I nodded at Money House Lord Hwang San's words.
“If that's your preference, Money House Lord, I understand. Please, sit down.”
“Thank you.”
As I took my seat, I looked over his clothes.
He was impeccably neat.
He wore the same navy blue clothes as the Geumsan Money House employees, with [Money House Lord Hwang San] embroidered on the left breast.
Without that embroidery, I'd have believed him to be an ordinary money house employee.
Outwardly, he was very kind and ready to serve his customers. Cross him, though, and you were fucked.
He got straight to the point.
“First, as you've probably heard from Department Head Bo, the counterfeit-draft problem has become extremely serious.”
“It's truly deplorable.”
“With that in mind…”
He took several drafts from inside his clothes and spread them on the table.
“Could you pick out the counterfeits from these?”
“What?”
“I heard you identified the counterfeit among the drafts Department Head Bo showed you the other day.”
“Ah… I just thought it was fake because it gave me a nasty feeling. I happened to guess correctly.”
“A person's intuition is often more accurate than you'd think. My own instincts are what brought me to where I am today.”
Hmm. So that was how he saw it.
As it happened, I had something in mind myself.
To make it work, I needed to identify the counterfeits among the drafts he'd brought with complete accuracy.
I reached out and selected the ones on which I could sense the Asura Blood Cult's Qi.
The Money House Lord watched me with an expression I couldn't read.
“I believe these are the counterfeits.”
“Do you?”
The Money House Lord nodded and carefully examined the back of each draft I'd selected.
“Whew. Your intuition really is excellent. To identify them so precisely! I'm impressed.”
“I really got them all right? Wow! I'm even more surprised than you are.”
I continued.
“But how did you know those were the counterfeits? Department Head Bo specifically told me yesterday that you hadn't found a way to identify them.”
“Ah… That's our public position.”
Public position?
“We have one more anti-counterfeiting measure that we haven't made public. That's how I was able to establish that these were fakes.”
“I see. That's a relief.”
“I'm sorry I can't tell you how it works.”
“I understand. Methods like that have to remain strictly confidential.”
I nodded, then asked cautiously.
“But why come to me? If you have such a method, can't you use it to tell whether the drafts are counterfeit?”
“There's a problem. I'm the only one who can use that method, and it takes some time. Tens of thousands of drafts are presented for payment every day.”
He sighed.
“As you know, Deputy Merchant Lord, one of the greatest reasons for our Geumsan Money House's success is how quickly we pay out money.”
He was right.
With such thorough safeguards against counterfeiting, they could hand over the money immediately.
That convenience was what had made them the undisputed leader among money houses.
“If we change our procedures now, what will our customers think?”
“You're caught between a rock and a hard place.”
“Exactly.”
He continued, looking frustrated.
“The solution is to catch the culprits as soon as possible, but…”
His words trailed off as he looked at me.
Those eyes seemed to be asking for my help.
In that case, there was no need to hesitate.
“I think I know a way.”
“What do you suggest?”
“As soon as we identify a counterfeit draft, we follow the person who used it and find their base.”
“If we could do that, I couldn't ask for more. But we have no way to recognize a counterfeit on the spot…”
I pointed a finger at myself.
“You have me, don't you?”
“What?”
“Me. You've acknowledged my intuition yourself, Money House Lord. Couldn't I identify counterfeit drafts immediately?”
“You could, but… They might notice.”
“Don't worry. I can pose as a money house employee.”
“However you disguise yourself, that face of yours is far too distinctive. And you're quite famous, aren't you?”
“In that case…”
I changed my face with the Novel Disguise Art.
“Would this do?”
“What you just did…”
“It's a Disguise Art my master taught me. It's something of a secret technique, so I can't explain it in detail.”
“Of course. As someone who practices martial arts myself, I can certainly understand that.”
I'd demonstrated the Novel Disguise Art right in front of him to earn his trust.
He wasn't someone who would talk carelessly.
Neither was Department Head Bo.
“Very good. No one should recognize you like that.”
.
.
.
Two days later, I officially announced that I was going on a business trip, then headed to the meeting place with Escort Guard Seo Wu and Escort Guard Jin Yu.
It was the place where the Provincial Administration Commissioner of Guizhou met Lady Seohyang whenever he came to Beijing.
You'd be hard-pressed to find somewhere around Beijing with better security.
“You're here early.”
I turned to find the Money House Lord stepping down from a carriage that had just arrived.
“Good to see you.”
“Please, get in.”
“Thank you.”
My companions and I boarded the carriage.
It was fairly large. Even with the three of us and the Money House Lord inside, there was plenty of room.
Palgap had wanted to come too, but an ordinary money house employee with an Attendant would have drawn attention.
“We're going to the training center. Employees receive instruction there before they're assigned to their posts. You'll be introduced as a new recruit.”
“Understood.”
“But are you sure you'll be all right? To be frank, working as a new employee isn't easy.”
“I know. Our merchant group's rules required me to start as a new employee there too. Even so, my mind is made up.”
“Then I understand.”
“You seem to be wondering why I'm going out of my way to make life so difficult for myself.”
“I won't deny it.”
Thinking about it, this had happened because I'd cut off the Asura Blood Cult's sources of money.
That was why I was stepping forward to resolve it.
But I couldn't tell him the truth.
The Asura Blood Cult wasn't yet publicly known. To make him understand a mention of them, I'd have to explain everything I'd done so far.
That could end up making me a target for them, so it would have to remain a secret for now.
Instead, I gave him the excuse I'd prepared.
“Our Eunhae Merchant Group has quite a bit of money deposited with the Geumsan Money House, and so do I personally. If counterfeit drafts were used to withdraw it, I think I'd be so sick about it I wouldn't be able to sleep.”
I clenched my fist as I spoke.
“After everything I did to earn that money! How dare they touch my money!”
“Ah… I understand.”
“Whew. I got carried away and made a spectacle of myself.”
“Not at all. I feel exactly the same way.”
He gave a wry smile, then explained the training center to me.
“The training center is in Hebei. When your training there is complete, you'll be assigned to the main office in Hebei.”
“Understood.”
“I'm counting on you.”
We traveled while discussing the coming operation in detail, and arrived at an inn in Hebei.
A middle-aged man was waiting for me there.
“He's the Head of the Personnel and Training Department. If you have any questions, you can ask Department Head Gu.”
“It's a pleasure to meet you. I'm Department Head Gu Seon-mo.”
“I'm Eun Seo-ho.”
“I've been briefed. I look forward to working with you.”
“I look forward to working with you too.”
“The training period is fifteen days. The two Escort Guards who accompanied you will also receive fifteen days of security training. But you're about three days behind schedule, so you'll have to work that much harder to learn everything.”
“Understood. I'll do my best.”
“Ah! Have you thought of an excuse for arriving late?”
At that, I glanced at the Money House Lord behind me and answered.
“Of course. I'll tell you later.”
“Very well. Please, follow me.”
Just then, the Money House Lord called me over and gave me a whistle.
“Use that if you need to call me.”
“Understood.”
I hung the whistle around my neck and followed Department Head Gu Seon-mo toward the training center.
“Trainees share a room in pairs.”
“I see.”
“Classes run from around nine in the morning until around three in the afternoon. Also, you may not leave the grounds during your training.”
As we walked, Department Head Gu Seon-mo explained the various rules and precautions before leading me inside.
I was assigned room eight. Someone was already using it.
“Good to meet you. I'm Gang Il.”
“I'm Eun Seo-ho.”
Since I'd changed my face with the Novel Disguise Art, I'd decided to use my real name.
As expected, he didn't seem to think I was Eun Seo-ho of the Eunhae Merchant Group.
“Where are you from?”
“I'm from Hubei.”
“I see. I'm from Anhui.”
“Anhui… Ah! That's where the Namgoong Clan is.”
“Yes, it is.”
He nodded, and I gently tested the waters.
“The Namgoong Clan is quite impressive.”
“It is, but…”
“Hm?”
“It's nothing.”
He seemed to want to avoid talking about them.
Was there something behind that?
I didn't mention the Namgoong Clan again.
For now, learning even that much about his reaction was a worthwhile gain.
“Wasn't the recruitment exam difficult this time? I thought I was going to fail.”
“So did I.”
As it happened, the Geumsan Money House had held its recruitment exam in the Fourth Month.
It was one of the foremost money houses in the empire, so plenty of people applied to take the exam.
The monthly pay was high, and the benefits were quite good too.
“But training began three days ago. Why did you arrive so late?”
“Ah… There's a story behind that.”
I deliberately sighed before continuing.
“I ran into Forest Bandits on the way.”
“Oh, no!”
“They took everything I had and dragged me to their mountain stronghold. I was going to be sold as a slave. But when I failed to arrive, the Money House Lord personally made inquiries and rescued me.”
“Good heavens! You went through all that?”
“Yes. I'll never forget what he did for me.”
My fellow recruit Gang Il seemed to believe every word of my invented story.
He felt sorry for me and offered to help.
“You must have had a terrible time. Then I'll teach you what you missed during those three days.”
“Thank you.”
With his help, I was able to get at least a rough grasp of the three days' training I'd missed.
Just then, a drum sounded three times.
“Ah! It's time for dinner. Come with me.”
“All right.”
I followed him to the dining hall.
“Here, you just pick up a tray, a spoon, and chopsticks like this. The cooks serving the meal will put the bowls on your tray.”
“I see.”
“Chicken for dinner today.”
Following my fellow recruit Gang Il's instructions, I collected my meal and sat where he suggested.
“Everyone, say hello. This is the fellow recruit who's sharing my room.”
They seemed to be fellow recruits Gang Il had become friendly with.
“Oh, I see.”
“But what happened to bring you here so late?”
“Apparently, he had a rather unfortunate experience.”
I nodded and told them the same story I'd told my fellow recruit Gang Il.
“I see. After overcoming such an ordeal, you should have nothing but smooth sailing ahead.”
“That's right.”
Fortunately, they seemed to be good people.
Then again, I'd heard that the Geumsan Money House placed considerable weight on character when hiring employees.
Morning came.
Classes started at around nine, but the daily routine began with getting up around five and running around the training grounds.
That was a relief.
I felt stiff when I couldn't train, so being able to loosen up by running around the training grounds was welcome.
* * *
Department Head Gu Seon-mo sighed.
It was because of the counterfeit drafts now threatening the Geumsan Money House.
Personnel and training, the work he handled, wasn't directly connected to the problem. Even so, it was a major crisis shaking the place where he worked.
'I hope this is resolved soon.'
Just then, an employee approached.
“These documents have just arrived from the training center.”
“Ah. Was today the day they completed their training?”
“It is.”
“Let's see…”
He opened the documents.
They were the grade reports for the trainees who'd been receiving instruction.
“Oh?”
His eyes lit up at one person's results.
“What is it?”
“This trainee, Eun Seo-ho, has the highest possible grade in every field.”
“Yes, that's right.”
The employee nodded.
“From the reports I've received, every teacher at the training center agrees that he's a promising talent.”
“I see.”
For some reason, Gu Seon-mo felt an ache in his chest.
It was a shame that such an outstanding talent couldn't spend his entire career at the Geumsan Money House.
'But if he can resolve the counterfeit-draft case, that alone should satisfy me… Whew. The more I think about it, the more of a shame it seems.'
* * *
At last, my time at the training center was over.
I was now every inch a money house employee.
After the completion ceremony ended, we waited for a while.
“Where do you think you'll be assigned, Eun Seo-ho?”
“Who knows? Isn't it random?”
“True.”
“Ha ha.”
My fellow recruit Gang Il's words made me laugh.
To be honest, I knew where I would be assigned. But that was a secret.
A little later, someone went up onto the platform.
“We will now announce your assignments. First, our top graduate. Eun Seo-ho.”
“Present!”
“Hebei main office.”
“Yes, sir!”
Just as the Money House Lord had told me.
I grinned.
Now all that remained was to hunt down the bastards who'd pissed me off by making counterfeit drafts.
–TL Notes–
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