The Youngest Son of the Eunhae Merchant Group - Chapter 689

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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 Eun Hae Trading Company Chapter 689

Chapter 689. Cho Seol-hui (3)

A transparent orb sat atop the tea table before Geumryeong.
“What is this?”
I examined the sphere and gasped in astonishment.
Inside the orb was unmistakably the snow castle I had created with my own hands.
Since the orb was only the size of a fist, the snow castle had been miniaturized to match.
“Chirp! Chirp! Chirp!”
A gift from the Ancestor?
Knowing how much I would lament its loss, the Ancestor had preserved only the snow castle I’d built within this orb.
The Anbae spaces I typically encountered were temporary constructs that vanished once traversed.
That had always filled me with regret.
After more than ten days of labor to create that fortress, and it held such joyful memories for me.
Yet the Ancestor had done this for me.
“This must have required considerable power to accomplish….”
“Chirp! Chirp!”
Ah, because I emerged from the Anbae faster than expected, residual energy remained within it, making this possible?
I see.
Since I’d exited ahead of the Ancestor’s calculations, I felt genuinely pleased.
This orb holds deep meaning for me—should I give it a name?
Seolseong-ju. A sphere containing the snow castle.
What do you think?
“Chirp?”
Are you serious?
You’ve wounded me. You know I lack talent for naming things, yet you ask anyway?
“Chirp! Chirp!”
You suggest Hee-sang-ju instead—a sphere holding joyful memories?
“Yes, let’s go with that.”
I nodded and examined the orb more closely.
The energy emanating from within the sphere felt extraordinary… should I test it?
I activated the Taiyin Ice-Sea Divine Art and placed my hand upon the sphere.
Whoosh.
Wait?
The space around me shifted, and suddenly I stood within the snow castle I had created.
I touched the castle wall with my palm.
The cold, familiar sensation of snow.
This is truly the Snow Castle I created.
But how do I get out of here?
Hmm… Let me try leaving the castle first.
After walking a bit outside the castle, I bumped into a transparent wall.
I should try using the Taiyin Ice-Sea Divine Art like before.
Whoosh.
In that instant, I found myself back in my bridal chamber.
Wow… What is this?
So if I enter this orb, I can hide away for a while?
I’ve obtained an unexpected treasure.
Then, could Seo Hyang also enter this with me?
If so, it would be nice to ride a sleigh together inside.
.
.
.
After breakfast, I headed to my office as usual.
This was because we had scheduled a formal discussion today regarding the whetstone delivery contract that was temporarily discussed at the Imperial Palace last night.
For this purpose, the Ministry of Works Minister and other officials were set to visit our Beijing Branch.
The reason it wasn’t held at the Government Office was simple.
The operational staff of the Eun Hae Trading Company, excluding me, would face complicated procedures and delays to enter the Imperial Palace.
The same applied to the process of bringing in the sample whetstones.
Since the Government Office wanted to proceed with this matter as quickly as possible, we chose the Beijing Branch as the location.
There were no special procedures needed for officials to enter the Beijing Branch.
“Please provide materials regarding this.”
“Yes.”
“What should we do about this?”
“Ah, you can give that to me.”
While I was working diligently, Father visited my office.
“You’re working hard.”
“You arrived at just the right time.”
“As it should be.”
And those who came with Father were the Sung Deputy Manager and managers who would oversee this whetstone business.
“Huff, huff! I apologize for being late.”
And following them was Eun Jung-ho, rushing in urgently.
“It’s fine. We just arrived as well.”
The reason we gathered was to prepare in advance for today’s whetstone delivery contract discussion.
While I did secure the whetstone delivery contract, I won’t continue managing this project.
As the Lord of Hyun Pung, I handle various duties and must move about to different places.
A sort of fixer, you might say.
And Father and Eun Jung-ho would take the lead in completing and managing these acquired projects.
That’s why this negotiation also needs to be led primarily by Father, Eun Jung-ho, and Sung Deputy Manager and his team.
“These are the matters we roughly discussed yesterday. And after we discuss them in detail here today, we’ll finalize everything.”
“I see.”
Father sat before the tea table, nodding as he reviewed the materials I presented.
“You’ve done quite a neat job. Thanks to this, today’s meeting will end early.”
“Haha. Thank you for the praise.”

After lunch, as I worked and waited, officials from the Public Works Department visited the Beijing Branch.
The Ministry of Works Minister and the Public Works Department officials.
We received them with courtesy.
“Small Merchant Eun Gil-sang greets the Minister.”
“Hehe, thank you for welcoming us so warmly.”
The Ministry of Works Minister smiled and returned the greeting to Father.
“It’s a pleasure to meet you. I am So Dae-won, Minister of Works. Thank you for inviting our delegation to your esteemed company.”
“We welcome your visit. Please, let us proceed to the conference room.”
With that, we moved to the conference room.
Once everyone was seated, the handmaidens placed refreshments before each guest and withdrew.
Then one official glanced back and forth between the other officials’ pastries and his own, then asked.
“Forgive me, but why is my pastry different from the others?”
I answered.
“Ah, the pastries prepared today contain chestnuts. We made a separate batch without chestnuts for the Minister to avoid any issues, and decorated it with jujubes to mark the difference.”
“How did you know that I break out in hives when I eat chestnuts?”
“It’s because the Eun Hae Trading Company is that sincere about this matter.”
At my words, the Ministry of Works Minister laughed and spoke.
“To think you’d care for us to such an extent. I express my gratitude.”
“You’re too kind.”
This was intentionally designed to prompt such a question.
It was a message not to underestimate the Eun Hae Trading Company.
And it was also a warning that we already knew all about them in detail, so they shouldn’t think of playing tricks.
But… his reaction was somewhat different from my intention.
“Truly! This is indeed the Eun Hae Trading Company.”
“Indeed it is.”
Father looked at me and chuckled softly.
Why?
.
.
.
After the meeting ended, our family had a separate dinner.
We offered to provide dinner for the officials who attended the meeting out of courtesy, but the Ministry of Works Minister politely declined.
“I appreciate the offer, but I must respectfully decline for next time. It would be improper to receive hospitality from the contracting party before such an agreement is finalized, so I ask for your understanding.”
The Emperor is indeed quite thorough about such matters.
Especially since he personally summoned the Minister of Works and issued the command himself, there’s no way we can afford to be careless.
“But I must say, today’s experience was truly remarkable.”
At my father’s words, I could only tilt my head in confusion.
“It’s the first time I’ve ever received such treatment from a high official like the Minister of Works.”
In truth, merchants rarely received favorable treatment from imperial officials.
Disrespect was standard, and it was common for them to view us as walking purses to be shaken for coins.
But it seemed my father found it both surprising and moving that a high official of the Minister of Works’ caliber would treat us with such courtesy.
“It’s all thanks to having a good son.”
“Father?”
I questioned him in return.
“Isn’t it because our trading company’s standing has risen?”
“Our company’s standing has improved, but we’re still only seventeenth. We’re not among the top trading companies that get summoned to the Imperial Palace to dine with the Emperor.”
Ah… that’s true.
“The reason they showed us such respect was because of you, Seo-ho. Is there any official in the Imperial Palace who doesn’t know you enjoy the Emperor’s favor?”
“…There isn’t.”
Only then did I realize why the officials hadn’t reacted as I’d expected to the refreshments I’d prepared to convey that Eun Hae Trading Company shouldn’t be underestimated.
And why my father had laughed.
That was it.
Their courtesy wasn’t due to anything else—it was because of me.
Moreover, since the Emperor himself had issued the command directly, there was no way they could handle it carelessly.
Suddenly, I felt a small sense of accomplishment at having become the Emperor’s faithful servant.
Every time I face the Emperor, it feels like my lifespan shortens by years, but I suppose there are advantages to it as well.
.
.
.
Two days later.
My father was busily occupied with the whetstone delivery arrangements, while Elder Brother Eun Jung-ho headed to the stone quarry in Shandong Jinan with the Sung Deputy Manager and officials from the Government Office.
An on-site inspection was necessary, and since it was for delivery to the Imperial Palace, security arrangements for the quarry also had to be established.
Yeon Ju-hyuk handed me some documents and spoke.
“The outside grows increasingly hot, yet strangely, it’s not so warm here.”
I nodded and offered an explanation.
“That’s likely due to my martial arts. As you know, my technique carries the nature of yin energy.”
Since it’s publicly known that I’ve mastered the Heavenly Stream Technique, there’s no problem explaining such matters.
“Now that I think about it, Gwak Vice-Manager also learned the Heavenly Stream Technique, didn’t she?”
“Yes, that’s correct.”
“That explains it! With both of you practicing the Heavenly Stream Technique, this space remains cool. Everyone outside is suffering from the sudden heat.”
At times like this, a cool drink would certainly lift one’s spirits.
I rose from my seat and called out to Palgap.
“Palgap!”
“Yes! You called for me?”
“I need your help with something.”
“Just tell me what you need, and I’ll do it.”
Reliable as always.
I had him bring large earthenware jars from the kitchen and cleaned them thoroughly.
Then I had him cut seasonal fruits into small pieces and place them inside.
“Now pour honey into them, and add boiled water.”
“Understood.”
Thanks to the servants and handmaidens who saw me working with several large jars and volunteered to help, the work finished quickly.
Once we finished pouring the boiled water into those massive jars, it was my turn.
Using the Ice Martial Sect technique to chill the water inside the jars.
Crack, crack.
Soon the honey water inside the jars became cold enough to form a thin layer of ice, and a refreshing fruit punch was complete.
“Now, send people to each department and have them take one jar each.”
“Understood!”
I took a separate bowl of the refreshing fruit punch and went to find Father.
“Father.”
“Yes, what is it?”
“I brought you some fruit punch.”
“Fruit punch?”
Father looked at the fruit punch I brought and wore a slightly surprised expression.
“My, you’ve used so much of this precious ice!”
I smiled and shook my head.
“Don’t worry. I didn’t buy the ice with expensive money.”
Ice was quite expensive during these summer months.
Even the Imperial Palace and high-ranking officials capable of ice harvesting used it sparingly.
“Then how did you obtain the ice?”
“Isn’t your son’s martial art the Ice Martial Sect?”
“Ah… that’s right.”
Father chuckled.
“Thanks to my talented son, I can enjoy refreshing fruit punch on this hot summer!”
Father lifted the bowl of fruit punch and drank it all in one go, then smiled contentedly.
“This really cools you down wonderfully.”
I’m sure it does.
Since I froze the ice with my own inner energy, it would be even more refreshing.
And with the detoxifying and purifying properties, it would feel even more pleasant.
After giving Father the fruit punch, I returned to my office, where I could see people enjoying the fruit punch and looking refreshed.
They noticed me and expressed their gratitude.
This is a small but not insignificant sense of accomplishment.
Then Palgap approached me.
“Master, Gwak Myeong-hyeon has arrived.”
“Ah! He has?”
I had sensed he would arrive soon, and finally he’s here.

I immediately made my way to the Guest Reception Room.
Before Master lay the fruit punch bowl I had prepared earlier.
“Your disciple greets you, Master.”
“It’s good to see you. It’s been a while.”
“Yes.”
I nodded in response.
“How was the taste of the fruit punch?”
“It was wonderfully refreshing. I could sense the Small Merchant Guild Leader’s achievement in it.”
Master truly is remarkable.
He had discerned that the ice was something I had frozen myself.
I sat before him and withdrew the Cho Seol-hui martial manual from my sleeve, placing it upon the table.
“This is the Cho Seol-hui I discovered this time.”
“I see.”
Master spoke calmly, yet his hand trembled as it reached toward the manual.
Tap.
When his hand touched the Cho Seol-hui, he bit his lip—as if restraining tears.
“When I was young, I first encountered martial arts through this very Cho Seol-hui. Perhaps that’s why old memories keep surfacing.”
Master lifted his gaze to look at me.
“In truth, you should have been introduced to martial arts through this Cho Seol-hui as well… but it is not too late even now. As you can see, this is not something to be understood easily.”
“That’s true. I experienced that myself.”
“Starting tomorrow, I shall teach you this Cho Seol-hui.”
At those words, I could only scratch my cheek awkwardly.
“Master… the truth is, I’ve already mastered it.”
“Already? You’ve already learned it?”
“The Ancestor’s guidance remained within this Cho Seol-hui as well.”
“In this martial manual?”
“Yes.”
I nodded and recounted to Master what I had heard from the Ancestor.
“He said he had left his guidance within this Cho Seol-hui.”
“I see. You must have worked hard.”
“Not at all.”
I shook my head.
“The hard part was simply enjoying myself thoroughly. And I came to realize that this joy forms the foundation of Seolpung Palace martial arts.”
“You’ve learned well indeed. Then, I shall take this with me.”
“Of course.”
“And I shall return here tomorrow morning.”
“Pardon?”
Master smiled at my questioning response and spoke.
“You must continue your training.”
“….”

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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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