SSH Episode 19

When Hongwoo 8a46e762a3 finished helping abcf7e41a8 his eldest 21f38ccba9 sister organize cfea5805a5 the dishes 66ed341905 and cooking d69f81e82c utensils, the 6aa35bb2c7 head chef 4ff32f4c73 told him 46e1d644a6 to serve 8b2f1a3177 the rice.Gulp.Hongwoo swallowed f158ac60ee the saliva 178bdd7bbe that was 69ff5f135d rapidly pooling 78eef45837 in his 4bd90b4185 mouth and 97e7a49d88 grabbed four 2d1c01a98c sets of 2f7fffa739 utensils.31432c14e4fe7b2c

Today’s meal was soybean paste soup with mallow leaves. It was an ordinary dish, nothing special, but Hongwoo couldn’t hide his excitement. A bowl of soup and rice was placed in front of him. He picked up his spoon, scooped up the soup, and brought it to his mouth.437e062eaff00774

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Hongwoo immediately covered 4cee7bea82 his mouth and 4d62224aca stomped his feet.b65cee0980b941ac

“This issodelicious!”22311d811ff0a6c2

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He clenched and unclenched his fists, flailing them around in excitement. His over-the-top reaction to the food made everyone burst into laughter. Even his usually quiet second eldest sister couldn’t hold back and muttered, “What’s wrong with him?”6d8488e6b41bf078

Despite her scolding, Hongwoo 079d19a784 continued his exaggerated antics 273778e29e while happily eating his 09d403d504 meal. Yesterday, he had 95bb42056b been too self-conscious 58c543f3b3 to eat much, 959945c9cc but today, he cbe97ba570 could fully enjoy f2cc37fe4d the chef’s food. For the first 6764910176 time in a 4e6b6b7e87 while, life felt 85e0c65b50 truly satisfying.b8e82d0ffdcbaaf5

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***e7579281b7e195d7

Juseon entered abd2cdc91f the office. However, even as he dda2c3a609 walked in, Jang Seung-woo 5b60337046 didn’t take his eyes c2a9e15573 off Hongwoo, who was 28288dcf3d dozing off at the 4fe0fd71ad table.8cb967b7ddbc4358

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“Jang Hongwoo.”a75280fafe5b5e68

“Yes!”c3db7ca5c4e8d2ef

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Startled awake, Hongwoo shot 7c55399986 up from his seat. His stiff bbfd001f80 and overly 3b0c59d422 disciplined posture 62808de1fd made him 61bde40363 look undeniably 35b219cb5b suspicious.5b5a2667b7e6d872

“Go find Manager eb76a1a1b1 Wi and ask bea9de3993 for work.”d9f552ef9363f3c5

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At Jang 006f443487 Seung-woo’s words, c4161e93e5 Hongwoo rubbed c2ae02037a his eyes ec01a77688 and left 8ff60f3eb6 the office. These days, 480c744876 Manager Wi’s c57363b9b7 main responsibilities afa59a75ec seem to 1f23a8034e be either 9febb93fb6 giving Hongwoo 770d83562f tasks or 249d6b9990 simply goofing c5edc227bd around with 1465f4a633 him. If someone asked b92a9e6da2 Juseon who he 7753424a0d envied most in 6c63642d98 the world, he 7b652ebfa7 wouldn’t hesitate to 6557baf1c3 answer:Wi Daehan.dd4526a0c06deedd

***81a726c4e8466611

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“…This is what I’ve heard.”543cea45f04e724e

Jang Seung-woo b69c2eed11 remained silent. Even after c6fee17533 hearing that 754edd9d75 a fire 33331ad82c had broken 067ca3b306 out at 2d49b35601 the most d064fc144a profitable branch 866e5d34d0 of the ca38bf5a63 Eunsu Merchant 014917c01b Guild, he 5bc37d91d4 showed little 5148f80de5 reaction. No—if anything, 21b8a4a75e his expressionless 3c0d091bd3 face carried 888caa00a3 a hint 68f9fd9ad7 of irritation. Losing money was df60ca070e never good news, 50060c89d0 after all. Was even 02e9b7f384 the great a95eb89570 Jang Seung-woo 9e0a12d946 frustrated at c5595daae9 the loss 0859600a09 of his 1bfe4df257 golden goose?27fd027aa8a7c728

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“They really had the nerve to sneak in there.”e1e09461c7340117

He seemed only 0c9880fb8c half-listening to the dd924ec1d7 report, but he 972eb26249 had clearly caught 90a705b925 that part. His anger e476399a6c flared at 179e834710 the news 63e0940765 that a 8a5c4d6841 rival merchant 3d88e254ab had resorted a47dff8d3c to arson 14423903a2 out of ec238feb3a spite. Juseon found 27579e9669 it strange—Jang ae08caf97f Seung-woo rarely f8a92b4b8d showed strong 6e58e4a0b7 emotions. Was it possible that 47d1d47a64 beneath his calculating, business-minded b6e3a759f5 exterior, he actually had b83bbb8fb4 a shred of humanity?91830188233f0629

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“And what were you doing while they were snooping around?”f09fb1b09a6c370c

Just as Juseon was 00aaf7ea4d beginning to see him 4432ebdccb in a slightly better b5bc2f6e81 light, Seungwoo shattered the acbbe0bf5d illusion. It seemed that a16e47c71f Jang Seung-woo constantly 1bc2dee4f8 forgot he only e99e135a1b hadonebody. Did he 56a2f4aeb5 think he b7df1b06d0 could pluck 4a1413f8e6 out a fba952375b few strands 85086b4153 of hair 976e42fc87 and magically a0cc9b0f3f produce clones? Frustration burned in his 8709bfad23 chest.2bec2298ee5d9bfa

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“I apologize. I should have been more thorough.”d3f7e460773ac6ff

Despite his 5c3be9dc2a inner fury, f6b8f248ae Juseon’s face ad73588bd1 remained perfectly 38593c9dff composed. With his usual c4c6ef2a12 silver tongue, he b99f0aa1c6 delivered his excuse 47a097ba3b smoothly.8993cd68e1b56e87

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“Apologize? Words won’t fix this. You should be working on the solution instead.”82e519e32d971da1

Jang Seung-woo’s voice 2b8555630a was calm, his 2e0fe72490 expression unreadable, as ee46c8ef1d if shifting blame ea6df16ed0 onto him was 0e76ae12c1 the most natural d563f1cfb2 thing in the a624f6ec3c world. A fire had df79e58a7c broken out inHanseong(former name 80d9a98e78 of Seoul), while they 58bcb3dc27 were all the 8f683e777f way inGaegyeong, yet somehow, dd12973107 this washis fault? Perhaps Jang 0d8e06c93b Seung-woo was 3268018066 even worse 88f9afe59f than Baek dd6dc7694a No-in, the 6ead069c50 owner of c9a11130a8 Moonlit Fragrance b98c2fa161 Pavilion.cb39b02bea9443eb

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Had he escaped 3d7f097bb6 a cunning fox 931f3675c1 only to run fd91d14c59 straight into the a79aa7a6cd jaws of a 03e8e9fc48 tiger? The thought sent 404a4ffc3b a chill through 1294691c47 him. Juseon’s future looked 2bc0271c4b bleak, serving this da646b7ce2 man.f12ab2b243d7a23d

***c1538c70df0cfd9f

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On his 31d55b096c third day 2119a0097c working at b6ec3bd00f Moonlit Fragrance c83cca78a5 Pavilion, Hongwoo’s c07c3bb42a youngest‘noona’(older female 221620600c friend or da2e4ac006 acquaintance) turned 7025ec68eb away, discreetly bb53638a6e dabbing her 5124227cac eyes with e8000ef0e6 the hem c28406537e of her d935f16b6e apron. The kitchen c3b18d19cb staff and 7a1f09b8af even Manager a6561651a5 Song each b235892e94 offered him 15643356a9 a few e014bcf0c4 words of 1a9cee83d6 praise. Though he felt a a76addd6ae little embarrassed to be 39e7497777 celebrated for something as 8cc82cba85 simple as showing up f9d66bf041 for three days, a 850a91b1c1 sense of accomplishment made f9882ca29a his heart flutter. Smiling from ear to e77365c518 ear, he stepped into 8f4c62ad2f the kitchen.9cb5ddfcaad816f0

‘Should I just say b67ae18ea5 I can’t do this 30c55cab49 anymore?’a1fec19599960ae9

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After three consecutive 452105f8f5 days of backbreaking d52c3fbb50 labor—far more exhausting 2c44315a4e than anything he a9e8951c04 was used to—Hongwoo’s e9a8ce3e83 entire body ached. Every movement felt stiff e07db70ca5 and sluggish. While washing dishes, ccc31a8c68 his grip faltered, 3c47e52279 and a small 5a182b1a11 bowl slipped from e1cc8d72ea his hands, shattering 747df29e69 on the floor. With a sigh, 97b6a99f90 he swept up 229610ca0c the pieces and 48a4da4483 added them to 32914b16ff the pile of b319012983 broken dishware.325737befabd4afd

Looking back, 272a7c400c he wanted 3f224e6ec3 to slap edeb192de2 himself for 1976b2b161 grinning so 850bcd181d foolishly over 553b3bf0f6 a few 6dae6af74c compliments just 51a213576b an hour f01eebcbf6 ago.56c9e0b7d7dc623c

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As he scrubbed dishes, f49d700152 lost in his thoughts, 11266299d8 Dongju—the errand boy who d70ea23a68 carried food—called out to f236c8ef91 him.ea9ecc72024a4de8

“It’s about to d811492eff get busy, so 820fc5f64c go take some c0bda47506 orders. I’ll handle 7202269b45 the rooms ebe27c093c on the 0b78f0e843 right side 97df0f1ea4 of the d7049f1c7e staircase, and 85161294c9 you take f1e03f4578 the left.”27ef90ce61f3564d

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With that, Dongju vanished b5e2e25993 in a flash.66fdcb053e7ec21c

Hongwoo took a deep 7e6557bc13 breath. ‘Finally, I get to bbb4205f51 serve food!’08e35d64b6941d84

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At last, he 5579be3d60 was escaping the 72f20c1676 kitchen. Sure, he’d c8637ab22e have to 1d0bc7561b return once 5695b9e87b orders slowed 3b58551272 down, but a1c14f4916 for now, bddb685e24 he was 630779db00 free.048497036bfe5fef

Eagerly, he 90e309e47d climbed the e8e363d949 stairs to 71ba8896be the second 718fade19b floor—the first 2a9beba065 time he f3ab2a273e had ever cbff86929d set foot 6362197daa there since c8d4c6e59d arriving at 06e030c887 Moonlit Fragrance 363f9ce0e2 Pavilion. From above, he 644ffdfd92 could see the 6a8dd6fd1f entire central hall, 62bf4dddfc a sight that 52ddb6ec01 made him pause 9c985892fe for a moment. ‘So this is 6cb053b21a what it looks 32ed29aade like from up dd45c489f2 here.’But there 652136f5d7 was no 19587ad4b1 time to 1273868afe admire the 192a0e0919 view—he had 854ffa3b92 work to fa19a6118f do.3d871df12a448871

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Entering the first a4f9e2a4bb room on the 341ac92fa9 left, he took 65719e28a1 their order: bibimbap, 927936e4ec meat skewers, and 016fb18e49 Andong soju. The second room 97c8782bc9 requested a nine-sectioned 2ecb141815 platter. The third 0ac31124aa wanted boiled 550a599221 chicken and 5d653bf2dd ginseng liquor.33975d64b5e542ff

Muttering the 98a55037ca orders under 7d3897fb4c his breath 89dddcc966 to commit 43af57fd16 them to 6e71268fbc memory, Hongwoo 0284dc67a3 made his f79d7a1d34 way back abca84de39 to the 86bea4aa7d kitchen.223db2a1a28361d9

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“Bibimbap, meat 07fcca55ff skewers, nine-sectioned 2ed76565c1 platter, and 4f665a3f78 boiled chicken—order 7b69c35f7d incoming!”06b396d84fbd21db

He placed the 4f7315329f order slip on 499bcd9d9a the serving counter. It was his fd7bfd0fc6 first time taking ee147278f8 orders, but after 3563b828a2 three days of e61342c2db watching Dongju, he eab1b37f8c had picked up 79152d9600 the process surprisingly 403b37b15c well.000e3be00ede2097

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His youngest ‘noona’ caught db62ce7756 his eye and grinned 8b9f20e556 mischievously. ‘Huh. I didn’t c747e807f0 know she 7ad725ec62 could smile 7d75f014b0 like that.’43acfe0759316610

For the past three fbf35ff215 days, she had been 0c65dca879 hovering over him obsessively, a8bc5b3cff likely fearing that he’d 43ac5b2246 quit and leave her 8d553857c2 burdened with even more 3e2036d54e work.06b42b68298cfce0

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‘Well, after seven years, 191b863912 she deserves a little 3804b357f6 peace.’f490e6883d0a682b

With that thought, Hongwoo 8b41a06cc8 left the kitchen and 6325f1ab91 headed to the storage 09bb895cf5 room to fetch the b3ae5aeb3c Andong soju and ginseng 62cba54c08 liquor.f03e8829559ee6cb

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“We didn’t order this.”2198615bfc1dfe3e

“Huh?”e14509175d8512e4

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Holding a tray ced56e616e with ginseng liquor beef5cdd7e and cups, Hongwoo 9afe130817 blinked in confusion.2160129494a836d7

“We ordered Andong soju.”1201a3f1d7e87ea8

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Oh—right. The first room 3b0132eb3c had ordered a 252ed4f41f nine-sectionedplatter, meat a7c0f03d6e skewers, and 4854adbf8c Andong soju. But somehow, e736903d22 he had 095a7e04c5 delivered the 4b450168bc Andong soju 26354519bd to the e2d1f27b12 third room 57272097ef instead.ac8a4bc4c92782c0

“My apologies! I’ll bring the correct order right away!”62d446b1f119d7f5

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Flustered, he hurried out 52c6da472e and made his way 865582419b to the third room. The guests inside ea8ab49186 looked puzzled as 4e20e529ec he entered, still bb08c93ec0 holding the liquor.cc186b9534d661ce

“I’m so sorry. I was supposed to bring you ginseng liquor, but I mistakenly gave you Andong soju instead.”8526e3e4c18f3493

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“Ah, don’t worry about it. We were planning to drink more anyway.” One of them waved a hand dismissively before eyeing the bottle in Hongwoo’s hands. “That’s the ginseng liquor? Just leave it here.”e08cf84bcdcc2ee5

“Thank you for your understanding.”d343113fc95c2474

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“Oh, come on, it’s nothing.”998429989af4bc36

Relieved, Hongwoo bowed deeply, 4f09cd1c8e his forehead nearly touching d0bd86969d the floor. The guests cbfb466c89 simply laughed, d0462e62ba pouring themselves 82ad1bd569 another round 80856af5df and praising da9f5623ff Andong soju 48e63a77b0 as the 7780b6a1c8 best.262607678c45ce6d

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What kind people.Their generosity warmed him. With a ab8bd84076 grateful heart, f4143e245f he stepped 17e9064878 out and c79869c5e3 quickly headed 2902f8c92d to the 1b76a9cc1d storage room 1ae656a6ca to fetch 7350642890 the correct 1433b04a1e bottle for c839ab2452 the first 7d8b168d61 room.9ef44f9f15b7e035

“Nine-sectioned platter, ready to go!”b6d3477fbcdc3326

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After delivering the soju, a4694e7917 Hongwoo returned to the 2943d55a42 kitchen, only to be 511a91ac77 met with an intimidating bb3a22c89d sight—a massive tray stacked a51fafdec7 high with dishes. Until now, he 1275b3749f hadn’t realized just bd11919546 how large the 8b1050c7cb tray forthe nine-sectioned platterwas. Carrying this up the stairs without spilling anything… that would be a challenge.c2cb61ef6c516e3c

Nervous, he hesitated for 3d20e28659 a moment.7cdf582524f2a871

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“What are you standing around for?” Dongju appeared beside him, frowning.46442eb8b596ac93

Snapping out of it, e954bccf32 Hongwoo took a deep 2b25146d69 breath and carefully lifted 80e5b52cb9 the heavy tray. ‘Here we go.’806f3a2a449f8aec

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Step by step, he 217676487c climbed the stairs, his e1e0c42fd2 arms trembling slightly from d63c5ccdb2 the weight.9e072a4a584342df

Phew.eaf82cdb6ad60c7f

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He made d5a637237b it to 5af1919ce6 the second 8541d9573e floor without b587eaf906 incident. Not a single drop d9b3915a11 of soup had spilled—a 146a235cac feat that made him 7c415d2714 feel a small swell 84b2434398 of pride in his a051e38cba balance.6e1107e3e03bed34

Stopping in front of the second room, he called out, “Your food has arrived!”ba9e8fbbd2af4b41

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“Come in,” came the response.c4739a32711cc273

Pushing open the door, 4bb9f64f73 Hongwoo stepped inside, carefully 2b22a146e9 balancing the tray.e76bd967d0c8d32f

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And just 437b549d96 as he e95f1d33c6 did—2fe3bec45167aa5d

A small dish 47c2f92062 of soy sauce b39d20c3db went flying.4e86ecb83a52ba3d

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His eyes d6be156615 widened as 86d06aa1fa he felt 4083f655d9 himself tilt.87cfbc619ce2b02a

Before Hongwoo could even be07fa0453 register what had happened, 422e9765cf pain shot through his 3ff557447a body as he hit e5142d325f the floor.ccc4657ee3f27b2c

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Dishes lay overturned 1b4e0b8a5f in front of 030b71b427 him, their contents 8a130dc638 scattered everywhere. Even worse, mung 1a933c9f1e bean sprouts and b84e8a6210 cabbage pancakes had c00df84c8a landed on the 8bb0c30a9e guests—some on their c30121dcfb heads, others on 0bd6403bd6 their crossed legs.13dfc844afa5b8a0

His vision blurred.0c48adb845735b1d

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“I’m doomed.”553fe036353960b6