As Prophet - Chapter 42



Only Krnovel

Episode 42. Two Students

There was no need to explain everything to the carpenter, even if it was someone else. Dalcheon roughly explained the overall structure, including the direction of the pavilion according to feng shui and the stakes that marked each location.

“What about wood?”

“Carpenters like us cut the wood in advance. The best wood is the wood that was cut in the winter of the previous year and left to age for a year. Wood that is moderately dried and tempered by cold and heat will last a long time.”

“How long does it take?”

“If you dry it well, it will last a thousand years.”

“A thousand years? Oh no, really.”

Is it the pride of a technician? Dalcheon may be fooling around because he is clumsy.

“Anyway, are you saying there is such a tree?”

“We didn’t plan to build this house, so we don’t have any wood. We have some cut down for other uses and as spares, but most of it has to be obtained from other carpenters.”

“Can you do that?”

“Of course.”

“Okay. And what about the construction cost?”

“It will come out quite well.”

No one can be free from money issues. That’s why many people dream of becoming rich. Dalcheon had no answer to this question. It was all the money he had saved while living a frugal life for the past two years. I sighed at the cost that was too much for me to understand, which was included in the word “quite.”

“If you tell me roughly in advance, I can prepare it.”

“The elder of the Baek family said he would take care of it.”

Dalcheon shook his head.

“You can’t do that.”

“He even said that. He said that when Confucius goes to the mountains, he will run the business in Baekjajang, and he told me to tell him that it will be done with Baekjajang’s money.”

“What? Wow, this guy is treating me like I’m going to die.”

“Anyway, I’ll take care of it.”

“It has to be built well. The drones are strong. It shouldn’t collapse if you hit it lightly. It shouldn’t blow away if you blow it back.”

“Of course.”

“Anyway, please calculate the cost in advance and let me know.”

“Okay, let’s first prepare a place for the workers to eat and sleep down here.”

“Please do not disturb those who are studying.”

“It’s a bit… … .”

“I hope it doesn’t take too long. Two students have already come in.”

Dalcheon chuckled after I said that. He was a carpenter I knew. He smiled bashfully, feeling sorry for having treated me like a loser all this time.

“I didn’t know you were this kind of person.”

“What? Unmanned?”

“Yes. I heard he’s a great person.”

“All you have to do is be strong, but people are just the same.”

“Ahahaha! I’m sorry for what I said.”

After doing other people’s work to fix their boats, he was given a big job. How could he not be happy? He only said nice things to catch Dalcheon’s eye.

Dalcheon, who had little concept of money, was nervous. He sent the workers down and was lost in thought. Where can I get money? What can I do to save up money? Can I cover it with the money the kids pay? Should I go to Sobaek and ask for a loan? These thoughts were running through his head.

* * *

After some time, the silent man who had been practicing approached.

“It’s over already?”

“No. Please take a look at my sword.”

Dalcheon stood up, blowing away his worries with one breath.

He pulled out his sword with such force that it made a snapping sound, and Mukhyeong flinched. It was because of the memory of what had happened before.

“Try it. Towards me.”

“yes?”

“I recommend you try attacking with the sword.”

It’s Bermuda. It’s a duel. And it’s a real-time search… … .

Mukhyeong hesitated and then raised his sword in front of him.

“I’m going.”

“great.”

Mukhyeong’s sword fell towards Dalcheon’s forehead. Dalcheon slashed it to the side. Because of the sword’s speed, Mukhyeong’s sword flew to the side. It was very fortunate that he did not miss the sword.

“Posture, it’s shaking.”

“yes!”

He points out that the sword was shaken after being struck with such great force that it flew away. Mukhyeong took back the returning sword and took a stance, then turned half a turn and drew a diagonal line. I don’t even remember what he said.

Dalcheon tilted his head to avoid the attack, and as he advanced, he leaned forward and almost simultaneously hit his lower back with the palm of his hand.

There was a loud noise and Mukhyeong took three or four steps back.

“Ugh.”

“Correct your posture.”

It was not a fight, but one-sided violence. Mokhyeong took a step forward while twisting his body, and swung his sword in the order of the three laws. Dalcheon skillfully dodged or blocked it, causing Mokhyeong’s body to stagger. There were even cases where he was pushed back three or four steps and fell to the ground.

When the formula of the law was finished, Mukhyeong’s spirit was completely torn apart. Even if the opponent knew the order of the examination, he couldn’t be defeated like this.

“What do you think the problem is?”

I held back the words that were about to come out, “How can I exploit the weak point of my examination if I know the next order of my examination?” Then I cautiously told him the correct answer.

“God is not present.”

“Yes. Then what should we do? We have no choice but to try again.”

“Yes.”

“What do you want me to see? Nothing has changed.”

After nagging her, he approached Baek I-jeong.

As a woman, her strength is lacking. Baek Yi-jeong’s movements, which she swung hundreds of times, were sluggish, and she couldn’t even hold the sword properly. Dal-cheon stopped her.

“Okay, try three things. Try drawing the same pattern while holding your breath, try it while exhaling with a “pa”, and try it while pulling your breath in with a “hup”. It has to be one of the three. That way, your body will know which one is best.”

“Oh, yes.”

“If you lower your sword while making a sound, the sword will dance.”

“Just a minute… … .”

Baek Yi-jeong drew his sword while controlling his tired breathing at Dal-cheon’s advice. He could see the difference between apnea, inhalation, and waking. Why did he tell me to do it one million twenty-one times instead of teaching me this earlier?

Although I was angry inside, I couldn’t show it. It was because the realization I felt while doing it was greater. Baek I-jeong, who wanted to try again quickly, took two steps back.

“Thank you for teaching me.”

Dalcheon snickered. The words, “You should have told me that earlier,” didn’t come out, but I thought Dalcheon might know the feeling.

When Baek Yi-jeong turned around, Dal-cheon was walking towards the fence with his luggage on his back. He slowly turned around while carrying his luggage.

Since the land is not large, they say that when they train on horseback, they circle around the fence. It is effective, but I didn’t like the idea of ​​circling around a place to study. Since they circled around the place where the main building was to be built, they were also concerned that the land was not flat.

Just then, Baek Ui-hyeong arrived on horseback. Dal-cheon ran down the hill like a child.

“capital punishment!”

“Oh, why are you welcoming me so warmly?”

“It’s nice to meet you, why wouldn’t the death penalty be happy? Hahaha, tell me something.”

“Oh, it wasn’t me who was happy, it was you who was happy.”

“no.”

“Where are you going?”

“I’m not going.”

Dalcheon jumped up as soon as he grabbed the reins that were being handed over. It would be better to try it out for himself than to just keep thinking about it in his head. Dalcheon circled around once and tilted his head. He didn’t like it. He circled around again and swung his sword, then picked up a stick and swung it around like a spear and hit a stake.

“What are you doing? Are you thinking about the Gi-chang and the knight training grounds?”

“Yes! It’s so narrow that I don’t think it’ll be enough.”

“Yes, it is still too small. We need more land.”

“That’s right. A lot of money went into this land alone.”

“You could practice your spear and spearmanship by going around once, and for running, how about taking advantage of the wide road and the riverbank below?”

“Oh, the riverside bluff?”

Dalcheon immediately rode a horse and galloped briskly, then smiled with satisfaction. Riding a horse in a place where there were no people, swinging a sword and pretending to stab with a spear, he looked just like a crazy person.

It is said that most of those who fail in the military examination fail in horseback martial arts. The width and distance are sufficient. Dalcheon tried horseback martial arts and came back with a satisfied face. After tying the reins, he saw Baek Ui-hyeong talking to a carpenter. He could hear the conversation, but he approached closer and interrupted.

“Death penalty, we need a place to practice.”

“What can’t we do in this vast space?”

“The distance is not visible.”

“Okay. I need to get 150 sheets.”

* 145 meters is said to be 150 sheets.

The land is large, but not large enough to create a wetland. Baek Ui-hyung’s gaze turned to the side.

“I should have bought the land next door too… … .”

“I don’t have the decency to ask you to buy more. I think it would be better to make a 50-sheet set and leave the rest for you to practice at the water’s edge.”

“Okay.”

Dalcheon made a loud noise and grabbed Baek Ui-hyeong’s sleeve.

“But you said that you would pay for the construction costs.”

“What can I do when I know you’re penniless?”

“Is the old man helping you?”

“Well, I did tell you. He said it was a good cause and that he would actively help. And I have some money, so I’ll add that too.”

“What is this? I’m sorry. What should I do?”

“Just give me your master’s name!”

“Hehehe.”

Dalcheon didn’t answer and just smiled. It seemed like he had no intention of giving it to someone else.

“Isn’t there a place where I can make money? Where I can make a lot of money at once… …. That is, make a fortune overnight.”

“If there’s something like that, I’ll do it! Hehehe.”

“But please find out if there is anything missing.”

“Those are often bad things. Wanting someone to be assassinated? Wanting someone to be killed for hire? Wanting someone to steal something? Wanting someone to threaten? … .”

“Still.”

“I’ll just get your help first, and I’ll pay you back later!”

Dalcheon shook his head.

“Where is the later for me?”

“What does that mean, young man? A man with many years left in him, like iron hairs?”

Dalcheon smiled faintly.

“Sometimes my presence fades. I don’t know when I’ll be able to get back on track.”

“You’re being ridiculous. If the ranking system were that easy, I’d do it all.”

He says such important things as if he were joking.

* * *

It would not have been the case that the slaves of the Baek family would have talked roughly like they were soliciting customers in the market. There were many people who had difficulty sending even one son to a school. So, there were many cases where only one eldest son was sent. There were not many households where brothers attended.

The reason why not a single person came despite the hard campaigning was because there weren’t many wealthy families. Above all, the purpose of a seodang was to produce exemplary citizens, not to produce people who passed the state examination through elementary and secondary education. It may not have been hopeless, but in reality, most people sent them because they wanted at least one person in the household who could read.

The promise of passing the military service examination was a great temptation, but the reason why few people responded may be because it sounded like a lie. It may have sounded like they were being told that if they just showed up to school and passed the exam, they would pass the exam.

In the past, if a person did not pass the civil service examination for three generations, they would lose their status as a yangban. It was a harsh class society. It was as difficult as picking stars from the sky for a commoner to pass the civil service examination. So, many people took the relatively easy military service examination, but that was not easy. The military service examination often did not have a set number of applicants, and the number of successful applicants increased depending on military circumstances, so it was relatively easy compared to the civil service examination.

In the past, the path to take the exam was open equally, but the conditions for studying were not the same. Raising one scholar required the entire family’s wealth, even if it was a wealthy family. In simple terms, it was like destroying the family. Even if it was a gravel field, it was barely possible to support it. In order to be considered a nobleman, you had to have at least one scholar. It was a world where it was ridiculous to call a nobleman without even one scholar, let alone a person who passed the state examination.

However, since he said that if you just go there, you can pass the military service examination, many people were interested. The fact that he was a hero of the Imjin War and that he could handle any of the eighteen weapons was also convincing. There were a few families who thought that there might be a chance between hope and despair.