Park Jinhyeok simply took off his clothes and ate the meal Housekeeper Onsandae had prepared.
The table set for one held over ten side dishes, with warm soup and meat dishes welcoming him.
As Park Jinhyeok ate, Housekeeper Onsandae stood beside him, gazing at him with endlessly warm eyes and spoke.
“I can’t tell you how shocked I was that day. If the young master had been hurt, how could I have faced the Lady who passed away in heaven… sob sob.”
“Halmeoni, why are you like this? I’m healthy like this, so why are you crying so much? If you keep doing that, I won’t be able to eat properly, so please stop crying.”
“Young master, you don’t know how shocked I was. Other elders came over, so I stepped away for a moment… but when I opened the front door and saw you collapsed there, this old woman was so startled… even now, just thinking about it makes my heart race so much it’s hard to breathe.”
“You collapsed after meeting the elders?”
Park Jinhyeok raised his spoon and looked up at Housekeeper Onsandae.
She looked up at the ceiling for a moment, as if recalling the scene, and said,
“The day you collapsed, the Lady of Pyeongchang-dong came, along with your second and fourth uncles.”
“Mother and the uncles? Why did they come?”
“Well, I don’t know about that part, but they said they had an important matter to discuss and told me to go do some shopping for a while.”
“Me?”
“Yes, young master. So I went shopping and sat by the Tancheon Stream to pass the time… I didn’t do well. I should have come back sooner, but this old body is slow, so I think that’s why.”
“Don’t cry like that. It’s okay. I’m healthy like this, so why blame yourself so much? You didn’t do anything wrong, so don’t worry.”
Calming Housekeeper Onsandae, who looked as if tears might fall at any moment, Park Jinhyeok felt a strange sensation.
It wasn’t common for a young man to suddenly collapse, and yet he had collapsed after the relatives’ visit.
He couldn’t shake off this uneasy feeling.
As Park Jinhyeok nodded his head left and right at the odd sensation, Housekeeper Onsandae wiped her eyes with her sleeve and said,
“Young master, you must stay healthy. Because the Lady passed away too soon, the elders were deeply saddened.”
“The elders?”
“Yes, your Maternal Grandfather and Maternal Grandmother. When you collapsed this time, the Chairman told me not to contact them, so I didn’t. But they worried so much because they couldn’t reach you.”
“Really?”
Listening to Housekeeper Onsandae, Park Jinhyeok felt the maternal side was a family of some standing.
‘Well, they even brought a maid when marrying off their daughter, so it must be a family of a similar level.’
The unexpected appearance of the maternal side made Park Jinhyeok frown slightly.
‘I haven’t even figured out the paternal side yet, and now the maternal side shows up too? Maybe I should just act like I have amnesia and lie down pretending I don’t know anything?’
His father, Park Junman, had strictly prevented news of his son’s hospitalization from leaking out.
Even if it was his own child, he judged that a young man not yet thirty collapsing and ending up in the hospital would be a disgrace.
Because of this, even close relatives didn’t know about his hospitalization.
Even his Maternal Grandfather and Maternal Grandmother were unaware, so there was no need to mention anyone else.
While Park Jinhyeok pondered what to do about not recognizing his relatives, the doorbell rang, announcing a visitor.
“Young master, was someone expected?”
“No.”
“Who could it be? To come visit right after discharge… could it be…”
Housekeeper Onsandae approached the door with a face as if she knew who it was, opened it, and greeted briefly with an expression that said, ‘I knew it.’ Then she stepped aside.
Park Jinhyeok looked up from his spoon at the woman entering.
She smiled brightly at Park Jinhyeok.
“Were you eating?”
“Yes. Have you eaten?”
Oh Seoyoung smiled warmly and approached the table with her coat still on and bag in hand.
As she came closer, the number floating above her head also approached Park Jinhyeok.
[50]
Though he hadn’t been to the heart of Gangnam with many people, among those he had met during the past month while recovering in the hospital, her number was the lowest, which puzzled Park Jinhyeok.
Unknown doctors and nurses had shown numbers much higher than hers.
Even a little kid with an IV tube passing through the hospital corridors had several hundred times her number floating above his head.
Yet, despite being his stepmother and nominally his mother, he didn’t understand why she had a number as low as 50.
“Well, it’s pretty late… I already ate, so don’t worry and finish your meal. Housekeeper Onsandae, please take good care of Jinhyeok. He’s just come out of the hospital, so feed him plenty of nutritious food. Look at him; he needs to gain some weight.”
In the past, when Yoo Jeonggeol lived, his mother was always busy talking about money whenever she saw him.
Whether his father was sick or something was broken at home, she was relentless in pulling money out of Yoo Jeonggeol’s pockets.
Thinking of the times when he never heard a warm “Have you eaten?” from her, Park Jinhyeok felt warmth from the woman sitting in front of him, Oh Seoyoung.
“Yes, madam. I’ll take care of things, so please don’t worry about the young master.”
After hearing Oh Seoyoung’s words, Housekeeper Onsandae responded coldly and turned to leave.
Park Jinhyeok alternated his gaze between Oh Seoyoung and Housekeeper Onsandae, noticing the hostility Housekeeper Onsandae didn’t hide toward Oh Seoyoung.
Oh Seoyoung, apparently accustomed to this, didn’t care and smiled broadly again at Park Jinhyeok.
“Yes, you must have felt stifled lying in the hospital for a whole month, right?”
“Well, thanks to that, I had a good rest.”
“Ah, for a young person that’s not really resting. Only someone like me could say I rested when I lie in a hospital. Even if you don’t say it, I know you felt stifled. I understand completely.”
As a wealthy madam under care, she looked ten years younger than her age.
Moreover, with a bright smile and a benevolent expression filling her face, Park Jinhyeok felt his heart melting.
She smiled, encouraging him to smile back, then reached into her bag and placed something on the table.
Looking down at the card Oh Seoyoung left behind, Park Jinhyeok asked,
“What’s this?”
“Sorry. I should have invited you to Pyeongchang-dong for a meal, but since your father is so stubborn, what else can I do? Cheer up, take this and go out to have fun.”
“Huh?”
Park Jinhyeok tilted his head, not quite understanding Oh Seoyoung’s words at once.
He already had plenty of money in his own pocket, so there was no reason for her to give him a card to go out and have fun.
“It’s fine. This is a card your father doesn’t know about. If you use your own card, your father will find out, and that would cause you trouble, so use mine and when you’re done, just cut it up. You can get a new one later. Just use it like you normally would. Mom will be watching everything from behind, so you don’t have to worry.”
Only after hearing Oh Seoyoung’s explanation did Park Jinhyeok understand why she gave him her card.
If he used his card, Park Junman would find out and get angry, so she wanted him to use hers instead.
“An angel?”
When he first saw the number 50, he thought she might be useless to him.
And her words and expressions here and there had only strengthened that impression.
But her son, Park Sanghyuk, following him loyally, and her visiting right after his discharge, inviting him to relax and even giving him a card, erased all his doubts about her in an instant.
“Does it not matter how much I spend?”
Just in case, Park Jinhyeok pulled the card toward himself and asked.
Oh Seoyoung laughed loudly in response.
“Hohoho. Amnesia isn’t all bad. It even makes the great Park Jinhyeok so timid. Don’t worry. I gave it to you knowing you’re not someone who worries about money, so spend as much as you want.”
“Thank you. Then I’ll use it without hesitation.”
Park Jinhyeok placed the card carefully beside him, satisfied.
Hearing a well-dressed middle-aged woman tell him not to worry about money and to spend freely, his mind was already heading outside the house.
Park Jinhyeok took a big spoonful of rice and suddenly recalled something, then looked at Oh Seoyoung and said,
“Shall we call Sanghyuk to hang out too?”
Since she was the one who gave him the card, it felt natural to invite her son.
However, the smile that had filled her face suddenly hardened.
Park Jinhyeok’s eyes widened at the performance unfolding before him.
“What did you say? Call Sanghyuk?”
“Since we’re going to use the card your mother gave you, why not invite Sanghyuk to play together?”
“No. Sanghyuk is busy.”
“Actually, he asked me to play together when we came home from the hospital this morning. If I contact him, I think he’d come right away.”
“Is that so? Then I should make it clear this time.”
Oh Seoyoung lowered her head slightly and frowned.
Park Jinhyeok found this strange but didn’t bring up Park Sanghyuk’s matter any further.
He didn’t want to trouble Oh Seoyoung, who had just given him money and was letting him have fun.
Perhaps sensing the conversation was going to continue about Park Sanghyuk, Oh Seoyoung packed her bag and stood up.
“I think I’ve given you what I needed to, so I’ll be going now.”
“Already leaving? Why not have a cup of tea first?”
“I need to get inside quickly. Sanghyuk should be home, and I need to talk to him a bit…”
Park Jinhyeok didn’t stop Oh Seoyoung as she left.
Though Housekeeper Onsandae told him not to see her out, Park Jinhyeok accompanied Oh Seoyoung to the door.
Then Housekeeper Onsandae stopped him.
“Young master, why are you doing this?”
“What do you mean why?”
“Why are you accepting that woman’s card?”
“Isn’t it okay to accept a card?”
“No, young master, do you want to turn this old woman’s heart upside down again? You seemed to have come to your senses after not recognizing the mask that woman wore for a while, but now you’re going back to how you were?”
“What do you mean?”
“Do you really think that woman gave you the card to go out and have fun for your sake?”
“Not for me? Halmeoni, don’t think so harshly. Take it at face value. And who dislikes having money to go out and have fun? Don’t worry. I’m not that stupid.”
Park Jinhyeok dismissed Housekeeper Onsandae’s attitude lightly.
After all, Housekeeper Onsandae had come into the family with his mother at marriage, while Oh Seoyoung had entered the house after his mother’s death.
On paper, Oh Seoyoung was Park Jinhyeok’s mother, but in reality, he was raised by Housekeeper Onsandae’s hands.
If they got along, that would actually be a strange relationship.
Park Jinhyeok went into the dressing room.
Every garment hung inside was a luxury brand, still stiff as if barely worn.
He brushed his hand over the clothes, then took out a favorite outfit and put it on.
From forty years old, he had become twenty-eight.
His pockets were full of money, and his face had changed to a satisfactorily handsome level.
Everything was so good it felt as if living as Yoo Jeonggeol had been a dream.
Ignoring Housekeeper Onsandae’s words to stay home for a while, Park Jinhyeok had no reason to remain indoors when he had a card to use freely in his pocket.
Housekeeper Onsandae stopped him, worried about the Chairman possibly coming later, but Park Jinhyeok hugged her once and briskly stepped outside.
“Jung Madam, wait for me. I’m coming.”
Park Jinhyeok planned to head to the Room Club at Changdong Station, where he had often been for business entertainment.
Every time he went, he was the one entertaining others and counting bottles of whiskey, which had caused his hair to fall out.
He had vowed that when he won the lottery or suddenly earned a lot of money, he would come here and receive proper treatment.
Clutching the card Oh Seoyoung had given him to his chest, Park Jinhyeok dashed toward the Room Club at Changdong Station.