The next day.
A meeting was held at the Eunwol Pavilion, and I attended as well.
“We’ve found the origin of the rumor.”
Father began with those words and pushed forward a sheet of paper that had been placed in front of him.
“This is a report from the Hao Clan.”
So he used the Hao Clan after all.
Because our information is also included in what they collect, we had to pay a bit extra, but among the intelligence networks we can access, they’re the most reliable.
Although, remembering the information we received when tracking down Gong Mil’s location still makes me sigh.
Pavilion Lord Jeok picked up the document and unfolded it.
“Sichuan Province, huh.”
“That’s right.”
“And the likely locations are…”
Intelligence organizations only ever provide information worth the amount paid. The Hao Clan is no different—they don’t offer perfectly accurate or detailed intel.
Same this time. They only provided a few merchant groups that seemed suspicious.
Seriously, what a joke.
All they do is take your money and hand you useless guesses.
I calmed myself and scanned the list of candidates. Then I let out a breath.
I was pretty sure I knew where.
The Dan Clan Merchant Group.
There’s nowhere else it could be.
Pavilion Lord Yeon, who was looking over the document with me, said,
“It’s here—the Dan Clan Merchant Group.”
“I think so too.”
Seems the others agree as well.
“So it really was the Dan Clan that stirred up this mess.”
I let out a small laugh in my mind.
“If it’s that greedy old man, of course he would.”
Pavilion Lord Yeon continued.
“The issue is—how did they slip past our surveillance?”
That merchant group is one of the businesses that makes decorative dolls, and it was one we had our eyes on.
And yet they slipped through our surveillance?
That could only mean something had gone wrong at the Eunhae branch located in Sichuan Province, or the Dan Clan was moving stealthily enough to evade detection entirely.
“Could they have an outside accomplice?”
At Jeong-ho’s question, Father nodded.
“That’s a possibility too. Right now, we can’t say anything for certain… The problem at hand is how to respond to the strange rumors about the Self-Dancing Dolls…”
Everyone let out a sigh at Father’s words.
“It’s a business we’ve already begun, and one that could provide permanent income—walking away now would be a waste, wouldn’t it?”
As he said that, he glanced at me.
He was clearly thinking of me.
The truth is, what allowed the Eunhae Merchant Group to grow this far was placing trust as our highest value.
To be honest, there was something our merchant group lacked.
And that was the ability to devise strategies.
If we were to become a truly great merchant group, we needed the ability to formulate plans.
That’s why, when Jeong-ho became the Merchant Lord, I volunteered for the role of strategist.
It suited me, and it was something I was good at.
Thanks to that, our group, which had lingered at the bottom of the top 100 merchant groups, began to rise.
I like the people of the Eunhae Merchant Group.
So, for their sake—and for the sake of the group—I intended to handle strategy again this time.
That didn’t mean I would betray the trust that the group holds most dear.
Trust.
It’s the one virtue a merchant must protect to the end, the lifeline of our trade.
I looked to Father and said,
“Father, may I speak?”
“Go ahead.”
“I have a solid plan.”
I explained the strategy I had in mind, and both Father and the others nodded.
“Very good.”
“That’s not a bad plan at all.”
With Father’s approval, the others voiced their agreement. Jeong-ho, wearing a look of admiration, said,
“How do you come up with those ideas every time?”
He continued,
“I heard it was you who came up with the ‘Igananjin’ (以假亂眞) strategy when the previous owner of the Fire Lotus Inn ordered that guy to set fire to the Finance Pavilion.”
“Hahaha.”
I scratched the side of my head.
I must have an allergy to praise, because every time I hear it, that spot itches.
Father called out to me.
“Seo-ho.”
“Yes, Father?”
“But to execute the strategy you mentioned, there’s one prerequisite. Do you know what it is?”
“Yes, of course.”
I continued.
“Someone trustworthy must lead the operation.”
“Exactly. And given that we can’t rule out the possibility that someone in our branch office in Sichuan has been bought off, that person must be truly reliable.”
“Absolutely.”
“And they need to be able to react quickly to changes as they arise.”
At Father’s words, Chief Administrator Yu sighed. Pavilion Lord Jeok looked at him and chuckled.
Pavilion Lord Yeon also smiled faintly and said to him,
“What can we do? The assistant’s just too capable.”
Which meant…
“So Seo-ho, go to Sichuan.”
As I expected, Father instructed me to travel to Sichuan.
Sichuan is practically a natural fortress. To reach it quickly, you either sail through the steep Three Gorges of the Yangtze River, pass the narrow and dangerous mountain path of Sword Pass, or traverse the western jungles of the Sichuan Basin.
There’s also the route through Shaanxi Province, but that takes far too long.
This job needs to be done swiftly.
In short, this journey was going to be a grueling one.
Honestly, I’d rather spend the whole day buried in documents in Chief Administrator Yu’s office than take this trip.
Even so, I had to go to Sichuan.
Even if this hadn’t happened, I was planning to go there anyway.
And now that this issue had come up, part of me felt it was perfect timing.
But since I didn’t respond right away, the others must’ve thought I was hesitating.
External Chief Administrator Go spoke up.
“Sending Young Master Jin-ho is also an option. But be honest—do you think he’d be able to respond skillfully to the situation?”
Jin-ho is a good man, no doubt, but he can’t stand injustice.
He’s too full of chivalry and righteousness—it’s almost a flaw.
“…If he doesn’t draw his sword and cause a scene, we’ll be lucky.”
As expected, being his sword instructor, External Chief Administrator Go knew him all too well.
Father continued,
“The goal of this strategy is to resolve things as quietly as possible. That way, we avoid sparking resistance from the customers.”
Father had seen right through my plan.
That ability to see to the heart of things—
That’s Father’s greatest strength.
Thanks to that skill, our group had grown to where it is now.
“So go, then.”
Jeong-ho chimed in.
“I’d honestly like to go myself, but I’m far too busy right now.”
“…”
Well, Jeong-ho really must be swamped handling the new business.
Someone trustworthy.
Someone who can adapt to the situation.
Someone with the authority.
Someone with free time.
I’m literally the only one who checks all those boxes.
That’s why they knew I’d be the one going.
“And since you’re the one who came up with the strategy, you know it best, don’t you?”
At Jeong-ho’s words, Father nodded.
“Go, then.”
“Yes, Father.”
Sichuan Province.
The Merchant Lord of the Dan Clan Merchant Group was receiving a report in his office.
“So currently, the Eunhae Merchant Group is unable to sell Self-Dancing Dolls, and it seems they’ve taken a heavy loss.”
“As expected.”
“It really was a brilliant move.”
The Dan Clan Merchant Group’s way of countering the profit loss caused by the Self-Dancing Dolls was simple.
Just make sure the dolls didn’t sell.
And to do that, they spread a strange rumor about them.
The Self-Dancing Dolls were so life-like and intricately made that the rumor about them containing human souls sounded plausible.
People who felt even a little uneasy didn’t buy them. Just like that, it worked exactly as planned.
“This was all thanks to that man.”
“Right. He’s the one who tipped us off that the Eunhae Merchant Group was watching us.”
“And even turned a blind eye to our actions. We really ought to reward him handsomely.”
“Do so. But remember—don’t reveal any of our information to him.”
“Of course.”
A man who’s betrayed once will betray again.
“But the issue now is how the Eunhae Merchant Group will respond.”
“They’ll shut down the business.”
“They’ve invested so much. Would they really abandon it so easily?”
“Rumors aren’t so easily buried. The rumors will continue to follow the dolls, and when that happens, the authorities will investigate.”
“Ah!”
“Would their Merchant Lord continue this business knowing that?”
“That makes sense. But if they still don’t shut it down, what then?”
“Then the government will step in, and during the investigation, we’ll learn the manufacturing method of the core component.”
“Ah!”
The biggest hurdle in replicating the Self-Dancing Doll had been exactly that.
The method to make the core component.
“If we have that, we can create a similar type of doll.”
“Won’t we just end up sitting in the mess we made ourselves?”
“It may seem that way, but as long as the dolls don’t resemble humans, we’ll be fine.”
He grinned.
“People are simpler than you’d think. As long as it looks different, they’ll believe it is.”
“Oh! Of course! That’s brilliant!”
The Dan Clan Merchant Lord and his deputy exchanged sly grins.
Before them, the future glittered like a rainbow.
Clip-clop, clip-clop.
The steady rhythm of hooves echoed around me.
Right now, I was on horseback, heading to Sichuan.
The carriage carrying my belongings and the one I was supposed to ride was following behind.
But it wasn’t because I found the carriage uncomfortable that I rode ahead on horseback.
I needed to implement the strategy I’d devised and also personally inspect the Eunhae Merchant Group’s branch in Sichuan.
If someone there had sided with the Dan Clan, they’d surely inform them that I’d arrived.
And that could interfere with my plan.
So I’d asked that my travel to Sichuan be handled in absolute secrecy.
Father had agreed it was the right call.
And I’d taken it a step further and departed ahead of the main party.
“Young Master, when’re we stopping to rest?”
At Palgap’s question, I turned my head slightly and asked,
“Why? Getting tired?”
“My butt’s going numb. I might die, you know.”
“You’re saying that, but you’re riding pretty well.”
I gave a small laugh.
An attendant and a servant are entirely different.
An attendant supports their master from close by and must be trained in various disciplines.
Even if Palgap looks slow like a bear, he’s the son of a Division Head in the Eunhae Merchant Group.
And my grandfather had recognized potential in him early on and trained him to be a proper attendant. That’s how he eventually became mine.
So horseback riding was just basic; he even knew some martial arts and swordsmanship.
Then one of the Escort Guards from the Eunpoong Division, who had come with me for protection, spoke.
“Like Palgap said, we should probably take a short break.”
Just in case something happened, Team Two from the Eunpoong Division was escorting me.
Two of their warriors, Yeo Eung-am and Lee Pil, had been assigned to guard me.
Now that I think about it, Warrior Yeo Eung-am often ends up as my escort.
“If we don’t rest now, it’ll be tough in Sichuan.”
True…
Sichuan’s hot and humid climate really wears you down.
That’s why spicy, fiery food developed there—fight heat with heat.
“Alright. Let’s stop for a bit.”
“Yes, sir.”
We decided to take a break under a tree up ahead.
“Whoa, whoa.”
Once we arrived, I tied my horse nearby. Palgap quickly spread out a mat.
“Please, have a seat here.”
“Thanks.”
“And how about some dumplings?”
Come to think of it, I was getting hungry. And who knew what would happen the moment we arrived in Sichuan?
Best to eat while I could.
“Let’s eat.”
“Yes, sir.”
I offered dumplings to Warrior Yeo Eung-am and Warrior Lee Pil as well.
So the four of us sat and shared dumplings and tea.
And then—
Suddenly, I felt something unpleasant.
It was that sickening sensation.
I’d felt it before when visiting the Zhuge Clan.
Which meant there was someone from the Unorthodox Sect nearby.
I immediately stood and grabbed the hilt of the sword hanging at my waist.
Seeing my reaction, the two guards also placed their hands on their swords.
“What’s wrong?”
“Someone’s nearby.”
Yeo Eung-am closed his eyes for a moment, then opened them and spoke.
“That direction.”
He pointed exactly where I’d sensed the presence.
“What do we do?”
The best option was to leave the area immediately.
No point in getting tangled up and spilling blood.
So I was about to leave—
“Please help!”
If I hadn’t heard the voice of a child.
–TL Notes–
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