Heaven-Defying Hero - Chapter 31

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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#031

“I’ll ask the Lord and contact you.”

The story about Dokjamo was so famous that even Cheon-gu had heard of it.

Not only the color of her palm but also the wheelchair carrying her son was famous, leaving no room for doubt.

“I’ll wait at Hangagaekjan over there. Please contact me.”

She kindly bowed her head in greeting and went to Hangagaekjan, the largest inn at the port.

“Who is that woman?”

Ja-gang-cheon had been by Cheon-gu’s side since the conversation began.

“If I’m right, she’s a female master with the alias Dokjamo. I don’t know more details.”

Cheon-gu had only heard rumors too.

“It seems she came for medicine. What’s going on?”

“Well, we’ll find out when we meet her.”

“You’re going to meet her right away?”

Ja-gang-cheon thought for a moment and shook his head.

“She’s no ordinary master. I need to find out about that woman first.”

Cheon-gu expressed his question ‘How?’ with his expression.

“Look over there. They seem more surprised than us, don’t they?”

Several men who had confirmed Dokjamo Song Ja-in entering Hangagaekjan hurriedly ran somewhere.

“You’re going to ask Hao-mun?”

“Yes.”

Ja-gang-cheon followed them along with Cheon-gu.

***

Hao-mun Shandong Branch Cheon-o Dan-ju Yeon-hee.

She was responsible for one of the five secretly operated Shandong Province branches.

Her original position was in Hwangdo.

But now she spent much more time in Jiao-nan.

-I would like to move the Cheon-o branch to Jiao-nan.

She had even sent such a request, and approval was expected to come down soon.

Since Hao-mun prioritized profit and survival over history anyway, there was no problem moving to a better place as long as the reason was valid.

Moreover, the current black market in Jiao-nan was a branch that generated profits ranking among the best not only in Shandong Province but nationwide.

‘It means I can do whatever I want.’

Hao-mun operated thoroughly based on performance.

At this rate, the next Shandong Branch Leader position would likely be hers. It meant becoming the number one person in Shandong Province.

The existing Shandong Branch Leader was actively supporting Yeon-hee since the structure was to move up to Haojungmunhoe, the core of headquarters.

“Dan-ju. Here are last month’s profit ledgers.”

A bright smile spread across her face as she checked the ledgers she had been waiting for.

It was a sincere smile without any pretense. She had many reasons to smile like this lately.

‘Today will be another good day like yesterday,’ she was thinking when,

“Dan-ju. Deungmyeong Jangju has come to see you.”

“What? That guy came here directly?”

“Yes. He just entered our market. What should we do?”

Her good mood instantly sank.

“Escort him to Yeon-ok-jeon and prepare everything properly.”

“Yes, Dan-ju.”

Yeon-hee let out a long breath, then began arranging her hair and choosing her clothes.

For her, this was battle preparation.

At the same time.

“Wow. It’s changed this much.”

Ja-gang-cheon was genuinely surprised.

This wasn’t the black market where people covered their mouths and bargained in dark alleys.

The residential areas spread on both sides of the alley had their walls torn down so the interiors were clearly visible. Naturally, all the houses were connected in a long line, with goods neatly arranged in the courtyards for viewing.

The shacks and huts that symbolized the slums had transformed into excellent shops.

Moreover, the Ha-o-mun-do standing in each alley would personally guide customers to the relevant places when they mentioned what they wanted. Their behavior was as kind as servants in giru, naturally making customers open their purses.

“I guess we sold it too cheaply.”

“Right. I knew it was doing well, but I didn’t know it would be to this extent.”

The most surprising thing was the goods they handled.

Just because it was a black market didn’t mean it only had dangerous items. Rather, such items were extremely few.

Then what kind of goods were in the black market?

“Are there this many smuggled goods?”

Eighty percent of black market goods were smuggled items.

“It’s not just goods that came in without permits that are smuggled.”

“Then?”

“Things that exceed permits. For example, that ginseng you see has a set annual quota from the imperial palace. But anything exceeding that comes to black markets like this. And that silk is the opposite. It’s sold here when they can no longer export due to exceeding quotas.”

Cheon-gu knew well about how black markets operated. Even the Ha-o-mun-do guiding them nodded in agreement.

But this wasn’t the end.

“And there’s one more crucial difference. It’s top-quality goods.”

“What do you mean by that?”

“It’s like this. In official trade, goods scoring 8 points or higher out of 10 are traded. And 9-point items are treated as luxury goods and traded separately. But 10-point items aren’t sold in such trades. They can’t get high prices compared to their rarity.”

“Ah. So bargaining is free here.”

“Right. That’s why there’s even a saying to look for precious items in black markets. And people looking for such items aren’t ordinary people.”

They could immediately understand why Hao-mun was so obsessed with black markets. Not only money but connections were built too.

“This way.”

They were guided to a fairly decent wooden house for a slum area.

It stood out in the slums but was average level for a regular market. But when they crossed the narrow courtyard and opened the shabby wooden door, a completely different scene unfolded.

Blue carpet and red cloth hanging from the ceiling harmonized, and luxurious white tea sets were placed on marble tables. A woman in elegant sky-blue clothes greeted them.

Lips curved like a crescent moon.

Eyes half-closed and enchanting.

Everyone held their breath and focused on each step she took.

In the illusion of entering a different space, Ja-gang-cheon said.

“Sister. Why are you opening your eyes like that?”

Yeon-hee flinched.

“You’ve become extravagant after making money. You should save to live well. You need to know money is scary.”

These were words Cheon-gu had once said to Ja-gang-cheon.

From Yeon-hee’s perspective, hearing those words from Ja-gang-cheon was most unpleasant.

“Well, how someone spends their own money is their freedom.”

Ja-gang-cheon took a seat in the chair placed next to the marble table.

“Are you going to keep standing?”

Yeon-hee, suppressing her surging emotions, sat across from him. Finally, when Cheon-gu also sat in a chair, someone poured tea for them.

“Oh? It’s that woman.”

It was the woman who had been watching Ja-gang-cheon and fled on the day he first met Yeon-hee.

Now she wasn’t wearing a mask and black clothes but feminine red silk clothing.

The impression was completely different from the first time, but Ja-gang-cheon remembered her without forgetting.

“You’re surprisingly still alive. I guess they don’t give you death missions anymore.”

“I was never given such missions.”

Her stiff tone didn’t match the clothes she wore today.

“You’re still doing it now though.”

“What are you talking about?”

“If someone who was watching me comes this close, I think I could kill them and have nothing to answer for. Don’t you think?”

“That’s speculation!”

When the woman finally flared up, Ja-gang-cheon moved his hand.

Rip!

As the woman’s clothes around her waist area tore, the atmosphere inside changed. The Ha-o-mun-do who had been holding back drew their weapons, and the woman glared at Ja-gang-cheon while covering the torn area with her hand.

But at the sound that followed, everyone swallowed hard.

Clang.

A small blade and torn fabric fell simultaneously from Ja-gang-cheon’s hand.

“Th-that’s…”

“Stop!”

Yeon-hee stopped the subordinate’s excuse.

“You must know it wasn’t intended to harm the Lord.”

Looking at where the weapon was hidden, it was quite an inconvenient place to draw from. If an ambush had been planned, it would have been placed in a more accessible spot.

“Removing danger in advance is my choice.”

“Then did you expect us not to do at least this much when you came to our branch? Our Hao-mun prepares for all situations. If you don’t like it, don’t come barging in like this and send an invitation instead. Then I’ll come to the manor myself.”

In front of her subordinates, she was quite a tough person.

Seeing her clearly show her willingness to resort to a show of force, Cheon-gu stepped in to mediate.

“We’re the guests here. Since we came without notice, I think we should understand this much.”

“Is that so?”

“Instead, when Hao-mun people come to our manor, they’ll receive the same treatment.”

A smile appeared on Ja-gang-cheon’s lips.

He had seen Yeon-hee’s eyebrows twitch.

“As you said, next time I’ll invite you to the manor.”

“By all means.”

In the end, Yeon-hee had made an uncomfortable promise. She found Cheon-gu, who stabbed from the side, more annoying than Ja-gang-cheon.

“Now then, would you please tell me the reason you came to see me?”

“I came to give you information.”

“What information?”

“The Poison Widow Song Ja-in has come to Jiao-nan!”

He raised his voice in an exaggerated manner, but no one reacted.

“Do you think we wouldn’t know that?”

“I came as soon as I saw her face, but you already noticed?”

“We have our people at the port too. Surely you won’t say this is also wrong?”

“Then do you also know this? Song Ja-in came to see me.”

Yeon-hee paused for a moment. This meant she didn’t know this information. Of course, with so many people having heard it, she would find out soon, but not right now.

“Do you want to know about Song Ja-in?”

“That’s right.”

“If you also tell me what you talked about when you met Song Ja-in, then I’ll tell you too.”

She was offering to give current information in exchange for future information.

“I’ll tell you why she came. Nothing more than that. Anyway, I’m not asking you to tell me any great secrets either.”

“There might be great secrets.”

“If there are, I’ll hear them myself when needed.”

“Fine. Then I’ll give you only as much information as you’ve paid for.”

Information naturally has different values.

Yeon-hee balanced an imaginary scale and organized what she would tell him.

“The Poison Widow Song Ja-in. She’s a master from Guangdong Province. There are rumors that she’s an executive from the mysterious organization Dogok, but that’s not confirmed fact. She’s evaluated as the best in poison arts in the current martial arts world.”

Her characteristic purple palms were traces of her poison arts.

“Her love story with the physician called the best in Sichuan is very famous. The old bachelor physician saved her when she was dying from qi deviation, and eventually they married. But the marriage ended in tragedy. He succeeded in saving his wife, but the husband died from poisoning. And that tragedy continued to her son. He’s barely surviving with the medical texts his father left behind, but the son is also in great danger.”

Yeon-hee continued her explanation briefly but with focus.

“Unlike her circumstances, her methods are very cruel. She never spares any enemy. She’s the strongest mother in the world, but also the most ruthless master. The nickname Poison Widow was created that way.”

The information she provided ended there, and Ja-gang-cheon was satisfied with this much.

“Hmm. You’re quite a convenient person, aren’t you?”

“What do you mean?”

For her, this was an evaluation she was hearing for the first time in her life.

“If I had looked into it myself, it would have taken at least a day or two. Coming to you, it was finished in just a moment.”

“That’s the value of Hao-mun.”

Ja-gang-cheon nodded as if acknowledging it.

“I’ll come visit often from now on.”

“Next time, please contact me before coming. It was too sudden, so my preparations were inadequate.”

“You’re right, it was a bit inadequate.”

“Which part was inadequate?”

When Yeon-hee asked indignantly, Ja-gang-cheon stood up from his seat and said.

“The wrinkles around your eyes. You couldn’t hide them all today.”

Ja-gang-cheon grinned and Cheon-gu let out a snicker as they left the place.

Watching them leave, Yeon-hee gradually clenched her fists and began trembling all over.

Then she irritably slammed the table and shouted.

“Bring me alcohol!”

The fire rising from within was too intense to be soothed with tea.

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