“Oh? Cousin Seon-il?”
“Hm? Seo-ho? What brings you to the palace at this hour… Ah! You’re here because of the Windcraft Fan you mentioned before.”
“That’s right. I just finished my audience with His Majesty.”
“It’s great to run into you like this!”
“Same here.”
Cousin Seon-il turned to the eunuch who was escorting me.
“This is my younger cousin. Since we happened to meet in the palace, I’d like to show him around the garden. I’ll escort him outside myself, so you may return now.”
“Very well.”
The eunuch bowed and left.
Seon-il smiled.
“Come along. I’ll show you the imperial garden.”
I asked cautiously.
“Am I… even allowed in there?”
“You didn’t hang that entry pass on your belt just for decoration, did you?”
Well, he wasn’t wrong. With an official entry pass, I could go pretty much anywhere in the palace except for areas guarded by the Imperial Guards.
“Besides, the garden’s the most beautiful place in the entire palace.”
The garden Cousin Seon-il led me to was breathtaking.
Rare flowers and exotic plants were laid out in perfect harmony with curious rock formations.
It was truly a sight to behold.
“What do you think? Amazing, right?”
“It’s incredible.”
“Honestly, working in the palace… it made me realize how wonderful it’d be to walk this garden with family.”
I understood exactly what he meant.
Ordinary people couldn’t just stroll into the palace.
You needed an official entry pass.
Those who held government positions had permanent passes, while others were issued temporary ones for specific purposes.
What he meant was… he envied fathers and brothers who could walk this garden together because they were qualified to enter the palace.
“If you felt that way, you should’ve told me sooner.”
“Hmm, ahem. I wasn’t… jealous or anything.”
Well, since he was kind enough to show me such a beautiful place, I figured I’d enjoy the day with him to the fullest.
As we walked and chatted about this and that, I ended up telling him about the child I rescued yesterday.
“That happened?”
“Yes, Cousin.”
“Playing by the river at that hour… Seems like those kids aren’t from well-off families.”
“Huh?”
“If they were, they’d be studying at the academy or practicing martial arts at the training hall at that time.”
“Ah… You’re right.”
He was absolutely right.
“That’s why people like us, government officials, have to try harder… but honestly, it’s never enough.”
“…”
“Among those who can’t afford to study, there are surely talented individuals the court desperately needs.”
As we continued touring the garden, a thought struck me.
What I did back then—ruining the Murim Alliance’s attempt to plant someone in the palace—was truly the right move.
It wasn’t just about stopping the Murim Alliance’s ambitions.
It was also because… Cousin Seon-il looked genuinely happy here.
Like a fish in water.
But… would the Murim Alliance really give up on placing someone in the palace?
No.
To them, the palace was the most threatening place.
They’d never stop trying to plant their people here.
Which meant… I needed to plant my own people here too.
That way, when the Murim Alliance made a move, I could counter them.
And that wasn’t the only reason.
The information inside the palace was priceless for someone like me, who dreamed of making the Eunhae Merchant Group the greatest under heaven.
The reason I was able to get involved with the palace in the first place… was because I had advance knowledge of the Salt Distribution Act.
In other words, I leveraged information.
But the truth was… I didn’t have nearly enough intel on the palace itself.
Even though the Emperor trusted me, that trust only went as far as trusting me as someone from a merchant background.
If there was a high-ranking official who shared palace information with me and supported me and the merchant group… how reassuring would that be?
But recruiting palace officials was no easy task.
The higher their rank, the greedier they were.
Ordinary amounts of money wouldn’t move them.
On top of that, they constantly watched the Emperor’s mood. So they wouldn’t easily take the bait.
Targeting low-ranking officials wasn’t worthwhile either. The information they could offer was practically useless.
Then… I remembered something Cousin Seon-il said earlier.
— Among those who can’t afford to study, there are surely talented individuals the court desperately needs.
A good idea popped into my head.
If that’s the case… why not earn their gratitude right from the start using the Eunhae Merchant Group’s wealth?
In other words… I could establish an academy.
Train talents from the ground up. Raise them properly, and send them into the palace through legitimate means.
Support those who are poor but intelligent. Or those with great skills.
And I’d have a perfect justification.
It wasn’t just about merchants making money for themselves.
It’d be framed as contributing to the nation.
Cousin Seon-il glanced at me, tilting his head.
“Why are you suddenly looking like that?”
“Oh. It’s nothing. I just got lost for a moment because the scenery’s so beautiful.”
“Hah… You’re hopeless.”
After finishing our tour of the garden, Cousin Seon-il walked me all the way to the palace gates.
“Then, I’ll see you tonight for dinner.”
“Yes, Cousin.”
Palgap and the Escort Guards, who had been waiting at the entrance, approached me, and we headed back to the Yeonjun Merchant Group.
.
.
.
As soon as I returned to my room, I started writing a letter to Father.
Then I called out to Geumryeong, hidden inside my sleeve.
“Geumryeong.”
“Kui?”
“Can you run an errand for me?”
“Kui?”
“This letter… deliver it to Father. I’ll give you this in return.”
I pulled out a silver tael and shook it.
At the sight of it, Geumryeong jumped up and bit down on it.
Then gulped it down whole.
Now that you’ve eaten… time to work.
I tied the letter to Geumryeong’s tail.
Geumryeong shot out the window like an arrow.
The next day.
Geumryeong returned with Father’s reply tied to its tail.
I untied the letter and opened it.
The response was simple.
[The meeting went quite positively. We should discuss this further and settle the details.]
Just as I expected.
Anyway, the deadline I’d given Bo-uk was tomorrow.
But I wasn’t worried.
He would come to me no matter what.
Bo-uk lifted his head.
The sun was rising.
He hadn’t slept a wink last night.
It was all because of the handsome young man he met—the one who helped rescue the child from the river.
His name… was Eun Seo-ho.
That man had offered him a job in the merchant group with an absurdly generous salary.
But… Bo-uk couldn’t believe it.
Why?
Why would someone offer him that much money?
Why would someone go that far to hire someone like him?
At first… he’d even been angry.
He thought Eun Seo-ho was mocking him for failing the metropolitan exam for five years straight.
A kind of… inferiority complex.
The man who had helped save the child could never be someone like that, and yet… the fact that Bo-uk even thought such a thing proved how five years of preparing for the metropolitan exam had worn him down.
Even after realizing that Eun Seo-ho wasn’t mocking him—especially seeing how serious he was—he still couldn’t bring himself to trust him completely.
Shamefully… it was because he’d been scammed more than a few times.
Once, someone claiming to be a former high-ranking official who used to write exam questions offered lectures. Bo-uk had paid a hefty tuition, only to find out it was a scam.
Another time, he bought an expensive elixir claiming to boost intelligence. That too… was a scam.
After being tricked so many times, it became impossible to trust easily.
That’s when Eun Seo-ho placed a silver tael in front of him and said,
— Consider this… a token of our meeting. Use it as you like. Then… check into who I am. If you decide I’m trustworthy, come to the Yeonjun Merchant Group. I’ll be there for the next three days before leaving the capital.
Rather than persuading him, Eun Seo-ho boldly told him to investigate for himself.
There was so much confidence radiating from him… he seemed to shine brighter than sunlight dancing on water.
From that day on, Bo-uk started asking around about Eun Seo-ho.
“Ah, you mean the Deputy Merchant Lord? He’s the guy who invented the Self-Dancing Doll.”
“You know the Windcraft Fan, right? The Department Chief of the Virtuous Wind Department made that.”
“Since he became the Deputy Merchant Lord, the Eunhae Merchant Group has grown insanely fast.”
“Huh? What’s his connection to the Yeonjun Merchant Group? Turns out, he’s the cousin of that Hong Seon-il who recently passed the imperial exam in the top rank.”
“He’s a young merchant, but he meets with the Emperor regularly. His future’s as bright as the sun.”
Putting all that together… it was honestly shocking.
He was the youngest son of the Eunhae Merchant Group, a salt distributor based in Hubei, and also served as the Deputy Merchant Lord.
On top of that, he was the Department Chief of the Virtuous Wind Department.
In just a few years, he developed and sold the Self-Dancing Doll, the Windcraft Fan, and the Self-Playing Zither.
Even leaving everything else aside… those three alone were still selling like wildfire.
Not to mention… he was also the cousin of Hong Seon-il, the man who recently passed the imperial exam with top honors and received high praise from the Emperor.
In other words… a trustworthy person.
But that only made Bo-uk more confused.
He couldn’t understand what someone like that could possibly see in him to offer such a high salary.
And so… he spent the entire night agonizing over it.
Grrrrr…
His stomach rumbled loudly.
Scratching his head awkwardly, he rubbed his belly.
“Even though I ate well just the other day… I’m still starving when it’s mealtime.”
Muttering to himself, he reached for his money pouch buried deep in his bag.
It felt light.
He shook it onto his palm… but the only thing inside was the silver tael Eun Seo-ho had given him.
‘Right… My last job’s pay went straight to covering the inn and meals.’
But… he couldn’t bring himself to spend the silver tael Eun Seo-ho gave him.
Maybe it was because of hunger, but that coin looked especially shiny today.
Looking at his current situation… made him feel downright miserable.
He was already questioning whether it was right to keep preparing for the exam when his mother and older brother were scraping by back in the countryside to support him.
He made up his mind.
Whatever else… he didn’t want to be hungry anymore.
That… was the biggest reason behind his decision.
Bo-uk stood up.
And headed for the Yeonjun Merchant Group.
I was packing my things to return to the Eunhae Merchant Group’s headquarters.
When’s Bo-uk going to show up, I wonder?
The reason I gave him that silver tael and told him to investigate me… was because I was confident in my reputation.
Once he realized I was trustworthy… that’s when the real dilemma would start for him.
Why?
Because he’d start wondering why someone like me would offer someone like him such a high salary.
But honestly…
That’s a pointless worry.
The longer he thought about it… the more the reality of having no money, of being hungry, of facing an uncertain future… would hit harder.
And in the end…
“Young Master, the man named Bo-uk you met the other day has arrived.”
He’d choose to pursue a new opportunity.
A faint smile tugged at my lips.
“Bring him to the guest room.”
“Yes, sir.”
.
.
.
A short while later, we met in the guest room.
Bo-uk sat there, trembling slightly, clearly nervous.
“So… you’ve finally come.”
“Ah!”
As soon as he saw me, he jumped up from his seat.
“There’s no need for such formalities.”
“No, no… You’re far greater than I imagined.”
“Hahaha.”
I chuckled.
“As I said before, I’d like to hire you at eight silver taels per month. Will you accept my offer?”
He nodded.
“I accept.”
“Then let’s discuss the details.”
I glanced at Palgap.
Noticing my gaze, Palgap laid a large writing board down on the table.
Then placed two documents on top of it.
“What’s this?”
“The contract. As you know… I’m a merchant. Merchants move by contracts.”
“But… I don’t go back on my word.”
“I know. This is more of a restriction on me. This ensures I pay your monthly salary on time.”
Though I phrased it gently, the truth was…
Contracts are meant to bind both sides, not just one.
After thinking for a moment, Bo-uk picked up the contract and started reading.
This was the standard contract the Eunhae Merchant Group used when hiring clerks.
Nothing out of the ordinary.
“All right. Let’s do it.”
“You won’t regret this?”
“No.”
At his firm answer, I smiled.
“Welcome to the Eunhae Merchant Group. From this moment on, we’ll be working together for the next ten years.”
Our employment contracts were always in ten-year terms.
But honestly… no one ever left after ten years.
There was simply no place with better benefits than the Eunhae Merchant Group.
“We leave for headquarters tomorrow. Make sure your things are packed by morning.”
“Understood.”
The next day, we departed Beijing and headed for Hubei, where the Eunhae Merchant Group was located.
Compared to when we came… our party had grown by one.
When we arrived at headquarters, I turned to Clerk Bo-uk and said,
“This is the Eunhae Merchant Group.”
“Incredible… I made the right choice coming here.”
Seeing him admire the place, I said,
“I’ll take you to your quarters. Rest up today. Tomorrow morning, report to the Virtuous Wind Department.”
–TL Notes–
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