Chapter 53. Reclaiming the Sichuan Branch (2)

Bakreunghwa broke the door and walked silently toward the pavilion in the center of the branch. My senior, Jajunpyeong, and I followed her without a word, communicating only through our eyes.

‘Isn’t that door made of zelkova wood, which is quite expensive?’

‘...You’ll fix it later.’

‘What? I have to fix it?’

Jajunpyeong avoided my gaze, which was asking why he was passing the buck to me. Let’s deal with this later.

As we walked in, Bakreunghwa’s anger seemed to intensify, visible even from behind. The branch was so quiet that it was hard to tell if it was open for business or closed.

‘Why is there no one here?’

Typically, branches have a few maids and servants. It’s not like an army; we can’t leave the cleaning, laundry, and cooking to the guards or the couriers.

But for some reason, this Sichuan branch was completely empty. It was as if everyone had been sucked into a temporal storm.

I asked Jajunpyeong with my eyes again.

‘What’s going on here?’

Jajunpyeong shook his head, indicating he didn’t know. It was a frustrating situation.

While we were worrying, Bakreunghwa walked steadily toward the pavilion and roughly opened the door. A musty smell wafted out.

Bakreunghwa involuntarily pinched her nose and frowned.

“Ugh...”

The smell was familiar and somewhat recognizable. Jajunpyeong and I spoke simultaneously.

“It smells like my room...”

“What’s with this old man’s smell...”

“...”

Why, when a man lives alone, a certain smell naturally develops. That smell was permeating the pavilion.

Bakreunghwa frowned and said to us.

“This is unbearable. Let’s open the windows first.”

We opened all the windows in the pavilion. As sunlight streamed in, we could see signs of human habitation everywhere.

“Ugh...”

I picked up a dirty, stained piece of cloth, only to realize it was a filthy undergarment. I immediately threw it away, cursing inwardly.

‘I’m going to die. Really.’

The situation inside the pavilion was dire. It seemed to have been used as an office, but now it looked like it had been converted into a personal bedroom for several years.

Bakreunghwa was now trembling with anger. With a fiery gaze, she asked us.

“Where is the Sichuan branch manager?”

“I’ll look for him.”

Jajunpyeong said and began searching. I joined in, looking around. After a while, I stepped on something.

“Ouch!”

A muffled scream came from a lump of blankets that looked like a dead potato bug. A middle-aged man burst out of the blankets and shouted.

“Who the hell are you!”

Bakreunghwa, recognizing his face, asked in surprise.

“Hacheolmin, the branch manager?”

“Bak... Chief?”

Hacheolmin, who had been shouting angrily a moment ago, started trembling like a leaf when he saw Bakreunghwa. Bakreunghwa’s eyes narrowed.

“Why were you sleeping in the office?”

“I... I was working late last night...”

Unfortunately, Hacheolmin’s excuse wasn’t very convincing. Even a quick look around revealed that he had been living there for months.

Bakreunghwa, of course, wasn’t someone who would be fooled by such an excuse.

“Then what is this?”

Bakreunghwa held up the dirty undergarment I had thrown away. Why was she picking that up again?

“And why is the branch in such a state?”

“...”

“Why is no one here even though it’s broad daylight? Why is the branch completely empty?”

As Bakreunghwa’s fierce reprimand began, Hacheolmin, trembling in fear, cautiously continued.

“Well, you see...”

“If you have any excuses, speak now.”

“...Chief. Well, you see, the thing is...”

Hacheolmin was in a state of panic, as if he were being dragged to a hearing. He was even trembling. In contrast, Bakreunghwa’s gaze was as fierce as I had never seen before.

Shaken by Bakreunghwa’s presence, Hacheolmin slowly began to explain.

***

To understand why the Sichuan branch had become this way, we had to trace back to the founding history of Baegun Escort Agency.

The agency was established through a joint venture between the Bak family and the Yun clan, and there were conflicts with the Namgung clan over logistics dominance in Anhui Province. But let’s skip the boring parts.

The important point was this.

“It’s because of the Sichuan Tang Clan.”

“Hmm...”

The Sichuan Tang Clan again. We sighed.

Hacheolmin, fidgeting, continued his story.

“The Sichuan Tang Clan hasn’t forgotten the incident during Yun Seungmyeong’s time. They have been constantly hindering our operations, making it impossible to run the branch properly.”

Yun Seungmyeong.

The former branch manager of the Sichuan branch and the fourth son of the Yun clan. He was the problem.

When the Sichuan branch was established, Yun Seungmyeong had been overly aggressive in his business tactics, greatly offending the Tang Clan. It’s said that he almost forcibly took a business that should have gone to the Tang Clan.

Due to other issues, Yun Seungmyeong was eventually removed from his position as branch manager, and it was said that he eventually reconciled with the Tang Clan...

“Isn’t that all in the past?”

When Bakreunghwa asked, Hacheolmin replied in a weak voice.

“It’s the Tang Clan, you know.”

We—Bakreunghwa included—nodded in agreement. His words were convincing.

Why? After a fight, even if they apologize and shake hands, some people still hold grudges and bring up past mistakes when they’re drunk. The Tang Clan was exactly that type.

Hacheolmin, bowing his head, said with a guilty expression.

“So, I couldn’t do my job properly. Even if I wanted to take on more business, everyone was watching the Tang Clan’s reactions.”

“Did you report this to headquarters?”

Bakreunghwa asked, her tone softer. Hacheolmin shook his head.

“Headquarters, perhaps also watching the Tang Clan, only told us to wait and gave no help.”

“Hmm...”

“So, we had to drastically cut operating costs and barely keep the branch running.”

Listening to his story, the restructuring measures taken by the Sichuan branch were not just harsh but brutal.

All maids and servants were fired, making it impossible to maintain the pavilions. So, most of the pavilions were sealed off to reduce maintenance costs.

The number of guards and couriers was reduced to a minimum, and when even their salaries couldn’t be paid, the working hours were changed to start at noon to reduce salaries.

As the salaries decreased, the guards struggled to make ends meet, so they were reassigned to escort duties to at least earn a living. This led to a lack of guards, making it impossible to take on more escort jobs.

This vicious cycle repeated, and now the branch was barely functioning, just breathing.

Hacheolmin said with a sigh.

“I also had to live here because my salary was cut, making it difficult to live elsewhere.”

His voice was trembling, and it was heartbreaking to hear. Bakreunghwa’s expression hardened.

‘And I broke the door...’

Bakreunghwa also seemed embarrassed. This wasn’t just Hacheolmin’s fault; headquarters had a responsibility for letting it get this bad.

But Bakreunghwa’s expression hardened again as she handed over a document. It was the one she had received from the Sichuan Tang Clan.

“Then what is this? According to the Sichuan Tang Clan’s investigation, our guards have been embezzling funds.”

Embezzlement is a serious issue that undermines the trust of an escort agency. Imagine checking the tracking of a shipment and suddenly seeing “stolen in the delivery area.” It would be enough to make you see red.

Such an incident would destroy the agency’s reputation. In response to Bakreunghwa’s reprimand, Hacheolmin hastily explained.

“I’m ashamed, but with the delayed salaries, the guards... sometimes took the goods and ran. We managed to recover them, but we lost a lot of credibility.”

“Sigh...”

It was a dire situation, and it was unclear where to start fixing the problems. Bakreunghwa sighed deeply and looked at us.

“Let’s talk among ourselves for a moment.”

***

In the backyard, Bakreunghwa held a brief meeting to discuss how to solve the problem.

“What do you think we should do?”

“Realistically, it’s best to close the branch.”

Jajunpyeong said bluntly. It was a practical judgment, and I agreed. However, Bakreunghwa shook her head.

“If we close this branch, the Mok clan’s transport job will go to another agency.”

“In that case, why not sell the business rights?”

I suggested cautiously. Since the branch was hopeless, it might be cleaner to close it and sell the business rights. But Bakreunghwa shook her head.

“It would be difficult to get a fair price. The Sichuan Tang Clan has no intention of giving us this business, so they’ll likely insist on a very low price.”

“I see.”

Then, it would be the Namheung Escort Agency. There was a branch in this area run by a branch of the Tang Clan, and they were likely to take it over.

After a moment of thought, I decided to summarize the issues first.

“There are two main problems. One is that the Sichuan branch is in a state where it can’t take on escort jobs, and the other is that the Tang Clan wants to give the escort jobs to someone else.”

“You’re right.”

“The second problem is more serious.”

That was true. With a large support team, we could manage this one escort job. And we could improve the branch’s condition before the next job.

However, the problem was the Tang Clan. If they refused to hand over the goods, it would be a complete disaster. Bakreunghwa, recalling the past, frowned.

“The Tang Clan seemed to want to completely eliminate our Baegun Escort Agency from Sichuan this time.”

“Should we try to improve the relationship?”

“It would be difficult. Unless we offer them something significant.”

The Tang Clan likely didn’t want a repeat of the Yun Seungmyeong incident. It was clear they wanted to eliminate the Baegun Escort Agency from Sichuan.

‘This is a headache.’

Bringing a large team from Hubei to Sichuan and then retreating would be a difficult situation. Bakreunghwa sighed softly.

After a moment of thought, I spoke again.

“Then, we can’t do anything with the Sichuan branch until we persuade the Tang Clan.”

“You’re right.”

“But with the branch in this state, we have no grounds to persuade them.”

It was a paradox. It was meaningless to try to rebuild the branch before persuading the Tang Clan, but we couldn’t persuade them without rebuilding the branch.

It was a tangled mess. The most reasonable solution in this situation was to accept some losses and take a conventional approach.

After some thought, I cautiously offered my opinion.

“We should start by rebuilding the branch.”

Bakreunghwa nodded heavily.

“Yes. Since time is short, let’s start today.”

***

A rigorous reconstruction plan for the Sichuan branch began immediately. Bakreunghwa decided to use all the emergency funds she had brought.

“First, the current staff should start cleaning the agency. Return the working hours to normal. Recruit more couriers quickly.”

She also hired temporary maids and servants. There was a mountain of work to do, but time was tight.

The Tang Clan requested a response within a week, saying that the escort jobs should not be delayed further.

‘A week isn’t enough to send someone to the Mok clan.’

I considered sending someone to the Mok clan through the Joseon Alumni Association to explain the situation and put pressure on the Tang Clan, but a week was too short. There was no time to spare.

We posted a recruitment notice and then, Bakreunghwa, Jajunpyeong, Hacheolmin, and I gathered to discuss how to persuade the Tang Clan.

The meeting room was filled with groans, and after much deliberation, I came up with an idea.

“What if we use Baegun Escort Agency’s network to bring someone who can vouch for this escort job? Someone with a good reputation in the martial world.”

Reputation in the martial world is significant. Sometimes, a single request from such a person can make someone risk their life.

Although the Tang Clan holds absolute power in Sichuan, if such a person vouches for our escort job, it would be difficult for them to act unreasonably. It would be an insult to ignore such a person.

Bakreunghwa’s face lit up at my idea but then darkened again.

“It’s a good idea, but I’m not sure if we can find the right person. Sichuan is a place where we have few connections.”

Bakreunghwa said uncertainly. Mobilizing the agency’s network to find and ask someone to come within a week was not an easy task.

‘Especially since the previous branch manager made a mess of things.’

This is why it’s important to maintain good relationships and not cause trouble for your clients. The successor suffers from the mess left behind.

But we had no better options. Bakreunghwa, not wanting to appear uncertain to her subordinates, spoke with renewed confidence.

“I’ll look for someone. It’s not impossible.”

We nodded, acknowledging her somewhat forced confidence.

Bakreunghwa instructed Hacheolmin to bring some registers and then turned to me and Jajunpyeong.

“Then, Seong, work with Jajunpyeong to manage the agency. We need to normalize operations as quickly as possible.”

“Yes! Understood.”

We bowed and acknowledged.

There was a mountain of work to do.