Deputy Merchant Lord Song Un continued in a trembling voice.
“C– come to think of it, I did have this. But when I heard that the person in charge had run away with the money, I gave up on using this ledger as proof…”
“Doesn’t that strike you as strange?”
“What are you getting at?”
Talking about the Murim Alliance and all that wouldn’t really convince Deputy Merchant Lord Song Un.
“The amount you were repaying was fifty taels of silver.”
“That’s right. I’d been paying it back every month.”
“Why would anyone run off with just fifty silver taels, not even gold? What can you even do with that amount?”
At my words, his expression started to twist.
“Then?”
“Yes. The Baekcheon Merchant Group deliberately used a cheap trick to take the Changhae Merchant Group for themselves. And the Debt Manager in charge of that debt got sacrificed in the process.”
“Impossible!”
Deputy Merchant Lord Song Un sounded like he just couldn’t believe it.
“B– but the Baekcheon Merchant Group is a merchant group under the Murim Alliance. There’s no way they’d pull something like that. That’s the kind of thing you’d expect from a lowlife loan shark, isn’t it?”
Yes, exactly.
And the ones who did that lowlife thing were the Baekcheon Merchant Group.
“To make everyone believe they’d never do such a thing, they threw Debt Manager Mo Cheong, the one in charge of the debt, under the cart.”
I tapped the ledger with my fingers as I spoke.
“This ledger is the proof. If you look here, you’ll see the County Magistrate’s signature. Why do you think Debt Manager Mo went to all the trouble of getting it?”
“…”
“To get the County Magistrate’s seal, he must’ve offered at least a small token of respect.”
“…”
He didn’t answer, but that didn’t matter.
I hadn’t asked expecting a reply.
“It’s because Debt Manager Mo is an incredibly decent person. He anticipated that one day this County Magistrate’s signature might be needed.”
At my words, he lowered his head.
“…I’m ashamed of myself for cursing him all this time.”
“Don’t blame yourself too much. In that situation, anyone would’ve resented Debt Manager Mo.”
Deputy Merchant Lord Song Un raised his head again and asked me in a solemn voice,
“Then what should I do now? What exactly do you need from me?”
“I’ll arrange the place. You’ll go there with this and appeal your injustice.”
I continued,
“And of course, Supervisor Ji Taek-mun, who’s currently here, has to be present as well.”
He was a supervisor belonging to the Baekcheon Merchant Group, currently in town to take over the Changhae Merchant Group’s operations.
I’m really looking forward to seeing what kind of face he makes.
At my words, Deputy Merchant Lord Song Un nodded.
“All right. Then when should I head to Cheongdo?”
“Why would you go to Cheongdo?”
“Well, that seal is from the County Magistrate of Cheongdo…”
“We’re busy right now, carrying out His Majesty the Emperor’s order to prepare for foreign trade, aren’t we? Even if you rushed, a round trip to Cheongdo would take at least six days. We can’t afford to waste that kind of time.”
I answered with a smile.
“The County Magistrate of Cheongdo is on the way here.”
“What?”
“And the place where you’ll be making your appeal isn’t the County Magistrate’s office. Honestly, do you think a County Magistrate alone can put real pressure on the Baekcheon Merchant Group?”
“Then why bring the County Magistrate?”
“Because we need a witness.”
I thought back to yesterday, when I’d met the County Magistrate.
There was quite a distance between Nanjing and Cheongdo.
No matter how fast you rode a horse, it was the kind of journey that would take six days there and back.
But I’m a Profound realm martial artist. For me, that distance was a half-day trip, tops.
Naturally, the County Magistrate of Cheongdo refused my proposal at first.
However…
“Please take a look at this.”
I produced the Censorate Inspector’s token.
“The person who gave me this is watching.”
“Hahaha! What I just said was complete nonsense, so feel free to ignore it. I mean, ahem, of course I’ll go. I absolutely must go. Hahaha.”
Some might say I’m abusing my authority, but this isn’t that.
This is about saving innocent people who were wronged.
His Majesty will overlook this much.
After thinking for a moment, Deputy Merchant Lord Song Un’s eyes went wide in sudden realization. As expected, he’d grasped what I meant.
“For now, just know that much.”
“All right.”
“And this matter’s top priority is secrecy. If they get wind of this, they’ll definitely make a move.”
“Understood.”
“Don’t speak of this to anyone. Not to your closest aides, and not even to your wife.”
“I’ll do that.”
Given how critical secrecy is in this, it might have been better to wait until the County Magistrate arrived, explain everything to Deputy Merchant Lord Song Un then, and move immediately.
But I had a reason to give him a heads-up like this.
First, Deputy Merchant Lord Song Un has to set sail the moment he regains the Changhae Merchant Group’s rights.
So this was my way of telling him to prepare ahead of time.
Second, I wanted to get a proper read on his character.
It’s more common than you’d think for plans to go sideways because someone trusted the wrong person around them.
No matter how many times you tell someone, “This is classified, don’t breathe a word,” it’s surprisingly hard not to say anything to anyone at all.
If he manages it, that means he has enough self-control and coolheadedness.
I might be helping the Changhae Merchant Group as a way to get revenge on the Baekcheon Merchant Group, but it’d be a waste to end things there.
This is my chance to decide whether to build a lasting relationship or let this be a fleeting connection.
If I’d had any real contact with him in my previous life, I wouldn’t have to go this far, but back then, we never really crossed paths.
The County Magistrate should probably arrive in three or four days.
And by then, the ships of the Eunhae Merchant Group will have reached port as well.
Shwaa–!
Two ships were cutting across the waves without hesitation.
The characters painted on their sides read [Eunhae].
They were the two merchant ships the Eunhae Merchant Group had recently built.
On the deck of the lead ship, a man watching the water rush past, Yong Eung–wan, was feeling deeply moved.
He’d scraped by working as a sailor at the very bottom, and now he was going back home as the captain of a massive merchant ship like this.
“Feels that good?”
“Hm?”
When he turned his head, his comrade and close friend, Song Juk, was standing there.
“I asked if it feels that good.”
“You’re asking something obvious. I’m going back to my hometown with the money to buy freedom for myself and my family. If that doesn’t feel good, I’m not human.”
“Well, you’ve got a point.”
For this voyage, Yong Eung–wan had personally recruited his people and trained them along the river near Yangyang.
The ship hadn’t been finished yet, so they’d just slapped together a rough mock-up on land, but training was absolutely necessary.
The bigger the ship, the more everyone’s hands and feet had to move as one if they wanted to avoid accidents.
Originally, he’d planned to use the profit from this trade to pay back the ransom money he’d received from Eun Seo-ho.
Then he’d live out his days as a truly free man, happily with his family.
But over the past few months, his thinking had changed.
The Eunhae Merchant Group’s true strength was far beyond what he’d imagined.
If he walked away from this position, he knew he’d regret it for the rest of his life.
His family had been wrongfully accused and turned into slaves.
Rather than staying on the land that held all those bitter, heartbreaking memories, moving to a new place and starting over didn’t sound so bad.
“Will we be arriving soon?”
Just then, a man approached from behind.
His name was Eun Jeong-ho.
Deputy Merchant Lord of the Eunhae Merchant Group, and the one designated as its next Merchant Lord.
He was sailing with them to Nanjing for this trade mission.
Once he saw Yong Eung–wan and his crew off from Nanjing, he’d be returning to Hubei.
Song Juk answered,
“Yes, another hour or so and we’ll be there.”
“I see.”
With a broad smile on his face, Eun Jeong-ho looked out over the water. Yong Eung–wan spoke up.
“You seem to be in a good mood.”
“Of course. Just thinking about how happy Seo-ho will be when he sees this ship makes me smile without even realizing it.”
Yong Eung–wan nodded.
Every time he saw them, he couldn’t help thinking how close those two brothers were.
Watching them made him think of his own older brother.
The brother who’d been dragged down with him and turned into a battle slave when their family was framed and ruined. He didn’t know if that brother was alive or dead now… but he quietly prayed he was alive.
For the family’s sake, and for his own.
“Young Master! Young Master! They say the merchant group’s ships have arrived!”
At Palgap’s shout, I jumped up from my seat.
“Really? Then we’ve got to hurry and go greet them.”
The one who brought the news belonged to the intelligence unit of the Eunhae Merchant Group. They’d been waiting at the docks and sprinted over the moment the ships came in.
A short while later, I arrived at the pier.
And I could see the ship just as they were lowering the gangplank.
The name [Eunhae] was painted on the hull in clear, bold strokes.
It was our Eunhae Merchant Group’s ship.
But the moment I saw it, my jaw dropped before I even realized it.
Ah… Father?
Since when were you this bold?
The ship in front of me was bigger than I’d expected. No, to be precise, it was much bigger.
“It’s been a while since I’ve seen that look on your face.”
Just then, I heard Brother Jeong-ho’s voice.
When I turned, Brother Jeong-ho was disembarking from the ship.
“Brother! You came too?”
“This is an important moment for our Eunhae Merchant Group. So Father told me to come and see them off properly.”
Which meant Father was also thinking of Brother Jeong-ho as the next Merchant Lord.
Just like Brother Jin-ho and I had hoped.
I grinned.
“Of course you should! Anyway, where’s Captain Yong?”
“Ah, he’s just finishing up the last checks.”
Soon, Captain Yong Eung–wan finished up his work and walked down from the ship.
Beside him was his right-hand man I’d seen before, Song Juk.
“Yong Eung–wan greets the Third Deputy Merchant Lord.”
“Song Juk greets the Third Deputy Merchant Lord.”
With these two, things would go just fine.
“Thank you for all your hard work. The ship is bigger and more imposing than I imagined, so it really surprised me.”
“I was surprised myself.”
“You all must be worn out from the journey. Let’s get you some rest first. I’ve reserved an inn where you can all relax comfortably.”
I led them to the inn I’d booked out in advance.
A little later.
After everyone had washed up and felt refreshed, they came down to the first-floor dining hall.
Captain Yong and Song Juk sat at the same table as my brother and me, and after dinner we shared tea and chatted about this and that.
“By the way, Seo-ho.”
“What?”
“Why did you tell us to bring all those plums again?”
Hubei had a huge number of plum trees. When the blossoms bloomed in spring, the sight was spectacular.
Their fruit was used as medicinal ingredients, but back then, people didn’t really know.
They didn’t know that plums were a miracle cure for bodies damaged by long voyages.
“Captain Yong, you’ve sailed for long stretches before, so you know this. When people stay on a ship for a long time, their gums start bleeding, they cough up blood, and their bodies grow terribly weak.”
“You know your stuff. We call that ‘Leaking Blood Disease.’”
A disease where blood leaks out of the body.
“It’s the strange wasting illness sailors on long-distance voyages practically live with. To fight it, some ships even grow bean sprouts onboard, but…”
Just then, Song Juk seemed to catch on to something.
“Don’t tell me the plums…”
“That’s right. I’ve heard plums are a special remedy for Leaking Blood Disease.”
It was something that had been discovered in my previous life, after large-scale trade really took off.
A lot of sailors were coming down with that illness where their gums bled and their bodies weakened, and no one had a good cure.
People said vegetables helped, so they tried growing and eating bean sprouts on the ships, but that had its limits.
There wasn’t enough space, and water was always short.
Then, by chance, they found out plums worked as medicine.
A merchant group heading overseas once loaded the wrong provisions and ended up carrying a large stock of plums. The sailors snacked on them throughout the voyage, and they all came back in excellent health.
That’s how they realized plums were effective, and naturally, the price of plums shot up.
There was no way I was letting that opportunity slip by.
The mountains in Hubei whose slopes were covered in plum trees were already my personal property.
“Like you said, we harvested unripe plums and packed them with sugar, but… are you sure they really work?”
“Of course. And you know this too, don’t you, Brother? Plums are used as medicine in all sorts of ways.”
At my words, Brother Jeong-ho nodded.
“That much I know. They help with thirst, vomiting, dysentery, and recovering from fatigue.”
“Exactly. So they’re going to be a huge help.”
When you live on a ship for a long time, the water can go bad, and people suffer from diarrhea and all kinds of trouble because of it.
Plums are a miracle cure for that too.
“So make sure everyone eats at least one plum a day.”
“Understood.”
Captain Yong Eung–wan nodded.
“By the way, what goods will we be carrying for this trade?”
“Tea and porcelain.”
“Tea?”
“You told my father before, didn’t you? That you wanted to sell Liubao tea from Guangxi.”
“That’s right.”
“So we’ve prepared Liubao tea from Guangxi, along with a variety of other teas. And in coordination with the Mudong Merchant Group, we’ve prepared plenty of porcelain as well, including tea cups.”
“Remarkable. I’ll make sure we bring back a huge profit from this voyage.”
“Don’t feel too pressured.”
I laughed as I spoke.
“Just relax and take it easy until departure.”
.
.
.
Three days later.
Palgap came into my room and reported,
“Young Master, the County Magistrate of Cheongdo has arrived at the Provincial Military Command Office.”
“Really?”
I got to my feet and said,
“You arranged the banquet hall like we discussed, right?”
“Of course. I reserved a hall at a nearby restaurant.”
That place would be the stage for this whole affair.
Tonight’s banquet, I’d be inviting the officials dispatched from the Imperial Palace and the officials of the Provincial Military Command Office.
And the people from the merchant groups in charge of this trade.
With them as witnesses in that place, Supervisor Ji Taek-mun… no, the entire Baekcheon Merchant Group… was going to lose, and lose big.
–TL Notes–
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