Return To The Building Owner [EN]: Chapter 410

“Attention! To the Battalion Commander!”

“Forward!”

Hyun-sung and Kim Dong-soo finished their initiation ceremony and left the battalion commander’s office. The two headed straight for the restroom.

“What’s going on?”

Kim Dong-soo looked around to make sure no one was there before immediately asking Hyun-sung.

“How did the battalion commander know that my father runs a large medicinal herb shop in Kyungdong Market?”

“Hey, isn’t that not the important thing right now?”

“What? What are you talking about?”

“Those three sets of herbal medicine are what’s going to make your military life easier. That’s what’s important. Do you understand what I’m saying now?”

“Ah…….”

Kim Dong-soo nodded as if he finally understood.

In his past life, Battalion Commander Lee Chun-soo had said the same thing to Kim Dong-soo. But back then, Kim Dong-soo didn’t understand why the battalion commander had said that.

Naturally, he had just answered vigorously, “Yes, sir!” The price for that was that his military life was inevitably tough.

But this time, it would be different. It wasn’t much, but Battalion Commander Lee Chun-soo would be drinking that murky water. Only Kim Dong-soo’s father, Kim Jin-yong, would know what was in it, but the important thing was that the murky water would make Kim Dong-soo’s military life a little bit easier.

“Do you think it’ll work?”

Kim Dong-soo seemed to have caught on and wanted to confirm.

“Of course. He’ll probably think of you every morning while he’s drinking his herbal medicine. Then, wouldn’t he naturally call the company commander to ask how you’re doing? If that happens, the company commander will naturally pay attention to you. That’s how the military works anyway.”

“But…….”

“Shh, someone’s coming.”

The two began to relieve themselves quietly, like mice.

Battalion Commander Lee Chun-soo didn’t say anything after the word ‘Nong.’ Hyun-sung couldn’t ask questions either. In the end, they had to leave the battalion commander’s office without figuring out what the word starting with ‘Nong’ meant.

Lee Chun-soo was left alone in the battalion commander’s office.

“Nongshim, huh…….”

He had received a call an hour before the new recruits arrived. It was from a completely unexpected place. It was from Nongshim headquarters. And it was directly from someone who was the chairman’s secretary.

-Please contact us when you need us.

That’s what the secretary had said directly. Contact them when he needed them? What did that mean? It meant they would help him. Whether it was material or something else.

It wasn’t just any company, but the one that had recently overtaken Samyang to become number one in the ramen industry. That was where the call came from. Not from a neighborhood corner store, but from Nongshim, the number one ramen company.

Of course, he wouldn’t personally receive help from such a place. In common terms, he could easily accept herbal medicine from a medicinal herb shop, but this was a different level. If he was greedy, he could be ruined before he even got promoted.

He had to get his star [promotion to general officer] next year anyway. He had to be even more careful about his behavior at times like this. Greed was a no-no. He wasn’t a fool who couldn’t tell the difference between shit and soybean paste [a Korean idiom for being foolish] and would just take whatever was given to him.

What the battalion needed most right now was a dining hall for the soldiers. The building was so old that it leaked when it rained. No matter how much he requested it, there was no way the budget would come down…….

“Yes, next spring, we’ll have a proper dining hall for the enlisted men…….”

Lee Chun-soo nodded with a satisfied expression, looking at the spot where Hyun-sung had been sitting. He was grateful that he was the top trainee from the recruit training center, but to have Nongshim come along as a bonus, what a lucky charm he was.

***

Hyun-sung and Kim Dong-soo came down to the headquarters company.

After reporting to the company commander, the two were waiting in the barracks. Because it was during work hours, there were only three people in the barracks.

The two were Hyun-sung and Kim Dong-soo, and the other person was Sergeant Oh Sang-geun, who was being discharged tomorrow.

From a week before discharge, they were excluded from all work. Whether they slept or read a book, no one would bother them. Maybe that was the reward for their military service.

Sergeant Oh Sang-geun, who had been lying down, looked at Kim Dong-soo.

“Hey.”

“Private Kim Dong-soo!”

“Where’s your hometown?”

“Private Kim Dong-soo. Wangsimni, Seoul.”

After asking Kim Dong-soo a few personal questions, he looked at Hyun-sung. Then he asked the same questions as Kim Dong-soo.

So far, it was no different from his past life.

Sergeant Oh Sang-geun’s hometown was Gangneung. Furthermore, he was a philosophy major from Kangsang University, class of ’85. That’s why he had welcomed Hyun-sung in his past life. But what was different from then was that he already knew Hyun-sung’s name for some reason.

“So, you’re Kim Hyun-sung, a business administration major from the class of ’88?”

“Private Kim Hyun-sung. Yes, sir!”

Naturally, he couldn’t help but wonder. How did he know his name out of so many people? But he knew the reason right away from the next words.

“Congratulations, belatedly. On passing the final CPA [Certified Public Accountant] exam.”

“Ah…… Thank you!”

“Actually, I saw it in the school newspaper last April…….”

Sergeant Oh Sang-geun’s explanation continued. He said he had learned about Hyun-sung when he passed the first exam last time. He had been subscribing to the Kangsang University newspaper even while he was in the military. He had read Hyun-sung’s article in the April Kangsang University newspaper and remembered it.

That’s how significant the CPA exam was at Kangsang University. And more than anything, it meant that he had a great attachment to his school.

“It would have been nice if you had come a little earlier…….”

Sergeant Oh Sang-geun looked at Hyun-sung with a regretful expression. The meaning was that if Hyun-sung had come a little earlier as a fellow alumnus, he would have had a chance to take care of him a little more.

Back then, the power of the so-called ‘old-timers’ [senior alumni] was stronger than expected. The position of the old-timers was so special that they were treated well by the personnel officer and even the company commander. Of course, it was also important how he had been doing his military service to do so. Not everyone was treated unconditionally just because they were old-timers.

However, Hyun-sung’s eyes were filled with pity as he looked at Sergeant Oh Sang-geun. But the problem was that Sergeant Oh Sang-geun didn’t know that.

It was then.

Ding, ding, ding!

The bell rang. It was the assembly bell. It was lunchtime.

Thump, thump!

Hyun-sung and Kim Dong-soo jumped up from their seats and ran outside. On the other hand, Sergeant Oh Sang-geun, who was left alone, lay back down on the bed. His lunch would be served anyway.

The two who came out stood in the front row.

‘Sigh…….’

Hyun-sung couldn’t help but sigh inwardly. He couldn’t help but sigh when he, who had even graduated from civil defense training, had to stand at the front of the line to eat lunch with a single stripe on his shoulder [rank insignia for a private].

That’s beside the point…….

There was another reason why he was sighing.

It was because of the cabbage. To be more precise, cabbage kimchi. He learned that they made kimchi with cabbage for the first time in the military. So much so that he didn’t even look at cabbage after he was discharged.

And what about the cabbage soup…….

Then, the voice of the duty sergeant echoed loudly.

“We’ll sing a military song at the same time as we start, the military song is ‘Cool Guy’…….”

“There are many~ cool guys~ but I’m~ the guy~ cool guy~~”

Hyun-sung started singing ‘Cool Guy,’ which he had sung so disgustingly, loudly again.

That afternoon.

“Look closely, it’s like this…….”

Sergeant Oh Sang-geun was teaching Hyun-sung and Kim Dong-soo how to organize their personal lockers. It was unheard of for an old-timer in the company to teach new recruits how to organize their personal lockers.

But the only reason why Sergeant Oh Sang-geun was going out of his way to do this a day before his discharge was because he was from the same school as Hyun-sung.

He was the same in his past life. That’s why he was even more grateful.

“Now, this time it’s how to fold socks, so…….”

Sergeant Oh Sang-geun started teaching how to fold socks this time.

Kim Dong-soo’s eyes were shining more than ever. He was trying to learn as much as he could. But Hyun-sung’s expression was completely different from Kim Dong-soo’s.

Should he say pitiful…….

That’s exactly how Hyun-sung’s expression was as he looked at Sergeant Oh Sang-geun.

The reason was one. Sergeant Oh Sang-geun couldn’t be discharged tomorrow.

Originally, he should have left to report his discharge to the brigade with the farewell of the company members, but the place he was going was not there, but the military correctional center.

In the end, he would go to the military correctional center and be discharged a week later.

“Now, this is the last towel. Don’t underestimate it just because it’s a towel…….”

You could tell that Sergeant Oh Sang-geun’s voice was full of affection. The more he did, the more pitiful Hyun-sung’s expression became.

There was a tradition in the company.

The day before discharge, they have a party at 12 o’clock after roll call. It’s literally a discharge party.

Of course, not all company members participate, but only the top three in the company participate in their own party.

It’s not that grand either.

It’s just about drinking two or three bottles of soju [Korean distilled spirit] with simple snacks in the squad leader’s office. It had always been like that, so they thought nothing would happen.

But that day, a night patrol happened to come out. If it had come from the unit itself, they could have done something about it, but it happened to come directly from the brigade.

As a result, Sergeant Oh Sang-geun, who was having a discharge party, as well as his juniors who were with him, were all immediately admitted to the military correctional center the next day.

In other words, the company was completely devastated. The duty sergeant and the duty officer were basic, and even the company commander and the battalion commander could not avoid punishment.

Naturally, the company atmosphere was bound to be fierce.

As a result, Hyun-sung and Kim Dong-soo, who were new recruits, had no choice but to be so confused that they couldn’t tell the difference between shit and urine [Korean idiom for being utterly confused]. Just thinking about it now made him dizzy.

Was that why?

Hyun-sung trembled without realizing it.

Then Sergeant Oh Sang-geun asked immediately.

“Private Kim, why?”

“Private Kim Hyun-sung. It’s nothing.”

“But why are you trembling?”

“It’s nothing. I sometimes do that when I’m nervous.”

Hyun-sung lied to cover it up, but he still couldn’t help but feel uncomfortable.

Then Sergeant Oh Sang-geun got up from his seat and said.

“I’m going to the bathroom for a while, so try it yourself now.”

“Yes, sir!”

Hyun-sung and Kim Dong-soo answered at the same time and started organizing their personal lockers.

As soon as Sergeant Oh Sang-geun completely left the barracks, Kim Dong-soo looked at Hyun-sung and asked.

“What’s wrong?”

“Why?”

“Why do you look so dark?”

“Huh? That, that’s…… No, it’s nothing.”

Hyun-sung knew that it was no use talking to Kim Dong-soo anyway, so he lied instead. If he said it unnecessarily, he would be even more confused, and if he made a mistake, it would be even more troublesome.

“Okay, let’s start.”

The two started organizing their personal lockers as Sergeant Oh Sang-geun had taught them a little while ago.

Quickly.

Hyun-sung’s hands moved quickly. No matter how much time had passed, his hands moved naturally to organize his personal locker because he had learned it with his body.

Finally, he used both hands to make the angles, and it looked pretty good.

‘What is this guy?’

Sergeant Oh Sang-geun couldn’t help but be surprised after going to the bathroom.

He had clearly demonstrated the same thing to the two of them a little while ago. Of course, there may be differences between people, but this was too different.

It was like looking at the personal lockers of a private and a sergeant at the end of his term.

Kim Hyun-sung’s personal locker was too perfect, while Kim Dong-soo’s personal locker was saying, “I’m a private.” to anyone who looked at it.

Naturally, Kim Dong-soo’s personal locker was normal. He came as a new recruit today and was now being taught how to organize his personal locker for the first time.

This was not a matter of doing well or not. It was a part that could not be understood by common sense.

But what was even more incomprehensible was not just the organization.

Angle.

Angles are life in the military. Especially in personal lockers, the importance of angles cannot be ignored. The angle is so important that the last step in organizing a personal locker is the angle.

But strangely, you could see the angle in Kim Hyun-sung’s personal locker. Not a clumsy angle, but a perfect 90-degree right angle.

He clearly didn’t explain the angle when he demonstrated it a little while ago. That was because he was going to teach it to them in the end anyway.

“Hey, Kim Hyun-sung.”

“Private Kim Hyun-sung!”

“What’s going on?”

“Private Kim Hyun-sung. I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

“I’m talking about the angle.”

Hyun-sung finally understood what Sergeant Oh Sang-geun was talking about. He had just organized his personal locker as he had done in his past life without thinking. And finally, he made the angles perfectly. Of course, he did it naturally because he had done it when he was in the military, but it looked strange to Sergeant Oh Sang-geun.

Hyun-sung had no choice but to lie.

“I learned it from a neighborhood friend before I came to the military.”

“Pfft.”

Sergeant Oh Sang-geun couldn’t help but laugh. It was the first time he had heard that he had learned how to organize his personal locker while enlisting in the military during his military life.

“You learned that?”

“Private Kim Hyun-sung. Yes, sir.”

“Haha, I see. Anyway, you’re quirky…… Good, then can you teach your fellow soldier until dinner?”

“Yes, sir.”

“Then from now on, you’re responsible for teaching your fellow soldier how to organize his personal locker, okay?”

“Yes, sir. But can I go to the bathroom first?”

When you’re a new recruit, you have to get permission to go to the bathroom. But what’s even funnier is that they don’t let you go to the bathroom alone. A senior soldier always takes you. Usually, a private first class or a private second class is in charge of that task.

But right now, Sergeant Oh Sang-geun is the only one in the barracks.

“Hey, let’s go to the bathroom. I’ll take you.”

“Private Kim Hyun-sung. Yes, sir.”

Sergeant Oh Sang-geun chuckled and started walking ahead.

Hyun-sung had no choice but to raise his arm at a right angle and follow Sergeant Oh Sang-geun to the bathroom.

In Hyun-sung’s mind, he was more concerned with preventing the situation that would happen at midnight tonight than the shame of not being able to go to the bathroom alone.

‘What can I do…….'”