The Eldest Daughter of the Sichuan Tang Clan Protects Her Family

Chapter 4: Yeonjuda

Tang Min asked with a look of shock.

“You, you, you’re not saying you can even make Yeonjuhwan now, are you?”

Yeonjuhwan was Yeonjuda’s spiritual elixir. So-hwa regarded Tang Min with a rather sullen gaze.

“......How could that be?”

The manufacturing method wasn't held by the Tang family, nor did she know what ingredients were used.

No matter how excellent her intuition for poisons and medicinal herbs was, she couldn’t create a spiritual elixir she had never even tasted, let alone seen.

Tang Min, however, remained oblivious to this self-evident truth.

Seeing the turbidity in So-hwa’s eyes, Tang Min cleared his throat, seemingly embarrassed.

“But why are you suddenly asking about that?”

“If I told you I knew where Yeonjuda is, would you believe me?”

Tang Min was the kind of person who would swallow it whole even if Tang So-hwa casually rolled a lump of dirt in the yard and called it a spiritual elixir.

Even if he found out he was deceived later, he would pull out Tang Ji-ha’s beard for raising his daughter poorly, but he wouldn’t dare get angry at Tang So-hwa. After all, then he wouldn’t be able to order her around, saying things like, "Go secretly take some medicinal herbs," or "Make me some plaster."

Moreover, Tang So-hwa never made false boasts, nor even plausible claims. She was such a quiet child that whenever Tang Min heard her speak, he would amplify the meaning of her words.

Thus, Tang Min remained silent.

A silent invitation for her to continue.

The quick-witted child continued in a calm voice.

“You know Haki picked up a hawk a while ago, right?”

“Of course. Why is that fellow always like that?” free𝑤ebnovel.com

Tang Min frowned and grumbled.

So-hwa smiled.

“Do you also know that hawk is a spiritual beast?”

“I do. That Ji-ha fellow subtly brags about how his son picks up spiritual beasts even on the street, and it just churns my guts. I shouldn't say this as a member of the Tang family, but that Ji-ha, he’s born with the qualities of a Tang family head. He’s full of toxic energy, isn’t he? He pretends to complain about Tang Hak being too soft, but if you listen closely, this brat is just bragging about his son. Why does that damn man have to be so cautious, twisting his words to show off...”

“It seems that hawk had an owner.”

Seeing her father’s rant about to lengthen, So-hwa quickly cut him off.

“Really? Taming a spiritual beast, what a madman.”

To Tang Min, 'madman' was a compliment.

He emptied his cup, looking at So-hwa with interest.

So-hwa, quick on the uptake, pushed a plate of Dongpo pork towards Tang Min and continued.

“I didn’t tell Haki, but there was a small bamboo tube made of slender bamboo attached to its wing.”

Suddenly, the sound of the flowing stream grew louder.

It was because Tang Min had held his breath.

So-hwa took a note from her sleeve and politely handed it to Tang Min.

“At the time, I thought it was nothing and threw it away, but on second thought, it seemed strange, so I wrote it down again.”

One of Tang Min’s eyebrows twitched as he received the note. Only eight characters were written on the small piece of paper.

[煙霞痼疾蛾眉細腰 (Yeonhagojil Amiseyo)]

A beauty (蛾眉細腰) with a chronic love for mist and haze (煙霞痼疾)—a profound lover of nature.

It was a strange phrase. Did they just scribble it down carelessly because the combination of characters pleased them?

If anyone else had brought such a thing, Tang Min would have flipped the table, accusing them of playing a trick, but since it was So-hwa, he couldn't help but consider it.

A long silence flowed.

Tang Min emptied his wine cup three times, as if needing time to gather his thoughts.

So-hwa picked up the bottle and refilled his fourth cup. Tang Min, watching his cup being filled, still at a loss, finally asked,

“Why do you think this is where Yeonjuda is buried?”

Tang So-hwa’s lips curved as if she had been waiting, and she replied.

“煙霞痼疾 (Yeonhagojil) refers to a longing for nature, doesn’t it? And 蛾眉細腰 (Amiseyo) describes a beautiful woman with fine eyebrows and a slender waist. But a beautiful woman with such a deep-seated love for nature felt somewhat awkward.”

“Well, since he’s a madman who tamed a spiritual beast, he might have just scribbled it down after drinking. Maybe he wrote it this way because he likes nature and women.”

At his words, So-hwa smiled faintly.

“I thought differently.”

“Oh, how so?”

“Mist (煙). Haze (霞). Beautiful eyebrows (蛾眉). Slender waist (細腰).”

Tang So-hwa broke down the characters written on the paper and explained their meaning.

“It visually expresses both the beauty of nature and humans. As if painting a picture with characters.”

Tang So-hwa’s gaze lifted towards Tang Min.

“So I thought it might be a painting made with characters.”

“A painting?”

“Yes. A painting depicting the beautiful scenery viewed from a mountain peak, with the mist draped over the mountain waist and the haze settling upon it.”

“......Mount Emei.”

Tang Min mumbled to himself before letting out a snort.

Mount Emei was one of the most renowned mountains in the Central Plains. Its name, Mount Emei (蛾眉山), came from its two facing peaks resembling a beautiful pair of eyebrows.

“Do you mean it describes the beautiful scenery viewed from Mount Emei?”

So-hwa nodded quietly and spoke again.

“Yes. To be precise, I think it’s the view from the summit of Sama (Third Emei) among the Mount Emei peaks.”

Mount Emei was a name encompassing its four peaks: Dae-a (Great Emei), I-a (Second Emei), Sama (Third Emei), and Sa-a (Fourth Emei).

“Mount Emei was named because its two peaks, Dae-a and I-a, resemble a woman’s eyebrows. So perhaps it depicts the moment one sees Dae-a and I-a at a glance from the summit of Sama?”

Mount Emei was such a high mountain that it often had thick mist, and haze was not easily seen from the middle of the mountain, obscured by clouds. Therefore, to capture the haze, one had to climb to the summit.

The summit where Dae-a and I-a are visible.

That likely refers to the summit of Sama.

So-hwa continued in a calm voice.

“The place where a mountain’s ridge dips down is called the mountain waist, isn’t it? And where that waist narrows and drops steeply is called a gorge.”

“So?”

“I suspect that note might be a phrase depicting a certain gorge on Sama, like a map.”

Silence fell for a moment.

Soon, Tang Min let out a hollow laugh and picked up his cup.

“Do you know how vast Mount Emei is? Are there just one or two gorges in it? Even if we find a gorge, how would we know where it’s buried and dig it all up?”

Tang Min clicked his tongue and shook his head. He dismissed his interest and picked up the wine bottle again.

So-hwa instead took the bottle, her lips curving subtly.

“If it doesn’t mean where the Yeonjuhwan elixir is buried, but rather the grounds where Yeonjuda resided, then there would be traces nearby, making it not impossible to track them down.”

*Thud.*

Tang Min, who had been toying with his cup, set it down completely and did not accept the wine.

Yeonju, the divine doctor, was a highly virtuous physician. She treated people without distinguishing between noble and lowly, and she took in and raised disciples unconditionally, believing it would save more lives. Because of this, Yeonjuda, where Yeonju’s disciples resided, grew large enough to form a village.

However, now not even a trace remained.

Yeonju was renowned for her miraculous medical arts, which could even reattach broken bones and severed organs. However, it was said that under the pretext of thoroughly researching patients, she acquired various corpses, from children to the elderly, dissected them, and taught her disciples.

After this fact became known, enraged people stormed Yeonjuda’s estate, ransacked it, and found hundreds of skeletons in the yard. Yeonju explained that they were the corpses of the deceased, but people did not believe her. Eventually, Yeonju could not endure the public’s condemnation and suddenly disappeared with her disciples.

Yet, after condemning Yeonju so vehemently, people actually searched for the vanished Yeonju. They tried for a very long time, but no one ever claimed to have found Yeonjuda.

Of course, since it was a group that disappeared half a century ago, the medical arts of Yeonjuda and the effects of their spiritual elixirs might have been exaggerated. People tend to embellish stories.

However, it was also true that those who consumed Yeonjuda’s spiritual elixirs became known as world-class experts, making it difficult to disregard their reputation.

The future Heavenly Bow Sword, whom Tang So-hwa knew, was also a child taken in by Yeonjuda.

— If I die, please deliver this to the family head.

That martial artist left a note before departing for Sichuan.

At the time, So-hwa had asked for the reason.

Because back then, she didn’t understand what those eight characters meant.

— What is this for?

Instead of an explanation, her lips curved subtly, and she replied briefly.

— It is where I will be buried.

When the martial artist’s body was recovered in Sichuan, Namgung Hyun personally carried the body to Mount Emei.

After returning to Anhui, he raged, claiming Yeon-a had died because of So-hwa, and drunkenly spouted strange words. If Yeonjuda had been alive. Then Yeon-a would have lived, he said. He babbled strange things about going to them to find Yeon-a.

At the time, she thought he was simply distraught and out of his mind.

But now, thinking back, she wondered if Yeonjuda had actually existed.

She had heard something in Anhui. When Namgung Hyun was young, he brought a girl his age and personally named her. That was Yeon-a. Could the reason her name was Yeon-a be because she was a child of Yeonjuda?

As she thought this, fragments of memories began to fall into place.

She should have brought Yeon-a before Namgung Hyun did. Not merely to clip Namgung Hyun’s wings.

Tang So-hwa told her father she wanted to search for Yeonjuda first, but he flatly refused.

He didn't believe in the existence of Yeonjuda and said he couldn't allow Tang So-hwa to leave the estate yet.

Indeed, it was impossible to persuade her skeptical father with words alone.

Tang So-hwa momentarily regretted not making a fake bamboo tube and note instead of saying she threw them away, but she soon dismissed the thought. Even if she presented fake evidence, her father wouldn't drop his suspicions. He would likely notice her lie just by her handwriting.

Instead of giving up, Tang So-hwa changed her approach.

If persuasion was impossible, then a request would do. Wouldn't it work if someone difficult to refuse made the request?

That’s why So-hwa came to Tang Min.

“I asked Father if I could investigate, but he refused. However, if it’s a request from Grand Elder Tang Min, it would be different, wouldn’t it?”

The Mad Green Dog, who defied common sense within the Tang family. The only elder who could change the family head’s mind.

So-hwa refilled the cup Tang Min had put down and asked.

“Grand Elder, would you be able to take me to Mount Emei?”