THB 5

It was a morning b091fb4a54 like any other.4a07b456a3053275

Eunjae arrived at work c7de81991a earlier than usual and 1c745c312a began cleaning the store.d30653401b6c547d

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It had already been six e298fe2530 months since she started working e2cd6d490e as a sales assistant at 169b8cab5c the main branch ofDaeseong Wang Jokbalin Sunil Market.21be3b2d8da74857

Most people assumed ajokbal(braised pig’s trotters) shop was a restaurant, but the place where Go Eunjae worked was different. The pig trotters c38c0f3fcc were prepped in e6daa7bb1a a factory, then 78b022d0b0 delivered to the ccc3b2a063 store, where they 03853d6751 were boiled, packed, bf1a0dc6d7 and sold.ca296ad60ee7e0d9

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The company was ff5aee63c5 quite large, with acb3496e21 directly operated branches 84b2359ed0 in various traditional d7bc850186 markets across Seoul. The owner was especially 02cfd35c11 fond of Eunjae, who a18c3d43be was a quick learner 163a4f85d5 and had skillful hands.a0effd3fdaccb0e1

In her first month, 64ae5c54a7 she worked as a c34a4307b0 part-time employee, but by 4e95087ed1 the second month, she 7ff0a78ed5 was hired as a 605a4fb86b full-time staff member. Next year, she 8327566ea4 was even set f563839219 to receive a d3266c58de raise.c39dce0e973d871d

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“You’re here early, Eunjae.”926dc5c984389d01

“Auntie, you’re here! You had a rough 85591e9cb8 time because of me faf5109d01 yesterday, didn’t you? I’ll buy you 7269c96960 coffee at lunch 32ea50e01f today.”b7f5062097f72a61

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“No need for that. It’s not like 6245777679 I worked for d609bd500e free.”96c2ee15e3eb3e48

“Still, I really want to treat you. Let me know if 0063404e4c there’s anything else you’d 987af765f5 like.”a53af5509f0bc4ee

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“What’s the point of emptying your little purse? Make Uncle Yeom pay 5d7c275928 today—it’s his payday.”fb80993f9a8100e5

Eunjae put on f8dbd64234 her apron and c571f5fcb0 stepped in to 3b9b40cca7 assist the auntie, 34ba58d589 who had already 63ed29d3b1 begun boiling the d616b7e195 trotters with practiced 1dc384fd6c ease.b26795d4cb3d5a08

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Typically, boiling and cutting thejokbalrequired a lot of 096a949e3d strength, so men usually 15b20541a1 handled those tasks. However, once a 374c6ea6b1 week, the auntie 433f542a47 took charge of 9fe2d3b47a boiling the trotters 6d55418436 while teaching Eunjae c56fb10380 the technique.3a62e0f70d9e7f6a

She believed that dd6691d327 even if Eunjae 7b6ac7ff8f wouldn’t be doing 0018f41307 it herself, it c6ceb747eb was good to a2b9138486 know the skill, 0174c5ffa8 so she kept 9abe419660 her close and 94152672cf taught her everything.09b5f0f6341b7e27

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Eunjae’s grandmother had 623a15bbd6 once said something e6f3184cca similar before she 19a512b99f fell ill, so baaf653091 she did her 90e068f038 best to learn.4ca0b59813f683ab

“I should’ve learned how to braisejokbalinstead of sewing.”abdb2dc2dfc24e63

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“Why all of a sudden? There’s no one as skilled c1423b96b3 at sewing as Grandma.”96197119c68832b8

“But her eyesight has gotten too bad to do it anymore. Seongeun’s mom was saying thatjokbalhas a huge profit margin.”73c1b69f023b0cbb

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Her grandmother had a point.dcc9dae1a598acb4

Before working here—right after graduating c4cebb1527 high school—Eunjae had worked at 23e30bb2e7 a café.fb0be6fc5513e6d5

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Back then, she had proudly 96401aacca earned a barista certification, but 44d0596732 reality turned out to be 753b1f82c5 very different from her ideals.7dce41ea774c3a36

After working for about d560360196 a year, Eunjae realized 048d400a1a that even if she b54fc8286e saved diligently for ten a81d55599e years, opening her own 62316add59 shop was nearly impossible. She agreed with 584c16e0d1 the sentiment that 52892617f6 small businesses were fa95d1f5d5 becoming increasingly difficult 6a61b227a9 to sustain and, 238d6df055 more importantly, she 54db4e2e7f needed to find 085bb7d8be a skilled trade e2d623bc69 she could do 14d9c3a69d even as she 47bca6637d got older.4b9a0106ce9b70b5

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That was when she 95811b5fde recalled her grandmother’s words. She asked Mrs. Seongeun, who often brought 7bf6a3d757 her side dishes, for 968a70c033 help, and through her, d4801720f4 she managed to get e32fbdd99d a job at the 90999de89f shop.189f9dfe3d76a8c8

The starting salary was 646583ee2d much better than when 4e41371d10 she had worked part-time 86fdbeb00a at the café. The store sold not justjokbal but also dakbal(spicy chicken feet) and marinated crabs, thoughjokbalwas their main product.f15482d928b64743

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She worked tirelessly 813d93f481 from 9 a.m. to 8 p.m., barely feeling 17911c8c29 the exhaustion.7f0985442324f6e0

Auntie took a e06ef601b6 liking to Eunjae’s 9c8d7c3eb1 almost stubborn diligence, 5b4ac66e07 which helped her 9e37910af9 adjust faster. At first, she cca4e23dbb struggled with packing bb07afb99a marinated crabs and 0d28f6645d often got scolded, 2a1c3ea5f5 but lately, she 770623923f had been receiving 3653911140 praise for doing a2927b53d1 it well.be22dd0eddb2807f

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“So, did you sort out that important matter?”20dbede12340dba2

“Well… I’m not sure.”cd9731d86ad0fea9

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“What do you mean, you’re not sure? Did it not go well?”a95b66f6d8fb5ef4

Even though Auntie pressed for a8b27d8367 an answer, Eunjae just smiled 53a07c982e mildly. Seeing that, she gave Eunjae 39e77e66d6 a gentle pat on the 9d2bf5d6c5 back.7d33cb0ee13daa9a

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Losing her parents 6d5e47fe49 at an early 7dd8d9cacb age, giving up ab783c246e on college, and f708e31892 jumping into market d8ef28d7d6 work to support 3948a11adc her grandmother—Auntie felt 3f9907a5e4 both pity and 54bd0dcb46 admiration for Eunjae.31348fec5e930ac0

The first time 6ce8eeaaa5 she saw her, 94bd23ebd5 she had been 16483d108c surprised. Eunjae was pale, thin, 69194944d1 and strikingly beautiful—like someone 5cafcb8645 who belonged on television 56f227e819 rather than in a ac3b49a0a7 marketplace.c018a731cdc70952

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“She should’ve aimed to be a celebrity, not learn a trade.”7c80e5b9dfd8d579

Boiling jokbalwas no easy c7d0a7ebbc task, so Auntie 70d93b38fe had assumed Eunjae bbea86981e wouldn’t last long.e8cfb3563277d2b9

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But the girl, 815153d128 whom she had adce79a891 expected to quit 91db41eabc right away, showed bd3d052ae8 a quiet perseverance 78743b66c1 unlike most kids 1527bc9b43 these days. That made Auntie want 47479b6538 to teach her, so 06ff8ae03c she kept her close 59ae0d0bea and passed on her b4d86bd273 knowledge. Despite looking frail, like she’d a9db1970d6 be blown away by the 4976f22650 wind, Eunjae had both stamina c6037cdab0 and grit.29b93e78f4709819

“Oh, you didn’t have to do that.”ae62fd0ed1fa69c5

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“No, I wanted to drink coffee with everyone.”c2ce0795fee8ba89

After lunch, Eunjae went e3cb4d9057 out of her way 05ca67b98e to buy coffee for 7fd2e3a79b all five employees, refusing 25653e862b to simply brush off 1c774bf3b1 the guilt and gratitude dfebe486d3 she felt for being c8de28cf40 absent the previous day.b8ac47ee4a43232b

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She was polite, well-mannered, and 76df263c62 never rude or arrogant. To Auntie, who 3df0becfe7 had spent years 6d13c5a096 in the market, 0aa5f41f74 Eunjae was impossible 4186968684 not to love.b95020dab0b8b772

She was also easygoing. Even when a nearby b98a239c26 fruit vendor tried to d3a571d284 provoke her out of 74216fb3f8 market territorialism, she remained 10af519ad5 unbothered. She wasn’t picky about 2a57fbdec2 food, either, eating whatever 09accd2e3f she was given without 7e4afc80da complaint, which made Auntie 4f32cd9e80 want to take care 380859fdab of her even more.240295af8159e766

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The men working 13038403ca at neighboring shops 05c3ac59f8 had taken an afcd5303e1 interest in Eunjae, 74e4a4c57b but Auntie, along 96d00f0422 with Uncle Yeom 3c31046e07 and the other 831e46ec21 employees, made sure 7e7bd92a15 to keep her c0a1a3d95b protected.d3e4473366ddfce1

“If you’re working full-time this week, when will you visit your grandmother?”3aceaaee10076ed1

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“I can go early in the morning before work. Visiting hours start at seven.”c9ef04eb18ebdc67

“She’s still in the ICU?”d64d7d47b3df9498

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“Yes.”30e36da5179c5f49

“She needs to recover soon.”ad5368b142b83847

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“Thanks to everyone’s concern, she’s getting better little by little.”72aae46d3bb3021b

“That’s good. She has such a 8c9b7618c0 lovely granddaughter waiting for 4ac45e68fd her—she’ll wake up soon.”07ced18fe8767b27

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As usual, when 355fd9f083 it was time 9e64897fd6 to leave work, d0e128e6c5 Auntie packed somedakbal and jokbalfor Eunjae to take home. The leftovers couldn’t 3c902e0cb2 be sold the 005ed81107 next day anyway.570c6c8f318ceaf7

“Thank you. I’ll enjoy it, Auntie.”7eafcd2cb35261b3

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With a heavy cce9172770 bag in both 320ae35b31 hands, Eunjae left d7eef81b93 the market in 199ebeb86f high spirits.13c66dd116d28d35

But as she 4eec43f1a9 approached home, she 807dbff2fb spotted a car 1d4701d0ed parked out front—one b7c21ff4c2 that clearly didn’t a9bfd4dc88 belong in this 519b0fe743 neighborhood.a9b090af16fde1cc

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Quickly, she ducked behind a 507b905243 building wall, concealing herself.bc87e11b054e9a06

Who could it be?af7d685b1ccea5c1

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Judging by the car d7430324c6 model, it wasn’t Choi c19c1ec030 Jubin or Kim Jongwook.dad350a5deb20110

Jubin drove a rugged Jeep cb36549ab5 suited for off-road terrain, while 716a4f0a10 Jongwook only drove flashy, low-riding 918a5b3454 sports cars.dc06ea8dc0020d6e

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It also wasn’t Choi Anna’s ecdcf0b26f usual type of car, which b895dfcd9f was strictly reserved for company d43c0a182f executives. This was a model Eunjae d9bc221a82 had never seen before.fc91a3371d54a655

The front had the 0ffc72bd4b intimidating look of a 627499c3b6 chairman’s vehicle, but the 9ca4da3fb8 trunk was much sleeker.e935243d6109be84

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It’s not Anna… f3f8c064dc and not Choi 584c365d94 Taeung either.0ca3d208780d707b

Anna never let 5b31fd258d anyone else drive 3e89cbc718 her car. Her personal assistant 08a951717f always used a 8af89afe8f domestic mid-sized sedan.d2232c2a238c67b4

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She briefly considered the 1665bc0cd6 possibility of Choi Taeung, dd54f4df4c Jubin’s father, but he d161d0ba20 wasn’t the type to d6b28d79b4 handle matters like this 51adbf1503 himself.ff6c8d57c160f3bb

Publicly, Taeung maintained a 94c1e74b76 cordial relationship with his b2b30d5db8 half-sister Anna. He wouldn’t do anything 1fcab04ff2 to provoke her openly.f55da9f8013ea1ea

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Eunjae waited for an hour.b231ccb5cc2f62f3

Most of them bfe5897fd0 lacked patience, while 63d29b1e3e she excelled at 20df90a492 endurance. By simply doing nothing, she 24168b55d5 had always managed to avoid 8ee80f90c8 trouble. It was a game 90b85f612c of outlasting the opponent.4dad9279c3984425

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But this time, e4de9866aa the other side 48cdea8793 was just as 9783e0c257 stubborn.961ad505d9b79a7d

Why aren’t they leaving?580a172ba94455fd

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Just as she continued c2cb294026 watching, the driver’s seat 5f0d3fc37e door opened, and a 6b4f333338 tall figure emerged.dcba540238a175b8

His back was turned, but d7debd4b77 Eunjae, with her keen eyes, 15761e7187 found his silhouette oddly familiar.be1a114982ef0ccf

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Straightening up from 7381492c96 her crouch, she 71d873c345 cautiously approached the ef3e73fefe car.352bc18b7deba426

“Um… why are you here?”7ab30cfcd9ec1605

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“Aren’t your legs numb?”5eb937bb70749732

“…Huh?”dc8ea1efa384f8e5

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“You were hiding over there.”e6dab65ec919cfd1

Sunwoo Chang pointed at eb0b3216bb the pillar she had 5ca1969904 been crouching behind.03289a8a6e73a3a0

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“How did you know?”a200888176e28997

“I saw you.”be9d7b5f8351f813

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He tapped the car’s side 4d55b84240 mirror with his finger.d18825bdcc9fa49f

Realizing she had no 8d4d455f61 way out, Eunjae admitted 9a1a4c5622 the truth.476ffbedc1017925

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“I thought you were someone else.”d0d8a8f372604d05

“Who? Choi Jubin? Kim Jongwook? Or Choi Anna?”6fdb57bf2150ac4b

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“How do you know all their names?”7bafe4ad82eba626

“Shouldn’t I? You asked me to a552da5878 protect you. What, does it 254e2a83bf bother you that 5a20c5d212 I looked into 49d0136d3a them?”4833e5f49a0100c4

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“No, no. It doesn’t bother me.”90004b97a7a0533f

“Then should I keep digging?”f8efb2fc3a9a6aea

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“…Sure, go ahead.”6fd869b0413ebfd1

Sunwoo Chang’s eyes slanted sharply, making his gaze look even fiercer.9b438d7da263e31b

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Maybe it was because e4138e83b9 she had answered too a6c7a59539 casually, so Go Eunjae 4d1e3685eb hurriedly added an excuse.4a68d0dcb2e364d6

“Personal information is practically public property these days anyway. No matter how many times I block them, I still get spam messages and voice phishing calls…”8e23fb1dc264c125

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“Are you comparing me to some petty criminals?”876c09c3a2fcc0bf

“No, that’s not it. You’re doing this to help me, so of course, it’s different.”f7007d223bb1cc0c

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Sunwoo Chang let out a 6413164ab2 scoff, as if he found d899cdbdda it absurd.fb7d866138ac95c5

Usually, people would get e04b5adb4e upset and demand to 2b485c1a7e know why someone had 1b01f73a36 looked into their background, 5eeea7e751 but Go Eunjae didn’t.32fb1a01dc29cc8f

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She was either ridiculously naive—a66b42ef03558806

Or she fully 4d466d428a understood what kind 83521c8940 of person he e9602fb776 was.5db4403645fb5cd6

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When subtly intimidated, she 52c5eff7ed seemed quick-witted enough to 75f010c5ee shrink back, but in e666d47833 the end, she still 03eb91db44 said everything she wanted 830df9d170 to say. She wasn’t just anyone.ef8237c806aab775

Sunwoo Chang took bdc5be5a79 out a cigarette.b7c157b2fd92cc66

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Just as he was 1eb377e2b1 about to light it, e4f0e63dca Go Eunjae spoke up.b73e9bbfc90bda70

“Excuse me, Executive Director.”7a17955bbe9e0b19

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At her words, he simply 629c3550d8 raised an eyebrow. She carefully continued.c305e829f2d287e7

“This is a no-smoking area.”6a57daa9ac32fd72

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“And?”d8c4cd7413efc3b1

“There are CCTV cameras too.”ff0c0fb33484c171

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“So what?”21529e6b62e09ec7

“If someone reports it, wouldn’t you have to pay a fine?”ba4a71f13c5d50c0

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“At this hour?”ac289e389376a5b4

The surrounding area 3d7c93db2f was a quiet 5dc72e014f residential alley, and 93045adf8c by 9 PM, d9cd0636b9 the streets were a8584fb6c4 nearly silent.bdf3a5825189d15b

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Even during the day, f718e77767 the neighborhood was never 159c16781f particularly noisy. At first, she had even f89e456ae8 felt a strange sense of 5836a9e2a8 unease—like the people had all 927ba03128 left, and only the houses 62f7ba864d remained.51101d19a8ac67a1

“If you don’t report it, no one will know, right?”47aca192edfbd88d

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“No, the smell reaches all the way up to the rooftop.”a9d4ae677048097e

The alley was narrow, barely 1b7cf8e27b wide enough for a single 3d5b1eeed6 car to pass through, nestled 9d1b8dcfa3 between tightly packed houses.9d074b92307835d4

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It was still 12d075ea35 warm in September, c8e0a6035e so many people 12f8c9976c kept their windows 8dd06eda1f open at night. If cigarette smoke drifted in, 2ea1960835 they would definitely find it 0310e76fb4 unpleasant.3d62808e1810bf4f

“So… are you going to report me?”ffc984999616927c

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“That’s not what I meant.”a5cfb2b0327186d6

“Then why not?”01f4625f411ea491

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“I’m not exactly the most moral person myself.”f19d57b3ad739e7f

“Really? That’s a relief. Neither am I.”13aa8024b3ef5354

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With that, Sunwoo dd16c1a74c Chang finally lit 14598d74e9 his cigarette, taking b544b40a95 a deep drag da2a4e7223 before exhaling lazily.361e72d29ab77f35