“Kang Yoon-ho, if you meet Man Geum-jeon, I will stop the seizure.”
Was it because I couldn’t ignore the influence of the merchant club leader? The clerk from the Man Geum Battlefield quickly nodded to the mediation proposal as if he had been waiting for it.
It’s good that the sudden situation is settled, but now I have to go to Wuhan, which wasn’t in the plan.
They said they wouldn’t give me much time, so I need to hurry up, pack my things, and set out.
Going to Wuhan isn’t a big problem. It connects to the Yangtze River from Yichang. The real issue is whether it’s okay to push aside one problem to deal with another.
“I know everything that’s going on here!”
“Hiding a runaway courtesan! Aren’t you ashamed?”
In front of my house, where the seizure from the Man Geum Battlefield had stopped, a group was shouting at the printing house’s door.
“What’s the matter?”
“Black hair? That’s Kang Yoon-ho from Da Seogak! You bastard! You hid her, didn’t you?”
One martial artist recognized me and reached for my collar.
Instinctively, I stepped back quickly as if avoiding Im Ha-yeon’s stone.
The martial artist’s arm stretched out further. As I quickly twisted my body and evaded his hand, I grabbed his wrist and pulled.
“Gwah!”
The martial artist lost his balance and tumbled to the ground, tasting dirt in an instant.
“What the hell are you doing?”
Im Ha-yeon’s training is paying off. I concealed my pride and asked, pretending to be indifferent.
“The black-haired person was a martial artist?!”
“Master Kang! Are you okay? They’re causing a ruckus, saying they came from some gambling place in Wuhan, demanding to hand over the runaway courtesan.”
Postmen from the Seocheon Post Office appeared amidst the startled expressions of the crowd.
First, it was the Man Geum Battlefield, and now it’s the Hao Mun Do people? What kind of day is it today?
I was distressed with the continuous problems but didn’t show it as I looked at the Hao Mun Do members. Do they know Im Ha-yeon is here? Or do they just have a hunch?
“What kind of ruckus is this in front of someone’s home? Quietly back off.”
Let’s pretend we don’t know anything for now. I warned the Hao Mun Do members with a stern face. Then one of them stepped confidently toward me.
“Kang Yoon-ho from Da Seogak.”
Has this guy eaten too many blades? With scars all over his face, he looks pretty intimidating while glaring at me as he calls my name.
“What?”
“Are you going to hide her for life?”
The martial artist shot back at me, as if he knew everything.
“I have no idea what you’re talking about.”
“If you want to hide her, keep her hidden for life. Just stay holed up at home, cherishing her like a treasure. But remember, Hao Mun’s eyes and ears are everywhere.”
“I don’t know about eyes and ears, but I can see a bunch of ruffians shouting at an innocent house.”
I smirked at the Hao Mun Do members, who were at a loss before the postmen.
“Ha! Just like I heard. Tell that woman it’s not too late yet. If she comes back now, she won’t face any harsh treatment. But if Huizhu’s patience runs out, things will get ugly. Both for her hiding and the one hiding her.”
“What did you just say?”
One of the postmen flinched at the threat and put his hand on his weapon.
“Tell that woman! Even if everything protecting you suddenly turns to ashes! Even if the person protecting you begins to resent you, do you think you can handle it?!”
“Are you threatening me in front of the Seocheon Post Office?!”
“Fine, I will withdraw now!”
The one who had a meal of blade marks on his face seemed to have had enough and quickly retreated with his group.
If you’re going to threaten someone, do it properly. Acting tough and then backing down looks pathetic.
“Should I sprinkle some salt for good measure?”
People like this come one after another.
With all these incidents, it’s like I should hold a ritual even if I don’t believe it. Should I put a pig’s head on the altar and have a go?
It would be a unique delicacy to eat with beef soup after leaving the pig’s head at the butcher after the ritual.
Suddenly, I feel like having beef soup. I sighed softly and opened the door to the printing house.
“Did you come?”
“Startled me! Make some noise when you’re around!”
Im Ha-yeon popped out from the corner with a voice cautious as if worried someone would overhear.
“……”
Did she hear everything from behind the door?
She couldn’t lift her head with a worried expression, probably having heard all the words I said. Where did that aloof cat-like demeanor go?
“I have no intention of looking upon you with resentment.”
It’s not your fault, is it?
Seeing her all messy with ink stains on her sleeves and face from working all day made my heart ache.
“Well…”
“Let’s go inside and talk.”
We have a lot to discuss.
—————————
“Da Seogak is about to fall into the Man Geum Battlefield?”
I summarized what happened today for Im Ha-yeon.
“It hasn’t fallen yet.”
“What are you planning to do?”
“I intend to go to the Man Geum Battlefield in Wuhan.”
Even if the Man Geum Battlefield bought the debts, what happened today is not a standard procedure. Suddenly appearing and demanding a seizure is out of the blue.
What are they aiming for? What do they want? As creditors and debtors, we need to face each other directly.
“Are you going alone to Wuhan?”
“I asked the Seocheon Post Office, but they said it would be too much to have both the printing house’s guards and the postage at the same time. If I take a boat, I can go alone without much trouble, so I’ll slip away.”
Despite the reputation of the Seocheon Post Office, the personnel from the Yichang branch are still few in number.
If going by boat is all it takes, that makes Im Ha-yeon a priority. I refused the postage offer from the branch leader of the Seocheon Post Office.
“……”
Did she feel my consideration? Im Ha-yeon frowned and had a troubled expression.
“Stop thinking weird thoughts and stay comfortably in the printing house for now.”
“……No.”
“What do you mean no?”
“Let’s go together. To Wuhan.”
*
Da Seogak could disappear.
In such a situation, how long can she continue to rely on protection?
Im Ha-yeon looked at Kang Yoon-ho with eyes filled with determination.
“Going to Wuhan could mean being caught. Even if the postmen accompany, unforeseen circumstances can occur. I’ll go alone.”
“If Jeon Gil-san harms you? Isn’t that his nature?”
“……”
Kang Yoon-ho couldn’t easily deny it.
“See? You’re not the only one depending on me.”
Im Ha-yeon sighed softly, carefully holding his wrist with both hands. It’s a way of physical contact she learned, throwing a small flirty glance at a man she’s fond of.
She managed to calm her racing heart as she touched the wrist of a bewildered man for the very first time, gazing into his worried eyes.
The unscrupulous merchant, Kang Yoon-ho.
She had misunderstood him as a scoundrel when he was at Wuhan. But how had he acted upon arriving in Yichang?
He provided lunch and breaks for starving workers. He clothed them in silk garments they never would have worn. He gave the hopeless scholars the courage to continue living. He offered dreams for the future.
“Just seeing Man Geum-jeon’s face will be enough. No matter what, I can’t take you with me.”
“If it doesn’t end with just seeing Man Geum-jeon’s face? You can handle ledger management, be quick on your feet, and be good with customer service; you will eventually need someone who can do anything when you call upon them.”
“You don’t need to risk yourself because of me.”
“You don’t need to risk yourself because of me.”
Im Ha-yeon shot back his words in kind.
“……”
“Just as you have your dreams, mine are with Da Seogak.”
It had been a dreamlike few months.
She wanted to throw off the identity of a courtesan. She wanted to live like a normal woman.
She wanted to do what she wanted, dream her dreams, make friends with ordinary ladies instead of courtesans, and giggle and chatter over trivial things.
And then, somehow, she met a man who made her uneasy…
Im Ha-yeon smiled softly at her own absurd thoughts and then silently looked up at Kang Yoon-ho.
“I will protect that dream. So please wait for me.”
Im Ha-yeon quietly shook her head at his words.
“They discovered where I’m hiding in Hao Mun. If I keep hiding like this, we both will only see things worsen.”
He helps when times are tough; he listens when it’s sad.
No matter what happens, he seems to want to protect her. But desire is desire.
If she stays here, it could burn everything about him.
Though Kang Yoon-ho’s wide shade gave her comfort, it was now time for her to step out of the shadows, take his hand, and move forward together.
“There’s no need to give up.”
“Who would give up?”
Im Ha-yeon shot him a radiant smile that made even Kang Yoon-ho momentarily lose his senses as she approached the window. Somehow, her face became red, but Kang Yoon-ho just thought it was hot in the room.
“Then?”
“I have no intention of giving up on my dreams either.”
Im Ha-yeon opened the window and reached out. A dream had flown in, landing in her hand.
It was the carrier pigeon from the Hao Mun Yichang Branch.
“It seems the Do-mun folks are scheming to take the branch leader position in Wuhan.”
The leader of the Hao Mun Yichang Branch began to reveal the information that flew in from Wuhan.
“Do-mun’s scheming?”
“It’s a plot to eliminate competition. Since the Ki-mun faction is stronger in Wuhan than Do-mun, they probably bribed others to push out Ki-mun and take everything.”
“Is Hao Mun really handling inter-faction matters like that?”
The rascals in Wuhan are said to have overcome the courtesan forces to ascend the branch leader? So the operation must be called ‘New Wuhan’ or something?
“That can’t be! Wouldn’t informing Wuhan about this resolve the issue?”
Im Ha-yeon raised her voice in denial, looking expectantly at the branch leader.
“The suspicions and circumstantial evidence are clear-cut. But the issue is there’s no decisive proof.”
The Yichang branch leader gripped the papers with disappointment.
“Indeed!”
“How much money was that? This information isn’t worth the price I paid.”
The request for information from Wuhan was my order. Not being able to gather something decisive is a waste of money.
I glared at the branch leader as if I were a contractor staring at a subcontractor who missed deadlines.
“I can’t refund you! I’ve conducted additional investigations. Recently, the leaders of the Hao Mun branch in Hubei Province have been changing frequently. Each for different reasons, but they’re all from Do-mun.”
So it’s not just one place?
“That’s really suspicious. But without decisive proof, going to Wuhan won’t change anything, right?”
“No.”
The branch leader approached me with a serious expression.
“What?”
“Even without decisive evidence, there’s a way to create a change.”
Slap! The moment my gaze was on the branch leader, it shifted 90 degrees.
“Wha—?”
Is this guy slapping me all of a sudden?
No matter how much the nightmare of a general contractor slapping the subcontractor is a dream, how could it be happening to me?
I can’t take it anymore. I infuse my right hand with energy. The target is the branch leader’s cheek. I swing my palm as though harvesting some white corn from his face.
“Yah! Is this bastard insane?!”
Avoiding? The branch leader retreated in shock.
“Who would have a say here! Why are you slapping me all of a sudden?!”
“Ugh! Damn. With this temperament, I can see why I’m hearing things from that friend… Here, take that.”
The branch leader looked at me with a bewildered expression as he handed me something from his pocket.
“What’s this?”
A blade-shaped coin?
“It’s a token of the Si-mun. Starting today, Kang Yoon-ho is officially part of the Hao Mun Si-mun. Additionally, I declare you the deputy leader of the Yichang branch of Hao Mun.”
So slapping me was some kind of initiation? What are you, medieval knights or something?
“Who gives you the right to make me a Hao Mun do? Just put your hand down. I’ll give it back to you.”
“Matters within the faction must only involve those from within, so this measure is necessary. If you want to save your partner, this is the only way.”
The branch leader said with a very serious expression directed at me.
“What do you mean?”
“It seems related to the Do-mun Huizhu, who oversees the gamblers in Hubei Province. Since Im Ha-yeon is part of Ki-mun, it will be challenging to raise suspicions with Huizhu of Ki-mun. You’ll need the strength of another group. So take this token and bring the evidence to the Huizhu of the Si-mun in Wuhan.”
So the leader of the Hao Mun Yichang branch is one of the agents?
Within Hao Mun, titles like Huizhu refer to those who manage tasks assigned to specific genders.
If the Huizhu of Hubei Province Ki-mun oversees the courtesans of Hao Mun there, then it means the opponent is Do-mun Huizhu.
Since it’ll be challenging to raise suspicions one-on-one, they’re suggesting to mobilize the collective of Si-mun.
“I’ll just do this mission and then quit right after.”
I said grumpily while rubbing my cheek.
“It didn’t even hurt much, and yet you’re being so dramatic… Let’s see how it goes. Send my regards to the Si-mun Huizhu.”
“Do your best, even if it hurts your heart.”
————————
“Are you all set?”
“Let’s board the boat.”
There’s no need to waste time with direct confrontation.
The day after the Man Geum Battlefield came, I left Da Seogak with Im Ha-yeon, entrusting the printing house to the head of guards and management.
The boat quickly set sail, making Yichang look like a small dot in no time.
“Let’s resolve this together and come back together.”
“Of course.”
I confidently replied to the anxious Im Ha-yeon, hoping I could save her fate.
What does Man Geum-jeon want from me?
Everything would be answered once we get to Wuhan.
“But why did you stop by Da Seogak before leaving?”
Im Ha-yeon curiously asked, observing me posing dramatically as we rode the boat against the river breeze.
“I left it there because it wouldn’t have been good to leave it behind.”
[It’s Ho Pil….]
“Another incident happened!!!!!!! Damn it!!!!!!!”
