Brother, Am I Cute? [EN]: Chapter 461

Extracurricular 36: Taekwondo Test (1)

Shortly after the broadcast, clips of Siha began circulating online.

From his personal talent, ‘Don’t talk nonsense, Im Mang,’ to his impersonation, ‘You are a *meongcheonghi* [fool]~.’

People found these scenes incredibly adorable.

And they also became curious about what his uncle did for a living.

Not only that, but several memorable quotes were born from the show.

[I don’t need to earn even a million won if it means I get to play with Siha all day long.]

Seeing him trying to ‘buy’ his brother’s time with a million won [approximately $800 USD], viewers commented that if there had been a donation function on the broadcast, they would have contributed immediately.

That’s how endearing Siha’s innocent gesture was.

[A needle thief becomes a cow thief! [A Korean proverb meaning a small crime can lead to a bigger one.]]

Some people pointed out that this statement was technically correct in a way.

Not the *right* answer, but a *true* statement.

These were some of the reactions.

Besides that.

[Can’t you give it to me just one more time?]

[Hyung [older brother or male friend] works with his laptop, so if you give him this, he’ll work a lot. So, I won’t give it to him.]

These cute and heartwarming words brought smiles to everyone’s faces.

Almost everything was aired, leaving little out.

However, what shocked the viewers the most was Siha’s artistic talent.

It was already showcased in a video on YouTube, but many people hadn’t seen it, so the common reaction was, ‘Did Siha really create the finished version himself?’

The word ‘genius’ was frequently used to describe him.

Anyway, while these aspects became a hot topic online, his friends weren’t particularly interested in that side of Siha.

“Siha, you actually said my name! Now everyone will know I’m going to be a soccer player.”

“Yeah, I told you I would.”

“I knew it, but I didn’t expect you to specifically say I’m going to be a soccer player. I thought you’d just say I like soccer.”

“It would be hilarious if I become famous later and this clip resurfaces.”

“Oh! That would be so cool.”

Hana, who was standing next to him, chimed in excitedly.

“If I become an idol, this might come out as part of my background.”

“Hana, you’re working hard, so you’ll definitely make it.”

“Hehe! Siha is the best. I hope everyone gets scouted by a broadcasting station now.”

“It would be fun to go together and film again.”

Of course, that’s unlikely, but it’s normal to have such dreams at least once.

Yeonju grabbed Hana’s hand.

“Hana, become an idol quickly.”

“Yeah, I’ll work hard. But I’m still too young to become one right away. There are child actors, but not really child idols.”

“That’s true. Even if you become an idol later, I hope we can film a drama together.”

“Wow, that would be amazing!”

At that moment, Jongsu approached Siha.

“Hey, Lee Siha!”

“???”

“You… you… you don’t know my dream, huh?! Why only me?”

“Jongsu, you’re good at studying, so you can do anything. It’s not that I don’t know your dream.”

“Is that so?”

“But what *is* your dream?”

“Hey! You really don’t know!”

Jongsu was taken aback by Siha’s words.

To think he wouldn’t know his dream. All the other friends know, but why doesn’t *he* know mine?

Come to think of it, he wasn’t even sure if he had ever told him his dream or not.

“So, what is Jongsu’s dream?”

“I, of course, want to be a teacher. Or I want to become a professor like my dad.”

“Okay. I’ll make sure to mention it next time we’re on TV.”

“It’s already too late!”

“But I talked about Jongsu the most on the show.”

“That’s… um… thank you.”

Jongsu was speechless when Siha said that.

He actually *did* mention him the most on the show.

In fact, he was more upset that Siha didn’t know his dream, but Jongsu didn’t quite realize that.

It wasn’t that Siha was intentionally messing with him, but his words were just a little off.

“Siha.”

Eunwoo called out to Siha.

“That’s not how you rap.”

“Huh?”

“I hope you do better next time.”

“I didn’t rap?”

“Oh, really? Puhaha [sound of laughter]. You were talking so fast that I thought you were rapping. I guess Siha didn’t rap. Sorry. Then let’s come up with something where you introduce yourself with a rap next time. Puhaha.”

“???”

The conversation ended with a random suggestion about rapping.

***

The children’s topics of conversation change quickly.

They talked about Siha’s broadcast at school, but the excitement had faded by the time they arrived at the Taekwondo gym.

However, a new wave of anticipation was building.

If the broadcast was just Siha’s story, a huge event that everyone experiences was coming up.

“Siha, have you practiced a lot?”

Siha tilted his head, confused by Seungjun’s question.

He couldn’t figure out what kind of practice he was talking about.

“*Hyung* [older brother or male friend] practice?”

“What kind of practice is that?”

Siha thought he was talking about practicing to become good at everything, like his brother.

But he wasn’t.

“I’m talking about the promotion test to get the yellow belt.”

“Ah! Taekwondo yellow belt!”

The Taekwondo promotion test.

The kids who were still white belts had to demonstrate what they’d learned so far to get promoted to yellow belts.

Seungjun became curious at Siha’s expression of sudden realization.

“Didn’t your *hyung* tell you?”

“I forgot. The master gave me a printout, but I only showed my *hyung* the notification slip. I also showed him that there was homework.”

“You can forget. We had a lot of homework.”

For reference, the homework was to solve two pages of a math workbook.

Even though it seemed like two pages, it wasn’t much at all when you considered the number of problems.

Even the slowest child could finish it all in thirty minutes.

Siha nodded.

“Yeah. There was a lot of homework.”

It felt like a lot to the kids who hadn’t had much homework before starting elementary school.

That’s how it seemed when compared to their previous experience.

“Then Sihyuk *hyung* wouldn’t know? He has to come and see it.”

“That’s right. I have to do well if *hyung* comes to see it.”

“???”

Seungjun’s question and Siha’s answer didn’t quite align.

Siha’s answer implied that he had to perform well because his brother would definitely be there.

Siha’s speech was often elliptical [characterized by ellipsis, the omission of words].

Sometimes his words didn’t quite connect because he left out the beginning or end of his thoughts.

However, Seungjun had long grown accustomed to his way of speaking.

“Let’s practice hard today.”

“Okay. But Siha, you’ve memorized everything, right? I’ve memorized everything.”

There weren’t any tests yet at school, but there were tests in Taekwondo.

The difference between the two tests was that schools ranked students with scores, while Taekwondo only required passing a certain standard to receive a yellow belt.

The difference was whether it was a competition against others or a competition with oneself.

Changing belts also provided good motivation for the children.

Siha looked down at his white belt.

“I want to become a red belt quickly.”

Siha liked various colors, but he thought red was the coolest.

“I like the white belt too, but I want to get a black belt!”

“Then you’ll only wear the black belt?”

“No. I’ll wear both the white belt and the black belt. Then it’s a soccer ball. Puhaha.”

“But since the uniform is white, even if you only wear the black belt, it’s the color of a soccer ball?”

“!!!”

Seungjun’s face showed a huge realization at Siha’s point.

“Siha, you’re a genius!”

Hana, who was watching them, shook her head.

She couldn’t understand why her brother was such a soccer fanatic.

She knew he liked soccer, but she didn’t understand why he related everything to soccer.

“Hana, you said you like the yellow belt, right?”

“Yeah. Yellow is refreshing. It’s lemon-colored.”

“But it looks more like forsythia yellow than lemon.”

“I like forsythia too because it’s pretty.”

While the children were talking like that, the master appeared.

Now that the kids had enough time to talk and play, it was time for Taekwondo.

“Everyone, back to your places!”

The children quickly found their places in an orderly manner.

They were now used to the Taekwondo gym and knew when it was time to get serious.

This time was just about taking a seat.

“Okay. The test isn’t far away. If any of your parents want to come and watch, tell them they’re welcome. Got it?”

“Yes!”

“Today, we’ll practice breaking for the test.”

“Breaking?”

“Yes. It’s about breaking this pine board.”

A very thin pine board.

The children enjoyed this part, and so did the mothers.

If you broke it with a cool move, applause would erupt.

Of course, there were times when the master and instructor would subtly assist in breaking the wooden board.

Unless it was a truly weak strike, this wooden board was bound to break.

“Accurate posture. And you have to extend your fist to break it. That way, you won’t get hurt.”

It wasn’t always the case, but the master warned the children.

There was always someone who got hurt by doing it in a strange way.

That hadn’t happened in his experience so far, though.

At that moment, Siha raised his hand.

“Yes, Siha.”

“I’m curious if it won’t break if it’s not hit properly.”

“Okay. You have to see it to believe it.”

The master held the pine board and struck it diagonally with his fist.

He intended to make it slide down slightly.

Crack.

However, contrary to his intention, the pine board broke.

Siha exclaimed.

“It’s broken!”

He hadn’t even thought it would break when held with one hand and struck diagonally.

The master was very embarrassed but decided to play it cool.

“The master is so strong that this one breaks easily.”

The master said it himself, but it sounded like a boast that he could break it with a light tap.

However, the innocent children accepted it at face value.

“Wow! The master is really strong!”

“It broke even though he hit it wrong.”

“If you get hit by the master, your body will break.”

As the reaction became more enthusiastic than expected, the master became unnecessarily embarrassed.

“Haha. If you learn Taekwondo properly later, you can knock down trees with kicks.”

He boasted even more for no reason.

At that time, Siha said.

“Did the master kill a tree?”

“Ah.”

The master instantly became the bad guy because of Siha’s words.

Killing a tree.

“Siha, the master didn’t kill the tree. He broke an already dead tree. No, that’s not it either. He broke wooden lumber.”

If the master had said he broke a dead tree, he would have seemed even worse.

Realizing that, he quickly corrected himself.

“Ah, I see. That’s a relief. The master didn’t kill the tree.”

“Of course. Taekwondo is learned to strengthen one’s body, not to harm others.”

A little cold sweat broke out on the master’s back.

That’s why you have to be careful what you say in front of children.

But something was strange. Usually, when they heard about knocking down trees, everyone would say ‘wow,’ but when Siha said it was pitiful, the situation suddenly changed.

Is he deliberately messing with me?

Looking at Siha with that suspicion, he saw him looking at the master with sparkling eyes.

“Master.”

The master was now afraid of what Siha was going to say.

“Yes. What is it?”

“Who is stronger, the master or Baekdong *hyung*?”

“Who is Baekdong *hyung*? Ahem. I don’t know who he is, but wouldn’t I be stronger?”

“Does the master win at arm wrestling too?”

“Of course. If I practice the right fist like this, I’ll get arm muscles.”

“Wow! Baekdong *hyung* is huge. He’s bigger than the master.”

“Haha. The master is also big. He’s 183cm tall [approximately 6 feet].”

“Baekdong *hyung* is 100 meters [approximately 328 feet].”

Is that even a person? It doesn’t seem like a person? If there was a 100-meter human, Korea would be in an uproar.

“His muscles are also huge. Almost like a car.”

The master thought Siha was even more boastful than himself.

I can’t compete with that level of exaggeration.

If you arm wrestled him, a human would break like a toothpick.

“But actually, he’s not *that* big.”

“Right? I knew it.”

“But he’s bigger than the master. He said he’s 2 meters tall [approximately 6 feet 7 inches].”

The master was surprised that Baekdong *hyung* was really big.

That level was 인정 [acknowledged/ 인정하다 is a Korean verb meaning to acknowledge or admit].

Seungjun, who was next to him, chimed in with Siha’s words.

“He works out hard too, so his muscles are *this* big. He said he has thick bones.”

“Ooh.”

“Siha, still, the master will win, right? Because he knocks down wooden lumber with kicks.”

“Yeah. But Baekdong *hyung* is really amazing too.”

The master thought.

I probably can’t win at arm wrestling?

You won’t know about a fight until you actually fight.

“Ahem. Kids, that’s not important. The test is important. Okay, let’s review what we’ve learned.”

“Who is stronger is the most fun.”

Seungjun shrugged and got up.

Siha also nodded.

Who is stronger.

This was a topic that adults often debated, using the protagonists of hero movies.

They also argued over which soccer player was better.

Whether it’s children or adults, ranking who is stronger was always an enjoyable topic.

The master, who was the person involved, wasn’t having any fun at all.

It was the result of boasting first.