[The Three Kingdoms] Golden Sun Exhibition

30 – The truth of that winter (1)

The grain harvest is over.

All that remains now is to prepare for winter, and I have piled up a lot of firewood in the school building to prepare for winter.

“I’m counting on you.”

“Yes, old man.”

At my request, the servants who came out of Chae’s house learned about the things that must be observed at the academy. While I am at the concert, they will work for the academy and be responsible for feeding the students at the academy, including Teacher Su-kyung.

And now all that’s left is to get someone’s permission.

She is shocked and has been staying away since I told her I was going to leave here for a while. I cautiously knocked on her door.

“Uiya.”

“…….”

There was no sound inside. I knocked on her door one more time.

“If you don’t come out, just go in.”

I opened the door. It was an act that was not considered polite, but it was also against manners for Sima Yi to act like this.

“I’m just visiting for a short while. Why are you so upset?”

“…I didn’t see it.”

Sima Yi was sitting alone on the bed, covered with a blanket, looking at the wall. She was turning to the wall as if she didn’t want to see me, so I walked up to her and sat down behind her.

“Now that I think about it, we’ve been together almost all the time since you came here.”

“…….”

“If there is a meeting, there is a parting. But this parting is only a temporary parting. We cannot stay here together for the rest of our lives.”

“…….”

I wonder if I should go this far when all I’m doing is going to a concert, but Sima Yi also needs to realize that.

She plans to return to Hanae soon. At the age of 15, on the day she becomes an adult, a person will come down from the river and take her away.

“So look at me. We’ve been together every single day for two years, but there are times when we become distant.”

“Master.”

Sima Yi said in a trembling voice.

“Are you sure you’re coming back?”

“Of course. I promise. I will definitely come back to you. Even if something goes wrong at Sugyeong Academy and you go missing while I am away, I will search everywhere to find you.”

I hugged Sima Yi from behind.

Although it was a bit awkward to hug the entire blanket, her trembling gradually subsided.

“I will definitely come back before the year is over. I promise.”

“That’s Master’s plan, I don’t know what they’ll think.”

Sima Yi turned around. Her eyes were red and swollen, and she hugged me tightly.

“They won’t arrest you for a commission in Cao Cao County, right?”

“Of course. A force as strong as Prince Shao’s army, or Cao Cao’s army, do you think they can catch me? hahahaha.”

“You won’t use the armed forces to scare you, right?”

“You threaten a village girl like me with a sword. If something like that happens, you spread the word. Jo Maeng-deok says that anyone who doesn’t listen to him will start by pointing a sword at their neck. Yes, that woman will think about all that. She will never do that. It is.”

I heard that Jojo is a woman who is thirsty for talent. But no matter how much you want it, they won’t threaten you into coming in.

“You said you were a talent worth giving to others, but you wouldn’t say you would kill me if I couldn’t have you, right?”

“No way. As I said before, JoJo is not the type of person to do that. Would he act like that when he doesn’t care if he looks good to me?”

“What if we just hold a festival and host the main event, provide hospitality, and then when we are about to leave, what if we don’t show up and meet the guests?”

“At that time, you just come out. Greetings? A letter can suffice. I want the cold water I drink after farming with you more than the glass of wine Jojo gives me.”

I stroked Sima Yi’s head and calmed him down.

“So, calm down. It’s only going to fall for a little while.”

Sima Yi had already experienced separation from his parents due to the incident in Xia. In the midst of all this, I have played the role of Sima Yi’s adoptive parent, so it was understandable that he felt a deep attachment to me.

“Teacher Soo-kyung will be with you. Shouldn’t you be sad about parting ways with Teacher Sun-yu? I’m sure Sun-yu will feel sad.”

“…….”

“You never know when and where we will meet. Isn’t it possible that you might be appointed to the Cao Cao army in the future? Shouldn’t you make a promise for the future on a good note with Teacher Sun Yu today so that we can meet again later on a good note?”

“……all right.”

Sima Yi wiped his tears with his sleeve.

“But Master, can’t I just stay like this for a little while? I think winter… will be too cold.”

“okay.”

I hugged Sima Yi so that he could feel my warmth.

“I’ll come back quickly so the winter won’t be too cold.”

* * *

“It was very hot, sir.”

“You can’t make fun of something like that.”

To get revenge on Sunyu, who was sitting in front of me, I lightly pressed my arm around her waist.

“Sama Yi is a child. He came down to Jingzhou alone and stayed away from his parents. No matter how much he acts like an adult, he is still just a child.”

“For something like that, aren’t you taking my feelings quite seriously?”

I shrugged my shoulders at Sunyu’s sly smile.

“There’s no need to stop people from thinking favorably of you. What does Sima Yi lack? Family, appearance, knowledge. He lacks nothing.”

“Oh my, can I seriously get eaten later?”

“If it’s that bad, wouldn’t it be okay to be eaten?”

Sunyu’s expression hardened.

“Sama Yi is a person who will become great. He has the talent and ambition to rise to the top of a country, or even higher. I would be deeply moved if a woman like that thought favorably of me.”

“What if I ask you to marry me?”

“…….”

Sunyu’s words had weight.

“It may not end with a child’s hitting. It may develop into a serious romantic relationship. Is that okay?”

“Sir. I’m just talking because you’re the only one here.”

I buried my face in Sunyu’s shoulder.

“My dream is to just live in peace with a woman who will live with me and do nothing.”

“……hehehe.”

“A man does a great job and a woman provides help? Oh, that is a discriminatory statement. If a woman has someone who is more capable and outstanding than me, it is my job to support her at home and take care of her.”

“You’re so snobbish.”

Sunyu just kept smiling as if she was in a daze.

“Aren’t you saying that the servants will do all the housework and dirty work, and the teacher will only drink the honey?”

“It’s not just honey.”

“…I am indeed.”

Sunyu shook her head.

“Then hand over the reins to me. Instead, you can hold on to me a little tighter.”

Sunyu took over the reins from me. As she asked, I hugged her waist from behind and supported her underneath.

“…Well, it’s comfortable.”

“Are you comfortable?”

“I feel stable. It’s because something heavy is supported from below. Well, it looks a little different when others see it.”

Sunyu smiled brightly and leaned back slightly towards me.

“Can’t we just stay like this before we start playing?”

“…Well, as long as it doesn’t catch other people’s attention.”

“hehehe. He’s the husband of a high-ranking official.”

Sunyu turned her head slightly and smiled.

“I’ll have to work really hard under Jo Jo.”

“What do you mean by that all of a sudden?”

“Because I am also human, I have a dream. The dream of becoming a high-ranking official.”

Saaah.

A mountain path with cold winds blowing in early winter.

I rode a horse with Sunyu and headed toward Yeonju.

* * *

Saaa ㅡㅡㅡ

A cold windy day.

The black-haired woman got dressed and went outside. Behind her, two young men were following with two chests on a cart, and the woman took the lead with a grinning look on her face.

“I must live today.”

The woman led her group to a manor. An elderly couple who looked like they were about to collapse lived in a well-maintained manor.

“Elder!”

“…teacher.”

The old man who was sweeping the broom in the yard frowned at the woman. The woman just smiled at the old man’s irritation towards her and took the gun.

“I will definitely buy this land today!”

“…I’m sorry, but please go back. Haven’t you already rejected that story several times?”

“That’s why I’ve come to talk more.”

“Go back. I have already said everything I have to say.”

“No, why are you doing that?”

The woman pounded her chest as if she was frustrated.

“When the owner of this place appears, I will transfer it back to him. In the meantime, I will buy this land and take good care of it. Do you need a guarantee? As for me….”

“I already know who you are, but I don’t want you to come to me like this anymore.”

“Elder! Please wait a moment. I know that you are staying here and managing the land because you saved lives. I will continue to repay you. You can go back to your hometown with your wife.”

“…Grunt.”

The woman took out a piece of silk from her bosom.

“Here is your child’s letter.”

“What…?! Are you saying you sent someone?”

“I just informed you of your situation. Rest assured, I am by no means such a bad person.”

“Daejoint, what kind of land is this that you would do something like this?”

“That’s right….”

The woman scanned the ground.

“…Because it’s right next to the land where my lord’s mother was born. Huh? Didn’t you hear?”

“I don’t know anything about your master. I just made a promise from the owner of this land. I will… take charge of this place… until he returns.”

Tap, tap, tap.

A young man slowly appeared, riding a horse. The old man looked at the woman and the young man in turn, embarrassed and not knowing what to do.

“No, why not now…?”

“Oh, no way…!”

“Look! Nephew!!”

The old man threw up his arms and ran towards the man on horseback.

“Nice to meet you! Tell me you’re coming, man!”

“…Why are you doing this, Joo Ong?”

“Ah, Ong! There are things you can’t say to your uncle….”

“I came here to see the state of the land after several years. What is happening now?”

The old man’s performance with desperate determination was rendered useless by the young man’s words.

“Ah, are you really the owner of this land?”

“…That’s right.”

The young man then frowned and began to glance at the two.

“This can’t be….”

“I don’t know, Goldsmith. Now you take care of it.”

The old man grabbed his gun and slowly retreated. The young man bit his lip with a sad look on his face, but the men the woman brought with them held a chest and blocked the young man’s front and back.

“Look, there’s a handsome Nauri.”

The woman knocked on the box with a condescending look on her face.

“Do you want to sell this land to me?”

“Who are you?”

“I am….”

The woman grinned, supporting her chin with her hand.

“Kwak Bong-hyo. I’m here to buy land!”