There is no way, right? (1)
Yoon Jong tilted his head.
“Does that make sense? Beggars don’t have money, but the Beggars Sect has a lot of money? How can they have a lot of money when it’s packed with nothing but beggars?”
“Tsk, tsk. Sahyeong, think about it. Let’s say each of those numerous beggars pays one coin a year up to the Sect. Then how much money do you think that would add up to?”
“Well, that’s…….”
Yoon Jong started to speak, then closed his mouth.
The phrase most commonly used to refer to the Beggars Sect was ‘the Hundred Thousand Beggars Sect’. It meant that the number of disciples belonging to the Beggars Sect amounted to a staggering hundred thousand. Of course, it was probably an exaggeration mixed in there, but…
‘No, is it really an exaggeration?’
It was certainly an exaggeration to say there were a hundred thousand Beggars Sect’s disciples. If there had been that many beggars who had learned martial arts, then Gangho would already have been more than unified under the Beggars Sect’s hand.
But if one considered that even ordinary beggars who had not learned martial arts were, in one way or another, connected to the Beggars Sect, then perhaps it was not an exaggeration to say that the number of beggars managed by the Beggars Sect reached a hundred thousand.
Then even if each of those hundred thousand people paid only one coin a year, how much money would be coming into the Beggars Sect?
“…They’d be rich.”
Yoon Jong ended up accepting this fact. But Jo Geol did not.
“No, wait. I get that the Beggars Sect earns a lot of money. But it costs money to manage that many beggars, doesn’t it? If more money goes out than comes in, they can’t be rich.”
“What would they need money for?”
“Huh?”
Chung Myung snorted and said indifferently.
“For us, money goes out because we have to feed our disciples, clothe them, house them, and even buy them weapons.”
“…Right?”
“What money would you spend on beggars? They beg for their food, pick up clothes to wear, and use clubs carved out of wood as weapons.”
“Huh?”
Jo Geol’s eyes began to shake as if an earthquake had struck.
“At most, they’d probably get a bit of treatment when they’re sick. And for that much, you can just hire a few physicians and be done with it. How much could that possibly cost?”
“It… it doesn’t cost any money… does it?”
Jo Geol tilted his head to the side. With a newly enlightened look in his eyes, he swept his gaze over the beggars of the Jinan branch.
Looking at them from that perspective, these beggars were an existence that cost no money and only brought money in. Of course, the amount each one earned was nothing but small change, but once a number like a hundred thousand came together, small change could no longer be called such.
Literally, a goose that laid golden eggs… no, a beggar who laid golden eggs.
“They’d be rich.”
“Right?”
Even Jo Geol ended up accepting it.
By that point, the disciples suddenly looked at Sunhak Gae with a gaze that had turned chilly. It felt like seeing a beggar they had kept noticing and tried hard to give even a few coins to, only to witness him climb into a four-wheeled carriage after sunset and enter a mansion as grand as a whale’s back.
Feeling the betrayal and contempt contained in their eyes, Sunhak Gae hurriedly waved his hands and shook his head.
“N-No, that’s not true! No…”
“We were deceived.”
“I really thought he was pitiful.”
“I said it’s not true!”
Sunhak Gae burst out in a shout and thumped his own chest.
“H-How could a beggar have a lot of money! If that were the case, I wouldn’t be a beggar!”
“Why couldn’t you? Chung Myung is a Taoist monk too.”
“Exactly.”
“……Pardon?”
But the Taoists of Hwasan had already been through far too much, and so they did not believe those words at all.
“The money the beggars pay up isn’t that much, and managing them costs far more than you think! I’m telling you, it’s a misunderstanding!”
Sunhak Gae protested fiercely, as though he truly felt wronged.
But the disciples of Hwasan, who had already suffered countless times at Chung Myung’s hands, neatly caught the truth hidden within those words.
“Ah, then it is not that you have no money.”
“…Pardon?”
At Baek Cheon’s words, Sunhak Gae blinked blankly.
“You said it costs more money than one would think to manage the beggars, did you not?”
“Th-That… is true, yes?”
“And this Jinan branch is the place that manages all the beggars in a large city called Jinan.”
“…..That is true.”
“Then.”
Baek Cheon smiled softly.
“Branch Leader may not have any money, but does that not mean the Jinan branch has money?”
“…”
Clap, clap, clap, clap, clap.
No sooner had he finished speaking than the disciples of Hwasan burst into applause.
“Khhh.”
“As expected of Sasuk.”
“When it comes to taking advantage of someone, he never loses.”
“Indeed, Chung Myung’s foremost disciple.”
“I’m your Sasuk, you bastard.”
Cold sweat began pouring down Sunhak Gae’s back.
“Is there, perhaps, something wrong with what I said?”
“Th… That is, that….”
Sunhak Gae wiped the cold sweat beading on his forehead with his grimy sleeve.
“Certainly… I cannot say that you are wrong. But that money is for the branch’s operating expenses, and absolutely not for any personal use…”
“Uh-huh. Personal use?”
Chung Myung cut in abruptly, his face twisting into a scowl.
“Hwasan is formally requesting help right now, is it not? How is this ‘personal’! I’m telling you, it’s not me borrowing money, it’s Hwasan borrowing it?”
“Then at the very least, there should be a request from Hwasan’s Sect Leader…”
“No! What on earth is this old man even talking about?”
Chung Myung looked at Sunhak Gae as though he found the whole thing absurd.
“Yes? No, what do you…”
“If we were going to borrow money in the Sect Leader’s name, we’d go find the Beggars Sect’s Leader, wouldn’t we? Do you think we’d come to a Branch Leader here and be doing this?”
“……Pardon?”
“No matter how ignorant of worldly affairs you beggars are, you should at least say something that makes sense! This is so frustrating, seriously!”
“Now, now. Chung Myung, hold yourself back.”
“He’s a beggar. How much would he know about the matters of money?”
“Sighhh. This is really driving me mad.”
Sunhak Gae fell into confusion.
Was that bastard really getting angry at him right now? Was that even allowed? And why are those bastards around him trying to calm him down?
They were reasonable questions, but unfortunately, no one answered Sunhak Gae’s doubts.
“Now, no need to drag this out.”
Thud.
Chung Myung struck the unsteady tea table with his palm.
“So. Are you going to lend it, or not?”
Sunhak Gae’s face twisted grotesquely.
Not once in his life had he ever imagined it. To think the day would come when he would have to agonize over whether to lend someone money.
Under the silent pressure bearing down on him, Sunhak Gae’s mind grew hazy, and before he knew it, he opened his mouth.
“Uh, how much do you need…”
“Well, it’s not that much.”
Chung Myung shrugged.
“Only about ten thousand nyang.”
Sunhak Gae’s mouth fell wide open.
“T-Ten thousand nyang? Did you just say ten thousand nyang?”
“Actually, I do wonder whether we’d really need that much.”
Chung Myung added indifferently.
“But it’s better than borrowing a moderate amount for nothing and then coming up short. It’d be troublesome for you too if we came back to borrow money again, wouldn’t it?”
The strength drained from Sunhak Gae’s body.
“They’re taking the liver out of a flea*…”
“Come on, you can’t do that. Fleas are pitiful.”
“Then what about beggars? Are beggars not pitiful?”
“Why would beggars be pitiful! Their arms and legs are perfectly fine, but they don’t work and live by begging.”
Chung Myung’s face turned into a scowl.
“If they were just ordinary beggars, I wouldn’t even say anything. But these guys have even learned martial arts, and they live by begging for scraps, so why is that pitiful? The people who give alms to those bastards are the pitiful ones!”
The disciples of Hwasan listening beside him unconsciously nodded.
“That is not exactly wrong.”
“What he says is right.”
“If they worked, they could make a living. Why don’t they work?”
Sunhak Gae clutched his own face with both hands. They were even crazier than he had thought.
“No. Absolutely not.”
“Come now. Don’t be like that.”
“I-It is operating expenses! If this money does not come in on time, I will be dismissed! No, before that, the beggars will starve to death! No! Absolutely not!”
“Then it is fine as long as it comes in on time, right?”
“…..Excuse me?”
Chung Myung, who had been resting his chin on his hand, grinned.
“Well then, it’s not like there’s no way.”
“…What?”
Sunhak Gae’s two eyes trembled with unease.
⠀
A few days later, Hwaeum.
“W-What kind of nonsense is this…”
The hand holding the crisp letter began to tremble.
“The disciples of Hwasan borrowed money from the Jinan branch?”
Up to that point, it was still within the realm of possibility.
He had never in his life heard of Taoists going around borrowing money from somewhere, but Hong Daekwang’s cultivation was not so shallow that he would be flustered by merely that much. After all, he had spent years here in Hwaeum, rubbing shoulders with Hwasan.
But the words that followed shattered even that deep cultivation of his in an instant.
“But why are they billing US for that money! You crazy beggar bastards! What the hell is that bastard Sunhak Gae doing! Uaaaaaaagh!”
Hong Daekwang tore at his own hair.
Why was Hwasan the one who had borrowed money, yet the bill was being sent to the Hwaeum branch!
“Does this make sense? Huh? Do you think this makes sense?”
With his temper, he wanted to grab something and throw it, smashing it to pieces, but the bitter thing was that in the desolate beggar den, there was nothing in particular worth breaking.
“Wh… what should we do, Branch Leader?”
At the cautious question from one of the Beggars Sect members, Hong Daekwang shouted back without a moment’s hesitation.
“What do you mean, what should we do! Tell them not to talk bullshit! Why should we repay money the Jinan branch lent out!”
“…..It does say they will return it to us later.”
“I’m telling you, that’s not the point!”
Of course, the letter also said to charge Hwasan Shinryong for the amount of money they had paid out. It also said that Hwasan’s disciples had agreed to that fact as well.
But Hong Daekwang absolutely did not take those words at face value.
‘What kind of bastard is Hwasan Shinryong?’
Money? He would give them money. Hong Daekwang believed that. Ah, of course, it was not Hwasan Shinryong he believed in, but Hwasan. At least when it came to matters like this, Hyun Jong was a clean and proper person. If only to avoid getting beaten by the Sect Leader, that bastard would repay the money.
The problem was that in return for paying it back, he would surely demand something else. Something damned troublesome, complicated, and utterly dreadful.
“Tell them to deal with it themselves! We absolutely won’t give it to them.”
“Yes, understood. But, that…”
One of the Beggars Sect’s disciples who had received the order tilted his head and scratched at it, as though something bothered him.
“What? What is it?”
“Will that really be all right?”
“What will? Did we do something wrong? Why should we pay back what they borrowed in the first place!”
The Beggars Sect’s member glanced at Hong Daekwang’s expression before cautiously opening his mouth.
“Branch Leader, you are right, but… if things go that way, the Jinan branch will end up getting drenched in filth, won’t it.”
“That’s how it should be.”
“But the one throwing that filth over them would be Hwasan, would it not?”
“….Huh?”
Hong Daekwang looked at the Beggars Sect’s disciple as though asking what that meant.
“That… the reason Branch Leader abandoned that well-placed Luoyang branch and came all the way here was because you had staked so much on Hwasan, was it not?”
“Right?”
“But… if that happens, it will end up looking as if Hwasan extorted the Beggars Sect’s money and ran off…”
“Uh…..”
“Then would not be Branch Leader, who tied himself to Hwasan, that ends up ruined?”
Hong Daekwang’s mouth fell wide open.
“No… that’s… why does it turn out like that…”
“That is how it is, is it not? The Jinan Branch Leader may get cursed at a bit and be driven out of his position as Branch Leader… but honestly, the Jinan branch is not that impressive a place, and the higher-ups will have their own thoughts on the matter, so if he says Hwasan Shinryong barged in and caused a ruckus, they will probably take the circumstances into account. But we…”
“We’ll be screwed.”
He knew it instinctively. If this report went up, it would not end with just having their begging bowls smashed.
He could already see, as clear as day, the elders coming running with dog-beating staffs in hand, asking whether this was the result of the management he had insisted on so stubbornly, even going so far as to set up a branch in Hwaeum so he could manage Hwasan.
“Branch Leader. In my opinion…”
He knew what would come next without needing to hear the rest.
Hong Daekwang, who had finished calculating in an instant, squeezed his eyes shut and opened his mouth.
“…Send it.”
“But….”
“Just give it to them. Give it.”
“No, that’s……”
“I said just give it to them and end this!”
When Hong Daekwang suddenly flew into rage, the Beggars Sect’s disciple frowned sharply.
“That’s not what I mean.”
“Huh?”
“We’re a little short on money.”
“…”
“Even if we scrape together every bit of the operating funds, I think it’ll still be not enough.”
Clear tears gathered at the corners of Hong Daekwang’s eyes.
“If you dig under the doghouse in the back yard… there’s something I buried there. If you sell that, it should be enough to make up what we’re short…”
“You really did tuck something away for yourself, even in the middle of all this. Understood.”
As the Beggars Sect’s disciple turned and went out without hesitation, Hong Daekwang, half-drained of color, muttered blankly.
“Now they’re going all the way to Shandong and raising hell too…”
A single tear traced a line through the grime on his face and fell onto the lap of that sorrowful middle-aged man.
________
*An idiom, meaning squeezing someone dry, taking the last scraps etc.
________
Please, subscribe/donate on Patreon or Buymeacoffee – support my work and help me buy official cookies to purchase the chapters. My schedule is on the About page.
Leave a Reply