Episode 61. Feels Like a Scam, Somehow?
Won Seung had assigned Ohgu to keep watch over the Heavenly Observation Pavilion.
With the Three-way Martial Arts Duel approaching, there was no telling what Cheon Il-hae or Gu Ja-ang might try.
Ohgu hadn’t wanted to run into Gu Ja-ang, but Won Seung persuaded him.
“You’re a completely new person now. Even your own mother wouldn’t recognize you. If you’re still uneasy, just use the Human Skin Mask.”
“If someone wrongs you, you have to get revenge. This is your chance!”
Ohgu covered his remarkable(?) good looks with the Human Skin Mask.
Knowing Gu Ja-ang’s personality and tastes, keeping tabs on him wasn’t difficult.
In fact, it was almost elegant—Gu Ja-ang only ever went to such refined places.
Right now...
Ohgu was sitting by the window of a scenic restaurant overlooking the Xiang River, sipping some light wine.
Watching the serene, blue waters flow by, he couldn’t help but mutter a curse. He’d almost ended up as fish food in that very river.
Since then, Ohgu had sworn off fish. Even now, his only snacks were vegetables.
‘You’ll die by my hand! I swear I’ll kill you!’
As Ohgu tilted his glass, he occasionally glanced at a private room where Gu Ja-ang and Jo Bang-un were seated.
‘What kind of scheming brings them all the way out to this remote spot?’
Ohgu’s gaze shifted to the waiter.
As if understanding, the waiter walked past the private room again, carrying a tray with a wet towel.
It had cost Ohgu quite a bit to win that waiter over. These days, he found it easier to use money than his own body.
It all depended on who was giving the orders.
Gu Ja-ang preferred to use his own body, while Won Seung believed that money could even make ghosts dance, and handed it out generously.
Spending such a large sum, Ohgu realized just how meager his pay from the Heavenly Observation Pavilion had been over the past six years—barely enough to scrape by.
Now, Ohgu was hooked on the taste of money.
Even the wine he was drinking now was something he’d never have dared to order in the past.
But Won Seung had told him:
A person needs to eat and dress well to become a good person. Only good people can do good work, so don’t skimp on food or clothing.
Ohgu didn’t really get it, but he followed the advice faithfully.
“Ahh!”
The wine tasted sweet.
Though he was well past thirty, Ohgu’s appearance was that of someone in their early twenties. As he pretended to savor the wine, a snort came from a nearby table.
Ohgu looked over and saw three men sitting there—clearly local thugs.
Well, it’s not like any decent folks would be drinking in the middle of the day.
“What are you looking at? Eyes down, punk!”
Ohgu sighed and looked up at the ceiling in disbelief.
Ever since his appearance changed, he’d been subjected to this kind of treatment now and then.
‘Just let it go, Woo Bok-Saeng. You got another shot at life—a golden one at that. Just live quietly.’
Ohgu turned away and downed his drink, but the mocking laughter continued.
“Look at this guy, acting all high and mighty with that eunuch face...”
Ohgu shot to his feet. He’d promised himself he’d live quietly, but he couldn’t just let that slide.
Especially when he was already struggling to suppress his anger at Gu Ja-ang...
“Hey, you bastards. Come outside. Now.”
With that, he led the way out of the tavern.
The three men immediately got up and followed, exchanging knowing glances—it was clear they’d been looking for a fight.
Ohgu, a bit tipsy, hadn’t picked up on it.
The three followed him into an alley.
Moments later—
Cries of pain and the sound of bones breaking rang out, and then Ohgu strolled back out, grinning as if nothing had happened.
‘Yeah, this is the life. This is why I joined the Murim. Is this kind of life over now? I’ll have to live like a respectable calligraphy and painting shop owner...’
As Ohgu lifted his head with a wry smile, a passing woman stared at him in shock.
A gust from the river swept through his long hair, and the woman collapsed to the ground in a faint.
Ohgu cocked his head in confusion, wondering what was wrong with her.
He still had no idea what his looks meant.
*
Inside the private room Ohgu had been watching.
A smooth, subdued voice spoke quietly.
“So, what exactly is this ‘reliable information’ you have? I need to know before I can arrange a meeting with the Pavilion Master.”
Gu Ja-ang spoke in a coaxing tone, but Jo Bang-un, arms folded, didn’t even acknowledge him.
“I’ve already set everything up for you. Just stay under me for a while, and then you can take over as Heavenly Observation Pavilion Strategist.”
“I need to know if that’s truly the Pavilion Master’s intention.”
Jo Bang-un was immovable.
Gu Ja-ang had been trying to persuade him for days, but Jo Bang-un wouldn’t budge.
‘Persistent bastard.’
From the start, Gu Ja-ang had considered Jo Bang-un expendable.
Now, with his own position in jeopardy, he had no intention of recommending someone who could replace him to Cheon Il-hae. He just wanted the information, then planned to quietly get rid of Jo Bang-un.
Jo Bang-un, for his part, was growing more suspicious by the day.
‘Maybe this guy hasn’t even told Cheon Il-hae about me.’
If that were true, he had no one to rely on—he might as well be dead already.
Gu Ja-ang threw up his hands as if conceding.
“Fine, you win. As you know, the Pavilion Master’s been too busy with the Three-way Martial Arts Duel to make time for a meeting... But I’ll take responsibility and get a date. Let’s meet here again tomorrow at the same time.”
“Fine.”
Jo Bang-un replied curtly.
Gu Ja-ang had given similar answers several times already, only to show up alone the next day with the excuse that Cheon Il-hae was busy, demanding the information first.
Today, as Gu Ja-ang left the room, he made Jo Bang-un promise again.
“It could all be settled tomorrow, so bring that information.”
“Understood.”
Jo Bang-un replied half-heartedly. The information was all in his head anyway.
Watching Gu Ja-ang’s retreating figure from the window, Jo Bang-un made up his mind.
‘This is getting me nowhere! I’ll have to risk everything!’
The day of the Three-way Martial Arts Duel was drawing closer. With each passing day, his information lost value. Information was like fresh fish—best when newly caught, and only valuable when it’s fresh.
Jo Bang-un mentally reviewed what he knew:
—Four people have come from the Sword Pact Sect. One of them is the Sect Leader’s disciple.
—The governor is secretly cooperating with Seongwang House.
—The organizer of the Three-way Martial Arts Duel, Pung Un-Saeng, is favorably disposed toward the Clear Water Sect.
At first, he’d thought this was valuable information, but as time passed, he became less confident.
Maybe the information had already lost its worth.
Jo Bang-un was getting desperate. In hindsight, he should have gone straight to Cheon Il-hae after hearing from Won Seung.
He’d wasted a couple of days trying to verify it, and in the meantime, the Three-way Martial Arts Duel was officially announced.
‘I can’t let myself be strung along by that guy’s words anymore.’
After days of fruitless negotiations with Gu Ja-ang, Jo Bang-un resolved to sneak into the Heavenly Observation Pavilion tonight and meet Cheon Il-hae directly.
*
Won Seung summoned Jong Bi and Ohgu to report on recent developments.
Jong Bi gave an update on the Clear Water Sect, while Ohgu focused on the Heavenly Observation Pavilion, especially Gu Ja-ang’s movements.
“Hm. So Gu Ja-ang and Jo Bang-un are still playing tug-of-war? Persistent fellows.”
Won Seung had expected Jo Bang-un to go straight to Gu Ja-ang, but after disappearing for a few days, he’d only recently started meeting him. It was puzzling.
‘I didn’t even leak anything that important... Why meet three days in a row? What are they plotting?’
He hadn’t considered that Gu Ja-ang might be planning to discard Jo Bang-un immediately.
But there was too much to do to dwell on it.
“Keep a close eye on both of them. Who knows what tricks they’ll pull before the duel.”
He gave another warning, then took out a thick envelope.
“And you need to sell these.”
Jong Bi opened it to find tickets for the Three-way Martial Arts Duel.
“You want us to distribute spectator tickets?”
“We’re limiting the audience to three hundred. I have a duty to select impartial spectators, so I’m issuing these tickets.”
“Ah!”
Jong Bi and Ohgu nodded in understanding, but their eyes widened at his next words.
“You’ll need to collect a thousand nyang per ticket.”
“What? Who pays to watch a martial arts duel?”
“I told you, we need to select impartial spectators. This is to weed out any troublemakers. Only those who are truly eager to watch will pay a thousand nyang.”
“Wow. Three hundred tickets... At a thousand nyang each?”
“That’s three hundred thousand nyang!”
Jong Bi and Ohgu exchanged incredulous looks.
“That’s only three thousand silver coins, though.”
“Is this really okay? Won’t the Heavenly Observation Pavilion or the Clear Water Sect find fault with this?”
They were fighting for their lives, and Won Seung was making money off it...
“It’s fine. It’s all been agreed upon. We’ll just use some of the proceeds for funeral expenses.”
Won Seung showed them the Three-way Martial Arts Duel Agreement.
He pointed to a clause at the end of a list of conditions.
—The organizer of the Three-way Martial Arts Duel, Pung Un-saeng, is responsible for ensuring the duel proceeds smoothly. He must coordinate, execute, and supervise all aspects of the duel fairly. He is also responsible for covering all related expenses and bearing any resulting costs.
Jong Bi protested.
“What is this? The organizer gets saddled with all the costs?”
“Yeah, what’s that supposed to mean? Making us pay for everything is too much!”
Ohgu chimed in.
Won Seung waved it off with a grin.
“I’m the organizer, so I have to take responsibility. I can cover these expenses.”
“But what does that have to do with the tickets?”
“Look here! See the phrase ‘bearing any resulting costs’?”
“...?”
“You shouldn’t interpret ‘costs’ as just paying out. If there’s a profit... collecting it is also bearing the cost. Even if people criticize me, I’ll take the unexpected profits.”
Jong Bi and Ohgu didn’t get it.
“Hmm... This really does sound like a scam.”
Making a profit counts as ‘bearing the cost’?
“No need to overthink it. If anyone complains, just say that.”
“So what do we do?”
“Put up notices around town about the tickets for the Three-way Martial Arts Duel. Don’t list the price—just let the rumors spread. Remember! It’s a thousand nyang per ticket. To prevent scalping, keep a list of buyers.”
After explaining the process, Won Seung sent them on their way.
‘There’s so much to keep track of.’
The Three-way Martial Arts Duel was just four days away.
Most of the arrangements were in place—now all that was left was the duel itself.
Won Seung went over everything again, wondering if there were any variables he’d missed.
If things went as expected, everything would go smoothly and the results would be clear... but he had a bad feeling it wouldn’t be that simple.
Cheon Il-hae of the Heavenly Observation Pavilion and the three brothers of the Clear Water Sect were not to be underestimated. Plus, masters from the Dosan Forest and the Sword Pact Sect had arrived.
Even if the governor got involved...
‘They’ll use every trick and scheme they can think of.’
The outcome of the Three-way Martial Arts Duel was crucial for Won Seung as well.
Cheon Il-hae had to die. Not just die—he had to die for sure!
Why? Because he’d sent Cheon Seok-san to kill me!
As for Hwa Cheon-gang... well, live or die, it didn’t matter much.
‘But Yong Jo-woon must survive.’
No one could predict how the balance of power in Xiangyang would shift after the duel.
Depending on the outcome, someone might blame Won Seung, the organizer of the Three-way Martial Arts Duel.
That’s when Yong Jo-woon would have to act as his shield.
Won Seung planned to give Yong Jo-woon the Meridian Cleansing Pill.