Chapter 7: Young & Rich
Chapter 7: Young & Rich
If you have a lot of money, you don't have to work.
You can make money work for you, not the other way around.
$100 million.
An amount that lets you live a life of luxury forever without working.
There are many super-rich people in the world, but having a net worth of $100 million at thirty perfectly fit the term 'Young & Rich'.
'So this is what it feels like to turn your life around.'
I never thought the day would come when I'd become the living embodiment of that phrase.
'But what am I supposed to do with my life now?'
I'd originally planned to stick with my company for as long as possible.
But with $100 million, I didn't think I'd feel any joy from receiving a paycheck anymore.
Besides, my work life wasn't exactly a bed of roses.
"Assistant Manager Kim. Our hospital family is having a staff dinner right now. Why don't you stop by and say hello?"
"Yes, Director! I'll be right there."
8 p.m.
I'd sometimes get calls like that after clocking out and coming home, telling me about a hospital's staff dinner.
Back when I was a new employee, I took it at face value.
'The hospital director must think highly of me. Enough to invite me to their staff dinner.'
The next day, Team Leader An called me a clueless idiot.
"Why do you think the hospital director called you?"
"Sir?"
"What good is a salesman with no intuition? Think hard. What was the problem?"
It was the first piece of homework Team Leader An ever gave me.
After mulling it over, I asked a colleague from my year and finally figured it out.
"It was a request to pay for the hospital's dinner with our company's corporate card."
"So you finally get it."
"I asked Sang-gi and he explained what it meant."
"It doesn't matter how you found out, as long as you did. In sales, results are all that matter. Anyway, you went to the dinner, drank, enjoyed the food, thanked the doctors for inviting you, and left. How do you think your actions looked to them?"
"They must have thought I was an idiot. I really messed up."
"Just because you get a request doesn't mean you do it for any hospital. Each hospital is ranked according to our company's standards based on the revenue they generate. The one that called you yesterday was one of those."
"I understand."
"So what's your next move?"
"I'll go to the restaurant from last night, have them cancel the director's payment, and re-bill it to our corporate card."
"Good. You're a quick study. That's how you do sales. With sincere..."
"Sincere heart?"
"Sincere flattery. Do you have any idea how much doctors, who've done nothing but study their whole lives with little social experience, love to be flattered? For a salesman, flattery is essential."
I worked for a pretty decent pharmaceutical company, and ophthalmologists made good money from vision correction surgery rather than insurance-covered cataract procedures. So things like paying for staff dinners didn't happen all that often.
But when you're visiting hospitals, it's not just the doctors you have to worry about.
"Assistant Manager Kim."
"Yes, Nurse Yoo. It's been a while. Is there a problem with the machine we installed last time...?"
"Not at all. You know that new bakery that opened right next to our hospital? Their bread is amazing."
Another lesson in social dynamics.
Why would a nurse make such a personal call to a salesman?
The answer: she wanted free bread.
During my first year, I'd stop by the bakery to buy bread three or four times a month before visiting that hospital, but I never got a warm reception.
They'd take the bread and just make a passing comment, like, "You didn't have to bring so much."
'This is so weird. Didn't she say the bread was good? I'm bringing this delicious bread, so why aren't they happy?'
An answer I couldn't figure out no matter how much I thought about it.
She likes the bread, so I bring a lot of it. Why wouldn't she be pleased?
The solution to this puzzle also came from Kim Sang-gi.
"Pre-pay at the bakery."
"Huh?"
"Put a bunch on the corporate card. About a million won. That way, the hospital nurses can stop by the bakery and grab whatever they want, whenever they want."
"Ah..."
A belated realization.
At the same time, I was a little annoyed.
"Honestly, wouldn't it be better if they just said it outright?"
"There's such a thing as saving face. When they drop hints, you're supposed to pick up on them. That's sales, my friend."
The social skills a salesman had to learn were truly profound.
"Do a maximum of a million won at a time. If you do too much, they'll start taking it for granted. Do it based on the situation. You have to get something back for what you give."
"Got it."
"And grab some bread for yourself, too."
"Huh?"
"From the company's perspective, how would they know who's eating the bread? And even if they did, they'd overlook something like that. This is one of the perks of being a field salesman."
Sales was a world of entertainment and bribery.
For someone like me, who grew up so poor I couldn't even afford a slice of bread, it was an unbelievably strange new world.
But problems that could be solved with the corporate card were actually the easy ones.
"Assistant Manager Kim. My daughter is graduating from college soon."
"Ah. Yes, Director."
"You know Chungbuk National University. The graduation ceremony is on February 15th, I think? It's in Emerald Hall."
"Yes, sir! I'll be there to grace the occasion."
I'd attend the director's family events, present a bouquet to a graduate I'd never met, and act as the cameraman for their family photos.
"This Saturday, a few of us Seoul National University alumni are getting together for a small classical concert. I'm playing the violin. I've been squeezing in practice whenever I can."
"You're playing yourself, Director? I'll definitely be there."
I'd attend the director's hobby concerts and listen to the tedious music as if I were deeply moved.
Of course, I also had to request a high-performance camcorder from the company's support team to record the performance and deliver the footage to him.
There were times I had to tag along for early morning soccer, hiking clubs, photography sessions, and even boat fishing.
'This 'social life' thing... it runs deep. So deep.'
Following doctors around and trying out various hobbies might have been nice, but since my job was sales, it was almost always connected to flattery.
This was the place I had accepted all of this as normal, intending to make it my lifelong career and work until I dropped.
'So what do I do now?'
* * *
For the first time in a long while, I slept soundly and woke up early.
My head was clear, a refreshing feeling as if all my worries had vanished.
"La la la."
I rode my bike to work today, just like any other day.
The salary I got from the company was no longer important, but the human indicators around me were.
I was curious what my colleagues thought about crypto.
In the morning, I worked as usual and even walked to a nearby hospital for a sales call.
Around 11:40 a.m., just before lunch, my subordinate Lee Jong-yeop came over to my desk.
"Can I talk to you privately for a moment?"
"Oh? Sure."
I followed Lee Jong-yeop out of the office. Instead of heading to the rooftop where we usually went, he led me outside the building.
Behind the buildings, he checked to see if any other employees were around, then spoke in a low voice.
"I'm only telling you this because it's you."
"Hmm?"
"I'm dating Yoo Hye-ri from the support team."
"You are?"
Most of the office couples were common knowledge. They must have been successful at keeping their relationship a secret.
The young men and women always found a way to date.
"I heard it while talking to Hye-ri. Your ex... Ah. I mean, what should I call her?"
"Chae-won?"
"Yes. Did you hear she's coming back to work next week?"
My ex-wife.
We fought every day of the year we lived together.
She couldn't control her emotions over the smallest things, arguing and fighting until the bitter end. The kind of person who was only satisfied when she won.
The woman who had made me yearn for my college days, when I was poor but at peace, was coming back to the company.
"She's coming back now?"
"Yes. The support team staff already knew. I wasn't sure if you did, so I thought I should tell you. I'm sorry if I overstepped."
"No, it's fine. Thanks for letting me know."
The company was divided into the support team and the sales team.
Even so, working in the same company meant we were bound to run into each other and have friction.
I had a pretty good idea of how much she'd badmouthed me to the other female employees when we were getting divorced.
Everything from domestic violence and cheating to pathological jealousy and being a psychopath.
I think she even said I was wired wrong.
The guys on the sales team, who spent a lot of time with me, didn't believe her, but the gossip about me spread like wildfire among the women on the support team.
'So Chae-won is coming back.'
My mind didn't become a mess, nor did I feel anxious.
'She's going to be so jealous of me.'
* * *
Now that I had money, there was a lot to do.
'I should buy some nice clothes, and maybe a decent car.'
After work, I went to the menswear department of a department store.
"I'm looking to buy several outfits."
"Of course. Please, try on anything you like."
Three hours flew by as I picked out a suit, casual clothes, and even a tracksuit.
They tailored everything, not just the length, but the sleeves and sides as well.
It was a service I never knew existed, having never bought clothes at a department store before.
The feel of a simple, light gray tracksuit was incredible.
'The design looks great on. It has the vibe of a young professional, dressed simply for a workout in New York's Central Park, maybe?'
It seemed common, but the slight difference in design made a huge impact.
I liked the reflection in the full-length mirror so much that I bought it.
The reward for hard work... before, I used to feel good seeing the deposit notification on my phone.
Becoming rich, I'd lost the joy of a paycheck, but in its place, I discovered the pleasure of spending.
'This feels amazing.'
I also bought a wallet and a belt.
Each item cost at least several hundred thousand won.
'How do other people afford such expensive things?'
Even with $100 million, I felt a pang every time I took out my wallet.
I still wasn't used to spending this kind of money, but my ex-wife's shrill voice echoed vividly in my mind.
'Just buy it.'
I couldn't count how many times she'd called me a cheapskate for trying to save money.
After that, I signed up for a gym to upgrade my life.
A gym that offered both CrossFit and boxing.
I toured the facility with a well-built coach and went through the sign-up process.
"How many months would you like to sign up for?"
"Three months, to start."
"Any experience with working out?"
"None."
"Alright, the beginner's class it is. When would you like to start?"
"I'd like to start today, if possible."
"Excellent. I happen to have some free time now, so go get changed and come right out."
For the next hour, I experienced hell.
The coach followed me around, pushing me through a set routine, making me run and punch until I thought my lungs would burst.
When I heard Jo Soo-ah worked out, I didn't think much of it.
But working out diligently was a daily battle, a victory over oneself.
"Wow. This looks really tough, but you're doing great."
"Am I?"
"Yeah. Most people would have given up by now. You've got incredible willpower."
"..."
All the strength had drained from my body, but I forced myself to move, practically dragging my feet.
I might have a lot of money, but this was the first time I'd spent like this, and I didn't want the gym membership fee to go to waste.
To the coach, it must have looked like I was just incredibly tenacious.
"Excellent. Just three more!"