novelraw Chapter 131 : A Pearl in the Mud (2)
Chapter 131 : A Pearl in the Mud (2)
A martial arts secret manual is made by mixing metaphors and similes. A very important secret manual, which is only allowed to some members of a family or sect, even has its contents written in code, and the method to solve the code is only passed down orally to the eldest son of the family or the successor of the sect.
Since there is no way to find out the method from the outside, it is not passed down outside the sect. There is no worry that the contents of the secret manual will be leaked.
"That's an old saying."
"What? Then?"
"Times change, and knowledge accumulates. People always develop. There are plenty of ways to break the codes that were made in the old days. It was an advanced cipher hundreds of years ago, but not now."
Cryptography, the study of solving codes, had been developing day by day. The Sima Clan, the family of the best martial arts scholars in the world, was also a family that had learned the most advanced cryptography due to their vigorous desire for knowledge.
Jang So-gil had learned forty kinds of secrets of cryptography to solve the ciphers of old secret manuals from Sima Hui.
[Even if you learn this, you'll hardly ever get to use it. But if such a thing happens, it means you've caught a huge piece of luck, so don't miss it.]
Jang So-gil, recalling Sima Hui's kind advice, twitched his nose.
"As my brother said, it's a huge piece of luck..."
No matter how many times he reviewed it, it was the Emperor's Sword Form. Although it would take a huge amount of time to decipher the whole thing, it was enough to decipher the first paragraph of the first chapter in one 'shichen'.
In the preface, there was only a lot of self-praise from Namgung Gang-jin, who was said to be the best master in the history of the Namgung Clan, and praise for the Emperor's Sword Form. The arrogance unique to masters and prestigious families was unfolded without concealment, so his conviction that this was the original became even stronger.
Yang Gwan shook his head and said in a doubtful tone.
"Is that really the genuine article? Unless the guys from the Four Black Alliance were blind, how could they not have recognized the Emperor's Sword Form..."
"See for yourself."
Yang Gwan opened the secret manual of the Emperor's Sword Form that Jang So-gil had handed him. Then his doubtful mind became even stronger.
"This is just a ledger."
On a certain day of a certain month, he bought something somewhere, and sold something somewhere. Stories of this kind were written in a line.
It was the same format, the same technique, and the same content as the many transaction ledgers he had seen while doing the inspector's work with Jang So-gil.
Jang So-gil let out a sigh.
"It's disguised to look like that. Do you think a code is there for no reason?"
"I-is that so?"
No matter how he looked at it, it didn't look like a code. But if Young Master So said it was a cipher, it must be a cipher.
"The disguise seems to have been successful."
As a result, the Four Black Alliance had thought that this ledger had no value and had thrown it into the low-grade warehouse. Honestly, if you were to judge only by what you saw, it was a situation where it should have been used as kindling, not stored in a low-grade warehouse.
Jang So-gil shrugged his shoulders.
"If you just look at the appearance, it's kindling. But this, in its own way, could also be used as a historical material to study the customs of that time."
"Then is it worth one silver tael like that novel from before?"
"It might get ten 'mun'. I'll be able to have a hearty breakfast."
"It was here for a reason."
"That's right."
It was not a strange thing. Some of the secret martial arts whose lineage had been cut off were sleeping in such an absurd place, or their value was not recognized and they were used as firewood or writing practice books by the illiterate and disappeared.
"Then wouldn't there be more things like this in the warehouse?"
"How could there be such a thing? For now, let's just finish organizing."
It was a matter of course, but nothing like the Emperor's Sword Form came out again. But there was the small luck of finding a painting worth over a hundred silver taels, and a paperweight made of a lightning-struck jujube tree that was hard to find and worth over three hundred silver taels.
And so, Jang So-gil organized several warehouses until the sun set.
* * *
The next day came. The task for today was the auction of trivial goods.
No matter how good the quality of the spoils was, if you tried to take all the items whose handling differed by type as they were, things would get troublesome. It was convenient for transportation to sell what could be sold on the spot and turn it into silver.
When one force fell, the next thing to do was to tear apart the property of that force and divide it. Just as when the Diancang Sect was exterminated, an auction was held this time as well.
The quick-witted merchants had expected this auction, so they each came to the place where the headquarters of the Four Black Alliance had been with thick promissory notes and silver in their bosoms. The martial artists who had been advised by such merchants also gathered one by one.
And Jang So-gil, who had expected their reaction, had set up an auction house by adding ten tents in advance.
A merchant, rubbing his nose, said to his fellow merchant.
"As expected, since a former merchant became the inspector, the work is handled quickly and well."
"That's what I'm saying. To think he had already built an auction house and had even classified the items."
"They say he's a talent called the Golden Ear, and he's living up to his reputation."
On the sign in front, the method of using the auction house was written. The auction was held in a total of ten tents, and the quality of the items was divided into grades from the highest, first grade, to the tenth grade.
"Items from the second grade to the tenth grade will be auctioned through a simultaneous bidding auction. The first grade will be auctioned through a regular auction. It's a simple and easy-to-understand method."
"That's what I'm saying. I'll be able to finish the work quickly and go back without wasting time."
Both of them seemed quite satisfied.
A new merchant, interrupting between the two, asked.
"Excuse me, but what is a simultaneous bidding auction?"
"Hmm? Ah, it seems you haven't done such an auction yet."
"My experience is shallow..."
"To put it simply, when an auction item comes up, everyone raises a piece of paper with the price written on it at the same time, and the one who wrote the highest price wins the bid."
"What? Why do you do it that way?"
"This way, you can prevent the bastards who keep encouraging competition and putting a bubble on the price, and since it's a one-shot bid, the turnover rate of the auction house becomes faster. You can bid quickly and organize the items quickly."
"Heo..."
As the new merchant was impressed, the other merchant clicked his tongue.
"This is a simple but very difficult auction."
"Why is that?"
"The price of an auction item is decided in an instant. After confirming the item that has come up at the auction house, you have to read its hidden value, determine how much you have to pay to win the bid, and how much you can earn when you resell it, all in an instant. Even for a fairly experienced merchant, it's not easy to make a profit in a simultaneous bidding auction."
If you only focused on winning the bid, you would end up calling a price higher than its original value and suffer a loss. If you only focused on making a profit, you might not be able to win a single item.
It was a very difficult auction where you had to make a quick yet careful judgment between profit and winning the bid, over the numbers.
The new merchant, who had finally understood the situation, sighed.
He had come to make a big score against the foolish martial artists, but for some reason, the situation was not ordinary. The auction was being operated so skillfully that even the seasoned senior merchants were at a loss for words.
Sighing that he had no chance of making a quick buck, the senior merchant patted his shoulder and said.
"If you want to aim for a big score, focus on the lower grades, and if you want to earn a little, focus on the upper grades."
In the lower grades, there was a possibility that there was a valuable item whose value even the seller had not properly grasped. It was finding a pearl in the mud.
The upper grades were items that had already been stamped as high-grade items, so if you bought them as cheaply as possible, you could resell them and make a profit. You could earn safely, but you couldn't touch a large amount of money.
"Then let's go."
"Let's do our best."
The three merchants, cheering each other on, dispersed.
Yang Gwan, who was listening to their story from a distance, scratched his cheek.
'Well, I'm sorry.'
There was no big score in the lower grades. Jang So-gil had really thoroughly overturned the items and had accurately calculated their value.
On top of that, since he had already set the estimated winning bid and the amount that would bring the maximum profit when resold for all the items, the merchants of the Daewoon Guild, who knew that price, had already taken their seats at each auction house.
When the auction began, the merchant of the Daewoon Guild would raise a piece of paper with the lowest price written on it. If everyone else called a price lower than that, that item would be bought by the Daewoon Guild. It was a profit equal to the profit that Jang So-gil had calculated.
"Ah, Young Master So. Is it really okay to do this?"
"What's wrong with it? The guys gathered here are all guys with some power and money. It's okay to rip them off a little. No, it's not even ripping them off."
If there was someone who called a price higher than the minimum price that Jang So-gil had set, it was okay for them to win the bid. Because it was not a matter of making the people who had gathered inevitably see a loss, or of taking everything they had.
It was just a matter of preventing them from making a big profit. So there would be no one who would be ruined by failing at the auction.
This auction was an auction in name, but in reality, it was a grand stage of fraud. Among all the people gathered here, the only one who would make a big score was Jang So-gil.
And surprisingly, according to the laws of the Great Ming, this was not even illegal. Because there was no law that prevented such an act.
Yang Gwan's conscience was pricked.
"Didn't I say I'd earn at least three hundred thousand taels from this?"
"No, even so, I didn't know you'd do something like this."
"Tsk, tsk."
Jang So-gil, smiling leisurely, sat down in a chair.
The ten merchants in charge of the auction were capable merchants that Jin Sangran had specially trained. They were trustworthy enough to be entrusted with the work.
In any case, this was not a very difficult task. Since Jang So-gil had already set the stage perfectly, it was a task that could be easily handled even if they just acted like human beings.
As he had some free time, the Emperor's Sword Form in his bosom was now unbearably on his mind.
'What on earth should I do with this secret manual...'
While he was worrying inwardly, Yang Gwan, unusually quick-witted, held his breath and whispered quietly.
"Why don't we just sell it?"
"Actually, I want to do that too."
It would be convenient if he just sold it. But that was not an easy task either.
If he just sold it, it would just be an old ledger worth ten 'mun'.
To get its proper value, he had to reveal that it was the Emperor's Sword Form and sell it.
"But if I sell it to someone else like that, wouldn't it be like declaring a fight with the Namgung Clan?"
"Then let's just give it to the Namgung Clan. Morally, that's the right thing to do, isn't it?"
"Well, that's true. But I can't do that."
"Why?"
Jang So-gil pressed his brow.
It was because of that name that gave him a headache just thinking about it, Namgung Yeohwa.
"Even now, Namgung Yeohwa hasn't canceled her declaration that she'll marry me, that she'll wait for me. I'm just delaying my answer. She's even preparing her dowry, saying she'll hold the ceremony right away if I accept. But the reason I can get away with delaying it is because there's opposition within the Namgung Clan."
He had heard that the head of the Namgung Clan doted on Namgung Yeohwa. Since he didn't want to give his precious daughter, who was the apple of his eye, to an orphan who had been begging in Sichuan, he knew that Jang So-gil was reluctant and had agreed, 'that's right,' and was cooperating in buying time.
"In the midst of this, if I throw the secret manual of the Emperor's Sword Form, what would I get in return, other than a wedding invitation?"
"Ah."
"If I send this, I guarantee it. From the next day, the matchmakers of the Namgung Clan will be camped in front of my house all day."
"Ugh... then what are you going to do? Are you going to close your eyes and set it on fire?"
"Are you crazy?"
"Right?"
To close both eyes and burn it, the Emperor's Sword Form was too precious.
It was not that he wanted to learn the martial art. The basis of Jang So-gil's swordsmanship was the Sun-Shooting Sword Art, a 'supreme speed' sword that focused on speed. It was based on overwhelming speed and induced a one-hit kill by delivering an attack faster than the opponent's response.
But the Emperor's Sword Form was a sword of 'heaviness' and 'hegemony'. It was a sword of continuous attack that crushed the opponent's defense with heavy and hegemonic continuous attacks, and did not give the opponent a chance to attack.
The martial principles were completely opposite. They were incompatible.
If he learned it, it would only ruin the Sun-Shooting Sword Art. So he had no desire to learn it at all.
But this was the history and symbol of a family.
Even if converted to money, it was a thousand gold, and there was even a possibility that it would be sold for more than the Plum Blossom Divine Pill.
"Hrmmmmm..."
I don't want to get married.
But I want to sell it at a high price.
Jang So-gil, with a dual mind, tore at his hair.
(End of Chapter)