An Advertising Genius Falls into the Joseon Era - Chapter 59

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Episode 59
Near Yongdang Port, outside a certain cave.
“Follow me this way.”
Following Gyuchul’s lead, Song Do-hyeon stepped into the depths of the cave. From the damp stone walls and pools of water gathered on the floor, a foul, musty stench rose in steady waves.
The cave was far deeper and more labyrinthine than he’d anticipated.
The winding passages twisted like a vast maze, with branching paths appearing at every turn.
After walking for roughly thirty minutes.
A cavernous clearing, broad as a training ground, revealed itself in the heart of the cave.
…….
Song Do-hyeon’s eyes narrowed as he surveyed the space.
The clearing was heaped with countless objects piled like mountains.
Bolts of silk and precious ceramics.
Glittering gold and silver trinkets and jewelry.
Even wooden chests stamped with merchant guild marks.
No one could mistake this for wealth accumulated by honest means.
It was stolen goods.
Then it happened.
Whoosh.
Torches suddenly blazed to life, and nearly twenty figures emerged from the darkness.
“So, Huksabang sent you?”
One of them—a thickly bearded man—stepped toward Song Do-hyeon.
“Your proof?”
“My proof?”
“You ought to have proof that you’ve come from Huksabang.”
He spoke in a low, measured tone.
Behind him, the other men fingered weapons—the sharp metallic scrape of steel audible in the silence.
“If by any chance you’re impersonating Huksabang, don’t expect to walk away from this unscathed.”
…….
Song Do-hyeon looked around without speaking.
Though surrounded by nearly twenty men, he showed not the slightest sign of concern.
Instead, a faint smile played at the corners of his mouth.
Not long ago, Ha-yun had faced a blade without flinching, her composure unshaken to the end.
Compared to that, this situation was trivial.
As the silence stretched, one of the subordinates, unable to bear it any longer, thrust a cudgel forward.
“You there—our leader’s speaking. Answer him, won’t you?”
…….
Song Do-hyeon regarded him for a moment without blinking.
Then his gaze swept the room again.
The atmosphere was menacing enough that it seemed they might bring their clubs down at any second.
Soft.
Song Do-hyeon’s hand moved at last.
He drew something slowly from his sleeve.
It was a Letter of Credential.
Click.
Hwang Jang-eok, the leader of the Yongdang Gang, gestured with his chin, and Gyuchul handed him the letter.
“Hmm.”
After examining the letter, Hwang Jang-eok nodded.
“Indeed, it is genuine—sent by Huksabang.”
With that, all suspicion was resolved.
Song Do-hyeon had come as a proxy for Wi So-gang.
The letter bore the date of an upcoming transaction and noted that Song Do-hyeon would be overseeing it.
Yet doubt had not entirely vanished.
“Still…”
Hwang Jang-eok studied Song Do-hyeon intently.
The presence he emanated was no less formidable than that of any seasoned criminal.
His build was neither particularly large nor especially muscular.
But his stance and movement were devoid of wasted motion, every gesture marked by precision and control.
Such a man was born to wield a blade.
Indeed, even now, Song Do-hyeon’s frame radiated a chill so palpable it seemed to fill the air.
The atmosphere was so cold and sharp that one could imagine him drawing a sword and cutting down men without hesitation.
Yet something felt off.
He was far too polished to belong to the underworld.
He existed in some in-between space.
Like someone lingering at a threshold, caught between two worlds.
Had he always been this way?
Or had something changed him, left its mark?
His blade’s edge carried a dullness she could sense.
Hwang Jang-eok studied Song Do-hyeon for a moment, then spoke.
“I’ve never heard of a Joseon man like you in Huksabang.”
Song Do-hyeon answered curtly.
“There’s nothing to know.”
“What?”
Hwang Jang-eok’s brows twitched.
Song Do-hyeon pressed on, relaying Wi So-gang’s words without hesitation.
“In five days, a ship will depart from Yongdang Port.”
……
“By then, have the promised goods ready.”
The air inside the cave turned suddenly chill.
At Song Do-hyeon’s tone—as if he were addressing subordinates—the Yongdang Gang erupted.
“This arrogant…!”
“Hey, watch your tongue.”
“Where did you learn manners like that?”
But Song Do-hyeon remained unmoved.
He simply continued delivering Wi So-gang’s message.
“If you break your promise, Huksabang will do business with the Saam Gang instead.”
The moment those words left his mouth, the Yongdang Gang’s fury exploded.
“You bastard!”
“Are you crazy, begging for death?”
“Do you know where you are right now?”
“You don’t expect to walk out of here on two legs, do you?”
The enraged gang members gripped their weapons, ready to strike at any moment.
……
Yet Song Do-hyeon showed no reaction whatsoever.
Whether they drew their blades or hurled curses, his bearing suggested he welcomed either.
From the moment he accepted this task, he had steeled himself for exactly such a scene. Without that resolve, he never would have come here in the first place.
Hwang Jang-eok let out a low hum.
He had watched Song Do-hyeon carefully, then raised a hand. He understood perfectly that threats meant nothing to a man like this.
“Stand down.”
“But brother…!”
“I said stand down.”
“Yes, understood.”
At Hwang Jang-eok’s command, his subordinates lowered their weapons in unison. Yet their fury had not diminished.
Hwang Jang-eok resumed speaking.
“We’ll have the goods ready by the fifth day, one way or another.”
Song Do-hyeon nodded curtly.
“Five days.”
And he drove the point home once more.
“Five days hence, on the New Moon, come to the appointed place.”
With that, Song Do-hyeon turned to leave.
He walked out of the cave with a steady gait.
Once Song Do-hyeon vanished, the gang members began raging again.
“That disrespectful bastard!”
“Brother, just give the word!”
“Let me drag him out and feed him to the fish right now!”
Hwang Jang-eok shook his head.
Laying hands on Song Do-hyeon now would only invite Huksabang’s displeasure.
Instead, he called out to someone else.
“Gyuchul.”
“Yes, brother?”
Gyuchul, who had taken a beating from Song Do-hyeon that day, stepped forward quickly.
Hwang Jang-eok spoke quietly.
“Look into that man’s background for me.”
Hwang Jang-eok murmured, watching Song Do-hyeon’s retreating figure fade into the distance.
“Where he lives, what he does, his family connections.”
He paused, then continued.
“What he eats, who he meets, who he favors—I want to know everything, down to the smallest detail.”
“I shall not disappoint you, sir.”
Gyuchul bowed deeply.
Thinking of the humiliation he’d endured today, this was exactly what he desired.
If he could only take revenge on that arrogant bastard, he’d do far worse than this.
At the thought of tracking Song Do-hyeon’s movements, Gyuchul’s lips curved upward of their own accord.
***
Before the front gate of a nobleman’s residence.
The tall, imposing gate spoke of the power held within.
Black tiles were layered across the roof, and the long walls stretching left and right seemed to have no end.
At a glance, it was no ordinary yangban household.
It was the residence of an influential family whose name everyone knew.
“…….”
Song Do-hyeon stood before it.
He paced back and forth in front of the gate for a long while, his expression troubled.
He stepped away, then approached again; he raised his hand to knock, then lowered it—this repeated several times over.
As though there were an invisible line before him that he could not cross.
After hesitating for so long, Song Do-hyeon finally grasped the door handle.
And knocked three times.
Knock-knock-knock.
After a moment.
The door opened, and a servant poked his head out.
He wore the irritated expression of one disturbed by an unexpected visitor at this early hour.
But seeing Song Do-hyeon’s neat appearance, he quickly softened his tone.
“…And who might you be?”
“I’ve come to see Jeong Ik-hyeon.”
“The master, sir?”
The servant looked Song Do-hyeon up and down.
His dress was immaculate.
Yet it was a face the servant had never seen before.
Or rather, it seemed oddly familiar from somewhere….
“He is in, as it happens… but whom shall I say is calling?”
The servant asked with formal courtesy.
After a brief silence, Song Do-hyeon spoke.
“Tell him a branch cast out ten years ago has returned to the house.”
“Pardon? A branch? What do you mean?”
The servant tilted his head in confusion.
“He will understand.”
“…Very well, I understand.”
When the character for “house” and the character for “tree” are joined, they form the character for “Song.”
The servant did not grasp the meaning.
But sensing an unusual gravity about Song Do-hyeon, the servant hurried inside.
After a moment.
The servant who returned was utterly changed. He spoke with the utmost deference.
“He bids you enter the inner quarters.”
Song Do-hyeon nodded silently.
Then he strode inside with long, deliberate steps—as though he knew the way.
“I have brought the guest.”
Upon entering the inner quarters, an elderly man stood with his back turned.
He carried an air of uncommon dignity.
Yet even as his visitor arrived, he did not turn around.
“I shall take my leave now.”
The servant, reading Jeong Ik-hyeon’s mood, quickly withdrew.
“…….”
Then silence settled between them.
No one spoke first.
Then Song Do-hyeon bowed at the waist.
“Have you been well all this time?”
Song Do-hyeon’s voice, which had always maintained an icy composure in any circumstance and place, was trembling. Looking closer, even the tips of his fingers shook faintly.
After a moment, Song Do-hyeon lifted his head and spoke.
“Father.”

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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