The Youngest Son of the Eunhae Merchant Group - Chapter 524

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

The Youngest Son of the Eun Hae Trading Company Chapter 524

Chapter 524. Facing Each Other Again (5)

The Chuk Yung Palace Lord nodded at my words.
“You speak truly. The dethronement of the Lesser Palace Mistress has not yet been officially announced. And if that fool had approached the Black Path in a fit of rage, would they have launched an attack so swiftly?”
The Palace Lord’s reasoning was sound.
His words meant they had been preparing to assault Chuk Yung Palace at any moment.
Upon learning of Maengxian Prince’s dethronement, they had moved quickly to capitalize on it.
Which meant someone had informed them of this matter.
“In your estimation, who do you believe it to be?”
I had my suspicions.
But the Palace Lord would surely know the internal affairs of Chuk Yung Palace far better than I.
“Why do you ask me such a thing? Would you not know better than anyone, my lord?”
“…Indeed. It is rather absurd to inquire of an outsider about the Main Palace’s affairs.”
After a moment of contemplation, the Palace Lord looked up toward Hae Dal-man, the External Chief Manager.
“Immediately arrest all those who serve in Hyun-i’s quarters.”
“I obey your command.”
I then asked him a question.
“Do you suspect there is a rat among those who serve in Maengxian Prince’s quarters?”
“None of my children are permitted personal guards. Should they wish to venture outside, they must request a personal escort, and I am always informed. Yet I received no such report.”
“Then he left in secret, without an escort.”
“Precisely. For that to be possible, there must be a rat among those serving in Hyun-i’s quarters.”
“But what of Hae Hong?”
“Ah, I briefly considered that possibility, but it cannot be him. The Hae External Chief Manager would surely have noticed. He appears indifferent, but he is quite strict in his children’s upbringing.”
“I see.”
“And most decisively, that one is currently under forced seclusion as punishment for his recent transgressions.”
Ah… then it is not him.
Yet something troubles me.
When I examined the quarters before, I detected no one bearing the aura of the Black Path.
“…!”
A single thought suddenly struck me.
“Is it possible someone in Maengxian Prince’s quarters left for several days and only returned yesterday evening?”
The Palace Lord turned to look behind him.
A man who appeared to be the Internal Chief Manager answered immediately.
“There is one called Ok Gun. He left temporarily due to family matters and returned yesterday evening.”
At this answer, the Palace Lord nodded.

What followed was swift and decisive.
We immediately apprehended everyone in the Maengxian Prince’s quarters and began interrogation.
The most crucial figure among them was a man named Ok Gun.
“When the First Young Master awakens, he will confess everything. If you voluntarily admit your crimes before then, we may show some leniency.”
“….”
“However, if you remain silent until then, you will face most brutal punishment.”

The Chuyong Palace’s punishments were indeed cruel.
And knowing this well, Ok Gun ultimately confessed.
“In truth, I seduced the Young Master. My father had accumulated a massive debt to an organization called Heuk Ryeon Bang….”
From his lips came the name of the place I had already anticipated.
Heuk Ryeon Bang.
They operated brazenly throughout the Yunnan Region, a most vicious organization.
They obtained income through cunning methods and used it to create the Extreme Martial Enlightenment Pill.
Their goal was the Black Lotus Realm.
They called themselves descendants of the Black Lotus, an organization with a quasi-religious element.
They referred to the Extreme Martial Enlightenment Pill as the Black Lotus’s Compassion.
Compassion my foot.
In any case, their end was not a good one.
In this life, their mistake was touching the Maengxian Prince and the Chuyong Palace.
The Palace Master deposed his son from the position of Lesser Palace Mistress for the future of the Chuyong Palace.
However, that did not mean he did not love his son.
Honestly, though he troubled me and brought shame upon the Chuyong Palace, it was not a crime worthy of death.
But seducing that son into consuming the Extreme Martial Enlightenment Pill and turning him into a cripple—that was another matter entirely.
And since the Chuyong Palace was more sincere in vengeance than any other, the Palace Master would surely exact his price.

The next day,
the Palace Master immediately summoned all the senior officials.
And at that gathering, he declared war against Heuk Ryeon Bang.
Though it was called war, it was essentially a subjugation.
Because of this, the negotiations were postponed, and so I remained at the Chuyong Palace a while longer.

After seeing off the Palace Master and the disciples as they set out toward Heuk Ryeon Bang, I returned to my quarters in the Guest Hall.
Then I wrote a letter to my Master.
Events had unfolded so chaotically that I hadn’t yet had the chance to report to my Master everything I had discovered.
An ordinary person couldn’t send letters from this place, but I had Geum-ryeong.
“Geum-ryeong.”
“Chirp!”
“Deliver this to my Master.”
“Chirp!”
Geum-ryeong quickly extended its tail. It was clear the creature took earning money seriously.
Geum-ryeong immediately fastened the letter to its tail and bolted away like an arrow.
Watching Geum-ryeong disappear into a distant speck in the blink of an eye, a thought suddenly occurred to me.
Could my Master truly keep pace with that speed?
I certainly couldn’t.
Just then, Palgap entered and spoke.
“Young Master, there’s… something.”
Palgap seemed to hesitate slightly. What was it?
“What’s the matter?”
“Someone has come from the quarters of Maengxian Prince. He’s asking to meet with you, Young Master.”
Palgap clearly didn’t approve of me meeting with him.
“You’d rather I didn’t meet with Maengxian Prince?”
“He tried to humiliate you before, and this time he tried to kill you. On top of that, you were injured from fighting him…”
“The thing is, I’m the most petty person in the world.”
At my words, Palgap let out a soft laugh.
“Do you truly mean that, sir? In all my years, I’ve never met anyone who claims to be petty and actually is.”
“It’s just a figure of speech.”
I continued.
“But a merchant must be able to smile and face yesterday’s enemy as though they were friends today. Besides, he’s hardly an irreconcilable foe.”
“Well, that’s true enough.”
An irreconcilable foe—one with whom the sky itself cannot be shared.
It’s a phrase from the Rites of Zhou, meaning an enemy so bitter that one cannot live under the same heaven.
For me, such enemies are the Baekcheon Trading Company and the Murim Alliance.
But lately, the Baekcheon Trading Company has been quiet, hasn’t it?
I told Palgap.
“So don’t worry about it.”

I rose from my seat and stepped outside. The person waiting there quickly bowed their head.
“I heard you were looking for me. Shall we go?”
“Yes, thank you for honoring the Young Master’s request.”
A short while later,
I arrived at the Maengxian Prince’s quarters.
He sat in a place with a fine view, sipping tea.
As the one who had drawn the Black Path into the Chuk Yong Palace, he deserved execution, yet he had managed to preserve his life.
It was because he had been manipulated through a man named Ok Gun.
Besides, he was also the son of the Chuhyung Palace Lord. Is this why one must be born with a silver spoon in their mouth?
However, due to the side effects of the Extreme Martial Reversal Pill, all the meridians in his body had been severed, his qi and blood twisted, and even his dantian shattered.
Fortunately, he could still manage to walk and bathe, but….
His teeth had loosened considerably, so he could only eat soft foods or porridge.
Given his ruined condition, he likely wouldn’t live much longer.
The hollow pallor of his complexion and the darkened skin around his eyes proved it.
“I heard you called for me.”
“Ah! Please, come in.”
He greeted me.
“I should rise and bow properly, but as you can see, I’m unable to do so. I ask for your understanding.”
“I wouldn’t expect it.”
I said so and sat before him.
“So, what did you wish to tell me that you asked to see me?”
At my question, he bit his lip, then opened his mouth after a moment.
“How did things come to this?”
That was what I wanted to ask.
In my previous life, I had become the Palace Master of Chuk Yong Palace, and though I had ruined it, I still lived commanding respect in Yunnan.
But now he had been stripped of his position as Lesser Palace Mistress and had become a cripple, his once-promising talent rendered meaningless.
“With my body like this, my thoughts have only multiplied.”
“….”
“And reflecting on myself, I realized that all of this began with me. I pursued the Lesser Palace Mistress one-sidedly, bound by the laws of the Northern Sea Ice Palace, and disregarded those laws….”
“Don’t you remember insulting the disciples of the Northern Sea Ice Palace?”
“Me? I’ve never done such a thing.”
“Back then, you clearly said, ‘Just because we’re not officially married doesn’t mean I don’t know if she rolls around with other men when her heart desires. Do you think I’m ignorant?'”
“Ugh!”
From his reaction, it seemed he was only now remembering it.
I told you.
That I have an exceptional memory. And that I’m petty and hold grudges.
So where’s the denial coming from?
“Th-that was truly regrettable.”
He apologized, looking embarrassed.
“It’s fortunate only I heard it. If Bing Haerin, Young Palace Master, had heard that, all hell would have broken loose.”
“…I am truly sorry.”
Well, my apologies to the Northern Sea Ice Palace should suffice at this point. What I need to hear is something else.
“You have wronged me as well, have you not?”
“For that too, I am deeply sorry.”
“But there are others to whom you owe far greater apologies than to me or the Northern Sea Ice Palace.”
At my words, he sighed and nodded his head.
“I know. I have committed an unforgivable filial impiety toward Father and Mother.”
“You may not realize it, but the Palace Master is currently leading his disciples toward the Heuk Ryeon Bang, using the Young Master as a means to do so.”
“….”
“Surely you do not think he does this merely to wash away the humiliation suffered by Chuk Yong Palace?”
“Is it for my sake?”
“What other reason could there possibly be?”
“I have been a truly pathetic son.”
“You are only now realizing this?”
I offered him no comfort. Comfort is something only those deserving of it should receive.
In my eyes, he was not worthy of such comfort.
He must clearly regret and reflect upon what he himself has done.
I cannot ease his guilt with hollow consolation.
“People walk down the wrong path in but a moment of carelessness. It happens when one fails to suppress an emotion or cannot control their hot-blooded nature.”
I continued speaking to him.
“I do not know what conclusion you have reached, but from what I have observed, the Young Master’s hot-blooded nature is excessive. That is both the cause and reason for this entire affair.”
“….”
At my words, he could only sigh heavily.
“You strike only at the painful spots.”
“That is my specialty.”
“Yet paradoxically, because of it, my heart finds peace. How contradictory.”
He smiled bitterly.
Gone was the stubbornness and hot-blooded nature I had seen in him before.
Did he now understand that displaying such temperament was futile?
Or perhaps he realized that indulging in such stubbornness and passion only brought pain to his own body.
When one lets their hot-blooded nature rise, the fire qi that emerges would touch the blood vessels, causing excruciating pain.
So he should have restrained his temperament long ago.
Now he was forced into a state where he could not display his hot-blooded nature at all.
“The reason I asked to meet with you, Lesser Palace Mistress, was not only to apologize, but also to make a request.”
“A request, you say?”
“Please convince my younger brother, Cheon-i.”
“Convince him of what?”
“Father will make Cheon-i the Lesser Palace Mistress. From what I can see, if that boy becomes Palace Master, he will do an excellent job. I am certain of it.”
He continued.
“Because I saw the qualities of a Palace Master in him, I tormented him whenever the opportunity arose. Yet he never even tattled on me to Father.”
“….”
“He simply hides away in the Archives to avoid me.”
So that’s why the Maengcheon Scholar was in the Archives.
“Now that I think about it, I was truly petty. I shouldn’t have acted that way… but without realizing it, I felt a sense of crisis.”
“….”
“But earlier, when Cheon-i came to visit me, he said something. He said he has no intention of becoming the Lesser Palace Mistress.”
He continued.
“Please, I beg you to persuade him to accept the position of Lesser Palace Mistress. This is the only atonement I can offer.”

I returned to the Guest Hall and wandered the courtyard, muttering to myself.
How could he make such a request of me! It was truly underhanded.
If only he had continued to be hot-headed or looked down on me as before, my heart wouldn’t feel this conflicted.
But he had approached me with genuine courtesy.
Moreover, in my previous life, it was indeed thanks to the Maengcheon Scholar that our Eunhae Trading Company was able to grow.
Just as I do not forget grudges, I do not forget kindness either.
And the Maengcheon Scholar I know is a man of broad vision. In other words, he possessed the qualities of a true leader.
And when he makes a decision, he is absolutely resolute.
If such a man were to become the Palace Master of Chuyong Palace, it would be as though I had planted an ally here.
The Murim Alliance would no longer be able to run rampant in this Yunnan Region.
And I could receive help in times of difficulty.
Yunnan is a remote region, but as a major production area for copper, it is a place of great importance.
In my previous life, when problems arose due to the Heuk Ryeon Bang, the supply of copper became difficult for a time, and we suffered greatly.
Our Eunhae Trading Company likewise manufactures various goods through copper, so this place must remain at peace.
In any case, there is only one conclusion.
I must persuade the Maengcheon Scholar.

I headed straight for the Archives.
Since I hadn’t yet returned my access pass to the Archives, I could enter without any restrictions.
I soon spotted the Maengcheon Scholar reading through documents.
“So you were here.”
“Ah! Young Palace Master of Eun Hae.”
“May I have a word with you for a moment?”
At my words, he regarded me intently before speaking.
“It seems you’ve come at your elder brother’s request to persuade me.”
“You’re quite perceptive.”
“I’ve always been quick to read situations since childhood. And I have no intention of becoming Lesser Palace Mistress at my elder brother’s behest.”
He let out a soft laugh.
What? Could he actually laugh like that?
But my thoughts scattered far away at his next words.
“Why should I grant the wishes of the man who killed my brother?”

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