Who threatened Cheonma Hara with a knife - Chapter 301



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Who threatened to call me Cheonmahara with a knife? Episode 301

Meadow (1)

The prepared Ilmok and his party left Nanju and headed northwest.

As always, Jin Ha-yeon, Jeong Hyeon, and Joo Seo-yeon were following him, and about fifteen people were following them.

Ten of them were unmanned, but the remaining five had slightly different roles, the most representative of which was Assemblyman Seo Jae-pil.

I also needed a congressman for this trip.

“Now that the research on the symptoms of plague and poisoning with the Chinese yam has been completed, please let me join you, Your Majesty!”

It was because Seo Jae-pil was persistent in wanting to conduct new research along the same lines.

Seo Jae-pil, who joined without even hearing the proper purpose, smiled broadly and asked a question.

“I’ve heard you’re heading north, but what exactly do you plan to do in the northern grasslands?”

To his question, Jin Ha-yeon answered on behalf of Ilmok.

“Our mission is to open a trade route from Gansu Province to the Western Regions, Representative Seo.”

As Jin Ha-yeon said, this was the plan that Cheon Ma had originally instructed.

Cheonsanbuk-ro, or going to the western region via the grassland road.

It’s just that in the previous journey, the priority was to open up trade with the Western Regions, so they used the desert route.

However, Ichimoku had no intention of using the grassland road at all.

“The meadow road is too winding. The only reason we’re heading north now is for camouflage.”

Jin Ha-yeon, who had been gathering her thoughts in her head for a moment, answered as if she understood.

“Does this mean that this is a journey to deceive the political party?”

“Yes. Starting from the northern nomads near Gansu Province, we plan to open a road only up to the vicinity of Cheonmandae Mountain.”

And after crossing over to Xinjiang through the foot of Cheonmandaesan Mountain, I planned to use the previous desert road.

In response to Ilmok’s explanation, Jin Ha-yeon asked a question.

“If you proceed in that manner, there is a risk of being found out later. Do you have any plans to do so?”

It wasn’t a tone of disapproval.

He was asking for information because he was unable to read the grand plan of Ichimoku due to his lack of confidence. In order for Ichimoku’s plan to proceed without a hitch.

But she was mistaken.

Ichimoku wasn’t confident that he wouldn’t get caught.

“There is no secret that lasts forever in this world. Even if we try to hide it with evil, if someone tries to dig it up with evil, it will be discovered.”

They say that there is no one in the world who doesn’t have a speck of dust on them.

No matter what method was used, it was inevitable that it would eventually be discovered. The truth could have been revealed through the Central Plains merchants who came to the West by sea, or there could have been cases where the warriors of the Heavenly Demon Sect who were traveling the grassland were caught performing magic.

“However, the Central Plains do not have the capacity to attack us right now, so we just need to hold out for that period of time. Also, even if we completely deceive them with the name of the Maitreya Sect, it would be meaningless.”

“???”

When both Jin Ha-yeon and Seo Jae-pil made puzzled expressions, Ilmok clicked his tongue and said.

“When all the conflicts in the Central Plains are over, will the hypocrites of the Zhengpa leave the Maitreya Sect, which opened the trade route with the Western Regions, alone?”

“ah….”

No matter how plausible the trick was, it was obvious that they would attack Mireukmyeonggyo in order to take away the trade route.

If that were the case, there were only two options for the Cheonmasingyo.

Either give up the territory and trade routes of the Mireukmyungyo to hide your identity, or reveal the identity of the new religion and fight against it.

Naturally, I had no choice but to choose the latter.

“Anyway, once the Central Plains conflict is over, the sparks will inevitably fly to us. That’s why we should prepare for the future by interacting with the Western Regions as much as possible. Right now, small and medium-sized factions and even large powers are fighting each other in the Central Plains, trying to expand their influence even a little.”

So, the plan was to trade with the West by turning a blind eye to things.

Rather than make the journey needlessly long and complicated in order to deceive someone, I decided to do as much trading as possible over short distances with only the bare minimum of insurance.

‘If the route to the West Region is lengthened by taking the grassland road for no reason, the number of trades will decrease and the cost will double, so it is actually a loss.’

Absolutely not, it wasn’t because I was tired of walking that long meadow road.

* * *

They moved northwest along the official route, replenishing supplies at Juquan County, and then turning north.

How long did it take to ride a horse towards the northern grasslands where countless nomads live?

‘Something seems familiar?’

When I finally left the central plains and arrived at the northern grassland, Ilmok felt a strange feeling.

“It’s a grassland area, very similar to the west.”

It was a landscape of a desolate sea of ​​sand in the desert, with small mountains and green bushes visible in the distance beyond the wide open field of vision.

Here, too, like the west, the terrain seemed to be a mixture of desert-like, barren roads and grasslands.

It’s a long way to go through the yellow, desolate sandy sea.

They arrived at the grassland they had seen in the distance, and could see several pao (gers) built in a row.

Near the pao, there were some nomads herding their livestock, and some of the nomads were gossiping among themselves as if they had discovered them.

“You, I see nomads, Confucius.”

Jeong-Hyeon, who had a developed sense, also reported to Ilmok that he had discovered nomads in the distance.

“Let’s get closer first. They might be surprised, so let’s move slowly.”

As they moved in a straight line toward the nomads, the nomads began to move busily.

Those who had been herding cattle were seen returning to their tribes, and some appeared to be preparing themselves for a possible battle.

And when we got a little closer.

Ilmok spoke to Ohallak.

“Please interpret what I say from now on.”

It was a pity that Ohallak was brought all the way here to interact with the northern nomads.

“We are merchants who are trying to cross from the Central Plains to the Western Regions. If you provide us with food and a place to sleep, we will give you an appropriate reward.”

Soon after, Ohalak translated Ilmok’s words into the language of the nomads, and Jin Hayeon opened the box containing the silver that she had prepared in advance.

But why is that?

The old man, who seemed to be the leader of the nomads, was shouting something, and Ohallak also continued the conversation by stammering and even making gestures with his hands and feet.

Only then, when the old man nodded belatedly, did Ohallak speak to Ilmok.

“Different tribe. Slightly different language.”

“Hmm. Are you saying we can’t communicate at all?”

“It seems possible to some extent.”

“That’s fortunate.”

If I had made one mistake, bringing Ohallak could have been in vain.

‘Well, the place where the Ohallak tribe was and this place are thousands of miles apart, so the story might be a little different.’

It was a concept that seemed like a kind of dialect.

I couldn’t tell which one was standard and which one was a dialect.

Since the other side seemed to have given permission, Ilmok took out a few silver coins from the box Jin Ha-yeon was holding and handed them to Ohalak.

Ohallak took the silver and approached the nomads alone. The old man who took the silver nodded and said.

“Guest. You are welcome.”

With Ohallak’s interpretation, Ilmok and his party also approached the nomadic tribe.

Likewise, when the old man shouted something to the tribesmen, Ohallak interpreted it for him.

“They say they are preparing a meal. Please come into the ger.”

Ilmok entered the yurt guided by the old man, accompanied only by the servants and Ohallak.

As he had done when he had visited the tribe of Ohallak, the old man offered him a glass of some kind of thick white liquid, either sheep’s milk or mare’s milk.

As I took a sip of my glass out of courtesy, the old man said something to me.

For some reason, Ohallak made a subtle expression at those words and then gave an interpretation.

“The road to the west. They say there are many dangerous tribes.”

As he interpreted the old man’s words, O’Hallac thought.

It was obvious that anyone who tried to attack them would be put in danger.

From the perspective of Ohalla, who had vividly witnessed the suffering of the Muslims, the old man’s advice could not help but sound funny.

“Hahaha. Thank you for your concern. By the way, is there a place on the way west where I can get water or food?”

Ichimoku responded appropriately to the other person’s warning and continued the conversation.

We started off with important stories and then moved on to more trivial conversations.

“You mainly use a bow for hunting. Actually, among our group, there is someone who is very good at archery. How about we try to team up?”

Ilmok slyly led a conversation that nomads would enjoy.

It was based on the experience of meeting the tribe that Ohallak belonged to.

The old man readily accepted Ilmok’s offer, and soon they left the ger again, preparing to compete in archery.

As the middle-aged man who was said to be the most skilled archer among the nomads stepped forward, Ilmok nodded to Jeong-hyeon.

“I trust you and leave it to you.”

To the cheering from everyone, Jeong-Hyeon showed a trembling reaction.

When Ilmok said that he trusted and entrusted everything to others, he was not referring to his archery skills.

This was a story about what would happen after that.

Following this, the match between the nomad man and Jeong-Hyeon continued several times.

As was the case in the match against the tribe that Ohallak belonged to, Jeonghyeon was able to defeat the nomad man without difficulty.

“Hahaha. She said that if you guys don’t mind, she would like to talk to you about the art of archery.”

Jeong-Hyeon didn’t open his mouth even once, but Ilmok spoke as if he had mastered the art of mind reading.

“Thank you so much!”

“Thank you for giving me such a wonderful opportunity.”

The tribesmen, who were experts at hunting, were happy to accept the offer, so the old man could not refuse it either.

Naturally, those interested in archery gathered around Jeong-Hyeon, and Jeong-Hyeon’s lectures continued.

“When you aim your bow, do it like this….”

Let me tell you in a trembling voice how to shoot a bow better.

Jeong-hyeon swallowed hard and mustered up his courage to carry out Ilmok’s instructions.

“But you guys. Do you by any chance know the Tao?”

The task that Ilmok instructed Jeong Hyeon to do was to spread the religion.

“Ahem. If you believe in our Mi, Maitreya religion, Mi, Maitreya will protect you and your arrows will shoot better.”

* * *

After completing his missionary work, Jeong-Hyeon returned with a much more gaunt face.

“Your Majesty, is this really necessary?”

A little suspicion welled up in her. A suspicion that Ichimoku was trying to harass her.

Towards that Jeong-Hyeon, Ilmok smiled and answered.

“Think of the nomads of the west, Lady Jeong.”

While Jeong-Hyeon made a puzzled expression, Jin Ha-Yeon, who realized something, answered instead.

“Are you talking about the division between nomads who continued their traditions and nomads who accepted Islam?”

“That’s right.”

At Ilmok’s answer, for some reason, Joo Seo-yeon felt even happier and said, “As expected, it’s senior Ha-yeon!”

But whether it was or not, Jin Ha-yeon looked at Il-mok and asked.

“Your Majesty, are you trying to open a path through preaching rather than through trade or battle with the nomads?”

“Yes. If we try to win them over through trade or violence, there is always the risk of betrayal. Especially since we are not using the real path of the steppe, if they just pass on information to the Central Plains, things could get complicated. However, if they become our followers, wouldn’t things be different?”

Most Muslims were fanatics, so there was a risk of ruining the effort to spread the religion, but it was calculated that the nomads would likely be able to get the religion to work.

It was an idea that I could think of because of my experience in the West.

The reason I brought Ohallak with me was also to facilitate this missionary work. If I was going to proceed by beating everyone to death, there was no need to bring him along.

Jin Ha-yeon, who had been pondering Ilmok’s intentions, soon showed an expression of emotion that was unusual for her.

“Ahhh. This too was part of the larger picture that Confucius was drawing. As someone who assists Confucius, I am sorry that I could not follow Confucius’s drawing.”

“…What big picture are you talking about?”

When Ilmok asked with a sense of foreboding, Jin Ha-yeon looked straight at Ilmok and answered.

“Isn’t it to spread our doctrines widely among the nomads of the North, and to spread the doctrines of the new religion throughout the world?”

“… … .”

No…?

‘That’s just a trick I came up with because I was too lazy to go through the meadow road…?’

At that moment, Ilmok was speechless.

“As expected, you are Confucius!”

“If that’s the reason, then I’ll, I’ll do my best.”

Joo Seo-yeon and Jeong Hyeon looked at Il-mok with the same expression.

In their gaze, Ichimoku felt an inexplicable sense of ominousness.

Because I felt like whatever I did from now on would be treated as some kind of scheme to conquer the world.