Invitation to the Chatroom of the Gods - Chapter 15



Only Krnovel

Episode 15 – Merit and Misunderstanding (2)

The province was the largest administrative district.

And including Gangseo Province, where our village belongs, there were a total of 23 provinces.

A provincial governor is a person who oversees military administration, inspection, and judiciary in a province.

It could be said to be a high-ranking official position that only 23 people in the world can hold.

So inside the luxurious wine cup.

As I opened the door and went in, a man was waiting for me.

Glossy skin and luxurious clothing.

Anyone can tell that I am a high-ranking official! I even have a confident demeanor.

“Ah! Are you the guy named Cheongun?”

That person would be the inspector general of Jiangxi Province, Zhu Guanquan.

From what I’ve heard, it seems like he’s a distant relative of the current emperor.

Well, if it’s natural, then it’s natural.

In the past, capable people could rise to government posts through examinations.

However, it was difficult to obtain a high-ranking position such as an inspector general with only ability.

There had to be a connection.

I’m talking about the connections called blood ties, regional ties, and school ties.

And the most important of all ties is blood ties.

“The missionary’s good fortune. I greet the noble inspector of Gangseo Province.”

I set the best example I could.

Then Ju Gwan-cheon waved his hand.

“There’s no need to be so polite. How can someone who has done so much deserve such extravagant treatment?”

I thought he was arrogant because he was a distant relative of the emperor, but it seems that wasn’t the case.

Judging from the way he spoke, his intentions were upright and upright, like those of a fair and upright scholar.

“Don’t stand there. Come and sit down.”

I took a step and entered the room.

As we entered the room, we could see that someone other than Ju Gwan-cheon was in the room.

‘wild boar?’

What a boar-like person…

No, there was a person sitting next to Jukwancheon.

As I was watching in bewilderment, the wild boar suddenly stood up, took the lottery ticket from me, and spoke.

“I’m late in greeting you. I’m Kwae Cheong Cheon from the Murim Alliance.”

“What do you mean by ‘the Murim Alliance’…?”

“It is the Chupung Sword Belt of the Guardian Hall.”

iced coffee.

Only then could I nod.

Since Namgung Se-ga, a member of the Murim Alliance, was involved in this incident, it seemed like someone from the Murim Alliance was involved as well.

The Martial Arts Alliance.

Simply put, it refers to a union organization of political parties.

An organization formed by the five major sects and various political factions, with the Gupaeilbang as its core.

Thus, the Murim Alliance was the organization that coordinated and judged various conflicts that occurred in the martial arts world.

Among them, the Hobeopdang that Kwae Cheong Cheon belonged to was a place that protected the laws of Gangho.

When something happens in Gangho, the first thing that comes to mind is the Guardians.

The Chupung Sword Belt can be seen as the hands and feet of such a Dharma Guardian.

To be exact, it is the armed group of the Protection Party.

Being affiliated there meant that you were by no means an ordinary person.

That’s understandable, because if you’re a martial artist, you’re a crazy person.

The conflict caused by such crazy people.

By the standards of ordinary people, they are not in their right mind.

Or stick a knife in your stomach.

Or cut off the roots.

In the martial arts world, a crazy act that causes one to lose their mind is called a ‘dispute’.

The Law Enforcement Agency is an organization that resolves ‘disputes’ that occur all over the world.

Then what do you need?

It’s force.

I could tell right away that his boar-like size and impression were not just any old thing.

“Thanks to the quick help, I feel so reassured!”

This is especially true for those in a high-ranking position.

It looks like he was dispatched from the Murim Alliance to protect Ju Gwan-cheon and investigate the case.

I politely accepted the ticket and answered.

“It is called the missionary’s blue cloud.”

After exchanging our names, we each sat down.

···But there was no separate bed of thorns.

As I sat uncomfortably, Ju Gwan-cheon smiled warmly and said.

“You don’t have to be so nervous. The reason I called you here is to congratulate you on your achievements.”

Fortunately, it seemed like they weren’t trying to hold me responsible for the murder.

As I let out a small sigh, Ju Gwan-cheon spoke.

“Surely you were worried that I would accuse you of something?”

“I was a little worried, since I had also committed murder.”

“What are you talking about! Those you killed were criminals who could not avoid execution anyway. How can you call that a crime?”

Then, Ju Gwan-cheon gave a sly nod.

Then, Kwai Cheong Cheon brought a small box from one side of the room.

“This is···.”

“That’s why I specifically called you.”

Ju Gwan-cheon gestured as if telling me to open it quickly.

I carefully opened the box and examined its contents.

‘Golden treasure?’

There were ten of them.

Ten gold ingots were neatly placed in the box, emitting a graceful appearance.

···It was a huge sum of money.

Even if I spent my entire life running a military base, would I ever touch one of these?

This means that.

It was like saying that from now on, I could spend a huge amount of money playing around for the rest of my life.

“How could you give me such a huge sum of money···?”

“A huge sum of money. It is nothing compared to the merits you have given me. And it is not just my sincerity. Here, the sincerity of Kwai Dae-ju is also present.”

“The Murim Alliance also showed a little more sincerity.”

Officials and the Murim Alliance.

It was a joint effort by two large groups that usually do not interfere with each other.

I am tired of talking about how heinous and heinous the sin of salt farming is.

Anyway, this was an unexpected reward.

A reward that can even be eaten without any harm.

I opened my mouth slowly.

“···I cannot receive it.”

Then, Ju Gwan-cheon and Kwai Cheong-cheon’s eyes widened.

I guess he never thought I wouldn’t receive it.

And so did I.

I honestly had no idea I would say something like that.

But what can you do?

‘If I take this money, my virtue will be tarnished···.’

If I receive this, all my merits will be for naught.

So, +63 days means that my life will disappear.

No, it means that since you passed out for four days, +59 days are gone.

With that, he returns to his original state with less than a month left to live.

That’s what happened with Gongdeok.

Regarding this, Taesang Laojun also said:

[It is said that virtue does not lie in cultivating blessings. Therefore, it is said that virtue is to have no obstructions in thoughts and thoughts, and to always see the true nature of the truth.]

At first I thought, what the hell is this?

But when I started accumulating merit myself, I could understand what it meant.

To be exact, it was the incident where he subdued Yuk Yun-yeon at the night market.

I once received some rice cakes from Ji-ae at the missionary office.

Ji-ae, who was given the rice cake, blushed and ran away, but anyway.

I was just about to eat some sirutteok, as I was feeling hungry and steaming.

‘The merits of two days were gone.’

The two days of merit I had accumulated by helping Ji-ae had disappeared.

This is clearly the accumulated merit before receiving the rice cake.

Just in case, I went to see Ji-ae again.

And when I returned the rice cake I had received from Ji-ae, whose face was flushed like a carrot, the virtue was accumulated again.

Ji-ae looked very disappointed and regretful.

But only then was I able to understand what merit was.

I could understand what Taesang Laojun said, that virtue does not lie in cultivating blessings.

This means that.

‘If you receive a price, the merit disappears.’

This could truly be called a damned merit.

So, now.

“This is not what I was hoping for.”

I tried to calm my trembling voice.

And he returned the money he had received in full.

Then, Jugwancheon and Kwaecheon were startled and said,

“You don’t have to decline. On the contrary, it’s nothing compared to your contribution.”

“It was just a small gesture of goodwill from the Murim Alliance.”

The two of them looked like they couldn’t understand me at all.

···I agree with you too.

I don’t understand why I’m acting like this.

So what about them?

“······..”

···So, my mouth really wouldn’t open for a moment.

My heart was also asking, “Is this really right?”

But there’s nothing I can do.

No matter how important money is, isn’t it more important than life?

Above all, money is nothing more than a lump of metal.

It’s just a tool that has value because we give it meaning.

You must not let yourself be deceived by illusions.

Didn’t the Great Master Taesang Laojun teach us this?

“Then I will get up and go.”

I got up from my seat in a hurry as if I was running away.

If I continue like this, I feel like I’m going to get eaten up by my feelings.

“Don’t do that. Just accept it.”

“Okay, then, Sohyeop.”

As I was leaving, Jukwancheon and Kwaecheon spoke to me again.

Then my heart starts to shake violently.

Wouldn’t one, if not all ten, of the gold coins be okay?

Seriously······.

“I really don’t need a reward!!”

···I guess I’m too lazy to become a god.

* * *

I ran away from the place and headed straight to the mission office.

But on the way to the mission office, I couldn’t stop sighing.

“ha···.”

I felt like I was going to die from the pain.

I think the saying, “a twisted ball of yarn” is exactly what is used in this situation.

Of course, the circumstances didn’t fit exactly, but the feeling fit perfectly.

“If you get ten gold coins···.”

It was an amount of money that I doubt I would be able to spend it all even if I spent it lavishly throughout my life.

How could you not be upset when you came out with that kind of money?

“ha···.”

I took a deep breath and headed towards the mission office.

The missionary arrived like that.

“Who is there?”

Someone was loitering in front of the missionary’s gate.

I looked closely to see who it was···.

“Aren’t you Byuksam’s mother?”

It wasn’t just the silk wall that made her mother.

Byuksam was also tightly attached to my mother’s leg.

I lowered my eyes to his level and asked Byuksam with a happy heart.

“Byeoksam, how are you? Are you okay?”

Byuksami nodded, clinging tightly to his mother’s leg.

There were several minor scratches on his face, but they didn’t seem to be any major problems.

I nodded and sat up again.

“But what is happening here?”

When I asked, Byuksam’s mother answered while biting her lower lip.

“That’s… I was waiting for you, Master. I heard you woke up.”

“Are you talking about me?”

“I wanted to tell you that I was grateful.”

Byeok-sam, who lost his father and lives alone with his mother.

To Byuksam, his mother was everything in the world.

And Byeok-sam’s mother also meant Byeok-sam to her everything in the world.

I smiled awkwardly and scratched the back of my head.

“What is that? It’s okay.”

“No. If it weren’t for you, teacher, I really would have···.”

Byuksam’s mother had a hard time opening her mouth.

What should I say?

What else should I say?

Mother Byuksam, who had been unable to make up her mind, finally burst into tears.

“Sob, if something had happened to Byuksami… if it really had, I….”

Mother Byuksam couldn’t continue speaking as tears welled up in her eyes.

I just stood there without saying anything.

Loneliness and isolation.

A widow is a wife who has lost her husband.

A widower is a husband who lost his wife.

And a child who has lost his parents is called an orphan.

But nowhere is there a word for parents who have lost a child.

I’ve been thinking long and hard about why that might be.

But I couldn’t find the answer until just now.

But now.

It seemed that the answer could be vaguely seen in the appearance of the sobbing mother.

The sorrow of losing a child.

The pain of having to send your child away.

“Really··· Really··· Sob···.”

Perhaps it was because there were no words to fully express it.

“Thank you··· Really, really thank you··· Master Cheongun···.”

The tears of the mother who was falling down the wall showed no signs of stopping.

Tears falling, drip drip, to the floor.

I stared at it quietly and thought quietly.

···Okay, this will do.

What does it mean to have a gold coin?

It is said that one comes empty-handed and leaves empty-handed.

A body that comes empty-handed and returns empty-handed.

Wouldn’t a simple word of thank you suffice?

Wouldn’t it be enough if the life of a family was preserved through that?

It would certainly be worth far more than ten gold ingots.

“Thank you, sob···.”

This is probably the best reward I’ve ever received for this work.

* * *

Inside the palace where Cheongun left.

Boom!

Only the sound of the door being roughly shut with a loud noise remained like an echo.

And Cheongwoon, who looked angry somewhere.

“······.”

“······.”

Ju Gwan-cheon and Kwai Cheong-cheon were sitting there blankly.

And I also didn’t understand.

The achievements that Cheongun has made are by no means ordinary.

What would have happened if there had been no Cheongun?

No one would have known that salt trading was taking place.

Innocent children would have continued to be sacrificed.

It’s not just children.

I can’t even imagine how many people were sacrificed through salt farming.

Basically, the entire village would have been devastated.

Furthermore, countless people from Oksan County, Sangyo City, and Gangseo Province would have been sacrificed.

What Cheongun did was not just save children.

That’s why Ju Gwan-cheon couldn’t just pass it by.

A reward was prepared to commend Cheongun’s achievements, but Cheongun refused it.

Do you think the reward was small?

That was absolutely not the case.

Ten gold coins are a huge sum of money that can feed and sustain a lifetime, or even two generations.

But Cheongun refused.

Does that mean Cheongun has a lot of wealth?

That wasn’t it at all.

Cheongun was a mere mortal who ran a failing missionary office.

I heard that all the government officials have quit as well.

Now, they say they are suffering from financial difficulties where they are barely able to survive.

However, Cheongun refused.

“Hahahahahahaha!”

Joo Gwan-cheon burst into laughter without realizing it.

“Are there still such young men in this world?”

Ju Gwan-cheon turned his head and asked Kwai Cheong-cheon.

“How did you feel about the quick delivery?”

Kwae Cheong Cheon, the leader of the Chupung Sword Sect of the Hobeopdang under the Murim Alliance.

Kwai Cheong Cheon was a master among masters who caught countless criminals in the martial arts world.

As his role is his role, he is also skilled in interrogating and torturing vicious people.

The crazy boar who even has that nickname, Gwangjeo (狂猪) Kwai Cheong Cheon.

Just by looking at the way the eyes turn, you can vaguely tell whether it is a lie or not.

“···It was a sincere heart without a single lie. I too··· am dumbfounded.”

“Hahahaha! When even the best chef says that, how can I just let this go!”

“That means…”

“I must submit a petition to His Majesty the Emperor immediately! Hahahahaha!”

The hearty laughter of Ju Gwan-cheon echoed throughout the palace.