Cheat day

Pearl

“What are you doing?!”

I shook off Baek Woo-jin.

“I’m hungry, that’s why!” 왜!”

“This.”

We were tugging at the clothes, but surprisingly, the strength is weak.

When I shook it with a bit of force, Baek Woo-jin moved like a dancing balloon puppet.

It’s a bit interesting.

“Stop it!”

“Can’t you just do a little more?”

“I’m dizzy.” I really feel like I’m going to die.

I put down Baek Woo-jin.

“You should exercise a bit.”

“That sound again.” I told you, it’s all because Ji-chan hyung gaslit me.

“No.” If you keep that up, you’ll be just like me when you reach my age.

I said it out of concern, but you act like you didn’t hear it.

I really can’t take it anymore. Let’s eat something quickly. 어? “Hurry.”

“Ji-chan hyung introduced me to a few places.”

I searched for “Jinju” in the message window I had with Cha Ji-chan.

Cha Ji-chan recommended restaurant C, famous for its yukhoe bibimbap, restaurant H, specializing in Jinju cold noodles, restaurant Y, known for its eel dishes, and interestingly, restaurant O, which serves Spanish cuisine.

I checked the clock, and it’s 12:08.

“I want to eat yukhoe bibimbap.”

“They say there are a lot of people here at this time.”

“Then naengmyeon.”

“Let’s go.”

When I searched for H Restaurant on the navigation, several locations came up. Even within Jinju, they have opened a branch like this, so it must really be a popular restaurant.

“Is it the main branch?”

Even if it’s a direct management store, there are people who think you should always go to the main branch for the best food, so I asked.

“I prefer being close.”

You must be really hungry.

I was also starving, so I headed to the nearest Choksokru branch.

Wow. Big.”

I didn’t realize it from the outside, but as soon as I walked in, I was surprised by the size of the store.

Even though there are branches, being able to operate such a large store means that there are many people who visit.

I’m already looking forward to it.

We occupied two seats, one side for the production team and the other for me and Baek Woo-jin.

“I’m mul-naengmyeon.”

Baek Woo-jin spoke urgently.

“Me too, mul-naengmyeon.”

“They say bibim is better.”

I supported bibim naengmyeon during the first Baekban debate.

“Watercress is tastier.”

“Ridiculous.”

“Should we order some meat pancakes?”

“Not meat pancakes, ribs.” Let’s eat galbi.

Baek Woo-jin looked at the menu and said.

I knew that the grilled meat would be served on top of the cold noodles, and having spent the most hungry 18 hours of my life, I didn’t think much about the budget.

First, we need to fill our stomachs before we can think about anything else.

“Please give us two bowls of mul-naengmyeon and two servings of grilled beef short ribs.”

“This side.”

“Are you going to order separately?”

He said while looking at PD Park Sang-cheol.

I was planning to question their conscience if they asked me to buy food for them, but it seems they aren’t that shameless.

“I think I can have lunch twice today.”

One can’t help but nod at Baek Woo-jin’s feeble voice.

I didn’t know this because I’ve never gone this long without eating, but it seems that my hands tremble when I’m hungry.

“Look at me.” I’m so hungry that my hands are shaking. I feel like I’m breaking out in a cold sweat.

Baek Woo-jin looked at me with a blank expression and then widened his eyes.

“Hey, do you have a blood glucose meter?”

Yes. Why?

“Look at the ashes.” It seems like symptoms of hypoglycemia.

“Me?”

“Hurry.”

Come to think of it, I heard what symptoms appear when hypoglycemia occurs when I first went to the hospital.

Since it was similar, I hurriedly checked my blood sugar and it came out to be 57.

“Uh?”

This is the first reading I’ve seen since being diagnosed with diabetes. The number 57 is so unfamiliar that I didn’t even know it was possible.

That’s a relief. I thought the standard for hypoglycemia was 50.

Baek Woo-jin said with relief.

“But it’s a really low figure.” The normal range is between 60 and 120.

Wow. I thought I was acting like this because I was hungry. If it weren’t for you, it would have been a big problem.

“Eat it all.” 어? You can eat sweets now. No, you have to eat.

“……Really?”

If I had a dream, it would be to have hypoglycemia symptoms come and eat all the food I couldn’t eat until now.

Unlike the fake hypoglycemia I experienced last time, my blood sugar is actually low now, so I’m planning to eat to my heart’s content today.

Is it because of low blood sugar?

Or perhaps it was because I was increasingly anxious to finally indulge the appetite I had been suppressing all this time, and finally, the food arrived before me.

The employee is filling the table, and it’s driving me crazy.

I can’t keep my mouth shut.

“What kind of naengmyeon place serves side dishes like this?”

“Exactly.”

The side dishes were so plentiful that you would believe it was a full-course meal.

Buckwheat jelly with seasoned vegetables, kimchi, jeon, and salad.

Above all, the blood soup is exquisite.

Wow. Try the soup. “This is really amazing.”

“Hee hee.”

Baek Woo-jin was almost crying as he picked up the side dishes to eat.

“Naengmyeon is served.”

There isn’t even enough space to put down the cold noodles.

The pearl cold noodles precariously placed at the end of the table looked abundant and refreshing just by looking at them.

On the clear broth, slices of meat and egg crepes are generously piled up.

Red, yellow, and even green colors are all together, making it look delicious just by appearance.

“I will eat well.”

Before mixing the noodles, I first gulped down the broth.

The cool sensation traveling down the esophagus and the savory taste lingering in the mouth make the long journey to Jinju feel worthwhile.

“It looks like they’re really making meat broth here.”

Baek Woo-jin is also impressed.

As far as I know, cold noodle restaurants usually add sweeteners to the commercially available broth, but if the broth is this clear and flavorful, even if they use sweeteners, it must definitely be meat broth.

The flavor is that rich.

“Mm.”

This time, I put in a lot of noodles.

I used to really dislike the chewy texture of the buckwheat noodles, but the noodles here are excellent.

It doesn’t taste tough, but it has a wonderful buckwheat aroma, and I’m really satisfied.

“It’s hot.”

The moment the staff member introduced the beef short ribs, I fell in love.

The copper-toned skin, so lushly ripe, and the yellow wrap skirt tied around the waist are so violently striking.

It is healthier and more vibrant than any beef short ribs I’ve ever encountered.

I dashed across the brightly shining white pebbles, drawn by the laughter of the brown-skinned ribs, and brought the chopsticks to my mouth.

“Mm.”

“It’s delicious!”

Baek Woo-jin closed his eyes and shuddered.

I cut the pineapple into small pieces and ate it with ribs and onions, and my mouth went wild.

The sweet juice of the pineapple begins to dance as it meets the juices of the beef ribs.

The combination of meat, fruit, and onions, with the changing texture with each bite, is also a work of art.

Baek Woo-jin is dancing the samba while sitting.

“This place is really delicious.” Right.

“Exactly.” Wow. “Is it okay if I eat more here?”

“If you use ribs like this, it seems like they really make the broth with the meat.” I’ll bring the meat. Brother, Brother, Are you listening?

Pretending to nod, he slurped up the noodles.

Please provide the text you would like to have translated.

I wanted to eat another bowl of naengmyeon, but there are just too many good restaurants in Jinju.

Unlike in Gangneung and Gyeongju, the budget was ample, so I put down my chopsticks with the intention of visiting other places.

“It’s 58,500 won.”

The moment I start calculating, I realize I’ve made a mistake.

Now that I’m full, I’m starting to worry about the budget, but I really indulged by spending 58,500 won on a single meal.

“Still, I have 200,000 won today.”

“Because it’s there~”

Even if there are places left to go, there is enough money in hand to resolve it.

“Then how about we take a walk to help with digestion and head to the C cafeteria after lunch time?”

“Agreed.” I want to go, but…

“Where?”

“Jinju Fortress.”

“Where is that place?”

“Do you know the story of Nongae?” It happened there.

“Ah.”

It is the story of a hero who embraced an enemy general and jumped into the Nam River during the Imjin War.

“I thought I could use it in a novel later, so I wanted to check it out.”

“Okay.” Let’s go.

Anyway, the producers hardly decide anything for the show.

Wherever I go, I can eat whatever I want, so there’s no pressure.

“Are we close?”

Yes. Very close. It’s only a few minutes on foot.

“Then let’s walk.” I don’t know how the parking lot will be.

Slowly, I moved my feet, feeling the spring breeze of the Nam River.

As Baek Woo-jin said, after walking a bit, Nongae Road appeared, and the castle began to come into view straight ahead.

As soon as you go up the slope, pay the entrance fee, and step inside, Choksukru is right there.

In front of Rue, the shoes that people had taken off were neatly arranged.

Baek Woo-jin and I also took off our shoes and climbed up Choksokru, and the open view and cool breeze naturally lifted our spirits.

“Wow.”

“Good.”

Spring has fully arrived, and although it felt a bit hot after coming south, here a cool breeze is blowing.

The cameraman, perhaps captivated by the scenery, captured the Namgang River on camera, while PD Park Sang-cheol and the writer went down to Chokseokru.

Since Baek Woo-jin also showed interest, I followed him down, and then Jinju Uiam appeared.

This place seems to be where Nongae defeated the enemy general.

Baek Woo-jin looked around and wrote something, then fully enjoyed the breeze of the Namgang River before moving on to slowly inspect the interior of Jinju Fortress.

After about 1 hour and 30 minutes of sightseeing, I saw Y Restaurant across the back gate.

It is a three-story building with a tiled roof, making it a structure that harmonizes well with Jinju Fortress.

“Uh.”

“Why?”

“Hey, Ji-chan recommended it.” They say eel is delicious.

“Eel?”

Baek Woo-jin’s eyes sparkled.

“Shall we eat?”

“This route is just too perfect.” “Of course, you have to eat.”

“Right?”

I walked enough to digest my food.

In the first place, naengmyeon wouldn’t fill me up, so I opened the door to Y Restaurant without hesitation.

The interior is quite clean.

I hung up the lanterns, and it seems like they match the atmosphere since there’s a lantern festival at Jinju Fortress.

“Let’s see.”

There are sea eels and freshwater eels. Which one is tastier?

“Freshwater is tastier.” Look, it’s more expensive.

Grilled sea eel is 24,000 won per serving, and grilled freshwater eel is 32,000 won per serving.

Um. Then should we order two servings of freshwater?

“How about one freshwater and one saltwater?”

“Okay.”

“Boss, please give us one freshwater and one seawater.”

After placing the order, I examined the interior of the restaurant more closely. The introduction stating that they have been in business since 1972 is impressive.

I heard that restaurant C, famous for its yukhoe bibimbap, has been around for over 100 years, and it seems that Jinju has many establishments with long-standing traditions.

How long has it been since I had naengmyeon, and I’m already hungry again?