“Isn’t it a bit late to be up like this?”
On the night when Jeon Gil-san’s guesthouse, as the first franchise owner, was successfully launched, Im Ha-yeon opened the door to the office with a worried look on her face.
“I have a meeting with Man Geum-jeon tomorrow. I need to work hard until then.”
With the main office work, client dealings, managing franchise stores, being the club leader for the Joseon community, and even handling the tasks related to the Tea Bookstore that came flying in from Yichang, it was really busy.
“Here, this is the ledger you’ll take tomorrow. I’ve roughly organized the miscellaneous documents.”
If it hadn’t been for Im Ha-yeon’s help, I would have collapsed right then and there.
“Thank you for your hard work, especially since I imagine Jeon Seogu was training hard too. Huh?!”
Just as I stood up to grab the ledger she handed me, I lost my balance.
“Are you okay?!”
Im Ha-yeon caught me just before I fell to the ground. Was I really on the verge of collapsing?
Was she surprised by this situation? She held me tightly without letting go. It smelled oddly nice, like some kind of perfume, coming from her soft body.
Come on, focus! Just because my body is tired doesn’t mean I should be having such absurd thoughts.
“I’m sorry. I think I got a little dizzy.”
I gathered strength in my legs to stand up and purposefully distanced myself from her. Was it the lighting? Im Ha-yeon’s face was slightly flushed.
“Let’s call it a night.”
Im Ha-yeon spoke to me with a face filled with concern, like she was watching a newborn trying to walk.
“I should take a look at the organized documents…”
“Go to sleep. There’s no need to check them.”
Im Ha-yeon placed her hands on her hips as if she would demonstrate her skills if I said anything more, glaring at me.
“Got it.”
If I didn’t want to collapse in front of Man Geum-jeon tomorrow, I should get some sleep now.
I nodded and sat on the bed in the corner of the office.
“Umm…”
As I prepared to lie down, Im Ha-yeon called out to me with her head down.
“Is there something you want to say?”
“Thank you… I believe tomorrow will go well!”
Was she embarrassed? Without listening to my response, she darted out of the office.
Did she think my struggles were because of her? That’s not entirely wrong. I used to rarely say thank you when we first met, but this was really remarkable progress.
I fell onto the bed, almost collapsing.
To save the Tea Bookstore and Im Ha-yeon, I must wrap up my meeting with Man Geum-jeon positively tomorrow.
For now, let’s sleep and meet him with a refreshed mind.
———————-
“Man Geum-jeon is meeting with your maternal grandsons. Please wait a moment.”
I had a feeling Jeon Gil-san would be hard to meet today. Did he have a prior engagement with his grandfather?
I came all nervous, thinking I would meet him right away, but now I feel a bit deflated.
The competition for succession among Man Geum-jeon’s grandsons is the main exam, while I’m just a side test, so I guess I have no choice but to wait.
“Hey, where did he go?!”
“Quick, look for him!”
As I waited, feeling like I was awaiting a job interview, the surroundings suddenly started to get noisy.
What’s going on? Trying to calm my nervous heart, I stepped out into the garden to take a look.
“…What’s with that box?”
There was a large wooden box in one corner of the garden, big enough for a person to fit in.
It hadn’t been there before!
In a garden where artificial items were entirely excluded, why was there a wooden box? It felt way too out of place.
“Hurry, look around!”
“Kang Gongja, excuse me for a moment.”
Some people who seemed to be servants of the mansion entered the garden and started looking around.
What’s this? Why aren’t they paying attention to the suspicious-looking box right out in the open?
“Not here. It must be somewhere else!”
The servants acted as if the box didn’t exist, looking around everywhere except for that area before leaving the garden.
What’s going on? Are they putting on a show together? It’s like the soldiers guarding a devil’s weapon can’t notice the crawling box at all.
Upon closer inspection, the area around the box seemed a bit hazy. Interesting. I carefully approached the box.
“Oh no!”
I accidentally broke a strange wooden piece near the box.
Everything in the garden must be expensive. What if I get asked to pay for it?
“Huh?!”
The moment I broke the wooden piece, a startled voice came from inside the box.
“Search the garden again!”
The box started to move. Whoever it is, if this were a stealth game, it would be game over right now. Guaranteed death.
“Uh, um…”
“Who are you?”
I shifted my body to block the direction the box was moving.
“Please… step aside.”
A girl? I could hear a very timid female voice coming from inside the box.
“…”
Should I let her go?
“Could you please step aside?”
A desperate voice echoed from within the box.
“Miss! Miss! Where are you!”
“Search spoons or boxes!”
“Eek!”
Is it Man Geum-jeon’s family? It looks like the troublemaking young lady is playing hide and seek.
“No one is on the right.”
I absolutely hate getting involved in troublesome matters right before an important interview. So I quietly muttered for the box to listen.
“Th-thank you.”
The wooden box moved a little, managing to only move its legs, and then shuffled to my right.
“Not my right, but your right inside the box!”
“Oh!”
The wooden box changed direction again and disappeared toward the area where no one was.
The voice sounded young. Who could she be?
————————
“Delivery food using jeonseogu. What a clever idea.”
Shortly after the suspicious box disappeared, the head of the guards came and led me to Man Geum-jeon.
“I thought it would be better to explore new markets rather than stick with what’s already out there. I pondered what was missing in Wuhan and what I could do, which led me to this business.”
“Expanding a franchise business without borrowing money or spending additional money is also quite unique.”
“The Nine Black Qi Hands can’t be easily replicated by others, and there are still many places in Wuhan to expand businesses, so I think it’s a solid strategy.”
“Even going so far as to give sharecropping to someone else’s grandson.”
So he knew that much.
“Haha… but they’ve been saying that these days the profits are good.”
I said it was squeezing through the franchise business, but if Jeon Gil-san couldn’t endure that enough to earn a profit, it would be troublesome.
“The content of the business seems fine… By the way, are your parents back home?”
Why suddenly talk about parents?
“They have passed away.”
I stated the fact as simply as possible without any emotion.
“It’s unfortunate they couldn’t see their child grow up.”
He didn’t look the least bit sympathetic. On the contrary, his tone had a subtle hint of delight. Why was he asking about it?
“I’m living to become a child who isn’t ashamed of my deceased parents’ names.”
I wasn’t sure why he asked, but I pretended to be a dutiful son carrying my deceased parents in my heart.
Man Geum-jeon nodded and silently examined my business-related documents and ledgers for a while.
Is there a problem? His brow furrowed without showing signs of relaxing. Why is he acting like this after a pleasant chat?
Feeling uneasy. It’s like answering an interview question well, but suddenly getting asked about my gap period when I was unemployed.
“This business has a problem.”
Man Geum-jeon stabbed the nail into my anxious heart.
“What issue are you referring to?”
“The records related to the jeonseogu are lacking. Originally, it should have been purchased at a high price, but there’s no record of it in the ledgers.”
“I happened to have a friend who could train in jeonseogu, so I received some help.”
“I asked to see your ability, not your friend’s. Unless it’s a small help, you shouldn’t build a business on someone else’s assistance.”
“My plans for the business were my own, even if I received help with the jeonseogu.”
“You should have paid a fair price for that help. If you had, it would have been credited to you. But this ledger has no such record, and if you said you paid for it, then you wouldn’t have even gotten started.”
“…Are you saying my exam is void?”
The jeonseogu is expensive. Normally, it would have been beyond the budget to buy a three-story guesthouse and buy the jeonseogu as well. Thus, it implies that the successfully running business is now void.
“Why? Does it seem unreasonable?”
It is unreasonable!
I didn’t even say such things back then! The condition I presented was to have a single receipt and start a business in Wuhan. Even getting Im Ha-yeon involved was my skill!
If I fail this exam and become a lifelong slave to debt, my gaze turned upon Man Geum-jeon.
With a smile on his face, he looked like he was waiting for something while making unreasonable demands and driving me into a corner.
“This old man is just like me…”
He was waiting for me to bite the bait.
“Throughout the conversation, you praised me, but your sudden critique has some ulterior motive, doesn’t it?”
For what reason did he dangle the fishing rod?
“Heh heh. That’s right. Your unreasonable remark that jeonseogu is merely help… If you accept my unreasonable request, I might overlook it.”
“What is this unreasonable request?”
Is it an additional condition for the test?
“I’d like you to go on a matchmaker meeting with my granddaughter.”
———————-
“Sir, I’m already promised to Lady Tang.”
I was at a loss for words for a moment at this unexpected proposal.
“Ten years from now, right?”
Where did he find out about that?
“Whether it’s in ten or twenty years, it doesn’t matter.”
“How can a man involved in great affairs remain unmarried? You need to find someone to support you. I’ll introduce you to my granddaughter, so you can meet.”
Technically, I’ve been married for two years. For now, I’m a married man.
“I appreciate your positive view of me. However, respectfully, I believe this proposal is a breach of trust with Baek Ga-jangsu.”
I couldn’t disclose the truth, so I decided to walk away.
“If you want to marry in ten years, you can do so. I’m not saying you should break off your engagement. If anything, it’s a favor on my part to give my granddaughter to allow you to express Baek Ga’s intentions.”
Man Geum-jeon smiled broadly as if he were doing me a huge favor.
Is this how people think in this world? It’s absurd, but perhaps it’s a genuine act of goodwill.
These days in Korea, it’s not uncommon for older men to suggest arranged meetings for their granddaughters with decent young men.
“I understand your intentions. However, I cannot betray the trust I promised to the lady I plan to marry in the future.”
Though I’m resolute that I will take responsibility for the heroines I bond with, that doesn’t mean I’ll accept all women who approach me.
I declined firmly.
“Then I can’t accept your unreasonable request.”
This old man is serious.
Man Geum-jeon smiled at me in a way that seemed to say, “You’re the fish that took the bait, so don’t think about swimming away.”
He wants me to marry his granddaughter if I want my Tea Bookstore back. What kind of ridiculous proposal is that?
If it were someone else, I could understand. There might be talents worth coveting. But someone who values friendship with Baek Ga, why would he make such a proposal?
A thought crossed my mind for just a moment.
“Sir, could this entire process be related to the competition among your grandsons happening in Wuhan right now?”
No way. That’s ridiculous, but… maybe. No, the exam is only for the grandsons. Still, it feels odd.
“It is rude for an outsider to inquire into family matters, but if you were to marry into my family, I might be able to tell you.”
So that’s halfway to a confirmation.
“I appreciate your favorable view of me. However, Lady Tang is the granddaughter of Baek Ga-jangsu and is from the Sichuan Tang Family.”
Even if Man Geum-jeon’s power is tremendous, the opponent is the overlord of Sichuan Province—Sichuan Tang Family. Just give up already.
“It’s alright. My granddaughter is from the Zhuge family.”
“What?”
From where? Zhuge family? The same one known for the clever Zhuge Liang?
When talking about the five great families of martial arts, the Zhuge family always gets a mention. If the Sichuan Tang Family is in Sichuan Province, then the Zhuge family is in Hubei Province.
Of course, in Hubei Province, the foremost sect is the Mount Wu Sect, often referred to as the mountain’s peak in martial arts.
But that’s not to downplay the Zhuge family’s influence in Hubei Province.
“They’ve already given their approval. They told me to prepare the girl. Let’s meet first and then discuss.”
Was he already all set for this?
I almost laughed in disbelief. The jeonseogu was just an excuse, and he wanted to find any reason to set me up with his granddaughter.
How do I even say this?
Should I say that Tang Hwa-rin is treated as an immediate member of the Sichuan Tang Family? If I send a letter saying I’ll be meeting with a prospective match just months after parting with Hwa-rin, will the furious Doujin turn Man Geum-jeon’s mansion into chaos?
Or should I say that as a top prospect of the Salmak, I would never accept that kind of disgrace? Or…
“Uh, Man Jeon-nim! The Miss!”
While I was choosing my words, the head of the guards burst through the door with a panicked expression.
“What happened?”
“Ah, the Miss!”
“What about her?”
“She’s disappeared, leaving only a wooden doll behind!”
