Chapter 306 : Request
"Sujin. I have a few favors to ask of a friend. You can grant them, right?"
As Namgung Hui pushed his face close and asked, Hwang Sujin blushed and answered.
"Wh-What is it? I'll listen and then decide."
"It's not very difficult. I'd like you to send a letter to the Tang family through your letter delivery service."
"To the Tang family? Well, it's not difficult, but to receive it from there... ah. You have a friend in the Tang family too? You're really something. Really something."
"Since you're also my friend, I'll introduce you all later. I don't have many friends either, so it would be good for me if those few friends get along with each other."
"Oh~ Is that so?"
Although Hwang Sujin kept being sarcastic, Namgung Hui found that side of her to be cute.
It felt more like looking at a somewhat young younger sister than a friend.
When you think about it, since Namgung Hui had lived much longer than her, she would be closer to a niece than a younger sister.
"Then what's the other favor?"
"Let me meet your grandfather, the merchant guild leader."
***
If the office of the Ten Thousand Gold Merchant Guild leader had a grand and distant charm.
The office of the Golden Merchant Guild leader was the epitome of splendor.
It was glittering with a golden light, as if it had been gilded here and there.
The calligraphy and paintings hanging on the walls were also all related to gold, such as golden dragons and golden carps.
And so, after passing even the pillars made of gold ingots, a golden door that seemed to be the entrance to the office appeared.
Before Namgung Hui could raise his hand and knock on the door, the door burst open, and a voice was heard from inside.
"Come in."
A voice that came quickly, as if it would not tolerate Namgung Hui knocking on the door.
Since he also felt a sense of urgency in his voice, Namgung Hui had no choice but to hurry and enter the interior.
If the hallway was full of a golden light, the interior was filled with a contrasting silver color.
"Originally, this place was also gold. But after my son was poisoned, I covered it with silver. Because if the silver here tarnishes, it means the poison is spreading."
Although he looked old, his voice felt firm.
As Namgung Hui turned his gaze and followed the owner of the voice, a man with a good physique was sitting there.
"You're the one who requested a private meeting with me? Since time cannot be bought even with gold, sit down quickly and state your business."
Namgung Hui was also a person who found the time of a short play to be precious.
He quickly moved in the direction the merchant guild leader, Hwang Suncheol, pointed, and then cupped his fists and greeted him first.
"I am Namgung Hui, the youngest son of the Namgung family. It is an honor to meet the great merchant, the Golden Merchant Guild leader."
"I want to say that the pleasantries are enough, but since I owe you a lot, I also want to express my gratitude. Thank you for saving my son and my granddaughter."
Namgung Hui had saved Hwang Sujin several times.
From the time she was kidnapped at the Red Cliff Valley to the surprise attack of the Hoicheon Association.
Besides that, just by being with Namgung Hui, her personal safety was quite protected.
And her father, the son of the merchant guild leader, Hwang Taeseong, although Namgung Hui was not directly involved, he had helped indirectly.
Because if it weren't for Namgung Hui, it would have been difficult for the Divine Physician Sect Leader to come all the way to the Golden Merchant Guild.
"Then, since we've exchanged greetings to some extent, let's get to the main point. Why did you want to see me? If you want a reward, you can just tell that child, Sujin. As I said before, time cannot be bought with money, but my time brings me gold. In other words, it's precious."
As if he weren't a money-grubbing ghost. It seemed everything looked like money to him.
Since Namgung Hui had also roughly guessed his character, he immediately brought out the main point.
"Do you know that I am facing the Hoicheon Association and the Blood Cult?"
"Of course I know. The Blood Cult has a grudge against your family, and the Hoicheon Association is causing trouble all over the Central Plains, including our merchant guild."
"So I created an organization called the Righteous Heaven Alliance to face those two, and I requested a meeting because I also wanted to receive the help of the Golden Merchant Guild."
"In other words, you're asking our merchant guild to provide supplies?"
To be sure, looking at the entire Central Plains, there was no place with more financial power than the Golden Merchant Guild.
But what Namgung Hui wanted from the Golden Merchant Guild was not a material element.
"No. What I want is the information power of the Golden Merchant Guild. To be precise, I'd like to say it's the trend of supplies."
Hwang Suncheol's expression changed subtly.
"The trend of supplies. Do you know what that means?"
"Yes. Just by looking at the trend of supplies, one can guess how the world is flowing. What I want is to know where the Blood Cult or the Hoicheon Association is moving from and to, and when they will start a war."
Even if they were masters, they had no choice but to consume food and clothing as essentials.
On top of that, if they were preparing for a war, they had to stockpile a huge amount of those supplies.
Well-polished weapons were a matter of course, and clean drinking water and grain were also essential.
The movement of such supplies could not be hidden, no matter how hard they tried.
Unless the Blood Cult or the Hoicheon Association were farming themselves.
‘The Hoicheon Association can be supplied to some extent from the military provisions. But even that can be traced with the connections of the Golden Merchant Guild.’
The ones who received the most bribes were none other than the people of the government office.
The places where the money of the Golden Merchant Guild flowed would not only be the Hoicheon Association, but also other officials.
"You're saying something interesting. And for a child of a martial family, you also know how to use your head."
Hwang Suncheol, whose expression had softened somewhat.
He had initially found this meeting to be troublesome, but not now.
‘Sujin's marriageable age is full. If it's a child of the Namgung family, it's not a bad thing for him to be matched with Sujin. Well, the family's fame or military power can be raised quickly with our financial power. The compatibility is not bad.’
Hwang Suncheol, who was calculating on his abacus in an instant.
He had finished his various calculations without even knowing what Namgung Hui was thinking.
"Then can you grant my request?"
"Yes. Alright. I can grant that much of a request. We also need to grasp it firmly on this occasion to prepare for a war. From now on, we are in an alliance. Now, let's write the contract first."
Did he always carry a contract with him?
He took out a splendid scroll from his bosom and held it out to Namgung Hui.
Namgung Hui received it and first inserted the clause he wanted.
After that, Hwang Suncheol also specified that the Righteous Heaven Alliance would provide military power to the Golden Merchant Guild.
"The crisis I'm anticipating is a serious situation where the existence of the merchant guild is at stake. So there will be no particular need to mobilize the military power of the Righteous Heaven Alliance."
"If so, isn't it that I'm the only one who's getting information? It's a favorable condition for me, so I like it."
"Instead, it means that if our merchant guild goes bankrupt, you guys might also go bankrupt together. And since you've decided to visit once a month, that's enough."
A clause that was also satisfactory to Namgung Hui.
Since it was a distance that Namgung Hui could come and go as he pleased with his lightness skill to Hunan Province, it was not a very burdensome matter.
Now, after putting their thumbprints on the contract, they divided it.
"If you have no more favors to ask, please leave. Because I have a lot of backlogged work."
"It's not a favor, but may I ask one question?"
"Yes. Go ahead."
"The people from the Hoicheon Association will surely come. How do you plan to deal with them?"
"You. You must have heard the saying that you can even command a ghost with gold, right?"
"Yes. I've heard of it. But I haven't seen it."
"If you're lucky, you might see that rare sight. Anyway. Don't worry about our merchant guild, and take care of yourself. Then let's leave now."
At the merchant guild leader's order to leave, Namgung Hui bowed his head and came out.
Seeing him boast like that, it seemed there was really no need to worry.
‘If my worries end up being for nothing, that's a relief. Then shall I head to the next place?’
And so, Namgung Hui safely finished his schedule at the Golden Merchant Guild and left Hunan Province.
Now was the time to head to Hubei Province, to Mount Wudang.
***
"Brother. What did you talk about with Sujin so much? At first, you acted as if you didn't even see her."
"I didn't say much. I just showed her around the inside of the merchant guild."
"But why are you smiling so much? By any chance, did you talk bad about me?"
"Goodness. You've been caught. You. Were you eavesdropping on our conversation?"
Namgung Hui shook his head at Jang Hwang's silly words and walked to the front of the inn.
Now, he had passed Hunan Province and had reached Mount Jingmen in Hubei Province.
Since Mount Jingmen was also near a large river, there were many inns with delicious fish dishes.
The scenery was also indescribably good, with mountains and rivers.
‘Come to think of it, when I saved Hwang Sujin, the granddaughter of the Hyeongmun Sect was also with her.’
As fate would have it, he had also crossed the river with the Hyeongmun Escort Agency.
That fate did not break and reached all the way to the Golden Merchant Guild.
A truly coincidental fate.
Since they had asked him to visit when he was passing by, he had decided to visit if he had the time.
As Namgung Hui entered the inn, the interior was full of tourists.
"Welcome! Are you two?"
"Yes. We're not sleeping, just eating. Is there a seat?"
"If you're eating, you'll have to share a table. Is that alright?"
"Well, sharing a table is also fine, so if there's a seat, please give it to us."
"Yes! Please follow me."
For an inn crowded with people, the waiter's condition was fine.
As they say, dealing with people is the hardest.
Due to the nature of an inn where all sorts of people flock, the waiter's job could be said to be really hard.
Nevertheless, the fact that the waiter was cheerful and bright must mean that his character was good.
‘Or he's the son of the inn owner.’
Because the better the business, the more money would fall into his own hands.
And so, the seat the waiter guided them to was by the window on the second floor of the inn.
From the second floor, just getting a seat incurred an additional cost.
Although expenses were not a big problem for Namgung Hui, he was reluctant to be overcharged like this without prior notice.
So he was about to grab the waiter and say something.
A commotion occurred at the window seat.
"We're asking to share a table. Are you going to keep acting so pricey? We're even buying the meal."
A group of men were raising their voices at a group of women.
But the women also had guts and didn't care about the men's threats.
One of the women stood up from her seat and even pointed her finger and said.
"We said we don't want to. Why do you keep bothering us? No. They say even a dog isn't bothered when it's eating."
"What? A dog? Are you saying we're worse than a dog?"
"That depends on what you do. We'll see if you bother us or not."
Hiss, hiss. A young man who was snorting.
His appearance was more like a cow than a dog, but anyway, Namgung Hui felt pity every time he saw his face.
‘The individuality of his facial features is so strong. How can his eyes, nose, and mouth be so separate?’
It seemed the reason for the refusal to share a table was not the man's attitude or tone, but that face.
If one were to eat with him, one's appetite might decrease somewhat.
And so, as the group of men left for their original seats, the waiter guided Namgung Hui's party to the women's table.
"Excuse me, young ladies. These gentlemen would like to share a table. Is that alright?"
"Of course it's alright. Please sit down."
Namgung Hui thought he was done for a peaceful meal because of the sharp gazes he felt from behind.
At this moment, he had no choice but to glare at the waiter.
(End of Chapter)