Chapter 252
The Youngest Son of the Silver Sea Trading Company Chapter 252
Chapter 252. His Situation (1)
I looked at Yang Eun-jik, who was staring wide-eyed in shock.
His face was filled with shock and despair.
It was just as we had intended.
A moment ago, we had discussed what to do with Yang Eun-jik while moving around to determine his location.
“I...”
Surprisingly, Jin-yu was the first to speak.
“I want him to feel the despair that the innocent people who lost their lives felt because of him.”
He smiled bitterly.
“Of course, I know I have no right to say this. But keeping him alive is dangerous. However, just letting him die peacefully... I can't help but feel for the innocent people who lost their lives because of him.”
I comforted Jin-yu.
“It wasn't your fault, was it? But the problem with Yang Eun-jik is that he did it on his own accord.”
He nodded at my words.
Come to think of it, Seo Woo and Lee Pil don't know what Jin Yu said about Yang Eun-jik.
I explained it briefly.
Naturally, they were furious.
“What a bastard!”
“He deserves to die a thousand deaths.”
What shocked them the most was the inn fire in Jiangxi five years ago.
At that time, the Green Forest Bandits from a nearby mountain keep set fire to the inn, and many people staying there were burned to death. It was Yang Eun-jik's first assignment.
“I heard about that from a colleague of mine at the time. He said that Yang Eun-jik incited the Green Forest Bandits to kill a person staying at the inn.”
He sacrificed so many people just to kill one?
That's outrageous.
“That's why I want him to feel the despair that those innocent people felt.”
“All right.”
“I want to do that too.”
Seo Woo and Lee Pil agreed.
Then, what would be the best way to make him feel desperate?
I remembered when I met Yang Eun-jik in my previous life.
“How did you reach the peak of your martial arts? Do you have any secrets?”
“Secrets...?”
“I'm sorry. I'm just a little curious...”
“That's not a bad thing. Well, actually, I learned martial arts from the Alliance Leader, but... I also had a problem with myself. The problem was that I had never felt the desperation of life and death, but thanks to the Alliance Leader, I was able to overcome that barrier.”
“I see.”
“It was only natural that I reached my peak. How much time did I spend enduring hardship to reach this level of mastery...”
Judging from that conversation, what he wanted most was to reach the peak of his abilities.
And in order to reach the peak, he needed to fight for his life.
I heard that the Alliance Leader was a master of quality armor.
So there was no way he couldn't have noticed Yang Eun-jik's condition.
With his help, Yang Eun-jik went through a life-and-death battle and was able to overcome the barrier to reach his peak.
When I told everyone my thoughts, they all agreed.
That's why he pushed him so hard, even though he could have easily defeated him.
It was to give him the experience of a life-and-death battle.
As I expected, he reached his peak.
However, as soon as he cheered, Seo Woo's sword pierced him.
Right where his qi center was.
“Guh! This can't be...”
He gritted his teeth, feeling tremendous pain as his qi center was broken. But the pain from despair must have been even greater.
The bright light of his sword was fading.
“I... I worked so hard to achieve this!”
I said coldly to him, who was in despair.
“You must be in despair.”
“Kuh!”
“But that despair is what the innocent people who died because of you also felt.”
“So what? They... should have known it was glory... worthless... people... for me. Sacrifice...”
What?
They should have known it was glory?
That worthless people could sacrifice themselves for him?
His very thoughts were rotten.
“That's what matters. You're going to die here. And no one will ever know or remember that you were once a peak warrior.”
I continued.
“Because you're dying less than half a second after becoming a peak warrior.”
Of course, we have no intention of remembering that he was once a peak warrior.
Enraged by my words, he howled.
“Zenzaaaang!”
And he swung his sword.
His last desperate attempt.
But the sword could no longer be swung.
Pffft!
The sword of the master swordsman had pierced his heart.
Cough!
“Go to the underworld and apologize to the people you killed.”
Thud.
Unlike my previous life, Yang Eun-jik met his death several years earlier than expected.
It's a good thing when you think about the innocent people who will be killed in the future.
We burned his body.
However, we didn't burn it completely, only the parts where the sword marks remained.
I considered subduing him and handing him over to the imperial palace, but I quickly gave up on that idea.
Even if it is the imperial palace, he belongs to the Martial Alliance.
To avoid future trouble, they could force him to commit suicide or secretly take him out of prison.
If we're not careful, his life could become even harder than before.
Therefore, it is best to dispose of him here.
However, if we burned him completely or buried him, the Royal Guards who lost track of him would be reprimanded, so we decided to do this.
“Master Jin-yu.”
“Yes.”
“Please ask Master Jin-yeong to come here.”
“Yes, sir.”
Then, before Master Jin-yeong arrived, we deliberately left traces here and there.
“Huff! Huff!”
A moment later, Master Jin came up to us, panting heavily.
“I heard you found Yang Eun-jik's body?”
“Yes.”
I nodded.
“My bodyguards and I were tracking Yang Eun-jik on our own.”
“You were tracking Yang Eun-jik?”
“Yes. As I said earlier, Beijing will be safe once we find him, right?”
“You... were serious.”
“Of course. I cannot allow Beijing, where a new branch of Eunhae Trading Company will be established, to be in turmoil. So, while searching this place, which is the most likely hiding place, we...”
I let out a sigh.
“We found a body burned in a fire.”
“Ugh!”
Master Jin frowned at the gruesome sight.
However, his face was intact, so we could recognize him.
“Judging from the traces of a fight left here, it seems he was eliminated.”
“I agree. It seems that the document was discovered.”
He clicked his tongue.
“What a pity. Now we can't use this as an excuse to question the Martial Alliance...”
Hearing his words, I smiled bitterly.
Even if he had survived, you wouldn't have been able to question the Martial Alliance.
They are not that easy to deal with.
“Still, we should inquire with them.”
I nodded.
Considering what happened to Yang Eun-jik, I wondered how the Martial Alliance would react.
I was curious.
“Oh, by the way... What happened when you went to meet Master Commander?”
“The imperial guards have just left on the emperor's orders.”
“Many more people will die.”
“...It can't be helped.”
When there's a rebellion, hundreds of people die every time.
“To be honest, I don't like it. Of course, those who betrayed His Majesty deserve to die, but what crime have those who were only following orders committed?”
“That's... true.”
“How about putting them to hard labor instead?”
After thinking about my words for a moment, Master Jin-yeong nodded.
“That's not a bad idea. I'll talk to them.”
“Thank you.”
I bowed with my hands clasped together. Seeing me, Master Jin-yeong said, “Now I understand why they call you Seonhyeom-mi.”
“What?”
“Anyway, thank you for your hard work.”
Master Jin ordered his subordinates who had followed him to collect Yang Eun-jik's body.
This way, the Royal Guards won't be reprimanded.
And since the body was partially burned, no one will know that we had anything to do with it.
In fact, we hid our abilities when we fought Yang Eun-jik earlier because we thought it would leave traces.
.
.
.
Half a month passed.
The Royal Guards and the Royal Guards who had been dispatched by the emperor captured all the rebels.
They were unable to prepare properly, so they were easily captured.
The emperor sentenced Chungjinwang to death.
Although his circumstances were understandable, the emperor could not leave any loose ends.
Receiving a relatively lenient punishment, King Chungjin bowed three times to the emperor and drank the poison.
However, the Minister of Revenue and the Minister of Education, who had been dismissed from their posts, did not receive such mercy.
“Nengji-hyeong?”
“Yes. I hear it was truly horrible.”
“...”
It seems that His Majesty was quite angry.
“What about the others?”
Pal-gap reported what he had heard.
“Most of the ringleaders were sentenced to death, but those below them were mostly sentenced to hard labor.”
“Not death?”
“Yes. They only did what their superiors ordered them to do, and that is not a capital offense. So it seems that their hard labor is not too difficult.”
That's good.
It seems that the emperor listened to Master Jin's words.
Anyway, the matter concerning Yang Eung-jik was settled.
I thought Beijing would be quiet now... but I was wrong.
This was because it was the busiest time of the year in Beijing.
It was the past.
Perhaps because of this, giants from all over the Central Plains gathered in Beijing, and most of the inns were fully booked.
Those who had nowhere to stay in Beijing had to unpack their luggage at inns.
While I was working at my temporary residence, Pal-gap entered the room.
“Young master, your eldest brother is here.”
“Hyung-nim Jung-ho?”
I got up from my seat and opened the door. Hyung-nim Jung-ho was standing outside the door.
Hyung-nim Jung-ho and my grandfather were still staying at the Yeonjoon Trading Company.
This place was literally a temporary residence, so there wasn't much space.
“What's the matter, Hyung-nim?”
“Are you busy?”
“....
I remained silent, feeling uneasy, but Jung-ho smiled and said, ”Even if you're busy, you can't refuse. Come with me to the Hyeonghak Academy.“
”Hyeonghak Academy?“
”Actually, my father wrote a letter. He asked me to deliver it a few days before the exam.“
”Who is the letter for?"
“To the government officials, of course. I have to read it to them.”
“Oh...”
I thought I understood the situation.
Originally, my father had planned to come to Beijing himself, but he couldn't make it due to various circumstances.
He wanted to encourage the government officials at the Hyeonghak Academy himself, but since he couldn't, he asked Jung-ho to read the letter to them.
“What about your grandfather?”
“He said he couldn't go to a place like that and told me to go with you.”
“Ah...”
If it was my grandfather's order, there was nothing I could do.
Even if I was busy, I had to go.
“Wait a minute.”
I quickly got ready and left.
Meanwhile, Jung-ho, who was drinking tea, saw me and smiled.
“Why are you dressing up so fancy?”
“I thought I should show some respect. What about you?”
Jung-ho also dressed up nicely in his own way.
“It's to show my respect.”
I smiled at his words.
“Let's go.”
“Okay.”
Soon, we headed for the Hyeonghak Academy.
Behind us, my bodyguards and Jung-ho's bodyguards were talking to each other.
It seemed like they were sharing information.
Soon, we arrived at the Hyeonghak Academy.
“Welcome.”
Perhaps because we had sent word in advance, the head of the academy welcomed us warmly.
“Thank you for your hard work.”
“Not at all.”
After exchanging light greetings, we got down to business.
“May I see the letter first?”
Hearing Jung-ho's request, my brother readily handed him the letter.
“Hmm...”
After reading the letter carefully, the academy head said cautiously.
“In my opinion, this part should be removed. It may put unnecessary pressure on the students.”
“I see.”
I felt sorry for my father, but with the help of the academy head, I made the necessary corrections.
“By the way, it is truly amazing that fourteen giants have come from this academy! What an incredible achievement.”
“Hehehe, it's all thanks to the students' hard work.”
Of course, it's impossible for so many giants to come from one city.
That's why the students of the Hyeonghak Academy went back to their hometowns to take the local exams.
As we were talking, we heard someone's voice from outside.
“Headmaster, it's urgent. May I come in for a moment?”
He tilted his head in confusion and asked us for permission.
“Come in.”
“Yes.”
The one who entered was one of the academy's teachers.
He greeted us and said with a troubled expression,
“Man-suk left this behind.”
It was a letter of resignation.