Chapter 26: The VIP Ranking System

When Kang Doochi mentioned that Mr. Go was a silver-level VIP client of JS Finance, Kang Jin asked:

“Are there different levels?”

“Yes, indeed.”

“And what about me?” Kang Jin probed further.

Kang Doochi shook his head with a smile. “Keep working at it.”

“Oh…” Kang Jin pursed her lips at his response. he wasn’t even ranked yet.

I deposited one million won, but I guess I’m still not considered a VIP.

Upon reflection, he hadn’t exactly led a bad life, but neither had he done many good deeds either. Hence, he couldn’t expect to be a VIP client for JS Finance. As Kang Jin pondered this, Che Yongho spoke up:

“I haven’t done anything extraordinary to become a VIP…”

“But you did help those in need during your lifetime, didn’t you? You sponsored underprivileged children monthly and volunteered at an orphanage every weekend.”

“But it’s not much…”

Kang Doochi shook his head at Che Yongho’s words.

“Mr. Che Yongho, you donated three hundred thousand won per month, thirty thousand won each to ten children.”

“T-That’s right…”

Che Yongho scratched his face, appearing slightly embarrassed.

Kang Doochi reassured him, “It is indeed significant.”

“How so? It’s just three hundred thousand won.”

“While three hundred thousand won may seem small, for Mr. Che Yongho, it’s quite substantial. The value of this amount differs greatly between a wealthy person and someone like Mr. Che Yongho. What matters isn’t the quantity but the willingness to sacrifice for others.”

Kang Jin muttered softly after hearing Kang Doochi’s explanation.

“Sacrifice?”

“To do good often requires making sacrifices.”

“Doing good deeds is one thing, but sacrificing…”

“Even if it’s not monetary, every action consumes time and resources. If you use them for others instead of yourself, that’s considered doing good. And our company, JS Finance, quantifies these actions as deposits.”

“Doing good seems quite complicated then.”

“It’s not complicated at all. Just do something good, and good things will happen.” Kang Doochi smiled and turned to Che Yongho. “We’re short on time, so please have a seat, Mr. Che Yongho.”

Kang Doochi gestured toward some empty chairs, and both Che Yongho and Shin Suho sat down.

Once they were seated, Kang Doochi addressed Shin Suho. “It would be best to start with you first.”

“Sure thing.”

Shin Suho addressed Che Yongho informally, as if they were already acquainted.

“Mr. Che Yongho, as a VIP of JS Finance, you can hire me. Will you?”

“Why would I…?”

“Oh! My apologies for not introducing myself earlier. I’m Shin Suho, a second-grade attorney from the JS Bar Association.”

“A lawyer?”

“I believe you’ll need someone to handle Lee Seung’s legal matters hereafter. Would you like to hire me?”

“As a lawyer…won’t that cost a lot of money?”

“It certainly will.”

Che Yongho grimaced at the frank admission about the high fees.

“How much does it…”

“In this case, it would be twenty million won.”

The mention of such a large sum simultaneously stunned both Che Yongho and Kang Jin.

Twenty million won?

It was an astronomical sum beyond Kang Jin’s wildest imagination. Even ten million would have been considered a huge amount of money to him, but twenty million?

Seeing their stunned reactions, Shin Suho explained, “It may seem expensive, but…we fear that the deceased might interfere with matters of this world.”

Che Yongho hesitated momentarily before replying, “I don’t have that kind of money.”

At Che Yongho’s response, Kang Doochi retrieved a tablet from his briefcase.

Even ghosts use cutting-edge technology.

Kang Doochi tapped on the screen and said, “There is currently 65,204,234 won deposited in your JS account, Mr. Che Yongho.”

“Sixty-five million won?” Che Yongho exclaimed in surprise. His wife, who had been helping their children eat, also looked back and forth between her husband and Kang Doochi, astonished.

“How did I end up with such a large sum?”

“It may not seem like it at first, but…eventually, good deeds come back to you. Some might call it karma.”

“So…this sixty million won is mine?”

“Yes, that’s correct.”

Seeing Che Yongho and his wife’s stunned expressions, Shin Suho asked:

“Will you hire him?”

Che Yongho hesitated momentarily before looking at his wife. With her nod of approval, he replied:

“I’ll hire him.”

With this response, Shin Suho nodded and took out several sheets of paper from his briefcase.

“These are the employment contracts.”

As Che Yongho signed the documents handed over by Shin Suho, Shin Suho then passed them to Kang Doochi. After reviewing the papers, Kang Doochi operated his tablet accordingly.

“Twenty million won has been deposited.”

Upon hearing this, Shin Suho stood up.

“Please follow me, Mr. Che Yongho.”

Shin Suho led Che Yongho to a secluded corner and began discussing something privately with him. Occasionally, he pulled out papers for Yongho to sign or started recording their conversation using a device from his bag.

Kang Jin discreetly asked Kang Doochi while observing them, “Can even the deceased interfere with earthly matters if they have enough money?”

“Money can make ghosts dance… So why couldn’t it control humans as well?”

“Does that mean they can do anything they want?”

“As long as they have the money, yes.”

“What if a malicious ghost tries to commit evil deeds, like killing someone…?” Kang Jin questioned further.

Kang Doochi chuckled at her inquiry. “A malicious ghost, huh… Well, there’s nothing stopping them theoretically. However… could such a malevolent entity accumulate significant wealth? Instead of amassing riches through wicked acts, they’d likely end up bankrupt.”

“Instead of accumulating wealth, their account would likely be overdrawn.”

Kang Jin nodded at Kang Doochi’s words. Just like humans, ghosts could achieve anything with money. However, currency in the afterlife differed from that in the mortal realm. Wealth accumulated during one’s lifetime was useless; instead, money in the afterlife depended on good deeds done while alive.

Evil individuals, having performed no virtuous acts, would have empty or even negative balances in their accounts. Consequently, despite wanting to commit further wrongs, they lacked the funds to do so.

While conversing with Kang Doochi, Kang Jin glanced towards Shin Suho. Shin Suho stood up, shook hands with Che Yongho, and then turned to Kang Doochi.

“Let’s go.”

Hearing this, Kang Jin hastily rose and approached Shin Suho.

“Um, Mr. Attorney Shin.”

He looked at Kang Doochi and asked, “Do you have something to say?”

“I’ve been thinking… I’m curious as to how you keep showing up like this.”

“Since I entrusted my shop with him, I just checked in on it.”

“That’s true, but…how can you appear here so quickly merely by checking in?”

“I was resting at home nearby and came straight away.”

“Where do you live?”

“Not far from here. Well then…”

With that, Shin Suho left without another word. Kang Doochi smiled at Kang Jin as he watched Shin Suho depart.

“My friend is quite straightforward. Anyway, see you later.” With a grin, Kang Doochi also exited the store, leaving Kang Jin shaking his head.

I don’t get it.

Everyone involved with this shop seemed to be peculiar.

But can one practice law both in life and after death?

As Kang Jin pondered this thought, he approached Che Yongho, who was sitting down with his family.

“How did it go, sir?”

“The lawyer assured me that he will handle everything.” Che Yongho’s face lit up. It appeared Shin Suho had convinced him of his abilities, and they reached a satisfactory agreement.

“That’s great news.”

“Thank you for your help.”

“It’s my pleasure. I’m glad things worked out well.” Smiling, Kang Jin glanced at their table before saying, “Enjoy your meal.”

Kang Jin then excused himself and entered the kitchen, leaving them to dine peacefully. By now, Bae Yongsoo had meticulously cleaned the entire space.

‘Indeed, there’s a difference when someone is paid to do a job.’

As he pondered this thought, the door opened, and the ghosts that had fled earlier started returning one by one. Kang Jin noticed their arrival and looked at Bae Yongsoo.

“Our guests are back.”

“Got it!” Bae Yongsoo raised his frying pan and shouted, “What would you like to eat? Hurry up; we’re short on time!”

The ghosts promptly placed their orders, and Bae Yongsoo and Kang Jin began preparing the food.

Early in the morning, Kang Jin woke up as usual and stepped out of the store with a broom in hand.

“Grrr! Have I been drinking too much lately?”

Ever since they started serving ghost customers, he found himself indulging in alcohol daily.

Since Bae Yongsoo officially started working at the restaurant, Kang Jin felt like he was running a bar rather than a diner.

Anyway, as Kang Jin tried to ignore his queasy stomach and opened the store’s door, he froze on the spot.

In front of him stood faint apparitions resembling Che Yongho’s ghost family from yesterday.

He knew they were ghosts, and it didn’t surprise him since he had already seen Che Yongho’s family. However…the reason for his sudden freeze was different this time.

Kang Jin was terrified.

One figure dripped blood profusely from its eyes, mouth, nose, and ears. Another had both arms broken and dangling loosely by its body. Yet another stood holding its own head in its hands.

So…surprised or not surprised? The answer was undoubtedly shocked.

Kang Jin’s eyes widened as he stared at these ghosts for a moment before slowly closing the door.

Click!

As soon as the door shut, Kang Jin collapsed onto his chair, visibly shaken.

“Wow, that was scary.”

While still seated, Kang Jin heard a voice near the door.

“Why did you come out and then go back inside?”

“Do you think they saw us when you opened the door just now?”

“So soon, we’re visible to them already?”

“It’s possible. They’ve been here all day, eating three meals…”

“Bae Yongsoo calling for Lee Kang-jin! It’s me, Bae Yongsoo!”

Hearing Bae Yongsoo’s voice outside, Kang Jin swallowed nervously and responded:

“Yongsoo?”

“Yeah, it’s me! So can you see us now?”

Kang Jin took a deep breath at this question. It reminded him of the ghosts he had just seen moments ago.

“You okay?”

“Yes.”

“I bet you were startled since it’s your first time seeing them like this. But they’re harmless despite their appearance; they’re the same spirits who frequented our restaurant.”

At Bae Yongsoo’s voice, Kang Jin hesitated momentarily before slowly rising from his seat and cautiously opening the door.

Creak!

He bit his lip as soon as he saw the ghosts still lingering outside, exactly as he’d witnessed earlier.

“It’s alright. Don’t be scared; appearances can be deceiving.”

Kang Jin looked intently at the ghost speaking to him, with blood dripping from its ears, eyes, mouth, and nose.

“Yongsoo?”

“Yeah, it’s me.”

With Bae Yongsoo’s confirmation, Kang Jin glanced around at the other ghosts. Initially shocked, he now recognized them as regular patrons of their restaurant upon closer inspection.

The most horrifying ghost had both arms crushed and was bleeding profusely from his entire body… It was Choi Ho-cheol.

‘How did Ho-chul hyung end up like this?’

As Kang Jin pondered this question, one of the ghosts stepped forward. Compared to the others, it appeared less menacing.

“You seem quite startled. Let’s take a moment.”

The ghost approached Kang Jin, placed its fingers on his chest, and started pressing several spots. Although Kang Jin couldn’t physically feel the pressure, miraculously, his racing heart began to calm down as soon as the ghost touched him.

“What is this?”

“I’m applying pressure to specific points to soothe your heart.”

“Can you really do that?”

“After all, I am known as a ‘Ghost Physician.’”

The ghost continued, “By the way, President Kang, your body is quite weak.”

“Me?”

“It seems like you haven’t been eating properly on time. Your stomach and liver health aren’t good…your knees seem weak as well. Additionally, there’s some lower back pain too.”

“My body is that bad?”

“When you wake up in the morning, do you feel stiffness in your lower back? And occasionally, do you experience hiccups?”

“Yes.”

In response to Kang Jin’s confirmation, the renowned ghost nodded.

“In return for this meal, I’ll treat you.”

Kang Jin pursed his lips at the ghost healer’s words.

I guess now I’m getting treated by a ghost.

First, he hired a ghost chef to cook food for other ghosts, and now he was about to receive medical treatment from another ghost.

Kang Jin licked his lips, eager for what was to come.