Chapter 1049 - Night Drinking

Pak Deok-hwan was quite accustomed to such invitations by now. He happily went along.

To his surprise, the man did not take him to a tavern or someone's home, but to a courtesan house.

This establishment had previously been under the jurisdiction of the Provincial Governor's Office, serving specifically to entertain officials and wealthy islanders. Consequently, the quality of the courtesans was quite high—all were official slave women of good pedigree from the northern provinces or from the intermediate chungin class families of the two-ban aristocracy.

Although the proclamation freeing all official slaves had been posted, the Military Control Commission's work had not yet reached such granular levels, and no plan had been devised for handling the courtesan houses and their women. The proprietress in charge had been content to play dumb and continue business as usual.

For the first half-month, business had been very poor. Most patrons had either fled, died, been arrested, or gone into hiding. But as the situation calmed, the wealthy families and scholars inside and outside the city resumed their pursuit of pleasures. The petty clerks of the Six Offices, having returned to work, also frequented the establishment, and business flourished once more.

In the past, Pak Deok-hwan had often visited courtesan houses to run errands for his masters. He had never dared dream he would one day enter a private room as a guest—in those days, even stealing an extra glance inside would earn him several blows from the proprietress's pipe.

Now he found himself in a private chamber that had once been reserved for the Provincial Governor and County Magistrates. A lavish spread of food and drink had already been laid out: twenty-four small dishes of pickled vegetables in various flavors were arrayed with dazzling splendor—half vegetables, half seaweed. Jeju was a place that relied heavily on the bounty of the sea.

The host, Hwang Un-u, sat drinking amid the attentions of two heavily made-up courtesans. Two other men were seated as companions. Pak Deok-hwan recognized them both: one was Choe Hyeon-taek, a clerk specializing in communications with the mainland who worked for Hwang Un-u; the other was Cho Myeong-gwi, a clerk serving under Kim Man-il.

Pak Deok-hwan did not know Cho Myeong-gwi well. As a servant of the island's foremost magnate, even an ordinary slave of Kim's household could strut through the streets with his nose in the air, let alone someone of Cho Myeong-gwi's standing.

In the past, Pak Deok-hwan had only watched from a distance as Cho Myeong-gwi came and went from courtesan houses and taverns, sometimes entering the Provincial Governor's Office itself. Never mind ordinary clerks—even the Provincial Governor treated him with courtesy.

Each companion had a courtesan at his side pouring drinks. The environment and atmosphere immediately made Pak Deok-hwan feel somewhat awkward.

Seeing him enter looking rather at a loss, Hwang Un-u hastily called out:

"Can't you see Master Pak is waiting? Hurry and sit beside him—attend to him properly!"

Two courtesans who had been waiting nearby immediately pressed close to him, and he was enveloped in warmth and fragrant softness. Pak Deok-hwan's face flushed crimson. Though his family had hosted banquets before its decline, when he was still a young master, his age and status had meant he never attended gatherings where courtesans openly accompanied the guests. The women's lavish garments and heavy fragrance of powder set his heart racing.

"What are you standing there dazed for? Hurry and pour wine for Master Pak!"

One of the courtesans filled his cup, her expression servile.

Pak Deok-hwan recognized her: Cho Ae-yun, the establishment's top courtesan. Like him, she was of chungin birth. Her family had been implicated in factional strife and she had been exiled to this place as an official slave. Her beauty had earned her a courtesan's fate. Because she was literate, cultured, and skilled in poetry, she had quickly become the exclusive property of the officials. Lower-ranking clerks rarely had even the privilege of having her pour drinks. As for someone like Pak Deok-hwan, the chance to catch so much as a distant glimpse of her had been vanishingly rare.

Now, to have her pouring wine and smiling for him—Pak Deok-hwan could not help but float on air, lifting his cup and draining it without thinking.

The other woman was also an acquaintance: none other than Yi Man-hui—one of the candidates he had once considered for marriage. To his surprise, she had become a courtesan! No wonder she had vanished over a month ago—she had already entered the courtesan house.

Her serving smile was still stiff, her wine-pouring and food-offering still clumsy. Clearly she had not been in this line of work for long.

The wine was excellent—the house's reserves included fine vintages imported from the mainland, reserved for dignitaries and wealthy patrons. Pak Deok-hwan thought to himself: had he not promptly allied with the "Chiefs," how could he possibly enjoy such treatment!

Those seated exchanged glances but did not broach the real subject. They simply took turns pressing drinks on him and showering him with flattery. Pak Deok-hwan's spirits rose. With the courtesans striving to please, the atmosphere soon warmed.

After three rounds of wine, Hwang Un-u caught the courtesans' eyes. They rose and withdrew one by one. Servants brought in the "main courses"—roasted beef slices, ginseng-stuffed pheasant, and similar delicacies.

Only then did Hwang Un-u speak:

"Master Pak has won such favor from the Crop-Head Masters. We are deeply impressed," he said. "I hear Master Pak has been entrusted with another important task?"

Though Pak Deok-hwan was young, this sort of maneuvering was not unfamiliar to him. While he did not know the saying "there's no such thing as a free lunch," he understood very well what such a "feast" implied. The moment the other man spoke, he understood the intent.

He set down his chopsticks and, chewing on a slice of beef, answered: "So Master Hwang already knows. Then I need not explain—yes, there is such a matter."

"This is quite a substantial piece of business! Young Master Pak is truly a promising talent." Choe Hyeon-taek poured him wine with an ingratiating smile.

Pak Deok-hwan deflected with pleasantries, realizing that since they had mentioned his current assignment, they must be eyeing the bow and arrow trade.

He quickly made the connection: the commercial consortium that Hwang Un-u served purchased large quantities of bows and arrows from Jeju every year. Clearly he was interested in the bows and materials currently stored in the government warehouses. And Kim Man-il's man was here too—Kim was a major rancher who annually sold great quantities of hides, sinew, and horn, all essential materials for bow-making...

With this, Pak Deok-hwan fully understood. A flicker of unease stirred within him. This was not a trivial matter. Though he had no precise count of how much bow and arrow stock was involved, bows and arrows were a major Jeju export—the quantity could not be small.

Using power for personal advantage was something Pak Deok-hwan felt no resistance toward. Such practices were commonplace. But if the matter was too significant... that was another story. His manner grew suddenly cautious.

"I wonder what Master Hwang has in mind?"

"Then let me speak plainly." Hwang Un-u gestured toward the companions. "These two gentlemen, as Master Pak surely knows, are both intimately connected to this affair. They would certainly never speak carelessly."

Pak Deok-hwan nodded, his mind racing.

Hwang Un-u lowered his voice and laid out his request.

Put simply, he wanted Pak Deok-hwan to omit a portion of the stockpile when reporting the statistics.

"...This is not difficult," Hwang Un-u said. "The Chiefs do not use bows and arrows—they have no real interest in them. They simply want to turn waste to profit and make a little money. They don't understand bow-making. As long as you make a small adjustment with your brush, the matter is settled, is it not?"

The manufacturing and trade of bows and arrows was specialized business. Never mind outsiders—even ordinary Jeju locals who were not in the trade had no real understanding. Pak Deok-hwan knew Hwang Un-u's words were no exaggeration.

Given how busy Chief Feng and the others were, they would certainly not pay much attention to this matter. Hwang Un-u was right: the Chiefs wanted these statistics only for "repurposing waste."

Greed welled up unbidden. Working for the Chiefs gave him tremendous satisfaction of pride, and his living conditions had improved considerably. He was already calculating his next steps—building a larger house, marrying a woman worthy of his new status. All of that required money...

"...Once the matter is done, Master Pak will receive a thirty percent commission." Hwang Un-u lowered his voice still further and slipped him a small silk pouch.

The pouch was heavy—silver, no doubt. Pak Deok-hwan's inner struggle was intense, but he did not push it away.

"I, too, have a small request. If Master Pak can exercise a bit of discretion with his brush, my master will surely express his gratitude!"

The speaker was Cho Myeong-gwi. His face, beaming like a flower, had eyes narrowed to slits that occasionally flashed with shrewdness.

Cho Myeong-gwi's master was Kim Man-il, the island's wealthiest man with a rank equivalent to the second tier of officialdom.

The largest bow and arrow shop in Jeju was owned by the Kim family. Moreover, Kim's "Mingshi Manor" held a monopoly on bow-making materials across the entire island—and indeed much of Korea. Kim Man-il naturally wanted to protect these interests with all his power.

They must not expose Master Kim's stakes to these outsiders while simultaneously under-reporting the warehouse inventory.

"...Master Pak surely knows of my master's wealth and influence," Cho Myeong-gwi said. "There is no way Master Pak would be left to labor in vain." Saying this, he too presented a gift.

After the banquet concluded, Hwang Un-u tried to detain him, offering to have Cho Ae-yun share his bed. But Pak Deok-hwan had no heart for it and firmly declined.

After Pak Deok-hwan's departure, Hwang Un-u ordered a fresh table of food and wine set out, continuing to drink with Choe Hyeon-taek and Cho Myeong-gwi.

Night had deepened. The lanterns outside the courtesan house were taken down, and the main gate was barred and locked. Hwang Un-u instructed the proprietress that all unnecessary personnel should retire, and that no courtesans were needed to attend them. Dense night wrapped the courtesan house's courtyard. The three men drank by the dim light of their lamps, conversing in low tones.

Their discussion naturally revolved around the evening's events. Making a killing on the bow and arrow deal was indeed their intent, but beyond that, these three men and their patron Kim Man-il harbored grander designs.

The sudden collapse of Yi Dynasty rule on Jeju Island had presented the island's magnates with an excellent opportunity to seize assets. Bows and arrows were merely their first step. These three and their backer had far loftier ambitions.

The imperial horse ranches on the island held tens of thousands of official horses and large numbers of cattle and sheep. Now the old government had collapsed, and the newcomer crop-headed pirates had yet to concern themselves with this—besides, they could not imagine what use sea-raiding pirates had for horses, cattle, and sheep. Now was the perfect moment to devour this vast fortune.

Even if the court someday returned to the island, they could blame everything on the crop-headed pirates.

(End of Chapter)