Chapter 81
The Youngest Son of the Silver Sea Trading Company Chapter 81
Chapter 81. Shaanxi Scorpion (4)
At that moment, one of the captains asked cautiously.
“If we help you, will you reimburse us for our losses?”
“How much did you lose?”
“Silver... thirty taels. It is the smallest amount, but...”
“What do you mean?”
I continued.
“Whether it's thirty nyang or three thousand nyang, it's money earned through hard work. We worked our feet off analyzing the market! We fought fiercely with our competitors! We bowed and scraped to our customers! We shed blood, sweat, and tears to earn that money. It's all worth the same.”
Hearing my words, the three captains were moved to tears.
“Our losses amount to 200 nyang.”
“We lost 550 nyang.”
“I promise. If we catch the fraudsters, I will do my best to recover your losses.”
Whether it was because they were moved by my words or because I promised to help them recover their losses, the three captains agreed to cooperate.
“Have you reported this to the authorities?”
They nodded in response to my question.
“We did report it.”
Their words conveyed their frustration and resignation at the lack of action taken by the authorities.
“I see. Could you tell me what happened at the time?”
The three captains told me about how they had been defrauded.
I analyzed their cases and ours and found a common thread.
It was that Shaanxi knew information that only an insider would know.
When I heard that Um Hyung-soo had been cheated, I had a hunch, and it turned out to be true.
Then how did they find out that inside information?
That information was important and unknown to those in positions of power who could easily be persuaded.
Therefore, one might think that they must have bribed someone in a high position, but I know Shaanxi's methods.
Shaanxi did not have any accomplices in the Trading Company.
They disguised themselves and acted like the real people, so even the victims were fooled.
That is why they were not caught for so long.
Whether it was the Trading Company that was harmed or the Trading Company he was acting for, he left no trace.
In order to make a mask that looks like a real human face, you have to make a mold of the face using wax and pig skin.
However, making a mold of the face and depicting it in detail takes a lot of time.
But there is one place where you have no choice but to make a mold of the face.
That was the second reason why Shaanxi Gal was never caught.
I asked them for one piece of information.
“Do you have a regular brothel that you frequent?”
.
.
.
After seeing the captains off, I saw people rushing toward me.
They were box carriers and porters.
“It's just as His Majesty said.”
“Candy has been released in the market, and we checked and found that it was definitely the candy we brought this time.”
“Let's go check it out.”
I immediately headed to the place where the candy was being sold and asked around how they got it.
That's how I arrived at a trading company.
The name of the trading company was Green Gold Trading Company.
They said they named it after the captain of the trading company, whose surname was Nok.
I knew from the beginning that this was the headquarters of Shaanxi Gal.
The captain of this trading company was definitely Shaanxi Gal.
However, I couldn't just blurt out, “The culprit is here.”
“When we counted the amount of candy that the Green Gold Trading Company gave to each retailer, it was almost the same as the amount we brought.”
“Either the Shaanxi gang is there, or someone is working with them.”
“We have to go there and ask them right now!”
I shook my head at the constable's words.
“We can't do that.”
“Why not?”
“Do you have any evidence?”
“What?”
“Evidence that they are Shaanxi Gal and that the candy they handed over is the candy we brought.”
“If we ask them how they got the candy...”
“They are the ones who prepared so thoroughly to commit fraud. There is no way they wouldn't have prepared evidence like that.”
Lee Hyung-soo was speechless at my question.
Lee Hyung-soo asked.
“Then what do you suggest we do?”
“I'm going to find that evidence.”
I told him.
“Ask Hwang Hyung-soo to come here. And Yoon Jo-jang.”
I called Yoon Ji-sim, the leader of the Eunpungdae.
“Please keep an eye on them.”
“Yes, sir.”
A moment later.
I went to the inn where I was staying and talked to Hwang Hyung-soo about this matter.
“If there is anything I can do to help, I will. You have been doing business with us for a long time, so it is only natural that we help you.”
I did not refuse his offer.
“Do you have a regular brothel or one you have visited recently?”
.
.
.
I was in my room.
On the table was a list of the captains of the three Trading Companies that had been damaged and the brothels that Hwang Hyung-soo frequently visited.
Another reason why I thought Shaanxi was so vicious was because they had been so difficult to catch.
It was because he manipulated powerless courtesans.
When the investigation into Shaanxi Gal was closing in, the courtesans lied, allowing Shaanxi Gal to escape the investigation several times.
When questioned about this, the courtesans committed suicide.
Why did they do that?
It was because of the artifact that Shaanxi Gal had obtained.
It was an artifact that allowed him to manipulate people through love, and he used it to manipulate the courtesans into helping him.
I looked at the list of courtesans and saw the name of the courtesan who was most likely to have helped Shaanxi.
Su Yook-ru.
Let's go there.
.
.
.
A moment later, I entered Suyokru.
Behind me were Palgap and two bodyguards.
“Welcome, sir!”
I was wearing a bamboo hat.
Bamboo hats are usually worn by those who want to hide their identity. However, thanks to the decoration on my bamboo hat, I was not turned away at the door.
“Bring us a table for drinking.”
I said deliberately in a haughty manner, and the waiter at the bar bowed his head in response.
“Yes, sir. I will show you to your seats.”
I sat down at the table the waiter showed me.
“Is there a girl here named Joo-wol?”
“Yes, she is one of the pride of Suokru. However, it may be difficult to call her...”
At that, I took a silver coin out of my pocket and threw it at him.
The waiter smiled brightly and bowed his head.
“I'll do my best.”
After the waiter left, I sighed.
I can't even do this.
The music is loud, and the laughter is annoying.
I sometimes stop by brothels when I'm working for the Trading Company, but I don't like them.
In this environment, I could slip a drug into someone's drink to make them pass out, and no one would know if I took a picture of their face.
And when people drink, they tend to reveal business secrets.
If a beautiful woman is flirting with you and you don't say anything, you're a real man.
This is the brothel that Hwang Haeng-soo frequents.
And there is a courtesan named Joo-wol who entertained Hwang Haeng-soo, but when Hwang Haeng-soo woke up from a nap, he found himself sleeping with his head on her lap.
“Are you uncomfortable?”
The man next to me asked in a low voice, and I nodded.
“Yeah, I'm dying.”
“But how are you going to persuade the courtesans? They say they are being manipulated because of the items.”
“I have a way.”
Soon, the door opened and a courtesan entered.
“Are you looking for me?”
“Are you Juwol?”
“Yes, I am.”
I stared at her silently. As soon as she entered the room, my stomach churned.
Why? Oh!
I soon realized that it was similar to the feeling I had when I faced the black sword.
She tilted her head and said,
“Let me pour you a drink.”
She approached me and poured me a drink. I picked up the cup and asked her.
“Do you know Captain Nokgeum?”
“....”
It was only for a moment, but I could read her expression.
She knew.
Sure enough, the courtesan in front of me was Shaanxi's accomplice.
But she shook her head.
“I don't know.”
She was lying.
Her body was trembling. It wasn't fear.
That unnatural trembling meant that her body was being controlled by something.
The fact that my stomach was churning was clear proof that she was under the influence of evil arts.
That object was a kind of evil art used to control people.
If that was the case, I had to break that control.
I gathered my energy.
“Those who have mastered the Tae-eum Byeonghae technique have such pure energy that they cannot be affected by evil arts or deception.”
Just as my Master had said, I had never been affected by evil arts or deception. Thanks to that, I had overcome many difficulties.
There were a few business partners who used dirty tricks, such as putting poison in my tea.
“The same goes for those who have been affected by that energy.”
I spread the energy of the Taeum Byeonghae Shin Gong that I had raised.
The method I was going to use was based on what I had done last time at the Jegal Family, when I used the Lion's Roar to bring those who had been affected by the formations to their senses.
At that time, the area was so large that I had to use Lion Roar, but now there was no need for that.
I just had to spread my energy widely throughout the room, and the geisha's control would be broken.
That's what I thought...
Haaah!
I had overlooked one thing.
My inner arts had grown stronger.
As a result, my energy spread beyond the room and spread throughout most of the brothel.
“Ah, I'm suddenly sober.”
“Is it because it's cold?”
I scratched my cheek at the sound coming from the next room. Then I looked at the courtesan named Joo-wol in front of me.
I no longer felt any trembling from her.
The control over her body had been broken.
“Huh!”
She took a deep breath and looked up at her hands.
“Huh?”
Now that I no longer needed to act like a rich playboy, I didn't need to use formal language.
I asked politely.
“Now can you tell me about the Captain of the Trading Company?”
“Captain Nokgeum is a son of a bitch.”
She said that and then was startled.
“Oh my! You can speak freely!”
“I broke the power that was controlling you.”
“Ah...”
Tears flowed from her eyes.
“Thank you... Thank you so much.”
“You're welcome.”
I took off my hat and placed it beside me.
“Tell me about Captain Nokgeum.”
“...!”
But something was strange about the way the courtesan Joo-wol was looking at me.
Why does she suddenly look so happy?
“How can you be so handsome? Ah...”
“...”
I continued.
“The captain of the Green Gold Trading Company...”
“Ah! That bastard...”
She told me about the captain of the Green Gold Trading Company. It was quite useful information.
“Do you know any other courtesans who know about him?”
“Wait a moment!”
She left the room and returned a moment later with other courtesans.
They told me everything they knew.
Thanks to my Tae-Eum-Bing-Hae-Shin-Gong energy covering the entire inn, I was able to control their minds in an instant.
“By the way, may I buy you a drink?”
“I'm free tonight...”
“Tonight, I will treat you with my own money!”
I awkwardly smiled and declined their offer.
“I have something to do tonight...”
I felt a chill and turned around. Pal-gap, who was sitting behind me, looked like he had something to say.
“What is it? It looked like you were cursing with your eyes just now.”
“I was cursing this dirty world that only cares about appearances.”
* * *
Nokgeum Trading Company.
Captain Nokgeum realized from an early age that he had a special talent.
It was the talent to deceive others.
He started by tricking his friends into giving him their candy. Then his actions became more and more daring.
It was fun.
It was fun to see people being deceived by him, and it was fun to see what he could gain from it.
He didn't care if others shed tears of blood or fell into trouble.
“Isn't the point of life to have fun?”
That was his way of thinking.
And a few years ago, he began to commit serious crimes.
His targets were merchants.
That's because he gained a lot from them.
It was fun because it was risky.
Now, he couldn't find any excitement in ordinary things.
So, he decided to try a bigger scam.
His target was Eunhae Trading Company.
He had committed four scams against the Trading Company, but he had never been caught thanks to a magical item he had accidentally come across.
The straw doll in his hand, Jeong-woong, was that magical item.
Je-ung had dozens of strands of hair tied to it.
By tying the hair of someone he had feelings for to Je-ung, he could control that person.
He had used this to manipulate courtesans and gain their assistance.
But something strange happened.