Light Novel: Volume 19 Episode 5
Manhwa: N/A
Yuqing was a fairly large city.
Its location at the intersection of waterways and land routes made it a frequent destination for those transporting large quantities of goods, such as merchant groups and escort agencies. Therefore, accommodations for them were well-developed. Additionally, a sizable horse market was situated on the outskirts.
Those who were to use the waterways would sell their horses here, while those who came by water and intended to use the roads would buy horses.
Due to these circumstances, the horse market of Yuqing was very lively.
As soon as the Zigong Merchant Group arrived in Yuqing, they headed for the horse market to sell horses. Their intention was not to sell the horses pulling their wagons. They intended to sell the horses they had seized from bandits.
The price for a single horse exceeded five pieces of gold.
With dozens of horses, they could earn at least hundreds of gold.
That’s why, despite the hassle, they had brought all the horses with them.
“Oho, all of these horses are well-maintained. Where did you get so many horses?”
A merchant in the horse market marveled at the horses that the Zigong Merchant Group had brought.
Obtaining horses of this caliber was not easy.
Even the merchant could not hide his greed as he looked at the dozens of horses.
“Dozens of horses like these already came in yesterday, and now, even more are coming in today.”
“Horses came in yesterday too?”
“Yes! Some old man brought them in all by himself. Other merchants bought them all up though, what a shame…”
There were more than a few dozen merchants buying and selling horses in the horse market. They were all in competition with each other.
Whoever secured more of the better horses could dominate the horse market.
The merchant eyeing the horses the Zigong Merchant Group brought with greedy eyes was also an ambitious one.
“I will give you five pieces of gold for each horse. Sell them all to me.”
“You’re joking. Forget it! I will go to another merchant.”
“Hold on! How much do you want then?”
“Ten pieces of gold per horse!”
“Let’s settle for six.”
“Forget it! I won’t sell.”
Lee Shin-pil shook his head with a displeased expression.
He, too, was a seasoned merchant.
He knew the market for basic horses, as well as the quality of horses bandits rode, which was why he was able to come out so strong.
“Fine! Then I will give you seven gold pieces. I can’t give more than that.”
“Seven gold, huh…”
Still, seeing that Lee Shin-pil didn’t look satisfied, the merchant hastily added another condition.
“I own a guest house here. If you’re going to stay here for a night, I could offer you a stay in my guest house. It’s better than having to look for somewhere else.”
“The stay at the guest house will be free of charge, right?”
“You robber… Hmph! Fine. Seven pieces of gold per horse and I will cover the cost of your stay at my guest house.”
“Good!”
Only then did Lee Shin-pil shake the merchant’s hands, smiling.
“This is the first time I’ve seen a merchant more ruthless than me. The Zigong Merchant Group will surely prosper.”
“I’ll take that as a compliment.”
“It is a compliment.”
The merchant pulled a promissory note from his pocket.
“Here’s 270 pieces of gold. You can exchange it for gold when you go to Guizhou Province.”
“Thank you! By the way, you mentioned that a large number of horses also came in yesterday, right?”
“That’s right!”
“Do you know who sold them?”
“I only heard it was some old man. I don’t know more than that.”
“I see.”
Lee Shin-pil nodded his head.
The merchant called his staff and ordered them to guide the Zigong Merchant Group people to his guest house.
Lee Shin-pil returned to where Pyo-wol was with the money from selling the horse.
He handed the promissory note to Pyo-wol and said,
“This is the money from selling the horse.”
“Why are you giving this to me?”
“Didn’t Master Pyo help take care of the bandits? This money was earned thanks to your efforts, so of course, it should be given to you.”
Pyo-wol stared at the promissory note for a moment before accepting only half of it.
“This is all I need, use the rest for traveling expenses.”
“There’s no need for that.”
“Forget it, just go.”
“Yes!”
As Lee Shin-pil withdrew, Pyo-wol passed the promissory note to Do Yeonsan.
“Brother?”
“It’s what you earned, so you keep it.”
“I don’t really need this much money…”
“It’s never bad to have more money. Keep it.”
“Yes!”
With no other choice, Do Yeonsan accepted the note but he then immediately handed it over to Eunyo.
“What is it?”
“I don’t need it, so you manage it instead.”
Eunyo slightly frowned for a moment at Do Yeonsan’s words, but she didn’t refuse.
She was familiar with handling money, having managed various brothels in Chengdu as well.
“Alright, I’ll keep it with me, just let me know if you need it.”
“Sure!”
Do Yeonsan smiled brightly.
“Pfft!”
At that, Eunyo couldn’t help but let out a giggle as well.
Do Yeonsan’s company made the journey less boring.
Pyo-wol briefly looked at them and said,
“Let’s go!”
“Yes!”
“Okay!”
The other wagons were already following Lee Shin-pil. Do Yeonsan hurriedly drove the wagon so as not to lose them.
The place they arrived at was called Changshin Guest House.
The building itself was shabby, but very large.
It was equipped with an independent stable and warehouse, making it a perfect place for the merchants to stay.
Do Yeonsan said,
“Brother, I’ll put the horses in the stable first, so you should go ahead.”
It would take some time to put the horse in the stable and move the cargo so Do Yeonsan have the two go inside the guest house first.
“Alright.”
Pyo-wol got out of the wagon first, followed by Eunyo.
The two walked shoulder to shoulder into the guest house.
The inside was crowded with people who had arrived before them.
Given that the merchant group had entered all at once, the atmosphere was inevitably chaotic.
Pyo-wol and Eunyo found empty seats.
Seats by the window that had a view of the outside were intentionally left vacant by the Zigong Merchant Group for Pyo-wol and his companions.
The two sat down and looked out the window.
Although the sun had set, there were still quite a few people walking around the street.
Just by looking at the relaxed expressions of the people, one could tell the atmosphere in Yuqing.
“How nice…”
Eunyo murmured, resting her chin on her hand.
Her gaze was fixed precisely on the people passing by on the street.
In her unfocused retinas, the afterimages of people were imprinted.
It would be better if she could see people with her eyes, but she could still understand their emotions through her other senses.
Not everyone might feel that way, but at least the people passing in front of the guest house seemed relaxed.
She never knew watching people without a sense of urgency could be so comforting until today.
Pyo-wol said,
“You, too, can be like that if you want.”
“I suppose so.”
She already has a good base in Chengdu.
There were several brothels in her name.
If she wanted to, she could live a leisurely and comfortable life.
And if Do Yeonsan stayed by her side, it would be the icing on the cake.
Eunyo soon shook her head.
Although it was a pleasant thought, she knew it didn’t suit her.
She had already set her foot deep in Jianghu.
Jianghu was like a swamp. Once someone stepped into it, it was impossible to get out without paying a price, and that price was very steep.
She was not yet ready to pay the price yet.
Pyo-wol looked at Eunyo without saying anything.
He couldn’t tell what she was thinking, but he didn’t want to interrupt her thoughts.
Meanwhile, Do Yeonsan, who had finished organizing the cargo, came in.
Do Yeonsan naturally took the seat beside Eunyo.
“You’ve worked hard.”
“What work have I done…”
When Do Yeonsan chuckled softly, Pyo-wol also cracked a slight smile. However, his smile quickly disappeared.
Seeing Pyo-wol’s face suddenly turn stiff, both Do Yeonsan and Eunyo exchanged puzzled looks.
“What is it, brother?”
“Big brother?”
It was then.
The door of the guest house burst open, and a middle-aged man and a young boy entered.
The middle-aged man looked to be in his late forties or early fifties, had a sturdy build, dressed in pure white long robes, with a long sword strapped to his waist. What was most striking of all was his fingers, which were so pale and delicate, that they didn’t fit his age.
The knuckles on his fingers showed no signs of bulging, as if one was looking at the delicate fingers of a lady.
Beside the middle-aged man stood a boy who seemed rather fragile.
The boy was slightly shorter than Do Yeonsan, and appeared to have a rather timid personality, given how he was looking around nervously.
The middle-aged man glanced around the guest house and then sighed.
“Hoo! Are there no empty seats here either?”
He had visited several guest houses before arriving here. All the guest houses he had visited were full. That’s why he ended up wandering the streets and eventually coming here.
It was then that the old man’s eyes fell upon this house.
His gaze settled on Pyo-wol, who was sitting by the window.
Pyo-wol was also staring straight at the middle-aged man.
“Hoo!”
Suddenly, an unintelligible sigh escaped the lips of the middle-aged man.
At his exclamation, the young boy naturally looked up and turned his gaze towards Pyo-wol.
The boy’s face lit up instantly.
“Brother!”
He called out to Pyo-wol as he ran towards him.
Pyo-wol stood up from his seat to greet the young boy.
“Shin-woo, is that you?”
“Is it really you, Brother?”
The boy, wrapping his arms around Pyo-wol’s waist, looked up at him.
“Have you been well?”
“It’s really you, brother! How did you end up here?”
As Pyo-wol tousled the boy’s hair, he spoke,
“You look well.”
The boy who embraced Pyo-wol was Nam Shin-woo.
He was the boy who had hidden in Tang Sochu’s workshop when Pyo-wol had first settled in Chengdu.
Nam Shin-woo possessed an ability similar to that of the Ghost King, the most incomprehensible being in Jianghu.
Namely, the power of immortality.
Many martial artists, including the Seven Stars Hall,1 had hunted Nam Shin-woo, hoping to capture him. Immortality was an ability coveted by almost, if not every powerful man in the world.
They thought that if they could capture Nam Shin-woo and unravel his secret, they believed they, too, could gain eternal life.
If Pyo-wol hadn’t protected him, Nam Shin-woo would no longer exist in this world.
Just then, the middle-aged man approached.
Pyo-wol’s gaze turned colder as he looked at the man.
“Wind Saint.”
“It’s been a while.”
The Wind Saint, as the middle-aged man was called, scanned Pyo-wol from head to toe.
He wore an expression of sincere admiration.
‘They say that the back wave of the Yangtze River pushes back the front wave, but isn’t this too much?’
When he had first seen Pyo-wol, his achievements had already been impressive. Still, at that time, he could roughly gauge Pyo-wol’s level. But now, he found it absolutely impossible to read his depth.
‘The world is so unfair. Some people struggle their whole lives just to climb one step, while others leap multiple steps in a single bound.’
The current Pyo-wol reminded him of someone he had known in the past. A man who was also incomprehensible to ordinary common sense.
The Wind Saint shook his head slightly and sighed.
“People are calling you the Reaper these days, right? I’ve heard much about you.”
“What brings you here?”
“I found my way here by accident. Since there are no empty seats, do you mind if we join you?”
“Go ahead.”
“Thank you!”
As the Wind Saint sat down, Nam Shin-woo also quickly pulled up a chair and sat next to him.
The Wind Saint’s gaze swept over Do Yeonsan and Eunyo.
“Hmm!”
He involuntarily made a humming sound.
The Wind Saint stared intently at the two for a long time.
Nam Shin-woo tilted his head, seemingly puzzled by the Wind Saint’s reaction.
The Wind Saint then sighed.
“You are already strange, and the kids you keep with you are all strange as well.”
While others might see them as ordinary children, the Wind Saint saw their extraordinariness.
To have even one such individual would be enough to shake the world, but there were two at Pyo-wol’s side.
The Wind Saint’s gaze shifted back to Nam Shin-woo.
‘With this boy, does it make it three? Just what is it about him that attracts all these monsters from the world? Should I have killed him back then?’
LUNACAVE
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