Chapter 117

Kang Jin beamed as she descended from the mountain and showed the ginseng to Shin Suho’s brothers.

“It’s wild ginseng.”

“Indeed,” Shin Su-jo replied nonchalantly.

Kang Jin probed him further. “Have you seen…a lot of wild ginseng?”

“We’ve seen plenty.”

“I guess…that makes sense.”

Considering how often Kang Jin had eaten wild ginseng dishes during her first visit here, it was no wonder the Shin Suho brothers were used to seeing—and consuming—wild ginseng regularly.

“When we started our business, we relied heavily on selling wild ginseng for initial capital.”

“Really?”

“Oh yes. Ginseng fetches quite a high price around here.” As Shin Su-jo spoke, she glanced at Kang Jin. “Did Manbok hyung give you this ginseng?”

“Huh? Yes, he did.”

“If you’re planning to sell it, let me know. There’s no fixed price for wild ginseng; its value depends on what buyers are willing to pay.”

Kang Jin nodded, acknowledging Shin Su-jo’s point. Indeed, the worth of wild ginseng fluctuated based on market demand.

In other words, if I asked for one hundred thousand won and they agreed to pay it, that would be its value. It was all about knowing how much to ask.

“I’m going to eat this myself since Manbok hyung gave me my first ginseng root.”

“The first… Then what about next time?”

“It’s actually harmful to consume too much ginseng regularly.”

Shin Su-jo chuckled and nodded at Kang Jin’s response.

“That makes sense.”

Even good medicine could lose its effectiveness or become detrimental when taken excessively, so Kang Jin wasn’t wrong.

“Well then, I’ll go clean these herbs now.” Kang Jin took the bag over to the well and started trimming the roots.

As he watched Kang Jin meticulously prepare the medicinal herbs and dandelion roots, Heo Yeonwook couldn’t help but express his admiration.

“This dandelion root is huge!”

“They say it’s thirty years old.”

“It certainly looks like it. This would be great with some soju.”

“I’m planning to grill it.”

“Ah…” Heo Yeonwook let out a small sigh at Kang Jin’s words but quickly shook his head.

“People cook ginseng that is over a hundred years old for samgyetang, so there shouldn’t be much difference between thirty-year-old and hundred-year-old dandelion roots.”

Kang Jin nodded in agreement with Heo Yeonwook’s statement, finished organizing the medicinal herbs, and turned towards Shin Soo-yong.

“When will we have the boiled pork dish?”

“We’ll eat it at eleven o’clock tonight.”

“At eleven? That late?”

“That way, whatever they consume here, they can fully enjoy it.”

Kang Jin nodded understandingly. Although this wasn’t One Meal Restaurant, consuming Kang Jin’s food directly at 11 pm would allow the ghosts to savor it properly.

“Then what about us?”

“If you’re hungry, ask Doochi hyung to get some JS convenience store meals.”

“Oh…sounds delicious.”

“Then let’s get back to making kimchi.”

Kang Jin turned at Shin Soo-yong’s words. The three thousand heads of cabbage had been stripped and placed inside red barrels while he was gone. Next to them, ghosts were preparing seasonings for the kimchi.

Chop-chop-chop!

Watching the ajumonis chop radishes, Kang Jin grabbed his own knife and joined them.

“You found plenty?”

The grandmother with whom Kang Jin had become friendly smiled as she asked him.

“Yes, there seemed to be lots of wild ginseng around.”

“No one else comes here,” she replied with a smile.

She then continued, “Is this your first time making kimchi?”

“Yes.” Kang Jin suddenly scanned the area before getting up from his seat.

“What’s wrong?”

“I just thought of something I can do.” As he spoke, Kang Jin looked around and approached Shin Su-jo. “Do you have any tools?”

“Tools?”

“Like a saw or hammer.”

“They’re in my car.”

As someone who ran an interior design business, Shin Su-jo carried tools with her at all times. She took out her car keys from her pocket and handed them to Kang Jin.

“Thank you.”

Kang Jin quickly made his way to where she had parked her vehicle, which turned out to be a one-ton truck. In its cargo bed was a locked toolbox secured by a metal plate. He opened it up and inspected the contents.

This is definitely the toolbox of an interior designer—very well-stocked.

After surveying the tools, Kang Jin strapped on a tool belt around his waist and started attaching various implements like hammers onto its loops. Once he’d gathered nails as well, he picked up a shovel and hatchet before heading back to the village.

“What are you planning to do?” Shin Su-jo curiously asked Kang Jin as he gathered tools.

“It seems like several adults live together here, so I thought some repairs might be needed.”

Shin Su-jo looked at his house after hearing Kang Jin’s explanation. The old thatched-roof dwelling was quite dilapidated with holes scattered throughout.

“Do we really need to fix it?”

Shin Su-jo refrained from saying, Isn’t this where ghosts reside?

Kang Jin responded, “Even if they’re ghosts, wouldn’t it be nice for them to live in a clean and well-maintained place?”

Shin Su-jo glanced between Kang Jin and their home before pursing his lips.

He’s right.

The house had always been in this state since he was young, so he never paid much attention to its condition.

Sigh…

As Shin Su-jo continued observing the house, he said, “Give me the shovel.”

“I’ll take care of it.”

“How?”

“We could cut down some healthy trees from nearby houses.”

“No way.”

“Why not?”

“It may look abandoned and dilapidated, but these were once homes for families. Would you like it if someone destroyed your house?”

“That…makes sense.” Kang Jin nodded at Shin Su-jo’s explanation before asking, “Then what’s your plan?”

“We need to do this traditionally.” She took the shovel from Kang Jin.

“As we walk around the village, I’m sure we’ll find dried straw or grass. Please gather those.”

Kang Jin looked puzzled by her request until she noticed the shovel in Shin Su-jo’s hands.

“You’re going to fill the holes with dirt mixed with dry grass?”

“Huh? How did you know that?”

“I’ve done plenty of construction work as a temp.”

“Really?”

“Yes, I’ve worked on traditional Korean houses, bridges, roads, and more. When constructing walls for those traditional houses, we often mixed straw with clay.”

Clay mixed with water creates mud, which can be used to plaster walls. Adding dry straw strengthens the clay wall by acting like steel reinforcement, binding the layers of clay together.

“In that case, I’ll gather the…”

Kang Jin hesitated, unsure about letting a woman do the strenuous labor of digging. Shin Su-jo chuckled at his concern.

“Do you think you can find yellow clay just anywhere?”

“So then…?”

“You have to dig properly.”

As he spoke, Shin Su-jo rested his shovel on his shoulder and turned to Kang Doochi.

“Hey, bro! If you don’t have anything else to do, could you help me out?”

“You mean…?”

“Pull this cart over here.”

Kang Doochi sighed as Shin Su-jo headed toward the mountain, then followed him with the cart.

Watching them go, Kang Jin grabbed another cart nearby and started gathering dry grasses around the village. He mixed mud and dried grass with water, stirring it all together with a shovel.

Scrape! Scrape!

As Kang Jin worked, Shin Su-jo complimented him. “You’re good at using a shovel.”

“I’ve done plenty of construction work before.”

“A lot of temp jobs?”

“Oh yes, from building traditional Korean houses to bridges and roads—you name it.”

As Kang Jin listened to Shin Su-jo’s chatter, he continued kneading clay with his hands. He tested its consistency by letting it drip from his shovel before scooping up more dry dirt and gently sprinkling it over the mixture. Once satisfied with the viscosity, Kang Jin grabbed the clay and started filling holes in the house alongside the rocks. His method involved roughly blocking gaps with stones and then filling any remaining cracks with mud.

Meanwhile, Shin Su-jo began patching some of the larger holes using the same technique.

She commented, “I think we’re done on this side.”

Kang Jin circled around the house and nodded at her assessment.

“That’s good.”

The thatched-roof dwelling was still decrepit, but at least no cold wind could get inside through the patched-up holes. Kang Jin looked up at the roof next.

Kang Jin surveyed the house carefully.

“Can we leave the roof as is?”

“I checked earlier when I climbed up there, and it seems fine,” Shin Su-jo replied.

Kang Jin inspected the house once more before suggesting, “What about building them a new home?”

“They wouldn’t like that.”

“But isn’t living here—”

“This dilapidated house holds memories of their family and village friends for these ghosts. Plus, a brand-new house wouldn’t really suit them anyway.” With those words from Shin Su-jo, Kang Jin fell silent while gazing at the dwelling.

That’s why she only did minimal repairs.

Shin Su-jo repaired the house while making minimal changes to its original structure. If they cut down a tree and used it as a support beam, it could help stabilize the slanted roof.

“I’ll fill this inside.”

“Should I help you?”

“It’s too cramped.”

As Shin Su-jo was about to enter the house with a bag of clay, Shin Soo-yong approached her.

“I’m heading to the convenience store for lunch. What would you like?”

“The Western-style salad from Secheon.”

“You’re dieting?”

“I had meat and kimchi earlier at dawn, so I need something light now.”

“Gotcha.” With that, Shin Soo-yong turned toward Kang Jin. “How about you, Kang Jin?”

Kang Jin responded with his own question. “Are you going to the JS Convenience Store?”

When Kang Doochi mentioned buying some food from the JS convenience store, Shin Soo-yong assumed he would go himself and didn’t expect her to make the trip personally.

“Yes.”

“Can you also visit the JS convenience store, Ms. Shin?”

“If I have business there, yes.”

“You’re human, though…”

“I used to live at One Meal Restaurant as well. I often went on errands for my mother. And my brother visits the afterlife once a day.”

“The afterlife?”

Kang Jin was curious about this term. “Is it different from the JS Finance Department?”

“If JS Finance is situated between this life and the afterlife, then it truly means ‘the afterlife’.”

“People…go there?”

“He’s also a lawyer for JS, so he has to go if he wants work.”

“A lawyer for the afterlife?”

“When you’re judged in the afterlife, having money means needing a capable attorney.”

Kang Jin seemed puzzled by Shin Su-jo’s explanation.

“But why would someone good need a lawyer if they have money in the afterlife?”

Having money in the afterlife meant living virtuously during one’s lifetime. Why would such a person require legal representation?

Shin Soo-yong chuckled at Kang Jin’s question.

“You’ve heard of how carelessly thrown stones can kill frogs?”

His response made sense to Kang Jin, who nodded understandingly.

Kang Jin nodded understandingly. “So ignorance is no excuse when it comes to committing sins.”

“No matter how good-hearted you may be, everyone inevitably commits several sins knowingly or unknowingly throughout their lives.”

“That’s harsh.” While he understood punishing deliberate transgressions, penalizing unintentional ones seemed excessively strict. By that logic, there would be no sinless souls on earth.

“That’s why it’s crucial to hire a skilled lawyer.”

“So even for sins committed unwittingly, a good lawyer will defend them?”

“A competent attorney can get someone acquitted of both intentional and unintentional crimes.”

“As long as they have enough money, right?”

“Indeed.”

“It seems like money rules supreme in the afterlife.”

“Yes, exactly.”

“Money talks everywhere, not just here.”

As Kang Jin nodded at Shin Soo-yong’s words, Kang Doochi approached them.

“You decided what to order?”

“I’ll let you choose, Kang Jin. What sounds good to you?”

Kang Jin replied, “I’ll have the paradise of enlightenment lunch box and spicy ramen noodles.”

“We can buy instant ramen packets and cook them here.”

“In that case, I’ll stick with the lunch box.”

With that, Kang Doochi opened the door to the dilapidated hut for Shin Soo-yong and Kang Jin to enter ahead of him.

Watching them go inside, Kang Jin licked his lips nervously.

Without a doubt…I’ve entered a strange world.

Despite being separated by only one door, the worlds outside and within were completely different.