The first ones to stir at the pier in the early hours are the dock workers.
Dock work is on a first-come, first-served basis. Since the required number of dock workers can fill up quickly on the day, they head to the pier before the sun rises.
“Club Leader! I’ve found the dock worker from last night at the pier. Come in.”
An incident occurred at the pier. After contacting the Sam-gu brothers, who supervise the dock work, they quickly helped me find the person.
“What, w-what brings you to look for me…?”
Finally, here it comes. The living CCTV of Joseon’s traditional culture is right in front of me.
Hands full of calluses and a face wrinkled by time. Seems like this person mainly does manual labor.
“I am Kang Yoon-ho. I haven’t called you here for anything bad, so please rest assured. Im Ha-yeon, bring me some warm tea.”
“Please dry yourself with this towel. I’ll bring out some tea to warm you up.”
Im Ha-yeon handed a towel to the visitor to dry their rain-soaked hair.
“I’m honored to meet you, esteemed Club Leader! I’m just a nobody from Huh County, near Namwon, with the last name Heo.”
Heo trembled and bowed repeatedly, hands shaking.
Seems a bit too nervous. Maybe they thought they were being interrogated or something.
To get them to spill everything they saw, I need to help them relax a bit.
“Nice to meet you. I used to visit Soonchang often along the Seomjingang river. Do you like gochujang?”
Let’s break the ice with some light conversation before getting to the point. Better to create some common ground and ease the atmosphere with a smile.
“Of course! Soonchang is famous for gochujang! Whenever the mistress would give me gochujang, I’d enjoy tasting it!”
Quite the runaway slave, aren’t we?
Whether it’s plotting rebellion in Joseon, or being a slave, it seems it doesn’t matter much in the Central Plains. People’s attitudes don’t change easily.
“When you mix fresh spring vegetables with gochujang and rice in spring, it’s surprising how it tastes even better than meat, even when there’s nothing but grass!”
“And just a few drops of sesame oil makes it feel like you’ve got the world!”
Perhaps it was my talk about hometown memories? Or maybe it reminded them of bibimbap? Heo’s expression finally relaxed.
“Haha, indeed! I heard there were suspicious activities at the pier last night. Is that true?”
Now, let’s hear the story. I heard there were no witnesses?
“On rainy nights, my body ached, and I couldn’t get up on time for work at the pier. So, I went to bed early and stayed up all night, which let me accidentally witness the event!”
“Good fortune indeed.”
Those were the kinds of guys who killed the postmen and those who contested them. Heo could’ve easily been one of them too.
“I think they didn’t notice me since I was hiding in the eaves of the remote unloading area with the rain pouring down.”
Heo seemed to realize how dangerous it was, shivering slightly.
“Tell me what you saw. It’d be best if you could share everything that comes to mind.”
“Usually, we don’t unload goods at night. It’s dark and suspicious. But to be unloading goods on a rainy night… I thought it looked too suspicious, so I watched from the eaves!”
“Did you see anyone who got off the boat or anything unusual?”
“Umm… Ah! I remember the person who was supervising; their attire was quite strange! They were wearing a pifengyi instead of a raincoat, with a hood on their head!”
A pifengyi is a type of windbreaker. Wearing it on a rainy day means it’s some high-quality gear that protects against wind and rain.
“Up to the head? Then you didn’t see the hair color.”
“I did see! It was green!”
Green? I froze for a moment, clapping my hand over my mouth.
Wait a second.
There’s a group that comes to mind when green hair and theft are mentioned.
“…Green Forest?”
Things are getting weirder by the minute.
“N-no, it’s not like that! The Green Forest Members have a grass-like green, but those fellows had a brighter shade of green hair!”
Thank goodness they weren’t the bandits that went to the Yangtze River.
“Were there any other suspicious individuals?”
“I also saw someone getting off the boat with a sword. They were hidden by a straw hat and a raincoat, so I couldn’t see them clearly, but I heard them speak.”
“What did they say?”
“I heard them shout something like, ‘Can’t see! Move and find it!’”
“Keep talking.”
I need to extract as much information as possible. I offered Heo tea and snacks while coaxing them to tell me everything about what had happened last night.
——————————
“Use this money to treat your kids to a nice meal.”
I gathered all the useful information. With this, it’s fair enough to give a generous reward.
“Club Leader! Oh, you’re giving me this much money! Thank you!”
“Il-gu, you did well too. Find anyone who knows about the men with green hair and pifengyi or about last night’s events. Let’s get some help.”
“Club Leader, help? Just give the order. I’ll scour the place and get the boys who drank ink and make sure they clean everything up nicely.”
“Alright, I’m counting on you.”
The eldest of the Sam-gu brothers, Choi Il-gu, bowed and promptly left the office with Heo.
“We’ve obtained an important clue.”
I gazed at the notes filled with information.
“Is this about an incident targeting the cargo?”
Im Ha-yeon asked with a puzzled expression.
I can’t see it clearly. The fact they told someone to “move and find it” means they were definitely looking for something.
“It’s common. If someone knows that a precious elixir, secret manual, or the location of buried treasure is among the cargo, even martial artists who usually walk the straight path will turn into robbers.”
It was an everyday occurrence in the Martial Arts World to shed blood over priceless treasures. Usually, information about the cargo contents is highly confidential, but had it leaked somewhere and caused this chaos?
“An expert who killed the postmen and contenders to snatch the cargo? I doubt this will pass by easily.”
“No, it could actually flow easily.”
“Why is that?”
“Because they didn’t act alone. They must have had to move the cargo without finding what they wanted, so they’re bound to slip up before our eyes.”
If it was just an expert killing people, finding them would be a fruitless endeavor. But if a significant load and manpower were involved, traces would surely remain.
“We should wait for the rumors to spread among the Joseon Tourism Association.”
“There’s no need to wait. I’ll go out.”
Having obtained what I needed, I stood up abruptly.
“Where are you going?”
“Our eyes and ears aren’t the only ones around here.”
We have one more useful means at our disposal.
—————————–
“How’s business going?”
“I never expected to see you, Hyang-ju! Thanks to your care, we’re doing well.”
The person I visited was the leader of the Haomun branch in Hubei Province, none other than the esteemed Si-mun Hyang-ju from Wuhan.
“Since the promising candidate of the Si-mun comes here, how could I not show up? Besides, it’s evident you haven’t come for a troublesome request but for something else entirely.”
Si-mun Hyang-ju, looking like a congenial businessman, smiled warmly and patted my shoulder.
“Do you know why I’m here?”
He must have realized I didn’t come because of Im Ha-yeon.
“Are you trying to probe me? It’s because of the Seocheon Post Office incident, isn’t it?”
“You already know?”
“If the Si-mun Hyang-ju didn’t hear that gossip, I ought to step down from this position.”
“A bizarre incident has occurred.”
“A boat with only corpses docked at the pier. Everyone is buzzing about it during breakfast.”
Even I, the victim, found this incident to be quite odd. It seems everyone is discussing it like they’re waiting for a bus.
“Do you have any suspects in mind?”
Since the rumors spread so quickly, perhaps he might know something. I asked expectantly.
“Heh, trying to get free information because it’s a big deal, huh?”
With a teasing smile, Hyang-ju looked at me.
“Haha, how could I seek free information from the grand Hyang-ju? I just wish to hear your valuable insights, Hyang-ju.”
I would pay if I had it.
I politely returned the jest.
“You sly one. With such a light tongue, even a few women would be enough for you.”
“Haha…”
I wondered if he had some good information. Reading the awkward smile on my face, Hyang-ju opened his mouth.
“I have a few suspects in mind.”
“Really?”
This could lead to a quick resolution.
“Everyone from Wuhan.”
“What?”
“Those with links to Wudang and Zhuge, the rogue factions of the Man Geum Battlefield, and others—all of them would want to suck dry the honey of Wuhan. The Tang Family’s sudden move must have been an eyesore to someone.”
Perhaps Hyang-ju doesn’t have much clue about it either.
“Is there any way to track the whereabouts of the missing cargo?”
Ultimately, my goal is to locate the lost items rather than to catch the thieves. Perhaps he possesses some relevant information.
“Is one of the missing cargo yours?”
“I’m suffering a major loss.”
“Tsk. Such bad luck.”
“In truth, I don’t care who the culprit is. I just thought you might provide a clue, so I came here.”
On a rainy night, a lot of cargo moved. Surely there must be witnesses.
With a sincere expression, I pleaded with Hyang-ju.
*
“If you provide me with just a lead, I will of course compensate you for the request.”
Si-mun Hyang-ju looked at the earnest expression of Kang Yoon-ho.
“Since today’s incidents have become a hot topic, related information has also surfaced.”
“Then!”
Hyang-ju smirked internally, looking at the face of Kang Yoon-ho, which was lighting up with excitement.
Hyang-ju was especially intrigued by this youth, considering he sent a letter praising the accuracy of his insight to the head of the Yichang branch, his closest aide.
Had it not been for the request involving confrontation with other Hyang-jus, he might have considered helping out.
“Are you confident in distinguishing the truth from the information?”
He clearly had some information on hand. However, this case was somewhat complicated.
An excellent opportunity. Hyang-ju decided to teach Kang Yoon-ho a lesson about the workings of the Haomun during this chance.
“What do you mean?”
“If they think it’s money-making information, the postmen will chatter away. Among the information that came today, there are rumors that the ghost of the Yangtze River killed a person filled with resentment and offered the cargo as a sacrifice.”
Haomun is an intelligence organization, but most of the information that comes in is shallow rumors.
Sorting through a horde of information to find the truth—an act that must be done by the people at the upper echelons of Haomun.
“Isn’t the Haomun’s information still well-regarded?”
Filtering through the chaff isn’t something difficult. Kang Yoon-ho asked with a puzzled expression.
“The people under me are postmen, not spies. This incident was deliberately orchestrated. It won’t be an ordinary case, so there must be even fewer witnesses.”
The information obtained by Haomun comes from careless mouths uttering truth.
Finding hidden truths amidst the flood of shallow rumors is a challenging task.
“Hmm….”
“The influx of information is wide, but the actual useful information is scarce. If we had time, I could sift through it. But for this incident, you’ll likely just waste money and time.”
The cargo in question is already gone.
Before long, the cargo would turn into loot and be sold somewhere, and it wouldn’t take long either.
Meanwhile, information continues to pour in constantly. Truths intermixed with unnecessary and false information.
Use this chance to cultivate the discernment to differentiate between what Haomun can sell as information and what cannot.
It would surely be a bitter lesson, but it would allow for growth within Haomun. Hyang-ju thought.
“If we specify individuals with witness accounts, wouldn’t it be easy to narrow it down?”
However, Kang Yoon-ho’s response was different.
Instead, he wore a confident smile, as if things had just gotten better.
“Hmm?”
“Two warriors wearing green hair and pifengyi. One has a cut on their cheek. There’s a high probability a man in a yellow oil shirt accompanied them. I also brought information about the crew members. With this, can we narrow down the information?”
Kang Yoon-ho pulled out the details he had organized from his coat.
“Where on earth did you get such information?”
Hyang-ju could only widen his eyes as he read the information presented by Kang Yoon-ho.
The paper he handed over contained information organized with certainty that surpassed anything a Hyang-ju from Wuhan would have at this very moment.
The direction of this incident was clearly outlined in that information.
