Entomologist in Sichuan Tang Clan Chapter 393

393
Plating 2

“Do you think some fun and good ideas will come to mind?”

“Yes, I need some answers.”

“Really? Then feel free to ask me any questions you may have. I’m really curious about what kind of fun it is.”

Elder Geulhwang looked at me with a curious expression as if telling me to ask him any questions I wanted.

I started asking questions right away.

“Is it by any chance Majeun (馬蹄銀)? Who makes it? It looks different than the coffins.”

What I was asking about was this high-denomination Majeun from the Central Plains.

It is called Majeun because it looks like a horse’s hoof, and the first thing I asked was where it was made.

I’ve used them once or twice and have kept a few on my boat, but they all look different and have different shapes, so I asked.

Because that was the first thing I had to check in my plans.

“Majeun? Majeun? Talking about big money… I’m even more excited to hear what kind of story they’re going to tell.”

First of all, let’s start with a story about high-denomination bills, and you will be interested, sir.

He began to answer with a smiling face.

“If it’s Majeun, it’s made by those who have been granted permission by the government. So anyone can make it as long as they have permission, which is why the shapes are all different. Even the Tang family can make it. Isn’t that right? Mandokshin-gun?”

‘I see!’

It looks like anyone can make something the way I imagined.

Moreover, since it can be made in Tangga as well, when I thought that my plan was possible, Grandfather Mandokshin continued speaking.

“That’s right. Elder Geulhwang. Little Dragon. Even in the Tang family, you can make silver. However, you have to have the quality and weight of the silver inspected by an appraiser who has given permission from the government before you can use it. But why are you asking that?”

“Do I need to get it inspected?”

“Yes, if you are caught using unapproved Majeun, you will be flogged and in severe cases, even beheaded.”

“···.”

I flinched at the words I heard next.

I’m telling you, it’s the ultimate punishment.

‘Wow. Is that so?’

I thought it would be a bit loose because of the times and the location, but the laws were more thorough than I thought.

Was that too hopeful?

Come to think of it, even in my past life, the maximum penalty for making counterfeit money was death.

Because it was a very serious crime that disrupted the market economy.

It seemed to be the same here too.

Then, at that moment when his expression darkened at the thought that my plan would be impossible, Elder Geulhwang asked.

“How come your expression changes like that?”

I thought it was such a good idea, I said with an apologetic expression, thinking I might have gotten excited for nothing.

“Actually, I was thinking of making a fake Majeun and giving it to the Odokmun guys as trading money.”

“Fake silver?”

“Yes, if you make a big deal or a continuous deal and you pour fake silver into them, and then at some point you spread the word that it’s all fake, wouldn’t that hurt them a lot?

So I thought about that, but when I thought about it, I guess my thinking was short-sighted. Because it violates the law.”

But, as he listened to my answer, the old man asked with a look of curiosity still on his face.

“But if it’s fake silver, do you mean something mixed into silver? Copper? Those things are common, and since they’re traded with the upper class, there are people there to inspect them, so it’s easy to get caught.”

“No, that’s not the way. It’s a way you won’t notice until you try it.”

“okay?”

“Yes, but it’s not allowed by national law…”

It wasn’t easy to check with my method without splitting the silver.

The weight will match and the exterior will be made of pure silver.

When I told him that fact, the old man, Geulhwang, clutched his chin and became lost in thought.

The old man, who had been lost in thought for a moment, spoke with a look of interest rather than disappointment.

“It’s certainly an interesting method. I don’t know what level of fake silver you can make, but if it’s of high quality, it’s a method I can definitely try.”

“You can try it? But if this spreads to other people, it will cause a big mess…”

The answer I heard was surprisingly hopeful.

Hope was rising at the thought that it was a method worth trying, but in the Central Plains, silver was also a form of currency, so wouldn’t the circulation of counterfeit money cause great chaos in the market economy?

When I said that, the old man shook his head.

“How many people in the world are there who can use a large amount of silver as trading money?”

Certainly, Ma Je-eun is a high-denomination bill.

There probably aren’t many people who would trade something like that in large quantities as trade money.

But what if we split them up and use them?

There are various specifications for Majeun coins, but the 50-nyang coin is the most commonly used.

He made a worried expression, thinking that 50 nyang was an amount that could be used in a reasonable transaction.

“Can’t the guys share it?”

But the old man answered my concerns with a smile.

Is that the kind of smile that you find cute?

“If we release this in the Central Plains as you fear, it could be a problem. However, since they are disguised as a member of the Greater Yue Kingdom, there is a way to harm them without harming others.”

‘No, is there such a good way?’

When I tilt my head at the words of the old man, I hear Hwa-eun’s voice.

Hwa-eun said in a bright voice.

“Ah! You mean the dragon silver?”

Something only the two of them know.

No, seeing that even Grandpa Mandokshin-gun was nodding his head, it seemed like there was something that only I didn’t know about.

At Hwa-eun’s words, Geul-hwang nodded his head.

“right.”

“What about the dragon?”

Hwa-eun explains with a bright smile, as if she is expecting my explanation.

The content of the beautiful private tutor’s explanation was stuck in my head.

“Yong-eun is a type of maje-eun used only for trade. It has the same shape as maje-eun, but it has the word Yong-eun engraved on the outside. It cannot be used in the Central Plains, and can only be used as payment for trade.”

“Oh.”

So, what this means is that the silver is used for foreign exchange transactions.

After Hwa-eun finished explaining, King Geul-wang continued to explain why he thought my plan was possible.

“So, if you can make a decent and beautiful fake silver, you can deal a big blow to them as you wish.

I am saying this because you seem to be concerned about the damage to the people. The Great Yue Kingdom will not suffer much damage. The Yong-eun is traded with noble people in the Great Yue Kingdom. If you traded fake silver with such people, it will be the O-duk-mun bastards who will suffer.”

If it is discovered that the silver was fake after dealing with the nobles of the Great Yue Kingdom, the Odukmun bastards will have to compensate for the damages.

No, will it end with compensation for damages?

You might get in quite a bit of trouble for insulting the nobility.

It was scary to think what would happen to Odukmun if it was revealed that Eun-i was fake.

‘Then can I proceed with things as I wish?’

Then, when I thought that I could proceed with things as I wanted without worrying, the old man continued to speak.

“I thought you had a good idea and would use the kids. I heard you wiped out all the kids and pirates in the area.

“If they go out to sea and sink or destroy ships, it is not something that humans did, so the Great Wall will not be able to protest or take action.”

As expected of someone who handles information, Elder Geulhwang knew that I had secretly helped the princess to wipe out the pirates of Iju.

So when I said I had a good idea, I guess he thought I could use the kids to split the ship in two like I did when I was fighting pirates.

But sinking the ship, even if the ship was destroyed, the Odokmun bastards would suffer damage, but the sailors could have been innocent civilians, and I wouldn’t have suggested such a simple, one-dimensional blow.

The one who handles this dragon poison.

Isn’t that the son-in-law of the Sacheondang family?

So wouldn’t it be a better way to let fake Ma Je-eun flow in like an addiction without you even knowing it?

‘Ehhhhhh.’

I said what I thought, smiling sinisterly to myself.

“If you simply smash it, it might reduce the damage a little, but it won’t solve the fundamental problem.

There might be other places where these guys make money that we don’t know about. If they’re from Daewol, doesn’t that mean they’re making money in Daewol too?

So, should we just beat them up and break them? Will that just mean that our connection with them will be lost?

So isn’t this method better?”

The guys I knew made their money at restaurants and pubs.

That was roughly resolved through a joint operation between Gaepo and Haomen.

And what was newly revealed this time was the upper part of the Daewol Kingdom.

But if it’s the upper class of Daewol, wouldn’t it be more likely that they would do some business in Daewol?

That’s why I said that even if you beat them all up and break them, it won’t deal much damage.

Elder Geulhwang, who had been nodding his head at my words, asked with a look of satisfaction on his face.

“Yeah, this method is definitely more fun. By the way, it’s fake silver. How on earth are you going to make it?

“It doesn’t seem like a method that ordinary people usually use.”

Now that all my worries were gone, I smiled and answered, wondering what kind of fake silver I was making.

“Well, I am the son-in-law of the Tang family, so I plan to use poison.”

“poison?”

Everyone’s eyes widened at the mention of making fake silver with poison.

This is just an alchemical declaration, you know.

“Are you saying that you make fake silver with poison?”

“With poison?”

Hwa-eun and Man-dok-shin-gun’s grandfather looking at each other.

The Tang family was a family that knew a lot about poison, but it seemed hard to believe that they could make silver with poison, even if it was fake silver.

He said this while stroking Lang Xiang’s head while receiving everyone’s attention.

“Yes, I plan to use not just any poison, but our Lang Xiang’s poison.”

-Q, cookie?

When I said that I needed Lang Xiang, Lang Xiang looked towards me and raised her antennae.

Hwa-eun also blinked and asked.

“Lang Xiang?”

The question was how to make fake silver with Lang Xiang’s poison, and in this case, our Lang Xiang was the key.

“Yes, because Lang Xiang’s poison is a very bright poison.”

-Quick!?

Lang Xiang was more surprised by my words than the other three.

***

The production of fake silver required the use of a poison production facility that was a family secret, and since the conversation we were about to have could be a family secret, I asked Elder Geulhwang to come back in a few days.

Then I will show you a sample.

“Would you like to go back and come back in three days? Then I can make some fake silver and show you.”

“Okay, I understand. I wonder how it’s made, but if it’s poison, it must be related to the vision of the Tang family. Then I’ll go back now.”

So, after King Geulwang passed away, the remaining Mandokshin-gun grandfather and Hwa-eun began to talk.

“Grandpa, I have a few questions to ask you. Is that okay?”

“Now you are asking me? Yes, feel free to ask me how to make fake silver with poison.”

The subject of my question is now Grandfather Mandokshin-gun, after having gone through Elder Geulhwang.

I decided to ask the store if they had what I needed.

Making fake silver required three special ingredients, one of which was already prepared by Lang Xiang.

But if I didn’t have this, I would have to make it from scratch.

If it had existed, it would have drastically reduced the manufacturing time, so it was something that had to exist.

“Oh, is there a poison that melts the body when it touches it, and gives off heat when it touches water? It’s the kind of poison that melts iron, so it can only be contained in a magnetic bottle or something…”

“If that’s the case···.”

As I was trying to describe his characteristics without knowing his name, Grandfather Mandokshin was lost in thought for a moment.

The short moment when Grandfather was lost in thought felt really long, and then Hwa-eun’s voice was heard from beside him.

“I think you’re talking about Seokdamjeong (stone gall essence), Grandfather.”

‘Seokdamjeong? Stone gall? What’s the name?’

Mandokshin-gun’s grandfather nodded in agreement to Hwa-eun’s answer that it seemed to be called the Stone’s Gallbladder.

“Yeah, I guess so.”

“I’ll go and get some. Check it out. Little Dragon.”

“It’s on my desk, so bring it.”

“Okay, Grandpa.”

From my knowledge of past lives, I knew that it had been made in Arabia since the 8th century, and that there were records of it being made in ancient China.

So, I waited for Hwa-eun with a desperate heart, hoping that what I was thinking was right, but Hwa-eun ran outside and soon came back with a small, black bottle.

Then he tilted the bottle against the iron bar and let a drop of the liquid inside fall.

-Chiiik.

A drop of liquid falls on an iron bar, causing the bar to corrode along with smoke.

“Seokdamjeong darkens when exposed to light, so it is stored in a black jade bottle and taken out only when needed. It is colorless and odorless, but if you inhale its fumes, you could die.”

‘You get darker when you look at sunlight? I guess I’m right!’

It seemed like the second ingredient, sulfuric acid, was right.