Back to Beijing
“Whoa, so this is the capital of the Central Plains? Beijing?”
Michelangelo, having passed through the city gates, looked around and then scrunched his face into a scowl.
“Worse than Seongdo…”
“Wahahahahaha!!!”
Lee Jinmyeong laughed with exaggerated volume and clamped a hand over Michelangelo’s mouth. When Michelangelo tried to turn with a look that said, Has this lunatic gone mad?, Lee Jinmyeong seized him with an unbelievable strength born purely of survival instinct, gritted his teeth, and spoke in a ventriloquist’s murmur.
“You wanna die for insulting the imperial family?”
“…If he’s going to be this consistently himself, I almost find it charming.”
Baek Beon gazed up at the sky with the faintly enlightened expression of a man who had already transcended worldly concerns, then lightly laughed and addressed Michelangelo.
“With that temper of yours, even if we tell you not to talk you’ll cause an incident later anyway—so just speak in the language of Florence.”
“Non è una grande città, ma non puoi parlare quanto vuoi.”
“…Signor Michelangelo, sarebbe meglio dire per dovere di cronaca che lei non parla cinese.”
“Volentieri!”
Having received Hwiyeom’s tacit permission, Michelangelo immediately launched into a loud, grumbling stream of Italian. Baek Beon regarded Hwiyeom with a peculiar expression. Hwiyeom listened blankly for a moment, then offered Baek Beon a light smile.
“…It’s better for you not to know.”
“…Yohohoho…”
Muttering that the world was truly a madhouse, Baek Beon stepped back.
“Then this humble one will stop by the Dongchang for a moment to report on recent events. I’ll also handle the request for an audience with His Majesty the Emperor on my end.”
“That’s very kind of you. In that case we’ll be staying at the residence of Hobu Sirang Sama Seung.”
“Understood. I’ll see you at the palace in a few days.”
Baek Beon vanished with a smile still on his face.
Hwiyeom, Sama Yun, and the people of the Sichuan Dang Family unpacked their luggage at Sama Seung’s house. Unlike the previous visit, when the size of the household had made it impossible for everyone to stay, this time the entire party was able to lodge there.
Sama Seung greeted Hwiyeom, Sama Yun, and Dang Su-jeong with a smiling face.
“I heard there was an attack that looked like the Pi Family’s handiwork.”
“That’s right. Thanks to them, we got an excellent chance to test the family’s new weapons.”
“Hahaha. So the reason you overcame a four-to-one numerical disadvantage wasn’t solely the strength of the Dang Family, it seems.”
Having already received a rough report, Sama Seung grinned, and Hwiyeom returned a faint smile of his own.
“Even without the new weapons, I believe the result would not have changed.”
“I’m sure it wouldn’t have. Hahaha!”
After a hearty laugh, Sama Seung’s expression turned serious.
“The atmosphere in the capital is far from ordinary.”
“In what specific way, sir?”
“You can probably guess that the Pi Family is grinding its teeth. They appear to be suspicious about the true identities of Noksan and An’gang and are attempting to uncover them.”
If the fact that bandits and river pirates had laundered their identities and started businesses came to light, it would be a severe political blow both to the Sichuan Dang Family and to Emperor Sungui, who had tacitly allowed it. The Emperor would then cut his losses to avoid taking the hit himself, and the entire fallout would land on the Sichuan Dang Family. In a sense, it was currently the family’s greatest secret and greatest weakness. Yet precisely because the Emperor held that weakness, he could trust and rely on the Dang Family all the more.
If the Pi Family managed to obtain such information, it would certainly be threatening…
Hwiyeom let out a short, derisive snort.
“Trying to wage an intelligence war against the agents of the Dongchang using only the Central Army’s information network must be truly exhausting work.”
When one spoke of intelligence power, the first organizations that came to mind were the Bureau of Military Affairs and the Dongchang. The Central Army, being a military force, possessed its own spy networks and means of gathering information, but they were not remotely comparable. Especially in the provinces, where their reach was weak. Sichuan, moreover, was a place where the people’s faith in the Sichuan Dang Family had grown almost religious; the conditions for local informants to operate simply did not exist. And while the Minjeongwon’s information-gathering and control capabilities were limited to Sichuan soil, they were already on a level that did not lag behind the Dongchang. As for matters along the Yangtze, the Emperor himself had issued the orders, so any competition would be against the Dongchang’s intelligence units in the open. Either way, the results the Pi Family desired would be difficult to obtain.
At Hwiyeom’s scornful laugh, Sama Seung spoke.
“That’s true enough, but always remain cautious. A cornered rat can bite the cat.”
“I’ll keep that firmly in mind.”
“And one more thing. There is information that the Gol Family—one of the Eight Great Families—will launch an inspection of the state projects along the Yangtze.”
“The Gol Family?”
At Hwiyeom’s question, Sama Yun answered.
“Zhu, Tian, Fang, Chi, Qiu, Ma, Gol, and Pi—those are the Eight Great Families of the Empire. The Gol Family ranks seventh and controls the Ministry of Works.”
“The Ministry of Works…”
The Ministry of Works was the equivalent of a Ministry of Construction and Transportation in the twenty-first century. Hwiyeom nodded.
“Indeed. Large-scale state projects, especially construction of dock facilities and the like, fall squarely under the Ministry of Works. They must feel they’ve been left out.”
“Since it is a direct order from His Majesty, they cannot openly voice discontent… but behind the scenes, it seems there is considerable grumbling.”
“Hmm… the Gol Family… the Ministry of Works…”
After a moment’s thought, Hwiyeom asked Sama Seung,
“There is one thing I’m curious about. Among the Eight Great Families, which ones are currently on bad terms with the Sama Clan, and which on good terms?”
As if immediately grasping the intent behind the question, Sama Seung stroked his beard.
“There are no eternal enemies or allies, are there? Still, under present circumstances, it would be difficult to walk the same path as the Ma, Gol, and Pi Families. At the present moment, that is.”
“May I hear the grounds for that judgment?”
“Because those are the families forced to fight us over interests. The Pi Family, which controls the Ministry of War and monopolizes profits from every ironware market, must either become mortal enemies of the Sichuan Dang Family—which is mass-producing high-quality wrought iron and steel—or become one family with them.”
“So either bind them with a marriage alliance, or smash them completely and swallow them whole… At present, the probability of choosing the latter is high.”
“In the case of the Gol Family, they oversee the Ministry of Works. With the Dang Family carrying out various state projects and large-scale construction, they are likewise in a position where they must fight over the same rice bowl.”
“And the Ma Family?”
“The Ma Family has strong ties to the Ministry of Rites, and the Ministry of Rites includes diplomatic affairs, does it not? To put it bluntly, their in-laws lost quite a bit when the Provincial Governor of Yunnan was beheaded and the tea trade there was monopolized.”
“Ah.”
Without even realizing it, he had evenly accumulated grudges against three of the Eight Great Families. Hwiyeom asked with a faintly absurd expression,
“But then why has there been no direct pressure of any kind until now?”
“The Pi Family already bled while scheming over the State-run Ironworks. The Gol Family has only just begun to feel its temper sour, so they will make a move soon. As for the Ma Family, raising the matter of the Yunnan Provincial Governor would mean making an enemy of the Dongchang as well—too burdensome—so some under-the-table deal seems to have taken place… And if you look closely, wasn’t that itself the Emperor’s protection from the start?”
At Sama Seung’s words, Hwiyeom spoke with a rare look of mild chagrin.
“In other words, His Majesty the Emperor has been sheltering our Dang Family since then…?”
“A new star appeared who gave the Eight Great Families a ringing slap to the back of the head—how could he not dote on it?”
Aigoo…
The sensation of belatedly discovering a max-level veteran who had been secretly watching over a fresh-smelling newbie made Hwiyeom click his tongue.
“If that is His Majesty’s will, there is little to be done… but personally, I think it would be fine to grow a little closer to the Gol Family.”
“And why is that?”
“For a latecomer seeking to enter an already-formed vested interest group, receiving the patronage of that group is more advantageous than defeating it in open battle. When the enemy’s power is strong and one’s own is weak, it is especially difficult to survive after turning every side into an enemy.”
“You intend to stay close to the Gol Family.”
Sama Seung’s eyes turned cold.
“You mean to join hands with the Gol Family and strike down the Pi Family, with whom we already have a grudge?”
“Rather than strike them down, once we share interests with the Gol Family it will become easier to insert ourselves between them, and easier to plot their division.”
“Easy to say… but is it possible?”
“If the Sama Clan lends its aid, what could we not accomplish?”
At Hwiyeom’s flattery, Sama Seung gave a short snort of laughter.
“That doesn’t sound like mere empty words to please me… You truly seem confident.”
“If the Gol Family is master of the Ministry of Works…”
Hwiyeom smiled.
“I can make them an offer they cannot refuse. Several of them, in fact.”
“Hahahaha…! Excellent!”
Sama Seung slapped his knee.
“Then let us set the board under the water. After the audience with His Majesty, I shall arrange for you to meet the people of the Gol Family naturally.”
“I am in your debt.”
“According to sources inside the palace, the formal audience will be in one week; there will be no separate informal audience. Rest well and prepare in the meantime.”
“Thank you.”
One week later, as Sama Seung had said, Baek Beon arrived at the Sichuan Dang Family’s lodgings dressed in formal court robes.
“Permission for the audience has been granted. Please accompany me.”
“Yes.”
“Ah, and one more thing.”
Baek Beon quietly drew close to Hwiyeom and whispered.
“About the assembly of the Twin Dragon Statue—the palace attendants may pick a fight beforehand.”
“Pick a fight?”
“Yes. Since it is a gift offered directly to His Majesty, they cannot openly complain, but they might make the inspection process long and difficult… or block it with some absurd excuse.”
“What? Is that even acceptable? It is an offering to His Majesty the Emperor—how dare they?”
Baek Beon waved a hand.
“That’s their job, you see. They’re not demanding bribes or anything so crude. It’s simply procedure…”
“Ah. I understand. They have to at least make a show of doing their work.”
“…You catch on quickly. Then you also understand why I’m telling you this now?”
“…I’ll somehow soothe Michelangelo.”
“Thank you, Young Master.”
Baek Beon clasped Hwiyeom’s hand tightly. Even though he was an elite eunuch of the Dongchang who had risen to Chief Inspector at a young age, something about the weary pathos of office life clung to him, and Hwiyeom could not help but laugh.
“Please don’t laugh like that—are you trying to seduce me?”
“What.”
Hwiyeom immediately wiped the expression from his face.
Fortunately, Michelangelo proved more cooperative than Hwiyeom had expected. However much he was a self-absorbed thunder-struck wild child who lived on sheer arrogance, the moment he stepped into the magnificent imperial palace and faced the prospect of an audience with the Emperor, he seemed to shrink a little inside.
That uncharacteristically subdued air, however, vanished completely the instant he opened the crates before the eunuchs and palace attendants and began assembling his masterpiece, the Twin Dragon Statue.
“Hooooh…”
“Good heavens…”
Even the most fastidious eunuchs could not spit out a single sneer at Michelangelo. They could only stare open-mouthed as the enormous, majestic sculptures they had never seen in their lives were assembled piece by piece and gradually took form. And when at last the Twin Dragon Statue stood fully assembled with the wish-granting pearl held in its jaws—
“Haaah!”
They forgot all dignity and cried out in wonder. One eunuch murmured in a trembling voice,
“This… is a work of art that will change the history of the Central Plains.”
Hearing that, Hwiyeom murmured softly to himself,
“It certainly will.”
He found himself looking forward to the audience a great deal.