Chapter 1

Changchunsung is located in the far eastern end of the Chang empire.It is called Chungchunsung, which means “blue sky city” because of its exceptionally high and blue sky. Changchunsung, where the sun went down, was now calming down its noisy vitality. The merchants closed their stalls, and the weavers patted their backs and returned home along the road. Among them, there was a place that was particularly crowded at night. It was Haeyungwan, the No.1 gibang* in Changchunsung.

[T/N: Gibang – It is a building where female entertainers lived and entertained their customers.]

Since its opening, there has been an unprecedented riot in Haeyungwan. It was because of the guest who had gathered all the courtesans in one room and kept throwing around various kinds of gold and silver treasures.

“My Lord, let me pour you another drink.”

“I’ve drunk too much, I’m starting to get drunk”

“Don’t be like that, just one more. Come on, ah!”

The man with a flushed face leaned against his armrest and shook his head. There were more than six bottles lying around the floor. It was the result of drinking the glasses offered by the courtesans. The room was a mess because he was seemingly out of his mind and opened his sack whenever he had the opportunity to throw a handful of jewels. The high-class courtesans who were struggling to catch it knocked up the table without hesitation.

They weren’t the type of courtesans who cared about such trivial things. Now, the man’s sack was opening for the fifth time, and the gold and silver treasures were eye-catching. Such an opportunity won’t come again, so if they lose this customer, the courtesans may regret it for the rest of their life.

“My Lord, where have you come from? I’ve never seen you in this outskirt town of Changchunsung before……”

“Me……? I came from…… Joongkyung.”

The man was sitting helplessly with his head down and he answered as if he was spaced out. The courtesans shouted heartless cheers at his answer,

“Oh my goodness! Is it true that there are all sorts of precious things in Joongkyung?”

Hearing this, the man let out a sarcastic laugh and waved his hand while saying,

“No. Joongkyung is a place where people live like anywhere else…….”

“No, my Lord! I’ve never seen such precious treasures like these gold and silver coins before! There is no doubt that Joongkyung is filled with amazing things!”

“It’s nothing special……. And I found these on my way here. I have nothing of my own …….”

But the courtesans didn’t believe what he said. His attire was not too glamorous, but its unique texture showed that it was made with a rare material. In addition, the small earrings on his ears and the saddle on his horse also looked very valuable, even if they were not openly decorated for show. Thinking that these things were not at all common, the courtesans wrapped their arms around him.

“My Lord, you have a high status in Joongkyung, right?”

“Hmm?”

“My Lord, what do you do for a living?”

“Geez, would I really tell you that?”

“Aw, My Lord. Don’t be like that……”

“Oho! I said no and that’s it. Ugh, I’ve lost my excitement”

The man jumped up from his seat, shaking off the courtesan who was sitting close to him. The action caused a commotion that included the table falling back and the bowl breaking, but no one blamed him. The only thought that filled the minds of the courtesans was that he had more gold and silver treasures left for them and they had to get it before he went out. They could have bought as many new bowls to replace the ones the man broke including the broken statues, but there will never be another customer like him. The courtesans looked fiercely at the one who was responsible for boring the man.

“My Lord, don’t be like that …….”

“Hey, let go! Take this and get lost.”

The man loosened the strap of the sack from his waist and flung it into the room.

The courtesans who were persistently following him screamed and threw themselves at it. It was interesting to see how the courtesans who were so reluctant to let him go didn’t even care about his existence anymore. The man shook his head, clicking his tongue.

“My Lord! You’ve drunk quite a bit. It’s too dangerous to ride a horse in this state.”

While the courtesans were distracted by the sack, the man headed towards the stable and the servant, who was supposedly the guest attendant, ran out and grabbed the staggering man’s shoulder. Walking slowly with his head down, he suddenly turned his eyes to the side and looked at the servant.

“I’m fine. I’m not drunk at all.”

“…… Pardon?”

The man who was out of his mind just a minute ago, answered firmly as if he were someone else, and the servant was shocked, letting down the hand on his shoulder. The man looked at the servant, laughed for a moment, and took off one of his earrings. Looking at the servant’s puzzled face, the man said,

“Give me your hand.”

“Y-Yes, My Lord …….”

“Here. Would you accept this and pretend you didn’t see me?”

“Thank you, My Lord..!”

“Okay. If you understand then bring me my horse.”

When the servant grabbed the reins and pulled the horse in front of the man, he sat on the saddle and rode out like a gale. The servant just stared blankly at him, and when he came back to his senses, the man had already left the door of Haeyungwan.

“Hey! Where is that ring? The guest threw it out earlier, right? Don’t even think about hiding it and give it to me”

After the man had made a fuss, Haeyungwan ended the day’s business early and locked the door. The courtesans were now gathered together in the largest room to settle the new harvest from today. They secretly hid what they had picked up themselves, and when the wandering merchant came in, the young courtesans who were about to wear silk clothes, pouted their lips and gave out a tassel or a ring. The amount of treasure piled up in the middle was quite large. When it was thrown, the courtesans were too busy picking it up and hadn’t realized exactly how much was being thrown but now looking at it like this, it was an amount they’d earn from a whole month’s work.

“Who was here?”

This was asked by Choi Haengsoo, the owner of this gibang, who opened the door after hearing the news. As for Choi Haengsoo, who was well-connected, there was no one he didn’t know in Changchunsung. Since all the secret stories of the court officials took place in this Haeyungwan, Choi Haengsoo was aware of all the current affairs of the region, even if he did not directly listen to them.

“A man from Joongkyung had a whole bunch of gold and silver in his bag. He said he had picked them up on his way here but it seemed to be a lie. Even though he wasn’t dressed fancy, everything he wore, from his clothes down to the small accessories, were definitely valuable.”

“…… Is that so?”

Choi Haengsoo sat in the upper seat and looked at the gold and silver treasures piled up in the middle of the room. When he went through them one by one, there was nothing too precious that he had never heard of. But aside from that, there was another thing that stood out the most. It was a small name tag made of iron, not gold or silver. Choi Haengsoo lifted it, put it in front of his eyes, and looked closely. The indigo tassel on the top was quite shabby, and the edges of the tag were a little rusty as he rubbed it in his hand. It was the most inappropriate item in this pile of gold and silver treasures.

However, the main issue was the pattern engraved on this name tag. “

This is……. the crest of Chungchunsung….!”

Choi Haengsoo turned the name tag upside down and scanned the inscriptions on the back with his fingertips. This plaque marked Changchunsung as Chungchunsung, the old name of this region. Choi Haengsoo let out a painful sigh as he stroked his beard. The change of the name Chungchunsung to Changchunsung was deeply rooted with the founding of the Chang Empire.

There was a time when the Yeon Dynasty, which had previously dominated the nation, collapsed under the hands of its treacherous subjects, and this land became a battleground for small nations. At that time, Emperor San, who ended the turbulent times with the will of heaven and built the Chang Empire, was from Chungchunsung.

Emperor San loved Chungchunsung, where he was born and raised. He changed its name to Changchunsung in order to prove that it was not just a small land on the periphery but also a place from where the Chang Empire originated. Since then, Emperor San ordered all sorts of media recorded with the old name to be erased and all newly created as Changchunsung, so there was no reason for this tag to remain.

“Who was that man who came earlier?”

“I didn’t tell you earlier but when Baekhwa asked the man what he did for a living, he became angry and left.”

“How suspicious. I’m going to inform the lord right now, so don’t take any of the treasure. If the man comes back looking for them while I’m away, tie him up and bring him to the lord. Do you all understand?”

“Yes, Master Choi.”

Choi Haengsoo got up from his seat and hurriedly ran out with the stone name tag. He needed to show this to Yeongju Chae Yoonjik immediately and find out what kind of person that man was. Before the stable keeper could command a horse, Choi Haengsoo grabbed the first horse he found and rode out of Haeyungwan.

“Darn it..! I was happy that I finally got some money.”

The room Choi Haengsoo had left was filled with sighs of the courtesans who were delighted a moment ago because of the unexpected harvest of treasure.