Return To The Building Owner [EN]: Chapter 668

671

“Just take the chairman position.”

“Take it?”

“Yes, I actually think it’s a good thing.”

Yoon Ji-soo seemed to welcome the situation.

Hyun-sung found it hard to understand.

He couldn’t help but ask why she thought that way.

“What do you mean? How is it a good thing?”

“Don’t you remember what you told me before?”

“Huh? What did I say…?”

“What did you say was the reason for buying 95% of the shops in this neighborhood?”

“That’s for the development of this neighborhood….”

“Exactly.”

Yoon Ji-soo said before Hyun-sung could even finish his sentence. Then she continued.

“Your goal is the development of this neighborhood, right?”

“That’s right.”

“So, there’s no need to hesitate anymore; it’s a good thing. That’s what I mean.”

“…….”

Hyun-sung still didn’t understand what she meant, so he couldn’t give any answer right away.

“Still don’t get it?”

Yoon Ji-soo tilted her head and asked. Hyun-sung nodded immediately. He couldn’t understand why the development of this neighborhood was related to the title of chairman of the shopping district association.

Yoon Ji-soo, looking slightly frustrated, poured a cup of water from the water purifier and said again.

“The analogy is a bit strange, but you know about the saying ‘the snake’s head leads the body,’ right?” [This refers to the idea that the leader sets the direction and the rest follow.]

“Snake’s head? Why are you suddenly talking about that here?”

“How does a snake move?”

“A snake? Well….”

Hyun-sung tilted his head. He felt that the question of how a snake moves wasn’t a simple one.

“It moves like this.”

Yoon Ji-soo mimicked the way a snake moves with her hand.

Anyone could tell it was a snake moving.

Hyun-sung nodded and said.

“Yeah. It’s true that snakes move in a winding way. I thought you were asking in a different sense just now. But why are you suddenly talking about snakes here?”

“Direction.”

“Direction?”

“Yes, which direction does a snake move in?”

“Um… well, it moves in the direction the snake’s head is pointing… wait a minute.”

Hyun-sung stopped talking and started thinking hard, as if he had thought of something.

After a moment.

“Snake’s head, direction… could this mean the chairman of the shopping district association?”

“Yes, that’s right. No matter how long the snake is, the body and tail eventually move according to the direction the snake’s head is moving. That’s why the snake’s head is important. Do you know why I’m telling you this now?”

“You want to talk about direction, right?”

“Yes, exactly. So, if you’re going to change this neighborhood anyway, you should become the chairman. That way, you can set the direction. The body and tail can’t set the direction, can they?”

Hyun-sung had no choice but to nod. At first, he wondered why she was suddenly talking about the snake’s head, but after hearing the explanation, he immediately understood what she meant.

“How about it? Can you make a decision now?”

“So, you’re saying I should become the chairman of the shopping district association and develop this neighborhood?”

“That’s right. Maybe you were destined to do that since you started buying the shops in this neighborhood.”

“Destined?”

“Yes, destined. Like a predetermined fate. Honestly, this is something that only you can do. This can’t be done with just enthusiasm. But I think you have enough material resources and enthusiasm to do it.”

Yoon Ji-soo looked at Hyun-sung for a moment and then continued.

“That’s probably why the chairman came to see you this early in the morning. He thought you were the right person to do this. And all the other members agreed, right?”

“That’s true.”

“See? Everything is already pointing towards you. That’s what you call destiny. Now, create the neighborhood you’ve been thinking about—to your heart’s content!”

Yoon Ji-soo emphasized the last words ‘to your heart’s content’.

Hyun-sung knew what those words meant.

Hyun-sung asked again to confirm the meaning of the words.

“To my heart’s content?”

“Yes, to your heart’s content. Create the best town you have in mind. That seems to be what you’re going to do from now on.”

“Um….”

Hyun-sung was silent for a moment, as if he was thinking.

After a moment.

“Can I do it?”

“You’ll probably do well, Hyun-sung.”

“Honestly, I’m scared. Can I really change this town….”

It was then.

Yoon Ji-soo suddenly tapped Hyun-sung on the shoulder and continued.

“Why are you being so unlike yourself? I believe in you more than anyone else. So don’t worry about anything and design this neighborhood to your heart’s content. It’s the neighborhood where our child will be born and grow up, you know what I mean?”

Hyun-sung had a word that struck his heart. It was the word ‘our child’.

It was a word he had never even thought of in his previous life. The two of them met too late, so they had no choice but to give up on having children.

Was that why?

The words ‘our child’ touched his heart.

Hyun-sung asked again.

“Did you just say our child?”

“Yes, I did. Our child. Create the neighborhood where our child will grow up with the heart of a father. That will definitely help you set the direction.”

The heart of a father!

Those words touched his heart more than ever before.

Create a new neighborhood with the heart of a father?

It was a different feeling from when he was just thinking about changing the neighborhood vaguely.

It felt like a blurry picture was becoming clearer.

‘Yes, that’s it.’

Hyun-sung looked at Yoon Ji-soo and called her name with emphasis.

“Ji-soo!”

“Yes, tell me.”

“I think I know now—how to change this neighborhood.”

“How?”

Yoon Ji-soo stared at Hyun-sung and asked. Her eyes sparkled, as if she already knew the answer.

Hyun-sung’s answer followed immediately.

“It was the heart of a parent, not just our child, but the hearts of all the mothers and fathers living in this neighborhood.”

Hyun-sung’s eyes were shining brighter than ever before. He opened his mouth again.

“Until now, I was just vaguely thinking about changing it into a simply developed form, but now I know the direction for sure. The answer was our children.”

“Right, if it’s a neighborhood where children can run around freely, wouldn’t it be a good neighborhood for adults to live in too?”

“That’s right. That was the answer. You found the answer, Ji-soo.”

Hyun-sung’s expression was brighter than ever before. Yoon Ji-soo smiled and continued.

“Then the chairman issue is resolved. Now, hurry up and wash up and have breakfast. I made soybean paste seaweed soup, which you like.”

“Wait a minute, let me make a phone call first.”

“To the chairman of the shopping district association?”

“Yes, that’s right. He must be very worried right now.”

With those words, Hyun-sung immediately called the chairman of the shopping district association.

-Hello.

“Chairman, it’s me.”

-Oh, Mr. Kim. But what’s going on? Maybe…?”

“Yes, I’ve decided.”

-Are you going to do it?

“Yes, I will. I will do my best for our neighborhood, even though I’m not good enough!”

Hyun-sung’s voice was full of energy. He had gained that much confidence. But that was only Hyun-sung’s point of view, and from the other person’s point of view, Hyun-sung’s sudden change was strange.

-What happened in 30 minutes? It’s so different from when we talked earlier.”

“I found the direction.”

-Direction?

“Yes, I couldn’t find the direction of what I should do exactly, but I found it a little while ago.”

-Haha, direction… well, can you tell me where that direction is?”

“I’m sorry, but I’ll tell you at the meeting tomorrow.”

-Um, how can I wait until tomorrow with this curiosity….”

Lee Se-young’s voice on the other end of the phone was full of regret. But Hyun-sung couldn’t help it. There were still many details to prepare.

“I’ll prepare in advance today and tell all the members about the direction and method tomorrow. I’ve only just decided on the direction.”

-Okay, it’s a shame, but what can I do? I have to bear with it. By the way, what happened suddenly that made you change your mind like this?”

“Ji-soo helped me.”

-Ji-soo? Who is that person?”

Hyun-sung glanced at Yoon Ji-soo and smiled before continuing.

“Ah, yes. She’s the woman I’m going to marry.”

-Ah, I see. Okay. Anyway, thank you for getting a good result. Then see you at the meeting tomorrow.”

“Yes, Chairman.”

Click.

Hyun-sung hung up the phone and started calling someone else again.

Beep, beep.

The other person answered the phone after two rings.

-Hello.

“Mr. Yoo, it’s me.”

The person Hyun-sung called was Yoo Young-chul, the president of the real estate agency.

-Oh, Mr. Kim. By the way, what’s going on so early in the morning?”

“I think I need to buy the remaining 5%. No, I have to!”

Hyun-sung’s voice was full of energy. It meant that his will was in it that much.

-The remaining 5%?”

“Yes, the two five-story commercial buildings at the intersection and the three commercial buildings across from the Korean medicine clinic.”

-Aren’t those the buildings that the building owners are already in Seoul, so Mr. Kim has already given up on them?”

“Yes, of course, but I’ve changed my mind. I have to buy those buildings no matter what.”

-Um, it won’t be easy….”

“It doesn’t matter how much money it takes. So please make sure to close the deal. That’s the only way to completely change this neighborhood.”

Until recently, he was going to develop without those buildings. That’s because those buildings were the ones that were never sold in his previous life.

But now that he’s changed his mind, he wants those buildings too. If it’s just about developing the town, he can proceed without those buildings, but when he thinks about the children playing around, he thinks those buildings should be rebuilt as well.

-Completely change?”

“Yes, that’s right. In order to make the town completely different from what it is now, those buildings can’t be left out either.”

-Well… I don’t know what Mr. Kim is talking about….”

“I’ll tell you the details at the shopping district association tomorrow. So I hope you contact those building owners from today. And if they want, I can visit Seoul in person.”

He was serious. If they wanted, he was willing to go wherever they were. That meant that Hyun-sung was desperate that much.

-Mr. Kim in person?”

“Yes, if necessary, depending on the situation.”

-Okay, I’ll try to contact you again from today.”

“And one more thing.”

-What else is there?”

“What about buying general houses? Can’t we speed it up a bit more?”

-Didn’t you say that there are 4 years left?”

“I think I’ll have to change the plan.”

The original plan was to start construction together when the villa construction boom hit this neighborhood in 4 years. But now he’s changed his mind.

The reason is simple. Now, in January of next year, Hyun-sung’s own child will be born. He calculated that he had to hurry as much as possible for the child to play around.

-The plan has changed?”

“Yes, that’s right. I’m thinking of starting construction as early as next year. So please hurry up with the purchase of general houses as much as possible.”

-Okay, I’ll pay close attention from today.”

“Yes, then please and see you at the shopping district meeting tomorrow.”

Click.

As soon as Hyun-sung hung up the phone, Yoon Ji-soo asked.

“Why are you in such a hurry?”

“Our baby will be born in January next year. When I think about it, it seems like there’s not much time left. I think I have to finish the construction within the next 5 years so that our child can play around.”

“The power of a father is scary, isn’t it?”

“Imagine it. Not only our child, but all the children are playing around freely in this changed neighborhood. When I imagine that, I can’t help but hurry.”

Hyun-sung’s eyes were shining brighter than ever before. It was the same for Yoon Ji-soo, who was looking at him.

“Okay. Hurry up and wash up and eat.”

“Ah, soybean paste seaweed soup.”

Hyun-sung’s movements became faster.

Shortly after.

When Hyun-sung came out after washing up, Yoon Ji-soo immediately scooped up soybean paste seaweed soup and put it on the table.

Then Hyun-sung immediately opened his mouth.

“Sit down quickly. Let’s eat together.”

“Yes, let’s.”

As soon as Yoon Ji-soo sat down in the chair, Hyun-sung immediately opened his mouth.

“Thank you for this morning too. And thank you even more for finding the direction. Thanks to you, I’m happy this morning too.”

“…….”

Yoon Ji-soo smiled at Hyun-sung instead of answering. Then Hyun-sung also made eye contact with her and started eating breakfast. He looked happier than ever before.