I barely managed to suppress the boiling rage and let him introduce his family.
There were four members in total.
The father and mother, the boy, and his younger sister.
The man with the surname Gong was named Du-i (斗二), and the children’s names were Gong Mil (孔蜜) and Gong Lae (孔萊).
“When my wife was pregnant with our son, she dreamed of a jar full of honey, so we named him Mil. When our daughter was born, she dreamed of picking loads of goosefoot flowers, so we named her Lae.”
“I see. Those are beautiful names.”
The father was an artisan.
The Gong family bowed to express their gratitude and brought out their prized tea.
“Thank you for the tea.”
“Much appreciated.”
Then I spotted the boy, Gong Mil, playing in the yard with his little sister.
“Look at this.”
“Wow! That’s amazing! You’re incredible, brother!”
In the boy’s hand was what looked like a toy cart he’d made himself.
But the cart moved on its own.
I was startled again.
‘Is that… an automatic cart?’
Though the design was crude, the basic structure was something I recognized.
A toy that had once been wildly popular among wealthy households—the automatic cart.
He had already made one.
Gong the potter noticed my gaze and said,
“My son is good at tinkering with small things like that.”
“Already being able to make something like that… He really is talented.”
“He is, and I’m proud of him, but it’s not like that kind of talent makes money. He plays with that stuff all day, and it just drives me crazy.”
“What do you mean by that?”
At my question, Gong looked at me, and I spoke firmly.
“It can make money. Actually, I’m the son of the Merchant Lord of the Eunhae Merchant Group. That’s why I can say this with confidence. If we sell the artifacts your son makes, they could bring in serious money.”
“I know that.”
Gong gave a bitter smile.
“But it’s the merchant who earns the money, not the craftsman who makes the goods, right?”
“…”
I went silent.
“Craftsmen are just used. Like the saying goes, the bear dances, but it’s the trainer who collects the coins.”
“…”
He wasn’t wrong.
“I’ve seen it far too many times working as an artisan. That’s why I don’t want my son to end up exploited like that.”
Gong’s eyes were filled with concern for his son.
Knowing how Gong Mil would suffer and eventually die from brutal overwork made my chest feel heavy.
If I backed off now, fate would only play another cruel trick on this family.
I didn’t want to regret it again.
After a moment of thought, I came up with an idea and opened my mouth.
“Then may I make a proposal?”
“A proposal?”
“Roughly how much of the profit from the pottery you make do you think you actually receive?”
“I’m not sure of the exact number, but I’m certain it’s less than a tenth.”
“Then if we offered you forty percent of the revenue, would you allow your son to work for our merchant group?”
“What?”
“Of course, we’d be open to revising that based on future contributions…”
I let my voice trail off and looked at Gong.
His eyes were filled with suspicion—what’s your angle?
I realized that words like these alone weren’t enough to convince him.
From what I could tell, their household wasn’t well-off.
And yet he still sent his son to school. That must’ve been because he didn’t want the boy to live a life of exploitation.
Which explained why the Jinkyeon Merchant Group had gone so far to get their hands on him.
I needed to approach this more sincerely.
But to speak openly, I needed the escort warriors to be gone.
“Excuse me…”
I turned to the escorts.
“Could you please get some snacks for the children?”
They nodded.
“Of course.”
They left the house, but I could sense it with my Qi.
Only one actually left.
The other remained nearby.
He had understood that I wanted privacy, but as a guard, he couldn’t afford to take any chances.
Still, this should be far enough that they couldn’t hear.
“To tell you the truth, I already know about your son’s talent.”
“Pardon?”
“I saw him in a dream. That’s why I was so surprised earlier—because I’d met the boy in a dream and then saw him in real life.”
“…”
“You probably don’t believe me.”
I smiled and continued.
“I wouldn’t believe it either if I were you. I’ve got no proof, and I can’t exactly beg you to believe me. Haha.”
“…”
“I came here just to meet him. But I couldn’t find the house. The only thing I remembered was that it had paulownia trees, so I was wandering around checking every house with them.”
I gave him a wry smile.
“Then, by chance, I caught a thief who turned out to be the one who stole your pouch. And you brought us here.”
“…”
“I believe it’s fate. Don’t you?”
“…”
After a long silence, Gong finally spoke.
“So then… what happened in that dream that made you come all this way?”
He continued.
“I’ve heard of the Eunhae Merchant Group. It’s one of the larger groups that regularly trades with the place I work. For the son of its Merchant Lord to come all this way in person… I’d really like to know what happened in that dream.”
“Someone discovered your son’s talent. But unfortunately, it caught the attention of a vile merchant group.”
Gong looked at me, and I didn’t avoid his gaze.
“That group kidnapped his parents to threaten him. From then on, his life became nothing but exploitation. Sleepless, starving, and forced to develop new artifacts, he…”
I let out a bitter laugh and continued.
“He dies of overwork.”
“…!”
“In the dream, he cried out in desperation. Begging me to save him and his family.”
“…”
“Can such a thing be called just a dream? No. When I saw what your son made today, I realized that it was likely a vision of what’s to come.”
What I called a dream was actually something that had already happened.
“He may only be at the age of learning, but even I could recognize his talent. You think others won’t?”
“…”
“It may sound odd coming from someone in a merchant group, but there are plenty of people who’ll do anything for money.”
“Then what about the Eunhae Merchant Group, Young Master? Does your group also do anything for money?”
I answered.
“A merchant group’s purpose is profit. But even so, our Eunhae Merchant Group acts with some measure of conscience. Valuing people is a principle that’s been passed down for generations, and I feel the same. That’s why I offered forty percent. At the very least, it’s fair enough that we won’t be called thieves.”
“That really all there is to it?”
“There’s also the fact that with that kind of talent, he can absolutely make a fortune.”
I smiled.
“I’m a merchant too, after all.”
“…”
“Please consider it. I’ll be heading back the day after tomorrow or perhaps the day after that, and I hope you’ll come with us then.”
“Alright. I’ll think about it.”
Just then, the escort warriors returned.
Their hands were full of snacks kids would love.
“Here they are.”
“Thanks for your trouble.”
I thanked the escorts, took the snacks, and approached the two children.
“Hey kids, do you like candied hawthorn and sugar pastries?”
“Wow! It’s candied hawthorn!”
“There’s sugar pastries too!”
Just as I expected, the children’s faces lit up. They grabbed the treats with both hands, one in each.
Seeing the two of them made me smile.
Looking at them like this, the guilt I carried about the craftsman I failed to save before… was starting to shift into something else.
I didn’t quite know what this feeling was.
.
.
.
Night fell.
The lanterns lit up across Geumseon Market, creating a stunning view.
After leaving Artisan Gong’s house, I wandered around the market.
I’d seen it during the day, but with all the lights, the night market felt like a whole different place.
Still, I quickly turned around.
“Are we heading back to the inn now?”
Palgap asked.
I shook my head.
“No. There’s somewhere I need to go.”
No matter how I thought about it, I still had a bad feeling.
In a village next to Geumseon, there was a merchant group.
Jinkyeon Merchant Group (榛樫商團).
It wasn’t very large, but it was quite well-known in the local porcelain trade.
In the merchant lord’s office, the merchant lord sat at a desk, his expression sour.
Before him, a man stood with his head bowed low.
“I heard you failed.”
“My apologies. Unfortunately, he was caught by a passing traveler.”
“Unfortunate, huh…”
“Yes, it was all because the third son of the Eunhae Merchant Group, who came here for business, dropped his water gourd…”
“Ha!”
“So that’s why you failed?”
“My apologies. But there’s no need to worry. I already gave orders to silence him, so his identity won’t be exposed.”
“Good. That was well done.”
The merchant lord nodded in satisfaction, tapping the armrest of his chair.
“Did you find out why that Eunhae brat came all the way here?”
“Well… we had someone tail him all day, but he just ate and strolled around the village.”
“Hmm… maybe just gaining escort experience?”
“Seems likely. He’s just a fifteen-year-old kid, after all.”
“He dropped by Gong’s house, didn’t he?”
“Gong said he couldn’t let them go without offering tea.”
“I see. In any case, there can’t be another failure next time.”
“Of course. No need to worry. I’ll make sure Gong signs a self-sale contract.”
A self-sale contract.
That meant a person selling themselves into slavery.
“He dares think of joining another merchant group, ignoring everything we’ve done for him? He’s not even worth pity. Hahaha.”
Morning came.
“You’re awake, sir?”
“Yeah. I’ll do some Qi circulation, keep watch for me.”
“Understood.”
After finishing my breathing exercises, my mind felt clearer.
The Supreme Yin Ice Sea Divine Art built up Yin Qi within the body, and after cycling Qi like that, my head always felt cool and refreshed.
Maybe that’s why I rarely ever sweat now.
“I brought your washing water.”
“Thanks.”
I washed up with the water Palgap brought, dressed neatly, and headed down to the first floor.
Time for breakfast.
When I got there, Master and Squad Leader Jeong were already at the table, chatting.
“Good morning.”
“Yes, we slept well, thank you.”
We exchanged brief morning greetings and I took a seat. Soon, members of the group began greeting us one by one as they sat at the table.
“What’s on the schedule for today?”
At my question, Ji Myeong-cheon, a Clerk from the Trade Pavilion, answered.
“We’re scheduled to head to the open field next to Geumseon Market at sìshí (9–11 a.m.) to conduct the transaction. We’ve exchanged letters with the other group to meet there.”
Squad Leader Jeong added,
“And we’re planning to leave early the morning after tomorrow. The Merchant Lord said he needs to take care of some business.”
The two Clerks from the Trade Pavilion nodded in agreement.
“I see.”
Clerk Im Gyeong-bin from the Finance Pavilion said,
“All you need to do, Young Master, is record the transaction as you were taught. No pressure.”
“I might make some mistakes, so please look over it carefully.”
“Don’t worry. I’ll double-check everything.”
After the meal, I returned to my room.
And from the window, I looked out over Geumseon Village.
I couldn’t tell whether Gong would accept my offer, which left me feeling a bit uneasy.
Of course, the child’s opinion mattered most, but since he wasn’t an adult yet, we’d need the parents’ consent to proceed.
Not long after, our group loaded up the silk into a cart and made our way to the clearing beside Geumseon Market.
The clearing was specifically set aside for large transactions.
I’d been here a few times before, and the place hadn’t changed a bit.
About a quarter of an hour after we arrived, a group pulling a cart appeared in the distance.
–TL Notes–
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