The carts rumbled to a stop, the horses sighing in relief. “Is this Dock Number 8, Foreman?” one of the men asked, wiping sweat from his brow.
Foreman Yu Gwanhong squinted, his eyes wide. Before them, a huge dock buzzed like a disturbed beehive. People hurried in every direction, shouting and pushing. “Looks like it,” he murmured, more to himself than the others.
“Blimey,” another man breathed, staring at the sheer number of people. “What’s with all the crowds?”
Yu Gwanhong shook his head, equally bewildered. Everywhere he looked, goods were stacked high – sacks of grain, rolls of silk, even strange metal tools he couldn’t name. And still, a long line of carts snaked back as far as he could see.
It wasn’t surprising, really. Sailing the Yangtze River was too dangerous now. This dock was the only safe way.
“I never knew there were so many merchant guilds on the Yangtze.”
“Normally, you wouldn’t see them all gathered in one place like this.”
“True enough.”
The foreman nodded, his face etched with tension as he gazed ahead.
“Listen, be careful, okay? This dock isn’t like any other. Isn’t this place run by the Mount Hua Sect and the Cheonwu Alliance? One wrong word, and you’ll find yourselves in a very unpleasant situation.”
“They’re righteous sects; surely they wouldn’t go that far.”
“Don’t be naive! Do you have any idea how high the noses of the Nine Great Sects and the Five Great Families are?”
The foreman shook his head, as if the mere thought exhausted him.
“Merchants find these prestigious righteous sects even harder to deal with than high-ranking officials. More than a few have been ruined by trusting the word ‘righteous.’ So, don’t let your guard down for a moment. Treat them as if you’re facing the loftiest of dignitaries.”
“I’ll keep that in mind.”
“Let’s go, then.”
The foreman swallowed hard and led his merchant band toward the dock.
But who do I even talk to?
The system was entirely new to him, and he struggled to get his bearings. The chaotic surroundings only made it worse.
His gaze darted around until it landed on a scholar near the center. The man stood out from the crowd, clutching a large book.
Is that the place?
The foreman cautiously approached the scholar and inquired, “Excuse me… is this where we board the ships?”
Whoosh!
The scholar spun around, a bright smile spreading across his face as he met the foreman’s gaze.
“Welcome, esteemed guest!”
“…”
“Boys, water! Bring cool water and damp towels! Now!”
“Yes, sir!”
Those bustling around the scholar scurried to open a chest, retrieving water chilled with ice and towels cooled to perfection.
“You must be weary from your long journey!”
“Here, here!”
The foreman accepted the offered items in a daze. The cool gourd in his hand seemed to melt away the fatigue of the journey.
“Is this your first time here?”
“Well, yes, it is… The guild leader told us we could board ships here…”
“Ah, I see! May I ask which guild you represent?”
“We’re from the Hwanho Merchant Guild.”
“Hwanho Merchant Guild?”
The scholar flipped through the ledger in his hands.
“Let’s see, Hwanho Merchant Guild, Hwanho Merchant Guild… Ah! Here it is. Booked for the Misi hour! Misi hour means this ship! Boys! Take care of our guests!”
“Yessir!”
Before the words had even left his mouth, burly men rushed forward, hoisting the cargo from the carts onto the ship.
“H-huh…? They’re lifting those heavy things so easily?”
The merchant band consisted of men accustomed to carrying goods. Yet, they couldn’t help but marvel at the sight of these newcomers effortlessly hauling the cargo. These men were tossing around loads that would have ordinary strongmen groaning with effort, carrying two or three at a time.
It wasn’t hard to guess that they were no ordinary folk.
“They’re incredibly stro—”
“Move it! Move it fast!”
“Run, you bastards!”
“You’re all dead if you’re late! Move it!”
“…”
The merchants stared blankly at the men, who were carrying the goods with a desperate fervor.
Do they really have to go that far?
They were carrying the goods with even more desperation than the merchants themselves. Considering that laborers typically tried to make their work as easy as possible, it was a peculiar sight indeed.
But even that didn’t seem to please the scholar.
“Have you lot only been eating gruel? Move it faster! If you don’t get all these goods loaded by today, we’re all dead! You know that man’s temper, don’t you?”
“Ugh…”
The laborers groaned at his words and picked up the pace.
“Move it! Move it fast!”
“No! We can’t load any more onto this ship! It’ll sink if we do!”
“Then tell them to bring the next ship! What are those damn sailors doing? Get that ship out of here!”
“Hey! Don’t put any more there!”
The foreman wiped the cold sweat from his brow as he watched the laborers desperately hauling the goods.
What is this place?
Just then…
“Gwanhong? Is that you?”
“Huh?”
The foreman turned at the familiar voice. A familiar face stood beside him.
“Oh? Brother Imong!”
“So, you’ve come here too? Well, there’s hardly anyone making a living on the Yangtze these days who hasn’t come here.”
“Yes, Brother. I see you’re here as well.”
The merchant called Imong approached and chuckled.
“Must be quite bewildering.”
“Indeed. I can’t figure it out…”
“You’ll get used to it soon enough. I’ve only just managed to adjust myself.”
Imong surveyed the surroundings and said with a mix of awe and admiration.
“Isn’t it amazing?”
“It is. Mount Hua is truly something. I can’t imagine when they built this dock, or where they found these laborers. They don’t seem like Taoists…”
“Oh? Don’t you know?”
“Know what?”
“Look over there, over there.”
Imong cautiously pointed to a large, burly man carrying goods in the front. The foreman tilted his head.
“Why… what about him?”
“Take a closer look. You can’t possibly not know him.”
“Huh?”
The foreman blinked for a moment, studying the man, and then flinched.
“T-that… Could it be?”
“Indeed. That’s Taepyeong Daedo.”
“W-why is that man here?!”
Taepyeong Daedo.
A notorious bandit from the Green Forest Stronghold located in the Taepyeong Mountains above Gugang. With his immense strength and violent temper, no merchant in the Gugang area was unfamiliar with him.
The foreman had encountered him a few times himself. Because of Taepyeong Daedo’s infamy, they had to pay higher tolls than on other mountains in the Taepyeong range.
He was known for his monstrous strength.
“Ugh!”
As Taepyeong Daedo groaned while carrying goods, someone passing by kicked him squarely in the backside.
“Ack!”
“What are you doing, slacking off! Move it, you bastard!”
“S-sorry!”
The unbelievable sight drained the color from Foreman Yu Gwanhong’s face.
“W-what is going on…?”
Taepyeong Daedo, kicked in the backside and apologizing. What on earth were these people?
“Seems like they’re all from the Green Forest.”
“T-these laborers? All of them?”
“That’s right.”
“…”
Yu Gwanhong’s entire body began to sweat.
Bandits carrying the guild’s cargo? This was an absurd situation. It would be better to entrust a fish to a cat.
“I-is this alright?”
“Think about it; it’s not such a bad thing. Who do you think is eyeing this place the most right now? River pirates, aren’t they?”
“That’s true.”
“To stand against those river pirates, you need bandits. Would river pirates dare to come easily to a place swarming with Green Forest bandits?”
“W-well, even so, they’re still bandits…”
“You worry too much. Look over there.”
“Yes?”
Yu Gwanhong turned his gaze to where Imong was pointing. A massive flag fluttered in the wind, and on it, in crooked handwriting, something was written.
“What does that say…”
Yu Gwanhong squinted and read the words, his mouth dropping open.
He no longer had the energy to be surprised.
“What… is that?”
“I heard that the Mount Hua Divine Dragon wrote that himself. No matter how bold the bandits are, could they possibly stand against Mount Hua?”
“…”
Yu Gwanhong suddenly felt dizzy.
Everything happening here was far beyond his understanding.
Bandits worked at a dock created by a Taoist. And that Taoist was a member of Mount Hua, famous for being the best bandit-catchers in the world.
I don’t know anymore.
Don’t try to think about it. As long as I make money, that’s all that matters.
“Looks like your cargo is all loaded.”
“A-already?”
Loading cargo usually took longer than expected. Filling a single ship could take a whole day, even with all the skilled laborers working at full capacity.
But not here. The cargo piled up on the ship at a visible rate. Even a child stacking toy blocks wouldn’t be able to do it faster.
“Then let’s go see on the island.”
“Not the other side?”
“You really came here without knowing anything. Here, you have to travel via the island. They deliberately set it up this way to avoid trouble with river pirates if you were to carry goods directly across the water.”
“But wouldn’t that mean we have to load and unload twice?”
“What does it matter? It’s not like we’re doing it.”
He had a point.
“Of course, you have to pay the boat fare twice, but if you can move the goods safely, the fare is nothing. Anyway, I have to go now, so I’ll see you later.”
“Yes, Brother.”
Yu Gwanhong rubbed his temples as he watched Imong hurry toward the ship. Just then, the scholar, who had been busily giving instructions, came running over.
“Are you the foreman of the Hwanho Merchant Guild? The loading is complete. You can board the ship and head to the island right away.”
“H-how should we proceed once we get to the island?”
“Don’t worry. We’ll take care of all the unloading. However, you can’t bring your carts on the ship, so please rent carts there to transport your goods to the other side.”
“Ah, carts…”
“One tael per cart.”
“…”
The scholar smiled kindly.
“And while it doesn’t matter when the hour is early like today, if you arrive on the island late, we recommend that you stay overnight on the island. These days, the heretics of the Demonic Sect are causing such a ruckus that traveling at night can be dangerous. We have accommodations prepared on the island for you to stay in.”
“Ah… How grateful I am…”
“Five taels per room.”
“…”
“Of course, meals are also available.”
“How much are those?”
“Hahaha! You can eat as much as you like.”
“…”
The meals certainly wouldn’t be cheap. Definitely.
“Um, may I ask you something?”
“Yes, of course.”
“It looks like they’re building something over there. What is it?”
“Ah, we’re getting more people than expected, so there are more people waiting. We’re building accommodations for them to rest in.”
“Ah. Then it will definitely be more comfortab—”
“We’ll also be adding restaurants where you can have a simple meal, tea houses where you can enjoy tea, taverns where you can drink alcohol, and even gambling dens where you can pass the time.”
“…”
“We hope you’ll visit often! Very often!”
“Yes…”
“Then, I’ll be off.”
The scholar smiled kindly, turned around, and shouted loudly.
“Move it, you lot! The guests are waiting!”
His footsteps were full of enthusiasm. Yu Gwanhong shook his head.
I don’t know what’s going on here.
He had lived a long life and traveled far and wide, seeing countless things, but the world always seemed to surpass his common sense.
Report immediately if laborers demand money or unnecessary compensation. We will separate the bones and flesh of the offending laborer.