Truthfully, letting three children wander around the marketplace on their own was fairly dangerous.
Even if the Baek Family was only a third-rate martial family, outsiders would still see them as children from a well-off household. There was always the possibility that someone might target their money—or their ransom value.
And the family can’t afford to spare a competent retainer just to escort us.
Their circumstances were made painfully obvious by a question from Baek Yeonyeon after she had finished bathing and changing.
“Brother, do you think they’ll even let us go out? I feel like the adults won’t allow it...”
Yanghwi knew exactly how things stood, yet answered with absolute confidence.
“Yeon.”
“Mm?”
“Your brother is a man who makes the impossible possible.”
Yanghwi grinned, then looked at Baek Heonso.
“So, I’m sorry.”
“Yes? F-For what...?”
Baek Heonso’s face immediately filled with foreboding.
A moment later, that foreboding became reality.
Yanghwi took Baek Heonso and Baek Yeonyeon to find Steward Han Seogeon, then opened with—
“Steward Han. So says he cannot accept me as his brother because I used to be a beggar.”
“W-Wha—uh—huh?”
Baek Heonso went deathly pale and began stammering incoherently.
Yanghwi continued without paying him any mind.
“Father instructed us to cultivate both martial and scholarly learning, but I believe that before either of those, the most important thing is to establish proper principles in one’s heart.”
Steward Han looked from Baek Heonso to Yanghwi, then let out a deep sigh.
He suddenly had the powerful feeling that the Clan Head’s newly adopted son was going to become a continuing source of headaches.
“Young Master Hwi. What exactly are you trying to say?”
“I believe So needs to leave the walls of the Baek Family Manor and learn something from the world outside.”
“In other words, you want permission to go out. No. It is too dangerous.”
Steward Han rejected the idea outright.
Yanghwi launched into his argument without missing a beat.
“Of course it would be dangerous for three sheltered children from a respectable family to go out alone. But I’ve spent all eight years of my life on the streets. I daresay there is no one in this family who understands the marketplace better than I do.”
“I understand that you know the streets. But what will you do if someone takes a liking to your money and resorts to underhanded means?”
He had a point.
If three children went outside alone, they could end up in danger even if they ran into mere street thugs, never mind actual Black Path fighters.
However—
Yanghwi was confident that even with his current childish body, he could handle most third-rate hoodlums.
I can’t exactly tell him that, so I’ll need another excuse.
“Then how about this? We ask Brother Gu to provide an escort.”
“Brother Gu? You mean Blood Axe, the man who atta—... visited our family yesterday?”
“That’s right.”
“I doubt Blood Axe is inclined to show you that sort of favor, Young Master Hwi.”
“Just allow me to send him one letter. If Brother Gu refuses to provide an escort, I won’t go.”
The corner of Steward Han’s mouth rose slightly.
He’s giving up on his own—
Then he paused.
No, wait. Didn’t something similar happen yesterday?
No.
Today was different.
A Black Path fighter who was also the son of the Red Bridge Gang Leader would never agree to play nursemaid for a few children.
“Very well, Young Master Hwi. Will you write the letter yourself?”
He was asking whether Yanghwi knew how to write.
When Yanghwi nodded, a strange gleam entered Steward Han’s eyes.
A child who had spent eight years as a beggar knowing how to write was apparently surprising.
Yanghwi wrote the letter in a single flowing burst, sealed it so its contents could not be read, and handed it over.
“Here you are, Steward Han.”
“Hmm. I’ll have it delivered, at least.”
And a short while later—
Steward Han’s jaw dropped.
Gu Ak had actually arrived at Baek Family Manor, looking extremely displeased.
“...”
“...”
What happened when the man whose home had been attacked and the man who had stormed in full of confidence only to be stripped of his coin purse faced one another again?
Yanghwi simply inserted himself between the silent Steward Han and Gu Ak.
“Steward Han. Brother Gu came in person, so as promised, please allow me the chance to broaden my younger siblings’ horizons as their elder brother.”
“...Haaaaah. Very well. But I will report this to the Clan Head.”
“Of course! In fact, there’s no need for you to trouble yourself. I’ll tell Father personally!”
Yanghwi finished speaking and turned to Gu Ak with a sly smile.
“Brother Gu. I’m planning to take my siblings around the marketplace first. Why don’t we discuss the matter from my letter after I send them home?”
“...I’ll follow your wishes, little brother.”
And so, the three Baek siblings were allowed to go out.
*****
“Wow! Brother! I think it’s been four whole months since I last went outside!”
“That long?”
“Mm! Father’s always busy...”
That made sense.
If the family could not even spare someone to escort his children, Baek Muryang could hardly afford to take much time away from work to entertain them himself.
Seeing Baek Yeonyeon so delighted brought a warm smile to Yanghwi’s face.
“Then let’s have as much fun as we can today.”
“Mm! Hehehe.”
“You too, So.”
“...Yes.”
Baek Heonso was still somewhat cowed, but even he seemed excited to be outside again after so long.
Which meant the only unhappy member of the group was Gu Ak.
“All day? Little brother, I, Gu Ak, am not exactly a man with endless free time.”
“Then why don’t we weigh what your time is worth?”
“Urgh...”
Gu Ak groaned as Yanghwi smiled pleasantly at him.
Damn it. If only I hadn’t run my mouth.
Yanghwi’s letter had contained exactly one sentence.
—Little Brother Gu. If you wish to become Brother Gu again, spare me one day.
The problem was that when Yanghwi had claimed he would render the Red Bridge Gang a favor great enough to erase their grievance, Gu Ak had scoffed and declared that if the brat actually managed it, he would gladly call himself the younger brother.
Damn this mouth of mine.
Martial artists valued face and reputation as highly as their own lives.
Black Path fighters were still martial artists.
There was no way Gu Ak could endure the humiliation of calling some tiny brat “Brother.”
And I can’t exactly kill him to silence him.
His reluctance to murder compared to most Black Path fighters was one thing.
The larger problem was that the brat had become the adopted son of Baek Family Manor.
The Baek Family might be weak, but its Clan Head had a powerful sworn younger brother backing him.
Gu Ak was already competing against more than ten siblings for the position of the next Gang Leader.
Creating a feud over a reason too embarrassing to explain to anyone would cost him far more than simply sacrificing a little of his time.
“Brother Gu, cheer up. You’ll get wrinkles.”
“...”
For an instant, Gu Ak’s temper flared, and a thought rose involuntarily in his mind.
Should I just do it?
Yanghwi, entirely unconcerned, continued leading his younger siblings from stall to stall and buying whatever they wanted.
“Brother! I want sweets!”
“Let’s see. How about we buy ten? We can take the rest home and share them with the retainers.”
“Okay!”
Baek Heonso stared enviously at Baek Yeonyeon as she happily ate her sweets.
Come to think of it, Baek Heonso had always preferred salty foods to sweet ones.
For example, the chicken skewers being sold at that stall over there.
Brat. He’s too intimidated to even ask.
Yanghwi went to the stall first and bought ten chicken skewers.
“So. Here.”
“...Thank you.”
“Don’t look so beaten down. Today’s supposed to be a day for having fun.”
“...Understood.”
Yanghwi wondered for a moment why the boy was still behaving so timidly.
Then he realized.
Ah. I used him as an excuse when I spoke to Steward Han.
So was probably terrified that word of him saying he could not accept a former beggar as his brother would reach their father.
“So. If they ask what you learned from today’s outing, tell them: ‘No man stands above another, and no man stands below another.’ Then you won’t get scolded.”
No one was inherently above another person, and no one was inherently beneath one.
If a seven-year-old boy came home spouting something that profound, every adult would be delighted.
“R-Really?”
“Really. I told you earlier, didn’t I? Your brother is a man who can make anything possible. Trust me.”
Baek Heonso’s face visibly brightened, and from then on he began enjoying the outing much more.
After that, Yanghwi made sure they saw more than merely pleasant things.
He took them beneath a bridge to give alms to beggars and gave his siblings experiences meant to cultivate their character.
Then they returned to the Baek Family Manor.
“So. Yeon. How was today?”
“It was so much fun!”
Yanghwi smiled at Baek Yeonyeon as she bounced excitedly, then turned to Baek Heonso.
Baek Heonso silently met his gaze.
The boy still looked somewhat insolent, but Yanghwi saw the beginnings of a different emotion in his eyes and decided that was enough for today.
Children really are easy to win over.
If you were so overwhelmingly better than them that they could not even feel jealous, then showed them even a little of something worth admiring, envy quickly turned into respect.
“Then could you two go inside first and give Steward Han a message? Tell him I’ll come back after talking with Brother Gu.”
Yanghwi ushered his siblings through the gate, then turned toward Gu Ak.
“You worked hard today, Brother Gu!”
“...Little brother. I have paid the price I owed. I hope there will be no more of this in the future. Otherwise...”
Gu Ak growled.
It was a threat: if Yanghwi tried to engineer another situation like today using the same excuse, he would not tolerate it.
Yanghwi was not frightened in the slightest.
“Of course, Brother Gu. Now, shall we talk business?”
“Business? I don’t believe you have either the standing or the years to discuss business with me, little brother.”
He was right.
But Yanghwi possessed information so valuable that Gu Ak would not merely listen—he would beg him to continue.
“There’s a rumor everyone in the marketplace knows. The Red Bridge Gang Leader’s sixth son took a concubine before he even had a wife.”
Gu Ak’s expression turned terrifyingly rigid.
Yanghwi had just touched his sorest nerve.
“You little bastard. There is a limit to how much I am willing to overlook.”
Dense killing intent, befitting a Black Path martial artist, began pressing down on the surroundings.
And yet—
“Come on, hear a man out before getting angry. This little bastard might just be able to solve Brother Gu’s problem.”
Even under the concentrated killing intent of a first-rate expert, Yanghwi remained perfectly composed.
Gu Ak stared at him in disbelief.
Does this little bastard have no fear at all?
Had someone cut out his liver and replaced it with a tiger’s?
“What are you trying to say?”
“Simple. I have some business to take care of today. Help me with it. And if you do—”
“If I do?”
For a brief moment, Yanghwi recalled an incident from his previous life.
Gu Ak. And Gu Ak’s concubine. The cause of the bloodbath that would engulf the Red Bridge Gang several years from now.
“I’ll make it possible for the woman you love—who currently cannot become your wife—to become your lawful wife.”
This time Gu Ak’s face froze for an entirely different reason.
“What do you mean?”
“Exactly what I said. I’ll make your father, the Red Bridge Gang Leader, recognize the woman you love.”
The reason the Red Bridge Gang Leader refused to allow Gu Ak to take the only woman he loved as his legitimate wife was simple.
She was merely a courtesan.
And like the Gang Leader’s other sons and daughters, Gu Ak was expected to enter a political marriage with the direct descendant of another Black Path faction for the future of the Red Bridge Gang.
“You’ve been refusing the marriage arranged for you, haven’t you? Very manly of you, Brother Gu. But keep it up and you’ll lose the succession struggle.”
“What the hell could you possibly know about that?!”
“I know at least one thing. Listening to me won’t cost you anything.”
After saying that, Yanghwi recalled everything he had heard about Gu Ak in his previous life.
In many ways, Gu Ak was nothing like a typical Black Path fighter.
He’s a Black Path martial artist who reached the first-rate level before thirty. He avoids chasing women and loves only one. His character isn’t completely rotten either. He’ll be perfect for me to use for a while.
There were limits to what Yanghwi could accomplish in the body of a child.
If he used Gu Ak as his proxy, his range of action would expand dramatically.
That was why Yanghwi was quietly trying to lure him in.
“Go on, then. Let me hear it. But if you waste my time, little brat, you’ll regret it.”
His manner was still rough, but by saying that much, he had effectively accepted Yanghwi’s proposal already.
Because Yanghwi truly did have a very tempting offer.
“I know where the Blue Snake Gang keeps one of its secret caches. How about we hit it together? I take eighty percent, Brother Gu takes twenty.”
“A secret Blue Snake Gang cache? How do you know where it is?”
“Oh, I have my ways.”
Gu Ak’s eyes widened as he asked the question, then narrowed again when Yanghwi gave him such a careless answer.
But what Yanghwi said next finally shocked him outright.
“They’ve also got dozens of poison bombs secretly brought in to attack the Red Bridge Gang, if I remember correctly.”
“What? Poison bombs?”