How can we revitalize traditional markets?
Support for digital sales integration!
Promoting nearby tourist attractions!
Attracting youth entrepreneurship!
Introducing local currency…!
These were mostly policies already being implemented.
Even so, it was difficult to prevent the decline of markets.
There was no single definitive answer.
Each market required an approach tailored to its unique characteristics.
And Kang Jiwoo managed to do just that.
“Three thousand won per piece~!”
“Pick one for a thousand won~!”
“Please, no fighting! Take turns and be considerate~!”
The Dongmyo thrift market was experiencing unprecedented prosperity.
“Wow, look at all these people.”
“I knew it would be crowded, but this is beyond expectations…”
“It’s so packed, there might be an accident!”
The sheer crowd made people fear for safety.
This bustling scene was the ripple effect of Kang Jiwoo’s visit.
“So, all these people came here for the Dongmyo ‘veteran look’ trend?”
“Amazing, even YouTubers seem to be here.”
The evidence was clear: a noticeable increase in young visitors.
Kang Jiwoo’s main supporters were in their 20s and 30s.
Initially, male followers were dominant, but recently, female support surged,
thanks to the popularity of his cute shorts and trending challenges.
Even younger visitors flooded the market.
“Sojin, hold onto mom’s hand tightly! If you get lost, it’ll be a disaster!”
“I know. You hold my hand too, Mom. You’re terrible with directions.”
“W-well… you’re not wrong…”
Kang Jiwoo’s friend, Lee Sojin, also visited the market.
She had fallen in love with Dongmyo fashion.
Sojin wasn’t the only child drawn to the market.
“This place is truly special! You said its name was Dongmyo?
It definitely lives up to its reputation as a fashion mecca!”
Choi Lisa, an English kindergarten student, visited the market with her mom.
Many other young girls also begged their moms to take them to Dongmyo.
Conversely, many mothers willingly brought their kids,
hoping to dress them up like Kang Jiwoo.
The merchants were astonished.
“Goodness. Why has it gotten so crowded?”
“I’ve never seen it this busy since I started my business.”
“We might have to close early today!”
They were busier than ever, yet their faces beamed with joy.
“How much is this?”
“Five thousand won!”
“Then I’ll take these, too!”
“Let’s see… This was originally 26,000 won, but I’ll give it to you for 20,000!”
“Wow! Thank you so much!”
In high spirits, the merchants even slashed prices generously.
Dongmyo Market had a heartwarming day like no other.
“Alright, everyone, let’s have a drink!”
The merchants, who wrapped up their businesses early, gathered at a barbecue restaurant.
Sitting around a round table with a glass of makgeolli and some leftover meat, they felt elated from selling out their goods and the cool, pleasant weather.
It was a perfect day—except for the political news.
“So Cho Seyoung’s gone mad with power and is purging his close aides.”
“That’s good news! This means Yoo Hangcheol will rise to first place now!”
“Hmph. I still don’t know what that Yoo Hangcheol guy is even doing.”
“What? Didn’t you say you were voting for Yoo Hangcheol? Changed your mind already?”
Most merchants, being older, tended to support Yoo Hangcheol.
However, as fitting the label of a historically unlikable election, many weren’t entirely fond of him either.
“There’s just something about him that rubs me the wrong way.
All he does is make crude remarks, it’s so undignified!”
“Still, you’re not planning to vote for Cho Seoyoung, are you?”
“Tch. Of course not, but still…”
As voices grew louder, suddenly—
Honk!
The roar of an engine and a loud horn interrupted the conversation.
The market’s iconic “Tom Cruise,” a dashing biker, had arrived.
“Merchants, I need your help with something.”
“What’s going on now?”
“I need to put up a banner, but I’m short on hands.”
Merchants familiar with Tom quickly stepped in to help.
The banner he brought was surprising.
“Huh? Isn’t this…”
“That kid again?”
“Why is Tom the one bringing this?”
It was Kang Jiwoo’s new banner.
“I joined the party. When I heard they were changing banners,
I rushed to pick it up myself.”
“Wait, you joined the party? Even you’ve switched sides, Tom?”
“Hold it tight at the ends. We’re putting it between the tree and that utility pole.”
“Geez…”
The banner was quickly put up.
Since they were merchants, their hands were swift and precise, so it wasn’t a difficult task.
By the time they finished, people had gathered around.
“So cute~.”
“The photo came out well, but the real thing was even cuter.”
“Right? I wonder if that little kid will come again. I’d love to see them.”
The merchants smiled warmly as they looked at the banner.
It wasn’t just because of their fond memories of Kang Jiwoo but also because the banner itself was of high quality.
“Being the only kid among them, they really stand out!”
All the other candidates for the election were over 40 years old.
Having an elementary school student among adults was enough to grab attention.
On top of that, the overwhelming cuteness was on full display.
“Hahaha. What were they thinking, doing the flower pose for the picture? Even their actions are adorable!”
The pose was unique—hands cupped around the face with a bright smile.
“I hope this stays up for a long time. Just looking at it makes me happy.”
“Seeing it after work will surely take away all my fatigue!”
A presidential candidate whose face alone was like public welfare!
The compliments didn’t stop.
Feeling proud, Tom shouted to the merchants, “Thanks to Kang Jiwoo, today was a great day! Don’t you all agree?”
“Of course, it was great!”
“There were so many customers today!”
“At first, I thought something major happened at our shop, but it turned out to be all customers!”
The merchants’ faces lit up with joy.
For them, nothing was better than a successful day of business.
“How many of those politicians who claim they’ll revitalize the market have actually done anything? Every election, the Republican guys show up with empty promises, but what have they done for our market?!”
“Absolutely nothing!”
“The only one who truly helped us is Kang Jiwoo! Unlike the others who only run their mouths, they actually get things done!”
“Exactly!”
Dongmyo’s very own Tom Cruise raised his hand high.
He stretched out his fingers to show the number five.
“If you’re from Dongmyo, vote for candidate number five, Kang Jiwoo!”
“Kang Jiwoo! Kang Jiwoo! Kang Jiwoo…!”
The merchants began chanting Kang Jiwoo’s name.
This was a region where over half had been loyal supporters of Yoo Hangcheol.
Now, it seemed like over half had become Kang Jiwoo supporters.
—
Wadadada.
As soon as they entered the house, they rushed to the TV.
Han Seoyoung sternly said, “Candidate? What’s the first thing you’re supposed to do when you get home?”
“Oh, right… I need to wash my hands…”
“Hurry up and wash your hands first.”
“Yes…”
Today, Han Seoyoung didn’t seem in a good mood.
She was probably exhausted from overwork.
With the poll numbers rising, the pressure must be immense.
Not to mention, the recent negative attacks and internal disputes were relentless.
Even with controlled media, they vaguely knew what was going on.
Hearing party members talk at the office gave them an idea.
“Did you brush your teeth too?”
“Yes, I brushed my teeth earlier!”
“Did you finish everything you were supposed to today?”
“Yes…”
“Are you sure?”
“I really practiced a lot…”
“Then you’re allowed to watch Tanniping.”
“Thank you~!”
Excited, they ran to the living room.
They jumped onto the sofa with a bounce and picked up the remote.
The sequence of buttons was second nature by now.
Love Heochuping Time!
Heochuping.
My life, my death, my light, my darkness, my everything!
Darn it.
Heochuping, why are you so cute?!
“Eat the kimbap I packed. Don’t drink too much soda.”
“Yes!”
“I’ll be in my room. Call me if you need anything.”
Han Seoyoung carried a stack of documents into her room, probably to work on something.
This was pure, uninterrupted Heochuping time.
“I’ve seen this episode… I’ll watch the next one~.”
While fiddling with the remote, they accidentally pressed the wrong button.
Heochuping disappeared, and the news started playing.
“Gasp.”
News was banned for them.
Han Seoyoung and the party members wouldn’t let them watch it.
That was because the news often broadcast unfiltered negativity.
“Wait… that’s me!”
Normally, I would’ve changed the channel right away.
But the news was talking about me, so I froze.
“The rise of candidate Kang Jiwoo is remarkable. Predictions suggest they might soon surpass candidate Yoo Hangcheol…”
On the screen, campaign clips of me were playing as reference material.
‘Stop watching!’
“Hehe. Thanks for the compliment~”
But my body wouldn’t listen.
I was completely fixated on seeing myself on TV.
“I’m an influencer! That’s why I’m on TV~”
‘Stop watching already! This is that sleazy commentator’s program!’
The problem was that this news program featured Gansina as a regular panelist.
According to party members, he’s been throwing out relentless negative commentary every day.
Sure enough, it didn’t take long for Gansina to speak.
“Kang Jiwoo has uploaded yet another video playing up their cuteness. Pretending to have a lisp and acting all adorable, huh?”
“I’m not pretending to be cute…”
I do have a lisp.
I swear, I’ve never deliberately slurred my pronunciation.
If anything, the way I bawled my eyes out in that chick-chick video speaks to my sincerity.
“Calling an influencer an inful-lung-seu? Even kindergarteners can pronounce better than that these days.”
His jab at my pronunciation made my body shrink back.
Carefully, I tried practicing.
“In… inf-lu-rung-seo…”
Nope, not happening.
My tongue is way too short.
“Everyone can tell you’re deliberately slurring your speech to seem cute. Some people even suspect you’re faking low intelligence. Kang Jiwoo is the sole reason politics has sunk to this level. Honestly, it’s disgusting.”
Excuse me?
Disgusting?
Can a fellow politician even say something like that?
“…Dis-cute-ing?”
Fortunately, Jiwooping didn’t seem to know what the word meant “disgusting”.
But they did pick up that it was an insult from the tone.
Click.
I changed the channel.
I wasn’t in a good mood.
Grabbing the corners of my drooping lips, I quickly brought out a toy.
“Dolly…”
Pink dolphin Dolly.
I stood her in the corner.
Around her, I arranged 100-won and 500-won coins in a circle.
“The coins are the bad pings…”
When toys were scarce, anything on the table could serve as a substitute.
Surrounded by coins, Dolly trembled and begged.
“Save me…”
But the coins were merciless despite her pitiful pleas.
“No way! You’re a liar!”
“You don’t even deserve to be president!”
“Stop pretending to be cute! You’re not cute at all!”
“Hiyeee…”
Poor Dolly couldn’t even resist.
As I played like that, tears welled up for some reason.
I rubbed my eyes and continued the game.
It was time to change the mood.
“I’m Clockping! Dolly is my friend! Come at me, bad pings! Bam! Bam! Bam!”
“Argh!”
“So strong!”
“Run away!”
With Clockping’s heroic appearance, Dolly found happiness again.
In this game, I was Dolly.
And Clockping was probably Han Seoyoung.
“…”
For some reason, I suddenly felt lonely and shot up from my seat.
I wanted to run into Han Seoyoung’s arms.
“Siljangping…”
“I’m telling you, there’s no position I can guarantee for you right now. All the other party members are in the same situation…”
Han Seoyoung was busy on the phone.
Her voice was raised, so I couldn’t interrupt her.
In the end, I went back.
“…”
The living room was quiet.
Even the sound from the TV felt hollow.
I wallowed in loneliness for a while…
Then suddenly remembered what I’d heard earlier today.
“Inful-lung-seo…”
I’m an influencer.
That means I can navigate through things on my own.
Remarkably, Jiwoo Ping had the same thought.
“I can do it on my own too…”
Sitting at the desk, they picked up a colored pencil.
Jiwoo Ping’s method of breaking through negativity.
It was a method even I couldn’t have imagined.