Chapter 24: Chapter 24

“Well, it will sell. Let me sell it. Let me get you a good price for your house. When you buy a house next time, try to check whether a wind’s blowing through your house. Choose one located at high ground and avoid one near water. A ferocious spirit comes down from above. You see temples all secluded in the mountains, right?” the broker explained.

“Oh, I understand,” she said.

“Let me tell you something that I don’t tell anybody. When you buy a house, don’t forget to ask how the past owner had lived there. Most probably, he wouldn’t tell you about it. If that’s the case, ask a nearby supermarket employee or the realtor or a neighbor. There is nothing to lose even if you ask that question,” the realtor said.

While listening to his explanation, she got enraged.

She felt she was duped into buying her villa house.

“Why didn’t you tell me in advance that this house was bad?” she protested.

The realtor asked loudly, “Did you ever ask me about it?

“Nope.”

“That’s why I didn’t tell you.”

“How did you know about this?”

“This is what they call geomancy. It’s shared by knowledgeable people only.”

She got angry at that.

Obsessed with the past again, she called Hojoon as soon as she woke up from idle thoughts.

“Hi, Hojoon, sorry to call you so late. I’m curious about something. Why did you buy my house?”

“Pardon? What are you talking about?”

“Well, it suddenly came to my mind. The realtor that I know told me my previous house, Green Villa, was a bad one because the wind was blowing hard over it.”

Could a puff of wind bring about all this misfortune?

Arum was so curious about it.

“Of course, you can’t ignore the wind. It’s called the strength of the wind. You must have heard the classics like <Wuthering Heights> and <Gone with the Wind> right?”

“Yes, I have.”

“See! Just look at how big the women’s storms in their lives were in the novels!”

As he said, there were lots of ups and downs in the lives of those women who couldn’t avoid the wind.

Arum felt as if she was a tragic heroine like those women.

“Then, why did you buy that villa, my previous house?”

Hojoon answered at that, “Because I’m the main character as a man.”

He cracked jokes when she was very serious.

‘Does this guy think he is a prince?’

The moment her good feelings about him were about to disappear, he told the truth, “In the Oriental society, the spirits of yin and yang are different. I’m not talking about yin and yang in terms of a man and a woman. All spirits have their relative yin and yang,” he explained.

“I can’t understand your explanation very well,” she replied.

“Do you still remember the previous owner of your villa? That divorced president.”

“What? How did you know about it?”

“He is my client. Anyway, though he was divorced while he was living there, he made a fortune in business. You didn’t hear that his sales volume was 50 billion won, and that he remarried a young woman twelve years younger than him, right?” he said.

“Oh, this villa must be myongdang, right?” she asked, suggesting that it was a propitious site.

“You’re too obsessed with myondang as a woman who doesn’t believe in geomancy,” he quipped.

Arum was embarrassed by his critical comment.

He continued, “There is something like bibo geomancy, which means that instead of leaving bad things as they are, we fix them for better use. That’s the beauty of the geomancy homegrown in Korea, and that’s why I like geomancy. In other words, there is no permanent myongdang or bad sites from the beginning. Did I answer your question?”

“Got it.” Her reply didn’t sound bright.

Hojoon quickly said, “In fact, I sent you the secret method on the geomancy of love through email. I was going to give you a call on that.”

“Really?”

“Again, let me give you 100 days, starting today.”

“Thanks.”

Quickly hanging up the phone, she confirmed his words through her email.

Like he said, she found the email from him.

‘He assures me I can make Konsu my man again through the secret method of geomancy.’

She was happy just about thinking of that.

‘Yeah, this is the real beginning of my love.’

***

Arum got up very early in the morning, still excited by Hojoon’s email last night.

It was 4:30 AM. She removed bedclothes quickly and took a shower.

“Sorry for waking you up, my lady in the flat below me. I’ve got to go out early.” The sound of her taking a shower was loud enough.

While washing her hair, Arum wished the woman downstairs could experience the spiritual joy of a prayer at dawn.

“Sis?”

Jina turned around and looked at Arum, who was gently patting her on the back.

“What’s the matter with you now?” asked Jina.

Arum, who said she didn’t go to church, came to the church.

“I came here after taking a shower,” Arum said.

“Are you alright?” Jina asked.

“Well, I’ve got something that needs desperate prayers.”

“What is it?”

“I can’t tell you now.”

Dawn prayer was not geomancy. But Arum read somewhere in a self-improvement book that one should start praying at dawn if one had something to pray for desperately.

The book emphasized that one should stay awake to make one’s wishes come true at the spiritual time when the ghost was moving around. That was why monks performed deep bows and pastors prayed during that time.

The secret of the early morning was enjoyed only by those who knew its worth.

Arum decided to be born again as a dawn person rather than a morning person.

After dawn prayer, she went to the office. She decided to fast in the morning. In fact, there was no food in her refrigerator. She couldn’t remember what kind of food she had for the past several days. Konsu was right. While quarreling with her, he once told her that she would not need anything like a kitchen. His prediction was precisely right.

Though she vowed to start her love with Konsu again, she didn’t know his phone number.

She didn’t know if he was hired by the company where he used to work at as an intern or if he left the company.

The worst scenario for Arum would be that he already got married and had a baby.

Based on her instinct, however, Konsu should still be single. She could easily find out if she asked her college alumni, but she didn’t do it for the sake of her pride.

‘Let me count on geomancy.’

After she split with Konsu, she formed a habit.

She made it a rule to answer stranger’s calls or any restricted call.

Even if it was some voice phishing, she would take the risk of being swindled out of her money.

The adverse effect of dawn prayer began to take a toll on her around 10 AM. She not only yawned, but also nodded off with her hand on the computer keyboard.

Even though an assistant wrapped up the news brief and put it on her desk, Arum threw a tantrum at the assistant, complaining that she didn’t bring it yet.

In the meantime, her phone buzzed and then stopped.

As she was dozing off, she didn’t know that she had as many as five calls on her cell phone. She called back one of the numbers that was unfamiliar to her.

When she called the number, there was a prerecorded message coming from it.

<This is Solar Electronics thinking about the world of customers. Please press the button of the person you want to talk to…>

Arum called Jina as soon as she heard the word ‘Solar Electronics.’

“Did you call me?” asked Arum.

“Nope. I’m busy now. Why?”

“Well, I had a missed call from Solar Electronics, so I thought you called me.”

“It’s not me. Did you have your cell phone serviced by our service shop?”

“No. I suspect it’s voice phishing.”

“Call me later, Arum.” She hastily hung up the phone, saying she had to attend a meeting.

***

Saturday morning, which was a dreamy time for all employees.

Arum barely took Jina out to an underground shopping center of the express bus terminal which was crowded with people.

As instructed by Konsu, she visited the place to buy some geomancy items that could make her wishes for love with Konsu come true.

“You’re crazy, Arum. Crazy… Why don’t you buy Konsu’s alter ego?”

“Shut up!”

“It looks like you’re kind of absent-minded because of Konsu these days. Get real!”

“Nope, I’m going to start love with Konsu again. We’re not yet done with our relationship.”

“I wonder if your brain has deteriorated, Arum. Look around yourself. There are so many nice guys around you.”

“I know. Yeah, half the people in the world are men. But there is only one Konsu in the whole world!”

“But you haven’t dated any other man, right?”

“Because they are not Konsu.”

“Enough! If you meet Konsu again, you are not my friend anymore!”