Chapter 291 : Transaction (2)
Chapter 291: Transaction (2)
Muhammad Majid answered my question.
"Truth be told, coffee only began to flourish among us Muslims several decades ago. And while most Muslims now enjoy coffee regularly, it's become quite difficult to obtain recently."
"Is there a particular reason it's become hard to find?"
"It's because of those blue-eyed and pale-skinned heretics of the far west who believe in a false savior named Jesus. They're absolutely mad for coffee. They pay dozens of times the original price for it, so lately even our own supply has been selling out."
"Have many of those pale-skinned foreigners been visiting this region recently?"
"You won't see them much around here. I've only heard rumors myself, but apparently in the coastal cities to the west, it's quite common to see people who've come for trade."
Combining Muhammad Majid's words with everything I'd seen and heard in Samarkand, the picture was becoming clearer.
"So that's why the atmosphere here feels somewhat quiet."
I had phrased "desolate" more delicately, but Muhammad Majid was experienced enough to know exactly what I meant.
"Indeed. The flow of merchants from the East dropped sharply about two hundred years ago. Now, everyone is coming by boat from the West, so the coastal cities are booming."
"So, do we have to go all the way to the coast to sell our goods?"
Muhammad Majid shook his head.
"It takes a solid twenty days to get to that port city from here. And we have only heard of it. None of us has actually been there. But don't worry. Muslims live in the east as well, and one of the major cities in the eastern territories is about five days from here."
The "east" Muhammad Majid spoke of seemed to refer to the eastern portion of the vast Muslim territories.
Based on Muhammad Majid's explanation, the abacus in my head quickly finished its calculations.
‘Hmm. So roughly twenty days from the main headquarters.’
It took about two weeks from the headquarters to Lanzhou. So, buying goods in Lanzhou and taking them to that city would take about thirty-five days total.
On the other hand, if we went all the way to the coast cities Muhammad Majid mentioned, it would be a grueling fifty-day journey.
Considering we'd need to make the return trip as well, a single trading expedition would consume nearly a hundred days.
‘If the trip is too long, the expenses will eat up all the profits.’
Having completed those calculations, I nodded in response.
"For now, we should visit that eastern city first. If there are merchant groups or traders who are willing to buy our goods, I'd prefer to complete our transactions there."
"A wise decision."
Muhammad Majid smiled with satisfaction, then asked as if something had just occurred to him.
"Come to think of it, you already knew about coffee despite being from the Land of Han. I've heard rumors that Chinese ships occasionally visit that port city. Has coffee spread widely in China as well?"
"It's hardly known at all." I shook my head at Muhammad Majid's question.
At least during my time in Gansu Province, I'd never even seen coffee in person, let alone heard anyone talk about it.
But listening to him, I realized there might be Chinese merchants trading with the Muslims who brought it in.
The only problem was...
‘Someone inside the Heavenly Demon Divine Cult not only imports coffee but also knows its effects?’
An inexplicable unease crept over me. It felt like the side effects of my Demonic Art that I thought were gone were creeping back.
‘It might have been obtained through the nomads west of the Tianshan Mountain Range who converted to Islam, but that’s highly unlikely. Nomads couldn't afford something that expensive.’
While I mulled over my thoughts, Muhammad joked with me.
"Hahaha. It's fortunate that it hasn't spread to the East yet. It's already hard enough to get because of those Western heretics. If people from the East started buying it too, we might never get our hands on any again."
Funny enough, his joke just confirmed my theory.
If even a prominent family in a city that was somewhat prosperous in the past had difficulty obtaining it, there was no way nomads could.
I kept that to myself and joked back.
"Hahaha. Who knows? Maybe we'll be the ones to make coffee famous in China and get rich together."
***
After the banquet concluded, the Majid family provided rooms for Il-mok and his companions to rest comfortably.
Il-mok returned to his room after bathing, and the three women serving as attendants were, for some reason, assigned to share a single room.
This was all thanks to Muhammad Makid who had smiled broadly as he provided them with one room.
‘Somehow, his thinking is exactly the same as Bazakh Rahman’s in this regard.’
Il-mok wondered if it was because of Muslim doctrine.
But he couldn’t exactly say no to that. Not only would it be rude to the host, but it would also inconvenience his own party. They have over forty people in the convoy, so they don’t have enough rooms for everyone to have their own.
The three women each laid out their bedding some distance from Il-mok.
Jeong Hyeon seemed uncomfortable with being close to others, showing signs of wanting to sleep apart from Jin Hayeon and Ju Seo-yeon. Meanwhile, Ju Seo-yeon was trying to scoot her bed even an inch closer to Jin Hayeon.
While Il-mok chuckled at this bizarre spectacle, Jin Hayeon approached him with her characteristically indifferent expression and spoke.
"Young Master, do you trust that Muhammad Majid?"
"I trust him to do business. But if you're asking whether he's a good person, probably not."
Il-mok shrugged and gave a brief explanation. He anticipated that Jin Hayeon might add something about "evil people" or "doctrine," so he continued speaking.
"However, that doesn't mean he's some worthless villain. He's just an ordinary person with a sharp mind. Someone who pursues their own interests in moderation. That kind of ordinary person."
Jin Hayeon let out a faint sigh, which was uncharacteristic of her.
"To be honest, after everything that happened, I find it impossible to trust Muslims at all."
"I sympathize. I'm starting to develop some prejudices myself."
For Jin Hayeon, whose emotions had frozen over, to speak of something as emotional as distrust meant these guys must really be pieces of work.
"Religion is supposed to exist to care for all living beings, yet I cannot fathom what their doctrine teaches that makes them commit evil so easily."
To Jin Hayeon's complaint that wasn't quite a complaint, Il-mok responded in a disinterested tone.
"Hmm. Is doctrine really the problem? As written in our own Divine Cult’s teachings, most humans are fundamentally evil by nature, correct? You can write the nicest things in a scripture, but if a bad person interprets it however they want, they'll just use it to do bad things."
And that’s basically the definition of a cult.
"For all we know, that 'generous hospitality' is also something from their doctrine. And those who violated it to attack us most likely twisted the interpretation to suit themselves. Deceiving their own conscience by repeatedly saying ‘They are heretics, so they don't count as guests.'"
The fact that traveling with the Majid Family meant a lower chance of being attacked was evidence enough.
We're all human, but if you're a believer, you're safe. If you're an outsider, you're a target.
‘Maybe religion is just an excuse. Maybe they're just worried about consequences.’
If the victim was a fellow Muslim believer, they might refrain because of the risk of future repercussions. But since Il-mok and his group were strangers from far away, even if they met a violent end here, it would be nearly impossible for anyone to seek revenge or find the culprits.
As Il-mok worked through his own thoughts about why these guys were so obsessed with raiding others, Jin Hayeon posed another question.
"Then, what do you think of that particular doctrine of Islam?"
"Which doctrine do you mean?"
"The one Bazakh Rahman mentioned. That a man may have multiple wives as long as he can treat them fairly and equally." She asked this out-of-the-blue question with her usual indifferent expression.
"Hmm. Since I haven't read their scriptures, this is purely my subjective view, but I think it actually means one should generally not take multiple wives unless absolutely necessary."
The women looked puzzled at Il-mok's words.
"Isn't that the complete opposite of what the doctrine says?"
"Treating every wife exactly the same? That's easier said than done. Is that even possible? I think it's a warning to consider human jealousy before you get married."
"I see."
Jin Hayeon thought about it for a second, then nodded before settling into her usual flat face.
Ju Seo-yeon didn't seem to care, but Jeong Hyeon looked depressed for some reason.
‘Is she stressed out because the room is crowded?’
Unlike Il-mok's assumption, Jeong Hyeon was thinking about something else entirely.
‘If he wanted a harem with three wives and four concubines, I might actually have a chance ...’
She had such low self-esteem that she didn't think she could ever be his one and only.
***
Early the next morning.
After preparing themselves, they left the Majid residence, but didn't leave Samarkand immediately.
For some reason, Muhammad Majid led them toward a massive palace-like structure.
Following Muhammad's guidance, what appeared before Il-mok's eyes was a great mural.
A mural depicting various scenes of people engaged in trade.
"As you can see, Samarkand used to be the center of the world's trade and culture. We lost that title to the West, but I pray that your arrival marks the return of our glorious days."
Muhammad Majid continued his speech like an elder bearing some historical mission.
It was probably a show put on for the residents of Samarkand who were watching from various places.
Regardless of whatever Muhammad was going on about, Il-mok's eyes had at some point fixed on a particular image.
It looked familiar.
‘Goguryeo people?’
The clothing, the hair ornaments, and even the ring-pommel sabers.
It looked exactly like the pictures he saw in history textbooks back when he was studying for the civil servant exam.
It was a peculiar feeling.
It felt surreal.
‘Wow... I never got to see this in real life even back in the modern world.’
Maybe it was because he’d left the familiar lands of Central Plains and entered the West. Lately, Il-mok found himself more frequently viewing situations from the perspective of Seo Ji-hun, the modern person he once was.
While Il-mok was lost in contemplation, Muhammad Majid's speech ended, and they finally departed Samarkand.
Their original party had ten additional people provided by the Majid family.
They were there to translate, provide guidance, and as proof of identity.
For better or worse, Ohalak was still tagging along with them as well.
Those from the Majid Family spoke both Arabic and the nomadic languages, but they knew nothing of the Central Plains' language.
After traveling until the sky grew dark, they camped for the night and resumed their journey early the next morning.
And by the time the sun was high in the sky, they arrived at another city.
A city called Bukhara.
Like before, it was a city surrounded by walls, but things were slightly different from Samarkand.
After those from the Majid Family had a brief conversation with the soldiers blocking the wall, they passed through the gate without any problems.
The middle-aged man from the Majid Family who had been leading the group asked Il-mok.
"If we travel four more days from here, we will arrive at a massive city called Merv, but until we get there, there are only small villages. Would you like to stay here for the day? Or shall we stock up on emergency rations and water and leave immediately?"
"If we leave now, can we reach a village by evening?"
"We would need to travel a bit further to find a village capable of housing this many people. We would likely have to camp out."
"Then let's stay here for one night before continuing."
"In that case, I'll look for accommodations."
The man responded and led the group through the streets of Bukhara toward lodgings.
Due to the large number of people, they could not all sleep in one inn, but he managed to secure three accommodations that were reasonably close to each other.
Some took turns keeping watch while napping to relieve their fatigue, while others wandered through Bukhara with the interpreters to sightsee around the city.
Early the next morning, they set off on their journey once again.
After a four-day journey where they occasionally stopped at the village they passed through, the outline of a great city named Merv began to appear before their eyes.
Naturally, a satisfied smile hung on Il-mok's lips.
‘It seems partnering with the Majid family was the right choice.’
If they had tried to find this city on their own, they would surely have been caught up in all sorts of bizarre situations.
If they could continue the journey as smoothly as this until they completed their trade and returned, giving up thirty percent of the profits wouldn't feel like a waste at all.