Chapter 300
The Youngest Son of the Silver Sea Trading Company Chapter 300
Chapter 300. Seokga's Wedding Banquet (1)
I looked at the face of Seokchu-gil's student and then looked up again at the sign hanging above the gate.
[Sanghyun Seokga]
Is this student in front of me Seok Bu-gan, who was the right-hand man of the Chief Administrator in my previous life?
I couldn't believe it.
But he was definitely the youngest son, and his name was also Seok Chu-gil.
To be honest, when I first saw Seok Chu-gil at the academy, I thought he was just someone with the same name.
There are so many people with the same name in this world.
The reason I dismissed it as a coincidence was because of his face.
Seok Chu-gil's face was slightly delicate, but the Seok Bu-gwan in my memory had a rough face.
So... when he grows up, he will look like the face I know?
No, I can't imagine it at all.
As I was thinking about it, Pal-gap asked me with a puzzled look.
“What's wrong?”
“Huh?”
“You look serious.”
“Nothing.”
I sighed inwardly. First, I had to go inside.
There was already a long line in front of Seokga.
They were there to greet the Chairman of Seokga and make a good impression.
However, I had brought Seok-chu-gil with me, so I could just go in.
“Huh! Young master?”
“Young master, you're here?”
The servants of the house recognized Seok-chu-gil and quickly bowed their heads to him.
“Yes, I'm here. Where is my father?”
“He is over there.”
Seok-chu-gil's attendant nodded and said to me.
“Let's go greet your father first.”
“That's a good idea.”
We headed toward where Seok-chu-gil's father was.
His father was standing in front of the gate, welcoming guests.
It's been a long time.
I thought to myself as I approached him.
“Father!”
“Who is this? It's our Choo-ah!”
“Yes, Father. I stopped by for a moment for my sister's wedding.”
Seok-choo-gil spoke more coherently than I had expected.
Another reason why I didn't recognize Seok-choo-gil as the deputy commander was because of his words and actions.
Thanks to his impressively polite speech, everyone at the Trading Company liked him.
That's why I never imagined that he was a graduate of the academy specializing in rehabilitation.
Following him, I also bowed politely and greeted Chairman Seok.
“Congratulations on your daughter's wedding.”
As soon as I finished my greeting, Seok Chu-il quickly said, “This is Eunseo-ho...”
“Father, this is Eun Seo-ho...”
“Huh!”
However, before Seok Chu-gil could finish, Seok Jang-ju's eyes widened.
He recognized me.
“No! Who are you? Aren't you Eun So-dan? The head of the Trading Company arrived earlier.”
As expected, my father had also come.
“I see. Actually, due to circumstances, I am working as a temporary assistant at your youngest son's academy. That is why I brought your youngest son with me.”
“Did Seonhae-mi say that herself?”
Chairman Seok looked overwhelmed with emotion, while Seok Chu-gil looked like he wanted to say, “This isn't right…”
“Don't worry about that. Please come inside and enjoy the banquet.”
“Thank you very much for your kindness, Chairman.”
“I am the one who should be thanking you for visiting.”
Chairman Seok called a servant and asked him to show me inside.
“Chua, stay close to Seonhyeom-rang and learn from his words and actions so that you may serve him well.”
“Yes.”
So, I headed to the seat of honor at the banquet hall with Seok Chu-gil.
On the way, it took a long time to get to the seat of honor because people who recognized me came up to greet me.
After finally finding a seat, I sat Seok Chu-gil down and went to my father.
No matter how important Seok Chu-gil was, it would be rude not to greet my father when he was here.
“Father.”
“Seo Ho! You said you had something to do, but you didn't come home. What are you doing here?”
“Actually...”
I told my father the whole story, and he nodded in understanding.
“I see. I understand. Go on, then.”
“Yes.”
I bowed to my father and returned to my seat.
I had a lot I wanted to say, but this was a banquet hall filled with many people.
Therefore, I had to be careful.
A single piece of information carelessly revealed could lead to serious trouble.
I sat down next to Seok-choo-gil and began to eat.
However, Seok-choo-gil didn't look very happy.
“Isn't today your Noona's wedding day? Why do you look so sad?”
“...”
I smiled faintly and whispered softly.
“Did you want to tell your father about the academy and me, but you couldn't?”
“...!”
He flinched at my question and waved his hand.
“That can't be true, can it?”
“It's obvious from your expression.”
“...”
Looking at him as he bowed his head silently, I asked calmly.
“Do you know why today turned out the way it did?”
“That's...”
“It's your reputation and trust. I have worked hard to build a good reputation and earn trust. On the other hand, what have you built and earned?”
“....”
I smiled.
“To be honest, I am not a good person. I can't even say that I am a good human being. However, the good reputation I have built makes people perceive me as a good and kind person.”
I continued.
“Of course, it is difficult to build a good reputation. It is much more difficult than building a bad reputation. However, a good reputation is what helps you in life. A bad reputation only hastens your death.”
I handed him a cup of wine.
“...!”
His eyes wavered as he looked at it.
“Please accept it. On a day like today, you can have a drink.”
“Really? You won't beat me up for drinking this?”
“How can a person live without drinking a glass of wine? I only stopped you from drinking until now to help you develop self-control.”
“Self-control...?”
“Yes.”
I nodded.
“If you don't even have the self-control to abstain from alcohol for a few days or weeks, what can you accomplish in life?”
“...You're right.”
He picked up the glass, and I poured him some alcohol.
To be honest, I thought he would down the entire glass in one gulp.
However, he took a small sip and put the glass down.
“I'll just have one glass today.”
“That's a good decision.”
“And I... want to be like you, Assistant Professor Eun.”
The look in his eyes was completely different from before.
What is this? All of a sudden?
This is awkward.
***
Seok-chu-gil looked at Eun Seo-ho sitting next to him.
He didn't feel good about his plan being completely ruined.
But...
His father's expression kept flashing before his eyes.
“No! Who is this? Isn't this Captain Eun?”
His father's attitude toward Eun Seo-ho was a warm welcome that he had never seen before.
Until now, he had always been the cute youngest child to his father and family.
No matter what he did, his father always looked at him with cute eyes.
Seok-choo-gil began to wish that there was something else in those eyes.
However, those eyes never changed, so he began to act out little by little.
That way, he could see a different expression.
But today, his father's expression made him feel strange.
What he wanted from his father and others was not to be cute... but recognition.
He wanted to be recognized and praised.
Then, the person he idealized appeared before him.
Was that why?
Eun Seo-ho's words were deeply engraved in his mind and heart.
So he asked Eun Seo-ho.
“I want to be like Assistant Eun. So, if I build a good reputation, can I become like Assistant Eun?”
Eun Seo-ho nodded readily.
“Of course.”
Seok Chu-gil thought Eun Seo-ho's smile was truly wonderful.
.
.
.
As it grew darker, it was time for the wedding ceremony to begin.
But...
Something had been bothering him since earlier, and sitting there quietly made him feel a little uneasy as a member of the same family.
Seok-chul asked Eun Seo-ho for permission.
“Something seems to have happened. I'll go see what it is and come back.”
Eun Seo-ho nodded readily.
“Go ahead.”
With permission, Seok-chu-gil headed toward the commotion.
“What's going on?”
“Ah! Young master.”
“There's been a commotion over here for a while. I came to see what was going on... Is it something serious?”
They blinked at Seok-chu-gil's tone, which was completely different from what they remembered.
Normally, he would have said, “What's all the noise? You ××! You're ruining my drink...”
But now that he asked politely, they wondered what was going on.
“Is it something I shouldn't know about?”
“No, it's nothing.”
The servants looked at each other, and one of them cautiously opened his mouth.
“Well... one of the gifts we received during the betrothal ceremony is missing.”
“What?”
The betrothal ceremony is when the bride's family sends formal gifts to the groom's family to signify their consent to the marriage.
In the Seok family, it was customary to exchange tea cups as gifts during the betrothal ceremony.
It was also a family tradition to pour tea into these cups and share it during the wedding ceremony.
If this is not done, the wedding itself is considered null and void.
Therefore, the disappearance of the teacup is a very serious matter.
However, they cannot use another teacup.
This is because there is a saying that using a teacup other than the one received as a gift will cause the bride to become a widow early.
You may wonder why they would cancel the wedding over something like that, but it is a rule that has been passed down from generation to generation, so no one would dare to break it.
There was a reason why everyone was bustling about. They were looking for the teacup.
“What should we do?”
If they couldn't find the cup and the wedding was canceled, his sister would be heartbroken.
However, even though everyone in the family was searching for it, they still couldn't find it.
How could he find it?
Then, an idea suddenly popped into his head.
“Maybe Assistant Professor Eun Seo-ho knows something.”
With that thought in mind, Seok-choo-gil returned to Eun Seo-ho. He knelt down in front of him.
“What is it? Why did you suddenly...”
“Assistant Eun. Please help me.”
Seok-choo-gil looked up at Eun Seo-ho.
“I lost something. I need to find it.”
***
I sighed inwardly.
I already knew that he had lost something and that it was a teacup.
I heard it with my own ears.
But I never expected Seok-chul to kneel before me to ask for my help.
I said to him seriously,
“A man should not kneel so easily.”
“I know that. But this is not a trivial matter. My sister's future depends on it. I beg you.”
He bowed his head to me.
People around us watched us with interest.
I smiled lightly, patted him on the shoulder, and said, “I understand. How can I help you?”
“All right. How can I ignore the plea of my disciple? I will lend you a hand.”
“Thank you. Thank you very much.”
I stood up and said to him.
“Please take me to the place where you lost your belongings.”
“Yes.”
Seok-chu-gil quickly stood up and took me inside.
Then I explained the whole story.
“Ah...”
From his explanation, I was able to understand what had happened at Sanghyun Seokga's house earlier.
Because of this incident, Seokga's family fell out of favor with his opponent and their family fortune declined.
His fiancée was from a fairly influential family.
That must be why Seok-chu-gil became the deputy commander of our Eunhae Trading Company.
While I was thinking about this, Seok-chu-gil said,
“You may think this is unusual, but it is meant to ensure that the descendants of our Seok family have happy marriages.”
“If that is the rule, then it must be followed.”
In any case, it was clear that the culprit was someone who was well aware of the strict rules of the Seok family.
The motive could have been a grudge or excessive romantic feelings.
When the news of my involvement reached him, Chairman Seok rushed over.
“I heard that Master Seonhyang is helping you.”
“Yes, it's only temporary, but a student at the academy where I work asked me, so how could I ignore him?”
Chairman Seok looked at Seok Joo-gil with a surprised expression.
“Did you ask him yourself?”
“Yes, Father. This may become known, but it is Seonhyeonmi-rang. I don't think he will reveal it.”
“You trust me again, so I must respond accordingly.”
Seok Jang-ju breathed a sigh of relief at my words.
“I am truly grateful that you will help us directly.”
“Then please tell me what the teacup looks like.”
Following Seok Jang-ju's orders, the attendant drew a picture of the teacup on a piece of paper.
It was a gold teacup.
At that moment.
- Kui! Kui!
Wow, Geumryung... Can you use telepathy too?