《Geomancy couple》 Chapter 1 Beep. Beep. Tinkle-tinkle. No matter how loudly the alarm clock rang, Arum still kept on dreaming. She briefly opened her eyes at the surrounding noise and then closed her eyes again, with her body and soul still separated from each other. ¡°Hey, Arum Yang!¡± Somebody shook her hard, but her senses remained numb. ¡°I saw you opening your eyes. Get up!¡± ¡®Who could it be?¡¯ That voice was familiar to Arum. It was a familiar voice, but she didn¡¯t care. The more she thought about it, the more her head became a mess. But it faded like a distant dream due to her dull senses. She was absorbed in doing some shopping in her dream. A latest model TV set, refrigerator, coffee machine, water purifier and oven. Bed and sofa. For the first time in her life, she kept choosing what she really wanted to have. Was it the day when she was preparing her trousseau three years ago? She spent 10 million won on buying all the furnishings for her wedding! She heard things again the moment the man¡¯s face was about to become visible. ¡°Arum?¡± ¡°Ugh?¡± she replied inadvertently while continuing shopping. Her bridegroom Konsu was smiling at her. At that moment, she opened her eyes. Arum frowned at the brightness of the fluorescent light. It was noisy around her, with someone sticking out his face, and she had a hangover. ¡®I wish I didn¡¯t drink too much.¡¯ It was too late, though. When she opened her eyes a little, she saw Jina. ¡®Am I still in the bar?¡¯ Nope. She clearly paid for drinks with her own credit card and left. ¡®Where am I now? Who am I?¡¯ She couldn¡¯t figure out anything. She only recognized Jina. ¡°What the heck? Did I sleep at your house? I think I blacked out then, right?¡± But her friend slapped her on the back with her palm. ¡°Are you crazy? You must be crazy.¡± Curling up like a cicada larva, Arum replied, ¡°What the hell are you talking about? I¡¯m not crazy.¡± ¡°Just look at how out of shape you are now! ¡®You¡¯re crazy¡¯ is all over your face. Just look at it!¡± When Jina kindly turned her around, she saw that there was a large full-sized mirror at her back. Swollen eyes? Obviously, she drank too much. Tangled hair? She could wash it clean. Foamy saliva mark on her mouth? Everybody had it when they were seniors in high school. And police uniforms? What the heck? Police? Astonished, Arum looked around. Clearly, she was in the police station. Policemen were busy doing their duties. ¡®Damn it! I¡¯m in the police station!¡¯ She looked at them with a bit of admiration and awe. How could they take care of a drunk citizen like her when they were snowed under work? Jina made her aware of the reality. She suddenly raised her finger and pointed somewhere. Aurm found a policeman walking up to her. ¡°He¡¯s in charge of your case.¡± Hearing that, Arum tried to fix her tangled hair and tie it into order. But she had no band. Jina noticed and quickly picked up a yellow rubber band on the floor. She tied her hair in a ponytail. She couldn¡¯t see the policeman as her hair blocked her view. ¡°Hey, do I look good? How about my hair?¡± asked Aurm. ¡°Are you having a blind date? You criminal!¡± replied Jina coldly. Without paying any attention to their bickering, the policeman approached. ¡°Have you come to your senses?¡± ¡°Yes, I¡¯m sorry.¡± ¡°I wish you had been more careful. You should apologize to that person over there, not to me.¡± With a cute look on his face, the kind policeman pointed at a man. ¡°Oh, I see.¡± Arum looked at the man with the most polite expression on her face. Her eyes met his. He was puckering up his face at the moment. He was a handsome guy, whose casual knitwear and loafer shoes made him look good. When he was seated, he looked like he had a standard Korean man¡¯s height, but he was much taller when he stood up. But he felt familiar to her. ¡®Where did I see him? Do I know him?¡¯ Before she could pursue that train of thought, the policeman left the place, saying, ¡°Try to initiate some good conversation.¡± Arum was still tilting her head. Instead of Arum who couldn¡¯t figure out what had happened at all, it was Jina who made a desperate appeal to him. ¡°Look! She got completely drunk last night. How could she steal anything? Hey, Arum Yang, where did you tell your substitute driver to go last night?¡± Where? Arum narrowed her eyes to focus only for a moment, but she felt a pit in her stomach. Damned hangover, let alone migraine! ¡°Did you clearly tell the driver about your destination?¡± ¡°Yes, I did. I told him to take me to Green Villa in Yonsinnae.¡± What? Green Villa? Suddenly, Arum shut her mouth. No way! ¡°Hey, did I really go to Green Villa?¡± She suddenly became sober and came to her senses. Her hangover and migraine were only excuses. ¡°Me?¡± There was no point of asking that question. She couldn¡¯t believe it. She felt that she had completely forgotten him and erased him from her mind. But it turned out that it was only her wishful thinking. It was her body that made her not forget her former fianc¨¦. A year ago, Green Villa was the house where she made a home with her fianc¨¦, Konsu. That was also the place she boarded at for five years. Anyway, she never revealed it to anybody after she broke off her engagement with him. What if she won the lottery? She would use all the money to buy that villa and smash it excitedly. What if she came into power? She would remove the administrative district that held jurisdiction over that villa. She wouldn¡¯t care even if the people got upset. For that villa served as hell to her all along. Anyway, obviously she went to that place under the influence of alcohol. Arum felt pitiful about herself. Come to think of it, she felt she was miserable, pathetic and pitiful, as if she were the heroine of a melodrama. Yes, her behavior last night was not weird at all. Was it a crime? Nope. Aurm was staring at Jina, with whom she was on close terms for the past ten years. ¡®How could you know my sublime love?¡¯ And then she cast a glance at the man. ¡®Hey, I think I pressed the doorbell of your house and acted like a drunkard. Granted that, how could you report me to the police? Do you know anything about love?¡¯ She became more and more confident. She also became convinced that she was innocent. She didn¡¯t want to be treated as a criminal on a false charge. Staring at Jina with a confident face, Arum said, ¡°Do you think it was wrong that I visited Green Villa? I could go there!¡± The man responded suddenly, ¡°Yeah, you could!¡± He spoke in a calm voice. It looked like he was a man of good understanding and generosity. ¡®He¡¯s got a good character as a man!¡¯ She instantly felt her case would be quickly closed. She wanted to get out of the police box as soon as possible. She wanted to take a shower and then go to a coffee shop. ¡°Did you say it was your former boyfriend¡¯s house?¡± That man smiled at her and added, ¡°Oh, I see.¡± To put it correctly, it was a matrimonial home, and not solely his. But Arum just smiled without responding. Knowing the ins and outs of Arum¡¯s situation, Jina¡¯s jaws dropped. ¡®What an idiot! She cannot make heads or tails of it.¡¯ Jina strongly signaled her to beg for his forgiveness, but to no avail. Arum opened her mouth, ¡°Yes, it¡¯s the matrimonial home. Look at its space. It¡¯s too big for one man, but good enough for a couple. Are you living alone there? Heating bill is too high. Have you changed the boiler?¡± But he reacted coldly. He even snorted at her question. Arum felt bad. ¡°Well, you may be right,¡± he said sarcastically. Losing her temper, she was about to retort when he cut in, ¡°Still, you should not have broken into my house.¡± Breaking into his house? That wording reminded one of a heinous criminal who killed or injured men and robbed them. Arum could hardly believe her ears when he used that wording. She tried to calm down. She asked rationally, ¡°Did I trespass? Me?¡± At that moment, the policeman brought a laptop. It contained a clip about Arum¡¯s behavior last night, videotaped by the CCTV installed at Green Villa from various angles. As the device was recently upgraded, the quality of the video was in UHD. In the video clip, Arum looked completely wasted. After getting off a taxi driven by a chauffeur, she opened Green Villa¡¯s main gate. She took off her heels at the gate and began to walk up the stairs while stumbling, with her long hair shaken out loose. Click, click, click. The lights attached with automatic sensors on the stairs were turned on one after another as she walked up. Chapter 2 Let¡¯s watch the CCTV footage in front of Villa No. 302. When she arrived there, Arum had pressed the password on the lock pompously. She must have heard some sharp sound of error on it. She inputted the password for several times before taking out a key from her bag. When the key didn¡¯t work, she bawled and wailed. ¡°Hey!¡± She kicked the door and pushed herself against it. Finally, she examined the sticker glued to the door and called somebody. Most likely, she had called a locksmith. She even fell asleep while she was waiting for the locksmith. When he arrived, she bowed to him politely. While watching her behavior last night, Arum felt distressed. Now she began to trace her memory clearly. She remembered she had said, ¡°I really can¡¯t recall the password you gave me at that time. You changed it at that time. The lock here is wrong, so change it.¡± Scrutinizing her from head to foot, the locksmith got down to work. Though he did it quickly, she fell asleep again. Finally, the front door was opened. She presented her credit card to pay for his service. ¡°I don¡¯t accept card.¡± ¡°Oh, I¡¯m sorry.¡± Taking out several notes from her wallet, she asked, ¡°How much did you say? I don¡¯t have enough cash. Wait a minute.¡± ¡°Hey, since I know you, let me take the cash. Just wire the remaining balance into my account.¡± ¡°Thanks.¡± Bowing to him politely once again, she went into the room. The screening of the CCTV footage ended there. Feigning ignorance, however, Aurm talked back, ¡°Yesterday? Did I do that?¡± But nobody seemed to believe her. Even her friend Jina didn¡¯t. ¡°I¡¯m sorry,¡± said Arum. She couldn¡¯t raise her head. It seemed that guy, whose villa she broke into, was not finished yet. ¡°I¡¯ve got another evidence with me. Can you take a look?¡± No, no! But she had no other choice but to watch his cell phone full of her own pictures. The look of her sleeping on the sofa was bizarre, and her meticulous make-up was a mess. She felt ashamed, but at the same time she got upset at the fact that he took pictures of her lousy behavior secretly. ¡°Don¡¯t you think this is a violation of portrait rights?¡± She lost her temper, but she should have refrained from it. The policeman intervened, ¡°We call this an evidence. As he reported this incident to us right away, we took measures to preserve the scene as it was, but he did have the right to take the photos just in case, which was good.¡± Now, Arum realized that all the people had turned their backs against her, including her long-time friend Jina. Crossing his arms, the guy moved his legs and stared at Arum. She felt a prick in her heart. If she could have her own way, she wanted to have a big argument with him. But she couldn¡¯t because of that hard evidence. The guy asked the policeman for the next move while looking at her, ¡°What should I do about her now?¡± With a smile, the policeman answered, ¡°I recommend both of you to resolve the matter amiably.¡± ¡°Absolutely. I¡¯m so sorry. Do you think I went to your place on purpose? Damned alcohol, these nasty drinking habits of mine are to blame¡­¡± In recent years, she had never acted more subserviently than now. The policeman tried to cajole him into settling the matter with her, ¡°Why don¡¯t you take into account each other¡¯s position and settle the matter smoothly? Arum Han, don¡¯t forget to wire the remaining balance of 300,000 won to the locksmith¡¯s account.¡± ¡°Sure, can I do it now?¡± she asked, taking out her cell phone. But the policeman gestured her not to do so. Her priority was to settle the case, not to pay the locksmith. The guy was not persuaded by the policeman and Arum. He presented conditions for the settlement. ¡°You have to pay for the cleaning, including quarantine. If you know any cleaning company, you can contact it. You shouldn¡¯t clean by yourself. Please contact a professional cleaning company.¡± Why should I pay for the cleaning work? She felt his condition was unfair. ¡°Why should I pay for it? I think it¡¯s unfair for me to pay for the quarantine expenses.¡± she asked, widening her eyes. How could he tell her to pay for quarantine expenses just because she slept on his sofa briefly? She got upset. But the guy showed her a picture in his smartphone. She couldn¡¯t identify what it was, but it looked disgusting. It looked like food waste. ¡°Didn¡¯t you notice your vomit here? Do you want me to clean it?¡± Astonished to see that, Arum closed her mouth with both hands. ¡®Was it true that I vomited?¡¯ She was so embarrassed that she did not know what to do. The photos taken vividly told the truth about what she had last night. She just felt ashamed to answer. ¡°So, do you want me to clean it?¡± he repeatedly asked her like a stalker. ¡°No, no, let me take care of it.¡± After hearing her reply, he showed her another photo. ¡°Look here! You also vomited in front of my front door.¡± ¡°No way!¡± Arum desperately rejected. How could a superb woman like Arum collapse because of alcohol? It was a terrible day. ¡°Well, you can confirm it in the CCTV footage.¡± His face was like that of a ten-year-old boy who kept at the argument tenaciously. ¡°Okay, let me wrap it up at this point. Can you settle for my request?¡± Then, he pretended to dust his hands off as if he were forgiving her generously. Arum felt offended. ¡®Well, I know I did something wrong, but you can¡¯t make me lose my dignity! So what?¡¯ She really wanted to talk like that, but refrained. ¡°So, what else do you want me to do?¡± asked Arum rather arrogantly, raising her head. ¡°By the way, I deducted what you took from my refrigerator,¡± said the man. ¡°Oh my¡­¡¯ Arum instantly lowered her head. ¡°You really ate a lot of food from there. You even touched a white pottery¡­¡± ¡°I do remember the pottery! I didn¡¯t drink alcohol in it.¡± It was a poor excuse, of course. ¡°Well, you opened a bottle inside the pottery. It was a quality home-made liquor worth 380,000 won.¡± ¡°I really didn¡¯t drink it.¡± She vaguely recalled a pottery bottle. As it was too heavy, she put it back into the refrigerator. ¡°Yeah, I wouldn¡¯t charge you for that.¡± Arum bowed to him quickly. She was too ashamed to express her thanks to him. The man then stood up, without appreciating her thanks. At that moment a middle-aged policeman, who was watching them at a distance, approached him, holding a book. ¡°Hojoon Lee, you must be the geomancy expert, right?¡± The guy¡¯s name was Hojoon Lee. ¡°Yes, that¡¯s correct.¡± He gently smiled when the police officer recognized him. Arum, who had quick eyes for learning things, detected the police officer¡¯s hypocrisy. ¡®He¡¯s different on the inside and the outside.¡¯ The police station instantly turned into a popular author¡¯s meeting with fans. Those making a noise at a distance came close to Hojoon. The middle-aged police officer presented a book and said, ¡°Can you sign your autograph here for me?¡± The book was called . The moment she looked at the book, Arum recalled his name. Ah! Geomancy master Hojoon Lee! He was the very man who appeared in an educational TV program to lecture about the geomancy of making money and hitting the gold mine. He was popular. Arum read an interview piece about him a month ago on the occasion of his new book. While he was getting Hojoon¡¯s autograph, the police officer said, ¡°I feel it awkward seeing you here. It¡¯s better for you not to come to a police station.¡± ¡°I know. This is the first time that I came here.¡± ¡°Really?¡± ¡°I mean, it¡¯s the first time I that I¡¯ve come here because of my personal affairs. I once visited a local police station to check out the geomancy of its chief¡¯s office.¡± ¡°Oh, did you meet such a police chief?¡± ¡°Yes, he was promoted to a position in the police headquarters later.¡± Hojoon felt proud of it. Those officers who gathered around him began to gossip about him. The middle-aged officer got more interested because he was on the waiting list of promotions. ¡°Wow, you¡¯re great! What¡¯s the secret?¡± ¡°In fact, places like a police station or courthouse related to lawsuits are avoided by geomancy talkers. You¡¯re sick and tired of criminals, right?¡± While saying that, Hojoon¡¯s eyes met with Arum¡¯s. He continued, ¡°By the way, I hear there were an unusually high number of incidents in every place that the police chief was assigned to. As a result, he was promoted many years later than his peers, so this time he desperately asked for my help because if he failed to get promoted this time, his juniors would overtake him.¡± Chapter 3 Arum enjoyed a New Yorker-looking Hojoon explaining to him kindly. Though he talked to her coldly, he reeled off a story pleasantly to the public. ¡°So, what¡¯s the secret of his promotion?¡± asked the middle-aged officer. It seemed that he was anxious to get a promotion as soon as possible. ¡°I asked him to put a small statue of Guan Yu in front of his office.¡± ¡°You mean that famous General Guan Yu appearing in the History of the Three Kingdoms, right?¡± ¡°Yes. As the police chief¡¯s life was like those of the main characters of the Three Kingdoms, he allegedly put the statue there immediately. Though this is something unfamiliar in our country, I heard the story from my friend Mark in Hong Kong. He said there were several statues of Guan Yu inside the police stations there. Guan Yu signified power and martial arts. There is a shrine that pays tribute to Guan Yu in our country.¡± ¡°Aha~¡± Arum found herself indulged in Hojoon¡¯s lecture on geomancy. He continued, ¡°Guan Yu symbolizes martial arts and power in Hong Kong, China and our country. A symbol of power. I hear that Hong Kong policemen pray before the statue of Guan Yu before going into action. They pray like, ¡®Give us power to crack down on criminals!¡¯ Guan Yu is kind of a patron saint, so they try to create power through the statue. What would happen if anybody set up such a statue inside the police station?¡± ¡°Oh, no! We¡¯ll receive a flurry of civil complaints.¡± The other police officer seconded, ¡°Right! They will complain it¡¯s superstition or a ghost, asking for the immediate removal of such a statute.¡± Arum kept nodding. That was true, because geomancy was superstition. Did he read her beautiful mind? He was now speaking passionately. ¡°By the way, why don¡¯t you believe in superstitions?¡± Arum felt a sting in her heart. ¡°Why don¡¯t you believe in superstitions? Isn¡¯t it okay if crimes are decreasing, and policemen are not injured thanks to superstitions?¡± His argument was kind of persuasive. ¡°Geomancy is not superstition. It¡¯s science. These days, geography can be measured by electromagnetic waves and magnetic fields. The effects of geomancy are proven by specific data. Do you want a strong police? Then, put a miniature statue of Guan Yu on your table. Your place will turn into a propitious spot.¡± Wow! There were cheers and applause among them. He was very charismatic. His lecture, which started with his signing his autographs, seemed to have moved their minds. They would recognize the images of Guan Yu on the internet. Arum felt interested in this eccentric guy. ¡®Was geomancy so attractive?¡¯ What if the geomancy expert she had met three years ago for the first time in her life was this man? Arum still gnashed her teeth at the thought of that geomancy expert she met on that day. It was three months ago before her marriage that Arum met geomancy expert Paekhoon. It was during a lecture session titled ¡®Geomancy Interior for the Newly Weds¡¯ held at the cultural center of a department store that she met him. The lecture was a four-part series. The old lecturer with grey hair coached those soon-to-be-married couples not only about geomancy, but also about the wisdom of marriage. ¡°Newlywed life? Wonderful. My wife was so beautiful back then, much more beautiful than you here. I was looking forward to the marriage date. You know why? Because I wanted to sleep with her. That¡¯s my only thinking back then.¡± Everyone made a hearty laugh at his witty remarks. A characteristic of soon-to-be-married couples was that they were generous. Basically, they became so happy to the point that they might even feel sorry for their overflowing happiness. ¡°So, I got married. How happy we were! I think we lived together for about two months. I was so happy, really happy to be with her. But the problem was she wouldn¡¯t go out of the house.¡± This time, soon-to-be husbands only laughed. ¡°Hey, if you¡¯re a man, you know that. Even if you are happy with your wife, you want to be left alone. For what? You can gamble, have drinks or meet other girls. As you have to be in the same house as your wife, it will drive you nuts.¡± Aha~ Brides-to-be nodded their heads. ¡°I¡¯m saying you grooms-to-be should live like that. These days, if you live like that, you¡¯ll get divorced immediately. Yin and yang are so different from each other. In other words, males and females have different spaces of their own. I just wanted to explain that to you in a different way. Do you understand? If you feel frustrated even after you get married, just let me know through Kakao messenger. Let me tip you off on a good place.¡± Konsu, Arum¡¯s fianc¨¦, responded favorably, laughing his head off. When Arum gently asked him, ¡®Do you feel the same way?¡¯ Konsu said ambiguously, ¡®Well, men are all the same.¡¯ And on the day when geomancy expert Paekhoon was supposed to give the last lecture, a guy dressed in a traditional Josun-style robe came instead to deliver it. It looked as if he was just thrust into the modern Korea from Josun, or old Korea. It was not just because he was dressed in traditional Korean robes. Just like a typical Josun man, he let his braided hair down and put on traditional Korean leather shoes called taesahae. ¡°As my father flew to Germany urgently on a business trip, I had to come here in his place.¡± The participants were surprised at seeing that he was a carbon copy of his father Paekhoon. His speaking tone and facial expressions, too, were exactly the same as his father¡¯s. As it turned out, they were supposed to have a question and answer session on that day. He received questions in advance through the bulletin board of the website as well as the question paper placed on each participant¡¯s desk. Arum wrote down several questions on a piece of paper while waiting for Konsu. ¡®Will he really not come here?¡¯ Her quarrel with him last night bothered her. She would have to see him anyway. When she saw soon-to-be-married couples coming into the lecture hall, Arum became more impatient. Afterward, the lecture began, and Arum was sitting alone. The young geomancy lecturer said he started with a village school and continued studies by taking qualification exams. He briefly introduced himself, explaining that he was learning about fame and wealth, science of changes and geomancy from his father. ¡°Let me reply to your questions first. How do you want me to arrange the dining tables? You can just arrange them for the convenience of your dining.¡± Suddenly, the soon-to-be-married couples looked disappointed. ¡°The basic of geomancy is the right functioning of your body. If you live in a leased house with a small space, just forget about the dining table. It¡¯s better to use a sitting table. You can use it as a desk when you study, a dining table when you eat, and a refreshments table when you enjoy fruits.¡± He looked like a pretty boring lecturer. ¡°Let¡¯s assume your parents bought you a large house where you can place a big dining table. Then, buy a round table. Some say they prefer a rectangular table to a round table because the latter occupies a large space. But think of this! How long do you think your newlywed life will last?¡± Now, the soon-to-be brides¡¯ faces turned pale. They couldn¡¯t protest by shouting, ¡®What the heck are you talking about!?¡¯ They seemed to put up with his lecture just because he was geomancy expert Paekhoon¡¯s son. ¡°If you buy a rectangular table, you should sit face to face with your spouse. But let¡¯s assume you had a quarrel or you felt bad. In that case, you have to turn back not to see your spouse. Haven¡¯t you done the same in your teens to avoid seeing your parents¡¯ faces? If you buy a round table, you don¡¯t have to do so. You don¡¯t have to sit face to face with your spouse. You won¡¯t feel bad because you can sit before the round table the way you want. What we hate the most in geomancy are corners. The murderous spirit is emitted from corners. So, buy a dining table that is as round as possible. Got it?¡± While listening to his lecture, Arum took notes, though she felt bad. The contents of his lecture were the same as his father Paekhoon¡¯s, but she just felt bad for some reason. The young lecturer was about to reply to a second question. At that moment, she was calling Konsu. ¡°How long do you think you¡¯ll take?¡± But Konsu didn¡¯t reply. ¡°Here is the second question. Why is it that I¡¯m dating only a scam?¡± Arum was astonished to hear that. She submitted that question as she was upset about Konsu. Fortunately, she didn¡¯t state her name. But she felt as if everybody was looking at her, since she was the only one sitting alone. ¡°The answer is simple,¡± said the young geomancy guy eloquently. Chapter 4 Everybody looked at his lips attentively. So did Arum, swallowing. ¡®Why should I keep meeting the type of man who is like a scam? I really have no idea. I chose my fianc¨¦ among a myriad of men, but he¡¯s eating my heart out with anxiety.¡¯ ¡°You! Because you¡¯re a trash can!¡± the lecturer mercilessly said in a sharp tone. All the people were shocked. The lecture hall was even more silent than the rough Siberian wilderness with blowing biting winds. He tore Arum¡¯s wounded heart and threw salt on it, saying, ¡°The purpose of a trash can is to contain garbage. Who would put garbage in a jewelry box? When I attended a kindergarten in Paris, my teacher said, ¡®You should not throw away garbage. You should not create it from the start.¡¯ Period.¡± Arum felt dizzy while hearing his reply. She was criticizing him within her heart, ¡®Did you say you were born in Paris? Are you joking?¡¯ He continued, ¡°I found no trash cans in my friends¡¯ houses in Paris. They put the trash can in an out-of-sight corner such as below the kitchen sink or in a warehouse. Even then, it¡¯s important to hide it. Let me say to the woman who asked this question: You should never have met such a scam from the beginning!¡± That last sentence of his was a finishing blow to Arum. With sunken eyes, roughly tied hair and dry lips, she burst into tears, after all. She stamped out of the lecture hall. She shivered. She gnashed her teeth at the thought of him. Of course, she broke up her engagement with Konsu. Three years passed after that, but she was forced to come to a police station because of Konsu¡¯s ghost. However, she felt different today. She wanted to tell this intellectual geomancy master about that young geomancy guy. She just felt it rather regretful to have formed a bad image of geomancy because of that phony geomancy guy. While she was looking at him blankly, Hojoon suddenly approached her, asking her, ¡°Aren¡¯t you going to work?¡± ¡°Oh, yeah, I should,¡± Arum said, startled while answering his question mechanically. ¡®Right! I have a ten o¡¯clock meeting on today.¡¯ She said, ¡°Okay, then. Let me accept your condition. I¡¯ll contact you later.¡± Hojoon gave her his business card and then left. Sitting on a bench at the bus stop before the police station, Arum felt as if she was bewitched by a ghost. It was only an overnight happening, but at the same time, it was a spectacular adventure for her. She thought she forgot all the memories of what had happened three years ago, but they were still hidden deep in her heart. Little did she expect that her life would change so much because of her quarrel with Konsu three years ago. It all started with the matter of ramen, or instant noodles. On that very day in question, she and Konsu purchased home appliances. Typically, lovers didn¡¯t want to spend even 10,000 won on buying their stuff, but on that day, Arum and Konsu just came back home after spending as much as one million won on buying wedding shower gifts. And their matrimonial home was the house that Arum rented but purchased later on the occasion of her marriage. Though it was just a plain old villa, she thought it was large enough for a couple. They were hungry as they skipped lunch while they were absorbed in buying home appliances. But the refrigerator was empty. What¡¯s available at the moment was just one ramen. ¡°What shall we order?¡± said Arum, dangling a food ad attached on the refrigerator before Konsu. But Konsu replied inattentively, switching TV channels with a remote control. On any other day he would have replied, ¡°Wait a minute. Let me cook for you.¡± When he dated her, he really wanted to. He really wanted to please her. But he began to think differently when his wedding was just around the corner. ¡®You are not supposed to cook for others, but each should cook for their own survival. It is not that men do not well, but that they don¡¯t cook.¡¯ Konsu recalled that phrase that he underlined while reading a book. As a working couple, it was inefficient for one to cook for the other, he thought. ¡®Whew! I should practice this when I become married.¡¯ He was confident that Arum was a rational woman who could distinguish theory from practice. ¡°What I mean is we should order food as the refrigerator is empty,¡± he said. Appeasing her offended feelings as much as he could, she responded to his annoying reply. ¡°Right now they should be watching the Korean-Japanese soccer match on TV. Do you think they can deliver our order on time?¡± Konsu asked. ¡°You bet.¡± ¡°Let¡¯s eat ramen.¡± ¡°We¡¯ve got just one. Won¡¯t you go out and buy another one?¡± Having said that, Arum expected that Konsu would stand up and go on an errand. There was a convenience store within one-minute walking distance. ¡°One ramen is enough. I know you¡¯re the best cook as far as cooking ramen is concerned,¡± said Konsu. As expected, he only gave lip service. ¡°Oh my¡­ You¡­¡± she quipped at him. ¡°I know what you¡¯re trying to say. Love me?¡± said Konsu. She felt like she lost again. ¡°Yea, I love you with all of my life,¡± she said. Kissing his cheek gently, she went back into the kitchen. The poor lovers attached a romantic meaning to a single ramen. So far, so good. At that moment, the kitchen sink drawer fell off all of a sudden. The rail supporting the drawer was torn off. She got angry, taking out a ladle. Her fingers felt like they were burning as she was holding the falling drawer. ¡°Dang it! That¡¯s why I asked you to change this sink,¡± she said. Obviously, she got annoyed. Though she jerked out words carelessly, Konsu spoke with a serious face, ¡°Bullshit! Why are you bringing it up again? We were done talking about that, right?¡± Konsu was also annoyed as he went around with her all day long to buy home appliances because Arum insisted on buying a coffee machine that was missing on the wedding shower list. ¡°We don¡¯t have to go to a coffee shop if we obtain this,¡± said Arum. ¡°Are you sure you won¡¯t go to a coffee shop?¡± In fact, Konsu felt it was a waste of money to drink coffee whenever he dated her. Now, he didn¡¯t have to date her, so he was intent on stopping drinking tasteless coffee. Someone extolled its supreme taste, but it was just bitter water to Konsu. ¡®You want to have coffee at home? And you want to buy a coffee machine for it?¡¯ Konsu couldn¡¯t understand. But Arum tried her best to cajole him into buying one. Though he knew she told a white lie, he decided to believe it. He even felt miserable because it was he who begged her for marriage despite his meager income. So, he purchased one in six-month installments, as he felt he couldn¡¯t at another time. In fact, he recalled a piece of advice from his senior friends who got married. ¡°Preparing a wedding shower? Just accept what your bride-to-be wants to do. Otherwise, you¡¯ll be burned out. Buy the stuff even with a loan. As you have to pay it off anyway, buy your own stuff, too,¡± he said. But he flew off the handle at her complaint about the sink. Actually, he agreed with her to keep using the sink. Instead of changing it, they promised to move to a new house as early as possible. He didn¡¯t feel good about her throwing a tantrum because she was aware of that promise. Konsu and Aurm were pretty sensitive to the matter of the sink replacement. Arum got angry whenever she looked at the sink that didn¡¯t befit a newlyweds¡¯ house. Obviously, it was a mismatch with the new linoleum, new wallpaper and new home appliances. She didn¡¯t feel happy while looking at it. She even felt her pride was offended when she wanted to say she was unhappy because of that sink. But when the sink was broken, she just revealed her genuine feelings before her brain caught up to her mouth. ¡°Why are you using foul language? I just said that carelessly.¡± ¡°Stop it.¡± ¡°Why should I? Did I say anything wrong?¡± ¡°Damn it!¡± said Konsu angrily. And then he threw the remote control at the wall. Crash! Upon hitting the wall, the remote control broke, with its broken pieces bouncing all over. ¡°Good heavens!¡± Arum couldn¡¯t sit idle, of course. ¡°Do you think I¡¯m not throwing stuff because I don¡¯t know how to?¡± Konsu was completely resigned to the situation. This time he trampled on the notebook on the floor. Crack, crack! The sound of its monitor cracking was heard loudly. ¡°Oh my god! What did you do now, Konsu Han!¡± Ignoring her shouting, he got out of the house right away, and sent her a text message. She slumped down onto the floor and began to sob when she received the message. She called him at his cell phone, but he didn¡¯t answer it. But he didn¡¯t come when 3 PM came around the next day. Arum and Konsu, both 27-year-old, a campus couple, were separated just like that because of a single ramen. Chapter 5 She came to her senses thanks to that pre-recorded announcement at the bus stop. She felt deeply remorseful about herself as she couldn¡¯t forget the nightmare three years ago. Though the bus arrived, she gave it a pass. She had to catch a tax to report to work on time. Fortunately, a taxi was approaching. Meanwhile, Hojoon, who got out of the police station, also didn¡¯t feel good. He found out that his house was once owned by a couple who broke off their engagement. Arum¡¯s reason for breaking into his house was more romantic than he thought. How much she did love him if she couldn¡¯t forget about him? As the head of the company Famed House of Geomancy, Hojoon had to work late into the night everyday due to an increasing workload. He was on his way home after working through the night yesterday, too. After he was done, he planned to travel to Hong Kong two days later, which he had put off, pressed for work. Though he took vacation leave, it was actually a business trip that included his attendance at a seminar and forum. With his vacation just around the corner, however, he was snowed under more than before. He could let his staff take care of some of his work or he could manage it after he returned from his vacation. But he decided to finish the work before his travel to Hong Kong. That was the way he handled his work. He was satisfied only when he got on top of it. So, when he returned home at around 3 AM after finishing his work, he found the lights were on in his living room. He got suspicious. As he was a perfectionist, he had never made a mistake. And when he went to work, he turned off the light in the living room. He liked the sun rising through the dawn. He didn¡¯t need any artificial light until after he took a shower, got dressed and brewed coffee. The windows faced the sun during mornings, and his room caught sunlight until he left the house for work in the morning. Except for the period from late fall until winter, he didn¡¯t turn on the light in the living room. Robbery? Definitely! But he couldn¡¯t report to the police recklessly. Holding his breath, he walked up the staircase. His heart rate was palpable. The intruder broke the front door to get in. The intruder was a pretty bold guy, Hojoon thought. He suddenly freaked out. He futilely tried to find any dangerous tool to defend himself. Oh! He noticed a mop in front of his neighbor¡¯s house. He was stressed because of his neighbor who placed their garbage in front of the door. Today, the mop looked like a savior to him. He recalled the posture of fencing that he had learned in middle school. His hands, which were holding the mop, trembled. What if the intruder had a lethal weapon and ran out suddenly?¡± What about the danger of gas explosion? Did he set up a homemade bomb? With his heart pounding hard, he cautiously approached. As the automatic sensor of his front door turned on, a big object was reflected in his eyes. A big object covered with hair. Woman? ¡®What the heck? Is she a woman?¡¯ Was she bleeding, stabbed in the body? He got scared. Was she dead? He poked her in the arm with the mop. She was moving, which meant she was alive. Whew! He felt relieved to know the intruder was not a robber. Instead, he gave a fake smile. As if she felt a knot in her stomach, that woman shifted her posture. She twisted, rolled, and then sat between the living room and the front door. He stared at her vacantly. She must be completely drunk, given she broke into a stranger¡¯s house. Then she curled up her body like a small child. No, upon double checking, he found that she was not a small figure. She was tall and slender. If she were not drunk, she would be regarded as very sensual and unique. The intruder was far from daunted. When she felt someone¡¯s presence, she narrowly opened her eyes and opened her mouth, ¡°Are you Konsu?¡± She called her boyfriend¡¯s name under the influence of alcohol. ¡°Konsu!¡± she called him in a very doleful voice. ¡®What the heck is she doing?¡¯ She intruded into a stranger¡¯s house and called her boyfriend¡¯s name mindlessly. Hojoon ignored her calls. He was thinking hard about whether to call 119 or 112. ¡°Konsu!¡± He was sick and tired of her repeated calling. ¡°Uh? It¡¯s me,¡± he lied as if he were Konsu, after all. At that moment, she burst into tears. It was the first time he saw a woman crying. Tears were streaming down her cheeks all of a sudden. He felt like he should not do so, but he still moved. And then he held her in his arms. ¡®Yes, let me treat her warmly with the spirit of benevolence. I¡¯m hugging her not as a woman, but as a human being.¡¯ He continued to justify his behavior. ¡®This lady is like a woman living alone or a pet that needs love.¡¯ It seemed that the woman really wanted to be hugged in somebody¡¯s arms. As if on cue, she sobbed while being held in his arms. Her words were inaudible due to her sobbing. Though he could hardly understand what she was saying, he silently patted her on the back. Controlling her sobbing a bit, she opened her mouth again. ¡°Please¡­stay with me, will you?¡± He was patting her on the back gently. ¡°Just don¡¯t leave me!¡± she desperately begged, swallowing her tears. ¡°No, I¡¯m not going to leave you.¡± Though he lied, he firmly promised that he would not. Back home from the police station, Hojoon took off his shoes before the front door. ¡®Yes, I won¡¯t leave you.¡¯ It seemed as if his own reply was echoing. He laughed mirthlessly. How could he remember a drunken intruder? Erasing that memory, he stepped into the living room. He turned on the light and threw himself onto the daybed. ¡°Oh my¡­¡± Come to think of it, he had been sitting up for 24 hours. He couldn¡¯t go to sleep at all. He was overwhelmed by fatigue. The daybed was a piece of furniture on which he could sit or lie down. It¡¯s often used for taking a nap in the western countries, so it¡¯s called a daybed. He purchased it one month ago. It was a low wooden bench with a mattress on top, so it was a good match with Korean furniture. As the daybed was made with the solid wood of a walnut tree, one could enjoy its beauty fully. ¡®Wait a moment. Why am I focusing on this daybed so much?¡¯ He wanted to hit the sack as soon as possible, but he was becoming more sober. Why? He suddenly got up and sat down. Damn it! He couldn¡¯t go to sleep at all. Her figure came into his mind often. *** The taxi that Arum was in got stuck in the traffic congestion. Fortunately, she left the police station early in the morning, so she still had some time. ¡®Why am I so nervous?¡¯ Arum was holding her hands tightly because she thought she could calm down by doing so. ¡®What is it?¡¯ And she searched for her bag. She was going to tell everything to Jina who betrayed her. ¡°Oh my!¡± She tried to find her bag and cell phone, but in vain. Obviously, she left them in the taxi. As she left the taxi empty-handed, she must have been pretty scared to be so out of her mind. There was no point in regretting her behavior last night. Her car, though it was a used one, was probably parked in the garage of Green Villa. ¡°Sorry, but can you go back to Yonsinnae Village?¡± Her heart began to pound from then on. She was nervous because the taxi driver might know she was broke at the moment. But there was no possibility that he knew it. As long as she could find her wallet, she could pay for the taxi fare. But things didn¡¯t work out as she expected. After all, she rode the taxi back to Green Villa, the place she vowed she would never come back to. Though she could step into her former house under the influence of alcohol, she felt as if she was being dragged into a slaughterhouse. ¡°Right there, please. Thanks.¡± The taxi driver stopped the car in front of the villa. ¡°By the way, I¡¯ve got a wallet in the house. Please wait here for a moment.¡± She quickly got off and raced to the garage. ¡®Ah, car key!¡¯ Why did she hastily judge her car key to be in her pocket? She searched her pocket for the key, but she did not find it. Where did she put the key? Nonetheless, she cherished some hope that she could open her car, so she pulled the knob of the door on the driver¡¯s seat. But it didn¡¯t open. She didn¡¯t receive any personal belongings from the police station, and neither did Jina. ¡®Did I leave it in his villa?¡¯ Chapter 6 Arum looked up at the villa. ¡®Did I leave my car key there?¡¯ While she was tilting her head to one side, the taxi driver honked his horn quickly. She raced to the driver and explained to him her pitiable situation. ¡°I guess I left my car key in there. Villa number 302. Let me go and pick it up quickly.¡± The driver bluntly showed displeasure at her reply. ¡°Don¡¯t turn off the fare meter. Let me pay for all that.¡± ¡°Got it. Come back quickly! I just keep receiving calls from other customers.¡± ¡°Sure.¡± As soon as she replied, she hurriedly walked up to the villa. Ding dong~ She rang the doorbell. As if on cue, Hojoon opened the door and presented her handbag. ¡°Are you here for this?¡± ¡°Yes, that¡¯s right. Thanks!¡± Hojoon was waiting for her secretly, but she quickly turned back after receiving her handbag. The door was closed with a thump. ¡°Damn!¡± His encounter with her, which he expected, ended dully. When Hojoon sprang out of the daybed, he noticed her handbag on the shoe rack. ¡°That thing is to blame!¡± He learned that every material had its own gi (energy force). He strode ahead and picked it up. ¡°It¡¯s you, damnit! You disturbed my sleep.¡± As a rule, he discovered other people¡¯s belongings in his house very quickly. ¡°She will be here soon to retrieve this bag.¡± Actually, he was about to go out when he heard the doorbell. But he didn¡¯t expect she would come so early and go back so quickly. In fact, he didn¡¯t know his exact feelings about her. Frankly, he was hurt. ¡°What a ridiculous woman! Did she leave her bag with me? I didn¡¯t think she was that rude, but she actually was. I¡¯ll never open my door for her again.¡± But he found himself responding to the chiming of the doorbell at a quicker speed than that of light. ¡°Who is it?¡± ¡°Excuse me¡­¡± As if she felt awkward, she was hesitant to continue.¡±My name is Arum Han.¡± He was swearing at her when she suddenly reappeared, so he also felt awkward. ¡°Hello?¡± He jerked the door open at her persistent pressing of the doorbell. As if she had ran up to the door, she was gasping for breath. He naturally cast a glance at her trembling shoulders. Her exposed collarbones were quite attractive. Arum stared at him. Sensing it, he quickly turned away his eyes. ¡°What do you want from me this time?¡± ¡°Well¡­¡± She felt embarrassed. When she stood before him, she felt like a guilty person who had to ask him a lot of favors. ¡°What did you leave behind here?¡± ¡°Did you happen to notice my cell phone?¡± ¡°I didn¡¯t see it.¡± With the front door between them, both were standing blankly as if they were a couple keeping their distance from each other. ¡°Could you call my number?¡± ¡°Come on in, please.¡± ¡°Thanks.¡± With a clear mind she went into his house. She took off her shoes neatly. When anybody entered somebody else¡¯s house, they usually took care to leave things as they were. Everybody lived in a house, but their lifestyles were different from one person to another. There was a saying that went about how just looking at someone¡¯s house would tell something about his or her character. As Arum stepped into the house of a stranger, she was cautious. She couldn¡¯t look around freely just like she did when she visited her friends¡¯ houses. So, she looked sideways. His living room was neat and clean, just like her first impression of him. Just like a house set for a magazine shoot, it was equipped with the proper furniture and accessories at the right places. He didn¡¯t look shabby just because he lived alone. Nor was his living room dirty or smelled musty because only a man lived there. There was a fragrant candle lit on the wall shelf shining delicately. It was a herb-smelling candle. ¡°Wait a minute.¡± As if he learned the manners on occasions such as this, he left the front door ajar before coming back. Watching him doing this, she recalled her mother. When she attended elementary school, her boy classmates came to her house for homework. ¡°Play with the door open,¡± she said. Bringing fruits on the tray, she reminded Arum of this pointedly. ¡°Why?¡± she had asked. Though she had nothing to hide, she didn¡¯t want to show her doing homework to her mother. Because of her puberty? No, it had nothing to do with that. She just wanted to play with her classmates alone. She belatedly found out that it was because of her puberty. ¡°You shouldn¡¯t close the door,¡± said her mother resolutely back then. ¡°Why, mom?¡± When her little child persistently asked without knowing anything, her mother scolded her lightly, saying, ¡°You should know anyway.¡± Only later could she understand what her mother wanted to tell. Of course, today, men and women mingle with each other without reserve. There came an era when they praised men and women living together without marriage. When Arum looked at Hojoon, he was exactly like the type of her mother. What an old-fashioned man! ¡®Well, I¡¯m not here to tempt you, man. I¡¯m not interested in you at all. Just give me my cell phone, will you?¡¯ She showed a fit of annoyance in heart, but at the same time there was a smile on her lips. Though she was sarcastic or tried to be deep inside, she found her trust in him had increased. ¡®He is a better guy than I expected.¡¯ Her icy heart melted away subconsciously. At that moment, her eyes met his. She was so startled that she looked at the frame hung on the wall. ¡°It¡¯s pretty.¡± It was really pretty. There was a sculpture with an owl sitting on a gold-plated twig in the frame. ¡°Do you know living water?¡± Living water? Was this guy involved in the pyramid selling business? Was it a plague given to the diamond members who had achieved the highest level of performance? Or was he a follower of a religious cult? Was he digging to get living water, believing he would live for eternity if he drank living water? She felt that living water was pretty unfamiliar to her. ¡°Don¡¯t you notice that the twig of living water has vigorously branched out? It reflects the spirit of the prosperity of family and business. Of course, it currently symbolizes wealth. The twig has been plated with pure gold and 24K gold.¡± ¡°Pure gold?¡± ¡°Yes. The energy emitting from pure gold fills this living room. In geomancy, the color of gold symbolizes wealth. In China, the emperor uses the color gold.¡± Nodding her head, she thought about his occupation. ¡®It looks like his job concerned geomancy¡­¡¯ She quickly took out his business card from her pocket. ¡°Oh, you are a geomancy consultant, right?¡± ¡°Well, they call me a geomancy master.¡± ¡°Why don¡¯t you give me your card? Oh, my name is Arum Yang, a single woman.¡± ¡°I know this company. Are you a reporter?¡± ¡°Sort of¡­¡± ¡°As far as I know, a reporter is cynical and careful. Can I go and visit your company for a cup of coffee when I pass by your building? Sometimes I go to a place near your company.¡± ¡°Sure,¡± Arum answered out of courtesy. ¡°By the way, is there any difference between a geomancy master and a geomancy consultant?¡± Arum¡¯s curiosity as a reporter was stimulated. ¡°Well, they¡¯re similar. We call those rubbing off the dirt of people in the public bath ¡®sesinsa¡¯,¡¯ right? Though it¡¯s not an accurate comparison, geomancy consultants offer consulting services about houses through the secret method of geomancy.¡± Despite his simple and kind explanation, she couldn¡¯t get an accurate grasp of its concept. Though she recalled various topics he mentioned on TV such as ¡® geomancy on making money¡¯ and ¡®geomancy on escaping from being single,¡¯ there were only a few she could remember clearly. ¡®Sorry, I switched the channel.¡¯ Arum felt a sting in her heart. ¡°We don¡¯t consult on grave sites.¡± ¡°What?¡± Arum didn¡¯t understand his joke. ¡°Cremation is the general trend these days, isn¡¯t it?¡± he tried to explain as easily as possible, so that the general public could understand. But she didn¡¯t seem to understand. ¡°Do you know anything about geomancy?¡± ¡°No, not at all.¡± ¡°Well, most people don¡¯t know about it.¡± ¡°It¡¯s difficult, isn¡¯t it? Geomancy .¡± Hojoon agreed. Learning about geomancy was similar to learning a foreign language. They had to learn characters and words just like they do when learning how to speak. They had to master the terminology of geomancy because they had to be able to communicate with the other party. In that respect, Hojoon and Arum couldn¡¯t communicate at all. This kind of experience was familiar to Hojoon, though. Geomancy dealt with the spirit invisible to our eyes. It was geomancy that facilitated the flow of the spirit. Though it seemed easy for Hojoon to talk about it, he found it pretty difficult to make his customers believe in it. Chapter 7 At first, Hojoon explained to people step by step because it was his mistake that they couldn¡¯t understand it easily. But the more they heard his explanations, the likelier many of them would begin to regard him as a barbarian all of a sudden. As there was more and more progress in science, it helped feng shui become more familiar to people by a lot. For they could measure the spirit, namely the flow of energy, through all kinds of scientific devices. Nonetheless, feng shui was still simple superstition to the general public. ¡®Oh, man! Please stop teaching me from the perspective of feng shui humanities!¡¯ Arum appealed deep inside. As it happened, Hojoon tried to change the topic. At the same time, she asked seriously, ¡°Can you really change one¡¯s fate through feng shui?¡± Interestingly enough, the business card she took out had a phrase that read, ¡®Let me change your fate through feng shui.¡¯ ¡°Do you believe in myongdang?¡± Hojoon asked back. ¡°Well, when they talk about feng shui, they usually talk about it, right?¡± She tried to show him whatever knowledge she had about feng shui. What she could recall to the best of her memory was myongdang, on the one hand, and paesanimsu or a mountain in the back and a river in the front. Hojoon liked her facial expression when she was waiting for his reply expectantly. He deeply wanted to see it more often. ¡°That¡¯s a secret in this business.¡± She was disappointed as she was expecting to hear it. ¡°Is the consulting fee expensive? Just let me know if this house is myongdang or not, will you?¡± ¡°Well¡­¡± What¡¯s more, Hojoon made sport of her by saying, ¡°It looks like this house is not myongdang, given that hyungsa takes place often.¡± ¡°You bet. I agree. By the way, can you tell me more about hyungsa specifically?¡± ¡°Well, for example, breaking off engagements or forced entry.¡± Arum felt embarrassed because she was the cause of all the accidents. ¡°But it looks like myongdang, given that my elder brother, a celibate, has gotten married.¡± ¡°Right. The woman who bought this house back then told me that this house would be her eldest son¡¯s matrimonial home.¡± Arum even remembered her name. She was a virtuous-looking woman in her late 50s. ¡°You should have a conscience,¡± Hojoon said abruptly. ¡°Why didn¡¯t you tell me you broke off your engagement when you sold this house to me?¡± he said, starting to blame her. ¡°Why should I tell you about something bad?¡± she retorted, staring at him as if she thought that was ridiculous. And then she sharply continued, ¡°Are you insisting that I should have told everybody I broke off my engagement?¡± She felt that his logic was unfair. When she had to sell her house, she felt devastated because of her separation. In such a situation, was it possible for her to tell the potential buyer, ¡®Though I broke off my engagement while I was living in this house, please settle in and enjoy your life!?¡¯ Hojoon replied calmly, ¡°Well, this damned thing, the spirit, is still in this house. So, the potential buyer avoids a house where misfortunes took place. Who would buy the house when its owner died an accidental death, or its family member committed suicide or was evicted here? And that at a high price?¡± Arum felt awkward upon hearing that. ¡°I wouldn¡¯t ask for a high price,¡± she said in a faint voice. ¡°You were paid more than the market price of your villa, plus the moving expenses. That¡¯s enough. Did you want more money from the buyer?¡± She felt that he was mean and nasty as he spoke so eloquently. Feeling that she was crestfallen, Hojoon felt sorry for her. ¡°Oh my god. Your cell phone!¡± Both of them had been engrossed in the world of feng shui for a moment and now came back to reality. ¡°Give me your phone number,¡± said Hojoon, holding his cell phone. He touched the number on his cell phone as she gave her digits, and pressed the send button. But there was no ringing from her phone anywhere in the house. She was now worried. Obviously, she had lost it if she couldn¡¯t find it here. What about the pictures and video clips saved in the phone? The smartphone with all the personal information was like one¡¯s identity to a modern man. In particular, those free spirits who lost their cell phones with the passwords unlocked would be the perfect targets of hackers¡¯ cyberattacks on their personal information. ¡°Can you call again?¡± She felt impatient. She had to retrieve it by all means. By mobilizing all the cells in her body, she pricked her ears and listened for the ringing. She found her eyes more and more drawn to the refrigerator. And she heard a familiar sound from inside. No way! The nearer she approached it, the more she became confident. She couldn¡¯t raise her face. Most likely, she had placed her cell phone in it when she took out water from the refrigerator. ¡®How can I take it out without being caught?¡¯ she thought hard. At that moment, he abruptly passed by her to open the refrigerator. ¡°Don¡¯t open it!¡± Arum held his arm in spite of herself. ¡°Let me take it out.¡± But Hojoon, who was quick in movements, was already holding her cell phone, which was pretty cold. ¡°It¡¯s fortunate that you didn¡¯t put it in the freezing compartment,¡± he said, handing it to her with a sarcastic smile. After receiving the phone, she vowed that she would never get entangled with this man ever again. Not only her surprising first encounter with this man, but also her second one, which made her seem stupid, were all ill-fated encounters. This house must definitely be a haunted house! Without looking back, she got out of Green Villa. *** The next morning, Arum boldly reported to work, wearing the same dress she put on the previous day. It was a publishing company near the City Hall metro station. Her company published a women¡¯s magazine, company newsletters and books. It¡¯s a publishing giant cited as one of the top companies in the field. She landed a job there at her second try, so it was special to her. Though other students graduated late partly because they were on a leave of absence or went abroad for foreign language training, Arum graduated from college in four years. She took pains not to worry her parents, but she didn¡¯t know how time passed so quickly as she was busy being in love. When she felt as exhausted with her work as she did these days, she regretted it. ¡®I wish I had been on a leave of absence at that time.¡¯ ¡®I wish I had gone backpacking then.¡¯ ¡®I wish I had gone abroad for foreign language training.¡¯ But that was just useless daydreaming. As a feature editor with five years of experience, she couldn¡¯t afford to spend time laboring under such a delusion. She got annoyed at the elevator that she felt was moving pretty slowly today of all days. Though she sent her supervisor Hong a text message that she would be late by one hour for personal reasons, it was her unilateral notice to him. Wasn¡¯t it okay to be late because reporters freely report to work and get off work? No way. They have to report to work just like ordinary salaried men, except when they had an interview, a professional meeting, or a need to go outside for a coverage. Right now, Arum was in a situation where she deserved Team Leader Hong¡¯s reprimand. She opened the thick glass door and walked up to her desk as stealthily as possible. ¡°Oh, you¡¯re in. What happened?¡± Hong asked with a worried look. He continued, ¡°You look bad. Were you sick?¡± At that moment, she wanted to say, ¡®Yeha, I feel so awful that my heart is aching, Supervisor Hong.¡¯ But she just showed her sad eyes instead. ¡°Where is the manager?¡± she asked. Raising her head a bit, she looked around Manager Kyong¡¯s desk. It was vacant. ¡°Oh, he was summoned by the editor.¡± ¡°Whew!¡± ¡°By the way, did you¡­¡± approaching her, Hong sniffed at her, ¡°did you have drinks?¡± ¡°Nope.¡± She waved her hands, startled by his question. ¡°You put on the same attire, too.¡± Hong was sharp in observing her dress. ¡°In fact¡­¡± She couldn¡¯t make any plausible excuse. At that moment, she noticed a newspaper on Hong¡¯s desk. What she saw was a cultural section of the paper. Her eyes were drawn to the title of the article, ¡®Feng shui is science!¡¯ And there was a photo of the feng shui master she just met, Hojoon Lee. ¡°Is that guy famous?¡± ¡°Do you know him?¡± ¡°No, No.¡± ¡°Our manager is desperately looking for him.¡± ¡°For what? An interview with him? Or to cover him? Or any information about him?¡± ¡°I have no idea. Who cares about feng shui at all these days?¡± ¡°You bet. Feng shui.¡± As if nothing happened, she went to her desk silently. Translator¡¯s note: myongdang means a propitious site hyungsa means unfortunate events Chapter 8 Finally, she came back home after a long time. Safely back home, she lied down on the floor. Suddenly ,she recalled the movie , which she watched to finish her assignment related to her liberal arts subject in college. ¡®Where is my house?¡¯ A twin-room villa with twelve-pyong space. She chose that villa because she could commute to her company by bus. People asked if her house was expensive because it¡¯s in the middle of Seoul, the capital city. Yes, it¡¯s expensive. But it¡¯s not as expensive as they think, for it¡¯s an old villa located on a hill that needed one to walk along the hillside, which took as much time as her riding a bus to go to work. Still, she felt thankful for the fact that she had a house in this world, where she could go and lie herself down. She had a fleeting moment of thinking like that. Even before she said grace, she fell asleep. *** She was doing the legwork today. As she was supposed to deliver a special lecture at her alma mater, she stopped by a beauty salon. She was overwhelmed by emotion when she thought about how she was a college student only a few years ago, but now she would give her juniors a lecture as a graduate. When was the last time that she had visited her alma mater since graduation? She felt as if she became a college student again. Rather, she already went back to her identity as college student Arum Yang. The topic of her lecture today was ¡®It¡¯s love because your heart aches.¡¯ The professor during her college days remembered her as the icon of campus lovers and contacted her as the speaker on that topic in his class. Besides, she was the feature editor of the popular magazine , which was leading the latest trends. She received a call from the professor two months ago. ¡°You are getting along with Konsu well, right? I heard you¡¯re getting married.¡± He conveyed his genuine congratulations to her. ¡°Oh, yes.¡± She didn¡¯t feel it necessary to tell him that she broke up with him. She didn¡¯t want to confess her every little thing about her misfortunes. ¡°I thought you could give a wonderful lecture. Can I ask you to come and give your juniors a lecture, something like ¡®a senior¡¯s lecture,¡¯ though I know you¡¯re busy?¡± ¡°Me?¡± ¡°Well, I have a perfect topic you can touch on.¡± ¡°Are you sure I can handle it?¡± ¡°Of course, this is a topic chosen by the student association. I think only you can handle it.¡± ¡°If I can, let me do it, professor.¡± ¡°The topic is on love, namely ¡®It¡¯s love because your heart aches¡¯.¡± The moment she heard it, she felt her chest tighten. ¡°Why? Do you think it¡¯s hard?¡± ¡°No, sir. I just had to think about it for a moment.¡± ¡°I don¡¯t think there is anything that a love doctor like you can worry about. Let me give my assistant your number then. He will call you again. I look forward to your lecture then.¡± ¡°Yes, professor.¡± Campus couple. That was the sorrow of public dating on campus. But Arum decided that she would focus on the positive side, thinking only that the professor remembered and kindly invited her. When she went to the lecture hall, there was a placard with the phrase . It was a four-part series, with one lecture per week. She could find familiar names on the list of lecturers. She started her lecture nervously. She decided to coach them comfortably as if she were their elder sister. She gave them advice after receiving anonymous letters from them in advance. As she failed in love, she could give them good advice. If she was happily dating her boyfriend, she could not have given an eloquent lecture. ¡°Check it out quickly! I think he is dating two women. He can¡¯t treat her as a genuine lover like that.¡± ¡°When I look at your case, I think you guys talk differently while you¡¯re in love. Oh my¡­ I wonder if I need to test you on this.¡± She was now comfortable enough to crack jokes. Those young men and women who got on the train of love came to hurt and ruin each other without finding the brakes when the relationship was derailed even slightly, then they lose their way. And they believe it was genuine love. In fact, that¡¯s her case. But when time went by and she turned 30, she realized something belatedly. Namely, even if one loved another, it was not love when it hurt. Was it because of her frank and genuine advice that they were deeply touched? Their response was favorable. She decided that she would take only three additional questions, plus the questions she already received. At that moment, she noticed a female student raising her hand. That student¡¯s face was white as a sheet. She made an expression on her face, as if she was about to cry. ¡°I¡¯ve got a question!¡± that female student asked in a faint voice. As her voice was barely audible, the whole lecture hall was silent. ¡°How come the man I¡¯m dating is a scum without exception? They are all scum! Scum.¡± Though her lecture went smoothly in a joyful mood up to that point, Arum felt as if she was punched in the face when she heard the question. Scum. The word ¡®scum¡¯ that her junior expressed while sobbing. That word kept echoing in her mind. Embarrassed by that question, Arum¡¯s face turned red. Her face was burning as if someone peeked into her innermost feelings. ¡°Oh, as for that question¡­¡± It looked like she would ramble without answering clearly. In order to cheer her up, Arum should tell her, ¡®It¡¯s not your fault. That guy you¡¯re dating is just scum.¡¯ Or, ¡®He might look like scum, but at the same time he might be a jewel that you have yet to discover. Cheer up!¡¯ But when she recalled her past memories of her bitter love affair with Konsu, which made her life miserable, she had only one answer. With a deep breath, she gave that female student a clear answer. ¡°You asked me why the man you¡¯re dating was scum without exception, right? It¡¯s because I¡¯m scum.¡± Everybody in the lecture hall began to make a noise. That female student who asked the question burst into tears. Though Arum thought her answer was too cruel, she bit her lips gently and advised with a fierce look. Just like what the feng shui master told the participants including her on that day. ¡°You throw garbage in a trash can, and jewel in a jewelry box, right? If you want to meet a man that is like a jewel, you should be a jewel-like woman first. Got it? I¡¯m sorry. This is all I can say to you, but what¡¯s really important is¡­¡± While answering the student¡¯s question, Arum also realized something. Something really important. She continued, ¡°In that case, you should forget everything in the trash can. You should act like a jewel-like woman. If you don¡¯t, even that jewelry box will be dumped in a trash can. Don¡¯t lose yourself just because you love somebody absolutely. We are all precious women.¡± That female student seemed to understand what Arum was trying to convey. Everybody had his or her own days of trash can, whether it was for love, learning, friendship or family. But the trash can cleaned well could be a flowerpot or an umbrella stand. It¡¯s up to the owner on how they would use it. Only now could Arum understand that feng shui master¡¯s words, which stabbed a dagger in her heart back then. Clap, clap, clap. The sounds of the students¡¯ applause resonated throughout the lecture hall. ¡°Thanks for listening. I¡¯m Arum Yang.¡± She came down the podium amid their thundering applause. Whew! After the special lecture, she took a stroll on campus with light steps. She could hardly enjoy the scene before the lecture as she was too nervous. ¡®This is the first time I came over here since graduation.¡¯ It was the same school that she was always at with Konsu. If she denied even that fact, her fond memories of her college days would disappear. Today of all days she wanted to indulge in the moods of her college life. The way to the library that they both used to walk together. The school cafeteria where they both had to be content with a cup ramen and gimbap. The vending machine before which they used to chat over a cup of instant coffee. The parking lot where Konsu arranged a surprise candle event for her to soothe her when she was sulking. When Arum recalled that day, she burst into laughter. He was close to burning down a building while preparing the candle event for her. He ran around to find a fire extinguisher in the building. Without the security officer, the building would have been burnt down, featuring as some breaking news on evening TV news channels. Suddenly, she got goosebumps while thinking about various things that happened during her college days. ¡®What the heck? Why do I still remember all those things?¡¯ Translator¡¯s note: 12-pyong is equivalent to 493 sq. gimbap is a popular Korean snack made with rice rolls wrapped in dried sea weed laver. Chapter 9 Arum always blamed herself for her stupid brain. With memory power like this, she could have been admitted to Seoul National University, the best in Korea. ¡®He¡¯s a ghost!¡¯ Indeed, Konsu was stuck in her memory like a ghost. As if she saw a real ghost, she waved her hand while turning on the car engine. She wished her past memories would be gone forever. She suddenly felt miserable, even though she confidently told her juniors in the lecture hall to forget all their past memories related to their lovers. ¡®I¡¯m just like them. I¡¯m only better at theory than at practice.¡¯ And then she turned on the engine. Suddenly, she heard a strange noise from the engine. The engine, which was supposed to splutter strongly, wouldn¡¯t turn on. ¡°Oh, my god!¡± As she forgot to turn off the interior lights inside the car, the battery was discharged completely. Like it or not, she had to spend another three hours with the ghost of Konsu because of the discharged battery. ¡®I would never take a car to a festival place. I would never have my car serviced on my way back from work on Friday. Nothing has worked out smoothly for me since I met Konsu.¡¯ She couldn¡¯t vent her anger even though she cursed at him all along. As she felt stuffy inside the car, she got out and waited for a local service car. ¡°Why are you causing trouble like this?¡± She kicked its wheel out of anger. ¡®I went to Green Villa because of you. And you caused me so much trouble today.¡¯ She just hated everything. When she was about to kick the wheel again, she heard a familiar voice. ¡°Hey, Ms. Trash Can?¡± Good heavens! Stunned, she almost sprained her ankle. When she was about to fall because of losing her balance, somebody held her shoulders. It was Hojoon, the geomancy expert she met before. ¡°Why are you surprised? Did you curse at me?¡± ¡°Are you a student here?¡± asked Arum all of a sudden. ¡°I just stopped by to see a professor briefly.¡± ¡°Did you graduate from this college?¡± Was he an alumna? ¡°Nope, the professor moved to this school.¡± ¡°Oh, I see.¡± Nodding her head, she recalled what Hojoon had said. ¡°By the way, did you say I am a trash can?¡± She couldn¡¯t understand it until today. ¡°I heard your lecture. You did very well. As you underwent painful experiences, you gave them very mature advice.¡± Did he hear my lecture? She blushed at that. It was as if she washed her dirty linen in public when her life was messed up because of her former boyfriend. Indeed, it was a pretty ill-fated relationship with Hojoon. She felt dizzy at the moment. She vowed that she would never see Hojoon again. ¡°What¡¯s the matter with you now? Did the tires go flat?¡± Obviously, he saw her kicking the wheel hard. ¡°No, the battery was discharged. I called for a service car, but was told to wait as the service was backed up a lot.¡± ¡°Really? Wait a minute.¡± Then he pulled over his car next to hers, which he parked in the rear of the parking lot. And he appeared with booster cables to jump start her car. ¡°Let me make your car engine turn on first. You can take your car to a nearby service center.¡± He skillfully connected the batteries of the two cars with the jumper cables. ¡°Now, start the engine.¡± She got on her car quickly and turned on the engine. Vroommm. The engine spluttered strongly. ¡°The engine is back on!¡± When she got off the car, her face glowed with excitement. It was the moment when her ill-fated relationship with him turned into some sort of good relationship. ¡°Thanks for your help all the time.¡± ¡°You¡¯re welcome. Please let me know as soon as you arrange a cleaning company for the cleaning service of my house.¡± ¡°Sure, I¡¯ll let you know after I check it out.¡± ¡°Bye for now.¡± ¡°If you are available, can you dine with me? I know this area very well,¡± said Arum. She had some sense of honor. She felt compelled to treat him to a meal, to say the least. ¡°Oh, I¡¯ve got an appointment. How about next time?¡± Then he left first. She suddenly felt awkward because she felt she went overboard while being impatient to treat him. She hurriedly got out of the campus where the ghost of Konsu was haunting her. *** A wine bar with jazz music playing. Gasping for breath, Jina came in. Sitting alone in the bar, Arum looked askance at her. ¡°I kept you waiting for long, right? My manager is crazy these days. He wouldn¡¯t let me leave the office,¡± Jina grumbled about her boss. ¡°How come you¡¯re treating me to wine?¡± ¡°Sis, I received a lecture fee. Hey, we¡¯re members of the society. Why can¡¯t we have wine? You like this place, don¡¯t you?¡± ¡°Of course, especially when you are treated by seniors like now,¡± Jina said while greeting a part-timer in the bar with a nod. ¡°Are you guys dating? I¡¯m touched, man,¡± quipped Arum. Jina seemed embarrassed at Arum¡¯s teasing. ¡°Enjoy the beauty of the world! Don¡¯t try to look at things critically like you usually do. Greeting him? Yeah, because I¡¯m a regular here,¡± responded Jina. But Arum was suspicious because she took pains to be eloquent. She stared at Jina with a sharp look, as if she already read Jina¡¯s mind. ¡°Doesn¡¯t he look handsome?¡± In the end, Jina revealed her genuine feelings about the part-timer. ¡°You must be crazy! You didn¡¯t date a guy for a long time. He looks like a college student. Do you want to pay for his tuition? Did he finish his military service?¡± asked Arum. Though Jina had preference for guys younger than her, he looked like a boy. ¡°He¡¯s not a part-timer. He is the owner of this jazz bar.¡± ¡°Really?¡± At Jina¡¯s reminder that the part-timer was the owner, Arum, who was grumbling, looked at him once again. When she had a closer look at him, it seemed his face had some sort of elegance. ¡®Is money glued to his face?¡¯ Though she hated the secular side of her so much, any salaried man barely making ends meet would envy him. After all, Jina and Arum kept gossiping about men, drinking wine. Rich men and poor men. Handsome men and ugly men. Both giggled, cracking jokes that even ugly men liked pretty women. Jina mentioned about something her colleague had told her several days ago. ¡°According to him, men automatically turn their eyes when a slender and tall girl passes by. And women on the street are asking themselves what kind of men they¡¯re looking at.¡± ¡°In your case, which man are you looking at?¡± Jina asked. What kind of man were women looking at on the streets? ¡°Well, I don¡¯t look at men,¡± said Arum. ¡°Neither do I. There are no men worth looking at,¡± said Jina. Women also looked at women. Pretty women. Women with great bodies. Stylish women. And then they keep comparing such women with themselves. My face, my body and my style. The ideal type of men to all women were those handsome guys that they could watch on TV or screens. They were romantic, rich, and loved only one woman. When Arum was in high school, girls following entertainers had no boyfriends because they lived in a fantasy world. But those girls who dated men early found their partners in the real world. What mattered to them was their partners¡¯ realistic asset, namely: money. ¡°Arum, are you looking for a man¡¯s money alone? You¡¯re not romantic at all,¡± Jina, who liked money more than Arum, said this textbook phrase. ¡°You¡¯ll know if you break up an engagement. You have no other choice but to talk about money. I would have gotten married if Konsu had bought a house. Don¡¯t you think so?¡± Arum asked back strongly. Some men in their 30s at the next table looked furtively at Jina and Arum and then drank again. Without caring about others around them, Jina and Arum argued over money and men late into the night. At the end of their talk, they mentioned Konsu again. ¡°I think it was good that you broke off the engagement with Konsu. He was good as a lover, but he was not a man to marry.¡± ¡°I think I have to immigrate if I don¡¯t want to hear about him. We¡¯ve been talking about that guy all day long. Let¡¯s stop it.¡± ¡°You asked to stop it, stop it, but it¡¯s you who is continuing to talk about him. Yeah, your relationship with Konsu will end when either of you get married.¡± Arum instantly gulped down a cup of wine on her table. Its burning and bitter taste burst inside her mouth. At that moment, Jina suddenly asked Arum: ¡°Are you going if Konsu gets married?¡± Chapter 10 ¡°What? Immigration?¡± ¡°I mean, are you going to Konsu¡¯s wedding ceremony?¡± ¡°Are you crazy?¡± ¡°You don¡¯t have to be crazy, of course. I think he will get married when he feels up to it.¡± ¡°Is he getting married?¡± Arum opened her eyes with surprise. Though she was drunk, she instantly noticed Jina¡¯s mention of Konsu¡¯s marriage. ¡°I don¡¯t mean he¡¯s getting married. But when I look at his message through the messenger, it looks like he will get married soon.¡± ¡°So, is he getting married?¡± Arum cut off nastily. ¡°I didn¡¯t say that. I mean, it looks like he¡¯s going to. I have no clue, of course.¡± Arum already became sober. She was stone cold sober now. She wanted to check out his SNS account and find him. But both had changed their numbers. Arum was curious, though. ¡®I¡¯ve been waiting for you. Despite that, you are getting married?¡¯ She was upset deep down. ¡°I think I said foolish things, Arum. I just brought it up to ask you to forget him,¡± said Jina. ¡°Who cares?¡± ¡°You are thinking about him again, aren¡¯t you?¡± ¡°No, I¡¯m not.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t lie! I see it on your face.¡± ¡°Nope~¡± It was true that the more she denied, the more she conjured up his face in her mind. There was silence between them for a while. Jina thought Arum¡¯s wounded heart had been healed because she broke off the engagement three years ago. But it was JIna¡¯s mistake. Jina meant well when she told Arum that she could start dating a man again. ¡°When is he going to get married? Is the woman beautiful? Is she buying a house for him?¡± Arum already showed her myopic attitude. She was now all focused on Konsu¡¯s marriage. Instead of replying, Jina drank a glass of wine. At that moment, Arum received a link message on her cell phone. It was from Hojoon, whom she met at the campus. Why did he send me a text message? Why at this time? What the heck is this link? When she pressed the link, she was introduced to his recent column. As soon as she read his column, she was taken aback. His column was obviously an answer to her question of myongdang several days ago. But she only noticed the two words, ¡®school¡¯ and ¡®refreshing¡¯ because of what she experienced on the campus today. ¡®What the heck? Is he making fun of me now?¡¯ How she could be nice to him. She parted with Jina in a sour mood and came back home. As soon as she opened the front door, she laid herself down on the sofa. Home, my home. Lying on the sofa, she thought about it for the first time. ¡®Is this place myongdang?¡¯ Several houses she lived at in the past flashed before her eyes. The house she was born in, the house she spent her childhood days in, a stranger¡¯s house, the house she stayed in while travelling abroad, and Green Villa, where she dreamed about her marriage life. Hojoon advised in the column that if one had bad memories of any particular house, one should not revisit there. It¡¯s a simple principle. Even if one didn¡¯t know about feng shui, one could easily understand. Then why did she go back to the house? No matter how hard she thought about her actions on that day, she could not figure out why. At that moment, she recalled salmon. The salmon would allegedly come back to its birthplace after leaving the river and swimming thousands of miles in the sea. Once the salmon traveled that far, it should settle there, but it would come back at the risk of its life. How could it come back to its birthplace without any built-in navigation? She typed the word ¡®salmon navigation¡¯ on the search engine of her cell phone. Some argued that the salmon had DNA that made it recall the environment of the river it came from. Others explained that the salmon would find its way back home by using the Earth¡¯s magnetic field like migratory birds. Indeed, it was written in the relevant article that pigeons find their way back home by using the Earth¡¯s magnetic field. As they had a magnetic substance in their brains called magnetite, they could return home anywhere, anytime. Namely, magnetite was a sort of navigation system for them. Arum turned it over in her mind. ¡®If I had a navigation system in my life, what would it be?¡¯ Though she didn¡¯t want to believe it, it was Konsu. Damn it! *** The company Hojoon worked at as its CEO was an interior company located near Hongik University in Seoul. Remodelled from a house into a modern-style building, his company had a liberal and comfortable atmosphere. Though it¡¯s an interior company, it designed houses based on feng shui as the core. In other words, his company was the ¡®Famed House of Feng Shui.¡¯ It was his exquisite idea that as an architect major he could combine interior design with feng shui. They might ask, ¡®Who cares about feng shui at all these days?¡¯ But they did not know better. Hojoon constantly received calls from rich men with so much to lose, or high-ranking officials. After he appeared on certain information programs of cable TVs and the entertainment programs of national terrestrial TV companies, he became much busier. He was widely consulted on various fields such as feng shui interior design, the real estate brokerage business, and tomb site feng shui. As he focused on interior design only, he was widely recognized for his expertise in the field. He was once the most popular among the wives of rich men. Why? He solved their headaches. By using the secret method of geomancy , he showed them how to win back their husbands¡¯ hearts, who were having secret love affairs. He showed them how to deal with the messy women who, sensing that they had money, wouldn¡¯t separate with their husbands. He showed them how to arrange the matrimonial homes of their ideal sons and daughters. Plus, he showed them how to have their daughters-in-law give birth to baby sons! Of course, he didn¡¯t deal with the rich only, but thanks to the constant consultation calls from their wives, he became a successful geomancy consultant. Late evening. Hojoon watched a soccer game on TV while eating jjajangmyon or black-bean-sauce noodles he had delivered from a Chinese restaurant. Though he wanted to watch more, he had a couple of meetings in the evening. With a mouthful of jjajangmyon, Heemang, the youngest staff of his company, asked, ¡°You don¡¯t like jjajangmyon, do you?¡± ¡°Not really.¡± ¡°I know you used to have fried rice. So, I thought it strange you ordered jjajangmyon today.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t you know they say you live long when you eat noodles?¡± ¡°Really?¡± ¡°My mom told me I should eat noodles on my birthday to live long.¡± ¡°Is today your birthday, then?¡± Hojoon hesitated a moment and said, ¡°Nope.¡± ¡°I see. Then, why did you go to the police station? Were you robbed in your house?¡± ¡°Who said that?¡± ¡°Team Manager Yun told me.¡± ¡°Yeah, a thief broke in. A thief.¡± Heemang opened his eyes wide with surprise. As an architect major in a technical high school, he used to draw Webtoon before he was scouted by Hojoon. He had an excellent sense of design, but he had slow wits. ¡°Aha! A thief. Did you catch him?¡± ¡°Let me enjoy my food, man. Where is manager Yun?¡± ¡°He went out to date a woman. He said today is the 100th day since he met her.¡± ¡°Wow! He¡¯s quite passionate.¡± ¡°You bet. It¡¯s only one year and a half that he got divorced, right?¡± There was something childish in Heemang¡¯s way of speaking. ¡°Hey, boy, the relationship between a man and a woman is all like that. How can I explain to you the mystic harmony of yin and yang?¡± ¡°Well, I know all there is to know about it.¡± At that moment, Assistant Manager Juyoung came out of the restroom with a toothbrush in hand. It¡¯s been five years since he was separated from his wife and son. ¡°If you¡¯s so slow-witted like that, you will get divorced, too. Keep our advice in mind,¡± Juyoung said. ¡°Why don¡¯t you move to another house quickly? Your house isn¡¯t a good one as you and your family are separated, right?¡± said Hojoon, pretending to know everything. ¡°I¡¯m not separated, man. I¡¯m okay as long as our family members are united as one in heart.¡± ¡°Well, you¡¯re supposed to split when you live separated from your wife and child for so long,¡± quipped Hojoon. ¡°Yes, sir. I¡¯ll keep it in mind.¡± Chapter 11 Chapter 11: Chapter 11 Responding jokingly, Juyoung, who was wise and understanding, went back to his desk. Watching his back, Hojoon felt sorry for him. Joyoung probably found it hard to stop his son who wanted to study abroad. As a child, his son was smart enough to learn how to read Korean and English with books he borrowed from a library. Why couldn¡¯t Hojoon understand Juyoung¡¯s feelings, who wanted to do everything for his son? But Juyoung could lose everything because of that. For he could not think of his relationship with his son only. Hojoon found it hard even to imagine Juyoung living separated from his wife. In fact, numerous theories backed up the correlation of the high ratio of divorce with separated fathers like Juyoung. There was no possibility that Juyoung, who was aware of the basic concept of geomancy , would not know this. Hojoon didn¡¯t say any more. At that moment, Manager Yun came in. He didn¡¯t look good. Hojoon asked, ¡°I hear you¡¯re dating.¡± ¡°Who told you so?¡± Turning his head, Heemang was enjoying jjajangmyon silently. ¡°I think you were spurned by the girl.¡± Hojoon touched his soft spot. ¡°That¡¯s why I told you that you should have moved early on. You won¡¯t date a woman as long as you live there. It¡¯s a place that a woman deserts.¡± ¡°That¡¯s why I chose that house on purpose, man. So what?¡± ¡°What the heck?¡± Hojoon was at a loss on how to respond. Furious, Yun justified his decision. ¡°Is divorce a state crime? You can get divorced after you get married. It¡¯s not a big deal.¡± ¡°I don¡¯t care, but don¡¯t get divorced as long as you work for my company. It will affect our sales. Who could ask for our consultation if our staff here get divorced and our business goes bankrupt?¡± Hojoon¡¯s point made sense. ¡°Hey, why don¡¯t you date a woman? You¡¯re such an eloquent speaker on the geomancy of lovers, right?¡± demanded Yun. ¡°Well, I¡¯m taking care of myself, man. Anytime when I feel up to that. Anyway, it is so windy in your studio flat. How come a geomancy consultant like you rented such a room? There was no peace in your marriage life, wasn¡¯t it?¡± ¡°I rented it on purpose, man. Are you happy? I think I¡¯m going to enjoy my life as a single man.¡± As if on cue, Heemang cut in, ¡°Yeah, I don¡¯t understand how a man can live with the same woman all his life.¡± ¡°You¡¯re not qualified to say that, dude,¡± quipped Yun. But Heemang resisted by continuing, ¡°Don¡¯t you think so? When I was in school, I found it so boring to wait for a month to change my mate in the classroom. But I was thrilled to meet my new mate every week. I wonder if I can be more skillful in choosing a woman if I get married and then divorced.¡± Hojoon and Yun marvelled at Heemang¡¯s fresh idea on marriage. Yun said, teasing Hojoon, ¡°Wow, that¡¯s terrific. Why don¡¯t you post it on your column in your SNS account? As we live in an age when human beings are myondang, isn¡¯t it myondang if you make friends with many people who love you?¡± Hojoon was just stunned to hear that. ¡°That¡¯s enough. If that¡¯s true, our company will disappear in the Korean market, won¡¯t it?¡± ¡°I like it, man. Geomancy company specializing in divorce. We can teach those wishing to get divorced how to do so definitely through geomancy .¡± ¡°Oh my¡­ You do it!¡± Hojoon shouted, putting down the empty noodle bowl. ¡°Are you upset?¡± Manager Yun looked at his face. ¡°Nope. I just can¡¯t understand what you¡¯re talking about. I have to attend a meeting. Are you happy now?¡± Then he raced to a restroom, holding a toothbrush. A little while later, a woman client visited the company. She was dressed in black, as if she had just returned from a house of mourning. Recognizing her, Heemang escorted her to a meeting room. ¡°You have come here to see the president, right?¡± She nodded silently. ¡°He will be here shortly as soon as he prepares the consulting data.¡± When Heemang was about to turn back, Hojoon came in. ¡°How have you been?¡± In contrast with his bright voice, she didn¡¯t show any change in her expression. The woman sitting in front of Hojoon was a professional who came to see him three months ago in connection with her marriage. ¡°You must get married. By the end of this year.¡± She was a client who he felt thankful for as she wired an expensive consultation fee into his account right away. She was a woman entrepreneur who opened business in Silicon Valley after obtaining a PhD in America. She was now the head of the Korea branch of a famous global IT security company. She was a capable professional widely known in the field. But there was a special terminology reserved for women like her in Korea. Spinster, gold miss, and the like. No matter how much she tried to impress others with her colorful background, her beauty or self-improvement, any woman stigmatized as a spinster was treated as ¡®used¡¯ in the so-called marriage market. Though such a woman was a ¡®new product,¡¯ it¡¯s like an old home appliance that didn¡¯t sell well. That professional woman in front of Hojoon said she always had blind dates with the type of men that she didn¡¯t like. Even those remarried men, who were far inferior in terms of the conditions of marriage, allegedly didn¡¯t like her. In this case, most people would think she was ugly. It was ridiculous for a single woman who doesn¡¯t look pretty to meet a remarried man. Besides, this woman was pretty enough. Her problem was the atmosphere or mood surrounding her. Just like a security expert, she was a workaholic who only focused on her own work while hiding her attraction by all means. Is this the great side of a career woman? In fact, she reminded Hojoon of his mother¡¯s sister who always felt tired as she had to report to work again after working three days and nights. This client came back to see Hojoon, though she had a lot of time left on her contract. As soon as she sat at the conference table, she spoke bluntly, ¡°I would like to request for the refund.¡± In a calm voice, she talked lightly as if she came back to a convenience store to change an item that passed an expiration date Asking for refund? Hojoon was embarrassed. There was nothing like refund in this business. Did anyone see fortune tellers giving refunds to clients? Even credit cards were not accepted by them. It was the same as asking for receipts for one¡¯s cash donations to a church. Of course, Hojoon didn¡¯t want anything like a special bonus that lawyers typically received for successful lawsuits. He clearly explained to her that he would not give a refund as his consultation was something like service fee. How come a woman so educated and knowledgeable as her was asking for a refund? Hojoon was kind of embarrassed at her request. ¡°Of course, there are cases that see the immediate effect of geomancy . But you have to keep watching from 100th day of your consultation up to one year. If you really don¡¯t get the results you want after that period expires, let me give you another geomancy consultation.¡± ¡°Nope. Your consultation wasn¡¯t effective, and I have no use for it anymore.¡± Did she find a man? Hojoon couldn¡¯t figure out why she was requesting for a refund. ¡°If you don¡¯t need my consultation anymore, did you run into another problem?¡± ¡°I got promoted. I¡¯m not sure if my promotion was affected by geomancy , but I got busier now. What I really wanted was not promotion but my love horoscope.¡± ¡°Congratulations! I believe such good things will take place one by one from now on. ¡°Maybe. But promotion at my age demands more responsibility on my end. The time has come for me to choose between the two, namely work and love. So, I decided to choose work. I¡¯ve decided to live as a single woman, so I don¡¯t need this geomancy method.¡± Though she spoke out without any hesitation, Hojoon could feel the bleak loneliness on her face. He could also see fear in her face that she would not even try as it was certain she would fail in love. Actually, that¡¯s common to anybody. Everybody longed for love whose true nature they could not figure out. But if they did not experience it, love would become the object of fear. Once they started the ball rolling, however, they would tend to roll on in their courses without anybody¡¯s help, which was love. How could Hojoon load this woman on the roller coaster of love? ¡°Do you really intend to live as a single woman?¡± Chapter 12 Chapter 12: Chapter 12 Hojoon recalled the impression of this woman who came to see him at the office with her mother last time. He conjured up the glittering eyes of her mother who wanted her to marry by the end of this year. ¡°Did you tell your mother of your decision?¡± ¡°Not yet.¡± Probably she couldn¡¯t tell her mother she would live as a single woman. Hojoon seized the chance to cut in, ¡°This week or next week if you¡¯re busy this week, let me stop by your house and give you a consultation if you¡¯re available. It¡¯s too early for you to give up. You¡¯ve been promoted, which is a good message. It would have been better if it had been a man. It¡¯s a very good sign that a change has happened in your life, namely a change in the spirit. If you stop there, the spirit will be broken.¡± Hojoon could not make her give up not because of her expensive consultation fee but because of her desperate efforts. She could not open her mouth. A little later, she broke the silence and said, ¡°Do you go to church?¡± ¡°What?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t have time during weekdays. Are you available on Sunday afternoon?¡± ¡°Sure, I¡¯ll see you then¡± Bowing politely to him, she left the conference room. Hoo~ Ha~ Hojoon let out the breath he held a minute ago. He felt stuffy just by being with her. ¡°Aren¡¯t you going to another meeting?¡± asked Heemang, sticking his head out. ¡°Oh shoot!¡± Hojoon forgot to attend his other meeting. Though he hurried up, it looked like he would be late by thirty minutes. As it was approaching rush hour, there was severe traffic congestion on the roads. As he made it a rule to be punctual, he felt he should not be late to the meeting. He had to call right away. ¡°This is President Hojoon Lee. I have agreed to meet you.¡± He felt uncomfortable as he thought he would take the client¡¯s precious time by being late. But the client was in a similar situation. ¡°Oh my¡­ I¡¯m so sorry. I should have called you earlier. You must be waiting for me, right? I¡¯m afraid I can¡¯t go to see you today.¡± Hojoon straightened up upon hearing that. This client had asked Hojoon to remodel his son¡¯s house, whose life was drifting since he got divorced. When he met the client, he had a real reason. He let out a sigh, complaining that his son was dating a woman, but he didn¡¯t want to get married, just content with dating her. Initially, the client was opposed to his son¡¯s girlfriend. But he changed his mind. He had no reason to reject her, who had wealth and a good job. He wanted both of them to get remarried. The problem was that his son didn¡¯t want remarriage, announcing that just one marriage was enough, and that he would only date women. After reading the client¡¯s mind on his first visit, Hojoon agreed to meet him again with the geomancy advice of his own. According to the client, his son invited his parents to a dinner, saying he wanted to introduce his girlfriend to them. ¡°Congratulations!¡± said Hojoon. ¡°My son says he wants to have the type of food that his mother would like to have.¡± ¡°Really? Which restaurant has he chosen?¡± ¡°Well, it¡¯s Mugunghwa Korean Restaurant. It¡¯s expensive and elegant.¡± ¡°No, you shouldn¡¯t go there,¡± said Hojoon resolutely. He continued, ¡°Men should have their own space in the restaurant. If you meet in a narrow place, your son¡¯s girlfriend will be be sensitive and she will regard your son¡¯s mother as an enemy. You need to choose a restaurant with the atmosphere of a primitive place and comradeship.¡± The client didn¡¯t understand his explanation. ¡°What did you say?¡± Hojoon said, ¡°What I mean is any elegant restaurant can make your son feel stuffy. The atmosphere of the restaurant will make your son feel daunted and uncomfortable.¡± ¡°Which restaurant do you want me to choose?¡± ¡°Hmm¡­ Try to find an outdoor restaurant that can offer BBQ service. Don¡¯t you know that having meat makes people feel relaxed? If you go to the suburbs, you will find various BBQ houses.¡± ¡°Ah! Thanks. Thanks so much.¡± The client hung up the phone. At that moment, Hojoon received a call. ¡°Did you get off work?¡± It was his mother¡¯s call. ¡°Yes, I¡¯m done now.¡± ¡°Sorry, I couldn¡¯t cook seaweed soup for you. Today is your birthday. Did you meet anybody?¡± she cautiously asked. ¡°Do I have to meet anybody if it¡¯s my birthday?¡± ¡°Not necessarily¡­¡± He quickly continued in order not to embarrass her, ¡°Don¡¯t worry, mom. I¡¯m not depressed.¡± ¡°Are you sure?¡± ¡°Yes, I¡¯ve met an interesting person recently.¡± ¡°Really?¡± His mother¡¯s voice became much brighter. She hung up the phone after wishing for him to enjoy the rest of the day. Hojoon made a U-turn at the next stop. *** A magazine company held an editorial meeting once a month. The magazine was made after heated editorial discussion, and then delivered to readers two months later. Accordingly, it dealt with the social and cultural trends coming up in two months, weather, and interviews with celebrities. As the current month was March, the editorial meeting this time dealt with the main concept of the upcoming May issue. The search word linked to May was ¡®bride.¡¯ No matter how much she wanted to avoid it, May came back without exception. ¡°Hi, guys, we¡¯re going to make a special feature on newlyweds in our May issue. Any good ideas?¡± the managing editor started the discussion softly. ¡°Isn¡¯t the feature on newlyweds too banal? We can deal with other topics such as outdoor or family,¡± said someone. Arum, who wanted to avoid this type of article by all means, nodded furtively. ¡°What? The bride of May is like Santa Clause of December!¡± shouted the editor. Everybody agreed with the editor¡¯s ruling. At that moment, Arum received a text message from Hojoon. Arum made a forced smile at his unexpected message. ¡°What the heck?¡¯ She was looking for a cleaning company. Actually, Hojoon asked her to bring them during the weekend, but then called them on his own. What? Have dinner together? ¡®I am afraid I can¡¯t even though I¡¯m hungry.¡¯ Scornfully looking at the text message, she sent a reply. The moment she raised her head after sending him a reply, her eyes met the editor¡¯s. ¡°Hey, do you have any idea, Arum?¡± ¡°What did you say?¡± ¡°You¡¯re the idea bank of our magazine. And you¡¯re also the creator of scum love.¡± Arum blushed at that. The recorded file of her speech at the campus on that day was circulating on the internet under the file name ¡®Scum Love.¡¯ Obviously, the editor had seen it. ¡°Any idea?¡± Arum quickly found some ideas in her notebook and read them out. ¡°Well, it¡¯s a diet method called wearing a bikini in three weeks.¡± ¡°Have you put on a bikini?¡± the editor asked bluntly. ¡°Nope.¡± ¡°How can you ask others to put on a bikini when you have never worn it? Why don¡¯t you try it first as a reporter?¡± In fact, the experience of wearing a bikini was more severe than leaving the company. ¡°No thanks.¡± ¡°Hey, go on a vacation comfortably. Why are you forcing them to keep in shape with a diet? You know they can wear rash guards, right? Don¡¯t they wear life vests?¡± ¡°They should,¡± said Arum in a feeble voice. ¡°Let¡¯s cut back stressful articles as much as possible. Manager Kyong, I¡¯ve reviewed the material on geomancy well.¡± Arum felt attracted to the word ¡®geomancy¡¯ immediately. ¡°I like that. I think it¡¯s a good idea to link the article with the interior of a house. Can you interview any expert in the field?¡± asked the editor. ¡°I think we can find college professors or geomancy experts.¡± ¡°No, no. They don¡¯t fit our concept. They don¡¯t even regard our magazine as a publication. So, let¡¯s forget about them. Arum, try to find Hojoon Lee.¡± Right at that moment, she received another text message from Hojoon. ¡®Oh my¡­ This guy is so mean to the end.¡¯ The editor demanded, ¡°Arum Yang?¡± ¡°Yes, editor?¡± She lost touch with the flow of the editorial meeting because of Hojoon¡¯s text messages. Manager Kyong pressed her, ¡°Call Hojoon now.¡± ¡°He¡¯s working until night today.¡± Everybody looked at her when she said that. ¡°Who the hell are you talking about?¡± The editor narrowed his eyes at her response. But Arum couldn¡¯t confide that she had been communicating with Hojoon. ¡°Can¡¯t you focus, Arum?¡± the editor bluffed. ¡°Sure, let me focus.¡± Chapter 13 The editor entreated Arum to contact Hojoon. ¡°Arum, let me leave it to you. You¡¯re in charge. Bring him over here by all means. Manager Kyong, give her Hojoon¡¯s contact number.¡± ¡°Yes, sir.¡± ¡°Hojoon is the most popular geomancy consultant right now. If we get hold of him first and combine Manager Kyong¡¯s concept with his geomancy method¡­¡± At that moment, Reporter Yun acted like he knew what he was doing. ¡°I googled Hojoon. He¡¯s also a specialist on the geomancy of love. Why don¡¯t we ask him about the of our love? For example, when can we find our boyfriends¡­¡± ¡°I already know it. You will find one when you have a raise in your salary,¡± said Manager Kyong jokingly. ¡°Have you checked out the number of views to his online lectures?¡± The editor¡¯s focus was on his public perception. ¡°30,000?¡± They got more interested in him because of the higher number of views than they expected. ¡°Play his lecture on YouTube,¡± said the editor, looking at Yun¡¯s cell phone quickly. Yun replayed one of his lectures. It was Hojoon¡¯s lecture in a TV program. He was dressed in Italian handmade attire. ¡°You say it¡¯s hard to date somebody, or Geomancy is difficult. That¡¯s right. It¡¯s not easy. But both have one thing in common, which is this. Namely, even if you can¡¯t find myongdang, you can make your house myongdang. That is to keep your house spick and span. You have to throw away old furniture to buy new ones. That¡¯s the same with love. If you want to find new love, you have to break up with your past love once and for all.¡± In the lecture, Hojoon had something like a professional charisma in the field. All of his words had a point. ¡°That makes sense.¡± Usually, the editor would have rejected such a lecture as bullshit, belittling the concept of geomancy. But this time her eyes narrowed, which suggested that she hit upon a good idea. ¡°Newlyweds¡¯ geomancy interior design that determines their luck on love. Wow, I like it.¡± The editor was pretty excited at the concept and title of the upcoming feature story. A story like this, which the editor chose in person, was 100% adopted. But the tonic of life is the twist. Arum asked, with a ray of hope for the editor¡¯s change in attitude, ¡°If Hojoon is so busy, how about that guy who reads a character with the face¡­¡± ¡°Dongha Choi?¡± Manager Kyong was such a know-it-all guy. ¡°Right. Can I contact him as replacement if Hojoon isn¡¯t available?¡± Arum asked, trying to read the editor¡¯s face. ¡°No, no. I don¡¯t think Hojoon is busy.¡± ¡°What if he isn¡¯t available in the worst case?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t want to hear ¡®what if¡­¡¯ from you. When I say he is available, he definitely is. Arum, try to contact him right now. Let me wrap up today¡¯s meeting. Get back to work!¡± The meeting, which was likely to last another two hours, ended there thanks to Hojoon. But she couldn¡¯t leave. She fiddled her cell phone. ¡®Do I really need to contact him?¡¯ As if she felt Arum was agonized over it, Manager Kyong came and sat beside her. ¡°Sorry, Arum. I should have taken this job.¡± But Arum thought it was not her fault. ¡°If you really can¡¯t, can I switch to some other reporter?¡± ¡°No way, Manager Kyong. If you do that, I¡¯ll be fired. You¡¯re assigned to covering the Chonju Film Festival, right? And you have to go there on a business trip.¡± ¡°Alright. By the way, our editor seems to have changed. You know, she has been insisting on something like ¡®modern,¡¯ ¡®edgy,¡¯ or ¡®hip¡¯ stuff.¡± ¡°Yeah, I was really surprised when you mentioned geomancy. Our editor doesn¡¯t go in for geomancy, as you know.¡± ¡°Can I tell you who initiated this idea originally?¡± ¡°You don¡¯t say! Our editor?¡± ¡°Yeah, exactly. About two weeks ago our editor saw an interview piece on geomancy, and she went crazy about it.¡± ¡°I can¡¯t understand what¡¯s the big deal about geomancy.¡± ¡°You bet. If you turn on the TV these days, you see so many programs about such topics as geomancy , saju (destiny), et cetera.¡± Come to think of it, Arum felt like she heard about it too often these days. Was it the latest trend? ¡°I searched for relevant video clips and articles on geomancy because of Hojoon. I think he is attractive.¡± ¡°Really?¡± Arum was of the opposite opinion. ¡®Well, personally I don¡¯t think he is attractive.¡¯ That was true. Granted she liked geomancy, she found herself often stunned at the word ¡®geomancy¡¯ after she met him. ¡°When I heard about ¡®geomancy,¡¯ I usually conjured up the word ¡®paesanimsu¡¯ (a mountain in the back and a river in the front). Room therapy? I wonder if it¡¯s part of geomancy, too.¡± Arum found geomancy difficult to understand, and now, Manager Kyong mentioned room therapy. Arum was super curious. ¡°What the heck is that?¡± ¡°Your room. You spend your healing time in there. You know, when you were a child, you wanted to have your own room, right? I shared a room with my younger brother. At that time, I couldn¡¯t keep a diary freely, and kept hiding my stuff in a secret box. When I was a junior in middle school, I had my own room. At that time, I felt like I owned the whole world.¡± In fact, Arum felt as if she owned the whole world when she became independent from her parents. ¡°All this means is that there is power in a room, which can change a man. In other words, room therapy is to fill the room with good energy. The thing is how to organize your idea around its concept. Try to look up some material on that. It¡¯s quite interesting.¡± ¡°Thanks!¡± Picking up her meeting files, Arum went out of the conference room. *** After she was done for the day, Arum pushed the revolving door to get out of the company. Though it was well past the closing hours, there were lots of office workers leaving their offices only now. The bus she got on was full of people going back to work on duty at night or going back home after the day¡¯s work. Arum used her own car only when she had to do the legwork or attend a meeting outside. Usually, she commuted by bus. But on a day like today, she regretted not bringing her own car. While walking to the bus stop, she carefully recalled what a senior friend of hers told her. The unforgettable excitement she felt when she purchased her first house. She felt as if she was an independent fighter in the world. She could have her own way freely, such as deciding when to eat, get up or go to the restroom, and so on. Besides, she didn¡¯t have to argue over the matter of lighting a fragrant candle with her mother, who didn¡¯t approve, saying it might burn down the house. Since she became independent from her, Arum had fragrant candles turned on in the living room and restroom all the time. And another independent space of hers was her private car. In a crowded bus, she was inevitably touched by other people, or she had to even feel their breaths. Now, with her own car, the moment she opened the door, it turned into her own world. And it took her to whatever place she wanted to go to. After she obtained her own house and car, she felt afresh how happy she was. Honk! She came to her senses at the honking sound. She turned her head instinctively. Hojoon could be seen waving at her from his driver¡¯s seat. Honk! Honk! This time, people around her turned back. If she didn¡¯t get in the car quickly, she would probably be noticed by the editor or her colleagues. She quickly walked up to Hojoon¡¯s car and gestured him to lower the window in the passenger seat. She felt he was not close enough to do so. Hojoon lowered the window and said, ¡°Are you going to get in through the window? Just open the door,¡± said Hojoon jokingly. ¡°Wait a minute,¡± she said in a low tone, expressing displeasure. ¡°It looks like you already finished your night duty. What a coincidence! I was also done just now, and came out for dinner,¡± he said, acting sly at the moment. ¡°I did have dinner already,¡± she said. ¡°Really? Me, too. Let me give you a ride home then.¡± Now, she had no choice but to get in the car. Hojoon was driving toward Ahyon-dong, where she lived. He asked her to get in his car, but he didn¡¯t say anything while driving. He just focused on driving like a taxi driver. Though she didn¡¯t expect anything, she couldn¡¯t stand it. For the first time, she came to realize how uncomfortable it was to be in the same space with an uncomfortable person. Chapter 14 Chapter 14: Chapter 14 Arum now began to feel like she were with someone else now. At that moment, Hojoon asked bluntly, ¡°So, have you been healed a lot since you moved to Ahyon-dong?¡± Actually, she had never given a thought to that kind of question. ¡°Do you happen to know what kind of area this place was before?¡± Suddenly, Hojoon began to explain the history of Ahyon-dong, as if he were a history teacher. ¡°When Preceptor Muhak chose Hanyang as the capital in Josun, he took Mt. Naksan,which was shaped like a dragon, on the left, and Mt. Inwang, which was shaped like a tiger, on the right as the prerequisites. The place that made up for the deficiencies on the right was the mountain range extending to the hill of Ahyon-dong.¡± His explanation was more boring than the history class that she had in high school. Of course, she didn¡¯t know about the history of Ahyon-dong in detail, but she also didn¡¯t care. Who would know if a mountain looked like a dragon or a tiger? ¡°Do you happen to know Hwalinso?¡± Now, Hojoon, who turned into a history teacher at the moment, openly ignored her. ¡°What are you talking about?¡± Though she lost temper at the drop of a hat, she didn¡¯t know at all. She thought she might have seen it in a history documentary, but she had a dim memory. ¡°Well, it¡¯s safe to think Hwalinso was a welfare center in Josun. In other words, sick people were treated and had their lives saved at Hwalinso. Such a place was located in Donam-dong and Ahyon-dong at that time.¡± Arum was now nodding her head subconsciously. In fact, she never thought about looking up the history of Ahyon-dong before. ¡°Oh, right there. Take a right turn there at the bakery¡¯s.¡± Strange enough, he didn¡¯t offer to have coffee or stop by a bar for drinks until he arrived at her house. ¡®Why should I feel sorry for him without any reason?¡¯ In fact, Arum felt like she was hooked by the wrong guy as he looked sharp and arrogant. From the moment he jump-started her car by using the jumper cables, to ¡®the battery of love¡¯ at the campus recently, she felt closer to him. ¡°Do you mean that villa over there?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± He pulled his car over before the villa. ¡°Take care. Bye for now.¡± ¡°Yes, thanks.¡± Getting off the car, Arum felt pretty curious. ¡°By the way, why did you come to see me today? Didn¡¯t you tell me you wanted to have dinner with me?¡± ¡°Are you hungry?¡± ¡°Not really. You asked me to treat you to dinner, didn¡¯t you?¡± ¡°You said you had dinner already, didn¡¯t you?¡± In fact, Arum got hungry because she actually didn¡¯t dinner. But she refused his request because she knew she would feel uncomfortable dining with him. Of course, she could change her mind even now and offer to have dinner together now. Hojoon said, ¡°In fact, I was curious where you lived. When you asked me where myongdang was, your house came to my mind. It¡¯s important to make your house myongdang. It¡¯s located in a stable geography of paesanimsu in terms of geomancy.¡± ¡°Are you sure you came here for that?¡± Arum didn¡¯t believe him. But he seemed sincere, given that instead of getting off the car, he was looking around the surroundings of her house. Just like him, Arum also examined the surroundings of her place. ¡°I understand paesan now, but there is no water in the front, isn¡¯t it?¡± He raised his fingers to point at the street. ¡°In modern geomancy, the mountain is symbolized by a big building or an apartment unit while water is the street. Okay?¡± Anyway, she agreed. As she was assigned to stories featuring geomancy contents, she felt good about getting free lessons from him. ¡°By the way, you had better get squared away first, okay? Ms. Trash Can?¡± She got goosebumps when she heard that. ¡®Why is he talking to me like that?¡¯ Instead of replying, she looked up at her villa. She saw a box full of stuff on the veranda. ¡°Your house is that one over there, with the untidy veranda, right?¡± She blushed, much embarrassed at his question. ¡®Oh my, I can¡¯t fool you!¡¯ She quickly changed the topic and asked, ¡°Are you sure you don¡¯t have any other business now?¡± ¡°I¡¯ve got one. Actually, it¡¯s my birthday today.¡± She just giggled at his answer. When a man caught the attention of a woman, he typically tried to win over her heart by saying she looked like his mother, his first love, or today was his birthday. ¡°Don¡¯t you think that excuse of yours is too banal?¡± With a pleasant laugh, she closed the door. ¡°Tell me about it on your real birthday. Let me treat you to a meal then.¡± Waving her hands, she went into the porch of her villa. ¡°Dang it! It¡¯s my birthday today.¡± Murmuring to himself, he started the car engine. He was still happy. He felt freshly energized after looking at Arum, who laughed aloud so pleasantly. *** The moment she entered the front door, the light in the dim living room turned on. Today of all days, she felt her house was a mess. ¡®What was the spirit of the energy in my room that my senior friend told me? Am I happy as the owner of this room? How long should I continue my current life when I have to turn on and turn off the light alone? She felt heavy, too. In particular, she felt stuffy again when she looked at the door of the small room in her house. Arum¡¯s house was a one-room style house with a living room and a big single bedroom. And there was a small room that could barely house a desk and a drawer. The room was now filled with all kinds of rubbish. Stuff. Plus, a box in the veranda was also full of other odds and ends. When she moved out from her parents¡¯ house, she carried a large bag alone. She had no home appliances whatsoever. When she needed something, she bought them one by one. The goods that she purchased right before her marriage had also piled up in her house. The odds and ends piled up in the small room were the stuff she hadn¡¯t yet thrown away after she broke up with Konsu. Because I¡¯m going to meet him again.¡¯ Little did she think her quarrel with him would lead to calling off their engagement. She felt like she would meet him again just like other lovers who quarreled and then met again. Arum stood before the small room. She was now even scared about opening it. She felt as if not only miscellaneous articles, but also her memories of Konsu would pour out. She was fiddling with the doorknob before turning back. But his remarks kept bothering her. Sitting at the dining table, she drank a cup of warm milk and sent him a text message. A little later she received a reply. ¡®Oh my¡­ He is really driving me nuts.¡¯ *** Hojoon visited the house of the IT security specialist, the client who asked for a refund last week. The client¡¯s house, which he visited before, was near his office. When he stepped into her house for the first time, he felt as if it was an office-like house where she just moved her bed into. There was nothing inside with a humane touch; a barren house with nothing that felt humane. It was full of home appliances, such as a computer, a TV set, a table PC and an internet phone. There was no sofa for her breaks or a comfortable bed for her laziness. It looked more bleak as she was using a dorm-style iron bed designed to save space. At that time, Hojoon was curious. ¡°Don¡¯t you think this bed of yours is uncomfortable?¡± ¡°Well, I spend little time sleeping here. I thought I didn¡¯t have to spend money on the stuff I didn¡¯t use. And that way I could have more space. It¡¯s the same bed I used when I studied in America.¡± ¡°Did you bring it from America?¡± Hojoon was surprised. He couldn¡¯t believe she brought such a cheap iron bed into Korea from America after paying an expensive shipping fee. He could size up her character after he heard it from her. Though she insisted she did so for space efficiency, she was pretty stubborn, to say the least. ¡°There are many beds like this in Korea.¡± ¡°Hmm.¡± Her thick eyebrows slanted upward. ¡°Well, this is more like a talisman than a bed to me. When I fall into a slump, I lay myself down here and recall the hard times I went through in college in America. I mean, those days when I was much poorer and had more difficult days than now.¡± ¡°Why?¡± Chapter 15 Chapter 15: Chapter 15 ¡°Because I¡¯m in a slump,¡± said the client. ¡°Why do you have to recall the hard times you went through? You have to throw away those articles that remind you of your hard times. You should get out of your bad memories to dream about a better life.¡± Hojoon gave her such advice at that time. He kept one principle in daily life. That was one item per household. What he hated the most was a multi-purpose item. Accordingly, the type of good that served its original purpose was beautiful and practical to him rather than those with complicated functions. That¡¯s the same for the folding or portable table as well as a bed and a chair. It¡¯s okay to use them briefly at an event or for the customers¡¯ use. But if such an item was used in one¡¯s daily life, it would make one feel nervous. Accordingly, it wouldn¡¯t help any prospective businessman hit the jackpot. The double-deck beds as commonly used in the dorms were also fatal to those living on the lower beds because the latter had to support those on the upper beds while sleeping. Accordingly, things didn¡¯t work out smoothly for those in the lower beds in terms of geomancy. After all, they could use such stuff as a last resort in a situation where they have no other choice available. When their situation gets better, however, they have to throw it away. There was one exception. That was the Korean-style sit-down table. When it¡¯s folded, it was convenient to put away, and as it¡¯s light, it¡¯s quite portable. Thanks to its various size, we could choose any table we wanted. It could be used as a dining table, studying table, tea table or work table in the kitchen. All other multi-purpose goods were garbage to Hojoon. The client changed her house as instructed by Hojoon when he visited again. Her main bedroom was now faithful to its original purpose. Indirect lighting created a cozy atmosphere in the room. A black-out curtain was set up, so she could sleep anytime day and night. She brought a Stucky flower pot in the living room to block the electronic waves of IT products. Though cactus was allegedly effective in blocking electronic waves, the thorns all over it were not good in terms of geomancy . In geomancy, they didn¡¯t recommend anything sharp at the end if it¡¯s directed toward a man. This was because a murderous spirit was emitted from that sharp end. That¡¯s why our ancestors used to say we should not eat at the sharp corner of the dining table because we could have upset stomach due to the spirit of that corner. And there was a toy, a doll¡¯s house, in her study. As she was asked to put in her study something she wanted to have most when she was a child, she chose a doll¡¯s house. ¡°My mother stopped me from playing with it.¡± That was her hidden desire. A desire that she couldn¡¯t satisfy in childhood. ¡°Great. As long as it strengthens your energy, anything is good,¡± Hojoon praised her. ¡°Why don¡¯t you keep your house in shape like a doll¡¯s house? Then, your boyfriend will appear soon.¡± And she placed everything in pairs, so she could find a boyfriend. However, the client gave up finding a lover and visited him to request for refund the other day. There must be some problem with her. Hojoon kept looking at the doll¡¯s house toy. He had to think of an excellent idea. He noticed Bobby sitting inside the doll¡¯s house alone. ¡°Ah!¡± Bobby was alone. ¡°This guy, doesn¡¯t she have a boyfriend?¡± The client nodded. ¡°First of all, you have to get Bobby a boyfriend. This doll sitting alone in the doll¡¯s house is exactly like you.¡± ¡°Oh my¡­¡± she let out a short sigh. Hojoon continued, ¡°And the dress as well as the hairstyle also affects your luck on love Your room is supposed to take after you. I think I read it somewhere in a research paper. Most of the kitchens or restrooms where crimes took place were allegedly dirty. That negative spirit of the rooms lead to murder or violence.¡± ¡°Does it have anything to do with my dress and hairstyle?¡± ¡°Of course. Criminals put on hats as a rule. Why? Because they have to hide their faces. If you want to date somebody, you have to decorate yourself well.¡± ¡°But that¡¯s too pretentious, isn¡¯t it?¡± Hojoon could understand what the client was trying to say. ¡°Well, let¡¯s talk about something artificial and pretentious. Who would say full blown roses are pretentious just because they¡¯re so beautiful? Why do they want to blame roses for blooming? It is pretentious to enjoy ostensible decorations in blind pursuit of expensive brand-name products. What I want to emphasize is not to hide your own beauty.¡± ¡°Despite her ostensible decoration, my mother¡­¡± The client turned gloomy again. There was something he could guess at. ¡°If I may ask, was your mother divorced? Or did your father have an extramarital affair?¡± The client¡¯s face turned deadly pale as if she saw a ghost. ¡°Both.¡± Her mother got divorced because of her father¡¯s concubine. ¡°Do you think your parents got divorced because of you? Did you ever think you could have prevented their disengagement if you had served them better, studied harder and remained as a good daughter? It looks like your mother told you so. That¡¯s why you refrained from decorating yourself while trying to live as a good daughter. You don¡¯t have to follow your mom¡¯s direction.¡± The client blushed as if he found out what she had on her mind. ¡°No, no. That¡¯s your parents¡¯ matter. It¡¯s not your fault. It¡¯s time you got out of your mother¡¯s influence. Find your own!¡± As soon as Hojoon was done talking, the client, who looked cold-hearted, shed tears. ¡°It¡¯s difficult.¡± As if she found it awkward to cry before others, she stopped crying in no time. This client would definitely change. And she would actively try to carve out her own life from now on. She needed to pluck up courage for that. ¡°Just forget everything, and just focus on love.¡± The client nodded and asked, ¡°Do you really think I can date well in the future?¡± She was still feeling nervous. But Hojoon was confident. He continued, ¡°Love is not a choice. It is not a matter of you can or you can¡¯t. Everybody has to date, and they¡¯re doing it now. Look at it. Love flourished even in the midst of war.¡± Hojoon passionately explained. But the client didn¡¯t reply. ¡®Did I go overboard?¡¯ When he was a bit agonized over it, the client asked, ¡°Are you in love with somebody now?¡± ¡°Pardon?¡± ¡°You just said dating was easy if you found yourself, right?¡± ¡°That¡¯s true, but I¡¯m not interested in dating.¡± ¡°I think I can date if you could. Let me give you three months for that. Otherwise, give me the refund.¡± Hojoon was put on the spot. Indeed, what she said was a very strange condition. *** Arum came to the office in the morning, and it¡¯s already lunch time. But she was so distracted that she couldn¡¯t focus on work until now. She opened the home page of Famed House of Geomancy and stared at its president Hojoon¡¯s face all the time. She took pains to brew coffee and prepare material for her seniors. She took one of her junior staff out for lunch and came back very late. When she sat down again before the computer, Hojoon was smiling there. She has to avoid him by using whatever means are necessary. She would feel it uncomfortable to bump into him even as a neighbor. If she has to collaborate with him, she now has to call or meet him often. Besides, he will inevitably see her seniors and the editor. It will be a matter of time that the horrible mistakes she made in connection with her intrusion into his house and her police record on that will be revealed. She can¡¯t allow herself to slide into the way of destruction. Though she knew his contact number, she decided to use the company landline to contact him. At least, her colleagues would testify that she did make efforts to contact Hojoon. And such a famous person like Hojoon would be too busy to consult. There would be no reason for him to respond favorably to a free consultation on geomancy interior design when, in fact, the interview was not about him. ¡°Hello? This is reporter Urum Ya with Single Woman.¡± She quickly and strangely pronounced her name. The other party took up the phone kindly, and said President Hojoon¡¯s schedule was so tight that he could not grant an interview. Arum was so happy to hear that. She replied, ¡°Oh, I see. That¡¯s fine. I understand. Thanks.¡± Hurrah! Arum was so happy about the interview rejection. She took pains to hide her uncontrollable smile. Chapter 16 Chapter 16: Chapter 16 Arum was about to race to the editor immediately, when manager Kyong, who overheard her conversation, asked with a worried look, ¡°Did they say Hojoon couldn¡¯t cooperate?¡± Oops! She had to pretend to be downcast on purpose, as there were some in the office watching her. ¡°What shall I do?¡± she said. Terrific news to her, of course. But she couldn¡¯t make a merry laugh before her senior, manager Kyong. ¡°Can I try? I hear the wife of my brother¡¯s alumna¡­¡± ¡°Her friend?¡± Very close. If Kyong tried to contact Hojoon by using her network, Hojoon would not refuse. Arum¡¯s face turned pale. ¡°Well, I mean not the wife, but her friend received consultation from Hojoon¡­¡± Fortunately she¡¯s a stranger. ¡°I hear Hojoon¡¯s schedule is fully booked already. We have to wait at least six months.¡± ¡°If that¡¯s the case, I¡¯m afraid we have to put it off until this fall when we are doing a feature on trousseau.¡± ¡°I guess so. As things stand now, it¡¯s very hard for me to continue with this feature project. Can I contact another geomancy specialist?¡± ¡°Well, the editor has a crush on Hojoon. I don¡¯t think she will approve your idea.¡± As expected, the editor was an indefatigable woman and editor. She didn¡¯t budge an eye at all after she was briefed. ¡°¡­Really?¡± The editor¡¯s eyes slanted upward a bit. And she said, ¡°Does he think he is¡­¡± Most probably she would speak ill of him. Single Woman was a female magazine boasting of the largest circulation in the field. She continued, ¡°How come he is so arrogant when he is not a popular entertainer?¡± Arum could read how the editor felt. How could he reject our request for an interview when there were so many celebrities waiting to be interviewed by us? She could not accept such humiliation as a woman who was so confident of her pride. ¡°Well, I think he could be regarded as an entertainer, given his current popularity. Try to contact him at least three times. Okay?¡± Arum expected the editor would give up and ask her to turn to another geomancy expert, but she didn¡¯t. Her single-hearted loyalty to Hojoon was already set into motion. ¡°Weren¡¯t you ready to be rejected at your first try?¡± ¡°But I hear he¡¯s tightly booked for the next six months.¡± ¡°Did you talk to Hojoon directly?¡± ¡°No, I talked to someone with his company.¡± ¡°I see. You never know unless you meet CEOs or representatives in person. They are trying to avoid interviews with various excuses like breakfast meeting or conference, when, in fact, they¡¯re idling away their time everyday. You can never approach them if you tend to think of them from an employee¡¯s standpoint. Have you ever seen his lecture?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°How many?¡± ¡°Two.¡± ¡°You have to watch them all. He is our country¡¯s best geomancy consultant. Don¡¯t even think of preparing a story with the material on paesanimsu alone? Go back to work!¡± Biting her lips, Arum had to get out of the editor¡¯s room. *** Reporting to work at his company, Famed House of Geomancy, Hojoon had a lot on his mind. His peace of mind was disturbed by the client¡¯s provocative question ¡°Are you in love with someone?¡± yesterday. Her question was still echoing in his ears. Looking back, he felt ashamed about himself because he announced so confidently that love was easy, and that love would be solved through geomancy. He has never thought of meeting and dating another woman. He had vowed he would not love anybody all his life. The moment the client asked that question, why did he recall Arum Yang? In the meantime, Arum survived another long day in the battlefield of her workplace. While she was on her way back, she had a lot on her mind. ¡®I wish I had drawn the line between official and private matters. Did I think wrong?¡¯ While she was walking up to her villa, she found something that caught her eye. A doll¡¯s house toy thrown into the recycle garbage box. The staircase leading to the second floor was broken. ¡®Oh I didn¡¯t know there were still people playing with that toy these days.¡¯ Come to think of it, she received a doll¡¯s house as a gift by pestering her parents when she was six years old. She really cherished it back then, but she couldn¡¯t remember where she put it. ¡®When did I put it away? Did I throw it away?¡¯ Though she didn¡¯t keep it to the end, it was her most precious toy. Even when her parents quarreled over the matter of money or the matter of hospitalizing grandmother to a nursing hospital or when her father had an extramarital affair, she closed the door of her room and played dolls without eating until it got dark. When she was so hungry and opened the door, she found the living room empty. Her father left the house already, while her mother called her sister, bursting into tears, in the main bed room. She didn¡¯t have the heart to tell her mother she was hungry. Looking back, when she was a child, she just wished her family would be just happy like the doll¡¯s house. Suddenly her bitter memories of childhood came to her mind, with her eyes welled with tears. After she came into her house, she said to herself on purpose while humming a tune, ¡°What should I cook today?¡± She should eat well in order to shake off her depressed moods. Opening the refrigerator, she chose the day¡¯s menu. ¡°Chicken! My diet food.¡± Thawing the spicy frozen chicken breast, she prepared fruits. She had a simple dinner. She tried to eat less to lose weight on those days she didn¡¯t have drinks. ¡°Let¡¯s study! Geomancy!¡± Sitting at the dining table, she began to enjoy dinner, playing Hojoon¡¯s lecture on geomancy. It was a video titled, ¡®Cleaning is diet ¨C Pungdok Cultural Center.¡¯ Most of the audience were middle-aged housewives as the special lecture by Hojonn was hosted by the shopping center in Pungdok District. ¡°Does anybody know why cleaning is dieting?¡± Hojoon was attracting the audience effortlessly. ¡°Labor? Yes, that¡¯s correct. But that¡¯s only half true. Geomancy is energy force. So is man. When we smooth out the flow of energy, the spirit of our body is back to life and the fat clogged in our body is discharged.¡± The audience seriously listened to his lecture. ¡°That¡¯s why the most important thing in daily geomancy life is cleaning. Did you clean your room before you came, right? I see dust even here¡­¡± He cleaned the dust on the audio box installed in the back of the stage. He looked at the black dust on his hand. ¡°But wiping the dust visible in your eyes is not cleaning. Even if you wipe the dust, dust is supposed to collect. If you put the stuff there, even a bad spirit stays there. Let¡¯s assume there is a piece of trash on the street. The next day you see trash piled up like a mountain on the same spot. Trash has the power to collect trash. Look at this belly fat. There is a reason for that.¡± The word ¡®belly fat¡¯ attracted the attention of the housewives. ¡°Dust on the wardrobe, behind the door and the refrigerator filled with food! All these bad spirits collect together to block the circulation of the body. Even though you don¡¯t see it, the energy of congestion is coming out of the whole house.¡± Housewives present at the lecture nodded their heads, carried away with his lecture. ¡°That bad energy gets stuck in your belly, which is most hard to lose, back, side and forearms to form flesh. Right here. In fact, I met lots of housewives who said their constipation disappeared or they lost weight after cleaning miscellaneous articles.¡± It seemed they couldn¡¯t believe it. ¡°That¡¯s true. If you surf the internet fan cafe of my company Famed House of Geomancy, you can read the testimonials by those who have experienced the miracle of geomancy. There are many people who said their lives changed after listening to my lecture.¡± While chewing tomato, Arum grabbed her belly fat. Oh my¡­ It was fatter than before. Grabbing her wobbly belly fat, she looked at the veranda. That stuff piled up there is like my belly fat? She couldn¡¯t believe it. Belly fat is belly fat, and miscellaneous stuff is miscellaneous stuff. Hojoon¡¯s talk is just nonsense! But there was something that bothered her while she was chewing tomato. ¡®Yeah, that¡¯s nonsense.¡¯ She ignored it and focused on his lecture again. At the end of the video were posted several housewives¡¯ comments. ¡®I purchased large trash bags on my way back home, but they were not enough. When I cleaned the refrigerator, it was more efficient and my husband wanted home food only.¡¯ ¡®I found nest egg 300,000 while I was cleaning the wardrobe.¡¯ There were also numerous testimonials by those who said they lost as much as 5 Kg by throwing piled trash. ¡°Really?¡± Chapter 17 Chapter 17: Chapter 17 In the end, Arum was opening her heart. She put down chopsticks with which she held chicken breast and stood before the small room. Usually she doesn¡¯t use the room. This is the second time she stood before it after she met Hojoon. With a deep breath she opened the door. She noticed kitchen utensils boxes not yet opened, and home appliances. And the coffee machine she purchased after arguing with Konsu. She was ashamed of herself. According to Hojoon¡¯s analysis, these stuff were pouring negative energy into the whole house. ¡®No way, I can¡¯t believe that.¡¯ ¡®All this stuff is me. How happy I was when I purchased them. How can these unopened boxes be called trash?¡¯ That was nonsense. When she moved one step, her sock collected dust ball instantly. Where did all this dust collect when I didn¡¯t even open the door for such a long time? She made a frown before she knew. And she took out frames among the boxes. The wedding picture frame covered with dust. She burst into laughter while looking at the smiling bride and bridegroom. One day before the shooting, they had rice with raw fish. Both of them were suffering from bellyache all morning. They had to visit the restroom frequently while posing for the shooting. Konsu, who suggested they eat rice with raw fish, felt sorry for her during the shooting. When she recalled that day, she got upset. Come to think of it, Konsu said more often he felt sorry on that day than when he said about breaking off their engagement. ¡®Dang it! Did he think I was inferior to rice with raw fish?¡¯ Anyway, both were done with shooting for their wedding safely, and received the insurance from the restaurant that sold rice with raw fish. When she received the text message on divorce and moved out, she didn¡¯t throw this stuff. The reason was not she had any lingering attachment to him but because she still believed in the possibility of meeting him again. The possibility of reunion. Though she told her acquaintances she forgot Konsu, there was a lot of evidence in the small room that she didn¡¯t yet forget him. In the lecture Hojoon passionately emphasized that they should clean the piled odds and ends and throw them away. But these are the stuff that she can never throw away. Why did Konsu leave, with all this stuff entrusted to her? She felt stuffy again. She sneezed because of dust. When she was about to leave, a plastic bag dropped. Numerous wedding invitation cards fell on the floor. The card with the names Konsu Han and Arum Yang clearly written on it. Suddenly she got angry. And at the same time she broke into tears. Nonetheless, she missed him. *** When the staff morning meeting of the Famed House of Geomancy was over, there was a telephone ringing. Heemang answered the phone. ¡°Yes, how are you? Yes, sir. It¡¯s hard because president Hojoon Lee is fully booked for the first six months this year¡­¡± At that moment Hojoon gestured toward him, asking, ¡°What is it?¡± ¡°It¡¯s call from women¡¯s magazine . They want to interview you.¡± ¡°Really?¡± After thinking it over for a moment, he said he would take the call personally. ¡°Hi, this is Hojoon Lee. Nice to talk to you.¡± They talked over the phone in a happy mood. When Hojoon hung up the phone, Heemang came back with a memo he recorded yesterday. ¡°I forgot to tell you this, but also asked to interview you yesterday.¡± ¡°Really?¡± is the company affiliated with Arum Yang. ¡°Who called you?¡± ¡°Well¡­¡± ¡°Nobody?¡± ¡°What I mean is, she said something like Urm. As her voice was inaudible, I only heard that.¡± Hojoon instantly sensed that it was a call from Arum Yang. ¡°Got it. You said it was , right?¡¯ He made a funny expression on face. But there was something that he didn¡¯t know. was the arch rival of . The editors of the two magazines were from the same university, and joined Munhwa Publishing Co. at the same time. But their relationship fell out when its rival publishing company inaugurated . Besides, the editor of took her juniors with her. faced a financial crisis because of that. Though they were enemies in the past, they tried to get along well in the name of comrades today. But they would immediately lock in competition whenever they found out exclusive stories. The editor of , who managed to have a lunch appointment with Hojoon, was fully ready to make the best use of the appointment. *** Arum had lunch in a relaxed mood. Holding a cup of coffee in one hand, she took the elevator and tried to sort out her assignment in the afternoon. ¡®Selecting the interview photos, wrapping up news brief, etc. What else do I have?¡¯ She couldn¡¯t recall what it was. She was bothered by that. ¡®There must be some other thing to do.¡¯ The moment she got off the elevator and arrived at her desk, the editor shouted, ¡°Arum, come to my room!¡± The editor obviously had a very angry look. ¡®What¡¯s the matter?¡¯ Arum couldn¡¯t figure out at all. ¡°You said Hojoon Lee¡¯s schedule was fully booked, right?¡± ¡°Yes, for the next six months.¡± ¡°How come he is meeting the editor of ?¡± ¡°Really?¡± she asked back, embarrassed. ¡°Are you making fun of me now? How come you couldn¡¯t contact him?¡± ¡°Obviously I contacted his staff¡­¡± ¡°What?¡± ¡°Didn¡¯t you call Hojoon yet?¡± Officially she didn¡¯t. She nodded silently. ¡°Do you think you are an editor with with such a poor performance?¡± ¡°I¡¯m sorry.¡± Once was locked in competition with like this, there was no other way to get around it. She had to show her performance as good as or beat it. Unless Hojoon walked into the office of on his own, she couldn¡¯t find the solution. ¡°I¡¯m sorry.¡± ¡°Go and get him here right now!¡± Right at that moment the youngest assistant knocked on the door of the editor¡¯s room. ¡°What is it?¡± The editor cast a sharp glance at the assistant. ¡°We have a guest looking for Arum¡­¡± As if he read the strange atmosphere of the editor¡¯s room, the assistant slurred. ¡®Oh my¡­ you are so slow-witted, man. Don¡¯t you see the editor?¡¯ Arum stared at him with some eye signal. But the assistant seemed anxious to say something urgently. ¡°Well¡­ geomancy consultant Hojoon Lee has come here.¡± ¡°Who?¡± Arum and the editor quickly went out simultaneously. Inside the conference room was sitting Hojoon Lee. ¡°Hi, Arum!¡± He greeted her gladly. ¡°Do you know him?¡± asked the editor. The editor was at a loss for words. ¡®How could you handle this when you knew him?¡¯ The editor seemed to cast an angry glance at her. ¡°No, let me correct, yes.¡± Arum was so embarrassed that she got confused which answer was correct. ¡°Nice to see you. I¡¯m Hojoon Lee.¡± ¡°How do you do? I¡¯m editor Young Oh.¡± ¡°I¡¯ve wanted to see you for long. I¡¯m reading your articles well.¡± The editor¡¯s face brightened at that praise of his. Arum couldn¡¯t figure out the situation at the moment. ¡®Am I dreaming now? Where did this guy appear suddenly like this?¡¯ At that moment the editor shouted at Arum, ¡°What are you doing now, with the guest standing like this? Escort him inside!¡± ¡°Yes, editor.¡± Arum decided to stay alert sharply. The three of them sat face to face. ¡°I heard from Arum that you were fully booked for the next six months.¡± She freaked out at that moment. She didn¡¯t lie. She just wanted to avoid the situation where she had to work with Hojoon. Little did she expect to have this unexpected catastrophic encounter. ¡®What does he make of me? What should I do if he asked me why I didn¡¯t call him at his cell phone?¡¯ She closed her eyes resignedly. ¡°That¡¯s right,¡± said Hojoon, confirming the editor¡¯s question on his schedule. ¡°By the way, I heard you met the editor of ¡± Hojoon was stunned at that. ¡°How did you know that?¡± ¡°Well, I¡¯m on a win-win relationship with that editor.¡± ¡°Oh, I see. In fact, my mother is a fan of ¡± Arum signaled with eye toward him to stop. But he didn¡¯t understand it. He continued, ¡°My mother keeps all the copies of including its inaugural issue.¡± ¡°Really?¡± The editor¡¯s voice trembled. The two editors were on an win-win terms officially, but privately they hated each other intensely. Though the editor of trembled while speaking with Hojoon, she didn¡¯t lose her elegance. But slow-witted Hojoon continued, ¡°I had a call from , so I made a lunch appointment to express my thanks.¡± ¡°Oh, I see.¡± ¡°But when my assistant told me he had a call from , I came running here. Sorry, my assistant was clumsy in answering the phone.¡± Only then did the editor brighten her face, and Arum breathed out comfortably. ¡°By the way, do you know each other? Why didn¡¯t you tell me, Arum? How come you keep on telling me you want to check with another geomancy specialist? Oh, sorry for that.¡± Chapter 18 Chapter 18: Chapter 18 ¡°That¡¯s fine with me. Don¡¯t you know she is so prudent?¡± Arum protested in her heart, ¡®Nope, I¡¯m not!¡¯ She got nervous at this moment. ¡®What is this guy trying to say by praising me with nonsensical lie like that?¡¯ Hojoon said, ¡°As I said I was so busy, she might have felt it hard to ask me a favor personally. Right, Arum?¡± She nodded for now. ¡°In fact, I¡¯m so busy. Today, I just stopped by since she told me I could come anytime for a cup of coffee. I hope I didn¡¯t disturb you. As I¡¯m a geomancy consultant, I wondered what kind of place your company, the best woman magazine, was.¡± ¡°I¡¯m so flattered by your praise!¡± The editor felt like she was the greatest after that compliment. ¡°Please make yourself at home. Could you look around my office first? I wanted to invite you.¡± Arum sensed the editor¡¯s intention. And she felt she realized why the editor insisted on having him for the feature interview. Hojoon examined the editor¡¯s room. It was a modern place in black and white. It looked as if he saw a sculpture of a museum. Her chair and desk were all brand-name products. Though she displayed accessories to the minimum, they were all expensive. The skylight, her desk and accessories were all in their right places. ¡°Have you ever studied about geomancy? Perfect. It¡¯s been a while since I noticed a room kept in spick and span like this. I think I know the reason why you have become the editor.¡± Just like a guy in the service business, he was eloquent. ¡°Oh, really? I¡¯m glad to hear that. As you know, we¡¯re involved in a sensitive and creative work. Can you help us further in any way?¡± the editor asked in a charming voice. ¡°Why don¡¯t you light a fragrant candle?¡± Hojoon thought it would be good for her to light a fragrant candle on the side table. ¡°If you see the flame, you feel relaxed. I think you¡¯ll hit on a lot of creative ideas, too. That¡¯s the feature of fire.¡± ¡°Creative ideas?¡± ¡°If you look at the flame, your brain is activated. And it rekindles your primitive sense. You know how important fire was in the primitive age. It¡¯s the candle that moves such an important thing to your room.¡± Isn¡¯t it nonsensical for him to talk about a primitive man igniting a flint in the age of science? Taking turns looking at both of them, Arum was at a loss for words. ¡°Wow, you¡¯re great. This is the very concept that I would like to feature in our magazine.¡± ¡°Well, thanks for your compliment. I think it¡¯s a good opportunity to introduce geomancy to a larger audience. But I don¡¯t cooperate with anybody who doesn¡¯t believe in geomancy. That¡¯s my only principle in work.¡± Though he said that to the editor, each of his words was clearly heard by Arum. ¡°So, let me put this way. If I ever come to work with your magazine , I¡¯ve got one condition. You should assign an editor who can understand my philosophy on geomancy. And she would work with me in the field and learn. In that case, I can work with her immediately.¡± ¡°Of course!¡± said the editor, chiming in. ¡°Well, today I just stopped by for a cup of coffee¡­¡± As if he was done talking, Hojoon said this bashfully. ¡°Oh, coffee!¡± The editor ordered Arum to go out and have coffee with him. ¡°Let me contact you after I decide on the direction of our feature stories on geomancy.¡± *** The battle of pride between the two editors was won by for now. Seated face to face with Hojoon at a coffee shop, Arum stared at him. ¡°When did I tell you to come over here for coffee?¡± she demanded. ¡°I know you wanted to say so, but you didn¡¯t.¡± ¡°O my¡­if you keep abusing my mistakes like this, I¡¯m going to report you to the police as a stalker.¡± ¡°Okay, no problem. Let me cooperate with then.¡± He knew how to play his cards right. ¡°No way, I can¡¯t allow that,¡± said Arum. As he met the editor already, she couldn¡¯t give him a cold shrift. ¡°By the way, is in competition with ?¡± ¡°Yes, when it comes to , it is our editor¡¯s motto to beat them.¡± ¡°I see. What a fierce competition! That¡¯s why they were so happy to have me.¡± ¡°Really?¡± ¡°Yeah, they were really happy when I accepted their request for a meeting. And they are paying dearly for my consultation.¡± The moment she heard that, Arum became impatient. ¡°So, are you going to collaborate with ?¡± ¡°Do I have to answer?¡± ¡°Are you going to sit on the fence?¡± ¡°Can¡¯t I?¡± As if to make fun of her, Hojoon answered with a teasing smile. She felt annoyed. But right now she was on the defensive. Hojoon stopped teasing her and asked, ¡°Why didn¡¯t you call me directly?¡± ¡°¡­..¡± ¡°Didn¡¯t you call because you hate me?¡± ¡°I¡¯m not childish, mam. I know how to keep my public and private life separate!¡± ¡°Then, why did you do so? It¡¯s my strong desire to publicize geomancy widely through the media like TV, newspapers and magazines.¡± ¡°You said you¡¯re busy. I hear your have already a fully-booked schedule for the next six months.¡± ¡°You don¡¯t have to be concerned about that.¡± Obviously he was determined to argue it out with her. She got angry at that. ¡°So, why did you come to see me?¡± ¡°I hear you called me! I can¡¯t stand it as I miss you often. Is it enough?¡± When he raised his voice, she flinched for a moment. ¡°By the way¡­how did you know the caller was me?¡± ¡°Don¡¯t you know you¡¯re the only reporter with who has done wrongdoings to me.¡± She felt a prick in the heart at that. ¡°And I have the evidence on that day.¡± Her heart sank at that moment. ¡°Didn¡¯t you erase my pictures from your cell phone yet?¡± ¡°I did.¡± ¡°You told me you still had the evidence?¡± She was edgy now. ¡°I was just joking,¡± he said. But she confirmed in his trembling eyes that he didn¡¯t. ¡°Erase them right away!¡± ¡°Well, I keep them as a token of remembrance.¡± Arum was dumbfounded to hear his nonsensical response. ¡°As a token of remembrance? How weird you are!¡± He was embarrassed. He didn¡¯t mean it. He erased all her pictures, but found out there were still a couple of them saved in his cell phone. ¡°Got it. Let me erase.¡± He took out his cell phone. ¡°You haven¡¯t created any copy of that, right? In that case, you¡¯ll be behind bars.¡± The photo of the intruder taken in his cell photo was bizarre. On a closer examination, however, she looked cute with an innocent smile. In the end, he erased only one of two such photos. And then he showed it to her, pretending to have erased them all. He wanted to verify to her that he really erased them. ¡°Just done! See this?¡± At that moment she changed her facial expression quickly and snatched his cell phone even before he could stop it. ¡°I told you I erased them all!¡± Hojoon sprang to his feet and held out his hand, but couldn¡¯t touch her as she was standing, while checking out the photo album in the cell phone. Finally she located the photo he didn¡¯t yet erase. ¡°Erase this one right now!¡± she shouted, staring at him. ¡°Oh, you don¡¯t have to. Let me erase it.¡± ¡°Hey, seriously. Let me keep just one.¡± ¡°Are you crazy?¡± Arum began to erase her own photo pretty quickly. Though Hojoon came to her quickly to snatch it away, Arum stubbornly grabbed it. ¡°O my, you¡¯ve got a video here!¡± she shouted. It was an unexpected bonanza. ¡°You want to delete only the photo, right?¡± demanded Hojoon. ¡°Are you going to post this video on the internet? Don¡¯t you know it¡¯s a crime?¡± ¡°How do I post this shit on the internet? It doesn¡¯t contain anything to watch.¡± ¡°What¡± Something to watch? That¡¯s a sexual belittlement. Are you talking about a woman¡¯s face? That¡¯s a personal attack!¡± ¡°O my god..you¡¯re impossible!¡± Hojoon tried his best to take it away from her. The moment he almost took it from her, his cell phone dropped on the ground. And then the video in question was played. ¡°Who is that woman?¡± asked Arum. There was heard the voice of a strange woman. In the end, Arum watched the video playing in his cell phone. She was Soran Cho, the grand daughter of the chairman of Sola Electronics, the biggest electronics company in Korea. How could it happen that Soran, a married woman, had been to his house when Arum was reported to the police for her unlawful intrusion into his house under the influence of alcohol! But her surprise didn¡¯t last long. Chapter 19 Chapter 19: Chapter 19 Right after her voice in the video ensued Hojoon¡¯s. ¡°Who the hell is that woman?¡± asked Arum. ¡°My girlfriend.¡± ¡®Am I? Whose girlfriend?¡¯ Arum couldn¡¯t believe her ears. At that moment his face turned pale. He picked up his phone on the ground and erased the whole video. ¡°I¡¯m sorry.¡± Arum accidentally came to know his private life. ¡°I didn¡¯t see anything there. Seriously. Who is she? I really have no idea.¡± It was a white lie that as a reporter she said she didn¡¯t know Soran Cho in Korea. ¡®Ah, What should I do? Why did married woman Soran visit his house? But it¡¯s my moral obligation. I should keep mum about it.¡¯ Hojoon lowered his head once again and said, ¡°I¡¯m sorry.¡± ¡°That¡¯s alright.¡± ¡°Well, I couldn¡¯t find any excuse to erase it. Thanks anyway,¡± said Hojoon awkwardly. With a polite bow, he stood up, and Arum also stood up. ¡°Let me contact you regarding the feng shui article after meeting.¡± ¡°Sure, you can take it easy and let me know anytime you want.¡± Arum quietly looked at his back, who left the coffee shop after saying goodbye politely. Arum was struggling with herself all day long. Though she vowed she would never tell it to anybody, she really couldn¡¯t stand it. Finally on her way back home she called Jina, an employee with Sola Electronics. ¡°Really? Are you sure? Soran Cho?¡± Jina was stunned to hear that. ¡°Yeah, I¡¯m 100% sure.¡± ¡°Soran was in his house at dawn?¡± ¡°Yeah. Don¡¯t you think they¡¯re on intimate terms?¡± ¡°I think so, but I just can¡¯t understand how she, who had no dearth in her life, met such an ordinary man.¡± ¡°Is this adultery?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t think so. There is nothing like adultery these days. Even the relevant law was abolished.¡± ¡°In fact, there are wild rumors about Soran these days. There was talk of their separation long time ago. Her husband is the chief business manager of Solar Electronics, but he failed to get promotion this time.¡± ¡°Really?¡± Then, why did she visit his house? ¡°Was he her first love?¡± The greatest love affairs that transcended their different positions came to her mind momentarily. When she came to think that money was the symbol of one¡¯s position, Arum became sullen. ¡°Anyway, keep this to yourself,¡± said Arum. ¡°Can I post it on SNS?¡± ¡°I¡¯m going to kill you if you do that. He will instantly find out I was the whistleblower.¡± ¡°Let him do whatever he wanted. I don¡¯t care. Bye, sis. I¡¯m on duty tonight,¡± said Jina. With a heavy heart Arum quickened her steps back home. *** After drinking a pinch of microbrew at a bar near his house, Hojoon stood up. The owner, who said he started business for the first time, treated Hojoon like a friend, though he was older than Hojoon. Hojoon¡¯s daily routine was to stop by the bar sometimes for a pinch or two of microbrew before going back home. Whenever he visited the bar, there were only a couple of tables occupied by customers. If he could have his way, he wanted to give him some free consultation on feng shui, but he held back the urge. The problem was the taste of microbrew. As microbrew at the bar was not mature enough, there was no increase in customers. Sometimes the owner offered free microbrew as a token of compliment, but Hojoon refused it. The owner knew the problem of his bar even without Hojoon¡¯s coaching. What¡¯s encouraging was the fact that the situation was getting better little by little these days. Only regulars like Hojoon could sense it. He was coming back home with a heavy heart. Little did he expect Arum could detect the video. She would probably think he didn¡¯t erase the video because of Soran Cho. Soran Cho. She was a dreamy girl. Hojoon met her when he was studying architect design in France. His association with her dating back to those days was continued until today. He tried his best to break up. It was not because he knew she was the granddaughter of the CEO of Sola Electronics that he split with her. It didn¡¯t matter at all, though Hojoon had a childish pride that his father is the most famous feng shui expert. The moment he realized that she had a fiance, Hojoon didn¡¯t feel attracted to her any more. ¡°You are the one and only to me, Hojoon.¡± It was Soran who clung to him. The very woman sobbing in the small attic of the house overlooking the riverside of Paris. He hugged her to soothe her troubled heart. He did so with a sense of obligation back then. He realized at that time that the small attic was a total mismatch with this woman. Walking up the stairs to Green Villa, he completely forgot about Soran. It was his living principle that he would never bring into his house any concern he entertained outside. He recalled what he had learned from his father about feng shui. ¡°These days people bring home their concern outside. Station district? Do you think those houses located near the station are good? Home is your resting place. It¡¯s best to come back home after you get your concern or worry off your chest first. Without exception old houses were located far away from the places frequented by people. For utter rest, our ancestors came back home after walking on the outskirts of their villages.¡± His father¡¯s lesson rang loud in Hojoon¡¯s ears today. Though he wanted to forget all about Soran, he arrived home before he knew. With a heavy heart he opened the front door. And he bumped into her. ¡°You¡¯re late, today?¡± It was Soran. ¡°How come you¡­¡± Hojoon was speechless. ¡°Are you back after seeing your girlfriend?¡± As if it were her own house, she sat on the sofa comfortably. He got confused whether it was her or his house at that moment. And he got angry about her who acted as she pleased. ¡°How come you have come into my house!¡± asked Hojoon. But she just giggled at that. ¡°The password on your front door is still the same as I used back in Paris. Doesn¡¯t it mean that I may come into this house?¡± Hojoon was at a loss for words. And he was embarrassed. ¡°Well, it¡¯s my habit. I didn¡¯t change the password to let you in. Let me report to the police for your unlawful intrusion. So, get out now!¡± ¡°Call the police!¡± As expected, she didn¡¯t change at all. ¡°Does your husband know you¡¯re here?¡± He felt it a bit ridiculous to mention her husband, but he had no other choice. ¡°Yes. He knows it. He is doing the same. To me you¡¯re the only man, but he is quite good at dating other women. He¡¯s got too many girls to date. So annoying,¡± Soran said with a bitter look, as if her pride was hurt. ¡°Please show me how to get divorced.¡± That was the reason she came to see him. ¡°I hear you¡¯re very popular among wives of rich guys. My mom¡¯s friends are your regulars, I know. Is it true that you made president Yun, that notorious womanizer, come back to the nest of home?¡± ¡°That¡¯s bullshit! Just get out!¡± ¡°How much do you want? If you make my husband put the stamp on the divorce letter first, I¡¯ll pay you as much as you want. I don¡¯t want to take the initiative. My father will kick me out if I mention the word ¡®divorce¡¯ first.¡± ¡°Just live with him, if you don¡¯t want it.¡± ¡°He¡¯s so boring.¡± Soran made a drowsy smile at that. ¡°You and I had great fun then, right?¡± ¡°Was it fun to you?¡± ¡°Why? What¡¯s the problem with that? I¡¯m sick and tired of money.¡± ¡°Do you know how many employees are knocking themselves out to make money?¡± ¡°That¡¯s why they get paid!¡± Soran shouted at him, as if she couldn¡¯t stand his reproach any more. And she stared at him with an angry look. ¡°Yeah, you¡¯re in your element when you vent out anger like that.¡± He wondered how he could stay with her in that rooftop room in Paris. *** ¡°Oh my god, it does influence me.¡± Arum was busy cleaning her house. She had to clean it while listening to Hojoon¡¯s video lecture on feng shui. As she had to prepare the feature on feng shui, she had to. ¡°I wish he had told me earlier if it was his real birthday yesterday,¡± she said in a grumbling tone. She completely forgot that she didn¡¯t believe it when he said it was his birthday. ¡°How come you took revenge on me just because I didn¡¯t treat you to dinner? Dang it, you¡¯re so stubborn!¡± Arum tried to speak with Hojoon in the video. ¡°Are you taking revenge on me like this? What? Working with you in the field? You want to give me a hard time on purpose, don¡¯t you?¡± No matter how long she cleaned her room, she couldn¡¯t calm down her anger. ¡°You won¡¯t get away with this! Let me take revenge on you by all means.¡± Chapter 20 Chapter 20: Chapter 20 She gnashed her teeth, watching Hojoon in the video. Right after his lecture was over, there was another lecture. This time, it was not a lecture, but an interview footage. ¡°Ugh?¡± The interviewee was grey-haired Paekhoon. She recognized his face as she heard his lecture at a department store three years ago. At first she was to click another playlist as she felt Paekhoon¡¯s lecture was wrongly put on the playlist. In the video, Paekhoon said, ¡°Hojoon Lee is my son. Initially I was opposed to his idea that he would carry on my family business.¡± Though Paekhoon spoke in Korean, Arum could not understand what he was talking about at first. She just listened with a blank expression. Paekhoon continued, ¡°He studied architectural design in Korea and in France. He¡¯s better than me now in terms of geomancy. I¡¯m proud of him, who is devoted to publicizing geomancy to the general public with a young and fresh sense.¡± Based on his remarks, the very geomancy consultant who insulted her by comparing her to a ¡®trash can¡¯ three years ago was none other than Hojoon Lee. She was so shocked that she couldn¡¯t move. Paekhoon¡¯s interview sent a shiver through her body. ¡®It was you who trapped me in the prison of ¡®trash can¡¯ for the past three years. Nobody would know how much my self-regard crumbled and how hard my life was all along.¡¯ Even when Arum went to sleep, she experienced hallucinations like ¡®You¡¯re trash, you¡¯re trash,¡¯ and whenever she looked at a trash can on the street, she even felt herself identified with it. ¡°Was that bastard you?¡± She gnashed her teeth in anger. Aside from her disengagement with Konsu, she really hated that young geomancy consultant who made fun of her. Of course, she overcame the hardship and recently gave a special lecture on her experiences about the sorrow of ¡®trash can¡¯ to her juniors at her alma mater. ¡®I will certainly punish this bastard who shook the basis of my life!¡¯ Nonetheless, she had to make sure he was the same guy who really made her life miserable at that time. She discovered a photo from the email attachments three years ago. The geomancy master dressed in traditional Korean attire. It was certain that he was Hojoon Lee. That photo was a group photo taken with the participants in the lecture series. The cultural center sent the photo to them. As Arum stormed out of the lecture hall at that time, she couldn¡¯t receive one. Never did she expect that this geomancy guy dressed in traditional Korean attire could turn into a guy dressed in expensive Italian handmade suit. Somehow she felt he was an eloquent speaker, and he liked to meddle in others¡¯ affairs, all indicative of the typical characteristics of geomancy consultants. Arum sent the photo to her cell phone. In the meantime, she was thinking about various titles of the feature story on geomancy. ¡®Carrying on the family business, geomancy specialist Hojoon Lee of Mt. Jiri.¡± What if this country field photo were revealed to the public? She just felt great joy in thinking about that possibility. Hojoon would actively cooperate to stop the release of his photo. And certainly he would skip that tedious lecture on geomancy for her. She picked up the phone. ¡°Hello?¡± Hojoon answered it right away. ¡°What¡¯s up?¡± said he in a cold voice. ¡°Oh, are you busy?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°I¡¯ve got something to show you.¡± ¡°Can you come to my house then?¡± ¡°What?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t have time for the time being. If you can show it to me now, I can. Otherwise, it will be difficult. Can you do it now?¡¯ ¡°Oh, yes.¡± After she hung up the phone, she headed for his house, Green Villa. *** ¡°Won¡¯t you get out? Someone will be here soon.¡± Opening the front door for her, Hojoon asked her to go out. ¡°Let me see her face before I leave. Your girlfriend,¡± she said in an icy voice. ¡°O my¡­¡± Soran moved around in his house comfortable as if it were her own. She laughed before the espresso coffee machine. ¡°Are you still using it?¡± And then she picked a sugar case right beside it. ¡°Parrot sugar. Aren¡¯t you fed up with this?¡± Hojoon felt his pride was hurt. ¡°Get out now!¡± ¡°Why? I¡¯m glad to see my stuff still here. Don¡¯t you think I can claim this as my house with all this familiar stuff here like this?¡± ¡°Don¡¯t misunderstand me. That¡¯s not your stuff anymore.¡± But she simply ignored his response. Like she used to always. And she approached him. She wrapped her hands around his neck and looked him in the eye. Hojoon almost held her waist with both hands, a sharp reminder of how dreadful it was to for one to remember someone¡¯s body. Soran, feeling he was trying to move his arms around her waist but stopped, made a smile. ¡°You¡¯re still mine,¡± she said. ¡°¡­..¡± ¡°You can¡¯t help it.¡± She was about to kiss him, when Arum opened the front door and came in. ¡°Hey, geomancy master! Your door is open..ugh?¡± Arum stopped at the spot after finding both inside. ¡®Ugh? Did I come into a wrong house?¡¯ At that moment Soran pushed off Hojoon and said, ¡°Come on in. Are you here for an urgent matter?¡± ¡°No, no.¡± What was more urgent than Soran stealing a kiss from him? Arum was ashamed of herself as she came her to bluff him with the photo ¡°You should have told me in advance you had a customer coming here. I know it¡¯s an urgent matter,¡± Arum protested. Soran said coquettishly like a female cat, ¡°Nice to see you. You know me, right?¡± Arum was embarrassed. She signalled to Hojoon for help. In the end, Hojoon stopped Soran. ¡°Get out now.¡± ¡°You can post my photo on your SNS if you want. This man is my one and only love.¡± Arum was surprised by Soran¡¯s offensive attitude. She felt as if she saw one scene of the craze soap opera her mother enjoyed watching. ¡°You said you were his girlfriend, right?¡± asked Soran. ¡°Hey, Soran!¡± he shouted. And then he pulled her arms to her side. ¡°Stop it. I¡¯ve got something to tell her. As an ex-girlfriend of yours, I have the right to say this. I really wish for your happiness more than anybody else. I want you to meet a good woman, and she is me. I know you better than any other woman, right?¡± While watching her, Arum came to her senses. She felt hostile to this woman who was using her good feelings about him as a weapon against others. Her feelings were the type that could be appreciated only by a woman who begged her boyfriend for love for the reason that she loved him more than anybody else. ¡°Tell me,¡± said Arum as arrogantly as possible. She also raised her head. She tried her best to keep her voice stable and calm when speaking to Soran. Hojoon was surprised by Arum¡¯s response. It was the first time he heard her speaking in a resolute voice just like a reporter. Besides, her glittering eyes were as calm as ever. ¡°You chose the right man. Congrats!¡± Soran kept sneering. ¡°Well, I don¡¯t think it¡¯s something you have to congratulate me on. So, what do you want to say?¡± When she felt she lost a war of nerves with Arum, Soran bit her lips and said, ¡°You think I took away your boyfriend, right? No way, it¡¯s you who broke up our relationship.¡± ¡°I understand you broke up.¡± Arum¡¯s heart was pounding hard. Her legs were shaking. In a crazy soap opera she watched before, the women getting on each other¡¯s nerves were seen grabbing each other by the hair. She flipped her hair back quickly just in case. Sora continued, ¡°We¡¯re not finished until I¡¯m done. So, take him back to his original position after you use him well. He¡¯s my man.¡± That¡¯s Soran¡¯s main point. ¡®Does this woman even regard a human being as a thing?¡¯ ¡°I think this is my place,¡± responded Arum, pointing at the seat right next to her. Arum drove a wedge in Soran¡¯s jealous eyes. It was her severe punishment of those who treated love with contempt. Bang. Soran went out after closing the door with a bang. Arum sat down on the floor with a moan after she left. Standing beside her, Hojoon was startled. ¡°How come you squat on the floor all the time when you can sit here on the sofa?¡± Come to think of it, Arum didn¡¯t yet take off her shoes. ¡°You should have told me in advance that you had a guest,¡± Arum said. Taking off her shoes with complaint, Arum sat on the sofa in the living room. ¡°Give me some water.¡± ¡°Why don¡¯t you do it yourself? You know my house well,¡± said Hojoon. ¡°Dang it. Can you bring it to me as the owner of this house?¡± While she said that, he already brought a cup of water. She gulped it down, but it was lukewarm. Chapter 21 Chapter 21: Chapter 21 ¡°What the heck is this? Is this tap water? Why is it so lukewarm?¡± asked Arum. ¡°You¡¯re in big trouble if you have cold water in this situation. That¡¯s why I mixed cold water with hot water. Heat goes up while cold comes down. It¡¯s sort of a yin and yang prescription. The spirit in our body is opened up, making blood circulation better. So, just drink it.¡± ¡°Ah, is this Mt. Jiri style?¡± Hojoon couldn¡¯t understand what she was talking about. ¡°Why do you mention Mt. Jiri at the drop of a hat?¡± She drank water slowly on purpose for the sake of Hojoon, who got curious. ¡°Don¡¯t you remember me?¡± ¡°Of course, I do. You collapsed in front of my front door recently.¡± ¡°That¡¯s not our first encounter.¡± When she beat around the bush, he got more interested. ¡°When was it then? Did you buy my book? I haven¡¯t seen ugly women like you at the book-signing ceremony.¡± ¡°O my¡­ You¡¯re impossible!¡± And then she showed him the photo. ¡°Don¡¯t you remember this?¡± Hojoon¡¯s face turned deadly pale. ¡°Where did you get this? Are you a stalker?¡± ¡°Am I crazy enough to stalk you? Do you really not remember it? Where is the man who shouted at me that I was a trash can?¡± Only then did Hojoon remember it. ¡°Oh, that zombie-looking woman.¡± ¡°Zombie?¡± She straightened her upper body as she sprang out at him. He pulled her shoulder and forced her to sit down. ¡°You¡¯re really a trash can, geomancy man! Besides, I saw you acting lethargic before your ex-girlfriend.¡± ¡°I¡¯m not such a crap. A trash-like woman came into my place.¡± ¡°Why? Because you¡¯re a trash can.¡± Arum should have gotten upset about him, but she was smiling. She was set to argue with him, but she found herself playing with him. What a funny situation. ¡°So, what do you want?¡± asked Hojoon. ¡°Nothing. I just want to post a photo taken in the past.¡± Her reply had him in stitches. ¡°Who would carry such a photo? Besides, he was not an entertainer. Just an ordinary citizen, as you know.¡± That was true. She got a bit disappointed. ¡°Well, let me post it on the internet.¡± Hojoon¡¯s face turned pale at that. Though he bluffed before her, he couldn¡¯t allow her to spread the photo on the internet. ¡°No, no way. You shouldn¡¯t do that. That photo of mine doesn¡¯t fit the image of the Famed House of Geomancy, which is chic and modern.¡± ¡°Are you ashamed of Mt. Jiri?¡± ¡°What the heck are you talking about?¡± ¡°Don¡¯t you think Mt. Jiri can also be chic and modern?¡± Both of them cracked ridiculous jokes like that and laughed out loud. They must have looked into each other¡¯s wounded hearts. They must have shared each other¡¯s secrets. They were on the defensive as far as love was concerned. ¡°Okay, then. You want to strike a deal with me, right?¡± asked Hojoon. ¡°Take back immediately what you mentioned, such as working in the field with you to learn geomancy!¡± ¡°No, I can¡¯t do it. That¡¯s an absolute principle I can¡¯t change.¡± ¡°Do you know how busy a reporter is?¡± ¡°Don¡¯t you know how dreadful it is to report a false story? Instead I can¡­¡± said Hojoon. But he hesitated for a minute. ¡°Instead of what?¡± Arum obviously smelled a rat. ¡°Well, I shouldn¡¯t do this¡­¡± After he was agonized for a moment, Hojoon shook his hand. And then he continued, checking her expectant look, ¡°If you listen to my lecture well, I can give you consultation. For the next 100 days, let me help you find your love with the secret method of geomancy. How about it?¡± Arum heard something from the heaven. Arum thought to herself, ¡®If only I could meet and love Konsu again! Isn¡¯t it a matter of time for me, given up as a trash can up to now, to become a jewel box? I think the trash piled in the small room could turn into shining home furnishings.¡¯ At Hojoon¡¯s sudden offer of geomancy consultation, Arum showed interest. ¡°Is that possible?¡± Asking that question, she folded her hands before she knew. ¡°The final outcomes of my geomancy consultation are unpredictable. You may not necessarily meet the one you really want to.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t worry about that. To me the one and only man is Konsu.¡± Her eyes sparkled with hope. ¡°Come to my office one week later. You should read my books and watch video lectures before you come here.¡± ¡°What if I can¡¯t find my love despite so many trials and hardships on my end?¡± ¡°If you sow the seeds of negative thinking like that, you won¡¯t reap anything.¡± Then he closed her mouth with both hands. ¡°If you can¡¯t find your love in 100 days, just spread that photo on the internet.¡± ¡°Really? Are you so confident?¡± ¡°Don¡¯t you know me? I¡¯m a geomancy expert,¡± said Hojoon with a hearty laugh. *** The conference room of . The editor chose the article candidates selectively. ¡°Next, what are you preparing, Arum?¡± Showing photo data by using a beam projector, Arum explained, ¡°I¡¯ve taken a review of the existing articles. They all turned to geomancy interior. Wall paper, furniture, accessories, kitchen were all given as a set through sponsorship.¡± ¡°So what?¡± ¡°This is sort of a setting. They say this kind of setting is not the type of space we live in.¡± ¡°Did Hojoon say that?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°Just go ahead.¡± ¡°So, we just visit the houses of the soon-to-be newlyweds for interior.¡± Arum looked at the editor¡¯s face. Manager Kyong praised her fresh idea. ¡°Any good idea on contacting potential newlyweds?¡± Given the editor¡¯s response, Arum instantly knew that she approved her proposed article. ¡°I¡¯m going to give our readers an announcement on this, and accept the applications through online.¡± ¡°Good. Let¡¯s start off with one house. Nice job.¡± And then the editor reviewed another reporter¡¯s item. After the meeting ended, Arum called Hojoon immediately. ¡°Hi, this is Arum. Can I talk with you over the phone now? Let me send you my proposed idea through your email. I would like to have a meeting with you first.¡± ¡°I can see you on Thursday. Can you come to my office near Hongik Univ.? I¡¯m fully booked for outside events.¡± ¡°Sure, let me come over to you.¡± ¡°Are you enjoying my lectures?¡± Looking at his book on her desk, she laughed. ¡°Of course. You know I have to satisfy your condition. I¡¯m studying hard now. See you on Thurs.¡± When she hung up the phone, manager Kyong stared at her. ¡°What the heck is going on now? You said you don¡¯t believe in geomancy. You complained it¡¯s hard, right? You even said you wanted to contact another geomancy expert, didn¡¯t you?¡± Arum felt a prick in the heart, but very briefly. ¡°As you have assigned me to this job, I¡¯m going to do my best.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t do your best. Once you¡¯re done submitting the article, that¡¯s it.¡± ¡°What do you mean?¡± ¡°Well, what I want is not that, but¡­¡± Manager Kyong showed an agonized expression. ¡°I want something hot and stimulating. Didn¡¯t you hear any rumors about celebrities such as Soran Cho or Unyoung Cha?¡± Arum was startled to hear the name ¡®Soran Cho.¡¯ At the same time she was amazed about manager Kyong¡¯s extraordinary ability to dig into stories. ¡°Nothing I have heard,¡± said Arum with an air of innocence. ¡°You told me your friend was an employee of Solar Electronics. Didn¡¯t you hear any rumors from her?¡± ¡°She is only a rank-and-file employee. Nothing.¡± ¡°Give me even a slight clue. It¡¯s about time Soran got divorced.¡± Murmuring to herself, manager Kyong stood up. *** Thursday. Arum visited the office of Famed House of Feng Shui located near Hongik Univ. Originally it was an ordinary house, but remodelled into the current building with a comfortable atmosphere, owned by Hojoon Lee. Heemang welcomed Arum. ¡°You must be a reporter with , right?¡± ¡°Yes, you¡¯re right.¡± ¡°President Hojoon Lee is on his way here. I had a call from him that he would be a little bit late. Can you come this way? This is the conference room.¡± She went into the meeting room. A little later Heemang came back with a cup of citron. Sweet fragrance of citron filled the room. ¡°I love this fragrance.¡± ¡°Oh, this is homemade. Our president has ordered us to serve customers with this tea instead of coffee. Citrons are directly shipped from South Sea, so the fragrance is very strong. Even sugar we serve is organic.¡± Hearing his explanation, she felt the fragrance was all the more strong. ¡°I¡¯m sorry I¡¯m late,¡± said Hojoon, coming into the room. Sweeping his hair up, he made a broad smile, as if he came running. He looked sweet thanks to the fragrance of citron. ¡°Give me a cup of strong coffee,¡± he asked a male assistant. And then Hojoon closed the door behind him. Chapter 22 Chapter 22: Chapter 22 ¡°Oh, man! I was served a cup of citron while you have a cup of coffee?¡± ¡°Do you want coffee?¡± ¡°No thanks. I think I will have a couple of more coffee until noon.¡± Taking out the meeting material, Hojoon examined her face. She looked relaxed after he proposed to her that he would connect her to the man she loved. She was no more the same woman that he met at the police station that night. ¡°I looked at your proposed idea. It¡¯s good to visit the houses of soon-to-be newlyweds and give them tips on geomancy.¡± ¡°Doesn¡¯t my idea look good? I watched your video lectures. Some of your advice was easy to translate into action.¡± ¡°For example?¡± ¡°Cleaning the house.¡± ¡°That¡¯s the point. If you can clean your house well, you¡¯re guaranteed half the success. Though cleaning is not geomancy, you have to get some heavy or negative off your chest. In terms of geomancy, a good house is one with good ventilation and cleaning.¡± ¡°Right. But newlyweds have never lived in such houses, so I think it¡¯s important to decide how to display their home furnishings instead of cleaning, right?¡± Hojoon nodded his head and said, ¡°Besides, they don¡¯t know what to buy.¡± Hojoon was bothered by what she casually said. Arum must have had a hard time getting rid of her packages after she broke up. Were the boxes piled in her veranda the very packages she hadn¡¯t yet disposed of? Come to think of it, isn¡¯t it so stressful for her to see the newlyweds? ¡°Do you really have to carry out this project? Can someone else take your place?¡± At his unexpected question, Arum replied, ¡°Well, it¡¯s my specialty.¡± ¡°Are you sure you can meet newlyweds comfortably?¡± ¡°Oh, you were worried about me. I¡¯m alright. As long as I don¡¯t get drunk.¡± ¡°No, never. Don¡¯t ever drink alcohol.¡± ¡°Never, never!¡± ¡°Let¡¯s go out for lunch.¡± ¡°This early?¡± In the end, Arum had to go out, as demanded by Hojoon. *** It was a small snack stand that Arum and Hojoon visited. Though she didn¡¯t expect any great meal, she felt it could be uncomfortable to eat face to face in a small space with the dining table between them. She looked at the plain menu board on the wall. The snack stand specialized in gimbap (laver rolls) and ramen. ¡°This place is the best snack stand when it comes to gimbap. Would you want it with ramen?¡± ¡°I¡¯d like to have gimbap only.¡± Hojoon called someone and said, ¡°We want three rows of gimbap and one ramen.¡± The owner of the snack stand stared at Arum instead of taking the order. ¡°Your girlfriend?¡± ¡°Oh, no. My girlfriend is more beautiful. This lady is working as an intern with our company.¡± ¡°Oh, I see. Let me come back in a minute.¡± The owner began to make gimbap right away. ¡°I¡¯m a regular customer in this place. The old woman, who is the owner here, raised her four children by selling gimbap and donated as much as 100 million won last year.¡± ¡°Really?¡± Arum counted the number of gimbap that the owner had to sell for a row of gimbap at 2,000 in order to make 100 million won. ¡°You probably won¡¯t be able to count it.¡± ¡°I can if I try,¡± said Arum. ¡°It was only 1,000 won for a row of gimbap five years ago.¡± ¡°1,000 won? That couldn¡¯t cover even the rice material.¡± ¡°When my company was struggling with financial difficulties in its early days, the owner let our staff eat gimbap on credit. So, we paid off the debts later and renovated the kitchen as a token of our appreciation. Do you see that building over there?¡± Arum looked at the high-rise building through a small window of the snack stand. It was the best life insurance building in Korea. ¡°The murderous spirit of that building is directly coming into this snack stand. So, I had the owner install a large mirror outside to create an optical illusion. In other words, I had the murderous spirit reflect outward. Over-sized or overwhelming buildings often emit enormous spirits.¡± ¡°And then did the owner here make more money?¡± ¡°I think so, believe it or not,¡± said Hojoon confidently. ¡°There is another secret in the sales increase.¡± ¡°What is it?¡± At that moment the owner brought gimbap. ¡°This gimbap.¡± Holding his chopsticks, Hojoon pointed at gimbap. She carefully examined it. Secret? No matter how hard she stared at it, it was just ordinary gimbap. ¡°Won¡¯t you try it?¡± Instead of answering, he asked her to eat gimbap. ¡®I wonder if there is a secret in the taste of this gimbap.¡¯ She quickly had one. It tasted delicious, but it was just gimbap that she used to enjoy. ¡°What is the secret?¡± she demanded. Hojoon held up one gimbap. ¡°Don¡¯t you think it¡¯s in beautiful shape?¡± ¡°You mean this gimbap?¡± ¡°Look inside it. Ohaeng, or the Five Elements are evenly included in it. In the Orient, we believe that when the Five Elements are in good harmony, the spirits of the body are also smoothly circulated.¡± Though she heard the word ¡®ohaeng¡¯, she couldn¡¯t understand exactly what it was. ¡®Well, I have no idea what ohaeng means.¡± Arum suddenly got cold feet when she heard ohaeng. She couldn¡¯t understand why ohaeng, which she never learned in school, was so important in feng shui. Hojoon explained, ¡°Look! There are Five Elements or ohaeng, such as mok(tree), hwa (fire), toh (earth), kum( iron ) and su (water), are included in this gimbap.¡± He held up one gimbap close to her nose. The principle of the ohaeng of gimbap was simple. There is a color representing ohaeng, namely mok representing green, hwa red, toh yellow, kum white and su black. As spinach (green), carrot (red), pickled radish (yellow) are wrapped in white rice and rolled with black gimbap rolls, gimbap has all the Five Elements of ohaeng. ¡°That¡¯s why gimbap is selling the most in our country,¡± said Hojoon. ¡°Really?¡± ¡°Well, that¡¯s my opinion. The signature food of our country uses five colors. Gimbap, bibimbap (rice mixed with vegetables), gucholpan (platter of nine delicacies). Right?¡± His explanation seemed plausible. ¡°As for gimbap, in particular, what can our students have for snack without gimbap? Which snack can those cash-strapped employees buy without gimbap? That¡¯s why there are so many gimbap houses around the country.¡± Hearing his explanation, Arum quipped, ¡°It looks like your explanation is missing something, but it¡¯s quite logical.¡± Hojoon laughed at that. ¡°Even food has such a harmony in it. It¡¯s all the more important for man. For the male and female relationship, the harmony of yin and yang is very important.¡± While listening to his lecture, Arum felt that gimbap tasted more delicious. ¡°Geomancy of love is not the fundamental of geomancy.¡± Arum showed sensitive reaction when he mentioned that. ¡°What are you talking about? You promised me that I could find my love through geomancy of love.¡± ¡°Who told you I would not? What I mean is that geomancy of love is not all about geomancy. And if you want to succeed, you should be able to find out who is the one you genuinely love. Please open your five senses wide to be able to feel that spirit.¡± ¡°How can I open? Is there any special way?¡± ¡°It depends on you, and you take the responsibility for that.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t worry about it.¡± Taking another gimbap, she asked again, ¡°By the way, do you even call food geomancy?¡± ¡°Food is not geomancy . I just interpret it in terms of geomancy. Let¡¯s think about the tea of citron you had a minute ago. What¡¯s the common thing between love and citron?¡± ¡°No idea. It¡¯s too difficult.¡± ¡°Love has to bear fruit. It would be better if your love bore sweet and fragrant fruit. That¡¯s why I used citrons smelling sweet fragrance as a prop. A citron tea creates a romantic atmosphere. The fruit that signifies successful ending makes the lovers¡¯ relationship smooth. That¡¯s why I use decorations with fruits as props when I turn to the geomancy of love.¡± Hojoon¡¯s lecture started with a row of gimbap. Arum could understand it more easily as she already watched his video lectures. ¡°By the way, I¡¯ve got one question. In some lecture a geomancy specialist says that if we get to like water, we become rich. Is that true?¡± ¡°Who told you so?¡± ¡°Well, I heard in another geomancy¡¯s lecture.¡± Hojoon made a ridiculous expression while enjoying ramen. ¡°In agrarian society water is the most important. With water available nearby, crops are harvesting a lot and bring lots of wealth to farmers. And that¡¯s why our ancestors dug a pond inside their houses and tended to live near water. These days it isn¡¯t necessarily true.¡± ¡°Really?¡± ¡°Don¡¯t you tap water in your house?¡± ¡°Of course, I do. These days everybody has tap water.¡± ¡°Right. Why is water important?¡± ¡°Because the lecturer insists we can become rich. We need to like water, I think.¡± Hojoon glared in his eyes at that, staring at her. ¡°Oh man, think about it rationally. If that¡¯s the case, the president of the aquarium company should be the richest in our country, right?¡± Arum thought that Hojoon was logical sometimes. And she felt geomancy was more rational than she thought. Chapter 23 Chapter 23: Chapter 23 Never had Arum been more thrilled than today when she stood before the door of the small room in her house. Standing before it, she recalled the bitter memories of her painful breakup with Konsu because of just one ramen. But she was now thrilled with the promise a rosy and happy future. ¡°Geomancy, wow!¡± Before she was engaged in the geomancy of love that Hojoon promised to her, she decided to translate into action what she learned from his online lecture. First of all, she cleaned even her unused room, so that dust could not collect. Sunlight and ventilation in such a room would be desirable, let alone hanging a wind chime to drive out the bad spirit of the room. She threw open the door of the small room. But there was one thing she didn¡¯t think through in advance, which was that she was overwhelmed by a sense of lethargy and depression whenever she entered this room. She couldn¡¯t act up to her words. She couldn¡¯t throw away the boxes with new home products. She could meet Konsu again. What was the point of cleaning this room everyday? It was even burdensome for her to clean her own main bedroom once a week. ¡®That villa was a wrong choice from the beginning.¡¯ Whenever she looked at the home furnishings for marriage, she felt regret. Her house in Green Villa was a rented room. She used to live there on a monthly rent, and later purchased it when its owner listed it for sale. In fact, she wanted a bigger house. Since she would get married to Konsu, she wished she could live in a better house. But she didn¡¯t have the money. Konsu just started working as an intern. He asked her to wait for two years. But Arum went ahead and purchased the rented villa. She wished she had waited for two years as he requested. But it was too late. Konsu felt stressed out because of his self-awareness of his financial incompetence. Arum and Konsu agreed to use 50 million won to purchase the house, which their parents gave for their wedding, and spend the spare cash on buying home furnishings. Though it was a shabby house, both wanted to enjoy their newly-married life fully. Both felt they could create a wonderful atmosphere in the room with a little more decoration. At that time, both of them had to work late into the night almost everyday as they were new hires. Nonetheless, they cut down on sleep and worked even during the weekends to save time for the interior construction of their shabby house at their own expenses. But they ran into an unexpected trouble. Arum didn¡¯t like the sink. She couldn¡¯t dismiss her cherished dream of a beautiful kitchen. She decided since childhood that when she got married, she would get a spacious kitchen and buy all kinds of cooking utensils and plates. ¡®Spicy seafood soup with freshly cooked rice. Pasta seasoned with bacon and abundant cheese and wine during the weekend. When the crab season comes, I am going to steam crabs in a large pot and enjoy them over soju with Konsu.¡¯ Arum¡¯s imagination went wild about her life after marriage. ¡®I¡¯m going to bake cookies for my children everyday.¡¯ ¡®Oh, when winter comes, let me make grapefruit tea, lemon tea and citron tea by myself.¡¯ As a woman who was dreaming of such things, Arum couldn¡¯t take the broken sink. As the last expedient, she tried to glue the broken part of the sink, but in vain. However, Konsu was practical. In his eyes, the sink was functioning alright. Though it was old and shabby, it was still a sink. He tried to persuade her out of it, emphasizing the need to save money in order to move to a bigger house as soon as possible. But Arum was not persuaded. ¡°It¡¯s our matrimonial home. I really can¡¯t use this broken sink, no matter how hard I try. As you know, a kitchen is a woman¡¯s space. I would like to make it a beautiful space,¡± she said. Konsu responded, ¡°You and I are working. How often do you think you can cook here? I would rather buy food outside. And you have had no problem with that up to now.¡± But Arum resisted, saying, ¡°Are you going to keep cooking ramen all the time here? Don¡¯t you want to invite your friends here?¡± Konsu talked back nonchalantly, ¡°Just call for take-out. We don¡¯t have to care about others. I know you don¡¯t cook well.¡± That was true. Though she wanted to cook well, she didn¡¯t. She really tried hard to cook well, but she didn¡¯t have the taste or the hands when it came to food. ¡°Well, I had no time to cook then. I think I can cook well if I try.¡± She tried to persuade him with a clumsy excuse. ¡°There now! You don¡¯t have time to cook or stay in the kitchen. More often than not you and I will have to eat at the company. During the weekends my senior friends usually eat out,¡± said Konsu. ¡°Hey, this is our newly-married life. If you want to keep the status quo, it no different from living alone. I really can¡¯t give in as far as the sink is concerned,¡± she talked back. ¡°Aren¡¯t you aware of our budget?¡± asked Konsu. ¡°I know it. But let¡¯s change it this time. When will we change it if not this time? You and I promised to start our newly-married life at a new condominium, but we ended up here,¡± she replied. In the end, that portion of her remarks offended his pride. ¡°Hey, we¡¯re not living here on a monthly rent. It¡¯s our house!¡± ¡°That¡¯s why I want to change the sink!¡± After that, their quarrel escalated to an uncontrollable situation where Konsu announced their disengagement on the day they were supposed to share one ramen. Though she put it behind her, it was still stuck in her memory as a deep regret that could not be forgotten even until today. In the end, she stepped back from the small room. She didn¡¯t want to clean it by herself. The most difficult thing for her after she broke off the engagement was to inform her family and friends of that unhappy news. ¡°O my¡­ I wish you had been a little more patient.¡± When someone said that, she replied with a smile, ¡°I think so too.¡± Nonetheless, she couldn¡¯t reply to them, ¡°I broke up because of a broken sink.¡± However, she couldn¡¯t hide it from her mother. ¡°How come you got divorced because of that petty sink?¡± demanded her mother. Her mother scolded her severely with an intensity that she had never experienced before. ¡°How stupid are you! You can change it at some point while you¡¯re living with him. A man doesn¡¯t know anything about it. You stupid girl!¡± ¡°Oh my god¡­¡± she let out a sigh with remorse. She got a rude awakening. At that time, she didn¡¯t know that lesson. She just purchased home furnishings just because others did the same for their wedding. Actually, she didn¡¯t have to buy them at the time. Again, she didn¡¯t have a knack for it. She blindly followed what others were doing. Both of them didn¡¯t know how to meet each other halfway and insisted on their own lifestyles. Basically, they were not mature enough to get married. Financially, they were hit hard by the breakup. Both of them severed contact with each other on that very day of their breakup. Come to think of it, the expenses of the sink replacement would have been much smaller. After all, the reason for their breakup was not because of the sink, nor one ramen. As she didn¡¯t know the real reason, she couldn¡¯t get over her lingering attachment to him. Some might ask why she didn¡¯t know the reason, but she couldn¡¯t figure it out even now. After she broke up with Konsu, she cried for three days, staying away from work without any notice. If her company, where she landed a job with difficulty, had not been generous, she would have been fired. She hated seeing others because she felt she failed in her marriage life even before she started it. She couldn¡¯t stand living in the matrimonial house where she got divorced. In the end, she put it up for sale. The old real estate broker looked around it and said, ¡°You should have offered it for sale. It¡¯s too windy here. Good decision. You were the third owner of this house. Do you know that the second owner got divorced, and the original owner did a moonlight flit?¡± ¡°Really?¡± ¡°You were completely taken in.¡± Only then did Arum recall the seller who offered it for sale urgently at a value cheaper than the market price. The middle-aged man, who looked tired all the time, got divorced and left the neighborhood. Having heard what the broker said, she looked at her villa again. Compared with other villas, her villa was slanted a bit to the outside. It was pretty windy because of that. She could still recall that howling and ghostly sound instead of a sweet and pleasant breeze. ¡°Do you think you can sell my house in a situation like this?¡± asked Arum. Chapter 24 Chapter 24: Chapter 24 ¡°Well, it will sell. Let me sell it. Let me get you a good price for your house. When you buy a house next time, try to check whether a wind¡¯s blowing through your house. Choose one located at high ground and avoid one near water. A ferocious spirit comes down from above. You see temples all secluded in the mountains, right?¡± the broker explained. ¡°Oh, I understand,¡± she said. ¡°Let me tell you something that I don¡¯t tell anybody. When you buy a house, don¡¯t forget to ask how the past owner had lived there. Most probably, he wouldn¡¯t tell you about it. If that¡¯s the case, ask a nearby supermarket employee or the realtor or a neighbor. There is nothing to lose even if you ask that question,¡± the realtor said. While listening to his explanation, she got enraged. She felt she was duped into buying her villa house. ¡°Why didn¡¯t you tell me in advance that this house was bad?¡± she protested. The realtor asked loudly, ¡°Did you ever ask me about it? ¡°Nope.¡± ¡°That¡¯s why I didn¡¯t tell you.¡± ¡°How did you know about this?¡± ¡°This is what they call geomancy. It¡¯s shared by knowledgeable people only.¡± She got angry at that. Obsessed with the past again, she called Hojoon as soon as she woke up from idle thoughts. ¡°Hi, Hojoon, sorry to call you so late. I¡¯m curious about something. Why did you buy my house?¡± ¡°Pardon? What are you talking about?¡± ¡°Well, it suddenly came to my mind. The realtor that I know told me my previous house, Green Villa, was a bad one because the wind was blowing hard over it.¡± Could a puff of wind bring about all this misfortune? Arum was so curious about it. ¡°Of course, you can¡¯t ignore the wind. It¡¯s called the strength of the wind. You must have heard the classics like and right?¡± ¡°Yes, I have.¡± ¡°See! Just look at how big the women¡¯s storms in their lives were in the novels!¡± As he said, there were lots of ups and downs in the lives of those women who couldn¡¯t avoid the wind. Arum felt as if she was a tragic heroine like those women. ¡°Then, why did you buy that villa, my previous house?¡± Hojoon answered at that, ¡°Because I¡¯m the main character as a man.¡± He cracked jokes when she was very serious. ¡®Does this guy think he is a prince?¡¯ The moment her good feelings about him were about to disappear, he told the truth, ¡°In the Oriental society, the spirits of yin and yang are different. I¡¯m not talking about yin and yang in terms of a man and a woman. All spirits have their relative yin and yang,¡± he explained. ¡°I can¡¯t understand your explanation very well,¡± she replied. ¡°Do you still remember the previous owner of your villa? That divorced president.¡± ¡°What? How did you know about it?¡± ¡°He is my client. Anyway, though he was divorced while he was living there, he made a fortune in business. You didn¡¯t hear that his sales volume was 50 billion won, and that he remarried a young woman twelve years younger than him, right?¡± he said. ¡°Oh, this villa must be myongdang, right?¡± she asked, suggesting that it was a propitious site. ¡°You¡¯re too obsessed with myondang as a woman who doesn¡¯t believe in geomancy,¡± he quipped. Arum was embarrassed by his critical comment. He continued, ¡°There is something like bibo geomancy, which means that instead of leaving bad things as they are, we fix them for better use. That¡¯s the beauty of the geomancy homegrown in Korea, and that¡¯s why I like geomancy. In other words, there is no permanent myongdang or bad sites from the beginning. Did I answer your question?¡± ¡°Got it.¡± Her reply didn¡¯t sound bright. Hojoon quickly said, ¡°In fact, I sent you the secret method on the geomancy of love through email. I was going to give you a call on that.¡± ¡°Really?¡± ¡°Again, let me give you 100 days, starting today.¡± ¡°Thanks.¡± Quickly hanging up the phone, she confirmed his words through her email. Like he said, she found the email from him. ¡®He assures me I can make Konsu my man again through the secret method of geomancy.¡¯ She was happy just about thinking of that. ¡®Yeah, this is the real beginning of my love.¡¯ *** Arum got up very early in the morning, still excited by Hojoon¡¯s email last night. It was 4:30 AM. She removed bedclothes quickly and took a shower. ¡°Sorry for waking you up, my lady in the flat below me. I¡¯ve got to go out early.¡± The sound of her taking a shower was loud enough. While washing her hair, Arum wished the woman downstairs could experience the spiritual joy of a prayer at dawn. ¡°Sis?¡± Jina turned around and looked at Arum, who was gently patting her on the back. ¡°What¡¯s the matter with you now?¡± asked Jina. Arum, who said she didn¡¯t go to church, came to the church. ¡°I came here after taking a shower,¡± Arum said. ¡°Are you alright?¡± Jina asked. ¡°Well, I¡¯ve got something that needs desperate prayers.¡± ¡°What is it?¡± ¡°I can¡¯t tell you now.¡± Dawn prayer was not geomancy. But Arum read somewhere in a self-improvement book that one should start praying at dawn if one had something to pray for desperately. The book emphasized that one should stay awake to make one¡¯s wishes come true at the spiritual time when the ghost was moving around. That was why monks performed deep bows and pastors prayed during that time. The secret of the early morning was enjoyed only by those who knew its worth. Arum decided to be born again as a dawn person rather than a morning person. After dawn prayer, she went to the office. She decided to fast in the morning. In fact, there was no food in her refrigerator. She couldn¡¯t remember what kind of food she had for the past several days. Konsu was right. While quarreling with her, he once told her that she would not need anything like a kitchen. His prediction was precisely right. Though she vowed to start her love with Konsu again, she didn¡¯t know his phone number. She didn¡¯t know if he was hired by the company where he used to work at as an intern or if he left the company. The worst scenario for Arum would be that he already got married and had a baby. Based on her instinct, however, Konsu should still be single. She could easily find out if she asked her college alumni, but she didn¡¯t do it for the sake of her pride. ¡®Let me count on geomancy.¡¯ After she split with Konsu, she formed a habit. She made it a rule to answer stranger¡¯s calls or any restricted call. Even if it was some voice phishing, she would take the risk of being swindled out of her money. The adverse effect of dawn prayer began to take a toll on her around 10 AM. She not only yawned, but also nodded off with her hand on the computer keyboard. Even though an assistant wrapped up the news brief and put it on her desk, Arum threw a tantrum at the assistant, complaining that she didn¡¯t bring it yet. In the meantime, her phone buzzed and then stopped. As she was dozing off, she didn¡¯t know that she had as many as five calls on her cell phone. She called back one of the numbers that was unfamiliar to her. When she called the number, there was a prerecorded message coming from it. Arum called Jina as soon as she heard the word ¡®Solar Electronics.¡¯ ¡°Did you call me?¡± asked Arum. ¡°Nope. I¡¯m busy now. Why?¡± ¡°Well, I had a missed call from Solar Electronics, so I thought you called me.¡± ¡°It¡¯s not me. Did you have your cell phone serviced by our service shop?¡± ¡°No. I suspect it¡¯s voice phishing.¡± ¡°Call me later, Arum.¡± She hastily hung up the phone, saying she had to attend a meeting. *** Saturday morning, which was a dreamy time for all employees. Arum barely took Jina out to an underground shopping center of the express bus terminal which was crowded with people. As instructed by Konsu, she visited the place to buy some geomancy items that could make her wishes for love with Konsu come true. ¡°You¡¯re crazy, Arum. Crazy¡­ Why don¡¯t you buy Konsu¡¯s alter ego?¡± ¡°Shut up!¡± ¡°It looks like you¡¯re kind of absent-minded because of Konsu these days. Get real!¡± ¡°Nope, I¡¯m going to start love with Konsu again. We¡¯re not yet done with our relationship.¡± ¡°I wonder if your brain has deteriorated, Arum. Look around yourself. There are so many nice guys around you.¡± ¡°I know. Yeah, half the people in the world are men. But there is only one Konsu in the whole world!¡± ¡°But you haven¡¯t dated any other man, right?¡± ¡°Because they are not Konsu.¡± ¡°Enough! If you meet Konsu again, you are not my friend anymore!¡± Chapter 25 Chapter 25: Chapter 25 In response to Jina¡¯s bluffing, Arum said, ¡°I¡¯m going to show you the best of geomancy this time. You can confirm it through me. How about that? Don¡¯t you like my concept?¡± ¡°Don¡¯t do crazy things!¡± ¡°Well, I still have something to do with Konsu.¡± Arum was glad that she could use the word ¡®still¡¯ as far as Konsu was concerned. She felt like she didn¡¯t split with him in a proper manner. Though she called off her marriage, she didn¡¯t break up in a final way. There was still a lot for both of them to do. For example, home furnishings to divide between them. Both have to agree to sell them at a used market or send them off to a recycling center. ¡°I think you had better ask Minwoo about Konsu¡¯s whereabouts,¡± said Jina, taking out her cell phone. Arum took it away and put it back into her handbag. ¡°No way. Don¡¯t call Minwoo. Konsu is my destiny. I will meet him again through geomancy love.¡± ¡°Are you crazy?¡± ¡°Be patient, Jina. If I can show you I can make it, you¡¯re next.¡± ¡°Nope, I don¡¯t want it.¡± ¡°Like you, I¡¯m preparing an article related to geomancy, so I need to experience it first. I doubt if Konsu can come back to me. If he can, I think there will be no people in the world who will be separated from their lovers, or divorced from their spouses.¡± ¡°You bet! You already know it.¡± Arum knew it, or pretended to know it. As she made up her mind to believe in geomancy this time, she was determined to try it by herself. Arum clicked ¡®Today¡¯s Shopping List¡¯ on her smartphone. ¡°What are you going to buy?¡± asked Jina, looking askance at Arum. ¡°First of all, a pair of crystal mandarian ducks!¡± ¡°Made in crystal? I guess it¡¯s expensive.¡± Both women moved to a crystal goods shop. They found the crystal pair in a shop selling small items after passing by several accessory shops. ¡°Beautiful!¡± Arum lost her heart to the bright crystal color. One crystal mandrian duck was smaller than a woman¡¯s fist. She picked a pair. ¡°What kind of effect does it have?¡± asked Jina. ¡°I hear that crystal improves our love horoscope because its clear and transparent spirit clears away the lonely and dark spirit. You know the use of this mandarian duck item, right?¡± ¡°Not at all.¡± ¡°They use it in traditional Korean weddings.¡± ¡°Isn¡¯t it a wild goose item?¡± ¡°Oh, I think you¡¯re right. I mean, something like a blanket with lovebirds printed on it. You can make a devoted couple with the mandrian duck item in your house.¡± ¡°Is a lovebird different from a mandrian duck?¡± asked Jina, continuously showing skepticism over geomancy love. ¡°Oh, let¡¯s buy this vase here!¡± Arum looked around various vases. Jina pointed at a pretty vase with beautiful waves. ¡°How about this?¡± ¡°Nope. Hojoon asked me to buy a pottery vase.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t you think it¡¯s too dingy?¡± Arum skipped vases made of glass, wood, iron and plastic, and then decided to buy a pottery vase in a streamlined shape. ¡°This is the one you want,¡± said Jina. ¡°Not bad. But I like this one better,¡± Arum said, showing the vase of her choice to Jina once more. And then Arum continued, ¡°There is a reason why I should choose a pottery vase. Its material is earth.¡± Arum could understand as far as that, but she couldn¡¯t explain any more. She checked back to Hojoon¡¯s email on it and read it to Jina. ¡°¡®Earth has a strong vitality of toh. To maximize the vitality of mok, which is compatible with toh, one must put flowers in a pottery vase. This improves not only luck for a prosperous family, but also on luck for marriage.''¡± ¡°That provokes deep thinking!¡± ¡°I¡¯m just trying it now.¡± She left the shop after paying for the vase. ¡°Oh my. It¡¯s really hard for you to make your ex-boyfriend come back. Do you think he can really come back?¡± asked Jina. Arum couldn¡¯t answer that. ¡°Well, Hojoon reminded me that my love might not be necessarily Konsu,¡± said Arum. ¡°Oh, you mean a different guy?¡± ¡°Who knows? I have no idea.¡± ¡°Okay, Arum. What else should you buy?¡± ¡°A bell and a clam.¡± ¡°What the heck is this combination of a bell and a shell?¡± asked Jina. Walking Jina off by force, who was grumbling all along, Arum moved to an interior decorations shop. *** Arum parted with Jina after dinner. Back home, she found that her legs had swollen up. She felt good, though, as she bought all the items she had to. First of all, she hung a bell on the front door. According to Hojoon, a good sound would bring about good news. And it had the effect of livening the atmosphere because the sound of a bell crushed unpleasant energies Come to think of it, there were bells in temples, churches and cathedrals. One would feel relaxed when one could hear the sound of a bell. Arum felt more relaxed now. Hojoon said all she had to do for this kind of effect was to hang a small bell or wind-bell on the front door. He also said a clear bell ring could help her make a good relationship with someone. After hanging it on the front door, she was embarrassed while holding a clam in hand. According to Hojoon¡¯s email, she was asked to buy a clam with shells attached to it. As the calm shut its mouth, it was so tight that nobody could open it. Likewise, a clam played the role of holding the lovers tightly, he said. ¡®Where should I put this anyway?¡± Arum sent Hojoon a text message. She was too tired to call. Waiting for his reply, she laid herself down on the floor. A little later, his text message arrived. She raised herself and went to her bed. She lowered her body to hide it below the bed. ¡°Oh! So much dust here.¡± There was so much dirt collected below her bed that she had to clean it first. There were a lot of dust bunnies here and there. She felt bad when she thought of how she had been sleeping with so much dust below her bed. Pulling out a vacuum cleaner, she cleaned the dust right away and then pushed the clam under the bed. Though she was physically exhausted, she felt good. She felt as if Konsu was coming closer to her. While she was walking back to the living room, another text message from Hojoon arrived. It was a password that looked like an equation. As she hated math the most, Arum couldn¡¯t understand it at all. No matter how hard she thought, she had never seen it in her math class. ¡°What the heck is this? Is this the law of geomancy?¡± Granted it was a great law, she was still too exhausted today to think about it. *** Two days later, Arum was supposed to have a meeting with Hojoon because she really had to start the geomancy project seriously. ¡°Do you want me to come to Kwanghwamoon?¡± she asked. She tilted her head a bit because of that unexpected meeting place. ¡°Well, that¡¯s where the roads run in all directions. In other words, that¡¯s a place with a good gi (energy).¡± ¡°I know, but¡­¡± ¡°In fact, I¡¯m supposed to meet you at 1 PM, but ft our meeting lasts longer than expected, I feel I can¡¯t move by 2PM,¡± said Hojoon. ¡°Got it. See you then.¡± At 2 PM, the coffee shop she was supposed to see Hojoon was crowded, full of vigor. She went upstairs. She saw a guy reading a book he just bought, a woman waiting for someone, someone studying English alone, and others in a business meeting there. She felt good as she could enjoy the luxury of spending time at a coffee shop in the afternoon after a long time. ¡°How pleasant it is to be outside the office like this!¡± But the place was too crowded. She couldn¡¯t find a seat. At that moment, a couple sitting beside the window stood up to leave. Though the table was small, she couldn¡¯t find any other one. She took a seat and opened his text message again. She still couldn¡¯t get it. She had no time to ask anybody. She was so busy writing about new books and movie reviews on Monday and Tuesday. It was after she was done with the reviews that she could make that appointment with Hojoon. Pausing for breath, she looked out the window. It was already 15 minutes past the appointed time. When she checked her smartphone, she found a text message from him. How could he be late? While complaining about it, she went downstairs to order coffee. The deep fragrance of sweet caramel macchiato tickled the tip of her nose. Konsu was there! Chapter 26 Chapter 26: Chapter 26 He was among the men who were standing up after the just concluded meeting. She turned around instinctively. She felt as if her heart was lurching out of her mouth. She held her breath quietly. So startled, she couldn¡¯t remember how she came back upstairs. Putting down a cup of coffee on the table, she looked out the window and found Konsu standing out there. He was parting with his companion. She was not sure if they were his supervisors at the company or his customers. Now, she could hardly control her pounding heart. She wanted to run to him and hold him. But he was not alone, but mingling with his companion at the moment, who seemed unfamiliar to her. With his image as a college student gone, he looked like a manly office worker. When he put on the suit as an intern, she that he looked awkward. But now, the suit was a perfect fit for him. Looking at him dealing with them absentmindedly, she came to her senses only after Konsu clearly said his goodbyes with his companion. ¡®I¡¯ve got to get a hold of him.¡¯ Konsu was walking toward the stairs of the entrance gate of the metro. Arum ran to him at full speed and walked close behind him. She could see his back now! ¡®It¡¯s been a while since I saw his back like this.¡¯ ¡°Konsu!¡± Walking down the stairs, Konsu turned back. During that brief moment, Arum worried over her appearance. She adjusted her dress and combed her hair neatly before calling him. Then, she smiled broadly at him. ¡°Oh, it¡¯s you¡­¡± Konsu had a troubled look on his face. She couldn¡¯t find any trace of a welcoming expression on his face. She was embarrassed. A little later, Konsu also smiled broadly and said, ¡°I¡¯m sorry. I was surprised. It¡¯s been a while. How have you been?¡± Konsu then held out his hand habitually. ¡®Shaking hands with my ex-boyfriend?¡¯ Arum was perplexed for a moment. Konsu also felt awkward when he offered his hand, so he laughed mirthlessly. Arum gave him a gentle smile, as if she broke up with him just yesterday. Though their wounded hearts three years ago seemed to separate them, they were not truly estranged. Arum felt strange when she found she was smiling at him as if nothing had happened before. She completely forgot how much she felt distressed and pained after her breaking up their engagement. Her resentment against him melted away like spring snow. ¡°Do you want to get a cup of coffee?¡± asked Konsu. Only then did Arum realize that she left her handbag and smartphone at the coffee shop. And she also forgot that she had a meeting with Hojoon at 2:30 PM there. ¡°No, not now. I have a meeting. Are you still working at the same company?¡± ¡°No, I¡¯ve moved to a foreign company.¡± He took out a business card case from his briefcase. ¡°That case¡­¡± Arum was surprised to see the case. It was the business card case she gave him as a gift. Taking it out, he chuckled bashfully and said, ¡°Well, I¡¯m using it well. As everything was going smoothly after I received it from you, I couldn¡¯t throw it away.¡± In fact, she bought it for him as a gift to congratulate for his intern job in the 2nd semester of his senior year in college. It was neither expensive nor a brand-name product, let alone any handicraft by a master artisan. It was just a decent case she bought at a department store during its discount period. Such a common case turned out to be a lucky item for him. She was touched by the fact that he still kept the case with him. ¡®You¡¯re mine, Konsu.¡¯ Her choice of this man that she loved so much was not wrong. He was still perfect as her lover. To her, he was the only man and lover. But the name on the card was different. ¡°Konwoo Han? Did you change your name?¡± With an awkward smile, he said, ¡°My mother has given me a new name in the hopes that I can get a good job.¡± Come to think of it, his mother¡¯s love of Konsu was pretty strong. She felt regret parting with him like this. But he was no more a college boy, but an office worker. ¡°Let¡¯s have a cup of coffee next time. Let me treat you,¡± Arum said goodbye to him first. ¡°Don¡¯t forget to call me,¡± said Konsu, tapping her gently on the back. Very gently. But it was a gentle and warm touch through which she could feel everything from him. Nodding, she turned around. When she came back to the coffee shop, Hojoon was already there, waiting for her. ¡°When did you get here? You told me you would be late.¡± Her face looked red with excitement. He stared at her bluntly. She felt embarrassed. She felt as if he was hearing the beating of her heart. She really felt as if he was already reading her mind. The atmosphere was rather heavy as Hojoon kept silent for a while. Arum took pains to say in a bright voice to change the atmosphere, ¡°How did you know this table was our place?¡± Instead of replying, he tapped on the table with his fingers. On the table was a feature project of . ¡°Wow, I think you have a good discerning eye. What do you want for a drink?¡± Apparently upset, he said curtly, ¡°I¡¯ve already ordered.¡± On the table were two cups of espresso coffee. It had a very strong taste with concentrated coffee. ¡°Espresso coffee?¡± No matter how much she liked coffee, it was too strong for her. ¡°Well, that¡¯s the coffee type I like,¡± he said, emptying the cup instantly. He drank it as if he was gulping down a cup of soju. On the other hand, Arum could hardly drink hers as it was too hot. She had to frown at every sip because it tasted so strong and bitter. She resented this man, who ordered coffee without asking her about her favorite coffee. ¡®Gosh. Where is my Caramel Macchiato?¡¯ When Arum looked around for it, he pointed at the floor. ¡°I cleaned it up.¡± ¡°Oh, I see.¡± She noticed coffee stains on the floor carpet below the table. Obviously, she had spilled it when she hastily went out of the coffee shop to catch up with Konsu. ¡°As you can see, I cleaned it up very well.¡± Arum felt embarrassed, and at the same time she expressed thanks in a feeble voice. ¡°You came back earlier than expected,¡± said Hojoon in a sharp tone. Obviously, it was her mistake that she left the place without leaving any note. ¡°Were you worried?¡± she asked, looking at his facial expression. ¡°Me? Nope.¡± She felt a bit awkward. ¡®Dang it! Why would he be worried about me?¡¯ She thought she asked him a silly question. ¡°By the way, why don¡¯t you ask me why I came late?¡± ¡°You told me you would be late because of a meeting.¡± ¡°Well, I had a meeting with the people with Sola Electronics.¡± ¡°Are you talking about your ex-girlfriend Cho?¡± ¡°Why didn¡¯t receive the call from Sola Electronics?¡± Come to think of it, she received a call from Solar Electronics last week. Was it because of that? ¡°Are you working on their behalf?¡± ¡°Well, electronics companies like Sola Electronics are producing lots of products targeting newlyweds during the wedding season. Though they look for products with salient functional features, they often get the advice of the people around them before buying. They are more interested in the reputation of the products than the function.¡± Arum nodded. In fact, she didn¡¯t know anything when she was preparing to buy home furnishings before her wedding. Though she used them casually before marriage, she really found it hard to select what she wanted to buy. She wasn¡¯t sure of which home appliance she had to buy first. ¡°Yeah, I know. It¡¯s tough.¡± ¡°So, electronics companies make model houses equipped with home appliances. Newlyweds can visit model houses and ask the model managers what they want to know. They also invite newlyweds and host special events. For the current season, they chose ¡®geomancy¡¯ as the title of the special event.¡± ¡°What? They have the same theme as our company,¡± said Arum. ¡°Why do you think it¡¯s the same?¡± asked Hojoon seriously. ¡°Well, well, because it¡¯s in vogue?¡± ¡°Wrong!¡± ¡°Is your ex-girlfriend Cho forcing you to work with Sola Electronics regarding geomancy?¡± ¡°Failed!¡± ¡°What is it, then?¡± ¡°That woman met the editor of your magazine, I hear. That¡¯s why the best women¡¯s magazine of Korea came to collaborate with an electronics company like Sola Electronics.¡± ¡°Wow, this is new to me.¡± ¡°You will soon hear the news when you come back to the office.¡± ¡°Well, I just feel bad about it. Do you think it¡¯s okay for that woman to proceed with the geomancy project like this, as if she¡¯s boasting about her wealth?¡± ¡°Do you want me to stop it?¡± Chapter 27 Chapter 27: Chapter 27 ¡°Yes, right away!¡± said Arum. ¡°What will happen to you then?¡± ¡°I¡¯m going to be fired, probably. Well, I¡¯m damned if I do and damned if I don¡¯t.¡± ¡°It doesn¡¯t matter to me.¡± Arum couldn¡¯t figure out his intention. ¡°Why? Don¡¯t you think you are now mostly stressed out because of this?¡± ¡°Why do you think I am? Soran Cho, my ex-girlfriend and the granddaughter of the CEO of Sola Electronics, has singled you out as the target because she feels you are my girlfriend.¡± ¡°Oh, I see.¡± She felt as if she became the tragic heroine of a crazy TV soap opera. ¡°It¡¯s up to you, Arum.¡± She drank a sip of coffee thoughtlessly. ¡®Dang it! This is espresso!¡¯ Hojoon asked, ¡°Is this the first time you tasted espresso coffee?¡± ¡°Nope.¡± Though it was the first time she had espresso coffee, she lied to him nonchalantly. ¡°This is the way you taste espresso. Put a lot of sugar in the cup and then spread it out two or three times. But you shouldn¡¯t stir the sugar in it. That way, you can enjoy the sweet taste after its bitterness. Just taste it. This was my favorite coffee when I was in Paris,¡± he said. ¡®Are you teaching me how to drink coffee?¡¯ Arum just drank it as if she was resisting his preaching on coffee. ¡°This is how I sip coffee,¡± she said. It was so strong. Her face turned red. But she couldn¡¯t be beaten. ¡°Let¡¯s get down to business now,¡± she said in a sullen voice. ¡°Sure.¡± Hojoon resumed the meeting. He looked like a man born for the sake of work. He gave her a detailed briefing about what Sola Electronics wanted exactly. When she came back to the office after meeting with him, her editor would obviously call her. So, she felt it would be wise to consult with him about the concept of the new project in advance. According to him, Sola Electronics had proposed to host a variety of events not just limited to model houses, but covering things such as shooting for the magazine and the invitation of newlyweds through the feature stories in the major dailies and SNS outlets. While she was listening to Hojoon¡¯s explanation, she remembered Konsu on and off. She couldn¡¯t focus. Though she tried her best to pull herself together, she couldn¡¯t help thinking of Konsu. Bang! As if he couldn¡¯t stand it any more, Hojoon hit the table hard with a ball-point pen. ¡°Let¡¯s focus!¡± ¡°Yes, I do. Please go ahead.¡± Hojoon stared at her sternly. ¡°Well, I can focus well. Yes, very well.¡± Obviously, she wasn¡¯t focused, so her voice was inaudible now. ¡°Did you see him?¡± asked Hojoon. ¡°You mean Konsu?¡± Arum mentioned his name before her brain caught up to her mouth. Since Hojoon found out she was absorbed into thoughts of Konsu while listening to his explanation, she blushed. ¡®Is this guy a fortune teller? How did he know I met Konsu?¡¯ She marvelled about it because she suspected it was what he meant by the geomancy of love. ¡°Yeah, I met him a few minutes ago at Kwanghwamun. This is the effect of geomancy , isn¡¯t it?¡± Hojoon wished that he hadn¡¯t figured it out, because he didn¡¯t care whom she met. But he did. He felt bad. Though she sat face to face with him for the meeting, Hojoon clearly saw her attention being distracted by Konsu. Her attention span was short, and her reply was not serious. So, he couldn¡¯t stand it anymore. ¡°Nope, it has nothing to do with geomancy.¡± ¡°Really? I just did as you instructed me.¡± ¡°Well, you can¡¯t see the effect of geomancy love so quickly like this.¡± Of course, he lied. He knew a man who had a call on the publishing contract right after he moved to another desk. He had a call from a client who said her daughter was admitted to the university she wanted after she moved to a different room. Nobody knew how long it would take for their wishes to come true. It was meaningless to try to predict it. Obviously, Arum¡¯s dramatic reunion with Konsu today was the effect of geomancy. ¡°I believe in geomancy,¡± said Arum. She had no other choice but to believe that it was geomancy that made her meet Konsu. ¡°By the way, no matter whom I meet, does it have anything to do with the current project?¡± asked Arum. ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°You told me I could work with you when I believe in geomancy, right?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°Then, why are you mean to me?¡± Hojoon responded resolutely, ¡°Who would want to collaborate with the woman who goes out quickly to follow her ex-boyfriend?¡± She quickly blushed at that and protested, ¡°You can just tell me you saw me meeting him. Why are you beating around the bush like this?¡± Arum was offended. Hojoon couldn¡¯t control his anger, either. Hojoon got upset because she went out to see her ex-boyfriend Konsu, forgetting her scheduled meeting with him, when, in fact, she was treated as an intruder because of Konsu, and even forced to come to the police station for questioning. In fact, the moment he came into the coffee shop, Hojoon saw Arum. ¡°Arum!¡± he called. But she didn¡¯t see Hojoon and continued running out. And from upstairs, Hojoon noticed her standing behind a man. ¡®That¡¯s the very guy she wanted to meet again.¡¯ Hojoon had a hunch. The reason he could find her table immediately upstairs was not because he noticed a company file on the table, but because her ex-boyfriend came into his view from that table. Hojoon blamed himself, murmuring, ¡®Why did I choose this coffee shop as the meeting place?¡¯ At the same time, he was curious about this guy Konsu. He carefully examined Konsu¡¯s face. ¡®Just the common face of an ordinary man.¡¯ At a glance, Hojoon felt that Konsu didn¡¯t welcome her. Even though Hojoon was looking from a distance, he could feel it. Nonetheless, she came back, excited, which made him upset. Hojoon wanted to tell Arum to face the music; Arum who felt happy while thinking about Konsu. He wanted to tell her that she was being taken in. He wanted to tell her this: ¡®A man reads a man¡¯s mind.¡¯ But he didn¡¯t say it. ¡°How can I collaborate with a woman like you?¡± Hojoon responded strongly. As if reluctant to be beaten, Arum said, ¡°Let me transfer my project to some other reporter. Is it enough?¡± ¡°I won¡¯t participate in this project if you do so.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t do it then! Go and work with that that you can trust! Okay, bye.¡± She went out of the coffee shop right away. Her happy mood after meeting Konsu lasted only briefly, and now she felt dizzy because of Hojoon. Tears streamed down her cheeks. ¡°What a bastard!¡± She felt her legs go wobbly. She wanted to give it up, but had to hang on. ¡®How come my shameful past, that I kept to myself, was discovered by this guy? Why is he making me feel miserable often? What the heck is this ill-fated relationship with him? And why do I keep exposing my miserable past to him?¡¯ *** Back to the office, she felt that her head was spinning like a top. She couldn¡¯t focus on writing an article, nor choose the right pictures for it. In a situation like this, the best solution was to organize her messy drawers. When the deadline was approaching, each editor showed their unique habits. One editor kept piling her paper cups pretty high. Another editor painted her fingernails with different colors. One of her juniors would keep wiping her desk with tissues and disinfectants, even though it was already dust-free. When they showed this kind of symptoms, that meant the deadline for their article was around the corner. How much could Arum¡¯s desk look different? Typically, her desk was littered with various stuff, looking as if it were bombed. ¡®Yeah, Hojoon¡¯s description of me as a ¡®trash can¡¯ was exactly right.¡¯ Arum made a fake smile when she looked at her messy desk. A sandwich bag, a beverage can, some leftover coffee, etc. Plus, a pile of mail and subscription magazines here and there on the desk. All this garbage on the desk showed that she had been absentminded for the past several days. During her high school days, she really wanted to keep her messy desk spick and span. She couldn¡¯t focus on textbooks, nor understand worksheet books. Out of nervousness, she began to clean up her desk drawers back then. When she was caught doing it by her mother who had come in with some snacks, she was given a sound scolding. ¡°Are you crazy, girl? What the heck are you doing now? You¡¯ve never cleaned it before, and why now? Clean it up after you finish the exam! You¡¯re really driving me nuts, stupid girl!¡± She was absolutely right. However, whenever she sat before the desk to cram for an exam, she just got nervous. She couldn¡¯t think straight because of the untidy drawer and the books randomly placed on the shelf. Without caring about them, she tried to solve the worksheets. After she solved one problem, she couldn¡¯t resist the urge to clean it up. Chapter 28 Chapter 28: Chapter 28 In the end, Arum brought a big trash can to dump all the miscellaneous stuff in there. Only then could she think straight and she felt like studying again. By the time she decided to get back to work, dawn was breaking, to her chagrin. So, she just remorsed herself. She didn¡¯t yet solve the worksheet problems certain to be covered in the exam. Back then, she comforted herself, saying ¡®You have to solve the problems by studying hard, not by luck.¡¯ As soon as she was done with the exam, her desk was back in a messy condition. While listening to Hojoon¡¯s online lectures on geomancy, she came to realize that putting things in order was part of geomancy . However, she could not figure out where she could find myongdang, no matter how hard she listened for his lectures. She also didn¡¯t know what items she had to buy as the props of geomancy. But she was pretty good at throwing things away. She felt a good cleaning would mean half the success. She liked the phrase in geomancy that throwing away rubbish was also the study of life. ¡°Every item has its own energy force. Your room and house are no exception. They constantly interact with your spirit. If there are dirty things around someone¡¯s house, it shows the mental state of that person. Only when that person throws them away, he or she can bring in saengi or a good living energy force. Try to receive a good energy force from the sunshine, wind and your guests. You will experience many good things and your life will change,¡± said Hojoon in his lecture. That was true. While she was cleaning her handbag, Konsu¡¯s business card she received a while ago dropped on the floor. ¡®This, too, happened thanks to geomancy .¡¯ How could she meet Konsu when she became interested in geomancy only recently? ¡°Definitely this guy is not a swindler.¡¯ Right after she installed the small items related to the geomancy of love as instructed by Hojoon, she began to experience its effects. That was an undeniable fact. Never did she expect to bump into Konsu in the heart of Kwanghwamoon streets. Was there a good energy of roads running in all directions as Hojoon said? As she was holding his name card, she became more and more curious about Konsu. Was he still a single or married? ¡®Do I go to the trouble of asking him? I¡¯m sure he is single. Otherwise he had no reason to use the business card case that I gave him as a gift.¡¯ She became more confident that he was single, given the way he looked at her. Arum could feel deep inside that he was still fond of her. After hesitating for a moment, holding his card, she sent him a text message. While she was waiting for his reply in excitement, the editor coming back from a business trip called her. There was a fragrant candle burning in her office. Definitely the atmosphere of her office was much more comfortable and softer than before. Arum couldn¡¯t afford to feel it, of course. She knew she made a big mistake by losing the golden chance to get free geomancy consultation, which she secured by making lots of efforts. Obviously the editor would want collaboration with Sola Electronics. She didn¡¯t even want to think about how she threw cold water on the geomancy project. ¡°Editor!¡± The sooner she confessed her wrongdoing first, the better, she thought. ¡°Yes, Arum. By the way, I didn¡¯t know you had a great friend like that with Sola Electronics,¡± said the editor. Ugh? She never told her about Jina. How did she know? ¡°You should have told me about your friend in advance.¡± ¡°Oh, she and I are so close.¡± ¡°Really?¡± The editor looked surprised. ¡°Was her working for Sola Electronics helpful to you?¡± ¡°Absolutely.¡± The editor looked at Arum with a strange expression. ¡°You have to keep her at a distance. And you should also keep your public and private life separate.¡± She felt a prick in her heart at that. She once asked Jina to send her discount coupons issued by her company. ¡°Though I receive her help sometimes, you don¡¯t have to worry.¡± ¡°Yeah, I know you¡¯re smart enough. I like the way you work so much these days. Everything has been going so smoothly since I burnt the candle.¡± ¡°Really?¡± She really wanted to say, ¡°Don¡¯t you think geomancy was so accurate? I met my ex-boyfriend,¡± but held back the urge. ¡°I think I have to host a big dinner for them. Invite Hojoon Lee, too. I hear he is Soran Cho¡¯s friend, isn¡¯t she?¡± ¡°Pardon?¡± ¡°Why didn¡¯t you tell me you¡¯re Soran¡¯s friend? Soran told me she proposed this special geomancy project because of you. Didn¡¯t you know that? Unlike the lousy rumor about her, she was frank and nice. How did you know her?¡± The editor looked at Arum with an interesting expression. Arum couldn¡¯t confess to her what had happened the other night. She couldn¡¯t tell her Soran was the ex-girl friend of Hojoon, who happened to be the stranger to Arum until she broke into his house recently under the influence of drink. ¡®What a cunning lady Soran is! Obviously you lied to my editor you¡¯re my friend.¡¯ When Hojoon warned her that Soran would go after her, she let it in one ear and out the other. Arum knew that the collaboration between Sola Electronics and could not be influenced by a rank-and-file employee like her. Accordingly, they could proceed without her. Given the current situation, however, she couldn¡¯t ask to be excluded from the project. ¡°Well, I got to know her by luck,¡± she slurred. ¡°Did your meeting with Hojoon go well?¡± ¡°Of course.¡± Arum lied brazenly. ¡°Just go back to your work then.¡± ¡°Yes.¡± In the end, she swallowed what she really wanted to say and went out with a heavy heart. Back to his office, Hojoon felt really bad. When he recalled Arum¡¯s happy look during her meeting with Konsu, he got angry. ¡°She just doesn¡¯t know anything.¡± Hojoon had a special talent. That was his ability to notice the energy force of people. He sharply felt their energy force by mobilizing his five senses. That was different from the spiritual exercise or stomatal respiration exercise. He couldn¡¯t explain with words. That¡¯s why he didn¡¯t tell people about it. If he did, he would most likely be treated as a swindler. Since he started engaging in geomancy business, his ability to read people¡¯s energy force was highly developed. He knew it was because of his extraordinary capabilities that he became the most famous geomancy consultant within a short period of time. For example, he exactly found out whether the client¡¯s house was pregnant with an unfortunate energy force, and then presented a solution to solve it. He could also read the fortune of any person. Like today, he could feel the joy and sorrow of a certain person even at a distance because the energy force of emotional feelings was pretty strong. Hojoon felt a bad energy force from a guy named Konsu. He felt bad about it. When he checked out the way Konsu looked at her, it was obvious that Konsu tried to hide lies. The reason Hojoon could feel it at a distance was that he discerned Konsu¡¯s energy force. That was visible to Hojoon, but Arum misunderstood. She was just happy because she met him. ¡®What should I do about her?¡¯ Hojoon felt bitter against himself as he couldn¡¯t help her out now. Clearly she said she would be responsible for the outcomes of the feng shui love he prescribed. ¡®Let me stop caring about her.¡¯ But Arum¡¯s sobbing, wrapped in his arms on that night, kept coming to Hojoon¡¯s mind. When she asked him not to leave, mistaken that he was Konsu, Hojoon promised he would not. ¡®Dang it! My sense of responsibility which is just needless at all¡­¡¯ Because of that sense of responsibility, Hojoon sent back Soran Cho that night. The day he split with Soran, he vowed that he would never take responsibility for anybody. If he dated a woman, he vowed to himself that he would do it in the most selfish manner in the world. By nature, however, he had a strong sense of responsibility. While he was lost in thought like that, Heemang opened the door and came in. ¡°Your father is here, sir.¡± ¡°Dad?¡± Paekhoon and Juyoung came in. ¡°Shouldn¡¯t I come over here? Did you hide your girlfriend in this room?¡± asked his father jokingly. ¡°Oh, no, dad. I just was surprised because you didn¡¯t give me any notice.¡± Gesturing toward Juyoung, he served his father. ¡°This is my company, son. Do you want me to get your approval first to come over here?¡± ¡°He just stopped by after giving a lecture in Daejon,¡± said Juyoung in detail. Chapter 29 Chapter 29: Chapter 29 Juyoung was Hojoon¡¯s military colleague. After getting his driver¡¯s license, he joined the army and served as a driver. After he was discharged, he turned into a driving ¡°god.¡± He applied to more than 200 companies, big and small, but failed. Instead, he obtained the license of a certified public accountant as well as a real estate broker. Now, he was working as the brain of Hojoon¡¯s company. Of course, he took Hoon Paek¡¯s lectures on feng shui. The reason he became Hoon Paek¡¯s personal driver was because he wanted to make a debut as a professional feng shui consultant later. Hoon Paek sat on the sofa and stared at his son bluntly. ¡°Are you in trouble now?¡± Truthfully, he was indeed in trouble because he met a woman who kept on harassing him these days. But he couldn¡¯t confide this to his father. ¡°What are you talking about, Dad?¡± Hojoon intentionally pretended that nothing unusual had happened. ¡°What is it? Can¡¯t you reveal it to your father? Did you get your girlfriend pregnant?¡± One¡¯s words were the reflection of one¡¯s wishes. Everybody furtively expressed what they badly wanted. What Hoon Paek wanted was not only Hojoon¡¯s marriage, but also the birth of his grandchild. Hoon Paek repeatedly emphasized to Hojoon that he didn¡¯t care about which came first. ¡°Well, all this happened because of you, Dad. You¡¯ve got to solve it as you caused the problem,¡± said Hojoon. He wanted to put his father on the spot. ¡°Don¡¯t blame me. What¡¯s the matter with you?¡± his father asked. ¡°Do you remember that Grand Department Store where you delivered a special lecture about feng shui for newlyweds?¡± ¡°I won¡¯t know if you tell me like that. There were so many department stores I went to in the past.¡± ¡°I mean the very day you lost 100 million in gambling, and mom insisted on divorcing you.¡± ¡°Oh, yeah, I remember that day. I couldn¡¯t go there, so you gave them a lecture on behalf of me.¡± At that moment, his father got angry. ¡°Do you know how much I got a scolding at that time? I¡¯ve never seen such disgusting trolls for the first time in my life.¡± Hearing that, Hojoon responded, ¡°I met that woman.¡± ¡°What? That trash can?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± Hoon Paek was worried about his son. ¡°So, did she find you on purpose? Did she want to take revenge on you? What a ridiculous woman! She¡¯s been on the search for you for revenge? She must have been here to take revenge on you, vowing to destroy you. Right?¡± his father asked. Hojoon¡¯s staff¡¯s jaws dropped because Hoon Paek was making a ferocious look, clenching his fist. As the CEO of Hojoon¡¯s company was Hoon Paek, his staff shrinked away. Hoon Paek was a religious fan of TV soap operas. Watching TV dramas was his only entertainment. He said the conflict in TV dramas were much weaker than those in the real world. Since he started his feng shui business, he went through several ups and downs. Hoon Paek¡¯s face had a look of concern because of his son. ¡°Well, not really, Dad.¡± Hojoon recalled his first encounter with Arum. ¡°She unlocked the front door and came into my house.¡± ¡°Really? She is quite bold,¡± said Hoon Paek with a worried look. That ¡®trash can¡¯ woman was the object of fear to Hoon Paek. That woman hurled all kinds abuses on the homepage of the cultural center of Grand Department Store. She criticized that the lecture series was quite bad in that it stirred up superstition and distrust. Arguing that she had to break off her engagement when she did as instructed by the lecturer, the lecturer had to take responsibility. She even blamed the son of that lecturer, who called the divorced woman a trash can, and called him a human scum. She was a terrible woman full of wicked energy force and revenge. Such a nightmare came back to haunt him. After all, the cause of all the evils was Hoon Paek himself. He started gambling and faced the crisis of being divorced by his wife. To make matters worse, he let his son take his place at Grand Department Store, which was a big mistake. Hoon Paek closed his eyes. ¡®What should I do now?¡¯ Hojoon could not figure out how much his father had been stressed out by the internet trolls. After that, Hojoon left for France again. With his eyes closed, Hoon Paek chanted, ¡°It¡¯s all my fault. It¡¯s my fault.¡± ¡°What is your fault, dad?¡± Hojoon got curious. Hoon Paek opened his eyes after looking back to some of the worst moments in his life. ¡°I¡¯ve got to see her,¡± said Hoon Paek. ¡°Pardon?¡± ¡°I¡¯ve got to ask her a favor.¡± With a heavy heart, he left alone without a sendoff by the employees. He even left his personal driver, Juyoung, behind. *** Arum was still working at the company. Today, too, she couldn¡¯t leave the office on time. She was so snowed under work that she couldn¡¯t even change clothes. Complaining about too much work, she bit into some gimbap. A junior reporter placed an order for snacks, including gimbap for those senior reporters who were too busy to eat out. On such occasions, Arum would ask for a BLT sandwich. She loved bacon so much. But she had gimbap everyday after she met Hojoon. Gimbap was not expensive, and she enjoyed its taste while chewing on it. When she was in college, she had gimbap so much and so often that she vowed that she would never have gimbap when she got a job upon graduation. Hearing the principle of ohaeng, or the Five Elements of gimbap, she felt as if she were eating energy bars. In fact, it was kind of a compensation mentality when she ordered an expensive sandwich in the evening at the expenses of the company. With only a few vegetables inside, the sandwich cost over 8,000 won. She didn¡¯t want to buy it out of her own pocket, but ordered it without any reservation when the company paid for it. Of course, she had a decisive reason when she switched from sandwich to gimbap. She got hungry quickly after eating the palm-sized sandwich. To Koreans, the main diet was and would continue to be rice. At that moment, she received a text message from Hojoon. ¡®Dang it! Did he tell his father on me because he had a quarrel with me today?¡¯ Arum felt that his actions were ridiculous. She called him right away. Instead of exchanging any greetings, she protested in an angry tone, ¡°Hey, Hojoon, why should I meet your father?¡± Hojoon responded, ¡°Did you ever pour out volumes of abuse at me?¡± ¡°Nope.¡± ¡°My father wants to ask you a favor.¡± She instantly thought, ¡®Hoon Paek wants to ask me a favor? What is it?¡¯ No matter how hard she thought, she couldn¡¯t think of one. Come to think of it, there was one thing that bothered her. She posted lots of curses on the homepage of Grand Department Store. She blushed with embarrassment. She couldn¡¯t focus on Hojoon¡¯s words over the phone. ¡°My father says he wants to come over to your company now.¡± ¡°No, no, he shouldn¡¯t come here.¡± ¡°If you don¡¯t like it, how about your house?¡± ¡°No. Let me go and meet him.¡± ¡°My father says you¡¯re so busy that he wants to go and see you.¡± ¡°No way. It is my moral obligation for me to go and see your father.¡± Arum set up the appointment and hung up the phone. And then she logged on the internet homepage of the department store. She surfed the free bulletin board for the comments she posted. She could find eight comments that reflected her extreme anger at that time. She felt ashamed. Never did she expect she would see him because of her bad comments. She immediately deleted them. *** Around the closing hour in the evening, three days after she had a call from Hojoon. Finally, she was done handling all her assignments. She went back to her leisurely life as an office worker. When she was a college newspaper reporter, Arum decided that she would never choose a job that had something like a deadline. When she worked as an intern under a telemarketing company, she vowed that she would never get a job that required calls. But a magazine company was the worst workplace with a proper mix of deadlines and interview requests. The first day after the deadline was the time everyone checked with each other if they were all ¡®alive or not.¡¯ Fortunately, everybody survived this time, too. They were most relaxed and comfortable on the first day after the deadline. That¡¯s why Arum decided to meet feng shui master Hoon Paek today. Hojoon was parked in the parking lot of . It was the first time she saw him after quarrelling with him at Kwanghwamun. And she was still in charge of the feng shui project. Both of them acknowledged each other with their eyes instead of a formal greeting. As both of them were to blame, they felt awkward to offer apologies first. Chapter 30 Chapter 30: Chapter 30 Hojoon drove the car on the outer ring road to Namyangju. Paekhoon had a quiet country house there where he wanted to concentrate on writing for the rest of his available time after giving a lecture on geomancy on and off. There was a severe traffic congestion on the road as it was the evening rush hour. Both Hojoon and Arum were silent inside the car. She was taking care of text messages at the moment. She often missed replies or official announcements because of the deadline. While she was at it, she came across the math formula that he had sent the other day. ¡°By the way, I¡¯ve got something to ask,¡± said Arum, breaking the silence. In fact, Hojoon was waiting for her to talk first. ¡°What is it?¡± ¡°You remember that math formula you sent me?¡± ¡°What?¡± When he pulled over his car for a moment, she showed him the math formula. F=Gmm/r^2 ¡°Don¡¯t you know about this?¡± asked Hojoon. ¡°Do I need to know it?¡± ¡°It¡¯s Newton¡¯s universal law of gravitation, not a math formula.¡± ¡°Oh, was it a science formula?¡± As Arum hated math and science the most, obviously she could not understand it. Most likely, she had learned it in high school. But there were so many things she learned and forgot in school. ¡°Why did you send it to me?¡± ¡°Well, that¡¯s the topic of my column that day. You can read it in my personal blog.¡± She googled it through her smartphone. Under the title ¡®The Law of Universal Love,¡¯ she was able to find the formula and his column. Let¡¯s assume F is the size of love. G is the gravitational constant, which is the same everywhere on earth. m1 or m2 is you, and r is the distance. Let¡¯s count it then. What¡¯s proportional to F, the size of love, is the multiplication of the masses of you and me. But what¡¯s in inverse proportion is the square of r; namely, the square of the distance between you and me. In other words, love becomes bigger as you come nearer to me. This confirms the adage, ¡®Out of sight, out of mind.¡¯ So, don¡¯t just look at your love from afar. Start loving someone you like. Your partner is near you.> After reading it, Arum said, ¡°In the end, the gist of your column is you can find your love near you.¡± ¡°Right.¡± ¡°Then, why did you write the column in such a difficult way to understand? And why did you send me that formula?¡± Hojoon didn¡¯t reply. ¡°I¡¯m asking you now. I was so curious!¡± ¡°I sent it by mistake.¡± What? Sent it by mistake? She felt ashamed of herself as she attached a great importance to it. ¡°Originally, I planned to send it to my youngest brother because he usually posted my columns on my behalf. He asked me to send the formula, so I did. As I didn¡¯t get any response from you, I just slept on it. Or you might not have received it, I thought.¡± While they were bickering over it, Hojoon¡¯s car arrived at his father¡¯s house in Namyangju. ¡°Welcome!¡± said Hojoon¡¯s mother, greeting both of them. The living room of his house had a classical air, like a tea house in the deep mountains. A collection of tea cups filled one of the walls. ¡°Where¡¯s Dad?¡± asked Hojoon. ¡°He¡¯s in the room. You can go in now. Let me bring you some tea quickly.¡± Hojoon escorted her into his father¡¯s room, and kindly opened the door for her. Arum went into the room. She smelled a delicate sense of orchids in the room. Paekhoon was an old man who looked after orchids. He was neat and clean. So was the way he spoke. His room was only equipped with the necessary things, with no pretentious bookshelves. ¡°It¡¯s been a while. How are you?¡± As soon as he saw her, Paekhoon stood up and welcomed her. ¡°How are you, sir? You look the same since I saw you years ago.¡± ¡°I¡¯m flattered. Please make yourself at home. Are you doing well these days?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°I was sorry at that time. I had to send my son there because of my personal concerns. I hear you were hurt a lot at that time.¡± ¡°Oh, it¡¯s all water under the bridge.¡± Like Arum said, that¡¯s all behind them now. When she said that, she felt that she was an adult now. ¡°I should have come to see you first. I¡¯m sorry. I was so upset at that time that I posted angry comments on the internet homepage of the department store.¡± ¡°No, you don¡¯t have to be sorry. That¡¯s why the bulletin exists. Though I don¡¯t want you to delete those comments¡­¡± Actually, that¡¯s what he wanted most. ¡°Well, I deleted them already. So, don¡¯t worry.¡± ¡°Really?¡± ¡°In fact, I slept on it for a long time, and suddenly came to think of it when I had a call. I guess the number of applicants for your lecture series decreased at that time, right?¡± ¡°Yes, you¡¯re right.¡± Paekhoon told her the truth without hiding anything. It was really a tough period for him. Hard times. When Paekhoon met her today, he found she was quite a different class from the type who posted those messages of complaint. He imagined her to be a pretty bad woman because of her vicious comments. But now, he found out that she was an ordinary woman. Paekhoon looked at her with a fixed gaze. ¡°Your glittering eyes are quite bright,¡± he said. ¡°Oh, thanks.¡± She was excited by his praise. Hojoon went further, ¡°Well, her brain is also clear. Just pure.¡± ¡°I think so. As your brainwave is clear, I think you will experience a good energy force soon. Your love is right in front of you.¡± She got goosebumps at that. Paekhoon asked, ¡°Do you have a religion?¡± ¡°Nope.¡± ¡°Any meditation?¡± ¡°No, not really.¡± ¡°Then, start a dawn meditation. Your lover is waiting for you.¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know how to meditate.¡± ¡°Just tune in to one of the TV channels, such as Buddhist TV, Christian TV or Catholic TV, whichever you like. They will tell you how to meditate in the morning.¡± And then he gave her a gift of appreciation. ¡°This is my gift for you. Though we started with an ill-fated relationship, I hope we can turn it into a good one.¡± Arum refused it, saying, ¡°You don¡¯t have to give it to me.¡± But he insisted, ¡°This gift knows who its real owner is. Please open it.¡± She opened it. There was a round-eyed necklace in it. The eye-shaped object was a black gemstone that provoked deep thinking. ¡°This is the eye of Horus. You haven¡¯t seen it before, have you? It¡¯s very rare.¡± ¡°Thank you.¡± Arum was lost in that strange and mystical necklace. ¡°I hear that¡¯s the right eye of Ra, the god of the sun in Egypt. It will protect you and heal your wounded heart,¡± he said with a gentle smile. *** On the way back to Seoul, Arum took out the necklace again. ¡°Which eye did your father say? Its name is difficult to remember,¡± she said. ¡°Eye of Horus. It¡¯s rare. It looks like he really appreciated that you deleted your bad comments from the homepage of the department store. What did you post there? I heard that they are all about me. Is that true?¡± ¡°Who told you so?¡± ¡°That¡¯s why they¡¯re so scared of retributive justice. As you hurled abusive words at me, you¡¯re tangled with me like now.¡± ¡°Rare¡­ You said it¡¯s rare, right?¡± ¡°Didn¡¯t you hear me?¡± asked Hojoon. ¡°What¡¯s the point of going over what happened in the past? I wish you would act more like your father.¡± She kept looking at the necklace while responding to his questions nonchalantly. ¡°How is it good for me?¡± ¡°It will help you judge what is true and what is not. It also stops an external bad energy force or a negative energy force from entering you. That necklace has such a force. Do you know what that gemstone is made of?¡± ¡°Oh, I didn¡¯t know if it was a stone,¡± she said, touching that black gemstone. ¡°It is a stone only available in Tibet. It¡¯s not a stone, but a precious jewel. It has an energy force inside. If you go to a dry sauna, you see crystals, right? This one has an energy force that is a hundred times stronger than a crystal¡¯s. And that¡¯s why the Dalai Lama of Tibet carries it with him as a spiritual stone.¡± ¡°Oh, did he really give me such a precious thing?¡± ¡°Yeah, he did.¡± ¡°Dalai Lama¡­¡± She held the necklace dearly in her arms. The energy force of the space, the energy force of peace, and the energy force of love! Just come to me! She closed her eyes, reciting these lines. She felt as if its warm energy force was wrapping around her body. It seemed as if the space was talking to her. At that moment, he said, ¡°You¡¯re the genuine jewel box, Arum.¡± Chapter 31 Chapter 31: Chapter 31 Arum shed tears when Hojoon said that. She remembered that Hojoon mentioned it in his book. Why did she recall that paragraph in his book while she was shedding tears? ¡°Why are you sobbing again? You look like a habitual crier. Do you like this jewel that much?¡± ¡°Yes, I like it so much. I¡¯m not going to be treated as a trash can anymore. Boohoo¡­¡± Hojoon was embarrassed, though he didn¡¯t mean it. ¡°I¡¯m sorry. Back then I didn¡¯t know about geomancy very well. I just had to do as instructed. I really didn¡¯t know that you were hurt so much.¡± At that moment Hojoon thought of the law of mass conservation. The law states that chemical reactions to raw materials only change the components of all the surrounding materials, not creating or destroying mass. Though he used that expression, ¡®trash can woman,¡¯ at the lecture thoughtlessly, it was stuck in the earth like air without extinction. He kept the lesson in mind again that he would keep his tongue under a bridle. Arum stopped sobbing now. ¡°Are you done crying?¡± She nodded. ¡°We¡¯re even now. Hope you¡¯re not complaining again,¡± said Hojoon. ¡°Do you want to have noodles? Aren¡¯t you hungry?¡± asked Arum. She had a good cry and now asked him about eating together. But Hojoon like her positive energy force like that. ¡°Pull over there at the rest area.¡± Getting close to the window, she pointed at the rest area for fear Hojoon might pass it. Both of them went out to have noodles at the snack house in the rest area late at night. Their relationship was reconnected that night. *** Rubbing her eyes at 5AM the next morning, Arum got up. She went to the church for dawn prayer yesterday, but she gave it up. Instead she planned to have the ¡®hour of contemplation¡¯ at home, as instructed by geomancy master Paekhoon. She has never thought of turning on the TV at that hour. Besides, she didn¡¯t feel up to watching a religion TV. But she changed her mind. She chose the Buddhist channel out of various religion channels. She read somewhere in an article that she could lose weight by bowing down 108 times. That method was in vogue. ¡°Now, let me start.¡± She began to bow according to the monk¡¯s recitation of man¡¯s repentance of 108 sins. She was short of breath when she bowed only four times. Ugh? She had to bow another 104 times. After bowing ten times, she squatted down. The road to spiritual awakening was long and tough. *** The advantage of getting up early in the morning was plenty of free time. Though she left for the office only ten minutes early, she arrived there 30 minutes earlier than before. She stopped by a coffee shop nearby to spend 20 minutes of free time. ¡°I want iced Americano coffee.¡± She felt really fresh. While waiting for her coffee, she fiddled the necklace with the eye of Horus. ¡®Give me a good energy force today,¡¯ she wished. Holding a coffee cup, she headed to the office. She usually waited in line to get on the elevator, but it¡¯s not crowded today. Everything went so smoothly that she even felt strange. She arrived at her desk 15 minutes earlier than before. ¡°Great!¡± At that moment she received a text message from Konsu. It was one sent by Konsu. And he sent a photo of the coffee on his table. ¡°What a guy!¡± She giggled at that. And then she zoomed the photo to check if there was any woman around him. She instinctively found it out. ¡®You¡¯re still single!¡¯ She wondered if this kind of joy was real happiness. Happiness could come from such a small thing, she thought. *** The project titled ¡®Newlyweds¡¯ Geomancy Interior that Brightens Luck on Love¡¯ was proceeding smoothly. Arum was in charge of meeting, requesting interviews and managing consultation. Manager Kyong volunteered to help her, and Hojoon actively participated in the project. Today they were supposed to select the newlyweds for the project. 2PM. Hojoon arrived at the conference room of . Arum and Manager Kyong led the meeting. ¡°We¡¯re going to visit the houses of newlyweds, as we planned originally. I had a call from Sola Electronics yesterday. They want a special geomancy lecture for the newlyweds,¡± said Arum. Saying that, Arum looked at Hojoon. He seemed calm as if nothing happened between Soran and him. Arum would not have stayed calm in such a situation. ¡°So, how did you respond?¡± asked Hojoon. ¡°Well, I answered in the positive, and told them we would select thirty subscribers of our magazine.¡± Manager Kyong asked, ¡°Are they preparing any free gifts?¡± ¡°Yes, they have. And they would let the invited newlyweds freely use the home appliances on display inside the model houses,¡± Arum said. ¡°Really?¡± ¡°By the way, didn¡¯t you have any call from Sola Electronics, Mr. Lee?¡± ¡°Nope.¡± ¡°You¡¯ll be contacted soon. I hear they are going to ask you to give an individual coaching for the first 100 newlyweds who purchase Sola products.¡± There was displeasure on his face. ¡°Who is going to give them individual coaching?¡± asked Hojoon. ¡°Of course, it¡¯s you, president!¡± ¡°Oh my¡­they just decided it without consulting with me first. As I was not contacted on this, I can¡¯t do.¡± ¡°Anyway, that¡¯s what they want.¡± Manager Kyong, who had been patient up to that point, asked, ¡°As many as 100? Our president coaching them one by one?¡± ¡°No, not really. These days they can post any video talk or video clip on their requests. I hear there was a famous Chinese company doing the same thing. It was allegedly the best electronics company in China. If they shoot a video and post it on the company¡¯s internet homepage, somebody gave them a coaching. I guess it¡¯s their marketing strategy.¡± ¡°Well, that¡¯s the thing Sola Electronics has to take are of. Are they many applicants?¡± asked Hojoon. ¡°I¡¯ve not yet announced it. How should I proceed? I¡¯m thinking of post it on our SNS account and the special event on our internet homepage.¡± ¡°But¡­¡± Manager Kyong said with a worried look, ¡°If we receive applications through SNS, many will apply. But we will be in big trouble if they change their minds in the middle. Why don¡¯t we shoot for only those that we know?¡± ¡°Oh no¡­ Who is going to miss the shooting? We¡¯re helping them anyway.¡± ¡°Well, that¡¯s your own wishful thinking. There are too many variants. If we select only those we already know, they won¡¯t change their minds easily. The thing is how to find those newlyweds. Arum, are you going to get married?¡± ¡°Good heavens!¡± ¡°I¡¯m not joking. Just experience it like me, though I¡¯m divorced.¡± ¡°Stop it, Manager Kyoung. What do you think, Hojoon?¡± He agreed with Manager Kyong. ¡°I think we need a more stable setting. As this project needs a photo shooting, the house should be large enough, I think.¡± ¡°That¡¯s quite a pressure! Can¡¯t we shoot in a small house?¡± asked Arum. But Manager Kyong made fun of her, saying, ¡°Nope, we need a large one for the purpose of shooting.¡± Hojoon frankly opined about his thinking. He said he had visited the houses of viewers after doing an interview on TV several times, but he had nothing to do except for throwing lots of things away when their houses were too small. That would be the case for newlyweds dreaming sweet dreams of marriage. How could he give them coaching on geomancy when, in fact, their houses were too small to house a refrigerator, Kimchi freezer, a washing machine and a TV set? Nonetheless, the new project should give them hope as well as useful information on geomancy . ¡°Do we know any soon-to-be newlyweds around us?¡± Checking her SNS account, Manager Kyong looked for people likely to get married. At that moment, Hojoon recalled a woman. Just recently, he had received a mobile wedding invitation card from her. Her name was Yuyoung, whom he befriended while they were attending middle school. As she carried out her dream of being a flight attendant, she was now flying all over the word as a proud stewardess. After he received the invitation card, Hojoon called her, ¡°Hey, little girl! You¡¯re getting married ahead of me.¡± Though he called Yuyoung a little girl, she was a slender and tall lady with gracious look, liked by everybody at the church. Male students attending the same church at the time wanted to date her. But she didn¡¯t date any of them. She didn¡¯t even look at them as she was such a devout Christian. Instead she followed Hojoon as if he were her real brother. Hojoon also doted on her, but didn¡¯t treat her as a woman. So, they became closer. But his relationship with her didn¡¯t last long. Chapter 32 Chapter 32: Chapter 32 Instead of going to a regular high school, he went to a village school in Mt. Jiri, naturally losing contact with her. Hojoon was also absorbed into studying at that time, as he had to take the state qualification exam while attending the village school. When she turned 20, she suddenly confessed to him during her summer vacation. Just discharged from the army, Hojoon felt a bit ill at ease when he saw her, all tall and grown-up. He treated her just like his younger sister. She didn¡¯t contact him, apparently feeling resentment at his attitude. Over time, both lost track of each other. According to rumors, she went to the United States to study. She came back as a beautiful flight attendant. But all these were behind them now, and Hojoon received her wedding invitation card recently. ¡°Haven¡¯t you ever regretted not dating me?¡± asked Yuyoung over the phone. ¡°Oh my¡­ you¡¯re getting married. Watch your language!¡± ¡°Well, I just wish you could have said you did.¡± ¡°Would you want to marry me if I regretted it?¡± ¡°Why not?¡± she said, jokingly. ¡°I know you¡¯re joking. The best thing I did in the world was to not date you. That way, I could see you, my sis, all my life. If I got married to you and divorced later, you and I are going to be lifetime enemies, right?¡± ¡°If you get married, I think I will be pretty jealous.¡± ¡°Really? By the way, when are you going to introduce your groom-to-be to me?¡± ¡°You¡¯re really curious about him, aren¡¯t you?¡± Hojoon was curious, of course. He wanted to know what kind of man this smart woman chose. But he didn¡¯t express his curiosity to her. ¡°I can see him on your wedding day. Do you need anything I can give you?¡± ¡°Nope. Are you sure you¡¯re coming to my wedding?¡± That was the last conversation he had with her over the phone. And then he slept on it. He felt that in some respects, this project could be a special gift for her. ¡°A woman that I¡¯m very close to is getting married soon,¡± said Hojoon after some hard thinking. ¡°Wow, that¡¯s good! We¡¯d really appreciate it if you contact her.¡± Arum pressed on him to contact her right now. Saying that he would be back quickly after his phone call with Yuyoung, he went out of the conference room. Standing in the hallway, he called her number on his cell phone. Usually, it was Yuyoung who called first because of her unpredictable flight schedule. ¡°Hi, brother?¡± Though she answered the phone gladly, she was surprised. ¡°What¡¯s up, brother?¡± ¡°Oh, you are in Korea, not abroad!¡± ¡°Actually, I switched to a short-distance flight job because I have to prepare for my wedding. By the way, you called me first this time. Any urgent matter?¡± He explained to her why he called in detail. She gladly accepted his offer. ¡°I love it. In fact, the house interior work was the biggest headache for me. You know I¡¯m pretty clumsy at doing housework. By the way, which magazine is it?¡± ¡°.¡± ¡°I know reporter Arum Yang is pretty famous for her love column.¡± ¡°Really? Actually, she is in charge of this project.¡± ¡°Wow! I definitely want to participate in the project. When I was about to split with my boyfriend, I sent her a letter on my episode. She gave me a kind advice, as if she were my older sister. I might have split with him forever without reporter Yang¡¯s advice.¡± Hojoon didn¡¯t know Arum was an entertainment reporter. ¡°She is the woman to whom I feel really thankful,¡± Yuyoung said. He felt relieved to know that Arum was the reporter that Yuyoung wanted to see. He went back to the conference table. ¡°What did she say? Did she say she would participate?¡± That¡¯s what Arum was curious about the most. ¡°Yes, she agreed. By the way, she said that she is a fan of reporter Yang. She said that she enjoys reading your counselling segment on love.¡± Hojoon¡¯s comment boosted Arum¡¯s pride. ¡°Wow! You¡¯re joining the ranks of counselling mentors!¡¯ said Manager Kyong with pleasant surprise. ¡°Okay, let me have a meeting with Yuyoung. Please give me her contact number. Do you happen to have her photo?¡± Hojoon showed Arum a photo of her dressed in flight uniform. ¡°She is a professional woman. Looks great!¡± ¡°Yuyoung says she feels indebted to you. She said that she was about to break up with her boyfriend, but you gave her some kind counselling, just like an older sister would. Thanks to your counsel, she met him again. Do you remember it?¡± She couldn¡¯t, of course. She gave so many young women lots of advice. When she was in charge of the love counselling segment, she thought, ¡®They¡¯re going to take care of their own problems anyway. Who is going to take my segment seriously?¡¯ But she now realized she saved this woman, Yuyoung, from her possible breakup. ¡®I think I have to be prudent in writing love pieces from now on.¡¯ While repenting within herself, she finished the meeting. Arum went down the lobby to see him off, smiling along the way. ¡°It looks like you have good news,¡± he asked lightly. Her face beaming brightly, she said bashfully, ¡°Konsu called me this morning. Thanks for getting me connected with him again. I¡¯m sorry I got angry at you before.¡± ¡°You don¡¯t have to thank me¡­let alone apologize to me,¡± said Hojoon in a businesslike manner. And then, he turned away. This was the first time he felt so bad when something good had happened to his customer. *** On his way back to his company, Famed House of Geomancy, Hojoon stopped before the red traffic light and forced a smile. ¡°No matter how hard I think, Konsu is not Arum¡¯s match. I can¡¯t understand her taste in men.¡± Though he vowed he would not care about others, he couldn¡¯t. On that day, Hojoon looked at Arum through the window of the second floor of the coffee shop. She was the happiest woman in the world when she was returning after meeting with Konsu. She was excited, just like a child. ¡®Are you that happy?¡¯ Murmuring to himself, Hojoon cast a glance at Konsu, because the guy who entered the entrance of the metro station came out the exit on the opposite side. ¡®What? He might as well cross the street.¡¯ Of course, Konsu had a reason for that. He met another woman. Hojoon could only see her back. She held his waist with both hands and then let him go. Obviously, they were lovers. They disappeared, holding hands together. ¡®Oh my god¡­¡¯ Hojoon was dumbfounded to see that. At that moment, Arum just came in the coffee shop in excitement. Hojoon couldn¡¯t bring himself to tell her, ¡®Your ex-boyfriend whom you just met has a girlfriend.¡¯ Everybody has a unique situation of their own. Maybe Hojoon could be wrong. So, Hojoon decided to be prudent. But he got upset when he saw Arum just beaming happily without knowing what¡¯s going on right under her nose. In the end, his meeting with Arum ended up in a quarrel. Now, the traffic light changed from red to green. ¡®How come Konsu contacted Arum when he is dating another woman?¡¯ Hojoon felt bad about it. But he had no hard evidence. Besides, it had nothing to do with him. ¡°Dang it! It¡¯s none of my business.¡± But he didn¡¯t realize that he was already deeply involved in Arum¡¯s matters. *** Soran Cho is the chief of the strategic planning team of Sola Electronics. The company¡¯s products became popular among the middle-aged and old people only a few years ago. The typical perception of its products was ¡®old-fashioned¡¯ or ¡®grandma¡¯s electronics.¡¯ At that time, Soran was in the thick of the worst period of her life. Expelled from her high school, she went to America to finish her studies. She was rumored to have taken drugs, lived with a boyfriend, and exposed her naked body. Fortunately, she flew to Paris in France to buy some brand-name things and suddenly indulged herself in design. Nobody knew what happened to her at that time, but she appeared before her grandfather as a different woman. ¡°Please give me another chance. I don¡¯t want anything more.¡± After that, Sola Electronics¡¯ products based on her designs became hits. Though the company changed the design of existing products only, it was back to its heyday, attaining a record of the biggest sales. She got promoted to the chief of the design room immediately, and won the top position of the strategic planning team earlier this year. And then she showed her old habit again. She openly called Hojoon to Sola Electronics on the pretext of holding a meeting. Arriving at Sola Electronics, Hojoon got on the elevator. He thought he would rather see her at the company. But that was his delusion. When he arrived at the meeting room, his jaw dropped at the strange scene before his eyes. Chapter 33 Chapter 33: Chapter 33 At first, Hojoon thought that he came to the wrong place because her staff were preparing food. Besides, there was a romantic rose flower on the small table. ¡°Sorry,¡± said Hojoon, turning back. ¡°No, the chief of the strategic planning team will arrive here shortly.¡± ¡°Is this the meeting room?¡± ¡°Yes, that¡¯s right. We have prepared this setting because she said she wanted to show you the home appliances of Sola Electronics.¡± It was a white lie. Hojoon was bewildered at the thought that he was taken in again. He heard her steps approaching the meeting room. When he turned around, Soran was standing there. ¡°Welcome, President Hojoon!¡± She was smiling at him. After she ordered her staff out of the meeting room, Soran asked him to sit face to face with her at the table. But he didn¡¯t sit. ¡°What are you doing?¡± ¡°Didn¡¯t you hear the explanation from them? I want to show you our company¡¯s home appliances. You know I haven¡¯t treated you to any meal so far.¡± ¡°Oh my¡­ I know that this isn¡¯t something that you have done for yourself, right?¡± ¡°Right. But you¡¯re the only man that deserves this kind of treatment from me.¡± ¡°Who is the chief moderator of today¡¯s meeting?¡± ¡°He went on a business trip.¡± ¡°Are you crazy?¡± ¡°What did I do wrong? This is the way I work. I didn¡¯t ask you to play with me. Just sit down.¡± ¡°I can¡¯t have this meeting without the responsible manager.¡± ¡°It¡¯s me, the responsible manager!¡± ¡°Are you making fun of me?¡± ¡°Do you think whatever I¡¯m doing looks like a joke to you?¡± Hojoon had nothing further to say. He felt that he should leave the room when he could still control his anger. Soran said harshly, ¡°You remember I asked you to help me get divorced the other day. That¡¯s no joke!¡± ¡°I didn¡¯t hear you!¡± he shouted and then left. *** When he was walking through the first floor lobby, somebody spoke to him, ¡°Wait a minute.¡± When he turned around, there was a lady whose face was familiar to him. ¡°Do you remember me? I saw at you the police station. I¡¯m Arum¡¯s friend.¡± She was Jina. ¡°Oh, I see.¡± Hojoon remembered her now. She came running to the police station to take care of Arum early in the morning on that day. ¡°Are you an employee under this company?¡± asked Hojoon. ¡°Yes, I am. What business has brought you here?¡± ¡°Well, I had a meeting¡­ kind of.¡± ¡°I see. Would you have a cup of coffee with me? The coffee here tastes very good.¡± She escorted him to the coffee shop downstairs. As if they were longtime friends, Hojoon and Jina hit it off. Their encounter at the police station probably helped them form a sense of a bond. ¡°I can¡¯t believe that we would meet like this! By the way, I¡¯m sorry about what happened at that time. I should have checked it out thoroughly.¡± While drinking her coffee, Jina told him about the recent case of Arum¡¯s trespassing into his house. ¡°It¡¯s alright. At first, I was surprised because I thought the intruder was a thief.¡± ¡°You bet. I just don¡¯t know why this crazy lady went to your place that night.¡± Hojoon smiled at her. Though Jina was foul-mouthed, she had genuine concern for her friend. ¡°By the way, you taught her about the prediction through geomancy that she would meet her ex-boyfriend again, right?¡± ¡°Right.¡± ¡°Do you think it will really take effect? I hope that it won¡¯t.¡± ¡°Pardon?¡± Hojoon got curious about her unexpected response. He asked, ¡°Isn¡¯t it what Arum wants?¡± ¡°Yeah, she probably wants it. But do you think that broken glass can be glued back? I know something about Konsu, Arum¡¯s ex-boyfriend. He is not generous enough to heal her wounded heart. I just have no idea why she loves him so much.¡± ¡°You bet,¡± Hojoon chimed with her unconsciously. ¡°Oh, what I mean is once you break up with somebody, you should know how to forget. It¡¯s very difficult for you to bring about a happy ending even if you meet again.¡± ¡°I think so. Everybody knows that, except for those two. Is there any way you can stop both of them from meeting again? Arum is going crazy about Konsu these days. She went to church for dawn prayer, and waved a wind chime.¡± Drinking at that moment, he almost spat out his coffee. ¡°Did she really do as I instructed her?¡± ¡°Yes. Once she gets hooked onto something, she would pursue it to the end.¡± While talking about Arum, Jina examined him, and saw how he was faintly smiling all along. ¡®This can¡¯t be right.¡¯ But she became convinced while she was talking with him. ¡°Why didn¡¯t you delete her video from your smartphone?¡± asked Jina. At her sudden question, Hojoon was at a loss for words. Jina continued, ¡°Be honest. You didn¡¯t delete it because of Soran Cho, right?¡± It was a sharp question. ¡°Why do you think so?¡± asked Hojoon. Jina began to talk freely about what she felt curious about him. ¡°I think you were very close to Soran if she came to your house in the wee hours. But you sent Soran, who is quite prideful, back home, and then went to the police station because of Arum. It seemed to me that you have a compensation mentality.¡± Her mention of compensation mentality offended his pride. ¡°I didn¡¯t do it for the money,¡± he said. ¡°Oh, not money. I think that was the wrong expression. It seemed to me you argued for innocence. Of course, you could go to the police station, but I felt that you concealed something. Did anything happen in your house that day?¡± Hojoon felt a prick in his heart. ¡®Good heavens! She¡¯s bugging me.¡¯ Jina continued, ¡°I¡¯ll keep it to myself. I hear you told Arum that she was your girlfriend, didn¡¯t you?¡± ¡°Well, that was because¡­¡± Hojoon couldn¡¯t tell her about it in a sober state. In the end, he had a drink with Jina. ¡°I was really curious about you. Why did a guy like you take care of this naughty woman Arum? To be honest with you, she is not pretty.¡± Jina was a straightforward woman. These women¡¯s friendship was so strong. ¡°Let¡¯s assume you¡¯re right,¡± he said. ¡°Then, why are sniffing around her? I hope you¡¯re not lying by saying it¡¯s because of your work.¡± Hojoon briefed her about what had happened up to now, starting from Arum¡¯s painful memories of his lecture on geomancy, objectively and logically. But Jina kept focusing on one question. ¡°So, my question is, do you like her? If you don¡¯t, why are you sniffing around her?¡± Reading his mind, Jina offered a cup to him. Hojoon gave up, after all. ¡°I don¡¯t know, either. I don¡¯t like her, but this is what happened that night¡­¡± Hojoon told her about the episode that Arum mistook him for her ex-boyfriend under the influence of alcohol. ¡°Wow, you have a very strong sense of responsibility,¡± said Jina. Listening to that episode, Jina ordered one more bottle of soju. ¡°Does Arum know about this?¡± ¡°Nope. She doesn¡¯t even remember what she did.¡± ¡°You don¡¯t have to feel any sense of responsibility. I misunderstood you because I felt that you might like her,¡± said Jina, grinning at him. She continued, ¡°She is eccentric sometimes. But she is not a bad girl.¡± ¡°Oh, you¡¯re mistaken. I don¡¯t think she is a bad woman. She promised to stop drinking while she¡¯s working on the project,¡± he said. ¡°Well, I understand Arum¡¯s position, too. Sometimes, I pass by my ex-boyfriend¡¯s house, though he didn¡¯t know this. Of course, I didn¡¯t tear open his door.¡± ¡°Nobody would do that. In the past, I sometimes wanted to go to that woman¡¯s house when I got drunk.¡± ¡°Oh, these guys are dangerous! That amounts to a crime.¡± ¡°Crime¡­ Yeah, I agree.¡± Hojoon smiled bitterly. Today of all days, soju really tasted sweet. Jina continued, ¡°Do you know why people can¡¯t clean up, regardless of their miscellaneous things, memories or gifts from somebody else? They can¡¯t, because of lingering attachment. When it comes to separation, for example, they have a lingering hope that their former spouses could come back or they could mend their broken relationship. But throw them away! Whether it is a thing or your lover, you just make good use of them and say goodbye when the time for separation comes. Only in that way can you buy new things and find a new lover. But Arum can¡¯t do it for the life of her. There is nothing that we should keep forever.¡± While speaking her mind eloquently, Jina had another drink. ¡°Why? Because we can¡¯t live forever.¡± Hojoon was startled to hear what Jina had just said. ¡°Where did you learn this, Jina?¡± he asked. ¡°Well, that¡¯s what my mother¡¯s sister told me.¡± ¡°If your mother¡¯s sister is interested in geomancy, please let her call me. It looks like her life itself is geomancy.¡± With a merry laugh, both clinked their cups. Chapter 34 Chapter 34: Chapter 34 While Hojoon and Jina were chattering about her, Arum was preparing a romantic date with Konsu. She received a sudden call from Konsu in the afternoon. ¡°Can we have dinner together if you¡¯re available?¡± And she was now heading for the appointed place. ¡°Where shall we meet?¡± When Konsu asked that question, Arum instantly visualized the map of Seoul in her head. She wanted to avoid the places where she had met him before. Instead, she wanted to meet him in an outdoor place where she could feel nature, such as one where the river ran and the atmosphere was windy. Where was a pleasant place where she could chat with him about the stories of their past with laughter? She wanted to find the location where she could make up for her unhappy memories through this one-time date with him. ¡®Shall I meet him at the Han River?¡¯ But access to the Han River was difficult without a car. If she were to ride a car with him, he would most likely make explicit contact with her body. Ultimately, she would accept his sexual advances, but not today. ¡®How about a restaurant with an aquarium?¡¯ She recalled the first place where Leonardo Dicaprio met Claire Danes in the movie . They locked their eyes through a fish tank bathed in a mystical blue. But the restaurant she had in mind was too expensive. She felt that it was not the right place for their reunion as it was not for his proposal. ¡®Let me reserve that place for it.¡¯ Now, the only place she could think of was the Chongyechon Stream. Like Hojoon said, Kwanghwamoon was a good place where the roads ran in all directions. It¡¯s also a dynamic place teeming with not only office workers, but also families and friends. If the Han River was a place for lovers, Kwanghwamoon looked like a meeting place for everybody. So, she decided to meet him at the Chongyechon Stream near Kwanghwamoon. Though she would see him there, she couldn¡¯t dine with him on the streets of Chongyechon. That¡¯s why she chose the Sky Lounge of Tower Building. Though she felt the expensive price there was a bit burdensome, she decided to foot the bill as she would date him in three years. ¡°Why don¡¯t we meet at Jonggak Station?¡± she said, without specifying the restaurant on purpose for fear that he might feel pressure. She headed for Jonggak Station with a light gait. The moment she arrived there, she felt that something was wrong. She sent him a text message like that, but didn¡¯t receive any reply for 30 minutes. Konsu was not there when Arum hopped up the stairs to the entrance. Thirty minutes had already passed. ¡°Oh my god¡­¡± She was standing there, indefinitely waiting for Konsu. As she couldn¡¯t contact him, she could not leave the place. At first, she got angry. She resented him for spoiling the mood. ¡®I thought as much. It¡¯s just me who is to blame for accepting his request thoughtlessly.¡¯ She regretted it. But she began to be worried when he didn¡¯t appear after more than 30 minutes. ¡®Did he get into an accident?¡¯ ¡®Is his meeting at the company longer than expected?¡¯ ¡®Does he feel it burdensome to meet me?¡¯ ¡®Has he forgotten this appointment?¡¯ She was getting worn out now. What distressed her all the more was the way the passersby looked at her. It looked as if everybody was looking at her now. ¡®Looks like she got stood up.¡¯ ¡®Was it true that her date was her ex-boyfriend?¡¯ ¡®Doesn¡¯t she have any pride?¡¯ ¡®She should have sensed that she got stood up when ten minutes have passed.¡¯ It seemed that as they passed by, they were commenting on her like that. Arum decided to block her ears. ¡®What¡¯s most important now is Konsu and I.¡¯ But she couldn¡¯t wait there all throughout the night. ¡®Okay, let me give him one more call.¡¯ The moment she was about to press the button, she received a call from Konsu. It was already 50 minutes later than the appointed time. ¡°I¡¯m sorry, so sorry.¡± She felt that he was genuinely sorry to her over the phone. ¡°My meeting suddenly got longer. I couldn¡¯t contact you. It was an important meeting. I have kept you waiting for so long, right?¡± ¡°It¡¯s fine with me.¡± Instead of expressing her bitter feelings, she responded casually, ¡°I was reading a book at a bookstore while waiting for you.¡± She eased his mind with a lie. ¡°How did the meeting go?¡± ¡°Yeah, it did go well. By the way, I¡¯m going to be late a lot if I go your place now. Can we meet at the half-way point? Can you come to Chungmuro Station?¡± She got upset at that. If he were really concerned and felt sorry, he could catch a taxi to come to her place right away. But he was telling her to come to Chungmuro. Konsu Han. ¡®That¡¯s why we broke up. You never changed!¡¯ She wanted to give him a piece of her mind, but she didn¡¯t want to repeat the same mistake. ¡°Chungmuro?¡± ¡°No, not there. As I am leaving from Kangnam, Yaksu Station is the half-way point. Why don¡¯t we meet at Yaksu?¡± He could come to Chungmuro Station, only a few metro stops from Yaksu. ¡®Why is he insisting on the half-way point?¡¯ Though she was outraged by his selfish behavior, she decided to forgive him as she was determined to show him that she had changed into a generous woman. She was already moving back to the ticket gate of Jonggak Station to head for Yaksu. ¡°Send me a text message for our meeting place,¡± she said. ¡°Got it. Let me go to you as soon as possible. You can have whatever food you want there. Sorry.¡± He sent her a message showing the map of the restaurant near Yaksu. She was now on the metro. Curry. It was not bad. But she didn¡¯t like it much. She was not meeting him just for a meal. If eating together was the main purpose of her meeting, she would meet him near her house or company, not Jonggak Station. ¡®I wanted to receive a good energy force from him, but I was overzealous. I should be patient.¡¯ Her sullen and distorted face, as she tried her best to control the surge of anger in heart, was mirrored in the metro glass. Obviously, she came out with a light mind for a pleasant date with Konsu. But her look in the mirror was a fatigued 30-year-old office worker. ¡®Let me be patient.¡¯ She forced a smile. She laughed at herself while managing a smile. Though she asked herself, ¡®You are happy to meet him again, right?¡¯, she felt resentful about him. She was mistaken when she expected that Konsu would go to the effort of coming to a place near her company, when, in fact, he didn¡¯t. And she was even imagining a romantic reunion with him at the Sky Lounge, when, in fact, he didn¡¯t think of it at all. ¡°Yeah, it¡¯s not his fault. This is also my obsession with him. How stupid am I?!¡¯ She got off at Yaksu Station after that. The restaurant Konsu mentioned as their meeting place was an Indian curry house in the underground arcade. Underground? She got annoyed while walking down to the underground with a heavy heart. ¡®What the heck? Is he trying to hide me from others? Is he meeting me in the underground because he doesn¡¯t want to be caught by someone else?¡¯ She felt these accusations deep inside. As expected, there were not many people at the underground arcade as it was already past the rush hour. There were no lovers dating there. ¡®Let me focus on the meeting¡­¡¯ Chanting an incantation, she opened the door of the curry house. Konsu was there already, waiting for her. ¡°Arum!¡± He waved at her with a smile. Looking at his face, her depressed feelings disappeared. She even forgot that he didn¡¯t arrive at the appointed time. How desperately she missed him for the past three years! So, she wondered how she would react on the first day of her reunion with Konsu. ¡®Can I shed tears like they do in the movies as soon as I see him? Can I hug him and kiss him passionately? Will I feel too awkward to look him in the eye? Or can I just look at him silently?¡¯ Did she imagine too much? She didn¡¯t feel any excitement the moment she saw him, the moment she had been looking forward to for the past three years. Instead, she felt very hungry. Having a large bowl of curry, she looked at Konsu. ¡°Why are you looking at me like that?¡± he asked playfully with a smile. ¡°Didn¡¯t you miss me?¡± Konsu smiled instead of replying. Obviously, her face was familiar to him, but he felt like she was a stranger. Though he constantly chatted and laughed over curry with her, he felt that something was lacking. ¡°You are well, aren¡¯t you?¡± asked Konsu in a low voice. ¡°Sure, I am.¡± She gave a bright smile, as if to show him that she was well. Chapter 35 Chapter 35: Chapter 35 She said in an excited voice, ¡°You look good, too. What a coincidence that I saw you there that day!¡± Konsu said, ¡°Well, I always thought about you a lot whenever I went to Kwanghwamoon. I felt like I could see you there. I had a hunch that I might see you there. You know, we used to walk together there a lot. I followed you quite often since you said that you liked buying books there, though I don¡¯t like bookstores that much.¡± ¡°Really? You thought about me?¡± That was new to her. ¡°Oh, I didn¡¯t know you don¡¯t like bookstores,¡± she said. ¡°Well, I liked it since I went with you there,¡± he said, grinning. He added, ¡°I purchased all the textbooks related to my major because of you.¡± ¡°Truthfully, I was impressed by the way you purchased those new books. When my other friends went around to search for used textbooks, you purchased new ones. I thought you were out of their league,¡± she said. ¡°I have a secret that you don¡¯t know about..¡± ¡°What is it?¡± ¡°I sold them all to my classmates with a 1,000 won discount.¡± ¡°Sold them?¡± ¡°Yeah, the main reason I purchased those books was not to study, but to impress you,¡± he said, laughing awkwardly. At that time, both were faithful to each other. And they felt that the center of the world was the other. It felt as if they went back to their college days through their reunion. All the memories they had at that time felt happy, and not painful. ¡®Yeah, this is the very moment I was looking for. The moment of going back to the me of the past, not denying myself, but recognizing myself as I am.¡¯ She felt that her past would disappear if she broke up with him. She felt that way for the past three years. ¡®I would like to rediscover my time with him.¡¯ So, she plucked up the courage and asked him, ¡°Are you dating anyone now?¡± ¡°You took the words out of my mouth. You didn¡¯t get married yet, right?¡± asked Konsu. ¡°What? Marriage? Do you think I got married?¡± ¡°Well, I have no idea. You could have. You¡¯re not going to bring your husband later, are you?¡± he asked, and then laughed like a naughty boy. ¡°It¡¯s me who vowed never to get married again after our breakup,¡± she said. In the end, she mentioned their ¡®breakup.¡¯ ¡°Sorry,¡± said Konsu, lowering his head a bit. He didn¡¯t want to hear it from her. She also felt sorry for him. She asked him a moment ago if he had a girlfriend. Without hearing his reply, she thought, she had to change the topic. They had curry, chatting about irrelevant topics like politics, the economy, and movies. ¡®When could we become close enough to laugh over our breakup? Can we laugh if we date again?¡¯ She didn¡¯t know yet. ¡°How about your work? Are you still working as an editor?¡± ¡°Yeah.¡± ¡°Wow, I¡¯m jealous! You stuck to the job that you love. Are you with the same company? I don¡¯t remember what it is. It looks like the name of your company has changed¡­¡± ¡°Yeah, I¡¯m still with the same company.¡± ¡°What¡¯s its name?¡± While responding to his question, she was worried that he might look up her articles in the magazine. Many of her articles in her regular love counselling section was based on her love affair with Konsu. She wanted to hide them from Konsu, but he was pretty curious to know. She quickly changed the topic. ¡°Why don¡¯t we have coffee? Because you were late, you pay the check.¡± ¡°No problem. Let¡¯s move.¡± While he footed the bill, she looked for a nice coffee shop with a cozy atmosphere. There was one with a pretty terrace nearby. Without asking her, however, Konsu went to an empty coffee shop in the arcade. Arum was offended. It looked like he wanted to have coffee quickly upon her request. When she went into the coffee shop, it smelled something stale, and the light inside was dim. She didn¡¯t even want to see Konsu carrying a cup of coffee. At that moment, a drunken executive of a company came in with his subordinates, making a big ruckus. It was not a coffee shop, but a convenience bar that sold alcohol. This was the worst moment for her. Without sensing her offended feelings, he gave her a coffee mug, saying, ¡°Enjoy.¡± She knew he was pretty insensitive to the atmosphere, but this was too much for her to endure. However, she decided to put up with it as a token of her newly gained status as an ¡®adult¡¯ through geomancy. A strong taste of curry was still in her mouth, so she sipped on the coffee to wash it down. But it seemed as if the coffee beans were so old that she felt her mouth became doused by a moldy odor. When she frowned, Konsu asked, ¡°Are you still living in the same villa?¡± He didn¡¯t notice the stale smell of the coffee. Without caring even the slightest bit, he sipped the coffee casually. Though she felt bad, she tried to put on a bright expression so as not to be caught. ¡°No, I moved out because of the location of my company. Let me tell you something. The prices of that villa went up by 10 million won.¡± ¡°Really? I told you so. The site of that villa is good.¡± Konsu mentioned ¡®site¡¯ without knowing how she really thought about that villa. ¡°Well, I really liked that villa. I¡¯m sorry you sold it.¡± ¡°I can buy it again.¡± ¡°How?¡± He was making an expression that was full of regret. ¡°I can buy it when the current owner lists it for sale. He¡¯s going to move sooner or later.¡± ¡°Do you know that owner? Did you sell it to your acquaintance?¡± ¡°Nope. I came to know him by chance. He is a good guy.¡± She mentioned Hojoon before her brain caught up to her mouth. She saw Konsu making a frown. It was Arum who was surprised at that. When she mentioned ¡®a good guy,¡¯ obviously, she referred to Hojoon. Why did she mention it before Konsu? She blushed all of a sudden. At that moment, Konsu¡¯s phone buzzed. ¡°Wait a moment. Sorry.¡± As if it was an urgent call, he went outside and didn¡¯t come back. He didn¡¯t come back for 30 minutes after he went out. She couldn¡¯t stand it this time. She stood up immediately and left the place. Most of the shops in the arcade were closing their shutters as their business hours were over. While walking up the stairs, she shed tears. ¡®What the heck did I do here?¡¯ She felt excitement alone, waited alone, and left alone again. What if Konsu called her now? She could probably forgive him. But he didn¡¯t. *** ¡°Thanks so much for your treat!¡± Jina, who was as cheerful as usual, bowed to Hojoon before leaving. Hojoon felt comfortable drinking with her because they were close in age. He rarely had a drink in a comfortable mood as he usually mingled with those at academic seminars or his company men at business dinners. Jina¡¯s cell phone buzzed. ¡°Oh, it¡¯s a call from Arum. Can I ask her to come here?¡± ¡°She won¡¯t come if you tell her I¡¯m here because she would that it¡¯s an extension of her work.¡± ¡°No, you don¡¯t have to feel like that. Let me ask her to join us. Hey, where are you? I¡¯m here near Hongik Univ.¡± Arum said that she was at Yaksu Station. ¡°Why did you go there? Got it. Talk to me when you get here. Come to the coffee shop right away.¡± Jina hung up and went to the coffee bar where she met Arum before, taking Hojoon with her. The coffee bar was a simple edifice made in bricks. Though Hojoon¡¯s company was located near Hongik University, it was the first time he visited this place. ¡°How about this place? This place is pretty popular these days,¡± Jina boasted, as if she were introducing her own house to him. ¡°Wow, this is a nice coffee bar.¡± Hojoon looked at the menu, which showed a variety of beverages such as coffee, beer and cocktails. Ordering an iced Americano coffee, Jina and Hojoon went upstairs and sat at the table beside the window. Though it was an early spring night, the alleys in Hongik University were crowded with sleepless young people. ¡°This coffee bar¡¯s business is really doing well. I can hardly find a table at this time. We¡¯re lucky today. It looks like sites like these where business is really going well are exceptional.¡± ¡°Nope, I don¡¯t think so,¡± said Hojoon resolutely. ¡°Really? I hear Arum is crazy about geomancy these days.¡± ¡°How the owner makes use of the site is also important.¡± At that moment, Jina received a call from somebody. ¡°Hmm? Wait a moment.¡± Excusing herself, she answered the phone, ¡°Mom, it¡¯s me. Already? You told me her due date was ten days away. Got it. Wait for me.¡± She hung up the phone urgently and explained her situation, ¡°Sorry, I have to go now. My sister has just given birth to a baby.¡± ¡°Congrats!¡± ¡°I was worried because she was delivering a baby in her old age. I¡¯m going to see her with my parents now.¡± ¡°Is it okay to see her? You drank alcohol.¡± ¡°No worries. I can go home and change clothes. Please take care of Arum well.¡± ¡°Sure.¡± Chapter 36 Chapter 36: Chapter 36 He saw her off and sat down again. He received a call from Soran at that moment. ¡®You¡¯re really driving me nuts. Just disgusting!¡¯ Though he once loved her, he just frowned whenever he received a call from her these days. His phone buzzed again, but he didn¡¯t answer it. He just turned it down on the table. Soran Cho was a woman who strove to have her own way. He didn¡¯t realize that she was such a woman when he stayed with her in Paris. In those days, he mistook everything that she gave him for love. He simply felt grateful to her for what she gave him. As time went by, however, he realized that it was not love. Looking back, her feelings about him were a mix of her hatred for her father, jealousy of her sister, and obsession with her ex-boyfriends. She vented her filthy feelings to him. And he couldn¡¯t stay with her anymore. ¡°Who else can I tell you this? Who else?¡± Soran forced her love on him like a kind of hell. As if her pride was stepped on by Hojoon, she got married to the youngest son of a business group, the rival of Sola Electronics. Because of their marriage of the century, the two rival groups ended their enmity and promised their everlasting mutual prosperity. Then, Soran came to Hojoon suddenly and asked him to divorce her current spouse. With the excuse of a meeting, she held this strange motive of winning over his heart. She was in a totally different class from him from the beginning. Hojoon vowed that he would answer her call. Though it¡¯s hard to predict the future of the relationships of people, there was a type that should never have been formed from the beginning. And that was the case of Hojoon¡¯s relationship with Soran. Hojoon¡¯s phone kept ringing, which bothered him a lot. Customers next to his table looked at him sometimes. When he took the phone reluctantly, he found that the caller was not Soran. ¡°Hello?¡± ¡°Hi, Hojoon, are you still at the coffee bar?¡± ¡°Yes, I¡¯m waiting for Arum.¡± ¡°Can you go to the hospital now?¡± ¡°Ob/Gyn hospital?¡± As Jina told him that her sister delivered a baby, Hojoon got confused. ¡°No, I heard that Arum was injured and taken to an emergency room of a hospital. She needs a guardian for treatment. I can¡¯t go now. Can you go there? It¡¯s an emergency room near Hongik University. I¡¯m sorry.¡± ¡°Got it.¡± ¡°Let me send you a text message for its location.¡± Hojoon hastily left the coffee bar without drinking the coffee. *** The emergency room of a general hospital in Sinchon. Arum was on the bed, with her knees bruised and her face and arm wounded. As if she hated this world, she closed her eyes tightly. ¡°Hey, Arum!¡± She opened her eyes at a familiar voice of a man. ¡®This can¡¯t be right!¡¯ It was Hojoon standing before her. ¡°How come you¡¯re here¡­¡± She was glad to see him. ¡°What happened?¡± He was bewildered to see her in such a miserable condition. Lowering his body, he asked her in a low voice, ¡°Did you drink alcohol again?¡± Arum got upset upon hearing that, feeling like he was looking down on her. ¡°Nope!¡± she shouted at him. He couldn¡¯t understand why she shouted like that. She was bruised all over her body from head to toe. ¡°If not, then whatever. Why are you shouting? I was worried since Jina told me that you were injured. I¡¯m relieved to see you well.¡± She got angry at the way he spoke to her. And he sensed her angry look at that moment. ¡°Did you expect I would comfort you kindly?¡± ¡°Who told you to come over here? Jina? Oh gosh¡­¡± ¡°I heard from her that her sister has given birth.¡± That¡¯s why Jina hastily hung up the phone. Arum could now understand why Hojoon came here. ¡°Did Jina¡¯s sister give birth to a boy or a girl?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know. From ancient times, delivering a baby has been regarded as sacred and noble. Don¡¯t ever think of visiting her since you¡¯re injured. How come you were injured like this?¡± ¡°I really have no idea. I don¡¯t know.¡± She really couldn¡¯t recall at all what happened. ¡°I came out of the entrance of a subway station and went to the coffee bar near Hongik University. It was a familiar street, but there were only a few people who were there at that hour. At that moment, I heard a motorcycle from behind me, and then someone tried to snatch my handbag.¡± ¡°So, were you mugged?¡± ¡°No, it was a close call. I just ran from that place, holding my handbag tightly.¡± Hojoon¡¯s jaw dropped at that. That¡¯s why her pants were torn and her face bruised. Fortunately, she didn¡¯t experience anything terrible such as being stabbed or r*ped. As there were so many terrible things happening these days, it was very fortunate that she didn¡¯t go through that. When he thought that far, he got angry. ¡°Are you crazy?¡± ¡°Pardon?¡± ¡°Just forget about the money when you¡¯re in such a situation. What if you were seriously injured?¡± ¡°I wasn¡¯t injured!¡± ¡°How come you¡¯re telling me that, when your body was covered with wounds like this?¡± When both of them quarreled at the top of their voices, the nurse in charge stopped them with a sharp admonition. Both of them were staring at each other. ¡°Just go now if you¡¯re going to continue treating me like this. I don¡¯t need a guardian.¡± ¡°Oh, good for you! Since I¡¯ve already confirmed that you¡¯re well and alive, I¡¯m going to go now.¡± Hojoon turned around. He got upset about the recklessness of this woman who, like a garden tiger moth, jumped into danger without knowing how precious her body was. ¡°You need to take an X-ray. Is it hard for you to walk alone?¡± the nurse asked Arum. ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°Can you ride a wheelchair?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°Okay, then. Oh my¡­ Did you put on shoes? The heels of your high heels were broken.¡± ¡°Doesn¡¯t matter.¡± When Hojoon turned back at the nurse¡¯s remarks, he noticed her broken high heels below the bed. He was just dumbfounded to see the broken and tattered high heels. The nurse helped her get up, checking her IV. ¡°Where is your guardian? Isn¡¯t he your guardian?¡± The moment she was about to say he was not, Hojoon came to her, pushing a wheelchair. ¡°Oh, he went out to bring a wheelchair. Just go out and take a left turn. You¡¯ll see an X-ray room. Take an X-ray there and come back,¡± said the nurse. ¡°Yes.¡± Arum felt awkward. Though she told him to go, there was nothing she could do just by herself in the hospital. ¡°Thanks.¡± ¡°You¡¯re welcome. Can you sit here?¡± said Hojoon. ¡°Yes.¡± Though her ankle felt sensitive, she, biting her lips, tried to sit on the wheelchair by holding the bed¡¯s side. ¡°Ahhh!¡± she screamed with pain. Hojoon held her in his arms and put her in the wheelchair. ¡°Oh god¡­ You¡¯re so heavy!¡± said Hojoon. That was true. Though he held her up with both arms, expecting her resistance, she was too heavy for him to lift up, combined with the gravity of her body. Nurses at the emergency room giggled at that, and the patient next to her laughed uncontrollably. Arum buried her face into her knees and said, ¡°Let¡¯s move quickly.¡± He pushed the wheelchair. Since it was late at night, it was quiet in the hallway of the hospital. ¡°How did you come here?¡± he asked. ¡°Ambulance came.¡± ¡°Who called for an ambulance? Did you catch the robber?¡± ¡°Nope. I called for an ambulance. Who could do that? There were only a few people on the street. I didn¡¯t catch the robber.¡± ¡°Did you have a meeting at Yaksu?¡± he asked casually. She forgot that she went to Yaksu because of the impact of the incident. And now, she began to remember why she held the handbag desperately. It was given by Konsu when he proposed to her. Subconsciousness was such a terrible thing. She must have felt as if she would lose him if she let her handbag get snatched. She felt like a fool. What¡¯s the big deal about this bag? She got injured while holding on to it, and now found herself taken care of by Hojoon. Tears ran down her cheeks, but she swallowed them. If she cried again before this man, she would be seen as a silly woman who stuck out her neck for her ex-boyfriend. But Hojoon knew at that moment what she did and where she went. To his best knowledge, she liked the effectiveness of geomancy, and she met Konsu again in three years. So, she must have met him again. ¡°Did you see him?¡± asked Hojoon. Instead of answering, her sobbing became louder now. That was enough of an answer. He could figure out why that happened. There was a saying, ¡®See one and you¡¯ve seen them all.¡¯ That was true. That¡¯s why it¡¯s important to know how to start. Everything had a sign. Chapter 37 Chapter 37: Chapter 37 There was a bad sign in bad things. One should sense it sharply. But most people didn¡¯t take it seriously. ¡®It probably won¡¯t happen to me.¡¯ What an irresponsible remark! It¡¯s like saying, ¡®This can¡¯t be rain!¡¯ when, in fact, it was raining. Half of those who get divorced once toyed with the thought, ¡®This can¡¯t happen to me.¡¯ Too negative? Life was a chain of pain from the very beginning. Hojoon remembered his father¡¯s constant preaching about how the family lessened its members¡¯ pain, lovers lessened each other¡¯s pain, and children lessened their parents¡¯ pain. His father also said that the moment of pleasure and joy was fleeting. ¡°From now on¡­¡± said Hojoon, stopping the wheelchair. ¡°Why don¡¯t you stop meeting him?¡± he said, losing patience with her. She didn¡¯t reply to his suggestion. Both of them didn¡¯t say anything until she took an X-ray and came back to the bed in a wheelchair pushed by him. Fortunately, she had no bone injuries. After the doctor said that she could be discharged, both went out of the hospital. It was 2 A.M. Arum put on some slippers, which Hojoon hastily bought at a nearby supermarket. The taxi arrived in front of Arum¡¯s villa. Though the doctor said that she had no bone injuries, she had to be assisted by Hojoon when she got off. She stood before the stairs, the biggest obstacle. These days any five-story apartment building runs an elevator, but her villa didn¡¯t have one. She freaked out at the thought of walking up the stairs. She thought she could get to her unit by the next morning if she clambered up the stairs. She felt it uncomfortable to be with Hojoon. She felt all the more so because of Konsu. So, she expressed appreciation of his help to let him go. ¡°Thanks so much for your help today. How can I repay it?¡± ¡°If you feel so sorry, pay me by the hour, including overtime pay,¡± said Hojoon curtly. Arum had nothing to talk back. Based on his logic, she used his working hours, so she had an obligation to pay for his service. Frankly speaking, Hojoon was a stranger to her. He had no reason to do her a favor. At that moment he held her arm to push her to the stairs. ¡°Oops!¡± She held his waist with hands quickly because of pain in her legs. ¡°Sorry,¡± she said, blaming her two hands. She blushed. It was her instinct. She didn¡¯t want to fall, so leaned on him instinctively. But he didn¡¯t care at all. At that moment he wrapped her waist with his arm. ¡°Though your bones were not injured, you will feel hurt because you stretched ligaments.¡± ¡°I¡¯m alright.¡± ¡°Are you going to crawl up there?¡± ¡°Yeah, after you leave. So, go now.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t you want my help because I am not your ex-boyfriend?¡± His question was pretty provocative. She stared at him. ¡°I can walk up the stairs alone.¡± ¡°I¡¯m not trying to help you because I like you. I¡¯m just showing you a service spirit. Won¡¯t you help me if I¡¯m injured like you?¡± She had nothing to say. ¡°Men with military experience see this kind of accidents often. It¡¯s nothing. Just lean on me. I¡¯m not interested in you.¡± ¡°I¡¯m not either!¡± ¡°Then, why do you refuse my favor? Are you sure you¡¯re not interested in me?¡± At his provocative question, she just decided to swallow her shame and humiliation. Like he said, both were not interested in each other. So, she didn¡¯t have to feel shameful. ¡®Yeah, let me think of this man as a male nurse or a care worker.¡¯ Thinking like that, she felt much more comfortable now. Rather she held his arms tightly. ¡°Let¡¯s go, then. My villa is on the 3rd floor. Don¡¯t blame me. I¡¯m pretty heavy.¡± ¡°I know because I have already lifted you up. You¡¯re not just heavy. Very heavy,¡± quipped Hojoon. As if they were in a three-legged race, both walked up the stairs. Arum was already short of breath when she got to the first floor. She had beads of sweat on her forehead. ¡°Let¡¯s take a short break,¡± she said. ¡°If you take a break, it will be harder to move again. Let¡¯s go!¡± ¡°No, I¡¯m a patient!¡± ¡°That¡¯s why you need a rest at home.¡± ¡°I can¡¯t, I can¡¯t.¡± ¡°Are you really going to crawl up there?¡± he asked, staring at her sternly. She felt stuffy, too. ¡®I¡¯m going to crawl after you leave!¡¯ She wanted to scream like that, but she was scared of the CCTV installed in the corner of the stairs. In the footage she would be seen crawling up slowly like a caterpillar. How ugly she would look! ¡®Yeah, I¡¯m a human being. Let me keep my dignity.¡¯ In the end, she raised herself at his repeated prodding. The moment the front door of her house was opened, she lay down on the floor, throwing off her self-respect she kept so far. ¡°Good heavens! You really like the front door.¡± ¡°I can¡¯t move any more. I¡¯m so tired.¡± Hojoon was as much exhausted. He noticed a rug on the living room. ¡°Wait a minute.¡± He took it and came back to her. ¡°What are you going to do with the rug?¡± ¡°Are you going to sleep here on the front door?¡± ¡°No, no. But you shouldn¡¯t use that rug.¡± Hojoon rolled and pushed her on the rug, who was trying to hug it with both arms. ¡°I paid one million won for that in Turkey!¡± she said. ¡°You can buy it at 100,000 won at the Namdaemoon Market.¡± He then put her on the rug and pulled it to the living room. When he almost pulled it near the sofa, the rug was torn apart. ¡°Oh noooooooo!¡± she screamed. ¡°You can buy it again. You¡¯re the priority now,¡± he said, telling her off. If Konsu had said so, she would have taken it pretty romantically. But she took Hojoon¡¯s remarks sarcastically. Nonetheless, she was happy she arrived home safely. Though she was mentally stressed out, she felt it fortunate to have him beside her at the moment. ¡°Thanks. If you give me the account number of your bank, let me wire the money.¡± ¡°Do you really think I¡¯m doing this crazy thing for money at this early in the morning?¡± ¡°Well, didn¡¯t you say you wanted an hourly pay for your service, did you?¡± One of the ways for modern men to express their gratitude is money. Money gifts for happy or sad occasions are such an expression. Its purpose is not to buy one¡¯s relationship with money. ¡°Well, it¡¯s just a joke.¡± ¡°Please accept the money. I¡¯ll feel comfortable if you accept my money,¡± said Arum. She felt like she couldn¡¯t continue to work with him if she felt uncomfortable. Obviously she would spend more money on treating him to meals if she didn¡¯t send him the money. ¡°Again, that was a joke. Don¡¯t care about it at all,¡± he said, taking out a bottle of mineral water from the refrigerator. ¡°Isn¡¯t it good for us to be on good terms as colleagues?¡± he said. ¡°Thanks.¡± ¡°If you agree, do you have ramen?¡± ¡°Yeah. They are in the cupboard.¡± Hojoon opened the cupboard that she was pointing at. There were various types of ramen. ¡°Do you like ramen?¡± he asked. ¡°Is there anyone who doesn¡¯t like ramen? If you live alone, you come to enjoy it.¡± ¡°You bet. Are you going to have it early in the morning like now?¡± He held a couple of ramen bags and shook them before her. There was nothing to eat except for ramen. ¡°By the way, I can¡¯t cook ramen for you now,¡± she said. ¡°I¡¯ve never asked you to cook for me. I just asked you if you would eat, too.¡± In the end, he boiled ramen. He took out a small folding table and put a ramen bowl on it. Both sat face to face at the table and enjoyed ramen. The moment she smelled ramen, she suddenly got hungry. As she didn¡¯t enjoy curry at all at the Indian curry house, she felt much more hungrier now. Though she thought she used chopsticks several times, the bowl was already empty. Obviously she had more than Hojoon. ¡°Wow, this ramen tasted so good. You cook ramen very well.¡± She tried to avoid the embarrassing moment by praising him on purpose. ¡°I guess you had too little. I wish you boiled three ramen instead of two.¡± ¡°Well, I did boil three.¡± ¡°Oh, I see. The bowl was full.¡± ¡°Take this medicine now. The doctor say it will hurt a lot.¡± He put away the ramen bowel and brought medicine and water. ¡°Let me take if after you leave.¡± ¡°Take it now.¡± He opened the medicine packet and gave it to her. As she had ramen and medicine, she really felt drowsy. ¡°Have a rest!¡± ¡°Wait a minute!¡± When Hojoon stood up to leave, she suddenly got scared. ¡°Are you going to leave now?¡± asked Arum. It was 4AM. Chapter 38 Chapter 38: Chapter 38 It was only right that Hojoon should leave now. But Arum suddenly got the chills because someone picked her pocket last night. She was scared. She couldn¡¯t call Konsu. Even if she called her mother, it would take more than an hour for her to come here. If she could hold out for about two more hours, the sun would already rise. ¡°Since you¡¯ve come to my place, why don¡¯t you take a nap here?¡± asked Arum. ¡°No thanks.¡± Hojoon remembered that when he was alone with her a while ago, he left the front door open. ¡°Wait a minute,¡± said Arum. When she called him again, he sensed what she wanted. ¡°Are you scared?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°Really?¡± Then he took off his shoes and came back into the living room. ¡°How come you insisted on crawling up here a moment ago?¡± ¡°I didn¡¯t know that I¡¯d be that scared.¡± ¡°So, are you scared now, when you pretended you were not a moment ago?¡± ¡°You bet. I just don¡¯t know why I insisted. Acting like that just to keep a handbag is really too crazy!¡± ¡°It seems like your handbag is so precious that you can actually risk your life just for it.¡± ¡°Well, it¡¯s a handbag Konsu gave me, when he proposed to me¡­¡± ¡°Do you like that guy that much?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know.¡± Hojoon could see wistfulness in her eyes. When he looked around, he found that she had installed a wind chime and a flower vase in the living room as he instructed. ¡°Did you really put a clam underneath your bed?¡± ¡°Yeah.¡± ¡°Do you believe that?¡± ¡°What the heck? Don¡¯t you remember how much you heckled me, complaining that I didn¡¯t believe in geomancy?¡± ¡°I¡¯m going to receive an honorarium from you if geomancy works out well for you. This is a very expensive geomancy method,¡± he said sourly. Then, he abruptly asked, ¡°Did he say he got married?¡± ¡°Nope.¡± ¡°Is he dating someone?¡± ¡°Probably not. That¡¯s why he asked to see me today. But he stood me up.¡± After taking a quick look at her living room, he sat beside her. ¡°Just split with him!¡± ¡°Why are you often telling me to break up with him? I understand that you¡¯re dating, too.¡± ¡°Me? Dating someone?¡± ¡°Yeah, that woman called Cho¡­¡± ¡°You mean Soran Cho.¡± ¡°When did you date each other? As a reporter with a women¡¯s magazine, I¡¯m dealing with lots of gossip stories. I don¡¯t see your name in Soran Cho¡¯s list.¡± ¡°Are you interviewing me now?¡± ¡°Just tell me off the record.¡± ¡°How can I trust you? Are you recording this?¡± Putting down her cell phone on the table, she said, ¡°No, absolutely not. I¡¯m really curious about your relationship with her. It seems that you¡¯ve split with her. I guess you would never meet a woman again once you split up with her.¡± ¡°Yes, you¡¯re right. I know the feeling well because I¡¯ve already experienced it. That¡¯s why I¡¯m dissuading you from meeting Konsu again.¡± ¡°I envy you.¡± ¡°What do you mean?¡± ¡°I envy your separation. Come to think of it, I didn¡¯t break up with him because our engagement was broken off unilaterally by him.¡± ¡°Then, why did you meet him again today?¡± ¡°Because I am not yet ready to break up with him forever. There are too many things I have yet to share with him. When I go somewhere, the first thing I think of is that I wish that I came with him. When I enjoy good food, I just think, I wish I had it with him. I can¡¯t stop thinking like that.¡± ¡°Then, try meeting him. Let me show you the surest way to make him your man.¡± ¡°Really?¡± She was just happy without questioning why he said that. In fact, Hojoon said that with a devil-may-care attitude. In other words, he was thinking, ¡®I don¡¯t think you guys can really meet and get married.¡¯ This guy, Konsu, didn¡¯t call or send a text message to his girlfriend, whom he parted with late at night. And this woman, Arum, who didn¡¯t even call her boyfriend, when she had an accident on her way back. Hojoon knew how their relationship would end up. Nonetheless, only Arum, the direct party, was not aware of that. ¡°Yes, I can do it for you, Arum. Just call me anytime when you want to. Let me help you guys secure a great love. Let me give you my full material and emotional support. In other words, I can help you with everything, such as where you meet and what you eat, and so on.¡± ¡°Really? Are you sure?¡± Arum clapped her hands excitedly. The more she clapped, the more he got stimulated. ¡°You know that I am a man of my words. Upon my honor as the best geomancy consultant, I¡¯ll help you rediscover your love. So, you want me to make Konsu love you again, right?¡± His eyes sparkled with overzealous desire. *** Arum took two days off. She had no choice but to use her precious annual paid vacation. Though she wanted to take more vacation leave, she couldn¡¯t. She reported to work, though she felt pain in her legs. She couldn¡¯t dare to use public transportation like the bus, and her own driving was dangerous. In the end, she had to spend almost all of her meager pay on riding a taxi. Once she reported to work, she got so hungry. But she suffered a much more pain than this kind of physical pain. She suffered some mental distress because of Konsu. Three days had already passed since Konsu disappeared after he said, ¡®Wait a minute!¡¯ He didn¡¯t call her to say he was sorry. She opened the mailbox to check if she had any email from him, but she didn¡¯t receive one. She tried to understand his actions all day long. She couldn¡¯t go to the company, so she was thinking about him while she was in bed. ¡®Did he get the call that his parents were in critical condition? Did his close friend die? Did Konsu have an accident? Was he taken to a police station after fighting with a drunken man? Or was he incurably ill? Did his condition get worse, which he had been hiding from me? Was he kidnapped by a female stalker?¡¯ Arum was tormented by all kinds of strange thoughts about Konsu. At some point she stopped thinking about him anymore because she felt ashamed of herself idling away like that while she was in bed. But the conclusion of her wild imaginations about him was the same. It was much more miserable, which she didn¡¯t want to recognize and think about at all. ¡®Yeah. He was such a bastard from the very beginning.¡± He acted like that when he was dating her. Whenever she had words with Konsu, it was Konsu who first disappeared. Aside from who was to blame, Konsu had always avoided such a situation. Only when she plumbed the depths of anxiety did he come back nonchalantly. When she examined his tracks, she found that he had a great time without worrying about her. He would come back as a chubby guy, eating three meals a day, and even drinking. On the other hand, her cheeks would look hollow as she wouldn¡¯t eat for several days, and her eyes were swollen because she cried too much. That wasn¡¯t all. When he disappeared after he did something terrible like cancelling off the marriage, he lost contact with her. After he notified her of his breakup with her though a text message, he went to Japan for a trip by using his sick leave when he was only an intern. During his absence, she had to deal with emergencies. She had to answer the calls from her parents and also his. She had to cancel the reservation at the wedding hall and pay for the remaining balance of their wedding shots. When all those things came to her mind vividly, she felt enraged. Konsu came back as a worse guy. How could he desert his ex-girlfriend, whom he met three years ago? This time she didn¡¯t quarrel with him, and she even felt sympathetic about him. What was the problem? In the end, several days passed after Konsu left her like that, and Saturday came. She didn¡¯t want to feel the weight of her worries anymore. As Hojoon asked her to do so, she began to clean up the house. General cleaning! She was determined to clean up everything this time. She didn¡¯t feel much pain in her legs. As she had no injuries on her two arms, she could clean and wipe the floor. What would be the most effective clean-up? She called Hojoon. ¡°Sorry to bother you during the weekend. I haven¡¯t had a call from Konsu yet. I think I need a more dramatic clean-up.¡± ¡°Move your bed!¡± ¡°Bed?¡± ¡°Most of the problems in love affairs come from the bed. If you change the bed, you can find a new love or your spouse may have an affair.¡± Hojoon began an impromptu lecture. As the bed was an important space where one spent one third of one¡¯s life, it had a great importance in terms of geomancy. He said that one received an energy force subconsciously while sleeping there. Chapter 39 Chapter 39: Chapter 39 Hojoon recommended that one should change the bed when one¡¯s spouse or family had died there, or when lovers or couples ended their relationship, or when a sick person had used it or the one who had an accident had used it. If one couldn¡¯t afford to buy a good bed, it would clear away the bad energy force by simply changing the bed sheets or the mattress itself. He continued, ¡°If it is not necessarily related to love affairs, buy a new bed if you want a change without paying too much. You can also change the location of the bed. Don¡¯t you feel tired all day long if you sleep incorrectly? If you are tired of your life, your bed is the problem.¡± ¡°Thanks so much! I¡¯ll call you again!¡± Arum went to the bedroom. It was difficult for her to move it alone. If she felt pain in her legs again, she would be in big trouble. Instead, she decided to change the sheet. She rolled up the blanket first and threw it into the living room. Lots of dust flew all over. When she too off the sheet, there was more dust from it. She decided to clean the blanket and sheet by putting them into the washer. First of all, she poured lots of detergent into the blanket and pressed the button. She felt fresh even though she was not done cleaning it. She felt like she did something great. ¡°That¡¯s why they wash the blankets.¡± On TV soap operas main women characters sometimes wash the blankets. When they feel stuffy or do something new, they wash the blankets without exception. Instead of the washer they use a large bathtub or rubber container. But never follow them. The weight of the wet cotton is beyond imagination. The more one treads on it, the heavier it becomes. Both legs tread on it sink deep, and it¡¯s very difficult to turn it over. Drying it is so tough. Once she pushes the blanket with water still dropping into the washer, not only the washer but also she is soaked with water. As she used to help her mother with cleaning the blanket, she learned the lesson. Anyway, Arum wanted to get out of her depressed moods. She wanted to start anew. She wanted to observe Monday in a different mood. She cleaned underneath her bed with a clean wet mop. She used a vacuum to clean when she put the clam, but there was lots of dust already. ¡°Where did dust collect like this?¡± She wiped it several times. The mop was already dirty. The moment she was about to go to the restroom to clean the mop, she heard her cell phone buzzing. She threw herself into the sofa to pick up the phone. ¡®Konsu¡¯s call?¡¯ But she was disappointed to confirm the caller. ¡°Why did you call me, mom?¡± Her mother felt sullen at Arum¡¯s blunt reply. ¡°Are you home now?¡± ¡°Yes. Why?¡± ¡°Don¡¯t ask me why. Stop by this place and take some kimchi. What are you cooking these days?¡± ¡°I¡¯m keeping well, mom,¡± Arum answered reluctantly. Come to think of it, she didn¡¯t stop by her mother¡¯s house for a few weeks. Her parents, who were divorced when Arum was in high school, lived in their own house. Fortunately, the original house they lived together disappeared as its area were redeveloped. It was like a hometown to Arum. She was born in that house. Her parents got divorced as she almost ended puberty. When she sometimes passed by that neighborhood, she felt nervous and sad. If their house had been there, she would have felt more depressed. When it was announced that its area would be redeveloped, her parents were happy because they would receive compensation, but she was happy because she could erase her dark memories. Her mother¡¯s house was a small two-room unit that she bought with compensation. Arum lived with her mother in that house until she graduated from high school. She went out after she went to college. She used to stop by her mother¡¯s house to get homemade side dishes. After she got a job upon graduation, she got independent from her mother. If she had got married, she would have been completely independent, which she regretted. ¡°Are you really not coming here again?¡± her mother demanded. ¡°You¡¯re going to force me to have a blind date again, right? I¡¯m not coming, mom.¡± ¡°Do you think you have a blind date like this all the time? Just stop by when you have time. I¡¯ve got something to ask you a favor.¡± ¡°Just tell me about it over the phone now. I¡¯m busy today.¡± Disappointed by Arum¡¯s curt reply, she hung up the phone without finishing her words. Whew! Arum sat slumped on the sofa. Was it because the call was not from Konsu? She felt wobbly all of a sudden. She just felt she was spent up even before she cleaned up the house. ¡®Am I waiting for him?¡¯ She just felt ashamed of herself, looking at her stupid face. She lay on her back on the sofa. At that moment, her phone buzzed again. ¡®It might be a call from mom again. Mom, I don¡¯t want to answer your phone now.¡¯ But her cell phone rang again. As she was not such a bad girl to her mother, she answered the phone. The caller was Konsu! ¡°Oh my god!¡± The moment she, sunned, was about to answer the phone, the phone cut off. She got annoyed. ¡°My mom is so annoying!¡± She blamed her mother when, in fact, she was to blame. She quickly pressed the missed call number. Konsu answered the phone quicker than expected. ¡°Sorry, I missed your call.¡± She tried to explain even before Konsu could talk. There was a brief silence over the phone. She sweated in her hands from nervousness. She felt the same when she was dating him. He flew off the handle when he couldn¡¯t contact her. And it took some time for him to blow off steam. At that time she thought that¡¯s the way of a man¡¯s love. Only when she broke up with him did she realize that he had a selfish and pin-prick character. Despite his deficiencies, she recalled what he liked or didn¡¯t. ¡®Konsu doesn¡¯t like this.¡¯ The moment she was worried about it, Konsu said in a calm voice, ¡°That day¡­¡± He was referring to the day he met her at Yaksu. ¡°You were pretty much upset about me, right? I¡¯m sorry.¡± ¡°Oh, that was¡­¡± ¡°Did you wait long?¡± ¡°No, I just left the place. Jina called her sister delivered a baby. It¡¯s fine with me,¡± she said. ¡°I was really sorry that day. We met in such a long time. But I was in a difficult situation at that time.¡± ¡°¡­.¡± She couldn¡¯t reply properly. ¡°Can we meet again today?¡± asked Konsu. ¡°Today?¡± The way she spoke suggested that she might not be available today. She wanted to see him, but she couldn¡¯t move freely because of her legs. What about the blanket in the washer? Definitely she felt she couldn¡¯t see him today. Konsu, who thought she would respond in the positive, seemed embarrassed. ¡°Do you have a boyfriend? I¡¯m sorry. I didn¡¯t know that.¡± ¡°No, no. I don¡¯t.¡± ¡°Really? Where shall we meet? Where are you now? Let me come to your place.¡± ¡°I¡¯m home now, but¡­¡± She wanted to say her condition was not good enough to see him, but she didn¡¯t. ¡°Okay, can I come to see you at home?¡± ¡°Sure, but¡­¡± She was already faltering with his sweet talk. ¡°Why? Are you uncomfortable?¡± he asked again. At that very moment she had a lot on her mind. She clearly said he could come, so she felt it unnatural to tell him not to come. At the same time she couldn¡¯t let he ex-boyfriend into her house recklessly. Deep inside, however, a naughty devil in her brain shouted at her, ¡®Why not? Why can¡¯t you let him in?¡¯ That was true. She had no problem at all with letting him in. If she felt it uncomfortable to invite him to her house, he would think she was hiding something. ¡®What do you expect from him?,¡¯ whispered the devil to Arum. Holding hands, hugging or some other physical contacts. She felt dizzy at the moment, but she already gave him her address. ¡°I¡¯ll be there in an hour,¡± said Konsu. ¡°Okay. See you then.¡± After she hung up the phone, her heart began to beat. She felt she did evil. ¡®Why? You didn¡¯t evil. In the end, he was the man you wanted to live with.¡¯ She was deceived by the devil¡¯s whisper. Her clean-up turned into a cleaning for the guest. ¡®You are great, Hojoon! You told me to move the bed to change my life. Yes, that¡¯s worked out well. Let me take that as my next column.¡¯ Shouting for joy, she came into the main bedroom for clean-up. Oops! The bedding was a mess, with the mattress bare without any bedspread. ¡°Can I leave it alone?¡± Chapter 40 Chapter 40: Chapter 40 She was agonized over it. But the mattress alone on the bed stood out, looking artificial and ugly. Konsu could take it up as the main topic. What if she stopped running the washer now? That would make things messier. The function of the dryer had its limits. What did she need to do right now? She badly needed the covers right away. She put on sleepers and called a taxi that would take her to a big supermarket. After she arrived there, she walked straight up to the blanket section. Grey covers with a modern touch? Or white covers in hotel rooms that could make her main bedroom neat? But she couldn¡¯t turn her steps before the covers in explicit Indian pink. If there was a universal language ¡®I love you¡¯, that would be pink color. She didn¡¯t need to hesitate any longer. She purchased not only the bed covers and blanket but also pillow cove, all in pink, as one set. Though she didn¡¯t plan to buy them originally, she didn¡¯t begrudge it. Her spending was kind of investment in business terms. ¡®Yeah, I need to invest as much as this for a cozy atmosphere of the bedroom.¡¯ She felt the geomancy of love was working for her perfectly. She even felt the whole universe was helping her. Though she was skeptical about geomancy in the past, she wasn¡¯t any more. ¡®I was too complacent. Wake up! You¡¯ve been waiting for this day, right? Even God is helping you now.¡¯ She pushed the cart vigorously. Finally Konsu walked back into her territory on his own. ¡®What should I prepare more to make today¡¯s opportunity a success? It will be about dinner time if I chat with him over coffee.¡¯ She felt it would be unnatural to eat out once he came to her house. ¡®Shall I order food? Do I look insincere if I do?¡¯ She felt like she needed nice food for a perfect victory in her home turf. ¡®Which food can I cook?¡¯ Kimchi stew and rice. Konsu could eat his fill, but the food was far from romantic. What about chicken soup with ginseng? Obviously it was good for stamina, which was something embarrassing. ¡®What do I expect him to do about me with that stamina food?¡¯ She wanted to make rice with roasted squid that Konsu liked. But the sink would strongly smell fishy because of one squid. At that moment she thought of calling Hojoon for a good idea. ¡°Hello?¡± She called Hojoon and asked, ¡°Hi, you remember citron tea I had in your office. Is there any good food, like citron tea, which I can share with someone I like?¡± Hojoon brought up the main topic right away. ¡°Did you have a call from that guy when you changed the bed?¡± She was so surprised by his extraordinary predictive power. She was gooseflesh all over the moment he asked that. But she thought she didn¡¯t need to tell him all because Konsu didn¡¯t yet come to her house. She didn¡¯t want to give Hojoon a chance to act arrogantly. ¡°Nope. I¡¯m just curious as I¡¯m in the mart now.¡± ¡°There is something queer about you.¡± ¡°Oh, no, Hojoon. Just take it as a reporter¡¯s curiosity,¡± she said with a hearty laugh. Even she felt she was acting strange. ¡°Why do you think our ancestors had noodles on feast days? In particular, do you know why people asked, ¡®When are you going to let me enjoy noodles?¡¯ instead of ¡®When are you going to get married?¡¯ Have you ever given a thought to that question?¡± ¡°Because noodles taste good?¡± Though Arum improvised an answer, she felt it was funny. It occurred to her that a documentary TV program once featured the history of noodles, explaining about the mouthfeel, interesting shapes and taste of noodles. Noodles are one of the favorite foods not only in Korea but also in other countries. Because noodles taste delicious! Hojoon teased her by asking, ¡°Don¡¯t you think only noodles taste delicious? Many other food also tastes delicious.¡± Then he continued, ¡°Noodles you have on birthdays have the implication that you can live long like the long slices of noodles. Noodles you have on wedding days mean tying the knot. That¡¯s why spaghetti is popular among young lovers these days. Noodles are the food that connects people. As noodles have the energy force of wind, you can change the atmosphere.¡± ¡°Wow! Spaghetti. Isn¡¯t it much better to put clams in spaghetti, which refuse to open after closing?¡± ¡°Sounds good!¡± ¡°Okay, let me choose Vongole spaghetti. Which dessert would you recommend?¡± ¡°The basic of geomancy is nature. So, anything that has the energy force of nature is good for your health. Try to have some fruits that have a strong energy force of earth. Fruits symbolize the successful result. I think your meeting will bear fruit.¡± ¡°Thanks so much.¡± ¡°Are you outside now? Walking around with pain in your legs?¡± ¡°Are you crazy? Nope.¡± ¡°I¡¯m asking because I hear some noise out there.¡± ¡°Oh, it¡¯s because I turned on the TV. Thanks for your counsel!¡± She hung up the phone quickly. ¡°Oh, what a mind reader!¡¯ She purchased various food ingredients before getting back home. Ten minutes before Konsu¡¯s arrival. A little later he would press the bell and come here. She should change the bedspread as soon as possible. Opening the packing wrap of the bedspread, she walked up to the main bed. At the same time she spread the mattress and put it on the bed. She had to push the bedspread into the four corners of the bed. By damn! The bedspread was smaller than the original one. No matter how hard she tried, it didn¡¯t fit the bed. She couldn¡¯t do anything about it. Now, five minutes to go before he arrives. She had to take a shower in five minutes. She was covered with dust while cleaning her house early in the morning, which she didn¡¯t for a long time. Her back was soaked in sweat as she had to move around though her legs hurt so much. Naturally she smelled strongly of sweat. Usually she had to use warm water first as hot water didn¡¯t come out right away. But even the boiler was turned on to heat water, she took an ¡®all-in shower¡¯ today. All-in shower was the type of shower that one uses only one soap to wash from head to foot when one was in a hurry. After she took an all-in shower, she took out an underwear box that she tucked deep inside the drawer. ¡®This is the only one I have now¡­what should I do with this?¡¯ It was a gift that her friends gave her to congratulate her wedding. It was a brand-designer underwear worn by a world-famous model. ¡®What am I imagining now?¡¯ Arum came to her senses. As a reporter she once interviewed an underwear designer. The designer said, ¡°Do you want to know why I am so obsessed with underwear? Because my real confidence comes from my underwear. Even if I don¡¯t show it to anybody, I feel confident in everything if I put on my underwear properly. Look at the Superman! How confident he is when he puts on underwear only!¡± Arum recalled that she laughed out loud at that. That designer was a man. He said while living with three sisters, he realized ¡®the impact of underwear on them¡¯ and had a hunch that his business in underwear design would hit the jackpot. ¡®Yeah, my underwear is my confidence.¡¯ Of course, she was not going to show it to Konsu, but wear it for her own sake. And then she took out chiffon dress because she felt awkward to put on a sweat suit even though she was at home. Wasn¡¯t chiffon dress too erotic? She felt she would feel uncomfortable when cooking. Blue jeans? She felt she would feel stuffy in jeans. So, she took out capris in hempen fabrics with her ankles exposed a bit. Natural and comfortable. As for top, she chose a T-shirt decorated with heart spangles. ¡°Okay.¡± And she began to put on makeup. No matter how busy she was, she couldn¡¯t show him her bare face. As she was sick for the past several days, her eye rims looked drab and dull. Today of all days she penciled her eyebrows well. The moment she drew her eyebrows on the right and then began to draw on the left, the doorbell rang. ¡°Oh, no!¡± The doorbell rang again. ¡°Wait a minute.¡± She forgot the pain in her legs and quickly opened the door. ¡°I have kept you waiting long, right?¡± said Arum, catching her breath, and raised her head. ¡°What did you do, with us standing before the door? Why did you put on makeup?¡± It was Jina who said that, to her surprise. ¡°Ugh? O my¡­¡± Arum was startled and became impatient now. To make matters worse, Hojoon was standing behind Jina. ¡°Why didn¡¯t you answer the phone when you¡¯re at home? He was so worried about you,¡± quipped Jina. ¡°Worried about me?¡± Chapter 41 Chapter 41: Chapter 41 ¡°Yeah, your legs got injured, and I felt sorry that I couldn¡¯t come to see you. Do you want us to remain standing like this?¡± ¡°Oops, please come in. You too, Hojoon.¡± Taking off her shoes, she looked at her milky-white face. ¡°Your face looks good. Do you put on makeup when you¡¯re at home?¡± ¡°Well, I did because I feel under the weather. You know, since I¡¯m sick, my face looks drab, so I applied some makeup for a change.¡± ¡°Sure,¡± said Jina, who started to look around as if she smelled a rat. ¡°How come you cleaned up the house, Arum? I know you¡¯re a free spirit by nature,¡± Jina added. ¡°Well, I clean like this everyday. Shall we go outside? I was going to go out for fresh air,¡± Arum said. ¡°It was raining outside. Didn¡¯t you know that?¡± Come to think of it, there were raindrops on the big windows of the veranda. ¡°Let¡¯s stay inside,¡± said Jina, sitting on the sofa. Hojoon placed a fruit basket on the dining table. ¡°You would have been in big trouble without Hojoon. I didn¡¯t know your condition was this serious. Hojoon, please come here instead of sitting at the table.¡± ¡°No, I¡¯m more comfortable here.¡± He also felt strange about the house. When he came at dawn last time, the bedspread in her bedroom was different. ¡°Are you dating someone?¡± asked Jina, staring at her bluntly. ¡°Who is it? Is he supposed to come here?¡± ¡°Nope. Let¡¯s go out. How about we get some coffee on a rainy day?¡± ¡°You want to walk out when your legs are in pain?¡± ¡°I¡¯m okay now. The doctor told me that I would recover more quickly by doing more workout. Rehab exercise is important.¡± At that moment, she heard Konsu approaching her house. ¡®Oh, no!¡¯ She wished that it was not Konsu. ¡®Please pass by quickly!¡¯ But she saw Konsu¡¯s face through the gap of the front door. ¡°Hey, Arum!¡± Obviously, it was Konsu¡¯s voice. She felt dizzy at the moment. She couldn¡¯t run away or hide. Strangely enough, it was Hojoon, not Konsu who bothered her at the moment. Did the ex-convict feel the same way? When she was at the supermarket, she pretended not to know when she talked with Hojoon over the phone. Now, she couldn¡¯t lie anymore since she was caught red-handed. Konsu was as embarrassed, arriving at her house while imagining a secret date with her. He was surprised to see a strange guy inside Arum¡¯s house. Even Jina, who stopped by to comfort Arum, was as dumbfounded at the crazy scene before her eyes. ¡°How come you, Konsu, came here¡­¡± ¡°Hey, Jina! It¡¯s been a while,¡± said Konsu with a smile. ¡°I don¡¯t think we¡¯re close enough to smile at each other,¡± said Jina. Jina was on edge. After he cancelled off the marriage with Arum, Jina took it personally and bore a grudge against him. Jina remembered shouting at Arum back then, ¡°Hey, Arum, tell him I¡¯m going to kill him when I see him!¡± How Arum felt so secure to have Jina on her side! Jina¡¯s statement was enough to convince everyone that it was Konsu, not Arum, who did wrong. But what about today? Arum tried her best to soothe Jina, who was seething with anger. ¡°I met him by chance,¡± said Arum. ¡°Then, why did he appear here? Konsu! Go on your own way, man. Don¡¯t stand in her way. Because of you, Arum was in such a¡­¡± ¡°Stop it, Jina.¡± ¡°What are you talking about? Did you clean up the house and put on makeup because of Konsu?¡± Jina and Arum quarreled, raising their voices. Right at that moment, Konsu was only interested in Hojoon. Konsu asked him, ¡°Are you Arum¡¯s boyfriend by any chance?¡± Hearing that, Arum hung her head with shame, murmuring, ¡°Oh, silly guy!¡± ¡°Not at all,¡± answered Hojoon lightly. ¡°I was startled. I thought she was dating another man. Nice to meet you. My name is Konsu Han, Arum¡¯s boyfriend.¡± ¡°Nice to meet you, too.¡± Jina raised her eyebrows as high as she could, but Arum poked her in the ribs gently, signaling with her eyes: ¡®Please don¡¯t do anything now.¡¯ Reading her mind, Jina didn¡¯t speak in a loud voice anymore. ¡°Jina is my college friend, too,¡± said Konsu. Hojoon carefully looked at Konsu, who laughed heartily. He had a dim recollection of Konsu¡¯s face when he met Arum at Kwanghwamoon. At that time, he couldn¡¯t see Konsu clearly, of course. Only now could he examine Konsu¡¯s face up close. ¡®HIs face is full of pretension.¡¯ Hojoon¡¯s face turned cold. It seemed to him that Konsu loved Arum enough to say he was her ¡®boyfriend.¡¯ Or rather, Konsu seemed to be have been consumed by the instinct to show off to Arum. ¡°Anybody wants coffee?¡± Arum asked for a change in the atmosphere. Three of them were seated face to face at the dining table. While she was brewing coffee, she realized how uncomfortable she could actually feel even at home with the guests sitting silently. As they had nothing to do, they began to exchange their business cards. ¡°My name is Konsu Han, and I work at Global Insurance.¡± Hojoon received his business card. Konsu also gave one to Jina, who was still disgruntled with him. ¡°You¡¯re selling insurance,¡± said Jina, looking at it. ¡°Hey, watch your language. I¡¯m planning insurance items,¡± said Konsu bluntly. ¡°Well, it¡¯s the same as selling insurance,¡± Jina said condescendingly. Hojoon gave his business card to him. ¡°My name is Hojoon Lee with the Famed House of Feng Shui.¡± Receiving his card, Konsu said playfully, ¡°Great. A salaried man like me is dreaming of starting a business.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t you know him,¡± Jina cut in, adding, ¡°Haven¡¯t you seen him on TV? He also published a book on feng shui.¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know.¡± ¡°He¡¯s the most popular geomancy consultant in our country these days.¡± ¡°Really? I didn¡¯t know you¡¯re famous. How come you got tangled with my dear Arum¡­¡± Though Konsu slurred, he was not happy about Hojoon¡¯s presence in Arum¡¯s house. In other words, his message was, ¡®Why did you come to her private house?¡¯ But Arum was more alarmed by Konsu¡¯s selection of the wording ¡®my dear Arum.¡¯ While she was pouring coffee into a cup, Arum almost dropped it. She might have been touched by that if he had done it three years ago. But she just felt uncomfortable about everything Konsu said today. Jina came to the kitchen table to get the coffee. ¡°How do you feel about your legs?¡± ¡°Oh, I¡¯m fine. Look!¡± Arum showed her legs and ankles on purpose, but she was focused on the two men. Holding the coffee tray, Jina walked up to the dining table. Konsu seemed to be bothered by Jina¡¯s mention of Arum¡¯s injured legs. ¡°Were your legs injured?¡± asked Konsu, pretending to be concerned. Putting down the tray, Jina began to blame him, ¡°As her boyfriend, didn¡¯t you know what happened to her the other day? She had her pocket picked near Hongik Univ on the day she met you at Yaksu. Am I right, Arum?¡± Arum looked at him at that moment. He hardened his face. ¡°I¡¯m alright now,¡± said Arum, who had to defend Konsu. But Konsu was agonized because he felt she was injured because of his mistake. ¡°I¡¯m sorry, Arum. Seriously,¡± he said in a feeble voice. With a broad smile, Arum said, ¡°No, it¡¯s not your fault. Don¡¯t worry. I¡¯d like to see you smile, Konsu.¡± ¡°Are you kidding? You guys really suck. Get out if you want to pretend to protect each other like that,¡± said Jina, frowning at them. Though Jina felt disgruntled with Konsu, she was glad to see him at the same time because Konsu seemed ready to meet her again. ¡°They used to be like that when they were dating on campus.¡± Hojoon just kept drinking coffee silently. He didn¡¯t feel good or bad about them. Jina now seemed to blame Hojoon when she said, ¡°This all happened because of you.¡± She continued, ¡°What a great feng shui consultant you are! Originally, I didn¡¯t believe in anything like geomancy , superstition, fortune or tarot. As I went through ups and downs recently, I felt that this could be a good relationship between us, this could be geomancy. Our encounter at the police station was also not by chance.¡± And then she began to whisper to Hojoon so as not to be overheard by Konsu, ¡°Who would have predicted Konsu and Arum would meet like this?¡± At that moment, both sat at the table. Konsu sat beside Arum nervously, for fear she would express the pain in her legs ¡°This leg?¡± ¡°No, right here.¡± ¡°Did you go to the hospital? Have you taken medicine? Why didn¡¯t you call me?¡± Each of what Konsu said seemed considerate, but feigned. ¡®Hey, Konsu. The man before you carried me on his back, fed me, and got medicine for me. I¡¯m embarrassed because of your pretension. So, stop it, okay?¡¯ She wanted to say that in front of his face. Chapter 42 Chapter 42: Chapter 42 ¡°I hear you¡¯re now collaborating with Arum. Are you here for work even today?¡± asked Konsu. ¡°Nope. I heard that she didn¡¯t report to work for several days and is on sick leave, so I just stopped by. I had something to consult with her, too.¡± ¡°Oh, you are here for work. Can I leave?¡± said Konsu, raising his hips as if he were about to leave the place. ¡°It¡¯s not that urgent.¡± ¡°Oh, please go ahead. As you¡¯re here anyway, please have a meeting with her. Arum, can I come back in two hours? I¡¯ve got some business to do, too.¡± ¡°Really? Can you come in the evening again?¡± asked Arum. ¡°No way! You guys meet outside, not here in the evening,¡± said Jina, opening her eyes wide with surprise. ¡°Well, I¡¯m going to sleep here,¡± said Konsu, with a puckish look. At that moment, Arum noticed Hojoon¡¯s sarcastic look, which Jina and Konsu didn¡¯t notice at all. ¡°Where is the restroom?¡± asked Konsu. ¡°Right there,¡± said Arum, not even raising her head. When Konsu left the place, Hojoon asked Arum in a low voice, ¡°So, do you feel good now, trickster?¡± ¡°Pardon?¡± ¡°Why did you lie to me that you¡¯re at home, when you were outside? I¡¯m sure that you won¡¯t prepare spaghetti alle vongole this evening, right?¡± ¡°Can you please pretend not to know?¡± ¡°Then, why are you trying to hide it from me? You know I¡¯m trying to help you guys.¡± While Hojoon and Arum were having words, Konsu was walking toward the Pandora¡¯s box. When Arum looked at him, he was going into the small room, which he confused for the restroom. ¡°Konsu! That¡¯s not the restroom.¡± But Konsu had already opened the door. ¡°Oh my!¡± Arum spazzed out. She couldn¡¯t show him the small room, which was full of miscellaneous items and boxes related to their breakup. She wished that she had locked the door, but it was too late. She unlocked the door to clean up in the morning. Konsu was faced with the boxes piled up high in the room, all reminding him of his past. Obviously, his face looked pretty unpleasant. Jina came out of the restroom. ¡°Hey, it¡¯s your turn,¡± she said. But Konsu was too embarrassed at the moment to hear Jina. ¡°Hey, Konsu!¡± Konsu was standing blankly, even when Jina called him loudly twice. ¡°Dang it. He isn¡¯t listening to me,¡± Jina complained. Closing the small room, Konsu headed for the front door. ¡°Konsu!¡± Though Arum called him urgently, he didn¡¯t care. He already left the house. Biting her lips, Arum couldn¡¯t stand idle. ¡°Sorry, wait a minute.¡± And then she ran out to catch up with him. Hojoon couldn¡¯t understand why Konsu got angry, but he instantly sensed that Arum was put on the spot. ¡°What the heck are they doing now?¡± Jina quipped, adding, ¡°I¡¯m sorry. I really didn¡¯t expect Konsu was coming here. I should not have insisted that you come with me here.¡± Jina felt sorry for Hojoon. But Hojoon said, ¡°I¡¯m alright. I was curious as to how she was doing. As you know, Arum was in charge of the geomancy project, so I couldn¡¯t proceed since she was sick. That¡¯s why I followed you gladly when you suggested that you come visit Arum with me. It¡¯s fine with me.¡± Then, he stood up. ¡°Why not wait until she comes back?¡± said Jina. ¡°Not today. It seems like Arum and Konsu are going to have a long talk.¡± ¡°Well, Konsu becomes easily sullen, and once he goes into a sulk, it takes time for him to relent. I just don¡¯t know why she can like such a guy.¡± Jina curled up her body, as if she felt that she made too biting remarks. ¡°Oh my¡­ I think that I was out of mind.¡± ¡°Let me take my leave now,¡± said Hojoon. ¡°Bye for now. I¡¯ll ask Arum to contact you when she comes back.¡± Without waiting for Arum to see him off, Hojoon left her house hurriedly. *** Arum ran after Konsu and barely caught up with him. Fortunately, it stopped raining, but the road was slippery. She almost fell several times, and was short of breath. Above all, she felt some pain in her legs again. But she was more concerned about soothing Konsu¡¯s troubled mind. How surprised was he upon looking into the small room? He must have noticed the wedding furnishings that they both chose right before their breakup, and their marriage photos¡ªlet alone wedding invitation cards spread all over on the floor. He could have gotten chills at those relics of their marriage. ¡°Konsu!¡± Though she held his arm, he didn¡¯t turn back. ¡°I was wrong, Konsu. Sorry, I¡¯m wrong. Sorry,¡± Arum tried to make excuses first. ¡°Don¡¯t get me wrong, please. Let me dispose of them right away, okay?¡± Konsu responded, breathing heavily, ¡°Are you kidding me? You met me again because you felt that those boxes were so precious, right? So, are you going to ask for alimony since we¡¯ve met again?¡± Her heart sank. She just wanted to start a romantic relationship with him again. She felt so much regret that he could not understand her genuine sincerity. ¡°Konsu, that¡¯s not my intention. Don¡¯t you know I still love you?¡± ¡°Love me?¡± Konsu didn¡¯t believe her. ¡°I think you resented me very much, looking at the boxes every night. I just keep thinking about it. That¡¯s why I¡¯m scared. I¡¯m scared about you!¡± ¡°No, no. I kept them just in case our love¡­¡± ¡°I would like to forget the bygones forever. I also want to date you again, I don¡¯t want to talk about our engagement again, and I want to go back to our good days again. But you didn¡¯t forget anything about our past, did you?¡± ¡°How can I forget? I love you. Don¡¯t you know how happy we were while buying that stuff?¡± ¡°Well, we fought a lot.¡± ¡°I had no problem with that, too. It¡¯s not me or you who¡¯s to blame. We were not mature enough at that time.¡± She felt a dull pain in her ankle when she was about to approach him. The pain was coming again, but he didn¡¯t notice it. ¡°Konsu, calm down. You shouldn¡¯t do this if we want to date again, right?¡± ¡°Sorry, I¡¯m such a mean guy, as you know.¡± ¡°No, no, you¡¯re still a great guy to me.¡± ¡°Sorry, Arum. Let¡¯s stop here. I don¡¯t want to talk to you anymore.¡± ¡°I¡¯m fine, Konsu. Though I resented you, I didn¡¯t hate you as much as you think,¡± Arum desperately begged. ¡°In fact, I was distressed, too,¡± said Konsu, revealing his wounded heart. He continued, ¡°I wasn¡¯t well because of you. I was scared at that time. I was such a silly guy all the time.¡± Warm tears came down her cheeks. She always thought that only she was hurt, and concluded that he was doing well without caring about her at all. ¡°Since I was the one who told you to cancel off our marriage, I couldn¡¯t approach you. I was the worst guy in the world. I didn¡¯t deserve to be happy, and I felt like I didn¡¯t deserve seeing you again.¡± ¡°Why do you think so? Please don¡¯t,¡± Arum tried to soothe and persuade him. ¡°Let¡¯s not struggle in vain,¡± he said. Having said that, he left. Looking back, Konsu was such a guy from the beginning. He never tried to improve his relationship with her. It was Arum who always endured it, who waited for him and soothed him. Like she did today. For example, the day after they fought, she said, ¡°I can¡¯t go on like this. Let¡¯s break up.¡± But he made light of what she said and took it jokingly. ¡°Why are you so mean? Just forget what I said carelessly. Let me try better,¡± he said. And then they began to date again in the past. But his attitude was different today. ¡®Can I see him again tomorrow?¡¯ Probably not. Arum was too lonely. She couldn¡¯t stand it when she thought she would be left alone. She felt so lonesome. ¡®Why should I alone make all these efforts to meet you again? Why me alone¡­¡¯ When she thought up to that point, she felt so sad. Some passersby looked at her, but she didn¡¯t mind at all. Though she wanted to move, she couldn¡¯t because her legs hurt. After all, Konsu didn¡¯t hug her at all. He didn¡¯t even let her lean on his shoulders, let alone hold his hands. ¡®In the end, it¡¯s me alone who is stressed out like this.¡¯ At that moment, someone held her hand quickly. ¡°Are you a fool? Why do you let yourself be taken in all the time?¡± It was Hojoon. ¡®Yeah, I¡¯m an idiot. Because I still like Konsu. Even now, I¡¯m just worried about him.¡¯ She shook off his hand. ¡°I¡¯m alright. Konsu is not like that by nature.¡± ¡°Oh my¡­¡± Hojoon got upset at her trying to protect Konsu in such a situation. She seemed such a poor judge of character. Arum was more ashamed that he saw her shedding tears. Wiping away her tears quickly, she calmed down and said, ¡°I¡¯m afraid that Konsu was really angry.¡± She now openly expressed concern about him. Chapter 43 Chapter 43: Chapter 43 Hojoon was just dumbfounded by her nonsensical reaction. But she said, ¡°It¡¯s all my fault. It looks like the effect of your geomancy of love is really powerful.¡± ¡°I think you incorrectly understood it. This is neither geomancy nor love.¡± ¡°Why not? I met Konsu when I did just as you instructed me.¡± ¡°So, are you happy?¡± he asked sharply. ¡°Yes, I am,¡± she answered without any hesitation. ¡°Do you still like this man who left you?¡± ¡°Of course,¡± she said stubbornly. ¡°Let me ask you one more question, then.¡± Arum was ready to field any question now, even one hundred or ten thousand questions from him. ¡°Is this the kind of love that you have longed for?¡± She couldn¡¯t answer easily. ¡®The kind of love that I¡¯ve been longing for?¡¯ It was definitely not. Who would want this kind of love? She got angry because she thought he was treating her like a fool. But it was Arum who made herself into a fool a moment ago. Her pride was offended. ¡°Yes, it is,¡± said Arum emphatically. But she felt empty in her heart. She tried to justify herself by saying, ¡°Are they any lovers who don¡¯t quarrel? They get closer to each other after quarreling.¡± ¡°But there are lovers who really fight like hell. Have you heard of dating violence? You know what? They say they fought because they loved. Does it make any sense? Can you understand the attacker?¡± said Hojoon sarcastically. Aurm couldn¡¯t reply because she felt his remarks didn¡¯t make any sense. Dating violence was definitely a crime. She didn¡¯t like the way Hojoon spoke to her, as if he was comparing her quarreling with Konsu to dating violence. ¡°That¡¯s enough. It looks like you¡¯re pretty interested in other people¡¯s matters.¡± ¡°Well, I¡¯m not interested in others at all, but I¡¯m very much interested in my client¡¯s matters, whether my consultation is free or not.¡± ¡°You don¡¯t have to pay attention to my matter. I met Konsu, and I realized that you¡¯re a very good geomancy consultant. I¡¯m not going to consult you about my private affairs in the future. I¡¯ll see you at the company tomorrow.¡± ¡°Oh, that¡¯s what I want,¡± said Hojoon. He said goodbye to her first, then headed for the parking lot. While he was driving his car out of the parking lot, she couldn¡¯t move even one step because of pain in her legs. ¡°Huh? Where¡¯s my phone?¡± Since she hastily came out to see Hojoon off, she left her phone in the house. ¡®What if Konsu called me in the meantime?¡¯ She quickly walked up the stairs. Every time she went up the stairs, she felt a dull pain in her ankles. But she got so impatient because Konsu might have called her. She threw the front door open. ¡°Jina, I¡¯m back. Didn¡¯t you get any call from him?¡± Taking off her shoes, she raised her head. ¡°What?¡± She was surprised to see an unexpected woman standing before her. She was none other than Soran Cho. ¡°Sorry for coming here without any notice, Arum.¡± Looking askance at her, Arum looked for Jina. She was brewing coffee at the kitchen. ¡°She just came in,¡± said Jina. Jina was treating Soran politely as Soran was her boss. In fact, Jina was the only guest who visited Arum¡¯s house until Hojoon stopped by. As Jina knew the password of her lock, she couldn¡¯t be called a guest. Today, her house was like a meeting place for unexpected visitors. ¡°What business has brought you here?¡± asked Arum, approaching Soran. ¡°Oh, I heard that you were injured.¡± ¡°Oh, I see.¡± Only then did she limp as if she were ill. ¡°I¡¯m alright now.¡± Arum didn¡¯t notice it a moment ago, but now saw a big fruit basket on the table. Given the department store tag on it, it seemed the fruit basket cost more than 300,000 won. Why did Soran bring such an expensive basket? ¡°It hurts a lot, doesn¡¯t it?¡± Soran showed that she was genuinely concerned about her pain, but obviously she didn¡¯t act naturally. It was as if she recited lines for a play. ¡°I went to the party for designer Song with your editor yesterday evening. Wouldn¡¯t it be strange if I didn¡¯t come here when you¡¯re sick like this?¡± ¡°I¡¯m alright.¡± Arum had nothing to say. She was not familiar with Soran, and had no common topic to share with her. Jina came back with coffee. ¡°Thanks, Jina.¡± ¡°You¡¯re welcome.¡± ¡°Who knew Arum¡¯s friend was working for my company? Jina, how is your work at the company? Is it hard?¡± ¡°Not at all. I¡¯m working happily.¡± At that moment, Arum almost burst into laughter. Whenever Arum had a drink with Jina, Jina threw dirt at her company. She could understand Jina, because she found the articles of their rival magazine more interesting than ¡¯s. Sipping coffee, she examined every nook and corner of Arum¡¯s living room. Even though Soran didn¡¯t check her body, Arum felt ashamed. Plates were cluttered up in the kitchen, the door of her main bedroom was open, and the washer running in the bathroom was making noise. They said that if you look at someone¡¯s house, you could see their character. That¡¯s exactly the case with Arum. ¡°This house feels pretty cozy. And I get a feel for humanity here,¡± said Soran. Was it last year? Soran¡¯s study was featured in an interior magazine. Though they didn¡¯t introduce her whole house because of her privacy, the readers could imagine it, based on the size of her study. Her study was almost the same as Arum¡¯s house. There was a sculpture about the same size of an adult woman installed in her study. A large chandelier found in a department store was also set up there. Besides, she set up a table larger than the conference table at ¡¯s building. And the best of her furniture was a recliner sofa for one person. There were four such sofas in various colors for various purposes, such as reading, music, movies and siesta. The sofa was allegedly made by German master craftsmen using the best quality Italian cowhide. It cost 2.5 million won per sofa. The reason Arum remembered the price of the sofa was she received a bonus at the time when she read the article. She wanted to buy it if it was less than one million won. She felt comfortable and cozy by looking at its photos. But she changed her mind when she found out the price was 2.5 million won. No matter how comfortable she could feel on that sofa, she couldn¡¯t be persuaded that she could spend her hard-earned money on such a luxury. Obviously she would feel very uncomfortable about it. Right at that moment Arum recalled Soran¡¯s room equipped with four luxurious sofas. From Soran¡¯s point of view, she would definitely feel Arum¡¯s house was very cozy. ¡°I think I made a lot of mistakes when I saw you first here recently. Let me apologize to you. At that time I was so embarrassed to see you with Hojoon. He said he was done with me, but I¡¯m not done yet,¡± said Soran. Soran frankly told what she wanted to say, which Arum liked. Soran continued, ¡°I know. You think Hojoon is so ordinary as a guy Soran loves so much. That¡¯s why I like him. Something ordinary means very special to me.¡± Arum has never imagined the life of the upper classes because she never saw it. But Arum felt there was nothing special when she looked at Soran¡¯s life. ¡®I wonder how an upper echelon figure like Soran can think an ordinary house like mine looks special.¡¯ Soran giggled as if she thought she was funny about herself. ¡°Arum, I think you are a very good match with Hojoon. I¡¯m such a dull woman. Even my husband said the same thing. So, I would like to¡­¡± Soran wanted to ask Arum a favor. The expensive fruit basket she brought was not a get-well gift but kind of bribe to ask a favor of her. ¡°Go ahead,¡± said Arum. ¡°Hojoon never does me a favor. I wonder if you can ask him a favor on my behalf; he might grant it.¡± ¡°What is that?¡± ¡°Sorry, it¡¯s my private affair. So, he will instantly figure out what it is if you tell him it¡¯s my request.¡± ¡°Are you going to meet him again?¡± Why did Arum mention it suddenly? She didn¡¯t intend to stand in the way of Soran and Hojoon meeting again for a romantic relationship. But Arum felt like she couldn¡¯t covey her request to him with her conscience. She couldn¡¯t reconnect their private feelings toward each other, let alone forcibly tie them together. Indeed, Arum wasn¡¯t wary of her because she had a good feeling about Hojoon. But Soran was pretty quick to read Arum¡¯s mind. ¡°You know I have decided to make friends with you, Arum. You don¡¯t think I¡¯m going to take away Hojoon from you, do you?¡± ¡°Not at all,¡± said Arum. In fact, she and Hojoon had never had a romantic relationship up to now. ¡°That¡¯s why I came here, Arum. Please do me a favor. Please. You¡¯re the only one I can turn to for this kind of help,¡± said Soran. When Soran said that, she looked so lonely. She owned such a large house and worked for a big company, with nothing to envy in the world. However, she looked so lonesome because of a man, namely Hojoon. ¡°Okay, I look forward to your cooperation, Arum. Thanks for the coffee, Jina. Have a good weekend, Arum!¡± Then Soran left her house. Chapter 44 Chapter 44: Chapter 44 ¡°Whew!¡± Jina, who had been holding her breath, finally breathed out. Arum said, ¡°I was stunned, Jina. I expected to see you when I opened the door, but it was Soran instead who was standing there. I feel like I¡¯m working in the office today, when I¡¯m actually off work.¡± Jina loosened up and sank into the sofa. Arum also squatted on the floor. ¡°By the way, did Konsu call me through my cell phone?¡± ¡°Nope.¡± Jina took out her phone from her pocket. ¡°Why did you take that bastard here?¡± Jina asked. ¡°No, I didn¡¯t.¡± ¡°Are you lying to me? Konsu repeatedly mentioned, ¡®My dear Arum, my dear Arum.¡¯ Are you really going to date him again?¡± ¡°Well, I met him already.¡± ¡°Hey, Arum Yang!¡± Jina shouted. She really got upset and said, ¡°You suffered too much because of him. Are you intent on dating him again?¡± ¡°¡­¡± ¡°What kind of reaction is that?¡± ¡°¡­¡± ¡°You¡¯re gonna pay for this, dude!¡± ¡°So what if I date him again?¡± ¡°Are you crazy?¡± ¡°I know you¡¯re worried about me, Jina, but I¡­¡± Arum tried to persuade Jina, but Jina was adamant. ¡°Split with him now!¡± ¡°No, I can¡¯t.¡± ¡°If you meet him again, I won¡¯t see you anymore,¡± said Jina, standing up in anger. But Arum could do nothing to placate her. Jina probably knew how many nights she cried, wishing to meet him again. ¡°Sorry, Jina.¡± Having heard that, Jina left without even turning back. ¡°I¡¯m really sorry, Jina,¡± Arum repeated quietly. After that, she was left all alone in her empty house. Konsu didn¡¯t call her until that weekend. On Monday, Arum received an email from Hojoon¡¯s company, the Famed House of Geomancy. According to the email, the staffer in charge, who was handling the collaboration project with , was replaced, and Hojoon would only supervise their on-site visit to the newlyweds¡¯ houses. ¡°He should have done that long time ago,¡± said Arum, pouting her lips. As long as he came and supervised on the shooting day, Arum would have no problem. But she felt lost as the staffer in charge, Heemang, was suddenly replaced. ¡°Dang it. He pretends to be pretty busy alone.¡± She felt she was close to the team leader, so she found it regrettable that Hojoon replaced Heemang without informing her beforehand at all. ¡°What should I do?¡± She didn¡¯t yet convey Soran¡¯s request to Hojoon. She couldn¡¯t call him on purpose because of that. So, she planned to tell him about Soran¡¯s request naturally when she met him at a meeting. Arum didn¡¯t know exactly what kind of request it was, but she wanted to convey it as Soran had asked her already. Jina, who she didn¡¯t reconcile with yet, came to her mind. Ah, everything was a mess even though she had already met Konsu. Since Konsu didn¡¯t contact her yet, she lost everything again. Nonetheless, Arum just blamed Hojoon, murmuring, ¡°He isn¡¯t capable at all.¡± She gave a call to the new team leader and got down to work. She scheduled the shooting date and emailed him on that. She wanted to set the final shooting date in harmony with the schedule of Hojoon¡¯s company. But she didn¡¯t get any reply two days after she sent the email. And even right before the meeting day on Thursday, she didn¡¯t receive any material from them. She asked Hojoon¡¯s company for the concept and image boards of the articles on the feng shui interior they suggested for newlyweds. The new staffer in charge was supposed to check out the shooting tools while looking at the image boards with the photographer, but he just kept saying casually, ¡°Let¡¯s meet for the details,¡± and laughed away. She was so embarrassed at his laughter that she couldn¡¯t get angry. 3PM on Thursday. She was supposed to have a meeting with the staff of Famed House of Geomancyi. After doing work on her calendar, she went back to the company and found Hojoon standing before an elevator. She was glad to see him. ¡°Oh, it¡¯s nice to see you here, Hojoon!¡± She grinned brightly at him. ¡°I thought you would not attend the meeting,¡± she said. ¡°The guy in charge took a day off because he had to attend a civil defense drill.¡± ¡°Oh, very well!¡± Arum said that nonchalantly in spite of herself and blushed. ¡°Did you wait for me?¡± asked Hojoon. Her heart began to beat at his unexpected question. At that moment, the elevator doors opened. ¡°No, never. Why should I wait for you? Please get in.¡± She treated him politely as he was a guest in her company. With a bright smile, she looked up at him. Today of all days she noticed his jawline. Neatly shaven, his jawline looked pretty attractive. As she met him in a flurry of accidents up to now, she had no time to look at his face carefully. Today, she also noticed his broad shoulders, looking pretty tempting. ¡®You¡¯re a reporter. You should maintain objectivity.¡¯ She met all kinds of men while working as a reporter, but it was the first time she felt that a guy like Hojoon was ¡°nice.¡± How did a reporter with a fashion magazine look like? She often met highly marketable entertainers. It was no exaggeration to say she also met hopefuls in the entertainment field. While she was meeting fashion models, TV personalities and celebrities, she hardly had the impression that they were ¡°nice.¡± She had a discerning eye for identifying those entertainers well-packaged to impress the public. The public would be shocked to learn about the truth of their ugly rumors. But she didn¡¯t divulge them because she didn¡¯t want to shatter the public¡¯s illusion about them. Toying with that kind of delusion, she scanned him from head to foot carefully. Of course, Hojoon sensed that. He realized she was staring at him with a fixed gaze. ¡°What are you looking at?¡± At that moment, she was lifting her eyes toward his upper body after she already checked out his lower body. ¡°Pardon? What did I do? Just get in quickly.¡± Gibbering like that, she pushed him into the elevator. ¡®I wish he¡¯s meeker.¡¯ Nobody except for Arum and Hojoon got on the elevator. As if they promised to do so, they didn¡¯t say anything inside the elevator. In fact, she had something to tell him. ¡®I¡¯m sorry for that day.¡¯ But she couldn¡¯t bring herself to say that. As she genuinely felt sorry for him, she couldn¡¯t open her mouth. After Jina left her house right after Hojoon went out, she was left alone in her empty house. She just felt sorry for Hojoon then. Obviously, it was Hojoon who reached out to her when she badly needed help. It was Jina who took care of her when she kept a low profile after breaking up with Konsu. ¡®How come you don¡¯t appreciate these guys¡¯ kindness and consideration!?¡¯ er own conscience shouted at her during the weekends. But she couldn¡¯t blame Konsu, as she was blinded by love. ¡®It¡¯s all my fault. Love is to blame.¡¯ Arum spent the time to repent at home during the weekend. That¡¯s why she was so glad to see Hojoon there. The elevator stopped on the 8th floor. ¡°Please get off first,¡± said Arum warmly, pressing the button gently. Hojoon sensed that she was being kind to him on purpose. He felt that she was obviously trying to curry favor with him to erase her wrongdoings, but he was adamant. In fact, he was pretty upset last Saturday. ¡®How come a woman doesn¡¯t have any self-respect?¡¯ e wanted to shout at her, but he didn¡¯t. He felt she was exactly like the him of the past who clung to Soran. ¡®How come a man doesn¡¯t have any self-respect?¡¯ Hojoon was recalling what Soran had said to him in the past. It took time for him to erase her remarks from his head. But this woman, Arum, reminded him of Soran¡¯s words and her feelings at that time. Exactly speaking, she got upset about him because he looked silly. ¡®Hey, that¡¯s not love.¡¯ Hojoon wanted to give Arum a piece of his mind, but he was prudent. He was not her neighborhood friend nor her supervisor at her company. Moreover, he was not interested in her as a woman. She was just a working partner at the moment. Nothing romantic. Nonetheless, he was bothered by her. After he left her house like that, he felt uncomfortable all day long. ¡®Is she doing well?¡¯ He kept thinking about her throughout the whole weekend. That¡¯s why he came to the meeting in person, with the excuse that Heemang was off work for a civil defense drill. In his mind, she had been doing well. He felt she was taking pains to treat him well this time. He made a furtive smile without her seeing it. At that moment, he overheard her answering the phone. ¡°Hi, Konsu.¡± Hojoon instantly frowned at that. Chapter 45 Chapter 45: Chapter 45 On her way back from work, Arum¡¯s heart was pounding¡ªnot because she wanted to meet Konsu, but because she was worried. Konsu, who called her out of the blue, said he was waiting for her at her house. ¡®What¡¯s he going to say to me?¡¯ She couldn¡¯t figure out whether he would get angry or apologize to her. The bus arrived at the stop near her house. Looking out the window, she saw him standing there. Though she got on and off the bus at the same stop several hundred times, she got extremely tense at that moment. When she got off, Konsu approached her first. ¡°Hi, Arum!¡± he greeted her with a bright smile as if nothing had happened. ¡°Did you wait long?¡± asked Arum, responding casually to make him feel comfortable. ¡°No, I just got here.¡± ¡°You must be hungry, right?¡± ¡°Not really.¡± Arum was embarrassed by his unexpected reply. ¡®Hey, you should say you¡¯re hungry even if you aren¡¯t.¡¯ Originally, she planned to have dinner with him and bring up the main topic, but surprisingly Konsu suggested first, ¡°Why don¡¯t we get beer?¡± She felt that dinner should not necessarily be a meal. She also felt that drinking would be a better setting for their frank conversation than eating with pleasantries. Instead of a crowded beer house on the street, she took him to a small sushi bar in the alley. It was a perfect restaurant for quiet talk, combined with a delicious meal and beer. ¡°What do you want to have for dinner?¡± ¡°Nothing in particular.¡± That¡¯s all they said until their orders came. She ordered prime ribs and chicken salad for Konsu, who liked meat. Japanese-style beef with whole grain mustard and raw wasabi was pretty delicious. She used to eat ramen or noodles when she came here alone. Today, she was with a special guest. The waitress brought them beer first. Konsu filled the glass for Arum. She looked at the froth on the beer filling the glass, feeling anxious to speak to him. She couldn¡¯t figure out why he suddenly called her. She decided to keep silent until Konsu opened his mouth first. They didn¡¯t toast with beer. Arum drank her own beer, while Konsu emptied his own glass. What a grim drinking party! She felt nervous while drinking beer. Finally, Konsu opened his mouth first. ¡°Sorry. I think I left everything to you when I left you three years ago.¡± At that moment, she felt agonized. She still couldn¡¯t figure out his intentions. ¡°I didn¡¯t know that was the end of our affair at that time.¡± Refilling his glass, he continued, ¡°I really had a hard time getting by because I missed you.¡± And then he raised his head to look at her. She was heartbroken. When was the last time that they looked at each other calmly like this? Tears ran down her cheeks. At that moment, she fretted over his change of mind, nervous about whether he might say that he didn¡¯t want to see her again. But her nervousness melted away the moment she heard what he just said. ¡°Well, it¡¯s me who missed you more.¡± ¡°Are you really sad?¡± he said mischievously with a smile, as if he felt awkward. Nonetheless, tears kept running down her cheeks. In the end, he moved to her side and wiped her tears. ¡°Stop crying. I¡¯m here to see you laugh, Arum.¡± Then he wrapped his arms her shoulders and hugged her tightly. Although she stopped sobbing for a moment, she cried again, wrapped in his arms. It was kind of her emotional outpouring, which she had held up since she split with him. She didn¡¯t know how she could hold such a reservoir of tears for so long as her tears kept flowing. Since he couldn¡¯t cope with it, Konsu felt pretty embarrassed. Though they took a table in the corner, it wasn¡¯t of much help. A part-timer looked askance at them. Konsu signaled to him with his eyes that she was alright. Quick-witted part-timers that night didn¡¯t go to Arum¡¯s table on purpose. Other customers sometimes looked at them, but most focused on their food. After some time, Arum came to her senses. It was not desirable to be a heroine in public. She calmed down and wiped her tears with napkins. Mascara spread all over her face, but it was inevitable. Still, she was bothered. She checked her face through the smartphone camera on the table. Fortunately, she didn¡¯t look terrible. She should have not cried from the beginning. She should have controlled her emotional feelings and dined with him sensibly. But it was too late. There was no point in crying over spilled milk. She looked at Konsu quickly. Dang it! His chest was soaked in her tears. ¡°You¡¯re ashamed, right?¡± he said. ¡°Yes, of course.¡± ¡°I would have left you.¡± She giggled at that and said, ¡°If you had left me again today, I would have treated you as a human scum!¡± She now pulled herself together a bit and responded to him with a smile. A guy who could show himself as he was without any pretension. In that respect, Konsu was the only guy to Arum. ¡®Yeah, my guess was not wrong. You¡¯re the one and only guy for me.¡¯ She felt ashamed of herself because she once doubted her choice of Konsu. ¡®You hold such a great trust in me, but I didn¡¯t do the same. Sorry.¡¯ She got hungry after crying. A quick-witted part-timer came back with their order. ¡°Your food got a bit cold.¡± ¡°It¡¯s fine. Thanks.¡± Konsu took the plate and put it on the table. Arum couldn¡¯t raise her head because she was to blame for the 80% of the food that went cold. ¡°I¡¯m hungry. Let¡¯s enjoy the food. I know you can¡¯t stand being hungry,¡± said Konsu. He offered a slice of meat to her. She quickly bit it into her mouth. She was okay now after making a scene like that, and he sat across from her again. ¡°Never did you think I kept all the packages in the small room, didn¡¯t you?¡± filling a cup of soju for him, she asked. He lightly nodded. She said, ¡°I couldn¡¯t throw them away. You know how much effort we put into them¡­¡± ¡°Sorry.¡± ¡°I didn¡¯t keep them to hear you say that. I wanted to dispose of them when I met you again. Because I felt that you would come back to me.¡± She expressed her genuine feelings to him now. Konsu said, ¡°Well, I thought that you sold them all because we split up three years ago. When I saw them, I got enraged all of a sudden. That reminded me of all those bad memories I had, such as where we bought them, how much we paid for them, et cetera.¡± ¡®That¡¯s why you got so angry at me,¡¯ she thought, looking at his bitter expression. Without raising his head, he said, ¡°I came back home with a heavy heart, but I was still angry.¡± She was bothered by his self-mocking comment. ¡°Sorry, Konsu.¡± ¡°No, I was angry at myself because I left you alone there. Just like I did the other day.¡± She was once again deeply touched by his confession. ¡®No, I shouldn¡¯t cry again.¡¯ She opened her eyes wide on purpose, and cracked jokes. ¡°In fact, I wanted to do lots of things to you when I met you again, such as slapping you in the face, throwing water on your face, and even picking on you with my high heels.¡± ¡°Oh my goodness! I¡¯m scared! Did you meet me to take revenge on me?¡± ¡°Revenge? Yeah, of course. Did you think I would not?¡± ¡°You changed a lot, Arum.¡± ¡°But when I met you again, I couldn¡¯t think of those anymore.¡± Her voice already turned soft, which pleased him. ¡°Of course. You know me, I¡¯m a nice guy.¡± When she got all her sorrows off her chest, she felt that her mind had lightened up. ¡®Let me keep an eye on you from now on.¡¯ She felt strange over how she could toy with that kind of thinking in front of Konsu. Obviously she had a strain of snobbery in herself. She now realized that there were lots of other important things than love. That didn¡¯t mean she wanted to split with him again. She wanted to make the type of romantic relationship that was mature enough. Her relationship with him in her 20s was full of love and passion. Now, in her 30s, she had to take into account her work, love ,and herself when she would date him again. ¡®Never lose sight of yourself.¡¯ She kept emphasizing that phrase in her regular column titled, ¡®Coaching Lovers in their 20s.¡¯ While thinking about that, she was sipping on her beer when her cell phone buzzed. It was a call from Hojoon. There were three missed calls from him. Obviously, he had called her while she was crying. ¡°Won¡¯t you answer the call?¡± asked Konsu, looking at her. She hid her cell phone and said, ¡°Oh, that¡¯s an important call.¡± Though she said that, she was bothered. ¡®What¡¯s the matter with him?¡¯ Arum was now concerned about Hojoon in front of Konsu! Chapter 46 Chapter 46: Chapter 46 Hojoon pulled over his car on the shoulder and called her again. He was worried when she didn¡¯t answer the call. It was not because she met Konsu again. It was because he knew that Soran Cho also visited Arum¡¯s house on that day. Exactly two hours ago, Hojoon had a call from his father Paekhoon and drove to his house. ¡°Dad!¡± Upset about his father, Hojoon tried to quibble with him. His mother stopped him. ¡°Hojoon, stop it, please.¡± ¡°Dad, why did you recklessly accept her offer without knowing anything about her?¡± ¡°Ummmm¡­.¡± Three days ago, Paekhoon received a secret offer from a woman called Mira Kim who maintained an elite network of madams in the top 1% of the upper class. ¡°A lady whom I know has reached out to me for a geomancy mentor, so I recommended you.¡± Mira Kim was a woman in her mid-50s who once wanted to be a literary girl. Reportedly, she wrote popular romance novels with the pen name Miracle when she was young. Later on, she didn¡¯t use her original name at all and turned over a new leaf in life under her current name Mira Kim. Although she was a best-selling novelist and beautiful, she didn¡¯t make a fortune. She once made lots of money, but she was swindled. Her former husbands turned out to be swindlers without exception, who formed a gambling fraternity even in prison. In the end, she was pushed to extreme poverty. She allegedly went around many houses in Itaewon for kitchen work. Since then, she had the habit of using English occasionally and worked as a matchmaker. After she retired, she ran a social club taking care of high-class madams¡¯ troubles secretly. But she was very proud of her job. She made a lot of money by running her shop exclusively for the high-class women. She sometimes got them connected to Paekhoon. ¡°Master, I know a lady who is planning to get divorced soon. She wants to get it done as orderly as possible. She said you have to use all means and ends to make her spouse offer to divorce first. Do you get it?¡± Paekhoon accepted her request because of the expensive consultation fee. The lady in question was Soran Cho. Soran lived in a high-end house in Sorae Town. As the security was tight even at the gate, Mira Kim initially speculated that the client might be a TV entertainer. As if she were already familiar with the security men, she passed the gate with Paekhoon by signaling them through eye contact. Sora greeted the guests in person, ¡°Nice to meet you. My name is Soran Cho.¡± ¡°I know you. You are the youngest daughter of the CEO of Sola Electronics,¡± said he. As a senior geomancy master, Paekhoon acted maturely, but he was surprised in his heart. Soran escorted Mira and Paekhoon into her study. As her study was larger than the main bedroom of a typical house, they were overwhelmed by its size. Just like an intelligent woman who studied fashion, it was decorated with artworks. There was a mannequin and a sewing machine on one corner of her study, but the sewing machine seemed to be just for display to show off her extravagance, because it was there just as an interior design. But Paekhoon didn¡¯t express his feelings. Soran signaled to Mira to close the door because she wanted to pour out her heart to him. As if she were familiar with this kind of situation, Mira went out after closing the door skillfully. Then, Soran, brought up the main topic, ¡°I¡¯ve longed to meet you, master. Since you¡¯re so famous, I found it difficult to invite you here. I hear your son is also a geomancy consultant.¡± ¡°These days, he is more famous than me,¡± Paekhoon answered casually because he didn¡¯t know at all that his son was her former boyfriend. ¡°So, tell me about your problem.¡± ¡°Divorce. Please help me get divorced once and for all in a way that it will be my spouse who divorces me,¡± she said, smiling bitterly as if she felt awkward. ¡°I¡¯m sorry to ask you a favor like this. As I¡¯m a well-known person in society, it¡¯s hard for me to get divorced my way. You might not understand my position.¡± ¡°There are so many issues that happen to us humans. The most difficult ones involve couples. By the way, such a problem can be solved if both the husband and the wife are working hard¡­¡± At that moment, she frowned. As an experienced geomancy specialist, he immediately read her mind. ¡°Of course, you can¡¯t work out a problem no matter how hard you try. In that case, we have to rely on geomancy.¡± Only then did she smile brightly again. ¡°I know this is a big favor to ask, but¡­¡± She lowered her head. Was it a big favor? Hoon already had good feelings about her, as she was like his nephew¡¯s daughter in terms of age. Soran continued, ¡°I have a boyfriend that I love. I would like to meet him again. Can I?¡± ¡°You¡¯re greedy, hahaha.¡± ¡°Am I?¡± ¡°You can get one thing when you give one thing up. You can¡¯t buy a person like how you buy a wardrobe. But since you say that you have lost your heart to him, you¡¯ve got to try hard. It will take time, though¡­¡± ¡°I met him before I got married. At that time, I tried every way to split with him, but I regret it now. My pride will be offended if I contact him first.¡± ¡°Why does pride matter when you find your love? You¡¯re still young.¡± ¡°Is it possible for me to date him again, master?¡± He nodded. She told him that she would be willing to pay as much as he wanted if he could keep her secret request to himself. And she told her that she would not hold him responsible even if his advice through geomancy didn¡¯t work out well for her, given the characteristics of geomancy. Instead, she said that she would pay him dearly as a bonus if her wishes came true. Who would reject such an offer? Paekhoon accepted her offer and visited her house to give her proper counsel through geomancy for two days. Now, Paekhoon belatedly realized that Soran¡¯s hidden ex-boyfriend was his son Hojoon. ¡°Dad!¡± While Hojoon¡¯s grumbling, Paekhoon got upset, too. ¡°How could I know who you were dating back in Paris?¡± ¡°Call her right away and tell her you¡¯re going to return the consultation fee to her. Also, return the house to her. You should have stopped her from getting divorced.¡± ¡°That¡¯s up to her.¡± ¡°Let me pay you twice the fee she gave you, Dad.¡± Paekhoon didn¡¯t reply. ¡°Dad!¡± ¡°Are you going to see her again?¡± Hojoon didn¡¯t answer easily. ¡°I¡¯ve got to see her for the joint project on geomancy. I¡¯m not going to see her for personal reasons. Never.¡± ¡°Leave her alone.¡± ¡°Pardon?¡± ¡°Let her get divorced, if she wants. Even if she wants to come back to you, do you think you can date her again when you don¡¯t want it?¡± That¡¯s true. But Hojoon got enraged at Soran, who ostentatiously met his father on purpose. ¡°Let me deal with this matter on my end,¡± said Hojoon. After he got his father¡¯s approval, Hojoon left the house. There was one principle he stuck to while he was involved in geomancy business. That was that he would never take issue with his fathers¡¯ geomancy method. He absolutely trusted his father¡¯s method. His father¡¯s method was like a law and a bible to him. He put top priority on receiving his father¡¯s counsel. Like Confucius said, it was the true filial piety of the children to follow their father¡¯s teachings for three years after his death. Accordingly, it was unthinkable for Hojoon to ignore his living father¡¯s geomancy advice. But he could not sit idle when it came to the matter of Soran. That¡¯s why he visited his father¡¯s house late at night. Driving back to Downtown Seoul, Hojoon called Soran. ¡°Where are you now?¡± asked Hojoon in an angry tone. ¡°Can you come to the hotel lounge we met before?¡± ¡°Sure. Stay put there until I arrive.¡± He drove to the hotel right away. She was sitting on the VVIP room of the hotel lounge. It was a private space where those inside could enjoy the night view of Seoul, while at the same time they were invisible to outsiders. As soon as she saw Hojoon, she made a lousy laugh. ¡°Wow, you are a chip off the old block!¡± ¡°Stop it.¡± ¡°Why? It¡¯s interesting, isn¡¯t it?¡± She waved at him to come to her side. Hojoon was standing at the door. He felt the moment he stepped into the space, he would be defeated. He didn¡¯t want to be a gossip topic if something went wrong. ¡°Let¡¯s have our fling. You know we were fed up with cheap wine when we were in Paris. You remember?¡± Chapter 47 Chapter 47: Chapter 47 ¡°Give me the address. I need to restore that house of yours to its original condition right away.¡± ¡°If you come to that house, I want to welcome you with open hands.¡± ¡°Nope, let me send my staff there. I don¡¯t want to get entangled with you again.¡± ¡°Didn¡¯t you hear anything from Arum?¡± When Soran mentioned Arum¡¯s name, Hojoon looked at her sharply. She continued, ¡°I asked her a favor. In other words, I requested her to ask you if I could receive your coaching on geomancy.¡± ¡°Do you think divorce is so trivial? Are you joking right now?¡± ¡°Nope. It¡¯s an important matter that affects my life. Don¡¯t you think my situation miserable since get divorced my way?¡± Soran wanted to draw comfort from him. ¡°I, too, want to love and be loved.¡± ¡°Just do it. Nobody told you not to love!¡± ¡°I want to love you.¡± ¡°I know you can love anybody no matter who he is.¡± Having said that, he turned back. Soran had no choice but to laugh it off since nobody wanted to hear what she really wanted to say. She just felt that she looked shabby even under the colorful lamp. In the meantime, Arum, completely forgetting to call Hojoon, was absentmindedly chatting with Konsu about their past. ¡°Do you remember Green Beer in front of our university? The fish cake soup there was really delicious. Shall we go there sooner or later?¡± said Arum. Konsu chuckled. ¡°Hey, that sucks! I remember that we poured water into the soup, and later, only water was left boiling there with no fish cake. Let¡¯s go to Izakaya near Hongik Univ. for fish cake soup. It tastes really delicious there.¡± She was a bit hurt by his remarks. ¡°Do you really not know why I want to visit Green Beer in front of our university?¡± ¡°Why?¡± ¡°That¡¯s where we first kissed.¡± ¡°Oh, you¡¯re right!¡± It was really a distant memory to him, as if it were a thing of the past century. How many times did they kiss after that first instance? They were close to each other enough to think they were united in one body. When the word kiss came up, Arum and Konsu felt awkward, so they kept emptying glasses of beer in silence. Konsu broke the silence. ¡°When did you move out?¡± ¡°Six months after you left.¡± He just nodded. At that moment, something crossed her mind. ¡°Did you come to my place at that time?¡± ¡°¡­.¡± Though he didn¡¯t answer, she could presume he did. ¡°Oh, you did,¡± she said, but didn¡¯t ask further. Both knew how much distress each of them suffered after they cancelled off their marriage. ¡°By the way, that guy!¡± Konsu suddenly said, with a wary look in his eyes. Obviously, Konsu seemed to think of Hojoon not just as a man, but as his rival. ¡°Is he a good geomancy consultant? I wonder if he can evaluate the merits of my house in terms of geomancy,¡± he said. ¡°I have no idea. He¡¯s quite busy,¡± she said, defending Hojoon in spite of herself. A bit embarrassed, she continued, ¡°What I mean is that he is not that competent.¡± ¡°I guess so. I don¡¯t believe in geomancy, to be honest with you. Who is going to believe it these days? As a young man, he¡¯s so pathetic,¡± Konsu said. Though she got annoyed by his comment, she didn¡¯t want to get on his nerves. ¡®You¡¯ve got to appreciate him because it¡¯s thanks to his geomancy advice that you and I could meet like this!¡¯ she wanted to scream at him. But she pretended not to believe in geomancy after reading his mind. She just kept drinking. And she faintly realized that she was near her house when she came to her senses. ¡°Oh, how come you got so easily drunk, Arum?¡± She came back home, almost wrapped in his arms. ¡°Wake up! Were you drunk like this when you were alone here?¡± ¡°No, no. Please don¡¯t go away today, Konsu,¡± he stopped him when he went to leave. As if he was waiting for those words, he immediately turned back. Both hugged each other tightly, looking as if they wanted to make up for their long separation. Now, they were on the same bed, as if they would never break up. She felt like she was dreaming now. When was the last time she slept with him on the same bed? Was it because of the new bedspread she bought? Tossing and turning in bed, she touched him by accident, which was comfortable. She could feel his warmth on the bed. She wished that the night would never end. Though she drank too much that night, she was pretty much sober. It looked as if she went back three years ago. If she could reconnect the lost time, she wanted to cut the periods when she was separated from him and past this moment. She leaned on his back and listened for his heartbeat. And she fell asleep like that. The next morning, Konsu was already up and ready to report to work. He kissed her the first thing in the morning, just like he used to. ¡°I¡¯ll see you later after work.¡± Even before she opened her eyes, he got out. But she didn¡¯t feel sad or hurt. She felt like even her soul was nourished by his warm love. *** From early in the morning, Manager Kyong didn¡¯t leave Arum¡¯s desk for some reason. ¡°I smell a rat,¡± she said, sniffing around her desk. ¡°You are dating a guy, right?¡± she asked. ¡°No way,¡± Arum answered. Though she answered in the negative, she turned her mouth up slightly, which suggested that she got a date. ¡°Are you going to lead me on?¡± ¡°No, no,¡± Arum tried to deny. But she couldn¡¯t hide her smile even though she pretended to deny. ¡°I¡¯m going to visit Yuyoung Choi¡¯s house for the geomancy interior project this afternoon. Are you going to come with me?¡± asked Arum. ¡°Why should I go there? I¡¯m supposed to have an interview with the Top of Top guys.¡± ¡°What? Aren¡¯t you doing the interview tomorrow?¡± ¡°Well, I changed the interview date to leave you here,¡± Manager Kyong said teasingly. Top of Top, which was a group composed of only boys, was a famous idol group created through public auditions. ¡°Anyway, go there alone today. And don¡¯t fail to show me your boyfriend, okay?¡± ¡°Well, let me see.¡± Manager Kyong was more excited to hear her reply. ¡°Yeah, I was right. You have a boyfriend!¡± Arum didn¡¯t deny it anymore because it was true that she had a boyfriend. ¡°Have you decided on the concept of that geomancy interior project?¡± ¡°Well, how about a surprise interior in which a bride gives a gift to a groom?¡± ¡°That sounds good. By the way, what are the guys from Sola Electronics going to do?¡± ¡°They have just released a wireless cleaner and dishwasher, so I asked them to showcase the new products, along with the bride using them in person.¡± ¡°Nice concept. She¡¯s getting married and receiving gifts.¡± ¡°Plus, she is receiving her spouse¡¯s love, too.¡± ¡°Wow! She¡¯s really lucky. When is she getting married?¡± ¡°Two months later. Our magazine comes out on her wedding day, so I¡¯m going to give her a copy of our magazine.¡± ¡°Yeah, she deserves it as a gift.¡± Gently tapping Arum on the shoulder, she went back to her desk. Arum knew exactly what she meant by that. In fact, she used to feel uncomfortable whenever she heard the word ¡®newlywed.¡¯ At least before she met Konsu again, she felt uneasy about it. ¡®I now feel okay about it, Manager Kyong.¡¯ She could focus on her work after a long time of being distracted. She filed the documents, edited junior reporters¡¯ articles, and cracked jokes with a professional photographer about the shooting concept of geomancy interior. While she was in the thick of it, she received text messages from Konsu. It looked like he could come if she agreed. She felt good when she imagined him running to her. She wanted to refuse just once. She sent him a text message implying she was busy, but she got nervous when he didn¡¯t reply. ¡®What did I do wrong?¡¯ What a terrible habit it was. She tried to find the source of blame in herself. She was always in a vulnerable position because she liked him more than he did her. At that moment, he sent her a map through a text message.