((()))

Originally, Si Hyun didn’t have much interest in things like jewelry or precious metals. Especially for rings, she didn’t wear them at all because she had complex about her rough hands.

Therefore, she thought that she should just keep them as Jeong Im told her to, but Woo Jin disagreed.
“What would you do if you just left what mom gave you thinking about you?”
“Mom told you to keep it well.”
“That’s because you shouldn’t lose it. Don’t you think the person who gave the gift will be satisfied if you wear it and show it when you go to the inlaws occasionally?”
It seemed to make sense when she heard it. However, the design was too old and in the case of the ring, the size didn’t fit at all, so it was not easy to wear as it was. So, she decided to redo the whole setting.

Over the weekend, Si Hyun took the jewels and visited a jewelry shop. It was a place that she purposely searched for and visited because it was famous for resetting.
“I want to change it to a design that can be worn in daily life. In a style that looks a bit young.”
After examining each jewel, the craftsman asked a moment later.
“Is this an item of deep meaning?”
“It’s something that my motherinlaw gave me when I got married.”
The craftsman carefully said.
“If there is not much meaning to the jewel itself, it is not worth spending a lot of money to reset it. Even if we buy it, we can only give you the price of gold. Since the gold price is also 14k, it’s not much, so it’s better to buy new ones.”
At the same time as surprise, her face flushed.
“Is it fake jewelry?”
“It’s not artificial, but it has almost no value.”
Si Hyun didn’t know the reason. She thought that if it was real jewelry, it would be expensive and good.
“First of all, the ruby is what they call filling, it is a ruby that has improved transparency by filling a lowquality ruby with leadglass components. It’s about 1/100 or 1/50 of the general ruby price.”
The craftsman kindly explained each jewel.
“Also, the sapphire is commonly called black sapphire, which was often used by old ladies. It has almost no transparency and the color is dark, so the value as a jewel is low. The pearls are natural pearls, but they have been used for a long time, so the luster has died a lot and there are many scratches. Originally, pearls are a jewel that is hard to pass on.”
Finally pointing to the diamond set, the craftsman spoke as if he was embarrassed.

“And this one is cubic zirconia.”
I felt like my face was on fire. He asked me if I wanted at least the gold value for it, and I literally stormed out.
“I’m sorry to have wasted your time. I’ll be back later.”
I didn’t have high hopes for dowry in the first place. What made me angry was not that the jewelry was worthless, but the feeling of being deceived. If I had just received a simple gold ring, I wouldn’t have been this angry.

Remembering Jeong Im, who put a lot of flair into saying it was something special for me, and Woo Jin, who played along saying that I had hit the jackpot, a hot feeling surged up from inside.

I would have been grateful for a lifetime if I had just kept the jewels without taking them to the jewelry shop, thinking I had received a great treasure.

Fortunately, the sun was setting. It was about time for Soo Yeon’s store to close.

I wanted to throw the jewels into the trash can as they were, but I held back and took a taxi.

It wasn’t long ago that I decided to quit the habit of running away to alcohol when something bad happened or when I had a lot of thoughts. So, I hadn’t drunk alcohol in a while, but today, I couldn’t help but drink.

Soo Yeon would comfort me warmly. Thinking so, Si Hyun headed for Soo Yeon’s store.

((()))

The lights on the store sign were already off, indicating it had closed for business. Through the glass wall, I could see Soo Yeon sitting alone at a table.

Thinking that it wasn’t time to close yet, Si Hyun opened the door and entered.
“Auntie, I’m here.”
“Oh, Si Hyun, welcome.”
Seeing Soo Yeon’s eyes red and swollen, Si Hyun was taken aback. She had been crying.
“What happened?”
Despite repeatedly shaking her head and saying it was nothing, under constant questioning, Soo Yeon finally spoke.
“I think I have to close the store.”
“Why all of a sudden? You were happy about how well the business was going.”
The story Soo Yeon shared through her intermittent tears was as follows:

According to her resident registration, Soo Yeon was declared deceased. Hence, she couldn’t have a mobile phone or a store under her name.

The store was also opened under someone else’s name, and that person had suddenly run away with the store’s deposit overnight. In other words, she had been scammed.
“The landlord said to refill the deposit for the store or vacate it by next week.”

Seeing Su Yeon choking back her tears, Si Hyun was filled with anger, not sorrow.

Su Yeon had been a maid in others’ houses since her twenties. Her life hadn’t been smooth since then. With her status, it would have been difficult to get a decent job; she probably just scraped by with odd jobs.

Such a person had managed to open a store only in her midforties after a lifetime of hardship, and now this…!
“So, what are you going to do now?”
“I have no money, so I have to vacate the store. I can’t keep it under that person’s name anyway.”
Su Yeon tried to smile as if to say not to worry, but her face quickly distorted back into sadness.
“How much is the deposit?”
As if it was a large sum that was even hard to utter, Su Yeon answered with difficulty.
“30 million won.”
It was certain that this money was all of Su Yeon’s savings.

30 million won. The exact amount she was trying to borrow as a bridal gift.

Si Hyun weighed the two people in her heart.

Su Yeon, who warmly embraced her like a mother when she had nowhere to turn in her childhood.

Her future motherinlaw, who handed over an engagement gift that was no better than trash and made a big fuss about it.

The scale quickly tipped to one side. The angry face of Jeong Im flashed for a moment, but it wasn’t scary.

She had long lost the desire to become a beloved daughterinlaw. If there was money to spend on her motherinlaw’s luxury bag, she wanted to help Su Yeon.

The image of Su Yeon handing her a wad of cash, worrying about Si Hyun, who couldn’t even ask her stepmother for money for sanitary pads, even while being driven away, was still vivid.

Si Hyun grabbed Su Yeon’s hand.
“Auntie, I’ll take care of that money for you.”

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