Chapter 4
“Earlier, I saw a really fancy car parked outside your house. And those men in suits coming out—did they come from Seoul? Are they colleagues from your company?”
At the curious question, Onyu paused while packing items into a black plastic bag.
Rolling her eyes slightly, Onyu looked at the middle-aged woman standing across the counter.
With her poofy perm pinned up with a flashy hair clip, eyebrows sharply arched like seagull wings ready to take flight, and bright red lipstick applied so thick it was hard to tell where her real lips ended, the woman was hard to miss.
Topping it all off was a loud leopard print dress.
The only person in the village who could pull off such a bold look was none other than Mrs. Seong Jeong-ja—the owner of the village’s only convenience store, “Ant Mart,” and also the local hair salon, “Cut Well Salon.”
“Well, sort of…”
Onyu mumbled vaguely.
Mrs. Jeong-ja was nice, but she had a notoriously loose tongue. It wouldn’t be an exaggeration to say that every rumor in the village started with her.
That’s why Onyu couldn’t let slip any information about plans to buy up the village and build a theme park.
“I knew it! They totally looked the part.”
It’s not like I had a sign on my forehead saying ‘I’m from Seoul.’ How does she just know these things?
Grumbling internally, Onyu continued packing the items.
“By the way, everything okay at the elder’s house?”
“What do you mean?”
Mrs. Jeong-ja asked with a serious expression, and Onyu tilted her head in confusion.
“Last night, there was a break-in at Mr. Oh’s mill.”
“What? A break-in?!”
Onyu’s eyes widened in shock.
“Exactly! I was so startled when I heard this morning. My heart’s still pounding.”
“Are Mr. and Mrs. Oh okay?”
“Luckily, it seems no one was home when it happened. The thief just took a bit of cash and an old watch Mr. Oh got as a wedding gift.”
“That’s a relief.”
Hearing there were no injuries, Onyu felt a wave of relief. Mr. Oh, who ran the mill at the village entrance, had been a friend of her late father.
“I mean, even for a petty thief, that’s just pitiful. What’s there to steal in a tiny village like this?”
Mrs. Jeong-ja snorted loudly through her nose, clearly indignant.
“Seriously, how much could that watch be worth? Probably not even pawnshop-worthy. Why steal something like that?”
She looked at Onyu for agreement, and Onyu nodded politely. “You’re right.”
“I don’t know what’s going on in this village lately. Not long ago, someone stole all the underwear women had hung out to dry. Then there was that weird crying sound from an abandoned house—total chaos!”
Oh yeah, that happened too…
Onyu frowned, recalling the odd string of recent incidents in the usually sleepy town, where every day felt like the last.
“While you’re down here helping out, you should fix that gate. It’s always wide open. It’s not even an automatic one. What if something happens when you go back to Seoul and the elder’s left alone?”
Concern laced in her voice, Mrs. Jeong-ja’s meddling was well-meaning. Onyu didn’t reply but handed over two ten-thousand won bills.
“By the way, I think you’d look so good with a perm. Ever thought about it? I’ll do it cheap for you.”
“No thanks. I like my straight hair.”
Onyu firmly shut down the sales pitch. Every woman who got a perm at that salon ended up with hair that looked permanently frizzy.
“Take care now!”
“Okay. I’ll drop by if I ever need my hair done.”
With her change in hand, Onyu left the store.
As she walked, swinging the black plastic bag, she paused in front of a large blooming fringe tree near her house. A wooden platform had been placed underneath for villagers to rest.
“Whew…”
Perching on the edge, she pulled out a can of beer from the bag.
“Haa…”
After gulping it down, she gazed blankly up at the sky.
It had already been a month since she’d come back home, helping out with farm work and turning the house upside down.
She had entrusted the company to founding member Manager Go Hye-won and come down herself, thinking she’d find the lottery ticket right away. But it was still missing.
Time was running out. The claim deadline for the prize money was only about three months away.
Despite searching everywhere, she wasn’t even sure if her grandmother had hidden it in the house or the peach field. The fear of never finding it gnawed at her.
It’s either in the house or the field! I don’t remember exactly, but I’m sure it’s one of those two. It has to be!
Her grandmother had been so insistent—and Onyu wanted to believe that. Expanding the search range would be a nightmare. It’d be like searching for a needle in a haystack.
As she nursed the ache in her chest with beer, Onyu pulled something from her pocket: the business card Lee Wan had given her.
If I just had that money…
Biting her lip in hesitation, she suddenly heard her grandmother’s sharp voice echo in her head:
“You find that ticket no matter what. Focus only on that. Got it?”
“Yes, Grandma!”
Startled from her thoughts, Onyu responded out loud, as if her grandmother were standing in front of her.
“Right. No more thinking about anything else right now. I can find it. No—I have to.”
Reciting her no-giving-up mantra like a spell, she clenched her fists with determination. With a firm resolve, she shot up from her seat.
Now wasn’t the time to be drinking beer. It’d be much wiser to go search the house again.
Grabbing the bag filled with snacks and sweets, Onyu marched back toward the house.
Meanwhile, Lee Wan stood grim-faced, staring at a banner outside a lottery shop in town.
[Congratulations! First Prize Winner! 8.85 Billion Won!]
The words, printed in yellow and white on a red background, stabbed into his vision like knives.
“A winning lottery ticket is hidden in that house and the peach orchard.”
“The prize amount is 8.85 billion won.”
He’d dismissed it as nonsense at first. But it turned out to be true.
“There were three first-prize winners that round. One of them purchased their ticket at this very shop. The prize still hasn’t been claimed.”
Manager Ahn reported carefully, trying not to draw too much attention to Lee Wan’s icy glare and twitching lips.
“If you want more concrete proof, we could request the store’s CCTV footage—”
“Ha…”
A dry, incredulous laugh escaped Lee Wan’s lips, cutting Ahn off.
“Haha… ha…”
“Sir…?”
Hearing that hollow laugh, Ahn’s face turned pale. This was not a good sign.
“Of all the things in my life…”
With an exasperated sigh, Lee Wan dragged a hand down the back of his neck in frustration.
“This… Is this real? If someone wrote a drama like this, they’d get torn apart.”
But this is real life, sir…
Ahn wanted to say, but held it in. One wrong word might ignite an explosion.
Lee Wan, rubbing his face anxiously, glanced at Ahn and asked:
“How much time’s left to claim the prize?”
“Three months.”
“By July 14, you must get approval from all the villagers. If you fail, you’ll marry the person I choose. Or you can give up the company. I’m not saying this to scare you. Remember that.”
Recalling his grandfather’s ultimatum, Lee Wan frowned.
July 14 was only a little over two months away—before the lottery’s claim deadline.
If they couldn’t find the ticket by then, neither Onyu nor her aunt would ever agree to sell the house.
But he couldn’t just hand them 8.85 billion won either. He was trapped.
“Damn it…”
Lee Wan cursed under his breath, lowering his head in frustration.
This really was an absolute disaster.
