Chapter 164
The Youngest Son of the Eunhae Trading Company Chapter 164
Chapter 164. A Guest in the Middle of the Night (1)
A moment later
Sect Leader Gong entered my room carrying a tray with a teapot and teacups.
Making sure no one else was around, I greeted him warmly.
“Have you been well?”
“Thanks to you, I am doing well.”
“But... what happened? How did the inn grow so big?”
“It just happened.”
He explained everything that had happened.
“Thanks to the increase in customers, we can now use the money you gave us without raising suspicion. So, we combined that money with the wealth I brought with me and built this five-story tower...”
Sect Leader Gong scratched his ear and said.
“The number of customers has increased even more, and we are busy every day.”
Mister Mun Ju-seong's face was full of smiles as he said this, and I felt proud as well.
In my previous life, Mister Mun Ju-seong had a double-headed dragon tattoo and returned to the Deunghang Trading Company to become the captain, but he didn't look happy at all when I saw him then.
Of course, he couldn't be happy because the double-headed dragon tattoo he brought with him nearly destroyed the Deunghang Trading Company and even caused his mother to pass away.
Was it because of my memories of that time?
Without realizing it, I said to him.
“You look happy.”
“Yes.”
Mister Gong answered, nodding his head.
“I am happy.”
It didn't seem like it was just luck that this inn had grown so much.
It was the first time I had seen such a kind and clean inn.
My business sense was telling me so.
This inn was not just famous in this area; it was not the kind of inn that would go out of business.
That thought suddenly crossed my mind.
I wondered what the captain of the Deokhaeng Trading Company would think when he saw the success of Sect Leader Gong.
I heard that when the Deokhang Trading Company expels an unlucky descendant, they cut off all ties with the family for fear that the bad luck will rub off on the rest of the family...
“I'm glad to hear that. I'm happy to see that you are living happily.”
“It's all thanks to you. You saved me from the tiger and gave me advice.”
I just smiled at his words.
I don't know for sure, but I'm sure he saved his life back then.
Considering that I returned to my family with a double life in my previous life.
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That afternoon.
After dinner, I walked in the garden next to the pavilion.
Seeing such a spacious and beautiful garden created for the guests of the inn, I thought that Sect Leader Gong must have a good sense of business.
As I was walking in the garden accompanied by my bodyguards, someone approached me.
Seeing a woman in her early thirties, I quickly clasped my hands together and greeted her.
“It's been a long time.”
It was Padu Pa.
“Yes, how have you been?”
“Yes, how have you been, Elder?”
“Nothing much, just the usual. By the way, I heard you got a title, Seonhaengmi-rang?”
“Yes, it just happened that way.”
“I knew you would make a name for yourself someday, but it happened faster than I expected.”
He felt shy and scratched his cheek.
“By the way, what happened? The inn has become quite large.”
Padufapa smiled and replied.
“The guy you asked to take over is quite talented.”
“He said he was just lucky.”
“Nonsense. I've run an inn myself, so I know. Luck alone wouldn't have made the inn this big, nor would it have allowed me to keep it going.”
“That's true. And it's also thanks to you, Elder.”
“Me? What did I do?”
“You took care of unwelcome guests and other problems, didn't you?”
When a business grows rapidly like this, there are often obstacles from those around you, and martial artists can be quite troublesome.
She smiled at my question and replied.
“There were some unruly guys, so I quietly took them aside and smashed their heads. But wasn't that what you asked me to do?”
I asked Padu-papa to protect Sect Leader Gong for five years in exchange for saving his husband's life.
Three years have passed since then, so there are only two years left, right?
However, even after the period we agreed upon had passed, Padu-papa did not seem to want to leave the inn.
At that moment, a young man approached from afar.
“Lady, what are you doing there?”
“Ah! My husband.”
Seeing the young man, Padupapa smiled like a young girl.
“This is the young man I told you about.”
“Ah! This young man!”
He smiled gently and clasped his hands together.
“Thanks to your kindness, I was able to save my life. I am grateful for saving my life.”
“Um...”
I didn't know how to respond to his more polite greeting than I had expected.
Pock!
Padu-papa hit my back with his palm and said,
“Why aren't you accepting my greeting?”
“Ah, yes. I'm glad you're healthy. May you two live together happily for a hundred years?”
“We'll be a hundred years old soon.”
“Uh...”
I was taken aback for a moment, but I smiled shyly and continued.
“Then may you live together happily for a thousand years.”
“Thank you very much, young man.”
Suddenly, I had a question.
“By the way, what are your names?”
“Me?”
Padu-papa replied with a smile.
“Yeon-ga-hwa.”
It means “beautiful flower.”
I was taken aback by the name, which was completely different from Padu-papa, which means “old woman who breaks heads.”
But I quickly nodded.
What kind of woman would want to be called that? It must have been the world that made her that way.
It must have been a world where she had to survive that way.
“And my husband's name is Yoo Geon.”
“Please forgive me for being so rude as to ask your names.”
“Not at all. We are grateful that you asked our names.”
As they said this, I could feel the deep affection they had for each other as they looked at each other.
And I felt something else.
Elder Yoo Geon's inner arts.
Even though he wasn't deliberately emitting his energy, I could feel his prayers.
It felt as if I was facing a huge cliff.
When did I ever feel this way before?
Ah, it was when my Master said he had attained enlightenment recently.
Then my Master has also reached this level?
That makes me even more curious. If someone like him was injured, it means he was in a fierce battle.
At that moment, people began to approach from afar, and seeing this, Padupapa, or rather, Elder Yeon-ga-hwa, said.
“Then we'll be going. I don't know where you're going, but be careful and take care.”
“Yes.”
Then Elder Yoo-geon added a few words.
“If anyone bothers you, tell us.”
“Yes, we will.”
When I greeted them, they turned around and entered the inn.
“Hoo!”
“Hoo!”
As soon as they entered the inn, my bodyguards breathed a sigh of relief and wiped the cold sweat from their brows.
“Who are those people?”
Seo Woo and Jin Yu, who were at their peak, seemed to be even more frightened.
It was complicated to explain, so I gave a simple answer.
“They are people I met before.”
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After spending the night at the Yeochun Inn, we packed our belongings and went down to the first floor the next day.
“Are you leaving, guests?”
“Yes.”
Sect Leader Gong didn't say anything, but he looked quite disappointed.
“We'll stop by again next time. Until then, stay healthy and happy.”
Sect Leader Gong nodded at my telepathy.
We left the Yeochun Inn.
Everyone strives to find happiness. But happiness is just happiness.
Happiness is like a piece of paper that flies away when the wind of hardship blows.
In order to hold on to that paper-like happiness and enjoy it, something heavy is needed.
I believe that something heavy, whether it be family, friends, responsibility, or effort, is what allows happiness to remain as happiness.
I remembered Sect Leader Gongzi, who was running around frantically to leave a good impression on the guests.
Perhaps it is because of his character that his luck does not end with luck, but remains as happiness.
Leaving the Yeochun Inn, we soon arrived at the ferry landing.
We had to take our horses, so we boarded a large boat bound for Shandong.
It was downstream, so we traveled very quickly.
However, although boats are comfortable, they can be a little boring.
Pal-gap was already fidgeting.
“Even if it's boring, it's better than riding a horse all day, isn't it?”
Pal-gap sighed deeply in response to my question.
“That's true, but I feel suffocated and restless when I'm sitting still like this.”
“Is that so?”
I suddenly thought of calling Jin-yu to train him, but the martial arts that Pal-gap was learning were not something that others should see.
Besides, it was not a good idea to train in such a small space.
Suddenly, I had a good idea.
There was someone here who could play with Pal-gap.
“Geum-ryung, come here.”
“Kui?”
“Pal-gap is bored. Aren't you bored too?”
“Kui!”
At my words, Geum-ryung's eyes lit up as if she was delighted, and she immediately rushed toward Pal-gap and kicked him in the face with her hind legs.
Bang!
“Ugh! What is this?”
Even though Pal-gap had become quite agile since he started practicing martial arts, he was still slow compared to Geum-ryung.
And Geum-ryung's provocation was excellent.
“You brat!”
“Kui! Kui!”
“Huh! What is this! Just try to catch me!”
Thanks to Geum-ryeong, Pal-gap didn't complain about being bored after that.
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While traveling by boat, he saw a familiar mountain.
It was Taesan.
There are five mountains in the Central Plains called the Five Great Mountains.
Mount Tai in the east, Mount Hua in the west, Mount Heng in the south, Mount Heng in the north, and Mount Song in the center.
Mount Tai was said to be the best of the Five Great Mountains.
This is because it is located in the east where the sun rises and is therefore the most sacred.
It is said that every time you climb Mount Tai, you become ten years younger and your wishes will come true, but in my opinion, it was because climbing the mountain was so difficult.
To be honest, it doesn't look that high, but it's not an easy mountain to climb.
Fortunately, we didn't have to cross the mountain, but could continue our journey down the river that flows around Mount Tai.
Seeing Mount Tai meant that we had entered Shandong, so we began to prepare to disembark.
We decided to spend the night in a nearby town.
It was comfortable to travel by boat, but it was tiring without us realizing it.
Also, when you ride a boat for a long time, you can get seasick when you get off.
Those who had trained in martial arts didn't suffer from seasickness, but we still needed to conserve our energy because we had to travel on horseback again.
Horses are very sensitive animals, so they needed time to adjust to the ground.
We also needed to replenish our emergency food supplies and other necessary items.
There was an inn near the ferry landing where I had often stayed in the past, so we headed there.
It was a place I often stayed when traveling through Shandong to other places.
“Let's stay at that inn.”
“All right.”
We unpacked our luggage at the inn.
Everyone quietly rested and left the next morning.
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It was the second day since we left the inn near the ferry landing.
“Liege, I think we should prepare for the night here.”
“That's a good idea. There's no need to push ourselves.”
I nodded at Seo Mu's suggestion.
The sun was setting quickly in the mountains.
“Then I'll look for a suitable place.”
“Yes.”
The bodyguards looked around and chose a flat spot to prepare for the night.
Thanks to their quick work, they were able to prepare for the night fairly quickly.
For dinner, we ate rabbit meat that had been hunted nearby and the leftover dumplings from lunch.
“Then, let's decide who will keep watch.”
When the remaining three warriors and Pal-gap were deciding the order, I interrupted Seo Woo's words.
“I will keep watch as well.”
“What?”
“What do you mean, even you will keep watch?”
“That's right. You can just sleep, young master.”
I shook my head firmly.
“It's okay. It's my turn to keep watch. Everyone must be sleepy, so if I keep watch, you can all rest a little longer.”
When I expressed my opinion strongly, everyone reluctantly nodded.
Pal-gap and I were paired up, and we were second in line.
The first and last ones were less tiring, but that was because of the order.
It was better for Pal-gap and me to be tired than for the bodyguards who were protecting me to be tired.
I knew that Jin-yu and Yeo-eung-am, who were the first ones to stand guard, would not wake me up, so I got up on my own at the agreed time.
“Uh... Are you awake?”
Seeing their panicked expressions, I knew I was right.
I said firmly, “Go back to sleep.”
“Yes, sir.”
They lay down on the floor, watching me, and soon fell fast asleep.
I chuckled.
They didn't have to go to such lengths, but honestly, that would be difficult for them.
As I stood guard by the campfire with Palgap,
ding
ding
ding
hearing the sound of a bell ringing in the distance, Palgap asked me in fear.
“What on earth is that sound?”