Memoir of a Regressor - Chapter 8

WeTried Translations

Translator/Editor: Alyo

◈ Memoir of a Regressor ◈

Chapter 8: Calculations

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Yi Do returned four hours after setting out to collect the money.

No one in the clan thought much of it.

Too many people were entangled with Cheonhwa Pavilion. To collect the money, he would have to resolve all those conflicting interests.

Above all, he would have to deal with the Jang Clan.

The Jang Clan's Young Clan Head was the greatest obstacle. He was the direct disciple of an elder from the Emperor Sword Sect, after all.

Cheonhwa Pavilion had sided with the Jang Clan because it knew that.

This was not something Yi Do, the youngest son, could resolve. In fact, it would have been difficult even if the entire Yi Clan stepped in.

That was why they had assigned him the task.

The first task given to someone ought to be the one most likely to fail.

If he succeeded from the start, he would surely face a crushing setback later. They intended to make him experience one in advance.

But then...

The Yi Clan was thrown into chaos by the words that came from Yi Do's mouth upon his return.

"You said it didn't necessarily have to be money, so I brought back Cheonhwa Pavilion itself."

"...What...?"

"And a martial artist named Jeong Rin from the Jang Clan has died."

Yi Se-geuk shot to his feet.

Every word coming from Yi Do's mouth was shocking. His reaction was only natural.

Who was Jeong Rin?

He was a promising martial artist of the Jang Clan, a master at Twin Sun Manifestation.

"The proprietor of Cheonhwa Pavilion, Jeok Gae-san, had been concealing Jeok Gae-san's martial arts. Jeok Gae-san said they would kill Jeong Rin there and kill me as well. However, Jeong Rin, a formidable martial artist of the Jang Clan, subdued Jeok Gae-san with the resolve to perish together with Jeok Gae-san. Unfortunately, Jeong Rin survived with all four limbs shattered and his dantian destroyed, then breathed his last. Before he died, he left me these final words."

"...What were his final words?"

"He told me to let the Jang Clan's involvement with Cheonhwa Pavilion remain buried."

At first glance, it sounded plausible.

Yet the situation itself made no sense.

Jeok Gae-san had been such a powerful master? Jeong Rin had died?

Yi Se-geuk could not understand it.

"...Is all of that truly the truth?"

"Yes. There was another witness besides me."

"...A witness?"

Yi Do gestured behind him.

"Come in."

The doors to the Clan Head's Hall opened, and a man with a terrified expression slowly entered.

He was an attendant from Cheonhwa Pavilion.

Yi Se-geuk asked him, "Is everything Yi Do just said true?"

The attendant swallowed hard. Then, as if he had made up his mind, he spoke with firm resolve.

"Yes. It is true."

A collective sigh rose from all around the hall.

The attendant drove the point home.

"Jeok Gae-san, the former proprietor of Cheonhwa Pavilion, was a demonic fiend. Though Jeok Gae-san perished together with Jeong Rin, without Young Master Yi Do's help, Jeong Rin could never have killed Jeok Gae-san."

"...Then why did Jeok Gae-san draw up a contract transferring every right to Cheonhwa Pavilion to Yi Do?"

The attendant glanced at Yi Do before continuing carefully.

"The truth is, Jeok Gae-san intended to drive a wedge between the Jang Clan and the Yi Clan."

"What do you mean? Explain it properly and slowly."

"When Young Master Yi Do said that if Jeok Gae-san did not wish to repay the debt, Jeok Gae-san should hand over all of Cheonhwa Pavilion, Jeok Gae-san brought out a contract. After signing it first, Jeok Gae-san told Young Master Yi Do to sign it as well. Jeok Gae-san also asked Jeong Rin to serve as a notary, so Jeong Rin, Young Master Yi Do, and Jeok Gae-san naturally gathered in one place. The three of them stood very close together, and the moment Young Master Yi Do signed the contract, Jeok Gae-san attacked Jeong Rin."

"...He attacked him? Jeok Gae-san attacked first?"

"Yes. It was clear that Jeok Gae-san intended to kill Jeong Rin first, then kill Young Master Yi Do. The contract was only a pretext to catch Jeong Rin off guard. If Jeok Gae-san had emerged as the final victor and destroyed the contract, no one would have known what happened there."

"...I trust there isn't a single lie in what you've said."

"Yes. I swear upon everything I possess that every word I have spoken to the Yi Clan's Clan Head is true."

Yi Do watched the attendant with a satisfied smile.

* * *

Jo Hyeon's heart pounded in his chest.

It was a lie, but in a way, it could also be the truth.

Only Jo Hyeon and Yi Do knew everything that had happened.

What mattered most was what came from their mouths. That would become the truth.

Jo Hyeon still remembered Yi Do's words.

"Do you intend to spend your entire life as nothing but an attendant?"

"...Pardon?"

"Listen carefully. Starting today, Cheonhwa Pavilion belongs to me. But I don't have time to manage a tavern. As it happens, the positions of proprietor and Deputy Owner are vacant."

"..."

"I'll first entrust the position of Deputy Owner to you. Learn the work, then make the proprietor's seat yours. Once I decide you're ready, I'll hand it over without a word."

This was the opportunity of a lifetime.

"Your name was Jo Hyeon, correct?"

"Yes, Young Master."

"Yes, Jo Hyeon. It's a good name. You may refuse my offer or accept it. The choice is yours."

That was enough.

There was no need for any further conversation.

Jo Hyeon immediately dropped to his knees.

"I will become your man, Young Master. Please accept me."

Yi Do gave him a clear answer.

"Good."

"Thank you!"

"However, there is something you must do for me first."

"Just give the order. I will accomplish it no matter what."

That was how the two got their stories straight.

Those who did not know what had happened could not even understand the situation.

That was only natural.

Yi Do had reached the Circulation Realm, but there was a fundamentally enormous difference between a martial artist of the Body Three Realms and one of the Four Qi-Cultivation Realms.

No matter how desperately they struggled, even several dozen martial artists of the Body Three Realms could not usually defeat someone who had only just entered the Four Qi-Cultivation Realms.

The presence or absence of the middle dantian made that much of a difference.

In the end, Yi Se-geuk decided that the accounts given by Yi Do and the attendant were true.

Otherwise, there was no way to explain it.

There were no other witnesses, and it was not as though he could drag the attendant away and torture a confession out of him.

Two hours later, the Jang Clan was thrown into chaos as well.

* * *

The Clan Head of the Jang Clan, Jang Mak-su, silently studied the man before him.

The youngest son of the Yi Clan.

He had no notable background and was heavily ostracized even within the Yi Clan. His mother had been a cook and attendant at an inn. Because of her exceptional beauty, she had entered the Yi Clan as a concubine, only to die while giving birth to Yi Do.

It was a truly pitiful background.

According to the reports, his personality had been so weak that he could not kill even an ant. He was habitually timid whenever he spoke to anyone, so he was not fit to be entrusted with even a minor task, let alone an important one.

Then what was this figure standing so confidently before Jang Mak-su?

Was that truly the third son?

Yi Do had just come and told Jang Mak-su everything that happened at Cheonhwa Pavilion.

The details were shocking, but Yi Do's attitude was even more shocking.

Yi Do said, "What you have just heard is the truth. From this point onward, Cheonhwa Pavilion belongs to the Yi Clan."

Jang Mak-su asked with a meaningful smile, "Are your words truly the truth?"

"Yes. We have a witness here as well, do we not?"

Jang Mak-su's gaze turned to Jo Hyeon, the attendant standing beside Yi Do.

Jo Hyeon was trembling from head to toe like an aspen leaf, but his words matched Yi Do's exactly.

As though they had rehearsed them.

"Even if the authorities begin a proper investigation, will you still say this is the truth?"

Jang Mak-su's attitude was clearly very different from Yi Se-geuk's.

The same was true of Yi Do. He was not behaving as he had before.

"Whether it's an investigator or a patrol inspector, the truth of what happened will not disappear. I came here in person because I was deeply grateful for the kindness of Jeong Rin, who saved my life."

"...Jeong Rin. Yes, he was the pillar of the Jang Clan's martial artists. His strength and realm were exceptional. He was certainly capable of helping Un-ryong over there accomplish even greater things."

"Yes. Yet such a man died fighting a demonic fiend. It is a truly regrettable matter."

"..."

"Originally, I intended to demand that the Jang Clan repay Cheonhwa Pavilion's debt. But after receiving such kindness, would it not take a beast in human skin to demand payment?"

"Yes, that is right."

Jang Mak-su did not bother denying it.

Nearly nine thousand taels of silver was undoubtedly a large sum.

The Jang Clan had indeed pressured Cheonhwa Pavilion not to repay it. Yet now that things had turned out this way, Yi Do wanted them to forget the debt and acknowledge his ownership of Cheonhwa Pavilion.

That was how Jang Mak-su understood Yi Do's words.

But one had to listen to someone until the end.

Yi Do had not come to seek anyone's acknowledgment.

He had already decided that Cheonhwa Pavilion would be his.

Then it would become his.

He did not need anyone's approval.

Yi Do said, "I briefly looked through the account books on my way here, and it seems you have quite a lot of unpaid tabs. Young Master Un-ryong and several martial artists alone spent more than two thousand taels of silver this month."

"..."

"Also, while Jeong Rin was fighting Jeok Gae-san, four tables and two chairs were destroyed. There are about six gouges in the floor, and the blood soaked into it so deeply that the entire floor will have to be torn up. I worked out an estimate, and it appears to be around two hundred taels of silver. But how could I, as a human being, charge you for that as well?"

"..."

"Of course, regardless of my feelings, now that Cheonhwa Pavilion has changed owners, it cannot continue operating under the same arrangements as before. Is that not right?"

"...Yes. With a new owner, it cannot continue under the same arrangements."

"Yes. That is why I intend to collect every unpaid tab now. Jo Hyeon."

"Yes, Young Master."

"Go give him that."

Jo Hyeon hurried over and handed Jang Mak-su a thick stack of papers, then returned behind Yi Do.

As Jang Mak-su silently turned over the pages one by one, his expression gradually twisted.

"As you can see, the total is 8,933 taels of silver. It includes every unpaid tab accumulated at Cheonhwa Pavilion, not just this month. I'll waive the loose change and accept only 8,900 taels."

"...Your calculations are strange. How can Shaoxing wine cost fifty taels of silver? As I recall, isn't it a wine that costs ten taels? And Daughter's Red, its price is equally absurd. One hundred taels per bottle? Hundred-Flower Dew is even stranger. How can a single bottle cost four hundred taels?"

"As you know, Shaoxing wine is a very special liquor produced in Shaoxing, Zhejiang. Its usual price may be ten taels of silver, but not at Cheonhwa Pavilion. That price includes the smiles of the courtesans, and you should not overlook that. The same applies to Daughter's Red and Hundred-Flower Dew, famous liquors from Shaoxing. You may call their prices strange, but those who drank them will understand very well that they were not."

Jang Un-ryong's mouth fell open as he quietly listened.

To be honest, when had the child of a wealthy household ever thought about money while eating or drinking something?

Jang Un-ryong did not know how much a bottle cost.

He had left most such matters to Jeong Rin, the person he trusted most.

Frankly, even if Yi Do had inflated the prices to an outrageous degree, there was no way for him to find out.

All Yi Do had to do was insist that it had always been Cheonhwa Pavilion's policy for the price of liquor to change from day to day.

The owner had changed, and the previous owner had already croaked. Who could dispute it?

"Surely the great Jang Clan, one of the Three Great Clans of Jangnyeong, would not refuse to repay money it borrowed."

The amount Yi Do demanded precisely matched the debt Cheonhwa Pavilion had owed the Yi Clan, plus the cost of repairing the pavilion.

It was a very peculiar coincidence.

"I would like you to settle the full amount immediately. Exactly 8,900 taels of silver."

Jang Mak-su was speechless.