Yeonsu and the Hanjeongsik Dinner
As the women and I lounged around in Byeolchae, evening arrived and darkness settled over everything. Mireong was still bent over her laptop working on something, while Minhwa had yet to return from her outing. Jeongmi glanced at me, then suggested we step outside to talk. I followed her out.
Once the sun had set, the night air turned cold. Jeongmi and I wrapped our robes tightly around ourselves and walked around to the side of Byeolchae to look at the river. Lights shone from houses or shops on the far bank—I couldn’t tell which—and the water caught them, glittering. Once again I thought how beautiful the nature of our country truly was.
"About the bodyguards..."
Jeongmi spoke while staring straight ahead. Surprised by the unexpected topic, I turned to look at her.
"I don’t know what Auntie told you, but those people came of their own free will after hearing Jisin’s words. They even said they would offer their lives to you."
My mind suddenly grew complicated.
"I thought they were people introduced through someone you knew. Was that not it?"
"They were introduced through someone we know—that much is true. But Auntie didn’t approach them about employment first. They came forward offering to do this kind of work. That’s how they were hired."
The wording was a little different, but Myeongsuk hadn’t lied or anything.
"Auntie is certain that even as things stand, they would never betray or abandon Jisin. But I believe it is necessary for Jisin himself to bestow his faith upon them—just as he has with this of ours."
Jeongmi touched the choker around her own neck. I smiled.
"But putting chokers on them too would be ridiculous. Tough, burly men wearing those lace-trimmed chokers..."
I burst out laughing, and Jeongmi laughed along with me. We laughed hard for quite a while.
"So... what should we do?"
Jeongmi said as she wiped away her laughter.
"Of course lace-trimmed ones are out of the question, but what about the leather chokers we used last time?"
I furrowed my brow.
"And if we attach rings and connect leashes..."
I waved my hand to cut her off.
"That’s... a dog collar, isn’t it?"
Jeongmi’s expression turned serious.
"Chokers originally come from dog collars. It’s something people with SM fetishes used to do."
I was flabbergasted.
"That’s for perverts. Healthy, ordinary men have no reason to wear something like that around their necks. If I suggested it, they’d quit the security job on the spot."
Jeongmi shook her head ever so slightly.
"I don’t think so."
Looking at her witch-like demeanor, I felt a little overwhelmed and found I couldn’t continue the argument. Jeongmi soon changed her expression and said,
"Anyway, tomorrow I’ll go out and prepare something symbolic that will let them feel they are part of our inner circle. All Jisin needs to do is bestow it upon them."
I now spoke in a pleading voice.
"I don’t know what that is, but do we really have to go that far?"
Jeongmi’s witch-like expression returned.
"Yes. Those people didn’t come here to make money. If this place is no different from any other workplace, they’ll lose their sense of belonging and leave before long."
Ah... I thought I’d better not say anything more. No matter how good I was with words or how well I could see through people’s hearts, it didn’t seem to work on Jeongmi and Myeongsuk. Probably because they still weren’t showing me their true hearts. No—they seemed like people who had never opened their hearts to anyone at all.
That evening’s conversation ended there. The next day Jeongmi went out in the morning saying she had business to attend to. When evening came, I prepared to keep my appointment with Gu Yeonsu. After dressing and stepping outside, I found a black sedan parked in front of Byeolchae. The chauffeur got out and opened the door for me. It was a car Gu Yeonsu had sent. This kind of hospitality felt a little uncomfortable, but it made for a convenient trip to the meeting place.
The car arrived at a quiet, luxurious hanjeongsik restaurant tucked behind Gyeongbokgung Palace. The place was enormous and looked extremely expensive. As I got out of the car, a man in a suit approached and guided me, saying a private villa room had been reserved. On the way to the annex I occasionally spotted men dressed as servants and women in hanbok.
This restaurant seemed to have several private annexes, and each annex contained several large rooms. I later learned that each of those rooms was soundproofed so that nothing could be heard from the next one. That was why politicians and businesspeople often sought the place out for discreet meetings. Wondering why Gu Yeonsu had specifically chosen a place like this to invite me, I entered the room the man led me to.
A massive table was already laden with so much food it looked ready to break the table’s legs, and a familiar woman sprang to her feet. It was Gu Yeonsu. Honestly, I didn’t recognize her at first. I had only met her once, and that day she had been completely naked. Dressed in an elegant suit with carefully applied makeup, she looked like a completely different person. On the other hand, I thought that meeting people naked had the advantage of seeing them without any pretense.
I sat in the seat she indicated, and Yeonsu sat across from me. The moment we took our places, the door opened and drinks were brought in along with a bubbling hot pot. It was almost as if they had been peeping through the crack in the door, waiting for us. Clearly it was consideration so the hot pot would not grow cold, but high-end restaurants really were different. Thinking of restaurants made me think of Mom again. What kind of work did Mom do at her restaurant? She had said she was a manager, so she probably wasn’t carrying food like this. Maybe something like a cashier? What was the restaurant Mom worked at like? My thoughts were wandering when Yeonsu spoke.
"I took the liberty of choosing the menu. I thought Korean food would have few likes and dislikes, so I chose this place, but I hope it isn’t inconvenient for you?"
I started in surprise and snapped out of my reverie. Then I smiled and said,
"No. I love Korean food. And this place looks like a really high-end restaurant—it must be incredibly expensive...?"
I looked around. The interior was done in a completely traditional style, and the subtle scent of wood lifted my spirits. Yeonsu briefly adjusted her glasses, picked up a flask-shaped liquor bottle, and held it out to me.
"The price of the food isn’t important. As long as I can have a quiet moment with Jisin. Please have a drink."
I lifted my cup. The clear traditional liquor she poured into the ceramic cup had a very strong aroma and seemed quite high in alcohol content. The taste was outstanding as well. When I emptied the cup with a smile, Yeonsu poured me another right away.
"Please eat as well..."
I brought my chopsticks to the food. The dishes were truly delicious. The jeon had no greasy smell at all, and the meats were extremely tender. The namul were all fresh, and the hot pot was rich and deep. It was a heavenly table. Watching me eat with relish, Yeonsu simply smiled and kept drinking. Even when I urged her to eat with me, she only answered and barely touched the food.
Until we were about halfway through the meal, Yeonsu said nothing at all. I acted as if I had no thoughts, but I was concentrating hard. I was certain this woman had a purpose for me. Yeonsu leaned her upper body toward me and said,
"Does Jisin happen to like traditional Korean music?"
I nodded.
"I don’t know much about it, but I like it."
At that, Yeonsu clapped her hands, and what I had thought was a wall next to us opened. I turned my head in surprise to see a female ensemble of gayageum, daegeum, and danso seated there. The three women, dressed beautifully in hanbok, began to play. With the low-lying traditional music, it felt as if I were time-traveling back to the Joseon era.
As I listened to their performance while eating and drinking, Yeonsu quietly rose, moved to sit beside me, and whispered into my ear,
"Who are you staring at so intently?"
I started and protested.
"It’s not like that. The music is just good..."
Yeonsu grinned and said,
"It’s fine. After all, having a young woman sit next to you would be better than drinking with an older woman like me. I’ve already spoken to them about everything."
My heart wanted it badly. But having a private moment with someone from the order whom I was meeting for only the second time and doing that didn’t seem right, so I firmly refused.
"There’s no need for that..."
I raised my hand, and the music stopped. When I waved my hand side to side, two other female staff members closed the wall-like door. Silence fell in an instant. I drained the cup in front of me in one go, turned to Yeonsu, and said,
"Alright... the banquet is over. Now tell me the real business."