Monopolizing Fortunes (177)
Monopolizing Fortunes (177)
Baek So-gu, who happened to be in Shaanxi Province, came running in a fluster at Do Tong-dal's summons. Since it concerned the fight between the Revenge Society, Mount Hua Sect, and Jongnam Sect, he had no choice but to hurry over.
"You're saying it'll be an all-out war?"
Because the matter was what it was, Ha Su-ran also stayed behind without returning to the Northern Unorthodox Alliance. So quite a number of people had gathered in the room.
Do Tong-dal laid out the plan he had put together while waiting for Baek So-gu to arrive.
"Will the Revenge Society move the way we want?"
"There's only one variable."
"What's that?"
"The Society Leader."
Do Tong-dal had not yet met the Society Leader. He had asked Won Jin-u for a meeting with the Society Leader, but had been unable to see him because he was supposedly in secluded cultivation somewhere.
"The Young Society Leader clearly wants to end the fight quickly. But the one holding the hilt is the Society Leader."
"Then this plan is nothing more than a plausible-sounding plan, isn't it?"
"If the Society Leader doesn't appear, things will flow according to this plan. And if he does appear, we'll be able to learn who he is, so that's good too."
"You really are positive about everything."
"Do you know the biggest difference between a rabbit and a tiger?"
"Fur color? Size?"
"A rabbit frets constantly about becoming prey, while a tiger hunts with the hope that it can catch its prey. If you have the choice, a hopeful tiger is better than a fretting rabbit, isn't it?"
"Anyway, you talk a blue streak. If your plan succeeds, there could be a storm of blood."
"To reduce the amount of blood, the Beggars' Sect's efforts are desperately needed."
"Heh—! Now that I'm old, the gates of hardship have opened. They've opened."
While Do Tong-dal was busily moving about, word came from Beijing that Ju Hyeong-seon's investiture as crown prince had been decided.
The message asked him to come offer congratulations if he had time, but right now he didn't even have time to take a piss and shake the thing off.
He sent a reply to Beijing with a roughly worded congratulatory message and one request tucked into it.
With that, Do Tong-dal wrapped up the matter of Ju Hyeong-seon's investiture and entered into the operation in earnest.
The first place Do Tong-dal went was the Revenge Society. Won Jin-u's face as he greeted Do Tong-dal was not bright.
"You held the Righteous Chivalry Sect's founding ceremony quite grandly, I hear. Congratulatory envoys came from the orthodox sects, of course, and even from the Northern Unorthodox Alliance. No less than Strategist Ha Su-ran."
"I didn't expect so many guests either. It seems the wine we fed the Sect Leader worked too well."
"Thanks to that, Mount Hua Sect won't be able to move easily. So hasn't the original plan gone completely awry?"
The original plan had been for Mount Hua Sect to pick a quarrel with the Righteous Chivalry Sect, and then to use that opportunity to deal Mount Hua Sect a severe blow.
"There is still an opportunity. As it happens, the Jongnam Sect Leader's birthday is a month from now. The Jongnam Sect people who came this time brought an invitation."
"Jongnam Sect? You mean to change the target from Mount Hua Sect to Jongnam Sect?"
"Is there any need to limit ourselves to one sect? Since it's the birthday of the Jongnam Sect Leader, one of the Nine Great Sects, won't orthodox figures gather from all over?"
"I suppose so."
"How about dealing with all of them?"
"You mean kill everyone who comes to Jongnam Sect?"
"It seems possible if we only had a poison that is colorless, tasteless, and odorless."
Since it would be an occasion celebrating the Jongnam Sect Leader's birthday, those coming from the Nine Great Sects or the Five Great Clans would be high-ranking figures.
On top of that, the heads of most minor sects would certainly attend in droves just to make an impression.
It was unquestionably an opportunity to weaken the orthodox factions' power in an instant.
"Even if we had a Three-None Poison, administering the poison would not be easy."
"Of course not. Jongnam Sect will be especially careful about that aspect as well. But we're fighting the entire orthodox world, so where would an easy task be?"
"It is worth attempting, but......"
The part Won Jin-u especially liked was that, if the plan succeeded, they could wipe out Jongnam Sect's line entirely.
Won Jin-u asked.
"Have you drawn up a plan for the poisoning?"
"How can I draw up a plan without the Three-None Poison?"
"I'll resolve that somehow."
"Then I'll draw up the plan for the poisoning. And if possible, it might be fine to pin the culprit on the Northern Unorthodox Alliance as well."
"The Northern Unorthodox Alliance would never do such a thing."
"The Revenge Society wasn't chased by the imperial palace because it had a reason to assassinate the First Prince, either."
Even in Won Jin-u's estimation, Do Tong-dal's plan was dangerous and bold. If it went as planned, they could deal with one of the two most important enemies.
On top of that, if drawing in the Northern Unorthodox Alliance succeeded, the orthodox-unorthodox war that had failed because of Do Tong-dal would break out again.
"Speaking of the imperial palace......"
A smile hung at the corner of Won Jin-u's mouth as he drew out his words.
"It seems you handled the imperial palace matter well."
"I did my best...... Has the imperial palace's offensive already stopped?"
"It has noticeably weakened."
"Hm. Rather than our doing, wouldn't it be thanks to the Third Prince being invested as crown prince? Now that the imperial throne is in his hands, there's no longer any reason to pursue us."
"Then that would mean the Third Prince is the one who engineered all of this."
"It's certainly possible. He killed the First Prince, who had the greatest chance of becoming emperor, then pinned the crime on the Second Prince, and in the end obtained what he wanted."
"A frightening figure. The ingenious plan is one thing, but the sheer execution—carrying out that plan without a single gap. Then I suppose we no longer need to worry about the imperial palace."
"Still, we should be cautious, just in case."
"I'll give you an answer about the Three-None Poison by the day after tomorrow."
Judging by the fact that he said the day after tomorrow rather than right away, the person making the poison was apparently not here.
Until he rose from his seat, Do Tong-dal did not bring up the subject of the Revenge Society's Society Leader.
At present, a considerable portion of Do Tong-dal's larger picture remained blank. That was because it was a part he could not draw without knowing who the Society Leader was.
He needed to know what the Society Leader's identity was, what kind of person he was, and how much martial arts he had mastered before he could draw an accurate picture.
But he could not rashly show interest in the Society Leader. If you try to dig up something the other party wants to hide, resistance is sure to follow.
Just as Do Tong-dal was about to leave the Revenge Society, the subject of the Society Leader came out of Won Jin-u's mouth.
"You should be able to meet the Society Leader before long."
"It seems he has achieved results in his secluded cultivation."
"That's something only the Society Leader himself would know. Well then."
Since it was a signal that he did not want to discuss the Society Leader any further, Do Tong-dal turned his reluctant steps away.
'What kind of person is the Society Leader?'
He had inwardly hoped to meet the Society Leader on this trip. The plan he was pursuing with the Young Society Leader could become the starting point of the orthodox-unorthodox war. Whatever the truth, the Young Society Leader believed so.
At a time like this, it made no sense for the Society Leader not to show his face at all, citing secluded cultivation.
'Does that mean he trusts the Young Society Leader that much?'
That could be, but with matters having progressed this far, the Society Leader ought to be standing at the front.
'He said we'll meet before long, so I can figure it out then.'
Do Tong-dal stopped at Naknyeong County, midway on his return to Luoyang. Since all this work was for making a living, he had to fill his stomach.
It was an ordinary restaurant, and the food tasted ordinary too. He had ordered noodles, dumplings, and stir-fried vegetables and was eating when voices rose behind him.
"This beggar old man, while I'm eating, where do you think you're sticking your filthy hand!"
"I've got to make a living too...... just give me a single coin."
When he turned his head, he saw a one-armed old man begging from two burly men. One of the men, whose eyes slanted sharply upward, kicked the old man in the stomach.
"Get lost! You old wreck!"
"Ouch!"
The old man tumbled and landed right beside Do Tong-dal. Do Tong-dal could not simply pass by the pitiful old man.
Because when he saw an old man like that, the image of himself freezing to death in the snow overlapped with it.
Do Tong-dal helped the old man up. The dangling sleeve of the old man's missing arm reminded him of his own missing leg.
"Th...... thank you. Young man."
The burly man who had kicked the old man muttered, "Brat, acting all kind." Do Tong-dal took a hundred coins from his pocket and pressed them into the old man's hand.
"Th...... this much money...... just one meal would have been enough."
"Then enjoy that one meal to your heart's content."
The one-armed old man thanked him repeatedly and then left the restaurant. As Do Tong-dal was about to sit back down, the two burly men who had struck the old man approached.
"Hey, looks like you've got money to spare. Give us some too."
The customers eating nearby muttered things like, "Tsk, he ran afoul of the Jangbaek Twin Brutes," and "Right, why stick your neck into other people's business and invite trouble."
Do Tong-dal picked up his chopsticks and quietly admonished them.
"Don't disturb an old man's meal. Get lost."
Of course, if they were the type to back off at words like that, they wouldn't have started trouble in the first place.
"Settle it with money while you can. Don't regret it after you've been beaten to death."
Do Tong-dal set down his chopsticks and slowly stood. He briefly considered just killing them, but that would only bring more troublesome matters.
"The thing you two need least is that head of yours."
In an instant, Do Tong-dal grabbed the two men's heads and slammed them into each other.
With a crack! the two men slumped to the floor. Do Tong-dal shoved the two men—who sat leaning against each other, unconscious—over with his foot, then went to the counter.
He didn't want to lay a hand on trash any further. He asked the dumbfounded owner, "How much?" and put his hand in his pocket—and then Do Tong-dal's movement stopped.
Earlier, he had definitely given the old man a hundred coins and put the rest back in his pocket. But now his hand couldn't find the coin purse holding his money.
"Huh?"
He searched all through his pocket, but the coin purse did not come out. He looked around the table in case he had dropped it, but he couldn't find it.
In the meantime, the two men caught by Do Tong-dal's kicks had two or three more ribs broken.
"Ah! Damn it! That beggar old man!"
It was clearly a pickpocketing.
"Repaying kindness with enmity has its limits."
Then he glanced at the restaurant owner. The owner was already glaring at Do Tong-dal with suspicious eyes.
"Could I...... put it on credit?"
"Do I even know you?"
Do Tong-dal pointed at the two men on the floor.
"I even cleaned up the trash for you."
"It's still right there, though?"
Do Tong-dal flung the two men out of the restaurant any which way. The owner was startled by that monstrous strength.
"Now it's cleaned up, right?"
"Credit means you'll pay it back......"
"I will certainly come back and pay. If possible......"
The last words were barely audible to the owner. Do Tong-dal dashed out of the restaurant. He cleanly ignored the owner's shout of "I never said I'd give you credit!"
"That beggar old man, I'll just—! Ugh—! Forget it."
He decided to simply acknowledge the skill of anyone good enough to pick Do Tong-dal's pocket.
"I won't have any need to spend money until I get to the Righteous Chivalry Sect, anyway."
With those words, Do Tong-dal soothed his regret over the lost ten nyang of silver. No matter how much money one had, lost money was inevitably a waste.
Do Tong-dal, who had been racing toward Luoyang using his Lightness Art, came to an abrupt stop at a point where he had nearly left the village.
At the edge of a low, sunny hill was the one-armed old man. The old man, who had plopped down on the weeds, was hurriedly eating a dumpling resting on his knee.
When Do Tong-dal's shadow fell over him, the old man raised his head and made a delighted expression.
"Oh my! Isn't it my benefactor?"
In that expression there was only delight, with no sign of awkwardness.
"If you stole a coin purse with ten nyang of silver in it, you should at least eat something good."
"Pardon? Wh...... what do you mean, ten nyang of silver?"
"Why act like this between professionals?"
The one-armed old man spoke with feigned bewilderment.
"I don't know what you're talking about, young master."
The deeply wrinkled, grime-caked face and the shabbily grown beard made him every inch a beggar, and his behavior matched. Nowhere was there the sense of wrongness that ought to have been there.
'Did I misunderstand?'
Do Tong-dal had never met anyone who could hide their true feelings this well. He wanted to immediately say, "It seems I was mistaken," and continue on his way.
But one certain fact held Do Tong-dal back. He had been pickpocketed, and the culprit could only be the one-armed old man.
And the fact that the old man could conceal that meant he was no ordinary pickpocket.
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