Fabre in Sacheon’s Tang Novel - Chapter 292

Chapter 292
Chorororok.
The amber tea that Geum Gi-ryung poured himself streamed steadily into the cup.
Simultaneously, a rich, pleasant fragrance began to permeate the air.
The delightful scent wafting from the teacup filled my nostrils.
“The smell is truly wonderful.”
“If it pleases you, I will reserve a portion for your personal use. Please, enjoy a cup now.”
“My thanks, Merchant Lord Geum.”
“Thank you.”
“I’ve been wondering about this since our last meeting—I should finally try it.”
This time, no one refused the tea offered by Geum Gi-ryung.
They had learned it was more valuable than gold, had come to understand he was a decent man, and by now, a certain level of trust had been established between us.
“Mmm. This is excellent.”
“The aroma is so pleasing.”
Both Sister Seol and Hwa-eun expressed their approval.

The purpose of this meeting with Geum Gi-ryung was to settle the final payment for removing the island and resolving the grain pest crisis.
The fee for island removal—one thousand silver nyang and a long-term information exchange agreement with the merchant lords—had already been agreed upon. That matter was closed.
For the grain pests, the loan previously advanced on the Ak Clan’s behalf was transformed into an interest-free loan with no repayment deadline. The bridal gifts stored on Geum Gi-ryung’s ship were officially transferred to the Ak Clan under Peng-hyung’s name.
But that had merely been an advance for dealing with the infestation.
A separate reward for me was still pending; it wasn’t enormous, but it was owed.

“To begin, I would like to suggest an amendment to our terms.”
The conversation, which had started so agreeably over the warm tea, took a sudden shift with Geum Gi-ryung’s words.
I tilted my head, curious.
Aside from Peng-hyung’s marriage gifts and his pact with the Ak Clan, the thousand silver nyang promised to me and the long-term information deals with the Taean merchants weren’t even finalized. And now he wanted to change the terms?
‘Surely not…’
Was this the classic bait-and-switch I had been wary of?
‘Tch… This Spicy Fabre’s temper can get quite fiery, you know. Are you certain about this?’
I maintained my composure and gave a slow nod.
He was a merchant, after all; perhaps he just wanted to negotiate.
“In what way?”
“I have reconsidered the conditions you asked for, Young Master So, and I feel my side is at a slight disadvantage.”
“A disadvantage?”
‘Seriously? How is providing information a disadvantage?
Do you really want me to shut that harbor gate on you?’
Just as I was growing irritated, Geum Gi-ryung smiled and continued.
“Regarding that information—if there is none to be found and we cannot provide anything to Young Master So, then that individual would essentially receive a service for free, correct?
Working without compensation goes against my principles. We did collect a thousand nyang from the Taean dock merchants upfront, but split between them, it amounts to very little.
Therefore, I wish to adjust the terms slightly—to be more beneficial for you, Young Master So. The original agreements will, of course, remain.”
“Ah, I… I understand.”
Hearing this, I immediately offered him a silent apology in my heart.
It turned out he was an honorable merchant after all.
A merchant from the Middle Plains with a conscience? In my previous life, I would have never believed it.
‘My apologies, Gi-ryung. I was wrong to doubt you.’
As I mentally atoned, he asked his next question.
“Is there anything specific you require, or a particular sum you had in mind?”
Ordinarily, I would deflect with a ‘you decide the price,’ but I couldn’t do that to someone this straightforward. I offered a slightly embarrassed look and answered truthfully.
There was something I wanted—I just hadn’t mentioned it because it seemed costly. But judging by his words, he might be willing to agree.
“Might it be possible for you to construct a ship for me?”
“A ship?”
Geum Gi-ryung appeared astonished.
He clearly hadn’t anticipated me asking for a vessel.
“Yes. And if the promised thousand silver nyang is insufficient to cover it, I would be grateful if you could apply that sum toward the ship’s cost.”
“If you mean a ship comparable to your current one, I can supply that at once. And there would even be silver left over.”
He seemed to think I merely desired a second boat. But that wasn’t it.
“No. I require a ship large enough to conceal that giant turtle’s back.”
“Ah… to hide the turtle’s appearance?”
“Correct.”
An ordinary turtle might heal its shell in months, but with Elder Geumdo, we couldn’t be sure how long it would take.
He was already over two centuries old and showed little physical aging—his entire body likely aged at a very slow rate.
This meant his shell could take years, or even decades, to fully restore. So we needed a covering.
Because the shell had suffered from rot, we had to remove all the sand and cleanse it thoroughly. This would leave Elder Geumdo’s golden shell completely visible—a certain way to attract trouble.
But by disguising him with a ship, we could even pass off his head as a figurehead. Hence, my desire to mount a ship on his shell.
Constructing a fixed edifice would be too heavy and cumbersome for him. It needed to be buoyant, fully encase the shell, and be lightweight. The solution was a custom-built ship.
As he listened, Geum Gi-ryung began calculating on his fingers.
“It would need to be at least double the size of a standard vessel and shaped to fit the turtle’s curvature. That requires significant labor. Your current boat is worth about a thousand nyang… This would be larger and made to order. Even at a minimum estimate, the cost would be around two thousand five hundred nyang.”
“Two thousand five hundred?”
“Yes, Young Master So. That is a conservative quote. In reality, most would demand three thousand to thirty-five hundred.”
‘Ugh… that’s… that’s a fortune.’
I was taken aback by the figure—a sum I could scarcely imagine. But it was necessary. Time to bargain.
“If that is not enough, I am prepared to include my current ship in the arrangement. We can sell it and add the proceeds to the payment.”
It was my first ship, but for the sake of this turtle-borne aircraft carrier, I was willing to part with it.
When I suggested adding my boat, Geum Gi-ryung pondered for a moment before nodding.
“Understood. Should there still be a shortfall, I will request additional contributions from the merchant guild.”
“But the island is already gone—would they actually agree to pay more?”
Even if he asked, I had already removed the island. Would they be willing to offer more money now?
At my question, Geum Gi-ryung flashed a cunning grin.
“One can never assume a lack of fools. But if I were to suggest the harbor could be blocked again, wouldn’t they be certain to pay? Don’t you agree?”
‘Gulp. So he knew?’
He hadn’t shown a single shrewd sign until now—so much so that I questioned his merchant credentials—but no, he was undoubtedly one of them.
I laughed uneasily, feeling like I’d been caught in a sly act.
“Haha… ha. A d-dangerous line of thought. Regardless, how long would construction take?”
“You likely need it soon, so I will expedite the process as much as possible. The timeline depends on how many workers I can allocate.”
His answer was perfectly satisfactory.
Then he looked at me and cautiously posed a final question.
“Young Master So, I have a feeling I will require your assistance again someday… and if we continue to foster this relationship, maybe one day… we could consider each other friends?”
He wanted to know if they could become friends, given how well they got along.
I responded with a grave expression.
“Tch… I’m disappointed.”
“Huh? W-was I overstepping?”
He recoiled at the word “disappointed.”
I looked him directly in the eye and said,
“No. It’s simply that… I already considered us friends. It appears I was alone in that.”
‘Man. Really. I’m not that petty.’
He could no longer contain himself and let out a shout,
“Gyaaaak!”
‘Hey—that’s my thing to say!’
He expressed a desire for friendship, but ended up screaming just like I did.

***
Tang tang tang!
With the final ring of the hammer, Elder Physician gave a satisfied nod.
“It is finished. Now we must seal the edges with adhesive and lacquer.”
He had just secured the patch over the crack in Geumdo’s shell.
A seal was essential. Mold could infiltrate, and relying on oiled paper indefinitely was not an option.
The procedure was as follows: first, the opening was sutured closed with Yoha’s silk threads to prevent infection or rejection.
Spider silk is a safe material—it causes no adverse reactions or rejection in animals or humans.
Then, a thin copper plate was fastened over it.
Yoha’s silk was there, true—but iron risked rust or poisoning, making copper the superior choice.
And in this age, copper was one of the few malleable and relatively inexpensive metals available.
I wished I could use gold, but the wounded area was simply too vast.
‘Forgive me for not giving you a gold shell, Geumdo. Sniff…’
Was this the feeling of a parent who couldn’t afford gold caps for their child’s teeth?
Even though Geumdo was far older than me, I felt a pang of sadness as I thanked Elder Physician.
“Thank you for your efforts.”
“My efforts… You provided me with spirit beast venom; I had to justify receiving it.”
In my past life, surgeons were sometimes humorously called the repairmen of people.
Installing metal rods into bones, sawing through joints—it was just like a construction site. Only the material was different. The same tools, the same manual work.
Elder Physician had that same craftsman’s aura.
This was, after all, his concept.
While I was struggling with how to protect Geumdo’s shell, he had proposed this method.
Create a copper plate, fix it over the shell, and seal the space between the copper and the shell with glue and lacquer.
It was feasible because the shell was so thick.
Now that I thought of it, even in my previous life, turtles with cracked or pierced shells were sometimes treated with adhesives or even items like bra fasteners. It was a sound plan.
The procedure was complete, and honestly, aside from not being real gold, the result was impressive.
Since the shell was naturally gold-colored, the match was good.
Now, all that remained was sealing the tiny gaps.
“Then I will journey to Bojeong to acquire the materials for the glue and lacquer.”
Bojeong was a city upstream on the Yellow River and the nearest port city to Beijing, where Hyung-nim’s ancestral Peng family was located.
It was some distance away, but until the new ship was ready, the farthest Geumdo could travel while disguised as a bamboo raft was Bojeong.
“Yes, and for now, let us cover the seam again with Jiju’s thread to keep out debris.”
“Understood.”
Incidentally, Bojeong was also near the intended destination of the two masters, Elder Physician and the Immortal of Herbs—Unghyeon.
“Now that the treatment is finished, I will inform everyone to prepare for our departure tomorrow.”
“Very well. I shall go and rest as well.”
Stepping down from Geumdo’s shell, I went directly to our boat.
Inside the cabin, I verified our supplies.
I was simply confirming everything was ready for the next day’s departure.
“Now that Geumdo’s treatment is over, are our provisions in order?”
“Yes, young master. All items sent from the Geumjeok Merchant Guild have been stowed aboard.”
The ship’s master confirmed there would be no problems with setting sail.
“Then please make certain nothing hinders our launch tomorrow.”
“Understood, young master.”
Preparations were almost finished. All that remained was to notify everyone who would be coming aboard.
When I disembarked and entered the Ak Clan compound, the guards greeted me respectfully.
“Have you completed your business, young master?”
“It is done. Do you know where Hyung-nim is at the moment?”
“Ah, he should be at the pavilion in the rear garden.”
“My thanks.”
Arriving at the pavilion, I found the Five Dragons of Ak—along with Hwa-eun and Sister Seol—all sharing tea.
As I drew near, Sister Seol hurried over and guided me to sit between her and Hwa-eun.
“Ryong, is it all finished?”
“Yes, Sister Seol.”
“So we leave tomorrow?”
“Yes. Everyone should make their preparations.”
As I spoke, looking around at the group, the Five Dragons of Ak all nodded.
Sister Seol said with excitement,
“They say the people there are suffering from anemia. What sort of spirit beast could it be? If they are lacking blood, perhaps it is a Bloodsucking Flying Rat?”
She had been speaking with Elder Physician yesterday, and they had speculated that if people were anemic, something might be targeting their blood—similar to Taean, a spirit beast might be involved.
Sister Seol seemed to be imagining something akin to a vampire bat.
But at her words, I complained inwardly.
‘Oh, Sister. Why must you spoil the anticipation?’
I was excited too, and… a bat? Really? A bat?
I felt a profound sense of betrayal.
That sort of guess was simply a jinx.