You’ll find out soon enough. (4)
“You’re saying there are no problems?”
“Yes.”
One of the merchant guild members answered, lowering his head slightly.
“Rather than merely having no problems, they have received very favorable assessments. Of course, there is one slippery bastard among them… But when ten people gather, isn’t it normal for one or two of them to cause trouble?”
“…..That is true.”
“They are all diligent and strong, so the word is they’re good men to put to work.”
“Hmmmm.”
Yeom Malsaeng stroked his beard, almost as though tugging at it.
‘Did I misjudge them?’
There had definitely been something unsettling about them… Then again, if that feeling had been accurate, there was no way the face reader could have failed to notice it.
“What did Hong-ga say?”
“He says that he put them through the wringer, but there was nothing particularly strange about any of them.”
“Really?”
“Yes.”
Yeom Malsaeng furrowed his brow slightly, then nodded.
“….Hmm. Then I suppose I was mistaken. Well….”
The merchant guild member lowered his head without answering.
Yeom Malsaeng let out a deep sigh and waved his hand lightly.
“Never mind. If I was mistaken, then that’s all the better. It means we’ve gained several useful workers.”
“Then…….”
Yeom Malsaeng let out a short sigh before answering.
“Leave them be. If there had been even the slightest reason for suspicion, I would have driven them all out today… But with us already short-handed, there is no need to complicate matters over needless suspicions. Just make certain everything is in order for tonight.”
“Yes. I’ll make sure everyone understands.”
As he watched the merchant guild member leave, Yeom Malsaeng stroked his beard once more.
“…I must be getting old.”
Seemingly tired, he rubbed the corners of his eyes, then rose from his seat. This was no time to be worrying about such things.
“I’ll have to check one more time.”
Tonight had to be perfect. If there was a mistake, it would not end with just one head.
❀ ❀ ❀
“Amitabha.”
After finishing the day’s work, Hye Yeon briefly chanted the Buddhist invocation, fatigue weighing on his voice. The wig covering his head felt so awkward that he kept reaching up to adjust it.
“Good grief. I told you not to chant Buddhist invocations, Monk.”
“….I’m sorry.”
Hye Yeon felt that there was no reason he couldn’t at least chant an invocation even if he was not acting as a monk, but there was no harm in being cautious, either.
“It seems there is no such thing as an easy job in this world.”
“Hm? You think so?”
Jo Geol looked at Hye Yeon with curiosity.
In truth, a laborer’s work consisted almost entirely of carrying and moving loads. It might be difficult for ordinary people, but for those who had trained their bodies through martial arts, it was hardly a challenge.
“Simply having to spend the entire day doing what someone else tells you to do makes the day feel long.”
“Ah…….”
“For ordinary people, the physical exhaustion would be added to that as well. I think I understand why the Buddha so strongly emphasized that life is a sea of suffering. I should have given more thought to the lives of sentient beings.”
Jo Geol rubbed his face with his roughened hand.
“Sahyeong. Why does he have to be like that even at a time like this?”
“…Hmm. Yes, he has a point. Come to think of it, we have not had many opportunities to experience the lives of commoners firsthand. When you think about it, this could be an extremely important experience.”
When, contrary to his expectations, even Yoon Jong began saying much the same thing as Hye Yeon, Jo Geol turned his head in search of salvation.
But there was no one who could save him. All he saw was Baek Cheon, who had half given up on himself over the bushy beard stuck to his face, Yu Iseol, who for some reason looked dejected, and Tang Soso desperately trying to console her.
And……
“Mmph….”
“Why is this bastard dead drunk from the start of the evening?”
“What did he say again? Something about how, if he had known there was this much liquor in Beijing that he had never tasted in his life, he would’ve come here ages ago and drunk himself senseless?”
“….He found happiness even in the middle of all this.”
Should one call this impressive, or should one call it hopeless?
“How many days has it been?”
“It’s the third day now.”
Jo Geol whipped his head around.
“No, you said a new shipment would come in after three days.”
“….It certainly has been that way until now.”
Hong-ga scratched the back of his head with an awkward expression. If it had been the first day, that sheepish look alone would have sent a chill down their spines, but after spending several days together, they had grown somewhat accustomed even to that face.
“So are we supposed to keep waiting around without a plan?”
It was then.
Bang!
The door was flung open violently, and one of the merchant guild members came inside.
Those who had been sitting about on the beds scrambled to their feet. Though they were all employed by the Gahwa Merchant Guild, the laborers who did physical work and the merchants who handled the goods occupied entirely different social positions.
“……Who is that bastard?”
“Ah, well….”
The merchant guild member clicked his tongue when he saw Chung Myung sprawled out on a bed, snoring away. But working hours were already over, so there was no grounds for reprimanding someone simply for having a drink.
“I have a message to deliver. Starting at the hour of the Pig* tonight, you are forbidden to leave the lodgings. You may not even go to the privy. Bear that in mind.”
At those words, Hong-ga slowly raised his hand.
“……May I ask why?”
The merchant guild member furrowed his brow fiercely and snapped back.
“If you’re told to do something, then do as you’re told. Why do you have so many questions?”
“I’m sorry.”
“I said it clearly. The hour of the Pig. If anyone leaves the lodgings after the hour of the Pig has arrived, I won’t let it end with a mere beating. Keep that in mind.”
The merchant guild member spoke to Hong-ga in a low voice.
“You do know why I’m telling you this, don’t you?”
“Of course, Sir.”
“Good. Then.”
The merchant guild member swept a sharp gaze over each of the laborers before heading outside.
Click.
The moment they heard the door close, the disciples of Hwasan quickly exchanged glances.
“Something seems to be happening, doesn’t it?”
“It’s obvious.”
“What could it be? Is the shipment we’ve been waiting for coming in?”
“I don’t think so. It is different from the way things have been done until now. If it were a shipment, they would not go to such lengths.”
Tang Soso shrugged as she spoke.
“Could a high-ranking official be coming?”
“A high-ranking official?”
“Perhaps someone who must not be seen in public without good reason. That would explain why they’re forbidding anyone from going outside.”
Baek Cheon nodded.
“That makes sense. Then who could it be? Who has ties to the Director of the Ministry of Revenue, yet is someone whose visit here must not become known?”
Everyone exchanged another round of meaningful glances.
“Chief Eunuch, Do Hyeon.”
“That would make sense.”
“Hmm. Amitabha. Isn’t that a rather hasty conclusion? If he is the Director of the Ministry of Revenue, he must have ties to quite a few high-ranking officials.”
“No, it isn’t a hasty conclusion.”
Tang Soso quickly stepped in to object.
“The very reason we came here in the first place was that we believed the Director of the Ministry of Revenue was plotting something together with the Chief Eunuch. If that’s true, there would be nothing strange about the Chief Eunuch coming here in person.”
“That is true, but…”
At that moment, Jwa Gohak spoke up.
“There is no real need to argue about it. We can simply find out.”
“But they warned us repeatedly, didn’t they? If we happen to get caught, it won’t just put us at risk. The people here will be in danger as well.”
“Hmm, that’s…….”
Jwa Gohak was just letting out a troubled groan, as though he had not considered that point, when….
“Well, then we just don’t get caught.”
“Hm?”
Everyone turned towards the source of the voice.
“Damn it.”
“You bastard, why did you bring that with you too!”
There stood Chung Myung, wearing a mask he had pulled out from somewhere.
“I thought we might have a use for it.”
“Don’t tell me you really planned to slit some throats if things went wrong?”
“…”
“Seriously?”
Wow, does this bastard have no line he won’t cross?
“Well, that’s not what’s important right now.”
“…There is never a time when something like this isn’t important.”
“If we happen to get caught wearing these, they’ll think we’re robbers or thieves. Then everything will be fine.”
“You really think that’s going to work?”
Chung Myung ignored Baek Cheon, who was shouting in fury, and turned his head towards Hong-ga.
“You can get me a few more like this, can’t you?”
“…It is possible, but.”
Baek Cheon ground his teeth and shouted.
“I’m never wearing one! Never!”
⠀
“…This is rather uncomfortable.”
Hye Yeon pressed down the mask that kept riding up his face.
“In all my years….”
“Talking about it will only make us feel more miserable, so let’s stop.”
Hwasan’s disciples, all wearing identical masks as they perched on the eaves, quietly sighed.
“Sasuk, it’s almost ti… Sasuk?”
Yoon Jong cautiously poked Baek Cheon in the side. Baek Cheon, who had been staring blankly at the moon hanging in the sky, wiped once at the corner of his eye and nodded.
“Yes… I know. We need to get ready.”
“Isn’t this just how life is?”
“..…Thanks for the consolation.”
They had visited the Southern Lands, where house-sized beasts ran wild, and the Northern Sea, where even their eyebrows froze solid. But who would have thought… that he would one day find himself wearing a mask like a common thief and hiding on the eaves of someone else’s house.
“The future I imagined for myself wasn’t like this… I was supposed to wield a magnificent sword, fight my enemies, uphold justice, and make my name known throughout the world… something like that…”
“Would you quit muttering already? You’re making too much noise. Just put your mask on properly.”
“…”
Baek Cheon let out a deep sigh and glanced over at Jwa Gohak. If even he was this shaken by the situation, then how must Jwa Gohak, a Confucian scholar, feel… Hm?
“What is it?”
“What do you mean?”
“Why do you look like you’re secretly enjoying this?”
Baek Cheon frowned deeply when he saw Jwa Gohak’s shoulders twitching strangely.
“There is nothing particularly bad about it, is there? It is a situation I had hoped for at least once.”
“You hoped to hide like a thief and spy on people?”
“That is not what I meant. I meant that I hoped for a situation where we would not shy away from unpleasant tasks in order to uphold justice. ‘A person of virtue walks the main road**,’ and when carrying out a great undertaking, one does not quibble over whether the method is right or wrong.”
“You’re sure that saying actually applies here, right?”
“Of course.”
“…”
This bastard was a lost cause too. And not just a little.
‘Is this really all right?’
Just as Baek Cheon was about to begin seriously wondering what on earth he was doing…
“They’re coming, Sasuk.”
“Hm?”
A small procession began to appear in the distance.
Baek Cheon narrowed his eyes as he studied the situation, then tilted his head in confusion.
“There aren’t many people for this to be the procession of a high-ranking official.”
“If he were coming openly with attendants in tow, there would be no need to avoid the servants’ eyes.”
“Certainly…….”
Baek Cheon nodded as he watched the small carriage approaching them.
In any case, that man Do Hyeon is supposed to be inside there, right?
“The head of the palace eunuchs. I admit, I am curious to see what kind of extraordinary person he is.”
Baek Cheon was just about to say one more thing when…
“Hey, bookworm.”
“Yes?”
After Chung Myung, who had been quiet all this time, suddenly spoke up, Jwa Gohak turned to him with a puzzled look.
“Do those eunuch bastards practice martial arts too?”
“Yes. All the high-ranking officials of the Eastern Depot practice martial arts. The palace eunuchs also serve as the Emperor’s guards, after all.”
“Really?”
“But why do you ask?”
“Sasuk.”
Chung Myung did not answer and called quietly to Baek Cheon.
“Hm?”
“You’d better be careful.”
At that moment, the small carriage that had come along the road stopped in front of the Gahwa Merchant Guild’s main gate. Soon, the door opened, and a man of a large build emerged from inside.
A beardless face. Yet even without a beard, the man exuded an imposing presence that seemed to bear down on everyone around him.
The expressionless eyes of Chief Eunuch Do Hyeon turned towards the main gate of the Gahwa Merchant Guild.
“That bastard…….”
Chung Myung kept his eyes fixed on Do Hyeon, the corners of his mouth twisting strangely.
“He’s a master [or expert 고수].”
The main gate quietly opened, and Do Hyeon slowly began to make his way into the Gahwa Merchant Guild.
Special Spinoff Chapter 65 >>>
________
*해시(亥時) – from 9pm to 11pm.
**군자대로행(君子大路行) – 君子 – a noble person/a person of high moral integrity; 大路 – main road/wide road. So why does the phrase “You’re sure that saying actually applies here, right?” follow what Jwa Gohak said?
This saying means that a person of moral integrity walks the main road aka this person doesn’t shy away from spotlight, walking the righteous path, rather than taking shortcuts and moving in back alleys (shadows – contrasting the main road), or using underhanded methods. But here they.. are using underhanded methods and hiding in the shadows.. What they are doing looks more like ‘the end justify the means?’ This is why Baek Cheon is asking if this actually applies.
________
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