Chapter 21
21.
Sihu had heard from Hayun that a streamer might visit the restaurant. He wanted them to eat quietly and leave without disturbing the other guests. Thinking this, Sihu trimmed the vegetables and beans on the table and muttered.
“A streamer? They’re just a guest who comes to my restaurant and enjoys the food. I just have to treat them the same as everyone else.”
Sihu’s hands moved without rest.
Thok— tok—
***
Buzz— buzzzz—
A notification appeared on Hayun’s phone indicating a text message had arrived. After checking the message, Hayun went into the [Fact Verification] channel.
‘1.2 million subscribers, and real-time chat firepower of over five thousand at once? That’s quite a large channel.’
When he properly checked his phone, it was a text about coordinating a visit schedule.
“This person really can’t get their timing right, huh.”
Hayun muttered as he looked at the text.
All the schedules that Woodpecker had said were possible were times when Sihu and Hayun weren’t operating the store. Hayun sent Woodpecker a message that visits were impossible at all of those times.
Ding!
Woodpecker checked his phone and let out a deep sigh.
Haah—
Having received the text, Woodpecker sighed that the coordination wasn’t working out.
“What the—. What a damn difficult restaurant to make content at—.”
Ding!
[If you would like to visit, we will have a spot ready around 09:30 AM. If that time doesn’t work, I’m afraid there’s nothing we can do either. Thank you for thinking of [SeeYou].]
Woodpecker felt irritation rising at [SeeYou]’s message, which set the time so rigidly.
“What the hell is this place?”
He swept his drooping bangs up in irritation.
Nickname Woodpecker, Kim Cheolsu—he ignored Hayun’s reply and notified them of a visiting day instead.
Ding!
[I’m sorry, but that is our regular closing day.]
Woodpecker—no, Kim Cheolsu—shouted in the middle of the night at things not going according to plan.
Kwaaang!
“Hey, keep it down! Do you live alone?”
A complaint came from the neighboring house.
Woodpecker Kim Cheolsu’s shoulders hunched.
‘I’m moving out of this house for sure.’
***
Sihu woke up just like any other day and walked around the vegetable garden for a while. Gazing at the mountain range visible in the distance, he muttered.
“There should be mountain herbs, mushrooms, and berries that grow in the mountains….”
The mountain was an unexpected treasure trove of natural ingredients. Didn’t the news occasionally report about locals who went to pick herbs and ended up digging up three-hundred-year-old wild ginseng?
Sihu looked around his surroundings and began to feel greedy that this place had mountains, sea, and fields all in one.
‘If there’s a rice field, and labor, aged doenjang… gochujang… ah?’
Sihu snapped his fingers at the thought that suddenly came to mind.
‘If it goes according to plan.’
Taking advantage of today being the regular closing day, Sihu boarded a bus and headed to Haran Market. He traveled for quite a while.
Sihu was thinking of burying jangdok in the “otherworld garden.” That was why he came to the Haran 5-Day Market. They said that if he came here to see and order the jangdok, they would deliver them.
‘I’ll buy a lot, bury some on the second floor of the house and in the garden, and put the rest in the otherworld garden.’
All this time, even as he harvested beans from the garden, Sihu had never thought about making jang. After meeting Master Yun Sukhui during a special class in high school, he had intended to ferment jang for a long time, but had kept putting it off because the restaurant was busy.
‘Since time flows faster in the otherworld, I can ferment and age the jang much faster and longer than in reality.’
As he headed to a specialty onggi shop in the Haran 5-Day Market, Sihu reproached himself for his laziness. He also worried about where and in which dishes to use the fermented jang.
Ding-dong~
As the iron wind chime hanging at the store rang out clearly, the owner approached.
“Hello, what kind of onggi are you looking for?”
Sihu’s pupils trembled slightly as he looked at the various types of onggi inside the store.
‘There were this many kinds of jars?’
Perhaps sensing Sihu’s hesitation, the shop owner asked with a kind smile.
“Did you come on an errand for your mom?”
“Huh? No. I came to buy jars to make jang.”
The shop owner made a quite surprised expression.
‘A young person making jang?’
When the shop owner was young, mothers her age used to come buy jars and personally make gochujang, doenjang, and ganjang on their verandas. Recently, due to large corporations’ jang business, making it personally had become rare. Yet here was a tall, handsome young man who came to buy onggi to make jang himself.
The shop owner found him admirable.
“I see. What size would you like?”
At the owner’s words, Sihu looked around for a moment. He thought of the onggi that would age for a long time, and the jars to be used as kimchi jars, soy sauce jars, doenjang jars, and gochujang jars, then asked which would be suitable.
“Will you be burying them in the ground? Or do you have a separate jangdokdae?”
The onggi shop owner thought that if there was a place to bury them these days, it would be a detached house with a yard.
“Yes, I have a yard, and a second floor.”
At Sihu’s words, the shop owner showed him onggi of suitable sizes.
“To make jang, the onggi must breathe well.”
Ttaak—
When the shop owner tapped the onggi as if knocking, a clear, pure sound rang out.
“And good onggi are ones that ring clear and pure like this, have a glossy surface, and shine.”
The shop owner went to a shelf for a moment and brought back a sheet of paper. When Sihu made a curious expression, the owner’s explanation continued.
“And this is the product test report for this onggi.”
Sihu read the onggi’s product test report and nodded.
‘At this level, it should be fine even after being buried in the ground for quite a long time.’
Afterward, Sihu asked the shop owner’s permission and examined the onggi by tapping them. Seeing this, the shop owner’s eyes sparkled at his meticulousness.
‘To think a young person would check onggi so carefully.’
Sihu, who had been checking the onggi one by one, spoke to the shop owner as if having made his decision.
“I’ll buy this one, that one, and those over there.”
The reason Sihu had come directly to the onggi shop to see and buy the jangdok was because he had recalled the words of Master Yun Sukhui.
‘She said, “You must come see and buy the onggi yourself.”’
The shop owner said she would deliver the onggi Sihu had chosen, and Sihu gave her the address.
“Oh my, you came from quite far? Since I’m delivering them personally, I’ll contact you before I go.”
Sihu expressed his thanks and left the store. After a moment’s thought, he stopped by a bank to withdraw cash. The warm spring sunlight was brightly illuminating the streets. Feeling slightly excited, Sihu decided to look around Haran Market.
Merchants were out selling various goods. Sihu had been to the market with his parents when he was young. He saw grandmothers sitting on the street trimming and selling vegetables. High-quality seasonal vegetables and fruits caught his eye.
“Grandma, how much is this?”
The grandmother trimming vegetables didn’t even look at him. Her hands working on the vegetables were gaunt, nothing but bones. Seeing that, Sihu felt a pang of sorrow.
‘……’
He asked a little louder.
“Grandma! I’m asking how much the donnamul and dallae are!”
Only then did the grandmother look at Sihu.
“My hearing is bad so I didn’t catch that. What did you say?”
At her words, Sihu spoke up a little louder next to her ear.
“How much are the herbs and dallae?”
“Mm—. Shall I bag a big bunch of these for three thousand won each?”
The grandmother pulled out a black plastic bag and put a large handful of herbs in it.
“Here you go. Student—did you come on an errand for your mom?”
Sihu flashed a gentle smile and held out a ten-thousand-won bill.
“Grandma, you don’t need to give me change.”
The grandmother asked as if she hadn’t heard well.
“What?”
Seeing Sihu’s bill, she tried to take change out of the pouch tied at her waist.
“Sell a lot, Grandma.”
Sihu grabbed the bag in front of her and quickly walked away.
***
He wandered around near Haran Market to catch the bus. Sihu, whose throat was slightly dry, was looking around for a café. Just then, he saw someone holding a smartphone and talking.
‘Huh?’
Seeing the person with the smartphone, the corner of Sihu’s mouth rose slightly. He instantly recognized the person doing a broadcast. Smiling gently toward him, Sihu leaned against the building wall and waited until he finished broadcasting.
Thud— thud—
Sihu saw him putting his smartphone and stand into his bag and walking toward where he was. Sihu stared quietly at him until he approached.
Swish—
As the man passed in front of Sihu, having completely put away his smartphone, their eyes met.
“Huh?”
At his surprise, a gentle curve formed on Sihu’s lips.
Thank you for reading.
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