I Became the Lousy Side Top - Chap 31
“If you trust me, then do we really need this clause?”
Mujin said.
“You never know.”
This was outrageous. Mujin’s expression went cold, but Jaewoo persisted and did not back down. He moved on and presented the second clause.
Tell me about any foods you’re allergic to or foods you dislike. Other than that, don’t dictate what I cook.
Mujin wasn’t a child. Still, it wasn’t a particularly annoying request.
I leave the moment my shift is over.
“I’ll prepare dinner so you can just heat it up and eat it. I have children at home to take care of.”
“They’re not even blood related, are they?”
“Still.”
“Hmm.”
Mujin was lost in thought for a moment as he looked at the clauses presented by Jaewoo. He’d thought Jaewoo was foolish, but he turned out to be smarter than Mujin realized. Normally, people wouldn’t have negotiated this much and would just have been happy to hear that their debt would be reduced.
‘What should I do?’
Mujin thought for a moment. Was Jaewoo worth all this? If he reduced Hyunjin’s debt by half, he wouldn’t be able to destroy him as quickly as before. He felt conflicted. On the other hand, there were many other ways to chip away at Hyunjin that didn’t rely on his debt. Jaewoo spoke to Mujin, not knowing what he was thinking.
“I won’t make you regret it.”
It was spoken in a confident tone. What did he mean by not letting him regret it? As Mujin looked at him, Jaewoo spoke confidently.
“You know how good my food is.”
Mujin knew that was true, but this was a heavy loss to take just for Jaewoo’s food. Mujin thought it over carefully. Should he accept these terms, or refuse them? After thinking about it, the answer was simple: Jaewoo was worth having. It may seem like a loss right now, but having him around would be enjoyable.
“Fine. But, Jaewoo-ssi…”
“Yes?”
“This is the first time I’ve granted this type of concession to someone. You understand, right?”
Despite the threatening voice, Jaewoo didn’t close his mouth. No, he couldn’t close it.
“Yes, I’ve got it. There’s just one more thing.”
“Is there?”
“I don’t want Hyunjin to know about any of this.”
“You think that’ll work?”
“Why not? Just tell him another family member paid off part of the debt.”
Mujin laughed lowly at those words.
“Yoo Junghyun is trash, gambling addicted trash. Do you think he’d ever pay off some of his debt for his children?”
‘That damn father.’
The biggest problem was Hyunjin’s father. A garbage person who kept causing trouble over and over again until the end of the story1. If he had just stopped gambling, Hyunjin’s debt wouldn’t have increased as much as it had now. Why can’t a child choose their parents before they were born? Jaewoo felt sorry for that. Still, it seemed like there must be a solution.
“Then wouldn’t it be okay to say that your company confiscated his winnings after he won a lot of money gambling?”
“Oh? And why should I do that?”
Mujin looked at Jaewoo with a puzzled expression.
“What if we extend the contract deadline? I’ll work for longer.”
“Hmm…”
“I’ll make whatever food you want.”
Mujin looked at his leather-gloved fingers.
“I want three requests. Three times, you’ll do whatever I ask you to do.”
This time, Jaewoo’s expression darkened. He knew the sort of things that Mujin might ask for.
“I won’t make you put up with anything unreasonable.”
“I’m very curious about what you consider ‘unreasonable’.”
Jaewoo really barks well. That was what made this more interesting. Mujin answered Jaewoo kindly.
“I’d define it as giving away body parts or selling your body.”
Horrible.
“How about it? Do you still want to do it?”
Jaewoo bit his lip. Still, he came this far, and he couldn’t just leave. Hyunjin’s face suddenly flashed across his mind.
“I’ll do it.”
The two then signed the revised contract. Even with the safety devices in place, Jaewoo still felt like he was walking into a trap. It was enough to make him anxious.
“As of today, Yoo Hyunjin’s debt has been reduced by half. That’s something to celebrate.”
It was natural for Jaewoo to feel this way when his opponent was Mujin. Jaewoo knew exactly how dangerous Mujin was. He took a deep breath and said.
“Yes, it is. Then shall we get started now?”
“Good.”
Jaewoo carefully took his copy of the contract and then took something out of his bag. It was a red apron. It looked old and crude, as if he’d had it for some time.
He was the first to head to the kitchen, casually wearing a neat blue shirt and the hideous-looking apron. It was a modern kitchen with a European-style bar, and was clean and free of dust. First, he checked to see if Mujin had any basic tools, then opened the refrigerator. Surprisingly, he found some staple ingredients.
Even more surprisingly, they were all fresh and unspoiled.
Was it normal to find things like that in a crazy top’s refrigerator? At most, he’d expected it to be full of expensive French water or alcohol. The neatly organized ingredients were unexpected.
‘Well, it’s better than nothing.’
Jaewoo muttered to himself and asked Mujin. Because the kitchen was open, Mujin and Dongsoo were both able to see what he was up to.
“Are there any foods you’re allergic to?”
“None.”
“What foods do you dislike?”
“There aren’t any.”
Hmm. Was that really the case? Jaewoo turned around with a mischievous expression and took his secret weapon out of his bag. As he unwrapped the cloth and brought the tub out of the bag, a pungent aroma was already hitting his nose.
Dongsoo was the first person to react. He was annoyed and started to head towards the kitchen, glaring at the source of the sour stench. What Jaewoo had brought out, with the smell of old, wet socks, was extra-strong fermented soybean paste2.
The director always drank foreign water and didn’t eat proper food, but now the first meal Jaewoo was cooking was a stew made with fermented soybean paste? Isn’t that just telling the director to go fuck himself? Dongsoo knew that Jaewoo was arrogant from the moment he added that clause to the contract.
“It’s okay.”
If Mujin hadn’t stopped him midway, he might have confronted Jaewoo right then and there. Jaewoo, whether he knew Dongsoo’s thoughts or not, was moving around the kitchen skillfully.
First he started boiling the broth, and while that was happening, he chopped up sour kimchi3, onions, peppers, and scallions. Today, Jaewoo omitted the minced meat in order to achieve a cleaner taste. In a second pot he stir-fried the sour kimchi, then added it to the finished broth, and dropped in the vegetables. Then, once it was partially cooked, he added the fermented soybean paste. When he added it to the boiling water, a unique smell began to spread throughout the apartment.
It was a smell that didn’t suit this cold and seemingly uninhabited space. Next, Jaewoo added a bit more high quality soybean paste, seasoned it with a little red pepper powder, and boiled it for a little longer. Even while he was making the soup, he’d been busy preparing side dishes. Some of them he’d brought from home, some of them he’d made there.
In the end, when the table was set, a savory country meal was completed. There were stir-fried anchovies in a fermented soybean paste soup, Jaewoo’s famous egg rolls, boiled cabbage served with seasoned soy sauce, and some vegetables and peppers. He’d also brought along some freshly-made kimchi. Although Jaewoo had brought everything else, he’d forgotten about the rice cooker, so he’d cooked the rice in a pot today. Luckily, it was finally ready.
“It’s done!”
Jaewoo wiped his hands and made a happy expression.
“Please eat!”
He’d prepared enough for two people, one for Mujin and the other for Dongsoo. However, while Mujin sat down at the table, Dongsoo didn’t show any signs of movement.
“Are you not eating?”
“I’m fine.”
“I made enough for two people.”
Dongsoo steadfastly refused to take a seat at the table. After arguing for a while, Jaewoo finally gave up and took Dongsoo’s seat himself.
‘I didn’t plan on eating here.’
He still hadn’t fully recovered from the last time. Not to mention Mujin wasn’t the sort of person to let things slide just because they were eating. This was still the house of a crazy top. Jaewoo reluctantly picked up his spoon, and the quiet meal began.
‘Hold on, my stomach!’
It was a table that was far from sophisticated, so he wondered if Mujin would enjoy it. But once Mujin actually picked up the spoon, he started silently emptying his bowl. Fermented soybean paste stew seemed to suit his tastes quite a bit.
Jaewoo had basically told him to go fuck himself, but he was eating so calmly. Jaewoo watched the rice disappearing at a rapid pace in a daze, only starting to eat himself after some time.
First, Jaewoo took a mouthful of stew. Although it was roughly boiled, it had a deep flavor, perhaps because the sauce itself was good. The combination of sour kimchi and fermented soybean stew called for rice to go along with it. Jaewoo felt like his appetite, which he’d lost, was coming back.
Next, he tried boiled cabbage with rice and stew on top. It was delicious as well. Jaewoo thought it would have been nice to have pumpkin leaves. That part was a bit disappointing.
Meanwhile, Mujin finished the entire bowl of rice.
“Would you like some more?”
Mujin nodded. Jaewoo calmly took the bowl and stood up, but his eyes suddenly fell on Dongsoo. For the first time, a proper emotion had appeared on his expressionless face. If Jaewoo had to guess, it looked like astonishment or surprise. Jaewoo looked around to see what had startled him so badly, but he couldn’t see anything that might have caused it.
Jaewoo decided to ignore Dongsoo and just eat his rice. After finishing the meal, Mujin prepared to leave with his subordinate. It seemed like he was going to work.
“Do you want any more?”
Jaewoo thought he was going to say something, but he didn’t. Mujin finished the last of the stew and left the table. It looked like he was worried about the smell, as he showered and changed his clothes before leaving. Mujin had eaten more than expected, so Jaewoo didn’t feel bad about that.
“Now all I have to do is prepare dinner. What should I make…?”
Jaewoo thought about dinner, going over the ingredients in the refrigerator and what he had brought.
“Director, are you sure it’s okay?”
Dongsoo asked cautiously as he headed to work with Mujin.
“What?”
“I’m talking about Jaewoo, the guy that arrived today.”
“What about him?”
Dongsoo was about to say something more, but ended up closing his mouth without speaking. Something about this situation felt strange, but he doesn’t know what it was specifically.
“Didn’t you research him before?”
“I did, thoroughly. There was definitely no room for suspicion.”
An aspiring idol who had lived a callow life, that was Seo Jaewoo. He had never really been in debt before, and getting involved with a debt collector like Mujin was a first for him.
“Then what is it?”
“It’s just a little weird. Isn’t it usually hard for someone to be so calm when they’re around people like us? And even after signing the contract, too.”
That’s true. Jaewoo hadn’t backed down even in the face of a so-called gangster. But Mujin didn’t think that Jaewoo had taken things lightly. Even though he had acted calm, there was fear hidden deep inside. Such a strange person.
“Well, we’ll just have to wait and see.”
“Yes!”
The conversation between the two ended with that.
Footnotes
이야기 끝까지 고구마를 선사해 주는 쓰레기 같은 인간 – A trash-like person who gives sweet potatoes to the end of the story. ‘Sweet potatoes’ seems to be derogatory Korean slang to describe someone who is annoying or bothersome. Basically Hyunjin’s father kept showing up to cause trouble and annoy the reader.
청국장 – Cheonggukjang, extra strong fermented soybean paste. It apparently has a very strong smell of wet socks. Wikipedia, Recipe
신김치 – shin kimchi. I found two conflicting definitions for this. One was for kimchi that was freshly made and not fermented yet, and the other was for kimchi that had been fermented for too long and turned sour. Either way, it tastes sourer than regular kimchi. Wikipedia
