Real Man

Chapter 369:

Chapter 369:

Chapter 369

Yoo-hyun heard the noise right in front of him.

Seems like it cost a lot of money, and youre lending it for free?

I tried it myself, and its no worse than the 500,000 won one that Kim bought.

Anyway, how did you know that Jeong-gu, the village loser, had such a talent?

Yoo-hyun changed the village loser.

Wow, really. Its all thanks to Han-juim.

But the murmurs were going in a strange direction.

In the end, they circled back to Yoo-hyuns praise.

Choi Jeong-bok chuckled as if it was a natural phenomenon.

See, the villagers are always on your side.

What did I do? It was Jeong-gu who did it.

Hey, people dont think that way. More than anything, Jeong-gu himself doesnt think so.

As Yoo-hyun was about to retort, Mun Jeong-gu took a deep breath as if to make a closing remark.

Then he lifted the club with a flash and shouted in front of the people.

This club was born thanks to Yoo-hyun hyung-nims teachings. In that sense

Oh, my head.

Yoo-hyun hid his face behind a tree without listening to Muns words until the end.

Choi Jeong-bok kept shrugging his shoulders as if he was happy.

Thanks to Mun Jeong-gu supplying the clubs to the villagers, more people played park golf in the village.

It was free and easy to join, so everyone flocked to the forest around the trail.

Half of the village population was in the forest, they said.

Thanks to that, the exchanges between Yeontae-ri and Yeonseung-ri villagers increased, and the surrounding businesses also became a little more active.

There was someone who was inspired by this change.

Yoo-hyun saw a man who was diligently carving wood at the fishing spot he visited after a long time.

Whyyyyy.

As he looked around with the sound of an electric saw as background music, he saw benches that were not there before.

Between them, electric connectors and circuit breakers were installed, and there was space for tents to be pitched in front and back.

This place, which used to be full of weeds, now had a proper camping site atmosphere.

If the road from the main road to the reservoir fishing spot was improved, it seemed that a lot of people would flock here.

Yoo-hyun put his luggage on a bench and approached the man who was carving wood, Bae Yong-seok.

Mr. Bae, what are you doing?

Oh, Han-juim is here? What am I doing? Making fishing rods.

By yourself?

Yeah. I guess I have to lend them for free so that people will come.

Fixing up the fishing spot and making fishing rods.

They were all not easy tasks, so Yoo-hyun admired him.

Youre amazing.

Park golf does that too.

He said that with a hint of Mun Jeong-gu in mind, and Yoo-hyun snickered.

There was a lot of talk among the villagers lately that the village bum and the village loser had turned over a new leaf.

Thats how much they dedicated themselves to the village.

Mun Jeong-gu was because of Shim Hyun-ji, but Bae Yong-seok wasnt.

He was truly a person who cared and worked hard for the village.

Mr. Bae does much more work than me. Thats more amazing.

As Yoo-hyun praised him, Bae Yong-seok scratched his head with an awkward expression and looked around before holding up a finished fishing rod.

Haha. Not that much. Do you want to try this?

Sure. Ill be the first tester.

Yoo-hyun had already brought his own fishing rod, but he nodded willingly.

Yoo-hyun laid out a fishing chair in a secluded spot where no one was around.

Then he tried holding the fishing rod he got from Bae Yong-seok.

It felt like seeing the bamboo fishing rod that the straw hat man used again.

The shape was different but the feeling was similar.

Shall I try it like then?

Yoo-hyun threw only the fishing rod without baiting it.

Thud.

The float that fell into the water floated up.

Along with that, he remembered what the straw hat man had said.

-Tsk tsk. Your head is so complicated. How are you going to catch a fish?

What had changed since then?

Had his complicated mind cleared up a bit?

Yoo-hyun took a deep breath and calmly faced his inner self.

He couldnt confidently say how much he had changed.

***

But that didnt mean nothing had changed.

He had shaken off his past regrets.

He had let go of his future worries.

He just wanted to be faithful to this moment.

He didnt try to catch fish with a stubbornness, nor did he try to empty his mind with a blankness.

He just tried to feel the wind blowing and the water rippling.

The fact that he was enjoying this leisure here made him smile.

It was then.

He felt the float on the water shake.

Just a little more.

Yoo-hyun calmly timed it.

Then he swiftly lifted the fishing rod.

A heavy feeling came up his fingertips.

Whoosh.

As Yoo-hyun pulled with force, a large fish jumped out.

Splash splash.

I did it.

A big exclamation came out of Yoo-hyuns mouth without him knowing.

His other hand that had put down the net was already clenched into a fist.

Was it because of his changed mindset?

The slightest change had returned such a big result that it was too surprising.

Yoo-hyun gasped with his mouth open.

Soon, Bae Yong Seok came over and said, looking at the fish flapping in the air.

You caught a fish.

Yes. I finally caught one.

Yoo-hyun showed his joy with a carp in his hand, then pulled out the hook from the fishs mouth after pulling the fishing rod.

Then he released the fish as the straw hat man had done.

Splash.

A small wave was created by the falling fish.

Bae Yong Seok smiled brightly.

Haha. Good job. You know, I bought some fish with the village fee this time, so I have to save some.

What?

Yoo-hyun made a dumbfounded expression and Bae Yong Seok added a kind explanation.

I tried to release some fish to operate the fishing spot properly. It seemed too scarce.

How is it? Isnt it fun to catch them anyway?

If he hadnt known this fact, the fun would have been much greater.

It was an embarrassing situation to tell the truth, so Yoo-hyun just nodded.

Yes. It is.

Haha. Then have fun fishing. Let me know if you need more fish.

Bae Yong Seok left with a cool laugh.

Yoo-hyun blinked his eyes for a moment and chuckled.

I see.

Then he stared at the sky alone for a while.

Yoo-hyun, who had tidied up his fishing gear, took out a burner from his bag on the platform.

He put a pot on a one-burner stove and boiled water.

Bubble bubble.

As he put ramen in the boiling water, he remembered what the straw hat man had said.

-When your head is a little empty later, eat the ramen you cooked then.

When could he see him again?

In fact, it was nothing but a fleeting encounter, but he strangely waited for it.

Even though he had a feeling that he wouldnt see him again.

Swoosh.

Yoo-hyun looked around in case, but he couldnt see the mans figure.

Come to think of it, he hadnt seen the mans face clearly either.

It was because it was hidden by the straw hat.

But his movements and voice still remained in his memory.

He felt like he could tell by the feeling if they met again.

As he was thinking about this and that, Yoo-hyun put the cooked noodles in his mouth.

Slurp slurp

Maybe because of the chilly weather, the spicy ramen was so delicious that he couldnt help but stick out his thumb.

I dont know about anything else, but I should be praised for cooking ramen well.

Yoo-hyun smiled and took another chopstick of ramen.

A familiar American number appeared on his phone screen.

He had been meaning to call him anyway, so Yoo-hyun answered with a happy heart.

Long time no see, Mr. Shin.

-Haha. How are you? You sound good.

Of course. How can I not be good when Im eating ramen while fishing?

As Yoo-hyun expressed his feelings honestly, Mr. Shin Kyungwook laughed out loud.

-Haha. Youre making me drool. I should visit you sometime.

Please do. Ill guide you to the best course.

They exchanged pleasantries and some small talk.

-How am I doing, you ask

Im in the village

There was no talk of work in between.

They also put aside their complicated plans for the future.

They just enjoyed sharing their emotions at the moment.

Then, suddenly, Mr. Shin said.

-You seem to have changed a bit.

In what way?

-Maybe youve gained some ease. I dont hear any obsession in your voice anymore.

What part of him had changed?

Yoo-hyun realized that his guilt and remorse towards Mr. Shin had faded a lot.

He wasnt too worried about the difficult future he had to face.

He didnt give up, of course.

He trusted him completely as a colleague.

He was happy to be able to talk to him like this, someone he respected and wanted to follow.

He was even happier to be recognized for his inner change by him.

His feelings were naturally expressed in words.

Thank you. Thats the best compliment Ive ever heard.

-Yeah. It seems like youve finally found some ease. Im more curious now.

Youll be surprised if you see me.

-You seem more cunning too.

Of course. Im a person who grows.

-Hahaha. Its an honor to be with someone who grows.

Yoo-hyun lay down on the floor and continued to chat with him.

A deep bond that had started from the past.

That bond was extending from this happy moment to the future.

The ramen was getting cold, but Yoo-hyuns heart was warmer.

After the incident at the fishing spot, Yoo-hyun felt much lighter.

He didnt meet the straw hat man, but he didnt have any regrets anymore.

He realized that the answer he was looking for was not something he could hear from others.

The next morning.

Yoo-hyun went to work with a light heart.

He didnt really feel like going to work, but he still went to the factory.

On the inner wall of the factory entrance, there was a TV installed by Mr. Park Chulhong.

There was only a simple sign for the fish cake factory, but it made the factory atmosphere feel alive.

The inside of the factory was even better.

They had cleaned up everything from the conveyor belt to the computers and monitors, making it feel like they were in a high-tech factory.

Wouldnt it look like they were doing something amazing to strangers?

Thats not wrong.

Yoo-hyun muttered as he looked at the reassembled box he had finished a while ago.

The fish cake factorys work speed was truly overwhelming.

They were doing their work much faster than in the Mokpo factory with the same number of people.

It was the result of the fish cake factorys special situation and the survival skills of the people who survived.

It was an amazing thing, but also something they couldnt let the Mokpo factory workers know.

That afternoon.

Yoo-hyun, who was in charge of CCTV surveillance, was spending time in the break room.

He didnt have any reason to worry about audits anymore, but he still pretended to be busy.

Thats when it happened.

Ring ring.

Yoo-hyun politely answered the phone from the Mokpo reassembly team.

Yes, thank you for your hard work. Ill have it ready and wait for you.

He didnt have anything to do every day, but he had to act serious when the Mokpo factory workers came.

Complaining about being tired was a bonus.

That was something that the fish cake factory workers always tried to keep.