Chapter 289
The Youngest Son of the Silver Sea Trading Company Chapter 289
Chapter 289. The Thief of Poetry (2)
At my shout, a man standing there was startled and slipped off the footstool he was standing on.
“Guh!”
The wind blew him into the wooden frame of the building, and his neck got caught on a hook.
Seeing this, Seo Woo immediately unleashed his sword qi.
Shack!
The sword qi cut the rope hanging the man's neck, and he fell straight down.
Kaboom!
“Huh! Huh!”
I ran to him.
“Are you okay?”
“...Yes. I'm fine.”
Thanks to Seo Woo's quick action, the man's neck was only strangled for a short time.
His butt must hurt more from landing on the ground.
I asked him.
“Did you try to kill yourself?”
“...”
His silence confirmed my guess.
No, more importantly, where did the other warriors who were supposed to be guarding this place go?
I'll find out later. First, I need to ask the man in front of me why he tried to commit suicide.
“This is the construction site for the Beijing branch of the Eunhae Trading Company. I don't know what happened, but you tried to commit suicide here! Don't you think that would cause a lot of trouble?”
He bowed his head in apology at my rebuke.
“I'm sorry. I'm so sorry!”
Seeing the darkness in his eyes, I could sense his deep despair.
“Why are you doing this?”
“...I don't want to talk about it.”
“Then I have no choice. Pal-gap, report this to the county office. Tell them that someone has trespassed on private property.”
“Yes, sir.”
“And tell them that this premeditated intrusion and attempted suicide could be an attempt to cause great damage to our Eunhae Trading Company, so ask them to investigate thoroughly.”
I continued.
“How much money has been invested in this Beijing branch so far! If rumors spread that someone died here, all that money will go down the drain!”
I was not exaggerating.
If this man had died here... I didn't even want to imagine it.
“As you say, Liege, this is a serious matter.”
“We were in real danger!”
“That's why we have to get to the bottom of this! If he's interrogated at the county office, he'll talk even if he doesn't want to.”
I looked at Pal-gap and said.
“What are you doing? Hurry up and report it to the county office.”
As Pal-gap was about to leave, the man cried out urgently.
“No, you can't do that!”
He grabbed my pants and begged.
“It was my fault.”
Now we can finally talk.
Judging from his appearance, he looked a little shabby, but he was wearing a headband and seemed to be someone who read books.
“So what is it? Why did you try to kill him?”
“It's just that…”
He sighed deeply and took a book out of his pocket.
“It's because of this book.”
The moment I took the book and saw the cover, I was taken aback.
Huh? This book? Why this book?
“Ah, it's a newly published collection of poems.”
Lee Pil said as he looked at it.
“That collection of poems has been receiving a lot of praise lately. They say it expresses the ultimate beauty that can be expressed through poetry.”
Although Lee Pil was a warrior, he came from the prestigious Sichuan Tang Clan, so he often read poetry collections.
That was why he recognized this poetry collection.
However, the reason I was taken aback when I saw this poetry collection was not because it was highly praised these days.
It was because the title of this poetry collection was “Ilgong Poetry Collection.”
The author was Chu Il-gong.
Yes, Chu Il-gong was the man who stole the poems written by Yoo So-ak, my chief administrator in my past life, and published them under his own name.
But in this life, I beat him to it.
I published Soak Poetry Collection jointly with Yoo, the Chief Administrator. Thanks to that, I formed a connection with the Clan Head of the Jegal Family, and even now, Yoo is still in contact with the Clan Head.
Hearing Lee Pil's words, the man began to cry bitterly.
“No! That's not true! That poetry collection isn't his! More than half of the poems in that collection are mine!”
“What?”
Lee Pil asked again.
“So you're saying that this Chui Il-gong stole your poems?”
The man nodded, sobbing.
Ha, it reminds me of the saying, “You can't teach an old dog new tricks.”
I thought that Choo Il-gong wouldn't do something so unscrupulous since I submitted my poetry first.
But I never thought he would find someone else to do such a thing.
Of course, the man in front of me could be lying, but... It's unlikely that a man who cried so bitterly and tried to take his own life would lie.
It's more likely that Choo Il-gong, who has a history of such behavior, did this.
He's a piece of trash, just as I thought.
“So I went over and protested loudly. But then... he actually...”
“He treated you like you were crazy.”
He nodded repeatedly at my words.
“It was so unfair, so...”
“That's why you did this, to prove your innocence by dying.”
As he said that, I picked up the [suicide note]. It had fallen to the floor when I took out the collection of poems earlier.
I unfolded the suicide note.
As the man had said, it stated that Chu Il-gong had stolen his poems, and he felt so wronged that he had chosen death to prove his innocence.
“How foolish.”
At my words, he grew angry.
“Even though it may look like a worm wriggling around in your eyes, this is the best I can do! So don't laugh at me!”
“Why would I laugh? I'm just stating the facts.”
I continued.
“Do you think hanging yourself with this worthless letter will make anyone bat an eyelid?”
“...
”You'll be lucky if you don't get ridiculed as a fool who couldn't even kill himself.“
At my words, he scratched the floor with his fingernails.
I could see blood flowing from his fingernails, but I didn't stop talking.
”If they were the kind of people who would reflect on their actions because of your death, they wouldn't have stolen your poetry in the first place."
“Then what should I do? There's no way to clear my name!”
A desperate cry.
In fact, there was a way.
However, it would take a long time and a lot of money.
The reality that it was difficult for ordinary people to clear their names left a bitter taste in my mouth.
“Before that, let me ask you something.”
“What is it?”
“Why did you choose to die here? Honestly, there are many other places you could have died.”
“Because this is the construction site of the Eunhae Trading Company.”
What do you mean?
“The Eunhae Trading Company is currently a highly respected company. And the third captain of the Eunhae Trading Company is famous as a martial artist. That's why I thought my will would not be ignored.”
“...
”And I thought they would hold a proper funeral for me. Actually, my family is poor, so we couldn't afford a funeral..."
Oh, I see.
What do you mean, you were doing well?
I felt good when he praised Eunhae Trading Company, but I suddenly felt uncomfortable when he said they would hold a proper funeral.
Listen.
Is Eunhae Trading Company the kind of place that provides free funerals?
But... family?
“Do you have any family?”
“My parents are dead, and I have a wife and a four-year-old son...”
I couldn't hold back and kicked him in the shoulder.
Bang!
“Ouch!”
He fell to the floor.
“What are you doing?”
“I'm sorry. I was angry when I heard that the head of a family was going to kill himself, leaving behind his wife and child.”
“...”
“How could you make such a decision, leaving your wife and child behind?”
“That's...”
His face turned red at my words, and he bowed his head.
To be honest, I think I understand why he made that decision. He must have been incredibly frustrated.
Sometimes, people can't see anything around them and can only see one thing.
I think that when that one thing disappears, the meaning of life disappears as well.
For the man in front of me, that one thing was “poetry.”
Still...
I don't think we should overlook the pain that those left behind have to bear.
I said to him.
“Well, since we're connected, why don't you write a poem?”
“What?”
“That way, we'll know if you're really talented.”
“Why do I have to show you my talent?”
“If you're lying, I'll take you to the county office right now.”
“...!”
He flinched and cleared his throat cautiously.
“You have to give me a theme.”
“A theme...”
I looked up. Perhaps because it was a cold winter, the stars were clearly visible in the sky.
“Let's use the stars and the night sky.”
At my words, he closed his eyes and began to recite a poem.
Each verse was truly beautiful.
The poems of Chief Administrator Yoo So-ak were beautiful, but the poem I was listening to now was also beautiful.
It was as if he was painting the night sky with poetry.
But this poem... It sounds familiar. It's like a poem I saw in my previous life.
A person's writing style reflects their unique personality.
That's why even if you borrow someone else's name, those who know will recognize it.
Lee Pil, who was listening to his poem, frowned and shouted as soon as he finished reciting it.
“This poem is similar to a poem in the Ilgong Collection!”
“Of course it's similar! I copied it!”
I calmly nodded and asked him.
“Your poem is very beautiful. You are truly talented. What is your name?”
“My name is...”
He hesitated and said.
“Song Rok.”
“...!”
I was shocked by his words.
What? Song Rok? The ill-fated poet Song Rok?
In my previous life, there was an incident that caused a stir in the world.
It was because of a collection of poems.
The poems in that collection were very elegant and beautiful.
So people searched high and low for the author of the collection.
But he shook his head.
“Those aren't my poems. They are a collection of my father's poems.”
When asked about his father's whereabouts, the son said he had taken him to the place where his father's memorial tablet was kept.
“It was my father's last wish,” he said.
The memorial tablet was inscribed with the name Song Rok.
In other words, the collection of poems was the posthumous work of the poet Song Rok.
That's right.
The man in front of me was only able to make his name known after his death.
I don't know how that bastard Choo Il-gong is able to find people like this so easily.
In his previous life, he was Chief Administrator Yoo, and in this life, he is the poet Song Rok.
We can't just leave this as it is.
Then Songrok asked me.
“By the way, who are you?”
“Me?”
I told him my name.
“My name is Eun Seo-ho. I am the third captain of the Eunhae Trading Company.”
“...!”
He was startled by my words and bowed his head in apology.
“I have spoken out of turn. Please forgive me.”
Even he must have known that what he said was out of turn.
Anyway, we need to clean up this trash.
“Let me help you.”
“What?”
“I will help you clear your name.”
“Thank you very much. You are truly a Master.”
No.
The reason I'm helping him isn't because I'm a hero.
It's just revenge for hurting Chief Administrator Yoo So-ak by criticizing his skills as poor and even stealing his poem in his previous life.
“There's no need to say that. It's your job anyway.”
And when this is all over, I plan to give him some money for his trouble.
In the form of employment.
I remember what his son said about his father in his previous life.
"My father spent his entire life devoted to poetry. He was just a waste of space. That's why my mother had such a hard time, and I started working as soon as I became an adult. So please don't ask me to write poetry. Just looking at poetry makes me want to throw up."
To be honest, there's nothing pretty about him, but I feel sorry for his family. And his talent is a waste.
The harder he works, the less his family will go hungry.
* *
The winter in Beijing was colder than last year.
However, something happened that made us forget the cold.
It all started with a single room.
[Imperial Poetry Contest]
[Poets! Raise your honor throughout the empire!]
It was a notice about the imperial poetry contest.
Poets who wanted to make their names known throughout the empire began to stir.
And what motivated them was the prize money.
“Did you hear? The prize money for the imperial poetry contest is huge!”
Choi Il-gong and his friends talked about the poetry contest, which was the talk of Beijing.
Choi Il-gong replied calmly.
“Huh! Ahem! I'm not interested in the prize money.”
That's because the poetry collection he submitted was not his own work.
“As expected, Chul-gong, you are a true poet. That's why I prepared a gift for you.”
“A gift?”
His friend handed him a piece of paper.
“This is your entry form for the poetry contest. I submitted it under your name. Hahaha.”
“....”