"No, you need to bow there!"
"I did bow."
"That's not how you bow! I told you the hand direction is wrong."
"Which side was supposed to be up?"
"The riiiight! Right! Right side! Geez!"
"Geez, what?"
"No, that's not what I meant…"
Myeong-hwa was on the verge of losing his mind.
'Where on earth did such a blockhead come from?'
An order had come down to teach etiquette and protocol to someone who would have an audience with the Emperor. The person who gave the order was Prince Lee Wang-ya, so he was a bit nervous, but he didn't think it would be particularly difficult work. After all, his job was originally teaching people protocol.
But…
"Why don't you understand even after I've explained it?"
"I think I need to make an excuse…"
"What?"
Wei Yan-ho crouched down in that spot and lightly struck the floor with his fist.
Thwack!
The solid blue stone laid on the floor shattered.
"…"
Myeong-hwa, thinking he was being threatened, paled and stumbled backward.
"Just gather strength in your fist and strike down. Can you do that?"
"Th-that doesn't make sense!"
"Right? That's exactly how I feel right now."
"…"
"If everyone could do something just by having it explained, there would be no one in the Central Plains who couldn't do anything. In reality, it's not like that."
It was an incredibly persuasive sophistry.
Except for the fact that after repeating the protocol training this much, even a monkey should be able to perform the Three Bows and Nine Prostrations.
"Urrrgh."
In the end, Myeong-hwa threw up both hands in surrender.
"For now…"
After looking up at the sky once and lowering his head, Myeong-hwa looked at Wei Yan-ho who was crouching and dozing, then shouted.
"Stop sleeping already!"
Myeong-hwa's desperate voice rang throughout the estate.
"…Is that so?"
"I can't do it. It's beyond my abilities."
Prince Lee Wang-ya threw his head back with a dejected expression.
'Now even the back of my neck throbbing doesn't seem strange. It feels natural.'
It seemed like it had been throbbing like that all along.
"Is learning that one piece of etiquette really so difficult?"
"I can't say about other people, but…"
Prince Lee Wang-ya's face crumpled.
"I'm sure he's just being lazy."
"To tell you the truth, it doesn't really seem like that."
"Hm? What do you mean by that?"
Myeong-hwa said with a troubled expression.
"I've heard the talk about him being the laziest person under heaven, and I prepared myself accordingly… but aside from dozing off because he can't overcome sleepiness, he's not trying to be clever to avoid learning etiquette. He himself seems to know that this is something he needs to do."
"But?"
Then why can't he learn it?
"When teaching people, you sometimes encounter that type."
"Hm?"
"There are those who show tremendous development speed in areas they judge to be 'worth learning,' but in areas unrelated to that, their learning speed is slower than a monkey's."
"Urrrgh…"
"The bigger problem is that this judgment of 'worth learning' isn't made by the head."
"You mean the body chooses on its own?"
"That's right. In my opinion, this is futile. No matter how much you teach them, they're worse than monkeys…"
"Stop with the monkey talk."
Prince Lee Wang-ya let out a deep sigh.
No matter how much he complained about the boy named Wei Yan-ho, he had respect for what the boy had accomplished. He even had admiration for the martial prowess he had achieved at that age. So comparing him to monkeys was too harsh.
"So in the end, teaching that boy etiquette is difficult work, you're saying."
"Rather than difficult, I'd say it's impossible. It's not that he lacks the will to learn."
"…I understand for now."
Prince Lee Wang-ya nodded heavily.
'It's not like I didn't expect this.'
He didn't know what Moon Yu-hwan was thinking by trying to arrange a meeting between His Majesty the Emperor and Wei Yan-ho, but Prince Lee Wang-ya was fully aware of the dangers of such a thing.
If you know the outcome, trying to reduce that danger would be natural human behavior, wouldn't it?
"Given this situation, we'll have to consider the formal audience a lost cause."
This was also for Wei Yan-ho's sake.
If he made a mistake somewhere that wasn't an official setting, they could somehow cover it up, but if he made a mistake in front of all the civil and military officials, there would be no room for excuses.
And hoping that Wei Yan-ho wouldn't make a mistake in such a situation was no different from waiting for lightning to strike from a clear sky.
"Tsk, nothing goes according to plan."
Prince Lee Wang-ya sighed deeply.
***
"…I'll go with him."
Wei Jeong-han said in a determined tone.
"No. I will go with him."
Wei San-ho also didn't back down an inch.
"I should be the one to go. It's the duty of a family head."
"I'm also grown up. I can handle this much. Taking care of my younger brother is my duty as an older brother."
"Taking care of one's child is a father's duty. Don't say anything."
"Father…"
Wei Yan-ho looked at the two people with a blank expression and bluntly spat out his words.
"Nobody can come with me. They said only I should go."
"…That won't do."
"Urrgh."
Wei Jeong-han and Wei San-ho hung their heads with frustrated expressions.
They were afraid. And scared.
They were just terrified of what this guy might do if sent alone into the Imperial Palace. Even Wei San-ho, who always trusted and believed in Wei Yan-ho, was hesitating.
Wei Jeong-han looked at Wei Yan-ho quietly and then opened his mouth.
"Yan-ho."
"Yes?"
"…You know that if you upset His Majesty, three generations could be exterminated, right?"
"I know."
"So if anything happens…"
Wei Jeong-han said with a resolute expression.
"Somehow make sure the law of collective punishment doesn't apply and you alone end it…"
"Good grief!"
Wei Yan-ho grabbed a pillow next to him and threw it.
"Is that something to say to your child?"
"The living must survive!"
"Who died? Who?"
"Nobody's died yet, but…"
"Bah!"
Wei Yan-ho flew into a rage.
"If I'm going to die, I'll say I learned it all from Father and drag you in no matter what, so keep that in mind!"
"You unfilial wretch! You should try to save your father!"
"You should try to save your child! Your child!"
Wei Jeong-han hung his head as if in despair.
"Oh my, Father, ancestors… please watch over us. Yan-ho is going into the Imperial Palace."
"I don't know why everyone's so worked up."
As Wei Yan-ho scratched his head roughly, those watching the situation clicked their tongues.
'Only you don't know, only you.'
'Does he really not know what he's like? Were all those things really done without knowing? All of them?'
"Amitabha."
Even Mu-san called out a Buddhist invocation.
"Since fate is fate, I pray for rebirth in paradise…"
Thump!
Everyone shook their heads watching Mu-san collapse after getting hit.
'That's what he gets for asking for a beating.'
'That guy has no sense because he's a monk.'
"I'll take care of myself and come back fine, so you don't need to worry. The Emperor is human too, isn't he?"
"…The more I hear, the more anxious you make me. That's also a talent, a talent."
Just as Wei Jeong-han was about to say something more, the door opened and a servant peeked his head out.
"Please prepare for the audience."
"Eek!"
"What we feared has come!"
"Finally!"
People were horrified.
The thing they had only imagined was actually starting to happen. That Wei Yan-ho was going into the Imperial Palace. Those who knew how dangerous this was looked at Wei Yan-ho with anxious eyes.
"Well then, I'll be back."
'If you can come back, that is.'
'If he can just come out of the Imperial Palace again, that would be a great success.'
Whether he knew everyone's feelings or not, Wei Yan-ho waved cheerfully and left the room.
"He's gone."
"…He's gone."
Gong Mu-jin, who had been watching the situation closely, looked at Wei Jeong-han with serious eyes.
"Senior."
"Mm?"
"Shouldn't we be fleeing?"
"…"
"As you said, the living must survive. If we're not careful, the Guangdong Wei Family really could be scattered to the winds…"
"Hey! You rascal!"
Wei Jeong-han kicked Gong Mu-jin and pointed at him while shouting angrily.
"Is that something to say in front of people!"
"You said it too, Senior!"
"That's because it's my business! It's not for others to say!"
"I'm anxious! Anxious!"
Gong Mu-jin shouted back.
"Does it make sense to send that guy alone to the Imperial Palace! Senior, haven't you thought about the aftermath?"
"Hmph."
Wei Jeong-han snorted and said.
"I did put on a show in front of Yan-ho, but if I can't trust my own child, who can I trust?"
"…Are you in your right mind?"
"Completely."
Wei Jeong-han said firmly.
"That kid acts like he doesn't think, but in fact, he's a child with deeper thoughts than anyone else here. And he's a child who sees farther than anyone."
For a moment, Gong Mu-jin's eyes trembled.
'Is he saying this seriously?'
"And even if things go wrong, how can I, as a father, avoid responsibility for my child's mistakes?"
"Ah…"
Wei Jeong-han said with his eyes closed.
"If I failed to raise my child properly, that too is my fault. If it's already too late and he can't go in the direction I want, then believing in the child and waiting is what a parent should do."
Gong Mu-jin found himself nodding deeply without realizing it.
'Wei San-ho and Wei Yan-ho might not have appeared by coincidence.'
It was because of this kind of educational philosophy that such talents could grow up.
Thinking about it, if he himself had been Wei Yan-ho's parent, he might have tormented the boy trying to fix his laziness and damaged his genius in the process.
'Definitely a senior with much to learn from.'
Sometimes when he looked at this person, he wondered if this was really the same person called the Righteous Hero Sword, as Wei Jeong-han seemed to have lost some spirit, but because of moments like this, he couldn't withdraw his respect.
Even if the direction was different, he was certainly someone worthy of respect…
At that moment, the door burst open.
"Honey!"
"Yes?"
Han Sang-ah entered through the door and began tilting her head in confusion.
"What does this mean? The steward sent a letter asking if he should just dispose of the farmland and buildings?"
"…"
Everyone's gazes focused on Wei Jeong-han at once.
"Ahem…"
Wei Jeong-han cleared his throat and nodded.
"Tell him to do that and send a reply."
"I understand for now."
Han Sang-ah looked at Wei Jeong-han once with suspicious eyes and quietly closed the door.
Click.
Even after a long time had passed since the door closing sound, no one opened their mouth. Wei Jeong-han, crushed by that heavy silence, smiled awkwardly and said.
"Just in case… just in case."
The reaction was explosive.
"Amazing."
"I need to learn from that."
"The fact that the letter came now means he contacted them even before entering Beijing. Wow, that preparedness! Fame isn't spread for nothing."
Gong Mu-jin chuckled and said.
"Believing in him, my foot."
"Ahem."
Wei Jeong-han's awkward coughing sounds kept erupting.
"The living must survive! The living must!"
"Who's saying anything!"
"You guys shouldn't be laughing either. If things blow up, soldiers will storm in here first, so pack your bags in advance!"
"Surely it wouldn't go that far…"
Before even half of Gong Mu-jin's retort could flow out, people rushed outside to pack their belongings.
Watching that scene, Wei Jeong-han clicked his tongue.
"I had no idea my child had so little trust."
"Senior shouldn't be the one to talk."
"…"