The Mad Dog Inspector of the Martial Alliance

In Sichuan, there lived a nameless orphan. One day, this orphan met a merchant who was handing out relief rice. In the merchant's eyes, the orphan's appearance was not half bad. The merchant said, "I hear you are sixteen. Rather than begging, why don't you come and work for me?"

The orphan replied, "If you'll have me, I'll do anything."

The long war between the Demonic Cult and the Martial Alliance, which had shaken the martial world for ages, had just ended. It was the beginning of a peaceful era. Naturally, the markets stabilized, and merchants rapidly expanded their influence.

The man who hired the orphan, Jang Daegil, was a rather capable merchant.

Thus, he did not stand by and watch the tide of the expanding market economy, but instead threw himself and the fate of his merchant guild into it.

Time passed, the gamble paid off, and the merchant guild grew larger and larger.

And at the center of that growth was the orphan boy.

Unlike the Confucian scholars, Legalists, or Taoists who had their noses in books, the orphan boy was an uneducated simpleton, but he was skilled with numbers, quick-witted, and had a knack for reading people's hearts. Jang Daegil, who highly valued his talent, cherished and favored him, credited him with achievements, and called him a son. People began to call him So Gil, meaning "little Jang Daegil," and as time went on, even that became too much of a bother, and they shortened it to a single character: "So."

By the time Jang So-gil reached the age of twenty, the business was prospering with each passing day, and its influence gradually swelled until Jang Daegil's merchant guild, the Great Cloud Guild, became a massive guild representing the Sichuan region.

But as the saying goes, good things are often followed by misfortune.

Trouble is bound to follow good fortune.

The emergence of a new, massive merchant guild representing Sichuan disturbed the peace of one particular group.

The Sichuan Tang Clan, the Supreme Clan of Sichuan, First Under Heaven.

For the Tang Clan, which had reigned aloof as the supreme power for over three hundred years, the Great Cloud Guild's rapid rise was nothing short of a challenge.

It is said that the three powers that rule the world are political power, financial power, and martial power.

These three powers are fluid. Once you possess one, the others naturally follow.

The Great Cloud Guild's financial power could align with high political power, and it could command strong martial power with money.

Therefore, in the eyes of the Tang Clan, the Great Cloud Guild's financial power seemed to have the potential to become a great threat in the future.

The bud of a threat must be cut before it can sprout.

The Tang Clan's blade was aimed at the Great Cloud Guild.

The power of the Tang Clan, called the Supreme of Sichuan, was as great as its reputation.

No matter how much the Great Cloud Guild had transformed into a massive merchant guild, it had not had enough time. The power of the Sichuan Tang Clan swept through the Great Cloud Guild without difficulty, and soon, it was annihilated, its presence vanishing from Sichuan.

On the day of the Great Cloud Guild's fall, Jang So-gil gritted his teeth and rolled in the mud.

"Sichuan, Tang Clan...!"

Jang So-gil swore revenge as he watched the ceaseless downpour, as if trying to wash away the blood.

This was an event of the nineteenth year of Emperor Yongle's reign, in the summer.

* * *

Who is the greatest under heaven of this era?

One hundred out of a hundred, ten out of ten, would all shout the name Gu Munryong in unison.

The greatest under heaven, Martial Alliance Lord Gu Munryong.

Clad in a white robe that was said to have never been stained by a single drop of blood despite fighting countless Demonic Cultists, he was a god of the battlefield, the sky, the supreme one.

He who was praised as the undefeated, the unyielding, the invincible across countless battlefields.

"Haa..."

He sighed, looking down at the moonflowers in the estate's garden.

"So you're saying there's no money?"

"My apologies, but yes, that is the case."

The name of the man apologizing with a stiff face was Sama Hwi. He was the second son of the prestigious Sama family and the strategist favored by Gu Munryong. Gu Munryong's gaze upon him was troubled.

"Strategist Sama, you really are just a strategist. You have no talent for anything besides fighting."

"I am sorry."

It was the truth, so he had no words or thoughts of protest.

Gu Munryong had expected at least a lame excuse, but seeing his endlessly rigid bow, he stroked his beard.

"Tsk. I don't like this. It's already been four years since the war between the Orthodox and Demonic factions ended."

"That is correct."

"Now that an era of peace has begun and all people have only happy days left to live, the Martial Alliance's finances are on the verge of bankruptcy?"

"That is correct."

"Strategist Sama, do you think this makes any sense? We are the Martial Alliance, the Martial Alliance! Where in the world did all the support funds from all over the Central Plains go?"

"I am sorry to have to say this, but."

"Forget about being sorry, just tell me quickly."

"The support funds and revenue are not lacking, but there are too many thieves in the Alliance."

"...Too many thieves?"

"Yes. Very, very many."

The Martial Alliance's main income was the money sent by the Nine Sects One Alliance and the Imperial Palace to maintain peace and balance in the Central Plains, and the next was protection fees. In vulgar terms, it was protection money.

"Since it's not a proper revenue structure, there are many who embezzle. There are those who claim they didn't receive money they were supposed to receive. There are those who file false reports, claiming a bad harvest or that they were robbed by the Green Forest bandits, and take the money for themselves, and so on. There are too many holes that are unimaginable to us."

"Uh... ugh."

"One could say it's just like those lowly merchants."

Even Sama Hwi, who was confessing this so calmly, openly considered merchants to be lowly, so the reason for the gaping holes in the Martial Alliance's finances was all too clear.

To the intellectual class who prided themselves on their learning, business acumen was a trivial skill not even treated as a talent, and above all, the mindset or techniques of obsessing over money were considered deviant and unbecoming of a gentleman. Naturally, they looked down on merchants and held scholars in high regard. The only reason they didn't disrespect martial artists was that they would die if they were hit; there was no other reason.

In short, the problem was the merchants' tricks, and the martial artists and scholars had no skill to stop them. So, the money was leaking out.

Gu Munryong's fists trembled on their own.

"How did it come to this?!"

"The reason these numerous tricks are rampant is that the methods are truly cunning and secretive, making them difficult to detect, and the bond between the merchants and their inside collaborators is so strong that it is even harder to find evidence, making it impossible to punish them."

"If the bond between merchants is that strong, then we can't even hire a merchant to solve the problem."

"That is correct. No merchant can do such a thing, nor can they be trusted."

"Then what about requesting help from the Imperial Palace and borrowing the power of the Eastern Depot?"

The Eastern Depot was a specialized investigation agency that, under the emperor's command, investigated corruption and embezzlement by officials. Their skills were said to be the greatest of all time, and their reputation was such that it was said no Golden Ghost [a term for a corrupt official] could escape them.

"It would certainly be possible if we borrowed the power of the Eastern Depot, but."

"But?"

"There is a non-aggression pact between the government and the martial world. If we borrow the government's power for the Alliance's affairs, the Alliance's reputation will fall to the ground, and above all, there is no way the Imperial Palace will help."

"Even if I personally request it?"

"It has been four long years since the Demonic Cult went quiet. The dog is boiled and eaten after the rabbit hunt is over. Just as the old saying goes, the Imperial Palace would rather weaken the Alliance's power than strengthen it. Therefore, borrowing the power of the Eastern Depot is also impossible."

"Grrr. This is impossible. That is impossible! This is so frustrating-!"

When it came to smashing things, he was the best under heaven, but that was a talent needed in a chaotic era.

In an era of peace, the talent for maintenance and management was needed more than the power to fight.

Even the greatest under heaven was just a mere martial artist, so Gu Munryong's patience was slowly reaching its limit. At his sharp demeanor, Sama Hwi cleared his throat and offered an alternative.

"Hiring a capable talent to crack down on them seems to be the best plan."

"A trustworthy talent, and such a person exists in the Martial Alliance! Who on earth is it?"

"He is not a member of the Alliance. He is a merchant."

"Didn't you just say with your own mouth that merchants cannot be trusted? Are you speaking with two tongues in one mouth?"

"There is one who is a merchant, yet not a merchant."

"A merchant, yet not a merchant?"

Sama Hwi opened his fan and pointed beyond Luoyang, toward the Sichuan region.

"This is an event from the sixteenth year of Emperor Yongle's reign. A merchant named Jang Daegil, living in the Sichuan region, is said to have adopted an orphan as his son. This child possessed a truly heaven-sent business acumen. His calculations were never wrong, he could spot a liar like a ghost, and he could predict the flow of the times by gathering the words of common folk without any hindrance. They say he made Jang Daegil's merchant guild, the Great Cloud Guild, into the number one merchant guild in Sichuan in just three years, so it is an undeniable fact that he has a heaven-sent talent."

"Hmm. Continue."

"But who is the number one in Sichuan? Is it not the Tang Clan?"

"That's right. Those venomous and vicious bastards. Scum more demonic than the Demonic Cult."

"When the Great Cloud Guild rose to be called the number one in Sichuan, its influence touched the Tang Clan's reverse scale [a dragon's weak spot], and an incident occurred last summer. The Tang Clan, unable to bear the Great Cloud Guild recruiting and training martial artists and trying to become a martial faction, took matters into their own hands. Thus, a net from heaven to earth was cast, and a living hell opened up."

"They must have all died."

"No. There is one who survived that hell of annihilation."

"Could it be, that person is..."

"That is correct. It is Jang Daegil's adopted son. It is said that Jang Daegil and his family, believing that they could surely make a comeback if they had that child, filled the river with their corpses and took arrows with their bodies to save him. There must have been heavenly luck, and he must have had skill as well, to have survived the net from heaven to earth."

Gu Munryong was not a dull man. If he were dull, he could never have achieved great mastery in martial arts. With his sharp eyes, he reflected on the situation and quickly understood what Sama Hwi wanted to say.

"I've heard the story well. The Tang Clan's lawlessness is hard to forgive, but realistically, there's no way to punish them. Rumors are just rumors, they won't serve as evidence."

Even Gu Munryong was hearing for the first time that a place called the Great Cloud Guild had been annihilated by the Tang Clan.

Sichuan is far. The Tang Clan is number one in Sichuan. It is all too obvious that they would destroy the evidence and use their tricks.

"Even if we knew, there is no room for us to intervene. Everyone was in the middle of recovering their strength after the great war with the Demonic Cult, and above all, didn't the Great Cloud Guild also do something wrong?"

"That is correct. For the sake of the Sichuan Tang Clan's face, they should not have engaged in the act of recruiting martial artists. If they intended to take on the color of the martial world, moving from a merchant guild to a martial faction, they should have knocked on the Martial Alliance's door first for us to save face."

"It's as if they're ignoring us too, so there's no need to get involved."

The Sichuan Tang Clan belonged to the Martial Alliance, and the Great Cloud Guild did not. That fact alone eliminated any room for the Martial Alliance to intervene. The arm bends inward, and the Martial Alliance was not a faction that pursued absolute good or justice.

"Even so, it's a bitter story."

"But this story is quite helpful to us."

"Jang Daegil's adopted son."

"As expected of the Alliance Lord. You have hit the nail on the head."

"If that story is true, a man driven mad by revenge will not be blinded by petty cash. And if he also possesses a genius-level business acumen...!"

"He would be the best talent this Alliance is looking for. And if we help him with his revenge on the side, we can also deliver a great punishment to the arrogant Sichuan Tang Clan."

"Can you find him? I really want to find him and put him to good use."

He is a man evaluated as having the best business acumen.

He reached such a level at the age of twenty, and now he must be sharpening his resolve for revenge.

If he could borrow his power to handle the Martial Alliance's financial crisis and, on the side, keep the Sichuan Tang Clan in check, it would be killing two birds with one stone.

To Gu Munryong, whose eyes were shining with anticipation, Sama Hwi spoke softly.

"I have already secured him. I am only waiting for the Alliance Lord's decision."

"Hah. How did you find a fugitive being pursued by the Sichuan Tang Clan so easily?"

"I did not find him."

"Then?"

Sama Hwi's lips curled up calmly.

"He came to us."

"He came to us? Wahahahaha!!! That fellow is a real character."

"I believe he is a character of the world."

"Hey, Strategist Sama. If we give the fellow a position, what should it be?"

The Martial Alliance is a coalition of various sects.

Within it, there are factions and sects.

With an ordinary position, he wouldn't even be able to hold his head up in front of them.

He needs a position that won't be looked down upon by them.

Sama Hwi grinned.

"The Central Plains are wide, and there are many thieves. It is not possible to catch all the thieves with just him alone."

"That's right."

"Therefore, how about first making him an Inspector to observe his skills and prestige, and then gradually increasing his authority to form an Inspection Team?"

"If we don't catch the thieves all at once and slowly build up his power, won't we be committing the folly of beating the grass and startling the snake?"

"Even if that were the case, if the thieves get scared on their own and the holes are plugged, isn't that also a good thing in its own way?"

"I see. As expected of Strategist Sama. Proceed as planned."

"As you command."

Once the Alliance Lord's order was given, everything proceeded swiftly.

Sama Hwi sent a carrier pigeon to Jang So-gil, who was living in seclusion in a corner of Luoyang.

And half a day later, the carrier pigeon returned with a reply from Jang So-gil.

Sama Hwi, who unfolded the message, gritted his teeth.

"That bastard-!"

Something outrageous was written in the message.

(End of Chapter)