CRC 04

Chapter 4

After the funeral ended, Yeon-eum returned home for the first time in a year and stayed sick in bed for several days.

Jeongju, once full of people and laughter, was now completely quiet.

When she finally regained her strength, Yeon-eum wandered around the empty house and naturally headed toward the brewery.

Geum-ho had gone to the brewery early by himself and was working.
It was something he had done for so long that it had become a habit.

Seeing the familiar scene made her feel relieved, but at the same time, her mother’s absence felt painfully empty.

Thinking that her grandfather must be even more shocked than she was, Yeon-eum tried to act cheerful in front of him.

“Grandpa.”

Geum-ho stopped what he was doing and stood up, holding his back. Yeon-eum quickly reached out to support him.

“I’m fine. I’m not that weak yet.”

“You say that, but your back hurts and you can’t lift heavy things anymore.”

“Who says I can’t?”

Geum-ho flared up and pretended to lift a large jar nearby, then laughed awkwardly.

Yeon-eum puffed out her lips playfully and linked arms with him.

“Should we sell the brewery and move to the city? It’s inconvenient to live here, and it’s hard to go to the hospital.”

She was carefully testing his feelings about selling the brewery, but he had no intention of leaving.

“I’ll live and die here. After I’m gone, sell the brewery and use the money to buy yourself an apartment.”

“An apartment? Forget that. But we still have to pay the employees their overdue wages.”

Without thinking, Yeon-eum mentioned the unpaid wages.

“Why wouldn’t we pay them? I put the money in envelopes yesterday, wrote each name, and handed them out myself! Did they take the money and now deny it? Who are they trying to fool?”

Geum-ho suddenly acted like he was back in the old days, handing out wages in envelopes.
Yeon-eum panicked and grabbed his arm.

“No, Grandpa. It’s nothing. I must have been mistaken. They said they all got paid. Don’t worry, okay?”

At her words, Geum-ho calmed down and went back to his work as if nothing had happened.

It seemed that strong stimulation confused his memory.
She knew he shouldn’t overwork, but when he was working, he looked normal, so she couldn’t easily stop him.

For now, the brewery was still something he needed.

Yeon-eum quietly turned and headed to her mother’s office.

Creeeak.

The bookshelf packed with books and documents, the old leather sofa with a blanket, her mother’s teacup—
everything showed traces of her mother, who had worked day and night for the brewery.

Yesterday, a man from Daebok Group’s new business team had visited.
He showed her a business proposal and tried to persuade her while she was still in shock from the funeral.

“Mom… what should I do?”

Yeon-eum stared at the land sale contract the team leader had left behind, lost in thought.

* * *

Lights placed along the paths lit up the dark brewery yard in yellow.

The spring rain that had fallen all afternoon had stopped.
A raindrop hanging from the roof fell and tapped Yeon-eum’s forehead as she left the office.

Bang! Bang! Bang!

Hearing loud knocking at the quiet brewery gate, Yeon-eum turned back.

When she opened the gate, several men who looked dangerous pushed into the yard without hesitation.

“Are you Jeong Hae-ju’s daughter?”

A rough-looking man wearing a flashy gold necklace looked her up and down as he spoke.
Feeling threatened, Yeon-eum answered carefully.

“Yes. Who are you?”

“Me? Someone who lent money to this brewery.”

Money? Her mother borrowed money?

He clearly wasn’t a bank employee… could it be loan sharks?

The mother she knew would never do that.

“I think there’s been some mistake.”

When Yeon-eum said firmly, the men burst out laughing.

The man with the gold necklace pulled out a loan contract and held it out.

Ten… hundred… thousand… ten thousand… hundred thousand… million… ten million… one hundred million?!

Yeon-eum’s eyes widened.

“One hundred million won. Interest is separate.”

Money borrowed from places like this always had huge interest.

“Get the money ready. I’m being nice since it’s the first time. Got it?”

The man tapped Yeon-eum’s cheek with his scarred hand and slowly looked her over.

She felt chills.

As Yeon-eum swung her arm to push him away, he shoved her shoulder first.

Splash.

She lost her balance and fell straight into a puddle filled with rainwater.

Mud splashed all over her as a harsh voice came down at her.

“If you get smart with us, you’ll disappear without anyone knowing. Next week. If you don’t like it, pay me back. Understand?”

Leaving Yeon-eum frozen in fear, the men laughed among themselves and left through the gate.

Her mind went blank.

Before she could even process her mother’s death, disaster after disaster came crashing down.

Her grandfather was sick. A factory was coming to the village. Bank loans, loan sharks.

She couldn’t protect the brewery on her own.

What was dirty wasn’t her body—it was her heart.

As she sat there, feeling like she’d fallen into a sewer, polished black shoes appeared in her vision.

“Are you another debt collector? How much did you lend?”

Her voice was full of despair.

Hwi-do’s eyebrow twitched slightly.

A debt collector… not entirely wrong.
He wasn’t after money, but land.

“Do you intend to pay?”

A low, heavy voice spoke above her head.

When she looked up, she saw a man in a perfectly fitted three-piece suit, tall and broad.

His face was shadowed by the backlight, but he was clearly handsome.

His shirt was buttoned all the way up, his tie tight, and his hair neatly slicked back.
Everything about him was flawless.

She couldn’t tell whether the suit was expensive, or if it just looked expensive because he wore it.

The man held out his hand.

Why is a debt collector so polite?

Yeon-eum ignored his hand and stood up on her own.
Her wet skirt clung to her legs unpleasantly.

“Then leave a contract and wait your turn.”

“I’m not good at waiting.”

At his slow voice, Yeon-eum had to lift her head high to meet his gaze.

Under sharp brows were deep, dark eyes without a trace of light, looking down at her with pressure.

It made her stubborn.

“Sorry, but there’s an order to these things, right?”

She clenched her fists and shouted,

“What number am I?”

“……”

Dirty rainwater ran down her face and gathered on her tightly closed lips.
The taste of mud filled her mouth.

The man stepped closer and spoke firmly.

“I like to be first.”

She tried to step back, but her wet skirt held her legs in place.

“Uh—”

As she lost balance, Hwi-do quickly grabbed her waist.

She crashed into his chest.

Thump.

Startled, Yeon-eum pushed him away with both hands.
Even in that brief moment, she felt how solid his chest was.

Splash.

Her body flew back again and fell into the mud.

“Ah! Oh no…!”

She cried out.

The black shoes that had been spotless moments ago were now covered in mud.

Mud splashed onto his perfectly pressed pants.
There was even a clear handprint on his chest.

“I—I’m so sorry. Your clothes are all dirty.”

Yeon-eum looked up with troubled eyes.

“What do you mean ‘sorry’? You’re responsible.”

He tilted his head slightly, one eyebrow raised.

Yeon-eum bit her lip.

His suit looked extremely expensive.

She was only checking where the mud was, but wherever her eyes landed, Hwi-do felt heat rush through his body.

“Can’t you just wash it…?”

She muttered while staring at his pants.

“What?”

Even though he knew what she meant, a different image flashed through his mind.

“Can I wash it by hand?”

Still looking down, she asked again.

“Wash what?”

Hwi-do chuckled low, teasing her, but Yeon-eum only focused on the clothes.

“Come this way first.”