Chronicles of the Lazy Sovereign Chapter 93

#93

Taejonbirok Volume 4 Episode 18

Chapter 29 – The Lazy Man, Becoming a Member of Parliament (2)

“Aren’t these conditions too good to be true?”

“What is it?”

“Jin So-hyeop alone cannot revive Seongsujang by working hard for twenty years.”

“……Well, yeah, that’s it.”

“And although the name of the Holy Spirit is great, it does not necessarily require true cooperation.”

“That’s true too.”

“But why did you pay Jin So-hyeop a huge sum of money, one nyang, for twenty years to revive Seongsujang? It doesn’t seem like there’s anything for him to gain from it?”

“Why is there nothing to gain? You can make money.”

“You have enough money now. Do you think you can get your initial investment back in twenty years if you invest that much money? If you’re not careful, you’ll lose all your investment.”

Wi Yeon-ho drank the tea placed in front of him without answering.

“I don’t think Jin So-hyeop has any particularly special relationship with the above Confucius. There are many ways to make money even without medicine, so I don’t understand why you would resort to this method.”

Wi Yeon-ho put down his teacup.

“It’s fate.”

“What are you talking about?”

“Isn’t it fate that I rolled in here and met that guy?”

“It’s fate……”

Wi Yeon-ho answered nonchalantly.

“Anyway, I’m the kind of person who would want nothing more than a room and food, so if I had money, I would use it for something meaningful. So-ah is someone who will do great things. Even though she’s young now, if So-ah revives Seongsujang and becomes a great doctor, she could save countless people. So I think it wouldn’t be bad to trust her once.”

“It is difficult to understand, but if that is what Confucius meant.”

Jinsoah covered her mouth.

And then I carefully walked out of the building without making any sound.

'I didn't know that the above person thought of me like that.'

Until a little while ago, there were no unscrupulous loan sharks, so who would have thought that such thoughts were being engrossed in them?

Ha Dae-bong's words were not wrong. Even if he worked his entire life, it was realistically impossible to pay off the twenty-nyang debt and rebuild the Seongsujang.

However, if he did as Wei Yanho said, in twenty years he might have paid off all his debts and be making a name for himself in the rebuilt Seongsujang.

‘They were all thinking of me… … .’

I felt sorry for having thought badly of Wi Yeon-ho, even for a moment.

“I have to repay you.”

The only thing she could do was become a great member of parliament. Thinking so, Jin So-ah ran home.

“Did you go?”

Ha Dae-bong opened the door slightly and looked outside, and saw Jin So-ah running into the distance.

“Yes, I went.”

“Hehehehe.”

An evil smile appeared on Wei Yanhui's lips.

“It’s not a big deal to fool a child.”

“……It looks very malicious, doesn’t it?”

“Is that so?”

Wei Yanhu smiled with satisfaction. With this, he had easily obtained a slave who was obedient, had a good background, and had good ripple effects.

“I can’t believe I got to participate in something like this, I’ve been living off credit alone…….”

Hadaebong had a puzzled expression.

“You’re a corrupt moneylender, and you have no credit!”

“……I complied with the established interest rate.”

“Six percent?”

“It’s five pennies to buy.”

Ha Dae-bong corrected Wi Yeon-ho's words and smacked his lips.

“You have lived very conscientiously.”

“I was born with such a good nature.”

“Did you apply saliva?”

"……a moment ago."

Ha Dae-bong smiled shyly and continued speaking.

“By the way, I feel a pang of conscience.”

“It’s not a bad condition for children either.”

“That’s true, but…….”

What I said earlier was also half true. The only thing that was clearly different from the truth was that the signboard for Seongsujang was not easily available everywhere, and that just holding that signboard was worth more than twenty gold coins to Jin So-ah.

“So what are you going to do now?”

At Wei Yanho's words, Ha Daebong swallowed his breath.

“Even if I continue working like this, it seems like it will be difficult to escape the position of branch manager. Why not take this opportunity to change jobs?”

“……Why do you want to use me? In the eyes of the above Confucius, am I no different from a moneylender who sucks the blood of the poor? I just don’t have a sword, but what I do is no different from what the blacksmith did.”

“That’s right!”

Wi Yeon-ho clapped his hands.

“The skill with which he maintained the battlefield while eating up those terrifying interest rates! The mentality with which he did not hesitate to crush the heads of drowning people who came to the battlefield to grab even a straw and push them into the water!”

“……Is that a curse?”

“At that level, no matter what you entrust me with, I can’t help but do well. Oh, that’s right. What do you think? I’ll pay you enough, so wouldn’t you like to take this opportunity to start anew as the new head of the Holy See?”

“In the past, I would have thought of it as a rope that I could grab without looking back…….”

As I vividly witnessed Jin So-ah getting hit in the eye right before my eyes, I began to suspect that this rope was actually a fishing line.

“Could this be happening to me too?”

“Why would someone who knows do this?”

“……I guess that’s what happened.”

“Hey, no.”

Ha Dae-bong was in agony as he looked at Wi Yeon-ho's suspicious expression.

He had met many people who were rolling around in the world of business, but this was the first time he had met someone whose intentions were so incomprehensible. When someone is planning something, their emotions or intentions are bound to show on their face, but Wi Yeon-ho had none of that.

Even now, he is slumped in his chair with an expression that says he has experienced everything in the world and that everything is annoying. What on earth are we supposed to read his intentions in that appearance?

“Ugh.”

Hadae-bong let out a long sigh.

'I don't know if it's a rope or a fishing line, but either way, it's certain that this could be a new opportunity.'

I was already feeling tired of the battlefield business.

That's what a battlefield is. All he could do was operate, and there was nothing he could do, like expand his business or try something new. All he could do was open his mouth wide and swallow people who came.

Although Ha Dae-bong was showing off his natural talents in this field, he was growing thirsty for new work that he could plan and carry out on his own.

“Will you let me run it the way I want?”

“I can’t say I’ll give you full authority, but I’ll try my best not to interfere. And as you can see, I’m not the type of person who can interfere even if I want to.”

“……That seems to be the case.”

You have to know something to meddle, and to know something, you have to move. When I listened to him, he seemed like the type of person who would stay in a corner of his room for two weeks or a month without going out. How could such a person know how the hospital was going and meddle?

'It's not very pretty, but… … .'

When I saw a person, I could tell that he had outstanding abilities, even though it was something I should never do.

'The fishing line is secure… … .'

The bait was too tempting. With that kind of bait, it wouldn't be a bad idea to take a bite. It was just a choice between starving to death without taking the bait, or taking the tempting bait and leaving the rest to fate.

“I will do it.”

Hadae-bong nodded vigorously.

Wi Yeon-ho smiles and extends his hand to Ha Dae-bong.

Ha Dae-bong grabbed the hand that Wei Yeon-ho extended.

“I will take good care of you.”

“Yes, it’s me.”

The revival of the Holy See, which would bring a storm to Hubei Province, was beginning.

“First of all, the first thing we need is a building.”

“A building?”

“I guess the building has to be grand for people to think, ‘Oh, if I go to this hospital, saving my life won’t be a big deal.’”

"okay."

Wi Yeon-ho also nodded.

Originally, appearances were important for people and businessmen. If Wei Yanhui’s master’s appearance had not been that of a swindler, he would not have been fooled so easily.

If only that pale red face hadn't had that white beard!

"fraud!"

"yes?"

“Oh, no.”

Wei Yanhu shook his head. Just thinking about his master made him feel like his stomach was turning.

“The building seems to be suitable.”

“Do you have a building you have purchased?”

“That’s not true…… I think I could get a building for free that has no owner and no one who claims to be the owner.”

“Where are you talking about? Is there such a place?”

“It’s a black kitchen.”

“…….”

Ha Dae-bong looked at Wi Yeon-ho with a blank expression.

Is this crazy guy going to set up a medical clinic in a building that has been used as a black hole breakwater until now?

“Would you like to reconsider?”

“Why? The building is magnificent, and it’s close to the city center. There aren’t many places in Infinite like it.”

“That is true, but.”

If we just consider the location, there's no need to say anything.

It was located in the middle of Muhan and on the main street. In addition, it was a famous place to the point that it would be difficult to find a person living in Muhan who didn't know where Heukji Kitchen was, so the location couldn't be better.

But is that the way people perceive things?

What business can you do without gaining a foothold and destroying popularity?

“……No one builds a restaurant on top of a trash can after clearing it out.”

“Hey, there could be a change in perception, where a place that used to torment people is now a place that saves people.”

“That’s just wishful thinking.”

“Let’s move on from that for now.”

“And secondly, it is important to recruit quality lawmakers.”

"hmm……."

“Even if you make a big announcement about the opening of a hospital under the name of Seongsujang, if the people who initially visit the hospital do not receive proper treatment, they will soon stop coming. It is important to spread the word.”

“I see?”

“In the end, it’s just a rumor.”

Hadaebong put his hand in front of him and pretended to whisper.

“No matter how good a doctor you are, if people don’t know about it, it’s useless. You have to spread the word quickly and reliably.”

Wi Yeon-ho nodded.

“He is indeed my eldest son.”

“Hehehe.”

“Then you must have a solution for all those situations?”

“…….”

Hadaebong became a mute who had eaten honey.

Why should Ha Dae-bong have that solution?

“Me?”

“Didn’t you ask to be allowed to run it the way you want?”

“Yes, it was.”

“But you’re going to do all this work and just enjoy the fruits for yourself? You leave all the hard work to others?”

I didn't mean it like that, but it feels like he's becoming a bit unscrupulous.

“No, that’s not it.”

“Then you must have a solution?”

“…….”

“If you don’t have it, make it by tomorrow.”

Ha Dae-bong sensed that something was wrong, but he was too deep in the water to pull out. The swamp called Wiyeonho was like a deep swamp from which one could never escape once they fell into it.

“Are you ready to retire?”

“When I die, I can’t go anywhere.”

"……mother."

Moisture rose up at the corners of Ha Dae-bong's eyes.