Cheat day

Tired People and Depressed People (1)

I packed two pickaxes and shovels and put on gloves.

“We need to work quickly.”

Joo Jiseung clapped his hands and picked up a shovel.

“Let’s get started. What about the side dishes?”

“I’ll take the shovel.”

“Then I guess Woojin and I will do the pickaxing.”

“The pickax won’t go in.”

Baek Woojin struck the field, but it only went in a little at the front. After struggling to pull it out, he struck again, and this time it was effective.

“Be careful of the rocks. If they fly out, it could be a disaster.”

“Stay a bit further back, hyungs.”

“This pickax is going to take longer, isn’t it?”

Joo Jiseung said.

“Should we just sprinkle the fertilizer while you two work for a bit?”

“Let’s do that.”

As I looked around for where the fertilizer was, I saw Shim Cheong pushing a wheelbarrow with two bags of fertilizer.

“I’ll bring it over.”

“No, no, we’ll do it ourselves.”

“If you’re helping us, we should do at least this much.”

“Oh, come on.”

While we were arguing and moving the fertilizer bags, Cha Jichan was teasing Baek Woojin again.

“Come on, hold your position like this. You need to stimulate your forearms and lats.”

“Stop talking nonsense and just hurry up!”

“Hurrying isn’t the most important thing. You need to feel the stimulation with the correct posture for it to be effective.”

“Oh, really! My grandma never did this with my mom! Can you just be quiet for a second?”

“This is all for your benefit.”

“So what!”

“Be quiet. You’re being a nuisance.”

“You’re going to wake Heungbu.”

As Joo Jiseung and I tried to intervene, they stopped talking and started playfully shoving each other until Baek Woojin got pushed away.

“How do we sprinkle this?”

“You have to remove the covering material first before sprinkling it. Like this.”

“Speaking of which, there’s plastic here?”

“There are onions under it.”

“Ah, have you already planted them?”

“Yes. We can’t let them freeze, so we laid down the covering. Now we have to remove it, sprinkle fertilizer, and cover it again.”

There seemed to be more work than I expected.

First, removing the covering was already making my back ache. I worried that if I sprinkled the fertilizer and dug with the shovel, I’d be completely exhausted tomorrow.

“Phew.”

After removing some of the covering and straightening my back, a sigh escaped me.

“Now we just need to put fertilizer into the spreader and spray it, but don’t sprinkle too much in one spot.”

“Isn’t a lot of nutrients a good thing?”

“If there’s too much nitrogen, it can cause disease. You also can’t store it for long.”

“Oh.”

Just like how people can develop diabetes, it seems plants shouldn’t have excess nutrients either.

Shim Cheong operated the spreader.

I felt a bit pressured, thinking that if I messed up, it could ruin the farming.

“Is this how you do it?”

I mimicked the action without actually starting the machine, and Shim Cheong nodded.

Carefully, I continued to spread the fertilizer, soon catching up with Cha Jichan and Baek Woojin.

“Wow.”

Baek Woojin looked at me in disbelief.

I was backlit, so it was hard to see, but even though it was still February, sweat was pouring down my face.

“What is it?”

“It looks so easy. I want to do that too.”

“If you’re going to do it so easily, come out for training tomorrow.”

“What are you talking about? We still need to remove all the plastic and cover it again. Plus, we have to shovel!”

“…No matter how I think about it, you seem to have it easier.”

“You can suffer a little.”

Cha Jichan scolded Baek Woojin.

“But you said it was hard too.”

“Hard work is good. Think of how much muscle I’ll build doing this!”

It had been a long time since Cha Jichan had seen any increase in muscle mass.

Sure, he could probably gain more, but if his muscles got any bigger than they already were, it would look quite ridiculous.

“I’m really tired. Switch with me.”

“Okay. Ask Shim Cheong how to do it. If you give them too much fertilizer, you’ll ruin the farming.”

“Got it.”

I grabbed the pickaxe.

***

“Haah. Haah.”

Had about three hours passed?

We were making better progress than expected.

Thanks to Park Heungbu managing the drainage a bit, aside from the initial access point, we only had to fix some areas that were collapsing or blocked.

We almost stayed up all night without finishing the work.

Still, my back was sore, and I figured I’d be in for some serious pain when I woke up tomorrow.

“Have a snack.”

Shim Cheong brought a large tray filled with various items.

The menu included roasted sweet potatoes, kimchi, and fish cake soup.

“Thank you.”

“Wow. I feel like it’s been 300 years since I sat down.”

Baek Woojin sat down dramatically.

He blew on the roasted sweet potatoes to cool them down and peeled them before offering them to me.

“I’m fine. You should eat them, Changyong.”

“Just try it.”

After smiling and encouraging him once more, he took a bite and nodded.

“Should I peel some for you too?”

“Move aside, will you? Do you think I have no hands?”

“Didn’t you say it would only take an hour or two?” PD Ahn Sang-kyu asked, only to provoke Cha Jichan’s anger.

“How much work do we have left?” Joo Jiseung asked after sipping some oden soup.

“No, you can eat and go. You’ve done everything you needed to do with your husband today.”

“It’s fine. Since we’re here, let’s finish everything. Why not?”

Shim Cheong shook her head.

“You’ve done so much already. Thank you very much.”

Shim Cheong bowed her head.

In surprise, we also bowed our heads and thanked her, which made her smile slightly.

“Farming like this has always been my dream, but my husband has really struggled with it. Imagine a man who used to work in an office suddenly having to farm overnight; it must have been tough.”

It seemed she hadn’t always been a farmer.

“He used to love going out and having fun, but now he’s always getting his hands dirty. I feel both grateful and guilty.”

“How did you start your YouTube channel?”

“There was nothing to do here. I told him if he was bored, he might as well try that. I said he could earn some pocket money.”

Shim Cheong smiled softly.

“At first, he wasn’t interested, but I guess he got bored. He set up his phone and started mumbling to himself. When he got a few comments, he was so happy. When he hit 1,000 subscribers, he tossed aside his equipment and celebrated with a glass of makgeolli.”

The expression on her face showed it was a happy memory.

“But lately, he’s been feeling a bit down. The subscribers weren’t increasing, and the comments weren’t as lively as before. Then, after he appeared on Changyong’s broadcast a little while ago, the subscribers suddenly shot up.”

The Heungbu channel, which had 10,000 subscribers when Baek Seung-yong was selling lunch boxes, grew to 30,000 due to the promotional effect, and after my recent phone appearance, it now had 48,000 subscribers.

The “Be Happy” event might have contributed, as views and comments increased significantly.

“He was so happy. He’ll be so surprised when he wakes up in the morning.”

“You have to film that reaction well!” Baek Woojin emphasized.

“Yeah.”

Shim Cheong nodded with a smile.

“Now that you’ve done everything you needed to do today, I think it’s time to go out and enjoy ourselves for the first time in a while. Thank you so much.”

As the chilly weather gradually cooled the sweat on my body, her words of gratitude warmed my heart once again.

“The sweet potatoes are really delicious.”

Cha Jichan, perhaps feeling awkward after receiving the thanks, brought up the sweet potatoes.

“Yeah, they really are.”

***

I’ve been waking up at 5 AM for seven years, but I still can’t get used to it.

Especially when it’s cold like this, I don’t want to get out of my blanket; every morning feels like a test.

I really wish I could sleep for just one or two more hours, but somehow, I manage to get up.

As I change my clothes, I can’t help but sigh while recalling the many tasks I have to accomplish today.

When will I get all of this done? When the sun sets, I’ll be exhausted and unable to do anything, and I can’t help but wonder if my life is meant to flow like this.

It’s frustrating.

But if I don’t do those tough tasks, isn’t Cheong going to have to do them instead?

That hand, which was dirty and calloused when we first met, will only get worse if I don’t help.

If I move, at least Cheong can suffer a little less.

“Ugh.”

Still, maybe it’s not so bad now that I’ve discovered the joy of harvesting and selling something I’ve grown with my own hands.

However, I miss the days when we could go to movies, eat delicious food, go for drives, and do things together like when we were dating.

“Cheong-a.”

After washing my face and brushing my teeth, I found that Cheong was still asleep.

On a normal day, the person who would be scratching their messy hair and cooking kimchi stew is fast asleep, snoring away without a care in the world.

Since she looks unwell, I’ll let her sleep a little longer today.

“Let’s see…”

As I head to the kitchen to prepare breakfast, I find that there are no sweet potatoes left for today.

There were at least twenty, but now there’s not a single one in sight.

I guess I have no choice but to boil some oden instead.

“Huh.”

When I opened the refrigerator, there was no oden either. I was looking forward to the Busan fish cakes, but they seem to be completely gone.

With no other options, I poured some oil into the frying pan, cracked four eggs, and scrambled them.

For breakfast today, I’ll make do with kimchi, seaweed, and scrambled eggs.

I took some frozen rice out of the freezer, heated it in the microwave, set the table, and brought it back to my room.

“Cheong-a. Wake up.”

“Ummm.”

“Wake up. It’s time to eat.”

“Uhhh.”

This isn’t like her to whine like this.

I’m worried she might be sick.

I got closer and placed my hand on her forehead, but she swatted my hand away irritably.

“Are you in pain?”

“Ummm.”

“Do you have a cold?”

No answer.

“Cheong-a.”

“Haa. What time is it?”

“It’s 5:30. You’re late.”

“You should sleep more.”

Cheong let out a sigh and went back to sleep.

“We need to spread the fertilizer today. And we still have to finish the drainage.”

“You don’t have to do it.”

“What do you mean I don’t have to? Come on. If you don’t want to work, just eat your breakfast. I’ll do it myself.”

Just as I was finishing my meal, Cheong quietly sat up.

Sure, everyone has days when they feel tired for no reason and everything feels like a chore.

Looks like I’ll be doing this alone today.

“After you eat, just soak the stuff in water. I’ll clean up when I come back for lunch.”

“Where are you going?”

“Oh, just to work.”

Cheong rubbed her eyes and got up, grabbing her coat.

“You said to eat and rest.”

“Oh, I’ll handle it myself. Just take care of your own stuff.”

Why is she being so sensitive today?

“Oh… that’s not it?”

“What do you mean that’s not it?”

“It’s nothing. Isn’t it?”

“What’s what? If you’re going out, then hurry up.”

“Do I really not need to eat?”

“I said I’ll take care of it, so stop asking.”

Cheong hit me lightly on the back.

What a strange thing.

Unable to bear the nagging, I stepped outside and noticed something odd.

“Huh?”

The areas where I needed to work on the drainage were all fixed.

It even looked like new, covered with protective material.

“Huh?”

Surprised, I turned around to see Cheong holding her phone and snickering.

“What’s going on?”

“What do you mean?”

“No, why is everything done?”

“Don’t you know?”

“Huh?”

Not believing it, I walked a bit further and saw that the area where we planted onions and garlic was all taken care of.

“Cheong-a! What is this?”

“What’s what? I don’t know.”

“No, this is all done, isn’t it? Huh?”

“Then does that mean we can take the day off?”

“Huh?”

“Want to go on a date?”

Surprised, I turned around and saw Cheong beaming with a big smile.