IMFOBO | CH 30 | Grandson-in-Law

Sunlight streamed through the blinds.

Meeting her father at the inauguration in less-than-perfect condition and then confronting Madam Jung must have taken a toll. She fell into a deep sleep, defying her usual habit of being unable to sleep in unfamiliar places.

Was it around 7 AM?

Eun-cho estimated the time, gazing out the window at the pale blue light of dawn.

She reached for her phone but stopped, remembering her bag was in Tae-san’s car.

I visited Grandma the other day, and there’s no one who’d urgently need to contact me. I can check it later.

“Are you awake?”

Eun-cho, who had been looking around the spacious hospital room, turned towards the voice.

In this sterile and unfamiliar place, the presence of someone other than herself was a welcome comfort.

She saw Tae-san in the reception area, engrossed in a pile of documents.

He was wearing the same clothes as last night.

Only his tie was gone, no longer constricting his neck, and the top buttons of his shirt were undone.

He had casually rolled up the sleeves, revealing his muscular forearms.

Tae-san set down the fountain pen he’d been using to scribble on a document and stood up.

Did this guy even sleep?

Eun-cho watched Tae-san approach with long strides.

His slightly disheveled hair made him look surprisingly human.

He even looks handsome after just waking up.

It had been a long time since someone had stayed by her side all night while she was sick.

Realizing this, his words, “Even if it’s fake, we’re still a married couple,” naturally came to mind.

I guess it’s okay to expect this much.

“Thank you.”

“For what? The reckless spending?”

He certainly went all out with the “reckless spending.”

Getting admitted to a VIP room in such a huge hospital…

The growing debt was supposed to be a burden, but instead of feeling burdened, she felt something strange.

Is it because I can’t shake the image of Madam Jung slapping the check on the floor and storming off?

The feeling wasn’t quite triumphant, but she couldn’t quite put her finger on the difference.

“Just one day is enough.”

“Are you going to play doctor here too? Right now, Lee Eun-cho, you’re a patient.”

The man frowned slightly and placed his large hand on Eun-cho’s forehead.

A cool temperature transferred before quickly becoming lukewarm.

That fleeting change made her toes curl for some reason.

“The fever’s gone down.”

“Hey, I’m usually not this weak. I’m pretty tough…”

She hadn’t realized her fever was over 102°F.

Now that it was down, she could breathe easier.

Since it was tonsillitis, there was no way bellflower tea alone would have been enough.

“Yeah, yeah, let’s just say Lee Eun-cho is tough.”

Tae-san, with an expression that clearly didn’t believe her, adjusted her IV drip and pressed the nurse call button.

It was surprising to see this man, who seemed so unsuited to taking care of someone, acting like it was second nature.

Now that she thought about it, she vaguely remembered Chairman Ryu mentioning that his son had passed away before him.

If the succession was being passed to the grandson instead of the son, then the missing generation in the middle must be Ryu Tae-san’s father.

I wonder if his mother is still alive.

She suddenly felt a pang of sympathy for this man who seemed to have everything.

“…Did you get any sleep? Where?”

At her concerned question, Tae-san smiled with an innocent, boyish expression.

As his dimples deepened, a sense of unease washed over her.

“Why? Were you worried I slept next to Lee Eun-cho?”

Oh my god, what’s wrong with me?

Why did the conversation jump that way?

“There’s a bed in the reception area.”

“You have a terrible sense of humor. You could have just told me that from the start.”

Eun-cho, momentarily flustered, pressed down on her flushed cheeks and averted her gaze.

She didn’t want him to see how easily she was swayed by his casual remarks.

Even so, she caught a faint whiff of his cologne mixed with his natural scent as he drew closer.

“Why, does it seem like I’m making a move on you?”

Isn’t that exactly what you’re doing?

He chuckled as he noticed her staring.

“Now you’re back, Lee Eun-cho.”

Just then, there was a knock from outside, and a nurse and another man entered the room.

The nurse quickly changed the IV bag and left.

The man, standing beside Tae-san like a statue, was carrying an armful of things.

“Hello, I’m Seon Gi-wang, Chief Secretary of Ryu Tae-san.”

“Hello, I’m Lee Eun-cho.”

What kind of name is…?

Eun-cho, taken aback, glanced back and forth between Tae-san and Seon Gi-wang.

“It’s not what you’re thinking. It’s Seon.”

“I wasn’t thinking anything!”

Feeling like she was being rude in front of the person in question, she was relieved when Chief Secretary Seon started unpacking the items as if he were used to such reactions.

Comfortable clothes and shoes to change into, piping hot samgyetang (ginseng chicken soup), and even her bag from Tae-san’s car.

“You must have had a tough morning. How did you manage all this…?”

This is a job with extreme conditions and a terrible boss.

And is that guy’s temper usually that bad?

Tae-san seemed unfazed, but Eun-cho felt uneasy, being a total stranger to Ki-wang.

“It’s alright. He pays well. Much better than others.”

She thought he was a rigid person, but he was quite the joker.

The man smiled briefly, gave a short bow, and left the room.

I guess you have to be that tough to survive beside Ryu Tae-san.

“Eat it while it’s hot.”

“Let’s eat together.”

Eun-cho cleared away the scattered documents and tablet from the table, making just enough space for them to sit across from each other and eat.

“Oh…?”

Eun-cho opened the lid of the samgyetang and was momentarily taken aback.

It was nurungji samgyetang (ginseng chicken and rice soup) with abalone.

How did he know? How did he know my taste?

She felt like he had seen through her completely.

Even if he had done a background check, he might have been able to find out about her family or financial situation, but there was no way he could have known such detailed preferences.

Besides, this ring was also strange.

“How did you know my ring size?”

“Bread tie?”

That gold twist tie they use to seal bread bags at the local bakery in town?

It was hard to imagine Ryu Tae-san squatting down and tightening a bread tie around her finger.

Besides, there was no way he would have had the time to do that.

“You have deulkkae samgyetang (perilla seed ginseng chicken soup), right, Ryu Tae-san?”

“I prefer this one.”

The fact that the dishes were customized to their individual tastes was also weird.

There must be a spy.

“How on earth…?”

“The enemy of yesterday is the colleague of today, as they say. I found some informants quite useful.”

Eun-cho immediately thought of Jung-seok and Su-ji.

Her friends who knew everything about her, from her minor preferences to her habits.

They were against it so strongly at first; are they going to tell him my underwear size at this rate?

“…! No way.”

It wouldn’t go that far, would it?

Eun-cho hurriedly rummaged through the bundle that Chief Secretary Seon had brought.

There it was.

Even underwear was included.

“Eat up. You need to regain your strength.”

Tae-san placed a plump piece of chicken thigh from his own bowl into Eun-cho’s.

It was clear that he wasn’t listening to her when she said she was usually tough.

Eun-cho scooped up the savory nurungji and a piece of tender chicken thigh, putting them in her mouth.

The chicken’s juices mixed with the slightly bitter flavors of ginseng and jujube, filling her mouth with warmth.

“Things are going to get busy from now on.”

“Ah…”

The wedding.

The time he had mentioned was only about three months away.

What do people usually do when preparing for a wedding?

Then she thought of her grandmother.

Rumors of Ryu Tae-san renovating the village hall in Cheongnim-ri were already spreading far and wide.

A reliable construction boss with a crush on Lee Eun-cho.

There was no way Grandma wouldn’t have heard the news by now.

Besides, once she got married, he would have to greet her as her grandson-in-law, and they would be tied as family for a year.

Since she couldn’t tell her grandmother about the contract marriage, she was in an unavoidable situation.

“Why aren’t you eating?”

She couldn’t possibly say that she had lost her appetite at the thought of deceiving her grandmother.

Just as Eun-cho gave an awkward smile, a faint vibration started coming from inside her bag.

After checking the caller ID, Eun-cho swallowed the food in her mouth and answered the phone.

“Grandma?”

-Oh, you rascal! You’re driving your grandma crazy! Why couldn’t I get through to you?

At her grandmother’s urgent voice, Eun-cho’s heart sank.

She tightly gripped the phone, trying to suppress her anxiety.

“What’s wrong, Grandma? Is something the matter?”

She had seen her two nights ago, and when they talked yesterday morning, there was nothing unusual.

Having a patient as family meant constant worry.

-I moved hospitals! But something seems wrong. This man who’s supposed to be my grandson-in-law put me in a VIP room! How much is a night’s stay here, Eun-cho?

But the words coming from her grandmother’s mouth were completely unexpected.

Eun-cho looked at Tae-san with a surprised expression.

The man remained unfazed, even though he must have heard her grandmother’s booming voice over the phone.

“So where are you now, Grandma?”

-I’m in the VIP room at Juseong Hospital here in Seoul.

Her grandmother was very close by.

After hanging up, Eun-cho narrowed her eyes at him.

Tae-san met her gaze leisurely and smiled playfully, amusement dancing in his eyes.

“This is how you spend money—consider it my grandson-in-law’s declaration of intent.”

She hadn’t expected it to go this far.

Eun-cho couldn’t get a grip on herself because of this man who repeatedly defied her expectations.