A deep silence thickly enveloped the room.
It wasn’t just a simple quiet. Sometimes, people forget what to say in the face of an unimaginable outcome.
Tension and shock. Everyone gathered could only stare frozen at one person, their surprised eyes filled with anticipation for what would come next.
“I hope to gain a lesson from this exam.”
However, Man Geum-jeon also found it hard to speak.
The problem Jang Noya presented to the candidates for successor was both a test and an education.
To make money with limited funds was this difficult? To lend money to someone and get it back was this hard?
“Always be cautious. Even if you become the successor of Man Geum Battlefield, I want you to engrave this unchanging lesson. This applies to Kang Yoon-ho as well.”
“I only wanted to confirm if this child truly could be my successor.”
That kid would grasp the unparalleled ledger. In that case, I’ll advise them: find something more precious than money from the other party.
For some, honor, pride, power, family, or even life itself are more valuable than money. Identify weaknesses and shake them.
If you realize my advice and return after seeing all kinds of filthy sights, you will achieve at least one success. Even one success can prove you are worthy to follow in my footsteps.
Even Man Geum-jeon could not have anticipated the current situation. No, who could have?
Only one person.
The one who declared they would prove themselves was looking at me with blazing black eyes filled with resolve.
“Bae Gak, you cunning Bae Gak. Even if you come at me from the afterlife, I must have this child.”
Man Geum-jeon could hardly control his pounding heart.
He thought that with age, having made a decent fortune, his greed would have disappeared. But he could not regain his composure at the treasure before his eyes.
He had always felt guilt toward his friend who left before him. Yet, no matter how much he thought about it, he couldn’t give up.
In the end, Jang Noya could do nothing but apologize in envy to his friend who had departed.
“I was only offering a piece of advice.”
What if he were to share everything he had learned in life with this child?
What would happen then?
“Is there still a need for further testing?”
Finally, emotions burst forth from Man Geum-jeon’s lips.
“Father, what is going on?!”
What Man Geum-jeon said was something everyone present hoped wouldn’t be voiced.
“I asked if there’s still a need for further testing.”
Man Geum-jeon questioned the assembled gathering with certainty.
“Grandfather!”
“Father! What are you saying?!”
“Which of you has done as much as that child?!”
No one could answer Man Geum-jeon’s question.
“When I gave a few coins, that child launched a carrier pigeon into the infinite sky. In just half a year, people from Wuhan aren’t hesitant to order takeout at high prices.”
“Th-that is!”
“You all abandoned the unparalleled ledger, yet that child grasped it. And today, that child has accomplished something I can’t even guarantee I could do.”
“……!”
Father, grandfather, it’s something you can’t guarantee you could do?
The assembled individuals froze in shock at the praises from Man Geum-jeon that seemed unbelievable.
“Father! Please give me a chance! You promised to allow us to take the third test!”
“Grandfather. Just once! Let us have one more chance!”
It can’t end like this! Even Man Geum-jeon’s daughter and granddaughter struggled to regain their composure and pleaded earnestly.
“Do you think you have the confidence to surpass that child in the third test?”
The return statement was cold.
“…….”
“Can you show me the capability that that child displayed in the first and second tests during the third?”
“Th-that is……!”
They had just witnessed the abilities of someone they had dismissed as a black-haired barbarian.
Does my son possess such abilities? Can the grandfather grant the next test that someone can match this skill? It barely got through the first two tests.
Everyone’s speech faltered at Man Geum-jeon’s question.
“What about you?”
“I will simply prove it again.”
Man Geum-jeon had to suppress a rising smile as he gazed at Kang Yoon-ho, who answered without hesitation.
“Do you truly feel the next test is necessary?”
“…….”
If it goes like this, it will simply pass by. Man Geum-jeon’s position as successor would slip away. He had to stop it. But how?
The gathered individuals felt frustrated, yet they couldn’t find a reason to stop it.
“Step aside!!!”
The silence in the room was shattered by an unexpected voice. Everyone turned their heads to the loud sound of a woman coming from outside.
“Y-you can’t go in right now!”
“I will meet my father! Why won’t you step aside?!”
“You know what’s going on inside, don’t you?”
“That’s why I’m telling you to step aside! Get out now!!!”
“You could see him after a moment…….”
“What’s all this commotion?!”
With Man Geum-jeon’s roar, the door to the room burst open, and the source of the ruckus entered.
“Father!!!”
“Nana, why are you here?”
Jang Noya questioned his suddenly appearing daughter.
“Our child has come to his senses and worked so hard!!! This is all because of you, Father!!!”
Jang Noya’s daughter, Jang Nan-ok, shouted at him with a face full of pent-up anger.
“If you have complaints about the first test results, you are a month too late.”
Nan-ok’s son had failed the first test. No matter how much his daughter complained, the path to succession was a cold reality. Jang Noya replied to his daughter with a cold expression.
“Ugh!”
Nan-ok sank down on the spot at her father’s words.
“It’s useless to complain.”
“It’s all because of you! Because of you!!! Because of youuuuu!”
“……What is going on?”
Jang Noya asked his daughter, who was overwhelmed with emotions he had never seen before, filled with sadness and rage.
“Sir Jeonju!”
The Head of Guards rushed in with a surprised expression, approaching Man Geum-jeon.
“Huh?”
“It’s… the thing is…….”
The Head of Guards whispered the recent news into Man Geum-jeon’s ear—the reason why Jang Nan-ok had suddenly barged into the meeting.
A look of shock widened Man Geum-jeon’s eyes.
“Today’s talk will be postponed.”
He issued an order to call the guests towards his children.
*
“What in the world is going on?”
They were doing well when everything suddenly came to a halt.
“Master Kang, could you stay for a moment?”
Before I could grasp the situation, Jeon Woon-yeop stopped me from leaving.
“Master Kang?”
“You should go ahead. I will follow shortly.”
He only called me. Something must have happened. Or is the test ending like this? I told Miss Zhuge to go ahead and followed Jeon Woon-yeop.
———
“Let me first pour you a cup of tea.”
“That you made yourself? Thank you, I’ll enjoy it.”
I accepted the tea made by Man Geum-jeon and spoke. It must be, after all, that he had something to say. By the way, he put a lot of effort into making it.
It isn’t quite as good as the tea Miss Hayeon made, but since the quality of the ingredients is high, I’ll give it a 4 out of 5 stars.
Man Geum-jeon didn’t say a word until I quietly finished my tea.
“Isn’t it a little much to just keep watching me? It makes it hard for a male guest to visit often. I’ll deduct 0.5 stars.”
“……Are you upset?”
As soon as I set down my teacup, Man Geum-jeon asked as if he had been waiting for my arrival.
What? Is it because I didn’t pick a successor immediately?
“Are you feeling regretful?”
That’s a question I should be asking. Instead, I looked at Man Geum-jeon with a provocative expression and questioned back.
“Hehe.” “That’s an interesting answer.”
Man Geum-jeon raised his teacup and smiled.
“You must have your reasons. It’s not easy for a mere brat to guess everything you’re thinking, but you’re not one to handle matters falsely.”
Man Geum-jeon nodded at my response with a wry smile.
“The girl who just barged in is my eldest daughter. She was my first child with my late wife.”
“I have had the chance to meet her before.”
Man Geum-jeon nodded as if he remembered and continued speaking.
“I was never Man Geum-jeon from the start. I had ambition but lots of mouths to feed, and while I was young, I had nothing. I truly had to work hard to survive.”
“…….”
“There was a day I earned a lot of money and returned home after a long time. My young daughter didn’t recognize me.”
“That’s…….”
Upon hearing my murmured reaction, Man Geum-jeon let out a small scoff.
“There comes a time when a man must make certain choices. I chose to be a stern head of the family rather than a loving father. My eldest daughter naturally took on the role of an additional mother to my other daughters. As time passed, I sent her to a good family as an expression of my long-held remorse.”
“I suppose now that you also have children of your own, you may understand.”
It is a common occurrence for the feelings of disappointment toward parents in one’s youth to be understood with age.
Did my consolation please him? Or was it simply amusing for a young one to comfort an older man? Man Geum-jeon chuckled lightly and continued.
“She was a wonderful daughter, but unfortunately, she did not become a good mother. It was likely because her father did not show enough concern that she became overly attentive to her children. Still, it didn’t matter much. She was already married, and those matters were theirs to bear. But speaking of which…….”
Jang Noya’s mouth suddenly closed tightly. It seemed there was something painful he couldn’t bring himself to say as the door closed with a tremor.
“What happened?”
“I just received the news that my grandson was found dead.”
“……!”
“They say it was my fault. He threw himself away after failing the exam.”
Why suddenly halt? A tragedy has occurred.
I quickly opened my mouth with a serious expression.
“There’s a tale of a scholar who took his own life after failing an exam. How can one blame His Majesty for that? How can it be a sin to give someone an opportunity that others may not get in a lifetime?”
“Do you truly think so…….”
“Failure is just part of life. What one takes from failure depends on the mindset of the individual. How can one blame those who offer opportunities for that? Please, do not be too heartbroken.”
This must be shocking news for Man Geum-jeon.
For his grandson to throw himself away after failing a test he set? But you know, throwing oneself over failing a test is the fault of the one taking the test, not the one who provided the opportunity.
Man Geum-jeon slowly nodded in agreement with my words.
“Then I would like you to take a look.”
“Me? What do you mean by that?”
“It would be against both propriety and law to deal with heir affairs while in mourning. I will call everyone together again after hastily concluding my grandson’s funeral. But before that, I would like you to check if there was any grievance in my grandson’s death.”
You want me to look into his death?
“Sir, although I am called the famed Ho Pil, it’s merely an empty title gained by coincidence.”
I’m not the kind of person who solves mysteries just by walking around, nor some detective that rushes in upon hearing about a corpse.
“I asked you to see if there was any grievance in his death, not to create a case from thin air.”
Man Geum-jeon shook his head as if to imply that was not what he meant.
“What do you mean?”
“Were you not present to witness? Regardless of whether you become my successor, my daughters will have significant disagreements.”
“It cannot be helped since a black-haired barbarian is to become the heir of Man Geum Battlefield.”
There’s bound to be some discontent when a despised black-haired barbarian from Hubei Province becomes the heir of a prominent bank.
“However, winning over the heart of my eldest daughter will change things.”
“What?”
“My eldest daughter plays the role of a big sister, akin to a mother, to my other daughters.”
Man Geum-jeon spoke to me with a small smile.
“……Sir?”
“If you wish to gain assistance in accomplishing great deeds in the future, it would be prudent to consider forming a connection through marriage.”
Wait a moment.
Are you implying that the reason you called me right when the incident unfolded……
Was not to comfort me after your grandson’s death or to find a famed Ho Pil to investigate the truth of the matter.
“You’re still as resolute as a family head.”
As the head of Man Geum Battlefield, he called me with thoughts of my future.
“You indeed also come across as a caring father.”
On Jang Noya’s face was a mix of concern for his daughter who would grieve over losing her child and a look that wouldn’t let the opportunity slip by, characteristic of Man Geum-jeon.
“…….”
No matter how I think about it, he’s an extraordinary person.
“Would you be willing to try?”
What is the true intent behind Man Geum-jeon’s thoughts? There was no need for deep consideration.
“I will give it my utmost attention.”
Both must be genuine. Those of a kindred spirit tend to recognize each other.
