Chapter 18
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Translator: penny
Chapter: 18
Chapter Title: A Wife is What Her Husband Makes Her (2)
-----------------------------------------------------------------
The pride battle between father-in-law and son-in-law had begun.
Mujin wore only a smile on the outside, but he was as sharp-edged as if he stood in the center of a battlefield.
Sssing!
Woong-cheol was no different; his preconceptions about Mujin played a huge role. He hadn't forgotten the fiasco Mujin had caused ten years ago, dead drunk and turning everything upside down. He'd sworn never to see his daughter again after that day. Time had cooled his anger from then, but seeing this punk again brought it all rushing back vividly.
'You think you can win me over with some crappy ginseng?!'
It only made him more displeased.
No matter that wild ginseng wasn't some lowly herb, they had a fifty-year root politely stored in the warehouse. Twenty- or thirty-year roots were expensive too, but only at a minimum of half a century did wild ginseng truly unleash its effects. In price terms, it would fetch at least a hundred taels of gold.
To strut in here with some ten-year-or-less market-bought ginseng? The guy had misread him badly.
Even if it held value as ginseng, Woong-cheol's pride wasn't so cheap as to waver over a bribe.
He pulled out one of the items loaded onto the carriage. It was wrapped in silk embroidered with phoenixes and tied with colored thread.
'Fancy packaging.'
Woong-cheol didn't even glance at it, maintaining his silence. He wasn't thrilled that his wife couldn't hold back her emotions in the meantime. He'd shattered expectations and cut off contact for ten years, telling her not to go. How could she act so lightly?
Sarrrk, saruk!
He unwrapped it and opened the box lid.
"No need to open it..."
"...Huh?"
Swwoooosh!
A subtle yet rich aroma from the sealed box swiftly filled and swirled around the room. Clear and pure, just the scent alone washed away the body's impurities, leaving a refreshing sensation.
'This intense fragrance?'
Woong-cheol, who hadn't planned to look, couldn't help but turn his gaze to the open box. Even he had never smelled such high-grade wild ginseng. This depth of aroma was a first.
Gasp!
What the hell was that monstrous size?
It was shaped like wild ginseng, but the size was unlike anything he knew. Thick roots branched into countless fine tendrils.
Mujin casually offered the box.
"It's not much, but please use it as a side dish."
"...?"
A side dish?
With that?
The scent couldn't be fake, and it was unmistakably wild ginseng. As a seasoned merchant, he could tell genuine from counterfeit.
To Woong-cheol's eye, this wasn't ordinary wild ginseng—it had to be at least several hundred years old. Wild ginseng typically lived 100 to 150 years. Even at that age, it was so valuable it was hard to find on the market.
First, check the head root.
'...What is this?'
Not just hundreds—it seemed like a thousand years old.
"Thousand-year ginseng?"
"Impressive eye."
"For real?"
"Just a thousand years."
What 'just'?!
If a thousand years was 'just,' then what about him handling fifty-year roots? It felt like a subtle dig, pretending otherwise... no, he was sure of it. And there weren't one but five such boxes. Mujin was opening them all one by one.
But it didn't end there.
"Dad, it's small!"
"Dad! That stuff you gave us before was wild ginseng?"
"Honey, is this real wild ginseng? What do we do~ I stir-fried it as a side dish!"
Taejin and Mijoo said they'd eaten it as a side dish before too. His wife seemed shocked, never imagining what she'd eaten was wild ginseng.
"It's nothing special. Not like Humanoid Spirit Ginseng or Ten-Thousand-Year Ginseng King or anything."
"...?"
Woong-cheol stared at Mujin, dumbfounded and speechless. What the hell was this guy saying? If true, it meant he'd casually mixed thousand-year ginseng into side dishes. Sure, he'd given it freely for his daughter, grandson, and granddaughter's health, but that was excessive.
'Not Ten-Thousand-Year Ginseng King!'
If rumors spread of a Ten-Thousand-Year Ginseng King appearing, bloodshed would follow. Any martial artist cultivating inner power would covet it. Just chewing it raw granted a decade's worth of cultivation—comparing anything to it was absurd.
Still, though.
Was it okay to just eat that stuff like nothing?
"Where did you get this?"
"I once went into a cave in a nearby mountain by chance, and they were everywhere. I pulled them all up and stored them in my house warehouse. I've been using them bit by bit as side dishes for my wife and kids, so only ten roots left now."
"...How many were there before?"
"Around a hundred? Didn't count, so not sure. Should've brought the rest."
"...No need."
A hundred thousand-year ginseng roots down the hatch—Mujin was flabbergasted, speechless. Sold on the market, it'd net tens of thousands of taels. No greed? Then he wasn't a merchant. But since he'd given it to family, Woong-cheol let it go. Their situation wasn't dire enough to covet it.
'No wonder his inner power grew so fast.'
Taejin's inner power was on another level from other kids his age. He realized it was all thanks to his father. So, he decided to respect him a bit more than before. If only he ditched those weird tempers he showed sometimes.
"Oh, and use this as a lamp in Mother's room."
"We have lamps already."
He pulled a round bead casually from his pocket. It glowed on its own, shimmering with mystical colors. Hwa-ran couldn't hold back her admiration at its profound beauty. As the lady of the merchant group, she had an eye for jewels.
"...No way?"
"Perfect instead of a lamp."
"You know what it is?"
"Night-Luminescent Pearl."
Anyone knowing a Night-Luminescent Pearl's value wouldn't carry it loose in a pocket. One alone could buy a manor. And this one cycled through five colors.
Among Night-Luminescent Pearls, seven-colored ones were the pinnacle, but even five colors multiplied the value several times. And he was giving it to use as a lamp at night.
Was this punk mocking him? The thought crossed his mind, but knowing the value of the ginseng and pearl, it couldn't be.
No lunatic would hand out thousand-year ginseng and Night-Luminescent Pearls just to mess with someone!
"Do you not know its value and give it away?"
"Father-in-law, you underestimate your daughter's worth. To me, she's far more precious than ginseng or pearls like that. So please accept it as a token of my heart."
Woong-cheol felt thoroughly checkmated, stumbling back in stunned silence as he gazed at his son-in-law.
"Don't like it?"
As Mujin moved to pocket it again, Woong-cheol hurriedly reached out.
"Heh heh."
'Damn it!'
"Honey, I heard the young lady came?"
"Yeah."
"She didn't come aiming for the merchant group, did she?"
"Jini isn't like that."
"You never know people's hearts. It's been over ten years apart, and the rumors about her husband aren't great."
Baek Yucheon's mood soured at his wife's question, which she asked knowing the answer. He couldn't deny being led around by her. But his first thought was jealousy.
From childhood, his younger sister had shouldered all their parents' expectations. Smart, brilliantly talented, sharp with numbers. Despite being a woman, she had all the qualities to lead the merchant group next. He was always compared to her.
'I thought it was good riddance.'
When that sister married into a small Qingyang sect—and to a notorious wastrel with bad rumors—he felt a huge weight lift. Right then, the marriage proposal from Guo Family Manor seemed like an opportunity.
There was no reason to refuse Guo Family Manor's offer, who held power in Danyang, Jiangsu Province. Combining forces would revive the merchant group and family, solidifying their position. It was a choice—and sacrifice—for succession and family prosperity over love.
'Maybe.'
Looking back now, it was odd. She had no reason to leave. No reason to marry a wastrel and betray their parents' expectations. Perhaps she knew of his jealousy and envy.
'She knew.'
He had to admit it. She was brilliant. She'd acted knowing full well. That's why she hadn't contacted them cruelly for ten years.
He'd heard the rumors. He pitied his envied sister, suffering with such a guy.
'I'm different now.'
As heir to Baemun Merchant Group, he'd built a solid position. Sure, with Guo Family Manor's help, but he'd led the group well so far. He wasn't the petty brother jealous of her talents like when they were kids.
'So why?'
His parents wanted to meet her first. He'd waited, but no need—he could've gone confidently together. Yet he'd avoided it.
'Stay composed.'
Yucheon steeled himself. He was getting sentimental because his sister came. No reason to waver. She was from another family now. He couldn't let her shake the merchant group's succession.
"Don't worry, honey."
"Don't pick fights or say anything unnecessary to Jini."
"Come on, do you think I'd do that? As long as I and the family are here, you're the heir to the merchant group. Don't forget that."
"I know, so drop it."
Gwak I-yeong knew her husband's anxiety. Inferiority toward his sister—he tried hiding it, but it showed. He was just pretending otherwise. But she wasn't worried.
'That's why I chose you.'
She decided to see how much he'd changed. If she recalled what Guo Family Manor gave Baemun Merchant Group, it was obvious, but still.
What trick did he pull? Their strict parents had fallen hook, line, and sinker. Faced with this incomprehensible reality. Sorcery? Definitely!
Dad snatched the five boxes piled with golden silk thread and bolted before anyone saw... Ah! He left. The grin on his face screamed, 'Jackpot!'
Mom had missed her sister terribly, so holding back this long was impressive. She'd even tried visiting over the ten years, but Dad had firmly stopped her. So it wasn't strange she couldn't hold back now that sis came.
Whatever he did to sway Dad and Mom, they were different. Not naive enough to fall for cheap sorcery. They'd hardened their hearts. Even seeing her beloved sister after so long, they'd managed their expressions perfectly. They wouldn't weaken here—forgetting a younger sibling's duty and responsibility? No way.