Chapter 33
The next day, Thursday.
He had a pleasant evening with his father the day before, but that didn’t mean he had nothing to do today.
He left home early in the morning and headed for his destination.
‘Today’s harvest is plentiful too.’
Of course, the place he headed to was Shin Junho’s mountain.
It had been about two hours since he started climbing the mountain, and his backpack was already so full that it was hard to find any empty space.
It wasn’t like he had picked herbs recklessly.
If he found ten roots of the same herb, he would leave one behind for the future.
It was an unspoken rule and common sense among herb gatherers in the Murim era.
He remembered that and left some behind as much as possible, and he excluded kudzu and Korean tea, which are used to make tea, because there was still plenty left. Even so, he had reaped this much.
As expected, it was a treasure trove for Kang Taehan.
However, with so much harvest, he felt a sense of regret in another aspect.
‘It would be nice to have a car.’
It wasn’t just the inconvenient transportation from Daejeon to here, but also the limit on the amount of herbs he could carry at once.
He didn’t bring it with him today, but if he stayed overnight, he had to think about camping gear.
But if he had a car, the amount he could carry at once would increase significantly.
Of course, there would be the trouble of driving between Seoul and Daejeon.
“Well, it’s been sixty years since I got my license.”
When everyone went to get their driver’s licenses together after the CSAT, Kang Taehan also got swept up in the atmosphere and got his license.
But he hadn’t held a steering wheel since then.
He even went to Murim in that state… It wasn’t an exaggeration to say that his license was literally a sixty-year-old expired license.
‘How much are used cars these days…’
It’s been almost two months since he returned from Murim.
It hasn’t been that long, but he’s saved up quite a bit of money and has some leeway.
Should he think about it slowly?
As he was coming down the mountain with that thought.
“Student Taehan! Long time no see!”
Someone waiting at the entrance to the mountain waved and greeted him.
It was none other than the owner of this mountain, Shin Junho.
He still looked a little weak, but he looked much better than when he was lying in the hospital bed.
Kang Taehan also smiled and bowed lightly.
“I told you I would visit you today.”
“Hey, my life savior has business to attend to, so I should be the one to come. Actually, I should have greeted you separately after being discharged, but I was too busy.”
Shin Junho said, waving both hands.
Kang Taehan scratched the side of his head with an embarrassed expression and smiled.
“That business is to give you something as a token of gratitude for using the mountain… It looks really strange if you come here to receive it yourself.”
Kang Taehan took a glass bottle out of the plastic bag he had taken out beforehand.
It was the same bellflower root syrup that he had given to Jo Wonho the day before, which he had brought down from Seoul.
“Is this… herbs soaked in honey?”
“Yes. It’s bellflower root syrup. And…”
If that was the only gift, he wouldn’t have used the grand word “return.”
Kang Taehan rummaged inside his backpack and took out an herb.
“This is… a wild ginseng, isn’t it?”
It is a wild ginseng with many fibrous roots and five leaves, which is considered the best among the herbs growing in the mountains.
Shin Junho, who recognized it, widened his eyes.
It was because Kang Taehan was holding the wild ginseng in his hand and holding it out to Shin Junho as if urging him to take it.
“A-are you trying to give this to me?”
“I wouldn’t have taken it out to brag, would I?”
Kang Taehan laughed lightly at Shin Junho’s reaction and wrapped the wild ginseng in a handkerchief he had prepared beforehand.
Even though the outline was clearly visible through the wrapped handkerchief, it was a thick and healthy one at a glance.
While Shin Junho was staring blankly at the clear outline, Kang Taehan placed the wild ginseng on Shin Junho’s hand.
“You’re still weak, so use it for your health.”
On last week’s mountain trip, Kang Taehan found three wild ginseng roots at the same spot.
Moreover, they weren’t small ones, but all healthy ones that were at least ten to fifteen years old.
Thanks to that, Kang Taehan was all smiles… but for a moment, he wondered if it was right to take them all.
He had permission, but after all, the mountain had a separate owner, and he himself had been unconscious for over a week and was still recovering.
Was it really a coincidence that he found three wild ginseng roots at once like this?
Suddenly, he had that thought, so he left the oldest one behind and contacted Shin Junho last week, and brought it today.
‘I’ve already dealt with the spiritual energy.’
Of course, herbs with strong energy like wild ginseng can be poisonous, and especially those picked from a spiritual mountain like this contain strong spiritual energy, which makes them even more dangerous.
But Kang Taehan wouldn’t forget that.
He not only removed some of the spiritual energy using the Star-Absorbing Great Method, but also softened the strong and tough energy of the wild ginseng itself through internal energy interference.
The fact that he absorbed the removed spiritual energy and accumulated it in his lower dantian was a side benefit.
Of course, it wouldn’t be as effective as consuming a whole wild ginseng root directly, but it was still a win-win for Kang Taehan.
But Shin Junho had no way of knowing that.
Shin Junho looked at Kang Taehan with a dumbfounded expression.
“No, this precious thing… You’re not eating it yourself.”
“I already ate something else.”
Kang Taehan’s words were not empty words.
He found three wild ginseng roots.
He had already chewed and absorbed all the nutrients and spiritual energy from the other two wild ginseng roots a long time ago, and even this one that was still left, he had gained quite a bit of internal energy in the process of refining its energy.
However, from Shin Junho’s perspective, it sounded like Kang Taehan was saying it to ease his burden.
His eyes were filled with deep emotion.
“Really… I’ve only been receiving help from you.”
Being unconscious for over a week meant that he was practically on life support, unable to move or eat.
Naturally, the effects would linger in his body for a long time.
Even if he regained consciousness and focused on recovery, it would take time for his weakened energy to return.
He had been feeling that his weakened body wasn’t getting better… and then he received this gift.
He saved his life, helped him regain consciousness, and now even gave him wild ginseng to replenish his energy.
What else could he call this person but a benefactor?
“I don’t know how to repay you for all you’ve done.”
“Don’t mention it. I’m also gaining a lot from you, Mr. Shin.”
It was true that this wild ginseng was also picked from Shin Junho’s mountain, and the herbs filling his backpack behind him could be considered a part of it.
However, to someone already overwhelmed with gratitude, it only sounded like humility.
Shin Junho couldn’t help but let out another exclamation of admiration.
⟢⟢⟢⟢⟢⟢
After the moving wild ginseng awarding ceremony.
‘…Huh?’
While coming down the mountain together, a small question came to Shin Junho’s mind.
There was only his car parked at the entrance.
“Come to think of it, how did you get here, Student Taehan?”
“I took a taxi.”
Kang Taehan said in a voice that sounded as if it was obvious.
Shin Junho’s head tilted to the right.
“…Then how are you going back?”
This place was a remote mountain village.
Finding a taxi on the way back would be extremely difficult, unlike coming here.
“I’ll take the bus.”
“The bus? I heard the intervals are quite long…”
“It’s not a problem if I time it right.”
However, Kang Taehan said with an expression that said it was no big deal.
To be honest, Kang Taehan’s honest thought was that he could even run back if he really had to.
If he put his mind to it, he could even walk to Daejeon.
‘Whoa…’
But to Shin Junho, it was a completely different story.
He’s been going back and forth to this place with such difficulty!
That meant he even readily gave away the precious wild ginseng he found after coming here with such difficulty.
Another weight was added to the value of the already heavy gift.
At this point, he really wanted to repay him somehow.
“…I’ll give you a ride today. Get in.”
“Then I’ll take your offer.”
The two naturally sat in the driver’s seat and passenger seat.
The car soon departed, but Shin Junho was lost in thought for a while because of what had just happened.
‘…It’s obvious he’ll be uncomfortable if I keep giving him rides.’
He was the one who originally wanted to come here and give him the wild ginseng.
It wasn’t a question of whether he could or couldn’t, but it was clear that Kang Taehan would refuse.
What should he do?
As his worries grew longer.
“It seems you got a new car recently.”
“Ah, yes. It hasn’t even been a month yet.”
At that moment, Kang Taehan, who was looking around the car, casually said something.
It was something he said to break the silence.
But those words gave Shin Junho an idea.
Shin Junho organized his thoughts for a moment and then slowly opened his mouth.
“But when I got a new car, naturally, I had my old car left over, right?”
“…Yes, that’s right.”
It was such an obvious statement, like saying he had clothes he wore after changing clothes, that Kang Taehan replied questioningly.
“So I was thinking of selling it… but all the dealers were trying to rip me off. All the dealers I used to know have quit, and it’s quite a dilemma.”
“Oh dear, that’s troublesome.”
“So… if you’re okay with it, Student Taehan, I was thinking of giving it to you as a token of gratitude at a reasonable price.”
“…Hmm.”
Kang Taehan put his hand on his chin and hummed.
‘It seems like fate is bringing us together.’
When he needed a spiritual herb, a mountain appeared where he could find one, and now that he needed a car, someone was offering to sell him one.
Maybe because it was a connection made through good deeds, it felt like things were strangely falling into place.
“It’s a Santa Fe, I’ve driven it for about 5 years, but I drive a truck for work, so the mileage isn’t that high. The only accident was when I scratched it while parking…”
Shin Junho continued to rattle off information about the car, thinking that Kang Taehan’s silence meant he was contemplating.
Kang Taehan, who didn’t know much about cars, nodded his head at the right timing.
When Shin Junho finished speaking, Kang Taehan quietly opened his mouth.
“How much are you thinking of selling it for?”
“Well… the price I have in mind is…”
He hadn’t thought of a price since he brought it up suddenly.
He wanted to just give it away, but he knew this virtuous man wouldn’t accept it, so he had to at least come up with a nominal price.
Would this be about right?
The car happened to be stopped at a red light, so Shin Junho casually said the amount that came to mind.
“…Mr. Shin, this might be rude to say.”
Kang Taehan didn’t know much about cars, and even less about used car prices.
“But there’s nothing wrong with the car, is there?”
The price Shin Junho mentioned was, at best, the price of a small car with major defects, a price that seemed problematic even to Kang Taehan.
