Chapter 44: Heartless (3) (1/2)

Chapter 44: Heartless (3)

Translator: Hwarang

Editor: Kidyeon

I met up with the Yang Clan’s Bangju, Jung Yeo.

He was pleased with my success at stealing the treasure vault.

“I knew that Byuk Kongja would be able to succeed.”

It doesn’t seem like he’s too surprised, but rather as if he expected this.

“It’s all thanks to you, Bangju-nim.”

“What did I do? It was your achievement.”

“If you hadn’t told me the location of the secret corridor, how could I have gotten there before Si Gon? It’s all thanks to you.”

He smiled when I thanked him. I’d said thank you from the bottom of my heart. If it weren’t for his help, I wouldn’t have even gotten close to the vault.

“Don’t they suspect you?”

“Thankfully they don’t.”

They didn’t believe that we’ld challenge one of the five great clans of the Central Plain, as they just considered us country b.u.mpkin. This was probably because none of the border clans had been able to do so until now.

“Where are they now?”

“I think they’re trying to bring the San Dong Merchant Guild to their side.”

It was the same San Dong Merchant Guild that had failed to bring the Song Clan to their side.

Since the San Dong Merchant Guild needed strength, and Ma Jung Soo needed money, you could say that they would form an exquisite corporation.

“So they’re planning to use the San Dong Merchants to solve their money problems.”

“Yes; maybe this could be an opportunity to get more money.”

My mouth curved upwards.

“Why are you smiling?”

“Of course because it’s the perfect opportunity to make more money.”

He chuckled nervously.

He might have taken it as a joke, but I’d said it truthfully.

Since I’ve already stuck my straw into them, I might as well suck them dry.

Moreover, the San Dong Merchants were already on my bad side. They were about to use the Song Clan to get out of their trouble too. I would’ve eventually extinguished them, but it seems that I’ll have to take care of them a bit sooner since they’re a.s.sociating with Ma Jung Soo.

“I’ve already told the information guild to keep an eye on the San Dong Merchants. I’ll let you know when I receive any news.”

“Thanks.”

Jung Yeo was showing his loyalty to me. Thanks to me, he’d been able to become the Bangju; the loyalty he was showing seemed aggressive and very large. Just this heist alone could cause him to lose his head—if anything went wrong.

I presumed it was about time. “Jung Bangju.”

“Yes.”

“You said that your dream was raising the Yang Clan?”

“Yes, it is.”

“Have you found a greater dream?”

He grew silent. He knew what my question meant. ‘Do you want to achieve this grand dream with me?’

“Do you trust me?”

His voice was trembling. He already knew that my previous question would change his life forever.

“I don’t know.”

“Then why did you bring it up?”

“Because you’re someone that I want to trust.”

In my previous life, I hadn’t trusted just anyone. I’d build up trust through a rigorous process of questioning and testing. However, that kind of trust was very dry. As if waiting for my death, they’d turned their backs on me.

Now that I think about it, our relations.h.i.+p hadn’t been built upon trust; it had been built upon fear. Fear that either their lives or careers would end if they did something wrong. It had been their fear of such things that had kept this relations.h.i.+p. That twenty year relations.h.i.+p that I’d had with them couldn’t even be compared to the less-than-a-year relations.h.i.+p I had with Jung Yeo. Thus, in this life, I wanted to change my way of making relations.h.i.+ps with others. Not through trial and questioning, but through following my instincts.

“Someone that you want to trust… it seems that your thoughts are similar to mine.”

He said truthfully. He also seemed to hold similar thoughts.

If he’d told me that he trusted me, I would’ve been disappointed. I should never make the mistake of keeping him too close simply because he’d helped me, nor should I ever make the mistake of keeping him at a distance because he’d refused my proposal.

“You said this before. Even though I’m not the best person, I’m not someone that forgets favors.”

“Yes, I said that.”

“I am not you to be a great person.”

Since I have someone like that by my side already.

“I need someone who can carry their weight without betraying me.”

Although he might not like what I’d just said, these were my true feelings.

“I’ll start building my trust of you for from here on.”

After staring at me in silence, he said, “Give me a moment to think.”

“Of course. I don’t mind if it takes months or years. Think deeply about it.”

“Thank you.”

Jung Yeo left the room after bowing.

I was able to hear him enter his room next door. This was the current distance that he gave me. How this distance will change will depend on his decision.

******

To eliminate Old Man Flower Fan, I had to first find someone.

Based on what Kw.a.n.g Du had said, Old Man had been at a place where he could prove his alibi during all the accidents that took place in Jae Nam. This meant that there was someone working for him. Of course, it wasn’t his style to personally do things.

There must be someone acting as his hands and feet.

Since he’d come together with Ma Jung Soo, it’s highly unlikely that he would bring such a person with him, which means that that person was somewhere nearby, receiving orders.

I needed to find that person. After I find him or her, I need to confirm, from that person’s mouth, that he or she did so under Old Man Flower Fan’s order. I can’t just kill that person based on an a.s.sumption.

I bought another face-mask and applied it. I couldn’t use the face that I’d used to get inside of the Yang Clan Manor. This time I bought a high-tier mask, as I was going to be using it multiple times.

Since face-masks are sold in a well-sealed package, not even the sellers knew what it looks like, much less the buyers. However the buyers could still choose the gender and age.

This time that face that I bought was that of a thirty-some years old male. You could also choose a face with some added features on the mask, such as a scar or burn marks for some extra nyang.

Before, you’d have to have a professional mask-maker make one for you, but now it had become much easier. The quality wasn’t too bad either. With high-tier masks, you couldn’t even tell when someone was wearing a mask.

I proceeded to observe Old Man Flower Fan from a distance with a new face. Since his martial arts weren’t ordinary, trailing him wasn’t easy. I didn’t have that much experience trailing someone either, so I had to simply observe where he went from a distance.

Old Man Flower Fan was truly a busy and calculating person. He woke up early in the morning, went on a walk in a nearby forest, had breakfast, had tea in his garden, all before finally starting his day. He busily went place to place. Most of the time he went somewhere to meet someone. Thinking that all these meeting were part of the process that he’d gone through to do what he did in Jae Nam gave me gooseb.u.mps.

On the fourth day, I finally caught wind of something. I figured out that he was meeting someone when he entered the forest in the morning. When he entered the forest for a walk, I didn’t follow him and observed from outside. I stayed and watched the forest a bit longer, before noticing a man leave from somewhere in the forest. The next day, and the one after, this man would leave a certain amount of time after Old Man Flower Fan had left. I determined that this was to precise to be a coincidence.

Five days after observing the forest, I entered the forest right after Old Man Flower Fan had left.

Swoooosh.

The sound of the wind blowing past the bamboo trees sounded like water flowing in a river, which

calmed my heart. I hastened my pace.