Return To The Building Owner [EN]: Chapter 316

316

“So much time has passed already.”

Hyeonseong glanced at his watch as he left Lee Wooseok’s house. Three hours – that’s how long he’d spent with the old man.

Preparing and eating the meal had taken about an hour.

The real issue was what came after.

The conversation that started over coffee seemed endless. It began with the soy milk Hyeonseong had brought as a gift.

Lee Wooseok talked about everything: his thoughts at Hyeonseong’s age, stories about his life, and the loneliness of living alone after his grandmother passed away. The stories just kept coming.

Hyeonseong finally managed to cut him off only after promising to visit again soon.

That’s how much Lee Wooseok missed having people around.

Leaving the house, Hyeonseong stepped into a public phone booth at the intersection.

He needed to call Shin Misook.

He knew she’d be waiting anxiously for his call.

As expected, the phone rang only once before Shin Misook’s urgent voice came through the receiver.

“Hello!”

“It’s me, Boss.”

“How did it go?”

“It went well.”

“Really?”

“Yes, so please leave right away. We need to sign the contract today. And there’s more good news.”

“Good news?”

“Yes, the landlord said he won’t charge rent for three months.”

“What? Is that true?”

“Yes, it’s true. So please bring the contract money right now.”

“Yes, yes, I understand. I’ll leave right away.”

“Then I’ll see you in an hour. Goodbye…”

Just as Hyeonseong was about to hang up, Shin Misook’s urgent voice called out again.

“Boss!”

“Yes, what…?”

“Thank you. Thank you so much. You saved Sumin and Suyeon [her younger sisters]. I will never forget this kindness.”

“You’re welcome… just work hard in the future and live happily with your sisters. I’ll see you later.”

Click.

A faint smile spread across Hyeonseong’s face. He couldn’t deny he’d been worried, especially about Lee Wooseok. If the landlord had remained stubborn, Hyeonseong wouldn’t have had many options.

Hyeonseong’s biggest concern wasn’t Shin Misook, but her two young sisters, Lee Sumin and Lee Suyeon, only in the third and fifth grade. He had to make this contract work for those children.

Hyeonseong made another call, this time to the equipment contractor, Yoo Mincheol.

“Hello.”

“It’s me, Hyung [older brother/friend].”

“Oh, President Kim. I was waiting for your call. How did it go?”

Hyeonseong had already explained the situation to Yoo Mincheol that morning. If things went well, he wanted to get an interior construction estimate right away. That’s why he was calling now.

“Yes, Hyung. Can you head over right away?”

“Of course. I’m ready to go whenever you give me work. By the way, how can I keep getting help from my younger brother like this?”

“You’re saying too much. We’re practically family. And did you prepare what I asked for last time?”

“Of course. I prepared five signboard designs as you requested.”

“Great. Bring those materials with you today. Let the store people choose their favorite, and then start working on it right away.”

“Okay, I got it. Thanks to you, I’ll be set for the next two months. Thank you so much. I’ll repay you…”

Yoo Mincheol stopped abruptly.

Hyeonseong immediately asked, “Yes? What did you just say?”

“Ah, no. It’s nothing. See you in a bit.”

“Ah, yes. I understand. I’ll see you in an hour.”

Click.

As soon as the call disconnected, Yoo Mincheol lightly tapped his head. He’d almost slipped up.

A few days ago, he’d met with Hyeonseong, who mentioned the signboard and sunting [storefront decoration] work. While not yet confirmed, if things went well, Yoo Mincheol could potentially handle the signboard and sunting for the remaining 24 stores (excluding the one vacant store) out of the 25 in the area.

Doing protruding signboards, front signboards, and sunting work usually cost at least 150,000 won [approximately $115 USD] per store, even with minimal charges. That would total over 3.5 million won [approximately $2,700 USD]. Adding the interior work for the newly opened store, the total would exceed 4 million won [approximately $3,000 USD].

Since it was a rural area, he handled both equipment and signboard work, but there wasn’t much of it. In that context, 4 million won was a significant amount.

Of course, he couldn’t just stand by. He’d offered Hyeonseong a portion of the total as a finder’s fee. It was common practice in the industry, so he hadn’t thought much of it. But Hyeonseong had flatly refused, saying he’d rather give the store owners a discount.

Yet, he’d almost brought it up again during the call.

‘What should I do?’

Yoo Mincheol was worried. He couldn’t tell if Hyeonseong’s “it’s okay” was genuine or just a polite gesture.

No one dislikes money. And Hyeonseong was running a business while still in high school, so he probably valued money more than anyone.

If so…

Yoo Mincheol, after a moment of contemplation, began placing twenty 10,000 won bills [approximately $15 USD each] into an envelope.

***

“How did it go?”

As soon as Hyeonseong entered the real estate agency, President Park Youngjin jumped up from his seat and asked. He was clearly anxious.

And why wouldn’t he be?

He’d lived in this village for sixty years. Instead of developing, it was in danger of becoming a ghost town within a few years. He’d initially tried to prevent it, but with the commercial district collapsing, all his efforts had been ineffective.

There was only one way to save the village: revive the commercial district.

But lacking the resources, he couldn’t do anything on his own. All he could do was watch the village crumble.

He felt powerless.

His will to act had been broken.

Then, one day, a young man appeared, seemingly out of nowhere.

At first, Park Youngjin didn’t think much of it. But as time passed, he recognized the young man’s true potential.

His abilities were remarkable, regardless of his age.

Of course, Park Youngjin was also motivated by self-interest.

To revive the commercial district and save the village, the young man’s skills were essential.

But a problem arose: the landlord, Lee Wooseok, wouldn’t agree to the terms. Park Youngjin had tried to persuade him for three days straight, but it wasn’t enough to change his mind.

Now, only one option remained: Hyeonseong personally persuading the landlord. If that failed, saving the village would become even more difficult.

That’s why Park Youngjin was so focused on Hyeonseong’s words.

Hyeonseong nodded and said, “It went well.”

“Hoo…”

Park Youngjin let out a long sigh of relief without realizing it.

He’d been so anxious, wondering if Hyeonseong would be able to persuade him. When Hyeonseong said things had gone well, Park Youngjin couldn’t help but exhale in relief.

“Were you very worried?”

“Hey, are you even asking? To be honest, I didn’t say it out loud, but as I watched you go into Wooseok hyung’s house, I started praying. I’ve never even been near a church in my life.”

“Praying?”

“That’s right. That’s how desperate I was. By the way, why were you so late?”

What made Park Youngjin even more anxious was that Hyeonseong had stayed at Lee Wooseok’s house much longer than expected.

He’d assumed that if things went well, there wouldn’t be any need for such a long visit.

Hyeonseong continued, “I ate a meal there.”

“Meal?”

“Yes, as soon as I went in, he told me to cook…”

Hyeonseong began to explain what had happened with Lee Wooseok. As the explanation went on, Park Youngjin smiled and nodded more and more frequently, showing that he understood Lee Wooseok’s situation. Finally, when Hyeonseong finished, Park Youngjin smiled and said, “You’ll be blessed.”

“Yes?”

“For comforting Wooseok hyung’s loneliness. You don’t know what it’s like to get old and live alone.”

“Ah, yes…”

“By any chance, what do you think is the hardest part about living alone?”

“Well, that’s…”

Of course, there would be many things: the pain of aging, the challenges of eating, dealing with illness, economic hardship, and, above all, loneliness. Countless other difficulties.

Park Youngjin continued, “It’s loneliness.”

“Loneliness?”

“Yes, when you’re alone, the loneliness and sadness dig into your bones. People who haven’t experienced it don’t understand the pain. So today, Wooseok hyung too…”

Park Youngjin’s words went on. Hyeonseong simply nodded and listened, offering comfort. After a while, Park Youngjin laughed self-deprecatingly and said, “Hehe, I don’t know why I’m telling you all this. I’m sorry, I ended up complaining about my own situation without realizing it. It’s not something to tell a young man like you.”

“No, I’m okay. You don’t have to worry about that.”

He meant it. While he hadn’t lived as long as Park Youngjin in his previous life, so he couldn’t fully empathize, he could understand to some extent.

Then Park Youngjin spoke again.

“But you know, you’re strange.”

“Yes? What is it?”

“Based on your age, you’re like my grandson, but strangely, I think of you as a friend.”

“Haha, a friend?”

Hyeonseong burst out laughing.

Park Youngjin asked again, “Am I weird?”

“Haha, President, you too…”

Hyeonseong had no choice but to laugh again, knowing that laughter was the best response when he didn’t know what else to say.

But he realized that it also depended on the person, after Park Youngjin’s next question.

“President Kim, don’t just laugh, answer clearly. Am I really weird?”

“Yes? That’s…”

“No matter how I think about it, it’s strange. It’s like I’m talking to a friend when I talk to you. In fact, now that I mention it, I felt something without realizing it the first time we talked a week ago.”

“Felt something?”

“Yes, a sense of kinship.”

Hyeonseong couldn’t help but tilt his head. He had no memory of showing off or acting in any special way in front of Park Youngjin.

Hyeonseong looked at Park Youngjin and asked, “Why do you think that? I don’t understand at all…”

Park Youngjin interrupted, “Feeling!”

“Yes?”

“I’ve never been wrong about my intuition. My friends call me a shaman, you know?”

“A shaman?”

“Yes, they say I could have been a jakdu [Korean shaman ritual] rider ten times over. Why? Because my divine power is that amazing. I even accurately predicted the day my friend would die.”

Hyeonseong was embarrassed by Park Youngjin’s suddenly serious tone.

But it wasn’t just his voice that had changed. His eyes were different from before.

Park Youngjin looked at Hyeonseong and asked in a low voice, “You! Who are you?”