Chapter 38
. Bae Sook-hee, Na Min-soo, and Seo Ji-won
On the altar, the Taoist Master Cheonha, who had been leading the followers in chanting, stepped beside the cult leader, the Heavenly Child General (Agi Jangsu).
“Everyone gathered here today in this holy temple must already know.
Grand Inspector Park Hyuk-kwon took his own life in his study.”
At those words, the followers of Cheonsanggyo bowed deeply toward the Heavenly Child General, who stood towering like a mountain.
“Heavenly Child General!”
“Lord of the Heavenly Faith!”
Master Cheonha raised his palm to quiet them.
“Our divine leader, the Heavenly Child General, foretold this already. What did he say?”
His voice grew louder, echoing through the cave temple.
“Yes—he said, ‘On the eve of the third month, the bluest scale shall tip.’”
“Ohh!”
“Ahh!”
Some gasped, others wept with emotion.
The shrine was burning with feverish heat.
“And exactly on that day, the one who held the highest seat of the Office of Censors—whose very name contained the character for ‘scale’—Park Hyuk-kwon, was found dead.”
“Long live the Heavenly Lord!”
“All hail the Heavenly Child!”
The cavern resounded with chants of worship.
“Our Lord also foretold that Minister of Personnel Kim Du-ryeom would die in the arms of a lowly courtesan—and that prophecy too has come true!”
“All hail the Heavenly Lord!”
“All hail the Heavenly Child!”
“Heavenly General! Lord of the Celestial Realm! Ten thousand years of glory!”
The followers, lying prostrate with candles beside their heads, raised their flames and shouted the name of the Heavenly Child as if not to be outdone by one another.
In Joseon, everyone knew the legend of Agi Jangsu, the “miraculous child general.” Every grandmother, grandfather, and village elder had told the story. But no one had ever heard of a child general who grew up into an adult.
All stories ended with the gifted child being killed—by frightened family or by royal soldiers. For this reason, many shamans enshrined the unjustly slain child general as a deity.
But here—before them—stood a grown Agi Jangsu.
He too had been born under the same cursed fate. Yet he had defied it.
He broke free from the chains of bloodline and class and began to preach Heaven’s will to save the people lost in the age of corruption and decay.
This Agi Jangsu was Heaven’s will incarnate—
born to overturn a rotten world and build a new one.
“Heavenly General Agi Jangsu! Lord of the Celestial Realm! Glory everlasting!”
The followers straightened their backs, shouting with one voice, trembling and weeping.
“The world you long for is almost here!
Those who follow the Heavenly Child shall be saved.
Those who turn away shall suffer forever in the flames of hell!”
The Taoist Master bowed ninety degrees toward his leader.
Then the Heavenly Child’s voice echoed through the temple, as if spoken from the depths of the cave itself.
“Believe. If you believe, you will be happy.
If you do not, you will fall into misery.”
“We believe! Heavenly General Agi Jangsu! Lord of the Celestial Realm!”
“Even a slave who believes shall enter Heaven,
and even a king who doubts shall burn in Hell.”
How clear and absolute his message was.
“We believe! Heavenly General Agi Jangsu! Lord of the Celestial Realm!”
The Heavenly Child slowly lifted one hand.
Seeing this, the Taoist Master’s voice quavered.
“The Heavenly Lord will now deliver a new prophecy!”
The followers instantly extinguished their candles.
At that moment, two men holding torches beside the altar moved.
They plunged their torches into the large clay jars before them.
The entire temple was swallowed by darkness.
Hundreds of people stood motionless, like clay dolls.
No breath, no sound. It was as if time itself had stopped.
Outside the cave, an owl hooted—proof that time still flowed.
Then, something about the Heavenly Child seemed… different.
The hem of his robe, which had dragged on the floor, now touched it perfectly—as if his body had grown taller.
The followers, called Heaven’s Workers, gaped in awe.
The Heavenly Child General’s feet were floating off the ground.
“I prophesy…”
All the followers bowed their foreheads to the floor.
“A man bearing the surname Jeong, who dwells where fruits ripen,
shall die on the next full moon.”
“Ohh! Heavenly General Agi Jangsu! Lord of the Celestial Realm!”
Without a sound of footsteps, the Heavenly Child glided among them like flowing water.
The believers lifted their heads, holding their breath, gazing up at him with trembling reverence.
Finally, the Heavenly Child stepped out of the shrine, descended gently to the ground, and disappeared toward the cave’s entrance, his robe fluttering like a divine being’s.
“Why did she stop packing the herbs? She only worked the morning shift—where’s she going now?”
“Hwang-hee, are you still staring at Lady Miyu like that?”
Hwang-hee blinked at Byun Ha-yeon, confused by his tone.
The two men had been watching Miyu from about ten meters away since morning.
“Miyu loves money too much to leave her shop. If she had errands, she’d have her clerks handle them. There’s no way she’d close after a morning sale.”
“Then why stop halfway through packing?”
“That, I can’t tell. Her mind’s impossible to read.”
“Understanding that woman is harder than peering a thousand fathoms into the sea.”
The morning scene at the herbal shop was unlike any other day.
Normally by now, Miyu would be dividing herbs into leaf packets for small-portion sales, scolding them for idling and dragging them to help her wrap herbs.
But today, the large jars of medicinal roots were lined up outside the shop in neat rows, like soldiers on parade.
Byun Ha-yeon fanned himself, tilting his head as he thought of Yi-un, who had been working unusually hard lately.
“Doesn’t Yi-un seem oddly eager about this business?”
“Maybe he invested more behind our backs?”
Hwang-hee narrowed his eyes.
“If he did, that’s betrayal. As a member of the So-maek-dang (Wheat Guild), I’ll have to scold him.”
Just then, Yi-un approached, dusting off his hands.
“Be honest,” Ha-yeon said bluntly. “Why are you suddenly working so hard?”
Yi-un smiled faintly. “Nothing like that.”
“Then why the sudden zeal? You used to hate trade more than any of us.”
“Who said I hated it?”
“I saw it with my own eyes—you railing against commerce louder than anyone! So why this sudden devotion?”
“I invested.”
Ha-yeon and Hwang-hee both stared.
“See? I told you he must’ve invested more.”
Yi-un chuckled. “No, same as you—twenty nyang each.”
“Then what’s with the enthusiasm?”
“It’s a good cause. Even the poor will be able to buy everyday medicine.”
He smiled warmly at the shop.
“Are you the king? The crown prince? Or a royal duke?”
“Does one need to be royalty to care for the people?”
He added earnestly, “Even a painter should worry for his country and think of its people. What’s good for the people is good for my family, my friends, and my neighbors too.”
“Well… that’s true,” they admitted, still suspicious.
“Anyway, it’s not just me. Didn’t you two come here early hoping to lend a hand too?”
“That’s true—but today’s strange. She’s stopped portioning herbs.”
“She said she’s changing the selling method—adding something new.”
“What kind of method?”
“She mentioned Bae Sook-hee, Na Min-soo, and Seo Ji-won.”
“What? No matter how well business is going, hiring three more workers for a shop that small? That’s absurd!”
“Yeah, it’s not an inn or a trading house.”
They both shook their heads. Labor costs would eat up the profits fast.
“Well, who knows.”
“Right, let’s just watch and take the profits.”
“Agreed.”
Rows of large jars stood before the herbal shop.
Each jar held a different herb, marked with a small tag listing its name and the amount one coin could buy.
As the sun climbed high, the bustling crowds began to fill Songpa Market, the largest in Joseon.
Miyu and Bok-sil, ready for the day, stood behind the jars.
“Remember,” Miyu said, “we don’t sell single herbs. A purchase must total at least one nyang. Prices vary, so if five herbs total over a nyang, you can sell them—but if six herbs total less, no deal. After they choose, always add a base fee of two jeon.”
“Two jeon base fee. Got it, Boss Lady. Don’t worry—I’ve been hardened in the marketplace since childhood. But, uh, these new recruits sure are late.”
“What are you talking about?” Miyu asked.
“Our juniors!” Bok-sil huffed, curling her lip. “First day on the job and not even here yet! Skipping work already? Just let them show up!”
“Wait, Bok-sil, who’s supposed to be coming?”
“You said so yourself—three helpers.”
“Three helpers?”
“Bae Sook-hee, Na Min-soo, Seo Ji-won. I remember their names exactly.”
“Ahh—Baskin-Robbins Thirty-One.”
“Yeah, that’s them! Bae Sook-hee, Na Min-soo, Seo Ji-won!”
“Heh. All right, shall we open shop?”
“What? You’re not waiting for them?”
“Nope. They went to find their mom.”
“What? Their mom?”
“Yeah, she’s an alien.”
“All three with different last names? Ohhh, I see—the mom’s talented. Three fathers… and she’s an alien?”
“Okay, enough talking. Let’s start.”
Then the two of them turned to the oncoming crowd and shouted in unison:
“Pick only the herbs you really need!”
“Buy only what your family truly requires!”
“It’s not expensive!”
Miyu’s heart pounded. Would this new sales method actually work—or fall flat?
