Chapter 21
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“We have to deal with the Hangzhou Sa-seon.”
At the words of Baek Chang-seong, the owner of the Hangho Kisaeng house, the other three said at the same time.
“Who doesn’t know about that? So, how are you going to deal with it?”
“I found out that martial arts are also extremely strong! Why do you think the nickname is Hangzhou Sa-seon!”
“We are doing this because there is no way! A way!”
Ha Chang-woo, Byeok Do-gae, and Sang Baek-choong were running a successful Kisaeng house in Hangzhou just like Baek Chang-seong.
No, instead, the past tense ‘ran’ has to be used.
Since the day the Wolha Kisaeng house received the Sagi wine, sales began to drop gradually, and now it has fallen below 50% of their heyday.
The only customers who come now are the ones who either don’t know the taste of alcohol or the people who had no choice but to come when the Sagi wine ran out at the Wolha Kisaeng house.
If only it goes on like this for half a year more, then, they will have to shut the doors.
It was because of their desperation that they’re gathered in one place, who used to growl like cats and dogs.
“Where there is life there is hope. About a month ago, I found a good investor.”
The three of them knew Baek Chang-seong at first glance.
“Is it that Geisha?”
“She’s not just a Geisha. She’s a heroine rumored to be the best in Jiangxi province.”
“She’s the Geisha when it comes to heroine. I heard that she was given 30% of shares…. some also say it’s dirt-cheap.”
Baek Chang-seong whose face was about to turn red let out a deep sigh.
“Would you have wanted to hand over the stake to me at that price? And to be honest, if you guys turn over the Kisaeng house, do you have the confidence that you’ll receive money as much as I receive?”
The reason none of them replied was that the value of the Kisaeng house has dropped more than it was three months ago.
“All this is because of those Hangzhou Sa-seon guys.”
It all ends with the Hangzhou Sa-seon.
“But, why is it that Geisha?” Asked Byeok Do-gae.
“Today Se-hwa came to see me this afternoon. I mean, there is a nice way. Se-hwa also used a huge sum of money and took over the stake. But, how long has it been since the sales didn’t rise? She said she has the confidence to turn it into a well-running Kisaeng house than before with her ability, but it’s like she’s been completely defeated by the Sagi wine.”
“Don’t talk lengthy, instead tell me what’s that nice way?”
“It’s better that you listen to it yourself. Come in!”
The door opened and a woman entered.
It is one of the five great Kisaeng houses of Hangzhou, no matter how inclined the three of them of the Hangho Kisaeng house were. If the stake of such a large Kisaeng house is 30%, the money that goes into it is not little. So, they thought the Geisha called Se-hwa was of course a scarlet woman in her old age…
The woman who entered only looked like she was twenty-four or twenty-five.
They’re professionals.
No matter how much they cover their faces with makeup, the fine wrinkles around their eyes couldn’t escape their sharp gazes. But, Se-hwa was actually that age and was even beautiful.
“I’m Se-hwa.”
The voice was great too.
Se-hwa asked if she could sit down even though there was an empty chair in front of the round table, and she sat down only after she got permission.
She was a woman who showed restrained manners rather than the slavishness of a Geisha.
‘They say she’s the best in Jiangxi province, so she’s worth it.’
It was the common thought of the three of them.
“Tell them about your plans.”
She nodded and began to speak softly.
“What a great plan has this humble girl got in her mind… I thought what would it be like to let it loose rationally. ”
“Rationally?”
“That’s right.”
At Se-hwa’s obvious reply, Baek Chang-seong asked frowning.
“In this case, if you’re being rational, does it mean you’re talking about brewing a better alcoholic beverage than the Sagi wine?”
“That’s not being rational, but it’s impossible. I too have had many drinks but Sagi wine was so delicious that I wondered if it was seriously human-made. The taste was so good that the nickname I think was given for them wasn’t too much.”
“Then what’s the rationalism that you said about?”
“The rationalism I’m talking about is a little more radical than that.”
Four of their focus was on Se-hwa.
“The world is eventually dominated by the powerful, isn’t it? If the power of the Sa-seon is pretty much stronger, then we can impose a stronger force than that.”
Anyone can have thoughts about suppressing force by force.
However, it was rare to see people who think it’s reasonable. It can be said that she is a woman who’s got a quite specific spiritual world.
“It’s not that we haven’t thought about it, but since we couldn’t find a suitable person….”
“I know someone.”
“Are you sure of him?”
“By any chance, have you heard of the three wicked ones of Jiangxi?”
The shoulders of those who were listening trembled.
“Not only the bandits who stood in their way because they tried to rob them, but also all the ninety-eight bandits who were followed up to their dents were massacred by the….”
“It’s not just that. They destroyed the entire family of Tae Seong-mun, the owner of the horse carriage, because it splashed water on their clothes and he did not apologize, right? Tae Seong-mun was nevertheless a Munpa that did quite well in Jiangxi.”
“What about those three wicked ones of Jiangxi now?”
Se-hwa laughed. There was no candlelight inside the room, but it seemed to be brightly lit.”
“We are trying to hire them.”
“Sorry? The three wicked ones of Jiangxi? Is that possible? According to the rumors, I heard that they were not people who seemed to make a movement with money?”
“Brewing a liquor better than Sagi wine is impossible, but hiring the three wicked ones of Jiangxi is possible. I have that kind of a talent. But….”
The ‘but’ at the end made the four of them anxious.
“But what?”
“In the end, money is the problem”
Money is needed to even use a waiter who serves food, and the cost of hiring the three wicked ones of Jiangxi cannot be free of charge.
“How much is it?”
“Wouldn’t it be five hundred silver taels?”
“Five-…. Five hundred silver taels?”
“Per head.”
Since it’s three people it will cost one thousand and five hundred silver taels.
It was a big lump of money two years ago, now it’s a huge amount of money that’s making their heart tremble.
“Is it not possible to just get down one of them?” Asked Sang Baek-choong cautiously.
If it’s for the three wicked ones of Jiangxi, even one of them seemed to be enough as much as the Hangzhou Sa-seon.
“They never make a movement alone.”
“But still…. one thousand and five hundred silver taels is too much. Can you not cut it down a little?”
“They are not mackerel that you buy from the market. Think about it and make a decision.”
Se-hwa stood up and walked across the room.
As she moved away, it felt like a golden opportunity was disappearing.
“Wait a minute!”
Sang Baek-choong who stopped Se-hwa first said the three of them.
“If we stay like this, it’s only a matter of time before we could be damned. Wouldn’t it come back to fifteen thousand silver taels or more in the future if we solve it with one thousand and five hundred silver taels now?”
They couldn’t give up on the future because the money right now would be wasted.
“Alright. Let’s use the three wicked ones of Jiangxi. But, you must make sure of something. ”
Ha Chang-woo’s voice continued to be firm.
“You must never kill them.”
“There could even be mishaps that’ll occur if you do the work….” Said Se-hwa.
“We have to stop those mishaps! You guys think about it as well. Is the nickname Hangzhou Sa-seon that was just given for nothing? Not just simply because of the taste of the liquor, but also because they did good deeds. Imagine they were murdered. What would happen after that?”
Of course, the Yamen, and 30% of Hangzhou’s residents will be desperate to catch the criminal.
The three of them nodded.
“Killing them wouldn’t work.”
“Exactly. Let’s just run off. Just like moving to a new place.”
The four of them who concluded looked at Se-hwa. She smiled softly at them as if there was no problem.
“I’ll certainly convey your will.”
Geom Woo-bin has grown a hand span from two years ago. He had quite a bit of muscle and his naked upper body looked rugged.
As he had already done Sanda with the three of them, even in the chilly weather beads of perspiration stood out on Geom Woo-bin’s skin.
The last person Geom Woo-bin stopped and faced was Jang Man-dok. Yeon Geum-hong looked at it pleasantly.
“Abolition, you are now a grown-up man.”
“How come your voice has a zest for lecher-….”
Smack!
Yeon Geum-hong’s fingerprints were stamped on Seo Seok-san’s back. Seo Seok-san averted his gaze and admitted that he was wrong.
“If you grow faster like this, the day that you would leave us would come soon as well….” said Do Pyeong-su.
Yeon Geum-hong who left fingerprints on Seo Seok-san’s back patted Do Pyeong-su’s back.
“We can’t hold onto him forever. One day he has to show up in Moorim.
Yeon Geum-hong also said so, but the thought of Geom Woo-bin leaving them made her want to cry.
After a brief confrontation, Geom Woo-bin was the first to move.
The speed of narrowing the distance with Jang Man-dok was faster.
“Oh! It has already reached the level of the four great sages!”
“How about Xing Yi Quan! The shadow of Kenpō covered Jang Man-dok completely!”
Of course, Geom Woo-bin did not reach a level that made Jang Man-dok awkward.
Even if Geom Woo-bin shows off all his abilities he couldn’t even touch a single piece of Jang Man-dok’s clothing.
However, that doesn’t mean Geom Woo-bin has poor skills.
In the present Moorim, there are probably only two people who can put Jang Man-dok in trouble with Kenpō, and there are very few people who can say that they’re a Moorim who can even touch the hem of his clothes.
‘Come on. Should I try attacking?’
Jang Man-dok’s fist pierced through Geom Woo-bin’s Kenpō style.
The attack that was loaded with a force of rationality was still strong enough to make a soundwave echo.
“Oh my! That guy Man-dok! What if he hurts the abolition like that……!”
“Seo Seok-san yelled as he was startled, but it was just an unfounded worry. Geom Woo-bin blocked Jang Man-dok’s fist with a surprisingly fast attack and defense for a change and began to counterattack.
“Oh! Wing Chun too!”
Even though it has only been three months since he started training Wing Chun which was specialized in defense more than attack, it was already being developed smoothly.
“The abolition seems to be too aggressive, don’t you think so?”
“Because it’s not an actual fight. You believe in Man-dok, right?”
The expectations of Seo Seok-san and Do Pyeong-su didn’t meet.
Geom Woo-bin was living out thoroughly with the proverb, ‘offense is the best defense’.
‘His force is beyond expectations!’
The strength of Geom Woo-bin that Jang Man-dok felt exceeded his expectations.
Jang Man-dok thought that the various magical elixirs they gave so far and the Moxibustion therapy they did for him every day while training blood & iron martial arts seemed useless.
After fifty seconds of attack and defense, Jang Man-dok began to dig in between Geom Woo-bin’s attacks.
Jang Man-dok is too strong to the extent he could ignore the shortcomings of Kenpō, but Geom Woo-bin has not reached that level yet.
Surprised Geom Woo-bin tried to defend himself by taking Wing Chun into action.
However, Geom Woo-bin’s Wing Chun was not yet perfect to prevent Jang Man-dok’s attack.
Thud!
Jang Man-dok’s fist made its way through the defense and thrust Geom Woo-bin’s chest. Geom Woo-bin who was blown away from this field roughly tumbled down onto the ground.
“Abolition!”
The three others who were watching were startled and ran towards Geom Woo-bin.
“Grunt!”
Fortunately, Geom Woo-bin raised his upper body with a groan.
Geom Woo-bin’s face which fairly showed any pain was completely distorted.
“Are you alright?”
At Yeon Geum-hong’s question, Geom Woo-bin waved his handoff.
“I’m alright.”
While Geom Woo-bin got hold of his pain with a deep breath the three of them ran towards Jang Man-dok.
“You just struck the abolition with your fist! Are you out of your mind!”
“I’ll pull out that useless tongue!”
“Hey Jang Man-dok, you’re digging your own grave!”
More flustered than the three of them, Jang Man-dok only opened his mouth but he couldn’t utter a word.
In truth, he was always like that.
As the three of them were just about to attack Jang Man-dok Geom Woo-bin’s voice was heard.
“Please stop!”
Geom Woo-bin’s expression as he stood up holding his chest was firm.
“Priest Jang Man-dok did nothing wrong.”
“But, that ignorant fellow struck you with his fist-….”
“I’m seriously thankful for that.”
“That fellow hit you ignorantly…. you’re feeling thankful?”
Geom Woo-bin patted his chest again and asked back.
“What do you think that’s lacking the most in me right now?”
“Energy?” Said Seo Seok-san.
Seo Seok-san murmured as Yeon Geum-hong and Do Pyeong-su squinted.
“Since you’re not mature yet.”
“Phew….” Sighed Geom Woo-bin.
“It’s dangerous. In particular, it’s like a life threat accomplished in an actual fight. Thankfully, you priests are so good, as I have absolutely no experience in risky combats where I put my life at stake.”
“You must not be in danger.”
“The person who puts you in danger must be killed. Just like this fellow!”
“Nope. It’s not that….”
Geom Woo-bin said the priests who misunderstood what he said.
“I wish you priests would push me a little harder.”
The blood-lions waved off both their hands at the same time.
“That’s not possible. Even now you are walking on a tightrope in the border of the limit.”
“You’re growing a bowl now. Although it looks firm from the outside, even if you touch it slightly wrong it could break apart. Do you know what does it mean to be caught by the devil? Death is the most common, and if you don’t die you have to live by eating porridge that someone feeds you until you die. Do you still want to do it?” Said Yeon Geum-hong to Geom Woo-bin with a serious expression.
“No. More than that, I need to do more. Above all of it, such things will never happen.” Replied Geom Woo-bin calmly.
“Because it’s not something to be sure of!”
“I know my condition. I have the priests who have the most outstanding abilities in the world by my side. Why would I have to worry? More than anything, all of you step back again now. As I’m going to do the Sanda again with priest Jang Man-dok.”
“Huh? You’re going to do more?”
Eventually, they had no choice but to raise both their hands for Geom Woo-bin.
Their wish of raising the best person of all time was indeed not easy to achieve.