The Youngest Son of the Eunhae Merchant Group - Chapter 194

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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 194

Chapter 194. Imperial Silk Delivery Competition (7)

The Empress asked with a subtle smile playing at her lips.
“How did you know I would wear a red dress to the Imperial Palace event?”
I had already prepared an answer for this question as well.
“That was revealed to me just now by the Fragrant Concubine.”
While the Fragrant Concubine tilted her head in confusion, the Empress asked with an intrigued expression.
“The Fragrant Concubine told you just now?”
“Yes. Though not in words, Your Majesty. The Fragrant Concubine was clearly entranced by the silk for a moment.”
I continued.
“It meant she liked it. However, upon seeing you, Your Majesty, she refused it. She didn’t say she disliked it or that it didn’t appeal to her—she said she refused it. In other words, it meant she couldn’t choose that red silk.”
“Hmm…”
“By refusing that silk, the Fragrant Concubine wished to show her respect toward you, Your Majesty. But from that, I discerned something. Perhaps red is a color reserved exclusively for you, Your Majesty, during the grand Imperial Palace events.”
The Empress smiled warmly at my composed explanation.
“You have a keen eye.”
“It is merely a merchant’s trifling skill, Your Majesty.”

The Baekcheon Trading Company had essentially destroyed itself.
Perhaps flustered because the Eunhae Trading Company had succeeded with the same theme immediately after them, disagreements erupted among their members during the second opportunity.
Whether that was a sign of things to come, the third opportunity saw conflicts escalate beyond mere disagreements into raised voices.
Judging from the cold expressions on the Empress’s and the Concubines’ faces, their score didn’t seem promising.
The Eunuch Official spoke.
“This concludes the fourth stage of the competition. Please return to your quarters, and we shall inform you of the final competition details in the coming days.”

* * *

The representatives from seven merchant guilds departed, leaving only the judges in the competition venue.
Each of them scored the merchant guild that had selected silk for them.
The maximum score was five points, and with three opportunities per merchant guild, the highest possible total was fifteen points.
The Empress nodded as she reviewed the scores they had recorded.
It was exactly as she had anticipated.
‘The outcome is already decided. The fifth stage of the competition seems rather pointless now.’
The difference was that overwhelming.
Soon her gaze fixed on one merchant guild’s name, and her expression turned cold.
Those who had engaged in dirty dealings in a competition under her supervision could never appear favorable to her.
And the Empress had a tendency to hold grudges.

* * *

The Baekcheon Trading Company was currently staying at an inn in Beijing. To be precise, they had rented an entire inn.
As a result, the people who had originally stayed there had to hastily pack their belongings and leave as if being driven out, but the Baekcheon Trading Company paid it no mind.
For the Baekcheon Trading Company, a subsidiary of the Murim Alliance, the principle was that the powerful took precedence.
The finest room in that inn naturally belonged to Namgung Bo.
“Damn it!”
Crash—!
He violently struck the table.
The table shattered and scattered into pieces.
He had bungled the fourth stage of the competition terribly, even by his own assessment.
Yet he could not blame the managers who had accompanied him.
They were all connected to the senior figures of the Murim Alliance by bonds as strong as steel cables.
If he shifted responsibility or spoke harshly to the managers as was his nature, the senior figures connected to them would also turn their backs on him.
If that happened, the position of next leader of the Baekcheon Trading Company would slip away.
The time was not yet right.
He had to endure and wait.
But Namgung Bo needed a target for his anger, and the Eunhae Trading Company, which had humiliated the Baekcheon Trading Company, became that target.
And there was one more reason.
“Without the Eunhae Trading Company, we still have a chance.”
Though he had failed the fourth competition, his performance in the other stages had been good.
He had to win this competition without fail.
By any means necessary.
His eyes gleamed with intensity.
“Chui!”
“Yes!”
At his call, a man named Chui immediately entered his room.
And seeing the table shattered into fragments, he could tell that Namgung Bo’s mood was far from pleasant.
He had to be careful.
Otherwise, he might end up like that Dattak himself.
“You called for me?”
“What news from those we planted inside the Imperial Palace?”
“That is….”
As Namgung Bo’s face began to turn fierce, he hurriedly answered.
“All contact has been lost.”
“Lost contact?”
“Yes, I am investigating what happened.”
“I see….”
Namgung Bo instinctively realized that the Imperial Court had discovered them and eliminated his agents.
If that were the case….
“Chui.”
“Yes, speak your command.”
“I must force the Eunhae Trading Company to surrender.”
“Sir?”
“Exactly as I said. They are becoming a nuisance.”

* * *

Several days had passed since the fourth stage of the competition concluded.
After finishing my morning cultivation exercises and stepping out of my quarters, Palgap bowed his head respectfully upon seeing me.
“Happy birthday to you, young master.”
“Thank you.”
Today marked my twentieth birthday.
In other words, five years had passed since I began this new life.
It struck me anew—time truly flies.
I straightened my robes and headed to the dining hall for breakfast, as the Yeonjun Trading Company also gathered as a family for morning meals.
I heard that this was a condition my grandfather had set for my uncle when my aunt married him.
As I entered the dining hall, my uncle was already there waiting.
“Ah, did you rest well through the night?”
“Yes, and did you sleep well too?”
“I did, Uncle.”
“And congratulations. Today is your twentieth birthday, I hear?”
“Thank you.”
I bowed respectfully, and my uncle smiled warmly.
“Your aunt mentioned it. It must be a shame to spend such a precious day without your family.”
“I believe that when a merchant conducts business for the trading company, such circumstances are unavoidable. Besides, you and my aunt are family to me as well.”
“I’m glad to hear you say that.”
I meant every word.
Having visited Beijing so frequently, they had become as dear to me as my own blood family.
“Now that I think about it, the Merchant Guild seems to be flourishing more and more these days.”
“Thanks to your help back then, things have been going well ever since. We’ve even opened new trade routes this time.”
“I’m grateful.”
“It’s all thanks to you.”
“No, it’s because Uncle possesses such remarkable ability that such results are possible.”
Uncle chuckled warmly.
“You flatter me with your words. By the way, this competition is down to its final stage now, isn’t it?”
Yesterday, an Eunuch Official visited and informed me about the fifth stage of the competition.
That final competition is tomorrow.
“Yes, I’m confident you’ll perform admirably until the end. I sincerely wish for your success.”
“Thank you.”
Soon, Aunt, Seon-mi, and Seon-il Elder Brother arrived at the dining hall, and they all congratulated me on my birthday with genuine warmth.
“Seo-ho.”
“Yes, Aunt.”
“Everyone must be busy, but today marks your twentieth birthday. It would be a shame to let it pass without celebration, so I thought we might hold a banquet this evening.”
“A banquet?”
“Yes, though not an elaborate one—just us enjoying good food and merriment together.”
“But everyone must be so busy….”
“No matter how busy, we can spare that much time.”
“That’s right, Elder Brother.”
With even my cousins speaking up, I could no longer offer polite refusals.
“I’m truly grateful. I look forward to enjoying the evening banquet.”
.
.
.
I strolled leisurely through the back garden of the Yeonjun Trading Company.
Since the fourth stage test differed from my expectations, I couldn’t predict what theme the fifth stage would present.
So while I tried to rest at ease, an ominous feeling crept over me.
Something about birthdays never sits well with me.
Is it because the day I died is my birthday?
Perhaps once I finish my revenge against the Murim Alliance and Baekcheon Trading Company, things will improve.
But today, the feeling is particularly unsettling.
Just then, a servant from the Yeonjun Trading Company approached me.
“Pardon me, Small Guild Master. A letter has arrived.”
“A letter?”
“Yes, a child asked me to deliver it to you.”
At those words, I tilted my head in confusion and reached for the letter, but—
“Young Master! This is dangerous! What if poison is smeared on it?”
Palgap interjected and took the letter first.
“Huh?”
It wasn’t an incorrect assessment, but if that were truly the case, the servant who delivered the letter would hardly be unscathed.
However, since Palgap’s expression appeared grave, I refrained from objecting and waited quietly.
Palgap received the letter first, meticulously examined it for anything amiss, then handed it to me.
“But you don’t usually do this—why now?”
“Something about this letter feels ominous, sir.”
“…!”
At those words, my heart seemed to plummet within my chest.
The day I died—my thirty-ninth birthday.
I still remember the letter Jin-ho had sent me then.
A letter saying he had prepared my birthday feast and was waiting for me.
When I received that letter, Palgap had examined it first with the same meticulous care.
When I asked why, Palgap tilted his head and replied.

“The letter felt ominous, sir.”

Had I not dismissed Palgap’s words back then, would things have unfolded differently?
“Young Master? What troubles you?”
“No, it’s nothing.”
I quickly shook my head to dispel the thoughts and unfolded the letter.
“….”
Damn it.

[We have abducted Geum-suk Chief of the Eunhae Trading Company. If you wish to save her, the Small Guild Master Eun Seo-ho of the Eunhae Trading Company must come alone tonight to the location below with one thousand silver taels in actual silver—not promissory notes. Should you report this to the authorities or arrive with warriors, Geum-suk Chief and her companions will forfeit their lives.]

“Phew…”
I took several deep, measured breaths.
My mind cleared instantly.
In my previous life, I’d experienced kidnappings and extortion schemes more than once or twice.
I couldn’t afford to panic over something like this.
I immediately turned to Palgap.
“Find out where Geum-suk Chief is. Right now.”
“Yes! Understood, sir!”
I was beginning to understand why I’d felt so uneasy today, and why Palgap had been so on edge.
It was because of whoever sent this letter.
Baekcheon Trading Company.
My instincts told me so, and my reason had reached the same conclusion.
There was only one place audacious enough to target me like this.
If money were their only objective, they wouldn’t have sent a letter in this manner.
Demanding that I come alone, and that I bring a thousand silver taels directly.
These two things alone made their purpose crystal clear.
They intended to either kidnap or kill me while I was exhausted from carrying a thousand silver taels.
That much silver was quite heavy, after all.
If that happened, the Eunhae Trading Company would be eliminated from the competition.
There was no way to continue competing if the representative went missing or was murdered.
Still, their execution was remarkably sloppy.
I would never handle things this way.
Of course, I’d never resort to such crude tactics in the first place.

I returned to my quarters and was organizing my thoughts when Palgap entered and reported.
“Chief Geum-suk left this morning, it seems.”
“What about her escort?”
“She went with one of the Eun Pung-dae members, it appears.”
“She usually stays indoors….”
“It seems she went out to purchase a birthday gift for Young Master.”
“Ah….”
Hearing that she’d gone out to buy me a birthday gift made me feel even more regretful.
I never imagined she would prepare a gift, given how she always kept count of my days….
Well, that’s not the important thing right now.
Chief Geum-suk is quite a valuable talent even within our Eunhae Trading Company.
She was also a steadfast supporter of Elder Brother Eun Jung-ho.
Above all, she’s family of our Eunhae Trading Company, so of course I had to save her.
That said, I had no intention of taking a thousand silver taels as this letter demanded.
I had no intention of giving those bastards my hard-earned money, and besides, in situations like this, you’re supposed to catch them off guard.
I tapped my sleeve and called out to Geumryeong.
“Geumryeong, come here.”
“Kwui?”
“If Chief Geum-suk is being held somewhere right now, could you possibly find out where?”
At my question, Geumryeong jumped down to the floor and explained by wagging his tail back and forth.
“So you’re saying we need something that Chief Geum-suk used?”
“Kwui!”
I immediately ordered someone to bring one of Chief Geum-suk’s belongings.
“Kwui! Kwui. Kwu!”
Geumryeong said something, and even without the tail explanation, I could guess what he meant.
“You want silver taels as a service fee?”
“Kwui!”
Fine, I could afford that much.
I handed silver taels to Geumryeong, and he readily accepted and swallowed them.
Just then, Palgap brought Chief Geum-suk’s belongings.
Sniff sniff.
Geumryeong caught the scent and spun around three times on the spot.
Then he looked toward the west and bolted out.
About an hour later, Geumryeong returned and tugged at the hem of my pants.
“You want me to follow you?”
“Kwui!”
As I was about to hurry after him, I felt the gaze of someone watching me.
In that case, it would be natural to use that to my advantage.
I sent a telepathic message to Palgap, Yeo Eung-am Warrior, and Lee Pil Warrior.
To act as though I remained in my quarters.
And I slipped out through the window with only Seo-woo Warrior and Jin Yu Warrior.

After following Geumryeong for about an hour’s walk, we arrived at a quiet, dilapidated house.
Judging by the crumbling sections scattered throughout, it appeared to be an abandoned dwelling.
Through the gaps in the deteriorating walls, I could see Gold Manager and an Eun Pung-dae Warrior bound to pillars.
Thank heavens. They were still alive.
But this bastard Namgung Bo—he’s really gone too far.
Those guarding the perimeter were none other than Black Path members.
The blood relative of a merchant guild representing the Murim Alliance employing the Black Path.
So he’s willing to do such things while keeping his own hands clean to the very end.
“You all understood the plan I mentioned earlier, correct?”
“Of course.”
“Then let’s go.”
How dare he pull this on my birthday?
You’re all dead!

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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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