CHAPTER 05………………………………………
Early in the morning, Chohee went straight down to the inn lobby.
During the past three days at the inn, she had checked repeatedly but still hadn’t heard any news about her older brother.
Yet she didn’t give up hope.
Perhaps he had come during the night.
“Sister, listen carefully. I have matters to settle here, so you go to Sinuiju first.”
He had clearly told her to go ahead.
Her brother was not one to break a promise. If she went ahead, he would follow—so she just had to wait.
But why did a deep uneasiness keep rising in her chest?
The faint smell of gunpowder that had clung to her brother frightened her even more.
No, it couldn’t be.
Chohee bit her lip.
A gun… her brother wouldn’t be that reckless.
“Miss Gyeongseong! Are you awake?”
Bok-i’s cheerful greeting made Chohee lift her head, forcing a smile.
“Good morning, Bok-i. Did my brother come by last night?”
Bok-i shook her head.
“No one from Gyeongseong came last night. Miss, I don’t think anyone from Gyeongseong will be coming for a while.”
“That figures… the station was a mess, after all.”
The news that Sinuiju Station had burned down due to the train explosion had already spread through an extra edition.
Having witnessed it herself, Chohee had to accept that she wouldn’t see her brother for some time.
“By the way, Miss Gyeongseong, will you be staying tomorrow as well?”
“Probably. Why do you ask?”
“Tomorrow we have a group reservation, so if you’re staying, it’s best to pay in advance.”
“I see.”
Chohee hurriedly pulled out her wallet from her pocket. Inside were only a few bills and some coins.
With this, even eating only one meal a day, she could afford to stay at the inn for another three or four days. If she skipped meals, maybe a week.
Chohee bit her lip again.
Her money was running out.
She had already been short on funds, having left Gyeongseong in a hurry without her emergency savings.
Soon, her money would be gone. And not just money—she might end up sleeping on the streets.
Her brother’s arrival was uncertain, but she had to wait here until she met him. The resources were absurdly insufficient.
Seeing Chohee hesitate, Bok-i smiled awkwardly.
“Miss, are you short on money?”
“Oh, no!”
Chohee blushed deeply and hurriedly placed a few coins on the counter.
“I’ll stay for just one more night.”
“Understood.”
“Um, Bok-i… perhaps…”
Chohee pressed her hands to the counter, eyes determined.
“How can I find work around here?”
“Work? You mean for yourself, Miss?”
“Yes. There seem to be quite a few foreigners around here; I thought I might find work. I can speak their language to some extent, actually.”
“Hmm… There are some postings for work, but I’ve never seen anyone like you take them.”
Bok-i reached outside the counter, pointing to a wall covered with flyers. Some sought workers, others advertised services, or posted notices.
“Oh, these exist…”
Chohee carefully examined them all.
Unfortunately, there was no work requiring English or French, but some were looking for laborers.
“They’re hiring workers here!”
“You probably won’t find what you’re looking for. Most are kitchen or cleaning jobs.”
“I can’t be picky right now.”
With her funds dwindling, she had to take any work.
Alone in Sinuiju, she had to survive to meet her brother again. For that, she would do anything.
“This is enough.”
Chohee smiled gratefully at Bok-i.
“Could I do cleaning work at least?”
“Sorry, miss. These days we’re in a tight spot too. We need workers who can handle kitchen and cleaning duties. You’re too weak for that, aren’t you?”
At the eleventh restaurant she tried, Chohee was rejected.
Exhausted, she collapsed in front of the restaurant, clutching the flyers she had brought from the inn.
Repeated rejections were eroding her confidence. She sighed heavily, resting her face on her knees.
Had she been living wrongly?
In Joseon, women did not typically work outside the home. Managing the household was considered a woman’s highest virtue.
Even when Japan forcibly occupied the country, poverty forced women to work, often in trade or kitchen work.
But none of these suited Chohee.
She had been a teacher, educating students. Though poor, she had lived proudly as an educator.
She filled minds, not stomachs.
It was the only reason she could hold her head high despite what neighbors said.
But now… she wasn’t sure.
Had her chosen path been wrong?
Principal Frey had told her not to lose herself, but before poverty, even that was a luxury.
“I’m going to starve… what’s the point of it all?”
She sighed again, lifting her head, blinking back tears, and stood.
The sky was slowly turning red.
“This is really the last chance.”
Chohee carefully folded the flyers and picked one last sheet.
One place she hadn’t gone yet.
She gripped the paper tightly, not letting it crumple.
Her determined steps led her to a place with red lanterns flanking the doors. She took a deep breath.
“It’s okay, Chohee. You can do this.”
Pausing at the door, she inhaled deeply, then opened it and stepped into the giru she had so dreaded.
Chohee began working at the giru.
Her tasks were simple: washing the kimonos the geishas wore, cleaning dirty rooms, sweeping the yard, and delivering food from the kitchen.
All day’s work paid her 50 jeon—a sum barely enough to cover one meal after paying for her night at the inn.
But Chohee could endure it.
She only had to survive until her brother came.
Pride and hardship alike were set aside.
“Ah… my back.”
On the seventh day, her back ached unbearably from pounding laundry all day. Her delicate hands were blistered and red.
She rubbed her eyes. No matter how much she washed, the piles never decreased, leaving her sleepless.
“No wonder the previous worker ran away in a month.”
Even Koreans avoided this job if possible.
If only she could rest for a moment… closing her half-lidded eyes, Chohee shook off the water from her hands.
The guests would only arrive in the evening.
If she rested briefly in an empty room until then, perhaps no one would notice.
Too tired to check her surroundings, she hurried into one unlit room, lying down.
“Just a little… just a little sleep.”
Her eyelids closed almost instantly.
Dowoon, dressed in a neat white suit, lingered outside the giru.
Though outwardly calm, inside he was consumed with anxiety.
A week had passed since Sinuiju Station exploded, and as he expected, things were spiraling out of control.
{I don’t doubt you, Mr. Ri, but you know the orders… no meetings with Koreans for a while.}
{Mr. Ri, do you know George? He was called to the police headquarters. Foreigners can’t be trusted.}
After news spread of the station’s explosion and Japanese casualties, Japanese businessmen who had dealings with him all avoided him.
No matter how well he had ingratiated himself before, Koreans were still Koreans to them.
The sudden severing of contacts cut off all the intelligence he had been gathering.
The ripple effects affected the Korean Provisional Government as well.
The station’s destruction was the first step in preventing resources from being taken to Manchuria. Now, he needed to plan the second step, but intelligence was blocked, disrupting operations.
“I have to find a way to coax them, no matter what.”
Dowoon suppressed his anxiety, thinking carefully.
Today, Shige Minamoto, a key Japanese businessman in Sinuiju, would come to Hongwongak. He visited every Thursday.
Minamoto was Dowoon’s last hope. Think of all the bribes he had given over the past three years.
Creek-
The rickshaw stopped, and a familiar figure stepped down.
Dowoon immediately wore a mask-like smile, concealing his worry.
{Minamoto-san!}
{Oh, Mr. Ri, what brings you here?}
Minamoto, small and thin in his mid-thirties, had slitted eyes and thin lips curved in a sly smile.
{I happened to be here, and upon hearing you’d come, I came as well.}
Dowoon smoothly guided Minamoto into the giru.
{Ha! I thought you disliked girus?}
{Not at all, Minamoto-san.}
Inside, several women waited. Their clothing was scant, barely covering them.
Dowoon settled in comfortably. Minamoto immediately reached toward a geisha’s chest.
A crooked smile spread across Minamoto’s face. Recalling that he insisted on drinking with women, Dowoon carefully spoke.
{Isn’t having sake among geishas the fastest way to unwind?}
{Ha! Finally, someone who understands me! But keep it from my wife; as you know, our reputation must be preserved.}
Dowoon suppressed his disgust, maintaining a polite smile while serving the sake.
After a few pleasantries, he cautiously moved to the main topic.
{By the way, Minamoto-san, have you heard? Martha & Co. from America is entering the railway business.}
Minamoto’s smile stiffened.
Meanwhile…
{Ha ha ha, pour me a drink.}
The noise roused Chohee from her sleep.
Even with her eyes open, the room remained dim. She rubbed her eyes.
“…Why is it so dark?”
She got up, and as her eyes adjusted, she saw the empty room.
What she thought would be a short nap had extended until evening.
As she hurriedly rose, laughter came from the lit room next door.
{Ha ha ha!}
‘A guest must be here already?’
Worried about being caught sleeping in a guest room, Chohee tiptoed.
The laughter… sounded strangely familiar.
This voice… where had she heard it before?
