Anyway, once I finished talking with Grandfather, I headed back to Father’s office.
On the way, Palgap called out to me.
“Young Master.”
“What is it?”
“Work’s important, but you should take a break too. I’m worried you’ll ruin your health at this rate.”
At Palgap’s words, I firmly shook my head.
“No. The harder I work, the more profit our merchant group stands to make. That’s how we grow faster.”
“I know that too.”
Then Palgap let out a long sigh.
“Still… when word spread that you were back, Young Master Geon-hyeok and Young Miss Bo-yeon were thrilled. They said they had birthday gifts for you… They’re probably going to be really disappointed.”
That made me stop in my tracks.
“What? What did you just say? Geon-hyeok and Bo-yeon are waiting for me?”
Palgap nodded at my question.
“Yes. Earlier, on my way back after showing the Yungang Man Clan’s Clan Lord and Young Lord to their lodgings, I ran into the young master and young miss.”
“…Have they grown a lot?”
“You’d barely recognize them, sir. The young master looks just like First Young Master’s wife, and the young miss is the spitting image of First Young Master.”
Hearing that only made me want to see them more.
“Ugh…”
But… I needed to get back to work.
Just then, Escort Guard Seo Wu spoke.
“I believe one of the reasons my lord works so hard is for his family’s happiness.”
“Yeah, that’s true.”
“But you’re part of that family too, my lord. If anything were to happen to you, your family wouldn’t be happy at all.”
“Ah…”
Seo Wu’s words hit me like a blow to the back of the head.
“You’re right.”
I let out a sigh.
“And he’s right. I keep running myself ragged because I want my family to live happily, but somehow that just leaves me with even less time to spend with them.”
At my words, Escort Guard Seo Wu nodded.
“This is the first time I’ve mentioned it, but my father was an Escort Chief too. When I was little, every time he left for work, he’d keep looking back at me again and again before he went.”
He continued.
“I think I finally understand how he felt, now that I’m a father myself. You need money to provide for your family, but the more you chase that, the less time you spend with them… It’s a cruel kind of irony.”
It was.
A real irony.
Listening to Escort Guard Seo Wu, I suddenly remembered how I used to feel when I watched Father as a child.
He was always so busy, and we rarely had time together.
Back then, I used to think that once I grew up and could help with Father’s work, maybe then we’d get to spend more time together.
But the truth was, I spent even less time with Father now than I had when I was a child.
“I wish someone could give me a clean, satisfying answer to this.”
At my grumbling, Palgap said,
“If you’ve got time to complain, you ought to get moving.”
“Hm?”
“Aren’t you headed to Georyang Hall right now? They’ve probably been waiting forever. What’re you going to do if you’re late and they decide, ‘I hate my youngest uncle!’ and refuse to even show you their faces?”
Ah… the second I pictured that, my heart dropped.
“…Let’s go.”
Yeah, I needed to catch my breath and rest when I could.
Still, there was no helping the fact that I couldn’t spend as much time with my family as I wanted.
Even so, I had to stop pushing myself too far.
Like Escort Guard Seo Wu said, if anything happened to me, my family would be devastated.
Had I already forgotten how worried they’d been in my last life, when I was so frail I couldn’t even walk properly without a cane?
Eun Seo-ho, you idiot!
Georyang Hall was Brother Jeong-ho’s detached residence.
The moment I stepped inside, two little children came pattering toward me.
“Uncle!”
“Uncle!”
The two kids who threw themselves into my arms were Geon-hyeok and Bo-yeon.
Just like Palgap said, Geon-hyeok looked just like my eldest sister-in-law, and Bo-yeon looked like Brother Jeong-ho.
Holding both children, I sat down in the courtyard.
“Oh wow! You’ve gotten so big!”
“Yes! I’ve grown a lot.”
“Bo-yeon got bigger too!”
“Of course you did. Both of you have grown so much!”
Smiling, I ruffled both their heads.
“I missed you all this time, Uncle.”
Geon-hyeok said it with surprising composure.
“Did you not miss us, Uncle?”
“As if that could happen. Do you know how much I missed you?”
“But I understand. I heard you do very important things, Younger Uncle. When I grow up, I’m going to become someone who does great things too, just like you.”
“Yeah, you will. I know you will.”
I nodded with a pleased smile. Then Bo-yeon piped up.
“Uncle! Is your title really Handsome Young Hero?”
Cough!
The question caught me so off guard I nearly choked.
I mean… it wasn’t the first time I’d heard it, but I never thought I’d hear it from Bo-yeon too…
Was it already too late?
Why were my eyes tearing up?
Beside me, Palgap jumped in enthusiastically.
“That’s right, Young Miss! Young Master Eun Seo-ho’s title is indeed Handsome Young Hero. Countless people have benefited from his grace, and the praise sung of him rises high enough to reach the heavens.”
“Wow!”
Geon-hyeok and Bo-yeon’s eyes sparkled as they stared at me.
“I–I’m going to become a hero like you someday too!”
“Of course. Bo-yeon’s definitely going to be a heroine.”
“Actually, I wanted to marry a husband like you, Uncle, but Father said there isn’t a man like you anywhere in this empire, so I gave up.”
At that, Palgap nodded.
What… was that supposed to mean? Why are you nodding?
No, more importantly, Brother Jeong-ho… what exactly have you been telling Bo-yeon?
You’re a father now. Are you really out there blocking your daughter’s future marriage prospects?
Don’t tell me you did it on purpose?
Looking at the things my brother had done before, I couldn’t say that was impossible…
Just then, my eldest sister-in-law appeared with a soft laugh.
“Oh my, this child really will say anything.”
“Ah, Sister-in-law!”
“It really has been a long time.”
At that, I scratched my cheek.
“I’m sorry I haven’t visited sooner.”
“Oh, not at all. Everyone in the world knows how busy you are, Young Master.”
My eldest sister-in-law turned to the children.
“Kids, you should give him the gifts you prepared.”
“Yes!”
The two of them immediately scampered back inside the detached residence.
I rose to my feet, and Palgap quickly brushed the dust off my clothes.
“They’re lively, aren’t they?”
“Too lively, if you ask me.”
I laughed at my eldest sister-in-law’s words.
“I’d say it’d be more of a problem if children didn’t run around.”
“That’s true.”
“Still, if I remember right, I thought Geon-hyeok and Bo-yeon’s birthdays were around this time…”
“That’s right. They were born in the Twelfth Month.”
Ah… no way.
“Their birthdays were the other day. They turned six.”
“…”
The children’s birthdays were at the beginning of the Twelfth Month.
Which meant their birthdays had already passed.
I really must’ve been living in a complete blur. I’d even forgotten Geon-hyeok and Bo-yeon’s birthdays.
I needed to reflect on that.
“I’m sorry. I didn’t even prepare birthday gifts.”
“Just make it up to them when they turn ten.”
“Yes. I will.”
In the Eunhae Merchant Group, birthdays that fell on years ending in zero, like ten and twenty, were treated as especially important.
“When the time comes, please give me a little hint about what they’ll need. Though honestly, they’ve only just turned six, and they already seem remarkably bright.”
At the compliment, my eldest sister-in-law gave an embarrassed smile.
Well, of course. Who wouldn’t like hearing their children praised?
“I think they must take after my husband.”
“I heard from your father that you were sharp from a young age too, Sister-in-law.”
“Oh my, Father really…”
Just then, Geon-hyeok and Bo-yeon came back carrying something.
Paper?
Each of them held a sheet of paper.
“These are our gifts.”
“I have one too!”
I accepted them and unfolded them.
“Our writing teacher told us to compose poetry and prose while thinking about someone we admire.”
Already poetry and prose?
Of course, for anyone even remotely educated, composing poetry and prose was considered quite important.
That was why, once children had mastered characters past a certain point, they would often start practicing literary composition too.
Otherwise, they might embarrass themselves later if they ever found themselves in a situation where they had to write a poem or passage.
Still, this meant they’d already learned enough characters to compose something like this?
And naturally, there weren’t many six-year-olds who could write poetry and prose.
It wasn’t something you could do just because you’d learned to read.
That was seriously impressive.
“You’ve already learned your letters that well?”
“Father said if we want to become like Younger Uncle, we have to study hard.”
“So we’ve been studying really hard.”
“Well done.”
It felt a little embarrassing, but…
Ah, seriously, Brother Jeong-ho!
I’m glad you gave them motivation to study, but what exactly did you tell them to fill their heads with this much wind?
Grumbling inwardly, I read the poetry and prose the two children had given me.
Of course, the rhythm and structure still weren’t quite there yet.
But I could feel what they thought of me in every line, and before I knew it, I was smiling.
After leaving Georyang Hall, I headed to Father.
“Thanks to you, I got a good rest. Thanks, Palgap. And thank you, Escort Guard Seo Wu.”
“You’re too kind.”
I said to Palgap,
“By the way, didn’t you used to mutter that this filthy world only remembers handsome faces?”
“You remember that?”
“I’ve got a good memory too.”
“I did. But it just kept making me sad, so I gave up.”
The way he said it while staring up at the sky made him look like a bear with both ears drooping, and I couldn’t help laughing.
“Still, those kids are pretty mature. Their birthdays already passed, and they didn’t even nag me for presents.”
I glanced back over my shoulder.
My eldest sister-in-law had told me to make it up to them on their tenth birthday, but there was no way I could just let it slide.
Not after I’d received birthday gifts from them.
A little while later.
I arrived at Father’s office.
“I’m back.”
“Good. I knew you’d come again. To discuss the liquor brewing, right?”
“Ah, yes.”
“I thought so. It seemed like it would take a while, which is probably why you didn’t bring it up earlier.”
Instead of answering, I just grinned and sat down at the tea table.
Father rose from his seat, pulled out several scrolls from where they were stored beside him, and laid them on the table.
“These are the places where we can start brewing right away. These are the ones that need more preparation.”
“I see.”
As I looked over the documents, I organized my thoughts.
“First, we should start brewing at the sites that are ready right now, then load the liquor onto the ships for the next trade run. Still, this is a little frustrating. It’d be nice if we had more ships…”
At that, Father flashed a grin.
“You don’t need to worry about that.”
“What?”
“In the meantime, we’ve had two more ships built, and they’re in training right now.”
“What?”
Father’s words left me stunned.
“Then does that mean our merchant group has four ships in total?”
At my question, Father nodded proudly.
Building ships wasn’t something you did lightly. It took a tremendous amount of money.
Once again, I was struck by the sheer scale of Father’s boldness.
“You’ve got to row while the tide’s in.”
“That’s true. Hahaha.”
I looked over the documents Father had prepared. He really was Father.
Just from the paperwork alone, the current situation was laid out with perfect clarity.
And maybe the reason my thoughts were coming together so cleanly now was because I’d just had a bit of rest after seeing the children.
“Ah, I heard it was Geon-hyeok and Bo-yeon’s birthdays recently?”
“It was.”
Father nodded.
“So Jeong-ho said he’d be back before their birthdays… but he’s later than I expected.”
“Yeah.”
Nothing had happened to him, right?
Why was he taking so long and making me worry for no reason?
I steadied myself and kept reading the documents, but something started to bother me.
Hm, there was definitely something.
What was it?
There was no way I’d feel uneasy for no reason.
I kept going over the documents, trying to dredge up the memory, and then I realized one thing.
Among the people on this list, there were some who had no right to produce liquor.
I rose from my seat and said,
“Father. I think I’ll inspect these places myself tomorrow.”
“Do you really need to handle that in person?”
“This is a matter His Majesty the Emperor personally granted special permission for. And the liquor we produce will be sold to distant foreign lands. It will shape how people see the Eunhae Merchant Group, so how could I treat it carelessly?”
“Hmm, that’s true.”
“So I’ll inspect them myself and make sure there aren’t any shortcomings.”
If I didn’t weed them out properly now, there would definitely be trouble later.
It could damage our merchant group’s reputation, yes, but there was an even bigger problem.
If the Emperor found an excuse to use against me, he might use it as a pretext to work me even harder.
No, he definitely would. Ugh…
Just thinking about it made a cold sweat run down my back.
And this latest trade run had laid the foundation for a favorable impression of the Eunhae Merchant Group.
There was no way I could let all that groundwork be ruined over something like this. Do you know how much money went into this?
At my words, Father nodded.
“Understood. I’ll pass the word to my master brewers.”
“No!”
I said it firmly.
“If they know I’m coming, then how is that an accurate inspection? Keep my visit a secret.”
I continued.
“I’ll be the one conducting the inspection, but no one will know I’m the one doing it.”
–TL Notes–
Tired of seeing Ads? Then please support me on Patreon! Any tier of subscription will make it so you won’t get any ads!
If you want to support me or give me feedback, you can do it at patreon.com/InsanityTheGame
Join my Discord! https://discord.gg/BWaP3AHHpt
