Chapter 36
Translator: penny
Chapter: 36
Chapter Title: The Red Serpent Sect's Move
The day after Mok Jimyeong departed.
A visitor arrived at the Eun Merchant Group early in the morning.
"Are you in? We've come to collect the debt."
It was a debt collector.
Since she had anticipated this would happen eventually, Eun Garyeon calmly received him in the reception room.
And there, she heard a shocking fact.
"What?! What do you mean by that?"
"I'll say it again. We've purchased all the debts from Sandomon for 40 gold nyang, Geumyeol Merchant Group for 50 gold nyang, and so on—a total of 200 gold nyang—from the Red Serpent Sect."
Eun Garyeon had heard of the Red Serpent Sect's infamous reputation.
It was a righteous faction notorious for exorbitant interest rates and even secretly dabbling in human trafficking.
There was no need to ask why they had bought up the debts.
Just looking at the lecherous glint in the eyes of the man who claimed to be from the Red Serpent Sect made it painfully obvious.
"Heh heh. As you know, you have seven days until the repayment deadline. If that date passes... well, I'll leave the rest to your imagination."
His sticky gaze roamed her from head to toe.
Reacting to it was Jang Yunho, who had been standing guard nearby just in case.
"You old bastard! Do you know who this lady is, staring at her with those filthy eyes?!"
Unlike before, he didn't draw his sword, but instead unleashed his killing intent like an arrow.
The Red Serpent Sect disciple flinched in surprise and placed his hand on his sword hilt.
As if he had been waiting for it, Jang Yunho spoke in a low voice.
"Draw that sword, and I'll chop off your entire arm."
Overpowered by the aura, the Red Serpent Sect disciple neither drew his sword nor removed his hand, frozen in indecision.
That's when Eun Garyeon intervened.
"That's enough, Jang Xiaoxie. And seven days? Understood. We'll prepare by then."
Only then did Jang Yunho release his pressure.
The Red Serpent Sect disciple, who had just had a chilling experience, hurriedly stood up.
"Ahem, then we'll return in seven days!"
Watching the man flee like a scared rabbit, Jang Yunho opened his mouth.
"Merchant Group Leader, are you alright? That guy was nothing, but if the Red Serpent Sect is involved, this could be quite dangerous..."
"It's fine. Seven days should be just enough time to make it work."
The Red Serpent Sect was only a problem if they couldn't repay the money.
And according to her calculations, they could definitely pay it back.
It had been over a month since Eun Garyeon returned to the Eun Merchant Group.
She hadn't just been idling around during that time.
Mok Jimyeong had told her not to give money to anyone for two months, but that was easier said than done.
The Eun Merchant Group was a merchant group, after all.
They had to turn their capital around and pay the overdue salaries to their employees.
The silver lining was that while the group was short on cash, the warehouse still had plenty of goods to sell.
Confirming that, Eun Garyeon had spent the past month lining up buyers, and now they just needed to deliver the goods and collect the payments.
However...
"Chief Clerk, what do you mean by that...?"
"Exactly what I said. Unless you pay all the overdue salaries, we won't work."
Another problem had arisen.
Im Jungdo had declared a strike.
The chief clerk position represented all the clerks.
If he refused, the entire merchant group would grind to a halt.
Thus, Eun Garyeon had no choice but to persuade Im Jungdo.
"Chief Clerk, we're asking you to sell the goods so we can pay those salaries."
"The salaries are already three months overdue. And the lady brings in some weirdo who... Look at this bruise? We haven't seen a single coin, and this is supposed to be acceptable?!"
Im Jungdo pointed to his eye socket, raising his voice.
The skin around his eye was bruised purple from burst blood vessels.
Eun Garyeon had no defense for that.
It was true that she had brought Mok Jimyeong herself.
Still, she couldn't just stay silent, so she pleaded with Im Jungdo once more.
"I'm sorry about that. But as you know, Chief Clerk, the Eun Merchant Group has no money to pay salaries right now. To earn that money, this time—"
"Argh, whatever! If you don't pay the overdue salaries, we won't work. This isn't just me—it's the will of all the employees."
His stubborn attitude gave her a headache.
No matter what proposals she made, even mentioning bonuses beyond their financial means, the result was the same.
"Pay the overdue salaries first."
"Haa... Alright. Wait here for a bit, then."
In the end, she gave up on convincing Im Jungdo right away and stood from her seat.
As she walked away, Eun Garyeon couldn't shake off the nagging unease.
'Something's off.'
It was natural for employees to demand their pay before working, but the current situation felt too strange.
Who was Im Jungdo?
He had been the chief clerk of the Eun Merchant Group for four years.
There was no way someone like him didn't know the merchant group's situation.
Even when she told him they could get paid as soon as they handed over the goods—or even that they could collect and distribute the sales proceeds themselves—he still refused. That was highly suspicious.
As if...
'He had some other agenda.'
She wanted to probe his true intentions, but time was of the essence.
They only had seven days until the Red Serpent Sect came knocking.
Pushing aside her suspicions, she headed next to the accountant's office.
"Uncle, what about the payment we were supposed to receive from the Munhwa Merchant Group last time?"
If that money came in, they could at least pay part of the employees' salaries.
But Eun Taehyeok shook his head.
"I checked this morning, and they said it's not possible today. They'll send it tomorrow."
"The day before yesterday it was yesterday, and yesterday it was today."
"Tell me about it. I've been hounding them every day, but... sigh."
Eun Taehyeok sighed in response, but to Eun Garyeon's eyes, he looked like he was smiling.
'No way... right?'
The situation felt strangely off.
***
Even in Beijing, known for its high prices, the Silver Flower Pavilion was one of the top high-class brothels.
A place where ordinary folk wouldn't even dream of entering, reserved for high-ranking officials' occasional visits. There, I had rented out an entire annex.
'Wow~ Brothel Hall sure knows how to treat a guest.'
When I said I needed a place to train, this was what they provided.
The interior was so luxurious that staying in Eun Taehyeok's confiscated room at the Eun Merchant Group felt like a loss in comparison.
After admiring the inside for a while, I finally stepped out into the annex's private garden.
I wanted to call in some courtesans and throw a drinking party indoors,
'Sigh, gotta train.'
I still hadn't elevated my physique to the level I wanted.
With my meeting with Chu Munrak approaching, staying like this would spell disaster.
As I was deep in training, a courtesan burst into the garden.
"Young master! Young master!"
"Yeah?"
It was Okhwa, the one who had shared my bed the night before.
Seeing her rush over, I set my sword down for a moment.
Panting as she reached me, Okhwa continued breathlessly.
"Big trouble. The Red Serpent Sect showed up at the Eun Merchant Group."
"Today?"
"Yes. Word is, the Red Serpent Sect bought up all the Eun Merchant Group's debts..."
That was expected.
I already knew all the Eun Merchant Group's creditors were in cahoots with the Red Serpent Sect.
'They're moving fast, though.'
I had left the Eun Merchant Group just yesterday afternoon.
It hadn't even been twelve hours yet, and they were already making moves...
"Who came?"
"Uh... I didn't hear that... Should I go ask the branch leader?"
She made a slightly sullen face at the thought of going back and forth again.
I couldn't help but chuckle at the sight.
"Nah, it's fine."
If the pavilion's madam hadn't mentioned it specifically, it was probably just some low-rank warrior who visited the Eun Merchant Group.
In fact, that used to be the kind of grunt work guys like me from back then handled.
Okhwa, having said her piece, stared at me blankly.
Memories of last night's pleasures stirred my lust, but unfortunately, there was no time for that now.
"If that's all, you can go. Thanks for the trouble."
"Yes! I'll be off then!"
She scampered away, just as she had arrived.
I watched her retreating figure for a moment, then picked up my sword again.
Time was really running short now.
With the Red Serpent Sect on the move, I needed to focus on training immediately.
'Poor Eun girlie must be struggling by now.'
From checking the ledgers on the first day, the Eun Merchant Group had more than enough potential to recover.
The most urgent debt was just the 200 gold nyang owed to the Red Serpent Sect.
But Eun Garyeon would never repay it in time.
'They'll definitely sabotage her.'
The Eun Merchant Group was already a massive web in itself.
A spider's web meticulously woven by the apex predator known as the Four Black Alliance, starting four years ago.
'Maybe even longer.'
Im Jungdo joined four years ago, but it could have been prepared much earlier.
At this point, it wasn't about money or ability.
It was a matter of weight class.
And there was only one way out of this situation.
Find an opening from the outside.
'She's got a solid connection to the Sichuan Tang Family, but...'
Still, they lacked the size.
To fend off the Four Black Alliance, which represented the unorthodox factions as a whole, she'd need something like the Murim Alliance.
Well, since it was just one elder from the Four Black Alliance, maybe the Tang Family alone could pull it off—but Sichuan was too far from Beijing anyway.
And there was no reason for the Tang Family to go all out helping her.
In the end, falling into Chu Munrak's clutches was her predetermined fate.
However,
'Not if I'm around.'
Thanks to me, Mok Jimyeong, that was about to change.