Pay‑to‑Win King of Martial Arts (Novel) - Chapter 111 - Merchant King (5)

Chapter 111 – Merchant King (5)

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Translated by Heavenly Cat

Read it only at Novelbyu.com & Utoon.net

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“Has he left?”

“Yes. There’s no sign of him.”

“That gave me a fright.”

“It gave me a fright too.”

“Your complexion didn’t change either. Truly, even a dog that hangs around a village school for three years learns to recite poetry.”

“I was too shocked to react.”

Yeo Bul-jin watched as Mun-won swept up the shattered jade with a broom.

“Where did it leak from?”

“Exactly. As far as I know, there’s no one who would divulge it. Shall I trace it?”

“No. Rather than repairing the cowshed after losing the cow, finding the lost cow comes first.”

No matter how he thought about it, he could not understand. The fact that Yeo Hong-won was managing Prince Xian’s private treasury funds was a secret known to only a very few people even within the Heaven’s Gift Merchant Company.

Yeo Hong-won himself did not even know that Yeo Bul-jin was aware of it. Yeo Bul-jin had personally planted people around Yeo Hong-won and found out on his own.

Then had it leaked from the information source? No matter how much Yeo Bul-jin thought about it, he did not believe so.

“Still, your acting was excellent, Elder.”

“Heh heh. It came out before I knew it. I suppose I’m not dead yet.”

“It would seem not.”

What Yeo Bul-jin had shown in front of Muk Hui-yeong had been pure improvisation. That fellow Muk Hui-yeong might have been a government man. The moment he showed that he knew private treasury funds existed in front of someone from the government, it would have been over.

“Scrape up every bit of information on this Muk Hui-yeong. I don’t care if it’s the Haomen, the Beggars’ Sect, or anywhere else.”

“Understood.”

After Mun-won left, Yeo Bul-jin leaned back in his seat. In truth, just as Muk Hui-yeong had predicted, Yeo Bul-jin had invited Wudang in order to lure them in, not because he had any particular interest in Muk Hui-yeong.

But as of a moment ago, the object of his interest had changed. From Wudang to Muk Hui-yeong.

Yeo Bul-jin opened the window. In the distance, the people of Wudang moving under guidance, with Muk Hui-yeong among them, looked tiny.

“What sort of fellow are you?”

Yeo Bul-jin’s eyes flashed. They were the eyes of a beast that had found something interesting.

* * *

The members of the Radiant Crystal Merchant Company, myself included, enjoyed a rest that truly felt long overdue. If you slept out in the open or in an inn, your nerves could not help but stay taut, so even resting did not feel like rest. In that sense, resting at the Heaven’s Gift Merchant Company was like welcome rain beneath a dry sky.

“Why don’t you Senior Brothers rest too?”

“Doesn’t this make you uncomfortable?”

At a glance, the disciples of Wudang all seemed uncomfortable about being at the Heaven’s Gift Merchant Company. They were still worried because I had gotten on Yeo Bul-jin’s nerves.

“Not at all. Being able to rest like this while away from home is a blessing. You should rest as much as you can.”

“How are we supposed to rest comfortably when our host probably doesn’t think well of us?”

“No. Even if he thinks badly, he’ll think badly of me. There’s no reason for him to think badly of you Senior Brothers.”

“People’s hearts don’t work that way.”

“Merchants think differently.”

I said it flatly. And there was no reason for Yeo Bul-jin to think badly of me either. He only had to send someone to Gansu and prove that what I said was true.

It would take quite a while to travel from Jiangsu to Gansu, but with the Heaven’s Gift Merchant Company’s distribution network, they would be able to get an answer within a month.

“Since we’re here, we should at least receive some hospitality before going.”

“Hospitality, my foot. We’ll be lucky if they don’t poison the food.”

“I told you. Structurally, the Huizhou merchants can’t afford to antagonize Wudang. They’re the sort who will rub themselves against the slightest opening.”

As I finished speaking, someone knocked on the door outside. When I told them to come in, an attendant from the Heaven’s Gift Merchant Company entered.

“I’ve come to convey the Company Lord’s words.”

“Ah. What is it?”

“He says he would like to invite the Company Lord and the disciples of Wudang to tonight’s banquet. Of course, the other company members will also be treated well enough not to feel slighted.”

“Very well.”

“Yes. Then I’ll inform the Company Lord accordingly.”

The attendant bowed to me and left.

“What did I tell you?”

I shrugged and looked at my Senior Brothers. They fell silent.

Evening came quickly. We had no fixed hour of waking or sleeping anyway. We only had to train.

I too swung my sword for the first time in a while. As the spiritual medicines I had taken in the Cave of Repentance were more fully absorbed and settled the farther I went, the strength and speed behind my swings had changed.

Myeong-yeop, who had no idea that I had taken two spiritual medicines, even chided me that there were limits to daily renewal.

“My body’s loosened up, so shall we go?”

“I’m still worried.”

“You’re more worried than I thought.”

“We’re not out here as individuals. We’re out here representing Wudang.”

Myeong-yeop said it gravely. It was just like a martial artist who valued debts and favors. But merchants valued practical gain more than debts and favors.

When we went outside, someone was already waiting for us.

“I’ll guide you to the banquet hall.”

Estates of this scale usually had a separate space set aside for banquets. Since the Heaven’s Gift Merchant Company was famous for its splendor, I was looking forward to seeing its banquet hall too.

The path to the banquet hall required passing through the main hall. It seemed they had prepared a place behind it. The smell of delicious food was already wafting over in full.

After walking for a while, we found a pavilion that looked to be the banquet hall. It was on a scale that could not even be compared to Returning River Tower in Huaiyin.

“Here we are.”

“Huh.”

Even I, who had visited most of the famous pavilions of the Central Plains, had to admire the banquet hall of the Heaven’s Gift Merchant Company.

There was an ancient-looking stone foundation and balustrade, carvings of all manner of animals, and a lake with lotuses and brocade carp.

“It’s magnificent.”

“Ha ha. Not a single guest who came to this banquet hall has ever been dissatisfied. Then, please enjoy yourselves.”

We went up into the pavilion. There sat Merchant King Yeo Bul-jin, now familiar to us, along with his escort and several middle-aged men around his age.

They seemed to be elders or retained advisors involved in the merchant company’s decisions. Every one of them had deep wrinkles and lips pressed into thin lines, the sort of faces that looked stubborn.

“The pavilion’s interior is magnificent too. It’s good to see the elders of the Heaven’s Gift Merchant Company again. I’m Muk Hui-yeong of the Radiant Crystal Merchant Company.”

I looked around the pavilion and laughed softly. There was a reason even members of the imperial family came here to relax. This pavilion truly lost nothing even when compared to a banquet hall in the imperial palace.

“Come in. The friends beside me are elders of the Heaven’s Gift Merchant Company.”

With a mild smile, Yeo Bul-jin introduced the elders. I shook hands with them one by one and bowed my head.

My Wudang Senior Brothers also greeted them, if a little awkwardly, and the elders stood to return fist salutes.

Five seats had already been set for us opposite the elders.

“Should we sit here?”

“Of course.”

Yeo Bul-jin still had not let that mild smile leave his face. My Senior Brothers were stealing glances between him and me. The last time they had seen him, he had been shouting at the top of his lungs, so his current calmness was hard for them to adapt to.

I looked around. There were no courtesans, no musicians, and no food laid out, though one would normally expect them to be present.

“So you hadn’t started the banquet yet.”

“Of course not. At the Heaven’s Gift Merchant Company, guests come first.”

“Then let’s begin now.”

“Before we begin, there is something we’d like to discuss.”

There seemed to be the slightest chill in Yeo Bul-jin’s words. My Senior Brothers and I straightened our backs automatically.

“What is it? A continuation of what we were discussing before?”

“No. Let’s not discuss that here. I’m already investigating it personally.”

Yeo Bul-jin laughed heartily. It seemed the elders had no idea what he was talking about.

“I spoke a great deal with Company Lord Muk last time, so this time I’d like to speak a bit with the Daoists of Wudang.”

“Ah. Then I’ll step out for a moment.”

“No. I asked for this meeting because you’re part of it as well.”

“Is that so?”

“Of course. First, let me ask the Daoists of Wudang. Must Wudang’s entry into the commercial world be done only through the Radiant Crystal Merchant Company?”

Now the real discussion was beginning. Yeo Bul-jin had probably wanted to ask that from the start.

Myeong-yeop glanced at me, then nodded.

“Since I don’t know the thoughts of my Martial Uncles, it’s hard for my answer to represent the sect. But if the Sect Leader chose to enter the commercial world through the Radiant Crystal Merchant Company after refusing it all this time, then he must have seen something in my Junior Brother. So I can answer yes to your question, Company Lord.”

“I see. Company Lord Muk is quite capable. We Huizhou merchants couldn’t even count how many times we’ve knocked on Wudang’s gates.”

Yeo Bul-jin rested his chin on the small table in front of him.

“Then, to be precise, Wudang’s Sect Leader has granted full authority over commercial affairs not to the Radiant Crystal Merchant Company, but to the disciple Muk Hui-yeong?”

“That’s correct.”

“More tightly bound than I expected.”

The elders looked faintly disappointed. In their view, the best method would surely have been to separate me from Wudang and step into my place. But now that they had been told it was impossible, they could only be disappointed.

“Then let me make you an offer, Company Lord Muk. Can I buy the Radiant Crystal Merchant Company, you included? I’ll give you a price you won’t find disappointing.”

“How much are you offering?”

“The amount you wrote last time. I’ll offer double that. Of course, I’m not joking with words the way you do.”

I let out a loud laugh, and Myeong-yeop sucked in a breath. The younger Senior Brothers didn’t understand, but Myeong-yeop did.

At this moment, Yeo Bul-jin was trying to buy me with two hundred thousand taels of silver. Two hundred thousand taels.

It was definitely a sum so large that even a Wudang Daoist ignorant of money would have his eyes flash.

It was common enough for one merchant company to acquire another. Two hundred thousand taels was enough to buy a mid-sized merchant company with a distribution network throughout the Central Plains. That was how highly Yeo Bul-jin was valuing me. With two hundred thousand taels, I couldn’t even guess how many talents I could buy.

But my answer had already been decided.

“It seems the Merchant King still sees me as a naive young Company Lord.”

“Two hundred thousand taels seems a perfectly adequate price. A small merchant company with not even a hundred servants is worth less than ten thousand taels.”

“But with Wudang, I can open up a distribution network together with them. And on top of that, I myself would have to be sold as part of it. My future is worth more than two hundred thousand taels.”

“There’s nothing wrong with high self-regard, but when it goes too far, it becomes arrogance.”

“Do you think I’m arrogant?”

I smiled at Yeo Bul-jin. Looking into my eyes, he shook his head.

“Who can say. To be honest, I think I have a pretty good eye for people, but I can’t tell what kind of person you are. But I do know one thing.”

“What’s that?”

“That you’ll either hit the jackpot or go completely bust.”

“Ha ha.”

I laughed because it was genuinely funny. Yeo Bul-jin really did have an eye for people. In my previous life, I took a great many risks and suffered many failures because of them.

“Fine. To be honest, I didn’t think you’d sell. I heard that Son’s man tried testing the waters and got slapped down cleanly. You’re every bit as straightforward as they said.”

“I have no intention of selling my merchant company at any price.”

“Fine, I understand. Then what about this?”

“What is it?”

“Let’s exchange one thing each.”

At Yeo Bul-jin’s deep smile, I realized this was what he had actually wanted from the beginning. He had known from the start that I wouldn’t sell the merchant company, and had only tested me. If I sold, all the better, and if not, then so be it.

“What are we exchanging? A warm embrace?”

“Your salt. You still don’t have any particularly suitable place to sell it, do you? We’ll sell it together for you. With no commission, of course.”

I nearly let my eyes go wide. I nearly showed too openly how delighted I was. In truth, building a distribution network to sell the salt was work in itself.

Naturally, the first step was to send people to the offices of the local market inspectors wherever there was a market. In other words, create dedicated contacts. Was that all? As the responsible party, the Company Lord himself, I would also have to go personally to show sincerity and see whether any swindlers were among the close relatives of the market officials. Once you considered the incidental expenses and travel time required, it was an enormous nuisance.

The reason I couldn’t just use black-path men the way I had when I sold the Green Forest Twelve Forms was that salt was much harder to peddle than the Green Forest Twelve Forms. Salt could be sold only in markets supervised by the city market offices and the salt-market authorities. That was how strictly the state controlled salt.

Once built, such a distribution network could be used again later, so it was an inevitable process for a fledgling merchant company, but it was no less arduous for that. Yet if I could borrow the Heaven’s Gift Merchant Company’s distribution network, I could skip all of it.

Just borrowing the Heaven’s Gift Merchant Company’s network once would mean having received the Heaven’s Gift Merchant Company’s certification.

“And if your merchant company has other goods to sell, I’ll let you use the Heaven’s Gift Merchant Company’s distribution network free of charge for about three years.”

“C-Company Lord, that’s a bit…”

The elders leapt to their feet. Three years was enough time for us to build a distribution network of our own.

He was openly giving us time to grow, and no other merchant company would volunteer for such a thing. In fact, the Heaven’s Gift Merchant Company would even be slightly harming itself for our sake.

A distribution network could be compared to a set of blood vessels. If the passageways were the same but the amount to be transported increased, it naturally put a strain on them. And that strain would naturally show up in financial terms.

‘This is insane.’

I was excited inside. What Yeo Bul-jin was offering was worth far more than two hundred thousand taels. I had never imagined such a gift would roll into my lap.

But on the other hand, I was worried about what exactly he wanted to ask of me to go this far.

“As far as I’m concerned, there’s no reason to refuse.”

“To be honest, you can look happier than that. Even I think it’s an exceptional benefit.”

“I should at least hear the price in return first. It seems there must be something you want from me badly enough to go this far, and I’m very curious what it is.”

“Mm. Do you know Prince Xian, who resides in Gansu?”

I narrowed my eyes slightly. What was he trying to pull here? I understood he was saying it this way because it was something the elders didn’t know, but still.

“Yes. I know of him. Though I have no personal acquaintance.”

“Prince Xian has personally requested an item from our merchant company. We went to great trouble to procure it and intend to deliver it to him, so I was thinking of entrusting you with the negotiation.”

“You’re asking me to sell the item for you?”

“Exactly.”

I blinked for a moment because I didn’t understand, then reached a single conclusion.

This man already knew that Yeo Hong-won had ties to Prince Xian.