Chapter 42
Chapter 42
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Translator: Ace
Chapter: 42
Chapter Title: Royal Family 12-3
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Kang Wook, the Taesung Group Chairman, had built Taesungwon in the year his son was born.
That was why Taesungwon consisted of a total of five buildings.
At the center was the Great Ta Hall, Taesung Hall, surrounded by True Jin Pavilion, Kind Seon Pavilion, Beautiful Mi Pavilion, and Excellent Woo Pavilion.
These four buildings, named after his children, were positioned around it like the four trigrams of the universe on the Taegukgi flag.
And, as expected, the Woo Pavilion stood empty.
"I'm Kang Ji-hyeok, starting to live at Taesungwon from today."
The security guard who approached straightened his posture and bowed his head.
"My apologies. We weren't informed in advance, so I was rude."
"It's fine. Once the gate opens, I just go straight up, right?"
"No, sir. You're the only one besides the Chairman who can drive all the way to your residence. Park next to the entrance, and a staff member will escort you to Taesung Hall. Please wait a moment."
After sitting in the car and waiting briefly, the massive iron gate slowly opened, revealing Taesungwon in full.
Following the security guard's guidance, he parked in the lot and stepped out. A staff member in a bow tie approached, bowing his head.
"Greetings, young master. I'm Section Chief Bae Hyun-mo, in charge of the entrance. Please follow me."
Young master...
It was a strangely unfamiliar term, but Ji-hyeok said nothing and followed Bae Hyun-mo.
There, about a dozen electric carts like those at a golf course were lined up in a row.
"Please hop on. I'll take you to Taesung Hall."
"We use these to get around?"
"Yes."
"If it rains even a little hard, you'd be soaked through."
"Truth be told... yes."
"No exceptions?"
"None."
Impressive.
It was absurd, but he couldn't help chuckling at the image of those haughty three sisters riding carts in the rain and getting drenched.
"Do we have to stop at Taesung Hall first no matter what?"
"Yes. All the madams, young master, and young ladies must greet the Chairman at Taesung Hall before returning to their own residences."
"The distance between buildings seems pretty far."
"Secretaries from each pavilion bring carts from Taesung Hall."
"What if the Chairman isn't there?"
"No exceptions."
What an interesting place.
He'd learn how it all worked in due time.
Ji-hyeok nodded, and Bae Hyun-mo, now in the driver's seat, turned and started the cart.
But just then—
"Wait, Section Chief Bae! Me too! Take me with you!"
A clear, bright voice called from behind. Turning, he saw a woman with a red mini backpack trotting toward them.
Though it was his first time seeing her in person, Ji-hyeok recognized her instantly.
Gong Yeon-woo, 26 years old. The youngest daughter of Executive Director Kang Jin-young, currently working as a curator at Seyeon Gallery.
In other words, his cousin.
Gong Yeon-woo's blue skirt fluttered as she reached the cart and hopped into the seat next to Ji-hyeok.
"It's you, oppa?"
"You know me?"
"Everyone in the country knows by now, right? Oh, but the group hasn't released your photo yet, so they don't know your face. I'm Gong Yeon-woo. You're not gonna say, 'Who are you?' or something, are you?"
Ji-hyeok smirked at her extended pale hand and shook it.
"Yeah. Nice to meet you. Let's get along."
"Just so you know, keep me out of any dogfights. I want to live quietly. Got it?"
"As long as you don't jump into the fray."
"Oh? This oppa's no ordinary guy. The cheesy answer would've been, 'I'm not here to fight, we're family' or something."
"Families fight all the time."
"True that. Anyway, leave me out."
"We'll see how it goes."
"Yes, big brother dear. I shan't come anywhere near."
Gong Yeon-woo was bright and cheerful.
At least for now.
As they chatted, the cart arrived at Taesung Hall, designed after Gyeongbokgung's Gyeonghoeru Pavilion.
At the main entrance, two women in brown suits greeted Ji-hyeok and Gong Yeon-woo.
"Manager Kim! Hi!"
"Good evening, miss. The Chairman hasn't returned yet. But he mentioned dinner would be here tonight, so please refrain from going out."
"Got it. I'm off then."
As if she'd anticipated it, Gong Yeon-woo headed straight to a cart parked to the left of the building the moment the staffer finished speaking.
A waiting staff member bowed to her, got into the driver's seat, and they drove off.
Watching her go, Ji-hyeok turned to the two staffers.
"Where do I go?"
"The Woo Pavilion has been vacant for so long that renovations are ongoing. Until they're complete, you'll stay here at Taesung Hall. I'm Kim Suk-hee, manager overseeing all of Taesungwon. This is Team Leader Park Seon-joo, who will manage the Woo Pavilion going forward. She'll stay there too and assist you during your time here. Team Leader Park, please escort the young master inside."
"Yes. This way, sir."
Team Leader Park Seon-joo was a refined woman in her forties.
Ji-hyeok followed her silently into Taesung Hall.
"Whoa..."
The lobby revealed beyond the entrance was nothing short of magnificent.
Or rather, it was too grand to call a living room—lobby fit better.
The first thing to greet him was a massive tiger painting on the front wall.
The fierce beast seemed ready to roar to life, its presence overwhelming.
"It's a piece painted for the Chairman by Master Heo Jeong-uk before his passing."
Master Heo Jeong-uk, the ink wash master who defined modern Korean art history.
Ji-hyeok had seen a few works in books, but facing this enormous painting in person, its vitality hit him like a force. All he could think was "magnificent."
Taesung Hall, which had made such a powerful first impression, featured staircases on both sides.
"The right staircase leads to the Chairman's private quarters. Best not to go up without being called."
"What if I do?"
"He'll blow up like a volcano."
Park Seon-joo guided him up the left staircase.
As he followed, a sudden thought struck him.
"Oh, how many staff are there at Taesungwon?"
"Seventy-four, including internal and external security."
"Who manages all of them?"
"Security is under Taesung Syscom. We're from Taesung Hausys, an affiliate of Taesung Trading. Manager Kim Suk-hee, whom you met earlier, handles overall operations."
As expected.
They were all eyes and ears for Executive Director Kang Jin-young.
But then—
"Our pavilion staff never share what happens in the residences outside. No need to worry on that front."
She's sharp.
To rise to team leader here, perceptiveness must be the top skill.
Ji-hyeok didn't bother responding.
He had no intention of hiding what went on here anyway.
The floor they reached via the stairs opened into a wide hallway.
At the end, Park Seon-joo stopped, carefully opened a door, and stepped aside.
"This will be your room until the Woo Pavilion is ready. If anything's inconvenient, just let me know—we'll fix it right away."
"When will the renovations finish?"
"About another week."
"Got it. Can I rest now?"
"Of course. Please go ahead."
As Ji-hyeok entered, Park Seon-joo followed.
He slowly took in the room.
It was easily five times larger than his old officetel.
In one corner of the vast space, his belongings were neatly stacked.
Before leaving for Hwaeun Temple, he'd gotten a call from the secretary's office asking for his officetel passcode.
No reason to hide it, so he'd shared it—and here it all was.
"I checked everything myself, but if anything's missing, tell me. Clothes are hung in the closet."
"Yeah. Nothing important if it is. What's this?"
Ji-hyeok pointed to the intercom on the sofa table.
"Like a hotel setup. Connects directly to the kitchen, laundry, management office, etc. Call the kitchen if you're hungry later."
"I see. Anyway, got it. I'm a bit tired. Mind if I rest?"
"Not at all. I've added my number to your phone. Call anytime if you need me. Rest well."
Once Park Seon-joo left, Ji-hyeok scanned the room a bit longer before flopping onto the bed.
'This is straight out of a movie. I doubted it, but they really live like this. In their own castle. Are the people at Taesung Group and the ones here the same, or totally different?'
It was a bit ridiculous.
Riding electric carts rain or shine, seventy-four people tending to just fourteen residents—it was astonishing.
And the grandfather's room you couldn't enter uninvited...
It bordered on laughable.
After clearing his head, Ji-hyeok got up and approached his stacked belongings.
He began unpacking and organizing, item by item.
Team Leader Park Seon-joo knocked at six forty-five, just as Ji-hyeok finished unpacking.
"The Chairman has just returned. Dinner is at seven-thirty in the Taesung Hall grand banquet room."
"Do you eat together every evening?"
"No. Meals are taken at each pavilion except on special occasions."
"So I'll be eating breakfast and dinner with the Chairman for a week."
"Yes. Unless he has external commitments in the evening."
"The grand banquet room down the left corridor on the first floor, right?"
"Yes, exactly."
"Got it. I'll head down on time."
Park Seon-joo bowed and left.
Ji-hyeok watched the door after she vanished.
Hmm... quite the nuisance.
Park Seon-joo was still outside the door.
Sensing his gaze through it, she'd startled and made a noise.
He'd noticed on the way up: all staff wore quiet-soled shoes.
That level of sound meant she'd been genuinely surprised.
'Means there's probably a peephole somewhere in the door...'
He didn't care if they watched, but it was still annoying.
Time to deal with it soon.
As his answer, Ji-hyeok smirked toward the door and headed to the bathroom.
To wash off the sweat from unpacking.
Ji-hyeok arrived at the grand banquet room precisely at seven-thirty.
Stepping through the door held open by a staffer, the first thing he saw was a massive dining table straight out of a movie.
Twelve people were already seated.
The head seat was empty—that must be for Chairman Kang Wook.
The seating went like this:
Taesung Trading Executive Director Kang Jin-young – Taesung Construction President Gong Gap-su.
Taesung Textiles CEO Kang Seon-young – Judge Yeo Seon-min.
Taesung Hotel CEO Kang Mi-young.
Taesung Trading Deputy Manager Gong Sa-woo – Taesung Textiles Deputy Manager Yeo Seo-yeon.
Taesung SNS Team Leader Gong Ji-woo – Park Eun-seok.
Gong Yeon-woo – Yeo Seong-gyu.
Park Eun-joo.
To the Chairman's right sat his three daughters; to the left, their husbands.
Across from CEO Kang Mi-young was empty due to her ongoing divorce, followed by the daughters' children in age order.
As Ji-hyeok entered, all twelve pairs of eyes turned to him.
Anger, jealousy, envy, curiosity—a rainbow of emotions.
But Ji-hyeok flashed a grin at them and took the empty seat at the far end, in front of Park Eun-joo.
Properly, it should've been next to her brother, Park Eun-seok, eldest son of CEO Kang Mi-young, but he played dumb and sat at the end.
"Hi."
He waved to Park Eun-joo across from him. She glanced around nervously, flustered.
And then—
"The Chairman is entering."
Manager Kim Suk-hee, stationed by the door toward the head seat—not the one Ji-hyeok had used—announced softly. All twelve rose at once.
Ji-hyeok stood too, his reluctance plain on his face.
The door opened, and Chairman Kang Wook approached the table slowly.
But...
"Why can't you even find your own seat?"
Irritation laced Kang Wook's voice.
Tension rippled across every face.
But Ji-hyeok, the target of the rebuke, replied nonchalantly.
"I don't know. Where's my seat, Grandpa? Care to tell me?"
It was a provocation.
Every face but Kang Wook's twisted in reaction.
A few eyes sparkled with curiosity, but most were grim.
The dining room fell silent at Ji-hyeok's question.
And the one who broke the silence was Chairman Kang Wook.