But even if he sold all year round, he could never make that much money. Of course, the medicine shop did not only sell ogapi branches. If he sold off his entire stock at a loss, he might just barely scrape it together.
“Cheongyeon, I only lowered it to 1,000 Hwan because it’s you. I asked the exchanger from District C for 1,500.”
“I’ll prepare plenty of fortifying tonics and health teas for you. So… couldn’t you reduce it a little more?”
The problem was that once he cleared out his inventory, he’d have nothing left to sell after moving.
“I know you make excellent tonics, Cheongyeon. But isn’t money more important than health? Hm? I need to move up to higher ground too.”
That was why the property dealer’s eyes were bloodshot as he hoarded money.
So long as he lived, Cheonghwajin would never sink. Yet even so, he could never reveal the truth and strut about. His own survival depended on Cheonghwajin’s safety… If it ever sank, he would die too.
Comforting himself with his pitiful situation, Cheongyeon tried haggling with the dealer.
“The truth is, I only have 700 Hwan. Couldn’t we make it work somehow? Otherwise, I’ll have to give up on the move entirely.”
The property dealer, lost in thought, let out a loud sigh.
“Cheongyeon, you know I’ve cherished you since you were a child, right? That’s why I’m lowering it.”
“Yes, thank you.”
“But don’t tell the exchanger from District C I let you off with 700. I’ll just get cursed at for nothing.”
Since Mr. Oh monopolized property dealing in District E, there was no way to know if this was a fair price.
“Of course. I’ll leave it in your hands.”
So he said, but Cheongyeon already planned to ask the exchanger about the broker’s fee later. Mr. Oh was notorious for preying on the weak, famous as a crooked broker. It was very likely he had overcharged someone like Cheongyeon, who had no one to back him. Still, even if that were the case, there was no way to ask for the money back.
Because of the man loafing behind Mr. Oh.
Not a single person who had dared confront Mr. Oh after getting swindled had ever walked away unscathed—thanks to his son. Covered in tattoos from head to toe, the son had been glaring at Cheongyeon for some time now.
“Oh, right! Cheongyeon, that tonic you made me last time was good.”
Cheongyeon, about to leave, clenched his fist where it couldn’t be seen. Apparently, Mr. Oh meant to wring use out of him in other ways now that he had lowered the fee.
“The immune-boosting tonic? You catch colds so often, Uncle—I’ll prepare something even better for that.”
“What about me?!”
His son shouted suddenly. Cheongyeon barely managed to keep his expression from crumpling.
“I’ll make you a tonic good for the body as well, Brother.”
“One tonic? You joking? Gimme ten at least!”
His son’s voice was as brutish as his appearance. Clearly, he had mistaken “one prescription” for “one dose.”
“You know how poor I am. But I’ll prepare ten packs for you.”
Grumbling, the son dropped back into his chair, muttering that he should’ve said that from the start.
In truth, one prescription meant twenty packs, enough for twenty doses. Thanks to his misunderstanding, Cheongyeon could actually cut the amount by half.
He felt a flicker of satisfaction, a small revenge achieved. He was already planning to gather cheap herbs and brew them into an even cheaper tonic.
It was agreed they would check each other’s houses tomorrow and finalize the contract, and Cheongyeon left the office. Mounting his bicycle, he headed straight for the medicine shop. The uphill climb on the way there had been hard, but going back downhill was easier.
He decided to start packing for the move. Though the contract wasn’t yet certain, even if it fell through, he intended to move somehow.
He gathered the most important things first: the gas burner, utensils, various medicinal herbs, and dried petals. The most valuable among them was dried lotus tea.
The lotus, famed as a noble plant that blooms from mud, was especially potent in Cheonghwajin. Used as a restorative tonic, it was the highest-priced item in his shop.
But lotus flowers only bloomed in very specific places. And drying them haphazardly would never produce their full effects. It was only because of Cheongyeon that they became something more. Herbs and teas processed by his hands manifested dozens, even hundreds of times their original efficacy.
He had never once thought of making a tonic for virility. That was, until someone came asking for it.
Fortunately, the client had been satisfied with its effects—and had never gone around boasting about it. Perhaps the man wished to keep the secret, pretending his prowess was entirely his own.
That client had been none other than Jang Ho-cheong, counselor of the Peira.
“They say even under the lamp it’s dark—turns out that bastard Jangga had been scheming with the smuggler ship’s captain all along?”
“Hm? Jangga? You mean the counselor of the Peira?”
By now he was either fish food, or dismembered like the smuggler ship’s captain, stuffed into a sack of trash.
“What’s left should be sold off in District C.”
Cheongyeon carefully wrapped the dried lotus in soft cloth. He had thought living alone meant he would have little to pack, but the accumulation of years left him with quite a burden. Resolving to throw away anything unnecessary, he managed to cut it down.
It would be exhausting, but he was determined to settle everything today. His only thought was to get out of District E, infested as it was with the Peira, as soon as possible.
He was dragging a sack filled with mulberry branches when the bell over the door jingled.
Moving was moving, but business was business. Straightening his aching back, Cheongyeon greeted the customer.
“Welcome.”
The moment he saw who it was, his heart plummeted.
A tall man stood silhouetted in the doorway, making the small shop seem smaller still.
“Running away in the night?”
Mu-won cocked his head. As always, he was dressed in a flamboyantly patterned suit.
…What is this?
The wind swept in through the open door, curling around the interior—and with it came an impossible fragrance. A blend of coolness and sweetness.
The scent of a Flower of Vengeance…!
And not just any scent—it was the fragrance of a fresh bloom, one that existed only when the flower was alive.
Cheongyeon struggled to calm the heart that thudded wildly in his chest. He couldn’t tell if it was because of Mu-won’s sudden appearance, or because of that scent.
“I’m not… running away.”
Mu-won stepped forward, only a single stride, but the pressure made it feel as though he stood directly in front of him. The cool, sweet fragrance thickened in the air.
‘Did he snap a flower? Where—how?’
The Flower of Vengeance had no scent in its natural state. But once its stem was broken, it released a powerful fragrance, marking the one who harmed it. The scent clung for over ten days.
“If you’re not running away in the night… then moving?”
His gaze swept slowly over the disordered room. Only then did Mu-won ask.
“Yes.”
Cheongyeon folded his hands neatly in front of him.
“To where?”
“It’s not certain yet.”
“Then it is running away.”
“I plan to move to District A.”
He blurted it out, hoping to deflect suspicion.
‘But more importantly—where did he find a fresh Flower of Vengeance? Could one really grow in Cheonghwajin?’
Mu-won snatched up the sack of mulberry branches that Cheongyeon had been dragging with effort.
“District A, you say.”
“Yes.”
Cheongyeon’s eyes were tight with worry, fearing he might spill everything inside. But Mu-won merely hurled it toward the pile of other sacks. Tossed carelessly, the branches spilled untidily out.
“Why, business isn’t good here?”
“…Yes.”
“Not selling?”
As Mu-won advanced again, Cheongyeon instinctively retreated—until the counter dug into his thigh.
With golden eyes that sent chills down his spine, Mu-won let his gaze trail over him slowly. Cheongyeon was deeply unsettled. He understood the unspoken meaning.
Sometimes at taverns or in the streets, men who fancied other men threw him suggestive looks. Always accompanied by sneers, as if suggesting he should sell his body instead of herbs.
Mu-won didn’t even bother hiding it. He smiled, openly appraising him. But unlike the others, he was no one Cheongyeon could afford to offend. A hint of displeasure might cost him his life.
And yet, despite knowing that, a twisted thought rose in him: ‘If I die, Cheonghwajin will sink. Then that man will die too.’
“You didn’t come here for herbs or tea? That’s all I sell.”
His voice was cold.
‘But where did he break a Flower of Vengeance? Could one truly bloom in Cheonghwajin?’
“The stem.”
“…!?”
Mu-won suddenly braced both arms on the counter, caging him in.
The heavy fragrance of flowers pressed down on Cheongyeon as he was forced to look up at him. Perhaps it was the floral pattern embroidered across the man’s suit, but the scent seemed like his very body’s essence.
Before him stood a flawless creature, so perfect he hardly seemed human at all. Faintly, the tang of the sea lingered in the air, and for an instant it felt as though some mythical being of the ocean had stepped onto land. He was something meant only to be revered by mankind.
As though entranced, Cheongyeon gazed up at him.
Then a low voice slipped into his ear.
“What did you do with the stem?”