Chapter 50 · 8 min

Chapter 50

That... Is Mr. Kang Uncle?!

Next day afternoon.

Construction site near Jin Myeong Gak.

“Aigo, waist.”

“Okay okay, lunch time, lunch time! Everyone let’s go eat!”

The site team members who stopped what they were doing and dusted off the dirt dust gathered and prepared to head to the restaurant.

“Aoo, thought dying from hunger!”

“Have to eat quickly and sleep a bit!”

At that time, the man who met Mr. Kang in front of the convenience store yesterday dawn lightly opened his mouth.

“Do you know who I saw near here yesterday morning?”

“Huh? Who did you see?”

“Mr. Kang uncle.”

At that name the foreman and team members’ heads turned.

“Mr. Kang? That feeble Mr. Kang? Why is that person still in this neighborhood? By any chance found other site work nearby?”

“Not site work.”

“Then?”

“That jjangaeng house in the alley there. The one rumored as famous restaurant. He was doing cleaning in the yard there.”

At those words the team members burst out laughter.

“Jin Myeong Gak?”

“Cleaning there? Haha, couldn’t do that poorly and found work. Even a grub has the talent of rolling.”

“Right.”

“What work is he doing at that restaurant?”

“Well doing dishes or something.”

“Aei, such famous restaurant dishes won’t be easy. The amount of dishes will be tremendous.”

“These days who does all by hand? Will use a dishwasher.”

“The shop owner seems a good person.”

“Even so will be kicked out again soon? Working is a bit frustrating?”

“That’s true.”

Everyone giggled and sneered.

At that time someone smacked his lips and said.

“But. There really people are fucking many, how delicious for such a fuss?”

“Right. Appears on television too and quite famous on YouTube too.”

“This time shall we also eat jajangmyeon once there?”

The gazes of team members whose curiosity moved headed toward the foreman.

The foreman pondered for a moment then clapped.

“Yeah, whatever. Since such a famous restaurant, let’s eat!”

“Said extremely expensive there.”

“Right!”

“Jajangmyeon expensive at most! I’ll treat!”

“Wow, foreman best!”

“Okay okay let’s go quickly.”

“Yes!”

In that way the six team members headed to Jin Myeong Gak chattering noisily.

A moment later, their steps who arrived in front of the restaurant stopped dead.

“Wow, shit··· look at the lined. No joke.”

Because it was the peak of lunch time the front of the restaurant was already in a bustle with people waiting.

“Don’t know if we can eat before lunch time ends.”

“Seeing reviews on the internet, unexpectedly turnover is good so the waiting line decreases quickly?”

“Tsk. Then fortunate.”

The team members stuck out their tongues and turned their gazes to the notice stuck on the glass door side.

Then confirmed the price written there and were surprised.

“······?!”

“Crazy, what is this? Am I seeing wrong now?”

One team member confirmed the notice again.

[Jajangmyeon – 18,000 won]

“Jajangmyeon is 18,000 won?! Is this right?!”

“Shit, sprinkled gold powder on the jajangmyeon bowl?! Receiving this price at a neighborhood jjangaeng house?!”

Dissatisfaction burst from the mouths of the site workers.

The foreman also sharply frowned as if absurd.

“Completely crazy about money.”

“Since business is going well, seems raised the price recklessly?”

“Shit, prices are crazy these days too, jajangmyeon price is this shape.”

“Expensive too expensive.”

“...”

Just then.

The sound of people coming out of the restaurant chattering with bright expressions was heard.

“Here was originally delicious, but changed to hand-pulled noodles and the taste really went crazy!!”

“Originally crazy too, but today really went crazy?!”

“From now how to eat other jajangmyeon and jjamppong, really!”

“Myeondosa’s words are right, right. The best famous restaurant in life.”

“Wow, never imagined 18,000 won would feel cheap!”

The foreman and team members who heard that sound paused and lightly glanced at each other’s eyes.

Clearly the price was expensive to the extent curses come out was right.

But since people praise that much, couldn’t help wanting what taste it is.

“Foreman··· what shall we do? Go elsewhere?”

When one team member asked, the foreman smacked his lips and made a decision.

“Whatever, let’s eat once. Have to confirm what taste it is.”

“Aren’t you overdoing too much?”

“Eating some jajangmyeon won’t go bankrupt! Eat! Eat!”

“Oh! Foreman best!”

The team members cheered and joined the very end of the waiting line.

“Ah shit, the line is long.”

“Decreases quickly right?”

“Wrote so in the review.”

“Not wasting all lunch time for nothing??”

Just when the team members were chattering looking at the clock.

The back door open to the alley beside the restaurant opened and someone came out.

“Eucha!”

The man who came out holding a bunch of empty flour sack bags in one armful.

He who threw the empty sacks into the corner and turned was Mr. Kang whose whole body was covered in flour.

“Eh? Mr. Kang uncle?”

At those words the foreman and team members all turned their heads toward the back door.

“Hey, uncle! Really working here?”

“We, came to eat lunch here!”

The team members giggled and pretended to know.

Mr. Kang wiped his forehead with the towel around his neck and looked at them.

“Ah, hello.”

Mr. Kang lightly nodded and greeted.

“Yeah. Said working here. Suffering a lot. Hard?”

“No. Manageable.”

“Well, easier working at a place like this than working at the construction site.”

“Haha.”

“...”

Leisurely laughter.

Strangely touched the foreman’s mood.

Wasn’t he the Mr. Kang who only heard nagging for not being able to work at the site until a while ago.

Because of that the appearance always intimidated.

But now he felt overflowing with leisure to the point of even peaceful.

And speaking of it the appearance also seemed much changed.

Always hunched and looking hard so looked older than the original 50s age.

Now...

Just by appearance 40s?

No to the extent of looking like late 30s.

Above all the leisurely atmosphere emitted from him was strangely overwhelming the foreman.

“Changed. The atmosphere.”

The foreman spat out pretending to hide awkwardness.

At those words Mr. Kang only made a faint smile at the corner of his mouth.

“Is that so. Ah, I’m a bit busy now so I’ll go. Enjoy your meals.”

Mr. Kang left a light bow and opened the back door again and entered inside.

“······.”

“...”

The left foreman and team members felt a somehow uneasy and unpleasant sense of defeat.

“What, that old man.”

“Something feels a bit unlucky.”

“Right. Really annoying.”

Around when the team members grumbled.

“Next six! Please come inside!”

When Bong-gu shouted, the foreman and team members entered the restaurant in a rush.

They stuck two guided tables and sat in a rush.

“Ah, really people extremely many. Here six jajangmyeon!”

The foreman finished the order, and the team members drank water and looked around the noisy restaurant interior.

Then their gazes naturally headed toward the open kitchen.

Flames surging between the noisily rattling woks.

Could know it was a chef of unusual level just looking.

“Wow, the chef is extremely young.”

“Still the skill looks good?”

“Heuum. The smell is killer, kills.”

Just when scanning the kitchen like that the team members’ gazes moved to the customers filling the hall this time.

“Wow, just seeing eating extremely hungry. Really eating deliciously.”

“Famous restaurant seems famous restaurant.”

“Eh? Hey, what that table is eating··· isn’t that meat?”

“Meat? Would be tangsuyuk or kkanpunggi.”

“No, that just looking is western steak?!”

At those words the team members’ heads all turned.

It was real.

One customer held the knife and fork and sliced the meat chunk and put it into his mouth, then was chewing with an ecstatic expression as if owning the whole world.

“What? Selling what steak at a Chinese restaurant?”

The foreman who was dumbfounded and looking around scanned the additional menu board largely stuck on the wall, then soon inhaled heok.

“Hey, th, there··· special limited menu··· tenderloin steak···.”

The foreman’s jaw who confirmed the price opened wide.

“Ten··· 100,000 won?!”

“Yes?! 100,000 won?!”

The team members freaked out and confirmed the menu board again.

No matter how many times they counted the number of circles it was clearly 100,000 won.

“Shit, not crazy?! Selling 100,000 won beef steak at a neighborhood jjangaeng house?! Moreover there is a guy who really buys and eats that giving money?!”

The team members couldn’t help being shocked.

Even 18,000 won jajangmyeon is a matter to be dumbfounded, 100,000 won steak.

“Wow··· what kind of place is this really?”

Just when everyone was looking at the kitchen as if absurd.

“···Eh?”

Inside the kitchen, right beside the young chef.

The back of the person standing in front of the large wooden work board.

It was Mr. Kang they met outside just now.

Taaang!

Jjaak!

“···That person, isn’t it Mr. Kang?!”

“Th, right!”

“Was pulling hand-pulled noodles here?!”

“...!!”

The team members all were shocked.

A place where flour flies.

Every time Mr. Kang’s two arms split the air, the huge flour dough strongly hit the work board and made explosive sounds.

Chalssak!

Taaang!

The team members who blankly watched that dynamic appearance became blank expressions.

“Th, that really··· Mr. Kang uncle···?”

“Doesn’t make sense···”

At the site he received all kinds of scolding for not being able to work and in the end was kicked out.

Such him is now skillfully pulling hand-pulled noodles in the kitchen.

That appearance was so flashy that eyes automatically went.

To the extent of cognitive dissonance wondering if it really is that Mr. Kang they knew.

At that time.

“The ordered six bowls of jajangmyeon are out! Enjoy your meal!”

With Bong-gu’s voice the jajangmyeon bowls were placed on the table.

“······.”

The team members still looked down at the jajangmyeon placed in front of them with dazed expressions.

Explosive fire aroma strongly stimulating the tip of the nose.

Because of that tremendous appetite surged.

“···First, let’s eat.”

At the foreman’s words, the team members also then forcibly withdrew the gazes nailed on Mr. Kang in the kitchen.

“How Mr. Kang uncle...?”

Someone’s voice muttering as if denying reality.

The team members began mixing the jajangmyeon with chopsticks with dazed and soul-left faces.

Seuk seuk, chalbak chalbak.

Every time the chopsticks stirred inside the bowl the sound of the noodles sucking the chunjang sauce echoed.

The foreman also lifted the chopsticks gathering his blank mind.

Mixed the sauce and noodles with seuk seuk then largely picked one chopsticks and shoved into his mouth.

Umul.

The foreman paused.

“······!!”

In an instant, a tingling thrill circulated throughout the whole body.

The elasticity of the noodles alive and breathing chewy.

And the surprising savoriness and sweet fire taste bursting every time the noodles are chewed!

‘Th, this··· is jajangmyeon?!’

The foreman’s two eyes widened as if they would pop out.