It seemed the coddling tone Taesu used was far more pleasant to hear.
“After pretending to be all solemn, the moment you run out of things to say, you start throwing a tantrum?”
“When the three of you are staring at me like that, of course I get nervous.”
“Nervous, my foot. But you, brat. Where did you sell off the doenjang jjigae? Why are you empty-handed?”
When Elder Jeon made his demand so brazenly, Taesu first showed his sense of injustice.
“I nearly died yesterday, you know.”
“And then I hear you just slept like a log.”
“Second Elder, I wasn’t just sleeping. It was because of extreme mental—”
As Taesu’s words threatened to grow long, Elder Jo roughly waved his hand.
Whoosh, whoosh.
“Trying to lecture your elders, are you?”
“It’s not a lecture—”
“You brat, even now—tsk!”
“There you go again. Anyway, I have my own work to do, so please settle this quickly.”
When Taesu answered sulkily, the old men’s faces immediately twisted.
“Just listen to the way that brat talks!”
“At this rate, he’ll roll over and show us his belly.”
“Fine. Go on, bare your belly. Let’s see if I leave you be.”
Elder Jo even rolled up his sleeves.
Seeing the old men come at him all at once, Taesu smiled softly.
“Haha.”
“You’re laughing?”
“I should laugh.”
“Do we look funny to you?”
“No. I’m just so glad you’re all hale and hearty. Truly, very, very glad.”
After answering, Taesu smiled even more brightly.
Before they knew it, the old men had also thrown off all their prickliness and were showing bright smiles.
“You came back well.”
“Looks like you went through a lot.”
“You rascal.”
Only then did they reveal the true feelings they had kept putting off and hiding.
Taesu responded in kind.
“I’m back.”
Those were the words he had truly wanted to say.
A short while later.
Creak.
Elder Jeon’s front door opened again.
Taesu came out first and stepped aside, and the trio of old men emerged one after another.
Taesu took the lead, volunteering to guide them.
“Let’s go.”
“Lead the way.”
“Yes.”
Step, step.
Taesu walked ahead, and the trio of old men followed behind.
The sight felt so natural, so inevitable.
After moving like that, they arrived at the wooden platform in the center of the village.
The people who had been waiting had even prepared seats for the old men on the platform.
Thump.
The old men sat down in order.
Then Elder Jeon slowly looked around and opened his mouth.
“We have decided to follow the decision you all make.”
At those words, everyone flinched.
Among them, Village Chief Jeon Nosik spoke with a flustered expression.
“Father, this is no ordinary matter… I would like you to serve as our center.”
“Yes. Elders, the village chief is right.”
Sincere pleas came from here and there among the people.
It was not simply that they were being pushed forward because of their age; there was respect in it, a desire to seek wisdom.
Taesu nodded.
‘That’s right. When adults act like adults, those below them will follow.’
It was bitter that, in the modern climate, such an obvious thing had to be brought to mind again.
Just then, Jeong Minsu and Kim Hyeokgwon approached Taesu’s side.
“You didn’t get hit?”
“Even if you’d gotten beaten up, you wouldn’t have had much to say.”
At the two men’s words, Taesu shot them a sidelong glare.
“What, were you hoping I got thrashed with a club?”
“No? That’s a shame.”
“Minsu… Never mind. What am I even saying?”
Taesu shook his head.
Up to that point, it had been a joke.
Kim Hyeokgwon was the first to switch to a serious voice and ask again.
“Was there any separate conversation inside?”
“They said it was because of the elders’ greed that the village had been closed off for so long. They regretted that.”
“What’s this? Somehow it feels like the mood is good.”
“That’s not it. They said they would watch how things flow. Just like now.”
Taesu gestured toward the villagers.
A vote by raised hands was being carried out, centered around Village Chief Jeon Nosik.
They were voting according to their convictions, without watching anyone else’s reaction.
The result came quickly.
Village Chief Jeon Nosik spoke of the outcome.
“Then, since there are slightly more in favor, we will first meet them face-to-face and see what kind of people they are.”
“Yes.”
“It will be a short time to understand what lies inside a person, but still, let us all observe them carefully.”
Village Chief Jeon Nosik nodded toward Taesu.
Seeing that signal, Taesu picked up the radio and informed Brad Kim.
“Brad, please bring everyone in.”
—We really can come in?
“It’s not exactly permission. More like an interview atmosphere.”
—All right. Got it. We’ll be there soon. See you inside.
Those were the last words over the radio.
All the villagers were looking at Taesu.
It was not because they were fascinated by the radio.
It seemed Brad Kim’s voice was familiar to them.
Kang Yeonghun approached and asked to confirm.
“Is that Dr. Kim?”
“Yes. You’ve all probably seen him before. The one who came for a preliminary survey.”
When Taesu added an explanation, everyone nodded.
“Ah, that generous-looking doctor.”
“He went around taking pictures here and there with his cell phone, so we gave him plenty of looks.”
“I felt a little bad about being cold to him back then. We’ll be seeing him again today.”
“I remember how he kept smiling even while we were saying harsh things to him.”
Perhaps because he was the first Korean from outside they had met, they remembered even that brief encounter.
After that, the villagers waited, caught between curiosity and wariness.
Vrooom.
The sound of trucks came drifting in, and soon they entered the village.
Raku’s truck stopped first, and President Gu Seungheon got out with a tense expression.
“Ahem, ahem.”
“Hm, hm.”
Unlike the nerve he had shown yesterday, he was openly uneasy.
From their position, it was understandable that their hearts had been squeezed with anxiety.
Taesu, Jeong Minsu, and Kim Hyeokgwon remained where they were.
From now on, it was out of their hands.
Whatever result came, watching like this was the wise thing to do.
‘Just be as you usually are.’
If Taesu’s feeling was right, that much would be enough.
Meanwhile, Village Chief Jeon Nosik approached first and greeted them.
“I am Jeon Nosik, the village chief.”
“I am Gu Seungheon. I apologize for coming so suddenly.”
Bow.
Standing neatly, they bowed to each other.
It carried a courtesy that was clearly different from a handshake.
President Gu Seungheon introduced the group standing behind him one by one.
“This is my wife.”
“My name is Kim Yeongseon. I look forward… to your kindness.”
“And beside her is our factory manager.”
“I am Na Duyeong. I’ll speak shamelessly and ask this of you. We did not come here to cause harm. We are also quite capable workers.”
Factory Manager Na Duyeong made his request with sincerity and desperation.
After him came Bong Yunju, in order.
They did not end with a simple greeting, but added their aspirations and resolve.
It seemed they had prepared while waiting.
In that brief time, their effort to show their sincerity was evident.
As for Himan and his family, and Barun’s family as well, President Gu Seungheon introduced them on their behalf.
Last came Namgung Hyeoncheol’s turn.
He scratched the back of his head awkwardly and said,
“My name is Namgung Hyeoncheol. To be honest, I’m a drifter. I’m from a Goryeo village in Kazakhstan, and while I’m staying here, I’ll also work hard—”
He was in the middle of speaking.
“Wait.”
A voice suddenly cut him off from the other side.
Everyone’s eyes turned to Village Chief Jeon Nosik.
He, on the contrary, waved his hands with a flustered expression.
“It wasn’t me.”
“Nosik.”
“Father, that wasn’t me.”
“I said it, so step aside for a moment.”
“Yes? Ah, yes.”
Village Chief Jeon Nosik opened the way with a bewildered expression.
Elder Jeon stepped out along that path and headed straight toward Namgung Hyeoncheol.
He was not alone.
Elder An and Elder Jo were with him as well.
Since the old men had said they would simply observe, everyone looked on in puzzlement.
The same was true for Taesu and the other two.
“The mood is suddenly turning strange, isn’t it?”
“We don’t know what might happen, so let’s go.”
Tap, tap.
The three who had been standing at a distance quickly closed the gap.
By the time Taesu and the other two arrived, the old men had also come to stand before Namgung Hyeoncheol.
“Hrm.”
“Hrrm.”
Under the old men’s fixed gazes, Namgung Hyeoncheol looked bewildered.
“Um, may I ask why you are all doing this?”
“You said your surname is Namgung.”
“That is correct.”
“Not your father… Then, by any chance, what was your grandfather’s name?”
It was an abrupt question, but the old men’s expressions were exceedingly serious.
Namgung Hyeoncheol answered with a bewildered face.
“He used the single-character name Hwan.”
“Namgung Hwan… Then by any chance, do you know your great-grandfather’s name as well?”
“I’m sorry, but I don’t know that much.”
Namgung Hyeoncheol’s answer was filled with confusion.
And that curiosity was not his alone.
Taesu and the medical team, the people of the Korean village, and even the people from Korea.
All their puzzlement was focused in one place.
Yet the old men themselves paid no attention to anything except Namgung Hyeoncheol.
It was the moment Elder Jeon’s line of questioning came to a stop.
Then Elder An quickly stepped forward and asked another question.
“Do you happen to know where your grandfather was born?”
“No.”
“Hm. I see.”
Elder An did not seem to have gained anything in particular.
At that moment, Elder Jo said a word to Elder An.
“If anyone is going to ask, shouldn’t it be me?”
“Ah, that’s true.”
“Please move aside a little.”
Whoosh.
Elder Jo quickly stepped in front of Namgung Hyeoncheol.
Then he asked in a slightly trembling voice,
“Is your grandfather well?”
“No. He passed away a few years ago.”
“When he was alive, did you have much contact with him?”
“From the time I was born until the day my grandfather passed away, we lived in the same house.”
Namgung Hyeoncheol answered surprisingly readily.
It seemed that from the questions he was hearing, he too was beginning to sense something.
Elder Jo continued asking him,
“Then, was there perhaps anything distinctive about your grandfather?”
“He had a burn scar on his neck.”
The moment he heard that answer, Elder Jo’s body, which had been struggling to maintain its composure, visibly shook.
He forced his trembling hand to move and asked,
“By any chance, by any chance… was it a scar shaped like this?”
“Huh? Yes. That’s right.”
“You… Then you… You really are Hwan’s grandson.”
“Do you know my grandfather?”
Namgung Hyeoncheol, who had been answering plainly, also grew more and more serious.
Elder Jo stepped closer to him and gripped his shoulders.
Tremble, tremble.
His arms shook so hard one feared he might collapse as he asked again,
“You really are Hwan’s grandson?”
“It is true that my grandfather used the name Hwan.”
“Yes. Yes… Looking at you up close, your eyes resemble his… Your nose resembles his… You are Hwan’s grandson. You are. Oh, you brat.”
Thud!
Elder Jo abruptly pulled Namgung Hyeoncheol into a tight embrace.
Namgung Hyeoncheol, still bewildered, quietly asked with a look of suspicion.
“By any chance, Elder, is your name Jo…?”
“Y-yes. Oh dear. That’s right, it’s me. Did that fellow talk about me too?”
“He spoke of you even the day before he passed away. He was grieving, saying he did not know whether you were alive or dead.”
“Oh dear. Hwan, you brat… I’m here, you brat. I’m right here. Oh dear, oh dear!”
Elder Jo spoke as if squeezing the words out of his chest.