Chapter 37 — The Old Man Is Too Good at Raising Cattle (1)
The moment the second examination was finished, Choi Sihyeon hurriedly prepared to leave.
"What is so urgent that you're leaving already? Surely you have plenty to discuss with the Yulli as well. At least say goodbye before you go."
"Forget it. Just imagining your smug face beside me is enough to make my blood boil. I refuse to endure that. I'm busy, so I'm leaving first!"
"...Still as dishonest as ever."
Kim Jiseok knew perfectly well that Choi Sihyeon was hurrying away because he wanted to wrap up Jeongmu's murder case for his sake.
He was grateful to his friend.
Even so, another concern weighed heavily on him.
"I managed to put it off until now... but this time, I'll have no choice but to send Yeoni to the provincial office."
Yeoni was the problem.
The provincial government office served a role similar to a modern provincial administration.
For the governor's review, testimony from Yeoni, who had conducted the first examination, would be necessary.
That meant she would have to go to Daegu.
And Kim Jiseok very much did not want to send her there.
Until now, he had always found ways to keep Yeoni from having to visit the Gyeongsang Provincial Office.
This time, however, there seemed to be no avoiding it.
While Kim Jiseok was lost in thought, the quiet outside the government office suddenly grew noisy.
"I'm telling you, I saw him slip the jade inside!"
"That's what I'm saying."
"Yulli, this fellow's skill is extraordinary!"
"...Yes. It is impressive."
"...Hm?"
Kim Jiseok heard familiar voices and stepped outside, uncertain.
"Very few people in all eight provinces could see through my handwork! You have excellent eyes. They say that if a person is worth a thousand nyang, nine hundred of it lies in the eyes."
"You have a remarkable servant. I like this fellow very much! His body is well balanced too. He was born to be a great general."
"Not a general. Donggu."
"Right, right. Donggu. You're impressive. The Yulli must feel very secure with you around."
"I know. Young Master tells me that often."
"Oh! Even your loyalty is admirable!"
And then...
Kim Jiseok saw someone's face and froze like a statue.
"...What is this?"
"Oh! It's been a long time!"
Bright smile.
"......?"
Kim Jiseok could not believe his eyes.
"Why... why are you here?"
"Things happened."
Grin.
Kim Jiseok's head began to ache.
Fatigue washed over him.
Unable to believe the sight before him, or perhaps simply unwilling to, he squeezed his eyes shut.
"...Ah."
What is going on?
Doyul was equally confused by seeing Kim Jiseok react like this for the first time.
Cheongun, however, remained completely unfazed.
He nudged Doyul several times with his elbow and spoke cheerfully.
"The magistrate seems absolutely delighted to see me. Don't you think?"
"I'm not sure I'd call that delighted, but the two of you clearly know each other."
Cheongun walked toward Kim Jiseok.
"You've been raising quite the brilliant young scholar."
"Ah... I can't believe this."
"Why would you come here of all places...?"
Wink!
Cheongun winked.
Kim Jiseok immediately understood the signal and swallowed the rest of his sentence.
"Haah..."
Half resigned, Kim Jiseok cautiously asked.
"Don't tell me... the secret royal inspector people have been talking about recently is..."
"Yes. That's me!"
Nod, nod!
Doyul stared at them in shock.
This man's the secret royal inspector?
He possessed far too little dignity for the role.
"Then the reason you passed through Eonyang without notifying anyone and came straight to Yeongsan was also..."
Nod, nod!
"Haah..."
Kim Jiseok pressed his temples.
"Do you truly hold some grudge against me?"
"A grudge? Don't say such things. The Yulli might misunderstand!"
"I came running because I missed you so terribly, only to be treated this coldly. My heart is breaking!"
"Just... how... why..."
Kim Jiseok struggled for words.
"You know my term ends soon and I'll be returning to the capital."
"Well, I came for several reasons."
"......"
Realizing this conversation would take some time, Kim Jiseok finally spoke.
"Fine. Come inside. Shall we have tea and talk?"
"Oh, excellent! I do like that you always offer tea."
"Yulli, it would probably be best if you gave us some privacy. I'm sorry, but for a moment..."
At that instant, someone burst into the government office.
Bang!
"Magistrate! Please! I've been wronged!"
A villager threw himself to the ground and cried out.
"Please resolve my grievance!"
Cheongun's eyes immediately lit up.
He sat down on the wooden platform where Doyul often sat.
"Ohhh! What's this about?"
"......"
Of all times...
Kim Jiseok clutched his head as his blood pressure rose and carefully watched Cheongun.
"My, what a twist of fate!"
"An aggrieved person has come to the government office, so naturally helping the people must come first."
"...Would you please wait inside?"
"How could I possibly do that?"
"I too shall watch with these two eyes!"
Stare!
"......Haah."
"No, wait!"
Cheongun suddenly slapped his knee as though he had realized something.
Then he turned toward Doyul.
"Of course! If the magistrate appointed a yulli, then surely the yulli handles lawsuits like these."
"......"
Cheongun's eyes gleamed.
"Let's see your ability properly this time!"
...What?
Watching Cheongun completely ignore Kim Jiseok's polite suggestion and eagerly settle in for the show, Doyul began to understand Kim Jiseok's exhaustion.
Governor Jo Jinkyung of Gyeongsang Province made no effort to hide his displeasure.
"What does the Dosa think?"
Here, the title Dosa referred to the governor's direct subordinate and chief aide.
Seo Gyeongsik, the Gyeongsang Dosa and Jo Jinkyung's right-hand man, carefully watched his expression.
"Forgive me, Governor, but... about which matter?"
Bang!
"I'm asking whether it makes any sense for a mere county magistrate to disregard the governor!"
"...You are absolutely right. A hundred times over. No, a thousand times."
Mutter, mutter.
"Tsk. That fool Choi Sihyeon."
"I went out of my way to make sure he received credit, and yet I never imagined he would be this incapable of understanding the situation."
"...Indeed."
Seo Gyeongsik smiled obsequiously on the outside.
Inside, he cursed Jo Jinkyung.
What generosity?
He handed the matter to the Magistrate of Eonyang instead of the Magistrate of Yeongsan and now pretends he was doing him a favor.
And isn't he retaliating against Magistrate Kim because Kim refused his invitation to come offer a bribe? Tsk...
Jo Jinkyung acted as though he had graciously tried to hand all the credit to Choi Sihyeon.
"H-Heh. If the Choi family is foolish enough to kick away fortune that rolls straight into their hands, perhaps their days really are numbered."
"Exactly. The family's luck must have died along with the brilliant younger brother of the Magistrate of Eonyang."
Jo Jinkyung studied Choi Sihyeon's report closely.
"...Idiot."
"How can someone be this oblivious?"
What Choi Sihyeon had submitted was called the Eonyang interrogation record in name only.
In substance, nearly everything belonged to Yeongsan.
"Hmph. I acknowledge that brat's ability, but I can't stand his arrogance."
"Does he really think I'll act exactly as he wants?"
Doyul had promised that all the credit for the criminal proceedings would go to Choi Sihyeon in exchange for letting him conduct the interrogation.
But after seeing Doyul's extraordinary talent, Choi Sihyeon had refused to do that.
"That irritating brat."
"A genius like you needs to have his talent recognized as soon as possible."
"You shouldn't be buried in some rural corner like Yeongsan."
"You should hurry to the royal court!"
As a result, the final record had become awkward for Jo Jinkyung.
The second examination report written by Eonyang's ojagin merely stated that there was no disagreement with the judgment of Yeongsan's ojagin, who had conducted the first examination.
Even the interrogation of the culprit could hardly be called Eonyang's achievement.
The official record explicitly stated that the true culprit had been successfully uncovered by a low-ranking official from Yeongsan County.
Bang!
"Was it really so difficult to write that the work was his own?"
"What a stupid bastard!"
"Indeed, Governor."
"Hah. At this rate, all this will do is raise Kim Jiseok's standing."
"He must be grinning from ear to ear."
"Are we really supposed to sit back and watch him achieve a major accomplishment right at the end of his term?"
"...Ghh."
Jo Jinkyung regarded Kim Jiseok warily.
"...That arrogant bastard will soon return to the royal court."
"How am I supposed to simply watch that happen?"
For a mere county magistrate, Kim Jiseok had an infuriating habit of standing by his convictions even against his superiors.
His family background was formidable as well.
And everyone knew he had been one of the Three Talents, the three exceptional graduates who had ranked highly in the main state examination and earned royal favor.
Damn it.
Maybe I never should've summoned him in the first place.
All I did was give myself another problem to worry about.
Jo Jinkyung feared that Kim Jiseok might someday become a blade pointed directly at him.
At this rate, once his term ends, it wouldn't be strange at all if he received a royal command and became a secret royal inspector before long.
By convention, secret royal inspectors were generally younger officials who enjoyed the king's trust.
There were practical reasons for that.
Older officials often lacked the stamina to travel extensively in secret.
And after many years in government service, they knew too many people, making it harder for them to operate anonymously.
...If possible, I need to knock Kim Jiseok down a little and damage his reputation beforehand.
Eventually, Jo Jinkyung decided he would have to change the board himself.
"...Haa. What should I do?"
"The irritating bastard did handle this matter fairly well."
"But in the end, all of this was done by people."
"If I look closely enough, there should be something..."
Jo Jinkyung narrowed his eyes and carefully examined the criminal records.
Then suddenly smiled.
"...And eventually, you find it."
"What do you mean? As expected, Governor, you truly are extraordinary!"
Jo Jinkyung tapped Yeongsan's first examination record with his finger.
"I can use this."
The man who had come to the government office looked deeply aggrieved as he addressed Doyul.
"Yulli, do you perhaps remember me?"
"...Hm?"
Doyul quickly recalled him.
"Aren't you the man who came here after being robbed?"
"Yes! That's right!"
The man's name was Kang Bokman.
While away for several years fulfilling his military service, thieves had stolen nearly everything from his home.
Fortunately, the evidence had been clear, so he had recovered everything without much trouble.
But now...
"It hasn't even been that long. Did something else happen already?"
Kang Bokman's expression turned sorrowful.
"I have a treasure."
"But... my precious treasure has been captured by an old man!"
"...Excuse me?"
"Please help me, Yulli!"
"I can't sleep at night when I think about how frightened that poor, delicate thing must be all alone!"
"And that devilish old man says he'll only return my treasure if I hand over money!"
"Does that make any sense?!"
Doyul's expression became serious.
"...This sounds extremely grave."
"Exactly!"
"I need to confirm the facts."
"Has there been a kidnapping?"
"Yes. You could almost call it that."
"This isn't something we can overlook."
"Tell me the man's name immediately."
"We need to send constables at once and rescue the child as quickly as possible..."
Then...
"Hahaha! There is no need for that!"
Dun!
An old man strode proudly into the government office.
And he was not alone.
What he brought with him was, astonishingly...
...Huh?
"Mooooooo!"
"B-Bangul! Bangul!"
Don't tell me his treasure is...
A cute, plump bull with sparkling eyes.
