A Favor from the Cousin Couple
Even by Young-hoon's standards, Manager Kim was a capable man.
If he ever quit the company and started recruiting talent of his own, Kim Jong-seok would be the very first name on his list.
"As you all know, we have two days left until closing, but barring any major problems, I'd say we'll hit our 6.1 billion sales target without a hitch. You've seen the other teams' numbers—our team is running in first place by a mile. Which is exactly why we need to be more careful than ever. Especially with Team 2 sitting at only 75% progress, watch your expressions out there. Don't go making enemies for no reason. You all know what kind of temper Team 2's leader has, right? Any questions?"
Busybody Park Dae-ri raised his hand.
"Section Chief, where's tomorrow's team dinner?"
"Good question. Hey, maknae—how much budget do we have left?"
"Hold on, Section Chief. We're currently at minus 500,000 won."
"Really? You know there's the monthly sales contest, right?"
"Yes, sir. There are prizes per product—TVs, refrigerators, washing machines, air conditioners, phones. A million won for phones, 500,000 won for the rest. And there's a separate award for the top three teams that hit the sales target: 2 million for first, 1 million for second, 500,000 for third."
"So this month we've got 2 million guaranteed for hitting the target, plus 2.5 million from the product prizes if we leave out air conditioners. That's 4.5 million total. Patch the 500,000-won hole and we've still got 4 million left over—so yeah, let's do Korean BBQ this time. I'll run it by the team leader."
Park Dae-ri couldn't help getting one dig in.
"Funny how Deputy Hong, who's never helped this team once, is finally pulling his weight this month."
"Hey, Park Dae-ri. What did you just call him? Short-staffed or not, you call people by their proper title."
"Understood, sir. Though they say even the king gets cursed out where no one's watching. And technically, I didn't curse."
"I don't care who said what. Your usual habits slip out when you're not thinking, and that's what worries me. Once more with feeling—watch your faces outside this room. Got it?"
"Yes, sir!"
The meeting wrapped up quickly, and they filed back out into a quiet office. The other teams were apparently still buried in their sales meetings.
The moment Young-hoon sat back down at his desk, his phone rang. It was his cousin's husband.
"Hey, brother-in-law. What's this all of a sudden, calling me in the morning?"
"Busy, are you?"
"You know full well our company's busiest at month-end. Heh heh. You want something, don't you?"
"Oh, come on. You know exactly why I'm calling."
"What is it? Did your wife ask for more wine?"
"No, it's not that… I've got a VIP client I need to entertain. Would you help your brother-in-law out?"
"But I'm all out now. I'd have to get more, and who knows when I'll see that gentleman again. And last time he said I'd have to pay for it."
"Really? So it's not impossible to get more, then? How much for a bottle, you figure?"
"Hard to say. It's good stuff, so maybe around 500,000 won a bottle?"
"That cheap? Then couldn't I buy ten bottles or so?"
"What are you planning, a business venture? No can do. If I see him this weekend, I'll see if I can get one, two, maybe three bottles."
Young-hoon had no choice but to lie to his brother-in-law.
"All right, even that's more than I hoped for. Thanks, kid."
"Sure. Talk to you later."
Before long, a call came from Hee-joo, Young-hoon's cousin. What was with everyone today? People who never so much as texted him were suddenly calling nonstop.
"Jeez, what is it now, Nuna?"
"What, did your brother-in-law call you first?"
"He did. Did you tell him to get you more wine? What are you, a VIP?"
"What's that supposed to mean?"
"He said he's entertaining a VIP and asked me to score him one or two bottles?"
"Really? Young-hoon, do like he says—just one or two more bottles, please?"
"Why? Guess it worked, huh?"
"Hohohoho! Last night I died and came back to life. Your brother-in-law turned into a beast and pounced on me all night long… I barely slept a wink, but honestly? Best night since we got married."
"Nuna, is it really okay to be telling your little brother stuff like that?"
"Who cares? You're a grown adult. So… you'll get it for me, right? Right?"
"It's kind of expensive, though. You sure?"
"How expensive? A million won a bottle?"
"No, like 500,000?"
"Hey! Your brother-in-law's loaded. Don't you worry. Honestly, with effects like that, you could charge a million and up and still be undercharging."
"Ugh, whatever. Gotta go. I'm busy!"
"Don't you dare! Come visit this weekend. Bring a couple bottles in both hands and I'll pay you back myself."
"Goodbye, Nuna. Go bother your husband a little less!"
Either way, one thing was now thoroughly confirmed: the wine worked. And just like that, another business item was added to Young-hoon's list.
After hanging up with his cousin, Young-hoon called the dealership owners one by one, urging them to prevent order backlogs as much as possible. All the while, his mind was churning seriously over how to put the Magic Additive to work as his next business venture.
He'd just come back from lunch and was nursing a coffee at his desk when a call came in from President Lee Jae-man.
"Mr. Kim, today was the filing date for the copyright on A Loving Heart, so I submitted the application this morning."
"Sir, is there really any need to report every little thing to me? You handle it all perfectly well on your own."
"Mr. Kim, from now on you must be kept informed of everything, no matter how trivial. Because as of today, you hold 90% of Girin Entertainment's stock. I just picked up the paperwork from the registry office. My shoulders feel considerably lighter now—though I suppose yours just got heavier instead."
"They certainly did. I didn't expect the moment to arrive this soon. Having it become reality like this… my shoulders do feel heavy."
"I and the Five Girls will do our utmost to support you, Mr. Kim, so don't worry too much. You're busy—I'll hang up now."
"Go ahead. I'll call when things quiet down."
The moment he hung up, KakaoTalk messages flooded in like a tide.
Every single member of Five Girls had messaged him. Apparently President Lee Jae-man had told them the news.
Chattering away with Five Girls over KakaoTalk for a while, he suddenly found it was officially work hours. Time always flew when he least wanted it to.
And for some reason, today of all days, Deputy General Manager Cho was still parked at his desk at this hour.
Park Dae-ri headed out first, and Young-hoon rose from his desk a few minutes later. Apparently Deputy General Manager Cho had seen it.
"Kim Dae-ri, going somewhere?"
"Yes, sir. Just grabbing a coffee in the break room."
"Oh, are you? Then bring me back a cup while you're at it. Americano."
That man—everything about him grated on Young-hoon's nerves. Did he have no hands, or no feet of his own? Grumbling under his breath, Young-hoon stepped into the break room, where Park Dae-ri was waiting.
"What took you so long?"
"Dude, I need to get back fast. What's up?"
"Why the rush?"
"Cho wants me to fetch him a coffee. The guy knew I was headed here. I swear, I just can't stand that man!"
"Yeah? Then I'll get straight to the point. Park Dae-ri—that Deputy Hong really is Royal Family. Section Chief Choi checked with an old classmate of his on the Group HR team, and it turns out he's the second son of Hong Sang-gyu, the president of LK Chemical."
"So that little bastard's been pulling all his psycho stunts this whole time because he's got his dad to hide behind?"
"No—and to be precise, that lunatic's been hiding behind his mother. She's the chairman's younger sister."
"Then why's he rotting away in our team?"
"He was originally in the Corporate Strategy team. The guy's got a decent brain, after all. But he pulled something there and got exiled to our department."
"What kind of something?"
Curiosity got the better of Young-hoon, and he asked.
"I don't know the details, but apparently he hit a female employee on his own team. The women across the whole group raised holy hell over it, so they had no choice but to boot him over here."
"Then he'll be shipped back soon, won't he?"
"That's the thing—it's not so simple. That lunatic's older brother is supposedly the HR team leader for the entire group. He's apparently on his brother's blacklist, so returning to the Group side is going to be tough."
"How old is the lunatic's brother that he's already Group HR team leader? Royal Family really is a different breed."
"Just one year older than us. One guy gets born to the right parents and becomes Group HR team leader; another ends up a mere assistant manager… Where the hell else is there a world this fucked up? Our careers are already a tangled mess as it is, and it feels like it'll only get worse. Honestly, it pisses me off. Me, I could always quit and take a job at my dad's hospital—but what about you?"
"Me? I guess I'd head back home and take up farming."
"Farming? In some mountain village in Inje, Gangwon Province? Quit joking around."
"I'm serious. Hey, more importantly, the psycho's probably waiting. Let's head back."
Young-hoon brewed the americano Deputy General Manager Cho had ordered and returned to the office. But the moment he tried to settle into his seat, thoughts came swarming in from every direction, and focusing on work proved impossible.
I was planning to quit the company anyway. It's just a matter of timing. When the moment's right, I'll walk—no big deal. I've got plenty to do.
Having reframed things positively, Young-hoon buckled down and worked through his backlog until quitting time. The moment Deputy General Manager Cho confirmed the progress rate against the sales target looked roughly on track for closing, he packed up and left at exactly six o'clock sharp.
Park Dae-ri sidled over and spoke quietly.
"Look, I hate everything else about that psycho, but his clock-out discipline? Genuinely admirable. Am I wrong?"
"You've got a point. Beats the other team leaders who just sit around killing time for no reason."
At those words, Hwang Dae-ri from Marketing Team 2 suddenly butted into the conversation.
"True. Your team's psycho is still better than our team's certified lunatic."
"Hey, keep it down. What if your team leader hears you?"
"Let him hear. So what? Your team's basically done with sales anyway. Why aren't you leaving?"
"Too risky. When are you guys getting out?"
"Dead and reborn, we're still not hitting 100%—I don't know what the lunatic's still clinging to."
"Where do you figure you'll land?"
"Around 98%. We're short 100 million, and there's no way around it. It's all OWS—Order Waiting System—so shipments physically cannot go out tomorrow, no matter what."
"If it's all OWS, isn't the game already over?"
"And yet the lunatic still won't let go. Ugh, whatever—our team's not getting out before 10 p.m. anyway. You guys head home first."
"Got it, buddy. Let's grab a drink sometime."
"Yeah."
Young-hoon had just finished his chat with Hwang Dae-ri and was packing up to leave when Park Dae-ri spoke to him again.