Bachelor Swordsmanship Remastered - Chapter 2

Episode 2: What? Did you say Martial Arts?

“Good.”

The official sitting in front of him spoke briefly without even lifting his head.

“Good?”

Unhyeon frowned slightly.

He couldn’t understand what was supposed to be “good.”

It couldn’t be good that he had no family, so he assumed it was fortunate that he had an economically well-off uncle.

Without his uncle, he wouldn’t have even dreamed of taking the state examination.

Even though the examination itself didn’t cost money, preparing for it required many things.

Tuition for the academy, living expenses, travel costs to the city where the exam was held, book costs, and various miscellaneous expenses made it no easy task.

Above all, since he couldn’t do any work and had to devote himself entirely to studying, it was a challenge that ordinary citizens couldn’t easily afford.

Moreover, it wasn’t just for a year or two.

Even for himself, without his uncle’s help, he wouldn’t have dared to take the state exam.

The sound of turning a page echoed quietly through the pavilion.

The official, who had asked a short question, remained silent again, and Unhyeon had to endure the awkward atmosphere with an anxious heart.

“Have you found a place to stay?”

The official’s dry voice echoed in Unhyeon’s ears. Surprised at the sudden question, Unhyeon quickly answered, delighted for the distraction.

“I haven’t found a house yet. I’m still staying at an inn for now, but soon….”

That dreadful inn.

Not only did it leak when it rained, but the food was terrible, and there was a foul smell.

The inn where Unhyeon stayed was the worst, to say the least.

But today would be the last day at that old inn.

Now that he had become an official, he planned to proudly get a house in Beijing.

“Good.”

The official spoke in an extremely businesslike tone.

“What? What do you mean…?”

Unhyeon involuntarily asked in response to the official’s words.

And he immediately regretted it.

Slam.

The official closed the book irritably.

Then, with sharp eyes, he looked directly at Unhyeon.

“Do you know where you are right now?”

Unhyeon’s shoulders twitched.

Of course, he knew where he was.

The Forbidden City, the heart of the continent, and the core of power—the imperial palace.

The official slowly began to speak.

“Our duty is solely to follow the emperor’s will. We must engrave in our hearts the saying that if the emperor orders a subject to die, the subject must die. Do you understand?”

Unhyeon swallowed hard.

The official’s words were half a threat.

But at the same time, they made Unhyeon realize the enormous significance of this place.

It was the pride that came with a heavy sense of duty, the confident realization that he had become part of a powerful organization.

Unhyeon’s eyes began to sparkle.

But the official paid no attention to Unhyeon’s reaction.

“Also, you were specially brought here by the Crown Prince’s favor, so you must never betray that trust.”

At those words, Unhyeon’s face flushed slightly.

Among those who achieved high scores in the state examination, the top three were given special titles: **Jangwon, Bang-an, and Tam-hwa**.

These individuals were personally appointed by the emperor and usually became scholars affiliated with the Hanlin Academy.

Unhyeon had also expected to go to the Hanlin Academy as usual.

However, the Crown Prince himself had singled him out and brought him to the **Changryong Palace**.

It was a promotion beyond his wildest dreams.

The Crown Prince was the core of power, the future ruler.

“You will be required to conduct in-depth research and reviews on specific fields as per the Crown Prince’s wishes and submit a perfect report….”

Something unusual caught Unhyeon’s ear amidst the official’s words. Without realizing it, he spoke up.

“By specific fields, do you mean…?”

As Unhyeon began to speak, he suddenly stopped.

The official, whose speech had been interrupted by Unhyeon’s question, was staring at him with a cold expression.

Only then did Unhyeon realize that this wasn’t the academy, where free questioning was allowed.

He quickly closed his mouth and bowed his head.

“Ahem.”

The official cleared his throat and continued speaking.

“The Crown Prince has specially granted you access to **Munyeongak**.”

Unhyeon’s eyes widened.

Munyeongak was the name of the imperial library.

It was a repository of countless books and artworks, including the great classic, the **Daejeon** (Great Code), a place that every scholar dreamed of entering at least once.

And now, the privilege of accessing Munyeongak had been granted to him.

Unhyeon’s eyes widened in disbelief at this incredible fortune.

But the official sitting in front of him continued to speak quickly and matter-of-factly.

“Also, since the Crown Prince may summon you at any time, from now on, you will reside within the Forbidden City. When you enter the palace three days from now, ensure that you have prepared everything. You may leave for today.”

The official finished speaking. However, Unhyeon did not move. No, he couldn’t move.

The sudden change in circumstances was too much for his mind to process.

“Reside… within the Forbidden City?”

In other words, he was being told to live in the Forbidden City.

Not anywhere else, but right here, in the Forbidden City.

The official, who had returned to his book, frowned again as he noticed the young scholar standing still.

“Go. And make sure you’re not late in three days.”

As the official’s cold voice rang out, Unhyeon finally snapped back to reality.

“Yes, yes.”

Unhyeon hurriedly clasped his hands together and bowed deeply to the superior whose name he had yet to learn. Then, he hastily made his way out of Changryongjeon.

The official watched Unhyeon’s retreating figure with sharp eyes, and once Unhyeon was completely outside, he quietly shook his head and murmured to himself.

“The top scholar of the examination, Jinshi Unhyeon…”

The official lowered his gaze to the book. There, the name Unhyeon and various details about him were meticulously recorded.

“Later, he can go to Gwangju and help his uncle with his work. He seems to be quite smart.”

Thud.

The official closed the book, and silence once again settled over Changryongjeon.

—

Step, step.

Unhyeon still couldn’t believe it.

A scholar of the Changryongjeon under the Crown Prince, permission to enter Munyeongak, and even an order to live in the Forbidden City. None of it was anything short of astonishing.

Even though he was walking, it felt as if his feet weren’t touching the ground.

Step.

Unhyeon stopped and looked around.

Everywhere he turned, the magnificent and grand Forbidden City left him in awe.

The golden double-roof shone with beauty as if it could take flight, and the golden inscriptions on the signboards were incredibly ornate.

Between the lavish red walls, it seemed as if the laughter of a beautiful woman might spill out at any moment.

“So, from now on, I’m going to live here? Right here, in this golden house…”

A smile slowly began to spread across Unhyeon’s face. At the same time, a line from a scholar’s song fleetingly passed through his mind.

― Within the books, there is a thousand measures of rice; within the books, there is a golden house; within the books, there is a beautiful woman.

For young men who long to play, being confined to a room to memorize old and tedious books is unbearably boring.

Starting with the Thousand Character Classic and Menggu at the age of eight, then progressing to the Analects, Mencius, the I Ching, the Book of Documents, the Book of Poetry, the Rites, the Great Learning, the Doctrine of the Mean, and the Zuo Tradition, after memorizing over 430,000 characters, there were even more annotations, classics, histories, literature, and poetry waiting.

What was most difficult to endure were the endless exams that went on for years.

Each time, the teachers would recite this scholar’s song to instill hope for the future in their students.

It was the very song that Unhyeon himself had recited countless times in his heart.

The song that he had vowed to himself, as he looked at some of his peers who neglected their studies, either with envy or disdain.

“Indeed, indeed, there was a golden house in the books.”

There really was a golden house in the books. And such an immense golden house at that.

Unhyeon quickly lowered his head, worried someone might see. However, his mouth was filled with a smile he couldn’t suppress.

He felt like shouting at the top of his lungs. His heart was bursting with joy at this unbelievable fortune.

But he couldn’t shout, nor could he laugh out loud. This was the Forbidden City, the heart of the continent, a place more forbidden than any other.

With his head still lowered, Unhyeon started walking again, his steps as light as if he were flying.

—

“Hoo.”

Unhyeon let out a long sigh, which dispersed into the blue sky.

The warm sunlight of early summer made even the hard stone path feel comforting, but Unhyeon, who was walking on it, had no time to appreciate the atmosphere.

“The martial arts world… what am I supposed to do about it?”

As he trudged along, another sigh escaped from his lips.

Though he wore the official robes that everyone envied and walked the wide paths of the Forbidden City that anyone would marvel at, Unhyeon’s steps were heavy.

When he triumphantly passed the examination, he thought all his hardships were over.

When he was assigned to the Crown Prince’s Changryongjeon and allowed to stay in the Forbidden City, it felt like he was flying.

But the dream-like days didn’t last long.

The “field of research” assigned to Unhyeon was something he could never have imagined.

“What? The martial arts world?”

At Unhyeon’s question, the official, Sailcheon, frowned.

Sailcheon, the only other official and scholar in Changryongjeon besides Unhyeon, was, in essence, Unhyeon’s direct senior.

“Yes, the martial arts world. Like Shaolin, Wudang, and Huashan. Haven’t you heard of them?”

“Ah, no, of course, I’ve heard of them, but…”

Unhyeon trailed off.

Of course, he had heard of them. Who hasn’t heard stories of people flying through the air in a single leap, walking on water as if it were flat ground, and cutting through boulders with a single sword strike?

But he always thought those were just the exaggerated tales of storytellers.

So why was the word “martial arts world” suddenly coming up as a “specific field of research” directed by the Crown Prince?

“That’s all. Go and do your job.”

The official turned his gaze away as if he had no more business with him. But Unhyeon still had something to ask.

“But why the sudden research on the martial arts world…? Ugh!”

Unhyeon swallowed his words with a groan.

The official, Sailcheon, was already glaring at him with sharp, piercing eyes.

Sailcheon spoke in a cold voice.

“That’s an extremely impertinent question.”

His voice was dry and cold.

“If you try to find out the reason, your life might not be long. Remember that the duty of an official lies in the ‘how,’ not the ‘why.’ Understood?”

Sailcheon continued speaking to Unhyeon, who was too intimidated to answer.

“In the next room is the Crown Prince’s private library. Start your research using the books there. I should warn you, the Crown Prince expects a perfect, vivid, and living depiction of the martial arts world. Understood?”

Unhyeon nodded.

But Sailcheon didn’t expect much.

There was no way Unhyeon could understand the meaning of his words at this moment.

Sailcheon, feeling bothered, turned his gaze away again.

Unhyeon had no choice but to retreat without being able to say anything.

And then, Unhyeon was once again shocked in the Crown Prince’s private library.

Because the “materials” in there were utterly worthless.

“My goodness…”

Unhyeon was speechless.

Books are supposed to be the truth of the ages and the living spirit of the sages.

Therefore, books must always be approached with a clean body and mind, with reverence, and must never be treated disrespectfully, even in a dream.

Yet, Unhyeon could hardly suppress a chuckle as he went through the books in the Crown Prince’s private library.

“Can such things even be called books?”