I sent Escort Guard Chang Un to inform Warrior Jin Yeong of what had happened.
In the meantime, Palgap treated Namgoong I-in with Geumryeong’s saliva.
The effect was remarkable. Not even a trace of Namgoong I-in’s injuries remained.
After that, we properly dressed him again in the clothes we had taken off, laid him on the bed, and wiped away the bloodstains until everything was clean.
As for the smell of blood, we opened the door to air out the room, then covered whatever remained with incense from the burner.
It was incense Agent Ha Hwa had brought over, and perhaps because it was meant for situations like this, it worked very well at erasing odors.
But we did not treat the wound on his shoulder.
That wound had to remain. It would make my story more believable when I said he had attacked me, and I had simply fought back.
A short while later.
Dadadadada!
The sound of a group rushing toward us came from outside. And then,
Bang!
The detached building’s door flew open, and Warrior Jin Yeong hurried inside, shouting.
“Deputy Merchant Lord Eun Seo-ho!”
“Yes, I’m right here.”
He ran over to me and checked me over from head to toe.
“Are you all right? You’re not hurt anywhere?”
“As if I’d be injured by an assassin who was only at the First-rate level.”
“Well… I suppose that’s true.”
Warrior Jin Yeong let out a breath of relief and rubbed his chest.
“I heard the assassin who killed Poet Na Jeong-su attacked you.”
“That’s right.”
I pointed at the bed.
“I knocked him out and put him over there.”
Warrior Jin Yeong looked that way and clicked his tongue in disbelief.
“You’re too softhearted for your own good. If it were me, I would’ve tied him up and hung him upside down from the ceiling.”
At that, I only smiled without saying a word.
To be honest, we did much worse than that.
Warrior Jin Yeong gave an order to the subordinate who had come with him.
“Take him to the Magistrate’s Office!”
“Yes, sir!”
“Ah! He may attempt suicide, so it would be best to bind all four of his limbs.”
Since I had even healed his broken wrist.
At my words, Warrior Jin Yeong nodded.
“Do that.”
“Ah, and please inform His Majesty. I suspect he’ll be rather pleased.”
Namgoong I-in opened his eyes when he felt his body swaying.
Clink.
The strange sound ringing in his ears, the uncomfortable posture he had been placed in.
And the damp, musty smell around him.
All of it told him where he was.
The underground prison.
“Hah!”
At the same time, the memories came rushing back.
He had attacked the detached building at Spring Dream Pavilion to kill Eun Seo-ho and silence him, only to realize that it had been a trap.
He had tried to kill himself, but someone had stopped him, and he had lost consciousness…
When he woke up, Eun Seo-ho was looking down at him with that handsome face of his and smiling.
“There’s something I’d like to know, so I’d appreciate your cooperation.”
The fact that both of his wrists had already been broken was the mild part.
The interrogation, disguised as torture, that began from that moment had dug all the way into his most sensitive places.
“I feel like there’s still more.”
“There isn’t! There’s nothing else!”
“That doesn’t sound right…”
When Eun Seo-ho glanced aside, the escort guard beside him twisted the sword buried in Namgoong I-in’s thigh.
“Kuaaaaagh!”
He had no idea how they knew he was still hiding something, but under that kind of pain, there was no way not to speak.
That cycle repeated again and again. He would faint from the pain, regain consciousness, and be forced through it all over again.
Each time, he swore to himself.
He would never let this pass.
Yes, he had done something that tarnished the Namgoong Clan’s name, but he was still a member of the Namgoong Clan.
If anyone was going to interrogate him, it should have been the Namgoong Clan.
Not some lowly merchant.
‘How dare a filthy merchant lay hands on my body?’
Separate from whatever punishment he might receive, he intended to report this to Elder Namgoong Geon-ji and make sure Eun Seo-ho was punished as well.
But then…
Something felt strange.
‘Why doesn’t it hurt?’
The pain had been so severe that he had fainted and woken up several times, yet now he could not feel any of that agony at all.
Only the place where he had been struck while attacking Eun Seo-ho throbbed faintly.
He inspected his body, and his eyes widened in horror.
‘Th-This can’t be! This is impossible!’
There was not a single trace of torture left on his body.
At this rate, he could not claim to Elder Namgoong Geon-ji that he had been tortured.
As he was still reeling in shock, he heard someone’s footsteps.
Soon, the figures who appeared in front of him were Elder Namgoong Geon-ji and Young Lord Namgoong Yang.
And behind them stood Deputy Merchant Lord Eun Seo-ho.
Eun Seo-ho gave him a gentle smile, and at that smile, Namgoong I-in bit his lip.
I saw Namgoong I-in in the underground prison.
The moment he saw me, his eyes flew open, and his body trembled. It was obvious he was absolutely furious.
But what was he going to do about it?
He had wanted to screw me over, but in the end, he was the one who got served that poison.
“Namgoong I-in!”
Elder Namgoong Geon-ji thundered at him.
“How dare you do something like this!”
“…”
He approached Namgoong I-in and slapped him across the face.
Pow!
“And because of you… because of your idiotic actions, do you have any idea how much trouble you’ve brought upon the main family?”
Elder Namgoong Geon-ji’s hand was trembling.
Of course it was. Before coming here, we had met with Warrior Jin Yeong.
And Warrior Jin Yeong had relayed the Emperor’s will to Elder Namgoong Geon-ji.
“A member of the Namgoong Clan brutally murdered a participant in the Poetry and Prose Competition hosted by the Imperial Family, and he did so within Beijing’s Inner City. His Majesty has asked whether the Namgoong Clan looks down on the Imperial Family.”
“N-No! Absolutely not! We have never harbored even the slightest such intention.”
“Is that so?”
Under that questioning, Elder Namgoong Geon-ji immediately threw himself flat on the ground and bowed his head.
“I-It is the truth. This is that man’s personal wrongdoing! It is absolutely not an issue involving the Namgoong Clan.”
Elder Namgoong Geon-ji, who had always carried himself with such arrogance, had clearly understood that this was a time to grovel.
After all, the Emperor’s words were, in effect, asking whether they had rebellious intent.
No matter how high the Namgoong Clan stood in the martial world, they could not survive if they made the Imperial Family their enemy.
If the Imperial Family mobilized the Imperial Guards, the Namgoong Clan would vanish without a trace.
And if the martial forces that hated the Namgoong Clan joined in as well, what happened next would be obvious.
The truth was, until now, the Imperial Family had simply left the Namgoong Clan alone because they lacked a justification to pressure them.
But now that such a clear justification had fallen into their hands, there was no way they would let it pass.
“Then should you not show His Majesty something that would allow him to trust you?”
“…”
A method he had not been able to use because Young Lord Namgoong Yang had been proven innocent was finally available to him.
In any case, Elder Namgoong Geon-ji had been humiliated like that, yet he had no way to vent his anger.
And now the very man responsible for creating this situation was right in front of him. How could he possibly hold back?
Pow! Pow! Pow!
“Kuh! Ghh! K-Keugh!”
“And because of you, I! I, Namgoong Geon-ji! Had to suffer that disgrace! That humiliation!”
Whether his anger still had not cooled or his own hand was starting to hurt, he picked up the whip lying nearby and began striking Namgoong I-in himself.
Crack! Crack!
“K-Keugh! Hngh!”
Namgoong I-in had been gagged, so he could not even defend himself properly. He could only be beaten helplessly.
Now and then, he shot me looks full of rage, but no matter how angry he was, there was nothing he could do.
That was why he should not have done something like this in the first place.
Still… it would be a problem if he died here.
“Elder, please calm your anger. Warrior Namgoong I-in is…”
“What Warrior? He’s a dirty Assassin! Just call him by his name!”
“Yes, then…”
That was what I had wanted to do from the start, but there was a difference between doing it with permission and without permission.
“Namgoong I-in is also an important witness for the Magistrate’s Office. We need him alive if we’re going to find the person who commissioned this murder.”
“Hoo…”
Elder Namgoong Geon-ji restrained his fury and shouted.
“Then who was it? Who commissioned you?”
“He is still gagged.”
I briefly stopped the elder, then glanced at the jailer.
The jailer quickly stepped forward and removed Namgoong I-in’s gag.
“So, who was it?”
“I-I don’t know for certain… But if I see the person’s hand and hear their voice, I may recognize them.”
“You will find them. No matter what it takes!”
“Yes.”
Of course he would have to.
They had to find the culprit in order to prove, even if only slightly, that the Namgoong Clan had no intention of rebelling against the Imperial Family.
If they managed that, the concessions the Namgoong Clan would have to make would also decrease.
The truth was, the Emperor had intended to use Young Lord Namgoong Yang’s murder charge to demand that the Namgoong Clan stop hovering around the Imperial Palace.
But Young Lord Namgoong Yang had been released, and the Emperor had been forced to give up that chance.
Now, however, I had captured the suspect like this, allowing him to pressure the Namgoong Clan even harder.
Naturally, His Majesty would be pleased.
.
.
.
Two days passed.
Even after the first preliminary round, a great many poets still remained.
It was only natural. This Poetry and Prose Competition had been opened to participants from across the entire empire.
And Elder Namgoong Geon-ji had originally intended to return to Anhui if Young Lord Namgoong Yang failed the preliminary round, but he was unable to do so now.
Because of Namgoong I-in.
Unfortunately, because Elder Namgoong Geon-ji had beaten him in the wrong place, there was now a problem with Namgoong I-in’s eyesight.
Because of that, he had to identify the culprit by voice alone, and that was not an easy thing to do.
Even if he was a First-rate martial artist and had sharper hearing than most people.
Hoo…
He really was useless from beginning to end.
After returning to the Beijing Branch, I was working in my office when Poet Song Rok came to see me.
“You’re here.”
“Yes.”
“Please, have a seat.”
I handed Poet Song Rok a sheet of paper after he sat down.
“So we have five possible suspects.”
That was right.
There were a total of five people whose poems contained traits similar to the poem written on the wall.
“This is… quite peculiar.”
“It really is.”
I sighed and looked up at the ceiling.
Still, narrowing it down to five out of that many people was something, at least.
Yes. Let’s think positively.
.
.
.
Night came.
Feeling stifled, I turned my head and looked at Young Lady Seohyang.
She was still working as well and had not gone home.
“Deputy Gwak.”
“Yes?”
“How about we take a walk in the rear garden to clear our heads?”
“That sounds nice.”
I went out to the rear garden with her, and we slowly walked together.
It was now the middle of the Third Month.
Because of that, the wind still carried a slight chill, but to me, it only felt refreshing.
“You seem troubled.”
“Yes. I am.”
At that moment, she smiled softly and recited a poem.
I let tomorrow’s worries drift away,
and today’s worries come floating down.
Tomorrow, and the tomorrow after that,
my worries keep drifting down without end.
Ah, so this is what it means
to live trapped in the mortal world.
I smiled at the poem.
“That’s one of Yun Ak’s poems.”
“That’s right. It’s also a poem I learned when I was young.”
She continued.
“This poem speaks about a life where worries never end. It makes you think that worries truly are endless.”
“Hahaha. That’s true.”
“So while we’re taking this walk, let’s forget our worries for a little while.”
“Pardon?”
“If you keep worrying while you walk, you can hardly call it a proper walk.”
At her words, I readily nodded.
“You’re right. By the way, Deputy Gwak, who taught you to read and write?”
“My older brothers taught me. Though my brothers were taught by a tutor the family invited.”
In a prestigious family like hers, they would invite a tutor to teach the children separately.
However, in most cases, that applied only to the sons. The daughters were taught by their mothers or other family members.
All so they would not have to show their faces to unrelated men.
Uh… wait.
A thought suddenly came to mind.
If all five of them lived in Anhui and were from the same region, then there was only one answer.
And I thought I understood the motive as well.
“Deputy Gwak, I apologize, but let’s end our walk here.”
After returning to my office, I wrote a letter in one smooth stroke and entrusted it to Geumryeong.
“Geumryeong, this is a letter for Father.”
“Kui!”
“I’m counting on you. Bring back a reply as quickly as you can.”
Geumryeong tied the letter to its tail and dashed off like an arrow. The reason I sent the letter to Father instead of the Intelligence Unit in Beijing was that Hubei was closer to Anhui than Beijing.
And a few days later.
When I opened my eyes at dawn, Geumryeong was perched on my chest.
“Ah! Geumryeong, you’re back?”
I sat up, stroked Geumryeong, and untied the letter from its tail.
As I read its contents, a smile rose to my lips.
As expected. So that was it.
.
.
.
That morning.
I sent a letter to Warrior Jin Yeong.
After breakfast, while I was handling my work, Warrior Jin Yeong came to the Beijing Branch.
“His Majesty has summoned you.”
“Warrior Jin Yeong, before that, there is something important I must tell you.”
I explained to him everything that had happened. Since Warrior Jin Yeong was the one in charge, he needed to know before I told the Emperor.
After hearing my explanation, Warrior Jin Yeong could not hide his surprise.
“So that is why you asked to see His Majesty.”
“Yes, that is correct.”
“Thank you for giving me advance notice. Let us go.”
“Yes.”
I followed him to the Imperial Palace.
When I offered the utmost courtesy, the Emperor ordered me to raise my head.
“Your grace is boundless, Your Majesty.”
“So, what matter brought you before me?”
“In truth, there is something I must report regarding the recent murder case. I have also come to ask that Your Majesty show mercy to the culprits.”
At my words, the Emperor thought for a moment before answering.
“If you say such a thing, then there must be a reason for it. Very well. Speak. I will take the circumstances into account as much as possible.”
At those words, I cupped my fist and bowed my head.
“This humble merchant will explain what happened.”
–TL Notes–
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