Chapter 56
Chapter 56
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 56
Chapter Title: Five Thousand Taels of Silver
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Yang-hui and Steward Han didn't bother moving elsewhere and simply ushered Chu Yong-wol inside right away.
After a servant brought tea, Chu Yong-wol put on a curious expression.
"Um, is the clan leader busy with work?"
Back when they'd signed the contract, Chu Yong-wol had been pressured by Baek Mu-ryang and ended up conceding a larger share of the profits.
Because of that memory, she seemed eager to report her results directly to Baek Mu-ryang and receive his guidance.
"Unfortunately, the clan leader has entered secluded training."
After the feast, the Tang family members who'd stayed a few days to recover from their travels had left, save for those assigned to produce the spirit elixirs.
Baek Mu-ryang had given some instructions to Steward Han and Yang-hui before retreating once more into closed-door cultivation.
'It's probably because of Mother.'
Baek Mu-ryang had felt profound frustration upon realizing he couldn't personally treat Jeong In-hwa, who needed the antidote for her poison blood.
He hadn't shown it outwardly at all, but Yang-hui—who had spent much time with his father in his previous life—could sense those emotions.
'It's only natural as the head of the family and husband to one woman. On top of that, as leader of a martial clan, he seemed dissatisfied with his own first-rate cultivation as well.'
In truth, first-rate was on the lower side for cultivation.
Well, limited to Evil Eye County, he was still among the top five experts.
'It's still far from enough. The main family will spread out farther and grow even larger from here.'
Prioritizing his own martial advancement over clan duties?
That was the mark of a true clan leader.
For a leader, the most vital trait was the dignity to unite everyone—and that was best embodied through martial prowess.
Besides, Steward Han's seasoned wisdom could handle most day-to-day matters anyway.
'...Lately, though, he loses his composure whenever money's involved.'
Case in point right now.
"Merchant Chu! Coming to the main house in person means you've had quite the success, eh? Heh heh heh."
'Hmm. No. Correction. Not right now.'
Heh heh heh?
Steward Han looked every bit the scholar who'd devoted decades to study, with his neat robes and long beard.
Yet seeing that same Steward Han grinning like a lecher made something feel profoundly off.
"Come on, tell us! How much? How much did you earn?!"
Chu Yong-wol replied, looking a bit flustered.
"First, regarding the contract between the Baek Clan and our Baek Book Merchant Group, and the progress so far..."
Steward Han cut her off.
"Just the conclusion! How much? Exactly how much?!"
His fingers kept bending and straightening, tracing the shape of coins over and over without pause.
Word had it that Steward Han had always favored scholarship in his youth and even now—but where on earth had he sold his gentleman's way?
He looked just like a gambler suffering withdrawal after being banned from the gambling dens.
'Why is the embarrassment always mine?'
Yang-hui figured the relatively normal one among them had to step in, so he turned to Chu Yong-wol.
"Merchant Chu, the family's finances have been tight lately, so the steward is a bit anxious. How much profit?"
Chu Yong-wol glanced awkwardly at Steward Han before turning back with a beaming smile.
"Heh heh heh. Don't be too shocked. A whopping..."
"A whopping?"
"...five thousand silver taels."
"Gasp!"
Yang-hui and Chu Yong-wol's eyes went wide as they stared at Steward Han, who let out a strangled cry.
"Steward Han!"
Steward Han's head was thrown back rigidly, frozen in place.
Slowly, very slowly, his head lowered.
And then a single word leaked out.
"Ah."
A beatific smile spread across Steward Han's face, like that of an enlightened monk.
Enlightenment. That was pure enlightenment.
His soul was clearly departing his body.
"Steward Han!"
Yang-hui shouted with genuine concern, channeling qi into his voice.
Light returned to Steward Han's eyes, which had seemed half-lifeless.
"Uh-heh-heh-heh! Uh-heh-heh-heh!"
'Phew. Good. I thought he'd leave this world for good.'
No exaggeration—Steward Han's reaction was that dramatic.
At least his expression suggested his lifeline had firmly reattached to the mortal plane.
"Uh-heh-heh-heh-heh-heh! Five thousand taels! It's only been three months since Young Master Hui solved the Baek Book Merchant Group's problems! Five thousand taels in three months! Uh-heh-heh-heh-heh-heh!"
Correction once more. He hadn't fully regained his senses yet.
Yang-hui shook his head and offered Chu Yong-wol words of praise.
"Truly impressive work, Merchant Chu. The actual period you could sell books in earnest was at most two months."
And it really was astonishing—even for Yang-hui, who knew the value of Ilpilhwiseo's novels from his future memories.
"How did you manage it? We discussed sales strategies together, but I figured it'd take at least a year for things to really catch fire."
Their earlier proposal had been a premium strategy to imbue the books with special value.
Value only emerges when people desire it, so it was bound to take time.
Yet Chu Yong-wol had produced tremendous results in just two months.
"Heh heh. The strategy we devised together was ultimately about creating a trend, right?"
"Indeed."
"So I made it trendy. On the back of a tiger, no less."
"Ah, so you seduced a tiger and sparked the trend?"
Yang-hui instantly grasped the full scheme, and Chu Yong-wol stuck out her tongue in admiration.
"As expected, Young Master Hui's business acumen lives up to its reputation. Exactly. The most influential madam in Namchang holds me in high regard, so I went through her."
In short, she'd leveraged mutual flattery among courtesans to assign value, then spread the trend through high-society ladies.
Once the winds started blowing, fanning the flames to build momentum wouldn't have been hard.
'As I thought. Choosing Chu Yong-wol was the right call.'
The Baek Book Merchant Group hadn't grown so swiftly in the future for nothing.
And with the sabotage from the Namgeum Merchant Group eliminated, it would expand even more in this life.
"Oh, right. Has Young Master Hui heard any news about the Namgeum Merchant Group?"
"What news?"
"Last time, the young hero spread rumors with those spirit herbs, remember? They went completely bankrupt after that."
Chu Yong-wol eyed Yang-hui's face closely as she continued.
"Word is, martial artists mobbed the place and caused a ruckus, but some wanderer saved them. The problem was, all their revival funds and usury contracts got stolen. That's the story, anyway."
Chu Yong-wol was bringing up something she didn't need to mention.
One of two things.
'Either she's curious how much of it was my doing, or...'
Yang-hui chuckled softly.
"As I said before, only up to spreading the rumors was me."
"Is that so? Word has it one of the wanderers who dealt with the 'demonic figure' at the Namgeum estate was a young boy."
"You don't think it was me, do you? Even a once-in-a-millennium genius is just an eight-year-old kid."
He shrugged exaggeratedly, even shivering for effect.
"Looking back, I'm truly glad. If I'd run into someone calling me a demon... Ugh. I nearly took a trip to the afterlife at such a young age. Must've been some rejuvenated eccentric who showed up."
"Hmm. Fair enough. No particular thoughts on the Namgeum Merchant Group's downfall? In a way, it snowballed from the young hero's scheme."
Ah, so that was the point.
"A usury den collapsing? Not my concern. What about you, Merchant Chu?"
"Same here."
Confirming each other's steadfast resolve and grit, Yang-hui and Chu Yong-wol exchanged smiles.
"Well then, this girl will take her leave."
"Won't you stay the night and rest from your travels?"
"You know how it is. If I had free time, maybe—but these days, every day is worth its weight in gold. A merchant has to know when to rest and when not to."
True words, and commendable ones.
The harder Chu Yong-wol worked, the greater the Baek Clan Manor's profits.
"Then allow me to see you off at least to the main gate."
"I'd be delighted to accept Young Master Hui's escort."
After confirming Chu Yong-wol had boarded her carriage and departed, Yang-hui returned to Steward Han's residence.
"Heh heh heh heh. Five thousand taels. Fiiiive thoooousand taaaels!"
Steward Han was still giggling to himself, fondling a money pouch containing fifty gold taels.
'Hold on. We need two thousand taels right away. That leaves three thousand.'
Five thousand silver taels was a considerable sum—enough to expand a business, even on the cheaper side.
But subtracting two thousand left three thousand, which was awkward to use immediately.
Wouldn't it be more efficient to keep about a thousand in reserve and spend the rest quickly?
'...Paying more for materials would surely yield spirit elixirs with even better effects.'
"Steward Han."
"Uh-heh-heh! Speak, Young Master Hui!"
"Um, if we put another two thousand taels toward spirit elixir materials..."
"Whiiirrrlwind yoooouth!"
The lion's roar of an elder without any internal energy shook the vast Baek Clan Manor.
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇ A month had passed since most Tang family members departed and the remaining Poison Pill Hall members began producing the spirit elixirs.
Lately, Yang-hui had been instructing his two younger siblings while increasing the focus on internal energy cultivation.
"Slowly. No need to rush. Stability is key. Circulating qi steadily—that's the essence of the technique."
Normally, they'd reply energetically, but today the two siblings remained quietly focused.
That was only natural. Speaking while cultivating an internal art was tantamount to inviting qi deviation.
"Visualize it. The flow of qi emerging from your dantian. It's often likened to a river or stream, but our Baek Clan's Harmonious Heaven Principle Origin Art is different."
There was only one image the Baek Clan needed to form while circulating qi through the full circuit.
A magpie.
"Harmonious Heaven Principle Origin Art. It harmonizes all energies under heaven into one, benefiting the origin. How does a magpie achieve that?"
The answer was simple.
"Huuuuh, suuuuh huuu."
"Suuuuh, haaaaah."
Yang-hui continued as he listened to his siblings' breathing.
"Think of a mother magpie. She uses her steadfast wings—which slice through the skies—to shelter her eggs and chicks. It embraces everything. It gathers all beneath its wings."
Even as he claimed supremacy through the ages without shame, his keenly sensitive qi sense reached toward Baek Heon-so and Baek Yeon-yeon.
He couldn't read the exact movement of qi within their bodies, but he could at least sense how the natural qi of the air permeated them.
'Both are doing well.'
The first stage of the Harmonious Heaven Principle Origin Art.
The key here was building a firm foundation.
More precisely, perfecting the unique temperament called Harmonious Heaven Qi.
'Once you pass this stage, you'll grow like weeds, little ones.'
Yang-hui was smiling contentedly when Baek Heon-so opened his eyes first, followed by Baek Yeon-yeon.
"Well done, both of you. Not just So, but Yeon-yeon can now complete the full circuit as of today."
"Thank you, big brother! It's all thanks to you!"
"Thanks! When big brother teaches, martial arts feel so easy and fun!"
Of course it was fun. He racked his brains every day to teach them in an engaging, age-appropriate way.
"Let's keep at it diligently and enjoyably. Now, once more..."
He was about to start another round when a voice cut across the training ground.
"Young Master Hui."
The speaker was the vice leader of the Tang Poison Pill Hall.
"Hoo. It's been a while."
The vice leader, who'd been holed up in the residence prepared for elixir refining, had finally emerged.
That could only mean one thing.
"Vice Leader, don't tell me...?"
"Probably."
The spirit elixirs, made with seven parts Seven Star Three-Part Ginseng roots and a whopping four thousand taels poured in.
At last, the spirit elixirs were complete.