Ch.208208. 30 Minutes Before the Ceremony

“Hey, did you get even more fit since I last saw you?”

Moving to the entrance of the main wedding hall. In this chaotic place where relatives and guests from both families were streaming in, my buzz-cut friend Sehyun, who was collecting wedding gifts at my request, suddenly made this random comment.

Since there was a lull with no guests entering at the moment, I figured I could respond. I adjusted my clothes, buttoned up, and replied.

“Yeah, well. I worked hard for the wedding photoshoot.”

“If your shoulders get any broader, you’ll turn into Julien Kang. Take it easy with the workouts, man.”

“Come on, comparing me to him is ridiculous…”

When you search his name, “shoulders” comes up as the first related keyword, so the comparison itself is disrespectful. Maybe he wasn’t being serious either, as he got up with a smirk and patted my shoulders.

“I guess you’re right. That guy’s built different. Oh, but why is this chair so uncomfortable? Couldn’t they have provided better ones?”

“Oh, sorry. Should I get you a different one?”

“How’s the main character going to leave his post? Forget it, I was just saying.”

Sehyun stretched, rotating his shoulders before sitting back down. Just as he was about to say something, another guest couple entered the main hall.

“Ah, welcome. The guest seating is this way.”

“Thank you. Congratulations on your marriage. Have a wonderful day.”

“Not at all, I should be thanking you. I hope you and your wife have a wonderful day too, Vice President.”

“Oh? You know who I am?”

The man handing over the gift envelope paused and asked. Of course I know. My parents kept stressing that I shouldn’t make mistakes when greeting people, so I’ve been memorizing the faces of our group’s officials whenever I had time.

“Of course. You’re the Vice President of Hanwi Steel, aren’t you? And this is your wife.”

“Wow, the Chairman’s grandson even remembers my face and my wife’s. I’m honored. The last time we met was at the garden party after the shareholders’ meeting three years ago. You must have a good memory?”

“Well, I’m the type who doesn’t easily forget things once I remember them. And if there’s anyone I should remember, it’s the Vice President of Hanwi Steel, right? You’ll be President soon.”

“Haha! Thank you for the kind words. Oh, honey, do we have any more envelopes? I think we put too little in this one. It’s the Chairman’s grandson’s wedding day, isn’t five hundred too small?”

“…Five hundred thousand won?”

Sehyun, who had been listening to our conversation, muttered with a dazed look. I nudged his shoulder with my elbow, signaling him to snap out of it.

‘Don’t space out, get the envelope, the envelope under the table.’

‘Oh, right.’

“Um, here’s the gift envelope.”

“Ah, thank you. Here’s a pen, and honey? My wallet please.”

Taking the wallet, the Vice President of Hanwi Steel took out several blue checks, put them in the envelope, and handed it over. I pretended to decline, shaking my head.

“Why are you giving two envelopes? You’ve already given a gift. I’ll just accept your good wishes. You don’t have to give this.”

“No, no, I insist. It would make me uncomfortable otherwise. Please accept it.”

“But receiving twice from one person seems improper…”

“Aren’t husband and wife one body and soul? Though my name is on it, think of it as coming from my wife, not me.”

“Hmm, is that so? I suppose refusing a gift is also impolite…”

“Yes, exactly. If you don’t accept it soon, I’ll feel awkward standing here with my hand out.”

Having risen from nothing to Vice President, his people skills were truly exceptional. After our back-and-forth, I pretended to give in, took the envelope, and passed it to Sehyun.

“Thank you. I’ll put it to good use. Sehyun? Please update the name and amount in the ledger. Make it really big.”

“Huh? Oh, sure.”

I had the still-dazed Sehyun complete the entry in the gift ledger, then bowed in thanks. Five hundred plus another five hundred, making one large sum.

With such a generous gift, I wondered if I should perform a formal bow, but decided against it since it would look strange to bow to someone other than the parents at a wedding.

“Well then, we’ll head in. Oh, let’s have a meal sometime. If you ever come to Busan, please feel free to contact me anytime. I’ll come running.”

“Yes. Just hearing that makes me feel reassured. I’ll definitely contact you if I go to Busan.”

The Vice President bowed deeply several times before heading to the guest seating. Only then did I exhale and take a deep breath to calm my excited nerves.

“Whew. That was intense.”

“…Hey, Siwoo.”

“Yeah, what?”

“You seem like a completely different person today.”

Different person? What does he mean by that? When I questioned him with my eyes, Sehyun picked up his pen and tapped the gift ledger list.

“Look at these amounts. Wow, I was really shocked. Aren’t wedding gifts usually 50,000 won or 100,000 won, maybe 500,000 won if you’re really close? But here, the baseline is in the hundreds of thousands. Am I receiving wedding gifts in Saudi Arabia or something?”

“Saudi Arabia? Don’t exaggerate. Besides, all of this gets reciprocated later. When the presidents’ or vice presidents’ children get married, my father gives them wedding gifts too. So don’t be surprised by the amounts.”

Compared to what our family has given out over the years, today’s gifts are just a drop in the bucket. After I added that, Sehyun looked completely stunned.

“Wow… I’m just realizing that you guys really live in a different world. How did you and Hwa Nabi never show it during school? If it were me, I would’ve been itching to brag.”

“I don’t know about Nabi, but I didn’t particularly hide it? Remember when I covered everyone’s dinner during the school trip?”

“That’s about it. And even that wasn’t super obvious. Besides, dinner for thirty people probably costs less than what’s in one of these gift envelopes, right?”

“Yeah, I guess so.”

At most, it would have been about 100,000 won per person, so he’s probably right. When I nodded calmly, Sehyun suddenly stood up and put his hand on my shoulder.

“My friend, I have a favor to ask.”

“A favor? Why so suddenly?”

“Since I helped you collect wedding gifts today, can you do me one favor?”

“Hmm… sure. You did work hard today. What do you need?”

“Buy me a sports car. The latest model.”

“…”

Sensing my gaze growing colder, Sehyun cleared his throat and turned his head.

“Just kidding. Set me up on a blind date.”

“A blind date?”

“Yeah, preferably with a woman from a wealthy family. Is that possible?”

The look in his eyes was serious, so it didn’t seem like he was just joking. This guy, he’s always honest about his desires. He wants to marry into money and live comfortably. It’s an ambitious dream but not very realistic.

Setting aside whether someone would want to meet him, most such people live in Seoul, while he’s attending university in the provinces.

“It’s possible, but… you’re not attending university here. And you haven’t done your military service yet. You’ll be at least 26 when you’re done with everything.”

“I just need to find a woman who’ll wait for me for six years.”

“Come on, be realistic…”

If such a person existed, she’d be Buddha, not a woman. As I was responding with disbelief, coincidentally, someone opened the door of the bride’s waiting room.

A woman with straight black hair and heavy eye makeup was approaching us. She seemed to be coming to greet me, and feeling mischievous, I casually brought up the topic.

“…Actually, I think there might be someone like that.”

“Really? Do you know her?”

“Yeah, I know her well. You probably know her too?”

He couldn’t possibly not know her. We were all in the same class in our first year of high school. But Sehyun seemed completely clueless, even with my hint.

“Someone I know? Is there someone like that among the people we both know?”

“There is. So what do you think? Decide now. Do you want to meet her or not?”

“Huh? Is she someone who can come right away?”

“Yeah, if I call her now, you can see her right away. Want to meet her?”

“Is that even a question? Of course I want to meet her! What’s her name? Is she pretty? What’s her personality like?”

“Hmm… wouldn’t it be faster to ask her directly?”

I almost burst out laughing mid-sentence but managed to hold it in. This won’t do. I covered my mouth and turned my head, unable to look him in the eye.

Confused by my reaction, Sehyun asked with a puzzled expression.

“Ask her directly? What do you mean? Is she here? Is she among the guests who just went in?”

“She’s right behind you, pfft.”

I finally let out a chuckle, and Sehyun turned around with wide eyes. As soon as he spotted the blind date I had mentioned, he immediately frowned and let out a sigh.

“Damn it. Don’t tell me the person you’re talking about is Jinhee?”

“Yep. It’s Jinhee.”

Well, it’s not entirely wrong. If nothing else, Jinhee does come from a wealthy family. Plus, she’s smart enough to have gotten into KAIST. Wouldn’t she be the perfect match for Sehyun, who dreams of being a rich family’s son-in-law?

I genuinely thought so and recommended her, but Sehyun didn’t seem to take it that way. He approached me with a hardened expression.

“Are you messing with me right now? Hey Han Siwoo, want to have your wedding and funeral on the same day?”

“It was just a joke, why so serious? Smile, come on.”

—What’s the joke here?