Monopolizing Fortunes (36)
Monopolizing Fortunes (36)
Jo Chi-un's face flushed red with fury as he received the report.
"You're telling me Tong-dal just let him go?"
"He did rough him up a bit, but they say he walked out of Namgyeong-ro on his own two feet."
"Why! You said he could have killed him easily!"
Hwang Seon-jung let out a deep sigh.
"Didn't I tell you? That bastard is definitely scheming something."
"Tell him to get here right now!"
Do Tong-dal arrived. The masked figure who served as his arm refused to leave his side for even a moment.
Jo Chi-un glanced at the masked figure. Do Tong-dal, with his arms rendered useless, was nothing to fear. But according to what he had heard, that masked figure had beaten Jo Gwang-un's crew senseless.
They said the masked figure had swatted them down as easily as children, and they hadn't even been a match.
'How does that bastard Do Tong-dal keep masters like this at his side?'
He was just a two-bit punk with nothing special about him, yet whether it was that masked figure or Jang Yu-seom of Cheonsangru, they listened only to Do Tong-dal.
"What's the meaning of this?"
He had intended to slap Do Tong-dal the moment he walked in, but because of the masked figure, he didn't dare raise his hand.
"What do you mean?"
"I hear you just let him go?"
"Just let him go? He'll be groaning in pain for a good three days."
"Why didn't you kill him?"
Do Tong-dal put on a bewildered expression.
"Was I supposed to kill him?"
"I told you to deal with him!"
"And I did deal with him. He won't ever set foot on Namgyeong-ro again."
"You should have killed him!"
Do Tong-dal's expression turned serious.
"Are you soliciting murder from me right now?"
Jo Chi-un felt a stab of guilt inside, and Do Tong-dal spoke to him.
"Say it with the fact that I'm on close terms with the magistrate in mind. Are you soliciting murder from me?"
"Ah...... no, that's not what I meant."
"Then I handled the job properly, didn't I?"
"I'm telling you to make sure he's never seen in Hangzhou again! That's your job!"
"That's for each district's branch chief to handle on his own. The previous Society Leader said over and over that a thug has to protect his own rice bowl."
"Have you forgotten who gave you that position?"
"If you called me here to take credit, I'll be on my way."
A smile hung at the corner of Do Tong-dal's lips as he looked down at Jo Chi-un.
"Great cause and loyalty—without those two, a thug is just trash. Those were the words the previous Society Leader always emphasized. His own son forgot that lesson faster than anyone, so how sad must the previous Society Leader be in the afterlife?"
"You...... you little snot-nosed brat, are you lecturing me?"
"If you're being lectured by a snot-nosed brat, then you've lived your life wrong, Society Leader."
Jo Chi-un grabbed the ashtray on the table and hurled it at Do Tong-dal. It was made of stone, so if it hit him squarely, it would crack his skull.
Swish!
Something flashed, and the ashtray split into eight pieces and clattered to the floor. The masked figure had drawn the sword in an instant and cut the ashtray apart.
The sword that had cut the ashtray did not return to its sheath; it was aimed at Jo Chi-un's throat.
The rage that had erupted like a volcano cooled to ice in an instant. The killing intent radiating from the masked figure and the chill rolling off the sword seemed to form a thin layer of frost on his skin.
"Shall I kill him?"
The masked figure asked. Jo Chi-un knew that if Do Tong-dal answered "Yeah," his throat would be pierced.
"That's enough. Let's go."
As Do Tong-dal and the masked figure turned and left the office, Jo Chi-un let out a sigh of relief.
He had summoned Do Tong-dal to show him the terror of the Society Leader, but now he was relieved just to have kept his life.
"Do Tong-dal, you son of a bitch!"
* * *
"It'd be good to bind this arm to my body."
At Do Tong-dal's words, Namgung Seol-rin bound him with a cord.
"Nice, it doesn't flop around."
With both arms bound to his torso, Do Tong-dal began practicing the footwork again. The backyard, a little over twenty pyeong, had been worn smooth as if swept with a broom.
It was the result of Do Tong-dal leaping and stepping as he trained the footwork. In the ten days since he began learning the footwork and kicking arts, he had gone through four pairs of shoes.
"When I move like this, my upper body is unstable. Is that right?"
At Do Tong-dal's question, Namgung Seol-rin stood in the center of the yard.
"It's because when you shift your foot to the Taiji position like this, then move to Geon, and step your left foot to Gam, your stride is too narrow. If you step out about half a foot wider, your upper body will stabilize and your next movement will be faster too."
Do Tong-dal executed the footwork as Namgung Seol-rin had instructed and nodded.
"I see. Next is Muhun Dapseol, right?"
Namgung Seol-rin spoke to Do Tong-dal as he moved through the footwork in a blur.
"Your heel must not touch the ground. You have to move lightly, with the feeling that you're literally leaving no trace in the snow."
The footwork Mujung Manbyeon Steps and the kicking art Heavenly Shadow Flash Kick that Namgung Cheol-hyeon had given him were not martial arts that could be handed out carelessly to just anyone.
The two martial arts, which had lain dormant in the Namgung Clan's secret vault for fifty years, were in no way inferior even to the Namgung Clan's treasured hereditary arts.
The two secret manuals, which could even cause bloodshed if they got out into the martial world, showed just how sorry Namgung Cheol-hyeon felt toward Do Tong-dal.
On top of that, Namgung Seol-rin did her utmost to teach Do Tong-dal the essence of the secret manuals. Of course, Namgung Seol-rin had not learned Mujung Manbyeon Steps and Heavenly Shadow Flash Kick herself.
But as a first-rate master, Namgung Seol-rin inevitably had a far deeper understanding of martial arts than Do Tong-dal.
So as Namgung Seol-rin learned martial arts alongside Do Tong-dal, she became something like a teacher to him.
It was only natural that he could learn martial arts far faster than by studying the secret manuals alone. And Do Tong-dal was no dullard. No—he possessed a talent that startled even Namgung Seol-rin.
He could dare be compared to Namgung Cheol-hyeon, said to be the greatest prodigy in the history of the Namgung Clan.
If only both his arms were sound, he would make far faster progress than now.
Do Tong-dal devoted more than five shichen a day to martial arts. Although he was the Branch Chief of the Namgyeong Branch, Jo Jin-ho handled the practical work, so Do Tong-dal had almost nothing to do.
After showing his face at the branch in the morning and receiving treatment, he poured the rest of his time entirely into martial training.
He had finished his footwork training and was resting for a moment when Wang Chil came by.
"Busy?"
"What brings you here?"
"I heard you went to headquarters yesterday. The Society Leader looked like he hadn't been able to shit for ten days."
Do Tong-dal wiped the sweat from his face with a towel and asked.
"Did he say anything about me?"
"He just glares. If looks could kill, I'd already be dead. Heh heh heh......."
"Just hang in there a little longer. Soon the Society Leader won't even have time to worry about you."
Wang Chil waved his hand dismissively.
"I'm fine. Being hated by the Society Leader isn't anything new for me. More importantly, I came because I have something to tell you."
"What is it?"
"It looks like the Society Leader is going to bring in a master from the martial world."
"So he's going down that road after all."
"Huh? You knew?"
"I expected it. Protector Hwang must have whispered in his ear."
"Will you be all right? His first target is Jo Gwang-un, but he might try to get rid of you too."
"The Society Leader is just hastening his own death."
"Since it's you, I'm not worried, but still, be careful. And have you heard the news about the chief of the Hyeongju-ro Fixer Office?"
The Hyeongju-ro Fixer Office was as insignificant a place as the Gwanghwa-ro Fixer Office.
"What happened?"
"He got arrested for killing a prostitute."
Come to think of it, something like that had happened in his previous life too. He remembered Wang Chil grumbling through tears at a drinking party back then, saying, "There's no way that guy would ever do something like that."
"That guy's a classmate of mine, and he's too kind-hearted to live as a thug. Haah—! He's not the type to do something like that."
Wang Chil sighed and glanced at Do Tong-dal's expression.
"What can I do for you?"
"No, well...... since you're close with the magistrate, I wondered if you could pull some strings for him. Honestly, I can't believe that Baek Jung-sik killed a prostitute. That guy treats women so well. He does have a bit of a womanizer streak, but he's never once laid a hand on a woman in his life."
"Still, there must be a reason he was arrested as the culprit."
The officials were incompetent, but they didn't arrest people without any reason.
"Apparently Baek Jung-sik was the prostitute's last customer. The prostitute's body was found not long after Baek Jung-sik left, so he got stuck with the blame and couldn't do a thing about it."
"I'll go look into it."
"Jo Gwang-un is still running around loose, and you must be busy with all sorts of things. Sorry to ask this of you."
"Brother, this is the kind of favor family asks of each other."
"You little shit, that's touching."
Wang Chil clapped Do Tong-dal on the shoulder.
* * *
Yang Su-pan readily granted Do Tong-dal's request. The government office's jail was built half underground.
It was structured with a long corridor down the middle and twenty-two rooms on either side.
Baek Jung-sik was locked in Room 15, located around the middle of the jail. The guard unlocked the room and asked Do Tong-dal once more.
"He's a murderer. Are you sure it's all right to meet him without a guard present? It could be dangerous."
"It's fine."
Clang! The iron door swung open, revealing Baek Jung-sik leaning back against the wall. Baek Jung-sik lifted his head weakly and looked bewildered at Do Tong-dal and Namgung Seol-rin entering.
"I came at Wang Chil's request."
His sunken eyes, rough stubble, and cracked, parched lips showed a face drained of all vitality.
"So you're Do Tong-dal. Wang Chil praised you until his mouth went dry every time we met."
"I came at Wang Chil's request, but if you really are the culprit, I have no intention of doing you any favors. There's nothing more sickening than killing a defenseless woman."
"I didn't kill her!"
Baek Jung-sik expressed his fury with his whole body.
"Every murderer says that."
Do Tong-dal was fishing. Which of the thirty-six types Baek Jung-sik fell under, and whether he was telling the truth.
"Why would I kill Seol-ran! Do you know how much I liked her? We ate together and promised to go traveling together...... She was seventeen years younger than me, yet she always called me big brother, big brother, so sweetly...... Fuck....... Why would I kill Seol-ran......."
Expression doesn't only appear on the face. The quiver of the uvula, the movement of the shoulders, the trembling of the knees, the curling of the feet. There were dozens of ways to read a person.
Grasping all those movements to determine the type and distinguish truth from falsehood was the first stage of the Mind-Reading Art.
'Type 2.'
Baek Jung-sik was one of the most common types. And the more common the type, the richer the expressions and the easier it was to read truth from lies.
On his face, twisted as if he were about to cry at any moment, only truth was visible.
Not just his face—his trembling shoulders and hands, and his feet pulled tightly inward, all told Do Tong-dal that Baek Jung-sik was telling the truth.
Unless he had killed someone without realizing it himself, Baek Jung-sik had been framed.
'What a headache.'
If he were the real culprit, there would be nothing to agonize over. The thought, 'Should I just pretend I don't know?' crossed Do Tong-dal's mind.
To clear Baek Jung-sik's name, he would have to catch the real culprit, and he didn't have the time or energy to go that far.
After pouring out his emotions, Baek Jung-sik slumped back against the wall just as he had been when they first entered.
"Wang Chil said there was no one as smart as you."
"It's relative."
"May I ask one favor?"
"I can't promise to grant it."
"Even if I die, make sure you catch the bastard who killed Seol-ran."
As expected, it was a favor he couldn't promise. Unable to offer comfort or even a farewell, Do Tong-dal left the jail.
Instead, he met with Yang Su-pan and secured one promise.
"Please delay Baek Jung-sik's trial as long as possible."
"Why?"
"Because he's not the culprit."
"A thug trying to play judge now?"
"Magistrate, you're hiding something from me, aren't you?"
"What would I be hiding?"
"You haven't sent a bribe to Jeon Su-bang."
"Huh? How did you know that?"
He could tell from the wrinkles around Yang Su-pan's eyes that he was hiding something from Do Tong-dal. So what was Yang Su-pan hiding?
There was only one promise between Do Tong-dal and Yang Su-pan, so it wasn't hard to guess.
"If you want to be the magistrate of Hangzhou for life, saving money isn't a bad thing."
"Fine. I'll send it. Damn it! Why do I have to pour water into a bottomless pot? But how did you know I hadn't sent the money?"
"Didn't you tell me I have that gift?"
Yang Su-pan looked at Do Tong-dal with narrowed eyes.
"I honestly can't tell whether this bastard is sincere or lying. Did you use that gift to figure out that Baek Jung-sik is innocent too?"
* * *