Enjoyable Life (2)
Ha, me? Bad personality? No way.
"Ji-yeon. I'll give you one more chance to speak honestly."
Under the bright lights of the department store, I fixed Seo Ji-yeon with a steady gaze. She flinched and parted her lips.
"Ah! O-of course! It's not like you're bullying kids around like some other chaebol heirs... um."
"But?"
She squeezed her eyes shut.
"Th-there was that thing... during the midterms in morals class... when you drew a 'Yoo Ha-yeon portrait' on the answer sheet and they accepted multiple correct answers..."
Ah, that. I remembered the question too.
Plato claimed that reality is an imitation of the Idea. Express at least two correct examples through drawings and explain the reason. (6 points)
I even remembered it clearly. But seriously, why the hell was a question like that on a middle school exam?
"That was correct."
Seo Ji-yeon balled her small hands into fists and pushed back.
"It was wrong! Reality is an imitation of the Idea, and art is an imitation of an imitation... But your portrait was already part of art the moment it was drawn, so it was incorrect!"
Originally, you were supposed to draw something like a circle or a square for it to be right. Those are reality imitating the perfect Idea of a circle. If you'd drawn a desk, it would have been an imitation of an imitation right from the start, so wrong. Honestly, it was a dirty, twisted question. And they had to bring in a morals teacher who specialized in Greek philosophy...
But I brazenly insisted.
"No. I'm the Idea of beauty. So a drawing imitating me is imitating the Idea."
"...That completely contradicts metaphysics!"
If it bugs you that much, you proctor the exam yourself.
"The teacher's the one at fault for phrasing the question so weirdly in the first place. They skimmed over it in class, but if you dig in, there were logical flaws."
"Stu-students who actually paid attention in class all got it right. Maybe you should've listened instead of zoning out? I even lent you my notes..."
I brushed off Seo Ji-yeon's excuses and thought back to the self-portrait I'd drawn.
Hmm, my drawing skills were pretty decent. As expected of me.
I'd stared at the mirror so much that I could sketch it without looking—smooth strokes. Even on the exam paper, it came out pretty impressive. That's why I had that answer sheet scrapped and kept for myself.
I'd nearly shattered my perfect-score streak from elementary school, but I "convinced" the morals teacher just right and preserved my legend.
Whew. I'm pretty amazing, huh?
After Ji-yeon made her bold statement, I personally bestowed a few gifts upon her.
"...This is, um."
She was dressed in an elegant gown, her face flushed bright red. It was a backless blue dress—fitting for the department store I'd set up in place of Samseong, quite the luxury item.
"Why? It looks good."
"It's so revealing..."
That's why I gave it to you. How dare you talk back to me?
It had some logic to it, but...
Yeah, so it's a gift. Even if it's embarrassing, it's insanely expensive, so it's not punishment. And...
"You'll be wearing stuff like this a lot later anyway. Your path's set once you graduate, right?"
"...Ah, yeah."
Seo Ji-yeon nodded slightly. From the moment she became my "friend," her career was locked in.
Truth be told, Daeha Middle School was basically my personal guard training ground. Most kids here would end up working for my company eventually. College was unavoidable, of course... But by the time they graduated, their options would be slim.
What if they hated Daeha Group? Tough luck—everything else was SMEs. If some other company tried to snag them, I'd pay a personal visit.
Hmm... Ji-yeon wouldn't be disloyal like that, but she'd be satisfied anyway. In this era, jobs guaranteeing lifetime employment for women, with fat salaries and benefits? Rare as hell.
"Do they even wear stuff like this at securities firms these days? I doubt you'd wear it to meetings."
"In America, yeah. At social events and such."
True story. Though our firm would need to hit investment bank level for it to matter... She's inner circle already, so it'll be fine.
"In the West, business is all about connections—seriously. You gotta hustle, meet people nonstop."
Building networks was the hardest part of my past life. As a woman, one smile usually did the trick unless they were hardcore racists... Men had it rougher.
"That's the same here in Korea..."
Hmm, true, but.
"The West never hired through interviews originally. That trend's stronger there."
I'd heard the British East India Company was one of the first to use exams, mimicking China's imperial system. Exams feel kinda foreign in the West.
"That's wild."
Seo Ji-yeon nodded slowly.
"Right? I was shocked when I first learned. In old America, every president change meant firing all the civil servants."
"No, not that... It's just surprising how knowledgeable you sound all of a sudden. Hehe."
I chuckled. Her saying stuff like that now?
"Flattery. Regretting your harsh words?"
"Nah, I'm always honest."
Seo Ji-yeon turned away, dodging the question.
Daeha Middle School, Daeha High School... The reason I went through all this hassle to train my own people is simple. Korea right now doesn't have the talent I want.
Hiring overseas has limits, and the current curriculum... well, you know. Memorization's important, but kids raised like this can't handle overseas branches.
Proof? Hardly anyone in the company meets my standards. Yoo Sun-jun, Ha Joo-seong, Ha Young-il... and now Lee Si-hyun too? All of 'em seasoned abroad.
They're busting their asses happily because of it. Thinking of Sun-jun oppa shuttling between Berlin and London alone makes me feel guilty.
Talent shortage, talent shortage.
"I get what you're saying, but can we skip the group assignments, miss...? You have the authority—please..."
The brown-haired girl sighed deeply in the library. I'd dropped by for a bit and found her looking like the world was ending, so I checked in. I gave my future subordinate a serious answer.
"Impossible. It's designed to simulate company work in advance. Or call it a 'team project' if group assignment sounds bad?"
"Same difference."
The vibe's different, though.
"Ahem, well... There are issues, but it'll get better soon. The biggest problem with group work? Teammates, right? They won't listen or whatever?"
"Huh? How'd you know, miss?"
Because I dealt with those assholes until I was sick of them in my past life. Your turn to taste group project hell.
"Obvious. Some ditch for 'something came up,' others have 'sudden emergencies.' No contact in the meantime..."
No smartphones yet, either.
*Nods vigorously.* The girl nodded emphatically in agreement.
Poor thing, you're suffering too.
"It'll smooth out soon. It's only rough at first—later, everyone's familiar. Our school doesn't take tons of students anyway? Plus, we'll all advance to high school together."
"Oh, right."
The prisoner's dilemma only works if you never see them again after. With repeat interactions, tit-for-tat prevails. Kids who can't adapt will fall behind.
Sad system where only the social butterflies survive... but can't be helped. I left them a path, though.
"I know our school's system is complicated and headache-inducing. But... isn't it good?"
"...Yeah. No college entrance stress."
She sighed again, scratching her cheek.
"Phew... Hmm, weird though. Does your group have slackers too? How?"
"Pfft, no way. With me there? I was just guessing."
"Aha. Makes sense."
She nodded, convinced, then tilted her head.
"Uh... so where are your group members?"
"Working hard on the project?"
"...Then what about you?"
"Shh."
"..."
"Ahem, honestly, I'd unbalance things if I joined. But we're five instead of four, so it's fine."
"Hmm... Do you do this in other groups too?"
"Unless it's a fun topic? I handle snacks and supplies, so they don't mind."
"Miss. Is this prepping for company life too?"
Yup, exactly. Precautions for working with the chairwoman... stuff like that.
Thanks to it all, I was enjoying life to the fullest these days.
This is what life's about.