The Start of a Trade War
It had already been compared.
The American tariffs on China had been announced at dawn.
By the time people woke up the next day and saw the news, they were already saying the United States had started a trade war.
And honestly, that was exactly how it looked to me too.
This didn’t seem like some halfhearted pressure tactic. It looked like they were really going to drag the whole thing into a trade war.
Because of that, what might have been dismissed as a mere incident was now being treated as the opening shot of a trade war, and even now there still wasn’t any real sign of the market bouncing back from the drop.
“Man, everyone’s got it rough.”
I heard the staff weren’t even going home anymore. They were staying in the office around the clock.
I’d have to give them more than just a bonus.
Yeah, five hundred million won each should do it.
A bonus only really meant something if you gave more than people expected. That was when it actually worked.
About two days passed.
The day after tomorrow, we were leaving for Jeju Island.
Even after two days, there were still no signs of a rebound.
The paper profits in front of me had already reached 300 billion won.
At this point, giving them 500 million won each seemed perfectly fine. That only came to 5 billion won total.
Compared to 300 billion, it was practically pocket change.
“Feels reassuring.”
On the road to Jeju Island, my heart felt lighter than air.
I was honestly relieved I’d managed to produce good results before heading out on vacation.
If I’d heard this news while I was already in Jeju Island...
That would’ve been a little annoying.
The next day.
I was on my way to Gimpo to leave for Jeju Island.
Sure enough, my steps were light.
And why wouldn’t they be? This trip to Jeju Island wasn’t even going to cost 200 million won.
That was less than 0.1 percent of 300 billion.
It didn’t burden me in the slightest.
We arrived at Gimpo Airport.
I could see the Uto Gym staff who had already arrived ahead of us.
“Looks like everyone made it on time.”
“Would it be okay to be late? Not a single person missed it.”
“Good. Let’s get on the plane.”
It was business class. Sure, it was a domestic flight and the price was cheap, but a round-trip ticket to Jeju Island still didn’t feel cheap at 300,000 won.
Maybe that was why everyone looked shocked.
Then their looks shifted into admiration.
This is how it should be.
Watching my staff like that made me feel good all by itself.
This was the way things were supposed to be. When you met people in society, you shouldn’t judge them by their looks or age—you should look at who they really were.
With a refreshed heart, I headed to Jeju Island.
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇
On Thursday, the day the staff were heading to Jeju Island for vacation, the Neo Gym employees all went together to Gimpo Airport.
There was plenty of resentment among them.
“What kind of gym forces people to take a vacation?”
“Seriously, this is disgusting.”
“At the very least, they should pay for the expenses if they’re going to force us.”
“Ugh... this is so fucking annoying.”
Not only had the vacation been forced on them, but they also had to cover part of the cost themselves.
They were already upset they couldn’t work, and now they had to spend money on top of that, so their frustration was off the charts.
Honestly, more than once, they’d all thought about quitting and moving somewhere else.
But that wasn’t easy for trainers.
They’d already settled down here. A trainer’s main income didn’t come from people who came because of them—it came from PT clients who happened to use the same gym.
The moment they left, they’d have to throw everything away and start over from scratch.
That wasn’t an easy decision to make.
So even while enduring this disgusting treatment, they kept showing up and gritting their teeth.
At least this gym had a good location, so they had a lot of clients.
“I heard Uto Gym is going on vacation in Jeju too.”
“Yeah, I heard. Supposedly on the exact same day as us.”
“Apparently their owner changed, and now they’re going on a trip. The owner’s paying for everything.”
“Wow... I’m jealous. Just a little while ago I was wondering when that place was going to go bankrupt...”
What made them even angrier was the fact that the gym they’d normally looked down on was going on the same schedule as them, while not having to pay a cent out of pocket.
And on top of that—
“Holy shit. Looks like they’re already boarding.”
“Whoa, that’s business class?”
“Look at the story. They tagged the owner and thanked him.”
“I’m seriously fucking jealous. What the hell is this for us?”
The Uto Gym staff had posted a photo of their business-class seats on social media.
They’d thanked their boss.
Meaning the owner had paid for every single business-class ticket.
Meanwhile, some people were flying economy and still had to pay part of the bill themselves...
There was no way not to compare them.
With their irritation simmering, they headed off to Jeju Island.
“Just take a taxi and come to the lodging I sent you.”
This was seriously disgusting. If they were going on vacation anyway, at least let them drive a rental car.
But because they were pretending to be some kind of group activity, they were told to use taxis every time they moved somewhere.
So no one would wander off on their own.
When they arrived at the lodging, the complaints only got worse.
Four people were supposed to share a room, but the room was nowhere near big enough for four.
One person looked like they’d have to sleep on the floor.
“This is honestly nauseating.”
“Look at the women. They all look like they’ve swallowed a turd.”
“Honestly, even as a guy I’m pissed as hell, so for women who are sensitive about this kind of thing, this must be hell.”
“That moron and the boss are the only ones grinning like idiots.”
“He definitely planned this to get the women into bed or something...”
“Just you wait. I’m not going to sit around and watch this happen.”
“Me neither. I’m going to screw with them however I can.”
I could feel my rebellious streak rising on its own.
After unpacking and coming back outside to head out for dinner—
“Huh? Aren’t those the Uto Gym people over there?”
“Looks like it.”
“Wow, we really ran into them here.”
The Uto Gym staff were standing off to one side.
And what made me even more irritated was—
“What the hell... did they seriously get that lodging?”
Even the place they were staying at was worlds apart.
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇
We got off the plane after arriving in Jeju Island.
Everyone looked pleased.
Even the short flight had been comfortable.
We left the airport.
“Boss, should we call a taxi?”
“No. We came all this way on a trip, so we should travel comfortably. I’ve already arranged rental cars.”
“...”
I’d prepared about six rental cars.
I’d contacted several companies and picked out the best vehicles I could get.
Imported convertibles.
“B-Boss. Don’t tell me that Porsche is...”
“Yes, that’s right. One car for every two people should be fine.”
“...”
Not only were there Porsches, but BMWs and Bentleys too.
I hadn’t rented a car for myself separately.
I’d sent one of my spare sports cars to Jeju ahead of time.
The Ferrari parked over there was mine.
I could see the staff on the side looking stunned into silence, unable to say anything.
Sure, all of this was money spent to get in the way of Neo Gym, but seeing those expressions made me feel good too.
“Boss! When we get back, I’ll work myself to the bone for the gym!”
“M-Me too. I will definitely repay this kindness!”
“Even though I’m older than you, Boss... I’m reminded once again that there’s so much I can learn from you!”
“Everyone, just enjoy yourselves. I’ll send you the lodging address, so open the top and take your time enjoying the ride over.”
“Thank you!”
I gave the staff the lodging address.
And when some of them heard the name of the place, they looked flustered.
“That lodging... isn’t that insanely expensive?”
“This is crazy. If I hadn’t come on this vacation, I’d be kicking myself right now.”
“Boss! I’ll see you at the lodging! Loyalty!”
“Yes, see you later.”
Just like the staff member said, the lodging wasn’t cheap at all.
If a place runs around 10 million won a night, doesn’t that count as luxury accommodation?
Even with my wrecked sense of money, I still knew that much.
We each got into our cars and headed to the lodging.
It had been a while since I’d driven with the Ferrari top down.
“This feels good.”
The wind brushing through my hair felt amazing.
I could drive one in Seoul too, but the feeling was completely different.
In Seoul, people’s eyes were always peeking at you, and the air wasn’t all that great.
But here, there were hardly any people watching, and the air was good too.
The cloudless sky was just a bonus.
After arriving at the lodging—
I handed out the room key cards to everyone.
Then I went to my room.
I had a private room.
After dropping off my luggage and resting a bit, I came out again in time for dinner.
Once again, I could see the staff making moved, emotional faces.
“I’m sincerely touched. No matter how much money someone has, 100,000 won is still 100,000 won—but you went out of your way to book a room this precious for the staff’s comfort...”
“My wife said she truly wants to thank you, Boss. She’s too shy to say it directly, but...”
“When you’re on vacation, the lodging should be good if you want to rest properly. Isn’t it more comfortable than your own home anyway? I just chose the best place I could.”
“As expected, the Boss’s benevolence...”
It was starting to look less like respect and more like faith.
Honestly, it was getting awkward.
I wondered if my sister had arrived in Jeju already.
I was just about to go get dinner when—
“Huh?”
“Aren’t those the Neo Gym staff?”
“Yeah.”
The Neo Gym employees were standing off to one side.
Since we knew each other’s faces at least a little...
I couldn’t just walk past them.
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇
I also spotted my sister among the flustered Neo Gym staff.
I didn’t care about the boss or that guy with the shitty attitude at all. My sister was the one I was happiest to see.
I waved.
My sister spotted me from far away too. She looked startled.
She didn’t know I was the owner of Uto Gym.
The manager standing beside her asked, “Do you know this person?”
“Yes, I got PT from him. Then the gym owner kept making things uncomfortable, so I took over Uto Gym. If you want healthy competition, you have to make the competitor a proper one first.”
“...In that case, you may be a great benefactor to me. Still, I don’t feel very good hearing that you were made uncomfortable by our owner.”
After hearing the manager explain the situation, he went to greet the Neo Gym owner.
“It’s been a while. What a coincidence. To run into each other like this means it must be fate, doesn’t it? By the way, where are you staying? Ah... over there, I see. Ahem. Are you using transportation by car, perhaps? A taxi, did you say? Hoho... Neo Gym really values group life, I see. Ah, as for us...”
Oh, he was good.
The Neo Gym owner was wearing a face I’d never seen before.
He was absolutely fucking livid.
“Thanks to our new owner... ah, this must be your first time meeting him, Boss. The person here is our owner...”
“...That kid is the owner?”
“...You’re being rather rude.”
“...I was too flustered and spoke recklessly.”
Yeah, that’s right, punk.
Every one of the Neo Gym staff was stunned.
We already knew each other’s faces here and there.
Especially my sister and that unpleasant trainer.