1953 Bare-handed Tycoon - Chapter 401



Only Krnovel

401 – Family gathering

On Sunday morning, the Kijo couple woke up early before visiting the Blue House and took their children to the local bathhouse.

Pilgrimage spoke to Gijo in front of the bathhouse.

“Honey, Young-eun and I will take a long time. After you finish bathing, go home first.”

“all right.”

Kijo went into the men’s bathhouse with his two sons.

The local residents were busy greeting each other as they noticed the change in tone.

Kijo, who had soaked his body in the bath with his two sons, began to rub Yeongsu’s back with a towel.

A local resident passing by was curious about the towel Gijo was using and asked.

“Boss, what is that?”

“Oh, this is it. It’s a washcloth made from fabric imported from Italy.”

“A towel for scrubbing?”

The men in the neighborhood watched as Gijo took off his son’s clothes.

A curious resident approached and asked.

“The timing is really cool. Do you sell that at Cheongsan?”

“Yes, it will be released soon.”

While Gijo was pushing his two sons’ toilets and wiping only the areas he could reach, he heard a familiar voice coming from the bathroom.

It was Kim Seo-kwang.

Seo-gwang, who entered the bathhouse with his three sons, was chatting with the neighborhood residents in a noisy manner.

Then Seo-kwang looked at the keynote and said in surprise.

“No! Sir! You came to the bathhouse! It’s been a while since we’ve met naked like this. Haha.”

“Brother Seo-Gwang, are you here?”

Kijo called Seogwang “hyung” in private.

“I will push your back.”

“I’m done. I’m fine.”

“Hey, leave it to me.”

Kim Seo-kwang almost forcibly took the Italian towel from Ki-jo and started pushing Ki-jo’s back.

Seo-kwang clapped his hands with the towel he was wearing and made the bathroom shake as he spoke.

“If we are talking about this Italian towel, it will cool off even a thousand-year-old stain! That’s what I mean!”

Kijo was embarrassed to see all the neighborhood men stripping off their clothes.

“Brother Seo-kwang, be quiet… … .”

“What are you talking about? This is a product that will be on sale soon, so we have to promote it diligently! Come on! Neighbors! Look how much dirt comes out of our boss’s clean skin!”

The keynote speaker covered his face with a towel and bowed his head.

Gijo, who suffered the humiliation of showing people the true face of time, waited for Seo-gwang to call the time.

As Seo-gwang came out of the bath, this time Ki-jo stepped forward.

“Brother Seo-Gwang, please stand up. I will push you.”

“Oh, I’m fine… .”

“That’s okay. Please sit in front.”

As the keynote speech began to push the light of day, people began to gather to watch the scene.

“Oh my, Manager Kim, you need to wash more often. You’re getting a lot of dirt.”

“It’s not that I don’t wash. The Italian towel is a magic towel that creates one even when there isn’t one.”

As Kijo pushed Seo-gwang’s back and sprinkled water on his back, Seo-gwang jumped up and started selling to the townspeople.

“Have you seen the power of the Cheongsan Italian Towel? Would you like to try it?”

“Can you lend me a towel? I can use it too.”

“Hold on tight. I knew this would happen, so I brought you some of these magic towels.”

Seo Gwang took out dozens of Italian towels from the basket and started handing them out. He asked for publicity while doing so.

“You should use it every time you come to the bathhouse and spread the word about the effectiveness of this towel. There is no such thing as a freebie! When people ask what this is, you should say, “It is an Italian towel from Cheongsan!”

“Don’t worry, Manager Kim. I’ll go around spreading the word all the way to the next neighborhood. Give me another towel. Give some to your wife. I’ll tell the women too.”

“Oh, of course. I should give it to you!”

The men who received towels from Kim Seo-kwang started to push the time.

Kijo said goodbye to Seo-gwang and went out of the bathroom to dry his two sons’ hair.

The children’s cheeks were red and ripe. Gijo sat on the bathhouse bench and applied Dongdonggurimu (lucky cream) to the children’s faces and hands to prevent them from getting chapped.

I regret not being able to buy banana milk or chocolate milk for my hungry sons.

Starting a dairy farm in Korea was still a long way off.

With no pastures to graze on and a tight grain situation for people to eat, raising dairy cows was a luxury.

Kijo, who had left the bathhouse with the children, returned home.

Pilgrimage and Yeong-eun, who were expected to take a long time, arrived home first.

Yeong-eun’s neatly combed hair caught my eye.

“You’re here. Please wait a moment. I’ll prepare breakfast for you.”

The breakfast table set by Pilgrimage contained more rice in each bowl than the usual amount of rice eaten.

The keynote speech understood the spirit of pilgrimage.

It seemed like they were worried that the children might end up eating in a hurry at the Blue House.

At that time, it was a matter of pride and courtesy to show that you were eating well at home.

When eating at someone else’s house, it was embarrassing to eat too well.

The Kijo couple fed their children plenty of food and dressed them in the best clothes.

The best clothes I had were new ones I bought at the market yesterday. They weren’t expensive by any means.

After finishing all preparations around 10 AM, the keynote speaker and his wife left for the Blue House around 11:30 AM.

Kijo saw Pilgrimage sitting nervously next to him in the jeep.

As the door to the Blue House opened and I stepped inside, it seemed as if I could hear Pilgrimage’s heartbeat right next to me.

The family of Kijo, who parked their car in front of the official residence and entered the residence under the guidance of security chief Park Jong-gyu, saw Park Chung-hee and his wife and children standing in front of the residence.

The keynote speaker couple bowed their heads first to greet each other.

“Come in. It’s cold. Let’s go inside.”

“Welcome, Pilgrimage. Come on in.”

Park Chung-hee and his wife warmly welcomed the keynote speaker and pilgrim.

The interior of the official residence was no different from a simple private home.

There were no fancy decorations or expensive furniture.

“This is the eldest, Geun-hye. The second is Geun-ryeong, the youngest is Ji-man.”

Chairman Park introduced his children.

Kijodo Youngsoo and Youngeun introduced Jimani and greeted him again.

Yuk Young-soo, who had been looking closely at Yeong-su, spoke to Seol-ryeol.

“You said your eldest child was born in 1949? He’s three years older than our Geun-hye. He’s handsome. He takes after his father, so he’s pretty and white.”

“He is handsome, ma’am… .”

The pilgrimage was shameful.

Chairman Park said as he guided us to the table.

“I don’t have much to offer. But please listen with enjoyment.”

The Kijo family also sat at the table and ate with Chairman Park’s family.

Chairman Park poured Kijo plenty of alcohol from the start.

“You said you wouldn’t drink with me outside and would only drink at home, right?”

“Yes, Mr. Chairman.”

“Let’s drink until our noses are twisted today, so you can pay the price for not drinking with me for so long.”

When Chairman Park exaggerated the fact that he was planning to have a drink with Kijo, Yuk Young-soo slyly reprimanded him.

“Boss, you don’t drink much. Don’t drink as much as you do with your subordinates.”

“I can’t say that this president is my subordinate, but he is a more capable staff member than any subordinate. No, he is like a teacher to me.”

When Chairman Park showed his affection for Kijo, Yuk Young-soo also smiled.

Yuk Young-soo was already pleased with the fact that she didn’t have any messy drinking parties with her husband.

“I tried steaming shrimp. Try it.”

Yuk Young-soo recommended steamed shrimp to the pilgrims and peeled the shrimp for the youngest, Ji-man.

Pilgrimage also peeled shrimp for Yeong-eun and Yeong-jun.

The two mothers were so busy feeding their children that they could not eat a single shrimp themselves.

The meal prepared by Yuk Young-soo was simple. The only special side dish was steamed shrimp, and the rest was soybean paste stew, vegetables, and rolled eggs.

As expected from a news reporter, Chairman Park didn’t eat much.

Instead, I preferred to drink alcohol, giving and receiving rice cakes and makgeolli.

The two families who ate together enjoyed some after-dinner entertainment.

“Geunhye knows how to play the piano. Geunhye, try playing it.”

As Chairman Park spoke, Geun-hye sat down in front of the piano.

Then Pilgrimage said to Youngsu.

“Youngsu, try singing. You’re good at singing.”

“Oh my? Youngsu sings well too? That’s great.”

Yuk Young-soo was also happy.

Yeongsu, who was on the introverted side, was shy, but that didn’t mean he was the type to shy away.

I approached Geun-hye, who was sitting in front of the piano with a red face, and asked her.

“Do you know the half moon?”

When Youngsoo asked, Geunhye, sitting in front of the piano, smiled brightly and answered.

“I know, brother.”

As Geun-hye played the children’s song “Half Moon” on the piano, Yeong-su sang.

“In the blue sky, the Milky Way and the white boat

“One cinnamon tree, one rabbit… … .”

Youngsu, whose voice had not yet changed, sang high notes well.

Chairman Park, Youngsoo Yuk, Kijo and Pilgrimage smiled happily and clapped their hands to the beat.

As the eldest children were good at playing music and singing, Geun-ryeong and Yeong-eun also sang along.

As both families finished singing, a warm atmosphere filled the room.

“Oh, right. Pilgrimage. Let’s put the gift from President Kennedy on Young-jun too. He’s about the same size as me, so I think it’ll fit well. Let’s take a picture with him wearing it. As a souvenir.”

Yuk Young-soo brought a cowboy outfit and hat and had Seol-hye dress Young-jun.

As I was trying to fill the gun wallet to match the cowboy outfit, five-year-old Jiman snatched the gun away from me, probably because it felt like Youngjun was stealing his clothes.

Then, Youngjun got angry and hit Jiman in the face with his fist.

The sudden event froze the mood and pilgrimage.

When everyone looked at him, Jiman burst into tears first, and Youngjun also burst into tears when he saw his mom and dad’s serious expressions.

“I’m sorry, Madam, Mr. President.”

Pilgrimage apologized to the two people with a sad face.

Kijo also apologized while rubbing Jiman’s face.

Then Chairman Park laughed heartily and said.

“It looks like those two are going to become really close friends. It’s like boys become close by fighting each other.”

“Yeah, it’s nothing. It’s a pilgrimage. That’s what guys do.”

Yuk Young-soo also tried to calm down the embarrassed pilgrimage.

“Let’s go take some pictures. It’s sunny outside, so let’s go outside and take some pictures.”

Chairman Park suggested taking a photo.

Chairman Park, who was holding a camera himself, took a picture of Youngjun wearing a cowboy outfit.

While taking the picture, Chairman Park said, “That guy is really cute and confident.”

And then, right after, he placed Jiman next to him and took a picture with him putting his arm around his shoulder.

Chairman Park ordered Jong-gyu Park to bring out a chair.

Four chairs were set up on the lawn in front of the official residence, and Chairman Park and his wife and the keynote speaker and his wife sat on the chairs side by side.

Chairman Park placed Jiman Lee in front of him and Kijo Youngjun in front of him.

Behind the couple stood Geun-hye, Geun-ryeong, Gi-jo, and Yeong-eun.

“Okay, let’s take a picture. One, two, three.”

Park Jong-gyu took several photos.

Kijo and Chairman Park, who took the photo, went inside the house to have a drink, while Seol-rye and Yuk Yeong-su watched the children playing in the yard.

The children had fun playing together even in the chilly weather.

Jiman and Youngjun, who had been fighting with each other, played with each other by shooting guns as if they had never fought before.

Yuk Young-soo, who was watching the children, spoke to Seol-mae.

“One never knows what fate holds for one. Just a few years ago, I was grinding my teeth because of poverty and resenting my husband, but now I’m living in the Blue House…”

“I don’t know how my husband got his business so big. I just stayed home and raised the kids, so it’s so strange to hear him call me ma’am.”

“You too? I’m finally starting to get used to hearing you say that, ma’am.”

Yuk Young-soo spoke to Seol-rye as if he was reminded of the sad days of the past.

“In the past, my husband often worked in the countryside and was not at home, so he didn’t send me living expenses. So I went to see my husband’s subordinate and complained.”

“Are you complaining?”

“Yes, we ran out of rice and fuel at home. I thought I would rather freeze to death than starve to death, and then one day a military truck came by in front of the house.”

“Is it a truck?”

“Yeah, my husband’s subordinate brought in two broken telephone poles and made firewood in the yard before leaving.”

“oh…….”

Yuk Young-soo smiled bitterly as he watched the surprised pilgrimage.

“Does your husband ever get angry? I don’t think he would, since he’s a gentle person.”

“I don’t know how to control my anger… .”

“I see.”

Pilgrimage said that there was a time when Gijo got angry, and then one memory came to mind.

“There was one time. When I was a refugee in Busan, I was selling goods from the US military base in a corner of the market. But some thugs kicked my goods and started a tantrum, so I ran away. When I came home crying and told my husband what had happened, his eyes turned bloodshot.”

“So what did your husband do?”

“My husband sighed deeply in frustration and then hit the floor with his fist several times. I think he was so frustrated that he couldn’t do anything about it.”

“I guess you felt resentful and sad that you were humiliated.”

“That was the most angry look I’ve ever seen.”

“He’s a good husband, honey. Has he ever been angry with you?”

“There wasn’t any.”

“How can my husband be so angelic? He really is an angel.”

Yuk Young-soo recalled a time when she fought with her husband over alcohol and women at drinking parties.

He was a good husband normally, but alcohol was his enemy.

And I had a bad habit of throwing things when I got angry.

When I talked to the wives of my husband’s subordinates, they said that when they get angry, they throw things like ashtrays at their subordinates.

He usually took good care of his subordinates, so they didn’t turn their backs on him, but I also heard that when Chairman Park threw something and got angry, these grown men would come home and cry or become depressed.

Now that he had reached the highest position, Yuk Young-soo wished that it would not be like that.

Yuk Young-soo felt good as he recalled old times and saw the pilgrimage and its children who were still untainted by the world.

“Pilgrimage, come often. I didn’t know that the inside of the Blue House was such a quiet and lonely place like a temple. Even the children are locked in here and can’t play with their friends. It’s so sad.”

The pilgrimage saw Geun-hye, Geun-ryeong, and Ji-man happily playing with their children at the words of Yuk Yeong-su.

Everyone was smiling brightly, and Youngsoo, Youngeun and Youngjun were playing.

“I’ll come often if you call me, ma’am.”

“You don’t have to call me, just come and play. Just say your name in front of the Blue House gate and I’ll let you in.”

“Thank you, ma’am.”

Yuk Young-soo held Pilgrimage’s hand.

The hands were warm, like the spirit of a pilgrim.

“It’s a pilgrimage. Let’s take a picture together.”

“I couldn’t even decorate it properly… … .”

“So what? Me too.”

The two sat side by side with their arms linked and took a picture.

The security guard who took the photo thought the two looked like close sisters.

After taking the photo, Yuk Young-soo said to the pilgrim.

“I don’t know what they’re talking about. My husband has been singing since yesterday.”

“What song is it?”

When Pilgrimage asked, Yuk Young-soo smiled and said.

“Your husband.”

“My husband?”

“Yes, since yesterday, this guy Lee Ki-jo is really smart. He helps me without any selfish intentions. He sang a song about how he wished there were ten more people like his husband.”

Pilgrimage blushed at her husband’s praise.

And then I looked at the official residence where my husband and Chairman Park were.