Goblin Library - Chapter 173

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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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Chapter 173

Lee Gang-hun sat across from Wang Ju-myung at the Local Restaurant. Wang Ju-myung appeared to be in excellent spirits.
“Boss, you seem to be in a wonderful mood.”
At Lee Gang-hun’s words, Wang Ju-myung laughed and waved his hand.
“Don’t call me boss—call me Boss instead.”
“Haha! Of course I’ll call you Boss. That’s only natural.”
“That’s right, exactly.”
At Wang Ju-myung’s words, Lee Gang-hun smiled. Among the Chinese, the term “Boss”—meaning elder brother—was used between those with intimate connections.
Of course, Korea had similar customs, but in China the meaning ran deeper.
“I heard you were injured recently?”
As Wang Ju-myung spoke while glancing at his own abdomen, Lee Gang-hun touched his belly.
“How did you know?”
“When you’re in my position, all sorts of stories reach your ears.”
Wang Ju-myung continued with a smile.
“They said you were cut by a blade. Are you alright?”
“Since I’m sitting here before you, Boss, the wound wasn’t deep enough to be fatal.”
“Good, I’m relieved. Those people over there can be quite rough.”
“Indeed they are.”
At Lee Gang-hun’s seemingly unbothered response, Wang Ju-myung spoke.
“I hear you’re also moving product through Site 8?”
“You truly miss nothing, do you?”
“Hehehehe!”
Wang Ju-myung withdrew a piece of paper from his pocket and slid it across smoothly.
Lee Gang-hun picked up the paper and examined its contents.
A single product name was written on the paper.
“I wondered what this was about when you suggested we eat, but it seems you’ve shown me your goodwill.”
At the euphemism of “goodwill” rather than bribery, Wang Ju-myung laughed with satisfaction.
“Their sales have been cut in half, and they looked absolutely miserable.”
At Wang Ju-myung’s words, Lee Gang-hun smiled and looked at the paper. Of course sales had been halved. What was written there matched the inventory items from Osung Manufacturing—the very reason this operation had been launched.
The stockpiles that had given Osung Manufacturing such headaches had all been liquidated in this venture.
So any company selling the same product had no choice but to take a hit.
“Then we simply won’t sell this product anymore.”
“How much inventory remains?”
“Not much.”
Since Osung Manufacturing’s goods were the most abundant, we had sold them first and in the greatest quantities.
As a result, only about one truckload remained.
“Then let’s sell just that much and stop bringing in any more.”
“Understood. Then… is there anywhere else where we might need to offer more gifts in the future?”
He was asking if there were places where I wanted to sell more products. If I sold more goods, gifts would flow to Wang Ju-myung.
“Once the gifts start showing results, more will come in naturally. Until then, keep doing what you’re doing. And if there are any who don’t show appreciation even then, let me know what products they’re using.”
“Understood.”
“Well, since it’s a good day, let’s have a meal. This one’s on me.”
“The Boss is treating us? Then I’ll eat with gratitude, brother.”
“Yes, eat well.”
As Wang Ju-myung spoke and raised his hand, dishes began arriving. Local traditional fare mixed with several Chinese dishes.
Seeing the Chinese food arrive, Wang Ju-myung spoke with apparent curiosity.
“Do they serve Chinese food here?”
Lee Gang-hun smiled and shook his head.
“When I saw you before, the Boss seemed to enjoy this cuisine, so I brought it specially prepared.”
“Why go to such lengths?”
“Since you came to a local restaurant because of me, I prepared this as an apology.”
When I first met Lee Gang-hun, he wasn’t particularly famous or well-known.
But now my face had become known to the local Chinese here—especially the gangs—so I couldn’t be seen meeting with Wang Ju-myung.
That’s why we met at a local restaurant Mahmoud knew rather than a Chinese restaurant I favored.
“And…”
Lee Gang-hun gestured to Mahmoud, who was eating at a nearby table, and he brought over a shopping bag.
“Hmm? What’s this?”
“It’s neither money nor anything particularly precious.”
“Haha! Of course not. You’re just a poor peddler after all.”
At Wang Ju-myung’s words, Lee Gang-hun smiled and opened the shopping bag, pulling out what was inside.
It was a bottle of liquor.
“Alcohol?”
“You seem to enjoy strong spirits, so I prepared this. I’ve tried it myself, and… it’s potent, truly potent.”
“Oho!”
Wang Ju-myung examined the bottle with curious eyes and spoke.
“I’ve tried many local spirits in this region, but I’ve never seen this brand before.”
“Just as in China and Korea, alcohol isn’t made only in large factories. This is from a family that’s been brewing for generations. So only those who know about it buy and drink it.”
“Oho! That kind of liquor is interesting.”
“That’s why I brought it for you to try.”
“Thanks to you, I get to enjoy something fine.”
Lee Gang-hun uncapped the bottle and poured for Wang Ju-myung, who began drinking with evident pleasure.

***

Lee Gang-hun’s business proceeded in that manner. Despite facing several near-death crises, he secured inventory and expanded his client base.
And now that his client base was stably established, he had returned to Korea.
Yu Tae-poong, who had been reading a book, noticed the Shoe Goblin.
“Lee Gang-hun’s business methods and audacity are truly remarkable.”
“Well, he’s someone who ran around among armed rebels with guns.”
“But why would a salaried employee risk his life to that extent?”
I couldn’t understand how a wage earner would stake his life just to retrieve company goods or sell company products.
At Yu Tae-poong’s question, the Shoe Goblin stopped typing on the keyboard.
After thinking for a moment, I smiled and spoke.
“This fellow is just like us.”
“Us? Goblins?”
“That’s right. He enjoys this work.”
“Risking his life?”
“No, to be precise, he enjoys selling goods. He takes pleasure in selling quality products at fair prices, providing profit to both producers and buyers. That’s why he risks his life to sell. Because it’s fun.”
“Risking his life for fun….”
“That’s what makes it fun.”
The Shoe Goblin smiled and looked at Lee Gang-hun.
“When you think about it, all work is related to enjoyment.”
“Is that so?”
“Humans labor to live enjoyably. They earn money so they can do what they want and buy what they desire.”
“That’s true.”
“And not just Lee Gang-hun, but other humans also risk their lives for enjoyment. Take skydiving—they say it’s safe, but sometimes parachute failures cause fatal accidents.”
At the Shoe Goblin’s words, Lee Gang-hun nodded. It was a valid point.
As another example, motorcycles are frequently ridden by people. Even knowing that despite wearing protective gear and being careful about safety, accidents can cause serious injury, people ride them because it’s fun.
“You’re right, Shoe Goblin. All work really is related to enjoyment.”
“Exactly.”
The Shoe Goblin smiled and spoke, then began typing on the keyboard again.
“I showed you the manuscript because you said you wanted to see it quickly. When the manuscript is reorganized later, you absolutely must read it again.”
“Understood.”
Yu Tae-poong smiled and looked at the Shoe Goblin.
“By the way, is Lee Gang-hun’s company growing?”
“It will grow. Just from what he’s sold so far, it exceeds that company’s two-year revenue.”
“He really sold a lot. Since you called it peddling, I thought he was only selling small quantities continuously.”
“Several containers went out, so that goes beyond peddling level.”
At the Shoe Goblin’s words, Yu Tae-poong nodded.
“Myung-seok will be working at a good company.”
“Even though the company is small, it’s already a good one.”
The Shoe Goblin smiled and looked at Yu Tae-poong.
“By the way, what book have you been reading lately?”
“Of course, I’ve been reading your 【Lee Gang-hun】, Shoe Goblin.”
Yu Tae-poong continued, answering half in jest.
“And before that, I was reading books by Lim Sung-un and Oh Mi-hee.”
“Lim Sung-un and Oh Mi-hee… Is 【Oh Mi-hee】 entertaining?”
“It is. The stories are about food.”
“Food… that’s nice.”
Then Shoe Goblin looked at Yu Tae-poong.
“Do you know something?”
“Know what?”
“Most novels related to food are healing stories.”
Yu Tae-poong looked at him with a puzzled expression.
“Really? Why is that?”
At Yu Tae-poong’s question, Shoe Goblin raised his hand.
Whoosh!
The Oh Mi-hee book came flying over. Immediately after, the Lim Sung-un book flew over as well.
Shoe Goblin, holding both books in his hands, opened the Oh Mi-hee book and spoke.
“When you think of food, what comes to mind first?”
“I’m not sure? Delicious food?”
“Think about it for a moment. What comes to mind when you think of food? Or who is the person who has made you the most food?”
“That would be my mother.”
At Yu Tae-poong’s answer, Shoe Goblin laughed and spoke.
“Exactly. When it comes to food, there’s food you buy and food others make for you, but what stays most vividly in memory is the food your mother made. You grew up eating the food your mother prepared.”
Shoe Goblin continued, looking at the book.
“That’s why food stories often contain stories about mothers. The flavors your mother made, the aromas of the food your mother prepared… and thinking of your mother brings healing.”
“That’s true. Ah! And your palate is shaped by your mother’s cooking, isn’t it?”
“Exactly. No matter how delicious other food is, it’s different from what your mother made.”
At Shoe Goblin’s words, Yu Tae-poong nodded as if understanding.
“Right. It’s not that it lacks flavor, but that it’s different.”
“That’s it. No matter how delicious, somehow my mother’s food suits my palate better.”
“That’s literally your taste preference.”
“They say familiarity breeds comfort, but the flavor we know best is our mother’s touch.”
“But Shoe Goblin, you seem to know a lot about a mother’s touch?”
“My protagonists have mothers. And….”
Shoe Goblin smiled and spoke.
“My protagonists are the type who work hard for success.”
“That’s true.”
Shoe Goblin’s protagonists have strong desires for success, to walk better paths.
“But when those characters recall memories related to their mother’s food, they just become children again. Those ambitious ones without blood or tears become sentimental. So I looked into it a bit.”
Shoe Goblin smiled and spoke.
“As a result, I’ve ended up reading quite a few food novels.”
“I see.”
Yu Tae-poong nodded and spoke while looking at Oh Mi-hee’s book.
“But it’s not quite a healing novel yet.”
“Is that so?”
“Right now, it’s more like… a stage of discovering food, I’d say?”
Shoe Goblin gazed at the cover of Oh Mi-hee’s book before opening its pages.
“Then maybe I should read it too?”
“Gluttony Goblin would probably enjoy it.”
“But in return, he has to read my book too. Got it?”
Gluttony Goblin would have heard what Shoe Goblin was saying while looking at the book.
After all, books and their authors are connected.
As Shoe Goblin began reading, Yu Tae-poong picked up Lim Sung-un’s book that lay beside him.
He had been wondering which to read first between 【Oh Mi-hee】 and 【Lim Sung-un】, but since Shoe Goblin had taken 【Oh Mi-hee】 first, he decided to read Lim Sung-un’s book instead.
‘Where did I leave off last time?’
As Yu Tae-poong opened the book while thinking, the last section he had read appeared before him.
‘Right, it was up to the part where cousin Lee Gang-hyuk got tangled up with a femme fatale.’
Yu Tae-poong became absorbed in reading the text.
In Lim Sung-un’s book, Lee Hye-eun and Choi Tae-sik were entering the gambling den where Lee Gang-hyuk’s cousin Lee Gang-soon worked.

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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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