Chapter 247

Idol (5)

***

Jeong Won-i walked while watching Haengun-i, who was ruffling Yoo Jin’s hair with his beak.

Is there something on her head that he’s trying to eat? What a diligent bird.

Yoo Jin shook Jin Hyuk’s hand. It’s something she does whenever she’s curious about something.

“Oppa, even your palm is so hard~.”

“Yeah. It’s because of the calluses.”

“It wasn’t like this before, though~?”

Tilting her head like Haengun-i, Yoo Jin looked up at her oppa.

“Right? Maybe it’s because I’ve been working out hard lately.”

This was also a change that came after he let go of his strength.

The body of an ordinary human easily gets scraped, blistered, and the blisters burst, causing pain. And as if rewarding growth, hard skin forms over it.

Holding her soft and squishy hand, the difference is even more apparent.

“Does it hurt here~?”

The spot Yoo Jin pointed to was the palm that had peeled due to blisters.

Jin Hyuk’s palm hadn’t even had time to regenerate because he had been swinging on a pull-up bar to train his erector spinae muscles.

“It doesn’t hurt. After a while, it becomes as hard as armor, and then it hurts less. If you overcome this, you become a stronger person.”

“Ooh~.”

Since Yoo Jin always admires whatever her oppa says, Jin Hyuk doesn’t joke around much in front of her. Not that he knows how to anyway.

Isn’t this how humans survive, adapting bit by bit, both physically and mentally?

The pain in his body has become so familiar that it’s almost embarrassing to call blisters painful.

Even a single callus becomes a topic to chat about with his younger sister, and for that, he’s just grateful.

When Yoo Jin held his hand and entered Jo Il-hun’s house, Jo Il-hun was drying herbs in the yard.

“Rock Seo-heum~ Even if you hate me~ I love you so much~.”

He’s been singing that song for over nine years. I wondered if there was a story behind it, but when I asked, the answer was nothing special.

– “Just because.”

Every time I see Jo Il-hun, I feel that he’s someone who lives very naturally.

He eats when he’s hungry, sleeps when he’s tired, and works when he’s out of money.

An uncle who gathers the neighborhood kids, becomes their idol, and plays the leader, receiving their admiration.

When I asked my school friends, they said every neighborhood has at least one uncle like that. And when that person moves or dies, another perfectly normal uncle takes over.

Someone who lived a carefree life, but after getting married and having a solid contract with General Farm, he became a reliable head of the household, living diligently.

That doesn’t mean he doesn’t say strange things.

“Jo Il-hun, hello~.”

“Uncle Jjolong, hello!”

Following her oppa, Yoo Jin also greeted him cheerfully.

“Oh my! Our star Seong and Yoo Jin are here.”

“Mom said-.”

Whoosh!

Beep!

Jang Gun-i and Haengun-i cut off Jin Hyuk’s words.

“Hey, you brats~. Did you all come? Let’s see~, since you came, I’ll give you a present.”

Jo Il-hun rummaged through the herb bag beside him and threw beef jerky to Jang Gun-i and pumpkin seeds to Haengun-i.

The beef jerky fell to the ground, and the pumpkin seeds flew over Yoo Jin’s head. You have to give them food to make them happy.

“Mom said-.”

“Uncle, what kind of root is this?”

This time, Yoo Jin cut off her oppa’s words.

‘Ah, geez.’

Mom said······.

Pushing aside his frustration, Jin Hyuk listened to Jo Il-hun’s explanation.

“This is something really precious······.”

Jo Il-hun dried herbs that most people don’t even know the name of and sold them at a high price to Yoo Myung-sun. He listed unverified effects like improving blood circulation, preventing aging, and strengthening the prostate, saying it’s good when brewed as tea.

Yoo Myung-sun, who didn’t know that his improved health was thanks to Yoo Jin, praised the efficacy of the herbs Jo Il-hun gave him and sent them as gifts to business figures in Seoul. He told them to try it and buy it if it works.

‘This isn’t even a placebo effect. What should we call this? The scammer herbalist effect?’

With Yoo Myung-sun as his advertising model, Jo Il-hun was making a tidy income selling herbs. It was a clear example of why senior celebrities appear in health food ads.

I heard there are scammers who distribute flyers with Chairman Yoo Myung-sun’s face printed on them to express bus passengers and hold prize draws. They sell a 5,000 won watch for 30,000 won to the winners.

“This is something called ‘hasuo.’ It’s rare in our country.”

Ah, I think I’ve heard of it. I’ve lived a life uninterested in health foods, so I’m not sure.

I started to think that Jo Il-hun’s seemingly genuine lies might not be entirely false.

But let’s keep it simple-.

“Mom said-.”

“Manhattan is really good.”

Ah, geez.

Who said people from Chungcheong Province speak slowly? They don’t even give you a chance to speak.

Their speaking speed might be slow, but their timing is like a sniper’s.

“Even if you feed a corpse Manhattan, the urine will just pierce the ceiling. That’s why the term ‘sky-high’ came about.”

“Ooh~?”

Old habits die hard. Even though he’s become diligent, Jo Il-hun’s strange talents still show up.

Yoo Jin, that’s not it. Jin Hyuk whispered so only Yoo Jin could hear.

This is why people say Jo Il-hun ruins all the neighborhood kids.

“Mom said there’s something she asked for, so we came!”

Finally, he stated the purpose of the visit in a complete sentence.

“Oh, right. Wait a sec~?”

He was already standing still, but being told to wait made him wait even more quietly.

‘What a mess.’

It’s really hard to keep things simple with these people.

Even if you just want to borrow a hoe, they ask if you’ve eaten, if you slept well last night when there was thunder, if you’re finally plowing the long field beyond the ashes, if a hoe will do or if you should use a pickaxe, if it won’t work, they’ll help you, so finish this and let’s go together, don’t just stand there, help out······.

‘It’s chaotic but quiet.’

The world is changing rapidly, but this rural village is as slow as a piece of cloud in the blue sky.

At least it’s been a long time since anyone mentioned a burglary in the neighborhood.

Of course, the appearance of the neighborhood has changed a lot.

But it still feels quiet because the people remain the same. People who consistently do their work in the same place.

Like the Buddha statue in a temple, like the Virgin Mary statue in a cathedral, like the cross, when you miss them and visit, you find neighbors sorting grains in the yard. The power that makes you attach your heart and affection to the neighborhood comes from them.

‘It feels like my second life is jumping into my first life and causing a ruckus.’

If Jin Hyuk’s first life was a simple straight line, his second life is tangled with noisy, loud, and disorderly relationships, making it hard to express as a shape. It’s easier to understand if you think of Jang Jin-nam’s curly perm.

“Here it is~.”

After briefly admiring the neatly spread hasuo leaves and roots on the mat, Jo Il-hun, who had gone inside, came out rustling a black plastic bag.

“Let’s see, this is······. Should I give it to you peeled or unpeeled?”

“Huh?”

Come to think of it, I came without even knowing what mom had asked for.

There was a reason I trusted mom so much, but it was unlike Jin Hyuk, who usually keeps everything in sight and moves according to plan.

Anyway.

“What is that?”

“This is castor.”

“Castor? What’s that?”

Castor beans.

They’re mainly used to extract oil.

“Every summer, when the heat is unbearable, we prepare this to prevent stomachaches. Ugh~, why isn’t this opening?”

Jo Il-hun grunted as the bag didn’t open easily, perhaps because it was tied too tightly.

In Jin Hyuk’s neighborhood, they steam tender castor leaves in the summer and eat them as wraps. The glossy leaves wrapped with rice and strong soybean paste make a quick meal.

It’s not just tasty.

“If you eat this, you won’t get stomachaches in the summer? And your poop will be as thick as our Jin Hyuk’s forearm~.”

“Ooh~?”

Yoo Jin, there’s no poop that thick. Jin Hyuk whispered again.

Even though it’s thinner than before because the volume has decreased, how dare poop compare to Jin Hyuk’s forearm?

“It also strengthens your intestines, so mom prepares it for our Yoo Jin to have a good summer.”

“Ah, really?”

Unlike his struggling hands, Jo Il-hun’s mouth didn’t stop moving.

Feeling sorry for him, Jin Hyuk picked up another plastic bag.

“Should I open this too?”

“Yeah~. Try it.”

Jin Hyuk easily opened the plastic bag.

It was full of bean-sized seeds, about the size of the first joint of a middle finger.

“It looks like kidney beans.”

“Really? That’s the peeled one.”

It didn’t curve as smoothly as kidney beans, but the shape and color were similar. If you look closely, it also resembles a shriveled beetle.

But Yoo Jin seemed to think differently.

“Wow~! It looks like Jeong Won-i!”

Yoo Jin’s eyes widened, and her lips rounded in surprise.

“Huh? What do you mean?”

“Hahahaha! What do I mean~? It looks like a baby’s balls~.”

“Hehe~, right.”

As Jo Il-hun laughed holding his stomach, Yoo Jin scratched the back of her head awkwardly.

But now that she’s nine, she seems to know shame.

Ahaha~.

It’s not like my sister meant anything bad, so I can’t scold her. In times like this, all you can do is laugh.

Come to think of it, it does look like it.

It resembles the shape of the contents you feel when you touch the two dangling pouches under the crotch.

“Is the unpeeled one different?”

“Of course, it looks different. It has a shell~. Here, look~.”

Finally, the bag Jo Il-hun was holding opened.

Yoo Jin, who had beaten her oppa, quickly stuck her head in.

“Wow~!”

As if she had never been embarrassed, a cheer burst out.

Why is that?

“Hahahaha! It looks like dad!”

Ah, Yoo Jin.

I think it’s time for Yoo Jin to take a bath with mom alone.

‘Thank goodness we shower separately after swimming.’

Just in case, Jin Hyuk closed his eyes tightly after seeing the unpeeled castor seeds. Even with his eyes closed, the shape was imprinted on his retina.

It does look like dad.

The pouch is full of hair.

“It’s okay because you’re young~. But Yoo Jin~, don’t go around saying things like that. People will think you’re weird~.”

“Yes, hehe~.”

***

Castor leaves that have been growing for a long time are tough and hard to eat even after boiling.

Of course, you can remove the veins and eat them. Sweet potato stems are also peeled and trimmed to make kimchi and side dishes, but trimming wraps is just a small task.

Still, it’s easiest and best to eat them when they’re tender.

If there’s a way to save even a little effort, it’s always the right way. I lived in an era where only businessmen used the word ‘efficiency’ like a panacea, but the word itself isn’t bad. As always, it’s the people who misuse it that are the problem.

That aside.

They said you can plant castor beans in unused land. Since there’s no unused land, we decided to plant them on the edge of the field.

Jin Hyuk, holding a hoe, was followed by Yoo Jin, who was holding the mouth of the plastic bag.

“Yoo Jin, do you like your oppa that much?”

“Yes, hehe~.”

In response to her mom’s question, who had come out to enjoy the spring sun with the baby, Yoo Jin smiled like a carefree person.

“Cheon Gil-ryong Habiji said that. He said to follow your oppa like the sun and the moon.”

“Why did he say that?”

“He said if you follow, you’ll become like him, and then, umm~, you’ll live well~.”

It wasn’t a difficult statement, but her effort to fully convey it by squinting her eyes and recalling the memory was admirable.

“Oppa? Why are you planting this······?”

Hey, just call it balls.

I don’t know why you’re making a big deal out of this when it’s not even a curse or slander. Are you some kind of handyman who can’t call balls balls?

Anyway, it’s Jo Il-hun’s mouth that’s the problem.

– “The word ‘seed balls’ came about because of castor beans~. Because the seeds look like balls. So ‘seed balls’ means seeds that look like balls, not a curse~.”

– “Ooh? Really?”

– “What does it matter~?”

Sigh, seed balls.

There’s no sane person in this neighborhood.

“Yoo Jin, this is called a castor seed.”

“Yes. Castor seed balls~ seeds.”

I think she’s obsessed with balls. Kids are always like this. Just last year, she was obsessed with butts and poked every hole in the tidal flats.

Like her sister, Jeong Won-i chases after any fly that enters the house, calling it a butterfly. Yoo Jin’s butt obsession has been cured, but Jeong Won-i’s obsession with calling Haengun-i a butterfly is still ongoing.

But since she’s a lovely younger sister, Jin Hyuk kindly explained as he had heard from Jo Il-hun.

“They say it’s good to eat as wraps or side dishes in the summer. It helps digestion and makes poop come out easily.”

“Poop? Poop?”

Jeong Won-i, who had come out to watch while holding mom’s hand, reacted while holding his hand.

I think he can’t distinguish between his brother and poop.

Giving Jeong Won-i a seed, he stuck the hoe into the ground, which was full of the smell of earth in spring.

Thud! Thud!

“Oppa, wraps are delicious, right? Ah~, what does castor wrap taste like?”

Yoo Jin, squatting next to her oppa, rested her face on the flower-shaped hands she made and tilted her eyes. Sparkling~.

“Oppa hasn’t tried castor wraps either. I saw the seeds for the first time today.”

“Bean leaves, sesame leaves, pumpkin leaves, lettuce leaves, cabbage leaves, butterbur, strawberry leaves, and, and~.”

Yoo Jin counted on her fingers.

She’s eaten a lot of plants as wraps.

But why did you eat strawberry leaves?

“Jin Hyuk, here~.”

“Yes~.”

When mom pointed out the spot to plant with her toe, it was a simple task of digging the ground with a hoe and burying the fruit.

‘When I was young, I used to plant beans with mom and rolled around a lot on the edge of the field.’

Now that I’m taller and have longer legs than adults, that won’t happen. One foot steps on the low ground, and the other is stretched out on the ridge like a tall farmer.

Thud! Thud!

Sticking the hoe with no margin of error, he reminisced about the current peace.

‘I hope things go smoothly without any incidents.’

Even if he doesn’t earn much money, even if Hong Soo-jung is disappointed because he’s not famous, what Jin Hyuk desires most is peace of mind.

“Ugh- Eek! Cough!”

“Jeong Won-i! Don’t eat that!”

At Yoo Jin’s sudden shout, the peaceful mood was shattered.

Worried that Jeong Won-i might have swallowed a large castor seed, Jin Hyuk, recalling the time an apple slice got stuck, dropped the hoe and ran to his brother.

“Eppuuuu! Spit! Spit!”

Fortunately, what came out of Jeong Won-i’s mouth was dirt.

I’m not sure if it’s right to call this fortunate.

“Ugh~. Does it taste good, you brat?”

“Dad~ Ppuut! Ppuut!”

This level of accident is fine now.

If you don’t eat dirt, you can’t call yourself a kid from this neighborhood.

It’s like a rite of passage.

But every time I hear a startled scream, my heart skips a beat.

It must be my imagination that I feel like I’m aging every time.

‘No. But. Seriously. Seed balls. When are we going to train······.’

Sigh~.

As he put his finger in his youngest brother’s mouth to remove the dirt, he sighed deeply.

The brat, who doesn’t know his brother’s feelings, smiles innocently at times like this.

“Poop~, dad~.”

Hey, you’re not a baby anymore.