Chapter 260
Chapter 260
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 260
Chapter Title: The Eviction Notice
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“...Sir. Owner!”
Kim Jong-chun jumped in surprise at the customer's call and lifted his head. A customer had approached the counter at some point and was peering at him with a puzzled look.
“Are you okay?”
“Oh, yes. I was just lost in thought for a moment. Haha... Let me ring you up!”
Kim Jong-chun forced the worry from his face. He finished the checkout with a smile, and the last customer left.
It was almost closing time. All that was left was to wash the dishes the customers had left behind and wrap up.
When one of the part-timers approached to clear the tables, Kim Jong-chun stopped them.
“Leave it. You go on home first. I’ll take care of it.”
“Huh?”
“It’s been a while since I had a drink. I’ll handle the cleanup, so head out~.”
The part-timer bowed at Kim Jong-chun’s words and hurriedly grabbed their things before leaving.
Finally alone, the emotions he’d been holding back came crashing down.
“...Haa.”
With a deep sigh, he unfolded the crumpled piece of paper.
It was the contract expiration notice from the landlord—the uninvited guest who had shown up not long ago to shatter this peaceful routine.
He’d read it over and over countless times. No matter how many times he did, the words on the page never changed.
Amid the dense legalese that was hard to understand, the only thing that stood out was the brutal condition: a 300% rent increase.
‘Just when I thought we were finally settling in and making a decent living.’
To think another trial like this would come now.
‘Does this even make sense? We’re doing great business here, perfectly fine. And suddenly they want us out in a month...!’
Frustration boiled up inside him, but with no solution in sight, it festered from within.
Lately, it had even affected his ability to focus on running the place.
‘I mentioned it to The Song folks, but do they have a way to fix this?’
They said the landlord was king above all in this land. How could a mere tenant defy the landlord’s grand will?
To Kim Jong-chun, it felt like being handed a single-masted boat and a single oar to navigate a massive storm. An utterly impossible challenge.
No matter how he tried to steel himself, it wasn’t easy. All he could do was send the part-timers home first and sip some liquor alone before heading out.
That’s what he was thinking as he planned to have a drink with the leftover broth today.
Knock knock.
Someone tapped on the glass exterior wall. When he looked up, a familiar face came into view.
“...Woo-yeon!”
Pleased, he rushed over in a heartbeat and opened the door. Song Woo-yeon grinned as he stepped inside.
“How’ve you been?”
It felt like ages since they’d last seen each other. Maybe because he saw him more often on TV these days, but it felt strangely unreal.
“Yeah, yeah. Doing great! Looks like you’re all healed up now?”
“I only ditched the crutches a little while ago.”
“All better?”
“You bet.”
Even so, the steps as he walked in were shorter and slower than usual.
Kim Jong-chun noticed but didn’t point it out.
Instead, he pulled over a nearby chair to make a seat and asked,
“What brings you all the way here? Aren’t you busy? I heard [Alleyway Secrets] is super popular these days.”
“Filming’s just the usual routine. I’m busy, but I’ve got time to come see your face, Uncle.”
He said that, but Kim Jong-chun knew he was run ragged without even time to sleep properly.
Running a company and filming a show—what schedule could be easy? He’d need two bodies just to keep up.
The Song was growing bigger by the day, so the work was only piling up, not letting up. And yet, The Song still seemed to be under Song Woo-yeon’s direct command.
Song Woo-yeon seemed to be heading farther and farther away. To a dizzyingly distant height that Kim Jong-chun couldn’t even fathom.
The kid who used to wait tables at Lee In-cheol’s place was long gone.
The fresh wave of emotion made Kim Jong-chun clamp his mouth shut. Song Woo-yeon spoke first.
“Uncle, could you make me a bowl of gukbap?”
“Huh?”
“I’ve been craving it. Your gukbap.”
“Come on, man. Would a gukbap joint not have a bowl for you? Hang on. I’ll whip up a proper spread.”
Leaving Song Woo-yeon in the dining area, Kim Jong-chun headed to the kitchen alone to prepare the gukbap. Memories suddenly surfaced.
‘There was a time when I had to get his approval just to open this gukbap place.’
The novice who could barely handle a knife had now become a skilled gukbap restaurant owner.
It seemed Song Woo-yeon wasn’t the only one who’d changed during that time.
Thud.
Kim Jong-chun set down a generous spread and said,
“There you go. Speak up if it’s not enough.”
“Thanks. Dig in.”
Song Woo-yeon picked up his spoon and started eating the gukbap with relish.
“Mmm~. Delicious.”
“Right?”
“Yeah. Who taught you?”
“Now it’s all about passing the torch, huh? After all these bowls of my gukbap you’ve had.”
The two bantered and chuckled. In that brief moment, Kim Jong-chun finally forgot his worries.
But the next words out of Song Woo-yeon’s mouth dragged him right back to harsh reality.
“I mean, a gukbap place this delicious disappearing? That’s just too much, don’t you think?”
“...”
“I heard. The landlord notified you of a 300% rent hike.”
Hoo.
Kim Jong-chun let out a deep sigh from the depths of his chest. Just thinking about it made his hands shake and kept him up at night.
“Yeah. Pretty much.”
“Under the Commercial Building Lease Protection Act, rent increases are capped at 9%.”
“Right. During the contract term.”
Kim Jong-chun continued in a low, subdued tone.
“That’s why they sent the contract expiration notice.”
“The original contract was for one year, right? But according to the Act, it can be extended up to five years?”
Just as Song Woo-yeon said.
Tenants could demand renewal for up to five years. In other words, rent could only be raised by a maximum of 9% during those five years.
It was a law designed to prevent landlords from jacking up rent drastically—a welcome measure for tenants.
But...
“Did you submit a written renewal request to the landlord between six months and one month before the contract expired?”
At Song Woo-yeon’s sharp question, Kim Jong-chun shook his head.
“We went with tacit renewal last year too.”
“I told you it’s better to submit it in writing.”
“I know, but if the landlord doesn’t express intent to terminate between six months and one month before expiration, it just renews automatically, right? So...”
He’d assumed it would roll over to tacit renewal again this time.
“It came exactly one month before. Business wraps up past midnight, and by the time I read it, it was already 29 days before expiration.”
Whether tenant or landlord, the basic principle was to notify about extension or expiration one month before.
The landlord had exploited that, sending formal notice at the razor’s edge.
Song Woo-yeon pressed once more.
“Even so, the tenant can still demand renewal.”
The Commercial Building Lease Protection Act was made to balance the power dynamic between tenants and landlords.
As such, it left plenty of room for interpretations favoring the tenant.
Legally, ‘one month prior notice’ was the rule, but if the tenant was still operating the restaurant, that could be seen as an intent to renew.
“You were still open for business. The court would rule it as tacit renewal.”
For tenant protections, just demanding renewal up to the expiration date made it highly likely to be accepted.
“I went to a lawyer for exactly this and got the same story.”
Kim Jong-chun smiled bitterly as he continued.
“But apparently, there are times when this renewal right becomes meaningless. Like when the landlord notifies termination before expiration, and on top of that, has ‘Justifiable reasons to refuse renewal.’”
“Justifiable reasons... you mean.”
Song Woo-yeon’s eyes widened. With just that hint, he’d already pieced it together.
“No way this place is getting redeveloped, and I doubt you’ve missed rent. Don’t tell me...”
“Yeah.”
Kim Jong-chun confessed flatly.
“They said they’re going into business themselves.”
Commercial Building Lease Protection Act Article 10-4 (Reasons for Refusing Renewal). Under this, a landlord using the building directly was recognized as a valid refusal reason.
“Pay the 300% higher rent, or they’ll run the gukbap place themselves...”
“They’re really going to operate it? Or is it just a lie to force the rent hike?”
“That’s what I thought too. But whether they’re serious or prepping for legal battle, they shoved business plans and registration docs right in my face.”
“...”
“The lawyer said we could challenge the 300% hike, but if they prove sincerity with plans to operate directly, it puts me at a disadvantage.”
He had crumbled so much upon hearing that.
“They said they’d put their son in charge. Just set up a gukbap shop, run it with part-timers, and make him a figurehead president or whatever.”
It was a situation that only drew hollow laughs. Song Woo-yeon’s expression hardened.
“So that’s how they’re playing it.”
“What can I do, Woo-yeon? We’ve built up so much goodwill with the regulars here. No guarantee another spot would do as well.”
A whine naturally escaped Kim Jong-chun’s lips.
“Haven’t even told the wife yet. She helped so much when we started this place, believing in me. How do I tell her we have to start from scratch again?”
Kim Jong-chun’s voice trembled faintly. Tears welled up, threatening to spill any second.
“I really...”
His vision blurred in that moment.
Thud.
Song Woo-yeon set down a stack of documents.
“What’s this?”
“Take a look.”
Kim Jong-chun wiped his eyes and haltingly read the top line.
“Committee to Promote Establishment of Commercial Prosperity Association in Response to Gentrification...?”