Chapter 143
The Youngest Son of the Eunhae Trading Company Chapter 143
Chapter 143. Cleaning Up the Front Yard (3)
On this floor of Hongranru, musicians played lively tunes, and dancers danced to the music.
I smiled at one of the dancers.
That's because I know who she is.
His name is Chun-il.
He was famous for targeting only the rich.
And he is one of the things I plan to “pick up” in Luoyang this time.
In the future, he will become so famous that he will even be given the title of “Silver Three Guest.”
This was because he broke into a rich man's house and stole exactly three silver coins.
However, he was so elusive that the owner of the house didn't even realize he had been robbed.
Known for being able to steal anything, he had several special skills.
One of them was disguising himself as someone completely unexpected.
What kind of man would dress up as a woman, and with such heavy makeup, to disguise himself as a dancer?
Even if we ignore the disguise, his dancing is so perfect that it is breathtaking.
Perhaps to liven up the party, Hongranru invited not only musicians to play instruments, but also dancers.
There were no female entertainers serving alcohol, but that was inevitable because the guests were accompanied by their wives.
And since it was a meeting of the 100 Great Trading Companies, there were many important matters to discuss, so it was necessary to exclude such entertainers.
Even so, music and dance were essential to liven up the atmosphere of the meeting, so musicians and dancers had to be invited.
Therefore, their identities were thoroughly investigated.
Even though the world's best trading company would have conducted a thorough investigation, he still managed to slip through, so we must assume that his ability to disguise himself and change his identity is extraordinary.
By the way, his ability to disguise himself is truly remarkable.
He uses his naturally handsome features to his advantage.
In my previous life, it was his behavior that allowed me to recognize his disguise.
Selling cloth at Eunhae Cloth Store, I naturally had to meet many women.
Most of the customers who came to buy cloth were women.
Even though he was perfectly disguised and danced, he couldn't help but reveal a slight awkwardness in his behavior.
Of course, most people didn't notice.
That awkwardness kept bothering me, so I kept watching him and eventually found out.
That he was Eun Sam-gaek Chun-il.
However, I had promised not to arrest him for stealing the silver plate, so I didn't arrest him for that.
At the time, I was just impressed, but looking back now, I realize that I missed an opportunity to hire the best security expert.
I can't miss this opportunity twice.
His end was not very pleasant.
Well, it doesn't make sense to wish for a good end for a thief.
He forcibly took possession of many people's property without paying them what they were worth.
He mainly targeted the rich and powerful, so he was also charged with treason.
As a result, he was punished more severely than he deserved.
In my opinion, he had the ability to escape from prison.
However, he calmly accepted his fate and smiled even as his limbs were torn apart.
He said he was finally able to stop stealing.
Knowing that future, I cannot just leave Chun-il as he is.
And in order to prevent further losses to our Trading Company, we must make him a security advisor to the Eunhae Trading Company.
This is because a large amount of gold is about to be stolen.
At that moment, the dance ended and the dancers withdrew.
Someone climbed onto the platform where the dancers had been standing and explained today's meeting, drawing everyone's attention.
I took the opportunity to approach the man disguised as a dancer and offered him some water.
“Thank you.”
I heard a slightly deep female voice.
One of Dao Chun-il's specialties was voice modification. He could modify his voice to sound like anyone, from an old man to a child, regardless of gender.
With this ability, it was impossible for anyone to tell the difference.
“I hear you're very talented.”
“You flatter me.”
I said to him as he drank the water.
“Three nyang.”
“Huh!”
He was so surprised that he spit out the water he was drinking.
“What do you mean?”
Instead of answering his question, I smiled and said,
“But I haven't seen your skills with my own eyes, so I'm curious.”
I showed him the silver plate hanging from my waist and said,
“So, if you can't show me your skills before the meeting ends today, will you grant me a favor?”
“I'm sorry, Young Master. I...”
“Are you not confident?”
“...”
“I see. You're not confident. Well, with security this tight, it would be difficult even for you. Hahaha.”
His expression changed at my words.
“All right. Don't lose and cry.”
I replied with a light laugh.
The competition began.
* *
Chun-il's eyes wavered.
“How did he know?”
Even he thought his dancer disguise was perfect.
On top of that, he had practiced his dance diligently and was in perfect sync with the others.
But now, not only had a youngster seen through his disguise, he was challenging him to a contest.
He couldn't refuse a challenge like this.
“I don't know how he found out who I am.”
He thought he should check again to see if anything was amiss after today's meeting, and looked up at the young man who had challenged him.
He remembered the chill he felt when he saw him.
“It must have been because it was cold.”
As he tried to calm his anxiety, a voice called out to him.
“Hey! What are you doing here? Hurry up and start the next dance.”
He quickly controlled his expression and replied with a smile.
“I'll be right there.”
* *
The meeting of the Baekdae Trading Company was not a gathering where people sat quietly and ate and drank.
On the surface, it was for the purpose of exchange between the Baekdae Trading Companies, so everyone was walking around here and there.
I sat at a table set up in a corner and quietly enjoyed my food and tea while watching my father.
My father was busy talking with the other captains.
The look in his eyes was sharp.
My mother was also upstairs with the wives of the other captains.
I needed to mingle with the other attendees as well.
Not only the captains and their wives were present, but also many of their children.
However, there was still plenty of time left, and I wanted to rest a little.
I was in good physical condition, but I couldn't help feeling exhausted.
Meeting Captain Namgung Kang of the Baekcheon Trading Company seemed to be quite stressful.
“I'll bring you some hot tea.”
“Thank you.”
I smiled and thanked the waiter. At that moment, the waiter spilled the teapot.
“I'm so sorry!”
Hearing his voice, the waiters nearby rushed over and scolded him.
“What are you doing?”
“Be more careful!”
“It's okay.”
He bowed his head repeatedly and apologized to me.
“Your clothes are wet, Young Master... Let me wipe them for you.”
He took out a towel and wiped my clothes.
I whispered quietly in his ear.
“Three nyang.”
“...!”
The waiter bit his lip at my words.
I wondered when he had taken off his dancer's costume and become a waiter. He was amazing.
If I hadn't learned martial arts, I would have been fooled.
His energy had changed completely.
No wonder the guards, who were trained warriors, were always defeated.
The Taiyin Binghai Technique was extremely effective at sensing energy.
My master had told me before that
the energy sensed by the Taiyin Binghai Technique was a person's fundamental energy.
Still, I should be grateful that it didn't feel like the evil energy of the Black Dao.
The dirty table was cleared, the wet tablecloth was replaced, and the food was served again.
I liked this seat, so I didn't move and sat back down where I was.
It was the perfect place to quietly observe people.
Then, I sensed someone sitting down next to me.
I turned my head and saw Captain Sa-gang.
The way he looked at me seemed as if he wanted to say something.
“Is there something you want to say?”
“Thank you.”
“Yes?”
I didn't understand why he was suddenly thanking me, so I tilted my head.
“The hairpin from yesterday.”
With those words, I understood what Captain Sa-gang meant.
“I guess your mother liked the hairpin I gave you yesterday.”
That's why she wore it on an important day like today.
Come to think of it, my mother was also wearing the belt I gave her.
I felt a little embarrassed and scratched my cheek.
Then, Captain Sa-gang, who had been hesitating, said.
“You're right.”
“....
So, Captain Sa-gang's mother was so happy that she cried?
I asked, not believing it.
”Was it the first gift you ever gave her?"
He nodded in response to my question.
Ah...
No wonder she cried.
It was the first gift her son had given her in twenty years.
“I must repay you.”
“I cannot accept your repayment. I didn't do anything special. How can you repay me?”
“...”
Then,
“Ah! Here it is.”
The person who spoke to me was Han Baek-geon, the captain of a trading company.
It was a familiar face.
He was two years older than me and the captain of Hongnang Trading Company.
He was from the same region as me, Hubei, and I heard that he had recently become captain.
“I'm sorry I couldn't attend your captain announcement ceremony.”
“No, it's fine. I know you were busy.”
Then he looked at me and Captain Sa-gang and said,
“By the way, it's strange to see Captain Kang talking to you for so long!
”It's nothing strange.“
”Haha, it's not that you're not good with words, but when I talk to someone who is so taciturn, I find myself getting frustrated without even realizing it."
Seeing him say this in front of me, it seemed that they were quite close. Captain Sa-gang didn't react much either.
I chuckled.
“Are words important? As long as you know what someone is trying to say, it's not that difficult to continue a conversation.”
Captain Han Baek-geon was impressed by my words and said, “Oh,” while Captain Sa-gang looked at me with admiration.
Why are they reacting like that?
At that moment, another Mister approached us.
“Baek-gun.”
“Ah! You're here too! Say hello! This is Eun Seo-ho, the captain of the Eunhae Trading Company.”
“Nice to meet you. I'm so happy to meet the famous Eun captain here!
”Nice to meet you too."
I greeted him cheerfully. However, my greeting did not end there.
“Huh? That Confucian scholar is Captain Eun Seo-ho?”
“The martial artist Eun Seo-ho?”
“Ah! The Eun Seo-ho who plays the zither!”
“The captain who made the zither and presented it to the king was that Confucian scholar!”
“The one with the sword?”
Were my deeds that famous?
They whispered among themselves for a while, then one by one they approached us, and I greeted them all until my throat was sore.
When I came to my senses, the table where I was sitting had become the center of the gathering.
Thanks to them, I was able to gather some useful information, which I stored in my head.
As we were talking about this and that, the topic naturally turned to silver badges.
“By the way, why don't you have a silver badge?”
“Um... I just lost it.”
“Oh no!”
“It disappeared without a trace.”
“How on earth did someone steal just your silver plate?”
I listened to their conversation and chuckled, kicking my foot lightly under the table.
Bang!
There was a slight sound, but it was drowned out by the musicians' music.
That was quite impressive.
It must hurt quite a bit with his inner arts, but he's enduring it.
Right now, Dae-do Chun-il is hiding under our dining table.
When did he get under there?
I kicked him the moment he approached me, trying to steal my silver plate.
I guess spilling tea on the table was part of his plan.
I did think the tablecloth was a bit large.
But isn't hiding under the tablecloth to steal a silver plate a bit too cliché?
However, it was probably a method that the Trading Company members here would never have thought of.
Of course, I already knew Dao Chun-il's energy, so stopping him was no problem.
In this way, I blocked a total of seven attempts.
I could see that others had lost their silver plates, but I couldn't tell them because it was against the rules.
It seemed to be a rule that reflected the spirit that one must protect one's own property.
After all, one must protect what is one's own.
The meeting was coming to an end, and the battle between Dao Chun-il and me was also coming to an end.
Puk!
And I just blocked the eighth attempt.