Monopolizing Fortunes (153)
Monopolizing Fortunes (153)
"Th-that's a fine idea."
The words stopped there. With Ju Seo-in saying nothing, Hwangmi Dal had no choice but to keep his mouth shut as well.
In the silence pressing down on Hwangmi Dal's chest, Do Tong-dal was forcing himself to hold back laughter.
"I understand what Seo-in wants, and......"
Hwangmi Dal had no idea at all, but he did not dare ask. Enduring Ju Seo-in's gaze any longer was more than Hwangmi Dal's old heart could bear.
"Tell me what the rest of you want."
No one opened their mouth. This had never been about receiving a reward in the first place.
They had simply followed Do Tong-dal, and before they knew it, they were sitting with the future emperor.
When no one spoke, Ju Hyeong-seon opened his mouth.
"It seems my question was too abrupt, so think it over in time."
Ju Hyeong-seon's gaze turned to Do Tong-dal.
"About the letter."
Do Tong-dal had already conveyed his intent, so the decision was Ju Hyeong-seon's to make.
"As you said, I will keep it secret for the time being. You will decide when to reveal it."
Do Tong-dal inwardly sighed with relief. If Ju Hyeong-seon had insisted on making it public, there would have been no way to stop him.
"I will inform you at an appropriate time."
After that, a warm and friendly atmosphere continued. Everyone laughed and chatted pleasantly, but one person was fretting and tearing at his hair.
'What in the world does the imperial princess want from me? Why is she doing this to me!'
The crown of Hwangmi Dal's head was growing conspicuously bare.
* * *
"Do Tong-dal."
"Yes, Your Highness."
Ju Seo-in stopped walking in front of the Imperial Palace Secret Archive and looked at Do Tong-dal with a steady gaze.
"Why are you so smart?"
"What's this all of a sudden......?"
"All I did in that room was look at old man Hwangmi's face, and I ended up getting to learn martial arts. Without even becoming a disciple."
As soon as Do Tong-dal had entered the imperial palace, he had handed Ju Seo-in a letter.
It said to deliberately arrive late, and if that kind of conversation came up, to simply stare at Hwangmi Dal.
If talk turned to what Ju Seo-in wanted, and Ju Seo-in stared fixedly at Hwangmi Dal, what would the people gathered there think? How would Hwangmi Dal, on the receiving end, feel?
The moment the thought "Does the second imperial princess like me?" rose in Hwangmi Dal's head, the game was as good as over.
If a man thought he was facing execution but instead received six months of labor, those six months of labor would not be hard at all.
A crisis of becoming the prince consort had turned into the transmission of martial arts, so there was no way Hwangmi Dal would refuse.
From the other side, the physician in black could be seen running over in a fluster. After greeting Ju Seo-in, the physician in black asked Do Tong-dal.
"I'm busy, so what did you want to see me about?"
"I'll tell you as we go."
They entered the Imperial Palace Secret Archive.
"The person who will learn martial arts is a ten-year-old girl. Her aptitude is the best in the Central Plains. And she's very bright. Please pick out a suitable elixir for a child like her."
"An elixir?"
"There are quite a lot of elixirs here."
The physician in black looked around.
"I'd heard the Imperial Palace Secret Archive was somewhere in the imperial palace, but it really exists. Oh! There are medical texts too!"
Do Tong-dal grabbed the physician in black by the back of the neck as they tried to dash over there.
"My business comes first right now."
"Tch!"
They entered the room where the elixirs were kept. As the smell of medicine rushed in, the physician in black's eyes sparkled.
"Hold on! That's Heosimbulsangcho! There's Seollyeonghwa here too! Whoa—! Oyeophongjicho!"
The physician in black dashed around here and there like a child in a toy shop.
"Stay focused on why we came here."
"Huh? R-right. Ssip—! How much time do I have to make the medicine?"
"One day."
"How am I supposed to make the elixir you want with just one day!"
"You never know, so take a look around."
Grumbling something, the physician in black looked around the elixir room. Countless elixirs were waving at them, but the medicines usable for the child Do Tong-dal had described were limited.
Feeding a child just any elixir because it was good for advancing martial arts would instead ruin her body.
The physician in black went to a corner of the elixir room, opened a palm-sized black box, and sniffed it.
"I smell Seolbaekyu, Ten-Thousand-Year Ginseng King, and Guyeophongcho. Mixed with ordinary herbs like Gambyeolcho. This looks like medicine someone made for the purpose of advancing Internal Energy?"
Looking at the bottom of the box, the physician in black read the name "Yeonghwandaehwandan." The pill wrapped in oiled paper was about the size of a thumbnail.
"At this level, it's truly a flawless elixir."
"Are you certain?"
"Even if I made it myself, I couldn't guarantee better. It's obviously an elixir for advancing a martial artist's Internal Energy. A specialist in just one field can surpass even me."
If the physician in black, who knew no humility, spoke like that, it was surely true.
"Still, if it's for a child to eat, not a martial artist who already has Internal Energy, you have to be careful."
"Don't worry. There's another expert for that side of things."
As Do Tong-dal was about to leave the elixir room, Ju Seo-in asked.
"Is that one enough? There's so much here. Take a few more."
"If that's allowed, I'll have to stop by later. Right now I don't have the leisure to think about martial arts."
"Once my third older brother becomes emperor, no one will say anything even if you clean out this whole Imperial Palace Secret Archive."
After leaving the Imperial Palace Secret Archive and sending the physician in black off, Ju Seo-in asked Do Tong-dal.
"When are you leaving?"
"I have to go now."
Ju Seo-in was startled.
"So soon?"
"The more diligent I am, the faster this chaos gets settled."
"Still, I'll miss you......"
"Study martial arts hard under the Alliance Leader."
"I will. When we meet again, we have to have a sparring match."
Do Tong-dal promised he would, then said his farewells to Ju Hyeong-seon and Yang Su-pan.
A deep regret, like that of sending off one's own flesh and blood, emanated from the two of them.
"Now, shall we go take over the Revenge Society?"
* * *
Jeon Ho-jin was a messenger from the Revenge Society's headquarters. The Revenge Society had shown sufficient courtesy by sending the Hall Master of the Amudang as its messenger.
"What did you say?"
Jeon Ho-jin asked again, as though he had heard something unbelievable.
"I said I cannot return to the Revenge Society right now."
At Jang Bu-ok's words, Jeon Ho-jin frowned.
"It is the Society Leader's order."
"Even if it were the emperor's order, I cannot go now."
"The reason?"
"The Protector who went out has not returned."
Jeon Ho-jin was both angry and dumbfounded.
"You mean to defy the Society Leader's order over a mere Protector?"
"Protector Bae Cheong-dong is not only my daughter's master, but an important person the Hwangdae Merchant Company cannot do without. I cannot even imagine going to the Revenge Society without him."
Bang!
He slammed the table, and the tea, which had gone cold without a single sip being taken, splashed outward.
"I came here with courtesy, and you insult the Society Leader! Defying the Society Leader's order just to wait for a mere Protector of a merchant company! The Hwangdae Merchant Company is nothing but one of the Revenge Society's many parts!"
It was always like that. On the surface they pretended to be polite, but the moment their mood soured even a little, they treated the Hwangdae Merchant Company like an uninvited guest warming itself by the fire.
"If it's such an unimportant part, then being a little late shouldn't matter."
Jeon Ho-jin spoke in a growling voice.
"Since it's not that important, I could also smash it right now."
Jang Bu-ok could feel from Jeon Ho-jin's voice that this was not a simple threat.
Fear rose to his throat, but he set his lower belly firmly. In the past, his head would have drooped.
But ever since Do Tong-dal had become the Hwangdae Merchant Company's strength, hope had grown that they could stand against the great evil called the Revenge Society.
"Then try smashing it."
"What?"
"You may be able to take my corpse with you, but you will not be able to break my will."
Jeon Ho-jin's anger was overtaken by bewilderment. The Jang Bu-ok he knew was not a man of such resolve.
Though this was their first meeting, he had come with an understanding of Jang Bu-ok's character from the Inpyeongnok, a record of assessments of the Revenge Society's important figures.
—His talent for commerce is outstanding, but he is timid and obeys orders from above absolutely. Even if he resists out of pride, a little intimidation makes him comply readily.
Other trivial remarks were written as well, but roughly summarized, it came to this. So he had thought it would be easy to bring him along.
But the Jang Bu-ok he met for the first time was far too different from the assessment written in the Inpyeongnok.
Jeon Ho-jin had run into a wall of difficulty. He had threatened to kill him, but he could not kill him.
The collapse of the Hwangdae Merchant Company's main base did not mean Jang Bu-ok's importance had vanished. No, he could become an even more important figure to the Revenge Society, because one of the things the Revenge Society, damaged in its fight with the imperial palace, needed most was money.
No one knew how much damage would pile up in the future, so the more money, the better. At present, the person in the Revenge Society with the greatest ability to earn money was Jang Bu-ok.
So the talk of killing him could only be a simple threat. Whether Jang Bu-ok had noticed his bluff or the Inpyeongnok's assessment was wrong, he could not tell, but Jang Bu-ok was not someone Jeon Ho-jin could handle as he pleased.
Jeon Ho-jin suppressed his simmering rage and asked.
"When is this Protector coming?"
Jang Bu-ok, as a superior merchant, read his opponent well. Realizing he had weathered the crisis, a small composure returned to Jang Bu-ok.
Jang Bu-ok wet his lips with the cold tea.
"He left without a set date, so I cannot know when he will return."
"Then are you saying we must also wait without a set date?"
"If you are in such a hurry, go on ahead. When Protector Bae Cheong-dong returns, we will follow right away."
He had received orders to bring them, so he could not go alone.
"I will wait three days. If this Protector Bae Cheong-dong does not come within that time, we leave. That is the limit of the favor I can extend."
Since Jang Bu-ok did not feel it as a favor, it was absolutely not a favor. So Jang Bu-ok also deferred giving a definite answer.
"Let us wait for now."
He could not enter that den of tigers without Bae Cheong-dong. Here, Jeon Ho-jin alone was a fearsome opponent, but there, figures more terrifying than Jeon Ho-jin swarmed.
He could not take Jang Yeon-seon to such a place without Bae Cheong-dong.
Jeon Ho-jin was not satisfied with that answer, but he did not press further.
Jang Bu-ok also left the room with a heavy heart. Muttering to himself, "Three days...... three days," he walked without thinking and arrived at the rear garden.
Whoosh—! Whoosh—!
Jang Yeon-seon, who had only recently begun learning martial arts, put considerable force into her wooden saber.
Jang Bu-ok watched Jang Yeon-seon's back as she trained. She repeated that tedious motion of bringing the wooden saber down without pause.
Jang Bu-ok was not a martial artist, but he was no complete layman either. He had actually trained. He had realized it was far from his path and given up early, but he had developed an eye for it.
'Her lower body is stable, and there's considerable power in her blade. She only started learning martial arts recently, but at that level, she's remarkable.'
Either Jang Yeon-seon was gifted, or Bae Cheong-dong was a good master—or perhaps both.
He did not know why Jang Yeon-seon had suddenly started learning martial arts. Even when he asked, the only answer that came back was "Just because."
He knew she resented him greatly, and the reason for the resentment was sufficient. The excuse that he had no choice was merely self-justification.
In the end, he had chosen money over family.
'I'm sorry, Yeon-seon.'
He spat out that apology, which he must have made ten thousand times in his heart, and turned away. The sound of the wooden sword splitting the air kept striking Jang Bu-ok's back.
* * *
Jeon Ho-jin, who had been glaring at Jang Bu-ok, spat out in a low voice.
"This is my final warning. Come with me right now."
Jang Bu-ok swallowed hard. The three days Jeon Ho-jin had mentioned had passed, but Bae Cheong-dong had not returned.
He had resolved never to go without Bae Cheong-dong, but Jeon Ho-jin's voice, thick with killing intent, was shaking Jang Bu-ok's resolve.
The sincerity he read in Jeon Ho-jin was also felt by the eight members of the Hwangdae Merchant Company gathered in the courtyard.
They waited anxiously for Jang Bu-ok's answer. They wanted to escape this killing intent, like a net of needles, with the words "Let's go."
But Jang Bu-ok betrayed their expectations.
"As I already said, without Protector Bae Cheong-dong, we cannot follow you."
* * *