ISS-Chapter 8

Chapter 8

About an hour later.

“Let’s reorganize our strategy.”

At my words, Seohwa blinked and gave a bitter smile.

“So first, I identify which items were supplied by Hwangryongjangju among those that come out.”

“Mm.”

“And second, we win the bid for it… right?”

“Right.”

“Will it work? The strategy is too simple.”

Seohwa was right.

This couldn’t really be called a strategy. Many people thought blind auctions were simply battles of discernment without needing much thought, and if we participated as planned, that’s exactly what it would become.

But that was only the story if you didn’t consider the reverse side.

“Try to pay attention to everything as much as possible, but if any cheap fabric comes out, pay extra attention to it.”

“……Pardon? Cheap fabric?”

“Right. Hwangryongjangju’s work will probably come from that direction!”

At my words spoken with crossed arms, Seohwa blinked. It wasn’t a difficult story if you thought about it a little.

There were limited reasons why Hwangryongjangju, who lacked neither fame nor money, would come all the way to Dongting Lake’s Heuksi to host this kind of secret auction. At most, it would be an eccentric act to relieve his boredom. And eccentricities are more fun when they’re dramatic.

Think about it.

Which story would resonate more—someone who made fifty thousand nyang from ten thousand nyang in one transaction, or someone who bought an antique with a single copper coin and it turned out to be worth ten thousand nyang?

“Undoubtedly the latter. Hwangryongjangju would know that too.”

“I hadn’t thought that far……”

“You can figure it out if you think about it a bit. Plus, there’s an additional reason.”

If it was cheap fabric, even if we won something strange, we wouldn’t suffer a huge loss. From the start, the expensive fabrics would likely shoot up in value to levels I couldn’t afford. So shouldn’t we focus on what we could get our hands on right away?

Finishing my thoughts, I looked toward the auction house where the auctioneer stood. And at that moment, as if it was time, the auctioneer slowly opened his mouth.

“We’ll stop accepting entries here! The auction will begin shortly, so those participating in the auction, please take your seats!”

“Hmm. Want to eat something? You haven’t eaten anything on the way here.”

“Ah, yes. I was getting hungry actually. Hehe.”

After watching the auctioneer’s proceedings for a moment, I quietly bought some chicken skewers from a nearby food stall, handed a few to Seohwa, and took a bite myself. And at that moment, the chicken skewer’s juices burst forth in my mouth.

……This!

“A delicacy.”

“Hihi.”

Should I buy something for Seowoo to eat on the way back?

“Now, let’s begin the auction! The first auction item!”

While tearing into the chicken skewers and filling my stomach, my attention turned to the auction house at the sudden shout. Fabric slowly emerging to the center of the auction house on something like a wheeled desk.

“Hemp cloth woven from hemp from northern Sichuan!”

“Hemp?”

As I glanced over, Seohwa spoke up.

“It’s cannabis, yes. That drug plant.”

“They make clothes from that?”

“Yes. Originally with hemp, the leaves are the drug and the stem is used for fiber. The material cost is expensive, and it requires considerable skill to process, so it’s quite an expensive textile. Not as much as silk though.”

“I see.”

As soon as Seohwa finished speaking, the auctioneer called out the starting bid. The starting bid was fifty nyang of silver.

Not tremendously expensive, but not an easy amount either.

“The auction will now begin!”

“Should we bid?”

As I held the number plate in hand and asked the auctioneer who was raising his voice loudly, Seohwa shook her head.

“That doesn’t seem to be it.”

“Is that so?”

“Yes. It’s definitely well-made fabric, but it’s ordinary hemp fabric. To consider it fabric made by a master is a bit……”

“I see.”

Listening to Seohwa’s words, I looked around. Indeed, while some were bidding with a just-in-case feeling, those with sharp eyes were all shaking their heads.

This was a dud. You could tell just by reading the room.

Bang bang bang!

“──Sold! This hemp fabric is sold to customer number 382 for one hundred twenty nyang of silver!”

At the auctioneer’s declaration of the winning bid with his wooden gavel, the winner came forward to receive the fabric. And immediately following was the second auction.

“This auction is ramie cloth woven from ramie fiber……!”

The auction continued in rapid succession. Ramie, woolen textiles, fabrics woven from animal fur, fully tanned whole leather, even fabric woven from spider silk.

How many times had items gone up for auction one by one with Seohwa shaking her head, when the auction was finally approaching its end.

“Next is the ninth item!”

The moment the auctioneer spoke, Seohwa’s eyes widened and she leaned her upper body forward.

“Munju-nim. That……!”

“Mm?”

At Seohwa’s words, I turned my gaze to examine the fabric placed in the center of the auction house. At first glance, it was white cloth that gave off no particular feeling.

“What is that to surprise you so?”

“……It’s linen.”

“Linen?”

As I blinked at the name of a crop I was hearing for the first time, Seohwa continued with additional explanation.

“It’s fabric made from a Western Region crop that can’t be obtained in the Central Plains. It’s tremendously expensive because it has good durability and hardly wears out.”

“I see. But for that to be so surprising…… Ah.”

Fabric made from a crop unobtainable in the Central Plains.

When you think about it, the answer was there. To make fabric from crops unobtainable in the Central Plains, you would need to know the techniques related to that crop, wouldn’t you?

And such techniques aren’t known by just anyone. In other words.

“……It’s Hwangryongjangju’s work. I’m certain.”

The moment Seohwa’s quietly whispered words ended, the bidding began.

“One hundred nyang!”

“One hundred ten nyang!”

“One hundred thirty nyang!”

“One hundred fifty nyang!”

At the rapidly soaring price to unmanageable levels, Seohwa clenched her fists tight.

“What should we do, Munju-nim…….”

“It’s fine.”

Let me organize this.

Looking around, everyone was enthusiastically trying to win that fabric. Some might think it’s Hwangryongjangju’s work, and from what they’d heard, it was valuable fabric, so even if they were wrong, they probably thought they wouldn’t suffer a big loss.

But compared to that, the money I had was far too little. Only four hundred nyang of silver. If I participated in this bidding competition, what were the chances I could win that fabric?

None. Absolutely certain.

“Don’t be too disheartened.”

“……But still.”

I patted the dejected Seohwa’s back and adjusted to a comfortable position. My prediction was off, but what could be done about it?

This was originally a secret auction I’d participated in with a ‘nice if it works, whatever if it doesn’t’ attitude. My predictions aren’t always right, and there was nothing to be done about regretting what was lost now.

“Two thousand two hundred eighty nyang, we have two thousand two hundred eighty nyang! Any more?”

As I watched the auction house for a moment with the sense of observing another world at the skyrocketing price, the auctioneer declared the winning bid. And slowly walking out from behind us was the winning bidder.

‘Must have a lot of money.’

While sitting there with such thoughts, I felt a gaze and raised my eyes. There.

Standing in stylish white robes with two swords elegantly drawn on them, looking down at me, was the winning bidder.

“I didn’t expect to meet in a place like this. Would you be Sohyeop Baek Riyun?”

“……You know me?”

“Of course. Though I haven’t met you directly, I’ve heard stories. You’re exactly as our disciples described. Sohyeop.”

The middle-aged winning bidder who looked me up and down with a fishy smile tapped the sword at his waist and continued speaking.

“Ever heard of Baekgeommun? I’m the sect master of that place.”

“Baekgeom……? Ah.”

Come to think of it, I had heard of it. When was it?

Probably when I was investigating the power structure of the surrounding area to establish my sect. I’d heard it was quite an influential sect in this region.

But why would my name come up at Baekgeommun?

“I heard you’re up to interesting things in Hwayong.”

“Interesting things, you say.”

“If you’ve heard of Baekgeommun, you should know full well that Hwayong is Baekgeom’s territory.”

“I understand Baekgeommun’s headquarters is in Seoksu, not Hwayong.”

“Hwayong and Seoksu are right next to each other.”

“What are you trying to say?”

As I slightly frowned, Baekgeommunju smiled fishily and pressed down firmly on my shoulder.

“I’ve heard what Sohyeop is trying to do, but I want to tell you not to harbor foolish thoughts. This vicinity has been Baekgeommun’s territory since ancient times. Even if we’re both from the orthodox path, there are no exceptions……no.”

“…….”

At Baekgeommunju slowly gathering his internal energy to pressure me, I chuckled lightly and casually brushed off his hand. And at that moment, the internal energy scattered completely.

“You have more skill than I thought.”

“And Baekgeommunju is weaker than I thought.”

“…….”

Looking at the entire Central Plains, there were definitely quite a few masters better than me. But I was the leader of Changcheon Corps, which competed for top positions even in the Murim Alliance.

I wasn’t weak enough to lose to a mere Baekgeommun sect master.

“We’ll see how long that spirit can last. Sohyeop.”

With a hardened expression, Baekgeommunju brushed off his sleeve with a flick, went forward to receive the linen fabric, and returned to his seat. And at that sight, Seohwa, who had been tense the whole time, let out a deep sigh.

“Huaaaa…… Mu, Munju-nim. I thought my heart was going to stop.”

“Were you scared?”

“Not that scared, but…… he’s Baekgeommunju. It’s quite a famous martial sect in this area…… is it okay to make enemies like this?”

“It’s fine.”

There would be no problem. Since the Uicheonmun I established also proclaimed itself orthodox, and Baekgeommun was also a member of the Orthodox Murim, they couldn’t use openly hostile moves right away.

Of course, if cornered, the story would be different, but since Baekgeommun didn’t know well about the manor’s effects or my abilities, they wouldn’t feel such a direct threat.

“More than that, of all people, that guy’s the winning bidder. My mood has gotten quite bad. Genuinely bad.”

“……Didn’t you say it couldn’t be helped?”

“That’s true too.”

I chuckled and prepared to watch the next auction item. After all, if I wanted to make clothes to wear, I’d need to buy at least one bolt of silk, wouldn’t I?

Having come here, I couldn’t return empty-handed. At the very least, I’d need to buy some decent silk.

And

With that thought, as I turned my attention to the next auction item.

I couldn’t help but close my mouth.

“Munju-nim, then which auction house should we go to next?”

“……Wait a moment.”

“Yes?”

I quietly silenced the chattering Seohwa and watched the slowly entering fabric. No matter how I looked at it, it was unmistakably familiar plain cotton cloth.

It wasn’t fabric that felt particularly special in any way. Perhaps others thought the same, as people were leaving their seats one by one.

But I didn’t leave my seat.

“Today’s final fabric! This is plain cotton cloth woven from cotton grown in the fertile soil of Hebei……!”

“Seohwa.”

“…….”

“Seohwa.”

“Yes? Ah, yes!”

Looking at Seohwa, who hastily answered as if belatedly realizing she was being called, I tightly clenched my sweat-drenched palm.

“That… what do you think?”

“That?”

“Yes.”

The tenth item.

Behind the plain cotton cloth that looked like nothing special.

The same golden aura I’d seen from Seohwa was shining.