Family Gathering (1)
“This Seollal, we're all gathering together for at least one meal, so make the preparations.”
Grandfather had assembled all the servants and was delivering a lengthy speech. A family gathering, huh... In the Hansung family, Grandfather had four sons under him. The eldest, Han Umin. The second, Han Yujun. The third, Han Suhyeok. And finally, my dad, the youngest, Han Seongu.
Han Umin was the vice chairman of Hansung Group, wielding immense influence in the group's management right after Grandfather. Han Yujun, the second son, was someone I'd never met, just like Umin. He was handling major operations in steel and petrochemicals at Hansung Group.
It had been five years since I arrived at this Bukchangdong Mansion, but strangely, we didn't gather much even during holidays here. It seemed more natural for everyone to spend the time quietly in their own positions.
Of course, I'd met the third son, Han Suhyeok, before. He managed the machinery business, which would later expand into defense, solidifying a firm position in the domestic market. Even in my previous life, I'd heard the name Han Suhyeok several times.
“Young miss, when all the young masters gather, their kids will come too, so the house is going to be quite chaotic. It's the first time since you came to this mansion, right?”
“Yeah. Come to think of it, their kids are coming too?”
The children of Dad's brothers would be my cousins, I suppose. As the nanny brushed my hair, she replied.
“That's right, but I'm worried those young masters' kids might bully you or something. Honestly, didn't the family oppose the president and madam so fiercely?”
That was true. Mom was a former singer—what they called a “ddittara”—and Grandfather had staunchly opposed their marriage. Well, now that I existed, they were getting along better, bickering and all.
I wonder how the test results turned out.
The aptitude test for Yeonhwa Elementary School. Honestly, contrary to the rumors, it had been surprisingly easy. With my memories from my previous life, I could solve it effortlessly. For this era, the questions had decent discriminatory power, so other kids would have found them tough. Yeonhwa Elementary was famous for its high academic level, attended by chaebol kids like me. In other words, there were other early admissions besides me.
I should push through as fast as possible.
Actually, the reason I'd entered elementary school early, as Grandfather expected, was to accelerate all the way to high school. My goal was Korea University, the top in the country anyway. I'd already graduated from there once. If I went once, couldn't I go twice?
One variable, though...
In 1983, there was no CSAT yet. The CSAT started ten years later in 1994; before that, you had to take individual university entrance exams or the College Scholastic Ability Test qualification exam.
“Oh right, young miss!”
“Yes?”
The nanny, as if she'd forgotten, handed me a small wrapped box.
“This!”
“What's this?”
“It's an entrance gift just for you to Yeonhwa Elementary. Nothing special, though...”
“Nanny?”
She urged me to open it quickly.
“O-okay, I'll open it then~”
I carefully fingered the ribbon knot. It untied more easily than I'd thought, despite seeming tightly secured. With a rustle, the contents slowly revealed themselves. It was a hair clip with ornate decorations.
“Wowww~ It's so pretty!”
“Ahem, I put a lot of thought into picking it out. I thought it'd suit you perfectly.”
The nanny shrugged with a slightly proud look.
“Young miss, want to try it on?”
At her words, I nodded eagerly. I couldn't wait even a second to wear it.
“Yes! Right now!”
The hair clip looked like a tiny butterfly had landed right there. Its thin, delicate wings, spread as if embedded with translucent gems, shimmered faintly. Depending on the angle, the color shifted subtly, almost like a living butterfly breathing ever so slightly—an illusion that tricked the eye.
“All done, young miss.”
I approached the full-length mirror in the corner of the room and spun around like a princess. A shy giggle escaped me.
“This isn't super expensive, is it?”
The gems embedded in the butterfly wings didn't look ordinary. No way could the nanny afford this on her salary.
“You gave me a big gift last time, young miss. And we skipped your birthday party last year too.”
Ah... Normally, they'd throw a huge party at the mansion for my birthday, but last year it was skipped due to packed schedules. Seems the nanny had kept it in mind.
“Thank you. I'll treasure it forever and use it well.”
“H-hehem! D-do you really need to keep it for life? You're growing like bamboo shoots every day, so it might not fit later.”
“Then I'll keep it in the box and treasure it forever.”
“Ahem, a-anyway, it's almost lunchtime, so let's go eat.”
Our nanny was the cutest at times like this. I lightly took her hand and headed to the first floor of the mansion. Servants bustled about, busy with Lunar New Year preparations.
Who cares who's coming?
Even if my cousins tried to bully me, I was confident I could brush them off. My lips curved up involuntarily. If anything, I was looking forward to it.
What kind of people are my cousins?
I earnestly hoped they were good ones. Otherwise, I might bully them plenty.
Name: Han Seoyeon
Age: Six years old
Yeonhwa Elementary School Aptitude Test:PASSED!
Score:100 POINTS (Perfect Score!)
＊
Grandfather picked me up and spun me around in a dance. The ceiling whirled dizzily in my vision.
“Hahaha! As expected of my granddaughter. A perfect score!”
“G-Grandfather~”
“Kuhahaha!”
The notice from Yeonhwa Elementary had arrived. My parents were overjoyed too. The aptitude test was notoriously difficult, and I'd set a historic first with a perfect score.
“Well done! Even the heir of Daehan Group didn't get a perfect score, but our Seoyeon has upheld the Hansung family's honor in one go!”
Grandfather's voice boomed with unbridled joy and pride. Waaah! Wasn't the reaction a bit much?
The reason Grandfather was so thrilled? The nanny explained.
“Apparently, from what the servants said, the young masters were terrible at studies back in the day.”
“...?”
How bad were they...?
“Last place.”
“Pardon? Last?”
“Last in the whole school...”
“......”
And even their kids were around the same level. That's why Grandfather would pound his chest, lamenting he had no proper heirs. Looked like I needed to hold onto first place in school. I secretly prayed for Jeong Haewon's peace. Because with me around, she'd never get first again.
Jeong Haewon was the future top figure in Korea's hotel industry. In her autobiography from old age, she'd mentioned never losing first place in school even once, as far as I recalled.
Kids' test scores were like the pride of chaebol families. Especially since Hansung and Hyundai weren't on good terms, even minor scores sparked rivalries.
“Seoyeon.”
“Yes, Grandfather.”
“You mustn't lose to those Hyundai kids, no matter what. Got it?”
“Yees~”
“Absolutely! Promise!”
“Yes...”
Grandfather gave me extra-special head pats before heading up to the second floor of the mansion. Soon, his hearty laughter echoed down. He was probably calling Hyundai's Chairman Jeong Munju to brag.
There was still a month until elementary school started. By then, I needed to make some progress on developing the next Hansung Cheongmyeon.
“Young miss, you're here?”
I stepped into Hansung Food's Research Building 1 again today. The savory smell had noticeably diminished. Someone once described it as a foot odor from the soles.
“The smell's reduced a lot, huh?”
“Heh heh, all thanks to you, young miss. Want to try some?”
“Sure.”
Dr. Lee scooped a bit of doenjang onto a spoon and held it out. Chomp! Nom nom! Gulp!
“Wow!”
“Heh, how is it? Much improved, right?”
“For real? It feels like we've replicated 70% of the doenjang Ando gave us?”
We were still 30% short, but pulling it up this far in such a short time was impressive enough. Dr. Lee rubbed his dark circles and continued.
“We fine-tuned the ingredient ratios, temperature, and humidity to reduce the aroma intensity while preserving the umami. We still need more verification on fermentation stability and long-term flavor retention.”
“Almost there?”
“Yes. At this stage, it's personally worth considering for commercialization. Though you want an even more varied doenjang ramen, young miss.”
“Hehe~”
He looked exhausted from all the hard work. I'd heard there was a woman at the company interested in him, but who knows if it worked out.
“Heh, I have zero plans to marry.”
“Why not~?”
“Time spent worrying about marriage is better used developing more products. I want to make bank and get a house with a yard for cute pets.”
“Hee~ Dr. Lee, you're more romantic than you look.”
I'd once dreamed like that too.
“But, young miss.”
“Yes?”
I looked up from skimming the lab data at his question.
“Won't just doenjang feel a bit lacking? Even in everyday doenjang jjigae, you add tofu, green onions, onions, and such.”
“Right. Plain doenjang ramen would feel empty.”
“Have you considered other ingredients? Doenjang's aroma and flavor dilute when mixed.”
True. While Ansimtangmyeon was based on doenjang and beef...
My ramen would add one more thing.
“Do you know about yubu?”
“Y-yubu?”
“Yes. Pricey ingredient.”
In my previous life, it was common at local marts, but here it wasn't widespread yet. I tapped the desk with my fingers.
“Yubu's super vulnerable to long-term storage. So I'm thinking of drying it into flakes.”
“F-flakes?”
“Yeah. Fry and re-dry the yubu to minimize moisture, suppressing rancidity and spoilage. Then, just pour hot water, and it revives soft and tender.”
“Wow! Where do you get this knowledge...?”
Can't say from the future, so vaguely.
“Saw it in a book~”
“I-I see. I should check bookstores too.”
Actually, some YouTuber taught it.
“Then, Hansung Cheongmyeon gets yubu. And tell Mr. Kim Bokhyeon to adjust the noodles to non-fried.”
“Got it. Already discussed that too.”
I resolved to apply the conviction from Japan to this Hansung Cheongmyeon. To beat Ansimtangmyeon, minimal safeguards were needed.
[Ramen That's Good for Your Health Even If You Eat It Ten Times]
The basic direction for the Hansung Cheongmyeon I'd develop next. And if it succeeded, another ramen would naturally follow. Thick udon noodles mixed with tempura toppings. It would pioneer a new paradigm unseen in existing cup ramen.