Chapter 125

“I must say, it’s quite unfortunate.” Lim Ho-jin, now tipsy, turned to look at the manager.

“It isn’t—”

“Oh, come on, sir. I can tell you’re disappointed.”

The grandfather pursed his lips and took another sip of makgeolli at Lim Ho-jin’s words.

Glug! Glug!

He finished off the rice wine with one gulp and sighed heavily.

“It would be a lie if I said otherwise. Still, this brewery helped raise my children and send them to school.”

As he spoke, the grandfather reached for the kimchi jar.

“Please try this instead.”

The kimchi in question was from the brewery, but when Lim Ho-jin tasted it…it lacked flavor. That’s why he suggested trying Kang Jin’s kimchi, which the grandfather readily agreed to without hesitation.

Crunch! Crunch!

As Lim Ho-jin watched his grandfather munching on kimchi, he glanced at the jar of it sitting nearby.

“Is this store-bought?”

“My second daughter made it.”

“Oh! Your daughter-in-law made it for you.”

The grandfather pursed his lips and looked at the kimchi after hearing Lim Ho-jin’s comment.

“She did ferment it herself… But as you’ve tasted, it’s not quite right… I wonder where she bought these ingredients from.”

Lim Ho-jin gave a wry smile. Truthfully, the kimchi didn’t taste good at all. To put it simply, it resembled cheap kimchi readily available in stores.

Store-bought kimchi is decent when first purchased but becomes tough and loses its flavor over time as the seasoning separates from the vegetables. That’s why people typically stir-fried store-bought kimchi once it had aged instead of eating it fresh.

The kimchi they were eating now was no exception. Plus, it tasted bitter, which wasn’t a good sign either.

“The girl isn’t in the right frame of mind to make kimchi these days. How could she when her family’s business is on the brink of ruin?” The grandfather chuckled.

“But she’s quite diligent, paying attention to such matters.” He smiled as he took another sip of makgeolli.

Lim Ho-jin glanced at the kimchi while watching the elderly man drink.

If she wants to buy some and send it over, there are plenty of better options out there…

Many store-bought brands nowadays, albeit slightly pricier, tasted even better than homemade kimchi. Cheap yet delicious food might sound appealing, but more often than not, the taste reflected its price.

Lim Ho-jin forced a smile as he refilled his grandfather’s glass. “When do you plan to sell your brewery?”

“It wouldn’t be easy even if I wanted to sell it. Not many people would want to take over this brewery, after all.”

“Should I look into it for you?”

Ho-jin didn’t know anyone directly connected with breweries, but South Korea was small enough that he could easily find someone who might help him through his network of acquaintances.

“No need.” The grandfather smiled as he sipped his makgeolli before suddenly stopping and raising his head.

“Ack!” He took a deep breath and cocked his head curiously. “Do you smell something spicy?”

Lim Ho-jin inhaled deeply and nodded. “It…smells quite nice.”

“Yes, indeed… It reminds me of… Ahh!” The grandfather breathed in once more, smiling nostalgically. “This smells similar to kimchi stew my wife used to make with anchovies.”

“Kang Jin is quite the cook.”

“Just smelling it lifts my spirits.” The grandfather glanced toward the brewery as he spoke. “It must taste delicious.”

He licked his lips before taking a sip of makgeolli, causing Lim Ho-jin to also smacked his own lips at the tantalizing aroma.

The scent was undeniably mouthwatering.

Bubbling sound…

As Kang Jin tasted the bubbling kimchi stew emitting that delightful smell, he exclaimed:

“Mmmph! This is great!”

The tangy yet well-aged flavor of kimchi filled his mouth. Combined with the savory sweetness from the anchovy’s oil, it made him feel like he could easily finish a bowl of rice in no time.

“Indeed, half the essence of kimchi stew lies in the kimchi itself.”

Watching Kang Jin savor the dish, Grandpa Yoon beamed brightly. Intrigued by this reaction, Kang Jin asked:

“How old is this kimchi?”

The grandmother smiled and held up four fingers.

Four-year-old kimchi? That’s impressive.

While not all aged kimchi tastes good…this one certainly did. It seemed like the grandmother had stored it somewhere no one else could access, allowing it to ferment properly without disturbance.

“I’ll let it boil for a bit more…”

Kang Jin opened the refrigerator and took out several side dishes. She planned on adding more accompaniments to the meal.

Clack!

As soon as she lifted the lid of one container, Kang Jin hastily turned away and resealed it due to the foul smell emanating from inside.

“Ugh!” Feeling nauseous, she quickly placed the dish by the sink.

“Why didn’t you throw these away…?”

Kang Jin shook her head and opened other containers as well. Each one was like hitting a landmine. All the side dishes were either rotten or covered with mold. Kang Jin grimaced and placed all the containers on the sink. Afterward, she realized that the only edible dish left in the refrigerator was kimchi stored in a large jar.

“Do you not eat here?” As Kang Jin moved to discard the container, the grandmother hastily waved her hand.

“Huh?”

The old lady continued shaking both her head and hand, which puzzled Kang Jin.

“These seem spoiled…”

Despite this, the grandmother kept gesturing toward the containers and then pointing at the refrigerator.

Seeing her gestures indicating he should put them back, Kang Jin complied without further protest. Truthfully, he had been hesitant to dispose of these dishes that smelled worse than food waste. However, since his grandmother insisted on keeping them despite his efforts to clean up, he felt somewhat relieved.

Still…

Why is she doing this?

He couldn’t understand why the grandmother, who took such good care of her husband, wouldn’t let go of these spoiled items.

In any case, as soon as the anchovy kimchi stew was ready, Kang Jin placed it on a tray along with side dishes. The sides were simple: finely chopped pepper pickles and sliced peppers with chili paste—just two items. Additionally…there was sticky rice, almost porridge-like in consistency.

It’s not bad.

Initially, he worried that the rice was too sticky, but it looked fine on the tray. The sour and spicy chili side dish seemed to complement the soft rice well.

Kang Jin gathered all the dishes together and exited the brewery with them.

As Kang Jin emerged carrying the tray, Choi Donghae hastily stood up to take it from him. In the past, he would have remained seated, but now, he had learned social etiquette and acted accordingly.

“Here you go, hyung.”

“Thanks.”

After receiving the tray from Kang Jin, Choi Donghae brought it over to the traditional floor seating area known as ‘tatami’.

“It looks delicious…”

While speaking, the grandfather’s eyes appeared to waver slightly as he gazed at the tray.

“Huh?”

“It indeed seems very tasty.”

Unaware of the grandfather’s reaction, Lim Ho-jin smiled at the food before curiously turning to Kang Jin.

“So why is the rice like this?”

The overcooked rice surprised even Lim Ho-jin.

“I didn’t get the water-to-rice ratio right,” Kang Jin admitted with a smile.

“How do you expect to run a restaurant serving rice like this? Why don’t you aim for promotion instead?”

“You think they’d promote me now?”

“If you make your intentions clear, I can push for it. Besides, Assistant Manager Oh thinks highly of you.”

“But then someone else would have to deal with my mistake.”

“Would that be such a bad thing?” Lim Ho-jin chuckled lightly as Kang Jin glanced back at the grandfather.

“The rice may be sticky, but it should still taste fine.”

The grandfather nodded at Kang Jin’s words and looked down at his meal.

“It reminds me of what my wife used to prepare for me when I worked…”

“Is that so?”

“She always set this table with these dishes whenever I was busy working.” The grandfather chuckled as he reminisced. “Looking at it now, it feels like something she would make…”

“Please enjoy your meal.”

At Kang Jin’s prompting, the grandfather picked up his spoon and took a bite of kimchi stew. A smile spread across his face.

“This is delicious.”

“I’m glad you think so.”

With a nod, the grandfather placed a piece of mackerel on top of his rice and grabbed a slice of kimchi. He then wrapped the kimchi around the fish before popping it into his mouth.

Chomp, chomp!

The taste was evident on his smiling face. With a grin, he chewed the fish and kimchi together before scooping up some rice with his spoon and grabbing some spicy pickled cucumber with chopsticks. He popped it all in his mouth at once, beaming again.

“My wife used to make this often.”

“Oh really?”

His grandfather chuckled as he took another big bite of rice mixed with cucumber.

Crisp, crisp!

“She wasn’t good at cooking rice,” the grandfather remarked, causing his wife’s eyes to narrow. She seemed puzzled by what he meant.

Unaware of her reaction, the grandfather continued while looking down at his bowl.

“Our wife also makes rice this soggy like porridge. Even after cooking for over fifty years, she still makes it like this. Tsk tsk tsk!” The grandfather clicked his tongue disapprovingly.

Kang Jin glanced at the grandmother, puzzled by her husband’s reaction. She looked exasperated as she watched him, pointing first at the rice and then at her husband, implying that she cooked it this way because he preferred slightly undercooked rice.

Kang Jin subtly asked, “Has she always made rice like this?”

The grandfather chuckled at Kang Jin’s question, seemingly reminiscing fondly about past memories.

“When she first moved in after marriage, she cooked rice just like this. Back then, rice was precious, so despite getting scolded by my mother, she continued making it this way.”

As the grandfather spoke, the grandmother started tapping her chest repeatedly and gesturing towards him. Kang Jin had a hunch based on their interaction and decided to ask:

“Did you perhaps tell her back then that you liked your rice slightly undercooked?”

The grandfather continued tapping his foot while gesturing towards Kang Jin’s grandmother. This prompted her to ask:

“By any chance, did you tell her at that time that you liked overcooked rice?”

“I did? I don’t like overcooked rice.”

“Just back then, when it happened.”

The grandfather pondered for a moment before nodding.

“Oh right, your mother scolded my wife for ruining the rice, and she ended up crying. Feeling sorry for her, I might have said I prefer overcooked rice and asked her to cook it that way from then on?”

“And after that, did you ever mention disliking overcooked rice?”

There was a brief silence before the grandfather chuckled.

“Now that I think about it, I never actually said that.”

“So perhaps, Grandmother believed you genuinely preferred overcooked rice and continued cooking it that way?” Kang Jin suggested.

Her words made the grandfather deeply thoughtful. Kang Jin glanced at the grandmother, who continuously nodded in agreement.

Indeed, that’s why she made it for him.

“It could be. She has her naive moments.” The grandfather chuckled and shook his head as Kang Jin glanced at the grandmother. Initially bewildered by her husband’s words, a smile soon spread across her face, seemingly thinking, Well, if you didn’t like it, why not just say so instead of eating it for over fifty years?

Shhhk!

As Kang Jin watched the grandmother gently stroke her husband’s hair, he pointed to the food.

“Please enjoy your meal.”

“Yes. It’s been a while since I’ve tasted my wife’s cooking…”

The grandfather suddenly looked toward the pantry area, then turned back to Kang Jin before focusing on the side dishes again.

Shhhk!

He picked up some chili pickles, took a bite, and savored the taste before looking at Kang Jin once more.

“Did you make this?”

“I used what was stored under that tree near the fermentation jars.”

“Fermentation jars under the tree?”

“Yes, there were kimchi, pickled vegetables, and fermented sauces.”

“Really?”

“The refrigerator was empty, so I looked around nearby and found them. And…I apologize for using your ingredients without permission.”

The grandfather shook his head at Kang Jin’s words.

“Where exactly are they located?”

“Just behind the brewery, sir.”

“L…Let’s go together.”

As soon as the grandfather hurriedly got off the floor seating, Kang Jin led the way without hesitation.

Judging by the maturity of the kimchi, it seemed the grandfather wasn’t aware of its presence. Thus, Kang Jin wanted to inform him about these hidden treasures.

Upon reaching the tree behind the brewery, Kang Jin lifted the straw mat, revealing several jars. The grandfather immediately opened one of the lids.

He opened it and sighed softly upon seeing the kimchi and fermented side dishes inside.

“I was wondering where you hid your kimchi…”

“You didn’t know there were pickles here?”

“My wife took care of household chores, so I wasn’t aware.”

“Did you not participate when she made kimchi?”

“What do men have to do with such tasks? We just enjoy some makgeolli while they pickle their hearts out.”

As he spoke, the grandfather gently stroked one jar before opening it. The tangy smell of kimchi elicited a chuckle from him as he tore off a piece and popped it into his mouth.

Crisp! Crunch!

Chewing thoughtfully, he smiled at the jar.

“Wife.” He softly called for her, gazing at the jar before speaking again.

“All those side dishes you made are still in the fridge untouched.”

Kang Jin looked at his grandfather after hearing this.

“I saw them too… Why haven’t you thrown them away?”

“After my wife passed away… I tried to eat them one day but…couldn’t bring myself to do it.”

“Why not?”

“It reminded me of her. So, I couldn’t eat them… Once they’re gone…

Tears welled up slightly in the grandfather’s eyes as he spoke.

…Was he worried that memories of Grandmother would fade once these dishes were consumed?

Food transcended mere sustenance; it held memories and encapsulated emotions tied to someone special. Despite being rotten, smelly, and moldy, for the grandfather, these dishes represented his late wife’s love and their shared memories.