Chapter 424
The Youngest Son of the Eunhae Trading Company Chapter 424
Chapter 424. My Friend's Marriage (3)
While I was confused, the conversation continued.
“Are you sure it's okay? I'll pay you the full price for the meteor shower.”
“No problem.”
“If not us, who else will pay back such a large sum? The interest on the money you borrowed has already skyrocketed, hasn't it?”
“...I said it's no problem!”
“Hmph! You'll regret this.”
With that, the guest left.
Now I can go to the Sect Leader, right?
I waited for a moment before moving, and then I caught the Sect Leader's eye.
“...
There was a moment of silence, and then the Sect Leader spoke.
”Come up and sit down.“
”Yes.“
I walked over to the pavilion where the Sect Leader was sitting and sat down opposite him.
”You behaved disgracefully. I'm sorry.“
”No, it's fine."
“Someone like you must have heard the entire conversation.”
If I said I didn't hear anything, would he believe me?
There was only one answer I could give.
“I'm sorry. I happened to overhear it.”
“You need to explain.”
“No, it's fine.”
I waved my hand.
“It's fine. I'll just forget about it.”
Of course, I was curious.
What was going on?
The Sect Leader opened his mouth with a serious expression.
“Actually, I am in quite a lot of debt. It is debt that my late father accumulated while he was ill for a long time.”
“I see.”
“And the man who was just talking to me is the captain of the Daegong Trading Company. I don't know why he needs it, but he said he would pay off the debt if I gave him the sect's ritual.”
He said with a bitter smile.
“As you know, the ritual of a sect is everything to that sect. So how can I accept such an offer?”
The Sect Leader was right.
The calendar of the martial arts sects is their spirit and strength.
“I don't know if I should ask this, but...”
“What is it?”
“How much is the debt?”
He answered my question.
“It's 30,000 nyang. But with interest, it's now 50,000 nyang.”
What a bunch of bandits.
“So... the situation is a little difficult right now.”
Ah, so that's why Miss Jeong-yeon participated in the Dragon and Phoenix Duel.
I was busy at the time and couldn't attend the duel, so I only heard about it from Jin-ho.
He said she fought fiercely and desperately.
With the sect on the verge of extinction, financial support must have been desperately needed.
But then a question popped into my head.
Bok-Yoon is the captain of the Kwang-Joon Trading Company, one of the largest trading companies in the Baekdae Trading Company.
How could he not know about the situation at the Yoo Seong-Moo Sect?
“Sect Leader, have you mentioned this to my friend?”
He shook his head at my question.
“No. How could I sell my daughter to pay off the sect's debt?”
“...”
“And if I pay off the debt with the help of my son-in-law, it will be a burden on him. Now that he can live happily in a wealthy family, I can't hold him back.”
Hmm...
Captain Bok-Yoon must be worried.
Honestly, with 50,000 nyang, Captain Bok-Yoon could pay it back if he tried a little harder.
But paying back the debt would damage his reputation as a master craftsman, and just watching it go unpaid would make him uncomfortable.
“By the way, why did you ask to see me?”
“Ah...”
The Sect Leader smiled awkwardly.
“Somehow, we got sidetracked. The reason I called you here is to ask you to take good care of my daughter.”
He continued.
“If anything happens, you are the only one she can rely on.”
“Why do you say that? Doesn't she have her own family?”
He shook his head slightly.
“For some reason, I feel like someone is targeting our sect.”
You have good intuition.
Having experienced my previous life, I knew that the Sect Leader's intuition was accurate.
“That is why I am asking you to take care of things in case something happens.”
But even though I am Jin-woo, the deputy leader of the sect, I am practically a stranger to you.
I said cautiously.
“Sect Leader, I'm sorry, but are you sure you want to reveal such intimate details to a stranger?”
The sect leader stared at me intently before replying.
“For some reason, I wanted to tell you. But I couldn't talk about this in front of other people, could I? That's why I asked you to come here... But then that guy showed up, and I ended up showing you a side of me that I didn't want you to see.”
“It's okay. Don't worry about it.”
“Thank you. Now, you should go.”
But instead of leaving, I made a suggestion to the Sect Leader.
“Sect Leader, I will lend you the money.”
“What are you talking about?”
“It is exactly what I said. I will lend you the money.”
It was clear that the Martial Alliance was behind the Grand Trading Company.
According to my memories from my previous life, the Yuseong Gate was given to the Moyong Clan.
It must be the price of their loyalty.
The husband of Young Mistress Ren was the second son of the Moyong Clan.
He had a bad personality and was not very capable.
There was no way she could be happy in a marriage like that.
The Sect Leader I saw now was someone who wanted his daughter to be happy. No matter how much the Alliance Leader arranged it, he would not want to send his daughter to such a good-for-nothing second son.
Come to think of it, I don't like the Alliance Leader either.
Why did the matchmaker set me up with such a worthless man?
In any case, the reason I ended up marrying into the Moyong Clan was because the sect was in such a difficult situation.
If I can settle the debt in advance, it means I can break the noose that is hanging over the Yuseong Sect.
“Lend me the money to pay off the debt.”
“What do you want as collateral?”
“What I want as collateral is the peace of the Yoo Seong-mun.”
Seeing the Sect Leader's confused expression, I smiled gently and continued.
“I am Jin-woo, the captain of the Bogyun Division. That is why I cannot stand by and watch the captain of the Bogyun Division worry about his in-laws. How can a son-in-law be happy when his wife's family is not at peace?”
“...You are right.”
“That is why I am offering to lend you the money. You said that you feel burdened by your son-in-law's help, but I am an outsider, am I not?”
“...”
“Besides, 50,000 nyang is not a large sum for me. So, you don't have to feel burdened. The interest is one nyang per year, and the term is unlimited. How about it?”
After thinking for a moment, he nodded.
“Those are very generous terms.”
“They are not that generous. It's just one nyang more each year.”
“But will 30,000 nyang become 50,000 nyang?”
...I have no words.
At that moment, a servant came and whispered to the Sect Leader.
“Please wait a moment. A guest is looking for you. I'll be right back.”
And so, I was left alone in the pavilion.
Hmm, my decision to lend him money... It must be the right decision.
It's not like I don't have the money to spare.
“Kui.”
At that moment, Geum-ryeong came out from my sleeve.
“Huh? Do you want to see the garden too?”
“Kui?”
Geum-ryeong came out from my sleeve and started running around the pavilion.
Then she jumped into the pond.
Why are you suddenly playing in the water? You'll get wet and I'll have to dry you off.
I muttered as I took out a handkerchief.
Kui!
Then, I suddenly heard telepathy from Geum-ryeong.
Why are you suddenly so happy?
The biggest reason she's happy is because she saw something expensive, right?
“Geum-ryeong, come here!”
“Kui!”
Geum-ryeong came out of the water.
“Is there something expensive inside?”
“Kui! Kui kui!”
Geum-ryeong explained while wagging her tail. So there's something under the pavilion?
What could it be?
I didn't know exactly what it was, but since Geum-ryung said it was expensive, it must be something that would help Yoo Seong-mun.
“Let's clean it first.”
Geum-ryung shook himself to get the water off, and I wiped the remaining water with a handkerchief.
“Get inside my sleeve first.”
“Kui.”
Geum-ryeong went inside her sleeve, and soon Sect Leader returned.
“I'm sorry for leaving suddenly.”
“No, it's fine.”
“Then let's continue our conversation.”
“There's no need to rush. The wedding banquet isn't over yet. Guests may come looking for you, so let's finish our conversation after the banquet.”
“You're right.”
I picked up my teacup and stood up. Then I headed toward the pond and said,
“By the way, this is a truly beautiful garden.”
The Sect Leader nodded at my words and said proudly,
“This garden was built by my great-grandfather. It's already over a hundred years old. Back then, our sect was quite prosperous.”
“Your sect is still very promising.”
He shook his head at my words and continued.
“I appreciate you saying that, but it was completely different back then. We were considered one of the three richest families in this region. However, my great-grandfather made some bad investments, and our fortune declined rapidly.”
“I see.”
“Anyway, looking at this garden makes me feel a little better. Although it's cold, so there isn't much water in the pond.”
“That's a shame.”
With that, I deliberately dropped the teacup I was holding into the pond.
Plop!
“Oh no! I'm sorry.”
“It's okay.”
“I'll go in and find it. In my family, there is a saying that if you drop your teacup in the pond and can't find it, you can't get married.”
Of course, there is no such saying, but it was a lie I made up on the spot so I could go into the pond.
If I went into the water for no reason, he would think it was strange.
“In that case, I'll call a servant to find it.”
“No, I must find it myself.”
I took off my outer garment and entered the pond. Fortunately, I wasn't wearing my ceremonial robe.
By the way, Pal-gap is going to nag me about this, isn't he?
Pal-gap and my guards are waiting outside the door. This back garden is a private place, so no one is allowed to enter without permission.
I sent a telepathic message to Geum-ryung.
Geum-ryung, where is that expensive thing?
Kui!
Geum-ryung came out from inside my sleeve and guided me.
Tap.
I felt something hard in my hand.
Is this a box?
Anyway, I found it, so I should go now.
“Sect Leader, there's something here.”
“What do you mean?”
I picked up what I had in my hand.
The box, which was about this size, was made of stone and quite heavy.
I picked it up and placed it on the pavilion.
“Do you have any idea what this is?”
“I have no idea.”
I brushed the moss off the top of the box with my hand. Then, some letters appeared clearly.
[To the descendants of Yuseongmun]
“I'll open it.”
He nodded to my question, and I carefully opened the box.
Huh? What is this...
We were both speechless.
This was because a brilliant light burst forth from inside the box, illuminating the entire room.
It was night pearls. And they were of the highest quality.
There were five night pearls in the stone box.
They were much larger and brighter than the ones I had found in Luoyang.
The Sect Leader held my hands and thanked me repeatedly.
“Thank you! Thank you so much! Thanks to you, I found my family's treasure!”
“Your family's treasure...?”
The Sect Leader nodded with tears in his eyes.
“According to our family records, there is a night pearl that has been passed down from generation to generation, but no one had ever found it. I can't believe it was here!”
Judging from the stone box it was placed in and the fact that it was hidden in the pond under the gazebo, it seems that someone deliberately hid it.
What's more, they even wrote “To the descendants of the Yuseong Clan” on the lid.
You said that your great-grandfather made a bad investment and ruined the clan, right?
Could it be that someone in the past was afraid that this night pearl would be sold, so they hid it?
In fact, night pearls last longer than gold in water.
“Can you estimate how much these night pearls are worth?”
“At this size, about 20,000 nyang each.”
“Wow! Are they that expensive?”
“Yes. As a merchant, I should buy them cheaper, but how can I do that to Sect Leader?”
I smiled and said, "I'll buy them at the price you said.
“You saved me the trouble of writing a debt contract.”
Since you asked the price, I guess you are willing to sell it.
“I will buy it for 20,000 nyang.”
By the way, I don't remember hearing about these night pearls in my past life, so I guess no one found them and they were buried as they were.
As far as I remember, the Yuseong clan was wiped out and everything here was destroyed.
The Sect Leader sold me three of the five night pearls.
So I gave him 60,000 nyang.
With this, the Sect Leader was able to break the noose that was strangling the Yuseong clan.
.
.
.
Naturally, Pal-gap lectured me at length.
“I'm sure you had your reasons for jumping into the pond, but still... Please take better care of yourself.”
“I understand.”
“Do you have any idea how surprised everyone was when you came out soaking wet?”
“I'm sorry.”
Pal-gap, who had been nagging me, smiled slightly.
“So, was it worth going into the pond?”
“Yes, of course.”
“But why is this guy doing that?”
Pal-gap pointed to Geum-ryeong, who was rolling around on the bed, hugging Geum-won-bo.
I smiled slightly and said,
“He did something worth it.”