If he forced his way closer, it seemed there would be even greater resistance.
Taesu did not think it difficult.
A child?
No matter how he thought about it, she was a child.
Handling children was also Taesu’s area of expertise. Accordingly, Taesu took out chocolate and candy from his pocket and showed them.
"I’ll give you this."
"……."
"It’s real. I’m just giving it to you."
"……."
Rustle.
Gang Songhui did not answer and looked at Gang Yeonghun.
It would have been a lie to say that longing was not contained in that gaze.
Meanwhile, Gang Yeonghun was perplexed.
He had achieved his goal of introducing Gang Songhui to Taesu.
Even so, this was not the situation he had wanted.
"Well, this is something."
He couldn’t say anything with certainty, so he was at a loss.
But then.
The old man leaning on a splint answered in his stead.
"Songhui, you may take it."
"Grandpa Wang, really?"
"Yes."
The old man with the splint permitted her kindly.
In truth, he was more curious about why Taesu was suddenly acting this way.
The other old men were on guard, glaring at Taesu with fiery eyes.
In that peculiar atmosphere, Gang Songhui cautiously showed herself.
And.
Snatch.
She quickly snatched the chocolate and candy from Taesu’s hand and hid behind Gang Yeonghun again.
For a brief moment, Gang Songhui’s face was fully exposed to Taesu.
It was truly only a brief moment.
But Taesu raised his head, smiled brightly at Gang Yeonghun, and said,
"You may put aside the worst suspicions."
"Pardon?"
"I’m saying you may forget the diagnoses I mentioned as the worst-case scenarios."
"You only saw her for a moment."
Gang Yeonghun could not believe it easily.
Even so, Taesu spoke with a bright face.
"I looked into it every which way, but there are no decisive symptoms."
"Is that so?"
"The details are a bit… since Songhui might hear, let’s speak again later."
"Ah, yes."
Gang Yeonghun was still bewildered.
Meanwhile, the old man with the splint made a peculiar expression.
Perhaps not the type to brood alone, he asked immediately,
"Did you check Songhui’s condition in this current situation?"
"Because she is a patient."
"We were in the middle of a conversation about your accommodations."
"I promised Mr. Gang Yeonghun."
As Taesu broached the subject, the old man with the splint seemed to have heard something about it.
"You said you would look after Songhui."
"No matter what happens."
"So that’s why you took care of Songhui first?"
"Isn’t keeping a promise important?"
Taesu asked back with a look that said, *What did I do wrong?*
The old man with the splint, who had been quietly watching Taesu, spoke in a low voice,
"I’m not of the Wang family, but because I’m the oldest, I’m called ‘Grandpa Wang.’ You may call me ‘Old Man Wang,’ too."
"This is rather sudden."
As Taesu was bewildered, Grandpa Wang smiled thinly and said,
"When you get old, your whims grow fierce, too, so just think of it as an old man’s whim."
"Then I shall call you Grandpa Wang."
"As you please. By the way, would you examine me, too?"
At those words, the other old men jumped up.
"No, Hyung-nim."
"What do you mean by that?"
"How could you do this so suddenly?"
Despite the outpouring of protests from the old men, Grandpa Wang didn’t bat an eye.
"He said he’d treat us."
"But who knows what he’ll demand from us afterward."
"And do you have anything to give?"
"Well… ahem."
At that single piercing remark, the old men shut their mouths.
It was fascinating.
It was the exact same question Taesu had asked earlier.
Yet the atmosphere had flowed in exactly the opposite direction.
It seemed the same question changed depending on whose mouth it came from.
Regardless of the atmosphere, Taesu answered Grandpa Wang’s question.
"You may come anytime."
"I’m old and don’t sleep in the mornings."
"Then come find me at dawn."
Taesu answered indifferently.
Perhaps that attitude touched the other old men’s nerves, for their expressions turned cold.
"That punk."
"Does he even know who that person is?"
The moment those words came out, Grandpa Wang furrowed his brow.
"Watch your mouths, all of you."
"……."
A single sentence silenced them all.
However, Taesu had clearly heard.
*That person?*
It wasn’t something one would say if they were merely on familiar, brotherly terms.
Taesu’s gaze turned toward Gang Yeonghun.
"……."
He silently met the gaze.
He showed a stolidity that revealed nothing.
Such an appearance left an even deeper impression on Taesu.
It felt as if his conjecture was gradually becoming certainty.
That said, Taesu was not the type to reveal his thoughts prematurely.
Then Grandpa Wang naturally turned the topic back.
"If the villagers come to find you, I won’t go so far as to stop them."
"Those are the most welcome words."
"But whether they come or not is a matter for them to decide."
It was a promise that he would not interfere.
That was good news for Taesu.
"If we leave things to flow as they will, they’ll arrive somewhere."
"You are a sensible one."
"I am fairly perceptive."
"I can see that. Then with that understanding, let us head back now."
Having finished speaking, Grandpa Wang slowly turned around.
At that moment, Taesu moved quickly.
Tap.
Blocking his path, he said,
"Please wait a moment."
"What is it?"
"It seems the tea preparations are complete."
The moment Taesu spoke.
Waft.
A savory aroma drifted to the tip of their noses.
The instant they smelled it, the old men’s eyes wavered slightly.
Because it was precisely the smell of doenjang-jjigae.
The savory tea Taesu had requested from Kim Hyeokgwon was none other than doenjang-jjigae. He had faith that with Hyeokgwon’s perceptiveness, the man would catch on and act accordingly.
Sure enough, Kim Hyeokgwon’s intuition was even quicker and sharper than Taesu had imagined.
Moreover, to maximize the dramatic effect, he had clearly been cooking with the lid on and had only just opened it.
*As expected, he’s the best.*
Taesu admired Kim Hyeokgwon’s sense once again.
But this time, it wasn’t just Kim Hyeokgwon.
Jeong Minsu’s voice came from a completely unexpected place.
"If you aren’t going to eat standing, this is the best spot."
Swish.
Everyone’s gaze turned that way.
Before anyone knew it, Jeong Minsu had set bowls and spoons on a large rock and was waiting.
The old men’s eyes wavered even more.
The savory smell of doenjang-jjigae.
And on top of that, the aroma of steamed rice.
"Ahem."
They were busy clearing their throats.
Taesu drove in the wedge with perfect timing.
"It is a unique tea that cannot be obtained here."
"Hmph."
"To be honest, I brought it to trigger your nostalgia. And it is triggering it right now."
"What a needlessly honest personality."
Grandpa Wang shot him a sidelong glance.
Yet his Adam’s apple bobbed visibly.
The other old men were the same.
Meanwhile, Gang Yeonghun and Gang Songhui were covering their noses slightly.
"Ahem."
"Dad, it smells weird."
As expected, their reactions were different from the start.
The generational gap could be seen in aspects like this.
Then Kim Hyeokgwon, carrying a large pot, deliberately walked past them and said,
"If you’re going to eat, come and eat. What are you all standing around for?"
Waft.
At the smell he deliberately let drift, the old men’s expressions grew even more complicated.
"Oh dear."
"What should we do?"
Taesu fanned the flames of their dilemma.
"Mr. Hyeokgwon, that’s the last of the doenjang, right?"
"Do you think we have an infinite supply?"
"Don’t waste a single drop and save it. We had a hard time acquiring it, too."
"They say they’re not eating? Then it’s fine by us."
Kim Hyeokgwon hadn’t discussed a single line with him, yet he caught on immediately.
That conversation certainly sounded provocative to them.
Grandpa Wang, struggling to steady his wavering eyes, headed that way first.
"Let’s see how this prepared tea tastes."
"Hyung, Hyung-nim. Let us go together."
"Ohh, that is… ohh… how long has it been…"
As if even forgetting they had been angry, the old men were drawn by the smell toward the large rock.
It was a sight where even their pride seemed to have spilled away.
It was evidence that doenjang-jjigae was stirring a special nostalgia in them to that degree.
Soon, their humble meal began.
A meal consisting of doenjang-jjigae, rice, and kimchi was all.
That was definitely all.
Yet the reaction was explosively intense.
"Kuh. This taste."
"To think that I would taste this again in my lifetime… kugh."
Even their dry eyes grew moist.
Gang Yeonghun was flustered by such a reaction.
"What on earth is that foul-smelling soup? You were even sighing like that during the day."
"Dad, are the grandpas crying?"
"Hmm? Ah, no. No… well."
"Are they crying because the smell is bad?"
"I don’t think so. Dad doesn’t really know either."
Gang Yeonghun and Gang Songhui had to watch the old men’s emotion-filled meal with bewildered faces.
Meanwhile, Kim Hyeokgwon, his previously blank expression now vivid, made a remark.
"Can people flip that quickly?"
"It seems like it’s been at least several decades since they’ve had doenjang-jjigae."
"How do you know?"
"Because Mr. Gang Yeonghun doesn’t know about doenjang, either."
At the same time as Taesu’s answer.
Rustle.
Jeong Minsu approached from the side and asked quietly,
"Then how should we calculate the time period they migrated here?"
"Let’s not calculate it."
"……."
"What would we do with it?"
"Right. That’s not what’s important."
As Jeong Minsu nodded, Taesu added flatly,
"Anyway, we’ve created a channel for exchange with the village."
"Then those who want to come will come."
"What more could we ask for?"
Jeong Minsu, pondering Taesu’s words briefly, nodded.
"Yeah. That should be enough."
"But I am a bit upset."
"About what?"
"That they would shed tears over doenjang-jjigae."
"Hmm."
Jeong Minsu held his tongue.
Taesu didn’t speak further, and neither did Kim Hyeokgwon.
Thinking more would only hurt their hearts.
Let’s just see the patients.
Given the current situation, it was more than satisfying to have progressed this far.
The old men scraped the doenjang-jjigae clean and disappeared.
The three of them washed the dishes without saying a word.
No, they couldn’t.
To tell a small lie, they didn’t even need to wash the dishes.
They had emptied that tasteless doenjang-jjigae so thoroughly.
The complicated gazes the old men showed when leaving still flickered before their eyes.
"You could have come when we could make it a bit tastier."
It was nothing more than a pointless grumble.
Once all the cleaning was finished, night fell.
The three of them lit a campfire and sat around it.
And there was one more person.
It was Gang Yeonghun.
Naturally, he had come regarding Gang Songhui’s issue.
Taesu skipped the niceties and brought up the matter first.
"Previously, I mentioned neurofibromatosis, acute parotitis, and lastly, salivary gland tumor."
"I remember clearly."
Gang Yeonghun’s voice trembled slightly as he answered.