Gulp.
The sound of an Adam's apple moving was unusually loud.
Manager Park, head of Pine House's Gold Province branch, swallowed deeply.
He could not put down his empty cup.
No, it seemed he had no intention of putting it down at all. He looked ready to lick up even the last drop of golden liquid remaining at the bottom.
A moment of silence passed.
It felt as though all the noise filling the merchant house—the rustle of ledgers, the clacking of abacus beads, the shouts of workers—had vanished in an instant.
Only the elegant fragrance rising from the bottle's mouth ruled the space.
"......"
Manager Park slowly opened his eyes.
The sharp, narrow look in them had softened. In its place were shock, confusion, and greed he could not hide.
I propped my chin on one hand, wearing a deliberately relaxed expression.
"How is it? Does it suit your palate?"
At my quiet question, Manager Park snapped back to his senses.
He hurried to compose his expression. After clearing his throat several times, he tried to put on the mask of a solemn merchant magnate again.
"Ahem... Well, it's not bad."
"Not bad?"
I snickered.
The corners of his mouth were trembling, yet he certainly knew how to talk.
"If it's merely not bad, then I've made a mistake. I forgot that the palate of Pine House's manager is so discerning. Manseok."
"Yes, Big Brother!"
Manseok answered loudly from behind me.
"Put it back. He says it doesn't suit his palate."
"Yes!"
Manseok roughly grabbed the bottle from the table with one hand and pretended to shove it into the carrier.
"N-No! Wait! Wait!"
Manager Park went pale and sprang up. His silk robes struck the table, overturning a teacup.
"Why? You said it was merely not bad. Doesn't that mean it's not good alcohol?"
"No, that's... That's just how I spoke! My, you have quite a temper!"
Manager Park wiped the sweat from his forehead with a handkerchief and sat down again.
Watching my reaction, he asked carefully.
"Young Master... what exactly is this alcohol? Its color is that of clear rice wine, but the taste is unlike any clear rice wine I've known. It has the rich weight of grain alcohol, yet the finish is fresh like fruit wine... And how can its alcohol content be so high?"
He had taken the bait.
A merchant's life depended on his eye for goods.
The Song Merchants of Gaegyeong were especially famous for their sharp eyes.
His reaction meant that this alcohol was beyond standard throughout all of Goryeo.
"Great Peace Wine."
I answered briefly.
"Great Peace Wine... I've never heard that name."
"Of course you haven't. I made it. It hasn't even been in this world for three days."
"You made it yourself...?"
Manager Park's eyes shifted to the jade token at my waist.
The Choi Clan.
The most powerful family of the military regime.
Though I had been cast out, there was no way a provincial merchant like him knew the details. He probably thought this was alcohol a young noble had made as a pastime.
But its taste was far beyond the level of a pastime.
"What is the secret? What did you put in besides rice? Ginseng? Spices from the Western Regions?"
"It's a trade secret. Do not try to learn it."
I cut him off.
"What's important is whether this is a product worthy of being sold under Pine House's name."
Manager Park smacked his lips, his expression like a man working an invisible abacus.
He picked up the cup again and smelled it.
"The aroma... truly is extraordinary. With an aroma like this, simply opening the bottle's lid would draw in customers."
"That's right. So, how much will you pay?"
We had reached the main point.
The negotiation began.
Manager Park fell silent for a moment.
It felt as though fierce calculations were racing through his head.
This alcohol was valuable. If it were offered to Gaegyeong's nobles, especially the literary officials and powerful men who enjoyed elegant pleasures, it would sell before they could stock enough.
But he was a merchant.
His instinct was to buy as cheaply as possible and sell as dearly as possible.
He slowly opened his mouth.
"Young Master, I will speak honestly. The alcohol is excellent. It would not fall short even if called the finest quality."
"But?"
"However... it has no pedigree."
"Pedigree?"
"Yes. Pedigree matters even for alcohol. Gaegyeong's fine wine, Andong's distilled liquor, Jindo's red wine... all of them sell on names built over decades, even centuries. But this Great Peace Wine is an unfamiliar name. Who would pay a high price for alcohol they have never seen or heard of?"
It was a typical lowballing tactic.
Since he could not attack the quality of the product, he attacked the brand.
"So?"
"The risk is high. Inventory could remain unsold, and it would cost a great deal to promote it. Therefore..."
He held up one finger.
"I will pay one silver tael per bottle."
Behind me, I heard Chilbok gasp.
To Chilbok, even one silver tael was an enormous sum. It could buy sixteen kilograms of rice.
Chilbok poked my back. It was as though he were whispering, 'Big Brother, one tael is incredible!'
But I snorted.
"One tael?"
"Yes. Clear rice wine on the market is normally five-tenths of a tael, or eight-tenths at most. One tael is a very generous price, considering the Young Master's status."
Manager Park smiled as though he were doing me a favor.
Hah. Look at this man.
He must think I was some naive scholar who knew nothing of the world.
Slowly, I rose from my seat.
"Manseok. Pack up."
"Pardon? Big Brother, already?"
Manseok asked in confusion.
"He says one tael. He treats this precious alcohol like plain water, so there's no point sitting here and wearing out our mouths."
Without even looking at Manager Park, I turned away.
"Let's go. There's a Japanese Trading Post across the way, isn't there? I hear the Japanese have an excellent palate for alcohol. If we show it to them, they'll lose their minds."
"Yes! Let's go to the Japanese Trading Post!"
Chilbok quickly played along.
"W-Wait! Young Master!"
Manager Park cried urgently.
But I acted as though I had heard nothing and walked toward the merchant house's door.
"Those Japanese Trading Post men have no money! And they're uncivilized; they won't recognize the value of alcohol like this!"
Manager Park ran after us, shouting.
I stopped and turned around.
"Manager Park. Do I look like a fool?"
Coldness entered my voice.
"Clear rice wine sells for eight-tenths of a tael? That's only true for cheap swill brewed with rice bran mixed in. Premium clear rice wine, brewed from rice polished down to its white core, costs at least two taels in Gaegyeong. And this Great Peace Wine is not even worthy of comparison with such liquor."
I lifted a bottle and shook it. The sloshing gold gleamed in the sunlight.
"The effort, skill, and flavor in this bottle. You want to take it for one tael? That is the mindset of a thief."
"......"
Manager Park closed his mouth.
His face shifted between red and pale.
"And pedigree? Ha ha ha."
I laughed loudly.
"Flavor is pedigree. Do you think anyone who tastes it once will not come looking for it again? I guarantee that once people taste this alcohol, every other drink will taste like piss. That is how pedigree is made."
I drove in the final nail.
"If Pine House won't buy it, that is fine. I can charter a boat and sell it in Gaegyeong myself. If that fails, I can offer it as imperial tribute and sell it once its name has risen. You are the one who should regret this, not me."
It was a gamble, of course.
I had no money to charter a boat myself, and presenting something to the imperial court was too procedurally difficult to be possible.
But Manager Park did not know that.
I had to make him think that the Choi Clan of Cheorwon stood behind me.
Manager Park's eyes trembled.
He knew it.
If he missed this alcohol, a competing merchant guild would take it, and Pine House's influence over Gold Province's alcohol market would be finished.
And if the Choi Clan dealt directly with the imperial court, a middleman like him would be left out in the cold on the Nakdong River.
"Then... what price do you want?"
Manager Park asked in a subdued voice.
The initiative had passed to me.
Slowly, I held up three fingers.
"Three taels."
"T-Three taels?!"
Manager Park cried out in shock.
"That's far too expensive! Three taels is almost the price of a sack of rice, which is four taels! A bottle of alcohol for the price of a sack of rice is absurd!"
"If you think it's expensive, don't buy it."
I was firm.
"But Manager Park, think carefully. How much could you charge if you bought this alcohol and brought it to Gaegyeong's nobles?"
I lowered my voice and whispered confidentially.
"Gaegyeong holds banquets every day right now. The nobles there spend money like water. If the taste is good, the price is whatever you name. In my view... if you package it a little more elegantly and put it in a box, you can easily get five taels per bottle. No, six."
Manager Park's eyes flashed.
Five taels.
Buy for three, sell for five. A profit of two taels.
Every bottle sold would leave enough profit to buy half a sack of rice.
And this was a consumable. Once drunk, it was gone. It would keep selling.
'This... will work.'
Manager Park's invisible abacus began clicking.
There was risk, but if it succeeded, it would be an enormous hit. And he had already confirmed the flavor. There was no reason for it to fail.
"Three taels..."
He bit his lip.
"Three taels... fine. But I have a condition."
"A condition?"
"Exclusive supply rights. Great Peace Wine must be sold only to Pine House's Gold Province branch. If you supply it to another merchant guild, merchant house, or especially the men at the Japanese Trading Post, the contract is void."
As expected of a merchant.
He demanded exclusivity.
But it was not bad for me either. If I fixed my sales route to a single place, it would be easier to manage and save transportation costs.
"Fine. But I decide the quantity. Alcohol does not appear instantly."
"Understood. Then... how many bottles did you bring this time?"
"Fifty."
"Fifty bottles..."
Manager Park calculated in his head.
Three taels multiplied by fifty bottles.
One hundred fifty taels.
It was an enormous fortune.
In a world where ordinary people could barely earn five taels even after farming themselves to the bone for a year.
One hundred fifty taels for fifty bottles of alcohol.
"Pay in cash now. I don't accept promissory notes."
"Hmm... Understood. Please wait a moment."
Manager Park went upstairs.
Once he was gone, Chilbok's legs gave out and he sat down.
"B-Big Brother... one hundred fifty taels...? I didn't hear that wrong, did I?"
"You heard perfectly, idiot."
"Wow... This is crazy. One hundred fifty taels... Isn't that enough money to buy three people like us?"
A healthy slave cost around fifty or sixty taels.
The carrier we had brought in was worth the price of three human lives.
"Big Brother, you're amazing! You completely crushed that picky manager!"
Manseok gave me a thumbs-up.
"This is called branding. Luxury goods are sold with nerve."
A short while later, Manager Park returned with two servants.
They held heavy leather pouches in their hands.
THUD.
The pouches landed on the table.
Their heavy sound struck my heart.
"Please check it. I was going to prepare silver ingot currency, but I mixed silver coins and copper cash so it would be easier for you to make small purchases."
I opened the pouches.
White silver flashed.
One hundred silver coins, along with bundles of copper cash.
I gave Chilbok a look.
"Count it."
"Y-Yes!"
With trembling hands, Chilbok began to count the money.
Clink, clink.
It was the most beautiful sound in the world.
The other merchants inside the merchant house watched us with envious or jealous eyes.
"One hundred fifty taels... It's correct, Big Brother."
Chilbok swallowed as he spoke.
His fingertips trembled slightly.
One hundred fifty silver taels.
It was a fortune none of us had ever touched in our lives.
"Good. Then we have a deal."
I nodded with satisfaction and stood.
But instead of taking the money pouches, I looked at Manager Park.
"Manager Park."
"Yes, Young Master."
"Carrying all this money is heavy."
I pointed at the pouches with my chin.
"Pardon? Then..."
"I'm going to spend some of it here before I leave."
"Spend it? We don't have much besides alcohol at this merchant house right now..."
"Rice."
At my words, Manager Park's eyes widened.
"Rice. Pine House practically monopolizes the quality rice from the Gimhae Plain, doesn't it?"
"Ah, yes. Of course. The finest rice is all in our warehouses."
"Then give me five sacks of rice. The highest quality. Choose rice that has been cleanly milled."
Manager Park smiled in relief.
He must have thought that a noble who had just earned one hundred fifty taels buying only five sacks of rice was making a small purchase.
"Ha ha, understood. Five sacks can be prepared immediately. Prices are high these days, so you'll have to pay five taels per sack, but I'll give them to you at the wholesale price of four taels. For five sacks... that's twenty taels."
Manager Park finished calculating and reached for the money pouch to remove twenty taels.
"Wait."
I stopped him.
"Why?"
"I'll pay for five sacks. But..."
I grinned and held up five fingers.
"Give me five sacks for free as well."
"Pardon...?"
Manager Park's hand froze in midair.
"What do you mean... You're buying five sacks, but you want another five sacks free?"
"That's right. Buy one, get one free. Buy five, get five free."
"Buy one... get what?"
"Forget the small details. If I buy five, give me five for free."
"Hah, hah... Young Master, your joke is going too far. Five sacks of rice are worth twenty taels. The free portion costs more than the purchase itself!"
Manager Park's face turned serious.
No matter how great a customer I was, such an unreasonable request violated a merchant's sense of fair dealing.
But I remained relaxed.
"Manager Park. What did I just give you?"
"Pardon? Well... Great Peace Wine..."
"No. I gave you exclusive supply rights."
I tapped the table.
"I told you that if you take this alcohol to Gaegyeong, you can sell it for five or six taels per bottle. That means you will earn two or three taels per bottle. With fifty bottles, you'll make more than one hundred taels without lifting a finger."
"W-Well, that assumes it succeeds..."
"You're not certain? Shall we cancel the exclusive contract and let me sell it myself?"
"N-No! I'm certain!"
Manager Park frantically waved his hands.
"Then that's settled. I will need rice continuously to brew alcohol in the future. The ten sacks I take this time will turn into more than one hundred bottles. Who will I sell those hundred bottles to? I'll give them all to you."
I drove in the final nail.
"Consider it an investment in the future. Don't save five sacks of rice and lose the goose that lays golden eggs."
Manager Park rolled his eyes.
Giving away five sacks of rice, worth twenty taels, looked like a loss. But if that rice came back as alcohol, he would earn hundreds of taels.
And if he pleased this young noble, he would be able to monopolize future new products as well.
It would be profitable in the end.
"Ha ha ha... Truly, Young Master, I surrender completely."
Manager Park shook his head and laughed.
"Fine! I'll charge you for only five sacks, and give you five as a gift. We'll deliver all ten sacks to your home!"
"How generous. As expected of Manager Park."
I smiled with satisfaction.
I paid twenty taels—the price of five sacks—and received ten sacks of rice.
It was effectively a half-price purchase.
"Here are the twenty taels."
I handed over twenty from the one hundred fifty taels and kept the remaining one hundred thirty.
The pouch was still heavy.
"Send the rice by cart today. The address is the edge of Galsan Village's marshland, where the large willow tree stands."
"Pardon? You mean that land where ghosts appear?"
Manager Park's expression turned strange.
He seemed unable to understand why a man who made such high-quality alcohol lived in a harsh place like that, or why he insisted on sending rice there.
"There are no ghosts there. Only a god of money. Make sure there are no delivery accidents. And the next batch of alcohol will be ready in about fifteen days."
I rose from my seat.
When I left the merchant house, the river wind blew coolly.
Chilbok, who had followed me outside, hesitantly watched my reaction.
"Big Brother... what do we do now?"
"What do you mean, what do we do?"
I grinned toward the town.
"If we've made money, we should spend it."
"Pardon?"
"Let's buy meat."
"Meat! Meat!"
Manseok clenched his fists and shouted.
"Let's raid the butcher. We'll buy an entire pig. Today, we're eating until we burst to death."
"Woooow! Long live Big Brother! Long live Great Peace Wine!"
"Loyalty! Loyalty!"
Manseok danced while carrying the empty A-frame carrier.
The carrier was empty, but our hearts had never been fuller.
Behind us, Chilbok held the money pouch tightly against his chest and would not let go.
I smiled as I looked toward the town.
From today's transaction, I had gained three things.
First, an enormous amount of cash: one hundred thirty taels.
Second, raw materials for the next batch of alcohol: ten sacks of rice.
Third, a dependable distribution partner in Pine House, and proof of my own negotiating power.
"Let's go! To town!"
"Woooow! Long live Big Brother! Long live Great Peace Wine!"
Manseok's cheers echoed along the Nakdong River.
The days of poverty and sorrow were over.
Now, it began.