Monopolizing Fortunes (57)
Monopolizing Fortunes (57)
Do Tong-dal heard the whole story surrounding Won Dae-yeon from Namgung Seol-rin. The 川-shaped furrows between his brows looked especially deep that day.
"Even the Underworld has an iron rule never to touch that family. What a complete bastard."
"If he'd only gotten revenge for his family, Won Dae-yeon wouldn't have ended up broken like that."
"The Beggars' Sect couldn't find him either?"
"They searched every place worth hiding, went through in-laws and distant relatives, and still nothing."
"Hmm. Then he's not hiding in the martial world."
Do Tong-dal, arms crossed, made a "hmm" sound, then muttered "well, damn." He was busy working something out in his head.
"What are you doing?"
"I shouldn't stick my nose in."
"What are you talking about?"
"Why do people like that keep showing up in front of me? Like I'm some kind of fixer."
"What's that supposed to mean? You can resolve Won Dae-yeon's situation? You have a way?"
"The man couldn't find him for ten years, and the Beggars' Sect couldn't dig him up either."
"But you have some way, right?"
"There's an angle worth poking, but......"
"Then poke it!"
"Because it costs money!"
"I'll give it to you! How much? How much do you need?"
Do Tong-dal, who had been about to say something to Namgung Seol-rin, stood up with a "forget it."
"Where are you going?"
"I'm going to kick away my good fortune. That's just my luck with money. You think money would come to me that easily?"
Do Tong-dal tucked the box of gold ingots under his arm and headed to the slaughterhouse. He looked like a cow being led to slaughter.
"Ah, hell—! I could just close my eyes and be done with it. Handing him over to the physician in black was kindness enough. He's the chivalrous hero, not me."
Grumbling like that, Do Tong-dal nevertheless crossed the slaughterhouse threshold.
"What brings you here?"
"Please find someone for me."
"The Hao Sect isn't some neighborhood inquiry agency......"
"Jan Sal-rang, Ju Ja-bang."
Go Seong-cheol was startled.
"I never expected to hear that name from you. Why are you looking for Ju Ja-bang?"
A fair amount of time had passed, yet the instant recognition showed the man had been quite famous in the martial world.
"No need to know that. Just find him."
"The Beggars' Sect couldn't find him for over ten years. How are we supposed to find someone like that?"
"The places the Beggars' Sect searched would mostly be the martial world, wouldn't they? If they still couldn't find him, that means he left the martial world. So the Hao Sect has an easier time finding him than the Beggars' Sect."
"That sounds plausible, but I can't guarantee we'll find him just because our conditions are better than the Beggars' Sect's."
"You can at least try, can't you?"
"Hey, you don't know this, but the Hao Sect doesn't move on a single command like a martial sect. It sounds like spitting while lying down, but the Hao Sect is a bit like grains of sand. Plenty of branches just ignore orders if there's no profit in it for them. And you can't punish them over petty reasons. On top of that, relaying orders costs a fair bit of money......"
At that point, Do Tong-dal opened the lid of the box he had brought. The dazzling golden light spreading in all directions shut Go Seong-cheol's mouth.
Gulp!
Go Seong-cheol had lived a full life and handled a fair amount of money, but he had never seen this many gold ingots.
"I-is this real?"
"You can't tell?"
Go Seong-cheol took out one of the gold ingots buried inside and appraised it.
"It's genuine."
"It's a bounty."
"A bounty?"
"Give it to whoever finds Ju Ja-bang. But don't kill him."
"You're saying you'll give all these gold ingots just for Ju Ja-bang's location?"
"In silver, it'd be roughly three thousand nyang."
The moment he said the amount aloud, his lower right side stung.
'Ah, what a waste!'
"That's the largest bounty ever placed on a single person."
It was an unprecedented sum.
"Can you move the Hao Sect now?"
Go Seong-cheol was so distracted by the gold ingots he couldn't answer.
"Old man!"
"Huh? Hmm?"
"I asked if you're going to find Ju Ja-bang!"
"Find him, of course I'll find him. With this money, I'd even find a nine-tailed fox. But still......"
"Don't drag it out, just say it."
"Later, if we find Ju Ja-bang, you could just wipe your mouth and deny everything. Looking at your crew's martial arts, it seems like the Hao Sect would have a hard time forcing payment out of you."
"Don't worry. You'll be keeping this, old man."
"M-me? What makes you trust me?"
"You're not stupid enough to run off with money you couldn't spend in a lifetime, are you?"
"It's so much I can't even bring myself to take it. I'll look into it, but I can't promise anything. And if we don't find him, I can't return all this money either. We have operating costs, you see."
"Then just find him."
Do Tong-dal left the slaughterhouse, leaving behind Go Seong-cheol, who was making a fuss about not being able to promise anything.
"Damn, my own money's going into this too."
Do Tong-dal stopped by home and grabbed a fifty-nyang promissory note. Hwang Chan-seok, who had been treated by the physician in black, had returned to the branch.
"Rest at home."
"I rested plenty in the carriage."
Do Tong-dal placed one gold ingot and the fifty-nyang promissory note on the desk.
"It might feel a little small, but be satisfied with this."
Hwang Chan-seok's whole face was covered in a smile.
"Heh heh heh...... It's more than enough. Coordinator Do, thank you!"
To Hwang Chan-seok, Do Tong-dal was a benefactor beyond compare. He had saved his life and then handed him a fortune—there was no benefactor like him.
Do Tong-dal's steps back to headquarters were slow and heavy.
"I did something stupid. Spending three thousand nyang on an opium addict who could die any day. Ugh—!"
His sigh seemed to sink the ground he walked on by two ja.
"Where did you go?"
At Namgung Seol-rin's question, Do Tong-dal flopped down into a chair and said.
"The slaughterhouse."
"To buy meat?"
"To kill money."
"What does that mean?"
Just then, the office door burst open and Wang Chil came in. Wang Chil's face was full of laughter as he approached.
"Tong-dal! I heard you made some money?"
Do Tong-dal suddenly realized his mistake. No matter what, he should have gotten Wang Chil's consent before spending a huge sum like three thousand nyang. Spending that money as he pleased was nothing short of disrespecting Wang Chil, the Society Leader.
Do Tong-dal shot to his feet and bowed toward Wang Chil.
"Boss, I'm sorry."
"Huh? You made money, what's there to be sorry about? First let me get a look at these gold ingots. I heard they're absolutely dazzling."
"They're gone."
"Gone?"
A long sigh came out of Do Tong-dal's mouth first as he began to explain. After hearing the whole story, Wang Chil asked.
"So you gave it all away?"
"I gave one to Branch Chief Hwang for his trouble."
"Anyway, you gave it all to the Hao Sect, didn't you?"
"I'm sorry. I should have gotten permission from you, the Society Leader. I was thoughtless."
Wang Chil let out a lament too.
"You were thoughtless, all right. You idiot, you should've brought me along to a spot like that! Then I could've shown off a little too! Just plopping down a whole box of gold ingots and saying, find me one person! That makes you look like a big deal!"
"What?"
Wang Chil clapped Do Tong-dal on the shoulder.
"You did good. That's more like you. When have you ever just walked past someone in trouble?"
"Still, it was three thousand nyang......"
"You idiot, a thug comes first and money comes after—not money first and a thug after. A thug's got to have that much style. We decided to live thick and long, didn't we? This is what thick means! Three thousand nyang of silver! Fuck, that's the thickest dump I've ever taken in my life!"
"You're really okay with it?"
"Of course! We're making plenty of money now, and we're going to make a ton more! People come first!"
Namgung Seol-rin suddenly hugged Wang Chil.
"What's with this girl? You're making my heart flutter."
"Society Leader, you're so damn cool."
"Hmph! You only just realized? Then I'm off."
Wang Chil left the office, and a moment later, a thud-thud! sound was heard.
"That old man's banging his head against the wall."
He'd talked boldly, but there was no way three thousand nyang didn't sting. Do Tong-dal flinched when he looked at Namgung Seol-rin.
"What's wrong with you?"
Namgung Seol-rin's eyes were brimming with tears as she looked at him.
"D-did I do something wrong?"
"Damn it, why are you so cool?"
"You're saying something nice, so why attach a curse to it......"
"I don't know!"
This was like a frog killed by a stone thrown in jest. Namgung Seol-rin had only meant to tap his shoulder lightly, but to Do Tong-dal, the blow was anything but light.
"Ugh!"
Do Tong-dal was shoved backward and crashed over with his chair—bang!
"Oh! Are you okay?"
"Why are you doing this to me!"
* * *
Clatter—!
As the chains were pulled, Won Dae-yeon, who had been submerged in a large tub, was hauled up with them. Both arms were bound to chains connected to the ceiling, and shackles were fastened around his ankles too.
It was an unavoidable last resort because Won Dae-yeon thrashed wildly when craving opium.
The physician in black emptied out the blackened water and refilled it with fresh medicinal solution.
"I've treated my share of opium addicts, but I've never seen one this severe. It's a wonder he hasn't died."
Do Tong-dal gazed at Won Dae-yeon, who hung limp and submerged in the water. Whether two months of treatment had been effective, his skin had recovered much of its original color compared to the beginning.
"I'm all better now."
Won Dae-yeon said that in a feeble voice. Do Tong-dal approached Won Dae-yeon, who was submerged in the tub.
"Really?"
"Yes. Over two months, this medicinal solution drew all the opium energy out of my body. If I get out now, I'll never seek opium again. I swear."
"Liar."
"I-I'm serious."
"I'll come back in a month."
As Do Tong-dal turned away, Won Dae-yeon shouted.
"Don't go! You bastard! Untie me! If you're going to leave...... if you're going to leave, at least give me the drug before you go! You son of a bitch!"
Do Tong-dal walked out of the clinic listening to Won Dae-yeon's curses. There was no hope visible in Won Dae-yeon's expression.
There should have been at least some sign of will to overcome the drug, but he was still the same opium addict who wanted nothing but the drug.
When he returned to headquarters, Jang Baek-dong piled another load of work on him.
"Damn! I should just take over as head of the Fixer Office."
In Hangzhou, there was nothing that didn't get resolved once Do Tong-dal stepped in, so the number of people seeking him out grew day by day.
One day, Wang Chil had asked.
"How do you resolve everything you step into?"
Do Tong-dal's answer was simple.
"I only step into things I can resolve."
There was nothing more foolish than clinging to an impossible task and agonizing over it. Even if it cost him, he had to give up cleanly on what needed giving up in order to move forward.
There was exactly one thing he had stepped into without being able to resolve it, and it was only causing him heartache: Won Dae-yeon.
"Still no news."
That day too, Do Tong-dal heard that answer from Go Seong-cheol and turned back. He had invested so much money and time, yet Do Tong-dal was still empty-handed.
"This is why sticking your nose in only brings trouble."
He called it trouble, but the days were peaceful in their own way. The Red Tiger Society's takeover of Hangzhou's nights was complete, and now not even the shadows of the Black Dragon Society and the Haerang Society remained.
So he was able to do a little work and a lot of martial training. Aside from a slightly foreign sensation, it was safe to say his arm had fully healed.
Do Tong-dal finally picked up a blade. The feeling of it fitting snugly in his hand was wonderful.
"A thug really does need something in his hand."
After a few light cuts through the air, he began training in the Three Severings Blade Art. The reason Namgung Cheol-hyeon had given him the Three Severings Blade Art out of so many blade arts was the conciseness of its oral formulas.
The Three Severings Blade Art was a blade art thoroughly faithful to the essence of the blade: thrusting, cutting, and swinging.
Even so, the reason it had been allowed into the Namgung Clan's secret archive was the intense power it held beyond any other blade art.
The Three Severings Blade Art expressed three outstanding characteristics, but it also carried the meaning of cutting an opponent's weapon into three pieces.
Until now, instead of training directly, he had read the Three Severings Blade Art over and over. Thanks to that, every oral formula and form was in his head.
Do Tong-dal's Three Severings Blade Art improved at a rapid pace. A considerable share of that credit belonged to Namgung Seol-rin.
She became Do Tong-dal's master, became his sparring partner, and sometimes became his enemy by rubbing salt in his wounds.
Do Tong-dal's training also gave Namgung Seol-rin no small help. The saying that one learns by teaching was not just something passed around.
On top of that, sparring with Do Tong-dal was intense enough that she couldn't let her guard down. Do Tong-dal picked up a few minor wounds as a matter of routine, and sometimes suffered injuries severe enough to expose bone.
"It's fine. This one heals fast by nature."
The physician in black reassured Namgung Seol-rin with those words, and indeed Do Tong-dal showed recovery far faster than an ordinary person.
* * *