Chapter 118: Song Jae-mun (2)
The boisterous atmosphere quieted down at once.
Countless people closed their mouths and stared only at Jin Seong-un and the porter.
“……”
The porter’s eyes trembled faintly.
In that brief instant, the man realized that Jin Seong-un, who had caught his blade, was an overwhelmingly superior master.
No matter how much inner qi he exerted, he could not free the blade that was lightly held in the other’s grip.
His judgment was swift, and his actions even swifter.
The man let go of his sword and immediately unfolded his movement arts to flee.
Jin Seong-un placed the sword he was holding lightly on the table. The merchants who had been drinking with him blinked at the weapon.
A few guards pursued the man.
However, he seemed to have diligently trained in movement arts, as he weaved easily between tables and people.
“Whoa!”
Tables overturned here and there, with wine and food spilling onto the floor.
It seemed unlikely the guards would catch him, and Jin Seong-un was about to take a step when—
“That’s enough. Leave him be.”
Song Jae-mun spoke in a calm tone as he rose from his seat.
People all turned their eyes toward him.
Jin Seong-un also wore a puzzled expression.
“Is it alright to leave him? If he came all the way here to brandish a sword, it must mean he bears a grudge.”
“Hehe, in such a short time I’ve concluded hundreds, even thousands of deals to rise to this position. How could I not have accumulated grudges?”
Jin Seong-un nodded.
No matter how upright one lived, if someone gained money, another was bound to lose it.
The life of a martial artist was no different. Whether in duels or battles of life and death, if one kept winning and building fame, losers were bound to emerge.
Song Jae-mun’s words continued, his tone as if addressing not only Jin Seong-un, but everyone present.
“In business, there are times one unintentionally wounds others. Even if I am upright, I cannot be a good man to everyone.”
At that, merchants here and there nodded. All had lived similar lives and had such experiences.
Glancing at the merchants’ mood, Song Jae-mun gave more weight to his voice.
“That man is surely one among those harmed by me without my knowledge. It is but the karmic retribution I’ve accumulated.”
Song Jae-mun’s expression grew bitter.
It was as if he bore the heavy destiny of life itself, like a chivalrous hero.
“Yet was I not saved by Heaven’s will? My meeting with Guest Dragon was Heaven’s will, and that Guest Dragon just so happened to be at my side—also Heaven’s will.”
At the mention of Guest Dragon, exclamations burst out everywhere. His reputation had already been soaring of late, and now the achievement of saving Song Jae-mun, one of the Hundred Great Merchants of the world, was added.
“There is a saying: small business is done by man, great business by Heaven. If Heaven’s will saved me, then it means in my life, my merits still outweigh my faults!”
“Hmmm.”
Unlike the cheering merchants, Jin Seong-un’s expression grew subtle.
Though he had not lived long nor experienced much, he knew the world did not always work that way.
There were many who suffered misfortune without fault. Even the children captured by Qinghai Iron Workshop had been so.
What sins had they committed to deserve such tragedy?
Yet there was an odd strength in Song Jae-mun’s words. The merchants were swept up by his tone, demeanor, and atmosphere, nodding fervently and cheering.
Only Jin Seong-un—and Oh Jeong-san, who watched from afar—showed subtly changed expressions.
The two of them, having cultivated martial arts of ascension, were not easily swayed by mere atmosphere.
As Jin Seong-un and Oh Jeong-san briefly exchanged glances, Song Jae-mun’s final words followed.
“If I continue to live righteously, Heaven shall keep saving me. If my wrongs grow greater, then Heaven shall not forgive me. I will merely accept it calmly. So do not chase that man.”
Those last words were directed at Jin Seong-un.
Jin Seong-un felt somewhat absurd.
‘He already ran away while you were talking this much.’
Even if told to chase him now, it would be difficult.
Of course, if he scoured all of Jingzhou, that would be a different matter, but…
“Well, understood.”
Jin Seong-un bore no personal grudge against the man, so if the party involved said not to pursue, he had no reason to insist.
“Separately, I shall buy drinks for all who heard my words today. Of course, it is Guest Dragon who saved my life, so you must thank him!”
Then cries of “Guest Dragon” erupted from all around.
Jin Seong-un scratched his head.
If nothing else, Song Jae-mun indeed had a remarkable ability to control the mood.
‘Well, no wonder.’
That was likely how he had started from the bottom and risen to the achievement of becoming one of the Hundred Great Merchants of the world.
The commotion subsided, and the next day dawned.
The Merchant Festival was comparatively quiet during the day.
Just as martial artists trained daily, merchants too attended to business every day.
Of course, Jin Seong-un, who had neither training nor business, was an exception.
He had breakfast and strolled leisurely through the streets.
Though fewer than at night, quite a few people were still enjoying the festival.
The problem was—they all recognized Jin Seong-un.
“Oh! Guest Dragon Master!”
A man he did not know approached and greeted him warmly, introducing himself and his business.
More and more such people gathered until Jin Seong-un was surrounded by merchants.
“……”
He had two choices.
First, to maintain his dignity and politely mingle with them.
Second, to simply run away.
Any reasonable person would of course choose the first option.
So Jin Seong-un unfolded his movement arts and dashed off.
…
…
…
He lightly leapt across rooftops, enjoying his stroll. With no one seeking him out, peace of mind returned.
The view of the Merchant Festival from above was even better. Merchants were always vibrant and passionate.
Even in the early morning, everyone was moving forward in their own way.
After walking for some time, something familiar caught his eye.
Though a bamboo hat concealed his face, Jin Seong-un vividly remembered the man’s presence and gait.
It was the porter who had attacked Song Jae-mun the previous night.
“Or perhaps… not just a porter.”
With that thought, Jin Seong-un quietly observed him.
The man was glancing about nervously as he approached a certain pavilion.
It was the lodging Oh Jeong-san had arranged for Jin Seong-un.
He had heard it was among the finest inns prepared for this Merchant Festival.
‘That man Song Jae-mun must also be staying there.’
Considering the way Oh Jeong-san treated Song Jae-mun, it was only natural.
It seemed the man had not given up on Song Jae-mun.
He loitered around the pavilion for a while, then headed not to the front gate, but to the back.
Soon, standing before the back door, he slipped a hand into his robe and steadied his breath.
Of course, that hand would be clutching a blade.
Jin Seong-un dropped down behind him.
The man was so tense that the sound of his breaths, as he tried to calm himself, came loud and ragged.
So Jin Seong-un spoke.
“If you try again today, you’ll die. After last night’s incident, the guards will be on edge.”
The startled man whipped his head around.
From that reaction, Jin Seong-un realized the man was not a martial artist.
Had he been one, he would have turned while slashing his blade in the same motion.
“……”
The two locked eyes for a moment.
As always, Jin Seong-un’s expression was calm, while the man’s face turned ashen, as though confronting a calamity.
“I am Jin Seong-un, the one running Seong-un Inn.”
It was a line he had repeated countless times throughout the Merchant Festival.
Of course, the man also knew his identity. The rumors that spread after were too great to ignore.
The Guest Dragon of Yichang saved Song Jae-mun’s life!
The man, who had heard the tale all night, had patted his chest over and over in disbelief. Who would have thought that the one who had grabbed his blade was one of the Five Dragons and Three Phoenixes?
Thus, meeting Jin Seong-un again, his expression was that of someone facing the God of Death.
So Jin Seong-un spoke.
“I hold no particular grudge against you. Nor do I have any sense of justice in this matter. I don’t even know what business lies between you and him.”
“……”
The man stared fixedly at Jin Seong-un.
Just then, the sound of footsteps approached the alley.
Jin Seong-un glanced toward the alley’s end and spoke.
“Let’s move somewhere else.”
Even if Song Jae-mun truly possessed the magnanimity to forgive, there was no way he would continue to let someone who tried to kill him twice in a row go unscathed.
Jin Seong-un grabbed the man’s wrist.
Then he leapt lightly into the air.
The man was struck by the strongest wind he had ever felt in his life.
The two stood atop a quiet hill behind Jingzhou.
Together, side by side, they looked down at the city sprawling in the distance.
Jin Seong-un did not press the man. He had no grounds to meddle in their affair anyway.
He was simply curious.
What kind of man was Song Jae-mun, who kept pretending to be close to Oh Jeong-san?
Time passed.
Just as Jin Seong-un was stifling a yawn, the man suddenly spoke.
“I once ran a small escort agency in Uiseong.”
Uiseong was a small city in northern Hubei, even smaller than Yichang.
It wasn’t far from Jo-yang County, where Song Jae-mun’s escort agency was based.
“Once ran?”
“It went under nearly ten years ago. Truthfully, it was an ordinary escort agency. But we raised horses exceptionally well. The horses we bred and managed were sturdier and could run longer than those of other agencies.”
“As an escort agency, that must have been a great strength.”
At Jin Seong-un’s words, the man nodded, recalling the distant past.
“It was. Though the agency was small, I believed with our stables’ skill we would soon grow. Then one day, a merchant came. He wanted to buy our horse-breeding techniques.”
“That merchant was Song Jae-mun? The Master of Jo-yang Escort Agency.”
“Yes. Though at that time there was no Jo-yang Escort Agency. He was just a merchant about to start his business.”
The man recalled Song Jae-mun’s impression.
He could never forget. He had truly seemed a good person, and his words and smile had a persuasive charm that drew people in.
“Of course, I refused. It was our competitive edge. Then the very next day, he offered to buy the entire escort agency. At the time, I was young and brimming with spirit. I had time to take on challenges, so I would never accept such an offer.”
The more he spoke, the darker his voice grew.
The following day, Uiseong Escort Agency received an unusually large escort request. The goods were worth a fortune, the escort fee was immense, and the distance was short.
The man believed at last someone recognized the agency’s value. If they succeeded in this mission, surely the name of Uiseong Escort Agency would spread across Hubei.
But the escort failed.
More precisely…
“We were ambushed by the Green Forest. An unusual occurrence. Normally, escort agencies paid the Green Forest bandits a ‘token of respect,’ and the bandits turned a blind eye. But in our case…”
He bit his lip.
For a moment, deep resentment clouded his eyes.
“They all died. The Head Escort, the escorts, the porters—even the horses. Naturally, the cargo was all stolen. We had no choice but to pay a crushing penalty.”
They had lost their core assets: men and horses. How could they ever repay such a massive sum?
“I sold the agency. There happened to be a merchant ready to buy it. Of course, it wasn’t Song Jae-mun. Had it been, I would have suspected him from the start.”
“And now?”
“But the ownership changed hands several times in a short span, and now, where Uiseong Escort Agency once stood, there is a branch of Jo-yang Escort Agency.”
“……”
“The one who commissioned that massive escort back then? I later learned he was Song Jae-mun’s in-law. The horse doctors and horse smiths who managed our stables now work under Song Jae-mun.”
Jin Seong-un fell silent.
The man, still glaring at the view of Jingzhou, spat his words bitterly.
“You expect me to believe all this is just coincidence?”