Bringing Home Doctor Ahn’s Remains
"......?"
The warm, cheerful atmosphere of the family gathering froze in place. Everyone felt it at once.
"Lee Kang-to, the Doctor Ahn you just mentioned—he’s the same Doctor Ahn we all know, right? The one famous for his handprints?"
The first response came from Eun-seo.
"Yes."
"You’re saying you’re the one who’s going to find his remains?"
Song Ji-na’s question followed.
"That’s right."
"Lee Kang-to."
Even Chairwoman Eun drew in a sharp breath.
"Do you really think that’s possible? As far as I know, the Chinese government doesn’t allow excavations."
Hyung-wook’s face, too, still rippled with shock.
"That’s why we needed a trial run with the BBC, didn’t we? Fortunately, the remains of the Communist Chinese soldiers were found and returned, and that became a kind of catalyst as well."
"But..."
"I know it won’t be easy. But if you give me the chance, I can do it. I already proved that through the BBC."
"Hmm... If this succeeds, it would be an enormous achievement... and something most of our people want as well..."
Song Ji-na’s expression grew serious.
"The real issue is getting the chance."
"It isn’t that simple. I do have a line in China, so I once tried to float the idea, but their thinking was different. It wasn’t, 'That’s the hero of your country, so dig him up and take him home yourselves.'"
"They’re afraid that if Doctor Ahn’s remains come back, the national spirit will strengthen. Neighboring countries don’t want us to have a spiritual pillar to lean on."
It was Chairwoman Eun who offered that explanation. It was a very top-tier businessperson’s way of thinking. The head of a major conglomerate really did see the bigger picture.
"That’s all the more reason we have to bring him home."
There was force in Kang-to’s voice now.
"Realistically, the difficulty of excavation is part of the problem too. No one has ever pinpointed exactly where Doctor Ahn was buried. But if it’s you, Kang-to..."
Song Ji-na fell into thought.
"I see. If it’s Kang-to, he could pinpoint the burial site with one perfectly accurate Gongsu."
Hyung-wook, too, joined the side leaning toward yes.
"Do you think you can do it?"
When Song Ji-na asked,
"I can."
Kang-to cut in firmly.
"Then the problem is getting the Chinese side to cooperate..."
"Former ambassador to China and current minister Kim Ki-wook has agreed to help create the right atmosphere."
"Minister Kim Ki-wook?"
"Wasn’t his child a victim of a case that nearly remained unsolved forever? I asked him as a favor, because of the connection I had from finding the remains for him."
"He agreed?"
"Yes."
"Hmm... If that old man lends a hand, the odds go up. Among former ambassadors to China, he had one of the best guanxi networks with the Chinese Communist Party leadership."
Guanxi is the Chinese pronunciation of “relationship.” The Chinese placed great importance on it.
Then again, so did Korea. No matter how much AI rose in prominence, final decisions still didn’t outrun human networks.
"Mother, you have a Chinese network too, don’t you?"
Chairwoman Eun was now nodding along as well.
"Mine’s a bit old-fashioned. Still, if Minister Kim takes the lead, I can provide some support from the side."
"The person helping us on-site has already been secured. Dr. Ailie, the genetics expert who took part in the BBC documentary, said she’d come. I also looked into Korean reporters."
"A large-scale excavation won’t do. The Chinese won’t want this becoming a public issue."
Song Ji-na hit the nail on the head.
"Just me, Dr. Ailie, two excavation team members, and about two reporters should be enough."
"Beopsa Kang-to."
"It started with a pretext, but this is something someone has to do. So even if you can’t help in person, I’d be grateful if you’d at least support me in your hearts."
"So you’re really determined to excavate Doctor Ahn’s remains?"
"You all know about that chain of horrific murders that once plunged the whole country into fear, don’t you?"
"......?"
"The culprits were the vengeful spirits of Korean miners forcibly taken for labor. They were punishing the descendants of the pro-Japanese collaborators who had deceived them and sent them off to forced labor."
"......?"
"Even those ordinary men longed to return to their hometowns when their country was finally liberated. So how much more must Doctor Ahn, a hero of our nation, wish for that? Wouldn’t he be happier lying in the soil of a liberated homeland, even in death?"
Kang-to’s voice rang with conviction. And the force in it was different from possession by a deity. It wasn’t the majesty of a divine oracle, but the resolve of one South Korean citizen speaking from the heart.
"Well..."
"I’m truly grateful for the warmth you’ve all shown me today. Because of that, a lot of my own narrow-mindedness has loosened too. If I were to follow Grandma’s advice, I could be satisfied with stopping here, but from the beginning, my resolve was aimed in this direction. If I quit now, I’d be the coward."
"......"
"So instead of worrying about me personally or what role I should play, please pray for the success of this endeavor."
Clap, clap, clap.
Applause broke out. Once one person started, the others joined in. Kang-to felt himself buoyed. The reason the applause began was because it had started with Chairwoman Eun. Of all the Cheonjo Group members, she was the one least likely to take a liking to Kang-to. And yet she had opened her heart, and that made his own chest go hot with emotion.
"Doctor Ahn, huh..."
Song Ji-na grew pensive. Then, just as quickly as that seriousness had come over her, she steadied her breathing and let out a brisk, generous answer.
"Fine. If you’re our youngest grandson, then that much patriotism and fighting spirit is exactly what you should have. Let’s give it a try."
"Thank you."
"Now then, to our Beopsa Kang-to’s final goal."
Song Ji-na lifted her wineglass.
Clink.
The sound of the toast rang bright and clear.
"Do you like it?"
In the lobby, Hyung-wook asked him. An imported Jeep was waiting in front of the hotel entrance. It was a bright yellow Wrangler, vivid and aggressive.
"It’s excellent."
"I figured an island meant a Jeep, but if it’s uncomfortable, say the word. Father said he wanted to get you a sedan too."
"This is more than enough. It looks like it could drive right over the sea."
"Once you’ve sobered up, take it for a spin. If you don’t like it, we’ll change it."
"But..."
"What is it?"
"Yoo Jae-hee came to see me a little while ago."
"So that’s why it was in the entertainment news that she was filming a new movie?"
"Yes. I gave her the tip."
"That director’s going to bomb hard, then?"
"Yoo Jae-hee’s fortune had fallen to rock bottom. She needed to meet someone who had fallen endlessly and then risen again to find upward momentum."
"Did Yoo Jae-hee accept it willingly?"
"She came with full determination. She even temporarily broke up with the man she’d been dating..."
The final phrase was softened carefully. The reason was that the subject was Hyung-wook.
"You can say things like that?"
Hyung-wook understood, and gave a gentle smile.
"You mean she was serious about it."
"She was a good person."
"What’s the point? She’s stubborn to the point of nonsense."
"I understood it as self-centeredness. Without that kind of resolve, you can’t push back against bad luck."
"What do you think? Do you think she’ll make a comeback?"
"Beyond just warding off misfortune, she’ll also need to build merit to recover the good fortune she’s exhausted. Her resolve is unusual, so I think she will. Just prepare a bouquet or two in advance for that day."
"And what about me? Do you think it’ll go all the way?"
"I told Jae-hee this already, didn’t I? Come back once the bad luck has cleared. I’ll take a look at the compatibility you were curious about in the first place."
"Then I should go with you too, huh?"
"That would be fine."
"And yet..."
"What now?"
"There’s something a little troublesome."
"What?"
As Kang-to lowered his voice, Hyung-wook’s eyes flew wide.
"No way."
Hyung-wook practically jumped in place.
"Who exactly is the person my sister met?"
"Right before she finished studying in the United States, they’d been seeing each other for about two years, right?"
"The topic was too hot to bring up back there, so I let it slide. But I still thought I should tell you..."
"Dr. Oh..."
Hyung-wook rested his chin on his hand and continued with a grimace.
"...is a woman?"
"Yes."
Kang-to cut it off cleanly.
A woman.
Since Eun-seo was a woman, this would become a woman-and-woman relationship. That was why it was such a hot issue.
"Damn, that’s insane. If anyone else told me that, I’d slap them across the face."
"If it’s wrong, I’ll apologize to noona myself."
"I even went to the bathroom with that person before. We did the stand-up version together."
"I’ve heard that nowadays they can use artificial penile reconstruction, attach penile function using the clitoris, and even build a urethra."
"So stand-up peeing would be possible too?"
"If they can even achieve erections with an implant, then everything except pregnancy is possible, isn’t it? If you’ve got the money and American medicine behind you, there’s nothing they can’t do."
"That’s a tangled mess."
"......"
"Wait a second."
Hyung-wook turned away and made a phone call.
"Eun-seo, it’s me..."
The call went on for quite a while. Kang-to understood. Even for Hyung-wook, this was not something easy to explain.
The main subject, Eun-seo, came bursting out of the elevator.
"Beopsa Kang-to. What was that you just said?"
Eun-seo was visibly agitated. Which meant she had known nothing about it either.
"Didn’t I say you should taste a little Gongsu?"
"And?"
"I’m giving you that Gongsu right now. Just as I heard it, your sister’s fiancé was originally not a man, but a woman."
"Not a man?"
"That’s what my shamanic message is saying."
"Beopsa Kang-to, Dr. Oh and I even stayed at the hotel together... Ah, this is driving me crazy."
"You should look into it yourself. If I’m wrong, I’ll accept any scolding you give me."
"I should. And if it’s not true, I’ll need to apologize seriously to Dr. Oh too."
"Yes."
Eun-seo took out her phone. Search mode. At the same time, Hyung-wook began tracing the identity as well.
Dr. Oh was American by nationality. Born and raised in the United States. As Eun-seo followed the trail of that résumé, a storm seemed to rise in her eyes.
"My God."
"You found something?"
Hyung-wook leaned forward.
"Up through middle school, she was a girl... After that, it shows that he became a man."
Eun-seo showed him the search results. Fortunately, there was a keyword trail.
Dr. Oh’s Korean mother. She had been a fairly well-known businesswoman. Her pride and joy, her only daughter. She had shown exceptional talent with computers from elementary school through middle school. There were interview photos of her winning first prize in coding competitions and taking the grand prize in contests hosted by related companies.
Three years after that.
The daughter standing beside the businesswoman had become a man. Even the name had been changed. But the image remained. More than anything, the undeniable proof was that same mother.
"So she had gender-affirming surgery in high school?"
"Probably."
"Whoa."
"Come to think of it..."
Eun-seo’s memory drifted backward. There had been a time when she’d gone to a hotel after a party. Twice, in fact. Once they were both drunk and didn’t go all the way, and another time Dr. Oh had firmly refused.
"It might sound a little conservative, but until marriage..."
Smack.
The union ended with a kiss. Back then, she had felt something bulging over the underwear. But they had never actually gone all the way.
"Then..."
Hyung-wook’s gaze shifted to Kang-to. The shock of the divine Gongsu had already been intense enough when they saw the BBC documentary trailer and the coverage.
But even now, they weren’t immune. So even while experiencing it live, it still didn’t feel real.
"Dr. Oh, could you come here for a second?"
Eun-seo called Dr. Oh over. This was something that needed checking.
"Eun-seo, what is it?"
Dr. Oh came out of the elevator.
"Do you maybe have something you’re hiding from me?"
Eun-seo’s tone had gone slightly cold.
"Me? Hide what?"
"If you’ve got some secret, it’d be best to confess now."
"Absolutely not—unless you mean that I love you too much?"
"Then what do you call this?"
Eun-seo held out the search screen. It was a photo of Dr. Oh in childhood, back when she had been a girl, taken with her mother right after winning a computer competition.
"......?"
That one blow decided the match. Dr. Oh’s eyes trembled violently.
"There’s one more thing."
"......?"
"It’s my little brother, Beopsa Kang-to’s Gongsu. Our Dr. James Oh was given an oracle saying that on the outside he’s male, but in the original version he was female."
"......?"
"So confess."
Eun-seo’s usually calm voice cracked like thunder. It was anger.
Eun-seo was a believer in gender equality. She accepted the voices of LGBTQ people as well. But marriage was another matter. At the very least, she should have confessed and given Eun-seo the right to choose. She hadn’t done that. Her own right to choose had been stolen from her, and fury surged up inside her.
"I, I was..."
"You were what?"
"I was going to tell you at first, but... I was afraid you’d be put off because I’m Eastern... I liked you so much. Then, and now..."
"What, Eastern? Isn’t there Eastern blood in your body too?"
"Eun-seo..."
Crack.
The sound of the slap tore through the air. Eun-seo had struck Dr. Oh across the face.
"Enough. Get out. From now on, if you date a woman, tell her up front that your original form was female before you start seeing her. And if you ever show up in front of me again, I’ll kill you."
Thud.
This time it was a kick to the shin. Overwhelmed by her momentum, Dr. Oh hobbled away, limping.
"Ugh, seriously, I’m pissed."
Still not soothed, Eun-seo was handed an iced Americano. She took it and downed the whole thing in one shot.
"Thanks, little brother. If it weren’t for you... Ugh, just thinking about it gives me the creeps."
Eun-seo shook her head.
She had nearly gotten engaged to a fake man and walked all the way to marriage. Thanks to Kang-to, she had escaped by the skin of her teeth.
"As expected..."
After hearing Eun-seo’s report, Song Ji-na and Chairwoman Eun both let out sighs of relief.
With her mind eased again, Eun-seo even held up a thumb from behind Song Ji-na’s back.
And with that finger stiffly raised, her trust in Kang-to—as a member of the Cheonjo Group family—grew another inch taller.
Having built up the trust of those around him, Kang-to finally threw himself fully into the final objective.
It was Chinese soil where Doctor Ahn had been laid to rest.
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