****
“That’s...”
Pressed by Sima Geon’s intimidating presence, Hwang Yeong faltered, and Hwang Jeong opened his mouth in her stead.
“To be honest, the inner core of the Snow Mountain Flower Fox is even harder to obtain than the Azure Spirit Oil. If my memory serves me right, there was only a single instance in our family’s history where we successfully treated a patient using one.”
Hwang Jeong turned his gaze to Hwang Yeong, as if asking whether his recollection was correct.
She nodded, prompting Cheol U—who had been furrowing his brow deep in thought—to speak up.
“What about the Great Transfer Technique?”
“Pardon?”
“I’ve heard that an expert with dual yin-yang energies once used the Great Transfer Technique to heal a patient with a similar condition.”
Cheol U glanced sidelong at Sima Geon as he spoke.
Hwang Yeong dashed the faint hope in Sima Geon’s eyes, who had been watching expectantly.
“It’s impossible.”
Her expression and tone were firmer than ever before as she continued.
“I don’t know what similar condition you’re referring to, but the Nine Yin Severed Meridian and Heavenly Yin Divine Meridian are heavenly punishments sent by the heavens themselves. No ordinary Great Transfer Technique could ever cure them. You’d need an extreme yang energy capable of clashing against the entrenched yin energy within the body, the ability to perfectly control the collision of those two forces, and even heavenly insight to pierce through not just the eight extraordinary meridians but every single acupoint in the human body. Does anyone like that even exist?”
“So, you possess such abilities, and that’s why you attempted the treatment?”
Cheol U asked in a mocking tone. He seemed irritated by the constant stream of negatives.
Even Hwang Jeong, who had gone to such lengths to summon Hwang Yeong, could no longer hold back and raised his voice.
“The power to counter the yin energy was provided by the Azure Spirit Oil, and the clash of the two energies was controlled with the golden needle technique. Our family secret, Penetrate Heaven Soul Return, can save someone as long as less than half an incense stick’s time has passed since their last breath. However, it’s a golden needle technique fraught with immense risk, as it doesn’t just consume inner energy but requires pouring every last drop of your own into the needles. Even so, controlling the yin energy entrenched in the patient’s body was no easy feat. Despite the added inner energy from me and Protector Gok, it was incredibly taxing to rein in those rampaging forces. Do you understand what I’m saying?”
As Hwang Jeong’s voice grew increasingly agitated, Hwang Yeong grabbed his sleeve and shook her head. Her face carried a subtle bitterness. Seeing this, Hwang Jeong sighed and forcibly suppressed his rising anger.
Cheol U, who had stoked their ire, was already flattened under Sima Geon’s stern glare.
An awkward silence settled over the sickroom once more. No one knew quite what to say next. Then, Sima Ho—who had been rolling his eyes nervously without daring to interject—cautiously spoke up.
“So, in any case, the treatment was more or less successful, right?”
“Y-Yes.”
Hwang Jeong nodded hesitantly.
“Then, even if that Snow Mountain Flower Fox thing is some legendary elixir out of myths, couldn’t you just feed her a strong yang tonic and call it cured?”
Convinced it was a brilliant question, Sima Ho looked around with flushed cheeks.
Hwang Yeong gave a faint smile and shook her head.
“It’s yin energy that couldn’t be eradicated even with the Azure Spirit Oil and our family’s golden needle technique. Nothing short of an extreme yang treasure like the Snow Mountain Flower Fox’s inner core will do. Creating a medicine with that level of potency is impossible...”
“It exists, that kind of medicine.”
Sima Ho cut her off with a confident expression.
“What are you talking about?”
Sima Geon asked in astonishment.
“A while back, our eldest brother got some medicine from one of the Beggars’ Sect elders. He chased the guy down for ten straight days and nights, begging relentlessly until he handed it over. It’s called the Yellow Dog Pill, a Beggars’ Sect secret remedy...”
Sima Ho glanced at Hwang Yeong before continuing.
“They collect the... uh, essence of yellow dogs during their... season, or whatever, and stew it for three days straight with all sorts of herbs. I heard from my brother who obtained it that the elder swore there’s no better medicine for boosting yang energy. He even claimed it surpasses Shaolin Temple’s Great Return Pill... Ow!”
Sima Ho, chattering excitedly, let out a sharp yelp as he was dragged away.
“H-Hey, what’s that for?”
He swatted at Cheol U’s arm twisting his ear and shouted.
“Damn bald-headed beggar! Spouting tales of getting scammed!”
“It’s real! After Big Brother took the Yellow Dog Pill, he was...”
“Shut it! Before I turn you into dog fodder.”
Cheol U turned away from Hwang Yeong and the others, his face beet red.
Thick-skinned as Cheol U was—second to none under heaven—he couldn’t bring himself to meet anyone’s eyes after Sima Ho’s words.
“My apologies. He’s all brawn and no brains; my little brother hasn’t grown up yet.”
Sima Geon bowed his head to Hwang Yeong and Hwang Jeong with a dazed expression.
“It’s fine. Yellow Dog Pill—what an amusing name.”
Hwang Yeong covered her mouth as she laughed, then suddenly stopped.
“Ah! Of course. An extreme yang elixir that surpasses even the Snow Mountain Flower Fox.”
“Pardon? What do you...”
Sima Geon snapped his head up.
“But it’s an even rarer medicine than the Snow Mountain Flower Fox.”
“What is it?”
Sima Geon unconsciously grabbed Hwang Yeong’s arms as he asked.
Gazing into Sima Geon’s eyes, sparkling with desperation and earnestness, Hwang Yeong murmured.
“Shaolin Temple’s Great Return Pill.”
<><><>
In the sweltering afternoon sun, Sima Geon took a brief break from work and quietly watched Sima Jin bustling around the butcher shop, diligently sweeping the area.
Her movements, as she went back and forth between the shop and the slaughterhouse handling all sorts of odd jobs, were more lively than ever before.
There was no trace of the girl who used to get winded after the slightest exertion.
Hwang Yeong’s words that the condition wasn’t fully cured rang hollow before this picture of restored health.
Well, she did say there’d be no issues with daily life. As long as it doesn’t relapse.
Sima Geon recalled her words, and a sigh escaped his lips unbidden.
“The ground’s gonna cave in. What’s with the sigh, Boss?”
Cheol U plopped down beside him after finishing hanging up a freshly caught pig on a post to drain the blood.
Sima Geon pointed at Sima Jin, who was humming a tune while accepting the liquor bottle Cheol U offered.
“Because of the little one?”
“Little one again? Didn’t we agree last night you’d never call her that?”
At Sima Geon’s words, Cheol U made an “oh crap” face and craned his neck to check if Sima Jin had overheard.
“Whew! No idea why such a tiny thing’s so fierce. She seemed so docile at first.”
Having suffered all night for slipping up with “little one,” Cheol U snatched the bottle from Sima Geon’s hand and shuddered.
“That’s why I said don’t call her little one. She’s not the same maknae from a few days ago.”
Though the treatment hadn’t fully eradicated the condition, the process of addressing the Heavenly Yin Divine Meridian had wrought a transformation in Sima Jin akin to shedding her old bones.
Her frame hadn’t grown larger overnight, but the gauntness from her illness was gone, and her beauty—which no amount of pallor could hide—had truly blossomed.
Rumors that the Goddess of Poetry had reincarnated spread from Soheung to the surrounding areas in mere days.
It wasn’t just her looks that had sharpened.
Even though the root hadn’t been fully excised, leaving the risk of relapse, with the condition partially treated, the genius aptitude inherent to those born with the Heavenly Yin Divine Meridian—a curse’s hidden blessing—was gradually emerging in Sima Jin.
Calling her “little one” nonstop amid her daily transformations had naturally invited her wrath.
“Heh heh heh! Slips off the tongue too easily.”
Cheol U snickered while furtively eyeing Sima Jin, then shook out the last drop from the bottle into his mouth. Smacking his lips regretfully, he asked offhandedly.
“Gonna go snatch one?”
“Snatch what?”
“What else? Shaolin Temple.”
“...”
When Sima Geon didn’t reply, Cheol U shot him a “no way” look and pressed.
“Not going?”
“I’ll take some time to think it over.”
Cheol U smirked at the answer.
“You’ll go soon enough.”
“No.”
“For real?”
Knowing Sima Geon’s temperament, Cheol U asked again.
“Yeah. Miss Hwang’s confident there won’t be major issues for the time being, so no need to rush. I haven’t been home long anyway. I want to spend time with my siblings and enjoy some everyday peace. Plus, it’s a long journey—gotta prepare properly if we go. Need to stabilize the butcher shop too.”
“Ah, the butcher shop. Right. If we both head to Shaolin, no one’s left to run it.”
Cheol U nodded in understanding, but Sima Geon looked surprised this time.
“You planning to go too?”
Cheol U’s eyes went wide for a moment.
“What kinda question is that? You weren’t thinking of ditching me and going alone, were you?”
Unable to respond, Sima Geon watched as Cheol U shook his head vigorously.
“Whoa! Unbelievable. I feel totally betrayed.”
“No, it’s not like that. We’ve got the shop to run, and someone needs to watch the kids...”
“Forget it.”
Sima Geon tried to explain, but it did nothing to soothe Cheol U.
No matter how many times he cajoled and persuaded, Cheol U’s sulky expression didn’t budge, so Sima Geon finally threw in the towel.
“Fine. We’ll go together. Happy now?”
“Of course we will. I was really hurt, Boss.”
Cheol U grinned as if he’d never been upset.
“Anyway, if we’re leaving, we need to properly train folks to keep the butcher shop running.”
“Train who?”
“Hyeon and Ho. Those two. Ho’s already halfway in, and weren’t you planning to pull Hyeon out of the restaurant job too?”
“Yeah. That’s the plan.”
“Heh heh heh! Hammer it into them for half a year straight, and they’ll at least be functional.”
Sima Geon rolled his eyes mockingly at Cheol U’s swaggering demeanor.
“Anyone hearing you’d think you’ve been a butcher your whole life. You barely learned it yourself a few days ago.”
“Heh heh! Comparing me to those rookies is unfair. I was ready even without lessons. Old Man acknowledged it too.”
Cheol U shadowboxed the air boisterously.
“In any case, we hold off on Shaolin until those two can handle the shop properly.”
“Right.”
“Hyeon’s diligent, so no issue there, but Ho... Oh! Speak of the devil.”
Spotting Sima Ho running from afar, Cheol U made a fuss.
“Sun’s still up— what’s he doing here now?”
Sima Jin, who’d been cleaning, leaned her broom against the butcher shop wall and walked over.
“Tsk tsk, nice going. What an embarrassment to the neighborhood!”
Sima Jin grimaced as Sima Ho tripped over a rock and faceplanted.
“Hmm, always say it, but training them properly’s gonna be a chore.”
Cheol U rubbed his forehead, already mimicking a teacher.
Sima Jin and Cheol U clucked their tongues at Sima Ho’s recklessness, but Sima Geon’s face hardened as he watched the boy scramble up without even pausing to put his lost shoe back on.
“B-Big Brother!”
Sima Ho, barefoot and pale as a ghost, called out to Sima Geon.
Only then did Sima Jin and Cheol U exchange worried glances, sensing something off in his behavior.
“Calm down. What happened?”
Sima Geon rushed over and gripped Sima Ho’s shoulders firmly.
“L-Little Brother...”
Sima Ho trembled violently, unable to continue.
That was enough.
Sima Geon’s expression turned rigid as his hands fell limply.