Chapter 56

#56 <The Joker Captain (3)>

***

As soon as they returned from the field, the rain poured down.

Jin-hyeok sat on the porch of the mud house with Jo Seol-chan, watching the rain.

“Wow, it’s really coming down hard.”

The yard of the mud house was relatively low and less traveled, so the ground was soft.

The rain poured so heavily that it was impossible to see ahead, and soon furrows were dug, and muddy puddles formed.

The sound of the rain was so loud that they had to raise their voices to have a conversation right next to each other.

Swoooosh-!

“Seol-chan! What do you want to do when the rain stops?”

“What? I can’t hear you-!”

All their carefully laid plans were washed away. They couldn’t go into the reservoir to collect water plants or play in the swollen stream after the heavy rain.

They needed a Plan B.

“When the rain stops-!”

Rumble-!

The thunder added to the noise, making communication even harder.

Giving up on talking, they sprawled out on the porch. Jin-hyeok noticed a swallow’s nest under the eaves.

“Is it because of the heavy rain? Even the swallows are resting at home.”

They had planned to do some indoor exercises, but Jin-hyeok quickly revised the plan in his head. No matter how he thought about it, it didn’t seem like it would be a memorable experience for Seol-chan.

“Should we watch a video?”

There were quite a few videotapes in the living room. Thanks to Hong Ki-jun, who sent new videos whenever they were released for their dad, who loved watching movies and listening to music.

“The videos in the parents’ room are… something… something.”

There were videos in the parents’ room without titles or pictures. It might be due to hormones, but sometimes he was curious about what they were. Spending a lot of time exercising and going to bed early helped suppress his curiosity, thankfully.

“Seol-cha-.”

Jin-hyeok’s mouth dropped open as he was about to suggest watching a video.

It was because Seol-chan was sprawled out on the porch, fast asleep.

Cawww-.

How could he sleep through this downpour? What a guy.

Even white noise has its limits, but it’s as noisy as a battlefield right now, and he’s snoring away.

“Maybe he’s not that sensitive.”

Perhaps Seol-chan’s easygoing nature helps him avoid major pitfalls and live without getting hurt. Or maybe he’s become this way because of the frequent wounds he’s experienced in life.

Jin-hyeok brought out bedding from the mud house, propped up a pillow, and covered Seol-chan with a blanket so he could sleep comfortably.

“If this becomes a memory for you too.”

He had told Hong Ki-jun that he would do anything to live an ordinary life. That was Jin-hyeok’s dream. There would be easy tasks and difficult ones. Not only the difficult tasks that others couldn’t do easily were meaningful and valuable. Every moment is precious.

“This time won’t come back either.”

Shin Woo-sung and Lee Seung-hoon were in the same class and always hung out together because of tutoring. They sometimes wrestled and ate lunch together. Since they were in the sports team, they had training camps during vacations, so they were hard to see, but they kept in touch with old friends without neglect.

“Maybe being a good friend to Seol-chan is something I can do now.”

Jin-hyeok moved to the kitchen and poured a ladle of water into the cauldron.

He flipped a soup bowl inside the pot. He didn’t know why he did it that way, but his mom did it that way.

Now, he just needed to add corn according to the number of people.

“One for Yoo Jin, one for mom, two for Jang Gun-i, two for Seol-chan, three for dad since he eats a lot. I eat less, so twelve…”

Jin-hyeok’s hands were busy counting the corn.

He added firewood and kindling, then struck a match.

Even though the match was damp from disuse, as always, Jin-hyeok’s hands created a big, bright flame.

*

Fortunately, the rain stopped before evening fell.

Jin-hyeok cut four bamboo poles to about 2 meters long. Since the bamboo was thin, it was easier to cut with a sickle than a saw.

Seol-chan, who had been following him around while eating boiled corn, blinked his eyes.

“What are you going to do with that?”

“Let’s go catch a catfish.”

Jin-hyeok had planned to be a good friend to Seol-chan and create memories. He wanted to give him a rare experience rather than the common and easy fishing for carp or gobies. The heavy rain also played a part in changing the plan.

“Sometimes, it’s okay to spend leisure time without a purpose.”

Whoa-, Seol-chan reacted with amazement.

“I’ve never seen a catfish before. Have you caught one?”

“No. It’s my first time too.”

Jin-hyeok had never seen a live catfish either.

He only heard the method from Jo Il-hun, the walking encyclopedia.

He said you could catch catfish in the muddy water of the reservoir after rain or on cloudy days.

You could catch small catfish called miyuki in streams, but it’s hard to catch them with a fishing rod in flowing water. You need to set up obstacles to catch them. He also heard that in Gangwon-do and North Korea, they call miyuki “mountain catfish.”

Jin-hyeok absorbed all the stories Jo Il-hun told him like old tales.

“This sounds fun. Are catfish tasty?”

“I don’t know.”

Jin-hyeok had never eaten catfish either.

“I’ve eaten carp, though.”

Sometimes, when they caught carp, his mom would make spicy stew or braised carp. The gochujang-based dish was spicy and sweet, which suited his taste. Grilled carp, scaled and salted, cooked over charcoal or briquettes, was also good.

“Let’s give it a try.”

We’ll see if we catch anything.

People often worry about what to do with the fish before even catching them. Like preparing the ingredients for spicy stew before going fishing. Some people end up with nothing and go to the fish market to buy fish.

He tied a fishing line to the end of the bamboo pole and attached a goby fishing hook.

It was a simple setup without a sinker or float.

“Let’s go get bait.”

They didn’t need to go far.

They could catch minnows and shrimp from the pond near the yard, which was enough for bait.

They only took thumb-sized ones and released the rest.

With four 2-meter-long fishing poles and a can with a few baits, the two friends walked down the road in front of the house. They thought the waterway built far in front of the house would be better than the reservoir, which required crossing a bus route and a mountain. Worried about getting his fur wet, Jang Gun-i, who usually liked to follow Jin-hyeok, stayed in the doghouse, rolling his eyes.

“Is this a river?”

“It’s a waterway, but it’s as big as a reservoir.”

Even though his grandmother farmed, Seol-chan lived in a farmhouse close to town. Since he didn’t farm rice fields and rarely went to the countryside, he might call a waterway 5 to 20 meters wide a river.

“If he didn’t speak dialect, he’d be a city bumpkin.”

Where should they fish? If it were a reservoir, they could fish from the stone embankment. But the waterway’s banks were steep and slippery. The rain made it even more dangerous. After looking around for a while, Jin-hyeok made a decision.

“Let’s do it from the bridge.”

“Yeah, okay.”

Jin-hyeok lightly skewered minnows and shrimp on the fishing hook. The key was to adjust it so the bait wouldn’t die. Seol-chan watched from the corner of his eye and followed Jin-hyeok’s lead.

Seol-chan showed off the bait he had skewered, like a student seeking praise.

“Is this how you do it?”

“Yeah, you did well.”

The bait still wriggled on the hook, looking fresh.

Jin-hyeok demonstrated the next step.

“Try this.”

Now, adjust the length of the fishing line so the bait moves on the water’s surface, then hold the fishing pole. You can press the handle against the ground or step on it with your foot. Holding it for too long will make your arms sore.

Mosquitoes and other annoying bugs bothered them, but you can’t live in the countryside if you let those uninvited guests get to you.

Slap-! Slap-.

The two friends slapped their necks, cheeks, and calves, focusing on fishing despite the mosquito attacks.

Watching the minnows fluttering on the water’s surface, Seol-chan said wistfully.

“This is nice. I want to do this too.”

At his friend’s reaction, Jin-hyeok’s lips curled up slightly.

Even though he had met Seung-hoon and Woo-sung as adults and drank beer with them, he had never done leisure activities like this with them. Adults tend to live their own lives.

Fishing with his dad was fun, but spending time with peers was a different experience for Jin-hyeok. Maybe school days are the best time to create memories with friends.

“Yeah. It’s nice.”

Oooh- Oooh-.

About 10 minutes later, when the sound of people disappeared, bullfrogs started croaking everywhere. The echoes bouncing off the embankment and water surface hit their eardrums.

“Where did those guys come from? Their sound is scary.”

Probably imported from Japan. It’s been about 20 years since they were introduced.

They were brought in for food, but when the business didn’t work out, shop owners released them, and they spread.

“They’ll quiet down eventually.”

“Really?”

“Yeah. Our country belongs to our kids.”

Seol-chan nodded, thinking it made sense. After all, a smart guy like him wouldn’t be wrong.

Whenever Jin-hyeok visited his hometown with a tent during vacations, he often couldn’t sleep at night because of the bullfrogs. But as time passed, their sound gradually decreased and disappeared.

‘Cats, raccoons, weasels, otters, herons.’

And predators like snakeheads ate the bullfrog tadpoles, reducing their numbers.

Jin-hyeok was reminiscing when…

Splash-!

A rough bite shook the bait on the water’s surface.

“Whoa-!”

Unlike carp fishing where you watch the float, this method involves directly seeing the bait being swallowed. It was a bizarre scene, like a monster appearing from the water. Jin-hyeok could fully understand Seol-chan’s shock.

He was startled too.

‘Almost freaked out.’

Amazingly, Jo Il-hun’s fishing method worked.

He said that on rainy or cloudy days, when the water turns muddy, fish come to the surface because it’s hard to breathe or hunt for food. Even nocturnal predators become active under these conditions.

“Whoa-!”

“Seol-chan! Relax your arms, just hold on!”

The muddy water surface churned like hot chocolate, suggesting it was a decent-sized fish.

Seol-chan followed Jin-hyeok’s advice, relaxing his arms and using the bamboo pole’s elasticity. He thought it might break, but the pole flexed, absorbing the catfish’s strength. Maybe that’s why they say the soft overcomes the strong.

‘This is amazing.’

Jin-hyeok was inwardly amazed. It wasn’t a glass rod or a high-tech carbon rod, but this delicate bamboo pole was holding up against the catfish’s strength. The wisdom of ancestors using natural materials was truly admirable.

Then, with a snap, Seol-chan’s fishing pole broke. But since it was tough bamboo, it could still be pulled.

“Keep the line tight!”

Jin-hyeok threw down his pole and helped Seol-chan by pulling the line with his hands.

The hooked catfish spun in the air, wriggling. No matter how strong it was, it was still a fish, and no fish could match Jin-hyeok’s strength.

“Hahaha! It’s huge!”

“Wow-, Seol-chan, you’re amazing.”

“Amazing? What’s that?”

“Haha-, it means you did great.”

Even the Buddha-like Son Jin-hyeok couldn’t hide his admiration for the big catfish.

Seol-chan, who had caught a catfish on his first try, sat down, his heart pounding. Was this really the fish he caught? From above, its head was the size of a fist, and its body tapered, with long whiskers near its mouth.

It looked as scary as the monster catfish from the cartoon “Frog King.”

“Is it over 40 centimeters?”

“Yeah. It is.”

Jin-hyeok measured the length with his hand span.

Including the long, thin tail, it was close to 50 centimeters.

“But Jin-hyeok, what about your fishing pole?”

Seol-chan looked apologetic, but there was no need to worry.

He had brought extras, and the bamboo poles were disposable anyway.

Seol-chan picked up an intact bamboo pole instead of the broken one.

Meanwhile, Jin-hyeok cut some reeds.

“What are you going to do with that?”

“I didn’t bring a container for the fish.”

He didn’t expect to actually catch anything. Jin-hyeok muttered to himself.

What could he do about the village’s trust in Jo Il-hun?

Anyway.

If they left the catfish on the ground, it might flop back into the water.

Jin-hyeok threaded the long reed through the catfish’s gills and out its mouth.

“This way, it’s easier to carry.”

“Yeah, that’s clever. Weird, though.”

With the reed through it, the fish couldn’t flop around.

Jin-hyeok placed the skewered fish in a puddle for now.

Seol-chan, thrilled by the experience, clenched and unclenched his hands, savoring the excitement.

“Wow-! It’s like electricity running through my whole body.”

Seol-chan laughed brightly, genuinely excited, and Jin-hyeok felt proud.

“But Jin-hyeok.”

“Yeah?”

“What about your fishing pole?”

“……”

Jin-hyeok, who had been fascinated by the strange catfish, looked around the water’s surface.

While Seol-chan was catching the fish, Jin-hyeok had set his pole down for a moment.

“There it is……”

It was floating leisurely in the distance.

Seol-chan’s eyes widened as he followed Jin-hyeok’s finger.

“It’s going really fast? Like it has a motor.”

The two friends stared in disbelief at the fishing pole being driven by a fish.

“Who’s taking that away?”

“I don’t know……”

Since they used shrimp as bait, it could be a carp. Judging by the strength, it might be a snakehead.

They chuckled as they watched the fishing pole zigzagging.

“Hehehe- This is funny.”

“Hahaha-.”

Woof! Woof!

The sound of barking echoed over the reddening water surface.

Jang Gun-i’s loud barks sounded like a powerful trumpet, rippling across the water.