In This Life, The Greatest Star In The Universe

I think it was back in middle school

I once deleted almost 90 percent of the posts I had written after hearing the senior trainees warn that anything left on the internet could come back to haunt me

“Grandma loves America! I want to send her to Hawaii!”

“My grandma really likes Thailand!!! Really.”

“♨(Must read) Please choose me! ☆★”

Those are the kinds of entries I vaguely remember

From a young age my only wish was to send my grandmother on a trip

So whenever I had some money saved up, we’d travel somewhere like Busan together, but I’d never taken her abroad

Of course, now I could send her anywhere with the money I made from my music rights

I could fly her first class if I wanted to

But she stubbornly refused, saying it wouldn’t feel right for me to work so hard and leave her behind

So I figured if I won something on a variety show, she wouldn’t be able to refuse and would have to go

No...

...Or should I just lie and say I won it on a show and send her off?

I quickly shook my head

Because Madam Kim Deok-soon’s supernatural ability would see right through my lie

At the mention of a luxury travel voucher, the guests’ expressions changed

“Director Gu, you should’ve told us this earlier!”

Mr. Woo Jae-yong clicked his tongue

“Then everyone here would’ve worked harder on the first mission”

“Sorry”

“...Hmph, I’m not happy. Anyway.”

When the veteran actor adjusted his glasses, everyone nodded in agreement and got fired up

My teammates were fired up too

Jung-hyun’s parents are in the countryside, Bi-joo’s worked hard caring for a younger sibling, and the maknae... well, she just smiled and said, “Travel voucher... sounds nice”

Then Ri-hyeok whispered to me

“I’ll give you mine if you get one, so send Grandma twice”

“Thanks”

“Ah, don’t touch me”

“......”

I patted him on the shoulder because I was proud of him, and he gently pushed my hand away

Sometimes he’s more like a cat than my brother

As everyone burned with ambition over the travel vouchers, the main PD explained

“Now we’ll move on to the second mission. There is no golden key reward for this mission.”

“What did you say?”

Song Jin-woo of Team B asked in disbelief

“Then how are we supposed to close the gap? We don’t have many keys and we’re already behind.”

“You can worry about that in the final mission.”

Everyone started thinking

The final reward must be huge, or there must be a way to steal keys so the leaders aren’t guaranteed to win

He continued

“Think of the second mission as an extension of the final one. But before we reveal the mission, let’s bring out the villagers.”

About ten villagers appeared from behind the crew

I recognized one of them—Grandma Im Soon-hyun, whom Ri-hyeok and I had helped clean before

“Hey, that’s the grandfather and grandmother Dae-gil raised”

Chun-hyun and the others spotted familiar faces and greeted them

The main PD said

“All right, let’s reveal the second mission.”

At his words, the chief writer spread out a white cloth on which was written in brush calligraphy

[Second Virtue of Filial Piety: Helping with Work]

Someone asked

“But we already helped—with changing lightbulbs and tidying houses.”

“In this case, you will assist the elders with their livelihoods. For example...”

He read from a list

“There’s planting autumn radish seeds in the fields, harvesting apples at the orchard, tasks in the livestock barns, peeling garlic, and so on. If the residents choose you, you’ll go help them.”

“That’s it?”

“Yes—isn’t that true filial piety?”

Everyone looked puzzled as the villager cheerfully spoke

I felt the same

It was a format you often see for rural segments, but something felt off, like there had to be more

Each of us had a VJ shadowing us as the elders began selecting their helpers

“Oh my, aren’t you Dae-gil’s benefactor? You’re with me. Let’s go pick some apples.”

“Hyung, I’ll go.”

“I’m coming too this time.”

As everyone split up, I ended up on a team with the youngest siblings

Strictly speaking, they were scared to go alone on camera and had clung to me

Naturally, I was picked by Grandma Im Soon-hyun

Back at her slate-roofed house, a colorful basin sat in the yard where the Pomeranian Doo-shik hopped around, and woven trays lay beneath piles of garlic

“It looks like a mountain of garlic.”

“A garlic mountain.”

“Oh hey, you wrote that in English without messing up.”

“I know, right. It’s been so long since you sounded like someone with a higher education.”

“What?”

The maknae pouted

“Sometimes I feel like you hyungs think I’m stupid.”

“Name six metropolitan cities.”

“...Grandma! I’ll help you!”

She ran over and helped her grandmother carry the baskets

“She doesn’t seem clueless, does she?”

“She doesn’t.”

“We did a fan signing tour through all the metropolitan cities; how could she not know that?”

“What do you think she was thinking? Probably just ‘Wow, Daegu’.”

That made sense

We helped move the trays, and the VJ adjusted the camera for the lighting as we sat in a circle on bath stools in the yard

“There’s so much garlic, Grandma.”

“Yes, a lot.”

“It might sting our eyes a bit, but it’s better than doing what others make us do.”

“True. It’s not like planting seeds or picking apples in this heat.”

Ri-hyeok asked

“Grandma, what do you use this garlic for?”

“There’s no use for it.”

“...Excuse me?”

“Well, the producers came and asked me to give them something to do. I’d already given them every task I could think of, so I figured since I run a restaurant, I’d think of garlic.”

“Ah.”

I smiled

“But it’s really nice to talk with you, Grandma.”

“Sigh—what’s so nice about talking to an old lady?”

“Really. I grew up with you, so I love hearing your stories.”

“You speak so nicely.”

While we peeled garlic, Grandma began to tell stories I’d heard before

What...?

I’d felt it from the start—every house we visited, the elders said, “Come listen to my story,” and began sharing

At first I thought they were lonely living alone, but maybe they were doing it on purpose

My instincts were buzzing, but I still didn’t know why

As Grandma spoke, I chimed in so she wouldn’t be bored

“I was with my husband in another village back then... when was that?”

“1968, Grandma.”

“That’s right, that’s right. It was all commotion because of armed infiltrators.”

“What are armed infiltrators?”

Our curious maknae asked questions in between

“Well... they were spies who invaded with weapons.”

Ri-hyeok explained the January 21 incident of 1968, and Grandma was impressed

“Oh my, you’re good at cleaning and you know history too. You’re so sharp.”

“He reads a lot of books. That’s why they call him the walking encyclopedia.”

“So smart—did you go to university?”

“No, I only graduated middle school.”

Ri-hyeok was stunned into silence, and I burst out laughing

But Grandma shook her head seriously

“Education doesn’t matter nowadays. Who cares about a diploma? It’s not like success comes from studying anymore.”

“...You’re right, Grandma.”

Ri-hyeok replied politely and shot me a glance; Ji-ho hid behind Grandma

“And with faces like these, you don’t need to study.”

“Really, Grandma?”

The maknae, smiling innocently, looked suddenly enlightened

“Grandma, do you know all the metropolitan cities?”

“Busan, Ulsan, Daegu, Gwangju, Daejeon, Incheon.”

“......”

“That’s common sense. Our Doo-shik knows them too.”

Seeing our maknae equated with a Pomeranian, Ri-hyeok and I grinned and high-fived

We continued chatting with Grandma

“What did you want to do when you were young?”

“Me?”

A shy smile appeared on her wrinkled face

“I wanted to be a singer.”

“Really? You must have been great at singing.”

“In my village, they said ‘If you sing, it’s Im Soon-hyun.’ If I’d married the right person, I’d have gone to Seoul to be a singer.”

I suggested

“Then sing one with us.”

“Ay, I can’t.”

“Mindset is everything. And we’re great at accompaniment. Whatever song you choose, we can play for you.”

“I’m embarrassed.”

“Don’t be, Grandma. My dad says you have to let go of pride to succeed.”

Ri-hyeok, sniffing as he peeled garlic, added

“That’s right, Grandma. Try singing once.”

Grandma Im Soon-hyun hesitated

“I don’t watch TV much, so I don’t know many song lyrics. But I remember a song we sang during jump-rope games when I was a kid.”

“Oh, it must be a children’s song.”

While imagining deer dancing on the mountain slope, Grandma cleared her throat

We clapped to set the mood

“One beat rest! Two beats rest! Three beats rest! One, two, three, four!”

With the pure expression of a young girl, Grandma began to sing

Ah~

Let’s crush the Communist Party~

...Communist Party?

How many millions are there

Koreans march forward like a blade~

We couldn’t help but burst into laughter—real laughter, not just for the show—laughing uncontrollably for a long time

The VJ looked like they might faint

It was perfect broadcast material

Later I learned it was a wartime marching song called “Victory Song” that children played jump-rope to after the Korean War

To think they sang that while playing... those elders really grew up in dynamic times

“I’m tearing up.”

Ri-hyeok wiped his eyes, and I did the same

Grandma looked sheepish

“...Was the song that bad?”

“No, it was wonderful.”

“Let’s sing that as a work song while we peel garlic.”

“Good idea.”

Following her lyrics, we peeled garlic faster

So that’s why farmers sing work songs

Because the work’s done in no time

When we finished sooner than expected and wondered what to do next, I saw Grandma massaging her lower back

“Ouch, my back.”

“I can give you another massage.”

“No need, ah yes that’s good. Not there, lower.”

Meanwhile Ri-hyeok and Ji-ho organized the peeled garlic

Watching the siblings swing their spicy hands at each other like weapons, I laughed

The gate creaked open and a grandmother in fluorescent clothes entered

Grandma Im Soon-hyun greeted her

“Chilseong-dae’s here.”

“She came over from the senior center.”

She looked at us with a warm smile

“You could’ve called if you were surrounded by handsome young men like this.”

“Ah, I forgot.”

Chilseong-dae sat on a yard chair, tilting her head with a gentle smile

“Does a massage feel that good?”

“Try it. It’s unbelievably good. My back’s been killing me. I couldn’t sleep at night, but I napped so well earlier.”

“Really?”

Another grandmother spoke to me

“When you’re done here, do mine too.”

“Woo-joo, I’m fine. Go massage that old woman over there.”

I moved to the next grandmother, asked where it hurt, and focused on massaging that spot

It wasn’t a skill I’d learned for variety shows, but thanks to my ability I could instantly tell where the tension was

So I targeted those areas

“Oh yes, right there. That really hits the spot.”

The result was amazing

She straightened up so elegantly, I felt her posture was even better than before

Chilseong-dae grabbed my hand

“Thank you so much. That felt incredible.”

“I’m glad it helped.”

“I’m the one who’s grateful. I hope I didn’t just cause you trouble by inviting you over.”

“No, not at all.”

As I was about to say that, the grandmother behind Chilseong-dae shook her head at me

I didn’t know why

But I finished my sentence anyway

“I really enjoy giving massages to elders.”

“Oh?”

As Chilseong-dae chuckled, Im Soon-hyun pressed her temple as if in pain

Her reaction confused me, so after she left I asked

“Grandma, why did you do that?”

“Ah, she’s the chattiest person in the village.”

“...Chattiest?”

What did that mean

At the senior center

“Ha ha ha!”

Mr. Woo Jae-yong and Ms. Yang Ok-boon of Ju Se-han’s elder members were chatting with the other seniors

“Call me brother, not teacher. Brother. Ha ha!”

“Oh my.”

Yang Ok-boon peeled a tangerine and made fun of her

“I hope I don’t age like that.”

“Bah, we’re all old together.”

“At least I keep up appearances.”

As they and the other seniors laughed, the door slid open

“Chilseong-dae’s here.”

“I’m here!”

Everyone in the senior center looked surprised, because Chilseong-dae rarely smiled ◆ Nоvеlіgһt ◆ (Only on Nоvеlіgһt) and even the village’s bad goat Dae-gil avoided her

Yet there she was, smiling

Then she spoke

“Sister, why’s your posture so straight today?”

“I got a massage.”

“Massage?”

“Yes, I visited Soon-hyun’s house and there were handsome young men. You know the handsome one among the five?”

“Oh, the one who looks like my grandson?”

“Nonsense, he looks like my grandson.”

“He looked like my son.”

As the highest praise elders could give, they continued complimenting her looks

Then Chilseong-dae began explaining what had happened at that house

A strange energy filled the senior center

“...Do you think we could go get one too?”

“Oh dear, that would be a hassle.”

“Right.”

“No, that young man said giving massages to grandmas is his greatest joy.”

“Ha... still it’d be a bother.”

With that, odd things began happening

“Oh, I think I left the stove on.”

“I need to go chop green onions.”

“I have to call the temple about something...”

As the seniors began to leave one by one, Mr. Woo and Ms. Yang exchanged knowing looks with the VJ

They knew exactly where to go

By the time the sun was setting over the west hills, Yeo Hee-chan, Kim Jung-hyun, and Kim Bi-joo returned from the apple orchard, rubbing their shoulders as they trudged along the dirt road

“Ah, I’m so stiff.”

“Want me to rub it?”

“No.”

Kim Bi-joo shook his head

Kim Jung-hyun, staring blankly, offered Jung-hyun an apple from the farm

“...What is this?”

“A peace offering.”

“What do you mean?”

“I thought you were mad at me for running into the road.”

“Oh.”

“I won’t do anything dangerous again.”

Kim Bi-joo smiled—they were just tired, and he’d misread it

“It’s not that. I’m just tired.”

“Oh, then want me to rub it?”

“No.”

But before he could finish, his friend was already massaging his shoulder

Yeo Hee-chan watched and laughed at how cute they were

“You two really get along.”

“It’s not like that.”

Kim Jung-hyun shook his head

“There’s a lot of nagging, and I’m always walking on eggshells. I even let him win on purpose.”

“Don’t say weird things, Jung-hyun.”

“It’s not weird. Woo-joo hyung agreed with me.”

“He didn’t. Woo-joo hyung told me you’ve worked hard taking care of Jung-hyun.”

“......”

When they realized the truth, they let out a breathless laugh

Yeo Hee-chan chuckled

“Our leader could go into politics, man.”

“You’ve disappointed me, Woo-joo hyung.”

As they joked about their leader, they spotted an open gate in the distance

They passed by and caught a strange sight through the opening

Sun Woo-joo was giving massages to elders while Wang Ji-ho and Seo Ri-hyeok performed like guest singers for the waiting seniors

“......”

The three of them couldn’t make sense of the scene