The next morning.
Merchant Lord Go visited the Beijing Branch.
He had come to finalize matters regarding this Liquor Tasting Competition and draft the memorial report.
“Ah, speaking of which, about the test His Highness the Crown Prince mentioned for the guests’ qualifications.”
“Yes. A full third of them failed to notice the fake entry we slipped in this time.”
So we deemed them unqualified, and the evaluations they gave were excluded from this round.
That meant this final result had been compiled from the opinions of roughly seventy people.
“I suppose they can’t be invited to the next Tasting Competition.”
“Of course not.”
Fortunately, the Provincial Administration Commissioner of Guizhou was not included on that list.
In other words, the Provincial Administration Commissioner had gained one more legitimate reason to visit Beijing next year.
After all, the only thing I can do for Lady Seohyang is make sure she gets to see her father’s face more often.
I’d like to take her to Guizhou one day so she can see her mother too, but… that won’t be easy.
As we talked, we finished drafting the memorial report that would be submitted to the Emperor.
The results had already been decided, but they still had to be formally reported through the Crown Prince.
Only then could the relevant offices proceed with their own work.
“By the way, Merchant Lord.”
“What is it?”
“Are you truly satisfied leaving things as they are?”
“What do you mean?”
“Why do people say that a well-colored dried persimmon looks tastier, or that something beautiful can be made even better? Doesn’t that mean appearance matters too?”
“You’re right.”
“Appearance is that important when it comes to sales. And this is trade with foreign countries, no less. Are you really planning to sell the liquor in plain, ordinary bottles?”
Merchant Lord Go tilted his head, as if he still hadn’t quite grasped what I was getting at.
“Plain… bottles?”
“Yes. I don’t particularly like that idea. I believe we need bottles that let you tell what liquor it is at a single glance. So I’m looking into ways to manufacture such bottles after receiving His Majesty the Emperor’s approval.”
I continued.
“And if the bottles themselves come to be treated like works of art, the value of the liquor will rise even further.”
“That makes sense.”
Only then did Merchant Lord Go seem to understand, and he nodded.
“If that happens, people will buy the liquor just to decorate with the bottle or display it.”
As expected of Merchant Lord Go.
He had already thought of the part I hadn’t even brought up yet.
“The problem is that I don’t have enough insight into liquor, so it’s difficult for me to design a shape that will bring out each liquor’s flavor to its fullest. And even if a bottle looks impressive, it would be no good if it makes distribution difficult. But unlike me, Merchant Lord, you specialize in liquor, so wouldn’t you understand such matters well?”
The corners of Merchant Lord Go’s mouth curved upward.
Good. He’s taking the bait.
“So, if you have the time, would you consider working on this with me?”
I quickly continued.
“For this project, I also received a generous budget from His Majesty the Emperor.”
“How much?”
When I told him the amount, Merchant Lord Go’s eyes went wide, and he asked again.
“Truly?”
“Yes. And I’ve also summoned the Deputy Merchant Lord of the Mudong Merchant Group in Jiangsu.”
“Oh! The Mudong Merchant Group. I’ve certainly heard of their reputation. They produce truly fine porcelain.”
“That’s right. They’re also one of the groups already working with us.”
At my words, Merchant Lord Go slowly nodded.
“If you’ve prepared this much, how could I possibly refuse to help? Besides, among the liquors chosen for foreign trade this time, there are some produced under our merchant group as well.”
“Then will you help me?”
“Very well. I’ll lend you my hand.”
At that answer, I clenched my fist tightly beneath the table.
Yes!
He took it!
Now that I had naturally managed to pass the work along, I could devote myself to the Poetry and Prose Competition.
Merchant Lord Go was currently staying at an inn, but I asked him to move his lodgings to the Beijing Branch.
Most of the Brewing Houses that had come for the Liquor Tasting Competition would be leaving by tomorrow, so we had plenty of room.
Merchant Lord Go readily accepted my request and agreed to come in two days.
We needed to prepare his quarters, and Merchant Lord Go also needed time to make arrangements for the move.
“Then I’ll see you in two days.”
“I’m truly grateful.”
After seeing Merchant Lord Go off like that, I returned to the office, where Lady Seohyang, who had been handling documents inside, greeted me.
“Did your conversation with Merchant Lord Go end well?”
“Yes. He agreed to come in two days.”
I apologized to her.
“I’m sorry.”
“What? For what?”
“For making you stay cooped up inside like this instead of being able to go out, even though I didn’t mean for it to happen.”
“It’s all right. The work is actually interesting, so I don’t really feel stifled or anything.”
The work is interesting…
And yet, before I knew it, I flinched.
Come to think of it, there had been more than a few times when I found work interesting too.
“Why are you looking at me like that?”
“It’s nothing.”
Just then, Lady Seohyang looked around, confirmed that only the two of us were there, and smiled.
“By the way, it seems there will be a wedding this autumn.”
“What?”
“Master Brewer Yeong Gu-jin’s.”
“Did you, by any chance, see it?”
At my question, she nodded.
“They’re holding the wedding sooner than I expected. Was his expression… happy?”
“Yes. Very much so.”
At that answer, I smiled warmly.
Well, I had heard that the Vice Minister of War’s daughter was beautiful, and her background was excellent too.
If Lady Seohyang put it that way, he must have been grinning from ear to ear.
I’ll tease him mercilessly later.
Just as I was thinking that, Palgap’s voice came from outside.
“Young Master, Master Brewer Yeong Gu-jin wishes to see you.”
Speak of the tiger, and it appears.
When I told him to come in, Master Yeong Gu-jin entered the office, cupped his fist to me, and said,
“Deputy Merchant Lord, my father wishes to meet you.”
A short while later.
I was standing before the Seonju Yeong Family estate in Beijing.
I had heard that the family name Seonju had been bestowed by an Emperor long ago.
It meant to always study and seek what was good. From that alone, I could understand what kind of family tradition they had.
I could feel that same spirit from Master Yeong Gu-jin and his eldest brother, Young Lord Yeong Gu-man.
As for Young Lord Yeong Gu-sang, well…
“Please come in.”
“Yes.”
Unlike last time, I passed through the main gate with confidence. Then, after sitting in the reception room and being served refreshments for a little while, the door opened.
The one who entered was a giant of a man, every bit as tall and imposing as the eldest son, Young Lord Yeong Gu-sang.
So this must be the Assistant Provincial Commander of Guizhou.
I rose from my seat and cupped my fist in courtesy.
“This humble merchant, Eun Seo-ho, Deputy Merchant Lord of the Eunhae Merchant Group, greets you, my lord.”
“I am Yeong Gu-jin’s father.”
The fact that he did not introduce himself by his official post first said plenty about the kind of man he was.
A true hero, then.
“I called you here to thank you for looking after Gu-jin. In truth, I would have liked to visit you myself, but you’re already in a position where the higher-ups are watching you closely. If I added myself to that, it might become a burden.”
“I’m grateful for your consideration, my lord.”
As expected, despite how he looked, he was a man of deep thought.
Was this the kind of person one had to be to become a high-ranking official?
“Let’s sit and talk.”
“Thank you.”
I sat down, and the Assistant Provincial Commander sat across from me.
“We discussed Gu-jin’s marriage, and the wedding will be held this autumn.”
“Congratulations.”
“Thank you. And this is thanks to you.”
“Pardon?”
“Gu-jin told me this. Because you were there, he was able to keep walking the path he chose without giving up. And he was able to cast aside the lingering attachments in his heart and focus on brewing liquor. That is why he was able to create fine liquor, and through that, he was able to cure her madness.”
“…”
I smiled awkwardly.
Hearing it directly like this was embarrassing, but well, it was true.
I had no intention of denying what I had contributed.
“And Hyeok-su said the same. He said that thanks to you, he was able to rescue Gu-jin after my second son had confined him.”
Ah. I’d been wondering why Warrior Dong Hyeok-su hadn’t been around lately…
“He is an artisan I support, after all. I merely did what had to be done.”
After giving that modest answer, I changed the subject.
“By the way, the Vice Minister of War seemed concerned that Clerk Yeong had taken sick leave.”
“Ah, there’s no need to worry about that. I explained it properly. I told him that father and son had simply exchanged blows in a long-overdue spar.”
I held back a laugh.
That wasn’t a spar. That was a lecture wearing the skin of a sparring match.
“I don’t have anything in particular I can give you. But someday, if you need my help, I will assist you once, so long as it does not go against our family’s principles.”
A promise of help from the Assistant Provincial Commander of Guizhou.
There was no doubt this would become a tremendous help later.
Which meant I needed to accept it right away.
“They say excessive refusal is discourtesy, so I will gratefully accept.”
After chatting with him for a while longer, I returned to the Beijing Branch.
“By the way, Young Master.”
On the way back, Palgap spoke to me.
“What?”
“Warrior Dong Hyeok-su and Young Lord Yeong Gu-man are both military officials, so why do you call one Warrior and the other Young Lord?”
Huh? Now that he mentioned it, that was true.
After pondering it for a moment, I felt like I understood the reason.
Warrior Dong was Lady Seohyang’s older brother.
Without realizing it, I must have used a more respectful form of address for him because of that.
I need to be careful about this.
If someone as sharp as Palgap notices, they could use that as a clue to figure out the secret.
“Palgap.”
“Yes?”
“You’re supposed to tell me these things sooner.”
It was deep in the night.
A man was running through an alley somewhere in Beijing.
“Huff, huff.”
From the way he gasped for breath, it was clear he had been running for quite some distance.
His throat burned, his heart ached, and his legs trembled.
But he could not stop. Someone was chasing him.
Yet the masked figure pursuing him followed at an almost leisurely pace.
After an hour of breathless cat and mouse, the man finally reached a dead end.
There, written on the wall in advance, was a poem.
[Your poem tore open the earth,
and even shredded the heavens to pieces.
One who condemns another
should remember
that he too may be condemned,
and if he kills another with that condemnation,
then he must also be prepared to die.
Did you truly not know?
Since you tore another’s heart to pieces,
you too shall be torn apart.]
The moment he saw it, he realized he had not escaped well at all. He had been herded to the place his pursuer wanted him to reach.
Right here.
And he felt like he understood why this was happening to him.
The masked figure spoke.
“If you valued your life, you should have known when to stop with all that criticism.”
“…”
“You don’t know who sent me, do you? Of course you don’t. It’s not as if there are only one or two people you’ve attacked with those poems of yours.”
He wanted to argue, but it was true.
The masked figure approached him and drew the sword at his waist.
Shhhk.
The icy sound had already cut through his mind.
“P-please spare me! If you spare me, I’ll never write poems like that again! No, I’ll stop writing altogether!”
He clasped his hands together and begged desperately.
Slice.
But the masked figure’s sword moved, and both of the man’s hands were severed.
“Aaaaaaagh!”
“My preference is to cleanly take the head… but I’m sorry. I have to do it exactly the way it’s written over there.”
Uaaaaahm!
I stretched as I rose from my seat.
Then, after doing Breathing Meditation, I headed to the training ground.
Lady Seohyang was already running around the training ground. She really did work hard.
I couldn’t afford to slack off on my martial arts either.
Today was the day Brother Jin-ho would take the people from Hubei and head back down with them.
However, Master Yeong Gu-jin and his party were not included among them.
That was because they had decided to build a brewery in Beijing and brew their liquor there.
The autumn wedding mattered too, of course, but they had no time to spare.
Since their liquor had received the highest score, they had to move diligently if they wanted to meet the required volume.
“Brother, have a safe trip.”
“I will.”
“Give my regards to the family.”
“Got it. You stay healthy too.”
“You packed the gift for Sister-in-law properly, right?”
“Of course.”
After seeing Brother Jin-ho off like that, it was time for me to begin preparations for the Poetry and Prose Competition.
But then…
Hm?
Why is Warrior Jin Yeong coming this way?
A short while later,
Warrior Jin Yeong and I were sitting across from each other in the reception room.
“You look like you have a lot on your mind.”
I said that first because he really did look deeply troubled.
“I do.”
“What happened?”
“Haa…”
Warrior Jin Yeong did not answer right away and drained his tea in one go.
I quietly refilled his cup and waited for him to speak.
“There was a murder.”
“What?”
A murder was a serious matter, but also something that happened fairly often.
Besides, that would fall under the Magistrate’s Office’s jurisdiction, so why was Warrior Jin Yeong…
And why was he telling me?
“The victim was someone who came to participate in the Poetry and Prose Competition.”
Ah…
Then it was something I did need to know.
“The victim’s name was Na Jeong-su. It seems he made quite a few enemies by often writing poems that criticized other people’s poetry and prose.”
“Aren’t those critical poems?”
“They were called critical poems, but when you looked closely, they were closer to outright condemnation.”
“I see.”
In truth, criticizing poetry and prose was an extremely difficult thing to do.
Poetry and prose contained the poet’s emotions, so to attack the work was to attack the poet’s feelings.
He must have been an awfully reckless man.
“But there is a problem.”
What kind of problem could make Warrior Jin Yeong look that grave?
“The most likely suspect is… one of the Namgoong Clan Lord’s sons.”
“…”
No wonder he looked so serious.
–TL Notes–
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