Ah! The Nangong Family – Chapter 001
001 I Want to See the Blood-Drinking Monster (1)
One step, one step. His footsteps were heavy. Crossing a snow-covered mountain in weather that seemed like it would freeze the flesh—indeed, it had not been a wise decision. Tsk, if only he had listened when people at the inn at the foot of the mountain had tried to stop him, instead of being in such a hurry.
"Huu……"
White breath spread with the sigh he exhaled. Though his body was tempered from training in martial arts, it was useless against this cold. Even wearing two layers of thick cotton clothes and draped in a cloak, he was cold.
He had heard it was somewhere around here, but looking at the road blanketed thickly with snow, another sigh escaped him.
Still, he had to go. Because he had a purpose.
Even if it was hard, it was for the family.
This much cold was nothing.
Reassuring himself like that, he walked, and walked for a long while.
"Ah!"
A village. He saw a village. It was a small mountain village with only a few sparsely standing houses, but it was undoubtedly the village he was looking for.
Walking briskly, he entered the village entrance, and before he knew it, night had fallen. From above, it had seemed like he would arrive quickly, but it took quite a bit more time than expected. A thatched cottage was visible by the roadside. He went there and quietly called for the owner.
"Is anyone home?"
There was no answer. Though he could clearly sense someone inside.
"Is no one here?"
When he shouted a little louder, someone finally came out. An old man, skinny as a rail, in shabby clothes.
"Who is it?"
"Ah, I am a passing traveler. As it has grown dark, might I impose on you for just one night? Of course, I will compensate you."
The old man looked the man up and down.
He was wrapped in a cloak over thick cotton clothes, carrying a small bundle. However, the back of his hip protruded sharply from beneath his cloak. He was wearing a sword. That made the old man uneasy, but his face was gentle, and the manner of his request was polite.
The old man, who had hesitated for a moment, finally agreed.
"Come in. It won't be comfortable, but you should be able to stay for one night."
"Thank you."
The inside of the thatched cottage was not much different from the outside.
Even with the door closed, wind came in through the cracks. So the window might as well not have existed. Moreover, there was only one room, and instead of a door, a straw mat was hung up, so wind blew right through there too.
The one saving grace was that a brazier was lit. Wood blazed fiercely in a brazier shaped like a large cauldron, so warmth circulated through the house.
"Sit over there."
The man put down his luggage and sat. Then the old man silently went to one side and brought back a basket filled with potatoes.
"I'm afraid this is all I have to offer."
"I was actually feeling hungry just now."
In a remote mountain village like this, food was precious. Especially in winter. So the act of offering even a single potato was itself tremendous kindness. The man was not unaware of this.
"You crossed the mountain?"
"It turned out that way somehow."
"To cross the mountain in this weather is brave. It is fortunate you didn't freeze to death."
"Indeed."
The man smiled, peeling and eating a potato. Seeing that, a look of warmth came over the old man's face. It was because, though he had been wary just moments ago, their brief conversation had put him at ease.
"I am of the Fang family. People call me Elder Fang."
Hearing Elder Fang's words, the man knew he had found the right place. Because the village he sought was precisely Fangjia Village.
"Ah, I am called Nangong Joseok."
"Nangong? If your surname is Nangong, might you be from the Nangong Family, the great power of Hefei?"
Correct. Moreover, he was a direct bloodline descendant. But he couldn't readily reveal his identity.
"A great power? That is all old news now."
The former Nangong Family had been renowned not only in Hefei, the capital, but throughout the entire Anhui region, and was even counted among the Eight Great Families of the World.
The Eight Great Families of the World literally meant the eight families with the greatest power in the world. Thus, one could imagine what their prestige had been like at the time.
But the present Nangong Family was a fallen family that barely maintained its lineage. The cause was the succession struggle in the previous generation and the Great Orthodox-Demonic War that happened to break out at that time.
Nangong Joseok's late father had become the family head by cruelly eliminating his blood relatives. Because of that, the family's power had already greatly diminished, and then the Great Orthodox-Demonic War broke out at the worst possible time.
As the Era of Great Peace lasted long, the emperor came to shun martial affairs and revere only literary ones, which caused corrupt officials to swarm and gnaw away at the nation. The common people endured and endured until they rose up, and right on cue, foreign forces invaded, so the fate of the nation was like a candle flame before the wind.
In such troubled times, one with the surname Zhu, backed by the Ming Cult that worshipped fire, overthrew the nation and became the new emperor. On one hand, he arrested and executed all the corrupt officials to right the nation's discipline; on the other, he drove out the foreign forces.
As the nation gradually found stability, the emperor tried to drive out the Ming Cult. He feared the power that had made him emperor overnight. Moreover, the Ming Cult was a heretical sect that worshipped fire. He could not keep his initial promise to make it the state religion.
In the end, he branded the Ming Cult as the evil Demonic Cult and had the orthodox martial arts factions oppose them.
This was the so-called Great Orthodox-Demonic War.
It was a method chosen because the military had no strength left after dealing with the foreign forces.
It ended in victory for the orthodox martial arts factions, but their losses were catastrophic. Of those who participated, nine out of ten died or were injured. Because of this, the Nine Great Sects became the Seven Great Sects, and the Eight Great Families became the Five Great Families.
The Nangong Family similarly lost its power then. The reason he had come to such a distant place was to somehow restore the family to greatness.
"What business brings you to such a remote village?"
"I have come to find a person."
"A person? Who are you looking for? There are only a few villagers, so if you tell me, I will let you know."
"A distant relative. His name is Sanhak."
"Sanhak? I have never heard that name."
"He would have come to this village over twenty years ago. Is there anyone you might remember?"
"Hmm... If it was twenty years ago... I see. I believe Jeongsan came then."
"Jeongsan? Might you describe his appearance?"
Nangong Sanhak was Nangong Joseok's relative. When a bloody storm swept through the Nangong Family due to the succession struggle, he had left, following Joseok's father. So he may have changed his name.
"He had a kindly face. He came with his sickly wife. But the wife died giving birth. He too died a few years later."
"He died?"
"He did."
"Other than him, has any outsider come in?"
"None."
Then it was him. He was Nangong Sanhak. In the last letter received, he had said he was living in Fangjia Village. To think he had died after Joseok went to such trouble to come here. He had not considered this possibility.
"But his son is alive."
"What? Is that true?"
"It is late today, so meet him tomorrow. I shall guide you."
"Thank you."
Nangong Joseok gave a slight bow and handed over some money. It was compensation for the night's lodging and for telling him what he wanted to know.
As dawn broke early in the morning, someone woke him. Barely opening his eyes, he saw it was Elder Fang. He must have been quite exhausted. To think he hadn't noticed at all even when being awakened like this.
"Rise. The sun has come up."
"Yes."
A hoarse voice came out as he answered. Though he had slept deeply, the fatigue had not yet left him.
He washed his face with water melted from snow. Each time his hand touched the water, a chilling cold sent shivers down his spine. But thanks to that, the sleep completely left him.
The meal Elder Fang set out for breakfast was the same as yesterday—potatoes and water. Even so, it was something to be grateful for, and Nangong Joseok filled his stomach without complaint.
"Let us go."
As soon as the meal was over, Elder Fang urged him on.
Whether he was impatient or simply diligent.
When he followed him out, a pristine snow path greeted them. They walked, the crunching sound of footsteps trailing behind them.
He was curious. What kind of child would he be? To Nangong Joseok's memory, Nangong Sanhak had been a very handsome beauty of a nobleman. If the son resembled him, he would surely have inherited those outstanding looks.
"We have arrived. That house over there."
Looking where Elder Fang pointed, there were a couple of houses by the roadside. It seemed to be one of those. But no. Elder Fang passed by there and went to a thatched cottage beside a large tree.
"Are you inside?"
There was no answer. Was no one there? No. Focusing for a moment, Joseok sensed movement inside the house.
"You there! Come out for a moment. A guest has come for you."
Only then did the one inside move, and a child opened the door and came out. Ten years old? No, perhaps a bit younger. The clothes were old but neat, and the face was fair.
"A guest?"
The child asked Elder Fang while looking at Nangong Joseok.
"Yes, you are......"
Nangong Joseok, about to ask if he was Nangong Sanhak's son, could not continue his words. Looking at the child's face, it overlapped with the image of Nangong Sanhak. His youthful appearance was so adorable that one wanted to pat his head at any moment. What further confirmation was needed?
The one called Jeongsan that Elder Fang had spoken of yesterday was undoubtedly Nangong Sanhak.
That child was his son.
"What is your name?"
"Ganghae."
"Your surname?"
"Fang."
"You are not of the Fang family. Your surname is Nangong."
Nangong Joseok corrected his surname, looking at him with eyes filled with emotion. Then the child tilted his head and asked.
"Are you by chance from the Nangong Family?"
"Eh? Y-yes. That's right. I am from the Nangong Family."
Nangong Ganghae stared intently without a word. As if trying to ascertain whether he was truly from the Nangong Family.
"Grandpa Fang. He is indeed my guest. Thank you for guiding him all the way here."
"If you should leave, stop by. Your father left something with me."
Elder Fang thought that Nangong Ganghae would soon leave the village, following that outsider. Was it not so? The man had come looking for an acquaintance, but the acquaintance was dead and only the child remained. Feeling pity, he would naturally take the child with him.
"Yes. I will."
After his parents died, the one who had looked after Nangong Ganghae the most was Elder Fang. Even without him saying so, if he were to leave this place, he had to at least bid farewell.
"Please come in."
Nangong Joseok followed Nangong Ganghae into the house. It was surprisingly clean. Things were well organized too. Somehow, it did not feel like a house where a child lived alone.
"Do you live with someone?"
"No. I live alone."
"Alone?"
"Yes. My parents have passed away."
"I know that, but how do you live alone?"
"I know a little hunting. I know how to work the fields too. The village elders sometimes help me."
Even so, to be living alone......
Nangong Joseok slowly looked around the house once more. No matter how he looked at it, this was not a house where a young child lived alone.
Come to think of it, there was something else strange. Children in remote mountain villages like this were usually dirty. But Nangong Ganghae was clean. His manner of speaking was also as if he had been educated in a prestigious family.
He couldn't be like that without some adult. Could it be that Elder Fang had cared for and taught the child?
That wasn't it. Elder Fang was a village elder through and through. His house that Joseok had visited yesterday was messy too.
"I am called Nangong Joseok. Your father, Nangong Sanhak, and I are distant relatives; we spent time together when young. Thus, you become my nephew. From now on, call me Uncle."
"Did you perhaps come to take me?"
Nangong Ganghae asked outright. It was an unexpected question, so Nangong Joseok could not answer immediately.
"My father said so. That someone from the Nangong Family would come to take me."
"Did he now?"
"Yes."
"Did he say nothing else?"
"He told me not to follow."
"What?"
"He said that place is home to a monster that kills its blood relatives and drinks their blood."
Nangong Joseok forgot what he was going to say. A monster that kills its blood relatives and drinks their blood—that was referring to his late father. He had cruelly killed his blood relatives to become the family head.
Had that not happened, no matter how great the Orthodox-Demonic War, the Nangong Family would not have fallen as it had.
"But I will go with you, Uncle."
"Your father told you not to go; what is your reason for wanting to follow?"
"Because I want to see."
"See what? Ah, surely you don't mean......"
"That's right. I want to see that blood-drinking monster."
Looking at Nangong Ganghae speaking so innocently, Nangong Joseok was unable to say anything for the longest time.