Chapter 112
The Youngest Son of the Eunhae Trading Company Chapter 112
Chapter 112. The Sichuan Tang Clan's Benefactor (2)
Hwang Doo-kyung was taken aback by my words.
It was only natural.
He had nothing to do with the Nimbus Sword.
“Why are you acting like that?”
“Well, it's just that... the Boss is currently away on business.”
“Then let's go to the mountain keep and wait.”
“Our mountain keep is small, so it will be difficult to accommodate so many people.”
The mountain keep at Nokasan is small?
That doesn't make any sense.
I know because I've been there.
Even if twice as many people as our group went there, it wouldn't be cramped. And as far as I know, Hong Im Head Escort should know that too.
Sensing that something was amiss, he took a step back.
I said to Heukdu-gyeom.
“I've been to the Nokasan mountain retreat before, so I know. It's located on a fairly large piece of land. So why are they refusing us entry, saying that it's too small?”
I continued.
“How should we take this?”
“Well...”
“This isn't a very welcoming way to treat guests, is it?”
He looked flustered and tried to mumble something.
“The truth is, our mountain keep has been in a difficult situation lately.”
“What kind of difficult situation?”
“I cannot say.”
“We have known Boss Nanbalgwang for many years... I am disappointed. We need to know what is going on so that we can come up with a plan.”
At that moment, Hong Im, the Head Escort, spoke up.
“As you said, our escort agency has built a strong friendship with the Boss of the Nambalang Sword. But now you are trying to break that relationship so coldly. I am very disappointed.”
Then Hong Im glanced over my shoulder.
He noticed that two of the warriors who had always been by my side were missing.
He immediately realized my intention and was stalling for time.
“Come on, come over here and have a drink. Come to think of it, I should have offered you a drink since we just met.”
Alcohol and snacks were placed on the table, and Heukdu-gyeom and his party sat down naturally in front of it.
In fact, one of the things that is prohibited during a mission is drinking alcohol.
Enemies will take advantage of any moment when your guard is down due to alcohol.
However, there are times when alcohol is necessary.
The main reason is that it can reduce the pain of the wounded.
That is why we always have alcohol on hand, and the alcohol we took out now was for that purpose.
Naturally, given its purpose, it was very strong fire wine.
Hong Im Head Escort opened the bottle.
Pop!
At the same time, the aroma of the wine made Heukdu-gyeom's throat move.
For bandits, it's hard to resist alcohol.
“Please have some.”
“Then I'll have a drink. Hahaha.”
In the end, he gave in.
I smiled at Hong Im, and he nodded.
Was it about half an hour later?
I sensed Seo Woo and Jin Yu approaching.
I also sensed the footsteps of those following them.
They're finally here.
When I realized who the man who introduced himself as Heukdu-gyeom was, I quickly sent them to the mountain keep.
Soon, a man with messy, unkempt hair appeared, leading a group of people.
“So, where is the man who claims to be a member of our mountain keep?”
It was the Boss of the Nambal-gwang Sword.
His eyes were wild with rage.
I pointed at Heukdu-gyeom, and Hong-im, who saw the sword, stood up and bowed with clasped hands.
Then he said,
“It was difficult to catch him.”
Heukdu-gyeom and his companions, who had been drinking, were taken aback by the sudden turn of events.
“Are these the guys who have been using my name to extort tolls?”
I shrugged.
“I don't know. I just sent someone to confirm that they were sent by Boss Chae.”
I passed the buck to him.
“It's up to you to decide.”
By the way, did you just say that?
“They've been using my name.”
That means Boss already knew about Heukdu-gyeom's evil energy.
That must have made Nambal-gwang-geom pretty angry.
That's why he rushed over here in less than half an hour.
Nambal-gwang-geom smiled at my words.
“I wasn't asking you. I was just talking to myself because I couldn't believe it.”
Then he said to his subordinates behind him.
“Guys, take them away.”
“Yes!”
The situation was over in an instant.
They were already in a daze from drinking poison, so there was no way they could respond properly.
They were beaten to a pulp by Nanbal Gwanggeom's subordinates and bound.
They were tied up so tightly that they looked like silkworm cocoons.
Nanbal Gwanggeom looked at them with cold eyes, then turned his head toward us.
“I know Hong Head Escort, but who are you?”
I clasped my hands together and replied.
“I am Eun Seo-ho, the deputy captain of the Eunhae Trading Company and the governor of Hyungpung Kingdom.”
“You are Nambok, the boss of the Nokasan Trading Company.”
“I have heard of your reputation.”
“You mean the madman with his hair all over the place?”
I smiled wryly and said, “You know him well.”
“You know him well.”
The others looked embarrassed at my answer. But I knew better.
Nanbal Gyeong was a madman, and he was very proud of his nickname.
He laughed heartily at my words. Just as I expected, he liked it.
“This is not normal.”
“Not as much as you, Boss.”
At that moment, Hong Im, the head escort, took out his pocket.
“Here is the toll.”
Nanbalgwang took the wallet, took half of the money out, and gave it to his subordinate standing next to him.
Then he threw the remaining half of the wallet to Hong-im.
Bang!
When Hong-im caught the wallet, he said,
“That is a reward.”
“What?”
“Thanks to you, we were able to catch those guys. I feel bad just letting you go without anything.”
“We'll take it.”
“See you next time.”
With that, Nanbal-gwang and his subordinates took Heukdu-gyeom and his group and left the place where we were staying.
Seeing this, Pal-gap said.
“He's a good boss. He even gave you half of the reward.”
Before I could answer, someone else spoke first.
It was Seo Mu-sa.
“That's normal.”
“What? Are you saying that all bosses are like that?”
“Not all of them. But if you value your life, then...”
Seo Woo continued to explain.
“In fact, the relationship between the mountain keep and the escort agency is a business relationship where give and take must be clear.”
The mountain keep provides convenience to those who come and go by “cracking down” and “cleaning up” other people.
In return, those who come and go pay a “toll.”
However, we tell them who to “crack down on” and “take care of,” saving them the trouble of catching them, so they give us something in return.
If the calculation is not clear, dissatisfaction will build up and eventually lead to a fight, which is detrimental to both sides.
Some say that the Green Forest Bandits suffer greater losses, but the escort agency also suffers considerable losses.
If the escort is delayed, they have to compensate those who requested the service.
Pal-gap nodded.
“I see.”
Perhaps because he was a former Head Escort, Seo-woo was well aware of such relationships.
“By the way, what will happen to that man, Heuk-du-gyeom, and his subordinates?”
I answered his question.
“They won't end up well.”
They got what they deserved, so there's no need to feel sorry for them.
But I am curious.
Will they be sold as slaves in the mines, with their limbs cut off like in their previous lives?
Or will they just be killed?
In this life, Heukdu-gyeom was captured several months earlier than in his previous life.
This will have an impact on future events.
But even so, I couldn't just stand by and watch Heukdu-gyeom.
He was clearly a man who would bring chaos to the upper world.
.
.
.
The next morning.
We set off again and soon entered the territory of the Wudang Sect.
Hong Lim, the Head Escort, told everyone.
“From here on, this is Haegamji. Everyone, put your weapons in your luggage!”
“Yes!”
When passing through the gate of the Wudang Sect, everyone except members of the Wudang Sect had to unsheathe their swords and put them in their luggage.
This was said to be in honor of Zhang Sanfeng, the founder of the Wudang Sect, and anyone who did not sheathe their sword would be severely punished by the Wudang Sect masters and banned from entering the area.
In other words, having to disarm here meant that it was safe even without weapons.
Seeing everyone busily sheathing their weapons and loading them onto their horses, Pal-gap asked, “But what if someone has no weapons or horse? How can we disarm them?”
“But what if you don't have any luggage or horses? How do you disarm yourself?”
Seo Woo-musa replied,
“In that case, you turn your weapon upside down. Then it will be considered as if you have surrendered your weapon.”
“I see!”
We passed through Haegumji.
We were gradually approaching Sichuan.
* * *
The Clan Head of the Sichuan Tang Clan, Tang Kyu-jin, received unexpected news from his subordinate.
“What? The Captain of the Eunhae Trading Company is in Sichuan right now?”
“Yes, that's right.”
About two years ago, Tang Kyu-jin's youngest son, Tang Jo-ung, was almost kidnapped.
His nanny was threatened and took Tang Zongxiong outside, and Tang Zongxiong's bodyguards lost track of the nanny and Tang Zongxiong due to a trap deliberately set by the kidnappers.
They thought they could find him anywhere because he had tracking incense on him.
However, when Eun Seo-ho brought Tang Zongxiong to the Sichuan Tang Clan, they realized how naive they had been.
This was because the nanny and Tang Zhaoweng's tracking incense had disappeared without a trace.
Therefore, if Eun Seo-ho had not rescued Tang Zhaoweng, Tang Kyu-jung would have lost his youngest son forever.
Even thinking about it now, it was terrifying.
Dang Kyu-jeong had punished the brothers who had been captured by Eun Seo-ho and was planning to use Dang Jo-ung as a hostage to demand something.
However, no matter what he tried, he couldn't find out how they had removed the tracking incense.
That was a big problem.
It meant that information about the tracking incense had been leaked somewhere.
Because of this incident, Eun Seo-ho became the benefactor of not only Tang Kyu-sung himself, but also the Sichuan Tang Clan.
And he was a great benefactor.
The Sichuan Tang Clan is known for being cowardly because they mainly use poison and hidden weapons.
They were able to become a renowned martial arts clan because of their principle of repaying kindness with double the favor.
Of course, they also repay their enemies in kind.
Therefore, repaying a benefactor is a matter of honor and pride for the Sichuan Tang Clan.
That is why they sent people to bring Eun Seo-ho to the Sichuan Tang Clan many times.
However, they were unable to achieve their goal, and while they were agonizing over this, Eun Seo-ho sent a letter.
The letter was written in a very polite manner, saying that he would visit when the time came, considering the sincerity of the Sichuan Tang Clan, and that they should not trouble themselves.
So they waited and waited.
And finally, the time came.
Tang Kyung-soo stood up from his seat.
“Now that he has come to Sichuan, we cannot let him leave like this. I will go and find him myself.”
“Yes, sir.”
“What is Jo-woong doing now?”
“He is practicing martial arts.”
“I see. He will be happy to hear this news.”
* *
When I arrived in Sichuan, I first headed to the Sichuan branch where my uncle was.
“It's been a long time!”
“How have you been?”
“I'm doing well. You've become even more handsome and beautiful since I last saw you. The women of Sichuan will be lining up to see you.”
“Hahaha. You flatter me.”
I also greeted my aunt, my two cousins, and my younger cousin, Ye-ok.
“Hyang-ok seems to be at the Emei Sect.”
“Yes, she said she is about to gain a new insight and is devoted to her training.”
“I see.”
It seemed that the previous incident of the Sichuan branch's leader being bribed by the Dan Trading Company was the catalyst.
The Sichuan branch members seemed to have become more determined.
“I think I will have to go to the Euljin Trading Company starting tomorrow.”
“It's because of the work schedule.”
“Yes, that's right.”
“But you know what?”
“...?”
His uncle gave him a knowing look.
“Are you sure you can go to the Euljin Trading Company tomorrow?”
“What?”
“The Sichuan Tang Clan is more persistent and thorough than you think.”
At that moment, the gatekeeper guarding the door of the Sichuan branch rushed over.
Then he bowed and shouted.
“Branch Manager! The Clan Head of the Sichuan Tang Clan is here!”
What? The Clan Head himself came?
When I looked at my uncle, he smiled and said.
“I was right, wasn't I?”
I had nothing to say.
I thought he would send someone to invite us at most, but I never imagined that the Clan Head himself would come.
I had no choice but to head to the reception room.
There, a middle-aged man was sitting and drinking tea. The aura he exuded was overwhelming.
Considering who he was, my uncle and I bowed respectfully with our hands clasped together.
“It is a pleasure to meet you. I am Eun Myeong-sang, the head of the Sichuan branch of the Eunhae Trading Company. Thank you for visiting our Sichuan branch.”
“It is a pleasure to meet you. I am Eun Seo-ho, the captain of the Eunhae Trading Company and the current governor of Hyungpung.”
The middle-aged man stood up and said,
“I am Clan Head Tang Kyu-jeong of the Sichuan Tang Clan.”