Chapter 20
The Youngest Son of the Silver Sea Trading Company Chapter 20
Chapter 20. Recruit the Palm Print (3)
I barely suppressed the blood rushing to my head and let him introduce me to his family.
There were four of them.
His father, mother, a boy, and a girl.
The man with the surname Gong was named Doo-ii, and his children were named Gong-mil and Gong-rae.
“When my wife was pregnant, she had a dream about a jar full of honey, so we named our son Gong-mil. We picked a lot of mugwort flowers and named our daughter Gong-rae.”
“I see. They are all beautiful names.”
The siblings' father was a potter.
The potter's family expressed their gratitude to me and my companions and offered us their favorite tea.
“We will enjoy it.”
“Thank you very much.”
Then I saw Gong Mi playing with his sister in the yard.
“Look at this.”
“Wow! That's amazing! Oppa! You're so talented!”
The boy was holding a toy cart that looked like he had made it himself.
Then, the cart started moving on its own.
I was surprised again.
“Is that an automatic cart?”
It looked quite rough, but I recognized the basic structure.
It was a toy automatic cart that had been very popular among children in wealthy families in the past.
He had already made one.
Noticing my gaze, Gong Dao said,
“My son is good at making small things like that.”
“He's already so skilled with his hands.”
“I'm proud of him, but his talent doesn't make money, and it breaks my heart to see him doing the same thing every day.”
“What do you mean?”
The potter looked at me, and I said emphatically, "I'm not joking.
“It can make money. Actually, I am the son of the captain of the Eunhae Trading Company. That's why I can say this with confidence. If you sell the items your son makes, you can make a lot of money.”
“I know that.”
The potter smiled bitterly.
“But it's the merchants who make money, not the craftsmen who make the items, isn't it?”
“...”
At that moment, I was stunned.
“Artisans are just used. They say that bears do the work and kings get the money.”
“...”
He wasn't wrong.
“I've seen many cases like that while working as a potter. That's why I don't want to see my son being exploited like that.”
The potter's eyes were filled with concern for his son.
Knowing that Gongmil was being severely exploited and would die from overwork, Gongmil's heart was heavy with worry and concern.
Moreover, if he stepped down now, fate would once again play a cruel trick on Gong's family.
He didn't want to regret it again.
After thinking for a moment, he came up with a plan and opened his mouth.
“Then may I make a suggestion?”
“What is your suggestion?”
“How much of your current monthly salary comes from the profits of selling the pottery you make?”
“I don't know exactly, but it's definitely less than the minimum wage.”
“Then, if I give you a quarter of that income, would you allow your son to work for our Trading Company?”
“What?”
“Of course, we can distribute more of the income based on his contribution in the future, but...”
I trailed off and looked at the potter.
His eyes were filled with suspicion. He was wondering why I was going to such lengths.
I realized that I couldn't convince him with just kind words.
Judging from their living conditions, they weren't well off.
Even so, they sent their child to school because they didn't want him to live a life of exploitation.
That must be why the Jin-Gyeon Trading Company went to such lengths to get Gong-Mil.
I felt the need to approach him more sincerely.
However, in order to have such a conversation, I needed to be alone with him.
“Excuse me...”
I said to the bodyguards.
“Please buy some snacks for the children.”
They nodded in response.
“Yes, sir.”
They nodded and left the gate. However, I could sense something.
Only one of them moved.
The other remained standing nearby.
Realizing that they wanted me to leave, I stepped aside, but their duty was to protect me.
That was why they were preparing for any situation.
Still, they wouldn't be able to hear me from this distance.
“Actually, I already know about that child's talent.”
“What?”
“Actually, I saw the child in a dream. That's why I was so surprised earlier. I saw the child I saw in my dream in real life.”
“...”
“You don't believe me, do you?”
I smiled and continued.
“You don't have to believe me. I have no proof, so I can't beg you to believe me. Hahaha.”
“...”
“That's why I came here to meet that child. But I couldn't find the house where he lives, so I was having trouble. I only remembered that there was a paulownia tree, so I was looking around this village, checking every house with a paulownia tree.”
I smiled faintly.
“But the thief I caught was the one who had targeted the potter's bag. And the potter led us here.”
“....”
“I think it's fate. Don't you agree?”
“....”
After remaining silent for a long time, the potter spoke heavily.
“So what happened in your dream that made you come here?”
He continued.
“I know the Eunhae Trading Company. It's a fairly large trading company that I often do business with. I'm curious to know what happened in your dream that made the son of such a prestigious company come here.”
“...Someone discovered my child's talent. But it caught the eye of a bad trading company.”
Gong Do-gong looked at me, and I didn't avoid his gaze.
“That trading company kidnapped my child and threatened him. From then on, my child's life was nothing but exploitation. He shed tears of blood, gave up sleeping and eating, and developed new tools, but in the end...”
I smiled bitterly and continued.
“He died of overwork.”
“...!”
“In my dream, the child cried out in agony, begging me to save him and his family.”
“...”
“Is this really just a dream? No. Seeing the child's talent, I realized that it was a dream with a high possibility of coming true.”
I said it was a dream, but it actually happened.
“He is still young, but even I can see his talent. I wonder if others have noticed it.”
“....”
“It may sound ridiculous coming from someone like me, but there are quite a few people who will do anything for money.”
“Then what about the Eunhae Trading Company that you belong to? Would you do anything for money?”
I replied to his question.
“The purpose of a trading company is to make money. However, Eunhae Trading Company is conscientious in its own way. It has been a tradition for generations that people should be treated with respect, and I also believe so. That is why I offered you a quarter of the profits. I think that is the least we can offer so that you won't be called a thief.”
“Is that really all?”
“And I also believe that with my skills, I can earn a lot of money.”
I said with a smile.
“I am a merchant too.”
“...”
“Please consider it. I plan to return the day after tomorrow, and I would like you to come with me.”
“I will think about it.”
At that moment, the bodyguards returned.
They were carrying snacks that children would like.
“Here you are.”
“Thank you for your hard work.”
I thanked the bodyguards and approached the two children with the snacks.
“Kids, do you like Bingdangho and Tanggu?”
“Wow! Bingdangho!”
“There's Tanggu too!”
They were children after all. They were excited and held one rice cake and one sweet in each hand.
I smiled as I looked at the two children.
Seeing the two children like this, my sense of debt to the palm print artist I couldn't save back then turned into a subtle different feeling.
I don't really know what this feeling is.
.
.
.
.
The lanterns were lit in Geumseonjangsi, creating a spectacular scene.
Leaving the potter's house, I looked around Geumseonjangsi.
I had seen it during the day, but with the lanterns lit, Geumseonjangsi looked completely different.
However, I quickly turned around.
“Are you going back to the inn?”
I shook my head at Pal-gap's question.
“No, I have somewhere to go.”
No matter how much I thought about it, something felt off.
* *
There was a trading company in the village next to Geumseon Village.
It was called Jin-Gyeon Trading Company.
It wasn't a large trading company, but it was quite well-known in Geumseon Market for its pottery trade.
The office of the head of the trading company.
The head of the trading company, sitting at his desk, did not look very happy.
A man was bowing his head in front of him.
“I heard you failed.”
“I'm sorry. Unfortunately, it was caught by a passerby.”
“Unfortunate...”
“Yes, the third son of Eunhaesang Trading Company, who came here for business, dropped a gourd...”
“Ha!”
“And that's why you failed?”
“I apologize. But please don't worry too much. I told him to keep his mouth shut, so his identity won't be revealed.”
“You did well.”
The captain nodded in agreement, then tapped the armrest and asked.
“Did you find out why the youngest son of the Eunhae Trading Company came all the way here?”
“Well... Actually, we followed him all day, but he just ate and looked around the neighborhood.”
“Hmm... Just to gain experience traveling?”
“That's probably it. He's only fifteen years old, after all.”
“I heard he stopped by Gong Do-gong's house?”
“Gong Do-gong said he couldn't just send him away, so he served him some tea.”
“I see. Anyway, we can't fail next time.”
“Of course. Don't worry. I will make sure that Gong Do-gong signs a contract of self-sale.”
A contract of self-sale.
That meant a contract to sell himself as a slave.
“He doesn't even appreciate the kindness of being allowed to work until now, and he dared to try to go to another trading company. He's not worth pitying. Hahahaha.”
* * *
It was morning.
“Are you awake?”
“Yes. I'm going to do some breathing exercises, so stand guard.”
“Yes, sir.”
After finishing the breathing exercises, he felt a little more alert.
Perhaps because the Tae-eum Byeonghae Gong technique involved accumulating yin energy in the body, he felt refreshed after doing the breathing exercises.
Perhaps because of that, I didn't sweat much.
“I brought you water to wash your face.”
“Thank you.”
I washed my face with the water Pal-gap brought me, got dressed, and went down to the first floor.
I had to eat breakfast.
When I went downstairs, Master and Jung-chung were already sitting at the table, talking.
“Did you sleep well?”
“Yes, I slept well thanks to you.”
After exchanging brief morning greetings, I sat down at the table. Soon, the Trading Company employees began to arrive and sit down at the table, greeting me one by one.
“What is the schedule for today?”
My question was answered by Jinyong, a member of the Sangyugak.
“Today, we are going to the vacant lot next to Geumseon Market to trade goods at 9:00 to 11:00 a.m. We exchanged letters with the other trading company and agreed to meet there.”
Jeong-chung continued.
“And we are planning to leave early tomorrow morning. The head of the trading company said we need to take care of some business.”
The two members of Sangyugak nodded in agreement.
“I see.”
Lim Kyung-bin of Jaegyeonggak said from beside him.
“Young master, just write down what you learned about today's transaction.
”Please check it carefully in case I make a mistake.“
”Don't worry. I will check it carefully."
After finishing my meal, I returned to my room.
I looked out the window at Geumseon Village.
I felt uncertain because I didn't know if Gong Daegong would accept my proposal.
Of course, the child's wishes were most important, but he was not yet an adult.
His parents' permission was necessary for the plan to proceed.
A short time later, our party headed for an open space next to the Geumseon Market with the silk loaded onto the cart.
It was an open space created for large-scale transactions.
I had been there a few times before, and it looked the same as ever.
We waited for a while after we arrived, and then a group of people arrived from afar, pulling carts.