Chapter 32. A Fight Over Money (2)

I didn’t expect the Jiejian Sect to show up here.

“Jiejian Sect, you mean?”

“Yeah. For a long time, the kids from the Jiejian Sect have been secretly transporting goods for the higher-ups. It’s not the sect itself, but the kids under them.”

“Aha, so they’re acting as porters.”

Being a porter is a term used in the jargon of the escort agencies, referring to the practice of carrying private goods during an escort mission with the intention of selling them personally upon arrival.

Naturally, if caught, they would face punishment. This is because it can interfere with the escort mission and potentially ruin it. Therefore, escort agencies often conduct inspections of the escorts' belongings before the mission starts.

“They would sneak their own goods onto the caravans of the Zhengjia Trading Company and transport them. They did this quite often, so they say.”

The scale of the Zhengjia Trading Company is quite large. If they added a few items, it probably wouldn’t even be noticeable.

“Perhaps the upper echelons of the Jiejian Sect also know about it, but they just leave it alone because they don’t want to interfere with the kids’ livelihood.”

“But wouldn’t it be a problem if Zhengjia or we found out about it?”

“Well, it’s not the sect itself doing it, but the kids earning some extra money. Besides, some of the goods are quite dirty, and we can’t touch them.”

In the jargon of the escort agencies, "dirty" refers to stolen goods or contraband. A typical example of such goods is salt.

Salt, being a monopoly item, is strictly regulated. Touching such goods could result in the death penalty.

Therefore, from the perspective of the escort agencies, which must be cautious of the government, these are goods that cannot be touched or should not be touched.

From the perspective of the Baiyun Escort Agency, it’s a piece of cake they can’t eat, and even if they tried, it wouldn’t end well. This was Sima Yu’s explanation.

“So, I think it’s a good idea to look for the kids from the Jiejian Sect. They would know more about such matters.”

“I see. I understand what you mean. I’ll have to investigate that side then.”

It made sense. A potential person to ask came to mind.

Naturally, it was Yang Jinpo.

***

The next day, I went to find Yang Jinpo. Finding him was very easy. A one-armed laborer isn’t common, so I had a waiter look for one, and we found him quickly.

‘Indeed, the waiter network is convenient.’

Yang Jinpo, whom I met again, asked me with a cold gaze in the market alley.

“What’s up?”

“We met not long ago, but it feels a bit awkward, doesn’t it?”

“...”

I ignored the look in his eyes, which seemed to be saying, ‘Is this guy messing with me?’

“I need some help.”

“I already paid off my debt. Don’t you remember?”

“Then let me owe you a debt.”

“...Quite bold.”

“Isn’t it better this way?”

He continued to glare at me. I thought he might shoot laser beams from his eyes. Of course, I ignored his gaze.

“Glaring won’t kill anyone, so let’s manage our expressions better.”

“...I don’t know what kind of guy you are.”

My bold attitude finally made him give up. The atmosphere was finally conducive to a conversation, so I got to the point.

“This is a good deal for you too.”

“What’s a good deal?”

“I’ll pay you for information.”

I took out a silver coin and flicked it with my thumb. Yes, it was a show of the silver coin. Yang Jinpo’s eyes wavered for a moment when he saw it.

Being a one-armed laborer, he must have found it quite difficult to make a living. Even for a two-armed laborer, life is tough, so how much harder must it be for a one-armed one?

“And it’s not a bad deal. It’s actually a good deal. It benefits the world and upholds justice.”

“It sounds more and more ridiculous.”

“Just listen, kid.”

I explained the situation step by step. Of course, I left out the story of the Joseon Fellowship and the amount of money, and only vaguely mentioned a "large-scale haul of over ten crates."

After listening, he let out a short hum and asked.

“I understand the content, but what do you want?”

“The Jiejian Sect kids used to secretly transport such hauls, right? Do you know anything about it?”

As they say, the snake knows the snake’s path. Yang Jinpo, who was in the Jiejian Sect, must have done such things often and could provide some information or a source.

Fortunately, Yang Jinpo nodded and replied.

“I have an idea of what you’re talking about, so I can look into it.”

“It won’t do if it takes too long.”

This was a matter that required urgency. In response, he put on a confident expression and extended his hand.

“I’ll tell you today. Advance payment.”

“Alright.”

I infused my finger with inner energy and split the silver coin in half. I was worried it wouldn’t split, but fortunately, it split cleanly like a watermelon.

I threw the smaller half to him, as I always did with my younger brother.

“I’ll give you the other half when you tell me.”

“This isn’t half.”

“Come to Longmen Inn when you have the information.”

Yang Jinpo grumbled for a while and then disappeared into the alley. I watched his back for a moment and then returned to the inn.

***

Fortunately, Yang Jinpo found me in less than two hours. He came to my table where I was eating noodles and dumplings for lunch and sat down in front of me without asking.

“Already found it?”

“Yeah.”

Then, without a word, he reached out and took one of my dumplings. I suppressed the urge to crush his fingers and instead picked up the plate and poured the remaining dumplings into my bowl of noodles.

Watching me make instant dumpling noodles, Yang Jinpo said,

“Your ability to emit inner energy has improved a lot. I can faintly sense a killing aura.”

“Huh? You can sense it?”

“Yeah. Even though I lost my inner energy, my senses haven’t dulled that much.”

Indeed, I must have unconsciously emitted energy while thinking about breaking his fingers. It means I’ve improved.

If your inner energy is low or you don’t know how to emit it, you won’t emit a killing aura. Or if you do, it’s too weak for the other person to notice.

The fact that Yang Jinpo sensed my killing aura means that my ability to emit inner energy has become more proficient. Despite the difficulty, I felt the value of following Wei Zhiyan’s training.

“Still, don’t emit a killing aura over a single dumpling. It’s petty.”

“I don’t listen to a one-bite wonder.”

I scolded Yang Jinpo and stuffed my mouth with noodles. Watching me drink the broth, he swallowed and said,

“Seeing your sudden improvement, it seems you’ve found a master. It would be good to learn how to hide your killing aura as soon as possible to avoid misunderstandings.”

“I don’t misunderstand you.”

“You’re a scumbag.”

He grumbled and chewed on the dumpling.

Who’s calling who a scumbag?

“Anyway, did you find out?”

“Yeah. You said about ten crates, right?”

“About that much.”

“My junior received a request to move about ten crates to Manning County in Anhui Province.”

“Hmm... That’s the right size.”

“Manning? What’s that?”

“That’s none of your business. Who made the request?”

Am I finally getting a lead?

In response to my question, Yang Jinpo smirked and replied,

“You might not know, but in such matters, you can’t know who the client is. They just tell you to move the goods from one place to another, and someone will be waiting there.”

“Then what’s the point of what you found out?”

“Listen. My junior said he didn’t take the job. He couldn’t take it, to be precise.”

“Why not?”

“Well, the young master excluded our faction from all Zhengjia matters afterward. Some were expelled.”

So, they were all demoted or fired.

The Jiejian Sect members couldn’t conduct their own escort missions, so they used to sneak their goods onto the caravans of the Zhengjia Trading Company.

But now, with the purge, they were all out of a job, so they couldn’t handle such requests even if they wanted to.

“So, when they refused, the client said to come back if they had any ideas by tonight (9-11 PM).”

Finally, I have a lead. If I catch the guy lurking around the scene, it will be easy to solve.

“Good. Where’s the meeting place?”

“Wait a moment.”

Yang Jinpo closed his mouth, thought for a moment, and then spoke hesitantly.

“I have a favor to ask.”

“A favor? More money?”

I planned to expense all the money spent so far to the fellowship, but if he asks for a large sum, it would be difficult to expense.

If the information is accurate, I could give up to ten silver coins, but if he asks for more, it would be a problem.

While I was quickly calculating in my head, he shook his head.

“It’s not that.”

“Then what?”

He hesitated for a long time before speaking.

“Can you take in about four people from the Baiyun Escort Agency?”

“What?”

“When I was expelled, my juniors who opposed it were also expelled. I’m asking if you can take them in at the Baiyun Escort Agency.”

That’s beyond my authority.

Seeing my confusion, Yang Jinpo quickly added,

“Just as laborers. Just laborers. They don’t expect to be escorts. They’ve all had their dantians destroyed and can hardly use martial arts.”

“That’s not the point.”

“I’m fine. You can’t use a one-armed cripple, but my juniors haven’t lost their limbs. I know it sounds shameless, but I’m asking you.”

“Wait. Calm down. I can’t answer your request because it’s different from what I expected.”

I don’t know what he thinks of me, but I’m just a new employee at the Baiyun Escort Agency. I’ve done a bit of good work, but I’m still a new employee.

Moreover, former Jiejian Sect members? It doesn’t sound like a good proposal to the higher-ups.

Think about it. If I suggest hiring former employees from a competitor who were fired, what would Jiang Biao or Bai Linghua think? They would probably think I’m crazy.

“I’ve only been at the Baiyun Escort Agency for a short time and don’t have the authority.”

“But I heard that you saved Bai Feng and Xue Feng’s lives at Wujian Mountain. If that’s true, you could ask Bai Feng for a favor.”

“I could ask, but they would think I’m crazy, and that’s the problem.”

“...I see.”

Hiring requests are not something a new employee like me can handle. Maybe after a few years. At least, it’s something a senior like Sima Yu or Zuo Junping would do.

After I explained the difficult situation in detail, Yang Jinpo finally understood and slumped his shoulders.

“I’ve lived inside the Jiejian Sect since I was young, so I don’t know much about the world. If that’s the case, then that’s how it is.”

“Yeah. I understand your feelings, but it’s beyond what I can do.”

“I understand. I’m sorry for the unreasonable request. Forget about it.”

I refused with a slightly embarrassed face, and Yang Jinpo waved his remaining arm as if to say it was fine. Then he pointed with his finger and said,

“The meeting place is Donghua Tower. Look for a man in red there.”

He said this with a lackluster attitude and then stood up to leave. I grabbed his shoulder and offered the silver coin.

“Take it.”

“...Alright.”

Yang Jinpo took the remaining half of the silver coin and left with a sad expression. I watched his back and sighed.

I’ve got the information.

Now it’s time to find Wei Zhiyan.