Return To The Building Owner [EN]: Chapter 306

306

Kim Myung-soon.

At 65 years old, she’s a local who has been running a restaurant in this neighborhood for 20 years.

Thump.

Her steps lacked energy.

She handed Park Young-jin an envelope.

“Mr. Park, this is the monthly rent, a few days late. Sorry about that.”

“Sister, don’t mention it. What’s the big deal…? How have you been lately?”

“Can’t you tell by the late rent? These days, I really don’t feel like running a business. Until last year, I managed to get by, but this year has been terrible.”

Kim Myung-soon shook her head as she spoke.

Park Young-jin immediately asked,

“Is it that bad?”

“You know better than anyone, don’t you? I’ve been in business for 20 years, and this is the first time it’s been this tough. And do you know what the real problem is?”

“The real problem?”

“Yes, as you know, the commercial district is moving towards the school’s main gate, so there’s no hope left here. People, no matter how hard things are, can endure if they have hope for the future, but if they don’t see any hope, there’s nothing scarier. And that’s exactly how people here are. They have no tomorrow…”

Kim Myung-soon’s complaints continued for quite a while. Though the words were many, the message was one: the current situation is too difficult, and the future is bleak. Therefore, no one will be able to endure in this atmosphere.

Hyun-sung’s expression wasn’t good as he listened. It wasn’t much different from the conversation he had with Park Young-jin earlier.

And another person.

As Kim Myung-soon’s story went on, Park Young-jin’s expression grew darker and darker.

Finally, when Kim Myung-soon finished speaking, Park Young-jin let out a long sigh without realizing it.

“Hoo!”

A moment of silence passed.

Park Young-jin cautiously opened his mouth.

“…Do you have any ideas on how to revive the commercial district here?”

“No way!”

Kim Myung-soon’s answer was firm. It was almost embarrassing for the person who asked the question.

Usually, when someone asks a question, they think for a moment before answering. No, even if the answer is obvious, it’s common courtesy to give the questioner a few seconds of consideration.

But Kim Myung-soon’s answer didn’t have even 0.1 seconds of hesitation. It meant that it wasn’t even worth thinking about.

Park Young-jin was dumbfounded.

Of course, he didn’t have high expectations given the situation. But he never thought she would answer so resolutely, to the point of being scary.

She had been doing business here for over 20 years, not just 1 or 2 years. So, he thought that even if she didn’t have affection, she would at least have some attachment. That’s why he wanted to share even a small idea to revive the commercial district.

But in Kim Myung-soon’s answer, there wasn’t even a trace of attachment.

Park Young-jin asked again.

“Don’t you have any attachment at all?”

“Attachment?”

“Yes, you’ve been doing business here for so long, how can you say that so coldly without even a second of hesitation?”

“Mr. Park!”

Kim Myung-soon called Park Young-jin seriously.

Park Young-jin’s voice couldn’t help but change.

“Yes, Sister!”

“Between me, who lives on rent, and you, the building owner, who do you think is more desperate?”

“Huh? What does that suddenly mean…?”

“Of course, you have your own worries, but how much more would this old woman, who can’t even pay her rent on time, be worried? As you said, I’ve been doing business here for over 20 years. Don’t you think that if someone like that answers without any hesitation, it means they’ve been thinking about it countless times?”

“…”

“Why wouldn’t I have affection or attachment? Since some time ago, I can’t sleep at night without sleeping pills. I’ve stayed up countless nights worrying, but I couldn’t find a solution with my own head. If I were desperate enough…”

Kim Myung-soon couldn’t finish her sentence.

Park Young-jin immediately asked,

“What do you mean…?”

“I’m going to stop now. Since the topic came up, I’ll tell you that I’m planning to quit after this summer when the contract expires. So, keep that in mind and put the store up for sale in advance. I’ve been 고민 [agonizing] for days, but I don’t have the confidence to extend the contract any further. It’s bitter, but I’m going to stop here. I guess my relationship with you ends here.”

“…”

Park Young-jin was speechless.

Until Kim Myung-soon answered so firmly a moment ago, he had misunderstood that she didn’t even have any attachment. But after hearing her story, he realized that it wasn’t that, but rather that she had been 고민 [agonizing] alone for a long time and made a final decision, so he had nothing to say.

It was then.

“사장님 [Restaurant owner]!”

Hyun-sung, who had been listening to the conversation, called out to Kim Myung-soon.

Kim Myung-soon turned her head and looked at Hyun-sung.

“Are you talking to me?”

“Yes, 사장님 [Restaurant owner]. Excuse me, but can I ask you something?”

“사장 [Restaurant owner] is 무슨 사장 [what restaurant owner], I’m done anyway… Anyway, what is it? Tell me.”

Kim Myung-soon tossed the words out as if she didn’t expect much.

Hyun-sung’s words immediately followed.

“If you were to renegotiate the monthly rent, would you still not extend the contract?”

“Renegotiate the monthly rent? What does that mean?”

“I mean, if I lower the monthly rent.”

“Hoho…”

Kim Myung-soon suddenly started laughing.

After a moment of laughing,

Kim Myung-soon looked at Hyun-sung and asked.

“What grade are you in now?”

“I’m a senior in high school.”

“Hmm… I see. Do you know what kind of people building owners are?”

“Huh? Well…”

How could he not know? He had been in business for over 20 years in his previous life and had dealt with several building owners. In the end, he even died because of a building owner’s betrayal.

Moreover,

Hyun-sung had watched the faces of building owners while watching disputes between tenants and building owners, such as the 족발집 [jokbal restaurant, specializing in pig’s feet] incident and the 곱창집 [gopchang restaurant, specializing in grilled small intestines] incident, on TV.

Of course, that doesn’t mean that all building owners are bad. Sometimes, he was moved by the heartwarming stories of kind building owners.

If he were to talk about building owners, he would have countless things to say. But he couldn’t say anything in this situation. That’s because he knew what kind of answer Kim Myung-soon wanted. To lead a natural conversation, Hyun-sung had no choice but to lie. Even if he knew, he had to pretend not to know.

“Why building owners?”

“You wouldn’t know because you haven’t experienced it. Mr. Park is here, but building owners never lower the rent once they raise it, no matter what happens. If the surrounding environment changes, they should readjust accordingly, but that never happens. They’re just people who only care about collecting rent, whether the tenants live or die.”

Kim Myung-soon began to bring out the words that had been in her heart without hesitation, as if she wanted Park Young-jin to hear them. It must be that she had a lot to say.

Then, Hyun-sung added to Kim Myung-soon’s words.

“Isn’t it a symbiotic relationship?”

“Symbiotic? They don’t have that kind of thought in their heads at all. Do you know when the current rent was set?”

“Well, that’s…”

Hyun-sung pretended not to know as expected. The reason was to properly understand what Kim Myung-soon’s dissatisfaction was.

Then, Park Young-jin glanced at him, but he pretended not to know and turned his gaze away.

At that time, Kim Myung-soon’s words immediately followed.

“It was 4 years ago.”

“4 years ago?”

“Yes, that was when business was the best. After that, the commercial district here gradually began to die. The final blow was when the buildings were completed on the school’s main gate early last year, and people moved in all at once.”

“Business is naturally…”

“Usually, it’s 빠졌 [fallen] by 30 or 40%. Some even lost half of their income. But not a single building owner lowered the rent.”

Kim Myung-soon put extra emphasis on the word ‘놈 [bastard, referring to building owners]’. Hyun-sung’s gaze naturally turned to Park Young-jin. Then, Park Young-jin avoided Hyun-sung’s gaze as if he had nothing to say.

He didn’t say it, but he felt that Park Young-jin’s expression acknowledged it.

Hyun-sung looked at Kim Myung-soon and asked.

“Did the tenants ask for a rent reduction?”

“Humph…”

Kim Myung-soon suddenly snorted.

Then, Hyun-sung immediately asked.

“Why? What did they say?”

“Do you know what those 인간들 [those people, with a negative connotation] said?”

“Huh? What did they say…?”

Hyun-sung couldn’t help but be surprised for a moment. The reason was because of Kim Myung-soon’s eyes. More precisely, Kim Myung-soon’s eyes, looking at Park Young-jin, were completely different from what they had been until now.

But what was even stranger was Park Young-jin’s expression.

His face was blushing, and he was making an embarrassed expression.

Hyun-sung could tell. There was something they couldn’t tell between the two of them.

At that time, Kim Myung-soon called Hyun-sung.

“Student.”

“Yes, 사장님 [Restaurant owner].”

“You asked me earlier if I wouldn’t extend the contract if you lowered the rent, right?”

“Yes, that’s right.”

“I’m sorry to talk to a young student like this as an adult, but ideals and reality are very different. You may learn in school that building owners and tenants have a symbiotic relationship, but what I’ve learned in my 65 years of life is that there’s no such relationship. So, there’s no need to answer your question, right?”

“Huh? Ah, yes…”

Hyun-sung nodded his head in a daze.

Then, Kim Myung-soon glanced at Shin Mi-sook and opened her mouth again.

“And just in case, if your mother is planning to do business in this neighborhood, I want to tell you to think again. You know what I mean, right?”

“…Yes.”

Hyun-sung had no choice but to nod his head once again.

Then, Kim Myung-soon looked at Park Young-jin and said.

“Mr. Park, I’m sorry. I guess I had a lot pent up. I said some harsh things without realizing it. Anyway, I’ve been able to make a living thanks to you for 20 years. And since we’re on the topic, I have one last favor to ask.”

“…”

“If a new person comes, I hope you don’t insist on the current rent. I’m leaving here, but I think about how another person has to endure this pain…, no, I’m just being 주접 [making unnecessary comments/being nosy]. I forgot again that building owners never lower the rent. Anyway, I keep forgetting things like this as I get older. Don’t worry about it. Then, I’ll be going now…”

Kim Myung-soon turned away after saying those words.

Then, Hyun-sung immediately called out to Kim Myung-soon.

“사장님 [Restaurant owner].”

“Huh? What is it? Do you still have something to say?”

“You didn’t answer my question earlier.”

“Question? What question?”

“When I asked you to lower the rent, what did the building owners say?”

Hyun-sung could feel that Kim Myung-soon’s eyes, when she looked at Park Young-jin when he asked her a moment ago, were unusual. That meant that there was some problem between the tenant and the building owner that he didn’t know about, which he could fully expect.

Hyun-sung was curious about that now, so he was stopping Kim Myung-soon, who was about to leave, and asking.

Kim Myung-soon’s words followed.

“I can’t bring myself to say those words, so ask Mr. Park here directly after I leave.”

“Huh? No, what are you talking about…?”

“Listen to it directly and let the student judge. Then, I’ll be going now. Oh! If you have time, come to our restaurant sometime. I’ll make you a warm meal. You really look like my grandson.”

Kim Myung-soon turned her body towards the entrance after saying those words.

Thud.

Kim Myung-soon took a few steps and was about to open the door.

“Sister!”

Park Young-jin suddenly stopped Shin Myung-soon.

Kim Myung-soon turned around and looked at Park Young-jin.

Then, Park Young-jin held something out.

“Take this with you.”

Park Young-jin’s hand held a few ten-thousand-won bills.

“What is this?”

“It’s the monthly rent.”

“So, why are you giving it back to me?”

“It’s exactly 50,000 won [approximately $37 USD]. It’s exactly 50% of the monthly rent.”

It was natural for Kim Myung-soon to be surprised.

Park Young-jin had shown no reaction even after talking about it several times. Each time, he would make excuses for other building owners and say strange things. Now, he’s saying that he’ll return half of the monthly rent.

What does that mean?

Kim Myung-soon cautiously opened her mouth.

“Mr. Park, 혹시 [perhaps]…”