Chapter 404 – I Worked Out (2)
It goes without saying that I was nothing more than a guest at the Ma-gyo.
Except for a few who knew that I was a disciple of the Blood Demon, to most people, I was an ambiguous guest whose position was not clear.
So, even if I had an idea, I would tell it to Yeong-ho-gyeong like a Buddhist monk telling a story to a nun, and it would be recognized as her idea.
That’s why something like this could happen.
“So, although it is an unfortunate incident, we see it as an opportunity since it is gaining popularity among the population. This is what the So-gyo-ju suggested-“
Un-gi-seong was explaining my idea in front of me with a proud expression. No, to be precise, he was explaining it in front of the Ma-gyo members and a few women from the orthodox sect.
It wasn’t a great story. We quickly imprinted the Un-ga-sang-dan on many people with low prices and convenient transportation, but the purchased items were mainly focused on necessities.
This was natural because the main advertising board, the well, was mainly visited by mothers. It’s not that mothers aren’t interested in luxury goods, but as those responsible for household chores, they tend to prioritize securing necessities first.
What Un-gi-seong was talking about now was a way to secure a wider range of customers than the existing customer base.
“…But what if we lure them with games like Takkon-hee() here? Many young people and children will come, and they can also become customers.”
Ah, Takkon-hee was the name given to air hockey. It was called Takkon-hee because it was played on a table with a round wooden board.
There were various games that could be played as long as there was a ball, but the reason why something that required equipment was made was that the inconvenience was the key.
A game that should have appropriate equipment. But what if using it was free? Wouldn’t there be people interested?
It was when I was making a slightly disappointed expression in front of Un-gi-seong, who was explaining his thoughts with great enthusiasm.
“But there will be many people who don’t know what this is. Isn’t it difficult to attach someone to guide them with the current situation of the temple?”
No Hee-bang said, raising his hand slightly. It was undoubtedly wrong to do something that would require more labor when they were already short of manpower and had asked for their cooperation.
But I had already thought about that.
“We have also considered that problem. Don’t worry, there won’t be any more work for you.”
“What do you mean?”
“It’s not something else, it’s just a game. Some of our followers have expressed their desire to play during their break time, so it’s enough for them to handle it themselves,” Yeong-ho-gyeong said.
Since we weren’t selling anything, we just needed to explain what it was. Even if it was a little different, it wouldn’t be a big deal. Besides, I didn’t even know the exact rules, so they could figure it out themselves.
The only problem was whether the Ma-gyo members really wanted to play air hockey, or if they were just doing it because they were asked to from above, but…
“If you don’t want to do it, then what can you do? If they criticize you from above, you just have to take it.”
This idea was not only for the Ma-gyo Coupang, but also for me personally, to spend time with Hwang Bo-hyeon.
Of course, I was slightly concerned about the possibility of the Ma-gyo members becoming more suspicious, but compared to the thrill of eating milky bread, it was a tiny problem.
And then there was one more person.
“If that’s what the temple wants, then I have no objections…”
When No Hee-bang saw me and our eyes met, her expression stiffened slightly. I was sure she was confused, even though I had only thrown out a bait. But since I had given her access to the accounting books, she would soon be able to clear up any suspicions held by the Ma-gyo members.
“Maybe I should pretend to be sick…”
Of course, No Hee-bang didn’t have a husband. With her already picky personality, if she had a husband, she would have given up on this troublesome task and used forceful means. But since she was alone and had shown interest in the night work, there was a good chance.
With a small hope that it might end even faster than with Hwang Bo-hyeon, I praised Un-gi-seong’s idea without hesitation and gave soulless compliments to Yeong-ho-gyeong, who was explaining it with enthusiasm.
I don’t think she was like this from the beginning. At least, that’s what No Hee-bang believed.
When she was young, her age when she was growing up, her male cousins were at the age where their blood was still boiling.
Even the slightest work that made them roll around all day, so much so that their mouths were watering, and the various fantasies they had about sleeping with women were all things they talked about.
Young No Hee-bang desperately pretended to be focused on her training and learning, afraid that she might accidentally reveal that she was a woman and get caught up in their talk. But that kind of thing couldn’t go on forever.
At the words of the male cousins, “Don’t just act like you’re not interested, let’s talk together,” No Hee-bang was forced to join the conversation.
Fortunately, No Hee-bang’s exceptional memory and analytical skills allowed her to smoothly engage in gossip with her colleagues, changing and mixing up their words just enough to avoid any suspicion.
However, there was one thing that No Hee-bang did not expect.
As she pretended to be interested in the conversation, she began to feel a fierce curiosity about the unknown sensations that arose within her when she heard about the tingling feeling of a man’s water entering a woman’s private parts.
Truly.
“I thought I had forgotten about it…”
The sexual desire of the male species was immense. Perhaps because it was condensed and condensed without a release.
She had heard the faces of the wives of high-ranking officials turning red when they talked about it, or that there was a new courtesan in the palace who was as beautiful as a fairy and that sleeping with her would be like sleeping on a cloud, but she was never affected by it.
And now, every time she saw Kang Yoon-i and Hwang Bo-hyeon together, she couldn’t help but imagine herself in their place, not so different from the people she had heard about in the past. No Hee-bang let out a deep sigh from the depths of her chest.
“Phew…”
“Why are you sighing so deeply, Bang-ju?”
Startled, No Hee-bang quickly replied, “Oh, it’s just a little frustration.”
“Is there anyone else here who’s more frustrated than someone who’s been given work while they were resting and is now sighing?”
As the maid placed a few pieces of wood and a bundle of paper on the ground, as if she was willing to listen to any strange words, No Hee-bang blushed at the realization that she had momentarily lost her composure due to her frustration.
“Here you go. These are the medicines that can be obtained urgently as you requested, Bang-ju. Although the supply may be a little low in this area of the palace, the demand is still quite high.”
“You’ve been talking a little less than usual, Bang-ju.”
“Should I talk more? The palace is just doing whatever they want with the Ma-gyo…”
The maid suddenly raised her voice, then hesitated and spoke in a low voice again.
“Since you’ve joined hands with the Ma-gyo, I’m the one who’s burning up inside. But now they’re asking me to do this without even telling me why. How can I say anything nice about it?”
“…”
“Of course, I know that the palace has its own reasons for doing this. But look at the situation now. The Ma-gyo members haven’t even shown their tails yet, but if it’s revealed that the palace has joined hands with them, what will happen?”
It was clear that No Hee-bang would be subject to criticism from the saints, even if she didn’t know it. They would accuse her of being blinded by money and kneeling before the Ma-gyo, their archenemies.
“It’s necessary. Besides, the Ma-gyo won’t just sit back and watch as they’re extensively affected by the compensation without any reason. Even if that’s not the case, if things continue like this, the Jungwon’s compensation will kneel before the Ma-gyo. We need to prevent that…”
“How are we going to prevent it? We’ve already helped the Jungwon’s compensation by assisting them. It seems like there’s nothing we can do to stop it.”
“…”
That was the problem.
Initially, she had planned to use suspicious items as a problem to halt their growth, or to control the flow of work by occupying a part of the upper management’s tasks, but both had many issues in their implementation.
The items were no different from ordinary ones, and the opening had no room to interfere with tasks other than configuring the delivery location, as promised.
As No Hee-bang couldn’t speak, Yang San-gae, who guessed the situation, spoke in a soft voice.
“Don’t try to shoulder the world alone. Didn’t I tell you that if you keep going to the Ma-gyo, your bones will rot? If you keep doing this, your head will turn white before you even get to rest.”
“…Maybe I’ll just stick to being a priest.”
“Then make sure the priest’s bones don’t rot. If the Ma-gyo suddenly pops up for no reason, the bones that are already rotting will completely disintegrate. Why did they ask you to gather these medicines like this? Are they trying to teach the Ma-gyo’s minority members?”
It was a question from Yeong-ho-gyeong, who had mastered the Thousand Demons Sword Technique to the extreme and had no room to practice swordsmanship, and who knew that the Ma-gyo would have tens of times more medicine than the opening.
No Hee-bang couldn’t answer the question truthfully. Even though she trusted the priest, she couldn’t casually reveal such a question.
Instead, No Hee-bang decided to bring up another thought that had occurred to her.
“Father, I have a curious question…”
“Why are you asking questions when you don’t even answer other people’s questions… What is it?”
“Um, just in case… What if I were to meet my husband now?”
“What?”
Yang San-gae looked confused, as if he didn’t understand the question.
Of course, No Hee-bang had not entertained the thought of meeting Kang Yoon-i at this moment. Her mind was too cluttered, and she thought that if she got married even late, the strange thoughts would disappear.
But as Yang San-gae gradually understood the meaning of the question and his expression changed, No Hee-bang became afraid of hearing the answer.
“Oh, forget it. Let’s just pretend I didn’t ask. Well then, I’ll be going. Please take care, Father!”
“Oh, no, Bang-ju! Bang-ju!”
No Hee-bang quickly grabbed the piled-up medicine on the desk and ran away, and Yang San-gae got up late and chased after her, but No Hee-bang had already disappeared.
If Yang San-gae used his divine technique, there would be nothing he couldn’t chase, but the suspicious looks sent by the openings from all over made it uncomfortable to do so.
“Huh, really…”
Yang San-gae awkwardly smiled and muttered as he closed the door and went inside.
“As I age, I suddenly start to talk nonsense… Have you found any decent Ma-gyo members?”
Marriage wasn’t a good condition to be in, and it was the same for No Hee-bang, who was a woman.
As far as Yang San-gae remembered, she was a woman who was enough to satisfy even below Sam-bong, but she couldn’t even save herself.
If No Hee-bang was a man, like some of the openings who secretly made a living with the money they embezzled, she could have done the same, but as a woman, it was not appropriate.
“Surely, she’s not thinking of marrying Son Ryong… Wait? Where did this go?”
As Yang San-gae was thinking about the late spring breeze blowing in his heart, he suddenly realized that the desk was empty.
Of course, he knew that No Hee-bang had taken the medicine, but the problem was that the medicine was not something that could be taken lightly.
If it was medicine like the Great Hwan-dan or the Self-Healing Dan, he wouldn’t have known, but there were many medicines with strong and peculiar characteristics that required careful handling. The bundle of paper he brought was a collection of such precautions.
“Ugh… What does she know to take everything?”
Of course, he didn’t doubt No Hee-bang’s ability. No Hee-bang, who had rich experience in the Gang-ho, would have checked and used it well.
That’s why Yang San-gae soon put his worries aside and plunged back into the sea of thoughts about what the palace was thinking when it made such a statement.
Of course, if he had known that there were mixed medicines confiscated by the so-called ‘Eumma’ self-proclaimed Sapa master, his response would have been more cautious, but Yang San-gae, who had just gathered what he could in a hurry, had no way of knowing that.
