NTH 20

“When falcons are full, they don’t feel like hunting and just fly around as they please. So we always keep them a bit hungry before sending them out to hunt.”

“Hah. This is really complicated.”

Manbong smiled shyly without responding. Thinking that his smiling face was quite lovely, Ilwoon suddenly recalled the sanpaku-eyed man he’d met earlier.

“By the way, how well does that Park Dohong, the falconer, handle falcons?”

“To be honest, he’s a bit clumsy. His skills haven’t improved much.”

“Then how is he a sippachi?”

“Well, the sippachi job is so tough that hardly anyone wants to do it…”

That couldn’t be the real reason. Ilwoon softened his tone to coax Manbong further. “I won’t tell anyone, so speak honestly.”

Manbong hesitated, then gave an awkward smile. “He… always pairs up with me, so…”

“So his accomplishments are always good thanks to you?”

“Well, something like that… But Mr. Eungsa is always kind to me. I have no complaints.”

“How is he kind to you?”

“Uh, just… he’s always nice to me…”

“He didn’t seem nice at all earlier. Is he perhaps your lover?”

“What? No, no! How could someone like me… I just admire him, that’s all.”

He said that, but Manbong’s face, including his ears, flushed red all the way to his neck.

Ilwoon felt sorry that a boy with such talent for raising falcons was being used by someone like Park Dohong. So, uncharacteristically, he meddled.

“Manbong, I have a suggestion for you.”

“Tell me, my lord.”

“You seem to have a great gift for handling falcons, so come with me to Hanyang.”

“What? H-Hanyang?”

“Yes. There’s a response room there several times larger than this one. I’ll use my authority to recommend you as a sippachi.”

“W-What? I’m fine as a falcon catcher. How could someone like me dare to be a sippachi…”

“What’s so special about being a sippachi? You’re a commoner, not an outcast—what’s lacking? Isn’t it only natural for someone who handles falcons well to become a sippachi?”

“But still…”

Ilwoon pulled out a decorative belt with a jade ornament from his robe. It was an expensive item, specially made for him by a renowned craftsman in Hanyang.

The center of the ornament bore the character for “abundance” (運), the last character of his name. Ilwoon placed it in Manbong’s rough hand.

“If it’s hard to decide now, think it over slowly. I’m giving you this as a token.”

“What is this?”

“It’s an ornament from my clothing. If you ever come to Hanyang with this and find Shin Ilwoon’s house, my servants and household will treat you with the utmost care.”

“My lord, why would you give something so valuable to someone like me? It’s too much. I don’t know what to do.”

Manbong’s face crumpled as if he might cry. Ilwoon patted his shoulder gently a couple of times.

“I just felt like it. Keep it hidden so others don’t see.”

*

The falcon hunt procession was lavish.

Led by the sedan chair carrying the Qing envoy, a large group followed. Ilwoon and the Jeopbansa rode horses, while the servants carried loads on foot.

The beaters, tasked with flushing out pheasants from the mountains, walked with dogs, and Manbong, looking somewhat tense, climbed the mountain path with a falcon perched on his arm.

Manbong, Park Dohong, and the beaters went into the lower forest to find pheasants, while the rest of the party settled on a flat area midway up the mountain.

The servants joined several tables they had carried to form a large one, and a banquet soon began. When the prepared food and drinks were lavishly set out, the Qing envoy’s mouth dropped open in delight.

From the mountain below, faint “woo-woo” sounds echoed as the beaters swept through the forest to scare out pheasants.

Then, a flapping sound rang out, and something was seen rising in the distance. With its long tail feathers, plump body, and forked wings, it was unmistakably a male pheasant.

“Here goes the falcon!” a clear voice shouted, unmistakably Manbong’s. The jingling of bells echoed beautifully through the quiet mountains, and soon the falcon came into view. With its massive wings spread wide and steady, it soared powerfully.

“Ohh!”

Everyone marveled at the falcon gliding swiftly after the pheasant. Unlike the pheasant, flapping frantically as it sensed danger, the falcon’s wings were as still as steel.

“Got it!” Manbong’s clear voice shouted again. The jingling bells rang through the silent mountains, and the falcon soon appeared, its massive wings spread straight as it soared.

“Ohh!”

Everyone was in awe of the falcon’s swift pursuit. Unlike the pheasant’s frantic flapping, the falcon’s wings didn’t so much as twitch.

“It’s caught!”

Amid the crowd’s cheers, the falcon seized the pheasant’s back with its thick talons. The pheasant struggled, but it couldn’t escape the iron grip of those hooked claws.

The successful falcon began descending toward a valley. Manbong was likely running, out of breath, to retrieve the pheasant while it was still alive. The Jeopbansa laughed loudly and clapped.

“Haha! What do you think, my lord? Quite a spectacle, isn’t it?”

The Qing envoy laughed in agreement, and the Jeopbansa preened as if he’d caught the pheasant himself.

“The falcon catcher will bring the pheasant back alive. We’ll pluck its feathers and roast it whole right here. The vibrant feathers will be collected to make a decorative item for you to take back to your country.”

A whole roasted pheasant was a delicacy reserved for royal birthdays, and pheasant feather decorations were luxury items for high-ranking officials. The Qing envoy, clearly pleased, declared in a booming voice, “I’ll grant a great reward to the falconer who succeeded in today’s hunt.”

Soon after, the sippachi and beaters returned. At the front of the group stood Park Dohong, holding a large, wriggling male pheasant that looked ready to fly off if released.

“I’ve brought the pheasant,” Park Dohong said, showing it to the Qing envoy and bowing.

The Jeopbansa asked, “Are you the falconer who handled the falcon today?”

“Yes, my lord.”

“What’s your name?”

“I am Park Dohong of the Park clan, my lord.”

“Park Dohong, well done. The envoy says he’ll grant you a great reward, so be grateful.”

Park Dohong bowed deeply to the envoy, who nodded with a smile.

To tear off that hypocritical mask, Ilwoon looked for Manbong, the true hero of the hunt, but he was nowhere to be seen. Everyone was focused on the pheasant, oblivious to the absence of both Manbong and the falcon.

Park Dohong handed the pheasant to the servants for preparation and walked off to a distance. Ilwoon quietly followed him. When Park Dohong finally noticed and turned around, Ilwoon asked, “Where’s Manbong?”

“…”

Park Dohong narrowed his sanpaku eyes without a word. Ilwoon pressed him sharply. “You can’t handle that falcon, can you? Where’s Manbong, and why are you taking all the credit?”

“Manbong told me to bring the pheasant up first, so I did.”

“Where is he?”

“He fell through the ice into the water.”

“What did you say?”

Ilwoon’s head spun as if he’d been struck. Without thinking, he grabbed Park Dohong’s collar and demanded, “What does that mean? Explain in detail!”

“The falcon grabbed the pheasant and landed in the middle of a frozen valley. No matter how much Manbong called, it just kept trying to tear into the pheasant, ignoring him.”

“And then?”

“Manbong walked onto the ice, gave the falcon some chicken to take the pheasant, and threw it to me. But the ice was thin, and it broke, and he half-fell in.”

“Then why didn’t you rescue him immediately?”

“As you can see, I’m tall and heavy. If I’d gone closer, the ice would’ve broken completely. If we both fell in and drowned, the falcon would’ve eaten the pheasant, and that would’ve put you in a tough spot, wouldn’t it, my lord?”

“A human life is at stake, and you call that an excuse?”

“I was just about to go rescue him, but you stopped me, didn’t you?”