Chapter 567

Chapter 567 - Side Story 1

A girl around five or six years old and a younger-looking boy were squatting on the dirt ground playing house.

The boy urged the girl.

"Hurry up. Hurry."

The girl found it bothersome but couldn't resist the urging and stood up. The girl picked up three tree branches, waved them, and shouted imitating an adult man's voice.

"Justice never yields, demons must be exterminated! Peaceful martial world, grand observation and justice! Fight for the martial world's justice!"

The boy, pleased, composed his expression and pointed at the girl with a rather solemn appearance.

"You rascal Unbreakable Heavenly Sword! For the crimes of disturbing the world and taking innocent lives, I, Poison Dragon, will firmly hold you accountable!"

It was a childish voice, but a face more serious than anyone's.

However, the girl soon threw away the branches.

"It's boring. I hate fighting games."

The boy became sullen.

"But if big sister doesn't play, I have no one to play with."

"Right. Oh, right."

The girl's eyes sparkled with mischief. The girl whispered and lowered her voice.

"You know that? How did Dad get past the checkpoint with lots of martial artists?"

"Huh?"

The boy bit his finger thinking, then answered.

"Everyone knew Dad was a cripple, so he passed without limping, right?"

"Tsk tsk tsk. You want to be like Dad from one to ten, but you didn't know that? Listen well. I'll teach you something only big sister knows."

"Big sister! Teach me. Teach me!"

"But you have to do it?"

"Yeah!"

The girl dressed the boy in adult women's clothing. She applied white powder to his face and even dotted rouge.

"..."

The boy felt something strange about his appearance and fiddled with the clothes here and there.

Since he wore adult women's clothing, the hem dragged on the ground.

"Did Dad really crossdress?"

"Yeah. He crossdressed to get through. So hold still so I can braid your hair. You said you want to be like Dad."

"This is weird..."

The boy kept grabbing the dragging skirt hem and walking, until his feet caught and he fell flat on the ground. Tears welled in the boy's eyes.

The girl was startled, worried the boy would cry, and looked around before telling him.

"Dad doesn't cry over things like this. Got it?"

"Uh, uh-huh."

The boy sobbed while holding back tears.

Then he saw a centipede crawling on the ground.

"Ah, a five-colored centipede!"

The boy picked up the centipede and put it in his mouth as if he'd never cried.

"Nom."

The girl grimaced and stepped back.

"Ugh... you beggar-like thing. Spit it out, quickly!"

"Quiet!"

Crunch crunch.

The boy chewed and ate the centipede.

The girl smacked the boy's head.

"Ugh, geez! There are other things to copy from Dad."

Smack!

Tears welled in the boy's eyes. The color of the tears flowing down his cheeks became murky for a moment, and poison energy suddenly wafted around.

"Hey, because you keep doing that, I can't even go outside the house because of you. You gonna keep spewing poison energy?"

"Hiiiing."

The boy started crying.

Then a voice calling the girl and boy was heard from afar.

"Poison Heaven, I told you not to bully your brother."

It was Jin Ja-gang.

Seeing her father, Poison Heaven quickly hid her hands behind her back.

"No, Dad. I wasn't bullying Gyeong. Gyeong kept picking up weird things and eating them, so I scolded him not to do that."

Jin Ja-gang narrowed his eyes.

"What's our family motto?"

Poison Heaven lowered her head and answered in a dejected voice.

"Integrity and Defense..."

"What does Integrity and Defense mean?"

"It means to know shame and not lose propriety..."

"But would someone who knows propriety call their brother a beggar?"

"No..."

Tang Ha-ran, who followed from behind, laughed seeing Tang Gyeong in women's clothing, swaying and falling again as he tried to get up.

"Why is he like that?"

"Hehehe."

Poison Heaven laughed and quickly shouted while running away.

"I'm sorryyyy! I'm sorry so I won't eat dinner tonight!"

"Poison Heaven, you rascal! Who told you to set your own punishment?"

"You were going to do that anyway."

Jin Ja-gang released internal energy to trap Poison Heaven so she couldn't escape. Gentle energy wrapped around Poison Heaven who was about to exit through the door. Poison Heaven twisted her body here and there like a loach and slipped right through the net of internal energy.

Jin Ja-gang drew up more internal energy and pressed his hand to the ground.

Internal energy seeped into the earth and rose like pillars from the floor on the door side where Poison Heaven was running.

Thud! Thud thud!

Pillars of internal energy burst out raising clouds of dust and blocked the door.

The pillars of internal energy were so thick that the door looked hazy. But Poison Heaven fearlessly jumped into the spaces between the wildly erupting pillars.

If Jin Ja-gang released internal energy as is to erect the pillars, she'd collide and get seriously injured. Jin Ja-gang had no choice but to remove thirty percent of the power from the internal energy. The somewhat weakened pillars rose slowly.

In the meantime, Poison Heaven quickly squeezed between the pillars and rushed out the door.

"I'll be back!"

Jin Ja-gang let out a long sigh. She had clearly moved while even anticipating that he would reduce his power.

Tang Ha-ran, who was watching from behind, laughed.

"She acts exactly like her dad. And when did she learn the Slithering Snake Step like that?"

Jin Ja-gang sighed.

"Haah, she has talent but doesn't try hard to learn martial arts."

"That's something I've heard a lot somewhere."

Tang Ha-ran laughed.

After sighing, Jin Ja-gang turned to Tang Ha-ran.

"Anyway, aren't you going to say anything about Poison Heaven doing that?"

"She played with Gyeong all day. Let her go out and play in the evening even briefly."

If she didn't eat dinner, she didn't have to be at the dinner table, so in the meantime she could go out and play outside the Tang Family Estate.

Tang Ha-ran smiled.

"She's pretty admirable at that level."

Unlike Poison Heaven, the younger brother Tang Gyeong still couldn't control poison energy and released it from time to time. Though it was no big deal for Jin Ja-gang's family, it was lethal poison energy to others.

Because of that, no one besides Jin Ja-gang's family and a few others could even enter the rear garden. They couldn't let Tang Gyeong go outside either. Yet Poison Heaven, saying she was the older sister, was kindly playing with Tang Gyeong.

Taking care of her brother at an age when she should be playing freely... Even though she sometimes bullied him, it was nothing but admirable.

Jin Ja-gang also agreed with Tang Ha-ran's words.

"She is admirable. But I'm worried because she just tricks her way out and runs around."

"I wonder who she takes after to be like that."

Tang Ha-ran said.

"Oh, I'll say this in advance, but it's not me. I had the personality of rigidly doing only what I was told since I was young."

"...Then it's me?"

"Probably you? It's not me, so if it's not you either, that'd be strange."

Tang Ha-ran smiled while holding Jin Ja-gang's hand.

"Tell me. What were you like when you were young?"

"I don't really know. I just went around gathering medicinal herbs and playing around, I think."

"Just like Poison Heaven, then."

"..."

Jin Ja-gang somehow couldn't deny it.

"Waaah, Mom. Dad."

Tang Gyeong ran crying to Tang Ha-ran and Jin Ja-gang.

As his emotions intensified, he released poison energy profusely again. That's why there are no maids or servants at this residence of Jin Ja-gang and Tang Ha-ran.

Jin Ja-gang said to Tang Gyeong.

"Take a deep breath and exhale slowly to stabilize your breathing. I taught you the breathing method, right? With ascending water descending fire, lower the hot energy downward..."

Tang Gyeong stopped crying and stared at Jin Ja-gang, then immediately cried even louder.

"Waaaah, Daddy. Hold me, hold me!"

Tang Gyeong grabbed Jin Ja-gang's pant leg and cried more pitifully. He spread his arms asking to be held and cried as if he'd stop breathing.

Jin Ja-gang showed reluctance, but Tang Ha-ran didn't help.

"Why are you looking at me? You agreed to take charge since returning from the Murim Alliance."

"I apologize for not taking care of the children for three years."

"Not three years, four. And you didn't even come home once during that time. I understand you were busy. But that was that, and now you're an unemployed bum with nothing to do. Now you need to help me."

Tang Ha-ran said clearly.

"I'm doing your share of work too."

After Jin Ja-gang stepped down from Alliance Leader and withdrew from martial world affairs, the Tang Family's role became even greater. Whether Jin Ja-gang wanted it or not, it was reality that the Tang Family greatly influenced the martial world's major and minor affairs, and the head of that Tang Family was Tang Ha-ran. The current Tang Ha-ran was far busier than before with no time to spare, so she had no choice but to leave childcare almost entirely to Jin Ja-gang, who was a beginner father.

"Even so, won't you help at all?"

"Then help me with one thing I want. How about it?"

"I won't do martial world affairs..."

"Well, that's up to the person asking."

Jin Ja-gang trembled at Tang Ha-ran's firmness.

"Isn't this too much between husband and wife?"

"The closer the relationship, the more we must keep to our boundaries."

Jin Ja-gang had no choice. He looked at Tang Gyeong sprawled on the floor kicking and crying pitifully, then accepted the proposal.

"Alright!"

"Deal made."

Tang Ha-ran quickly picked up Tang Gyeong.

"Stop crying. Now."

"Hiiing..."

"If you keep throwing tantrums and crying, I'll tell Dad not to tell you old stories. Don't you want to hear Dad's stories about cool fights from the past?"

Tang Gyeong sniffled and nodded.

"Then don't cry, go wash your face first, then let's have dinner. Dad will tell you interesting stories at dinner."

"Okay. Please tell interesting stories."

When Tang Ha-ran put Tang Gyeong down, he grabbed the long hem and waddled toward the well. Though still very young, he skillfully drew well water alone, poured it into a basin, and washed his face.

Jin Ja-gang looked at Tang Ha-ran incredulously.

"You're saying you'll tell my stories, so why doesn't he listen to me but listens to you?"

Yet Jin Ja-gang sighed in relief. At that sight, Tang Ha-ran burst out laughing again.

"Children don't just throw tantrums. They're confirming how far their demands can be met. That's how they learn human relationships. They confirm their position within that. You can't talk to a child from an adult's perspective."

"I feel like I lost out because it's too simple."

"Good. Then I'll tell you one more thing as a bonus."

Tang Ha-ran said.

"Nan deuk ho do. When raising children, parents need to be a bit more foolish."

Nan deuk ho do means it's difficult for smart people to appear simple-minded.

Tang Ha-ran looked at Tang Gyeong washing his face well alone and said to Jin Ja-gang.

"You're smart, so the children's clumsiness will frustrate you. You'll want to teach and tell them what you know and experienced. But children don't grow according to their parents' wishes. They don't turn out as I want either."

"Then... I should just watch?"

"I've never pressured the children. Know why?"

Tang Ha-ran looked at Jin Ja-gang with eyes that seemed somewhat tired but clear.

"Because they're your son and daughter. They inherited the blood of the world's wisest father, so I thought they'd do well on their own without me telling them to do this or that."

Jin Ja-gang looked at Tang Ha-ran quietly, then slowly shook his head.

"I should take back what I said earlier. It's not simple and not easy either."

"Of course. That's why childcare is hard. But you'll slowly get used to it, so don't worry. No matter what anyone says, you're those children's father."

Tang Ha-ran grasped Jin Ja-gang's arm with both hands as if linking arms.

"Our children will grow up well. In a good environment, eating good food, and learning from good teachers. But how will other children grow up?"

Tang Ha-ran leaned on Jin Ja-gang's shoulder and said softly.

"Take care of that child too. That's the work I want from you."