Chapter 53
Part 3: Charity House
Yeon Sang-hyeon slowly walked through the winding alleys of the slums, following behind the old woman guiding him.
His steps were slow, and the steps of those moving covertly with him naturally slowed as well.
Not a single person expressed dissatisfaction with that.
The people lined up on both sides of the alley held Yeon Sang-hyeon's hand and kissed it.
Those who could not manage even that prostrated themselves and kissed his feet, or kissed the hem of his clothes.
The poor had not been able to wash properly, so they were filthy and grimy. Almost every one of them suffered from skin diseases, large and small, making their appearance ghastly, and they gave off a nauseating stench of filth mixed with pus.
Even so, Yeon Sang-hyeon showed not the slightest sign of displeasure.
His expression was peaceful, without the slightest wavering.
He silently walked on, accepting, as much as he could, the reverence everyone showed him.
'Mm. With composure. Everyone, please act with composure.'
The triplet maids following behind him were beside themselves.
'Everyone, follow the Head Maid's example!'
Jeong-a was listening to the complaints of the poor, things they did not dare say to Yeon Sang-hyeon.
"Fairy! Please bestow a blessing upon my child!"
"Please keep my husband, who has gone to the front lines, safe!"
"Please let my mother rest peacefully in heaven!"
Jeong-a had no power to answer each of their prayers.
Instead, she did what she could.
She embraced those who deserved to be embraced, stroked the heads of those who deserved to be comforted, and kissed the foreheads of those who wept in sorrow.
Seeing that, the triplets also approached the poor more actively.
"…Are they believers of the Fairy Order?"
One of the Fourth Young Master's young strategists, who was following from a distance, could not hide his bewildered expression as he watched them.
"I had heard that their influence was strong among the poor, but I never imagined it would be to this extent…"
"I knew that the name of the Retired Supreme Madam was still renowned throughout the entire Central Plains Nation, but I did not expect them to show such reverence even to her son."
"Is this the fanaticism of a secret sect?"
The Fourth Young Master sighed at the words of the young scholars following behind him and exchanging opinions.
"You still do not understand, even after seeing their actions and their expressions?"
"What do you mean by that…?"
He looked at his eldest brother's back, visible in the distance.
"…They are not showing reverence to Eldest Aunt. They are showing reverence to Eldest Brother."
"…Is that so?"
In contrast, what was the reaction the poor showed toward his own group?
Even when the Fourth Young Master's party passed right beside them, most of them paid no attention.
"Master."
The plump maid walking beside him asked.
"If they are this poor, would they not simply leave the neighborhood if you gave them a few coins?"
The Fourth Young Master smiled at her adorable question.
"It is not that simple."
"Is that so?"
He took the plump maid's hand and explained.
"If they leave this place, where should they go?"
The plump maid whose hand he held blushed, but answered earnestly.
"Um… another slum?"
"That is right. But there is no slum anywhere with enough room to accept all of them. They would have to scatter and enter several different slums, and the few coins they received would disappear in an instant there."
"Disappear?"
The Fourth Young Master smiled at the maid, whose eyes had gone round.
"It may look as if they are living together however they please, but whether it is a shack or a hut, in the end, it all costs money. And there would be many people aiming for whatever money they have."
He had phrased it gently, but the reality would be far more dreadful and cruel.
"Ah…"
The Fourth Young Master shrugged.
"For them to leave with peace of mind, they would ultimately need an enormous relocation fund, enough to allow them to escape poverty."
"I see…"
The plump maid, who came from a wealthy family, answered with a somewhat puzzled expression.
"Are all of them beggars? If they work hard, should they not be able to escape a neighborhood like this?"
At her question, the Fourth Young Master finally burst into laughter.
"Most of them all have jobs."
"Pardon?"
"And they are people who work very diligently and sincerely."
***
Yeon Sang-hyeon looked at the one-armed young man holding his hand and kissing it.
On the young man's remaining arm was a tattoo showing that he had once been registered in the military.
But on his exposed body, there were more wounds made after that than scars gained in battle.
Yeon Sang-hyeon looked down at the old woman and children kissing his feet.
The wounds and scars visible on the old woman and children were not from abuse or anything of the sort.
Countless hands brushed past Yeon Sang-hyeon's hand and the collar of his clothes.
Broken fingernails, fingernails that had fallen out entirely without leaving even a trace, bent fingers, severed fingers, hands covered in small scars.
They were traces of terribly harsh labor.
***
"Children, adults, time, place—it makes no difference to them. Wherever there is work, they are people who will do anything. It is just…"
A bitter smile settled on the Fourth Young Master's lips.
"No matter how hard they try, the wages they receive are not enough for them to escape this place."
Under harsh labor conditions, they were rapidly worn down.
If they were injured or fell ill, if they were too young or too old, their already meager wages shrank even further.
If they did not work hard, they could not even survive here.
"There is only one place they can go after leaving this place."
The Yellow River.
Only after becoming a handful of ashes and drifting along the river's waters.
It was as if the smell of burning corpses brushed past the noses of those listening.
***
"Master. It seems the front of the group has arrived at the destination."
After hearing the report, the Fourth Young Master looked back at his subordinates.
"All of you, watch carefully from now on. Watch why Eldest Brother is practically an object of faith to these people."
His gaze turned forward.
"And you will also understand why I invited Eldest Brother into our plan, even if it meant offering him a share."
Everyone's eyes turned ahead.
The first thing that entered their sight was a building with a tiled roof.
Because the surrounding shacks were so flimsy and filthy, the building drew the eye despite being old and not particularly large.
As they drew a little closer, they could see countless people lined up at the entrance, creating a bustling crowd before the gate.
One person who had learned martial arts drew upon his internal energy and read the building's signboard.
"Charity House?"
They entered the front yard through the central gate, which had been cleared for them in advance.
Inside, it was a madhouse of activity.
"Meals this way! Line up this way for meals!"
Regardless of age or gender, people holding bowls waited in a long line for the porridge boiling in a huge cauldron.
"The sick this way! Those who are ill, line up over here!"
Beneath a ceiling made by stitching together worn cloth tents here and there, countless patients lay on the ground with only a single layer of straw beneath them.
Boys and girls who might have been errand-runners, or perhaps something else entirely, ran around frantically.
The voices of physicians sorting the patients in line by severity blended with the voices of physicians trying to save those in poor condition.
And those who appeared to be apprentice physicians or female physicians helping them had cloth wrapped all over their bodies.
"…Leprosy patients?"
When one maid covered her mouth in horror, the Head Maid scolded her.
"Leprosy has low contagiousness. Do not show an excessive reaction for no reason."
At that moment, one physician approached them.
"Ah, there is no need to worry. They have all been fully cured. Their scarring is severe, so they are merely covering it. They are not patients."
The Fourth Young Master nodded.
"The conquest of leprosy. One of the achievements Eldest Aunt left behind."
"That is correct. In order to repay that grace, they trained in medicine and now help us."
The physician smiled.
"Seeing as you call her Eldest Aunt, you must surely be the Fourth Young Master of the Luoyang Sword Clan."
He began guiding them inside.
The plump maid asked on behalf of everyone's curiosity.
"Can selling food and practicing medicine in a slum really be profitable?"
The physician leading them widened his eyes, then soon burst into laughter.
"Ah, this is not a place that does business."
The Fourth Young Master took over the explanation.
"This place provides food and medical care to the poor free of charge. Eldest Brother pays all the expenses and operates it."
At those words, everyone failed to hide their surprise.
The Fourth Young Master's Head Maid added to his words.
"In the large slums within Luoyang, there is always one of these Charity Houses."
The physician gave a good-natured smile.
"And every Charity House is also a shrine enshrining our teacher, Yak Seonnyeo."
***
The Fourth Young Master respectfully held the incense in both hands and waved it in the air a couple of times.
After placing the incense in the large incense burner, he stepped back and, together with his subordinates, pressed his palms together with a respectful attitude.
After showing his reverence for a sufficient amount of time, he raised his head and looked at the Buddhist painting beyond the incense burner.
In a world where drought and flood mingled together, the people were groaning in pain.
Those who were starving, ragged, and moaning with illness rolled on the ground, cried out, and suffered.
And there was someone who saved them.
The woman standing barefoot upon the burning earth was beautiful, and on her lips was the compassionate smile of a Buddha.
In one hand, she held a bodhi branch, and in the other, she held a medicine pouch with no bottom.
The sentient beings gathered at her feet filled their stomachs, learned wisdom, awakened, and were saved.
She was Yak Seonnyeo, Pan So-yu, said to be the incarnation of Bhaisajyaguru(Medicine Buddha).
"Please watch over us…"
After briefly murmuring a prayer, the Fourth Young Master turned and went outside.
His subordinates followed him with solemn expressions.
When they came outside, another group of the poor entered to offer their prayers.
Even after that, countless people were still lined up outside.
After watching that sight for a moment, the Fourth Young Master looked back at his scholars.
"Do they still look like fanatics intoxicated by false faith to you?"
No one dared answer, out of shame.
"Do you now understand why they greeted Eldest Brother with such devout attitudes?"
Everyone answered and nodded.
The Fourth Young Master clicked his tongue at them.
"You are always running your mouths, pretending to know this and that about the affairs of the world, but in the end, your eyes cannot see beyond the towering walls of the main family."
Who would dare make excuses?
"It is common for those who undertake great enterprises and fight over power, those who call themselves strategists and advisers, to be ignorant of the poor and the destitute."
He looked at the scholars, whose heads were lowered.
"Because they cannot purchase any of the goods we deal in. Because they are people we can simply use for pocket change, and when they are broken and ruined, replace them."
The Fourth Young Master clapped his hands.
Everyone raised their heads and looked at him.
"Even so, you must know this. In the end, the will of Heaven begins with the will of the people, and the will of the people is the will of Heaven that begins from the lowest places."
The small, young boy placed the will of Heaven in his tender mouth.
"If, in the future, you wish to find sharp stratagems and establish firm strategies, and become true advisers and strategists, you must engrave that principle deep within your hearts."
The young scholars clasped their hands together and answered loudly in unison.
The Fourth Young Master nodded at the sight and said.
"So now do you understand how incredible and great my Eldest Brother is?"
The scholars were about to answer all at once, but hesitated.
What did that have to do with this?
"You fools!"
Unable to watch any longer, the Head Maid grabbed hold of her master as he jumped up and down.
"Now, now, the First Young Master is waiting for you."
"Ah!"
At those words, the Fourth Young Master ran off.
"Eldest Brotheeer! This unworthy younger brother has arrived late!"