Chapter 52: Obituary
After finishing his schedule at Incheon Port, Kang Sunhyuk headed straight to Kangsan Construction headquarters. He had a lunch appointment with Baek Hyeri. Wanting to have an intimate meal with her, he sent Lee Seojin away. He told Seojin to return to the office after lunch, by 2 PM, saying he would make his own way back to the company.
Arriving a bit early for lunch, Kang Sunhyuk hummed cheerfully while waiting for Baek Hyeri in front of the Kangsan Construction building. His suggestion to Chairman Kang Mansik that it might be dangerous to put Kang Dohyuk in the spotlight after the shooting incident had worked. Chairman Kang informed him that while Kang Dohyuk would continue handling the actual Yeouido project behind the scenes, Kang Sunhyuk would be in charge of public-facing duties. This caused a shift in attitude at Kangsan Construction. They suspected that Chairman Kang might be backing Kang Sunhyuk rather than Kang Dohyuk, and they even encouraged Baek Hyeri to meet with Sunhyuk.
Thanks to this, Kang Sunhyuk had been able to set up appointments with Baek Hyeri quite easily. This was already their third meeting since the day of the shooting.
Last week, they met after work and went to a pork belly restaurant where they grilled meat and drank soju. Surprisingly, they hit it off well. Unlike her appearance, which suggested she only frequented upscale restaurants, Baek Hyeri wasn’t like a typical chaebol heiress—she was easygoing.
In fact, it was Kang Sunhyuk who worried about meat smell getting on her clothes. Baek Hyeri brushed it off, saying she could just wash them.
The idea that such a woman would marry Kang Dohyuk was truly absurd. Anyone could see it would be an unhappy marriage. At first, Sunhyuk had simply intended to steal this arranged marriage from Dohyuk to get involved in the Yeouido project, but the more he met her, the more genuinely captivated he became.
“What would you like for lunch?” he asked.
He hadn’t decided on a place in advance, wanting to ask her directly. Last time, he had dragged her to a samgyeopsal restaurant without asking, so today he wanted to follow her preference.
“Hmm… I don’t really mind anything, but I’m craving something with broth.”
“Broth? Seolleongtang? Galbitang?”
As he rattled off various Korean soup dishes, Baek Hyeri, who had been listening quietly, burst into laughter.
“Let’s go somewhere close. I can’t take too much time for lunch.”
She pointed across the street. A yellow sign displayed the name of a region and the words “hangover soup” in large letters.
“Will that be okay?” Kang Sunhyuk asked.
He personally loved hangover soup. But most women tended to dislike it because of the congealed ox blood in it.
“What do you mean?”
She started walking, confused about what he was asking.
“You haven’t possibly never tried hangover soup before…?”
When he asked suspiciously, Baek Hyeri chuckled and shook her head. By then, they had crossed the street and reached the restaurant.
“Auntie, I’m here!” she called out cheerfully.
As she entered ahead of him and greeted the owner warmly, a woman who appeared to be the owner came out and welcomed Baek Hyeri.
“Why haven’t you been around lately? I was wondering if something happened.”
“I’ve just been busy.”
Baek Hyeri and the owner chatted affectionately, clearly familiar with each other. Kang Sunhyuk stood behind her with a bewildered expression, watching the scene.
“Who’s this handsome fellow? Not one of your usual employees… Don’t tell me you got a boyfriend?”
The owner woman glanced at Kang Sunhyuk and playfully elbowed Baek Hyeri’s side.
“Nothing like that yet.”
Baek Hyeri answered with a smile and sat down at an empty table. Without even looking at the menu, she ordered two bowls of hangover soup, then finally turned to look at Sunhyuk.
“Why that expression?”
She asked, noticing his peculiar look.
“I’m surprised in many ways.”
“That I like hangover soup? Sometimes after company dinners, I come here with my employees the next day.”
It wasn’t just that hangover soup didn’t match his image of Baek Hyeri—that wasn’t the only reason Kang Sunhyuk was surprised.
“I’m thinking that you’re actually giving me a chance.”
Though she said they weren’t dating “yet,” that “yet” sounded like there might be a possibility in the future. Baek Hyeri made an “ah” sound and nodded as if it wasn’t a big deal.
“You’re the one who asked for a chance, Kang Sunhyuk-ssi.”
“Well, that’s true, but…”
Though he had said that, he hadn’t really expected much. He had thought that if things didn’t work out, he would have to force the arranged marriage his way, but he hadn’t expected Baek Hyeri to choose him over Kang Dohyuk. Until now, when comparing the two, ten out of ten people would choose Dohyuk.
Though it hurt his pride, he could objectively understand why. Dohyuk’s education and maternal family background were overwhelmingly superior. As for looks, Sunhyuk was also handsome, having inherited Chairman Kang’s strong genes, and Kim Yumin was beautiful enough to have caught Kang Mansik’s eye. But because of his cocky speech and behavior, people generally said Dohyuk was better.
“You shouldn’t look so surprised.”
Baek Hyeri replied with a playful smile.
“Actually, on our side—no, this has nothing to do with Kangsan Construction. Personally, I’ve been constantly weighing whether Kang Dohyuk-ssi or Kang Sunhyuk-ssi would be better. And lately, I’ve been leaning slightly toward Kang Sunhyuk-ssi.”
“Because of Dohyuk and that shaman’s strange relationship?”
“Well, that’s part of it. Even though it’s an arranged marriage and I don’t expect him to like me, I’m still uncomfortable with him openly having someone else. And I’d prefer someone who’s favorable toward me.”
“But compared to him, I…”
“I told you not to talk like that. I understand why you feel that way, but Kang Sunhyuk-ssi is plenty attractive too. You have a… rough side, but after meeting you a few times, I feel like you’re not rough on the inside. That’s about as far as I’ve gotten for now.”
Baek Hyeri poured water into cups and placed one in front of each of them.
“There’s no point in comparing Kang Dohyuk-ssi and Kang Sunhyuk-ssi. You’re completely different people. It’s true that Kang Dohyuk-ssi is good at his work, but it’s also true that he lacks humanity. Even so, I agreed to an arranged marriage because I needed his business skills. But now Dragon Holdings has given me another option—that even if I choose Kang Sunhyuk-ssi, Kang Dohyuk-ssi will continue working on the Yeouido project. Um… it’s still a bit ambiguous to explain, but I don’t think Kang Sunhyuk-ssi is a bad choice.”
She met Kang Sunhyuk’s eyes and smiled brightly.
“Actually, at first I thought you were completely like a gangster.”
Kang Sunhyuk couldn’t entirely deny that and let out a groan. Still, seeing Baek Hyeri smiling so sweetly at him made his heart race. He might not be as impressive as Kang Dohyuk, but he felt that if he continued to treat her sincerely, there might be hope for him.
It seemed like a good thing after all that Muryeong or whoever had brought Yeon. While Kang Dohyuk was preoccupied with that shaman, he’d gained time to spend with Baek Hyeri.
Since it was lunchtime, the restaurant must have prepared in advance, as two steaming bowls of hangover soup arrived quickly.
“Try it. Once you get a taste for this place, you won’t be able to eat it anywhere else.”
Baek Hyeri picked up her spoon first and cut the congealed blood floating in the middle of the earthenware bowl in half. The savory aroma stimulated his senses, and Kang Sunhyuk licked his lips as he picked up his spoon.
That’s when it happened. His cell phone, placed to one side, vibrated and clattered against the table. He considered ignoring the unknown number but decided to answer just in case.
[Kang Sunhyuk-ssi? This is the Criminal Investigation Division of Seoul Seocho Police Station.]
Kang Sunhyuk’s face immediately hardened at the mention of the police station. Had he done something wrong recently? He couldn’t remember anything. Even if he had, why would they call now, of all times, when he was with Baek Hyeri? He couldn’t even groan in frustration.
[Are you the son of Kim Yumin-ssi?]
The unexpected mention of his mother’s name caught him off guard. Blinking in confusion, Kang Sunhyuk abruptly stood up at what he heard next, bumping into the table. With a loud clatter, Baek Hyeri’s earthenware bowl wobbled, splashing broth onto her white shirt. She looked up in surprise, but Kang Sunhyuk wasn’t even looking at her.
“Kang Sunhyuk-ssi? What’s wrong?”
Sensing something was seriously amiss, she asked, and only then did he turn to look at her.
“My mother is in the hospital, no… I think I need to go right now.”
Kang Sunhyuk, pale as a sheet, fidgeted anxiously. Baek Hyeri put down her spoon and stood up.
“Which hospital? I’ll go with you.”
Kang Sunhyuk seemed half out of his mind. In that state, he probably couldn’t drive, and it would be difficult for him to explain what was happening. Baek Hyeri quickly paid and took the lead, but Kang Sunhyuk, who was following behind, staggered after a few steps as if his legs had given out. When she approached to support him, he waved her away, saying he was fine.
Do all the men in this family habitually say they’re fine when they’re clearly not? Though the manner and reaction were completely different, it reminded her of Kang Dohyuk’s cold face when he said it didn’t matter when his bodyguard was injured, and she let out a small sigh.
***
Beep-beep-beep, trill. At the sound of the automatic lock on the front door being released, Yeon, who was sitting in the living room, turned his head. The door opened, and Lee Seojin was coming in. It wasn’t time for him to be off work yet, so Yeon stared at him, wondering what was going on.
“Have you eaten lunch?” Lee Seojin asked Yeon. That morning, as he left for work, he had told Yeon there was food in the refrigerator and to help himself.
“No, not yet.”
Perhaps because he hadn’t been moving around, he wasn’t hungry. Besides, it was just 11:30. At the answer that he hadn’t eaten yet, Lee Seojin slightly furrowed his brow. It was unexpected—Yeon thought he wouldn’t care whether he ate or not.
“Is that all you have to wear? You dressed normally when you were with Sunbae Dohyuk.”
Lee Seojin suddenly commented on his clothes.
“Kang Dohyuk-ssi gave me clothes to change into, so I just followed.”
At the answer that these weren’t clothes he had prepared himself, Lee Seojin’s face hardened again. Fearing he might have irritated him, Yeon closed his mouth and observed his expression.
“Never mind. It doesn’t matter how you’re dressed—let’s go. We have somewhere to be.”
“Where…?”
“You’ll see when we get there.”
“Did something happen to Kang Sunhyuk-ssi?”
Since Kang Sunhyuk was currently his client, Yeon wondered if that’s why Seojin was urgently looking for him.
“No.”
However, Lee Seojin answered without a moment’s hesitation.
“Your name was Yeon, right?”
Unsure what to call him, Lee Seojin confirmed his name again.
“Yeon-ssi, don’t you want to see Sunbae Dohyuk?”
It was an unexpected question. Moreover, while Lee Seojin’s expression didn’t show much change as he asked, the yellow thread connecting them was growing murkier. Jealousy was being added to hostility. If left like this, the yellow would soon turn black.
