Chapter 185
The Youngest Son of the Silver Sea Trading Company Chapter 185
Chapter 185. Ice Breaking (1)
When the ship we were on started moving, the other ships that had come to help also started moving.
Just like in our previous lives, the other ships helped us.
Of course, thanks to our quick rescue, the other ships only had to take the people on board.
Soon, the ship arrived at the pier near Daegun Seonjeom.
The passengers who had nearly died when Daegun Seonjeom's ship capsized were naturally not going to stand idly by.
They rushed to Daegun Seonjeom as a group and protested.
However
“As you can see here, even if a martial aunt occurs, our company will not provide any compensation.”
Sure enough, written on the wall was, “Under no circumstances will compensation be paid.”
“We have suffered tremendous losses due to the sinking of the boat! So please go back. If you keep this up, we will report you to the prefectural office.”
The owner of Dae Geon Shipbuilding took an arrogant stance.
The passengers had no choice but to complain and leave.
“Damn it!”
“Damn it!”
“I'll never buy anything from Daegun Trading Company again!”
Seeing this, I shook my head in disbelief.
I expected something like this, but they really are something else.
As far as I know, the owner of Daegun Trading Company is the third son of the head of the trading company.
I don't know how he was educated, but his attitude toward serving customers, which is the most important thing in business, was completely wrong.
I felt that even if he hadn't been in this line of work in his previous life, he would have failed anyway.
Even if he wrote that to avoid responsibility, he could at least apologize.
But to report it to the county office is completely unreasonable.
Thanks to him, I now had another reason to go.
I turned around and headed straight for the county office.
When I arrived at the county office, I immediately asked to see Jihyeon.
“Who are you and where are you from?”
“Please tell him that I am Eun Seo-ho, the junior captain of the Eunhae Trading Company.”
Thanks to the reputation of my company, I was able to meet Jihyeon without having to wait long.
“So, you wanted to see me?”
“Yes. I am Eun Seo-ho, the captain of the Eunhae Trading Company. I have come to see you, Jihyeon.”
“What is it you want to see me about?”
“Do you know about the Daegunsunjeon ship that sank in Dongting Lake last night?”
“...I am aware of that.”
“I came to request an investigation into the matter. It is clearly the fault of Daegunsunjeom, but they are denying it.”
Ji-hyun clicked his tongue at my words.
“Daegunsunjeom is not at fault. It was dark at night, and it was just an accident with an unknown cause.”
“The investigation is already over?”
“Of course. I already went to the scene myself.”
When?
I didn't see Ji-hyun there.
Ji-hyun smiled subtly and said politely.
“I understand that Eunhae Trading Company has a good reputation, but I don't think it's right to bully such a small trading company.”
It was clear.
Ji-hyun in front of me took money from Daegun Trading Company.
“Do you really think so?”
“It's not what I think, it's the truth.”
“Is it okay if I report what you just said to His Majesty the Emperor?”
I sighed and took out my inspection badge from my pocket and held it in front of him.
“What? What is that...?”
When Ji-hyun saw the badge of the inspector general, his face turned pale.
“Gasp!”
I signaled him to be quiet and said in a low voice.
“I am acting on the secret orders of His Majesty the Emperor. If you reveal my identity to others, I will hold you responsible.”
“...”
“Do you understand?”
He nodded repeatedly with a thoughtful look on his face.
To make things clearer, I took out a scroll and handed it to him.
“His Majesty the Emperor has given me the authority to conduct an official investigation. Therefore, the report on this matter will be submitted directly to His Majesty the Emperor.”
I smiled and said,
“You said the investigation was already complete. You even said you went to the scene yourself. Then can you tell me what happened so I can write the report?”
Ji-hyun bowed his head and begged in a trembling voice.
“It was a lie that I investigated last night!”
It was just as I expected.
As I listened quietly, as if encouraging him to continue, he confessed everything.
“Dae-gun Trading Company offered me a large sum of money to cover up this incident, so I ended up telling a lie.”
“I see.
I will conduct a proper investigation right away. Please give me one more chance.”
“Hmm...”
“Please, just this once. I have an elderly mother to take care of, and a wife and children to support.”
“I understand. I will turn a blind eye this once. But if I hear of something like this again, I will not be able to let it pass.”
“Thank you. Thank you so much.”
Ji-hyun bowed his head repeatedly.
He had no intention of punishing him severely.
It was true that the salaries of bureaucrats were low, and he had not committed a serious crime.
Seeing this, I suddenly thought of the county magistrate of Sungyang.
As our Trading Company grew, the expectations for gifts were getting higher.
I should visit there once.
I said to Ji-hyun.
“Ji-hyun.”
“Yes, sir. What is it?”
“We need a thorough investigation. Please search from top to bottom.”
“I will do so.”
.
.
.
On my way from the county office to the tax office, I ran into a family.
It was the child I had saved the night before and his parents.
“Ah! Aren't you Master Seon and Master Dae?”
“I'm embarrassed. I'm not old enough to be called Master Dae yet.”
“Then I'll call you Master So. Where are you going?”
“I'm on my way to the tax office. By the way, is the child all right?”
“Yes. The physician said he could leave, so he just got up.”
“Are you hurt anywhere else?”
“No.”
“That's good.”
Seeing how relieved I was, the boy's father clasped his hands together and said, “It's all thanks to you, Master. We will never forget your kindness.”
He bowed his head to me and said, “My name is Huang Ben-ji. I am from Guizhou. The boy next to me is my son, Huang Ren-xian. He was saved by you yesterday.”
“I'm sorry for the late introduction. My name is Hwang Bon-ji. I am from Giju. The man next to me is my servant, and the boy you saved yesterday is my son, Hwang In-seon.”
“I am Eun Seo-ho, the captain of the Eunhae Trading Company. These are my attendants and bodyguards.”
I introduced our group and greeted them with a smile.
“Then we will be on our way.”
“Yes, please take care.”
I bowed again and passed them, heading toward the Chapter of the Sun.
The shipwreck that had occurred in my previous life.
It was highly unusual for the emperor to intervene in such a matter.
Normally, something like this would not even be reported, but the reason for this unusual turn of events was because of that man.
Huang Bonji, a scholar.
He was once framed and forced to leave his hometown, but the emperor valued him and called him back to Beijing.
However, in the meantime, he had crossed the river of no return, and the emperor ordered an investigation.
In the midst of this, he learned about the capsizing of the Daegunsunjeon's ship on Dongting Lake.
In his previous life, Hwang Bon-ji had made a big plan for his son's birthday.
Wanting his son to develop a sense of adventure, he asked an escort agency to take his family to see Dongting Lake.
However, they did not have much money, so they had no choice but to board a boat sold by Daegunsunjeon, which was cheap at the time.
Unfortunately, the ship capsized, and his wife and son drowned.
Heartbroken, Hwang Bon-ji also fell ill and died, and when the emperor learned of this, he was greatly angered.
In my opinion, the emperor was angry because he lost a talented person who could have reduced his workload.
In any case, Daegun Trading Company was beaten and collapsed.
Well, I'm not going to let it go this time.
“Come in.”
As I approached the shipbuilding company, the owner quickly ran over to greet me.
“I thought there would be no customers because of what happened last night, but there are quite a few.”
“That's right.”
He said with a smile.
“To be honest, I'm still in shock.”
He said he didn't know why, but I thought I knew the reason.
It was because of his personality, which was usually very safety-conscious.
On my way here, I stopped by a store and overheard an interesting conversation.
“But I heard that the ship capsized.”
“If you're worried, go to the fortune teller.”
“Is it safe?”
“It's safe there. You're too cautious.”
Remembering that conversation, I smiled. After all, a truly good person is someone who is recognized by those around them.
Now this business will be smooth sailing.
By the way...
What was that thing I saw last night?
The rock on the bottom of Dongting Lake that I saw when I went in to save a child named Hwang In-seon.
It felt familiar, and I had a strong feeling that I had to go there.
Could it be... the remains of Seolpung Palace?
That's what the investigator said.
He said there were traces left here and there.
But how long has it been since he went to the North Sea...
In any case, he felt he had to check it out.
* * *
At that moment.
The captain of the Daegun Trading Company was not in a good mood.
“So we have to give up that ship?”
“Yes.”
Lieutenant O Jin-chul said cautiously.
“We checked everywhere, but the ship is too big and completely sunk, so it's impossible to raise it again. The only way would be to dive down and dismantle the ship... but that would cost much more than the value of the ship.”
“....”
At that moment, a young man sitting next to him said.
“Father, does that mean I can't do business anymore?”
“...”
“I finally got my act together and decided to do some work, but the heavens are against me.”
“Be quiet.”
“...Yes.”
The captain of the Daegun Trading Company frowned and asked his lieutenant.
“How much was that ship worth?”
“Three hundred nyang.”
Hearing this, the captain of the Daegun Trading Company held his throbbing head.
What was the problem?
Was it because they tried to take all the business from Hwari Trading Company?
Or was it because they lowered their prices to beat Hwari Trading Company and ended up taking on too many passengers?
“I did it because I thought we could make twice as much money by taking twice as many passengers at once...”
The sailors strongly opposed it, but they couldn't disobey his orders.
That was when it happened.
“Captain! We're in big trouble! Captain!”
“What's going on?”
“The police are here!”
“The police?”
Wondering what was going on, he went out into the courtyard and saw dozens of police officers already in the trading company's courtyard.
“What is this...! Ah, Ji-hyun!”
Just then, Ji-hyun approached him.
“What is going on? Why are there police officers here?”
“We are here to investigate yesterday's martial aunt. We need your cooperation.”
“Wasn't that incident concluded as having no cause? Why are you doing this?”
He whispered in a low voice.
“Perhaps your gift wasn't enough?”
“No, that's not it.”
“What?”
“No matter how much I like gifts, my life is more important.”
“...!”
He was startled by his words.
The fact that Jihyun had to protect his own life meant that something serious had happened.
The captain of the Daegun Trading Company felt his vision go white and collapsed on the spot.
“Damn it. I'm done for!”
* *
That night.
I took Seo Woo and Pal-gap with me and headed toward the lake where the rock had been.
“So you saw something at the bottom of Dongting Lake?”
“Yes.”
“And you said you couldn't sleep until you confirmed it?”
“Yes.”
Seo Woo sighed and said, “I'll learn how to use a fishing rod quickly. There are many things that need to be done.”
“I need to learn this technique quickly. It's more useful than I thought.”
“It's quite useful to know.”
Whatever the reason, it wouldn't hurt to learn something new.
I took off my clothes and handed them to Pal-gap, then entered Dongting Lake wearing only a thin jacket and pants.
“I'll be back.”
“Be careful.”
“You must be careful.”
I nodded and slipped into Dongting Lake.
Hoo...
I slowly performed the Ice Sea Mental Technique.
I felt my body temperature gradually dropping and my body becoming one with the water.
Then, I used the Ice Sea Water Technique to move my body.
My body moved swiftly, like a fish swimming freely in the water.
Then I headed for the place in my memory.
It was dark all around me, but thanks to the Ice Sea Technique, my vision was not obstructed.
After swimming for about half an hour, I saw the sunken Daegunsunjeom ship.
If so, the rock must be nearby.
I slowly looked around.
“...!”
That's it.
I smiled and slowly approached it.
There were familiar letters written on the rock.
[O descendant of the snow and wind, prove your qualifications.
I used the Ice Sea Mental Technique and placed my hand on the rock.
Ooooh.
Soon, the rock began to vibrate, and familiar marks began to appear on it.
The moment I saw that, I remembered how I was forced to stay with the investigator and learn the Jinseolshik sword technique.
It was really hard. But now I have to do it again?
The vibrations I felt from the rock at that moment.
Woo-woo, woo-woo
Was it just my imagination that the rock was pleading, “Please don't go”?