Chapter 65
“Damn it! That again.”
“Oh my!? Sister Jeong-ran, what’s wrong with her?”
“Is it the first or second time? She confronts the Triad guys like that every day, I wonder if she won’t get into trouble.”
“I’d do the same if I were her. She was betrayed, lost Cheong-a-ru, and even got into debt. Anyone would do that if their successful life fell into the abyss overnight.”
The people who were rolling the dice with So-ah murmured as they watched the commotion in the corner.
‘That woman named Yuk Jeong-ran… she seems to have a lot of stories.’
So-ah’s gaze was fixed on Yuk Jeong-ran, who was in a scuffle with the burly men.
Yuk Jeong-ran!
A woman who looked to be in her early thirties.
When he had gathered information from Chief Jang, he had thought she would be a very luxurious and corrupt person, but when he actually saw her, she was the owner of a rather refined appearance.
“I’m sorry, but it’s a freebie. Let’s roll again next time, haha.”
So-ah threw a handful of freebies to the people and stood up.
The people were disappointed, but since the freebies were not just a penny or two, and they had no confidence in winning even if they continued to roll the dice, they thought it was a windfall.
“Ahem. Let’s do that.”
“Young master! Are we rolling all night next time?”
So-ah, leaving them behind, strode towards the place where the commotion had occurred.
“Hey! If you keep doing this, you’re banned from the Hall of Joy. Got it?”
“Just give me some alcohol! You bad guys. I’m a customer here too.”
“You bitch! Do you know how much your debt is to our association, including the outstanding balance?”
As it turned out, a problem with the alcohol bill seemed to have arisen between Yuk Jeong-ran and the manager of the Hall of Joy.
So-ah approached them.
“How much is it?”
So-ah asked the burly man who seemed to be the manager.
“Who are you?”
The burly man spoke in a blunt tone, and Yuk Jeong-ran glanced at So-ah with a subtle gaze.
“A passing traveler.”
“You look like a dandy who’s here for the first time. Do you think this crazy bitch will give you a turn just because of that? Not a chance.”
The burly man made rude remarks.
So-ah frowned and spat out in an angry voice.
“Hey. Don’t you just have to receive the money? What does it matter to you whether I spend the money or not?”
At that, the burly man’s expression crumpled.
Money?
Good.
Who doesn’t like money?
But the man was just a middle manager.
Even if the sales of the Hall of Joy went up, the money that fell to him was a pittance, so he had no intention of doing business while being insulted by a young brat.
“Hey! Young friend. Behave yourself. Do you know who I am?”
“You’re talking nonsense, really.”
“What?”
“If you’re a gangster, just take the money like a gangster. Don’t try to save your useless pride.”
“You bastard!”
At So-ah’s provocation, the man threw a punch as big as a cauldron lid.
But,
Grab!
“Uwaaak!”
As So-ah quickly grabbed the punch and pressed it gently, the man let out a groan as if he was in pain.
Murmur, murmur—
In an instant, everyone in the Hall of Joy moved their gaze to So-ah.
As befitting a gambling den, there was always a commotion, but at least there was no one with the guts to get into a scuffle with a Triad manager, so it was natural for them to pay attention.
“Young master… you…”
Yuk Jeong-ran’s voice trembled.
A man she had never seen before.
Of course, there were countless men who had shown her kindness.
But seeing So-ah’s upright eyes, which seemed completely out of place in a gambling den, a complex and subtle emotion spread.
“I won’t say it twice. How much is it?”
The burly man, in an instant, realized that So-ah was a martial artist.
No matter how much of a gangster he was, he couldn’t face a martial artist alone.
So, he had no choice but to back down.
“Ugh… 500 silver taels…”
For a moment, So-ah’s eyes widened.
‘Crazy! How much alcohol did she drink to owe 500 silver taels? Does that even make sense?’
He had wanted to splurge on money he didn’t have, just once.
So, he had boasted loudly.
But at the unexpected amount, So-ah gave up on the calculation.
“Hmm. I see. Anyway, apologize to this young lady. Hurry up.”
“Yes?!”
A question appeared in the burly man’s eyes.
He had asked how much it was, but then he had completely omitted the talk of money and was talking nonsense, so he couldn’t help but be bewildered.
But So-ah, unable to readily give out a large sum of money equivalent to one gold ingot, seemed to have decided to put on a bold face and once again boldly omitted the matter of ‘money’ and opened his mouth.
“If you don’t apologize, I’ll pull out your fingers so you can’t use chopsticks for the rest of your life.”
“Hee… heek! I understand. Young Lady Yuk. I’m sorry. I apologize for today’s incident.”
Only then did So-ah slowly release his hand and say to Yuk Jeong-ran.
“Young lady.”
“…Yes?”
“Can I talk to you for a moment?”
It didn’t seem like he was hitting on her.
If he went out on the street right now, young and beautiful women would line up, so why would he hit on her?
With that thought, Yuk Jeong-ran hesitated for a moment, then nodded.
“Alright.”
***
‘500 silver taels? Is she a woman possessed by a ghost who died from drinking? Really!’
So-ah was still thinking about that.
It was the moment he understood Chief Jang’s words that Yuk Jeong-ran’s luxury was severe.
‘She probably drank only Geumjoncheong day and night. And her gambling debts must have piled up.’
But it didn’t matter.
The important thing was how to win over Yuk Jeong-ran.
So-ah found a small stall in front of a nearby port with Yuk Jeong-ran.
“Grandma. Give me a bottle of Baekgeon-a and a stir-fried vegetable dish.”
“Alright, wait a moment.”
It was a place he sometimes visited with his junior sister and junior brother.
Although it was a shabby street stall run by an old woman, it was a tavern where the atmosphere became mellow as you exchanged a drink or two while looking at the scenery of the pier under the night sky.
“It’s a really pretty place. I’ve lived in Liaoning for a long time, but I’ve never been here.”
Yuk Jeong-ran said.
She had followed So-ah without a word and had not yet asked any questions.
Who are you, why did you help me, do you have any ulterior motives?
Although she could have asked, for some reason, seeing So-ah’s innocent eyes, such thoughts faintly scattered.
“It’s a place I visit often. It can’t be compared to the Geumjoncheong and delicacies you usually drink, but sometimes a glass of cheap alcohol like Baekgeon-a tastes better, right?”
“That’s right. I actually like this kind of thing more.”
A little later…
The owner, an old woman, brought a steaming stir-fried vegetable dish and a bottle of Baekgeon-a.
So-ah poured a drink for Yuk Jeong-ran.
“Have a drink.”
“You too, young master!”
After drinking a glass like that, So-ah opened his mouth softly.
“Young Lady Yuk. I’d like to hear your story.”
“Huhu. It’s not a very pleasant story, is that okay?”
“Of course.”
“I lived for 10 years looking at one person. He was a Confucian scholar, and he was so poor that he couldn’t even study because of his many siblings and old mother.”
“…”
“I truly loved him. So, I got a job as a musician at a brothel and saved money diligently, and I helped him in every way so that he could focus on his studies. As I lived like that, I gained the recognition of those around me and saved a lot of money. I also started a business, and he passed the state examination and became the magistrate of Tieling.”
‘Hmm… up to here, it’s a beautiful story.’
While So-ah was having that thought, Yuk Jeong-ran let out a deep sigh and continued to speak.
“But it was a futile effort. He only saw me as a source of money. In the end, he met a woman from a great family and got married.”
“What a bad guy.”
“No. Even then, I could understand. It’s greedy for a person of a humble status who runs a brothel to become the partner of a magistrate. But that wasn’t the end.”
“Yes?”
“He trampled on me because he was afraid I would become a stumbling block in his life. Through the Triad.”
Just by hearing it, his anger boiled.
But So-ah continued to listen to her words.
“One day, gangsters came to the Cheong-a-ru that I was running. They got drunk, beat up the employees, and started to destroy the brothel. I was so angry that I grabbed them by the scruff of the neck, and using that as an excuse, they lay down in the clinic, and that brat! The one who had become the magistrate, Ga Yeong-deuk, came with them, arrested me, and threw me in jail. Because of that, I sold the Cheong-a-ru that I had worked hard for 10 years to build, and the money was extorted as a settlement.”
It was a truly unbelievable story.
But that was not the end.
Yuk Jeong-ran continued to tell her story. After that, the Triad, through underhanded means, made her take out a high-interest loan, and at the same time, spread false rumors that she was a woman crazy about luxury and alcohol, and completely destroyed her character so that she could no longer enter the entertainment world.
‘If Young Lady Yuk hadn’t been a famous person with a wide network and potential, they would have surely killed her without anyone knowing.’
So-ah’s guess was correct.
Even if she was rotten, she was still a big shot. If Yuk Jeong-ran hadn’t been a famous businesswoman in the entertainment world, they would have committed murder and gotten away with it.
“Thank you for telling me your painful past.”
“It’s strange. I don’t usually say such things. But seeing your upright eyes and jade-like face, I found myself talking without realizing it. For some reason, it feels like you’re a completely different being from the people here. You know, that kind of thing. A person who, when you meet them, you just know they’re a benefactor. You’re that kind of person.”
‘The beginning is good!’
So-ah shouted with joy at Yuk Jeong-ran’s words.
Now, the time had come to once again display that ‘passionate acting’ divine art that he had displayed at the North Sea Ice Palace.
“Young Lady Yuk.”
“Yes, young master?”
“I will be honest with you.”
“…”
“I intend to use you.”
***
He had thrown the gauntlet.
How would the opponent react?
In the moment when his heart was pounding,
“Is there any use for a toothless tiger like me?”
“Of course.”
“You’re a fun person. Usually, when you’re trying to recruit someone, you don’t use the expression ‘I want to use you’.”
“If it were a general recruitment, that would be the case. But I didn’t approach you with that purpose. Literally, I intend to use you.”
“How rude.”
“No.”
“…”
“It’s not rude at all. Why? Because I will pay you a sufficient price for it.”
So-ah asked solemnly with eyes filled with a blazing light.
“Young Lady Yuk. Do you happen to know who I am?”
“I don’t.”
“I am Jin So-ah, the great disciple of the great Moyong Family, and the current chief instructor of the Martial Alliance’s White Martial Academy, holding the position of a first-class official of the Martial Alliance.”
“Gasp…!”
Jin So-ah!
Even if So-ah was not a martial artist, he was not one of the ten great masters of the unorthodox and orthodox paths, or the most famous person whose name everyone would know just by hearing it.
But at least in the land of Liaoning, the home of the Moyong Family, there was no one who had not heard his name.
In particular, the incident where he had beaten the once-in-a-century prodigy of the Namgung Family, Namgung Mun, to a pulp in one blow had spread far and wide in the market, and even the gangsters respected So-ah.
So, it was natural for Yuk Jeong-ran to be surprised.
Because she had a small sense of awe at the thought of when she would ever be able to meet the great young master of the Moyong Family, who was just a businesswoman.
“From now on, the Moyong Family will take over the entertainment world of Liaoning. Of course, the Triad and the corrupt officials who protect them will also be completely wiped out.”
“Young master…”
“Also!”
“…”
“Your ruined life. I will find it for you again.”
Yuk Jeong-ran’s slender body trembled, unable to overcome her emotions.
“So, you should also try to use me, Young Lady.”