Everyone knew that oil was needed to move the ship Peira. He should be trying to bid on the items they needed, so where did he find time to fool around and have some fun? Cheongyeon gave up trying to understand Muwon. Until the auctioneer counted down to number one, the pursed lips did not open.
“For the sperm whale! The auction was sold to Hwang Ran-nim for 1.35 million hwan! After the ambergris, you now own the sperm whale!”
Hwang Ran, his face turning red, looked back at Muwon with an aggrieved expression. He never dreamed that Muwon would give up on his auction, as with everyone else there. Hwang Ran jumped out of the cart at the captain’s urging to pay the price.
“Hwang Ran is in big trouble. He shouldn’t be going broke.”
Despite the words of concern, his face was full of amusement. Only then did Muwon get up from his bike. Cheongyeon quickly tried to grab the handle, but the other man only got off the saddle. The handlebars were still held in Muwon’s hand.
“If you’ve seen enough… I have to go back to the apothecary now.”
Cheongyeon mustered up his courage and spoke up first. Because of the sperm whale’s bloody stench, he was still breathing only through his mouth. Meanwhile, Hwang Ran, who must have paid for his bids already, was walking towards Muwon, surrounded by a group of Peira. Thinking back on Saturn’s words, hadn’t he said that Peira was looking for Hwang Ran?
“You seem to be very busy.”
“Hey.”
What else was he going to say… Cheongyeon felt his heart tighten.
“Make me some tonic that is good for my body.”
“Tonic…?”
He thought Muwon was going to steal the bike like he did the pirate ship, but he soon handed over the handle. He put back the piercing that was hanging crookedly and gave a warning with a smirk.
“If you spit in it, you’re dead.”
We’re sorry for MTLers or people who like using reading mode, but our translations keep getting stolen by aggregators so we’re going to bring back the copy protection. If you need to MTL please retype the gibberish parts.
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‘Still, it seems like his doubts are completely gone, right?’
Cheongyeon muttered to himself as he pedaled. Seeing that he did not threaten him with the Boksu flowers or mention the Hwa clan this time, it was highly likely that this was the case. Or at least, he wanted to believe that.
Pow! Pop! The sound of firecrackers being shot off was heard from afar. Since some people hadn’t been able to watch the auction because they were at their workplaces, sailors announced the end of the successful auction with fireworks. Passing the large Cheonghwa Canal, going up and down the hill, a festive and lively atmosphere hung everywhere. This was because sooner or later, Peira would be distributing money to each store.
To elaborate, one-fifth of the auction money from the whaling boat went into Peira’s pocket. The previous owners of Cheonghwa Town took half of it, so compared to that, Peira were quite generous. Additionally, Peira distributed a portion of the profits generated by his auctions to the people of Cheonghwa Town. 500 hwan each was given to those who ran stores that supplied goods to Peira, and 1,000 hwan each was given to those who were indispensable in Cheonghwa Town, such as doctors and mechanics. Those who were not related to Peira or had no clear occupation received nothing.
There were also people who tried to trick Peira by receiving multiple payments, but if they were caught, they were beaten to the point where treatment costs were even higher than the payment. Some people had even died from being beaten. Nevertheless, since those who resorted to tricks kept appearing, it seemed that there were people who valued money more than their lives.
Meanwhile, Cheongyeon’s pockets were still full. In any case, the money Muwon gave was still there. But it was curious, what kind of change of heart had occurred in Tae Muwon?
Suddenly suggesting to go see the sperm whales together, and talking about fun… No matter how capricious a man he was, Cheongyeon couldn’t grasp him at all. Or maybe they somehow became close enough to have a casual conversation.
For a while, he had been obsessed with suspecting that Cheongyeon was from the Hwa clan, but the past two months had been really quiet. He still couldn’t believe it, but he even apologized to Cheongyeon.
Since he was called the madman of Cheonghwa Town, Cheongyeon would have to give up on trying to understand. If this continued, Muwon could come back to threaten him. Cheongyeon also gave up trying to approach merchants from the 1st Continent. Today he’d caught Muwon’s eye again, so it couldn’t be helped.
But he needed to quickly prepare the boiled Boksu flowers to drink…
Otherwise, the contamination that started in the lower abdomen would gradually spread throughout the body and heat would filter through every part of the body. After the death of the Peira advisor and the captain of the smuggling ship, everyone seemed to be focusing on catching smugglers. The owner of Dandelion Bar also drew a line, saying she could no longer connect Cheongyeon with smuggling ships. After he quit his part-time job, the owner’s attitude became cold and he couldn’t do anything about it.
Cheongyeon returned to the apothecary and grabbed a small pot before even unpacking the bundle. It was used to weigh herbs placed on the scale. He weighed medicinal herbs that would boost his body’s energy, such as astragalus, white wood ear mushrooms, ginger, and goji berries, on a scale and mixed them together.
The ceramic medicinal pot was used frequently and was clean. Still, he wiped the inside clean with a dry cloth and poured water along with the ingredients. Although briquette fire was cheaper, he used a burner to make it a little faster.
The medicinal pot was larger than a regular kettle, so it took longer for it to heat up. If one boiled it for over an hour and filtered it through a strainer, they would get a decoction that would last for 10 days.
Cheongyeon planned a visit to Peira as soon as the decoction was completed to deliver it to Muwon. He wanted to prevent the disaster of him coming all the way here. Of course, telling him to make a tonic may have been just an off-handed remark, but Cheongyeon couldn’t ignore it. Never let your guard down and let him find fault. It was a warning Cheongyeon had always kept in mind ever since he became involved with Tae Muwon.
It was only after Cheongyeon unpacked the bundle and returned the remaining herbs to each bag that he sighed. Then he sat down on the counter chair to get some rest. Staring blankly out of the window, he felt a bit bored and took out snacks from the drawer. It was a fried potato snack seasoned with pepper and salt. When he opened the bag, a savory smell wafted up.
There were many snacks he ate for the first time since he was born. Rice and side dishes were barely enough to make a living, so snacks were luxury items he had not been able to afford. The owner of the Cheonghwa store was worried about Cheongyeon’s excessive spending for the first few days, but she soon seemed to believe it when he insisted a large-spending customer had come.
Cheongyeon put thinly sliced potato snacks into his mouth one by one. As he ate it, he developed a taste for it, but he still liked sweet food better than salty food.
As the water began to boil, the smell of herbal ingredients from the tonic boiler filled the store. He couldn’t open the window. The inn owner, who hated the smell of herbs, started a fight, so ventilation could only be done at night. Fortunately, Cheongyeon liked the slightly musty smell of herbs. Although he had never met his grandparents, he often imagined that their embrace might carry such a fragrance.
There was no formal education in Cheonghwa Town. They say that in other continents, you could go to school if you had money, but here, the only education was a bookstore. Fortunately, he learned writing and arithmetic from his nanny and did not have much difficulty living. It was just that he didn’t have much money.
The bell hung on the door of the apothecary shop rang once.
“Welcome.”
“Yes, hello.”
The guest was Oh Jisam, the son of real estate agency Mr. Oh. Even though the temperature was warm during the day, it was not enough to wear sleeveless clothes like that.
Oh Jisam always took pride in the tattoos engraved on his bulging muscles. Cheongyeon became curious every time he saw the carp tattoos on both forearms. If the muscles were lost, how shriveled would that giant carp be?
“Can I help you with anything?”
Cheongyeon got up from the counter chair.
Since he had not signed a contract with the real estate agency before, there was no promise to make him a decoction. Several months had already passed, and he was worried that he had now come to start a fight.
“Are you eating cookies?”
With his long, slitted eyes focused on the counter, Cheongyeon quietly put the bag of snacks down on the chair.
“Damn, is someone gonna steal it from you?!”
“I was going to clean it up since I’m done. What do you need?”
“The smell is killing me. You making some decoction?”
Oh Jisam’s legs exposed beneath his shorts were hairy.
“Yes, I received an order.”
Oh Jisam showed no interest in the medicinal herbs lined up around him or the flower tea in the box hanging on the wall. Cheongyeon sighed inwardly thinking that he had come to start a fight.
“I’m just wondering, you…”
Oh Jisam paused in an uncharacteristic way. He scratched the back of his neck and groaned.
“Did you get on Peira’s nerves?”
Pr: Sasa
Thanks for the chapter!
Thanks for the chapter!!