Chapter 155
Chapter 155
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 155
Chapter Title: Hanzhong Merchant Guild
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Ga Rip readily agreed to my request for paid time off.
“Asking for a vacation the moment your probation is over? Have you no shame?”
“Then I won't take it. I don't care if the Outer Hall goes under. You can figure it out yourself.”
“Hey, now. Don't you know the old saying about hearing a man out?”
For a whole month, at that.
‘I was already swamped. This worked out perfectly.’
Especially now, not long after opening the Jin Martial Hall, this was a very welcome development.
In business, laying a strong foundation in the beginning is the most crucial part.
Of course, the leave came with a condition.
To resolve the corruption case involving the Hanzhong Merchant Guild's deliveries.
For that very reason, I went to the Red Dragon Hall to meet with the three Jeok brothers—Il, Yi, and Sam.
“You're here?”
“Hehehe.”
“Come on in.”
“…”
With three killing fiends in the room, the air was thick with bloodlust.
Not to mention, their clothes were drenched in blood from whatever they had just been doing…
“Ah, we were just butchering. Don't get the wrong idea.”
Just butchering… wait a minute.
“B-butchering, you say?”
“That's right.”
“But why would the famed Red Dragon Sword be… butchering?”
Jeok Yi answered in his place.
“It's to sharpen our sense for killing. The Heavenly Killing Short Sword requires that kind of instinct to be properly trained. Hehe.”
“…”
What kind of demonic art is this?
As I silently shook my head, Jeok Il explained with a faint smile.
“The founder of the Jeok family was originally a butcher. In a way, you could say the foundation of the Heavenly Killing Short Sword was laid in a slaughterhouse.”
“Why are you revealing our family's secret history to an outsider?”
“He's right, elder brother. I believe you should be more cautious.”
“How could Mujeon be an outsider? Soon enough, we'll be family. Isn't that right?”
“…Not at all.”
“Ahem, it seems you're not ready yet. But you'd better hurry. Hwa-ran is getting to the age where she must marry.”
“…”
Jeok Il said with a nod, while Jeok Yi and Jeok Sam glared at me, their eyes brimming with killing intent.
‘Seriously.’
It was truly frustrating. If they were going to ignore my opinion, they could at least get their own stories straight.
The scene was enough to make me sigh. I wondered if getting involved with these people was a good idea, but I had no choice.
I needed the Red Dragon Hall's help to resolve the Hanzhong Merchant Guild affair.
“I have a favor to ask of you, brothers.”
At the same time, I took a golden plaque from my robes.
It was the repayment plaque I'd received during the war with the Southern Heaven Palace, a favor I had been saving for a truly critical moment.
“…!”
Upon seeing the glittering object, Jeok Il's eyes widened.
“This isn't from us.”
“…Can't you make an exception?”
The problem, of course, was that it was a repayment plaque from the Green Dragon Hall.
A moment later.
The repayment plaque gambit failed, but the three Jeok brothers didn't leave.
“Are you out of your mind?”
“Hehe, it reminds me of the saying that the world is wide and madmen are plentiful.”
“…And we can't even kill him.”
Well, I did have to endure a few insults.
In any case, they proposed different terms.
“Are we strangers? If you feel that bad, just help us out with something later.”
It was a favor on credit—the kind that could swallow a cow whole.
‘No reason not to accept.’
I could always look for an opportunity to weasel out of it later.
As I nodded in satisfaction, Jeok Yi asked.
“Hehe, so, who do you want us to take care of, and when, where, and how?”
“Ahem, it's not about taking care of someone. I'd just like you to conduct an investigation.”
At the word "investigation," the three Jeok brothers nodded with pleased expressions.
“It seems you've finally realized that the Red Dragon Hall's intelligence network is a cut above the Beggars' Sect.”
“Seems so, elder brother. He was always visiting that bald head from the Beggars' Sect; I was starting to think he was ignoring us.”
“He's realized that high-grade intelligence is more important than the cheap rumors floating around the market.”
*Nod, nod.*
I didn't even know where to begin correcting them, so I just nodded silently.
In truth, they were right to some extent.
Unlike the Beggars' Sect, which had only recently been re-established, the Red Dragon Hall had an intelligence network and sphere of influence that had been solidified over more than a century.
Especially in their home base of Sichuan, the Red Dragon Hall still held more sway than the Beggars' Sect.
It's just that their fees were so exorbitant they'd make your eyes pop out.
“So, what is it you want us to look into?”
“The Hanzhong Merchant Guild. Ah, well, what happened was… this and that… and so on… and that's the current situation.”
I explained the current situation involving the Hanzhong Merchant Guild, the Military Affairs Department, and the Outer Hall.
After hearing the whole story, Jeok Il nodded silently.
“So, we just need to kill the head of the Hanzhong Merchant Guild and those corrupt scholars from the Military Affairs Department.”
“No.”
That's not what I meant.
* * *
After submitting the investigation request to the Red Dragon Hall, I quickly returned to the Jin Martial Hall.
The Red Dragon Hall's investigation would take at least three days, so in the meantime, I planned to teach the first half of the Black Martial Spear Arts to my students.
“One!”
*Swoosh!*
In time with the call, seven hundred students thrust their spear shafts in near-perfect unison.
“You! You're putting too much force into it! How many times do I have to tell you the shaft should slide out with a *whoosh*?!”
“S-sorry.”
“Two!”
*Swoosh!*
“Keep the tip of the spear steady!”
Mornings were for stamina and strength training, afternoons for spear techniques, and evenings and dawn were for practicing the Black Martial Arts on their own.
I had originally planned to teach only volunteers, but as soon as I mentioned that these two martial arts came from Bukgung Baek, everyone wanted to learn.
Fortunately, none of them had mastered any high-level martial or internal arts, so everyone chose the Black Martial series without any lingering attachments.
‘Makes sense.’
After all, if they had already learned high-level martial arts, they wouldn't be students at the Jin Martial Hall in the first place.
“Eight!”
*Hiyah-!*
Watching the students move in time with my calls was truly satisfying, but at the same time, a sliver of anxiety crept in.
Even though I'd only decided to teach the first half, the Black Martial Spear Arts were still a high-level discipline.
I knew too little about the spear to properly break down and teach the profound principles and nuances contained within its forms.
‘If he was going to give me a manual, why not a fist or kicking art?’
Why did my master have to give me something like this…?
It was fine for the stage of learning the basic forms, so I was managing to teach them for now, but the future was a problem.
On top of that, my lack of time was also an issue.
‘From now on, I can't be tied down to the Jin Martial Hall.’
Once this investigation was over, I would have to return to the Outer Hall, which meant I couldn't be tied down here.
That's why I took drastic measures.
“Good work today, everyone. Starting tomorrow, a special guest instructor will be teaching the spear arts, so please be aware of this change.”
I was bringing in an outside instructor.
Who, you ask?
“My goodness, brothers! Thank you for making the long journey. Here, here, have some tea first…”
They were my brothers from the Black Dragon Hall.
I couldn't invite the younger warriors of the Black Dragon Hall, like Wi Ji-pung, as they were busy running their own schools, but the middle-aged martial artists in their forties and older were practically unemployed.
So I offered them part-time positions.
I didn't just invite anyone, either. I brought in men who, if not quite experts in the art of the spear, were at least halfway there.
After all, the predecessor of the Black Dragon Hall, the Diancang Sect, was a Taoist school renowned as a martial sect for its practical combat arts.
Their training included the spear, the halberd, and even archery.
Most importantly.
‘With no money, there was nothing else for them to do but train.’
With neither family nor fortune, what else was left?
Only martial arts.
That's why the Black Dragon Hall was called the finest elite force in the Nine Dragons Fortress, despite being too poor to afford a single elixir.
When you do nothing but train in a place like that until you're over forty, you practically become a walking encyclopedia of martial arts.
To the point where they could grasp the first half of the Black Martial Spear Arts with a single glance.
“By the way, you've all familiarized yourselves with the Black Martial Spear Arts I sent over, right?”
Just as I expected, the five brothers from the Black Dragon Hall nodded nonchalantly.
“We've mastered the forms and stances perfectly. The underlying principles will come naturally with time.”
“As expected of you, brothers. To grasp it all so quickly.”
“Ahem, it wasn't anything difficult. Anyway…”
The one acting as their representative blushed and asked.
“Lately, the elders of the hall have been asking for wine more often…”
“Don't you worry. I, Jin Mujeon, am not the snot-nosed kid I used to be. The elders' wine money? You'll be taking home enough for the children's candy, too.”
I took a piece of paper from my robes and showed it to them.
“If you instruct for just four hours a day, I'll guarantee one silver tael a month.”
It was an insanely low-balled offer.
Considering that four of the five men before me were peak masters, the monthly wage was practically nothing.
“…Seems a bit stingy, don't you think?”
But I was confident I could persuade them.
“It might seem that way, but if you look closer, that's not the case. Why? Because you need to focus on the 'four hours a day' part. Look here. You just come in the morning, supervise the students, have a meal, and head back… In your spare time… plus, the time…”
If I couldn't persuade a Taoist who knew nothing of worldly affairs, how could I ever hope to survive in this harsh world?
And my prediction was spot on.
“…Now that you mention it, Mujeon's words seem to make sense. What do the rest of you think?”
“Senior Brother, your words are absolutely right.”
“Indeed. Mujeon isn't a stranger; he wouldn't treat us unfairly.”
“And since he's providing a hearty lunch, we won't be dipping into the Black Dragon Hall's rice stores. It's two birds with one stone, isn't it?”
Thanks to my dazzling negotiation skills, the brothers stamped their seals on the contract.
After hiring the outside instructors, my duties at the Jin Martial Hall decreased significantly.
Yu So-pyeong handled the administration, the Three Freaks of the Dang Family took care of training, and my brothers from the Black Dragon Hall were in charge of the Black Martial Spear Arts.
‘Excellent. Just excellent.’
This is why landlords are called gods.
Because they make money without doing a thing.
Just like me.
“La dee da dee da.”
Just as I was humming cheerfully to myself.
*Thwip!*
An arrow came flying toward me from out of nowhere.
*Snatch.*
It wasn't shot with much force, so I was able to snatch it out of the air.
A piece of paper was tied to the arrow, which clearly meant it contained the findings from the Red Dragon Hall's investigation.
The problem was why they had resorted to such an inefficient method.
‘Something's up.’
It meant that someone had appeared who could put even the mighty Red Dragon Hall on edge.
After reading the attached paper, I couldn't help but nod.
‘Baek Jung-cheon?’
Because Baek Jung-cheon was the one who had started this mess.
* * *
The results of the Red Dragon Hall's investigation were as follows.
1. Two months ago, the entire family of the Hanzhong Merchant Guild's head was killed in an unknown attack.
2. Management of the guild was transferred to the vice-head, Ju Gyeong-ryun.
3. Ju Gyeong-ryun's wife is from a branch family of the White Dragon Hall.
4. The White Dragon Sword was confirmed to have gathered the scholars of the Military Affairs Department.
5. The Captain of the White Dragon Hall's White Sword Unit met with Ju Gyeong-ryun.
6. The White Dragon Hall caught wind of the Red Dragon Hall's investigation into the Hanzhong Merchant Guild, forcing the investigation to be halted.
‘No wonder he was smiling so slyly.’
True to his nature as the incarnation of political maneuvering, he had set the stage for us to be completely blindsided.
“Hah, after getting his arm crippled for messing around, you'd think he'd just lock himself in his room and flip through erotic paintings…”
Should I just go and tattle to my master?
After a moment's thought, I shook my head.
That was the worst possible move, not a clever one.
Knowing Bukgung Baek's personality, he would undoubtedly slaughter every last one of the White Dragon Hall members the moment he heard me complain.
If that happened, Bukgung Baek would be branded the greatest butcher in the world.
“…I have no choice.”
There was no other way.
I had to go in myself and find the evidence.