I hid my fluster and said,
“N– no, Your Highness! How could a mere merchant like me possibly receive an apology from you?”
“This is my apology, yes, but it is also one Father wished to convey.”
“…”
That only made it more bewildering.
You could search the entire Empire and still find only a handful of people who had ever heard an apology from the Emperor.
Just how much more was he planning to work me to the bone…?
“I ended up hurting you unintentionally. I give you my word that this will never happen again.”
“Your grace humbles me.”
“So then, Father said he would grant you whatever you wanted as compensation. That includes the reward he already promised you before, as well as this apology for what happened.”
At that moment, I cheered inwardly.
A reward!
What sweeter word was there?
But even collecting a reward took a kind of negotiation. If I played this properly, I could walk away with something better than what I’d originally been meant to receive.
“May I ask what reward His Majesty originally intended to grant me?”
“Money, silk, and this Entry Pass.”
The Crown Prince pulled a jade token from his sleeve and placed it on my knee.
Normally, I had to receive a temporary wooden Entry Pass each time I entered the palace.
But this was a jade Entry Pass for permanent access, which meant I wouldn’t have to return it like the wooden one.
In other words, I could come and go from the imperial palace whenever I wished.
The value of this Entry Pass was higher than it looked.
At first glance, it might seem like nothing more than a pass, but once the destination was the imperial palace, that changed everything.
Seeing my name engraved on it, I could tell it had been prepared in advance.
The fact that they had gone this far made me think the Emperor had a much bigger plan in mind.
He must have been sure I’d accept it.
But I put on a troubled expression and held the jade pass back out.
“I’m deeply sorry, but I don’t think I can choose this.”
“Why not?”
“Because this humble merchant cannot bear the weight of it. Even now, I’m summoned to the palace from time to time, and still I end up being tested like this. If I accept this… I’m too weak-hearted to endure what comes after.”
The Crown Prince’s visibly shaken expression told me I’d been right.
“The reward I want is not something this great.”
“Then what is it you want?”
I pretended to think for a moment, then spoke.
“The truth is, I happened to obtain something unexpected this time, and I would like His Majesty to guarantee my ownership of it.”
“Will that really be enough?”
“Yes.”
“What is it?”
“A wrapping cloth.”
“A wrapping cloth?”
“Yes. This is highly confidential, but since I’ll have to report it to His Majesty anyway, I may as well tell you now. I found Venerable Blood Staff Star Monk’s final testament there.”
“What? Is that true?!”
I glanced around, then quietly said,
“Your Highness. Please lower your voice.”
“Ah, my apologies.”
Of course, while I was speaking with the Crown Prince, my guards and his were surely standing watch all around us.
Still, there was no reason to speak any louder than necessary.
“There is a red silk wrapping cloth that had been used to wrap that testament. I want that.”
“You’re asking for just that?”
“It isn’t just that. It’s the cloth that wrapped a revered Venerable’s final testament. How could that possibly be without value?”
“Huh…”
The Crown Prince looked dumbfounded.
I understood the expression. But once he learned the truth later, he might be dumbfounded for a very different reason.
The Crown Prince spoke.
“Even so, I don’t understand. Why ask for it as your reward? Why not just keep it?”
“To prepare for any problems that might arise later. If the Shaolin Temple claimed even that wrapping cloth was theirs, then as a mere merchant, wouldn’t I have no choice but to hand it over?”
“Hm, that’s true.”
“So I ask that His Majesty guarantee, in his own name, that the ownership of that wrapping cloth belongs to me.”
I continued.
“His Majesty stands above all in this Empire. No matter that it is the Shaolin Temple, how could they possibly defy his command?”
The Crown Prince nodded readily.
“Very well. Father told me to grant whatever you wanted within reason. Though honestly, you could’ve asked for something far better than this.”
“For me, this alone is enough. And to be honest, does it really matter what I receive? The fact that His Majesty hasn’t forgotten his promise to this humble merchant, and has reminded me of it in this way, is more than enough to leave me deeply moved.”
“If that’s truly how you feel, then I suppose there’s nothing more to say.”
Done!
I clenched the hand hidden beneath the blanket and inwardly rejoiced.
With this, the ownership of the wrapping cloth artifact was firmly mine.
“Still, you really are hard to predict.”
“Pardon?”
“You said it yourself earlier – you’re a merchant. So naturally, I assumed you’d choose this permanent Entry Pass.”
My apologies, Your Highness.
I am exactly the kind of person who should stay far away from the imperial palace.
His Majesty was already watching for any chance to drive me into the palace and plant me there like a stake. Why would I be insane enough to bring myself any closer to it?
Smiling, I said,
“As I just told you, I simply can’t bear something like that.”
“How is it that a merchant can be so free of greed? I wish the ministers in the imperial palace could be even half as much like you.”
Ha… Your Highness.
That’s a dangerous thing to say.
And free of greed? Me?
If His Majesty heard that, he’d probably roll on the floor laughing.
The Crown Prince quietly examined the jade pass before speaking.
“As a matter of fact, Father gave me a letter to read in case you refused to accept this pass.”
Then he took a small envelope from his sleeve, broke the seal, and began reading.
“…”
A moment later, his expression turned slightly awkward. He tucked the letter away again and picked up the jade pass.
I suddenly had a bad feeling about this.
“It’s a bonus, so take it.”
“Pardon?”
“You’re a merchant. Don’t tell me you don’t know what a bonus is.”
“I– I do, but…”
“This is yours.”
In other words, it was an imperial gift.
And once something had been bestowed by the Emperor, I couldn’t exactly refuse it. So in the end, I had no choice but to accept it.
“Your grace humbles me.”
At this point, I had no idea how many times I’d said that today.
The Crown Prince rose from his seat.
“My business here is done, so I’ll be going. Recover quickly, and I’ll see you at the imperial palace soon.”
“Your Highness…”
“Ah, there’s no need to rise. And since we’re on the subject, do recover quickly. If your recovery drags on too long, Father may send an Imperial Physician.”
“…”
With that, the Crown Prince left my quarters. I watched him go, then looked down at the jade pass now sitting in my hand.
Your Majesty.
Why are you being so clingy?
Still, it was too late to back out now, so all I could do was make the most of it.
But what on earth had been written in that letter to make the Crown Prince react like that?
The Crown Prince left the Beijing Branch of the Eunhae Merchant Group.
“Let’s return to the palace.”
“Yes, Your Highness.”
Only after climbing into the carriage did he finally let out a long sigh.
‘Seriously… that man is frightening. But I think I finally understand why Father favors him so much.’
[So that brat got you too. Well, if you already gave your word, there’s nothing to be done. Give him the jade pass he refused and tell him it’s a bonus. Then you should get to see the look on his face when he realizes what happened.]
In any case, the Crown Prince had done exactly as the Emperor instructed, and he had indeed gotten to see Eun Seo-ho look visibly thrown off while accepting the jade pass.
And he had realized one other thing as well.
‘Father said he was faking sick… but he looked so deathly ill that I ended up treating him like a real patient without even thinking about it…’
Eun Seo-ho was definitely the kind of man who would be terrifying as an enemy.
But if he stood on your side, you probably couldn’t ask for someone more dependable.
‘Could he truly become my man?’
A little later, the carriage arrived at the imperial palace, and the Crown Prince headed for the Emperor’s office.
“You’ve returned.”
“Yes, Father.”
The Crown Prince gave a detailed report of everything that had happened during his visit with Eun Seo-ho.
“…That is all.”
“I see. So that brat Eun Seo-ho asked for a wrapping cloth as his reward?”
“Yes. It was the red silk wrapping cloth that had been used to cover Venerable Blood Staff Star Monk’s final testament, and he asked that the imperial family guarantee his ownership of it.”
“And you granted that request.”
“Yes. I simply couldn’t refuse such a small request when all he wanted was a thing like that.”
At those words, the Emperor unconsciously pressed a hand to his forehead.
The sight made the Crown Prince tilt his head.
“What is it, Father?”
“Whew… no, it’s nothing. It seems I was right to attach that brat to you.”
“Pardon?”
“If you can do even half of what he does, then no one will ever take from your hand what you already hold.”
The Crown Prince frowned in confusion.
He simply could not understand what the Emperor meant.
“I don’t understand what you mean.”
“You thought he lacked greed, didn’t you?”
“Yes. That’s true.”
The Emperor gave a bitter smile and explained.
“The truth is, there are few men greedier than that brat. He gets everything he wants, and still manages to make sure nobody sees him that way.”
“…?”
“Crown Prince. That red wrapping cloth you just granted him? That is the Path-Revealing Map (現路圖), a treasure of the imperial house.”
“What?”
The Crown Prince was stunned.
When Eun Seo-ho had mentioned it, he had assumed it was simply the cloth used to wrap Blood Staff Star Monk’s final testament.
But it had actually been a treasure of the imperial house!
The Crown Prince knew the Path-Revealing Map well.
After all, when they set up the plan to test Eun Seo-ho this time, part of the story had involved the Embroidered Guard searching for that artifact.
But although that had been part of the plan, nobody had truly expected to find it.
The artifact had vanished long ago, and while there were old records about it, nobody could say with certainty whether those records were even true.
That was why the Crown Prince had never once realized that the red wrapping cloth Eun Seo-ho mentioned was actually the Path-Revealing Map.
“I– I’m ashamed, Father. I should have been more perceptive…”
“It’s fine. Think of it as tuition. At that price, it was a cheap lesson.”
Only then did the Crown Prince begin to understand, at least a little, why the Emperor wanted to place Eun Seo-ho at his side.
Meanwhile, the Emperor let out a sigh inwardly.
The Path-Revealing Map was an artifact among artifacts. In times of mortal danger, it served the Emperor by guiding him to a safe path of escape.
The Emperor of that era had survived only because he followed the road the Path-Revealing Map revealed and encountered Venerable Blood Staff Star Monk.
It had also served as an extraordinary protective treasure.
Perhaps because of the legend that it had once been dyed with dragon’s blood, nothing in the world could tear or cut the cloth.
‘To think I had a chance to recover an artifact like that, only to lose it like this… what a waste.’
But what could he do?
He had already given his word.
Still, the one comfort was that the artifact had ended up in Eun Seo-ho’s hands.
The Emperor trusted that he would never use it for evil.
‘Still, I did force that permanent Entry Pass into his hands… perhaps that should be enough to satisfy me?’
Several days passed.
I stretched and got to my feet.
“Is it really all right for you to be up now?”
At that moment, Palgap came into my quarters and asked, and I nodded.
“Yeah, I’m done faking sick now.”
I’d already landed a small blow on the Emperor, and I’d gotten what I wanted too, so there was no need to keep up the act any longer.
Besides, if His Majesty actually sent an Imperial Physician, that would become genuinely burdensome.
The Emperor had probably figured out by now that the wrapping cloth the Crown Prince promised me was an artifact.
It must’ve stung quite a bit.
But since he’d already spoken, he’d had no choice but to let it go.
For the first time in a while, I trained properly. I hadn’t been able to while pretending to be sick, so my body had been feeling heavy.
After working myself hard, I washed up, ate breakfast, and headed to the office.
Still, it really was hot.
It was the middle of the Eighth Month, so this was still the height of the heat.
By next month, a cooler breeze would probably start to blow.
The Windcraft Fan sold quite well again this year. This time, we changed up the colors a little.
People definitely tended to prefer brighter, more colorful shades.
Honestly, the Windcraft Fan was such an overwhelmingly superior product that it had no real competition.
But that didn’t mean we could afford to grow lazy with our research.
The moment you got careless, that was the moment you started falling behind.
No one knew what the future held. If we wanted to keep succeeding, then we had to keep researching and improving without pause.
A few more days passed.
Whew, I’ve dealt with everything urgent. Now I can finally breathe a little.
That was what I was thinking when Palgap brought me a letter.
“Young Master, this is a letter from the Merchant Lord.”
“Hm? Father?”
I took the letter and opened it.
I’d already sent word through Geumryeong that I’d returned safely from Lanzhou, and I’d already received a reply too.
[Seo-ho, read this and tell me – are you doing well? This time, the Shaolin Temple brought a huge sum of money. They said it was money they had borrowed from you, and that they owed you a debt of gratitude, but I honestly have no idea what that means. Also, the Shaolin Temple has formally invited you.]
The Shaolin Temple invited me?
It was probably about the matter of Venerable Blood Staff Star Monk’s Sword Tomb.
I already had something I needed to deliver to them anyway, so I might as well make the trip.
–TL Notes–
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