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Episode 56: Start of Business (3)

Even though Bright Flower Pavilion was closed, people didn’t care at all. Even though it was said to be repaired and returned anew, no one was expecting it to be like that.

“Are you really going to offer half price?”

And Jin Myeong was once again suffering from Yang Jeon. People were already there, tearing down the old buildings on the hill and building a new Bright Flower Pavilion.

“I think it’ll be okay. Just looking at this place now, the building definitely looks like it’ll be built splendidly.”

They were staying in a lodging facility built next to where Bright Flower Pavilion is currently being built. It was a place that was luxurious yet comfortable enough to not be uncomfortable at all. Since this was the level of a place that had been hastily built as a lodging facility, expectations for the newly built Bright Flower Pavilion were high.

“If the exterior looks good, customers will inevitably come in.”

“Yes. That’s why I’m doing it that way. Why are you doing it at half price?”

It’s a place that doesn’t make any money because there aren’t any customers. Although they were holding on for now with Jin Myeong’s pocket money, it was not something that could be done forever.

“You really don’t know much about Yang Jeon.”

“Huh? What do you mean?”

“It’s to attract people. It had to be an affordable price so people will come and try it out.”

If the price is expensive, there is no need to come to Bright Flower Pavilion.

“There are already other good places, so why come to Bright Flower Pavilion?”

“So, are you going to keep making it that cheap?”

“How could that be? A hundred days. Exactly a hundred days.”

During those 100 days, Jin Myeong had to attract a lot of customers and become famous.

“If you keep getting used to the half-price, you’ll fall in love with Bright Flower Pavilion. Then, even if the price goes up, you’ll come back again.”

“I don’t know.”

With the help of the Namga Merchant Group, the quality of the alcohol was good and the attendants were excellent. And the appearance of the courtesans that Jin Myeong brought was also exceptional. But this was no ordinary bar.

“Would you spend a lot of money in a place where you can’t even hug a courtesan and just watch a performance, dance, drink, and talk?”

“Well, I don’t know.”

Although Yang Jeon was still skeptical, Jin Myeong seemed more confident than expected.

“And the prices are so high that ordinary people can’t even afford private rooms.”

“Yes?”

“Should we estimate the silver on the fifth floor to be around 100 nyang?”

“What kind of nonsense is that?”

‘Who on earth would come here for a hundred nyang of silver?’

‘Who spends in one day the amount of money that would normally feed a family for four years?’

“But I think the fifth floor should be like that? A place where ordinary people can’t even set foot. What do you think?”

“If you ask me how it is……”

Yang Jeon couldn’t answer easily. He couldn’t be sure if what Jin Myeong was saying was really true. Rather, he felt that Jin Myeong was thinking too lightly.

“People who feel superior because they have a lot of money. We invite those people to a special place.”

“…Will that work?”

“I have to make it happen.”

To do that, didn’t Jin Myeong have to find new accommodations and only bring good alcohol?

“And what about Yuran?”

“She has talent.”

The woman that Jin Myeong bought with five nyang of silver. Here, she rested and ate well, and her once skinny body began to gain weight. As the scars on her face disappeared, her hidden beauty was revealed.

“Really? I guess that kid should be the mascot, the representative, right?”

“Yes. I guess……”

The one who best accepted the guidance of the Four Flowers was Yuran, who had never learned anything before. She was absorbing all of the teachings of the Gentlemen at an incredible pace.

“Then now that child will become the owner of the fifth floor.”

“Ah……”

“But I guess she’ll have to show her face first.”

Their faces should not be covered from the beginning. For the first hundred days, all the courtesans had to come out and show themselves to the guests.

“The second-floor costs ten nyang, the third-floor costs twenty, the fourth-floor costs fifty, and the fifth-floor costs one hundred nyang.”

“…I really don’t know.”

“The first floor is cheap, so anyone can come. But from the second floor onwards, you can’t enter without fame, power, and money.”

Yang Jeon realized. That Jin Myeong’s thoughts would never change.

“How many rich people are there in this vast world?”

Children of the Five Great Clans, children of slightly larger families, and children of high-ranking officials. Those are the people Jin Myeong is targeting. As long as the rich get richer and the poor get poorer, even though times have changed, there are bound to be those born with a silver spoon in their mouths.

“Even if it fails, I won’t know. After all, only the Young Master’s money went into it.”

“Okay. It’s my money, so I’ll do whatever I want with it.”

Yang Jeon eventually gave up on persuading Jin Myeong. Time passed while Yang Jeon’s worries grew deeper and deeper. Finally, the magnificent building that Jin Myeong had envisioned, Bright Flower Pavilion, was completed, and its doors were finally opened.

“Wasn’t this place called High Demon Pavilion?”

“It seems that the name has now been changed to Bright Flower Pavilion.”

“That name really sucked.”

And on the day Bright Flower Pavilion first opened, people started flocking in. But it didn’t take long for people’s faces to change from anticipation to curiosity.

“Is this a bar?”

“It just seems like a simple bar.”

Usually, when one thinks of a bar, they can’t help but think of a typical red-light district. However, the first floor of the Bright Flower Pavilion they were looking at now looked more like a drinking establishment or an inn than a typical bar.

“Okay, please sit down. You can sit here and order.”

Even the waiters on the floor were visible. The waiters skilfully guided the guests at their tables.

“Hmm.”

They were fooled by the half-price price, but they felt like they came for nothing. But, thanks to the skilful guidance of the waiters, they couldn’t help but order food and drinks without realizing it.

“It doesn’t seem to be a brothel, but……”

(Refining ‘giraffe’ [Girin/Giru] -> ‘brothel’ context.)

“I just think of it as a tavern.”

“Still, isn’t it surprising that you can drink this alcohol at this price?”

It appears that the half price claim was not a lie. Although it wasn’t the brothel they had in mind, they were happy to be able to eat great food and drink at a cheap price.

“Are they the courtesans here?”

“That’s great.”

The guests watched in silence as the courtesans appeared with their musical instruments. The courtesans who appeared briefly greeted the guests, then went up to the stage that Jin Myeong had set up in the center of the first floor and began playing instruments.

“What the hell is this?”

“They’re suddenly playing?”

The guests looked bewildered when the courtesans suddenly appeared and began to play music and dance.

“Hmm. It’s definitely good.”

“This isn’t bad either.”

The doubt was fleeting. They quickly became absorbed in the performance and dance of the courtesans. They started pouring the alcohol faster and faster, bringing it to their mouth.

“The reaction is not as bad as I thought.”

“Still, I think it’ll be difficult for a while.”

The immediate reaction was not bad, but the positive feedback was still negative. Jin Myeong guessed it’s because when you say pleasure house, one would think of it as a red-light district.

“I don’t always have to be the same as everyone else. Who knows? Maybe others will follow suit later.”

“Well, I don’t know if that’s true.”

Jin Myeong couldn’t tell if there really were such things in the Central Plains or not. But if these types of places become popular, it will definitely be because of Bright Flower Pavilion.

“Have the courtesans move around slightly after they finish playing.”

“Yes.”

Not all the courtesans played at once.

Jin Myeong had no intention of quietly teasing the courtesans who did not perform. They had to go around the first floor and talk to the guests.

“What’s on the upper floors?”

“I heard that you have to pay a lot of money there.”

“How much?”

“Ten nyang of silver?”

“Is it that great?”

The guests who were talking about the upper floors still didn’t understand. Of course, the food and drinks are delicious. The courtesans playing and dancing in front are a delight to the eyes and ears. But they don’t think it’s worth ten nyang of silver.

“Isn’t it supposed to keep you from touching them even if you go up there?”

“No way. It’s still ten nyang.”

The most important thing to keep in mind at Bright Flower Pavilion. You must never touch them unless the courtesan allows you to. When customers first heard it here, they were so shocked that they thought they had heard wrong.

If they had heard this story in advance, they wouldn’t have even thought of coming to Bright Flower Pavilion even if it was half price. Anyway, because of the talk of being kicked out, most people only talked to the courtesan, but not everyone was like that.

“Ahh! Stop it!”

“Tch! Where are you yelling and making a fuss!”

Jin Myeong grimaced at the sharp scream followed by a male voice.

“If you’re a courtesan, you should pour drinks like a courtesan! Why are you acting so smart!”

A man with a flushed face, perhaps slightly drunk, grabbed the wrist of a courtesan standing next to him and shouted.

“Customer.”

“Huh? What is it?”

The man turned his head nervously at the voice coming from behind him. Then a man with a huge body was looking down at him.

“You can’t do that at Bright Flower Pavilion.”

As Mak-il, the eldest of the Mak brothers, smiled with a fierce expression, the man who had been harassing the courtesan stopped moving.

“Sir, you must leave now.”

“Huh? What! What are you!”

Mak-il said, grabbing the man by the back of his neck. The man tried to resist, but was unable to stop the attack.

“I’m a guest!”

“I’m sorry, but Bright Flower Pavilion doesn’t need guests like you.”

The answer was no. The man crumpled his face as he looked at the Jin Myeong that appeared before him.

“What are you!”

“The owner of this place.”

“Oh! That’s great! You made such a ridiculous plan and then you even insisted on it!”

“If you don’t like it, then don’t come. But if you come, then you have to keep your promises.”

The man who was about to rush at Jin Myeong stopped moving when something pressed down on his body with a thud. He thought the guard was crushing his body, but that wasn’t the case. Instead, Mak-il stood still at a distance from him.

“Ugh.”

His body began to tremble involuntarily with an unknown chill. And the man could tell that it was because of Jin Myeong who was smiling in front of him.

“Get out.”

“…Ugh.”

“I won’t accept the money.”

But despite Jin Myeong’s words, the man did not move. All he could do was somehow stand on wobbly legs.

“He fainted. How could someone who doesn’t even know martial arts be able to withstand the Master’s murderous intent?”

The situation finally ended after the Yang Jeon’s response.

Mak-il threw the unconscious man outside.

The noisy Bright Flower Pavilion suddenly became very quiet. Customers never thought that they would actually chase away the guests.

“It was quite noisy. Enjoy yourselves.”

The quiet atmosphere ended only after Jin Myeong went up to the upper floor.

“But is it really okay to do this?”

“What else?”

Yang Jeon immediately followed Jin Myeong. Jin Myeong’s actions of kicking out the guest seemed a bit harsh.

“What if all the customers stop coming like this?”

“It doesn’t matter though.”

Jin Myeong looked down at the noisy atmosphere on the first floor again.

“Don’t get me wrong, Yang Jeon. This is just for fun. I was a little serious, but I don’t care if this place goes down.”

Is it because Jin Myeong’s money went into it? Or maybe it was because Jin Myeong was working harder than expected?

It seems that Yang Jeon thought that Bright Flower Pavilion had to have a lot of guests.

“So don’t put too much meaning into this. It’s just something like that.”

Yang Jeon had no choice but to nod at Jin Myeong’s words, which felt cold to him.

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