Return To The Building Owner [EN]: Chapter 46

Of course, Shin Myung-soon would say that.

In many ways, Hyun-sung was still frustrated.

Then, Shin Myung-soon spoke again.

“No matter how successful it might be, I’m too scared to do it. Besides, I can’t invest my own money in a place like this. I appreciate you thinking of me, but I’m sorry, Hyun-sung.”

That was Shin Myung-soon’s final word.

Is it over like this?

Hyun-sung felt a sense of emptiness.

He finally found a place, but she says it’s not for her. She absolutely refuses to do it.

Ha!

What a disaster.

But forcing her more here would only backfire.

It was unfortunate, but Hyun-sung thought that today was the end.

Hyun-sung opened his mouth weakly.

“Then, Mother, go in.”

“I’m so sorry…”

“Since there’s still time, let’s think of other ways.”

Hyun-sung couldn’t let go of his lingering feelings and left the alley with regret.

***

“Oppa, why does your face look like that?”

While having dinner, his younger sister, Kim Ji-yeon, suddenly asked, noticing Hyun-sung’s swollen face.

“It’s nothing, really.”

“What do you mean, nothing? Oppa, did you get into a fight?”

Hyun-sung wished she would just let it go quietly, but Kim Ji-yeon persistently kept asking.

“Let’s just eat, Ji-yeon.”

Then, his mother looked at Hyun-sung and said,

“Did you really fight? Your face is swollen.”

“No, I bumped into a friend while playing soccer. I’m fine, so don’t worry too much.”

“Really?”

“Yes, what am I? Would I fight…”

At those words, Kim Ji-yeon glanced at Hyun-sung. Then she chuckled. Knowing what it meant, Hyun-sung smiled back.

Then, his mother spoke again.

“Oh, honey, did you hear the news?”

His father, who had been quietly eating, looked at his mother.

“What news?”

“About Mr. Park.”

“What about Hee-cheol hyung [older brother/male friend]?”

Hyun-sung also turned his head to look at his mother. He was curious about what happened.

Seeing Hyun-sung showing interest, his mother continued excitedly.

“Well, they say he’s now receiving bank interest instead of the private loan interest he used to get.”

“What’s up with that hyung?”

“They say he’s going around to each house and rewriting the IOUs. So people are in an uproar, wondering what’s going on.”

Hyun-sung couldn’t believe his ears.

Park Hee-cheol used to calculate compound interest, adding the interest to the principal. It was only natural that he couldn’t believe that such a person would suddenly receive bank interest overnight.

That wasn’t all.

According to his mother, he even donated 500,000 won [approximately $400 USD] to the village chief for the village festival this Chuseok [Korean Thanksgiving].

Then, his father smiled at Hyun-sung.

Curious about the reason, Hyun-sung asked again.

“Why?”

“Why? Why does a 쪽발이 [Jokbari, derogatory term for Japanese person] use a blanket?”

“Puhahaha…”

Hyun-sung burst out laughing without realizing it.

He never dreamed he would hear such an old-fashioned joke from his father.

His father continued.

“You’ve really made a decent person out of him.”

“Haha, so that’s how it turns out?”

Seeing the notorious Park Hee-cheol change, it seemed that there was nothing more frightening than death for a person.

Thanks to Park Hee-cheol, dinner became a more enjoyable time. He used to be someone who would make you annoyed just thinking about him.

After finishing dinner, Hyun-sung went into his room.

“What to do?”

His mind was filled with only one thought.

It’s too good to let go of the shopping district. It was definitely a place that was a hit in his past life. That means, unless there’s an unexpected change, it’s almost certain to be a hit this time too.

Knowing such a place and having it taken away by someone else?

That can’t happen.

He would probably regret it for the rest of his life.

That’s when it happened.

Knock knock.

“Oppa, it’s me.”

His younger sister, Kim Ji-yeon, opened the door and came in.

“What brings my pretty Ji-yeon here?”

“Why are you talking like an old man?”

“Is it weird?”

“Yes, it is.”

He meant it as a friendly gesture, but from his sister’s perspective, it seemed awkward.

“Okay, if Ji-yeon doesn’t like it, I should definitely fix it. So, what’s up?”

“Reporting for duty.”

“Report?”

Hyun-sung asked back, and Kim Ji-yeon smiled and said,

“Yeah, I had a consultation with my homeroom teacher today.”

“Is it about your high school career path?”

“Well, actually, I was going to go to a vocational high school in Namyangju.”

That was it.

His sister had already decided everything at this time. He felt pathetic and foolish for not knowing that and thinking she was just struggling with her school life.

Hyun-sung asked cautiously.

“So, how did it go?”

“I decided to give the recommendation letter to another friend, and I’m going to Chuncheon Girls’ High School. Of course, that’s assuming I pass the entrance exam.”

“That’s great. That’s really great. That’s really great!”

He meant it sincerely.

He couldn’t say anything else. He knew so well how incompetent and hopeless he was in his past life that he couldn’t replace it with any words.

He couldn’t even say sorry because he felt so sorry.

“It’s all thanks to you, Oppa. Thank you so much.”

“No, I should have paid attention sooner…”

“What are you talking about? Thanks to you, I’m dreaming again. Don’t say that.”

“Okay, I understand. So, Ji-yeon is going to be a teacher now?”

He only found out about his sister’s dream later. By the time he found out, too much time had already passed.

In response to Hyun-sung’s question, Kim Ji-yeon smiled and replied,

“Oppa, it’s just the beginning. Next, I have to go to Chuncheon National University of Education.”

“Ah, that’s right. I was getting ahead of myself.”

Wait a minute!

Suddenly, a thought popped into Hyun-sung’s head.

“Ji-yeon!”

“Why all of a sudden?”

“Will you try teaching Oppa first?”

“What are you talking about?”

Hyun-sung’s idea was simple. His sister’s dream is to be a teacher. So, he thought it wouldn’t be bad to have her teach him in advance.

Besides, Hyun-sung was starting over from middle school, wasn’t he?

He calculated that being taught by someone would be much more effective than studying alone.

Hyun-sung began to tell his sister, Kim Ji-yeon, about his thoughts.

After Hyun-sung finished explaining, Kim Ji-yeon asked.

“Is that for real?”

“I’m telling you, it is.”

“So, you’re saying you’re going to start learning from the first year of middle school again?”

“Yeah, I’m going to try studying properly from now on.”

Hyun-sung added a little lie. He couldn’t say that he didn’t remember because he had regressed.

It was a lie for good intentions.

Then, Kim Ji-yeon stared at Hyun-sung and asked.

“Are you really my Oppa, Kim Hyun-sung?”

“Hey, don’t be silly. What do you think?”

“Well, it’s not difficult. But can you handle it? I’m a bit tough.”

“Are you going to kill me or something?”

Whether she would kill him or save him, he would find out later. And with that, Kim Ji-yeon decided to become Hyun-sung’s personal tutor.

But what was strange was Kim Ji-yeon’s expression.

The look in her eyes as she looked at Hyun-sung.

That look felt stronger than ever. It was an intense look as if she would send him to Seoul National University. On the other hand, the smile on her lips was in contrast to the look in her eyes. Of course, Hyun-sung couldn’t even notice that, and his expression looked satisfied.

Then, Kim Ji-yeon handed something over.

“Oppa, this is my gift to you.”

“A gift?”

“Yeah, it’s a fountain pen. I thought it would suit you well.”

“A fountain pen? That’s expensive. Where did you get the money?”

When Hyun-sung asked, Kim Ji-yeon smiled slightly and said,

“You gave me allowance.”

“Hey, that was for you to buy something delicious to eat and something to put on your face, but you used it for that…”

“If I eat it, will it go down my throat? I couldn’t buy an expensive one though.”

She was a younger sister who had matured too early.

She was at an age where she should be eating and playing with her friends, but in the life of poverty, Kim Ji-yeon had become an adult before she knew it.

Tsk.

It was bitter, but he decided to accept it well.

“Thank you, Ji-yeon. I’ll use it well.”

“It’s cheap now, but when I become a teacher and get my first salary, I’ll buy you the best one.”

“Okay, I’m already looking forward to it. Our Kim Ji-yeon teacher.”

Just thinking about it made his heart burst.

Then, Kim Ji-yeon said again.

“I’m telling you again, I received a really big gift from you this time. It wasn’t just money, it felt like my stopped heart was beating again.”

“…”

Hyun-sung was speechless.

He himself had never given his sister a gift in his life. Because he didn’t know when he was young, and because it was awkward when he got older.

Click.

Hyun-sung opened the fountain pen case.

It was a product from Monami [a popular Korean stationery brand]. The sleek silver color shone exceptionally.

There was also a memo inside.

When Hyun-sung took out the memo, Kim Ji-yeon said urgently.

“Oppa, wait!”

“Why?”

“I’m not used to that yet. Read the memo after I leave, okay?”

“That rascal…”

He loved such a sister so much.

Choosing a fountain pen, writing a memo, and even wrapping it nicely. Thinking about his sister who put her heart into preparing it made him smile.

“Okay, I was kind of like that too.”

It was true.

No matter how old he was, it was still awkward to read the memo right in front of his sister.

Then, Kim Ji-yeon smiled and replied.

“Right? It’s still a bit like that, right? Then, let’s start the class tomorrow, and I’ll go now, Oppa.”

“Okay, I’m counting on you from tomorrow.”

When Kim Ji-yeon left and Hyun-sung was about to unfold the memo.

“Oppa.”

Kim Ji-yeon opened the door again.

“Oh, you scared me.”

“Don’t be surprised…”

“Why?”

“Don’t fight anymore in the future!”

Slam.

With those words, the door closed.

Ha!

He could only let out a hollow laugh.

That meant his sister already knew. She didn’t believe from the beginning that he bumped into someone while playing soccer with his friends.

“There’s no ghost around here.”

He was just ashamed of himself for being so busy making excuses without knowing that.

Hyun-sung unfolded the memo again.

It was the moment when a smile bloomed completely on Hyun-sung’s face as he read the memo.

– Oppa, thank you!

It was just one line.

It felt like all of his sister’s heart was in that one line.

After looking at the memo for a while, Hyun-sung took out the fountain pen that his sister Kim Ji-yeon had given him. Then, he took out a notebook from his bag and opened it.

Swish swish.

The ink came out clearly.

Hyun-sung carefully began to write something on the memo. He looked so nervous and excited that anyone who saw him would mistake him for writing a love letter.

The letters that Hyun-sung carefully wrote were neatly written on the second line of the memo.

– I’m more grateful!

***

The next day.

Hyun-sung hurried out of the house early.

He couldn’t sleep properly all night. The original plan was to study math after his sister left. Because he was going to receive private tutoring from his sister from the next day.

He thought that he couldn’t be completely humiliated from the first day, even though it was the first year of middle school. So, he was going to do some solid preparation.

But when he was solving math problems, other thoughts came into his head. No matter how hard he tried to push them away with his will, it was no use.

In the end, he gave up and went to sleep at 2 a.m.

“Did I come too early?”

He looked at his watch and it was a little past 7 o’clock. The first bus hadn’t arrived yet.

Today, he went to school by bicycle again, following yesterday’s pattern. Yesterday, he couldn’t make it in time for the first bus, but today was different.

He had a purpose.

Hyun-sung was now sitting across the alley from the empty shopping district entrance he had seen yesterday. He had a notebook in his hand.

After worrying until dawn, he came up with a preliminary market survey.

Of course, it was clear that the place was a hit in his past life. But he felt uneasy about believing that 100% for some reason.

So, the method he chose was to directly investigate the floating population [pedestrian traffic].

He didn’t want to get something for nothing by just believing in his past life.

He would have to find more ways, but what was clear was that he definitely couldn’t give up on this shopping district no matter what.

Hyun-sung began to stare intently at the other side of the street.

“Yes! One person.”

Hyun-sung quickly drew the first stroke of the Chinese character for “correct” on his notebook. Thus, Hyun-sung’s first market survey began.