CHAPTER 71

“Huh? Who could it be at this hour?”

Siyeon was about to get up to check outside when Yoonsoo stopped her and got up first.

“I’ll go out and check. You stay here.”

“I won’t refuse.” 

Siyeon sat back on the floor. Her parents had gone upstairs, to let the factory workers enjoy themselves, and the four of them were helping themselves with the food, reheating and drinking. 

Yoonsoo put on his slippers and went out to the yard. 

“Who is it?” 

With a tone similar to that of a landlord, he opened the door wide. Ijun, who had been standing in front of the house, glanced briefly at the two-storey house before turning his gaze to Yoonsoo in front of him, confirming whether he had come to the right house. 

“I thought I had come to the wrong house. Is this the right place?”

Ijun asked, implying why Yoonsoo was coming out of this house. 

“Oh, we were just gathering for a drink. Come on in.” 

Ijun entered with a stern expression. Following behind him, Yoonsoo began to chatter.

“Siyeon often feels lonely, you know? Even though she pretends not to care about the world, if someone treats her a little better, her eyes change. It’s clear when she likes something. That’s why Manager Yang and the team leader wanted to take care of Siyeon a lot.”

 Ijun stopped in his tracks and turned around. His indifferent gaze was fixed on Yoonsoo’s face.

 “What are you trying to say to me?” 

“Just curious why someone who easily falls for a little kindness is still wandering around like a rain-soaked puppy. I’m wondering why a newlywed is still yearning for people’s affection like that.”

“Do you like Siyeon?” 

At Ijun’s straightforward question, Yoonsoo’s face stiffened slightly. He looked down for a moment before meeting his gaze again. 

“Within the legal boundaries, yes.”

“I hope you’d care for her not overgoing beyond legal boundaries.”

“Once, when I worked part-time at Yeongjin, Siyeon would sit outside even in the scorching midsummer sun. She said she liked the warmth of the sun, but I later found out she was waiting for the boss there. Even when she lived alone, she used to come out every day, look at the gate, and lie down. It was fascinating to see someone who interacts with people so much living alone like that.”

 Ijun tilted his head slightly as he looked at Yoonsoo. 

“How devoted she is to filial piety. When her husband couldn’t come for dinner, she was afraid her parents would be disappointed, so she called us instead. If she had met her birth parents late, she should be causing a fuss, but she has been acting like a perfect daughter from the beginning until now. It has become a habit for her to be mindful of her parents.”

“Mr. Park Yoonsoo, you seem to have no sense at all. Are you advising me, as her husband, to take good care of my wife?”

“I do have a sense, but I have a broad mind.”

Ijun, with a smirk as if he found it amusing, opened his mouth with a serious face.

“So, according to you, Mr. Park Yoonsoo, despite your excessive care over the past seven years, Siyeon still feels lonely and longs for affection. Are you implying that I’m making her come out to the yard like a dog waiting for its owner to bring food?” 

“Please don’t speak so lightly when you know nothing about us.” 

“You know nothing about us and Siyeon, so it would be better if you stopped talking now.” 

“…”

Ijun gave him a cold look, then turned briskly and opened the slightly ajar front door and went inside.

“Mr. Ijun!”

As Siyeon looked towards the entrance, she was startled when she met eyes with Ijun and quickly stood up. She took a few steps towards him.

“Did you come here directly from work? If you were coming, you should have let me know in advance.” 

“I called three times, but you didn’t pick up any of them.”

“Oh… I didn’t know.”

“Where are your parents?”

“They’re on the second floor.”

While the two were talking, Manager Yang and the team leader greeted Ijun as if they’re very much familiar with him. 

“Hello!” 

“Yes, hello.”

Ijun nodded to them over Siyeon’s shoulder and then turned towards the stairs leading to the second floor. Siyeon followed him. 

“I had my phone on vibrate, so I didn’t hear it. I’m sorry.” 

“Don’t put it on silent in case you get a call from the adults in Suwon, so make sure to set the ring on the phone loudly. And next time, don’t ask when I’ll finish, but rather ask if it’s okay to come for dinner directly.” 

“Are you angry?” 

“Yes.”

“….” 

He stopped in front of the door on the second floor and knocked.

“I’m here.”

Then her parents opened the door with a welcoming face.

“Why are you coming so late? I heard you were busy today.” 

“Yes, I was quite busy today.”

“Did you have dinner?”

“I didn’t have time, so I couldn’t eat.”

“Oh my! You came straight here without having dinner?”

“Yes.” 

Her parents’ eyes widened. Especially her mother, then began to scold Siyeon with a very disappointed look. 

“Siyeon, you don’t even know if your husband had dinner. AAnd if Ijun was going to be late, you should have told me in advance.” 

“Well, I…”

Siyeon tried to make an excuse, but Ijun interrupted. 

“I called three times, but she didn’t answer. It seems like she was having so much fun with people that she didn’t hear the phone ring.”

“What time is it now? How hungry must you be?”

“It’s okay. Skipping one meal won’t hurt, and if Siyeon had fun, that’s all that matters.” 

Siyeon rolled her eyes at Ijun’s sarcastic remark. 

“I’ll go to the market, so wait a bit. I’ll prepare something quickly.”

“Yes, Mom.”

“Siyeon, come with me.”

“Okay…”

Siyeon, following her mom downstairs in a hurry, stopped in her tracks and turned to look at Ijun. The corners of her eyes were sharply raised. 

“While we wait, shall we have a drink?”

“I brought the car today, so it’s inconvenient. Dad.”

Siyeon’s sharp gaze suddenly softened. She gave Ijun a puzzled look. It was surprising that Ijun had brought the car himself. 

“Why aren’t you coming down, Siyeon?”

“…Yes! I’m coming.”

Smiling, Siyeon turned and went downstairs to the first floor. 

“Well, what should we do…”

“How about playing Baduk?”

“You learned how to play baduk too?”

“I haven’t formally learned, but I’ve taught myself and play well.”

At Ijun’s response, Chairman Choi chuckled. The sound of his laughter reached the first floor, and the people sitting in the living room looked at each other.

* * *

A truly ambiguous situation was unfolding. While her mother was preparing the food, Ijun and her father sat solemnly at the first-floor dining table playing Baduk, while the people in the living room chatted noisily and drank. Siyeon, who had been helping her mother, returned to the living room as her tasks ended.

“Will you not back down?”

“Do you want me to show you?”

“Fine! I have my pride too.” 

Siyeon glanced at Ijun from the corner of her eye. Perhaps because he grew up in the midst of adults since he was young, Ijun surprisingly got along well with her father. 

Her father occasionally expressed dissatisfaction with Ijun, who never backed down, but each time Ijun just smiled slightly. Her father pretended to be dissatisfied, but he actually seemed quite pleased. 

It took quite a while for her mother to set the table properly. Time was needed for the native chicken she bought at the market to transform into samgyetang. Her mother, happy that Ijun had decided to have dinner, meticulously prepared the dish. 

“Oh, that’s samgyetang. Indeed, son-in-laws are different.”

“We had dakbokkeumtang. Same ingredients, but completely different dishes.” 

Manager Yang and the team leader murmured to each other. 

“Do you want to eat it again after eating it?”

“Who said I wanted to eat it? It’s just interesting.” 

Manager Yang retorted angrily at Yoonsoo’s sarcasm. 

“But… Ijun, I’m surprised. He’s kinder than I thought.” 

“Right? I just had that thought.”

“What about Ijun?”

Siyeon interjected with a curious expression into the conversation between Manager Yang and the team leader.

“He could have just picked you up, but he’s here sitting and playing Baduk with the boss.”

 “He hasn’t had dinner yet. He missed mealtime while working.” 

“Did he come to pick you up without even eating? And that person is probably waiting for samgyetang right now because he has nowhere to eat, right? He wants to eat before leaving so that both his mother and you can feel at ease.”

“…Is that so?” 

Upon hearing the team leader’s words, Siyeon took a sip of beer and glanced at Ijun. She felt oddly uneasy after hearing the team leader. Ijun driving here despite not usually taking the wheel himself gave her a feeling of being treated specially by him.

“Excuse me? I come here every weekend to bring Jessica to have a meal, and I even drove myself here. Why don’t you say I’m considerate too?”

“Are you and Director Ijun the same?” 

“What’s the difference?”

“Your faces are different.” 

Manager Yang, with an incredulous expression, retorted, and the team leader delivered a pointed remark.

As the defeated father in Baduk expressed his regret with an “Ahh,” the food was ready. The game board was cleared to one side, and in front of Ijun, a large bowl of samgyetang with two large chicken legs on top was placed. 

“Siyeon.”

Ijun called out to Siyeon. She got up from her seat, wondering why he was calling her, and approached the dining table.

“Okay. Let’s switch seats, Siyeon.” 

As if waiting for this, her father got up and offered her his seat. He went to the living room, and Siyeon took the seat her father had vacated. 

Ijun used chopsticks to pick up chicken leg, placing them on a small plate in front of Siyeon before pushing it towards her. Siyeon blinked as she looked at the chicken legs in front of her and then glanced at him. 

“I’m already full.”

“Just eat the chicken legs.” 

With that, Ijun began to eat his meal. It seemed like he was quite hungry as he thoroughly finished all the side dishes prepared by her mother and cleaned his samgyetang bowl. Meanwhile, Siyeon slowly nibbled on the chicken legs, and her mother watched the two with a contented expression. 

“Director Ijun! Baekya Foods does a lot of advertising, right? We have a fantastic rookie actress here! It’s the team leader’s daughter, Dayeon. She’ll be on TV starting next week!” 

“This guy is crazy, seriously!” 

Manager Yang, who had quite a bit to drink, chuckled loudly, and the startled team leader gestured to cover her mouth.

“We don’t recruit advertising models based on connections.” 

Ijun responded seriously to Manager Yang’s joke. 

“No, besides the main model, you might need more people! Even if it’s a seat next to the main model, how about that? She’s going to become very famous in the future, you know?” 

“Sookhee!” 

The team leader suddenly called out Manager Yang’s name. Ijun, who glanced at the bewildered team leader, and Siyeon, who was nibbling on the chicken legs, spoke.

“It’s a perfect condition for a rookie actress to get a bad reputation, but should I still do it?” 

Ijun whispered softly as if he was willing to do it if Siyeon asked. 

“A bad reputation?” 

“Sponsorship.” 

“Sponsorship? That’s not good!” 

Siyeon was taken aback and her eyes widened. For a rookie actress, having a bad reputation before becoming popular would mean sinking before rising. As if he had anticipated her reaction, Ijun chuckled softly. 

“Instead, I can send food trucks to the filming set. I’ll support your friend’s daughter like that.”

“…Can you send the biggest and best one?” 

“Of course.” 

Watching Siyeon’s cheeks brighten with happiness, Ijun faintly smiled with his eyes.