Siblings Working in Business (235)
The house was clean, but since it was the filming location for their upcoming stay, they spent some time tidying up.
Since their mission was to ask each other questions to earn dinner ingredients, everyone tried their best to ask as many questions as possible.
Thanks to that…
By dinner time, the initial awkwardness had mostly dissipated.
“Since it’s the first day, we’ve provided the ingredients for your meal through this mission, but tomorrow, you’ll have to prepare them yourselves.”
Then, baskets of ingredients were placed before the members.
Inside were flour dough, zucchini, anchovy sauce, minced garlic, carrots, and potatoes.
“Now, please prepare your meal.”
The members’ faces clearly expressed their thoughts, ‘What are we supposed to make with this?’
The ingredients were basic, to say the least.
‘Hmm.’
Eun-ho looked at the ingredients and thought for a moment.
“That’s why they told us to wear comfortable clothes.”
“Seriously…”
Seo Seung-yeon added to Ryu Seok-hyun’s grumbling,
“Let’s just get to it.”
And so they began.
10 minutes later…
Eun-ho smiled, watching them.
‘They were all complaining earlier…’
Despite their initial grumbling, once their tasks were assigned, everyone started working without complaint.
Eun-ho and Seo Seung-yeon were assigned to the fire team.
Seo Seung-yeon looked at the agungi (traditional Korean cooking stove) in the yard with a troubled expression.
“Eun-ho.”
“Yes.”
“Have you ever built a fire?”
“Yes. I used to do it often when I was younger.”
From the moment they were told they had to build a fire…
Eun-ho, as if it were ingrained in him, gathered dry straw and other flammable materials from around the yard.
“Hyung, I’ll build the fire, so can you bring some branches for firewood and some of that firewood piled up in the back?”
“Oh, I can count on you. I’ll be right back!”
At Eun-ho’s request, Seo Seung-yeon went to the backyard to get firewood.
Meanwhile, Choi Tae-hyun and Ryu Seok-hyun were busy cleaning the cauldron, and Eun-ji and Jikki went to the garden with baskets to gather more ingredients.
Choi Si-woo and Aeseul went to the nearby houses — although ‘nearby’ meant a 20-minute walk — to ask for kimchi and other side dishes.
Eun-ho built the fire with practiced ease.
Just then, as Seung-yeon watched Eun-ho in fascination…
“Oh, they’re back.”
Choi Tae-hyun and Ryu Seok-hyun returned after cleaning the cauldron.
“Hyung, come here! Eun-ho’s amazing at building fires!”
“Eun-ho is?”
“…?”
When Ryu Seok-hyun and Choi Tae-hyun arrived…
Eun-ho had already built a perfect fire, neither too strong nor too weak.
“What? Eun-ho, have you used an agungi before?”
“Yes, when I was younger…”
He felt slightly self-conscious, being watched by so many people.
Fortunately, the fire didn’t go out, thanks to them having thoroughly dried the cauldron.
After filling the cauldron with water, they decided to prepare the ingredients while the water boiled.
“Hyung, can you wash the carrots and potatoes?”
“Okay.”
“Hyung-nim, when Seok-hyun Sunbae and Tae-hyun hyung come back, can you peel them with them?”
“Okay.”
Choi Tae-hyun and Ryu Seok-hyun asked Seo Seung-yeon to peel the carrots and potatoes they had washed.
Just then…
‘Why am I…’
Eun-ho was slightly taken aback.
He realized he had somehow become the one giving orders.
“Done peeling!”
“We did a good job.”
“Yes, very clean.”
Ryu Seok-hyun, Choi Tae-hyun, and Seo Seung-yeon proudly presented their work.
PD Yoo, watching them, amused by the middle-aged men seeking praise from the much younger Eun-ho, chuckled.
“Oh…”
Just then…
Honestly, when Eun-ho started chopping the vegetables, his clumsy knife skills didn’t inspire confidence.
But once the water started boiling, Eun-ho’s true skills shone.
He added the prepared ingredients to the cauldron, as if he had done it countless times.
‘It needs a bit more color.’
Just then…
“We’re back!”
“We’re here!”
Eun-ho’s eyes lit up, looking not at Eun-ji, but at the ingredients in her hands.
“Hey, Lee Eun-ji.”
“Yeah?”
“Hurry up and wash those and bring them over.”
“You stingy rockfish-looking…”
Eun-ji grumbled, but she obediently washed the green onions and chives (jeong-gu-ji) and brought them to Eun-ho.
The rich green color of the vegetables enhanced the broth’s appearance.
“Not too much garlic…”
Eun-ho muttered as he dipped a spoon into the jar of pre-minced garlic.
Contrary to his words, ‘not too much’… when Eun-ho took out the spoon…
“Ahahahaha!!!”
He had scooped out almost all the garlic in one go.
Eun-ji burst into laughter at the sight.
Eun-ho, who had done it on purpose, asked playfully,
“What, is it wrong? I said ‘not too much’.”
“Ah, you’re right. It’s ‘adequate.’ Ahahaha.”
Although he had said it jokingly, adding an entire jar of garlic wasn’t a joke.
It was enough to flavor the entire cauldron.
Eun-ho washed his hands, returned, and skillfully tore off pieces of the flour dough.
While everyone watched Eun-ho…
Eun-ji, used to this sight, was looking up at the sky, fascinated by the stars.
Just then, Seo Seung-yeon asked Eun-ji,
“Eun-ji.”
“Yes.”
“Does Eun-ho cook often at home?”
“Yes.”
“Eun-ho seems like a very caring older brother.”
Eun-ji finally turned her gaze from the sky to Seung-yeon.
“…?”
“Hahaha, look at Eun-ji’s face.”
Eun-ji’s jaw dropped.
Seung-yeon burst into laughter, seeing her dumbfounded expression.
While they were laughing, Seok-hyun looked towards the house with a worried expression.
“Why aren’t Aeseul and Si-woo back yet?”
Just then, as Seok-hyun sighed…
“We’re back, we’re back! We got the side dishes!”
“We got kimchi and other side dishes!”
Si-woo proudly showed them the containers of kimchi.
Aeseul, holding two smaller containers, smiled, displaying what seemed to be the “other side dishes.”
“Good work, both of you.”
Ryu Seok-hyun, their company colleague, patted them on the back.
Just then, Aeseul, ignoring Ryu Seok-hyun, covered her mouth and stared, her eyes fixed on one person.
“Wow! Wow!!! Gasp.”
It was a gasp of genuine admiration, mixed with fangirling.
Aeseul was looking at Eun-ho.
“Are you seriously cooking today, Sunbae-nim? Am I actually going to eat food cooked by Eun-ho Sunbae-nim? Oh my god, I’m so excited!”
Eun-ho, hearing her excited whispers from behind him, flinched as he was seasoning the soup with fish sauce.
“Done! I need some bowls!”
The sujebi (hand-torn noodle soup) filled the cauldron, enough for the staff as well.
“Thank you for the food!”
“Good work, Eun-ho.”
“Thank you, Eun-ho.”
Eun-ho smiled and responded to the members’ thanks.
“Enjoy.”
“I will.”
“Sure.”
Eun-ho replied curtly to Eun-ji’s greeting, as if he had never smiled.
“How does it taste?”
Although it tasted perfect to him…
He was worried he might have seasoned it to his own liking, so he cautiously asked after everyone had a taste.
Eun-ji, most familiar with his cooking, was the first to speak.
“It’s okay.”
Several eyes widened at Eun-ji’s words.
“Eun-ji, what do you mean, ‘okay’?”
“Huh?”
“It’s more than okay!”
“It is.”
“Huh?”
Eun-ji, suddenly the target of their criticism, looked around, bewildered.
Just then, Seung-yeon, looking at the bowl of sujebi with an impressed expression, said,
“Eun-ho, I’ve been to almost every famous restaurant, and this is amazing! It’s as good as any of them!”
Tae-hyun nodded in agreement with Seung-yeon’s opinion.
“With skills like this, it’s no wonder you wanted to use my kitchen.”
“Ah.”
Eun-ho chuckled, remembering his visit to Tae-hyun’s apartment.
“Your kitchen is nice, Hyung-nim. I felt like a chef there.”
“Well, your taste buds are already those of a chef.”
Eun-ho, embarrassed by Seo Seung-yeon’s playful flattery, pretended not to hear and looked away.
Just then, he noticed three people quietly eating with their heads down.
“Are you okay?”
Eun-ho asked cautiously, and Ryu Seok-hyun, after quickly slurping down the broth, gave him an enthusiastic thumbs-up.
“Eun-ho.”
“Yes.”
“Do you want to go into business with me?”
“Huh?”
“Hahaha.”
He didn’t understand at first, then burst out laughing.
“Seriously, Sunbae-nim, what Uncle said wasn’t just empty praise! It’s the best!”
“That’s right, that’s right.”
Aeseul, her voice trembling with emotion, added to Si-woo’s praise.
“It’s so delicious, the best. Oh my god…”
“It’s amazing, how did you make this with such limited ingredients…?”
“Well, it’s sujebi, so…”
Eun-ho, smiling, replied to Si-woo’s impressed comment, as if it were nothing special.
Eun-ho then looked at the last member.
Jikki had been quiet the entire time.
She might have different tastes since she was from overseas.
Even among Koreans, some people liked kimchi, and some didn’t, so he figured it could be the same with sujebi.
As expected…
Jikki was eating quietly, but much slower than the others.
She seemed to have something on her mind…
‘Ah!’
Just then, Eun-ho suddenly remembered.
Something Jikki always ate with her meals, something she loved.
“Jikki, would you like some of the spicy peppers we picked earlier?”
“…!”
Jikki’s eyes widened, looking at Eun-ho, as if wondering how he knew.
It was their first meeting in this timeline, after the regression, so it was a slip-up.
Just then, as Eun-ho realized his mistake and panicked, Ryu Seok-hyun stood up and said,
“Sujebi is delicious with sliced peppers. I’ll get some.”
Eun-ho breathed a sigh of relief, grateful for Seok-hyun’s interruption.
Then, afraid of making another mistake, Eun-ho focused on his sujebi.
After the Let’s Live Together a Bit members finished their meal, the leftover sujebi was transferred to a pot for the staff to heat up and eat.
Their reactions were the same as the members’, filled with praise and admiration.
“Please change into comfortable clothes and relax.”
While the staff were eating, the members went inside, following the PD’s instructions.
Chang-seok’s house had a large daecheong maru (main wooden floor) and two large rooms on either side.
Past the large room on the right side of the daecheong maru, there was a narrow hallway, leading to a smaller room called the sarangchae (guest house).
And there, strangely out of place in the traditional hanok, was a small, modern bathroom with a toilet.
The large room on the opposite side also had a spacious area that seemed to have been used as a kitchen in the past.
That area had also been converted into a luxurious bathroom.
But it was about three times larger than the one in the sarangchae.
The female members, including Eun-ji, took the side with the nice bathroom and the large room, and the male members, including Eun-ho, took the other side with the sarangchae and the smaller bathroom.