Six-thirty in the afternoon.
Having finished his work, Seongheon entered Domyeongjae and stepped into Unseondang. He scanned the yard, which seemed busier than usual, and the interior, which was already being aired out, before heading back outside.
He wondered if Yeonwoo was at the main building and headed that way, just in time to spot her moving trash.
“Ah, Ji Yeon…”
Seongheon, who had called out her name in his haste, stopped. Watching Yeonwoo drag a massive, bulging trash bag, he let out a dry, incredulous laugh. He found the sight of her struggling with both hands both cute and pathetic, so he quickened his pace.
Seongheon moved in, lifting the trash bag Yeonwoo was pushing with one hand as if it were weightless. Yeonwoo looked up, startled as the load suddenly levitated.
Ah.
“Managing Director! I’ll do it!”
“If it drags and bursts, who’s going to clean that up?”
“I’m almost there! I’m almost there!”
“I know. This is my house.”
Seongheon strode away, unbothered. He marched ahead carrying the bag filled with refuse, and Yeonwoo followed with rapid, small steps. She moved her hands as if to support the bag, then mimicked a grabbing motion in mid-air, and when Seongheon finally arrived at the disposal area and set the bag down, she reacted in sync.
But in the end, she had done nothing but watch him handle the chore.
Yeonwoo squeezed her eyes shut before opening them.
“I’ll get scolded. If Manager Moon finds out, it’ll be a disaster, Managing Director.”
Seongheon brushed off his hands.
“More importantly, Ji Yeonwoo-ssi.”
He ignored her concern and called her name, causing Yeonwoo’s eyes to widen. Seongheon furrowed his brow slightly, looking annoyed.
“I want to know your phone number.”
“Pardon? My number?”
When he suddenly held out his phone, signaling for her to input it, Yeonwoo looked dazed.
“I need a way to contact you. I was going crazy with frustration all day.”
……Why?
Yeonwoo swallowed the question and instinctively took the phone. But she had no number to give him, no digits to input.
“I don’t have a phone. I got rid of the number entirely.”
“Ah.”
As she returned the phone with polite fingertips, Seongheon looked down at his own device.
He hadn’t expected this. He rubbed the bridge of his nose. Her number hadn’t been on her resume, and he had been on the verge of asking her several times already.
But she had no number.
“Managing Director, did you have something to say to me?”
Yeonwoo asked cautiously, sensing his shift in mood. At the mention that she had disposed of her phone, Seongheon exhaled a breath sharpened by anger, his thoughts turning to Cha Yoonseok.
“Did you get rid of it when you entered Domyeongjae?”
“Yes. That is correct.”
All day long, he had been anxious because he had no way to reach her. He had picked up the receiver to call the main building, only to stop; he had thought about calling Manager Moon to ask, only to stop again.
He knew all too well how it would look for him to be hunting for Yeonwoo, so he had let the time pass, paralyzed by his own restraint.
Most likely, Yeonwoo had discarded it for fear that Cha Yoonseok would track her. Afraid that a phone would leave a trace. Afraid that Cha Yoonseok would move heaven and earth to find her.
……With every untold story added to the pile, an uncontrollable rage surged within him.
It was six-fifty. It was almost time for Cha Yoonseok to arrive.
“Ji Yeonwoo-ssi.”
“Yes. Managing Director.”
“Are you aware that a guest is coming here today?”
Yeonwoo nodded.
“Yes. I heard about it. That you are receiving a guest, Managing Director.”
“Did you hear who is visiting?”
“No. I didn’t hear that part.”
“A representative from Namsong Industrial Development will be here shortly. Someone both I know, and you know.”
“……Ah.”
Cha Yoonseok.
Her pupils trembled as if her composure were cracking. Yeonwoo’s complexion turned pale in an instant, and she could only blink.
Before they could say anything more, the radio crackled. It was a call from Manager Moon saying the guest had arrived and to hurry to the main building.
Shortly after, Seongheon’s phone rang as well. Confirming the caller was Manager Moon, Seongheon brought the phone to his ear.
─ Managing Director. The guest has arrived. Should I show him to the main building right away?
Seongheon looked down at Yeonwoo. He watched her expression, weary of everything, lose even more of its color, then replied in a low voice.
“Show him in.”
At the same time, the heavy iron gate of Domyeongjae clattered open.
“I’ll be there soon.”
Having stepped out of his car, Cha Yoonseok gazed into Domyeongjae and wore a vulgar smile.
*
Cha Yoonseok followed Manager Moon’s lead. When the roof tiles of the ancient-looking main building came into view, Cha Yoonseok let out a groan of admiration that seemed to boil up from his chest.
“They said it was enough to make the five palaces of the Hanyang capital jealous, and damn, this is the ultimate.”
It was a cheap assessment compared to the sight before him. Following Manager Moon with a loose-jointed gait, Cha Yoonseok handed over the gift packages brought by his driver only once he stood before the main building’s stepping stone.
Manager Moon looked down at the gifts, then looked up.
“Here at Domyeongjae, we do not accept any gifts for the guests we serve. My assistant explained that over the phone, I believe.”
At that, Cha Yoonseok placed the boxes wrapped in golden silk on the wooden floor and continued.
“I couldn’t come empty-handed. Hey, what do you take me for?”
Claiming to be a man of manners, Cha Yoonseok pointed to the boxes with a crooked posture.
“This is wild pine mushroom. That there is five-year-old family-grown wild ginseng. Take them and make the Managing Director a bowl of stamina soup. If there’s any left, share it among yourselves.”
Cha Yoonseok tapped Manager Moon on the arm as he finished.
“Or, if you want, just pocket it yourself without the Managing Director knowing. You could probably get a good price reselling it. You know how it is. Just make sure you tell the Managing Director that I was the one who gave them to you.”
Cha Yoonseok laughed crudely, suggesting he could skim some off the top.
“I’m the only one who thinks of these calculations. You shouldn’t look down on the generosity of the countryside. People living in places like this know better.”
“…….”
“Have you already had your fill, Manager? I heard you’re in charge of the storeroom here at Domyeongjae. Help yourself when you can. It’s all just like that.”
He spoke with a tone that implied he was the only one who truly understood how things worked. He talked as if he were overflowing with wit and magnanimity, but Manager Moon simply stood there and opened the main door.
“The Managing Director isn’t here yet, so you may go inside and wait.”
“Oh, I’m going in. It’s pleasant to have a lady opening the door for me. Age doesn’t matter, right?”
“…….”
Cha Yoonseok kicked off his shoes and stepped into the main building. Watching his shoes sprawl outside the stepping stone, Manager Moon picked them up and placed them neatly in a row.
*
The appointment was for seven o’clock, but Seongheon had not yet appeared. Cha Yoonseok, guided to an attached guest area, sat at a low table. As he sat on a cushion letting time pass, the door opened.
Cha Yoonseok, thinking it was Seongheon, spun his torso around hurriedly, only to raise his eyebrows when he saw Yeonwoo enter.
“Hey, Yeonwoo. Have you been well? We meet again, huh?”
Yeonwoo kept her gaze lowered as she placed the tray on the table. As she set down the water and cups, Cha Yoonseok leaned forward, resting his weight on the table.
“I’m talking to you, and you don’t even greet me. Huh? I came all the way here to see you. Since you wouldn’t come out.”
As if she couldn’t hear a thing, Yeonwoo made no reaction. After staring intently at her face, he noticed her fingertips trembling slightly and chuckled.
“I don’t know if you’re aware, but I’m staying around here. Nearby.”
“…….”
“I’m taking you with me when I go back to Seoul. Holding your hand tight.”
When Cha Yoonseok slid his cup toward her to prompt her to pour the water, Yeonwoo picked up the pitcher. She knelt as she had been taught and poured, but Cha Yoonseok grabbed her wrist firmly.
Water spilled onto the floor.
“Shit. I’m talking to you.”
He could feel Yeonwoo clenching her teeth. Cha Yoonseok widened his eyes until the whites were visible, murmuring to intimidate her.
“Don’t make me lose my temper. Isn’t it enough? If you were going to run away, you shouldn’t have gotten caught. And if you got caught, you should have crawled out.”
“……Let me go.”
“Shut up, shit. I’m already pissed off just looking at you. If you don’t like it, scream. I’ve got nothing to lose.”
“…….”
“You saw it last time. No matter what you do, I can get out of it. So go ahead and scream. Whatever I tell this Managing Director about you, that’s my choice.”
As Yeonwoo’s demeanor turned submissive, as if the threat had worked, Cha Yoonseok smirked.
He gripped her wrist as if to break it before letting go. Yeonwoo picked up the pitcher again and filled the cup. Seeing her trembling fingertips, Cha Yoonseok scoffed in derision.
He leaned back against the backrest and watched Yeonwoo steadily.
“Cut the act and crawl out now. Stop trying to find the bottom of my patience, which even I don’t know.”
“…….”
“If you get caught by my hands before you come out, our ending won’t be beautiful. I don’t get fooled twice. You get caught by me? Your life ends that day. Do you have any idea how much I’ve been gnashing my teeth while looking for you? I’ve been treating you like a gentleman and you don’t know your place. Just wait. How I’ll catch you and torture…”
As Cha Yoonseok pressed her, the door opened. Seeing Seongheon, Cha Yoonseok stood up with such speed he shoved the cushion away. Yeonwoo only stood up after she had filled Seongheon’s water cup.
“You’re here, Managing Director!”
Cha Yoonseok greeted him loudly, his voice completely different from before. After bowing at a near right angle to Seongheon, he lifted his head.
In the meantime, Yeonwoo left the room with the tray. Seongheon stepped aside briefly to let her pass, cast a sidelong glance at her face, and then entered the room as if nothing were amiss.
Cha Yoonseok smiled like a younger brother who had just been reunited with a family member he had lost long ago. He then stretched out his arm to offer a handshake.
“You’ve become even more dashing since I last saw you, Hyungnim!”
“…….”
“Oh, my apologies. I follow you so deeply in my heart, Managing Director, that the word ‘Hyungnim’ just slipped out.”
Seongheon looked ruthlessly at the hand Cha Yoonseok held out.
A moment ago, Yeonwoo’s expression had been transcendent, as if she were beyond reality—as if she had already steeled herself for death.
“It’s an honor to be invited like this! Managing Director!”
Cha Yoonseok greeted him once more, loudly. As Cha Yoonseok’s outstretched hand twitched, urging him to take it, Seongheon slowly reached out.
“Welcome.”
“…….”
“To Domyeongjae.”
Seongheon gripped Cha Yoonseok’s hand firmly.