Chapter 36: Chapter 36

The name of the small city was Salt Lake City. It was a simple name attached because there was a salt lake filled with salt water rather than fresh water nearby, and the salt produced from that lake was the city’s representative product. From what he heard, it seemed to be a unique-tasting New Continent salt that was very popular in the Central Plains.

To Jang Geon’s taste, it was just that the astringent taste was slightly less, so he didn’t know what was so delicious about it.

“Is there no word from the Imperial Court? Salt would be managed directly by that side.”

“Of course there is word. So all the salt produced here goes to Heavenly Empress City and is sold only under the Imperial Court’s supervision. On the surface.”

“…Aha. On the surface.”

The innkeeper wiping a cup behind a long table smirked.

“It seems the money coming out of this business is really no joke. It’s truly gold that comes out of water, gold. Much more certain than gold dust. But does it make sense to sell all that under the Imperial Court?”

Jang Geon, sitting in front of the table, raised his cup and spoke,

“The Imperial Court must be slashing the price.”

“…Uh, no. It’s not that. But they keep trying to control the sales volume? Those bastards are trying to stop it out of the idea that we’re sucking up Central Plains money. So we just go to New Sichuan and secretly sell it off. It’s an open secret around here.”

At the innkeeper’s answer, Jang Geon chuckled in absurdity.

“If you get caught, the Imperial Army won’t sit idly by. Will it be alright?”

“What does it matter? In this vast land, how much Imperial Army could there be anyway? As long as we’re careful around Heavenly Empress City, there’s no problem. And since the Emperor has no special interest in this land, he won’t send the Imperial Army just because a bit of salt crossed over secretly.”

Jang Geon slowly shook his head and sipped his liquor. The Emperor’s true mind is something really no one knows except the Emperor himself. The current Emperor seemed as indifferent to the New Continent as his father, but again, it was impossible to guess how long that would remain so. If the thought suddenly popped into his head one day that he wanted to colonize all of the new land, tens of thousands of Imperial Army soldiers would cross over to this land on sailing ships just like that.

Thinking up to that point, Jang Geon shook his head again. Even if they called it salt produced here, it wouldn’t reach even the feet of the salt produced natively in the Central Plains. That’s why even in Heavenly Empress City, they managed it loosely. From the Emperor’s perspective, it merely looked like ants squirming beneath his feet.

He tilted the bottle to fill his cup and gulped it down. Either way, it wasn’t a problem for Jang Geon to worry about.

It had already been several days since he spent time in this inn. Originally, he intended to just lightly relieve his travel fatigue and leave again, but experiencing the surprisingly chilly weather along with the warm stove heat together, his feet naturally stuck to the inn. Moreover, staying for a few days like that, this city wasn’t bad either. Because there was plenty of salt, salty food and cheap room rates were to Jang Geon’s liking.

The public order here was handled by a sect affiliated with the Martial Alliance called the Sword Dragon Sect. Cities or large-scale villages were often handled by sects belonging to the Martial Alliance like this, so it wasn’t a strange thing. It seemed the Sword Dragon Sect earned a lot of money by managing and supervising the salt trade of Salt Lake City, and invested that money back into the development of Salt Lake City.

“By the way, aren’t you doing any work?”

Just then, the innkeeper asked in passing. Jang Geon, who was drinking liquor, thought about whether he had run up any credit tab so far.

“…Didn’t I give you three days’ room rent yesterday?”

“No, well. It’s just that it’s already been several days since you came to our inn, but I’ve only seen you playing and eating. At first I thought you came to work as a salt laborer.”

Jang Geon scratched his chin. He was exploring martial arts in his own way while resting comfortably, but to an outsider’s eyes, he apparently looked like a mere idler. Thinking for a moment, Jang Geon pulled out the newly bought tobacco from his shirt, rolled it, and bit it. Lighting it with a nearby lantern and blowing out smoke with a puff, the innkeeper watching him laughed.

“Seeing you playing and eating like that, did you strike it big somewhere?”

“Striking it big… I did strike it big once. The problem is that it was an empty can.”

“Oh. Tell me the story. Working at an inn, listening to stories from outsiders is my sole pleasure.”

Jang Geon bit the cigarette in his mouth, looked at the innkeeper, and smiled back. Was this gentleman also an information merchant gathering minor intel to sell off, like Madam Yeo in Cheongsu Village? Watching him for a few days, he strangely liked listening to other people’s stories.

“What more is there to a story of kicking an empty can? Just give me one more bottle of liquor.”

As Jang Geon, who seemed about to start a story, wrapped up his words like that, the innkeeper grumbled softly and pulled out a new bottle of liquor.

“Do you need any snacks?”

“I’m fine.”

In fact, it would be good to have snacks. But for that, his pocket situation wasn’t good. As the innkeeper said, he now slowly needed to do something and earn money. If he didn’t want to starve to death.

Jang Geon thought while puffing his cigarette. Still, this time he hadn’t completely squandered his money on gambling, so there was no need to rush too much. Having stayed for a few days and roughly knowing how this city ran, if it became truly urgent, he could go to the Sword Dragon Sect, show off some sword skill, and become a retainer, or if that didn’t work out, become a salt laborer as the innkeeper mentioned. Jang Geon wasn’t overly worried.

Just then, a man opened the inn door and entered inside.

“Welcome. Are you staying the night?”

“…I will only have a meal.”

Entering alone, he did not go inside but sat at the long table like Jang Geon. As Jang Geon looked, he was a well-built, handsome young man wearing a head cloth on his head. His slightly somber eyes and atmosphere gave the impression of someone who would be popular with women.

Jang Geon, who had glanced past him, involuntarily turned his eyes back. The man, who was looking around the surroundings slightly nervously, felt Jang Geon’s gaze and faced him.

“…Is there a problem?”

“No. It’s a face I haven’t seen before. Where did you come from?”

The young man furrowed his eyebrows as if Jang Geon’s question was uncomfortable.

“Why are you curious about that?”

“Indeed. Why are you curious about that? You’re an outsider too,”

The innkeeper bringing warm tea chimed in like that. Jang Geon casually stroked his chin and said,

“Just because that gentleman’s impression is good. I wondered if we had met somewhere once.”

“That’s impossible. Because it’s my first time coming here. There’s no way we met before either, so it seems to be just your misconception.”

“Right. I must have misjudged.”

Jang Geon roughly brushed off the eyes of the young man and the innkeeper and raised his liquor cup. The reason he couldn’t take his eyes off the young man wasn’t a big deal. It was simply because the well-trained body revealed above the young man’s hands and clothes caught his eye. In the New Continent, he had hardly seen a body trained to such a visible extent.

However, since there was no telling what kind of expert with what story might be wandering this vast land, in the end it wasn’t something to care deeply about.

Meanwhile, the young man who had been looking at Jang Geon decided to consider him a mere drunkard and began eating the noodles the innkeeper brought. He ate it ravenously as if he had been hungry. The innkeeper felt pity at that sight and added a bit more noodles for him.

While Jang Geon smoked all of his last remaining cigarette, the young man finished his meal with slurping sounds and even let out a belch as if he could now live. The innkeeper laughed.

“Did you eat well?”

“Ah. I ate well, Boss. The broth is very good.”

The young man looked at the chuckling innkeeper’s face, pulled out money, and handed it over. And to the innkeeper collecting it, he continued speaking,

“Excuse me, I’d like to ask something.”

“Hmm? Haha. What are you curious about? By any chance, a job? I can connect you to the salt laborer side.”

The young man shook his head.

“My name is Jin… Won-sang. I am looking for a person.”

“Oh! Looking for a person? I know the people here well.”

At the innkeeper’s agreeable answer, the face of the young man named Jin Won-sang brightened slightly.

“The person I’m looking for is a girl named Yang So-so, no. Since a lot of time has passed, she’s not a girl. At any rate, she is a woman named Yang So-so.”

“Yang So-so?”

The innkeeper tilted his head.

“Is that all?”

“Th-Her smile is really pretty… and she is very kind.”

At Jin Won-sang’s words, the innkeeper let out a chuckle.

“Hey man. When you’re blinded by love, everyone is pretty and kind. How can you find a person with just that? How many people drop by this Salt Lake City and how many stay here.”

Jin Won-sang hesitated for a moment at those words, then continued speaking,

“Excuse me, probably… she’ll have a daughter… and that child will be a bit sick. Her husband will be a laborer doing hard work. And… she might have changed her name.”

The innkeeper was speechless for a moment. Seeing the young man’s expression when he said the woman was pretty, he thought he came looking for a lover. But why was he looking for a woman with a husband and daughter? And why would she have changed her name?

Pausing for a moment, the innkeeper spoke as if roughly understanding,

“Ah, well, are you separated family? A sister?”

“…Yes, that’s right. Separated family. A sister.”

Looking strangely at him answering readily, the innkeeper scratched his head.

“This is tricky. I’m sorry, but I don’t know. If she even changed her name, wouldn’t it be faster to look around directly?”

“…I see.”

Jin Won-sang’s expression looked gloomy. It seemed his strength drained at the thought of meeting and walking around many people. However, he forced a smile again and said,

“Right. The way coming here was really tough too, but since I eventually came, if I seek to find her, I’ll eventually be able to find her.”

Jang Geon, who was sipping liquor on one side and unintentionally heard their entire conversation, stared at the slumped man. To be exact, he was looking toward his chest where he had pulled out money to give the innkeeper earlier. Imagining that pouch that looked heavy even at a glance, a method popped into Jang Geon’s mind to touch money by selling legwork moderately without much hardship.

“If you’re going to wander around here and there like that, you’ll need a guide.”

At Jang Geon’s sudden words, Jin Won-sang, who looked gloomy, furrowed his eyebrows.

“…What?”

Jang Geon rubbed out the cigarette stub in the ashtray and continued speaking,

“Is this your first time here? Searching for a person in such a place won’t be ordinarily tough.”

“…That may be so. But that doesn’t seem to be something you need to care about.”

“Well now. It seems we might be able to help each other.”

Jin Won-sang blinked his eyes for a moment, then furrowed his eyebrows again as if realizing what he meant.

“Are you saying you’ll help me find a person? In exchange for compensation? But you said you’re an outsider too?”

“I’ve been here longer than you.”

At Jang Geon’s nonchalant answer, Jin Won-sang let out a soft laugh.

“If it’s for something like that, hiring a local resident here seems better. Rather than a person drinking liquor in an inn, that’s much…”

“You learned martial arts.”

At Jang Geon’s sudden words, Jin Won-sang paused for a moment. But soon he smiled again and continued speaking,

“…People who learned simple breathing techniques are scattered everywhere. What’s so great about that, ”

“You mainly trained in fist arts, so you’re not a person of a New Continent sect. You learned martial arts in the Central Plains. It hasn’t been long since you came over. Seeing your palms, besides your main fist art, you learned weapon techniques… Probably spear… No, staff techniques. Seeing your body, the fist art you learned is a considerable power fist. It would break boulders too. And as far as I know, there are really few Central Plains sects that train in such power fists and staff techniques together.”

Jang Geon smiled and pointed at the head cloth hiding Jin Won-sang’s head.

“That head cloth is cool.”

In that short moment, Jin Won-sang’s expression completely stiffened pale. He trembled his lips, hesitated, and barely managed to say,

“…Y-Your eyes are extremely… good. In that short moment while I entered the inn and ate a meal, did you… verify all of that?”

Without answering, Jang Geon merely smiled faintly and held up his liquor cup. The innkeeper, who was quietly listening to their conversation, subtly put down a new cup of tea in front of Jin Won-sang and chimed in,

“I don’t know what it is, but that friend got it all right, didn’t he? I didn’t know he had such an ability. How about doing as that friend says?”

He continued speaking as Jin Won-sang turned to look at him,

“That friend stayed here for a few days, and from talking with him during that time, he’s not such a bad friend. He’s not a friend who would scam you and rip off money. So try working together for a bit first, and if you think it’s not working, you can change people, can’t you?”

At those words, Jin Won-sang gathered his hands and fell into thought for a moment. And Jang Geon, sipping his remaining liquor, looked at the innkeeper unexpectedly at his appearance taking his side. The innkeeper subtly winked one eye and held up three fingers. The words he was saying seemed visible: I helped you, so 30% of the pay is mine.

Jang Geon sternly shook his head and held up two fingers. Thinking for a moment, the innkeeper nodded. Just then, Jin Won-sang finished thinking and raised his head.

“Alright. Since you seem to be a person with extraordinary observational power, it seems you’ll be of great help in finding the person. Then how much money should I give you?”

“Well. How much do you have?”

At Jang Geon’s lukewarm answer, Jin Won-sang pulled out a money pouch from his shirt. And thinking for a moment, he handed the whole pouch to Jang Geon.

“…You’re giving me all of this?”

“Yes.”

This time, Jang Geon was surprised and hesitated for a moment.

“…You don’t know yet whether I can find her or not?”

“Then I will be squandering my money.”

Jang Geon looked into Jin Won-sang’s eyes for a moment. His eyes were pure and solid. Rather than being like any boulder or steel, they were eyes where the firmness of his own will was revealed. Jang Geon liked that gaze for some reason and smiled subtly. And he received the proffered money pouch.

“Alright. Then let me start right away.”

“Wh-What? Right now?”

Rummaging through the money pouch, placing silver coins and a few copper coins on the table, Jang Geon walked right out of the inn with large strides. Flustered, Jin Won-sang quickly gulped down the tea water the innkeeper served, bowed politely in farewell, and followed behind him.

The innkeeper looked at the swinging door as they left, then turned to gather the silver and copper coins.

“Interesting friends. It’s going to be lively.”