I Will Start Doing Business In Jungwon From Today [EN]: Chapter 60

“I’ve rarely found anyone in the main alliance who listens to me, but a mere disciple from afar remembers my words clearly. Hahaha.”

Jo Gwang-yun was more concerned about the fact that no one listened to the Alliance Leader than the hearty laughter itself.

The Great Mentor had also said that Mo Yong-hwi was just a figurehead. Who exactly held the real power here?

Mo Yong-hwi spoke, addressing everyone but Jo Gwang-yun.

“No sect is superior, and all are valuable pillars of the Jianghu [the martial arts world]. Anyone who is a righteous martial artist is qualified to sit in this seat, and all martial artists can ask questions if they have doubts.”

His gaze met Jo Gwang-yun’s.

“The rise of the Changryong Sect isn’t just good luck. It’s only natural with such a spirited young man. Good. What do you want to ask?”

Jo Gwang-yun bowed respectfully and said,

“You said that if the culprit is from the Demonic or Black alliances, you would not hesitate to wage war. Does that mean you will take the culprit’s life as compensation for the lives lost from the Changryong Sect?”

“Of course. Even if the culprit turns out to be from the Murkwood Society or the Evil Path Alliance, I will behead their leader.”

“But what if your prediction is wrong?”

“What? Wrong?”

“Predictions can be wrong, can’t they? Many things have been said here today, but they were all based on assumptions and predictions.”

“True. It could be wrong. So? What are you trying to say?”

Jo Gwang-yun glanced at Mo Yong-hwi and noticed his eyes were shining strangely, as if he was expecting something.

In an instant, the actors on the stage changed. Now, Mo Yong-hwi and Jo Gwang-yun were the main characters.

“I will also make an assumption. What if the culprit is not from the Demonic or Black alliances, but a righteous martial artist? Can you still pursue them to the end and behead them?”

The hall was as silent as if cold water had been poured over it. Not a single breath could be heard.

The righteous sect killing another righteous sect. Even with the ‘what if,’ it was not a statement that could be easily dismissed or taken back.

Jo Gwang-yun continued to utter words that were hard to take back.

“Many things have been said here today, but only one statement from the Great Jeong Pavilion Lord is true: that the culprit is a master. This alone can narrow down the possibilities if, and only if, the culprit is a righteous martial artist, because only a third of them are masters of that caliber.”

He used the word ‘what if,’ but he was essentially saying that the culprit was among the leadership of the Martial Arts Alliance, which was full of masters.

Most of the people in the hall hesitated, unsure how to respond to Jo Gwang-yun’s statement, especially since the leadership, the direct parties involved, had not yet spoken.

Moreover, the Alliance Leader was simply grinning.

However, this was the Martial Arts Alliance. There were quite a few simple-minded individuals who acted on emotion.

“Wow, I’ve been coming to the Martial Arts Alliance for over ten years, and I’ve never seen anyone as outrageous as you. Who are you?”

A man in his thirties stood up and spoke sarcastically.

Jo Gwang-yun remained polite, despite the man’s informal language.

“Excuse me, but who are you?”

There could be no more impolite question than this.

The people who were already dumbfounded were even more taken aback by this question.

The man was so dumbfounded that his mouth hung open.

Jo Gwang-yun was probably the only one here who didn’t know Noh Hye-gwang (盧慧光), the First Sword of Hwasan [one of the major sects].

“Me? Just a disciple of Hwasan. Satisfied?”

Noh Hye-gwang repeated Jo Gwang-yun’s earlier words verbatim, but Jo Gwang-yun remained indifferent.

“I see. But is that all you have to say?”

“What?”

“Surely, your personal feelings or impressions aren’t all you have to say in a public setting… Please, speak your mind. I’m listening.”

Noh Hye-gwang, who had been venting his frustration but hadn’t considered his official opinion, hesitated for a moment before speaking.

“If someone here is the culprit, I will behead them with my own hands.”

“Thank you, Great Hero. If you do so, the Changryong Sect will never forget your kindness and will repay you.”

Jo Gwang-yun immediately bowed his head.

“How? The day Hwasan needs help from the Changryong Sect will never come.”

“I’ve learned that one shouldn’t make hasty predictions about the future.”

Finally, Noh Hye-gwang’s stern face turned into a look of bewilderment.

“Ha! I’ve never seen anyone with such a silver tongue. What’s your name?”

“Greetings. I am Jo Gwang-yun of the Changryong Sect.”

As soon as he revealed his name, many people began to murmur, but since Hwasan was far from wealthy, Noh Hye-gwang had never heard of the name Jo Gwang-yun.

Suddenly, Noh Hye-gwang’s eyes widened.

“What? A merchant?”

It seemed someone had informed him through internal energy transmission [a method of communication used by martial artists].

“How did the Martial Arts Alliance become like this? A mere merchant spouting nonsense in the Martial Arts Alliance?”

It seemed he was more angry about the fact that Jo Gwang-yun was a merchant than his ‘nonsense’.

To him, merchants were selfish groups who only filled their own bellies, even if poor people starved to death.

“You, sit down. He may be a merchant, but he is the only disciple of Quick Sword Master. He is qualified to be here.”

The Beggars’ Union’s Chief Inspector spoke loudly, as if for everyone to hear, and the way people looked at Jo Gwang-yun changed.

To them, Jo Gwang-yun was now seen as a wealthy man with outstanding martial arts skills.

Some even thought that he was able to ask such bold questions to the Alliance Leader because he was confident in his martial arts.

As the murmuring grew louder, the main character of this scene, Alliance Leader Mo Yong-hwi, slammed the table and stood up.

“Great Jeong Pavilion Lord, Dang Chae-myeong!”

Dang Chae-myeong was startled and stood up.

“Lead all the warriors of the Great Jeong Pavilion to Seoan immediately.”

“Yes, sir.”

“Tell the disciples of the Beggars’ Union, Hwasan, and Jongnam to thoroughly investigate, regardless of whether they are righteous or evil.”

Dang Chae-myeong hurriedly ran out, and Mo Yong-hwi turned to Chief Inspector Chwi Gae.

“Chief Inspector, I need to borrow the strength of the Beggars’ Union.”

“Tell me, Alliance Leader.”

“Send the Beggars’ Union members from all over Shaanxi to Seoan to help with the investigation.”

“I will do so.”

Taking advantage of the fact that everyone’s attention was on the Alliance Leader, Jo Gwang-yun quietly sat back down.

He had provided the excuse, and the Alliance Leader was making full use of it.

From now on, it wasn’t about catching the murderer. It was about using this incident to each party’s advantage.

“Finally, I request all the family heads and sect leaders of the Alliance to check if any of their disciples or family members visited or stayed in Seoan around the time of the incident and submit a list of their names.”

He said ‘everyone,’ but he was looking at the leadership, and among them, the Five Great Families had to endure the piercing gazes.

It was natural to argue that they were being suspected, but this was not the time.

The eyes of countless small and medium-sized sects were on them.

Also, Mo Yong-hwi did not forget to appease the leadership.

“If we prove our innocence from within, everyone will trust our leadership, won’t they?”

Mo Yong-hwi, who had neatly organized the stage, called out to Jo Gwang-yun.

“Hey, you, mere disciple!”

“Yes, Alliance Leader.”

Jo Gwang-yun, who had been avoiding eye contact, stood up.

“If we investigate the possibility you mentioned without leaving anything out, you won’t be dissatisfied, right?”

“That’s right.”

“Then you must accept whatever conclusion this case comes to. Understand?”

“That’s not something you should be saying to me.”

“What? What else… Ah…”

Mo Yong-hwi frowned, realizing his mistake. He realized that his last words should have been directed to the head of the sect, not just the one who had raised the question.

“Sect Leader Im, what do you think? Will you trust the Martial Arts Alliance and me and leave it to us?”

“Of course.”

Im Bon-jae was more relieved that it was over than concerned about the sect leader’s reputation.

He had been uneasy since Jo Gwang-yun said he would come along, and his ominous premonition had been correct. He was worried about the future.

After all this chaos, the Five Great Families would not let it go quietly. Once things calmed down, they would surely bring up today’s events and oppress them.

Im Bon-jae looked at Jo Gwang-yun, the cause of this mess, with resentful eyes, but Jo Gwang-yun’s gaze was already directed at someone else.

* * *

“Sect Leader Jo, why did you do that? That kind of behavior doesn’t help us at all.”

Im Bon-jae continued to complain after returning to their lodging near the Martial Arts Alliance.

“What help are you talking about?”

“Pardon?”

“Sect Leader, the deaths of the three disciples are unfortunate, but we’re not just doing this to find the culprit.”

“Then what is the purpose?”

“We’ve already gained one thing, haven’t we? From today, the Changryong Sect has become the de facto leader of many small and medium-sized sects. Don’t you think?”

Whether it was de facto or not, many sect leaders had sought out Sect Leader Im after the meeting, and they all praised his spirit today.

“The price of death is not some soft revenge. It must be something more concrete and practical that helps the growth of the Changryong Sect.”

Im Bon-jae was speechless. Even if he was a merchant to the bone, to think of using the deaths of young disciples…

“Sect Leader, let’s postpone our discussion. We might soon have a lot of guests coming to find us.”

“Guests?”

“Those who want to use our Changryong Sect. Let’s see what they propose.”

Im Bon-jae clicked his tongue and turned away. Jo Gwang-yun said to him,

“If we don’t keep our wits about us, we’ll be eaten by those guys. Remember that.”

Im Bon-jae had already been eaten. He still had the position of representative of the Changryong Sect, but Jo, the head of the Jo family and the only disciple of Quick Sword Master, had taken that position away.

As Sect Leader Im left, Jo Gwang-yun thought about who would be the first to come. The one most closely related to this incident would come first. Whether that person was the culprit or not.

“Sect Leader, a guest has arrived.”

Already?

He thought they would come after dark, avoiding people’s eyes, but they came before dinner. Does that mean they’re that desperate?

“Bring them in.”

The first guest opened the door and entered without even being guided. An impatient person.

“Oh? Great Hero, what brings you here?”

Hwasan’s First Sword, Noh Hye-gwang, looked around the room.

“To think a great merchant would stay in such a simple place.”

“You shouldn’t spend money where it’s not needed. You have to save to live well.”

“That guy, he always has to add one more thing.”

“Great Hero Noh, I’m a bit busy… Please tell me what’s going on.”

Noh Hye-gwang plopped down in his seat and held up two fingers.

“Just two questions. Is your master really Quick Sword Master Kwon?”

“Don’t you trust the words of the Beggars’ Union’s Chwi Gae?”

“I don’t trust the Beggars’ Union much. Knowing a lot of information and using that information are two different things. To use it, they also spread false or exaggerated information. So, I only believe about half of what the Beggars’ Union says.”

He thought he was just a country bumpkin who madly drew plum blossoms in the mountains, but he was very different.

“You are Quick Sword Master’s disciple, but you didn’t receive much teaching. You only received the status of being a disciple, to use that status in the martial world. Am I right?”

“You misunderstand. It’s just that my talent is dull, so I haven’t achieved much. I am receiving great teachings.”

Noh Hye-gwang looked at Jo Gwang-yun for a moment before asking his second question.

“Who do you suspect?”

“I don’t know, so I acted so presumptuously today. I thought the Martial Arts Alliance would do something.”

“You’re just lying through your teeth.”

Noh Hye-gwang was a straightforward person. As soon as he finished asking his two questions, he stood up and said,

“Keep your wits about you. There will be a lot of guys trying to eat you now.”

His last words were not a question but a warning.

The second visitor was an unexpected person.

“I don’t know if it’s rude to visit so late at night.”

“No, it’s okay. I tend to sleep late. But what brings you here? Strategist Je Gal.”

End