Chapter 23. The Name That Cannot Be Spoken (4)
A place where the desires of countless people blew through the air like wind...
The weather vane on the roof of a merchant inn in Buwan Port began spinning round and round.
Public opinion of the Rang Merchant Company, which had received exclusive sales rights from Beopsindang, was not particularly favorable.
And there was a good reason for that.
Bam was following exactly the same methods as her father and older brothers to line her own pockets.
She hired professional brokers to bargain over prices and collected enormous interest through moneylending.
Eventually, people even began calling her a merchant who disrupted the market.
She was already being harassed and kept in check by merchant companies from other countries.
On top of that, misunderstandings had arisen with Hui Kingdom officials sent to supervise them, leaving Bam's nerves on edge.
“The problem is that everyone curses us, but we're not even making that much profit.”
Bam rested her chin on one hand as she stared out the window at the street below.
On the surface, a grand and magnificent festival was approaching...
But to the experienced eyes of a merchant like Bam, it looked like nothing more than something pretty on the outside and worthless within.
According to what she had heard from Beopsindang's priests, this country was so poor that they hadn't even secured enough funds to properly hold the festival.
Hyeon, who had been quietly listening to Bam, lowered his voice.
“Isn't that why we came to Saeumseo today? To find a way through this situation.”
“Let's observe things a little longer.”
The building where Bam and Hyeon sat looked like an ordinary merchant inn from the outside.
In reality, however, it was a government office called Saeumseo.
It was an institution secretly operated by the kingdom to track liquor distribution routes and gather information among common citizens.
The Rang Merchant Company had discovered its true purpose and had also come to Saeumseo to gather information related to trade.
A short while later, an official came rushing into the building.
He gathered the other officials around him and excitedly began talking about what he had seen and heard.
Sensing something unusual, Bam and Hyeon exchanged glances.
“Looks like pirates have appeared. Apparently, they're attacking government vessels and trading ships passing through the area.”
Even for pirates, blocking a major sea route and plundering ships at a time when countless vessels were coming and going for a national event was highly unusual.
It went against the established customs of international maritime trade.
Of course, the biggest problem was the incompetence of the Hui Kingdom government, which was doing nothing even after government vessels had been attacked.
Bam's eyes gleamed.
“I've been getting restless anyway. Maybe we should teach those pirates a lesson.”
It seemed like an excellent opportunity.
As the festival's official merchant company, they could strengthen their prestige while silencing complaints from rival merchants.
And if they protected government vessels, they could also use that favor to establish stronger ties with the government.
Of course, the Rang Merchant Company itself had quite an impressive history of plundering other ships...
But one's position changed depending on the circumstances.
Sometimes, it was necessary to pretend to be righteous.
A cunning smile appeared on Bam's lips.
“I would prefer that we act with more caution.”
Hyeon immediately cut down Bam's suggestion.
“The military force we possess is our final card for threatening the king of the Hui Kingdom.”
“So?”
“There's nothing to gain from revealing it so easily over something like this.”
His gaze hardened.
“We'll only face even greater surveillance and interference than we do now.”
Bam stared sharply at Hyeon, visibly irritated.
“Wait a second. Since when have we cared what some random country or another merchant company thinks of us?”
After all, the Hui Kingdom was only one of the countless countries and markets with which the Rang Merchant Company traded.
Even if their relationship with the Hui Kingdom were completely severed, it would hardly deal a major blow to their overall business network.
In fact, the Rang Merchant Company had always preferred to use force, make a quick profit, and then leave before things became troublesome.
Bam narrowed her eyes.
“What happened to Hoyeon, the mercenary captain of the Rang Merchant Company who was infamous for his cruelty?”
“And what about the days when you rampaged through the countries along the Tuima coast however you pleased?”
The old Hoyeon would have acted solely according to what benefited the Rang Merchant Company.
No.
He would have understood what Bam wanted before she even said it, and done whatever it took to give it to her.
But Hoyeon's mind was now tangled with entirely different thoughts.
He merely looked at her with dark eyes and said nothing.
What other intention was Hoyeon hiding?
Bam hated admitting that Hoyeon was not something that belonged to her.
“I'll keep wandering freely through the world together with you from now on.”
“There is nowhere in this world where I can truly be free.”
Hoyeon was not the kind of man who made promises or vows he couldn't keep.
Whether it concerned the future of the merchant company or his future with Bam, he had always drawn a strict line.
As if he were someone destined to leave at any moment.
A tense atmosphere hung between the two.
Their emotions continued pulling against one another like a rope stretched to its limit.
Bam felt exhausted.
“I'll return to the merchant inn first.”
Hyeon rose from his seat, his black robes fluttering behind him.
Bam couldn't take her eyes off his retreating back.
He actually disobeyed me!
If it had been her older brother Rang Gong, he would have killed Hoyeon or crippled him for less.
Bam was overwhelmed by shock and betrayal.
Suddenly, everything in the world felt dull and boring.
It was the feeling Bam hated most.
“My lady, this is a special fruit wine brought up from the southern region.”
At that moment, a servant from the inn approached and presented her with fragrant wine.
Golden powder shimmered inside the glass cup.
Bam frowned at the servant.
“I didn't order any wine.”
She was already in a bad mood.
“The gentleman seated behind the pillar in the room across from here asked me to deliver it to you.”
Bam immediately shot to her feet.
She strode away so quickly that the fabric of her trousers fluttered around her legs.
Whenever something caught her curiosity, she couldn't endure even a single second without finding out the answer.
She wanted to know immediately what the person who had sent the wine was plotting.
The man sitting behind the pillar was Old Man Gyeon, owner of the Dongdo Merchant Company.
Old Man Gyeon was a seasoned merchant who had been a longtime rival of the great merchant Rang.
He was famous for having amassed immense wealth by dominating the underworld.
This was Bam's first time seeing him in person.
His reddish-orange face was long like a carrot, his cheeks were deeply sunken, and his tiny eyes—barely the size of fingernails—were drawn close together.
Beneath his enormous hooked nose grew a pure-white beard.
