I Became the Loan Shark Queen’s Grandson!
Chapter 21
September 1996.
Jo Sun-ja’s office.
I opened the envelope.
Inside were a loan agreement, joint guarantor documents, a promissory note, and a photograph of the debtor.
The faint smell of old paper spread through the room, making the atmosphere feel even heavier.
Whenever my fingertips brushed against the edges, I could feel the dry, crisp texture.
The musty scent unique to documents that had been stored for years reached my nose.
Only the sound of turning pages broke the silence.
[Han Mi-suk]
·
Current Assets: 0 won
·
·
Current Loans: 120 million won
(Hospital bills and living expenses)
·
·
Repayment Ability: Below 15%
·
·
Monthly Repayable Amount: 100,000 won
·
·
Trustworthiness: 97%
·
So now I can see the status window even through a photograph.
That was surprising.
Again.
And definitely useful.
Trustworthiness: 97%.
She clearly intends to repay. I just need to change the method.
My maternal grandmother, Jo Sun-ja, didn’t miss the change in my expression.
Her glasses rested near the tip of her nose as she raised only her eyes and stared straight at me.
Her gaze was sharp, but there was warmth in it too.
It felt like she was testing me while also surrounding me with protection.
As if she could judge what answer I would give from a single look.
For a brief moment, the room became even quieter.
I could almost hear only my own heartbeat.
“Judging by your expression, you already have a rough picture in your head.”
Grandmother’s voice was low.
“Taesan, what are you planning to do?”
I gave a short nod without taking my eyes off the records.
“First, I want to meet the debtor, Ms. Han Mi-suk.”
Grandmother nodded too.
“Seeing the situation yourself is the most accurate way to judge it.”
I put the documents back into the envelope and slipped it into my bag.
My fingers felt slightly stiff.
Even the sound of the papers rubbing together seemed louder than usual.
The zipper closing on the bag sounded strangely heavy.
Almost as if the weight of this entire case had been sealed inside.
I looked briefly at the hand resting on my bag.
Then clenched it into a fist.
I knew I could waver if I didn’t make up my mind properly.
“All right. Go.”
Grandmother continued without taking her eyes off me.
“You’re right. It’s better to talk face-to-face. I already considered it money we probably couldn’t recover, so don’t push yourself too hard.”
“Grandma, I don’t think there’s such a thing as money that can never be recovered. People fail because all they do is scream at debtors to repay. I’m going to make it possible for them to repay. If you look hard enough, there’s always a way.”
Even I had to admit that my confidence was practically touching the sky.
But...
This case really did look difficult.
Why?
She had absolutely no assets.
And the only joint guarantor was her husband, who had cancer.
I stopped breathing for a moment and thought.
This was exactly the kind of problem that couldn’t be solved through simple arithmetic.
But that didn’t mean I could back away.
Why would Grandma...
Lend private money to someone like this?
And unlike ordinary loan sharks, why hadn’t she threatened or pressured the debtor when repayment stopped?
Scenes of loan sharks harassing desperate borrowers flashed through my mind.
But the woman sitting before me had clearly walked a different path.
Without realizing it, I looked at the back of Grandmother’s hand.
It was calloused and deeply wrinkled with age.
I already knew the road those hands had traveled hadn’t been ordinary.
“You’re wondering why I just left this debt alone?”
As expected, Jo Sun-ja was quick.
“That’s right.”
My answer was short, but my throat suddenly felt dry.
I swallowed and acted casual.
Inside, possibilities and guesses were crashing through my thoughts like waves.
“For the first two years, no matter how difficult things became, she always paid the interest on time.”
“Ah, I see.”
The moment I nodded, something in my chest loosened slightly.
She hadn’t completely collapsed.
That alone felt like a tiny light in the darkness.
“To tell you the truth, when I lent her the money, I already knew there was a good chance I’d never recover the principal.”
“Really?”
My voice rose.
The surprise showed clearly on my face.
I never imagined Grandmother would say something like that.
For a moment, my entire understanding of what a “loan shark” was began to shake.
The person in front of me wasn’t merely a cold lender who only calculated profit.
She had seen someone’s tears and circumstances and still made her decision.
As expected, Grandmother was different from an ordinary loan shark.
“It was pitiful. She came here crying, begging me to save her husband. She even dropped to her knees.”
“You’re softer than you look, Grandma. Hahaha!”
“Do I look soft to you?”
“Aren’t you?”
“Taesan, I can be much harsher and more ruthless than you think.”
That was probably true too.
She had said it casually.
But there was strange firmness at the end of her voice.
My smile stiffened.
My chest tightened again.
“Grandma.”
“Hmm?”
“Don’t you need a housekeeper?”
“A housekeeper?”
“If she can’t pay the interest anymore, she can work it off with her body.”
At an ordinary private lending office, especially if the debtor was a woman, they might threaten her into working at a bar or selling her body.
But we didn’t do that.
“I thought about making her work too. But how am I supposed to drag a woman away when she’s caring for her dying husband? I can make her work after he dies. There are plenty of ways. I could marry her off to some wealthy old man or something.”
