Chapter 240
Crash!
Though Dang Jong-gyeok fell to the floor trembling, Wei Yan-ho's anger showed no signs of subsiding.
"I'd rather gnaw on moss in a cave than eat this! You actually charge money for this?"
The innkeeper was shocked and tried to calm Wei Yan-ho down.
"Sir, why are you acting this way? Please calm down first…"
"Calm down? Calm dowwwn? Do I look calm to you right now?"
Wei Yan-ho pointed at the food.
"Try it."
"Excuse me?"
"I said try it."
The innkeeper looked at the food with a bewildered expression, then picked up chopsticks and put a piece of the spiced meat stir-fry in his mouth.
"…"
His face immediately contorted.
'What is this?'
He was clearly chewing meat, but it felt like he was chewing some incredibly tough arrowroot. On top of that, it had a salty and strange taste.
"Oh my…"
This inn catered to distinguished guests from Mount Hua. Though they did sell affordable food for common people, their main focus was on expensive dishes.
Especially meat-heavy dishes designed to comfort those tired of Mount Hua's vegetarian fare—wasn't that their pride and joy? But for that meat to taste so terrible!
"I'm sorry! I'm so sorry, sir!"
The innkeeper fully understood Wei Yan-ho's anger.
Coming down from Mount Hua after eating nothing but grass, walking all that way to get a proper meal, only to be served something that wasn't fit for human consumption—of course he'd be furious.
Moreover, the dishes Wei Yan-ho had ordered were among the most expensive items on the menu. Paying that much money only to eat garbage—throwing fried chicken at someone's face was understandable.
'That rotten bastard.'
The person the original head cook had recommended, who claimed he could make the dishes himself—he'd thought the man had some skill, but to serve such pretty-looking trash and call it food!
"I'll make you new dishes right away."
Wei Yan-ho's body trembled with rage.
"These precious ingredients!"
Wei Yan-ho looked ready to burst into tears. He felt ashamed to face the pigs and cows that had died to make these dishes.
Eating them deliciously was the only way to pray for their souls' peace, but even Wei Yan-ho, who could survive on moss growing on cave walls, found these hellish dishes too difficult to chew and swallow.
"Bring that guy over here, that one!"
"Excuse me?"
Wei Yan-ho pointed at Dang Jong-gyeok, who was sprawled on the floor after being hit by the fried chicken.
"Bring him over."
"…"
It seemed too harsh to wake up an unconscious person just to bring him over, but the person himself was asking for it. Besides, he wasn't in a position to argue with Wei Yan-ho right now.
After serving such expensive food in this condition, he had nothing to say.
The innkeeper quietly shook Dang Jong-gyeok awake.
"Wake up. Hurry!"
Perhaps for the first time ever—and possibly never again—the innkeeper's feelings while waking up 'someone who fainted after being hit by fried chicken' were quite peculiar.
"Mmm…"
Fortunately, Dang Jong-gyeok woke up quickly, relieving the innkeeper's worries. Of course, he wasn't worried about Dang Jong-gyeok but rather about having to face Wei Yan-ho's anger alone if he didn't wake up.
"Come here."
"How dare you lay hands on…"
Slap!
The innkeeper mercilessly struck Dang Jong-gyeok's cheek.
"You bastard, won't you come to your senses? Do you know what you've done?"
"Ah…"
Thanks to the innkeeper's ruthless slap, Dang Jong-gyeok realized what situation he was in and bowed his body.
'This is dangerous!'
He didn't know what had hit him and knocked him unconscious, but Wei Yan-ho was clearly suspicious of him now. Dang Jong-gyeok's body trembled. He'd rather bite his tongue than have Wei Yan-ho discover his identity.
"Come here!"
The innkeeper dragged him in front of Wei Yan-ho. It wouldn't be difficult to shake off the hand of an innkeeper who knew no martial arts and run away, but if he used martial arts, Wei Yan-ho would rush over and send him flying in an instant.
'Just go along for now.'
If he unnecessarily provoked Wei Yan-ho now, the situation could turn bad.
Besides, it wasn't just Wei Yan-ho here—Jang-il was also present.
'Why of all times… '
He might be able to somehow fool Wei Yan-ho, but that cunning Jang-il was known as the martial world's bloodhound. Why else would he be called Fox-Dog—cunning like a fox and keen-nosed like a dog?
If he tried any tricks in front of Jang-il, he might really bring disgrace to the Dang Family. If that happened, Dang Myeong wouldn't let him off easily.
"Why, why are you doing this?"
Wei Yan-ho looked at him with a crooked gaze.
"Why? Did this fellow get amnesia or something? Are you from a wealthy family?"
Dang Jong-gyeok flinched at the mention of being from a wealthy family.
'Wait, he mentions amnesia but suddenly asks about wealthy families?'
Lee Seol-hwa seemed to have the same question.
"What does amnesia have to do with being from a wealthy family?"
"Amnesia is originally a rich person's disease."
"What?"
"It's originally a disease that only kids with some money get. Have you ever heard of a beggar getting amnesia?"
"…No, I haven't."
"See?"
When Wei Yan-ho stuck out his belly as if to say 'I told you so,' Lee Seol-hwa just shook her head.
What kind of conversation was this?
"Hey, whatever!"
Wei Yan-ho glared at Dang Jong-gyeok and said:
"Eat all of this."
"What?"
"The taste is disgustingly awful, but the ingredients are too precious to throw away, so you eat all of this by yourself."
"What the…"
Dang Jong-gyeok's body trembled.
"All of this?"
"Yeah."
Dang Jong-gyeok's eyes took in the food filling an entire table.
'He ordered a lot.'
This wasn't a meal for two people. Even twenty people would have leftovers. What could he say when a rich person was spending their own money…
'Come to think of it, I almost had my human skin mask peel off while cooking.'
Dang Jong-gyeok smiled awkwardly.
"Great Hero, it seems difficult for me to eat all of this."
"Yeah. Then leave some."
"I can leave some?"
"Yeah. But…"
Wei Yan-ho smiled broadly.
"One beating per spoonful left."
"…"
"Burp."
Wei Yan-ho patted his belly, satisfied by the fullness he hadn't felt in a while. Unlike the food made by that wretched bastard, the food the innkeeper remade and brought was truly heavenly.
Seeing how the innkeeper could increase sales if he worked as the head cook himself, but still hired a separate cook, it seemed he'd already made enough money.
"…You ate all of that?"
Jang-il, who had been eyeing Wei Yan-ho's leftover food, said regretfully.
"Order only what you can eat, only what you can eat."
"If there were only people like you, all the beggars in the neighborhood would starve to death!"
"Whatever."
Wei Yan-ho stretched leisurely. As he extended his body, his bulging belly bumped against the table, making it shake.
"Ugh."
Jang-il groaned and turned around. At the next table, Dang Jong-gyeok, who had been forcing down the original food, was already half-unconscious. Looking at his belly swollen like a tadpole, sympathy welled up like a tide.
'Not being able to eat is torture, but eating too much is also torture.'
At the mention of one beating per spoonful, Dang Jong-gyeok had stuffed food into his mouth until his belly nearly burst. That was understandable—Wei Yan-ho's 'one beating' was on a different level from anyone else's.
This was Wei Yan-ho, who had been turning promising young masters into stars in the sky with just one blow as he fought through the tournament.
One blow would mean unconsciousness, two blows permanent disability, three blows certain death.
So he ate desperately, forcing it down, but…
"…Cruel bastard."
"Hey, cruel is harsh."
Wei Yan-ho shrugged his shoulders.
"You can say that looking at him?"
Looking at Dang Jong-gyeok, who was clutching his belly swollen like Namsan Mountain, head buried in the table, unconscious, the word 'pitiful' came naturally.
"No matter what crime he committed, to go that far. It probably didn't even hurt that much."
"Hurt?"
Wei Yan-ho tilted his head.
"Well, it's not like it was made with spoiled ingredients—just eating poorly made food shouldn't cause pain. Though the taste was horrific enough to hurt one's tongue."
Jang-il stared intently at Wei Yan-ho.
"Are you okay?"
"Huh? Why?"
Jang-il looked Wei Yan-ho up and down, then brought his face close.
"Get away from me!"
Anyone would be startled if a beggar stuck his face that close. As Wei Yan-ho recoiled in shock, Jang-il tilted his head curiously.
"That's strange."
"What is?"
"Hmm…"
Jang-il turned his head to look at Dang Jong-gyeok. Wei Yan-ho couldn't tell, but to his eyes, it was clear that the skin texture behind the ears differed from that in front.
"What?"
Suddenly realizing something, Jang-il looked at Wei Yan-ho and asked:
"You… you really did this to him just because he made the food taste bad?"
"What other reason would there be?"
"…"
Jang-il looked at Wei Yan-ho with an exasperated expression.
'What kind of person is this?'
Jang-il had naturally assumed Wei Yan-ho knew the full situation and was punishing Dang Jong-gyeok accordingly. Though Jang-il couldn't know who Dang Jong-gyeok was exactly, he could understand the general situation—that an assassin sent by someone had tried to poison Wei Yan-ho.
But that wasn't the case at all.
"…Is that really such a great sin?"
"You can't expect to get away with ruining perfectly good ingredients like this. God may forgive, but I won't."
"Crazy bastard."
Wasn't Wei Yan-ho someone who had lived five years without eating a single blade of grass properly? Remembering Wei Yan-ho's pitiful state when he first emerged from the cave, Jang-il slowly nodded.
'Well, if I'd been in that state, I would've smashed the skull of any beggar who wasted food too.'
There probably weren't many people in all of the Central Plains who understood the preciousness of food better than Wei Yan-ho.
'That aside… '
Jang-il asked curiously:
"Are you okay?"
"Huh? Why?"
"Well, do you have a stomachache or anything…"
"I'm fine. I filled up with delicious food afterward."
"R-really?"
"Yeah."
Looking at Wei Yan-ho's nonchalant response, Jang-il shook his head.
'Immunity to all poisons?'
He didn't know whether that guy had tried to poison Wei Yan-ho just to mess with him or actually intended to kill him, but it was clear that the poison hadn't worked on Wei Yan-ho.
'Monster-like bastard.'
Looking at Wei Yan-ho with exasperation, Jang-il turned away.
"Just in case, stop by the medicine hall before you sleep tonight."
"Why the medicine hall?"
"Just go!"
"I'm seeing all kinds of strange beggars."
Jang-il sighed.
'Now, the question is how to handle this guy… '
Looking at Dang Jong-gyeok, who looked ready to explode if his belly were pressed, Jang-il fell into thought.
Unless things become serious, detaining Dang Jong-gyeok here could cause bigger problems. If he stepped in directly, it might give the impression that the Beggar's Sect was siding with the Guangdong Wei Family.
'Let's observe for now.'
Since this was during the tournament, it was best not to escalate things. Especially since that guy's involvement would make any incident blow up infinitely.
Jang-il decided that if the situation became complicated, only then would he reveal what he knew.
But Jang-il didn't know.
He didn't know that things would start going wrong that very night.