The Youngest Son of the Eunhae Merchant Group 25 - More Than Expected (2)
My father echoed my words.
"A secret deal?"
"Here's the content."
I pulled the contract I'd made with Jang Dae-su, the branch head, from my bosom and handed it over. Father took it and read through it.
"……."
As he read, Father's eyes widened suddenly.
"Is this real?"
"Yes."
"There really are snow lotus herbs, white tiger spirit roots, and snow ginseng on Odongsan?"
"That's right."
I drew a small paper envelope from my sleeve and offered it.
"To confirm for sure, I collected samples."
Yeon Gakju quickly snatched up the envelope I'd placed on the table and opened it.
He examined the spirit herb samples I'd dug up.
Yeon Gakju's hands trembled visibly.
"R-real... real spirit herbs……."
Any merchant group large enough to rank among the top hundred naturally specialized in certain goods.
And our group's main product was medicinal herbs.
That's how I'd been able to procure the spirit herbs used to cure my illness in my past life.
The heirs of the Eunhae Merchant Group received systematic education on herbs from childhood.
Even so, distinguishing spirit herbs without seeing them in person was difficult.
Father, seeming puzzled by this, asked,
"But these spirit herbs haven't entered our group in the past ten years. How did you identify them?"
"If you just remember your studies well, it's not that hard to tell them apart."
I smiled and replied. Father looked skeptical but let it pass.
"But what if they weren't spirit herbs? What were you planning to do with such a secret deal?"
Father's reprimand continued.
It was the scolding I'd expected, and I had an answer prepared.
"If someone else finds them, they'd just take them, right? So I judged it necessary to secure priority rights first."
"That's not the issue. What if Jang the branch head uses this as an excuse to harass our group?"
"Ah, that would be fine too."
"……?"
"Look there—fifth line. There's a clause: 'Neither party shall hold the other responsible for unavoidable reasons preventing the transaction.'"
I continued,
"I asked if it might not be spirit herbs and if that was okay. He confirmed it was and we put it in the contract."
"Ah... so that's why this clause is there."
"Exactly."
I'd added that clause in preparation for questions from Father or others. But what was on Odongsan was undoubtedly spirit herbs.
Yeon Gakju had just confirmed it.
"This deal is to be conducted in secret. Please keep that in mind."
"Sweet things always attract bugs, as they say."
We could transact spirit herbs secretly precisely because they were spirit herbs.
The origins of spirit herbs and elixirs were almost always kept secret, an unspoken agreement among all involved in such trades.
"Anything else to report?"
I shook my head at Father's question.
"No."
"Then leave us. We have more to discuss."
Eunwol Pavilion.
After Eun Seo-ho left, Eun Gil-sang let out a hollow laugh.
"I just thought he had a merchant's talent, but I was wrong. The kid's got luck on his side too. On his very first outing, he brings back a massive treasure like it's nothing."
Outer Steward Go Il-pyeong replied,
"True as that may be, talent and luck alone wouldn't have made it happen. According to reports from Inspector Jeong Chung and his team, the young master seems extraordinarily clever. Though Jin-gyeon Merchant Group brought it on themselves, luring them into a trap and dealing with them shows real ingenuity."
"And he's got some serious guts too."
Head of Sangyu Pavilion Yeon Da-mi chimed in.
She held the spirit herb sample Eun Seo-ho had gathered.
"Proposing that to Odongsan branch head!"
"No hesitation before profit—that's the mark of a true merchant."
Everyone nodded at Go Il-pyeong's words.
"But here's the thing."
Then Sepung Pavilion Head Jeok Byeong-cheol spoke up.
"Why did the young master make that craftsman his personal subordinate?"
"He hasn't gotten group permission yet, so he had no choice but to take him under himself. The situation must have been urgent."
Jeok Byeong-cheol smiled and continued at Go Il-pyeong's explanation.
"The young master never once said he'd transfer that subordinate to the group. It was as if he'd planned it that way from the start."
Yeon Da-mi snickered at that.
"Our old man sure is sharp."
"You mean...?"
She nodded at Go Il-pyeong's question.
"Just like you said, old man. That's why I negotiated with the young master, not the craftsman."
"Must have been tough for him."
Yu So-ak said.
"Negotiating with you, I mean."
"……It was tough."
But Yeon Da-mi's expression was odd.
"For me."
"Pardon?"
"He was no ordinary opponent. And he hasn't even been taught negotiation tactics. I'm sure of it. It's innate."
"Haha, to that extent? He's our group's great fortune!"
"Indeed. Haha."
As everyone laughed, Jeok Byeong-cheol's eyes gleamed.
He wondered what intentions lay behind Eun Seo-ho's actions.
That evening.
Dang—dang—dang—
Ten bell tolls rang out.
The signal for the early You hour (5-7 PM), also marking quitting time.
Thud.
I set down my brush and said,
"Steward, it's quitting time."
He looked disappointed, but when I'd accepted Yu the steward's assistant offer, I'd set conditions.
So he had no choice but to nod.
"You're dismissed."
Thanks to my hard work today, the workload had shrunk considerably.
As I rose,
"Steward, you should head home too without overdoing it—for your health."
"I'd love to, but the work doesn't let up……."
Yu the steward cleared his throat mid-sentence. Anyone could see the pile had dwindled.
"Ahem, right you are."
"See you tomorrow then."
I clasped my hands in farewell and headed straight to my quarters.
"Young master, you're back?"
"Yeah, I am."
"But are you really working all day?"
I flopped onto the bed at Palgap's question.
"Yeah."
"You must be beat, sir. And that Yu steward's too much—making you work before you've even recovered."
"It's 'cause I'm too capable."
Truth be told, working before fatigue faded wasn't harsh for me.
Right after returning from outings, diving into office work had been routine before I lost my life.
I just wanted to rest when I could.
Once I officially became branch head, I couldn't afford the luxury of resting after a trip.
There's a saying: Quit your job to open a little shop and rest, only to find you work even harder.
So I'm resting now, before becoming branch head.
Later, I won't be able to rest even if I want to.
"Dinner plans, sir?"
"With Gong the master craftsman and his family?"
"I'll prepare that, sir."
I rose to the bell tolls of the Mao hour (5-7 AM).
Circulated my energy, changed clothes.
On outings, I'd trained at night out of necessity, but now with a regular schedule, back to dawn martial practice.
Opening the door, Master arrived right on time in my front courtyard.
"Greetings, Master."
He returned my clasp.
He'd said such formalities weren't needed, yet he still observed them with me.
"Did you rest after your outing yesterday?"
I gave a wry smile at his question.
"I worked."
"……I see."
Master looked faintly regretful but said firmly,
"Still, don't skip or shorten training just because it's hard. Humans aren't that frail. Endure, push through, and you'll grow stronger."
"……Yes."
As I'd expected.
"Then let's begin training."
"Yes."
Training started with running.
Sandbags on my body, lapping the courtyard.
My front courtyard was spacious enough that just circling it left me gasping.
"Huff, huff... Horse stance next?"
Master shook his head at my question.
"No."
"……?"
"Do that separately at night. You can handle building strength on your own without my guidance now."
Master continued,
"From today, I'll teach you swordsmanship."
"Swordsmanship...?"
"Yes."
Master smiled.
"You've built enough foundation to learn proper martial arts now."
I cheered inwardly.
It meant the day I could openly use martial arts was near.
"The swordsmanship you'll learn from today is the True Snow Twelve Forms Sword Technique. Inspired by snow's properties, you'll see how exceptional it is as your realm advances."
"I can tell from the name alone."
I smiled back.
"It probably incorporates snow's heaviness and lightness, swift movements in blizzards, changes as snow whips in the wind, and such."
Master's eyes widened.
"Impressive. Exactly right. How did you know?"
How?
It was the swordsmanship I'd learned in my past life.
"You mentioned snow's properties. And snow has more than one."
"Sharp as ever."
Master looked pleased.
"You'll also learn footwork."
"Footwork... like walking techniques?"
Of course I knew what footwork was.
I'd mastered it before.
But knowing too much might seem suspicious, so I asked anyway.
"Think of it as movement methods. Whether swinging a sword, staff, or fist, fighting means moving your body in response to the opponent."
"Right."
"Footwork makes that efficient. Its real combat value is even greater. You must master it."
"Yes."
"The footwork I'll teach is the Traceless Step Method. A family art. Master it, and you can walk on snow without leaving a single footprint."
In other words, it enabled the stepping on snow without trace realm.
No footprints meant uses beyond imagination.
I'd benefited greatly from it before.
"First, learn how to handle the sword."
.
.
.
Five days passed like that.
I sighed, looking at my palms.
They were covered in blisters.
It was only natural.
This morning too, I'd gripped the wooden sword through basic stances a hundred times each.
Nine basic sword stances total.
Nine hundred swings.
Every day.
Master's creed and teaching philosophy: stick to the basics.
That's why my hands blistered daily.
Still, in about a month, calluses would form.
I knew from experience.
The time to use martial arts openly was approaching.
But that didn't mean revealing my true skill.
I had to fool Baekcheon Merchant Group and the Murim Alliance to widen my room to maneuver.
.
.
.
Working at Jaegyeong Pavilion, I was summoned to Eunwol Pavilion and entered.
No one else had arrived; I was alone.
I sat at a chair by the long table.
Sitting here reminded me of my past life. Back then, I'd sat left of the head seat where Jeong Ho hyung sat.
Meetings here handled tens of thousands of nyang in silver daily.
And yet...
Even though I'd lived it, it now felt like a dream.
I sighed at the reality of retracing the path to make us one of the Three Great Merchant Groups.
Of course, those days had been enjoyable.
But running a merchant group wasn't all fun.
With memories from my past life, this time I could move faster.
Then the door opened, and someone entered.
I rose quickly.