Return To The Building Owner [EN]: Chapter 600

That afternoon.

Slurp, slurp.

Hyun-sung and Lee Myung-hoon finally started eating their jjajangmyeon [black bean noodles] for lunch after 3 PM. This meant that a lot of people had come. Indeed, people had been coming non-stop from 9 AM until just a while ago.

A little later.

“Wow, I feel like I can finally breathe,” Lee Myung-hoon said after swallowing the last noodle. Hyun-sung also put down his empty bowl and said,

“I know, right? I feel like I can finally breathe. But how did so many people come all at once like this?”

“That’s what I’m saying. It’s like they were all waiting for something; I don’t know how they all came at once.”

“By the way, how many people came?”

“Just a moment.”

Lee Myung-hoon started checking the computer. Then, he immediately said in a loud voice,

“Wow! It’s over 300 people. 325 people to be exact.”

“325 people?”

“Yes, exactly 325 people if you include the grandmother who came a little while ago. So many people came and went.”

“At this rate, it’s only 3 PM, so we’re basically looking at over 500 people.”

“Yes, I think it will definitely exceed that.”

Lee Myung-hoon nodded in agreement. Then, he immediately asked Hyun-sung again,

“But the strange thing is, how did people find out so quickly and come here?”

“It’s probably word of mouth.”

“Word of mouth?”

“Yeah, there’s nothing faster than word of mouth in the neighborhood. People will probably keep increasing as time goes on. Maybe in no time, we’ll have over 1000 people a day.”

“I guess that could be true. Especially since it’s free.”

That was a given. If they were charging money for the goods, that wouldn’t happen, but since they were giving away food for free, there would be cases where people who weren’t in need would come along.

Just then.

Clang!

The store door opened and a man came in. He looked to be in his early 40s and was wearing a suit.

Most of the people who had come so far were almost all over 50 or 60 years old.

This was the first man in his early 40s. And in a suit, too…

Hyun-sung greeted him first.

“Welcome.”

“Yes, excuse me.”

The man in the suit came into the store and started looking at the goods. But he seemed uncomfortable for some reason.

After a while.

The man who was looking at the goods carefully opened his mouth towards Hyun-sung.

“Excuse me, do you have a restroom…?”

“A restroom? Ah, yes. Go outside and turn left.”

“Yes, thank you.”

The man nodded and went outside. He seemed to have an urgent matter.

Lee Myung-hoon immediately asked,

“Don’t you think that guy is a little strange?”

“I don’t know, coming here in a suit at this hour… anyway, he doesn’t seem typical. We’ll see.”

A little later.

The man who had gone outside came in and approached Hyun-sung. Then, he carefully opened his mouth.

“Excuse me… are you the owner?”

“Yes, I am… is there something I can help you with?”

“I’m sorry to bring this up out of the blue, but I was laid off from my job a few days ago.”

“Pardon?”

Hyun-sung was momentarily dumbfounded.

The fact that he was saying such a thing after just meeting him was incomprehensible, and he couldn’t understand the purpose of telling such a story to a stranger.

The man spoke again.

“Actually, I’ve only been married for a year.”

“……”

Hyun-sung still didn’t understand. Why was he telling him this? But he couldn’t interrupt the man.

The man continued.

“My wife got pregnant three months ago. I was so happy then that I thought I had the whole world. But I was laid off from my job a few days ago. Of course, you’re probably wondering why I’m telling you all this.”

“Yes, to be honest… I am.”

“To get to the point, I’m asking you to save me.”

“Pardon? What do you mean…?”

Hyun-sung was just dumbfounded.

He was seeing this man for the first time today. And the man suddenly came in and talked about his marriage, his child, and his unemployment, and now he was asking him to save him. Of course, he couldn’t help but be dumbfounded.

The man continued.

“Of course, I know it sounds ridiculous. But I’m at my wit’s end right now, so after much deliberation, I came to see you.”

“Do you know me?”

“Not directly, of course.”

Not directly? That meant he knew him indirectly. The problem was, what was the route of that indirect connection?

Hyun-sung immediately asked,

“Did someone introduce you?”

“Do you know Yoo Seung-il?”

“Yoo Seung-il? Are you talking about the owner who runs the bookstore upstairs?”

“Yes, that’s right. I’ve known him well for a long time. I couldn’t go to work today anyway, so I went to his bookstore. And he was talking about you.”

Hyun-sung couldn’t understand. If what this man was saying was true, Yoo Seung-il would have contacted him first.

When introducing someone, making a phone call is the basic thing to do.

But he had never received such a call.

Hyun-sung immediately asked,

“I haven’t received any contact from that owner…”

“I told him not to. I thought it would be a burden to him. I said I would just come and talk to you directly.”

“Ah, I see.”

Hyun-sung finally understood why Yoo Seung-il hadn’t called.

Asking someone for a favor is never easy. This man knew that, so he deliberately prevented Yoo Seung-il from calling.

“He said he was going to call anyway. But I didn’t want to burden him since I came all the way here. So I came to see you directly.”

“What did he say about me?”

“He mentioned a restaurant in Hongcheon, Gangwon-do. He said you run a big restaurant there.”

This man was saying that he would go all the way to Gangwon-do for a job. In the end, that meant he was even willing to move there with his wife.

“Are you saying you’re willing to go all the way to Gangwon-do now?”

“Yes, of course. I can go anywhere for a job. I think that’s what I have to do for our baby who will be born.”

“Hmm…”

After thinking for a moment, Hyun-sung asked again,

“Is your wife willing to go to Gangwon-do too?”

“No, she’s not. I’m just planning to go down there alone. If that happens, I can come up once a month.”

“So, you’ll be living separately…”

“Yes, I think that’s the best option right now. I’ve been looking for a job for a few days, but I’ve come to the conclusion that I can’t get a job anywhere in this IMF [International Monetary Fund] crisis. That’s why I came to see you.”

That wasn’t wrong. Companies were laying off even their existing employees. In that situation, getting a job was like picking a star from the sky.

But the problem was that they were newlyweds. They had only been married for a year.

Moreover, his wife was three months pregnant.

‘What should I do?’

It would be a lie to say he wasn’t worried.

It was too pitiful to say he couldn’t get a job, but it was even more heartbreaking to send him to Gangwon-do.

As Hyun-sung’s worries grew longer, the man spoke again.

“Please, save my family. I need to get a job for our baby who will be born.”

“……”

Hyun-sung was in a difficult position.

Of course, it wasn’t difficult to get someone a job in Gangwon-do. But he didn’t know this man well enough. He knew his situation was pitiful, but he wasn’t comfortable with just giving him a job unconditionally.

Just then.

Clang!

The store door opened and another person came in. This time, it was a grandmother who looked to be in her 80s. But because of her old age, even the way she came in looked precarious.

At that moment!

The first to move was the man in the suit.

“Grandma, come in slowly.”

The man had already gone to the grandmother’s side and was supporting her.

Then, the grandmother said,

“Thank you, by the way, is it true that they give out free food here?”

The man in the suit looked at Hyun-sung instead of answering. Then, Hyun-sung also moved and approached the grandmother, saying,

“Yes, Grandma, that’s right. What do you need?”

“I need some rice and side dishes…”

With those words, the grandmother picked up a basket. Then, the man in the suit stepped forward again.

“Grandma, I’ll hold the basket, so just put things in it.”

“You’re a kind young man, thank you for your help.”

With those words, the grandmother began to put rice, bean sprouts, and other side dish ingredients into the basket.

A little later.

“Thank you, I’ll enjoy it.”

As the grandmother was about to leave, the man in the suit stepped forward again.

“Grandma, I’ll take you home.”

With those words, the man took the bag that the grandmother was holding. Then, he opened the door and helped the grandmother out of the store.

It was all over in an instant.

You can tell a lot from one thing.

You could see the man’s character.

Hyun-sung, who had been watching the scene for a moment, nodded and asked Lee Myung-hoon,

“I can’t keep being here all the time, can I?”

“That’s true.”

“It seems like it’s too much for you to handle alone, and we need one more person, right?”

“Are you talking about that man…?”

Lee Myung-hoon seemed to understand what Hyun-sung was saying. Then, he spoke again,

“I don’t think it’s a bad idea. We have a lot of grandfathers and grandmothers coming anyway.”

“I think so too. It must be hard for them to carry heavy things alone.”

“That’s what I’m saying.”

“Moreover, he’s observant.”

“That’s right, you can’t teach that. But that man just does it on his own…”

Lee Myung-hoon nodded in agreement.

He had been thinking that they needed one more person anyway. The reason was that Hyun-sung needed one more person to be able to do his work more freely.

10 minutes later.

As the man in the suit who had left the store came in, Hyun-sung called out,

“Mister.”

“Yes, Mr. President. And for your information, my name is Lee Soon-cheol.”

“Ah, yes. I understand. The thing is, would you be interested in working here?”

“Pardon? Is that for real?”

Lee Soon-cheol’s eyes widened as if he couldn’t believe it. Seeing that, Hyun-sung continued,

“Yes, it’s true. We needed one more person anyway. I can’t be here all the time.”

“If you would do that for me, I wouldn’t ask for anything more. Why else would I have tried to go all the way to Gangwon-do?”

“You’re newlyweds, and that was also a concern for me.”

“If you just give me the job, I’ll do my best. If that happens, I won’t have to lie to my wife anymore, and I can be a proud father for our baby…”

Lee Soon-cheol stopped talking and covered his mouth with his hand. He seemed to be overwhelmed with emotion.

That meant he was desperate.

Hyun-sung looked at him and said again,

“Okay, good. Start coming to work tomorrow.”

“Is that really true?”

“Yes, it is. I decided after seeing what you did a little while ago. I think you’re qualified to work here.”

“Thank you so much. You saved me. I’ve been taking the lunch box my wife makes for me and not going to work for the past few days…”

Lee Soon-cheol’s words got a little longer. That meant it had been a difficult and hellish time for him. After talking for a while, Lee Soon-cheol finally shed tears.

A little later.

After finishing his words, Lee Soon-cheol suddenly took off his suit and said,

“Mr. President, I’ll start working right away from today.”

“Are you sure you’re okay with that?”

“Yes, of course. I’ve been suffering outside to make it to 퇴근 [toegeun – quitting time] for the past few days, but today I’ll go home with my head held high.”

“Okay, I understand. I look forward to working with you.”

Hyun-sung reached out his hand to Lee Soon-cheol. Then, Lee Soon-cheol immediately grabbed Hyun-sung’s hand with both hands.

It was the moment when the two people’s relationship was starting anew.

Just then.

Lee Myung-hoon, who was looking outside, said,

“Huh? Why is that car in front of the store?”

Hyun-sung’s gaze also turned to where Lee Myung-hoon was pointing. It was right in front of the store. But the fact that the car was a Benz was the problem.