Fabre in Sacheon’s Tang Novel - Chapter 59

Chapter 59

“I am Tang Hwa-eun of the Sichuan Tang Clan. I have come to see the head of the Namgung family. Would you be so kind as to announce me?”
Standing before the grand entrance of the Namgung estate, perched high upon the majestic—yet brutally steep—peaks of Huangshan, Tang Hwa-eun stated her business.
The guards’ response was exactly as anticipated; their flustered expressions revealed their alarm and unease.
Her mere identity was enough to put most men on edge.
“P-Poison Blossom?! This is a great honor. But, you wish to see the family head?”
“Indeed. I assume he is in residence?”
“Y-Yes, of course! Please, wait here just a moment. I will inform him at once.”
The original plan had been to request an audience with Namgung Seol, the family’s first daughter. Yet, given the nature of their transaction, involving her was unnecessary.
This concerned the exchange of a priceless family treasure, and there was no sense in complicating matters by asking for someone who was probably under house arrest. With Namgung Seol’s standing within the household likely diminished, insisting on seeing her risked a outright refusal.
As Tang Hwa-eun spoke, one of the guards scurried inside, soon reappearing with a woman in tow.
‘Is that her? The one they call the Flower King Peony?’
It appeared the rumors of her confinement were mistaken.
However, my first look at the famed greatest beauty of the central plains made me skeptical.
While certainly attractive, she seemed to pale next to Tang Hwa-eun, whose very presence commanded the space. The woman approaching us lacked that overwhelming aura.
It made me question the beauty standards of this time.
While I was lost in thought, the woman greeted Tang Hwa-eun.
“It has been too long, Hwa-eun Unnie.”
“It has, Eun. How have you been? Was it two years ago, at the Seven Families Gathering?”
From their conversation, I gathered this was not Namgung Seol, but her sister, Namgung Eun.
“Yes, Unnie. I heard you asked for Father. May I inquire as to the nature of your visit?”
Namgung Eun’s eyes were fixed on Tang Hwa-eun, who answered after a short silence.
“Our clan recently came into possession of a rare elixir, one infused with cold energy. We heard the Namgung family has been searching for such a remedy and thought it might be of use…”
Before she could finish, Namgung Eun gasped.
“Is that true? A cold-imbued elixir? Truly?”
“Yes, of course…”
Namgung Eun seized Tang Hwa-eun’s hands, her face a picture of profound gratitude and relief.
“Thank you, Unnie! You have no idea the weight you’ve lifted from us! My uncle journeyed all the way to the Northern Ice Palace seeking such a cure and returned with nothing. I was so anxious, but now… With everything else happening, this is truly wonderful news!”
Tang Hwa-eun’s assumption about their desperate need had been correct.
The situation was clearly serious. Overflowing with relief, Namgung Eun began to guide Tang Hwa-eun inside.
“Please, come in, Unnie. Father will be overjoyed!”
“Eun, just a moment…”
Tang Hwa-eun, who was never comfortable with being touched, stiffened slightly. Watching her, I smirked inwardly, having found another one of her vulnerabilities.
As we were led deeper into the estate, Tang Hwa-eun cautiously broached a subject.
“Eun, forgive me for asking, but I must… I heard some troubling rumors concerning Namgung Seol. Is she alright?”
Namgung Eun, who had been all smiles, stopped dead. She turned slowly, her expression darkening.
“So you’ve heard… I suppose it was inevitable; the gossip is everywhere now.”
Heaving a deep sigh, Namgung Eun moved closer and lowered her voice.
“I will explain everything once we have a more private moment.”
Accepting this with a slight nod, Tang Hwa-eun asked no further questions as we proceeded to the main hall.
Inside the hall of the main family, an elderly man with a severe yet noble bearing greeted us.
“Well, well, what a surprise! The young lady of the Tang Clan! How is your father faring?”
“He is well, thank you for your concern, Head of the Namgung family.”
“Ah, good… peaceful times, then? Peaceful…”
The family head repeated the word “peaceful” with a distant, bitter smile, clearly lost in his own troubles.
Catching himself, he quickly refocused.
“Ah, forgive me. To what do we owe the pleasure of your visit from Sichuan to Huangshan? Is this an official matter for the clan, or a personal call?”
“Father, the Tang Clan has brought us a cold-imbued elixir!”
“What? Is this true?!”
Namgung Eun’s interruption startled the family head, who turned to Tang Hwa-eun, his voice urgent.
“A cold-imbued elixir? What manner of elixir is it? There are many varieties—can you describe it?”
“We have it with us. Would you care to examine it?”
“You brought it here?!”
At this confirmation, the family head’s eyes went wide. Tang Hwa-eun glanced my way, a signal it was time.
With unsteady hands, I reached into my robe and produced a small pouch. Carefully, I poured its contents onto the table.
*Clink.*
A faintly glowing, icy crystal rolled into view.
The moment it was revealed, a chill radiated from it. Both the family head and Namgung Eun stared in rapt wonder.
“Might I inspect it more closely?”
“Please, by all means.”
I placed the crystal on the pouch and slid it forward. The family head eagerly picked it up, placing his palm upon it to sense its energy. A look of pure joy soon spread across his face.
“The purity of this cold energy is exceptional. This could sustain us for a decade!”
“A decade, Father?”
“Yes, far superior to the elixir we procured from the Zhuge family years ago. This is of a much higher grade!”
‘Superior to that one?’ I thought, surprised.
Cradling the elixir, the Namgung family head examined it with awe and curiosity, turning it over as if evaluating a rare jewel.
His expression shifted as he noticed something within the bluish crystal. Frowning, he asked, “There is something inside this crystal… something shrunken and dried. What is it?”
The question was inevitable once the peculiar inclusion was spotted.
At a look from Tang Hwa-eun, I first offered a polite bow to the family head.
“I am Wei Su-long, Tang Hwa-eun’s betrothed.”
“Ah, her fiancé. My apologies for not greeting you properly; the elixir consumed my attention. But please, tell me, what is that within?”
I replied in a measured tone, “I am afraid that is a secret I cannot divulge, sir.”
“I see. Revealing it might hint at its origin, perhaps even its source. Very well, I shall not pry.”
He accepted this evasion, though the real reason for my secrecy was quite different.
How could I possibly confess that the object inside was merely the desiccated tail of a lizard?
It was, in fact, Seol’s severed tail. Presenting a partially decomposed, dried-out lizard tail as a precious elixir would raise far too many questions.
‘Who could have imagined this would be considered an elixir?’
Its discovery was entirely accidental.
After cutting off Seol’s tail, I had kept it as a memento, much like the shells of the O-gongs or their mother’s legs. Over time, it dried and began to crystallize, taking on an icy appearance.
One night, I awoke to an unusual coldness in my chest. Investigating, I found the tail had transformed into its current state. Back at the clan, I showed it to Grandfather Mandok Shingun, who verified it could act as a powerful elixir for those who cultivated ice-based arts or required cold energy.
I was initially baffled that a rotting lizard tail could become such a treasure. Then I recalled the nature of our blue-scaled lizards—they were a type of fat-tailed gecko.
These lizards, built for harsh climates, stored vital nutrients in their thick tails. In this case, Seol’s tail had absorbed yin energy from the Seolsam plant and preserved it, retaining its potency even after being severed.
Though the tail was in poor condition, the Namgung family’s reaction confirmed it was a genuine treasure, not just a curious keepsake.
“Well, then,” the family head said, his sharp eyes narrowing, “you have not brought this here out of mere generosity. What is it you seek in return?”
As expected of a shrewd leader, he went straight to the heart of the matter.
Exchanging a look with Tang Hwa-eun, I ventured cautiously, “I have heard the Namgung family possesses an Ice Jade Orb. Would you consider trading this elixir for it?”
His face immediately brightened.
“Absolutely! Eun, go at once and fetch the Ice Jade Orb from your sister’s room.”
“Yes, Father,” Namgung Eun replied, hurrying out without a second thought.
She returned shortly, slightly breathless, carrying a translucent orb roughly the size of a billiard ball.
“Here it is…”
The orb was a brilliant, icy blue, emitting a cold energy reminiscent of the lizard-tail crystal.
Namgung Eun handed it over with a smile. As my fingers touched it, a familiar coolness spread through my hand—strikingly similar to the sensation of holding Seol’s tail.
I passed it to Tang Hwa-eun. After a brief moment holding it, her expression confirmed its authenticity. Having previously handled the energy of the Seolsam seed, she recognized the orb’s comparable nature.
Tang Hwa-eun gave a slight nod of approval. I quickly bowed to the family head.
“Thank you, sir.”
“No, it is we who thank you. I must confer with the elders on how best to utilize this elixir.”
The transaction had been remarkably smooth and direct.
In my previous life, such trades were often fraught with complications and deceit, but this exchange was straightforward to the point of feeling almost unreal.
‘A deal that benefits everyone,’ I mused.
With the trade completed, the family head’s demeanor became much warmer.
“Now that you are here, you must stay as our guests for a few days. We will ensure you are treated with the highest honor. Ah, Hwa-eun, you are familiar with our Seol, are you not?”
“I am,” Tang Hwa-eun replied.
“My daughter has… had a difficult time of late. If you could spare a moment to see her and offer some comfort, I would be grateful. Keeping her isolated is doing her no favors.”
Tang Hwa-eun glanced at me, silently seeking approval for the delay. Since a day or two would not greatly impact our travels, and given her concern for Namgung Seol, I nodded my assent.
Looking somewhat relieved, Tang Hwa-eun turned back to him.
“Of course, sir. I will do what I can.”
Soon after, we left the main hall and followed Namgung Eun toward the inner courtyard reserved for the Namgung family’s direct lineage. This was where Namgung Seol was being kept.
On the path to the inner quarters, Namgung Eun sighed with relief, her expression a blend of gratitude and weariness.
“Thank you, Unnie. Father’s spirits have lifted considerably. These past few days, the atmosphere has been so tense it felt like treading on thin ice.”
“Is that so? Please, tell me what happened,” Tang Hwa-eun prompted, and Namgung Eun began to explain the situation she had alluded to earlier.
“I don’t know how much you’ve heard, but a strange rumor has been spreading about my sister. They say she has been roaming Huangshan at night, stealing the yang energy from men…”
“Yes, I heard something to that effect. But it’s ridiculous, surely?”
Though the topic was absurd, their faces flushed with embarrassment as they discussed it.
“At first, Father and the elders dismissed it. But some of the men who claimed to be victims described… intimate details about her body—things they could not possibly have known. When Father confronted her, she thought he was angry about her sneaking out to train and admitted to that, which only made everything worse. That is why she was confined.”
“What happened then?”
“I managed to slip in and speak with her, and we straightened out the misunderstanding. But it still doesn’t explain how those men knew those things. In the end, she had to prove her innocence by undergoing a Su-gung-sa test.”
“Good heavens…”
At the mention of Su-gung-sa, I looked on in confusion. Noticing this, Tang Hwa-eun quietly explained to me via sound transmission.
[Su-gung-sa is a test of a woman’s virtue. They raise lizards in jars, feeding them cinnabar until their bodies turn red. Then the lizards are ground into a powder and applied to the woman’s body. If she is truly pure, the mark will not wash off, even with water.]
‘They do what to the lizards?!’
I wasn’t sure what cinnabar was, but the process of force-feeding it to lizards only to grind them up sounded utterly savage.
As my eyes widened in disbelief at such cruelty, I noticed a woman rising from her seat in a pavilion at the center of the inner courtyard.
She possessed a striking aura, with a red peony tattoo spanning the back of her left hand and trailing up her wrist.