The Mad Dog Inspector of the Martial Alliance

Beggars first start their life in the Beggars' Sect as White-Clad Knots. White-Clad Knot means they have no decision-making power. They just do as they are told and live as they are told until they die. Sometimes, very lucky or talented beggars get a single string engraved on their belt and become a One-Knot Beggar.

From this point on, the real life of the Beggars' Sect begins. A One-Knot Beggar can command ten beggars under them, and by commanding the beggars, they can gain many things. Although they cannot gain honor, they can get a comfortable place to sleep, a full stomach, and a warm back. So, the dream of every beggar was to become a One-Knot Beggar.

If one became a One-Knot Beggar, the next step was a Two-Knot Beggar. A One-Knot Beggar who has accumulated a clear and visible achievement, or has cultivated their martial arts skills through constant training, can be promoted to a Two-Knot Beggar. A Two-Knot Beggar can command up to five One-Knot Beggars. The beggars under them are a bonus, so they have enormous authority.

If one became a Two-Knot Beggar, was the next step a Three-Knot Beggar? Not necessarily.

The position of a Three-Knot Beggar was almost entirely hereditary. So, unless one had parents who were Dantou and inherited the official position, the limit for an ordinary beggar, no matter how hard they tried, was a Two-Knot Beggar. If a Three-Knot Beggar had risen from the bottom instead of through inheritance, it meant that they were at least a first-rate master.

Yang Gwan said, chewing on his beef noodles.

"Come to think of it, the rising young master of the Beggars' Sect I saw at the Dragon and Phoenix Assembly was also a Three-Knot Beggar."

"How was he?"

"He received the title of Ugly Dragon, and just like his ugly title, he was a man who fought in a truly ugly way."

"U-ugly?"

"He does the 'Lazy Donkey Rolls on the Ground' as if it were a meal, rolls on the ground, and covets the opponent's lower body. It's a truly ugly sight, but he's very strong. If I were to face such a person, I would have to be tense too."

"Don't worry. The Three-Knot Beggar of Luoyang is hereditary. He's far from being a master. His name is Do Jibaek, and he's a fellow who received the official position of Luoyang Dantou from his father, Do Seungho. When he was young, he apparently thought of entering government service and even took the provincial examination separately, but the results were not good."

"Still, a beggar who knows how to read, shouldn't he be praised?"

"That's right. You're right."

In the current Ming Dynasty, only about one-tenth of the people could read and write. It was so bad that one of the reasons people couldn't learn martial arts even if they obtained a martial arts manual was that they were illiterate.

"That fellow named Do Jibaek is quite a clever one."

"Even though he failed the provincial examination?"

"Do you think the provincial examination is child's play? The kids who pass the provincial examination are, in terms of martial artists, first-rate masters. It's not something you can do with an ordinary head, so it's not strange at all that he failed."

"Hmmmm. I see. Then this whole affair is ultimately about finding the money a smart guy has hidden?"

"You have a talent for summarizing things. That's right. Do Jibaek has money hidden away."

"To hide the beggars' money again, my goodness..."

"He collects the beggars' tribute, sends some to the imperial family, some to the Martial Alliance, and most of it to Kaifeng. This was what the Dantou were supposed to do, but a person's heart isn't like that, is it? Giving away money that has once entered your pocket is as painful as scraping off your bones and flesh. And to have that money taken by three places, would you be happy? You're bound to be anxious to embezzle it somehow."

"But do beggars even have money?"

"They sell information and vegetables. They also sell mushrooms and receive small donations. Some decent-looking female beggars also sell their bodies, and in some cases, they switch to working in brothels. In that case, they also receive a referral fee. Is that all? They also take on small assassination requests."

"Assassination requests?! That's something that the Dark Curtain or the Killing Curtain does..."

"That's for the assassinations of important people. When ordinary people fight and it turns into a knife fight, the Beggars' Sect or the Hao Faction are the best."

Jang So-gil said that and took a little of the well-cooked duck meat onto a flour pancake. He rolled it up and took a big bite, and the taste was truly a delicacy of the world. He smiled with satisfaction.

"As expected of elder brother Gwon Cheonhui. He sent a good cook."

"The taste is certainly amazing, but eating while talking about such things makes me lose my appetite a little."

"How does it compare to the food at the Shaolin Temple?"

"Don't even mention it. They only eat vegetables there. It's a good thing they don't interfere with lay disciples eating meat with their own money. The direct disciples can't even eat meat, so they say it's a living hell."

"That's a relief. Then let's eat well and go for a little ruckus."

Yang Gwan, who was tearing at a duck leg as if he wasn't satisfied, asked.

"Are we going for a show of force right away?"

"You don't want to?"

"No, I'd love to. To be honest, I didn't like the Beggars' Sect from the moment I heard Guild Master So's explanation. I'd welcome the chance to teach a lesson of benevolence and righteousness to the fake beggars who feed on the backs of the real beggars. And since they do all sorts of dirty things, my fists are itching."

"It's a relief that you're motivated."

"At first, I didn't like what Guild Master So was doing, but now that I see it, there's nothing better than this. I like it very much."

"You like it? What about?"

"If you think about it, isn't this all about executing justice?"

"J-justice?"

The corners of Jang So-gil's mouth trembled. It was a sense of bewilderment that came from never having thought he would say the word 'justice' with his own mouth. He had just said it out loud, but he still couldn't believe it. Justice, justice? Such a word exists, but it's an impossible word.

Yang Gwan showed off his brawny arm muscles and said.

"That's right. Didn't you also say, Guild Master So, that a person who does one bad thing never does just one?"

"I did say that."

"There's a saying that a needle thief becomes a cow thief. The gutsy fellows who embezzle the Martial Alliance's money must already be great thieves who have stolen a cow. At first, I thought it would be natural for such a fellow to also steal a needle, but the more I hear, the more absurd it is. They even do human trafficking and contract killings, so I'm afraid to hear what's behind that."

"That's probably right. If you get caught embezzling the Martial Alliance's money, you're bound to die. A fellow who does such a thing would probably commit light crimes that won't get him killed even if he's caught, as if he were breathing. I only mentioned prostitution and assassination because I don't know much. They probably do even worse things."

"So, since we're catching such guys and throwing them in jail, how rewarding and just a job is that? I'm truly impressed by your scheme, Guild Master So!"

"Lord Jang said that people see different things in one thing depending on their perspective, and it was true. I'm starting to doubt if you and I are really seeing the same thing."

Did he become like this because he trained at the Shaolin Temple, or was he like this from the beginning?

Jang So-gil and Yang Gwan's friendship was actually only a few months old, so he couldn't know for sure.

"Then what should I do?"

"First, you have to protect me and the children."

"The children?"

"The beggar kids I hired."

When Yang Gwan looked at him with curious eyes, Jang So-gil grinned and raised his hand.

"Cook Heo, please pack up the food I asked for earlier and the food that's left now."

* * *

The life of a beggar is miserable and cruel. Beggars guard their territories from each other like a knife and do not forgive those who cross that territory. Usually, they are wrapped in a straw mat and beaten with a staff until they die. The famous straw mat beating.

There were twenty beggars who had ignored him, a Three-Knot Beggar, and had taken on work, given information, and received payment on their own. They were all young, and they all had some kind of appendage or defect. An appendage meant a sick old mother or younger siblings who were too young to even beg, and a defect meant that some part of their body was missing or broken. In other words, it meant that there would be no trouble even if they were beaten to death with a straw mat.

But Do Jibaek couldn't bring himself to order these damn young beggars to be beaten to death. His head, which he had been confident in enough to even try for the provincial examination in the past, was warning him. If he killed them, there would be no way out. The inspector of the Martial Alliance would come.

"But I can't just leave them be, so this is driving me crazy."

Discipline had already loosened. By letting the clear traitors live, the organization's military discipline had collapsed. The number of people complaining had increased, and the reckless ones like Oh Chungyeong were already showing signs of getting out of control.

"Oh my, I was eating and living well, what kind of thunderbolt is this?"

This was all because of that crazy inspector. His life of drinking wine and fondling women in a brothel was ruined. To go to a brothel, he had to take off these damn dirty clothes, but if he took off his dirty clothes and was seen by the Martial Alliance's inspector or the Beggars' Sect's secret beggar who had come because of this commotion, he would be in trouble. A secret beggar was an inspector of the Beggars' Sect who found those who betrayed the Beggars' Sect's will and smashed their heads. They were quite rigid in their thinking.

"Damn it. Who still acts like a beggar these days..."

Anyway, in the rough-and-tumble life of the Beggars' Sect, all the big-headed knots took off their dirty clothes and lived in luxury. It meant that Do Jibaek's deviation was not the only one. And yet, the Four-Knot Beggars, the Branch Masters, and the Chief Branch Master still insisted on the old-fashioned beggar's work. Out of the question.

"Calm down. Calm down and read his intentions."

Do Jibaek bit his nails. His eyes were blurred with impatience, but he still had a bit of his old knack left. His small brain moved furiously.

"What is his ultimate goal?"

One of the current guesses was the absorption of the information organization, and the other was the tribute money that Do Jibaek had secretly embezzled. Looking at it coldly, these two could not be taken at the same time. To take over the information network of the Luoyang branch entirely, twenty young beggars could do nothing. Not only was the number insufficient, but they were all illiterate. The only one who knew how to read in the Luoyang branch was Do Jibaek.

"If this body doesn't hand over the reins, they can't take over the information network, yes."

Information doesn't just appear. Information only gains value when hundreds of strands of seemingly useless small talk are tied together and used in the right place at the right time. So, starting with those twenty, it would take a long time to expand their influence and chip away at Do Jibaek's influence.

"Then is it money after all?"

He had heard that the mad dog inspector of the Martial Alliance had linked the Gentleman's Academy and the Hakseo Escort Agency in just half a day and sent them both on a boat to the underworld. Seeing his temperament, he probably wouldn't do something that takes a long time. There was a high probability that the act of feeding, housing, and treating the twenty children was not the main point.

"I heard he was an orphan, so it wouldn't be strange for him to show affection to beggars."

By Do Jibaek's own reasoning, there was a high probability that what the fellow was aiming for was money. If so, the matter became a little easier.

"Hehehe."

Do Jibaek was no fool. While most rich people stored their silver in a granary or entrusted it to a bank and used promissory notes, Do Jibaek used a slightly wiser method.

That method was truly cunning and elegant, something that an inspector of the Martial Alliance could never figure out. It would be safe to be relieved.

"As expected, preparation is the key to avoiding trouble... hehe."

Do Jibaek laughed lowly.

It was when he was praising himself like that.

"Is anyone there-!"

A clear voice echoed under the bridge.

* * *

Yang Gwan, with a scowl on his face, reported to Jang So-gil.

"The twenty children who were buried in the ground have all been rescued."

"Well done. Do they all look alright?"

"They say they're cold and hungry, but on the outside, there don't seem to be any major health problems, but..."

He was not a doctor. He only knew a little about pressure points and the basics of first aid that he had learned while learning martial arts. He had no way of knowing the details. So he lowered his head without confidence, and Jang So-gil waved his hand.

"That's enough. Fortunately, our Three-Knot Beggar Do Jibaek was not a very foolish person."

"Of course. According to the laws of the Beggars' Sect, they should have been beaten, but since it was the inspector's doing, I thought there must be some meaning to it, so I was holding off on the judgment."

"You did well. Then there's only one thing we need to talk about."

"What do we need to talk about?"

Jang So-gil smiled brightly.

"Give me the money."

(End of Chapter)