RR 11
[011] A Big Change 3.
“The extensibility clearly belongs to YS (Kim Young-sam). He can sweep the Seoul metropolitan area, Gyeongnam, and Honam regions. The ruling party can only absorb votes from Daegu-Gyeongbuk, Gangwon, and some parts of the metropolitan area, so the next term is almost certain.”
Sunyang Construction’s CEO, whom Chairman Jin trusted most, was the first to offer an opinion, as if taking the lead.
“What about DJ (Kim Dae-jung)?”
“Of course, unification with DJ is possible, but he has a weakness. Having suffered from the red complex, he is highly likely to concede this time. He will concede after being promised the next term after the upcoming one.”
“Any other opinions?”
Everyone just looked at each other, signaling agreement.
Chairman Jin let out a faint chuckle.
Everyone believed so firmly in the unification of the two Kims. And it wasn’t just them. How many citizens didn’t believe in the unification of the two Kims?
Every influential figure Chairman Jin had met so far believed in the unification without a doubt. Only his young grandson didn’t believe in it. Of course, he might be thinking this way because he knew nothing about the political situation and trends.
But the basis was accurate. The young grandson saw through human greed precisely.
The CEOs of the core affiliates instantly tensed, not knowing the meaning of Chairman Jin’s smile.
Was he pleased?
Or was he disappointed?
However, the chairman’s subsequent remarks didn’t reveal the truth.
“Let’s end it here today. Everyone, open your ears and gather as much information as possible.”
Chairman Jin ended the meeting with a smile.
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My Next Move
Now, it was time to do what I had put off.
No, rather than putting it off, should I say I hesitated and was afraid? But it was something I had to face eventually.
First, I asked the private tutor.
Considering he was getting paid handsomely for doing almost nothing, it would be hard for him to refuse my request.
“How about an outdoor lesson this Sunday?”
“Outdoor lesson?”
“Yes, to Dangjin on the west coast.”
“Dangjin? Why the west coast all of a sudden?”
“The textbook says it’s the only place in Korea that faces the sea only to the north. I want to see it for myself.”
It was a rather flimsy excuse, but he wouldn’t be able to refuse.
He was earning a Sunyang Group new employee’s monthly salary for checking homework for just 30 minutes a day. To keep this sweet gig, he had no choice but to be mindful of my wishes.
“Th-that’s fine. Let’s go.”
“Can you drive, Teacher? Do you have a license?”
“Uh, yes, I have a license, and it’s not a ‘closet license’ either (meaning, not a dormant one).”
“Then I’ll ask my father for the car. Teacher, please just get permission for the outdoor lesson.”
A smile instantly spread across the tutor’s lips. How often does a college student get the chance to drive a luxurious foreign car?
Getting my parents’ permission was easy.
Believing that school and studies were everything, they probably wanted to send me to see the sea, even if they had to push me.
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“Do-jun, tell me honestly. Why do you want to go to Dangjin?”
This was a time before GPS or smartphones. The tutor, who had gotten used to driving slowly, using a national map book and milestones as his navigator, subtly asked.
I already had an answer ready.
“Actually, I have a friend who transferred there. I want to meet him.”
“Really? Then why didn’t you tell me the truth?”
“If I told the truth, you’d ask, ‘What kind of friend is he?’ ‘What do his parents do?’ ‘Why did he transfer?’… You’d ask a million questions, wouldn’t you? It’s bothersome.”
“Oh, my! You’re quite grown up, aren’t you? To find talking with your parents bothersome?”
Oh, boy. Not just grown up, but getting old.
After that, I chatted idly with the college student, passing the time until we entered Dangjin.
The past of 30 years ago, existing only in vague memories.
I was now experiencing the miracle of those memories unfolding right before my eyes.
A landscape where there were no traces of West Coast development.
The rattling of the car, feeling the unpaved roads directly through my body.
Instead of beaches full of guesthouses, there was a general store like a sundry shop for just a few fishermen, even if its name was ‘Super’.
Tears welled up when we entered my old neighborhood, where the few visible apartments looked alien.
Again, I experienced the mystery of memory.
Seeing the barbershop at the entrance of the neighborhood brought back memories of my childhood hairstyle, and the beauty salon made me vividly recall my mother’s younger self.
Passing the school gate, faces of friends and teachers I hadn’t thought of once since graduation came vividly to mind.
Tracing those memories, I approached the house where I grew up.
“Teacher. Can you wait a moment? It’s right over there.”
“But have you been here before? How do you know the way so well?”
“My friend explained it in detail several times.”
I gave a brief answer to the curious tutor’s questions and quickly got out of the car.
My heart began to pound as if it would burst at the sight of the signboard across the street.
[Yoon Laundry]
I couldn’t easily take a step.
Could I really look my parents directly in the eye?
What if I accidentally called them “Father”? To them, I was just a strange child they’d never seen before…
My greatest fear was something else.
What if I encountered my past self, Yoon Hyun-woo?
What if something miraculous, like in a movie, happened?
I couldn’t just imagine.
I took a deep breath and slowly started walking.
My father’s figure visible through the laundry shop’s window. Seeing my young father through the steam of the iron and my mother arranging laundry, tears inevitably burst forth again.
I leaned against the laundry shop wall and waited for my tears to dry.
Steeling myself, I opened the laundry shop door.
The old door creaked, and both their gazes fixed on me.
“Um…”
“Hmm? A child I haven’t seen before. Are you here to pick up laundry?”
What should I say?
“The child looks quite well-off. Doesn’t seem like a kid from our neighborhood.”
Seeing Mother’s face up close as she scrutinized me, regret washed over me.
I should have waited longer.
If I had come back when I was older, as an adult, I could have offered practical help.
My mother, who was just entering her late thirties, looked ten years older than her age.
I could now see the hardships etched on both their faces.
“Did you get lost? Why aren’t you saying anything?”
I couldn’t indulge in sentimentality any longer and quickly spoke.
“Is this Jin-woo’s house? Yoon Jin-woo?”
I pretended I had come to the wrong house and intended to leave. That seemed the most natural course of action.
“Jin-woo? No.”
“Ah, yes. I’m sorry.”
As Father tilted his head, I quickly bowed and said.
“Honey, do you know anyone named Jin-woo?”
“I’m not sure. Shall I ask Hyun-ji? If there’s a Jin-woo among her school friends?”
A jolt of electricity ran through my entire body.
Hyun-ji?
No way?
“Uh, um… Who is Hyun-ji?”
“Hyun-ji? She’s our only daughter. She should be around your age… You’re not a child who lives here. Our daughter is so pretty that everyone in this neighborhood knows her. Haha.”
My only daughter, Hyun-ji.
I hadn’t misheard. I, Yoon Hyun-woo, didn’t exist.
I fled the laundry shop as if escaping. If I had delayed any longer, I would have collapsed.
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.
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“What’s wrong? Wasn’t that your friend’s house?”
“Yes? Oh, no. It was… but my friend wasn’t there.”
“Then you should have waited longer.”
“No, it’s fine. Let’s just go.”
Avoiding the suspicious gaze of the tutor, I looked out the window.
“Teacher. I’m a bit tired, can I sleep for a bit?”
“Really? Well, you must be tired. Get some good rest. I’ll wake you when we arrive home.”
“Thank you.”
I watched the receding laundry shop, then leaned back in the seat and closed my eyes.
I didn’t think about what had happened.
Reincarnation? Regression? Possession? Time travel?
I didn’t want to question or analyze the cause and effect of it.
I just had to accept the outcome. After all, I couldn’t change this strange result that had already occurred.
And that result was that all that remained of my connection with my parents was my memory.
I wiped away the flowing tears. The tutor, who spotted me in the rearview mirror, said nothing and simply sped up.
Perhaps because even though they were a child’s tears, they seemed too sorrowful to ask why.
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My Next Steps
I opened my notebook and sat there blankly for a while.
The detailed future events I had recorded so far might become useless.
My very existence had already brought about a significant change.
The place of Yoon Hyun-woo, who should have been born, was unexpectedly occupied by an only daughter.
There was no need to invoke the grand butterfly effect theory. Even Chairman Jin Yang-cheol’s affection for me alone could change the future.
A changed future could mean that my powerful weapon was meaningless.
Damn it.
From now on, my actions, words, and plans must be even more cautious and careful.
The major current of the future must not change for me to gain what I want within it. I must not change the world, but only change Sunyang Group.
It won’t be easy. That’s how great Sunyang Group’s influence is in Korea.
Complex thoughts swirled in my head, but an unchanged fact came to mind, and tears welled up again.
The being named ‘I’, Yoon Hyun-woo, does not exist in this world. Only the primal emotions etched in my mind remain. These emotions will also slowly weather away and fade, and then Yoon Hyun-woo will completely disappear.
I wiped the tears from my eyes and closed the notebook.
I have to let go of the past.
Only think about the future.
I will live as the perfect Jin Do-jun to sit in the position of Sunyang Group Chairman. It will be a rough road, but…
“Huh, wait.”
A sound burst out of me without realizing it.
I counted on my fingers, recalling memories.
“Young-jun, Hae-kyung, Kyung-jun, Soo-kyung, Tae-jun…”
Thirteen.
Including me, Chairman Jin Yang-cheol had exactly thirteen grandchildren.
But why was the number in my memory twelve?
Who was the missing one?
I took out the notebook from the drawer. I re-read the dense records of memories, trying to figure out what I had missed.
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