AFJE 07

Chapter 7

Some time later.

Dal-jae headed to the government office in a nearby town.

In his hand was a plump local chicken.

Knock, knock.

“Chief Clerk, it’s me, Dal-jae. There’s something I’d like to discuss with you.”

“Come in.”

Dal-jae carefully opened the door to the Chief Clerk’s office.

Creak.

Inside the room, a thin man, the Chief Clerk, was sitting at a desk and looking through an account book.

Dal-jae quietly placed the local chicken beside the Chief Clerk’s desk.

“Oh, Chief Clerk. Please hear me out.”

“What is it?”

“You know about that rumor that’s been going around recently, right?”

“What rumor?”

“You know. That inn called Insaeng Jumak or whatever. The rumor that it’s doing insanely well.”

“Oh, I’ve heard about it. I heard their gukbap is supposed to be that delicious.”

At the Chief Clerk’s words, Dal-jae clapped his hands loudly and made a big fuss.

“Yes! Yes! I don’t know about the taste, but goodness, those people have taken away all my customers!”

“They took all your customers? How exactly did they do that?”

“Ah! Well, it’s a little complicated to explain…”

Once the Chief Clerk showed interest, Dal-jae began telling him everything related to Insaeng Jumak.

From the fact that the place had been newly renovated.

To its various services.

And even the story about Ha-yoon.

“…Some girl with no known family background completely renovated the place!”

“She certainly used her head well.”

“Anyway, can the market order be maintained like this? What are the other taverns supposed to live on? Isn’t that right, Chief Clerk?”

“Hmm…”

After hearing Dal-jae’s words, the Chief Clerk fell into thought for a moment.

The person who had contributed greatly to making Dal-jae’s Sanmaru Jumak the best tavern in the town was none other than this Chief Clerk, Choi Hyang-seo.

Choi Hyang-seo had received money and various favors in exchange for protecting Dal-jae, and with Choi Hyang-seo’s support, Dal-jae had been able to maintain his position as the owner of the best tavern for a long time.

That was, until recently.

“Hm…”

But now, Sanmaru Jumak was facing a crisis.

And this was not entirely good for Choi Hyang-seo either.

Because it meant that his share would decrease.

In fact, Dal-jae regularly offered a certain amount of his profits to Choi Hyang-seo every month.

“Hmmm.”

Even so, Choi Hyang-seo was reluctant to get involved in this matter.

Although he was the Chief Clerk, if he wanted to use the power of the government, he would ultimately have to get the magistrate’s permission. If he reported such a trivial matter, he was sure to be severely scolded.

He needed something bigger to use as a reason to ask for the magistrate’s permission.

After weighing his options, Choi Hyang-seo shook his head.

“That’s something the market merchants should solve among themselves. It’s not something I should get involved in. I have no grounds to intervene.”

“Why do you have no grounds? Didn’t I tell you just now?”

What Dal-jae intended to report was not any wrongdoing committed by Insaeng Jumak.

What he intended to report was Ha-yoon’s identity, the key person behind Insaeng Jumak.

“There’s a woman working there whose background is completely unknown! We need to arrest that woman right now and interrogate her.”

“Her background is unknown? What do you mean by that?”

When Choi Hyang-seo became interested again, Dal-jae lowered his voice and spoke.

“There’s a woman working there, and the way she talks and behaves… she doesn’t seem like someone from around here.”

“Not from around here?”

“Yes. Her hair is only cut down to her ears, as if she cut it somewhere herself. And more importantly, she claims she lost her memory and doesn’t know where her hometown is. Isn’t that obviously a lie?”

“Hmm…”

Choi Hyang-seo rubbed his chin and fell into thought.

“She must be a runaway slave. Otherwise, there’s no reason for her to tell such a lie. Isn’t that right, Chief Clerk?”

“A runaway slave…”

As it happened, Choi Hyang-seo also remembered having a hard time several years ago while trying to catch a slave who had run away with property.

Fortunately, he had managed to catch the man in a certain village, and although he could not recover everything, he was able to recover part of the stolen property.

He made up for the missing amount by selling the man to a salt merchant.

The unpleasant feelings from that time slowly began to rise again.

“If that’s the case, then it’s a different story.”

In Joseon, slaves were a kind of resource with monetary value.

Therefore, catching a runaway slave was considered a great achievement.

Depending on which household the slave belonged to, there could also be additional rewards.

For example, if he was lucky enough to catch and return a slave belonging to a high-ranking nobleman, he could be promoted in return or ask that nobleman for a favor in the future.

Finally, the benefits and interests lined up perfectly.

Bang!

Choi Hyang-seo slammed his hand down on the desk.

“Fine! I’ll send the constables tomorrow morning and confirm that woman’s identity.”

“Thank you, Chief Clerk! Thank you so much!”

After finally getting what he wanted, a sly smile spread across Dal-jae’s lips.

Even though he had not drunk a single drop of alcohol, Dal-jae already felt drunk from the excitement of the crisis that was about to fall upon Insaeng Jumak.

Around dawn,

Ha-yoon, who had gotten up early, was sitting in the empty tavern.

Why am I here…?

When she had suddenly fallen into the Joseon era, she had been too confused to even have the time to think about such things.

The Joseon era?

Something she had only seen in dramas and novels had suddenly become reality, and she could not think of anything.

The instinct to survive somehow was all that controlled Ha-yoon.

But as the tavern became stable again and she gradually adapted to this era, questions began to arise one by one.

The fundamental question of what had brought her here in the first place.

The jade ring. That jade ring brought me here.

She remembered the moment of the accident, when the jade ring had trembled and a brilliant light had wrapped around her.

And when she opened her eyes again, the jade ring had disappeared without a trace.

She did not know whether it had disappeared as a result of sending her to Joseon or whether she had simply lost it.

I have to find that jade ring again.

Ha-yoon knew.

The jade ring existed somewhere in Joseon.

Her father had emphasized that the jade ring was an object that had been discovered during the Joseon era.

To do that, I have to become very successful here!

Whether it was to return to the future or to find the only keepsake left by her father, Ha-yoon could not stop.

She had to make Insaeng Jumak even bigger.

She had to use its influence to find the jade ring.

The success of Insaeng Jumak was the key to returning to the future.

In the end, there was only one answer.

Survive.

And succeed.

Once she made a plan, her confused mind felt a little clearer.

“Then, shall I sell some delicious gukbap today too!”

Just as Ha-yoon finished thinking and was about to stand up—

Bang―!

Suddenly, the door of the tavern flew open with a loud noise, and constables rushed inside.

“What is this… Gasp!”

Startled by the noise, Munsik and Ok-bun hurriedly ran out.

“Why are the constables here…?”

“No, more importantly, why are they carrying weapons like that…?”

Seeing the constables as if they had come to arrest some serious criminal, Munsik cautiously approached them.

“Um… What brings the honorable constables here?”

The man who appeared to be the leader of the constables slowly looked around the tavern.

In a low and intimidating voice, he asked,

“This is Insaeng Jumak, is it not?”

“Yes. This is indeed Insaeng Jumak, but…”

“Who is the woman with the short hair?”

“……!”

When the constables suddenly began looking for her, Ha-yoon instinctively shrank her shoulders.

Munsik calmly continued responding to them.

“Excuse me, but why are you looking for Ha-yoon?”

“You don’t need to know that. Just tell us where the woman is.”

“Well, that…”

Sensing that something was wrong, Munsik hesitated to answer.

If he told them the truth, they looked ready to arrest Ha-yoon immediately.

Unable to cause them any more trouble, Ha-yoon stepped forward herself.

“It’s me. I’m the woman you’re looking for.”

“Hmm.”

The constable compared Ha-yoon’s appearance with the bundle of papers he had brought.

In fact, there was hardly any need to compare them at all. Ha-yoon’s appearance was unmistakable.

A woman with short hair could not possibly exist in Joseon.

The constable stared at Ha-yoon for a moment before speaking.

“A report has been made against you.”

“A report?”

“That’s right. What is your status?”

“My status?”

At the word status, Ha-yoon froze for a moment.

Ha-yoon’s status was that of a Korean woman from the twenty-first century.

By the standards of this time, she would simply be an ordinary commoner.

But even if she said that, she had no way to prove it.

“I, well…”

When Ha-yoon hesitated to answer, the constables pressured her even more strongly.

“What are you doing?! Tell us your status at once!”

“Ah, well…”

Ha-yoon hesitated because there was no way for her to prove her identity.

The constable glared at her suspiciously.

“Could it be that you have no status to prove?”

“……!”

The moment the constables realized that Ha-yoon had no way to prove her identity, their attitude completely changed.

Their suspicion had turned into certainty.

Soon, the leader ordered the constables,

“You there! Bind that woman at once and take her to the government office!”

“Yes!”

“Oh my! Ha-yoon!”

“No! That child is not a criminal!”

Munsik and Ok-bun tried to stop Ha-yoon from being dragged away, but there was nothing they could do.

“Stand back! If you interfere with the government’s affairs any further, you will be charged with the same crime.”

“Gasp!”

Faced with the constables’ threats, the couple eventually took a step back.

Ha-yoon comforted the two of them.

“Don’t worry. Everything will be fine.”

“Ha-yoon…!”

“I’ll be back soon. Until then, please take good care of Insaeng Jumak.”

“Oh dear, what are we going to do…!”

And so, with no way to prove her identity, Ha-yoon was taken to the government office under the unfair accusation of being a runaway slave.

And even over the once-bright and peaceful Insaeng Jumak, dark clouds had begun to gather.