Vendor Registration (2)

But the moment Oh Ha-young's overbearing face rose in his mind, the anger came flooding back.

The offer from Oh Ha-young's friend to write a statement — was that Oh Ha-young's scheme too? The woman was a cunning bitch, after all. Maybe she could already see herself losing in court, and this was just a cheap way to look generous.

Hmph. So she's heartbroken that I'm having a hard time? That's rich. That woman doesn't have a shred of sympathy in her. If she did, she wouldn't have spent her school years beating on people just because her family had a little money.

Still, he was grateful that the friend was willing to send a statement. Then the suspicion crept back in. What if the statement itself was garbage?

What if she wrote that she had clearly heard Kim Chirok grab Oh Ha-young's arm and ask her to go to a hotel? That would put him in a terrible position. He could end up wearing a crime he never committed, with no way out.

Even if she didn't go that far — even if she simply wrote that she hadn't heard either of them — the whole thing would be left hanging in the air. A judge could rule however he pleased. And if that judge happened to be close with the lawyer Oh Ha-young had hired, it would be dangerous. He could spend the rest of his life wearing the brand of a sex offender.

Judging by the phone call, though, it didn't sound as if she intended to write anything that vicious.

The phone rang again. He thought Oh Ha-young's friend was calling back. This time, though, it was Jang Min-soo — the man he had met at the Japanese language academy, the one who was dating a Japanese woman.

"Hyung-nim! How are you? This is Jang Min-soo. We met at the Japanese academy in Yeoksam-dong."

"Ah, Mr. Jang. How have you been?"

"There you go being formal with me again. How have things been for you lately, Hyung-nim?"

Jang Min-soo was two years younger than Kim Chirok, and he never failed to call him Hyung-nim.

"Me? I'm doing fine."

"I heard you changed jobs, though. The Japanese instructor told me."

"I started a little factory in Hwaseong, Gyeonggi-do."

"You started a company? Times are hard right now, and you went and founded one. A factory — so that's manufacturing, then."

"That's right. Rubber injection molding."

"Injection molding? I actually worked at an injection plant out near Asan for a while myself."

"Did you?"

"Manufacturing only works if you've got a solid buyer lined up, though. You do have one, right? You wouldn't have started the company without that."

"I've got a buyer."

"Then all you have to do is make the parts well. Keep the defect rate down. Manufacturing is a war against defects, you know."

"You know your stuff."

"Heh heh. You pick things up after you've been on the floor a while."

"So what happened with the Japanese woman? You went to Japan last time to meet her parents, didn't you? Kashima City in Ibaraki Prefecture, if I remember."

"Heh heh. I'm getting married in the spring."

"To whom? That Japanese woman?"

"Yes. I'm marrying Yumiko."

"Wow. That's huge! Congratulations."

"The thing is, Hyung-nim, I don't speak Japanese nearly as well as you do, so I worry. Yumiko's Korean isn't great either, and my Japanese is clumsy, so we struggle sometimes."

"If there's affection, you'll be fine."

"Still, when I'm with Yumiko, I feel at ease. Hyung-nim — when I send the wedding invitation in the spring, you'll come to the ceremony, won't you?"

"Of course. I'll be there."

"Thank you, Hyung-nim. Next time you're in Seoul, let's meet."

"Thanks for calling."

Kim Chirok found himself thinking of Yumiko, the Japanese woman he had met once in Myeongdong. He remembered her as a girl with large eyes. Like Aunt Ayaka, she was the type who smiled easily. He figured the two of them would do well together.

Yumiko worked retail at an outlet mall, and Jang Min-soo handled pre-sales at a real estate firm. Both of them worked in sales, which meant they were the smiling, easygoing sort. He didn't imagine they would run into any serious collisions.

Talk ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠of Japan brought Hirosue Yoshiko back to mind. He unlocked his phone and looked at her photograph. She truly looked like a goddess who had stepped down from the sky.

Ah. If I could live with a woman like that.

It would feel as if he had gained the whole world. As if he had swallowed Mitsutec whole — no, the entirety of H Group.

Who will Hirosue Yoshiko marry?

Perhaps she would never marry at all. Perhaps she would take the same path as the madam of the ochaya he had once seen at the H Group Chairman's residence, and become the proprietress of a teahouse herself.

Then he remembered something Aunt Ayaka had said. Yoshiko had an otokoshi at the ochaya — a man whose job was to dress her in kimono — and he had been making advances. That was why Yoshiko had ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠said she wanted to come to Korea, even if only for a change of scenery. Kim Chirok wanted to get Hyangdong Tech on stable footing as fast as he could, and then go see her.

A few days passed.

The factory registration certificate came through. Kim Chirok decided it was time to file the vendor registration application with Mitsutec.

He had everything in order: Hyangdong Tech's business registration certificate, a certified copy of the corporate registry, and the corporate seal certificate, along with the factory lease, a rundown of the equipment, and a report on technical personnel.

He spoke in front of the Plant Manager and Manager Cho.

"I'm going to Mitsutec today to file the vendor registration."

"Got the rest of the paperwork done?"

"All of it."

"That so? What did you put down for technical personnel?"

"I wrote it as it is."

"Cho and I never even went to college, and we don't have engineer licenses or anything. Sorry about that."

"I'll tell them that even without those things, our technical skill is second to none."

"Mitsutec won't see it that way. Those people don't give our kind of skill any credit. They think all you do is buy mixed rubber compound and stamp it out in their molds."

"Even so — temperature, the speed you apply pressure — that's the kind of thing only someone with real experience can do."

"The plant manager and the quality team at the old Hyangnam Tech had flashy résumés. Engineering college, Class 1 engineer licenses, the works."

"Don't get so nervous."

"I'm more worried you'll be the one who loses face, President Kim. Sorry."

"It's fine."

"If Manager Cho had a license or something, at least…"

Manager Cho scratched the back of his head, looking embarrassed.

The Plant Manager flipped through the documents attached to the application, then snuck a glance at Kim Chirok's résumé. Seoul National University. A stint in the H Group Strategic Planning Office.

"President Kim… you're too good for this. A real waste of talent, running a factory like this."

Kim Chirok laughed.

"Why do you keep trying to run me out of Hyangdong Tech?"

"I've spent more than twenty years in rubber injection and extrusion plants, and I've never once seen a Seoul National University graduate on the floor. I imagine the Mitsutec CEO took a real interest in you starting this company."

"He already calls me an interesting fellow, as it happens."

Kim Chirok drove to Mitsutec. This time he left the suit and tie at home and went in his work uniform. He handed the documents to the Purchasing Manager.

The Purchasing Manager smiled.

"We'll process this for you as quickly as we can."

Since he was already there, Kim Chirok figured he ought to pay his respects to the Director and the Department Head as well.

The Department Head's desk sat at the very back of the office, by the window — the best seat in the room.

"I just submitted the vendor registration documents to the Manager."

"President Kim, you look rather strange in a work uniform. A man who belonged in a conglomerate Strategic Planning Office, dressed like a man on the production line."

"I'm working with a production worker's mindset."

"If the president himself has that kind of attitude, Hyangdong Tech ought to grow."

"Thank you."

"Once a vendor application is filed, we go out for a site inspection. But we've already been to the Hyangdong Tech factory, so we'll skip that. The CEO has given instructions as well, so we'll process this quickly for you."

"I'm grateful."

"And if you run into any difficulties along the way, you don't need to come in person. Just call me."

"Thank you."

Kim Chirok bowed deeply to the Department Head — the man whose nickname among vendors was the Grim Reaper. This was the same man who, in the Hyangnam Tech days, would only deal with the Managing Director and the President.

He had meant to greet the Director as well, but the Director was not at his desk. He had gone to Seoul, they said, to attend a presentation on the commercialization of transferred technology at a research institute.

Kim Chirok drove back to Hyangdong Tech.

The Plant Manager and Manager Cho met him with worried faces.

"They didn't flag us for not having enough technical personnel, did they?"

"We only filed today. They won't have started the review yet."

"What if we get rejected over that?"

"We won't. Don't worry so much."

"I heard they come out for a site inspection when you apply for vendor registration. Shouldn't we be preparing?"

"They said they'll skip it. They've already been here once."

"Is that right? That's a relief. At my last company, a vendor site audit meant the whole place went on emergency footing."

"The application's in, so now we wait quietly. They'll score it on their end, get the CEO's approval, and then tell us the result."

"By the way, President Kim — a letter came for you."

"A letter?"

"Looked like it was from a woman."

Kim Chirok took the envelope from the Plant Manager. It was from Oh Ha-young's friend.

Hmm. So she sent the witness statement.

"Who is it? The sender's a woman. Not a girlfriend, is it?"

"Not a girlfriend. I was waiting on a document, and she sent it."

Once the Plant Manager and Manager Cho had left the office, Kim Chirok quietly opened the envelope. It was the statement.

It had been typed in a word processor and printed on A4 paper. The submitter's name was at the bottom, with a red seal ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠stamped beside it.

Kim Chirok read the eyewitness statement.

On the whole, it was unobjectionable. She had written it according to the five Ws and one H, as if she had gotten help from a lawyer. She had also attached a photocopy of her identification — someone had probably told her to do that too. The copy had come out blurry. She clearly hadn't wanted anyone reading the details on her ID.

Kim Chirok drafted a preparatory brief for the court. He wrote down the case number and noted that he was attaching the eyewitness statement of the complainant's friend, who had been present that day.

He drove straight to the post office in Hyangnam-eup and sent the documents to the clerk's office of the Seoul District Court.

He trusted the judge to rule wisely. A judge, he believed, would not hand down a verdict that left a permanent stain on a young man's name.

Two days later, a call came from the Mitsutec Purchasing Team Leader.

"Yes, sir."

"Your vendor registration has been approved."

"Is that so? Thank you. Truly — thank you."

Without realizing it, Kim Chirok bowed to his phone.

"Hyangdong Tech falls well short of the registration requirements. We approved you on the strength of the CEO's assessment of your management ability and your potential. Going forward, you'll need to expand your facilities and bring in more technicians."

"Understood."

"And please obtain ISO certification, at the very least. I'll send you the vendor identification number by text."

"Thank you."

"Log into the Mitsutec ERP system, enter Hyangdong Tech's company information, and complete the vendor registration. After you register, click to apply for the service. You'll need an authorized digital certificate."

"Understood. I'll register right away."

"And tomorrow or the day after, the Manager and I will stop by Hyangdong Tech. We can sign the mold custody agreement then. Have the corporate seal certificate and the corporate stamp ready."

"Understood. Thank you. All of this is thanks to you, sir. I think I might cry."

"Haha. It's not thanks to me. It's the CEO's consideration."

Kim Chirok called the Plant Manager and Manager Cho in.

"They said the vendor registration went through."

"Yes! We got it! They approved us even though we're underqualified!"

The Plant Manager and Manager Cho broke into applause.

"And tomorrow or the day after, the Mitsutec Department Head and Manager are coming here. They want to sign a mold management contract. They said to have the corporate ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠seal certificate ready."

"Wow! That's going through too!"

The Plant Manager and Manager Cho threw their arms around each other.

The Plant Manager turned to Kim Chirok.

"Do you really think all four injection machines will be running?"

"I don't know yet. We'll have to sit down and talk it through when they get here."

"I'd love to see all four of them going. Annual revenue would be over two billion won."

Two billion won. Even at a twenty percent operating margin, that left four hundred million. They hadn't bought the factory on a loan, so there were no financing costs to eat into it. If four hundred million was left over, this was a business worth doing.

Hmm. If it even gets to that, it's far better than working at a conglomerate. I'd take a salary and dividends. This could actually work.