* * *
‘First of all, she likes my face.’
Even my attempts at being cute worked somewhat.
‘This kind of person won’t fall for it immediately.’
If I push too hard at once, it might backfire.
‘It’s more effective to simmer slowly.’
To do that…
‘I need to make sure she sees my face often.’
I stared intently at grandmother.
I placed my hand on my cheek and thought.
Maybe she’d like me more if she got attached.
‘How can I see her often?’
At that moment, I saw a cane hanging on the cradle.
Indeed, where there’s a will, there’s a way.
‘This is it!’
I couldn’t help but smile. I immediately shouted.
“Buah! Buya!”
Use the coin!
[How would you like to use the Love and Peace Coin?]
Make my body emit the scent of lemongrass whenever this grandmother comes!
Soon, the subtitle moved.
[It requires 200 coins for Noh Hwa-jin, the matriarch of the Sungjin Group, to smell lemongrass whenever she comes. Do you want to proceed?]
It cost quite a few coins, but I had no choice.
‘Let’s think of it as an investment for the future.’
I immediately shouted.
“Bupa!”
Execute!
[Executed]
[Everything comes with a price]
[In exchange for using the coin, you will not be able to taste anything for seven days]
Wow, the price is steep.
‘Still, a week will pass quickly.’
I smiled at grandmother.
Do you know, grandmother?
‘Lemongrass scent is effective for muscle pain.’
When I got injured while filming a movie, the physical therapy clinic always smelled like this.
‘Even if the effect is minimal, it’s fine.’
The important thing is that this grandmother visits me often.
“How do I deal with this… Huh?”
It seemed the effect was immediate. Grandmother’s eyes blinked.
“Why is there a nice scent?”
Indeed, why?
I stood up, gathering strength in my legs, and reached out to grandmother.
“Baah!”
Grandmother inhaled, trying to find the source of the scent.
Thanks to that, her face got closer.
“Is it coming from you?”
That’s correct.
Grandmother sniffed every nook and cranny of my body.
‘Hmm, you sniff a lot like a dog.’
After sniffing for a while, grandmother stopped at the top of my head.
“It seems to be stronger here.”
Is that so.
With her face so close, I gently touched her cheek with my lips.
“Bpoppo! Bpoppo!”
It means a kiss.
How do you feel, grandmother?
Grandmother’s pupils trembled significantly.
‘No, you should be happy to see this!’
Why are you so surprised?
‘Does she dislike physical affection?’
Even when a cute child gives a kiss?
At that moment,
[Grandmother is pleased with the cute kiss]
[200 Love and Peace Coins have been added]
[Total Coins: 15,457]
Ah, I’m sorry, grandmother.
Who knew you’d be so pleased. Thank you very much for the coins.
“You, what are you doing!”
What do you mean.
“What kind of dirty act is this!”
If I only listened to her words, it would seem like she was scolding me.
But I know.
‘Grandmother, your words and actions don’t match.’
Coins don’t lie.
‘What I need now is speed.’
Since small acts worked, I should deliver a stronger one.
I smiled broadly and kissed her cheek again.
“Byaa~!”
Babbling was an added bonus.
How is it? 1+1 is destructive, right? Even those who wouldn’t buy anything would buy this.
Grandmother’s body trembled. Then she quickly grabbed her cane and stood up to leave.
‘Hmm, seems like it was quite a shock.’
I raised a hand and waved.
“Bye-bye!”
Goodbye, grandmother.
It won’t change immediately.
‘But you will come back.’
Aroma and a cute baby’s charms, how destructive is that!
‘Now that the guest is gone, should I practice?’
I looked at the mirror. Although I felt faint again, I had to train now.
‘Let’s practice expressions!’
Training is the only way to survive!
I looked in the mirror again. In the mirror, there was a baby statue with determined eyes.
* * *
Ma Soo-jung was an honest person. So, President Seo was nervous.
“Soo-jung, how is it?”
She sighed, looking at the ceiling.
“You’re not mad, right?”
“What would you have done wrong for me to be angry here?”
“Ah, right.”
“But I feel a bit twisted inside.”
Ma Soo-jung held all kinds of curses inside.
“I didn’t do anything wrong, right?”
“Right. You didn’t do anything wrong.”
It was actually closer to being a good thing.
“But still, the ‘ss’ sound keeps coming out.”
“Don’t curse, Soo-jung.”
“I’m not. How can I teach Kongja? But still… president.”
The president hung his head.
“Right.”
“People were saying all sorts of things, like whether we shopped for the child.”
“Talking about it hurts.”
Ma Soo-jung leaned back on the sofa. Just thinking about it made her head feel hot.
“I don’t mind the fuss among netizens. The problem is that every program has been mocking me! Oh, I should speak properly.”
Ma Soo-jung tapped her lips with her finger. But she couldn’t take back what she said. The boss nodded.
“Some shows say I should be reported to the police.”
“Wow, that’s crossing the line.”
“I don’t know if it was scripted or their own opinion, but I wanted to shave that guy’s head.”
“Hahaha.”
The boss chuckled weakly.
“And now they’re sugarcoating adoption as something beautiful.”
Ma Soo-jung muttered, looking up at the ceiling.
“Seriously, they’re such dogs.”
“Soo-jung!”
“Oh, sorry for the language. But ‘dog-like’ isn’t too bad, right? Puppies are cute.”
“Well, it’s fine. Just don’t say it outside.”
“I can say it outside. Just not in front of Kongja.”
The boss tilted his head in confusion.
“Really?”
“It’s just frustrating. The public opinion changes just because of paparazzi photos. It’s disgusting!”
Yes, it is disgusting. This world is inherently so. The boss sensed it was time to bring up the main topic.
“So, are you going to refuse?”
Ma Soo-jung smiled brightly.
“Why would I refuse?”
“You’re really going to do it?”
“Yes.”
“Really? You’re going to do the magazine shoot? Soo-jung, you can’t go back on your word.”
“I’m doing it. Boss, I’m Ma Soo-jung.”
The boss nodded vigorously.
‘Our Soo-jung has turned into an angel since adopting a son.’
It was good. Very good, but also a bit puzzling.
‘You usually don’t do things you don’t want to.’
It wasn’t about acting roles. Ma Soo-jung always finished her assigned roles diligently. But she was adamant about refusing anything unrelated to acting.
‘She’s good at premieres, but she turns down hosting gigs right away.’
Even so, the boss expected her to refuse this job.
‘Because she cherishes her adopted son so much.’
He thought she would avoid exposing him.
“Did something change your mind?”
At the boss’s question, Ma Soo-jung tightly closed her lips.
“Oh, you don’t have to answer if it’s hard.”
“It’s not that. I just thought about it after seeing the paparazzi. I don’t eat crap.”
What?
The boss blinked. What was she saying?
“It’s infuriating to be called a dung beetle when I don’t even eat dung. And I can’t avoid it forever.”
Honestly, Ma Soo-jung had been worried.
‘Is it okay for Kongja’s face to be known?’
But that worry was pointless.
‘As long as he’s my son, the paparazzi will keep taking photos.’
Unless they never went outside.
‘But we can’t live like that.’
It’s not like they committed a crime. So they went out, and of course, got photographed.
She hadn’t imagined that it would improve her image.
‘It’s because our Kongja is so adorable.’
Ma Soo-jung propped her chin on her hand. Her son’s cute face lingered in her mind.
‘Kongja, Mommy is thinking hard for you.’
What would be best for you?
‘So, it’s the magazine.’
Ma Soo-jung spoke calmly.
“If we’re going to be photographed anyway, it’s better to do it officially and properly.”
“That makes sense.”
“The problem is the money.”
Ma Soo-jung frowned.
“It’s not much money anyway.”
“It’s not about the amount. That’s just pocket change. I’m Ma Soo-jung. It’s not like I’m short on money.”
The boss blinked.
“That’s true.”
“What to do with that money, that was my concern.”
At first, she thought about opening an account for Kongja and putting it in there.
But was that really necessary?
‘For that pocket change? And the most important thing is our Kongja’s image.’
Ma Soo-jung sighed. The most important thing was this.
* * *
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