The Mad Dog Inspector of the Martial Alliance

Originally, he had planned to choose a horse early in the morning and leave, but the time had been considerably delayed.

It was because choosing a horse was a very important task.

Jang So-gil and Yang Gwan had wandered around the horse market for more than half a day.

"Even if it's the best horse market in Luoyang, in the end, it's still a market. I didn't think there would be any truly good horses..."

Horses were an essential resource and at the same time a strategic resource. The breeding and trading of good horses were managed by the imperial family. The good horses mentioned here were not horses like ponies, but large, strong, and agile horses like the blood-sweating horse. Such horses were not numerous.

"I heard that a hundred Jeju horses were presented as a tribute from Joseon last year, but I never thought that not a single one would be released to the market. His Majesty is too much. Is he planning to use all those horses for military purposes!"

"Guild Master So, you'll get into big trouble for that."

"I know, I know. Damn it."

Jang So-gil had many complaints, but he held them back. Insulting the emperor was a serious crime. He had the sense to distinguish between what he should say and what he shouldn't.

And he had already chosen and bought a horse. It was a large horse with a little blood of a Joseon iron-hoofed steed if you went back three generations. Horses are very smart. They have the intelligence to know immediately if you insult them. They were going to travel together from now on, and if he made it feel bad, he could really be harmed. Jang So-gil gently scratched the horse's head and muttered.

"Aish. Now I have to even read a horse's mood..."

"Hahaha. You should also read the mood sometimes, Guild Master So."

"You seem to be in a pretty good mood."

"Of course. This fellow is my horse now, isn't it?"

The horse Yang Gwan had chosen was a black-hoofed, black-tailed yellow horse.

The black hooves meant it was a horse with hooves as black as a crow and a black and yellow tail. It was strong and had a good personality, so it was to Yang Gwan's liking.

"It was my dream to have my own horse. But a black-hoofed, black-tailed yellow horse, isn't that a famous horse? I can't help but be happy!"

"You're a fellow whose dream is easy to achieve."

"You're saying that because you're you, Guild Master So. Are horse prices usually not expensive? To be honest, I have a feeling we bought something too expensive."

The price of a horse was quite expensive, so ordinary commoners could not even dare to think about it. One silver tael could buy two seoks of rice, depending on the region, but the basic price of a horse started at ten silver taels. If it was a good horse, the price would go through the roof. The horse Yang Gwan had chosen was a famous horse, so it was a whopping fifty taels. The horse Jang So-gil was riding was also fifty taels, so they had spent a hundred taels on horse prices alone in one day. After equipping themselves with preserved food, water, and various travel tools, the expenditure was a whopping one hundred and twenty taels.

Yang Gwan's head spun when he saw the expenditure amount. So he was watching his mood, and Jang So-gil grinned.

"Do I do business at a loss? I plan to make a profit on this trip too, so stop worrying and let's go."

"Yes, sir. Then which way will you be heading?"

There were two main ways to go to Yunnan. The method of going through Sichuan, and the method of going through Hubei, Hunan, and Guangzhou. If you asked which one was faster, it was definitely the way through Sichuan. The road was a bit rough, but to put it simply, the distance was shorter. On the other hand, the way through Hubei, Hunan, and Guangzhou could also use a boat, and the road was well-maintained, so it was comfortable, but it was a bit of a detour.

Jang So-gil said without a moment's hesitation.

"We'll take a detour."

"May I ask why?"

"The faster, the better is the current situation, but it's not good to be too fast either. We should be a little faster than the advance of the Martial Alliance. If we are too fast, we will reach the enemy's momentum first. Do you have the confidence to fight the Diancang Sect first and win?"

"It would be difficult to even protect myself..."

Yang Gwan had inwardly wanted to arrive in Yunnan first and save people. So he felt a little gloomy. Jang So-gil, not unaware of Yang Gwan's feelings, gently persuaded him.

"I acknowledge your chivalrous nature, but we have done all we can. We have kicked the heavy ass of the Martial Alliance and made it move, so that is enough. I also feel frustrated and vexed. But what can we do? We have to draw a line and distinguish between what a person can do and what they can't. Courage and recklessness are similar, but they are completely different words. Throw away recklessness."

"..."

"Anyway, there is another reason why we are not going to Sichuan and are passing through Hubei and Hunan. Where would the merchants who have fled from Yunnan go? To the west is Tibet, and to the south are foreign enemies. To the north is Sichuan, but you know well the closed-off nature of the Sichuan region."

"Th-that's right. They wouldn't accept them obediently."

"And yet, if a merchant went to Sichuan, it means that they were usually indebted to the Tang family or had established a cooperative relationship. Do we have to go to the land of death, Sichuan, to save such guys? Or should we help the merchant guilds that fled to the Guangxi and Hunan regions because they disliked Sichuan?"

"I understand."

"If you understand, then let's set off."

* * *

The journey was smooth. It was partly thanks to choosing only safe roads, but Yang Gwan's presence was a big factor. Even a traveler whose eyes had lit up with greed upon seeing the White-Clear Divine Sword would fold their greed and become a gentle sheep in the face of the murderous flames when Yang Gwan narrowed his eyes and slightly circulated his Fire Wheel Art. So Jang So-gil's journey was very smooth.

"The Shu brocade is very good. I like it. The price is very cheap."

"It's a product bought directly from Sichuan. This price is probably only possible at our shop."

"I see. The price is no different from buying it in Sichuan. The pattern is also very good."

"Aren't the tiger and the dragon particularly good?"

"I'll just buy the phoenix and the qilin."

"...Th-then how about you buy this instead? The plum blossom is also nice."

"You have the nerve to try to trick someone who has picked out the genuine article at a glance. You must have a pretty thick skin. Or you must be looking down on me. Which one is it?"

"You're an expert. Damn it, I thought I was having a lucky day today!"

"It was a good deal. To sell the Shu brocade of Sichuan at cost price, you will be blessed."

"Stop rubbing it in and go quickly. Deokchil-ah, bring the salt!"

Jang So-gil held the two rolls of Shu brocade with the phoenix and the qilin drawn on them and smiled with satisfaction. On the other hand, the merchant swallowed his tears.

Jang So-gil would wander around the market like this and buy things whenever he stopped by a village. And in the next village, he would sell the things he had bought in the previous village for more than twice the price. The money increased as if by magic. At that absurd sight, Yang Gwan asked in a daze.

"What kind of trick is this? No, why does the price of a product more than double just by crossing one village? Are all those people fools? Why don't they do it when they can earn twice as much by taking the trouble to cross one village? It's not a very difficult task since it's walking on a main road. There are no bandits, so why?"

"You're a fellow with a lot of questions. It's no big deal. You put a bait product on the stall."

"A bait product?"

"A truly good product has the power to attract people's attention. It has a dignity that fakes don't have, and a noble charm. How about this Shu brocade?"

The red silk with the phoenix drawn on it and the black silk with the qilin drawn on it were splendid. But that was all.

"To my eyes, it just looks like silk. It's pretty, though."

"That feeling of 'it's pretty' is the power of the genuine article. Since even a blockhead like you thinks so, what about a person who likes beautiful clothes? They can't help but be drawn to it as they pass by the stall. Now, let's say a customer has stopped and is looking at the stall."

"Then they'll buy this right away."

"You foolish fellow. If it's sold at that price, the owner will be at a loss, won't he?"

"Ah."

"Once a customer has come, you have to use all your wits to prevent them from buying the bait product. You can put cheap silk with a similar feel but completely different quality around it, or the owner can talk to them directly to confuse them and induce a misunderstanding, or you can suggest an absurd price. There are many ways. Any method is fine. To gather people with a bait product and sell something else. That is the skill of a merchant. So this can be called a duel between a merchant and a merchant."

"If it's a merchant fight, there's no way you'll lose, is there, Guild Master So?"

"That's right. So I am winning every duel in a row, and I am sweeping up the bait products of every village. There's no way I won't make money."

Jang So-gil giggled and rolled a silver coin. He had only passed through five villages, but he had already recovered the cost of the trip. To do this in just three days after setting off on a journey was truly a formidable skill.

"This is why it's good to run around in person sometimes. When I was in Sichuan, it was a big deal just for me to walk, wasn't it?"

"That's right. Come to think of it, that was to hide the bait product."

"That's it. It will be fun to come back now."

"Since your face is known, it won't work anymore, will it?"

"That's true. So at that time, I'll have to sell the things I brought from Yunnan at a high price. The tea and horses of Yunnan are of the highest quality in the world, so they sell well."

Yang Gwan clicked his tongue. It wasn't just his imagination that Jang So-gil's face had looked better than usual since he had left Luoyang. He was truly enjoying the journey.

People feel good when they do what they like. If it's something they're good at, they'll feel even better. And for Jang So-gil, what he was good at and what he liked were the same. A person who liked making money was also good at making money, so it was like adding flowers to brocade.

'Guild Master So is originally a person who doesn't suit the smell of blood.'

To be honest, Yang Gwan's true feeling was that it was better for Jang So-gil to spread his wings in a distant place where the smell of blood from Sichuan could not reach. A distant land like Joseon would be good, and the land of Dongying would also be good. It would be fine to go to the Western Regions through the Dragon's Path.

One day, when the bloody incident in Sichuan suddenly comes to mind and he grits his teeth and says, 'I'll kill those bastards,' and runs out on his horse, it would be good to be in a distant place where he can find his composure while running and return home. If it were such a distant place, the hand of Sichuan would not reach it, so wouldn't it be too easy for this genius to become a great merchant by fully demonstrating his talent?

But Jang So-gil himself had chosen revenge.

He urged his horse on with a sense of regret and slightly increased his speed.

As he walked like that, he saw dark clouds in the distant mountains.

"Guild Master So, I see dark clouds. It seems it will rain in about one mealtime."

"If it's one mealtime, we won't be able to return to the village. Is there a place to take shelter from the rain if we go further?"

"Even if we follow the main road, it's too early for a post station to appear. But if we go a little off the road, there should be a place to take shelter. I see a shrine in that forest over there. I think we can make it there."

"A shrine..."

"But it doesn't look like a shrine where people live."

"Wait a minute, let me see too."

Jang So-gil's eyesight was outstanding, but he was clumsy at enhancing his eyesight by raising his internal energy. So he needed a considerable amount of preparation time compared to Yang Gwan. When he slowly, carefully, and cautiously concentrated his internal energy on his eyes, the shrine finally came into Jang So-gil's view. The old, shabby, and dusty shrine felt more like the energy of a beast or a ghost than the smell of a human.

"You're right. It's an unmanaged shrine. But it should be enough to take shelter from the rain."

"We have other travel tools too. We can start a fire, and we can also spread out our bedding."

"Then let's spend the day there... huh?"

"What's wrong?"

"Look over there."

As Jang So-gil said, when he turned his gaze, he saw a group of people approaching from the west of the shrine. There were three of them, each riding a horse and running through the trees, and their appearance was unusual.

"It seems they are being chased by someone."

"You see it that way too? Are those guys also trying to take shelter from the rain?"

"I don't know. They look too desperate to be just taking shelter from the rain. It might be a tiger attack."

"They could be in a hurry because their goods might be damaged by the rain, or they could be merchants being chased by bandits. They might even be merchants who have fled from Yunnan."

There was no way to know here. The only way to know the answer was to approach.

"It's best to avoid them if we don't want to get involved."

"Then are you going to get wet in the rain?"

"That's troublesome. The Shu brocade will be damaged. Let's go to the shrine for now."

Jang So-gil scratched his chin.

"Don't tell me they're really merchants who have fled from Yunnan?”

(End of Chapter)