The Youngest Son of the Eunhae Merchant Group - Chapter 137

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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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The Youngest Son of the Eunhae Trading Company Chapter 137

Chapter 137. As You Sow, So Shall You Reap (7)

He exhaled slowly and nodded his head.
“I’ll accept the proposal.”
“You’ve made a wise decision.”
I withdrew another document from my sleeve and presented it to him.
“What is this?”
“A document regarding compensation.”
“…?”
“You must compensate the Mi Gwa Merchant Guild for the damages caused by your actions as Merchant Leader.”
“Ah….”
The compensation did not include provisions for Haeng-su and the workers who nearly died because of the Namho Merchant Leader.
They worked for the Mi Gwa Merchant Guild, which offered good welfare, and their misfortune stemmed from his greed.
Saving their lives from death was compensation enough.
As the saying goes: as you sow, so shall you reap.
Since he caused financial harm, he must repay it in kind.
“But the compensation is thirty percent of net profits?”
“Yes.”
“Then… the company will only have forty percent left?”
“That’s correct.”
“You’re being too harsh!”
“Would you prefer I revoke your position instead?”
.
.
.
That evening.
I returned to the Mi Gwa Merchant Guild Office.
I informed my Paternal Uncle and Ji-seo Elder Brother about my visit to the Namho Trading Company today.
“We’ve reached an agreement with the Namho Trading Company. Both merchant guilds have decided to withdraw from the price competition.”
“What?”
My Paternal Uncle questioned my words.
“What do you mean? Withdraw from the price competition?”
“Exactly as I said. We’re withdrawing from the price competition, and both merchant guilds will resume receiving the original medicinal herb prices.”
“But why stop here?”
My Paternal Uncle nodded at Ji-seo Elder Brother’s words.
“That’s right, just as Ji-seo says—why stop now? A little more and we could bring down the Namho Trading Company entirely.”
I regarded my Paternal Uncle quietly.
“Then our Mi Gwa Merchant Guild could become Guizhou’s premier medicinal herb broker. So why are you kicking away such an opportunity?”
At those words, I found myself at a loss for words.
Ah, this Paternal Uncle of mine.
How he never fails to match my predictions.
I felt vindicated in having struck a secret accord with the Namho Trading Company.
“Paternal Uncle.”
My voice carried an unusual weight, and my uncle tensed as he looked at me.
“Did I ever promise to destroy the Namho Trading Company for you?”
“….”
“I said I would save the Mi Gwa Merchant Guild—I never said I would destroy the Namho Trading Company.”
“….”
“Isn’t that so?”
“Y-yes, that’s right.”
“It was this Mi Gwa Merchant Guild that was on the brink of ruin. Now that the situation has reversed, you want me to throw everything into an all-or-nothing assault?”
Ji-seo Elder Brother shook his head firmly.
“Still, I cannot accept this situation. If we just push a little harder, we can finish them off, can’t we?”
“And then?”
“As the Small Merchant Guild Leader of this company, I demand that you relinquish the position of Acting Merchant Leader to me.”
At those words, Jin-ho, sitting beside me, bristled.
“What? After Seo-ho has run back and forth all this time just to barely reverse the situation!”
“This is an opportunity to grow the Mi Gwa Merchant Guild further—and you want to throw it away? Then you’re unfit to be Acting Merchant Leader!”
Ah, this brother of mine.
How he too never strays from my expectations.
I had seen it coming from the moment my Paternal Uncle entrusted me with the Acting Merchant Leader position, saying he had nothing to do and would spend his time reading in his quarters.
The saying that a man changes when he enters and exits the privy isn’t wrong after all.
But I had anticipated this much, so it was manageable.
People say humans cannot be remolded, but I, Eun Seo-ho, am proof that it is possible.
And does Ji-seo Elder Brother realize?
That his words just now have made me resolve to execute a plan I had been considering.
I had hesitated somewhat, but that hesitation has now vanished.
I extended my arm to calm Jin-ho.
“Brother, sit down.”
“But….”
“It’s fine. Sit down.”
Jin-ho sensed something in my voice and obediently returned to his seat.
Yet his brow remained furrowed, clearly displeased.
I turned to Ji-seo Elder Brother.
“Is it the position of Acting Merchant Leader that tempts you? Or was it always the position of Merchant Leader itself?”
“Well, of course….”
“It seems you’ve taken a fancy to the position of Merchant Leader. Yet your Paternal Uncle is still alive and well.”
At those words, Ji-seo Elder Brother panicked and hastily waved his hands.
“No, no, that’s not what I meant….”
“Yes, I understand. You mean you don’t trust me.”
“Yes, that’s it.”
“But here’s the thing. This reversed situation is a result I created because you don’t trust me.”
“…Ahem.”
Ji-seo Elder Brother continued speaking.
“We know you’ve suffered greatly. So we’ll express our gratitude separately, and from now on, we’ll handle things ourselves….”
“So you’re telling me to back off now? But it hasn’t even been half a year yet, and it was Ji-seo Elder Brother, the Small Merchant Guild Leader of Mi Gwa Merchant Guild, who first proposed terminating this contract. So this is at Mi Gwa Merchant Guild’s request.”
I continued speaking.
“In such cases, Mi Gwa Merchant Guild should compensate for those losses. Isn’t that right?”
I smiled as I spoke.
“If Mi Gwa Merchant Guild compensates for the money invested so far, I will withdraw immediately and return to the Eunhae Trading Company.”
At my words, my Paternal Uncle and Ji-seo Elder Brother’s eyes widened.
“Truly?”
“Yes.”
I rose from my seat.
I approached the wooden table, picked up a brush, and wrote the contents I had prepared beforehand on paper.
Then I placed it on the table.
I had hoped never to write this contract.
“You need only affix your seal here.”
The two men read the contract I presented.
The contract contained nothing particularly special.
It stated that Eun Jo-san and Eun Ji-seo of Mi Gwa Merchant Guild had requested that Eun Seo-ho step down from his position as acting Merchant Leader, and that in return, Mi Gwa Merchant Guild would compensate for all the funds the Eunhae Trading Company had expended thus far.
“If you provide just the amount invested, I will immediately step down from my acting position, and this Merchant Leader position will return to your Paternal Uncle.”
“….”
“And the credit for reviving this merchant company will also go to your Paternal Uncle.”
At my words, my Paternal Uncle nodded.
“I understand. I’ll affix my seal to this contract and reclaim my position as Merchant Leader.”
“Father! Wait, just a moment….”
Before Ji-seo Elder Brother could even stop him, my Paternal Uncle unhesitatingly affixed his seal to the contract.
Watching this, I became certain.
Even if my Paternal Uncle hadn’t taken his own life in my previous existence, Mi Gwa Merchant Guild would have collapsed anyway.
In any case, things were proceeding exactly according to my plan.
Whoosh.
I quickly retrieved the contract and spoke.
“But Paternal Uncle, why didn’t you ask the most important question?”
“The most important question?”
“Shouldn’t you have first asked how much has been invested so far?”
Only then did my Paternal Uncle realize something had gone terribly wrong, his face draining of all color.
Ji-seo Elder Brother exhaled a long sigh.
I smiled faintly and withdrew a ledger from my pocket, placing it on the wooden table.
“This is the money invested in the Mi Gwa Merchant Guild up to now.”
At my words, my Paternal Uncle and Ji-seo Elder Brother hurriedly seized it and began examining the figures.
I suppressed an inward laugh—my uncle’s pupils were trembling uncontrollably.
“This much… has been poured in?”
“Yes.”
I nodded.
“If you doubt it, you’re welcome to verify the accounts yourself.”
My Paternal Uncle wouldn’t have known the amount. After all, I had deliberately kept it from him.
Had he possessed even a shred of sound judgment, he would have either asked me to disclose it or conducted his own audit.
Sigh.
No matter how I looked at it, the situation was hopeless.
Now I understood why Grandfather would sigh whenever my Paternal Uncle’s name came up.
It wasn’t merely a matter of pride—Grandfather had clearly grasped these deeper flaws as well.
Ji-seo Elder Brother was marginally better, but demanding I surrender the acting Merchant Leader position showed he was cut from the same cloth.
“So then, do you have the funds to repay this investment?”
My Paternal Uncle answered in a strangled voice.
“Once the guild begins turning profits, we’ll repay whatever amount, bit by bit…”
“How long must I wait? The deficit is already this severe.”
“…”
“And the contract stipulates payment by the end of this month. How do you intend to fulfill that obligation?”
Ji-seo Elder Brother glared at me.
“You deceived us!”
Jin-ho Elder Brother, standing beside me, spoke up.
“Deceived? Who deceived whom? Seo-ho spoke only truth, yet you signed the agreement with a smug grin, blinded by pride.”
“Tch!”
My Paternal Uncle ground his teeth.
“So from the beginning, you accepted the Merchant Leader position with this scheme in mind?”
“No.”
“Don’t lie to me!”
“I truly had no such intention—not until Ji-seo Elder Brother demanded I step down from the acting position. I simply planned to restore this guild diligently and depart cleanly after six months with a polite farewell.”
At my words, my Paternal Uncle’s gaze shifted to Ji-seo Elder Brother, who fell silent like a fool with honey in his mouth.
“Why do you think I mentioned six months? Because that’s how long it takes to revive this guild.”
“…”
“If it takes me six months, do you truly believe that you two, who brought the guild to this state, could restore it swiftly?”
“…”
“To put it bluntly, the capital invested thus far far exceeds the guild’s current value.”
“Regardless, how could it possibly exceed…”
“Then, what value does a merchant guild have if it’s nothing but a hollow shell burdened with debt and filled with deficits in the ledgers?”
My words caused both men’s heads to droop lower and lower.
Confronted with the harsh reality my words laid bare, both men were forced to face the truth.
“The price at which we sell medicinal herbs is lower than the price at which we purchase them. That means we’ve been operating at a continuous loss.”
“If you’re thinking that after I step down from my position as acting Merchant Leader, you’ll destroy the Namho Trading Company through low-price policies and then raise prices—I’m telling you seriously, you’ll truly collapse.”
Because now the Eunhae Trading Company stands behind the Namho Trading Company.

* * *

Eun Jo-san felt as though ice water had been poured over him.
Coming to his senses, he realized he had just committed an utterly absurd and catastrophic blunder.
In the end, his pride had ensnared him once again.
As Eun Seo-ho had said, he should have sacrificed his smaller pride for his greater one.
Eun Jo-san turned his head to look at his own son.
The Small Merchant Guild Leader, Eun Ji-seo.
To be honest, when his son had demanded that Eun Seo-ho step down from his position as acting Merchant Leader, his heart had felt relieved.
It was exactly what he himself wanted to say.
Just a little more pressure and they could become the foremost medicinal herb broker in Guizhou—how could they stop here?
He hadn’t wanted to miss this opportunity.
But now he resented his own son for voicing those words.
Had he not spoken them, the situation would never have escalated to this point.
Yet what was done was done.
So he considered what to do next.
His plan had been to push further, destroy the Namho Trading Company entirely, and then demand higher prices for medicinal herbs.
But somehow, as if Eun Seo-ho had read his mind, he had spoken.
That doing so would truly lead to ruin.

Before returning to the Eunhae Trading Company, his Uncle—who had advised him to humble his pride—had spoken to him gravely.

“It’s not easy to say such things, but you are my nephew after all, so I must.”
“What is it?”
“You lack the qualities of a Merchant Leader.”
“Pardon?”
“Why don’t you join the Eunhae Trading Company instead? I can arrange a good position for you.”
“What do you mean by that?”
“If things continue as they are, eventually this merchant guild will fall into someone else’s hands.”

But he didn’t even listen to his Uncle’s proposal—he was actually angry about it.
He hadn’t even seen off his Uncle, who had rushed about for five years on behalf of the Mi Gwa Merchant Guild.
Now, for some reason, his Uncle’s words kept circling through his mind.
Looking at Eun Seo-ho, I began to understand why my Uncle had said I lacked the qualities of a Merchant Leader.
‘The qualities of a Merchant Leader—perhaps that’s what he meant, seeing someone like this.’
Eun Seo-ho asked again.
“So, how do you intend to provide this money?”
“….”
I felt utterly helpless.
There was no source from which money could come.
Only then did Eun Jo-san recall that the company had already been running at a deficit even before Eun Seo-ho became acting Merchant Leader.
I had deceived myself into thinking the Mi Gwa Merchant Guild had returned to its former normal state.
My mouth had gone completely dry.
“Could you… postpone this for just a few days?”
At Eun Ji-seo’s words, Eun Seo-ho spoke firmly.
“If you say such things, you shouldn’t have signed the contract in the first place.”
“Did I sign it? Father signed it.”
“Your name is also on the contract.”
“Tch!”
Then suddenly Eun Seo-ho’s expression softened.
“However, the debtor in this matter is the Mi Gwa Merchant Guild.”
“Does that mean if my son and I step down from our positions as Merchant Leader and Small Merchant Guild Leader, our debt disappears?”
“Exactly. If you hand over the Mi Gwa Merchant Guild, I will consider this debt settled.”
In the end, it had happened exactly as my Uncle had said—the company would fall into someone else’s hands.

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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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