A Child Who Resembles Me [EN]: Chapter 129

129. Brother’s Memory

The Seryun Group of today, built by Jae-gwang dedicating his youth, is a company that grew from its humble beginnings in the snack business.

Although Jae-gwang doesn’t directly develop products now, in his younger days, he traveled extensively, both domestically and internationally, tirelessly studying and researching flavors. The numerous snacks Jae-gwang created are still beloved as global bestsellers.

For the Seryun Group, the food business is paramount. It’s a formula that has remained successful for decades, and Jae-gwang takes great pride in it. Therefore, Jae-gwang cherishes and appreciates talented individuals with discerning palates.

Thanks to Jae-gwang’s warm demeanor, Jeong-o’s tension eased slightly. Yena was also delighted that Jae-gwang listened to her and even praised her, smiling brightly.

“Our Yena, do you like candy?”

Jae-gwang tilted his head, looked at Yena, and asked. Yena glanced at her mother, who usually limits her candy intake, before answering.

“Yes.”

“Okay. Then, after you finish your meal, let’s make candy with Grandpa.”

It seemed the company had released a candy-making kit as a new product.

Yena’s eyes sparkled. She was thrilled by the prospect of eating candy after finishing her meal, and even making it herself. If she made candy with her grandfather, her mother wouldn’t be able to object too much. Buoyed by this, Yena chewed and swallowed her vegetable side dishes with gusto.

“Does the new daughter-in-law find the food to her liking?”

“Yes. It’s very delicious.”

“Good. Eat heartily.”

Jae-gwang beamed at Yena, but felt a pang of awkwardness towards Jeong-o.

He was filled with the joy of having a daughter-in-law and gratitude towards her for raising his child so well, but the guilt of not resolving the conflict with his wife weighed heavily on him. Consequently, the mealtime was subtly awkward and quiet.

In the midst of this subdued atmosphere, someone entered the dining room.

“Father.”

It was Ji-heon’s half-brother, Jeong Ji-tae.

Jeong-o, who had just taken a spoonful of rice, was startled and quickly swallowed her food before turning her head. A man as handsome and dashing as Ji-heon was standing nearby.

He was completely different from the images she had seen in news articles. She wondered how someone could be so unphotogenic.

“Oh, you’re here now? I thought you were going to arrive after we finished eating,” Jae-gwang said, his tone slightly gruff. Jeong-o wiped her mouth and stood up from her seat.

Ji-heon, who had been observing Jeong-o’s reaction, gently took Jeong-o’s hand, who was standing awkwardly, and guided her back down. Knowing his wife’s appreciation for handsome men, he was subtly monitoring her reaction.

Jeong Ji-tae, however, didn’t seem to notice Ji-heon’s gesture and greeted Jeong-o indifferently.

“Hello. I’m Jeong Ji-tae.”

“Yes. I’m Lee Jeong-o.”

A simple greeting was exchanged without any additional introductions like ‘Ji-heon’s brother’ or ‘Jeong Ji-heon’s wife.’ Jeong-o felt her tension return, and Ji-tae turned his head towards Yena.

“You must be Yena.”

“Hello.”

Ji-tae looked at the child with a reaction that seemed unchanged, or perhaps with a slight upturn at the corners of his lips – a reaction that was hard to define as a smile. Then, he turned and sat next to Jae-gwang. Only after that did he greet Ji-heon.

“It’s been a while.”

“Yeah.”

Ji-heon’s response to Ji-tae’s greeting was terse. Only Jeong-o’s eyes widened slightly next to Ji-heon.

*Is that it?* They said they were meeting after a year.

The greeting felt so perfunctory, not like people meeting after a year, but as if they had seen each other just yesterday. Even though she had already heard about it from Ji-heon, it was still surprising.

Jeong Ji-tae didn’t seem to have come to the main house specifically to see Jeong Ji-heon and his family.

As expected. As soon as Ji-tae sat down, he began discussing a matter unrelated to the meal with Jae-gwang.

“Did you hear the news? The Chief Justice of the Supreme Court is retiring tomorrow.”

“Is that so? I heard rumors that he wasn’t in good health.”

“The Blue House [the South Korean presidential residence] will immediately nominate a candidate for the next Chief Justice. Judge Chae Seo-bok is the frontrunner.”

Judge Chae Seo-bok. He was the father of Chae Eun-bi and Chae Eun-yeop. It wasn’t entirely unrelated to Ji-heon, but it was an inappropriate topic for a family meal, so Ji-heon and Jeong-o simultaneously stopped using their chopsticks.

“Do you have to talk about that during mealtime?”

Jae-gwang was the first to voice his displeasure.

“Then what should we talk about?”

As if he were the host in charge of this gathering, Ji-tae asked Jae-gwang. Jeong-o, thinking that this family really lacked conversational skills, lowered her head and surreptitiously observed their reactions when she heard another indifferent voice.

“I’m getting married.”

Jeong-o’s head shot up.

It wasn’t Jeong Ji-heon who had spoken, but Jeong Ji-tae.

Ji-heon also stared at Ji-tae with wide eyes. Jae-gwang also seemed surprised.

“Why are *you*?”

“Am I not allowed to? He did it too,” Jae-gwang pointed at Ji-heon with his chin as he replied.

“Do you have someone?”

“Can I do it alone without someone?”

“Who is it?”

“I’ll tell you again soon. Today isn’t my day to be the main character.”

*You’re saying you’re not the main character, but you’re certainly acting like one!*

Flames flickered in Ji-heon’s eyes.

Jae-gwang, noticing Yena’s curious expression, asked in a low voice.

“Don’t tell me… is she pregnant?”

“That will happen someday.”

*Gasp.* Jeong-o couldn’t contain herself and quickly swallowed the laughter that threatened to erupt.

*These people, maybe they’re just clumsy at expressing themselves and have lived without meaningful conversation. They don’t know how to connect with each other.*

All three of them seemed so similar in their awkwardness that she couldn’t really blame any one of them. The imperfections displayed by people who seemed so perfect on the outside helped to ease Jeong-o’s tension.

Amidst this awkwardness, only Yena remained focused silently on her meal. With a clear goal in mind, Yena emptied her rice bowl faster than usual.

“Grandpa, I’m done eating. When are we going to make candy?”

“Yena.”

Jeong-o gently cautioned her because the others were still eating, but as expected, Jae-gwang welcomed Yena’s eagerness.

“Okay! So that’s why our Yena ate so quickly! Then shall we go make candy?”

Jae-gwang got up from his seat without finishing his meal. Eventually, the others got up as well.

Jae-gwang led Yena to the room next to the kitchen. She had expected just a new candy kit, but it was much larger than she had imagined.

In the space that Ji-heon knew as his father’s workshop, there was a wide iron workbench and colorful lumps of dough. They weren’t lumps of flour dough, but lumps of candy dough. He was planning to make candy himself.

“When did you prepare all this…?”

Ji-heon, quite surprised, asked blankly. Ji-tae next to him was equally taken aback. His father, who had never even made him ramen when he was young, was now going to make candy himself for his granddaughter.

“Grandpa practiced all night to make it for our Yena!”

Jae-gwang said, stretching the dough and blowing air into it. He had made thorough preparations to impress his granddaughter.

Whether he really practiced all night or not, Jae-gwang’s hands moved skillfully on the iron plate. The lumps of dough were arranged to form the name ‘Jeong Yena’ in large letters, with a heart next to it.

“Now, this big thing will become a small candy the size of Yena’s finger. Now, our Yena, try rolling it once,” Jae-gwang said, stretching and rolling the candy dough that had been shaped into a name like a rice cake. Yena’s eyes lit up as she approached and stood next to Jae-gwang.

Yena’s small hands and Jae-gwang’s rough hands moved in rhythm. The candy dough gradually changed from the thickness of a rice cake to the thickness of *tteokbokki* [spicy stir-fried rice cakes] rice cake. Jae-gwang quickly corrected any unevenness caused by Yena’s hands.

Soon, a long string of candy was made. Jae-gwang quickly cut the cooled candy string with a cutter. Ji-heon’s mouth also dropped open like Yena’s.

*My father is not that kind of person, my father is not that kind of person….*

He’s not the kind of person who plays with children so openly and gives them gifts like Santa Claus.

The change was bewildering but not unpleasant. Just as Ji-heon had introduced his daughter to Jae-gwang at first, Yena was a princess saving the world. Ji-heon could understand the feeling of wanting to give her anything when he saw her face.

“Here. Look. It’s the only Jeong Yena candy in the world.”

The cross-section of the candy that her grandfather handed her had the name Jeong Yena neatly engraved on it. Even the heart next to it was very charming.

“Wow!”

Yena couldn’t hide her joy. The name, which was still unfamiliar, now looked just sweet. Jae-gwang filled a container with candy and handed it to Yena. Yena jumped up and down in place. Behind her, Ji-heon also smiled happily with Jeong-o.

“I heard our Yena is good at Go [a strategic board game] too? Shall we play a game of Go with Grandpa?”

“Yes!”

After finishing making candy, it was another activity right away. Jae-gwang had many things he wanted to do. He also wanted to see how well the child played Go.

Jae-gwang took Yena’s hand and left, and Jeong-o followed behind.

Ji-heon saw Ji-tae remaining at the workbench without immediately moving, gathering the scattered candies and putting them into an empty container. This was also a strange sight. As Ji-heon watched, Ji-tae stared back as if he had been caught doing something he shouldn’t have.

“I’ll take them. Is that okay?”

“What are you going to do with candy that has my daughter’s name on it?”

“There’s someone who likes candy.”

Ji-heon’s expression brightened. He understood immediately. His brother was in love. He seemed to be taking it to the person he was going to marry.

A person in love can look so different. Ji-heon laughed at that fact anew.

“I should go now.”

Ji-tae said as he moved to the drawing room with Ji-heon.

“Already?”

“I’m busy with work. And I don’t like Go.”

Ah.

Ji-heon remembered something that happened a long time ago, more than 20 years ago, when he was very young.

Ji-heon and Ji-tae learned Go at the same time. Ji-heon started learning Go at a younger age than Ji-tae.

Because he was at an age where he wasn’t tied down by other studies, Ji-heon fell into the world of Go faster and was even able to offer advice when Ji-tae and Jae-gwang played Go.

Ji-heon still clearly remembers what Ji-tae said with a stiff face after being defeated in a game at that time.

“Instead of just watching, why do you have to meddle?”

Was that hurtful? Around that time, Ji-heon realized that Ji-tae and his mother were different, and they gradually drifted apart. By the time Ji-tae was in middle school, they barely exchanged a word a day.

“Do you remember? You scolded me for giving you advice when you were playing Go.”

“Of course. I remember.”

He asked casually, thinking he would have forgotten, but his brother remembered.