Chapter 192

“Slowpoke (2)”

“Uhuhuhuhu-. Euhuhuhuk-. Kkeuk-kkeuk-.”

If someone had seen Jang Jin-nam from afar, they might have thought a woman with curly perm was squatting and crying. That’s how intense Jang Jin-nam’s reaction was. He was the most sensitive person in SSS, and also a man who reacted to dirty jokes.

Jang Jin-nam wiped his tears with an apron and glared at Kim In-rang.

“Hmph! You can’t say things like that, young man. Don’t ever say that in front of your sister-in-law. She seems like such an innocent lady.”

“Yes! I’ll correct myself!”

It was a surprising shift in attitude.

The two men put on solemn expressions as if they hadn’t been gossiping just moments ago.

Han Yu-young was looking at them with a puzzled expression.

Thanks to Jang Jin-nam’s vigorous stirring, the color of the sea anemones had evened out.

The first step in stir-frying sea anemones—lightly cooking them over low heat to prevent toughness—was complete.

“Pass me the chili powder.”

“Powder powder! Chili powder!”

“Green onions.”

“Green onions!”

“Garlic.”

“Your garlic!”

Sigh-. That uncle is quite the joker. Jin Hyuk, glancing sideways at Kim In-rang, let out a small sigh to calm his exasperated heart. Jang Gun-i probably felt the same way when he sighed while looking at Choi Tae-yang. The image of him falling flat on his face while trying to pull up kudzu roots is vivid.

Bubble bubble-.

An amazing transformation was happening inside the pot.

The broth had expanded so much that the once-abundant sea anemones were almost submerged, disappearing from sight.

‘It was supposed to be stir-fried sea anemones, but now it’s turned into a soup.’

Jin Hyuk peered into the pot, pushing aside the steam that rose as if reaching for the sky.

“There’s really a lot of water. Wow-! It smells delicious.”

“Right? The smell is really good.”

Even Jang Jin-nam, who was experiencing sea anemone cooking for the first time, was amazed.

Now it was time to season.

Jang Jin-nam added coarse salt with his thick hands.

Then, as if fanning the rising steam, he pulled it towards himself. That’s how he checked the smell.

“Why the smell?”

“I check the seasoning this way. You can tell by the smell.”

Oh-. Impressive.

Jin Hyuk also had a sharp sense of smell, but taste is something you check with your tongue. The idea of checking seasoning by smell was fresh and shocking.

After sniffing a couple of times, Jang Jin-nam used a ladle to add soy sauce.

“Huh? You’re using dark soy sauce?”

Jang Jin-nam nodded with a calm motion.

“Yes. Dark soy sauce contains seasonings, so it’s good for bringing out the savory flavor.”

Wow, I’m learning a lot.

Who would have thought I’d learn about the benefits of dark soy sauce and cooking from a muscular UDT veteran.

“Now we’ve used all the ingredients. Just keep stirring so it doesn’t stick and let it simmer.”

“Okay. Then I’ll clean up-.”

Jin Hyuk started cleaning up the bowls and seasonings.

Kim In-rang approached Jin Hyuk, who was tidying up, and pointed at Jang Jin-nam’s back as he vigorously stirred the pot.

“Hey, doesn’t Senior Jang look just like an ajumma?”

“Cook-.”

Earlier, they were gossiping about sea anemones with Jang Jin-nam, and now it’s Jang Jin-nam’s turn.

Jin Hyuk’s face turned red as he couldn’t openly laugh.

Jin Hyuk was also imagining that scene. A muscular housewife with a curly perm.

Slurp-. Jang Jin-nam, who had tasted the broth, muttered.

“I can hear everything, you know?”

“Ah! Yes! I’ll correct myself! I didn’t mean anything bad!”

Despite saying he’d correct himself, he looked way too happy.

Clang! Clang!

Finally, Jang Jin-nam banged the ladle against the pot to shake off the seasoning.

It was a signal that the cooking was done.

“Hmm-. It seems done.”

The savory and spicy aroma stimulated not just the sense of smell but also the stomach.

Jin Hyuk unconsciously leaned his nose over the pot, sniffing.

‘Mmm-. The smell is really amazing.’

Jin Hyuk picked up a well-cooked sea anemone with a spatula.

Then, he picked it up with his hand and turned his body. It was clearly the gesture of a chef looking for someone to taste.

“Brave Jin Hyuk, taste it, huh?”

It was like teleportation.

The brave coward Jin Hyuk had already taken several steps back.

‘It smells good, but no thanks!’

The smell was good, but knowing the true nature of the tentacled monster, he had no desire to eat it.

“In-rang, taste it.”

“Yes!”

Phew-phew-.

The strong-hearted Kim In-rang blew on the stir-fried sea anemone a few times to cool it down, then bravely put it in his mouth.

Hododododo-. Hot-. Munch munch-.

‘Is it… edible?’

Jin Hyuk observed Kim In-rang closely with narrowed eyes.

“Ugh… Huhk-.”

Kim In-rang’s expression gradually changed as he made a pained sound.

His chewing slowed down, and eventually, his lower jaw stopped.

‘It must taste weird!’

Time to run.

That’s when it happened.

After swallowing, Kim In-rang muttered with a dazed look.

“Ajumma… can I have one more?”

***

They sat around the table, avoiding the cold wind.

Jang Jin-nam, who cooked, and Kim In-rang, who helped.

The self-proclaimed ‘man with no appetite’ Jang Jin-nam was relentlessly wielding his chopsticks.

“Wow-. This is the most delicious thing I’ve ever had.”

“It’s all thanks to the chef. There’s plenty, so take some home.”

Son Kwang-yeon and Kim In-rang were too busy eating rice with stir-fried sea anemones to talk.

Jin Hyuk sat on the living room floor with Yoo Jin.

“Yoo Jin, ah-.”

“Ah-.”

“How is it?”

“Sss-. It’s spicy but so delicious-.”

Whether it was because of the spiciness or the taste, Yoo Jin’s eyes were teary.

Watching his younger sister eat was heartwarming and happy, but Jin Hyuk’s chopsticks couldn’t rest.

‘Should I eat a big one?’

Jo Il-hun’s assessment that it was a taste like no other in the world was accurate.

It was an abstract expression, but there seemed to be no other way to describe it.

‘There’s nothing to compare it to.’

It wasn’t tough at all, even for Yoo Jin to chew, and the thickness gave it a nice, crunchy texture.

However, the seasoning was too spicy for Yoo Jin.

Jin Hyuk put rice in a bowl and cut the stir-fried sea anemone into small pieces with scissors. He added a generous amount.

Then, he sprinkled seaweed powder and drizzled sesame oil, mixing it all together. He couldn’t leave out a few spoonfuls of the remaining broth.

Clack clack clack-.

The aggressive sounds from the living room caught Han Yu-young’s ear.

The sight of the siblings sitting sprawled on the living room floor, eating from a bowl, was oddly endearing. They looked like country kids who had just returned from the mudflats, messy but not unsightly.

The reason Jin Hyuk ended up catching sea anemones was strange, but it ultimately brought another kind of happiness, and Han Yu-young couldn’t hide her contentment.

Clack clack clack-.

The sight of her big son scraping the remaining rice grains from the bottom of the bowl to feed his younger sister was also incredibly endearing.

Huh? It’s going into his mouth?

“Yoo Jin, do you want more?”

“Nooo? I’m full.”

“Okay. I’m full too.”

“Oppa, let’s go catch more sea anemones-. They’re so delicious-.”

Even though it was spicy and made her sniffle, Yoo Jin kept savoring the taste.

Jin Hyuk felt the same way.

“Okay. Let’s go. Let’s go in winter, and in spring too.”

Jin Hyuk’s eyes burned with determination as he licked the seasoning from the corner of his mouth.

It seemed like even Mina wouldn’t be safe next time.

Ugh, I’m so full-. Son Kwang-yeon, patting his belly, turned his head towards the living room.

“I’m not against it, but won’t the sea anemones go extinct if we keep catching them?”

“We can just go to other towns. Il-hun said there are plenty of good sea anemones in Cheongpo-dae. Seung-hoon’s town also has an abundance of them.”

“Cheongpo-dae Beach? That’s sandy, can you eat them?”

Jang Jin-nam, who was also moved by the stir-fried sea anemones, chimed in to support Jin Hyuk.

“We learned how to prepare them properly today, so it’s fine. Just cut them open and rinse them with salt.”

Hmm-. Son Kwang-yeon nodded.

‘It’s an unforgettable taste. So delicious.’

Even Son Kwang-yeon, a city boy who drooled over grilled sparrows, was completely won over by the taste.

But as someone who lives by the sea, it’s important to have a mindset of preserving coastal resources. If we keep catching them just because they’re profitable and tasty, what will be left in 10 or 20 years?

It’s one of the reasons why Son Kwang-yeon, who loves the mudflats and fishing more than anyone, spends his days off at home with his family instead of going out. It might not save resources by just holding back, but it’s better than just talking about conservation without action.

‘We should also research sea anemone breeding.’

Protection is important, but we can’t give up eating them.

They were also researching coastal fish farming techniques at the independently established Fisheries Resource Research Institute to address climate change and overfishing. It was the first independent research by a private company without government funding.

Although there are laws in place to protect fishery resources, prohibiting them without enforcement is like a fence without a post. Since the authorities don’t even pretend to enforce the laws, the plan was to increase the population so that even with overfishing, they would be preserved.

Because human greed knows no bounds.

“Oppa. Next time, let’s catch even more-.”

“Ahaha, okay. I’ll work hard to catch them. You work hard to find them, Yoo Jin.”

There’s no need to worry about the amount we catch.

Swoosh-.

The sound of a pot lid opening came from the yard.

The molehill family had already finished two pots and still wanted more.

‘If they have any conscience, they’ll help catch them too.’

When they go fishing, they always come back empty-handed, but they sure eat well when our son catches something.

Ugh, I’m so full.

But why does my heart feel like it’s beating harder and my blood is boiling? Lately, I’ve been feeling so lethargic, like a hibernating reptile, but this is strange.

‘Is it similar to a myeonghyeon phenomenon?’

When Jin Hyuk was about five or six, Son Kwang-yeon was around thirty.

Son Kwang-yeon was seriously ill. Lying on the floor, his body felt like it was being sucked into the ground, and he was severely weak. High fever and chills kept Han Yu-young’s hands busy with wet towels.

The hospital said there was nothing wrong.

The neighbors speculated that it was just his body adjusting from being a city person to a country person, from a student to a farmer.

‘Right. It’s similar to that time.’

Anyway, the feeling of warmth and energy after eating sea anemones was similar to when he miraculously recovered after drinking the herbal medicine Kim Soon-bok brewed for him when he was sick.

***

Whoosh-.

From the start of the new year, strong winter winds blew from the sea, fields, and mountains.

Heavy snow and strong winds. The winter general seemed determined to erase the traces of the dry and hot summer with its fierce momentum.

We already know it’s winter without all this fuss.

‘Grandfather Dangun was quite the trickster.’

Jin Hyuk, wearing a chestnut seller’s hat and sweeping the yard with a broom, clicked his tongue at the unfamiliar Grandfather Dangun. It’s probably not just Jin Hyuk’s complaint.

Almost everyone living on this land must have clothes and shoes suitable for the season. It doesn’t matter if you’re in the city or the countryside.

We can’t forget the transitional seasons either. The moment you forget to bring a light jacket, the cold clings to you. You have to manage both heating and cooling.

‘If it’s a trick, it’s a trick.’

How could anyone choose such a land?

It seems like choosing a place that makes future generations suffer is a tradition passed down from our ancestors.

Thanks to that, we invented well-insulated houses and floor heating, so should we be grateful?

Or should we call them short-sighted pioneers who made their descendants suffer?

‘They must have chosen the land in a nice autumn-.’

It’s a place to live for thousands of years, so they should have lived there for at least a year before deciding.

Still, I don’t feel like actively criticizing them.

It’s inconvenient, but the air is good, and the scenery is great.

Adapting to the climate that swings between heaven and hell must make people, well, full of fighting spirit.

“Ouch-, my back.”

To rest his aching back and warm his cold hands even with gloves on, he straightened up for a moment.

After clearing the snow from the yard to the bus stop to prevent slipping, the land chosen by Grandfather Dangun seemed to mock him by dumping more snow.

Crunch crunch crunch-.

The sound of a heavy car crushing the snow made him turn his head towards the hill.

Kim In-rang’s car was sliding down the slope like a glacier.

It was a trip to bring Kim Eung-nyeo’s family as guests.

The wheels rolled slowly, as if carrying precious guests.

Clunk-.

Son Kwang-yeon and Han Yu-young carefully opened the front door and came out.

“Mom, are the kids still asleep?”

“Yes. They’re knocked out.”

Son Kwang-yeon and Han Yu-young warmly welcomed Kim Eung-nyeo’s family.

Jin Hyuk’s attention was solely focused on his mother’s expression.

‘It’s similar to when she returned from the Hawaii trip.’

To be precise, it resembled Yoo Jin running towards her mom after a long time.

Well, as long as mom is happy.

Dad said it.

Family isn’t just about blood.

“Jin Hyuk-.”

Hwang Ga-young, who got out of the car, waved her hand.

The chestnut seller sweeping the yard smiled awkwardly at his aunts and sisters.