Black Corporation: Joseon [EN]: Chapter 675

675. Birds of a Feather (5)

Although the professors and international students caused some commotion, the overall atmosphere in Seoul remained calm.

However, Bukji [Northern Frontier region] was still noisy.

The Ming Chinese and Jurchens, who had resisted the Empire’s rule with force, were mostly dismantled by the Imperial Army’s concentrated suppression.

The remnants who survived the Imperial Army’s suppression became bandits, plundering the surrounding villages. The Imperial Army’s cavalry and infantry were dispatched again to suppress them.

As this situation repeated itself, a game of hide-and-seek between the Imperial Army’s cavalry and the bandits continued endlessly in the Yoha region.

However, it was a hide-and-seek with a predetermined outcome.

From the start, the Imperial Army had overwhelming superiority in military strength, and the situation in the Bukji region was also changing unfavorably for the bandits.

As the Ming Chinese and sedentary Jurchens who had been carrying out disobedience movements were expelled, those who had been providing supplies such as food and information to the bandits disappeared.

In the end, the bandits, suffering from a shortage of supplies, resorted to plunder, and the residents of the surrounding villages became hostile to them.

Eventually, information about the bandits began to flow to the Imperial Army, and the Imperial Army began to carry out suppression more efficiently.

* * *

As the rural areas of Bukji were gradually stabilizing, the night streets of Yoyang Fortress were still noisy.

The beginning of this was the establishment of brothels by the Milwi [secret intelligence agency] operatives who had received a secret order from Hyang.

Yoyang Fortress, as the central city of the Yodong region, also had a red-light district.

However, the overall level was far below that of Beijing or Nanjing beyond Shanhaiguan [a major pass of the Great Wall of China], or even smaller cities.

This was because the Yodong region, and further the entire Bukji, was an economically underdeveloped area.

The productivity of the rural areas in the Yoha region was barely enough to be self-sufficient.

This was the reason why the quality of the alcohol supplied to the red-light district was poor.

Most of the alcohol sold in the red-light district’s bars was baijiu (白酒) [a type of Chinese distilled liquor]. And this baijiu was distilled liquor.

To make proper distilled liquor, a much larger amount of mash was needed. Naturally, in a situation where self-sufficiency was barely possible, good baijiu could not be produced.

Therefore, a small number of high-end bars imported famous baijiu produced in Beijing, Nanjing, or Hangzhou, which was famous as an entertainment city, and sold them at ‘very expensive’ prices. And other ordinary bars sold low-grade baijiu at ‘expensive’ prices.

In this situation, those living in Yoyang Fortress or those who visited Yoyang Fortress from the surrounding areas had to put up with it even if they were dissatisfied.

Because there was no other place to drink comfortably other than those bars.

Then, as the Empire took control of Yodong, the Empire’s brothels entered the red-light district.

* * *

When the Milwi officials first built brothels in Yoyang Fortress according to Hyang’s orders, the atmosphere was full of negative energy.

‘The customs are different, and the alcohol they drink is different, so will business be good? It will just be used as an information gathering window.’

However, the situation was different from what Milwi had expected.

Customers flocked to the brothels.

The biggest reason why customers flocked to the brothels set up by Milwi was the reasonable price of alcohol.

The soju [Korean distilled beverage] sold in the Empire’s brothels was not cheap either. However, compared to the price of alcohol sold by existing bars, it was a ‘very reasonable’ price.

“The alcohol is a bit mild, but at this price, it’s bearable!”

“Of course! Of course! And they say it’s mild, but there are more than a few places that sell worse baijiu at a higher price?”

That’s how the residents of Yoyang Fortress, who found an alternative, flocked to the brothels.

Next, what made customers flock to the brothels were the ‘gisaengs’ [female entertainers].

There were also gisaengs in the bars of Yoyang Fortress. The problem was that most of them were prostitutes. There were a few yegi [skilled female entertainers], but their skills were far below those of the yegi in Beijing or other famous cities.

However, all the gisaengs in the brothels set up by Milwi were yegi.

Of course, they were mostly yipaegi [second-rate gisaengs], not ilpae [first-rate gisaengs]. However, even though they were yipae, they were people who had dealt with officials and sadaebu [scholar-officials] in the Empire’s capital.

And, as the Han people had a knack for ‘pungryu’ [refined taste and artistic talent] since ancient times, their level was not comparable to that of the yegi in Yoyang Fortress.

Thanks to this, customers flocked to drink alcohol while enjoying the gisaengs’ songs and dances, even though there was no prostitution. And most of these customers were those who had some power in Yoyang Fortress.

“That’s right! Someone like me should enjoy alcohol in such a classy place!”

“With enjoyable sights and sounds, and an abundance of fine wine and delicious food (美酒佳肴) [měijiǔ jiāyáo – a Chinese idiom], where else can you find such luxury?”

And this situation immediately reversed the atmosphere of Milwi.

“Look at this? This side income will be quite substantial?”

“It’s not just side income! The big fish we’ve been aiming for are flocking in on their own!”

“We need to speed up the construction of the brewery!”

“Tell the ilpae retired gisaeng we contacted earlier to come quickly! We need to select and train her colleagues soon!”

The Milwi agents, encouraged by the booming brothel situation, began to move busily.

* * *

As the ‘stone that rolled in unexpectedly pulled out the embedded stone’ [an idiom meaning a newcomer displacing the established], the existing bars did not stand still.

There were also thugs who lived off the bars, handling drunks, troublemakers, and collecting debts.

And the owners of the bars who suffered great damage urged the thugs.

“Are you just going to sit and watch?”

“Don’t worry! The story has already been reported to the bangju [gang leader], and he will move soon!”

As the thugs said, the bangju of the ‘Black Wolf Gang (黑狼幇)’ [Hēiláng bāng – a fictional gang name], which controlled the red-light district of Yoyang Fortress, was keeping a close eye on the brothels set up by Milwi.

“If I eat that, I feel like I’ll make a good fortune….”

The bangju, who swallowed his saliva while watching the brothels that were raking in money every day, could not easily step forward because of the existence of Milwi.

Because the bangju, who had experienced all sorts of hardships, immediately realized that Milwi was not an ordinary group.

“Of course. Because they are the ones who came all the way here to set up a bar. Hmm….”

However, the bangju was only worried because he wanted the brothels so much that he couldn’t just let it go. However, in the end, he had no choice but to get up. Because the damage to the bar, which was the gang’s source of funds, had become too great.

“Gather the kids!”

“Yes, Bangju!”

* * *

The bangju, who had gathered all the gang members, walked to the place where the brothels were located.

The merchants around, seeing the Black Wolf Gang moving in a group, quickly packed up their stalls and closed their doors.

Meanwhile, the Yoyang branch manager of Milwi, watching the approaching Black Wolf Gang, smiled bitterly.

“Coming in a group with baijiu, how undignified….”

The branch manager, who lightly shook his head, ordered his subordinates.

“Arm yourselves and stand by.”

“Shall we take out the pistols too?”

The branch manager shook his head at the deputy branch manager’s question.

“Hide the pistols and silver guns. They’re useless in this kind of group fight.”

“Yes.”

* * *

As Milwi established itself as a proper intelligence organization and gunpowder weapons became commonplace, Milwi was also provided with firearms.

One was a gun named pistol because it was about the size of a fist. It was an item that reduced the barrel of the 6-shot horse-mounted gun used by the cavalry as much as possible.

Another firearm, the silver gun, was a single-shot gun with a silencer. To be more precise, it was an object that looked like a cane and fired a single bullet for a horse-mounted gun.

Because reloading was out of the question, it was only used for one-shot kill assassination operations.

Due to the nature of the Milwi organization and the characteristics of the firearms provided, Sejong and Hyang applied strict management guidelines.

-Only those with a license to kill can use firearms.

-The distribution of firearms can only be done with the consent of the commander, deputy commander, and three people with a license to kill.

-Check the status of firearms in and out and traces of use once a day.

* * *

The bangju of the Black Wolf Gang, who stopped in front of the Milwi members standing with their backs to the brothel, soon conveyed his demands.

“Come under us! Then we will guarantee safe business!”

The Milwi branch manager’s answer to the bangju’s request was simple.

“Hey! Sprinkle salt!”

“Yes!”

That’s how the armed conflict between the Black Wolf Gang and Milwi broke out.

To deal with the Black Wolf Gang, who came out with thick greatswords (大刀) [dàdāo – a type of Chinese sword] and axes, the Milwi took out changpo swords [a type of Korean sword].

“I’d like to use a silver sword if I could….”

The branch manager, who retreated as soon as the conflict broke out, looked at the rushing members of the Black Wolf Gang and couldn’t hide his regret and grumbled.

* * *

The silver sword, which was modified from the European rapier to make it easier to hide and carry, was ambiguous to use in such a public place.

Because of the letters ‘Jaeumwigung (在陰衛國)’ [roughly translates to “Protecting the Nation in the Shadows”] engraved on the sword. It was an item that boosted morale in night battles fought with spies from foreign countries – mainly Ming – at the risk of their lives, but it was an item that would cause headaches if used with baijiu and passed on to a third party.

* * *

As soon as the intelligence that ‘a bloody incident occurred in the red-light district’ came in, the soldiers of the Imperial Army’s Gyuchaldae [military police] were dispatched.

This was because Yoyang Fortress was still under military administration (軍政) [gūnzheng – military rule].

“It’s quite brutal….”

The Gyuchaldae commander, seeing the scene where blood and flesh were splattering everywhere, sighed softly and ordered his subordinates.

“First, surround the area to prevent anyone from escaping, and wait for my signal.”

“Yes!”

Shortly after, as soon as the report came in that the soldiers had taken their positions, the Gyuchaldae commander pulled out the horse-mounted gun he was wearing on his waist and pulled the trigger towards the sky.

Bang!

As soon as the gunshot rang out, both the Black Wolf Gang and Milwi stopped their actions.

“Drop your weapons! Or I’ll shoot you!”

At the Gyuchaldae commander’s order, both sides put down their weapons.

“Take them all away!”

“Yes!”

* * *

That evening, the branch manager, who had hidden his body during the day, visited the Gyuchaldae.

“I am the person in charge of operating the brothels in the red-light district. I came because of an unfortunate incident today. I would like to see the Gyuchaldae commander.”

“The commander does not allow interviews with officials.”

“I still want to see him.”

At the branch manager’s earnest plea, the soldier guarding the headquarters reported the situation.

Not long after, the branch manager was able to meet the Gyuchaldae commander.

“Because of what happened during the day….”

“That matter will be handled based on Imperial law. Discrimination between Bonji people [people from the mainland] and Bukji people is legally prohibited.”

At the Gyuchaldae commander’s words, the branch manager put his hand into his arms. The Gyuchaldae commander’s expression turned fierce at the sight.

“Are you going to dare to bribe me!”

“It’s not a bribe.”

The branch manager, who answered calmly, took out a small iron certificate (鐵券, a book made of iron) [tiěquàn – an iron certificate conferring privileges] from his arms and handed it to the Gyuchaldae commander.

“This is….”

The Gyuchaldae commander’s expression hardened seriously when he saw the iron certificate. It was because of the letters engraved on the cover of the iron certificate.

-License to kill.

It was an item that had only been circulating as a secret rumor among the military’s Gyuchaldae and the Podocheong’s [police bureau] high-ranking commanders that appeared before his eyes.

The branch manager quietly continued to speak to the Gyuchaldae commander.

“Here in Yodong and Yoha in Bukji, we are in contact with Ming and Oirat. Therefore, there are many spies, and His Majesty is worried. So, we came.”

“Then are all those people in jail?”

“Some of them are, but who they are is confidential.”

“Ah….”

As the Gyuchaldae commander nodded, the branch manager continued.

“In handling this situation, the commander’s words are the correct answer. However, since it is a matter of the Empire’s safety, I ask for confidential handling.”

The Gyuchaldae commander, who had been contemplating for a while, soon came to a conclusion.

“Let’s do that.”