I Will Start Doing Business In Jungwon From Today [EN]: Chapter 55

He could identify wealthy men instantly and assess the value of the gisaeng house’s women at a single glance.

Being so knowledgeable about both the merchandise and the customers, it was no wonder the business was thriving.

“Really? So, it’s difficult, you say?”

Jo Gwang-yun stood abruptly, as if he’d seen all he needed to.

“Pack up. Let’s go.”

Everyone quickly rose from their seats.

“W-wait a moment, young master. That’s not what I meant…”

“Why? You went to the trouble of preparing this woman, only to speak ill of her. Do you have something else to say? And… even if she is a gisaeng, it’s impolite to criticize a woman’s beauty to her face.”

“N-no, that’s not what I meant…”

Jo Gwang-yun lightly patted the woman’s shoulder as she stammered, clearly embarrassed, and smiled.

“I know you want to squeeze more money out of me. But you need to improve your judgment of people. When dealing with someone as obsessed with money as I am, you don’t try to extract more through haggling. You need to understand that if you do your job flawlessly, I’ll give you twice the promised amount as a reward.”

“My lord.”

The middle-aged woman prostrated herself before Jo Gwang-yun. Her address had changed from ‘young master’ to ‘my lord’.

“I deserve to die for failing to recognize such a noble person, but I beg for forgiveness by successfully completing this important task.”

“Your job is to ensure that the eunuch and those women spend the night together. You said you deserve to die, so you must risk your life to ensure it happens.”

The woman clearly saw in Jo Gwang-yun’s piercing gaze that he was not a man to make empty threats.

“I will keep that in mind, again and again.”

When Jo Gwang-yun gestured, Gu Seung took out a gold ingot and dropped it heavily on the floor.

“With this much, you should have no problem living comfortably wherever you go, right?”

The middle-aged woman couldn’t answer, her mouth agape.

She had been promised a pouch full of silver, but this was a gold ingot worth dozens of those pouches.

“If you ruin the job, I will reclaim your head and that gold ingot.”

“I’m spending in one night what I couldn’t earn in a lifetime of selling smiles, so of course, I must risk my life. Don’t worry, my lord.”

Jo Gwang-yun shifted his gaze back to the two women.

“The same goes for you. Don’t think that serving the eunuch well for one night will change your fate. That man’s temper is as fickle as boiling water. He kills without hesitation when he tires of someone. Survive to the end. When the time comes, I will make sure you live comfortably in a place where no one recognizes you.”

These women, living lives worse than animals, didn’t want to miss the chance to live like humans, and their eyes sparkled with hope.

* * *

“Eunuch, why have you been so scarce lately? I’ve been waiting for you so long, I thought my neck would break.”

The eunuch, accompanied by his guards, entered the gisaeng house with a flourish.

The bodyguards stood guard in front of the room, blocking entry.

The eunuch, taking a seat at the head of the room, immediately frowned.

“Why are you here? Go call the girls quickly.”

“Oh, you’re so impatient. My lord, I have something to tell you.”

“What is it now? How long has it been since I got your nephew a position? Are you already asking for another favor?”

The eunuch knew that the guy the woman earnestly vouched for wasn’t her nephew. A man who knew he frequented this place and was close to the woman had given her some money and asked her for a favor.

He could turn a blind eye once, but not anymore. How much money was involved in securing an official position?

“What are you talking about? I’m not that shameless. And I will repay that favor for a long time.”

“Goodness, you’re long-winded. I told you to leave quickly.”

“You must give me a chance to repay your kindness.”

“Repay my kindness? How could you possibly do that?”

“What else can I do? I can find very good girls and offer them to you.”

“Girls? Did new gisaengs arrive?”

The eunuch’s eyes lit up.

“Two of them, in fact. And they’re not ordinary girls.”

“Not ordinary, you say?”

The woman smiled, seeing the eunuch’s face flush with lust.

“They’ll probably be just to your taste. I chose them with great care…”

“Enough. Stop the chatter and bring them in quickly. Now!”

At the eunuch’s urging, the middle-aged woman clapped her hands, and two women entered the room gracefully and bowed.

“It is an honor to serve you, my lord.”

The eunuch watched every move of the two women as they entered and sat down.

“What do you think, my lord?”

The eunuch seemed not to hear the middle-aged woman’s words and spoke directly to the two women.

“Raise your heads.”

When he made eye contact with the two women, the eunuch scrutinized them intently.

“Slightly upturned upper lip, long, narrow eyes, narrow shoulders, skin like flour. Up to this point, they’re no different from other gisaengs, but…”

The middle-aged woman swallowed hard.

If the new women weren’t special, men would prefer familiar faces. If she was rejected, she’d lose her life, let alone the gold.

“My lord…”

Just as she was about to hurriedly point out their good qualities, the eunuch raised his hand to stop her.

“Shadowed faces, eyes devoid of vitality. They’re smiling to look appealing, but they’re dead women with not a spark of will to live.”

The middle-aged woman’s vision blurred.

She was so desperate she considered stripping and throwing herself at the eunuch, but his next words stopped her from untying her coat strings.

“I know how to awaken girls like you. I, your master, will breathe life into you today. How about it?”

The eunuch’s eyes shone like a wolf hunting its prey.

“We are overwhelmed by your boundless grace, my lord.”

“We are deeply grateful.”

As the two women bowed again, the middle-aged woman breathed a sigh of relief and told the bodyguard guarding the outside.

“Bring in what we prepared.”

One of the bodyguards pushed a large box into the room.

The eunuch, who had been dozing off, opened his eyes.

He didn’t know how much time had passed, but he didn’t want to worry about such trivial things today.

The eunuch smiled as he looked at the two women who had stirred along with him, after glancing around the chaotic room.

“You’re such clever girls. How do you know me so well…”

The woman, naked and kneeling, carefully said.

“You have given us pleasure, my lord. We have done nothing.”

“Bring the clothes.”

The eunuch put on his clothes with the women’s help and sat back down.

“Put on your clothes. Slowly. I will watch your figures.”

As the two women unfolded the clothes they had folded and were about to put them on, the eunuch’s eyes flashed.

“Wait. Bring me that slip you’re holding.”

The eunuch took the thin slip and spread it out wide.

“Oh, what a magnificent painting. A Yellow Cat and Butterfly…”

One of the women asked, her eyes sparkling.

“Do you like it, my lord?”

“Of course. It’s obviously a masterpiece at first glance.”

“But how did you know the name of the painting as soon as you saw it?”

“I’ve seen it a few times. There used to be a guy who was good at painting this. His skill was superb… Wait.”

The eunuch’s face hardened as he began to look back and forth between the two women and the painting.

“From now on, you must not lie about anything I ask.”

“How could I lie to you, my lord?”

“Where did you come from? Perhaps from Gaebong?”

“Yes, we did.”

“Who sent you here?”

“A wealthy merchant from Gaebong sent us here.”

“A merchant? What’s his name?”

“I don’t know his name, but he’s the head of the Jo family’s pawnshop.”

“The Jo family’s pawnshop…”

After thinking for a moment, a smile spread across the eunuch’s face.

“That guy is finally starting to act like a human being. That’s right, you mature by experiencing sorrow and suppressing injustice. Hahaha.”

A clearer picture than the Yellow Cat and Butterfly was forming in the eunuch’s mind.

The guy who acted all high and mighty by himself had colluded with a wealthy merchant and taken bribes as soon as he was exiled to the provinces.

Bribery is a symbol of corruption and depravity.

Now, Yun Ju-seong was just another common official, no different from other ministers. Or rather, didn’t a turncoat offer even more loyalty?

It’s like a well-behaved dog wagging its tail, begging him to look at it once. That tail is these two women.

The eunuch shouted outside.

“Hey! Bring the head manager here.”

The head manager, as if she had been waiting without sleeping as dawn approached, scurried over and prostrated herself on the floor.

“Did you call, my lord? Did you like the girls?”

“These two girls are coming with me. Hurry and prepare.”

“Yes? What do you mean…?”

“Enough noise. They were originally offered to me, so I’m taking them. Isn’t that right?”

The prostrated middle-aged woman smiled broadly.

“I will prepare immediately. Please wait a moment.”

Now, the eunuch wouldn’t show up at the gisaeng house for a while, and sales would drop, but she wasn’t disappointed at all.

Because a gold ingot that would change her fate had come into her hands.

* * *

“He took them home?”

“Yes, young master. He must have liked them very much.”

“You’ve worked hard. That gold ingot is yours now. And of course, your head will remain on your shoulders.”

With the most difficult task completed, Jo Gwang-yun’s mind was much lighter.

“What are you going to do now? You have a lot of money. Are you thinking of returning home in triumph?”

“What would I do in that remote countryside? I’m thinking of using the gold you gave me as capital to start my own business here.”

“You’re still going to sell smiles? Even with that much money?”

“It’s what I’ve learned to do. What else can I do? Someone as rich as you wouldn’t understand.”

“Do I look like the son of a wealthy family to you?”

The woman looked at Jo Gwang-yun again.

“Ah, aren’t you?”

“Don’t be rash and start your own business. The gold you barely got will disappear quickly. You think you’re good at selling smiles, so you’ll be good at running a gisaeng house? Do you know how many business novices lose their entire fortune like that?”

“Young master, are you perhaps in business…?”

“You thought I was the degenerate son of a wealthy family offering women to the eunuch to get a government position.”

Jo Gwang-yun smiled at the woman’s blank expression.

“Let’s do this. I need a place to stay here in the capital anyway. It would be nice to have a house, but I’m not married yet, so I’m alone. Since I’m alone, I only need a place to sleep, right?”

“Then I will serve you whenever you come to Gye-yang.”

“No. I don’t like this gisaeng house. It’s too shabby.”

“Young master, this is the best gisaeng house in Gye-yang.”

“That’s exactly what I’m saying. The best gisaeng house is like this, so what can I do? I have to build one that I like.”

The woman understood Jo Gwang-yun’s intention.

“Find a suitable place. I’m going to build a gisaeng house so big and luxurious that this gisaeng house will feel like a thatched cottage in comparison. You gather all the women with the most outstanding beauty and talent in the Central Plains. How about it? How about we do business together? I’ll give you as much as you earn.”

“If you give me the opportunity, I will do my best.”

Jo Gwang-yun said to her, who was prostrating herself.

“Think of a scale more than ten times the size of the gisaeng house you’re thinking of. Enough for all the imperial family and all the court officials to hold a banquet and still have room. Got it?”

The woman thought this young master was a celestial being. Someone who would definitely change her fate.

“And that gisaeng house won’t have a common name like ‘Hall’ or ‘Pavilion’.”

“If you take out Hall and Pavilion from the name of the gisaeng house, what kind of name are you going to give it…?”

“Club. It will be called Jo Family Club. And you will be the first manager of that place. Haha.”

The woman blinked and clapped her knees.

“A place where everyone enjoys pleasure together. It’s truly exquisite.”

Bang Young-young, who became the first club manager in the Central Plains, jumped up and bowed deeply to Jo Gwang-yun again.

End