Chapter 159: What Kind of Money Is That (2)

The uninhabited basin of Yangju Mountain.

Seonghwa Seonghwa was engrossed in something in the kitchen.

Foods such as steamed carp and dongpo meat arranged neatly on one side. There were even garnishes on there. It seemed like a guest was coming.

She placed her left hand on her waist and looked around, looking for a spatula.

When I lifted the lid of the pot, steam came out.

Seolhwa’s eyes, which were checking whether the rice was cooked, suddenly and subtly changed. At the same time, he muttered softly to somewhere.

“Just take one step inside. I”ll cut off all your legs.”

Contrary to the scary words, there was no change in expression on the face. Moreover, his gaze was still fixed on the pot.

She spoke casually while stirring the inside of the pot with a spatula.

“She must have looked like a rich woman, cooking rice here like this.”

A black shadow was moving in front of the door. It soon transformed into a human image.

A man in black clutching a sack of attitude. It was a perfect assassin. Her eyes were shaking violently.

How could anyone have expected that Eunshin would be detected so easily? He recognized his presence without even looking.

I felt regret over the request information and the other person’s level, but there was no turning back now.

“If I don”t let it sit now, the rice won”t taste good. I have an important guest coming today. So, will you just stand there and wait for a moment?”

Seolhwa, who was stirring the spatula, wasn’t even looking at him.

Seeing that sight, assassin felt an instinctive fear. In my entire life, there has never been a moment that gave me goosebumps as much as this moment.

His mouth opened for the first time.

“…If I were to leave behind an arm, would you just let me go?”

“No. You die today.”

Sensing that things were going wrong, assassin decided to run away.

A small bead secretly slipped out of his sleeve and into his grasp. It was a smoke bomb, a tool commonly used by assassins.

I wasn’t sure if I would succeed, but this was the best I could do.

Pow-!

A thick fog burst out in all directions from the entrance to the kitchen. At the same time, assassin flew to the other side.

Taaa-!

Seolhwa”s eyebrows narrowed sharply.

She quickly covered the dish with the pot lid and extended her right hand toward the entrance.

At that moment, four beams of light flew towards the sprayer.

Deep! Puppuppuk-!

“Kaaak!”

A thin ray of light penetrated both of assassin’s legs and arms. The thin and tough silk silk thread attached to the end of the needle sparkled like a spider web.

“You went to dinner.”

Seolhwa was annoyed. This was because the smoke screen from the spray seeped into the cauldron. Pre-made food could be protected, but rice could not.

When she closed her fingers, the spray twisted and fell backwards.

It was a force that could not be resisted. As Seolhwa pulled Cheonjamsa, assassin was dragged away mercilessly.

“Please save me!”

“Are you going to ask me to kill you soon?”

Seolhwa grabbed assassin’s hair. Then he dragged himself towards the warehouse. Because I didn’t want blood to splatter in the yard.

The look in assassin’s eyes said that it was unfair. So much so that tore came out.

“I want to know who will kill me!”

“What? Did you come to kill me without knowing who I was?”

“Well, I never heard that the target of the request was a martial artist! I just received a request to capture a woman who was alone! I was also defrauded!”

“How much did you receive in return for the request?”

“Three silver taels.”

Seolhwa looked astonished.

“I should have received more. It”s the price for the life of the Lady of Jade Flower.”

At that moment, assassin’s pupils shook in fear.

No martial person could not have known her nickname. Wasn’t he a fearsome figure who rose to the position of leader of the Maduro cult, who made a name for himself in the Great War?

“Dang, you can stand, really?”

Seolhwa opened the warehouse door and raised one corner of his mouth.

“That”s right. Then, shall we talk about that client together from now on?”

“Oh, this shit”.”

Those were assassin’s last words.

After one visit.

Before I knew it, Seolhwa was sitting in the hut.

Neatly arranged side dishes and steaming rice bowls. These were foods prepared for So-mu.

So-mu, who was holding chopsticks across from him, looked satisfied.

“It tastes good. Yeonmae”s cooking skills are getting better and better, isn”t it?”

Compliments can make anyone feel good. Seolhwa said, managing her expression as if she didn’t want to show it.

“It must be delicious. Someone made it.”

So-mu ate well whatever food he cooked. Even now, my mouth was full of cold food.

“I heard assassin came to visit? When a woman lives alone in such a remote place, she always has to be careful.”

“Are you worried about me now?”

So-mu swallowed the food in his mouth and changed the topic.

“Um” But what did you do? Did you kill him”?”

Seolhwa, with her arms crossed, narrowed her eyes and glared at So-mu, then spoke with a somber expression.

“I kept him alive because I didn”t want to bury him. You can take him to the government office.”

Disposing of a corpse was not an easy task.

When So-mu heard that he was still alive, he secretly breathed a sigh of relief.

“I”ll take you. But why are you targeting Yeon-mae?”

It was something I could never understand. Since she left Kangho, she has never done anything to offend others.

Seolhwa said as if it was no big deal, putting some side dishes on So-mu”s rice bowl.

“There”s nothing to worry about. It”s not a big deal.”

If he dared to attack her, he would either be crazy or not know who he was. It was clear that the situation was not serious enough to cause concern.

“Well, if there”s anything I can help you with, you can tell me.”

“Then, please do some research on Ouyanghoe. But don”t touch it at all. I will handle it.”

So-mu chuckled and moved his chopsticks again.

“I don”t know who they are, but they touched the wrong person.”

***

So-mu went straight to the military prison.

A black robe was draped over his shoulder. Her eyes were half-open and he was drooling.

The soldiers guarding the entrance stood up with puzzled expressions.

“Who are you?”

“He”s an assassin who tried to harm innocent civilians. First, lock him up for a few days until he comes to his senses.”

“Yes, I understand.”

The back of assassin being dragged away by soldiers. So-mu, looking at him, added a word.

“He”s a pitiful guy, so feed him well.”

Now I had to find out about Ouyanghoe that Seolhwa had requested. He could have used the Corps’ intelligence network, but since it was a private matter, he chose a different route.

The place he moved to was a village not far from Jangan. The location of the open the Branch was already known.

A two-story old building on the outskirts of town. It looked ugly, as if it was about to collapse, but the scale and interior were wonderful in their own way.

At the entrance, three young beggars stood guard, clutching batons.

“Are you in Branch Province?”

As beggars of openness who handle information, they had great insight. After checking So-mu’s official uniform, they asked with nervous faces.

“W-what”s going on?”

“Um. Just tell them that an acquaintance came to see it.”

“Sleep, just wait a moment.”

The beggars sent one person up. And before it was even half-width, an old beggar came hurriedly down. It was Heo Gyu whom So-mu wanted to meet.

“Oh my, this guy!”

When Heo Gyu tried to hug him, So-mu quickly dodged and said.

“Let”s walk for a bit and talk first. Let”s have a drink after a long time.”

“Giggles. If that”s the case, there”s no reason for me to refuse. Go ahead.”

There were so many beggars lying around. Only after the seeing eyes disappeared did So-mu’s mouth open again.

“There”s a knot growing on my back?”

“Ahm. I am now the leader in opening up. It”s all thanks to you.”

“It”s because of me?”

“It”s because our Lord noticed that I was close to you. Giggles. It was ultimately because of the secrets of the Demonic Cult that you passed on to me.”

“Hmm. What is the Martial Alliance”s reaction?”

“What can we do? Since the New Demon Cult is researching the destruction methods of the martial arts of the right faction, we have no choice but to analyze the martial arts of the Demon Cult and develop herbalism.”

“That”s good. If the Martial Alliance falls to the Divine Demon, the government army won”t be able to survive alone.”

“Don”t worry. Experts from each sect have already gathered and are studying all night long.”

So-mu nodded once with a faint smile.

“But these days, there seems to be no conflict of interest between factions.”

“Isn”t that inevitable? This is a time when the survival of the Martial Alliance is at stake. In order to survive, we have no choice but to unite as one.”

“I guess that”s true too. Where is the nearest guesthouse?”

“I own all the guesthouses around Jangan, so just follow me. By the way, what kind of information do you plan on receiving for the drinks?”

“You”re just a ghost. Have you heard of Ouyanghoe? If you have any information, please pass it on.”

“You don”t know the Ouyang Association? The government”s information network is disappointing. You don”t know the Chamber of Commerce where the richest man in Sichuan Province is located.”

“The richest man in the central region?”

“The man named Hwang Gi was the head of Hoeju, and he was a well-known figure in Sacheon. It seems he came over to take advantage of the situation in Changan this time.”

“and?”

“Giggles. If something goes, something has to come. Let”s talk about the rest over a drink. We”re almost there.”

At that time, So-mu”s steps suddenly stopped. Her eyes were looking somewhere to the left.

Heo Gyu looked around his head and asked.

“Isn”t that your daughter over there? Riding a bull?”

So-so was clear. It was going somewhere while riding on a yellow animal. Behind me, I saw two kids my age. They were the children of Director Baekyak.

“Daughter, where are you going?”

So-so, who made eye contact, smiled brightly and pulled the reins.

“father!”

“What were you doing here?”

“Dalong is taking me for a walk.”

Baeksang and Baekah, who were riding in the back, greeted each other at the same time.

“Hello, uncle!”

“Hey guys, it”s been a while.”

Baek Sang’s eyes, which were full of venom in a way that was typical of a child, had calmed down. Moreover, judging from his changed prayers, it seemed like he was steadily learning martial arts. Although it was not comparable to So-so.

At that time, Heo Gyu approached me with a curious expression and tilted his head.

“But what kind of animal is this? It”s not even a bull”.”

I couldn’t help but wonder.

Wrapping your body in a blanket with a chick on it and covering your face with a cloth. In addition, he was wearing a clown hat and a colorful leash.

It was the moment when Heo Gyu’s fingers were about to touch the Mountain Lord’s face. Suddenly, the huge tiger opened its mouth wide, revealing its sharp teeth.

“What, what, what!?”

Heo Gyu, startled, took a step back and almost fell.

“It”s outrageous that you”re firing a gun in the open. To be surprised by an animal.”

“Was the rumor that they captured the Mountain Lord true? But why are they on board?”

“Let”s go inside and talk about the details.”

“Whew. I thought my heart stopped.”

Leaving the surprised Heogyu behind, So-mu approached his daughter and asked.

“Have you eaten?”

“No. I”m hungry~”

“I”m on my way to a guest house with Mr. Heogyu. Let”s go after eating.”

So-so looked back and smiled.

“My father bought me food. Let”s go together. Hehe.”

Baeksang and Baekah also seemed hungry.

“Thank you, uncle.”

“Hehe. I was hungry too, sister.”

The guesthouse was nearby. I tied up the Mountain Lord in the backyard and went inside and settled down.

So-mu sat across from Heo Gyu, and the children took separate seats in the corner.

So-mu, who had already eaten with Yeonseonghwa, was just drinking.

“What kind of scheme is this guy named Hwang Gi of Ouyanghoe doing in Chang”an?”

Heogyu swallowed the food in his mouth and poured down his drink.

“It is said that he kept going in and out of Taewoongbang. It was probably his intention to manipulate the market price of Eunja to make money exchange profits.”

“Hmm. I heard someone exchanged all of Taewungbang”s silver coins. I guess it was Hwanggi.”

“No. There is a rumor that Hwanggi released all the silver he owned at once to lower the market price, but the wrong person swept them all up.”

“There is another wealthy person in Changan who is comparable to Hwang Gi? Who is it?”

“There is no information about him. For some reason, Taewongbang is keeping her mouth shut. It seems he is reluctant to even mention him.”

The price of silver coins was soaring day by day, exceeding 400 taels worth of coins. However, the price continued to soar to the upper limit every day without stopping.

I was curious as to who was hit by the thunderbolt, but that wasn’t the important issue right now.

“What does Ooyanghoe do? How did they raise the investment money?”

“They were guys who specialized in the loan business in Sacheon. Even now, they are having fun in Chang”an.”

“You”re in the business of lending money?”

“That”s right. They say they lend money to anyone, regardless of who they are. But there are also rumors that they demand dozens of times more interest, and if they can”t pay it back, they capture it and sell it somewhere.”

“They are rotten from the very beginning. What are their other peculiarities?”

“Recently, the number of robberies around here has been increasing. I heard a rumor that most of them are people who borrowed money from the Guyanghoe. We are even going to Guard Battalion to investigate, but there seems to be no results.”

So-mu folded her arms and looked worried.

“Where is Ouyanghoe”s headquarters?”

“First of all, could you please order me another bottle of alcohol? I”m thirsty after talking so much.”

Meanwhile, the children sitting in the corner of the guest room put their headed together. I was eavesdropping on what adults were saying.

So-so whispered with a serious expression as he grabbed the duck meat with chopsticks.

“I know. That fat guy.”

Baeksang asked in a low voice.

“So-so, how do you know?”

When he remembered what happened last time, So-so frowned as if he was angry.

“The last time I went to Taewoong”s room, he pushed me away.”

“As expected, you are definitely a bad person. So-so, you are a pure officer. Shall we scold you?”

“No. I”m just a patrolman in the palace.”

It also said that if you leave the palace, you have no authority.

Baeksang’s face, who was thinking about something, suddenly brightened.

“I have a good idea.”

Five-year-old Baek-ah, who knew nothing, was just watching with wide eyes.

After a while, when the mock was over, the children stood up at the same time.

“Father, I”ll go first!”

So-mu, who was preoccupied with the conversation with Heo Gyu, waved one hand.

“Obviously, when we followed the Cheongwoonpyo Bureau and checked, the woman was the only one there. Could it be that there was an escort that we weren”t able to check?”