Chapter 112
Chapter 112
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 112
Chapter Title: The Value of Real Estate
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Back in my past life, when I was in elementary school, my father would grab me whenever he drank and say the same thing.
“*Hiccup*, once that land in Gangwon Province gets developed, our troubles will be over!”
That’s right.
My father, in my previous life, had been duped by a friend into buying a plot of land in a remote, mountainous region of Gangwon Province, a landlocked parcel with no road access, making development nearly impossible.
When I was young and knew nothing, I vaguely believed his words.
But once I became an adult and could properly distinguish fact from fiction, I realized the truth.
It was a worthless piece of land, difficult to even farm, let alone develop, that only cost us property taxes every year.
Thanks to that, the circuit of hope I had been running so hard since childhood was, of course, switched off.
Why am I suddenly bringing this up?
“When you actually go and see it, it might not be worth much.”
Because as I listened to Myo Hyang’s explanation, my anxiety grew.
“No way. The Grand Chancellor said it was worth a hundred thousand nyang…”
“Well, he might think that since he’s only seen it on paper.”
Myo Hyang continued with a small smile.
“They say land for business should be where people gather, land for farming where water gathers, and land for raising livestock where the wind gathers. We’ll have to go and see what your land is suitable for, but if the surrounding environment isn’t right, its value could plummet.”
“…”
“Of course, we’ll have to go and check the details to know for sure, right?”
*Wow, did I get scammed?*
Just like my father in my past life.
Thinking back, there were more than a few strange things.
First, the fact that Jeok Hwa-ran specifically told me to choose land was strange from the start.
Also, the Grand Chancellor had flatly refused my request for twenty thousand nyang. It would have been far cheaper for him to just give me twenty thousand in cash and be done with it, rather than giving me land worth a hundred thousand nyang.
Finally, it was also strange that a candidate plot of land appeared the moment I asked for it.
It felt…
*Like a well-orchestrated setup.*
There was no other way.
I had to go and see it for myself.
* * *
The distance from the Nine Dragons Fortress to Hanzhong is a little over a thousand li.
If I had set out alone as originally planned, I would have ridden a horse, camped out, and traveled quickly. But taking women who knew nothing of martial arts on such a journey would be a surefire way to wear them out.
Naturally, I planned to prepare a carriage and spend the nights at inns along the route.
The problem was…
“So, do you know what I said?”
“What did you say?”
“I told him I was already spoken for. His face turned beet red and he ran away, you know?”
“What?! *Giggle*.”
“*Giggle*.”
*This is… quite entertaining.*
The auntie… no, the young ladies’ talk was surprisingly worth listening to.
Of course, maintaining my dignity as a middle-class member of the martial world, I feigned disinterest and drove the carriage.
All while using my internal energy to enhance my hearing and continue listening to the two women’s conversation inside.
“Yesterday at the market, some man came up to me and said, ‘Miss, if you have time, would you care for a cup of tea?’”
“Oh my, was he handsome?”
“He was handsome enough, but not my type, so I just refused.”
“Really? What a shame. You should have at least gotten a cup of tea out of him.”
“Nah, it’s fine. A handsome face is fleeting once you get old. It’s not like you can live off his looks forever. The most important thing when looking at a man isn’t his face.”
“Then what is it?”
“Strength.”
“St-strength?”
“Huhu, our So-so is still young, isn’t she? The reason strength is important is…”
“Hmm…”
Listening to the two women’s conversation, which bordered on R-rated, my interest was further piqued.
*Spicy.*
Provocative talk is always the most fun.
Anyway, strength…
*I’m pretty decent in that department myself.*
It’s just a shame I can’t prove it.
Moreover, I’ve kept myself in mint condition not only in my past life but in this one as well.
*New is always better than used.*
Lost in such thoughts, I drove on until a village came into view in the distance.
There were still about two hours until sunset, but we couldn’t reach the next village in that time, so we had to find an inn here.
*Neigh!*
“Whoa, whoa.”
As I stopped the carriage in front of an inn, a waiter quickly scurried out.
“Welcome!”
The waiter greeted us with a booming voice.
*Clunk.*
The carriage door opened, and as Cheong So-so and Myo Hyang stepped out, the gazes of everyone passing by were fixed on them.
One was Myo Hyang, once the top courtesan of the Nine Dragons Fortress, and the other was Cheong So-so, who had earned the title of Divine Maiden for her beautiful appearance and outstanding medical skills.
In a rural village like this, they were beauties of a caliber that would make eyes pop.
“Phew! It feels good to be out. I thought my butt was going to fall off.”
“Me too.”
The waiter, who had been standing there dumbfounded for a moment, snapped back to his professional senses and rushed over.
“My goodness! For such peerless beauties to grace our inn! This is the honor of three lifetimes!”
*Hohohoho.*
The two women beamed at the words “peerless beauties.”
As expected, being called pretty was a line that worked in both the modern world and the martial world.
After tying the carriage to a post in front of the inn and going inside, I found the two women had taken a table in the center.
The other tables were packed with customers, making it seem as if this one spot had been left open just for us.
“Hmm…”
I scanned the patrons inside the inn, checking for any strange characters.
It was wise to be cautious. In the martial world, inns were a kind of cliché collection.
If it were just a group of men, it would be one thing, but being with beautiful women greatly increased the chances of encountering villains, from the local young master type who approaches with a “Miss, would you care to join me?” to the ruffian type who bellows, “Hahaha, come over here and pour me a drink.”
And just as I expected.
“Miss, our young master over there…”
A nuisance had already appeared.
Faced with this all-too-familiar cliché, I began to picture what would happen next in my head.
First, Cheong So-so and Myo Hyang would refuse.
“I don’t think we have any reason to meet your young master.”
Then the servant, in danger of being scolded by his master, would cling on persistently.
“Please, don’t be like that…”
When the two still refused, the so-called young master would step forward himself.
“Hahaha! Please, don’t refuse. Let’s at least have a meal together. It’ll be my treat.”
I couldn’t help but marvel at how the story unfolded as if it were straight out of a script.
*Wow, it’s not like this is some world inside a novel.*
So this is how it really happens.
“We don’t need it.”
Now it was time for this punk to start a fight with me to create a sense of intimidation.
*Thump.*
My prediction was not off by a single inch.
The fellow calling himself a young master bumped my shoulder, then started picking a fight with a smug grin.
“Could you step aside for a moment? I have something to discuss with the ladies in front of me.”
“…This is starting to get fascinating.”
At this point, it felt like I was watching a well-rehearsed play.
I glanced at Myo Hyang and Cheong So-so, and they both shook their heads.
It seemed to mean I should avoid any unnecessary bloodshed.
I thought the same.
Even if I gave this guy a good beating here, he would just come back with a horde of his underlings.
So.
*Crack! Crunch.*
I just hit him once.
“Kugh!”
The sound of a nose bone breaking was followed by a fountain of blood.
“Go.”
“What?”
“I said go. You bastard.”
*Clink.*
I placed the Nine Dragons Token on the table. Within the territory of the Nine Dragons Fortress, Sichuan Province, it was practically an imperial inspector’s pass.
“Hah!”
The man slammed his blood-soaked face to the ground and bowed his head.
“I-I was unaware of your status and acted rudely! Please forgive me.”
“Fine, whatever. Now get lost.”
“Yes, y-yes!”
“Ah, wait.”
Something suddenly occurred to me, and I called him back.
“Yes?”
“You can pay for the meal before you go.”
“What do you mean…”
“Weren’t you just offering to treat these lovely ladies to a meal? I’m giving you the chance, so just pay in advance before you leave.”
I immediately called out to the waiter in a loud voice.
“Waiter! Bring every dish you have available right now. And a couple of bottles of white liquor.”
Then I spat out irritably at the man standing there dumbly.
“What are you doing? Not going to pay? Are your feet glued to the floor? I bet they’ll come loose if I break both your legs. Want me to do that for you?”
“N-no, sir! I’ll go right away!”
And so, thanks to the unexpectedly appearing villain, we were able to enjoy a very lavish meal.
“Well then, let’s head up. We’ll need to get to bed early if we’re to leave tomorrow.”
However, the inn’s clichés were not over.
*Clang!*
A group of rough, bandit-like men stormed in.
Each one carried a large axe or saber, clearly identifying them as vagrants.
And their reaction was also according to cliché.
“Khahaha, just in time. Look at the pretty wenches.”
“Sigh.”
It was truly an exhausting day.
“You two go on up ahead.”
*Nod.*
Cheong So-so and Myo Hyang headed for the stairs leading to the second floor.
“Where do you think you’re going?”
“Come on over here.”
At that, a few of the bandit-like men hurried over.
*Crack! Crunch.*
“Gaaah!”
I immediately shattered one of their knees. Considering the level of medical care in the martial world, he would likely live the rest of his life as a cripple.
*Thump.*
*Crunch.*
“Ugh!”
I grabbed the one who seemed to be the leader by the neck with one hand and lifted him into the air.
“Anyone who wants to die can stay. Otherwise, hand over all your money and get out.”
“Y-yes, sir!”
A moment later.
After the vagrants had fled, I looked at the table piled high with coins and thought.
*Is it going to be like this every time we enter an inn?*
This was far too troublesome.
“I’ll have to take some drastic measures.”
I couldn’t keep going on like this.
And the solution presented itself sooner than I expected.
*Clunk.*
“Senior!”
The inn door opened, and Jeok Hwa-ran came in.
*Thump, thump, thump.*
And she wasn’t alone; she was with the warriors of the Red Dragon Hall.
“How could you just leave me behind?! You even promised we’d go have fun together!”
Jeok Hwa-ran answered my unspoken question, huffing and puffing.
I was taken aback by her unexpected appearance, but I soon realized what had happened.
Jeok Hwa-ran had used the Red Dragon Hall’s intelligence network to track us down.
I was so dumbfounded that I was at a loss for words, but then a brilliant idea struck me.
*Why don’t we just go together?*
That’s right.
If Jeok Hwa-ran joined our party, the murderous demons of the Red Dragon Hall standing behind her would become part of our group as well.
That meant that the kind of troublesome incidents that happened today would surely not occur again.
“I did it because I didn’t want to cause any trouble for our Hwa-ran.”
*Blush!*
“O-our Hwa-ran?”
Jeok Hwa-ran’s face turned red, and she lowered her head.
Then she began to mutter to herself.
“…The son will be Jin Baek-cheon… the daughter will be Jin Baek-hyang… the second child… the fourth granddaughter… the first great-grandson…”
I spoke to her in the softest voice I could manage.
“Since you’ve come all this way, would you like to come with us? As a sort of trip.”
“Th-then what about the promise…”
“That’s separate, of course. That’s that, and this is this.”
“Th-then okay! I’ll even pay for all the expenses, so let’s go together.”
Life is so much easier when you’re friends with a rich girl.
* * *
The rest of the journey was incredibly comfortable.
Flies still approached every time we entered an inn, but…
*Shing.*
“Halt. One more step and I’ll cut off your ankles.”
They would flee at the sight of the bloodthirsty warriors of the Red Dragon Hall.
Of course, Myo Hyang and Cheong So-so occasionally complained about feeling stifled, but this was still a hundred times better.
*By the way, was public safety always this much of a mess?*
No matter how cliché-ridden the martial world was, it was astounding how many men would rush at women they’d never seen before just because they were pretty.
If Sichuan, which was said to have relatively good public order, was like this, what on earth were the territories of the Ten Demon Alliance or the Lion’s League like?
It was a hardcore, hellish martial world that gave me a headache just thinking about it.
In any case, after five days of comfortable travel since joining up with the Red Dragon Hall warriors…
“It’s Hanzhong!”
We had finally arrived in Hanzhong, the location of my land.