When the Academy Master saw it, an embarrassed look crossed his face.
“Wait! Isn’t that a withdrawal letter?”
“It is.”
“I told him to give me a little time so I could think of a solution… So this means he’s giving up on the civil service exam as well…”
“Looks that way. He’s already said several times that he’d be giving up on this round of the exam.”
What in the world is going on?
Brother Jeong-ho asked the Academy Master,
“Could you tell us what’s going on?”
The Academy Master hesitated for a moment, but couldn’t withstand our expectant looks and finally began to explain.
“The student’s name is Man Suk. He’s one of the successful provincial examinees produced by our Apricot Blossom Academy. He’s from Hebei.”
“Ah, right, I remember now. Isn’t he someone benefiting from our Eunhae Merchant Group’s education sponsorship system?”
“That’s right.”
“I heard he’d passed the provincial exam and was supposed to take the capital exam this time.”
“That’s true as well.”
He let out a sigh.
“But he says he’s giving up on the exam.”
“You said that earlier, but I still don’t really understand. What happened?”
Of course, even if he doesn’t take the exam this time, as long as he keeps his status, he can sit for it again later.
But the exam isn’t held every year; it only comes around once every three or four years.
Miss it once, and the wait until the next chance is painfully long.
On top of that, he’s been honing himself and working like crazy for this exam, only to suddenly give up?
And with only half a month left until the exam?
“So… what’s the reason?”
“Well…”
The one who answered my question wasn’t the Academy Master, but the teacher who’d brought us the news of Man Suk’s withdrawal.
“It’s because he has to support his younger siblings.”
“…?”
According to the explanation, Man Suk was the eldest of eight siblings.
Recently, misfortune struck: his father died in an accident.
His mother had already died of illness six years ago.
They’d been slowly paying off the debts from her long illness day by day. Then his father died in an accident on top of that, so of course the house the children lived in was sold and ended up in a loan shark’s hands.
The moneylender must have had at least a shred of conscience, since the person didn’t lay a hand on the siblings and only took the house.
But the siblings, suddenly thrown out onto the street, had no choice but to squeeze into their uncle’s house.
“Even so, thanks to the Eunhae Merchant Group’s education sponsorship, he could keep studying and eventually pass the provincial exam.”
“Then shouldn’t he all the more take the exam? If he passes and becomes an official, even if it isn’t a life of luxury, he can still support his siblings.”
“I think the same. And that’s exactly why Student Man Suk studied even harder.”
The Academy Master went on in a heavy tone.
“And his chances of passing this round of the exam are very high. He’s the kind of student who actually knows how to pass.”
“Then why would someone like that…”
“A letter suddenly came from the uncle who’d been looking after the younger siblings. It said he couldn’t take care of them anymore.”
“What was the reason?”
“I don’t know. Man Suk didn’t tell me that much…”
He continued.
“But for Man Suk, who was desperate for the exam, to give it up and rush back home… it can only mean the situation is that urgent.”
The education sponsorship only lasts until passing the provincial exam.
Even that alone is enough to become a low-ranking official.
I felt like I understood what Man Suk was thinking.
He was probably planning to work as a low-ranking official and support his siblings.
Honestly, even after hearing all this, I could have just let it go.
It’s not like Man Suk is the only one whose circumstances keep them from sitting for the exam.
But it felt wrong to leave it like that.
I stood up and spoke.
“Brother Jeong-ho, you can read Father’s letter out loud on your own, right?”
Then I turned to the teacher who’d said he was Man Suk’s instructor.
“Where is Man Suk’s home?”
.
.
.
They said Man Suk’s hometown was a small seaside village in Hebei.
I immediately turned to Palgap.
“Palgap, let’s get ready to go out.”
“How many days are we going to be away this time?”
“Hard to say. But we shouldn’t be gone for too long.”
“Understood.”
We finished getting ready to leave in less than an hour after I spoke to Palgap.
“Oh! You got everything ready really fast.”
“Didn’t I tell you? I keep everything packed so we can leave whenever you give the word.”
At Palgap’s words, the escort guards all nodded along.
“Hahaha, you did say that.”
This time, Yeo Eung-am, who was still resting from an injury, stayed behind, and someone else joined our group.
It was a fellow exam candidate from the same region, a person named Yun Byeok.
“You must be busy preparing for the exam. Is it really alright for you to come with us?”
“You don’t need to worry about that. You sit the exam with the skills you’ve built up all along anyway.”
“That’s true, but still…”
“Anyway, I really want to thank the Eunhae Merchant Group.”
Where did that come from?
“Actually, Man Suk and I are schoolmates from the same academy. Our instructor wrote a recommendation letter so we could enter Apricot Blossom Academy. But… to be honest, coming all the way to Apricot Blossom Academy to study costs a lot of money.”
“That’s true.”
“So at first, Man Suk was going to give up on enrolling at Apricot Blossom Academy, but then he became a beneficiary of the Eunhae Merchant Group’s education sponsorship. That’s why I’m grateful. That guy studied like crazy. Among us, his nickname was ‘the shut-in scholar.'”
In other words, he studied so hard that all his classmates were amazed.
Yun Byeok went on.
“Anyway, I’m sure Man Suk’s uncle has his own circumstances too. He’s the one who first volunteered to take those kids in and raise them.”
“Is that so?”
Honestly, even if it’s just for a few months, taking in and raising seven children is no easy task.
And even knowing that if he waited a little longer, the day would come when Man Suk passed the exam, he still sent that kind of letter.
He managed to endure for months; how could he not wait just a few more weeks?
In just a few weeks, he could become a relative of a central government official.
After the carriage had been running for about two hours like that,
“Young master.”
Seo Wu’s voice came from outside, so I opened the carriage window.
“Yes, what is it?”
“Someone is walking up ahead. Judging by the Apricot Blossom Academy uniform, it’s very likely Student Man Suk.”
At those words, I stuck my head out the window.
Sure enough, someone in a blue academy uniform was trudging along, shoulders sagging.
When I told Yun Byeok to take a look as well, that person also leaned out the window.
“That shut-in brat… it’s him.”
The voice was thick with emotion.
At the earliest, Man Suk could only have submitted his withdrawal and left the academy a few hours before I arrived.
And unless you were using lightfoot martial arts, it was only natural that horses and a carriage would be faster than a person on foot.
Even so, we caught up faster than I’d expected.
“Whoa, whoa!”
Soon the carriage came to a stop.
I opened the door and looked outside.
“Student Man Suk?”
“Who are you?”
Wariness was written all over that face.
“Hey! You little bastard!”
Just then, Yun Byeok thrust a head out of the carriage and yelled, and Man Suk flinched in surprise.
“Huh? What are you doing here? Aren’t you supposed to be studying for the exam?”
“You just handed in a withdrawal letter, and you think I can study right now? You idiot!”
“Th-that… I have my reasons…”
“Reasons or not, how could you…!”
At this rate they were never going to stop, so I gently held Yun Byeok back and spoke.
“Get in. Let’s go to your hometown together.”
“I-it’s alright.”
“No need to refuse. Besides, I heard things are urgent…”
He hesitated a little at my words, then nodded.
“Then… I’ll trouble you.”
Man Suk climbed into the carriage, and it started moving again.
“…”
Silence filled the carriage for a moment, and I was the one who broke it.
“So, what exactly made you give up on the exam?”
“…”
“I understand you might not want to talk about it. But as someone who extended the education sponsorship to you, I think I have some right to know.”
At that, his eyes widened.
“Y-you’re from the Eunhae Merchant Group?”
“To be precise, I’m the Third Deputy Merchant Lord.”
“I’m sorry! I didn’t recognize you!”
The carriage I was riding in wasn’t one belonging to the Eunhae Merchant Group, just an ordinary one.
So it was only natural he hadn’t realized.
“So then, could you tell me what’s going on?”
“Well…”
He scratched the back of his neck and let out a sigh.
“My uncle… gambled and ended up losing the entire family estate…”
“…”
His face flushed red.
I couldn’t help clicking my tongue inwardly.
Gambling really is a damn problem.
“His friends egged him on, so he played just one round… and won ten times his stake.”
The rest was obvious.
“So he figured he could win just as much the next time, kept throwing money at it, and in the end lost not only his initial stake but the entire household’s assets, right?”
“H-how did you know?”
“Winning on the very first game is what people call beginner’s luck. It’s just that: luck. Not skill.”
I continued.
“Luck is nothing more than luck. And there’s a good chance he stepped into a rigged game designed to lure in clueless people.”
“Even so! To someone who’s raising seven nieces and nephews…”
“Precisely because they’re heartless, they set up those rigged tables.”
“…”
“Anyway, when it comes to gambling, the first winner is the one who never sets foot in a den at all, the second winner is the one who walks away right after winning that first game, and the third winner is the one who comes to their senses and leaves after losing money.”
I let out a bitter laugh.
“But most people can’t leave, because they keep thinking of the money they lost, or they convince themselves they’ll win it back if they keep playing, or they just can’t give up that heart-pounding thrill.”
After giving it a moment, I asked Man Suk,
“So what is your uncle doing now?”
“He said he’s going to ship out on a boat somewhere. Fortunately, he only ruined the family estate…”
Should I be calling it fortunate that he hadn’t given up on life entirely and killed himself?
But what did the rest of the family and those nieces and nephews ever do wrong…
Come to think of it, I was reminded of Asung, the clerk from the Finance Pavilion.
That one also racked up huge debts from gambling and then took someone’s money to try to burn down the Finance Pavilion.
Is gambling the problem, or is it the people who gamble?
.
.
.
Two days later.
We arrived in Man Suk’s hometown.
But the situation… was a complete mess.
“You can’t take that! That’s my mother’s keepsake!”
“Let go!”
“Aagh!”
“Mom!”
“Auntie…”
“Oh no, oh no…”
Several burly men were tearing the household apart, stripping it of furniture and belongings.
Off to the side, the woman they called ‘aunt’ had collapsed onto the floor, wailing, while several children around her cried.
The brutes didn’t care in the slightest. They just kept neatly loading anything that looked valuable onto a wagon.
“How can you people do this?”
“If you’re going to blame someone, blame your husband who gambled the house away! Why are you throwing a fit at us?”
“…”
I couldn’t watch any more.
I walked up to them and spoke.
“Hold on a moment.”
“And who the hell are you…?”
They snapped back irritably at first, then froze when they took in my clothes.
Even at a glance, anyone could tell the outfit was expensive.
Guess putting some effort into how I dressed today paid off.
“Ahem, and you are…?”
“I’m from the Eunhae Merchant Group. From the looks of it, this house has been put up for sale…?”
“Hehe, y-yes, that’s right.”
“So, how much is this house?”
“What?”
“This house and everything in it. I’ll buy it. How much?”
At my words, they exchanged glances before replying.
“P-please wait just a moment.”
One of them bolted off somewhere, and I addressed the remaining men.
“If this all has to be put back anyway, you’re only wasting effort. Just take a break.”
About half an hour later, a man came hurrying over.
He had a rough, rugged face, and one look in his eyes told me he was clearly the banker who ran the gambling den.
He bowed to me with a servile smile.
“Hehe, the name’s Byeon, sir. I hear you’re buying this house?”
“That’s right. How much for this house and its contents? No, to be exact, how much debt does the owner of this house owe you?”
“Well… counting the interest, it’s one hundred silver taels.”
“…”
He’d really squeezed them dry.
I took a note worth one hundred silver taels out of my pocket.
“Will this do?”
“Ah! Yes!”
As he reached out to take it, I smoothly pulled the note back a little and said,
“Let’s write up the contract first.”
“O-of course, of course. Hehe.”
Once the contract was done, I handed the brutes a few extra coins and told them to put everything back the way it was.
In about two hours, the house that had been turned upside down was restored to its original state.
Watching quietly, Man Suk let out a sigh and asked me,
“What do you want from me?”
“What do you think I want? I heard you’re supposed to be clever…”
He thought for a moment, then immediately knelt down and bowed, pressing his forehead to the floor.
“I, Man Suk, offer my loyalty to the Deputy Merchant Lord.”
Correct answer.
Not that he really needed to go as far as kneeling like that…
–TL Notes–
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