The Lighthouse Manor
Having arrived in Gyounam, Ja Gangcheon stopped by the harbor.
“Let’s drop by the labor office first. I want to learn a bit about the sailors.”
“They’ll be glad to see you. I heard things have been tough for them lately.”
“Tough? Why?”
“While cleaning up Gyounam Market, he gave his subordinates quite a lot in retirement funds. Left only enough to barely keep the place running.”
“Why go that far?”
“He said people without heart should leave without lingering. That the labor office needs to stay poor so only those with true purpose remain.”
“Mother said it’s not good to be too harsh on yourself. Though Father sometimes said that was necessary.”
Whatever the reason, hearing that So Yeondok was struggling did not sit well with him.
“Should I help him?”
Ja Gangcheon still carried promissory notes that could be exchanged for a large sum.
“No. You need that for building the ship. What you have now won’t even come close.”
In the face of a new ship, even that much money became pocket change. That was reality.
“So this is what it means to worry about money.”
To Ja Gangcheon, wealth had always been “just something that was there.” But now that he needed more of it, he finally grasped its true value.
“No wonder so many people stake their lives on wealth.”
As he walked with that thought, a familiar figure caught his eye.
“Huh? There he is.”
So Yeondok, director of the labor office, was not in his office but unloading cargo from a large ship docked at the harbor.
“Don’t force it—two of you lift together! If you’ve loaded it all there, close the carriage door! The cold is escaping!”
The laborers following his orders were all former members of the Haeryong Sect. The cargo they brought down from the ship was transferred into a thick-walled carriage lined with several layers of cloth. The white-wrapped objects revealed their true form in front of the carriage, and Ja Gangcheon tilted his head at the sight.
“I thought they were moving porcelain or something. It’s ice.”
The precious goods were none other than ice. When Ja Gangcheon reacted with indifference, Cheongu explained.
“In summer, ice is as precious as porcelain. Seeing that, winter must be coming soon.”
It was only autumn, which was why they could even glimpse ice at all.
“Is ice that expensive?”
“Ask him yourself.”
So Yeondok, recognizing Ja Gangcheon, pulled off his gloves and came running over.
“What brings you here, Benefactor?”
“Why are you carrying cargo yourself?”
“I just wanted to work up a sweat.”
He never once mentioned his difficulties. Instead he spoke of the good points and smiled.
“My heart is at ease, so it doesn’t even feel hard.”
He said that, yet he had grown so thin his cheekbones jutted out. It was not the healthy kind of weight loss. It was the mark of hard labor.
“But how much does ice like that go for?”
“Ah! Shall I give you one?”
“No. I’m just curious about the price.”
“Right now one of those blocks is one nyang of silver. Since it’ll be split in half for use, you can think of the amount one person can carry as half a nyang.”
“That’s quite expensive.”
“That’s only because it’s autumn—prices have come down a lot. In summer, ice is so precious you can barely even see it.”
“How precious?”
“At the height of the heat, even paying five times the current price makes it hard to obtain. I’ve seen cases where people in a rush sold one block for five nyang each.”
Even if it was not quite porcelain, the price was clearly enormous.
“Every province even has a government office dedicated to managing ice. There’s an official post for it too. The royal family sometimes bestows ice as a gift in summer. Of course, it’s treated as a highly honorable gift.”
“Is that so?”
Ja Gangcheon thought for a moment, then nodded.
“Thank you, Uncle. I’ll come by again later.”
Ja Gangcheon hurried back to the Donghae Merchant Guild.
The place he arrived at was in front of the guild’s warehouse—where his belongings were stored, and where even the guild master had not approached after the goods had been moved there.
“I have ice.”
Hearing that, Cheongu and Panseok asked back with surprised faces.
“Ice? Where?”
“Just follow me for now.”
Inside the warehouse, everything Ja Gangcheon had brought from Guigokdo remained piled exactly as it was. The leaves and cloth used to wrap them on Guigokdo were still intact, and no one from the guild had opened any of the packages. That alone spoke to the character of the Donghae Merchant Guild’s master.
Ja Gangcheon picked up one of the square boxes neatly stacked to one side. Peeling away the leaves revealed a crystal box filled inside with white frost.
“Everyone be careful. Get as far away as you can.”
He pressed the two of them against the warehouse wall and opened the crystal box from the opposite side. Then a dense chill that had turned into thick mist flowed down like a wave and filled the warehouse in an instant.
Click!
It took only about the time of three deep breaths, but the warehouse had transformed into something like a freezer.
“Ugh… What on earth is this?”
Cheongu, his lips turned blue, asked while trembling.
“It’s called an Ice Crystal. A treasure of the North Sea Ice Palace.”
“B-Big Brother. It’s been an honor serving you all this time……”
“No. You can’t fall asleep.”
Ja Gangcheon patted the back of Panseok, who was putting on a dramatic act. At once warmth spread through Panseok’s body and color returned to his face.
“Whoa. Does something like this even exist in the world?”
“What if we use this to make ice and sell it?”
At those words Cheongu answered in an excited voice unlike his usual self.
“That’s a great idea.”
“But I don’t know how to sell it either.”
“I know about that. As long as we can make the ice properly, selling it won’t be difficult.”
“Perfect.”
Ja Gangcheon held out the crystal box containing the Ice Crystal. But Cheongu had no intention of taking it.
“Can you manage that? I don’t think I can handle it.”
Cheongu hurriedly waved his hands in refusal.
Even as they left the warehouse, Cheongu remained lost in deep thought. He had been briefly excited by the fact that they could make ice, but soon realized the problems.
“It would be strange if ice just appeared out of nowhere. And with cold like that, the surroundings would get chilly too.”
“Then what do we do?”
“We need a space where secrecy is guaranteed. And it probably needs to be fairly large.”
Ja Gangcheon agreed.
“True. I was told that if word gets out that we have an Ice Crystal, the North Sea Ice Palace would chase us all the way to the underworld.”
“Putting it that way makes it even harder.”
“Don’t worry. I’ll protect you.”
Not reassured in the slightest, Cheongu mulled it over repeatedly before reaching a conclusion.
“I think we need a large manor. We’ll have to build an ice warehouse and have people coming and going to transport it. And preferably outside the village. If word spreads that ice is being produced, people will definitely try to uncover the secret.”
“Hmm. Well, since we’ve already found people to build the ship, we need a house to settle in too. Since it’s a home to welcome my parents, a spacious place would be nice.”
“The guild master will be disappointed.”
“We’ll see him often enough anyway. More importantly……”
Ja Gangcheon asked with a slightly anxious expression.
“You’re coming with me, right?”
This was the most important issue. Fortunately, Cheongu answered without hesitation.
“Of course. If I leave you alone in a manor that produces ice, it’s obvious what kind of trouble you’ll get into.”
“Hehe. That’s a relief. Then let’s go see Uncle Guild Master.”
Greatly reassured, Ja Gangcheon immediately set off.
“You never put anything off, do you?”
“Is that bad?”
“Most other people need preparation. Not that you’re doing anything wrong.”
When Ja Gangcheon failed to understand, Cheongu matched his walking pace and explained.
“It means I’m envious. And you’re doing well.”
While they talked, they arrived at the guild master’s office. Jo Pilsung, who had been deep in serious conversation with the elderly chief steward, set everything aside the moment he saw Ja Gangcheon and showed a bright smile.
“Welcome.”
Recently the foundry had been recovering little by little as the center, but running the entire guild was still a struggle.
“I need to buy a manor. Please help me.”
Faced with the sudden request, Jo Pilsung’s expression hardened.
“Why are you looking for a house? Is there something uncomfortable about your stay here?”
Seeing Jo Pilsung immediately look apologetic, Ja Gangcheon hurriedly waved his hands.
“It’s not that—I just really need one. It’ll be good for you too, Uncle Guild Master, so please look into it quickly.”
“Good for me?”
“I’ll tell you once everything’s ready.”
Even without understanding Ja Gangcheon’s words, Jo Pilsung immediately ordered workers to find a manor matching the conditions.
It was two days later that Jo Pilsung came to Ja Gangcheon saying he had found a decent manor. It was a place a little outside Gyounam village; following the northern official road for about two gak would get you there. Walking eastward with the sea beside you, you would come to a small hill, and there sat a fairly large manor. The elevated terrain offered a clear view in all directions, and to the east, Jinhaepo Harbor and the sea came into view at a glance.
“Isn’t this the house where the master of the Sangcheon Merchant Guild used to live?”
Cheongu knew the place. The Sangcheon Merchant Guild had done large-scale seafood trade between Gyounam and the nearby imperial capital, Hwangdo.
“Recently they took heavy losses when two ships sank. That’s why they put the house up for sale.”
The warmth of people still lingered in the halls. The manor was quite large: three residential halls alone, two warehouses, plus a separate food-storage warehouse and dining hall.
“The front yard is spacious, and the back yard has been maintained as a garden.”
In the back yard an elegant pavilion stood amid a small evergreen garden, and from there one could look down on the sea. This was a far better manor than Ja Gangcheon had hoped for. Especially the view of the sea from the pavilion was exquisite. The locals described the crashing waves as rough, but that was not how Ja Gangcheon saw it.
What a beautiful sea.
To him the sea had been like a raging evil spirit. It had never once granted him rest. So a sea landscape he could look down upon like this felt almost mystical.
“I’ll take this one.”
Without needing to look further, Ja Gangcheon made the decision.
“Then I’ll handle the negotiations.”
Ja Gangcheon had not even asked the price. Instead he handed over the largest-denomination promissory note he had—a note marked for a full ten thousand nyang. Naturally Jo Pilsung was astonished to see it.
“Such a large sum……”
Even so, Jo Pilsung did not ask about its origin.
“Is it not enough?”
“It’s currently listed at exactly ten thousand nyang.”
“Then it’s perfect.”
“We can’t buy it at that price. Since it’s a forced sale, we should be able to knock off at least thirty percent.”
To merchant Jo Pilsung, seven thousand nyang seemed the fair price.
“Handle it as you see fit.”
Though he needed to save money, Ja Gangcheon did not hesitate. Partly because he liked the house, but more because he did not want to waste any more time.
The sooner we build it, the more we can earn.
This was an investment, so there was no reason to hesitate. Of course that thought had not come from Ja Gangcheon himself but from Cheongu’s advice.
Ten days later, the secluded manor on the hill overlooking the sea became Ja Gangcheon’s property.
“Have you finished thinking?”
At Cheongu’s question, Ja Gangcheon nodded. There was something he had pondered for a long time, uncharacteristically for him.
“Then tell me now. What will you name the manor?”
Ja Gangcheon answered while looking at the empty spot for the name plaque.
“Deungmyeong Manor. It means lighthouse.”
“Lighthouse?”
“Yeah. So my parents can see the lighthouse and find their way here safely.”
Cheongu thought Ja Gangcheon had chosen quite an excellent name.