First, I had to find Old Man Mae’s son…
To do that, I needed something his son had used.
As I was wondering how I should get my hands on something like that, one door caught my eye.
“Then, by any chance, is that your son’s room?”
“…It is.”
“Would you mind if I took a quick look inside?”
“Do as you like.”
I quietly opened the door.
The room was clean despite having been empty for nearly fifteen years.
But there were no traces of anyone living there.
That meant Old Man Mae cleaned it every day. That was how sincerely he believed his son would come back.
I sent Geumryeong a Voice Transmission.
– Geumryeong, go into that room and smell some clothes or whatever else you can find.
– Kui.
Then I closed the door.
Since Geumryeong was half spirit body, slipping through walls was no problem.
Though I still had no idea why, whenever I asked it to run an errand, it insisted on flailing around and trying to come in through the window.
“It’s very tidy. You must clean it often.”
“Shouldn’t he be able to sleep comfortably whenever he comes home?”
“I see. Then is there anywhere you think your son might be?”
“If I knew that, I would’ve gone looking for him long ago.”
True. Fifteen years was more than enough time for him to search every place he could think of.
I returned to the Beijing Branch.
Geumryeong had left to find Old Man Mae’s son at my request.
There was a high chance he was already dead, but I hoped, for Old Man Mae’s sake, that he was still alive.
Old Man Mae could only move if his son came home. And if his son was already dead, proving that would be a serious headache.
Besides, the old man wanted it so desperately. A wish like that ought to come true.
As usual, I woke up in the morning, performed Breathing Meditation, finished my training, and was about to start working.
“Kui! Kui!”
I saw Geumryeong flailing as it climbed in through the window.
I hurried over and caught it.
“You’re back?”
“Kui!”
“How did it go? Did you find him?”
At my question, Geumryeong nodded with a smug look on its face.
“Kui!”
My expression brightened at that answer. In other words, the son was still alive.
I immediately called for Palgap.
“Palgap!”
“Yes!”
“Get ready to leave! We’re going to find Old Man Mae’s son.”
The preparations were finished quickly.
I had already given everyone advance notice, so they had all been getting ready.
This time, we needed to move fast, so I brought only Palgap and the Escort Guards with me.
“My lord, I’m not sure whether I should ask this…”
Escort Guard Chang Un trailed off.
“Ask freely.”
“Yes. To be honest, if this were anywhere else, they would’ve already forced Old Man Mae out and torn his house down. From what I’ve seen so far, people with power usually do exactly that.”
“You’re saying I’m making trouble for myself.”
“Hahaha.”
“To put it simply, I’m doing this for the Eunhae Merchant Group.”
I continued.
“Resentment is poison. If you let it pile up little by little, it can bring down even the sturdiest fortress. For the Eunhae Merchant Group’s future, I don’t want that kind of poison building up in the first place.”
“Ah…”
“And who knows? This course of action might even improve the Eunhae Merchant Group’s reputation.”
“So you’re saying it’s for the merchant group’s sake.”
“Yes. Which means I am absolutely not putting myself through all this because I’m a good person.”
At my words, Palgap and the Escort Guards looked at me in a strangely subtle way.
“W-what? Why are you suddenly looking at me like that?”
At my question, Escort Guard Seo Wu gave a quiet snort of laughter.
“It’s nothing.”
“Kui!”
Just then, Geumryeong, who was sitting on the River-Crossing Horse’s head, pointed in a certain direction.
At the moment, we were traveling under Geumryeong’s guidance.
This was south… but how far south were we going?
“Geumryeong. Do you happen to know what region we’re headed to?”
“Kui?”
“I mean, was there anything you saw there that left a strong impression on you?”
“Kui! Kui!”
“Uh…”
For a moment, I was taken aback.
“Sugarcane? Old Man Mae’s son was in a huge sugarcane field?”
There were plenty of places that grew sugarcane, but if it was an enormous sugarcane field…
Don’t tell me it’s Guangxi?
That was way down south.
Ugh! That’s insanely far.
Considering how late Geumryeong came back, I should’ve guessed it might be a long distance away…
Hah. Why didn’t I think of that?
Still, I couldn’t turn back now.
And for some reason, I had a gut feeling that I should go personally instead of sending someone else.
I said to the Escort Guards,
“We’ll have to go all the way to Guangxi.”
That meant I would be away for quite some time, but I wasn’t too worried, since Brother Jeong-ho was at the Beijing Branch.
Guangxi was south of Guizhou… Should I have brought Young Lady Seohyang?
The thought crossed my mind for a moment, but I soon shook my head.
Since we needed to make a fast round trip to Guangxi, it would be too hard on her.
So this time, it was better for her to stay at the Beijing Branch.
“Geumryeong.”
“Kui?”
“We’ll be moving at full speed from now on, so get inside.”
“Kui!”
Geumryeong slipped into my sleeve, and I spoke to the others.
“Then let’s run.”
“Yes!”
We moved quickly.
Since everyone was riding River-Crossing Horses, we reached Hubei in only a few days.
I considered briefly stopping by home, but it didn’t seem like we had enough time, so we simply passed through.
After riding for several more days, we arrived in Guangxi.
If we hadn’t had the River-Crossing Horses, it would probably have taken us several times longer. We would have suffered a lot more, too.
For some reason, I felt grateful to Geumryeong for dragging such River-Crossing Horses over to me.
“Kui.”
You want me to show my gratitude in silver?
That was Geumryeong, all right. It never disappointed.
Thinking that, we rode a little farther and soon saw a vast sugarcane field.
“Wow!”
Palgap exclaimed in admiration.
“Is all of that sugarcane, sir?”
“Yeah.”
“…”
Palgap was left speechless, and I gave a small laugh.
“You think this place is the empire’s largest producer of sugar for no reason?”
“But somehow, Young Master, you’re acting like this isn’t your first time here. As far as I know, this should definitely be your first time in Guangxi.”
Sharp.
Well, Guangxi was a place I had often visited in my previous life.
He was the Young Palace Lord of Zhurong Palace now, but back then, thanks to Maeng Cheon, who had been a wandering martial artist at the time, the Eunhae Merchant Group had been able to distribute sugar.
I suddenly remembered the first time I came here.
Back then, I had also been deeply shocked by the sheer scale of the sugarcane fields.
And this was a place I had visited in my previous life as well.
Nothing had changed, either then or now.
Then another thought suddenly came to mind, but I pushed it aside for the moment.
Finding Old Man Mae’s son came first.
“So, Geumryeong.”
“Kui.”
“Where exactly is Old Man Mae’s son?”
“Kui!”
Geumryeong pointed ahead with its tail.
“He’s not far, right?”
At my question, Geumryeong nodded. Good.
Still, to think it could track a single scent all the way from Beijing to Guangxi.
Geumryeong really was impressive.
Just then, a warrior approached us.
“This is the Yeocheong Merchant Group’s sugarcane field. Where have you come from?”
“We’re from the Eunhae Merchant Group.”
“What brings the Eunhae Merchant Group here?”
“By any chance, is there a man named Mae Jeong here?”
Old Man Mae So-gun’s son was named Mae Jeong.
I hadn’t heard that directly from the old man. I had learned it separately through an investigation.
The warrior thought for a moment, then seemed to remember someone and spoke cautiously.
“Are you perhaps referring to Supervisor Mae? The supervisor’s name is Mae Jeong.”
Huh?
Supervisor?
.
.
.
A short while later.
In the Yeocheong Merchant Group’s Reception Room, I sat across from the man presumed to be Old Man Mae’s son.
I sent Geumryeong, who was inside my sleeve, a Voice Transmission.
– Geumryeong. Is this the right person?
– Kui!
He is? And I shouldn’t doubt you?
– Kui! Kui!
Just make sure I pay you properly in silver?
Fine… I get it.
If Geumryeong was being this firm, then there was no mistake.
At that moment, Supervisor Mae Jeong asked me,
“You said you’re Deputy Merchant Lord Eun Seo-ho of the Eunhae Merchant Group?”
“Ah, yes. That’s right.”
“May I ask why someone from a place like the Eunhae Merchant Group is looking for me?”
I set down my teacup and said,
“Your father is waiting for you.”
“…What?”
He looked bewildered, then asked carefully,
“Do you… know my father?”
“What?”
No, if you ask me like that, I’m the one who gets confused.
“What else do you know about my father?”
“His name is Mae So-gun. He should be in his mid-sixties this year. At present, he lives as a farmer on the outskirts of Beijing.”
“Is that all?”
“I haven’t known him for very long, so I don’t know much. But I do know that fifteen years ago, his son left home, saying he would succeed in the world, and that a year later, all contact was cut off.”
His eyes were still full of suspicion.
I sighed and asked,
“I’m only asking just in case, but… did you lose your memory?”
“…!”
Supervisor Mae Jeong flinched.
So that was it.
Geumryeong had clearly said this man was Old Man Mae’s son, but the man in front of me had instead asked whether I knew his father.
And when he asked me to describe his father in more detail, I sensed a vague, aching longing from him.
“…Didn’t you already know that when you came here?”
“I didn’t. I simply came here because I had a reason to find Elder Mae’s son.”
“How did you come here knowing I was that man’s son, then? Don’t you think your story contradicts itself?”
“I can see why you’d think that. Then, to clear up the misunderstanding, I should tell you this first.”
“Tell me what?”
“I have an Artifact that can find people.”
Since I couldn’t reveal Geumryeong’s existence, I had no choice but to pass it off as the power of an Artifact.
“What? Did you say an Artifact?”
“Yes. Thanks to that Artifact, I learned that Supervisor Mae was Elder Mae’s son and came looking for you. For reference, I need you to keep this matter secret.”
“Hah. Fine, for now. Then why did you go so far as to use such an Artifact to find me?”
His suspicion still hadn’t faded.
I answered honestly.
“Our merchant group is planning to establish a Martial Arts Academy together with the Imperial Family. Elder Mae’s house sits inside the planned site. No matter how generous a compensation offer we make, he won’t budge. When I asked him why, he said that if he moved away, his son would no longer have a place to come back to.”
I continued.
“That is why I came looking for you, Supervisor Mae. Unless I find his son for him, how can the elder move with peace of mind?”
“…”
Perhaps he hadn’t expected me to answer so frankly, because he let out an awkward cough.
“Anyway, judging by your reaction, it seems quite a few swindlers have latched on to you before.”
“Hah… That’s right.”
There was no such thing as a good swindler, but those who preyed on people who had lost their memories deserved divine punishment.
Not knowing anything about yourself was like walking down a pitch-black road without a single lamp.
How desperately would a person long for that lamp?
And those swindlers were the sort who trampled that desperation underfoot.
“You must have had a difficult time.”
“Yes, well… I have.”
He thought for a moment before speaking.
“In that case, may I ask a favor?”
“What is it?”
“If you really are the Deputy Merchant Lord of the Eunhae Merchant Group, and if the reason you came looking for me is truly what you said, please stay here for a few days. I’ll investigate you as well.”
“Very well.”
.
.
.
We unpacked our belongings in the quarters inside the merchant group compound.
I had considered getting rooms at a nearby inn, but he had asked us to stay inside the merchant group.
To think he could immediately prepare quarters within the compound large enough for our whole party!
He might be a supervisor, but it seemed he had quite a bit of authority.
Normally, supervisors couldn’t allow guests to stay inside the merchant group compound even if guests came.
We headed to the stables to retrieve the luggage loaded onto the horses.
“You’re working hard.”
I said that to the stable servants as I entered.
Then, as we unloaded the horses, an older-looking warrior beside me asked cautiously,
“Um, by any chance… are those horses River-Crossing Horses?”
“You know them?”
“I knew it! They really are River-Crossing Horses!”
“How did you know our horses were River-Crossing Horses?”
At my question, the warrior answered,
“To tell the truth, I’ve always loved horses. When I was young, I went around studying every horse I could find. Thanks to that, I also came across records about River-Crossing Horses.”
“I see.”
“But to think I would actually see River-Crossing Horses with my own eyes! My wish is coming true.”
That suddenly made me curious about his wish.
“May I ask what that wish is?”
“Well, it’s not a secret. My wish is simply for our Merchant Lord to recover.”
.
.
.
I returned to the quarters I had been given, took off my outer robe, and lay down on the bed.
I did find Old Man Mae’s son, but he had lost his memory…
Was that why he never came back?
For now, I was relieved that he wasn’t dead… but this was tragic in its own way.
At that moment, Geumryeong came out of my sleeve, bit my hair, and tugged.
“Kui! Kui!”
“Fine. I’ll give it to you. I said I’ll give it.”
I took a silver tael out of my money pouch and handed it to Geumryeong. Geumryeong hugged the silver tael and rolled around on the bed.
I watched it for a moment, then fell into thought.
The Yeocheong Merchant Group’s Merchant Lord was bedridden with illness…
When I arrived at this sugarcane field earlier, a memory had come to mind.
I heard he was an exceptionally good person, but he never recovered and died.
Even though the medicine that could cure him was right in front of him, he never knew it.
–TL Notes–
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