The Genius Decided To Live An Ordinary Life [EN]: Chapter 312

The exam hall assigned to Jinhyuk was an agricultural high school in another region, different from the one in his past life.

‘Is this my third time here?’

Once for the preliminary CSAT [College Scholastic Ability Test] meeting, and once for the TOEIC [Test of English for International Communication] exam in his past life.

After being discharged from the military, he had taken the TOEIC exam to apply for contract positions at SeIn while helping Shin Woosung with his business. It was the same school he had visited back then.

“I’ll be off. The traffic is bad, so just go.”

Vehicles carrying test-takers were lined up, and with the heavy snow, they couldn’t afford to delay any longer.

Whistle-! Whistle-!

The police were constantly blowing their whistles, directing traffic to clear the area in front of the school.

However, Son Kwangyeon, reluctant to just send his son off, got out of the car to follow Jinhyuk.

“Hyunwoo, go slowly. I’ll see our son off and then follow you.”

“Yes, sir. Just follow the road.”

He had his test admission ticket in his backpack, along with two extra-large insulated lunch boxes for a light eater, and computer pens in every pocket, just in case.

He also had the hot pack that Hwang Gayoung had given him. It was a gift from his innocent older sister that warmed Jinhyuk’s heart whenever he thought of it, so he couldn’t leave it behind.

He also had the ‘Perfect Score Cushion’ that Hwang Gayoon had specially made with new materials, tucked under his arm. A cushion for getting a perfect score, she had named it directly, true to her cool personality.

At the main gate, parents were patting their children and praying while turning rosaries.

Reporters and cameramen who had come to cover Son Jinhyuk were also stamping their feet and blowing on their hands.

Kim Yuduck, who was fiddling with a hot pack, spotted Jinhyuk and waved her hand.

“Jinhyuk-ah! Look over here, here. It’s your sister. I’ll just get a video. Please give me an interview after the exam.”

Truly a national reporter.

It would be faster to check where that reporter doesn’t appear.

“Is the chairman here too?”

“Ughhh, I’m nervous.”

He met Lee Seunghoon and Shin Woosung, who had arrived together in Shin Woosung’s father’s car.

Right, Lee Seunghoon had stayed at Shin Woosung’s house and came together.

Woosung, if you’re nervous, you should have studied more.

It seems like only those who didn’t study are nervous. Lee Seunghoon is calm.

“Jinhyuk hyung! Good luck on your exam!”

“Son Jinhyuk! Perfect score!”

“Lee Seunghoon! Shin Woosung!”

“Taeyang High! Taeyang High!”

Oooooooo-!

He waved to the sports club juniors who were chanting their seniors’ names, and to the student council members who were shouting the school’s name and singing cheers.

He turned his body in response to the careful touch of his father brushing the snow off his shoulder.

“Dad, I’ll be off. Have a good day at work.”

“Aigoo, son. Our son… Ummuuhuhu.”

Jeez, this dad is crying again.

Jinhyuk stood in front of his dad to block him from the camera and hugged him tightly.

Pat pat-.

“I’ll do well and come back.”

“Ummmuuuuu-.”

What is he saying, he’s not a cow.

Ha, I can’t just put him in my pocket and go.

He’s such an emotional dad, he needs a lot of attention.

***

It was an exam he had taken once before.

So, he could tell.

‘It’s different. Completely different.’

The questions were completely different from the ones he had solved in the past.

‘There will be a lot of crying kids?’

The level was worlds apart from the usual mock exams.

It was just a guess, but perhaps the level had increased because some companies occasionally required CSAT scores not only for admissions but also in the job market? Even in the language section, there were quite a few questions that required data analysis and logical thinking skills similar to the civil service aptitude test.

Sigh-.

Huoo-.

Ughhh-.

Sighs and groans could be heard from all around.

Eugh-.

Hey, who’s pooping in the exam hall?

Ah, it’s a senior who’s retaking the exam.

Well, it happened in the past and will happen in the future.

This is a separate issue from the changes in the world or the discriminating power of the exam.

In the past, was there any exam that wasn’t difficult?

‘Math is absolute hellfire.’

The last question in the multiple-choice section tripped Jinhyuk up.

Even Jinhyuk, who had come to like math, had to rub his forehead at the difficulty.

‘It’s confusing.’

Clearly, he understood what the question was asking.

He had also finished analyzing the given data.

But no matter how he solved it, there was no answer choice that matched the result Jinhyuk had derived.

Just as he was letting time slip away.

Thump-.

【The guy in front is 1, the guy behind is 3, the guy on the left is 2, the guy on the right is 4, the guy at the very back is 5, and the guy at the very front guessed.】

‘You shouldn’t come out now…’

Ugh-.

At the sudden appearance, Jinhyuk gritted his teeth and held on.

【I came because you called so desperately. I’m going. Good luck.】

Hahyuu-.

He almost lost his mind while focusing on the problem.

That rascal, he didn’t even give me the answer, and the answers are all different even though he helped me cheat?

The proctor, who had been looking at Jinhyuk particularly, gave him a worried look.

Jinhyuk pretended to be fine and moved on to the next question.

‘Let’s solve the short answer questions first and then calculate it again.’

He couldn’t just do it carelessly.

He had promised Yujin to proudly show her a report card where he had done his best.

He had made another promise.

To go to college with his sister when she was old enough.

– “Oppa! I’m going to MIT [Massachusetts Institute of Technology]! I heard their engineering program is good. And it’s co-ed.”

Well, it would be fun to work hard for 9 or 10 years and then go to college in the US with my sister. Maybe my slowly regressing mental age will be similar to my peers by then.

Of course, it wasn’t for reasons like a degree or the romance of campus life.

It was because he thought he could actively recruit talent to lead the aerospace industry by helping Yujin at that time.

‘By then, my friends will start families, and we’ll grow apart…’

Ah, focus.

*

During lunchtime, Lee Seunghoon and Shin Woosung came to find him.

It’s the day of the CSAT, can’t you guys eat separately, you punks-.

“Wow-. What’s in Woosung’s lunch?”

Jinhyuk’s eyes widened at Shin Woosung’s lunch box, which looked like he had brought the whole rice cooker.

“Mom made braised short ribs for me, the chairman, and Seunghoon to eat together. It’s Korean beef.”

Indeed, lunch tastes best when eaten with friends.

*

‘The second section of the CSAT seems easy.’

It was at a level that Jinhyuk, who was weak in science, especially physics and chemistry, could solve easily. As for social studies, well, he was a type who was strong in memorization, so the more difficult it was, the more the pervert Son Jinhyuk enjoyed it.

He finished the English section in less than 40 minutes and even completed the answer memo on the back of his test admission ticket.

He would use this test admission ticket to check his score at home.

*

“This is the fifth College Scholastic Ability Test this year. The test-takers who have finished the exam are leaving the exam halls. Was it because the purpose was to measure not only simple college entrance but also the culture and intellect of prospective members of society? The test-takers don’t look good due to the increased difficulty. Still, we will cautiously try to interview them. Son Jinhyuk, or should we call him a student? Let’s meet student Son Jinhyuk. How do you feel about taking the CSAT today?”

“It was somewhat difficult, but I think it was at a level that appropriately stimulated intellectual curiosity and problem-solving desires. However, I think it is necessary to increase the exam time or lower the difficulty.”

“Why do you think so?”

“If the passages are long, you should give more time to think, but even though I usually read a lot, I had to spend a lot of time reading the passages. In the case of the language and social studies sections, there were many unfamiliar passages because they were not from textbooks or classics.”

“Our student Jinhyuk, if you don’t mind, what score do you predict you will get?”

“I don’t think I’ll get a perfect score. I guessed on two questions in the science section.”

Kim Yuduck made a disgusted face from outside the camera angle. The people watching were also dumbfounded by the absurd statement.

As if he didn’t care about the reactions of others, Jinhyuk calmly shared his thoughts on finishing the exam.

Thanks to the candy Yujin gave him, he seemed to have found the right answers. He had finally solved the last multiple-choice question in the math section.

“Solving problems is always fun.”

“Ah… yes. Your words are annoying-, ah, no, thank you. Good job.”

After the interview, he patted his waiting friends on the back.

“You guys worked hard. Seunghoon, Woosung.”

“Chairman, you worked hard too-.”

“It’s over now. Ahhh-! School was reaaally- fun.”

Woosung really had fun. It was a school that provided lunch, but he brought his own lunch and ate it.

‘Me too. It was fun.’

As it got darker, the cold became more intense, and Jinhyuk, whose nose was red, chuckled.

“I can’t believe it’s over.”

Lee Seunghoon twitched his nostrils.

He’s sentimental for someone his size.

‘Is it really over…’

It feels like it’s just the beginning.

His friends’ college lives, everyone’s youth, and Jinhyuk’s social life.

They all knew it in their heads, but they couldn’t clearly picture the future.

That’s what the future must be like.

Like winter, which comes and waits outside the door without anyone noticing.

I hope the future of this life will be spring.

“Chairman, shall we go to a restaurant for dinner? Let’s have a get-together just us. Seunghoon, you call Mikyung too.”

“Eee? Should we?”

“I want to go home early today. Let’s meet at school tomorrow.”

Shin Woosung’s father was waiting in the car, but Jinhyuk waved him off.

He wanted to go home to his family.

He had said he would take public transportation on the way back, so he walked on the uneven road where the accumulated snow had frozen.

If he walked along this road, he would reach the terminal and could go home.

‘Jeez. The terminal is so far from here.’

Son Jinhyuk doesn’t always think ahead and act.

***

Was it because he had used his brain all day and came home?

The awakening effect hadn’t disappeared.

Grandpa Chun Gilyong’s brother had called this an awakening.

Regardless of the dictionary definition, the fact that his head was still heating up and spinning was comparable to the shock of an awakening.

His buoyant mood wouldn’t settle down, so he wandered around near his house.

Heheheh-.

While the snow was falling heavily, Janggun stayed by his old friend’s side.

Crunch-.

When he had walked about halfway along the ridge, he heard something being stepped on under the snow.

Was it because the temperature had dropped and the snow hadn’t melted? An unwet newspaper came out.

“Who put a newspaper here-?”

Looking at the date, it was a newspaper from less than a week ago. It seemed like Jung Sangtae, who had been taking a walk last night, had forgotten it. That uncle always carries a newspaper around for show, even though he doesn’t read it.

「National Audit, Summoning of Business Leaders and Current Government Officials」

「Heated Hearings, Blame Game」

「Chairman of ⨯⨯⨯ 〇〇 Group Arrested, on Charges of Embezzlement and Tax Evasion」

「◆◆Steel’s Transformation, Taking Off from SeIn. A Miracle 10 Months After Overcoming Bankruptcy.」

「Evidence of Jung Daesoo Giving Hundreds of Billions to YS Revealed. Calls for Judgment on the Regime Intensify」

「Foreign Capital’s Inaction, Our Economy Unaffected by the Cold Wave That Hit Asia」

Jinhyuk’s lips curled up in a satisfied smile.

Thanks to Hong Gijun fulfilling Jinhyuk’s request, the cold wave of the past would not be repeated. You never know when another crisis will come, but it was good that they had gotten past this one for now.

He remembered what Richard Hammond, whom he had met through Hong Gijun last winter, had said.

– “Richard isn’t interested in money. He’s only interested in making money. Korea? Anyway, except for SeIn, it’s an American dependent market. Richard moves America. So, what Richard means is that Richard can control the Korean market if he wants to. Ah, don’t take it badly. Isn’t that the truth? It’s a shame. We could conquer Korea under the RB flag, but Raymond told us not to.”

His head was complicated by the fat man’s words.

It was because of the anxiety caused by the fact that it was a negligible market except for the mega-corporations, so it could be swayed at any time.

At the same time, one side of his heart felt relieved.

It was because he was able to overcome the crisis because a monster like Hammond was an ally.

He raised his head towards the gray sky.

Large snowflakes landed on his lips, nose, forehead, and eyelashes.

‘Will those friends go to college?’

The red stickers plastered all over their homes.

His peers who had lost their breadwinners and held liquor bottles and tambourines instead of pens.

The guys who carried sand-filled backpacks and cement bags instead of books, who held knives instead of pens, and who carried pig hind legs on their shoulders to make a living.

The friend who worked as an art academy instructor to make a living after going to art school.

The guys who envied the friends who followed the female students around and handed out business cards for entertainment establishments to make a living.

Even the guys who had managed to go to college and had their youth mortgaged for scholarships and ended up serving long military terms against their will could be seen as souls swept away by the world.

And that’s not all.

There were countless others.

‘That damn college. It’s nothing special even after you graduate.’

Because the world’s system was like that, because the times were flowing like that, everyone lived as if it were natural.

Well, regardless of the value of a college degree, it was a comfort to Jinhyuk that they were able to live their lives in the direction they wanted. Even if it was a path that the social system had half-forced.

Now, a college degree was no longer a given, and going to college after graduating from a humanities high school was no longer a normal path.

In the gardens of the ivory tower that had been tainted by commercialization, banners announcing academic conferences and Olympiad achievements fluttered more than exciting MTs [Membership Training] or boisterous festivals.

As he walked, he was under the persimmon tree.

Woof! Woof!

Janggun barked while looking up. He was spinning his tail like a propeller. It was something he did when he was in a good mood.

High up in the persimmon tree, a persimmon, well-ripened in vermilion, was enduring the pouring snow.

Whether it had burst from the cold or been pecked by a magpie, it showed off its translucent flesh against the dark sky.

‘Is that magpie food…’

Jinhyuk squatted down and brushed the snow off Janggun’s head.

“Our Janggun, do you want to eat a persimmon? Let’s just leave that one.”

Because it’s magpie food.

It was rare for Jinhyuk to speak so softly and kindly to Janggun.

Heheheh-.

As if he liked the tone of his voice, Janggun licked Jinhyuk’s chin.

‘I hope everyone is happy.’

He sent a message of comfort in his heart to those who no longer existed, those who must have had a hard time.

He also thought of the loneliness of those who were 10 or 20 years younger than Jinhyuk, those who had sometimes been more harshly treated by the world.

Ah, what does age matter? They were contemporaries, and they were comrades who would be together in the future.

In the end, he pictured everyone in his head, even those who were older than Jinhyuk. He hoped that the life of being swept away by the world would never be repeated.

He also included encouragement for his current friends, who were now becoming adults, who had devoted themselves to their studies while suppressing their hot-bloodedness.

Comfort for humans who had lived steadfastly despite being pushed around.

The title and form imitated Éluard.

「Title: Cheering on Youth

Your heart is cut by the blade wind

You who are huddled in a cold corner

Tomorrow is dark

And your life is heavy

On the path you have bravely embarked on, the whole world is your friend

And there is no one who does not smile when you look around

Even if you are sad about your lonely situation

Hanging like magpie food trembling in the frost

Do not cry, my friend

Run and run through the darkness

Let go of the painful tears

For you can wait for the sunlight to live」

The moment he put a period in his mind, he knew.

He realized after writing the poem.

This was a dedication for Jinhyuk himself.

A soul that had never been comforted, a man who had only himself to embrace.

How could he miss someone and comfort someone else when he couldn’t look after and care for himself?

The pleasure of the awakening, which was the exclusive property of those who had realized it, was of no importance.

‘My heart is at peace.’

The smile that he made with his lips raised was bright.

“Oppa-! Dinner’s ready-!”

Yujin called from the open window on the second floor.

He waved to his sister and then moved his feet. To the house where his family was waiting.

“Let’s go, Janggun.”

Heheheh-.

Squeak- Squeak-.

With this kind of snow, even the chaotic, overturned world of the past would look white and like a new world.

The snow, which was falling even more fiercely, quickly erased the man’s footprints.

Finally, the man’s silhouette disappeared into the white curtain.

That figure was no longer lonely.