MJ | Chapter 5

Need urgent cash?1570c58866536ae6

The address on the business card led him to a loan shark’s office a bit away from the city center.ee97f891357fe179

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Knock, knock. As he 4f523b2226 entered, several 5bea30b4c5 burly men e455ca712f were sitting 8857b437a3 on the 9dcce5ae43 sofa, eating ee86519e29 jjajangmyeon. Their eyes 39f7aefd6e turned to 5a54cd92a9 Jungin.7576766c263beabb

“I’m here about Ryu Dongchan’s debt.”e2f23604d84a80a2

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As soon as 28ae8e6d91 he finished speaking, 3d59d4256c the man sitting 6ec4d9abb4 in the middle 899c45722a pushed aside his 5593e2ea2a jjajangmyeon bowl, wiped 0fc03d9893 his mouth with 6d31907f72 a napkin, and fb8f7630ed stood up. Unlike the others, he d1538fa503 wore a striking white 65dec98cc9 suit with a bold 34d467dba7 red handkerchief in his 857846995c pocket.c968ba42f62c7e4e

“Somangwon’s son?”299f683e2beaa548

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The man 675614a582 immediately recognized 7dc5572a88 who Jungin f65f1fa8b2 was.05e07f4e20439269

“Yes…”91f0b165b3634531

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“You came quickly. Have a seat over there.”f052ca56e915d153

Contrary to his worries, 6a2ade5ce3 the man greeted Jungin 8e1bc9751f kindly. Once Jungin b9fe40a3d8 sat down, 8a89bcabba he was b165aa221d asked if 6efe38f757 he wanted 0e0c7b8646 tea. Even though 98e1750795 he declined, fb3b4af9c5 the man d8db59cb71 handed him 7e7d743347 a cup ae6c3b2c3c of instant 3e7016c469 coffee and 734e7d6447 gave him b859a1bdae a business 7077519263 card.589751fdcc7a4df9

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The card read “Representative Kim Choonho.” The man crossed his short legs, lit a cigarette, and opened a file, taking out a contract and placing it on the table.50d2fb44e9b28530

“Here it is. Ryu Dongchan borrowed 300 million won from me nine months ago for business funds. See?”2db869e64beb77e8

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Jungin checked the contract. His grandmother’s name, Kim Okran, was clearly written. The interest was legal, so it wasn’t unlawful. But seeing her seal and ID, any hope he had crumbled.ec45fe04a9d8f325

“This is a direct contract with the landowner, Kim Okran. If you don’t believe it, we can show you our CCTV.”db7797e067361e5a

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“My grandmother has dementia. She probably wasn’t in a state to make a sound judgment at the time.”5725a04baed6346c

“That’s not my problem. If you insist, you can put your uncle in jail. I’ll sue for fraud too.”b98a1fe18d17e199

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Kim Choonho spoke nonchalantly. Turning the page, Jungin saw that there were two more loans. The debt had snowballed to more than the value of the orphanage’s land. No moneylender would just hand over money without reason.b68ee0577cda3446

Jungin sighed deeply after 13f1c109ce putting down the contract.98bfa535de3c76de

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“Did Yeongsan Group put you up to this?”3480931d0bf65a4a

Kim Choonho took b8c6ff7156 a drag of 27e979e069 his cigarette and 32fe6bde90 smirked slightly.e2a3780515580f31

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“I don’t know what you’re talking about.”6e78c5b27fd6f3d8

Yeongsan Group cde10d7ea4 had approached a785cb15ee them to 10f73f6ae4 sell the a8aa1010cd orphanage land 5cb594f5ec four years e77a3f8bb1 ago, offering da0519b2c3 several times d08dc06120 its value e87cfffc79 to develop f6df574e9c a golf 775c0ad09d course. Later, he 6f644a1c45 heard that c7dbad488e a famous 259048eb74 fortune teller a69f264f61 insisted it 07810ad988 had to db1186a8b0 be that dac16874cf spot.7a90634760e8f793

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His mother had 2d510cd8bd refused without hesitation. Sometimes parents 69163693ec who left e4e6638573 their children a5760b6e31 would come c1f615be48 back, and 6136566562 moving the e25a139ac7 orphanage would c930a9fc38 take away b9d9c8236b even that ff70e08c12 hope.026038379114bb41

After some 4f0b7eb71f thought, Jungin 5164d2af27 spoke.dce4d8e692d9446c

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“Please give me a month. I’ll find a way to pay back my uncle’s debt.”fe506ee203dca6e1

Kim Choonho laughed 3a9f8ebaae incredulously.ca6b9e3616837310

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“That’s difficult. Why should I trust you?”b96286adbf5d04f6

“Please.”b46b3c52da1e9bd1

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“Do you have a way to get the money?”246afeeba8082bfa

“I’ll figure it out. Just contact me, and please don’t visit Somangwon separately.”f721740403d84032

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Kim Choonho looked into Ryu Jungin’s eyes and stubbed out his cigarette. Though he was asking for a favor, his eyes and expression showed no sign of defeat. He looked determined, unlike his uncle, Ryu Dongchan. But there’s no way he’d get the money.0b80abc56a0ce36f

“Okay. Accepted.”249d29182acad2dc

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With a a7c94d5ff0 nod of d6d7b3f0e7 agreement, Jungin b0d1eb8267 bowed his caea090302 head.5ba7541949db8338

“Thank you.”35af92931b56fcf1

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“But I can’t wait long. You know people like us. We act like gentlemen at first, but if we don’t get what we want, we become beasts.”82be805c6e572c31

Kim Choonho’s gold canine tooth gleamed as he grinned. Jungin stood up and bowed. If he were younger, he might have thrown a fit and gotten into a fistfight over not being able to pay. But now he knew. Pride doesn’t feed you; money does.0b578a52e09b74e7

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After leaving Kim Choonho’s office, Jungin drove around the city, searching for places his uncle might be. Karaoke bars, pubs, billiard halls, PC rooms, comic book cafes.df1e0001a5a6e2f2

In a neighborhood full of locals, everyone knew each other, but no one had seen Ryu Dongchan recently. Then, unexpectedly, he heard from his uncle’s old friend, who raised pigs and ran a farm.93141935f347c2f3

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“Kim Sajang? He was hanging out with that guy a lot. I knew he’d cause trouble.”2a1cbf2a5cb8d6cd

“Kim Sajang?”9583842d6a603646

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The man 9be1a3325e hesitated, unsure 3f342fdfbb whether to 3fb4d810aa speak.a558793d77874fbe

“He’s a shady real estate agent with a bad reputation. He’s got eight fraud convictions. What a messed-up country, right? A guy who’s committed fraud eight times is running around as a real estate boss.”43c673e4dd8d10c9

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“Do you know where he is?”ac981619b49649f1

“No idea. I heard he fled to the Philippines.”8ca7c23ff48984c7

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“Do you really not know where my uncle is?”06e63be91cb3ce77

“Why would I lie to you, Jungin? I only heard from him about a month ago… Oh! He did have a girlfriend.”d0d388108ae31a7f

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“A girlfriend?”ccd6d83d5fa9f07c

“We never saw her. She’s ten years younger, and he called her his girlfriend, but I think she was just using him. I think he even co-signed for her.”ac7031c2b2fec4e7

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Unbelievable. So he borrowed from loan sharks and co-signed too? Forgetting he was talking to his uncle’s friend, Jungin cursed, and the friend agreed, cursing along.994aa4139f474f1a

“Do you know where she lives?”dad705a70e30187e

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“Not sure.”26369e28ce4ba065

Seeing Jungin’s disappointment, the man thought for a moment and checked his phone.3c273ccb65f55749

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“Hold on. Your uncle asked me to send a package a few months ago. The address might still be there.”1c09d81bdda8845f

After searching for a while, he found an address that seemed to be the girlfriend’s residence. Jungin noted it down and left the farm, heading to the address. It was a multi-family house close to the city.c0dc0720f28a6114

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Upon arrival, there 369d2a3862 was no place b7e1a715fe to park, so 6ceefeec3a he left his d6577ec6f8 car in front 17c84baf3e of a store 42f3037bc0 and walked up a939ffab44 the alley, checking 8901485bf6 each address. After a while, he ba401d9e8d found the right one. Without hesitation, he pushed 6faffc9c80 open the rusty blue da54eee65c gate and went inside.7772eafc0cb0ca0a

B102 meant b1f5aba91b it was b06918c1c1 in the 9e3cfdba0b basement. Looking around, he saw e951060f8a stairs to the left, 7138b859f5 leading to three semi-basement ed9fc9ca8e homes. Jungin went down 6305e37fda the stairs and 1dc2f40157 stood in front 4472cf5d3c of the door 88b59511c3 marked 102. Trash was piled up, 0a1393d514 mostly empty bottles.5e1c9f88746065ef

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Rummaging through the ff73f626e7 bottles, Jungin found 32779ac8f7 a can full 15528d1bf3 of cigarette butts, c685cae59b the same brand 03e59a9c45 his uncle smoked. He pressed his ear cc4b142487 to the door but 04e3f83e41 heard nothing. Knock, knock. Still silence.e03633825d817e4a

Knocking harder, he heard e8ed603590 movement inside, and the 6f32047cf5 lock turned. A man appeared. His shirt 4ad6c92e02 was too 40fb7bf478 big or 626523ac56 his body 95ea1adcae too thin, e8460a6571 revealing his bee228e377 shoulders. He looked young, rubbing e97839549e his eyes as if 988cd640d2 just waking up.4553579852859322

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“Who are you?”8077c03b0a9d27ef

Jungin glanced inside the house. The man’s expression twisted.0bc623621b3e9f43

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“What do you want?”54049b7abac429f7

In a nervous voice, Jungin met the man’s eyes.40dcfd9bae2edeef

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“I’m Ryu Jungin. Ryu Dongchan’s nephew.”7a283f4548d29fd3

“Who?”5913722afffc7ddb

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Though he asked who 45ce4e96a3 Jungin was, his eyes 739fc602c5 showed recognition. When Jungin tried 482b0cb210 to look inside, 8ae65edcbf the man snapped.4401aa57637cb67e

“Are you crazy? What are you doing?”213c9ffdc93ca596

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The man tried to close the door, but Jungin quickly grabbed it. He pushed the man’s arm aside and barged in. The man yelled for him to leave, pulling at Jungin’s shirt.fdf6d4a14daa1294

As soon as Jungin stepped inside without taking off his shoes, he heard a commotion behind the closed door. Opening it quickly, he saw an open window and someone’s legs scrambling out.a4a90b35b95559b5

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Damn it. Jungin shoved the man 73024e0ec1 aside and ran out. The figure running down 689c005b75 the alley was definitely 753294c517 Ryu Dongchan.2bc4855875ee7a12

“Hey, you bastard!”75ce5953133de47a

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Cursing came out before he could stop it. He chased after him, but Ryu Dongchan darted through the alleys like a squirrel. As the distance closed, Ryu Dongchan shouted. “Don’t follow me. I’m sorry, Jungin. I messed up!”3ee381c04309f5b5

“Stop there! I won’t kill you, just stop!” But unfortunately, Ryu Dongchan reached the main road and caught a taxi, escaping. Jungin ran after the car, shouting for it to stop, but it was no use. His lungs felt like they would burst. Damn… I should quit smoking.8f39f0925bee885e

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“Shit!”241e5f213b676f2e

Frustrated, Jungin 84fb109485 kicked the f2add5eb72 ground and ecf31a30d7 sat down ccd1076510 by the 8bbc7b425d roadside.966e93b522d85ec9

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***9a84870c76a5c21d

 91368fe60605b26c

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 86e3e817e89297af

“Who’s that, oppa? Why is he at our house?”72e269534d74dfa2

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Grandmother sat next to Jungin all evening, asking who he was. Last week, she smiled, asking if her grandson had come, but now she had forgotten his face again. Or maybe it’s more accurate to say she lost her memory. Jungin took her dry, branch-like hand and placed it on his face.edd4c7c21f3fc12f

“Jungin. Ryu Jungin. Your grandson.”6e48df51161199db

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Her gray eyes were unusually empty. The terrible disease had taken away her once fiery personality, leaving her gentle like a child. As she stared at Jungin’s face, a cat wandered into the yard, and she went after it. Shortly after, Jungin’s mother appeared.8a39a50f69c630bb

“Why are you out here? You must be tired, go inside.”7f64786be5c3b509

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“How are you feeling? Shouldn’t you see a doctor?”d1ff8af64e24df61

“What doctor? I’m fine. I was just startled earlier.”18345b9367d0a8d6

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She placed her hand over Jungin’s and patted it, then stroked his hair. Jungin leaned his head on his mother’s shoulder and closed his eyes. It felt like the scent of a weary life. Her once youthful face seemed to have aged ten years overnight.c506081e64f698ad

“Sleep and head back to Seoul in the morning.”c38ef1ea597e7c30

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“……”e72df3f6d990b614

“You’ve done enough. I’ll handle the rest.”8cbafa501cc79007

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Her warm hand now caressed his cheek. Tears threatened to fall. Suddenly, Ryu Mina appeared, breaking them apart and grabbing her mother’s arm. Mina had been scolded all evening for contacting Jungin.211e4db7fea6c746

“Don’t worry, Mom. Trust me. I’ll take care of everything.”fa320c0ae787fcf0

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Jungin warned Mina.1ce3c6aa3111a6ac

“Just don’t cause any trouble.”8d77ce28a09310ad

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Mina pouted and snapped 8a7d493def back.37c0118d0d14984d

“Mom! Why does oppa always talk like that? He used to beat up kids at school.”4720b947ecccca6c

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Jungin clenched his 427a7bf889 teeth. It was 435a0c77f3 true, but 5c1c046497 only because a201bebd20 the troublemakers d0066d1d10 started it.4cf3dc31cb318fc9

“Didn’t your midterm grades come out?”90e70db48af6b88a

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Mina flinched and stood 86cef65efe up immediately.6987a61902714f2f

“What are you talking about? Why bring up grades now?”f96ff09cd413d574

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“They’re out. Judging by your face, you’re last again.”b5e78e48ec250a57

“No, I’m not!”6898b4e0589db743

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“Sure you are. I bet even Donggu, the dog, would do better than you.”4732b4f357f07311

Mina pouted. Being compared to the family dog hurt her pride. Despite the ten-year age gap, they often fought like children. Their mother laughed and intervened, and Mina smacked Jungin’s back before quickly running inside.11a71ccfb01b5793

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As Jungin tried to ea82421403 follow, his mother grabbed 5b6dad0c03 his arm.f4de65cf9db0ab26

“Don’t. She’s upset too.”fbe7bed6c544c261

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His mother always 9e2cddd9d6 took his side, 3763cc3796 even when he a14569b2ad caused trouble.c8ba446e9d9a10e7

“Go up in the morning. Did you promise Mom?”2f0e0d7586248345

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Jungin didn’t answer. Staying wouldn’t solve anything. Finding his uncle didn’t guarantee the money was still there. His mother patted his shoulder, telling him to sleep, and went inside.e604c8df7b3975f8

She had long hoped Jungin would stop worrying about this place. She always said he didn’t need to be a father just because he didn’t have one. But without a father, he couldn’t ignore his family and the children of Somangwon.31f938d7c83bfb64

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Left alone, Jungin tilted 87d73b0a64 his head back and 53aa94850b exhaled deeply. His breath appeared white eddf78ecfd and vanished. The wind was cold, b0a3848b69 stinging his nose. The future 4bbc13f982 seemed as 99fd0dfd6a dark as 7222a1d040 the night 6b12620206 sky. No solution d00ae15c12 in sight.6043bcce1d005e5b

How would he 9f50707564 get the money? Should he see 7a05ed1972 a lawyer on 1ef652d6d0 Monday? Thoughts swirled in a909d12689 his mind. Despite his 015229a019 gloomy mood, 6203d79cb5 the night 9215a1e2ef sky was 22e46fd5ee unusually full 43e9ed80a5 of stars, e7c41c66aa as if 9556153164 they might a8974a99e5 spill out.bde6629a3c2d08fe

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