The Long-Awaited Harvest (6)
Hangju's low market.
A liquor ban had been imposed due to the famine, and with the populace restless from the threat of riots, hardly any customers showed up. The streets felt eerily empty.
Inns, taverns, and brothels that had survived on the coin of travelers from afar were hit hardest by the fallout.
In such times, their lifeline was Haomen. Bring them information, and they'd pay for it.
Of course, they often got turned away empty-handed.
But...
"What? Haomen refused to pay for the info?"
The waiter nodded at his colleague's question.
"Yeah. Said they'd put it on my tab."
"Hah! First time in my life I've heard of Haomen extending credit."
"That's how bad this famine is."
"Then what am I supposed to do? If I don't get paid today, the kids go hungry."
As they sighed and swapped stories, another waiter approached, whistling cheerfully.
"Pick up a coin on the street or something? What's got you so chipper?"
"Heh heh! Ta-da! Check this out!"
"Whoa! What the—? That's rice!"
"Where'd you get it?"
"Cheongpa Pavilion."
"...?"
Tilting their heads, the others listened as he explained.
"How can you guys be so out of the loop and still work as waiters in Hangju? Haven't you heard? Seonhyeopmirang is buying info at Cheongpa Pavilion. Figured I'd check it out since Haomen wasn't paying, and bingo—it was true."
He continued.
"Gave 'em some info, and they handed over this sack of rice as payment."
"For real?"
"Dead serious! Why would I lie about rice?"
The waiter who'd been fretting over his kids' empty bellies bolted from the spot.
"Gonna run to Cheongpa Pavilion real quick!"
By the time he arrived, a line of some twenty people had already formed out front.
He jumped in hastily, and soon it was his turn.
"Uh, I heard you're buying information here..."
"That's right. Welcome."
"But... you really give out food for info?"
"Of course. Head into that empty tent over there and share what you know."
He ducked into the tent and spilled what he knew.
"Very good. Here's your payment."
"Th-thank you!"
Bowing repeatedly as he emerged, he clutched a small sack containing a hop of rice.
A single hop—mixed with whatever scraps they had—would feed a whole family for one meal.
And with rice so scarce these days, it felt far more precious than cash.
Praise for Eun Seo-ho spilled from his lips unbidden.
"They call him Seonhyeopmirang, and he's the real deal! What a good man!"
Meanwhile, Haomen's Hangju branch was a ghost town.
Without funds to pay for info, no one was bringing any in.
Intelligence was built from scraps of seemingly trivial low-grade tidbits that coalesced into high-grade revelations.
No scraps, no revelations.
And clients grumbled about the drop in quality.
The problem was what they were saying.
"Damn it! Might as well go to another branch."
Each Haomen branch operated independently—which meant they were rivals to one another.
Clients weren't bound to one branch; if they needed intel from elsewhere, they bought from that region's outpost.
But without cash, how could they afford it?
Hangju had once been a thriving hub, yielding vast intel sold profitably to other branches.
No more, not since the liquor ban.
Yeon-yeon sighed deeply.
"Branch leader."
"What now...?"
The caller was Hong Nam, one of the disciples.
"They're buying up info at Cheongpa Pavilion. A hop of rice per tip."
"What? Why? Why would Cheongpa Pavilion buy info?"
"No idea. But a bunch of our disciples are heading there to sell instead."
Haomen was a loose organization.
Unless you were top brass, where you sold info was your call.
"At this rate, our branch is done for."
"..."
"Branch leader, go apologize in person."
She shrieked at Hong Nam's words.
"I'm the branch leader—Haomen's Hangju branch leader! You expect me to grovel before some lowly merchant?"
"He's no lowly merchant. He has the Emperor's favor, ties to the Gold Guard and Shadow Network, and friendships with the Murim Alliance and North Sea Ice Palace."
Yeon-yeon fell silent. Hong Nam inwardly tsked.
'It's that worthless pride holding us back.'
She'd apologize, sure—but insisted on making him come to her. Absurd stubbornness.
'Apologizing at all means swallowing pride already.'
He sighed.
"So, we're just gonna starve? You know we're barely scraping by selling off assets."
How they knew, no one could say—but even the secret vaults hidden across the branch had been looted.
It was eerily thorough intel work.
"Next, you'll have to sell those treasures you cherish."
"N-no! Not my treasures! Do you know how hard I worked to get them...?"
Hong Nam gritted his teeth.
"So make a decision already. Branch. Lead. Er."
I stood on the third floor of Cheongpa Pavilion, gazing down. A throng lined up to sell their info.
"But sir," Palgap ventured.
"Yeah?"
"What do you do with all that info you're buying? Using it yourself?"
"Nah, not me."
"Pardon?"
"Handling intel is a skill. I don't have it."
I went on.
"Passing some to our merchant group's intel team, gifting batches to allies."
Yeo Eung-am Warrior tilted his head.
"But why pay in rice specifically?"
"Yep."
I nodded.
"Cash could get stolen or flow to rival factions."
"How so?"
"Think about who's lining up here."
"Waiters and courtesans."
"Right. They're employees, working under bosses. If they get coin, will those bosses let them keep it?"
"Ah!"
"Even if not stolen outright, bosses could sweet-talk it away. 'Times are tough—lend me some.' Grateful just for steady work, they'd cave."
"Makes sense."
"Worse if those bosses tie to Haomen."
Everyone nodded.
"But a hop of rice? Harder for bosses to snatch or borrow. Awkward."
Palgap nodded approvingly.
"As expected of your foresight, young master. Can't keep up."
Why are you grinning like that?
Cheongpa Pavilion's mistress, who'd been listening, asked cautiously.
"But... are you sure about this?"
"About what?"
"The rice for those folks. It adds up fast."
"Ah... true enough."
Grain prices were sky-high; expenses were steep.
As the one running the place, she had every right to worry.
"No need to fret."
"Huh?"
I just grinned.
The money buying that rice? Not mine.
It was Haomen's, siphoned via the gold tokens.
So here I was, doing good deeds with someone else's cash.
What face would Yeon-yeon make if she knew?
Just imagining it was delicious.
And I'm not all bad.
This intel would help Haomen—just not her branch. Mine, with its ties to me.
What fault did the rank-and-file have? They just followed orders.
"I'll step out for a bit."
"Sure thing."
Chwiwol Pavilion
I headed to a nearby brothel.
One of the top five in the West Lake district. Why here today?
To acquire it, naturally.
Haomen's punishment aside, I had business in Hangju to handle.
As I approached the main entrance, a burly guard blocked me.
"Sorry, we're not receiving guests yet."
Fair enough; it wasn't operating hours. Sun high in the sky.
"No worries. Not here as a customer. Is the mistress in?"
"Do you have an appointment?"
"No appointment. But pass word inside: Eunhae Merchant Group's sub-leader Eun Seo-ho wishes to see her."
The guard's eyes sharpened.
"One moment."
He dashed in, then hurried back.
"My apologies. Please, come in."
A waiter guided me inside Chwiwol Pavilion.
"Welcome. I'll escort you from here."
I nodded.
"The mistress's quarters are on the sixth floor."
Sixth floor...
No wonder climbing it daily seemed grueling.
The thought crossed my mind as we arrived swiftly.
"Right this way."
A beautifully adorned woman rose to greet me.
"Welcome. I'm Maetwi, mistress of Chwiwol Pavilion."
"Eunhae Merchant Group sub-leader Eun Seo-ho."
"I've heard the name. Please, sit."
I took a seat.
Up close, her complexion was wan, skin dull and dry.
Even the mistress wasn't eating properly.
As I pondered, Maetwi asked.
"So, to what do I owe the visit?"
"You've heard I took over Cheongpa Pavilion lately... care to guess?"
"You want to acquire Chwiwol Pavilion?"
"Exactly."
I nodded.
"I'd like to buy it."
"..."
Silence hung briefly.
"How much?"
"A thousand silver taels."
Regret clouded her face.
"Isn't that a bit low?"
"I think it's plenty. Famine end in sight? Operating costs alone make eight hundred feel generous."
"Then why buy? As you say, it's a gamble in endless famine."
"Famine lasts forever?"
"We'll hold out till then."
I chuckled.
"I can afford to buy because I can wait. Can you?"
"..."
Her eyes wavered; after deliberation, she spoke.
"Truth be told, Haomen's Hangju branch offered twelve hundred taels."
"Is that so?"
I smiled.
"And can Haomen's Hangju branch actually pay that now?"
"..."
Maetwi's eyes trembled harder.
She knew their straits.
Haomen had reached here too, huh? A survivor in the famine; I'd wondered.
"They'll say they can't pay now, but later... when you need cash now?"
Recalling what I'd seen entering, I added.
"Plenty needs fixing right away. Sellables look stripped already."
"So, sub-leader, you can pay upfront?"
"Of course."
Raiding Haomen's vaults was payback for threats and meddling—but I'd foreseen this too.
Party A bids high, can't pay now.
Party B bids low, pays now.
Mistress needs cash yesterday.
And the difference? Less than twenty percent?
Outcome obvious.
She said to me.
"Could... we discuss terms?"