Chapter 120 - Don't Grudge Me for Collecting My Debt
Unable to wait in his right mind any longer, Wang-jeok returned to his residence and drowned himself in liquor. But neither the alcohol nor the comfort from his most favored concubine could soothe him.
"To think some bastard dares..."
For Wang-jeok, who had written a flawless success story up to now, this incident was his greatest crisis and ordeal. Though his subordinates teemed with elites like stars in the sky, he couldn't relax until he confirmed Wang-ho's safety.
Gulp! Gulp!
How long had he been chugging straight from the bottle? A voice drifted in from outside.
"Group Leader! A message from the young master!"
Wang-jeok knocked over the table in his haste and shot to his feet.
"Come in!"
A middle-aged man entered, bowing his head deeply and raising both hands high. In them was a tightly rolled parchment.
Wang-jeok snatched it open immediately.
Father, it is your son Wang-ho.
[...]
If you give them the money they want, I should be released safely. The amount they demand is...
[...]
Tremble...
Wang-jeok's hands shook violently as he gripped the parchment. It was unmistakably his son Wang-ho's handwriting, so he felt a momentary relief at his survival.
"What's it say?"
Wang-jeok handed the parchment to the middle-aged man. His face hardened as he read it. Silently, he gazed at Wang-jeok with eyes asking what to do.
Instead, Wang-jeok asked him.
"What do you think we should do?"
"First, isn't the Group Leader's will what matters most?"
"What do you mean by that?"
"Assuming the worst case, if the young master is as he described, would you pay the ransom he mentioned?"
"..."
Wang-jeok didn't answer right away. But soon, in a deflated voice, he said,
"We must avoid letting it come to the worst, but if it does, of course we'd have to meet their demands. Money can't be more important than my son."
"Understood. Then pretend to comply while buying time. Say the amount is so massive it takes preparation—and time."
Twitch!
Wang-jeok's barely visible eyebrows wriggled like caterpillars.
"That damn... We don't even know where they are—how the hell are we supposed to deliver that?!"
He bellowed in frustration.
Just then, another figure entered.
"Group Leader! The kidnappers sent this!"
Another parchment was thrust into Wang-jeok's hand. He took a deep breath and unrolled it.
Tremble...
His hands and eyes shook even more violently than before as he read.
Crumple!
The parchment was crushed mercilessly in his grasp.
The middle-aged man asked,
"What did they write?"
"Tomorrow, they'll exchange the money for the son—but prepare the ransom as Continental Exchange bills. Location to be sent separately..."
"As expected. For that huge sum in silver, they'd need at least ten wagons. Naturally, they'd want bills. And only Continental Exchange bills ensure smooth cash conversion later—anyone would think that."
Flick.
A fierce glint filled Wang-jeok's eyes.
"They'll have to show themselves eventually to collect. When they do, no matter who or how many, we'll seize them and tear them to shreds!"
"Exactly."
"Still, just in case—convert the ransom to bills ahead of time!"
"Understood."
"I'm heading to the grand hall! Gather everyone, put our heads together, and find the best way!"
"Yes, Group Leader!"
Wang-jeok lumbered toward the grand hall with heavy steps. After a few paces, he turned back, waving the crumpled parchment.
"Where's the one who brought this?!"
"That's... it wasn't a person. It came via the group's messenger pigeon."
"..."
Disappointment shadowed his massive face.
Faced with the unprecedented crisis of their heir's kidnapping, the Golden Merchant Group assembled its leadership in the grand hall under Wang-jeok to discuss rescuing Wang-ho safely while awaiting word from the kidnappers. Meanwhile, Yeon-hoo was somewhere no one would expect.
"Incredible."
"As a rival to the Golden Merchant Group, its scale is staggering from the start."
Yeon-hoo and Yuksoon stared in awe at a massive building towering like a fortress in the city center.
Continental Exchange.
Operated by the Continental Merchant Group—rival to the Golden Merchant Group—its immense size astonished even Yeon-hoo, lord of the world.
Now, the two sat in an inn directly across from it.
"It's astonishing they can operate openly here, the heart of the Golden Merchant Group."
"Everyone knows the White Night Cartel backs the Continental Merchant Group. Even the Golden Merchant Group can't fight the White Night Cartel."
"Truly the White Night Cartel. But will they really comply so easily?"
"We have to trust Wang-ho's word."
Wang-ho had said his father Wang-jeok would do anything to save him—including paying the sum Yeon-hoo demanded.
Yeon-hoo silently sipped his drink.
Yuksoon eyed him curiously.
"Have you... done something like this before?"
"What do you mean?"
"You seem so familiar with it..."
"First time."
"Ah... yes, my lord."
Yeon-hoo set down his cup and gazed at the sky through the window. Thick clouds blanketed it, the air growing humid—rain was imminent.
Today, we leave this place.
Yeon-hoo was certain. Wang-jeok would come to convert his son's ransom into Continental Exchange bills.
The Exchange would close soon. Less than half a shichen remained.
"What if they don't show?"
"We'll cut off an arm and send it as planned."
"You'd really do that?"
Yuksoon regretted asking—he knew Yeon-hoo would go further once set on a goal.
He scratched his head, staring at the Exchange. Then his eyes sharpened.
"My lord, they're here."
Yeon-hoo turned to the Exchange. A single carriage bearing the Golden Merchant Group's flag approached under heavy escort. It halted at the main gate.
"Move?"
"Wait—they need time to convert to bills."
Yeon-hoo sipped again, utterly relaxed. Yuksoon inwardly marveled.
Five million nyang on the line, and he's this calm...
Yes—the ransom Yeon-hoo demanded was five million nyang in silver.
Yuksoon had doubted even the Golden Merchant Group would pay such an astronomical sum. He pictured their unseen leader, Wang-jeok.
What face will he make when he learns we've bled his son dry too? Or maybe Wang-ho won't tell his father. Either way, success here solves our funding woes in one stroke.
Rumble!
Thunder rolled, followed by rain.
Pour!
About a shichen later?
"Time to go."
"Yes."
Yeon-hoo and Yuksoon left the inn, slipping into an alley to mask their faces with prepared cloth.
Wang Jung-bo, a key figure in the Golden Merchant Group and uncle-figure to Wang-ho, had come to the Continental Exchange on Wang-jeok's orders to convert five million nyang in silver to bills.
Usually viewing the Exchange as a thorn in his side, he delegated to his men and waited inside the carriage.
The spacious interior screamed luxury: tiger pelts on the floor, walls adorned with white fur and horns from unknown beasts.
Wang Jung-bo drank as the man in the blue robe across from him scanned the streets sharply through the open window.
Wang Jung-bo smirked at him.
"Even bloated fools wouldn't dare scheme in the city center. If they move, it'll be somewhere deserted—relax."
"Yes."
Gulp! Gulp!
Wang Jung-bo drained his bottle, his eyes darkening with irritation.
"I told him not to wander outside headquarters... but the fool insisted on 'gaining experience' and caused this mess."
"The young master?"
"Who else? Spoiled rotten on elixirs since childhood, thinking his qi invincible—now look at him."
"Survivors said the fiend's martial arts were monstrous. The young master's carriage had our strongest disguised as escorts, yet they fell without swinging a blade."
"They got careless, no doubt. Who'd target the Golden Merchant heir?"
"..."
"That's why I teach: never relax on escort duty. Maintain focus. Our world is unpredictable."
"Wise words. But aren't we being careless now?"
"Careless? I said—even bloated fools wouldn't here..."
Wang Jung-bo couldn't finish. Commotion outside.
Crack! Crunch!
"Argh!"
"Ugh!"
"What the—?!"
He thrust his head out the window. His men, leaving the Exchange with gold and jewels swapped for bills, collapsed spewing blood—like daggers to his eyes.
"Urk!"
As Wang Jung-bo groaned, the blue-robed man smashed the door and leaped out.
Bang!
What he saw first: a masked figure. More precisely, chilling eyes peering from the mask.
"...!"
Stunned, he slashed at the mask's throat. But it was illusion—his chest exploded in a hole, collapsing silently.
Thud!
Wang Jung-bo, stepping out, froze against the wall, trembling. A martial artist of note, yet he couldn't fathom resisting. Those eyes had turned him to a monkey facing a python.
"Go tell Wang-jeok: I'm just collecting a debt—don't be stingy."
"...!"
"We'll return your little lord when the time comes. Wait quietly."
"Got it! Got it!"
Wang Jung-bo nodded frantically, neck nearly snapping. As the masked figure vanished, he slumped to the ground.
His trousers were soaked.