Chapter 403: The Loafer is Bored (3)

«Ah!»

Wei Yanho turned around. An old man had approached him.

«I’m sorry.»

Wei Yanho bowed his head quickly.

Although he was brazen, he knew it was wrong to enter a place without permission. He had to apologize for his mistake.

«I asked who you were.»

«I am Wei Yanho.»

«Wei Yanho?»

«Yes.»

The old man looked at Wei Yanho with an expressionless face and said,

«What are you doing here?»

«It’s a long story.»

«Tell me.»

«I was hungry and looking for the dining hall… I smelled food here, so I came in, but it wasn’t the dining hall.»

«The dining hall?»

«Yes.»

The old man tilted his head:

«Aren’t you a guest of the Tang Family?»

«E… yes, I suppose.»

«That’s strange. The guests’ food is taken to their rooms.»

Wei Yanho scratched his head uncomfortably upon hearing the old man:

«Normally, the food was brought to my room, but I missed the time. I was too embarrassed to ask for more, so I was looking for a place…»

«It was in vain. The Tang Family doesn’t have a dining hall.»

«Huh? Where do they eat?»

«There is a place where they prepare the food, but it is taken to the rooms. They prepare the food in different places. If there is poisoning in a collective meal, it will be a big problem.»

«Ah… I see.»

Many clans had a separate dining hall due to the large number of guests and servants. He thought that the Tang Family would have one too, but it was not so.

«Then they should have said so! How bad.»

«Bad?»

Wei Yanho said with pursed lips:

«I met many people while looking for the dining hall, and no one told me that there was no dining hall.»

«Yes?»

The old man’s eyes flashed.

If he were a guest, they should have told him that. The fact that they hadn’t done so meant that the members of the Tang Family were deliberately bothering him.

While the old man considered that, Wei Yanho bowed his head:

«Thanks to that, I didn’t waste my time. Thank you. I’m leaving.»

«Wait.»

«Huh?»

The old man pointed to the table:

«Eat something.»

«No, it’s not my food. I’ll eat something simple in my room.»

«I can’t eat all this alone.»

«Huh?»

Wei Yanho looked at the table and the old man in surprise:

«Alone?»

«Yes. I told them to bring only enough to eat, but they didn’t listen to me.»

The old man said with irritation:

«It’s too much food for one person. Ten people could eat this.»

«I have a lot of money.»

The old man shook his head in disgust:

«Then eat. It’s food that’s already here. If you order food now, others will have to work. It’s better to eat it than throw it away.»

«It’s very logical and reasonable.»

«I see.»

The old man sat at the table without saying anything. Wei Yanho sat across from him.

«Eat.»

«Thank you.»

The old man smiled subtly as he watched Wei Yanho eat quickly.

‘He’s a strange guy.’

The old man was not sociable. He was very antisocial. He had no close friends, even in the Tang Family, where there were many people.

The elders avoided him because of his eccentric personality, and the young people rejected him.

It didn’t bother him. He preferred talking to a wall than with fools.

But he was interested in this guy.

‘His clothes indicate that he is a warrior.’

But he didn’t seem like a common warrior.

When warriors visit this place, the first thing they look at are the weapons on the walls. Even if they won’t use them.

Strange weapons are dangerous if you don’t know them, but easy to handle if you do. If there is a strange weapon that you don’t know, you must pay attention so that you can face it in the future.

But this young man was not interested in the weapons on the walls, only in the food.

‘It’s interesting.’

That would be possible if he were a young man from some noble family… but that guy couldn’t be here at this time.

The Tang Family wouldn’t allow it, and not even a brave man would dare to do it. Furthermore…

Chomp chomp, slurp slurp.

‘He eats a lot.’

It was becoming more and more interesting.

Eating in the Tang Family was something that people avoided. Many were careful even with the water in the Tang Family, famous for its poison. That he eats like this in an unknown place… is his heart made of iron?

«Aren’t you eating?»

«No.»

«Eat something. Food tastes better when shared.»

The old man had to think about who the owner was. After hesitating, he picked up his chopsticks:

«Okay.»

They ate in silence for a while.

After finishing the meal, Wei Yanho took the teapot and drank quickly:

«Ha! I ate well.»

«…You must have been very hungry.»

«Yes. I thought I would starve to death.»

Of course.

Otherwise, he wouldn’t have eaten all that food.

«You’ve already eaten, so it’s my turn to drink.»

«Yes. Of course.»

Wei Yanho was in a good mood after eating.

«What clan are you from?»

«I am Wei Yanho from the Wei Family of Guangdong.»

«Wei Family of Guangdong?»

«……Don’t you know it?»

«I have never heard of it.»

Wei Yanho’s face saddened.

The Wei Family of Guangdong was not as famous as the Tang Family of Sichuan, but it was an important clan of Guangdong. A warrior should not say that he had never heard of it.

‘I must become more famous!’

Wei Yanho quietly thought that his ancestors would hit him if they knew.

«Yes, Wei Family of Guangdong.»

«Yes.»

The old man looked at Wei Yanho seriously and asked:

«Is that on your waist a sword?»

«Ah, this?»

Wei Yanho touched the sword on his waist:

«Yes. It’s a sword.»

«Then you are a swordsman.»

«I guess so.»

«Why aren’t you interested in the swords outside?»

Wei Yanho tilted his head. He didn’t understand what the old man meant.

But the old man’s question was natural.

Warriors were obsessed with martial arts and weapons. They would do anything to strengthen themselves, and they were interested in weapons that could improve their skills.

But Wei Yanho said calmly:

«Should I be interested in swords that are not mine?»

«Things don’t have an owner. There is no reason why you can’t be the owner of those swords.»

«Well, maybe.»

But his expression was indifferent.

«You don’t seem interested.»

«Are you the blacksmith?»

«…Why do you think that?»

«Because your hands are unusual.»

Wei Yanho’s gaze landed on the old man’s hands. The old man smiled wryly:

«It’s obvious.»

His hands were different. His hands were full of calluses and burn scars from handling hot metal.

If he doesn’t realize that he is a blacksmith by seeing his hands, he is a fool.

«It might be a rude question for a blacksmith, but my master said that weapons are like poison.»

«Poison?»

«Yes. In the Tang Family, that might be a compliment.»

Wei Yanho smiled uncomfortably:

«He said that weapons are a deception. They make you believe that it is your own skill.»

«Hmm.»

The old man frowned slightly:

«Are you saying that you can’t improve if you use weapons?»

«It’s not that you can’t improve. Even weapons are just tools, and you must train. But… the amount of improvement decreases.»

«Why?»

«Because you use something that is not yours as if it were yours. If two people with the same skill, one with a weapon and one with a common tool, fight, the person with the weapon will have the advantage.»

«True.»

«But as you improve, the advantage of the weapon disappears. Then, the person who has trained harder will be stronger.»

The old man nodded:

«I understand what you are saying, but in the martial world, you must protect your life with your skill. If you use weapons to survive longer, doesn’t that increase the chances of getting stronger?»

«That is true.»

Wei Yanho did not deny the old man’s words:

«I think it’s a matter of choice. Giving up the present for the future, or protecting the present to see the future.»

«True. But most choose the present, right?»

«Yes. That’s not bad. It just doesn’t fit my style.»

«Hmm…»

The old man looked at Wei Yanho with interest.

It is difficult for a young man not to be interested in weapons. It is when they have more ambition and a longing for improvement. But this young man spoke like an old, experienced warrior.

That aroused the old man’s interest.

«Of course, that is possible with common weapons.»

«Huh?»

«But what if it is a weapon so powerful that even your eyes are blinded?»

«It wouldn’t change anything.»

Wei Yanho said indifferently:

«My master’s stone is more terrifying than the most powerful weapons. The most powerful man I know can break mountains and split seas with a single stone, why would I obsess over weapons?»

A slight dissatisfaction appeared on the old man’s face.

He wanted to emphasize the need for weapons, but the young man’s attitude was too firm.

«Can I see that sword?»

«This one?»

«Yes.»

The old man knew it was a delicate question. Asking a warrior to give him his weapon is a challenge.

Even if the old man was not an expert in martial arts, he was from the Tang Family of Sichuan. If he asked for a weapon, no one would give it to him easily…

«Here.»

But unlike the old man’s concern, Wei Yanho gave him the sword without hesitation.

«…Thank you.»

The old man, who had wanted to say something if Wei Yanho refused, took the sword with an uncomfortable expression.

Then he drew the sword carefully.

Shhh.

The old man’s eyes widened as he saw the sword with a low metallic sound.

«T… this? This is!»

The old man’s shout echoed in the room.