden planks for the roof.

Holding a heavy Wang Mang hammer right above her head, with each swing, nails disappeared without a trace—this was the legendary technique that shook the carpenters of Guangzhou, eliminating nails in one blow.

Of course, no one really knew just how amazing A-Qing’s craft was, having little knowledge of carpentry.

When A-Qing reached out her hand, although not as beautiful as hers, a delicate hand came stretching out for the nail.

Beauty may be subjective, but the beauty of hands is universally appreciated when they are long, slim, and fair.

Therefore, A-Qing’s hands were both the most wicked and most beautiful.

Even if Jin Seol’s hands didn’t measure up to A-Qing’s, she should appreciate that she can even be compared.

Then, at some point, along with a nail, came a quiet voice.

“Thank you.”

“Huh? What for?”

“For this event, wasn’t it all organized by Seomun Sojeor? Including lunch and all? It was like an experience for common folk, right?”

“Oh, it’s nothing special.”

At that, Jin Seol looked at A-Qing.

Underneath the sunset, her clear skin and enchanting face shone beautifully.

“I guess I shouldn’t have refused the help from the Martial Alliance. Together, we’ll only keep feeling sad and hurt, stuck in our own misery. I’m really glad you came, Seomun Sojeor.”

As Jin Seol said this, she gazed around at the family still joyously chatting, the warmth of the wine lingering in the air.

Without knowing, her lips relaxed into a smile.

“It’s been ages since things have been this lively.”

“Then how about sending a letter now? The guest hall will be ready for repairs soon.”

“No, Dad.”

Jin Seol’s cheeks flushed.

It seems Jin Sojeor is still calling the head of the family Dad.

A-Qing noted this trivial observation.

“I should tell my father. I should have requested support from the start when I realized the Sapa were hindering us. I procrastinated because things weren’t looking good; I felt embarrassed to show my state to others. I should’ve mustered some strength—how pitiful of me.”

Jin Seol gently bit her lovely lips.

In lieu of an answer, A-Qing reached out her hand.

After a moment of hesitation, Jin Seol cautiously took and clasped her hand.

A-Qing’s hand felt cold, but that made Jin Seol’s warmth feel even more reassuring.

Feeling the warmth conveyed through her palm, A-Qing subtly pulled her hand back and responded.

“It wasn’t for your hand, but I asked for a nail…”

The First Jin Gajang Restoration Contest concluded with the victory of the Big Dipper faction.

After all, they finished the work before darkness fell, meaning both teams’ speed scores were tied.

There wasn’t a single flaw to be found, so artistic scores were also tied.

And since no safety accidents occurred, the safety grade (though everyone was curious why it was called a safety grade instead of a safety approval) was also tied.

Ultimately, the deciding factor was how tall their eaves were.

It’s a unique style of architecture from Guangdong, where houses have their eaves raised high at the front and back with bricks, gracefully finishing off the ends.

This is called “Huaqi” or “pot ear,” referring both to the pot shape and the ear shape of the eaves.

According to carpenters, this design keeps the houses cool in summer, so there must be some scientific principle behind it.

But A-Qing didn’t want to analyze it scientifically, so she just accepted it.

A wisdom passed down through the ancestors, although not hers; nonetheless, it was the wisdom of the Central Plain’s ancestors.

“Surely, that must be the case.”

The Big Dipper faction built their eaves about five courses higher, earning them substantial bonus points for that edge.

Unfortunately, the underprivileged Jin Seongchae got the short end of the stick.

But really, wasn’t it just about having high eaves?

Was there perhaps a special point awarded by the head of the family? (Even the reserved Jin Gajang raised an eyebrow at this.)

There was a bit of controversy regarding the fairness of the judging.

However, since it was all in good fun, the atmosphere wasn’t too serious either.

Of course, that last sentiment was merely A-Qing’s personal opinion.

Underestimating the competitive spirit of martial artists, this first Jin Gajang Restoration Contest was bound to make those eaves look more like donkey ears than royal ears, but A-Qing remained blissfully unaware.

After the construction, leftover materials were piled up beside the front gate of Jin Gajang, with a note affixed.

“The wood is contaminated and can only be used for firewood if you want to salvage it. The bricks are discarded out of laziness to wash them. The Civil Engineering Fairy cleanses them with spirit, and they will be removed in ten days.”

This is a common method in the Central Plain for dealing with scrap materials, meaning:

If you want it for firewood, take it.

If you want to wash the bricks and use them, take them.

Feeling squeamish? Don’t worry, the shaman has purified them.

If you don’t take them, they’ll be thrown away in ten days.

Thus, excited commoners passing by started to grab as much as they could.

Truly, it was a win-win situation; a green initiative that minimized waste.

And so, news of this quickly spread throughout Guangzhou.

It seemed the Civil Engineering Fairy was capable enough to lend a hand to Jin Gajang.

Did they summon a great master? While such a master would surely be strong, the curse aspect seems a bit dubious, right?

And so, chatter ensued.

How long could the Civil Engineering Fairy withstand the cursed Jin Gajang?

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