The Triumphant General
Chairman Jang was in a hurry.
It was evening rush hour, and the traffic barely moved. He caught himself worrying that the mighty specimen standing proudly at his attention might droop powerlessly before he ever arrived.
Only a few years ago he had enjoyed a vigorous sex life, but these days nothing worked at all without the help of pills. And even Viagra was off the table — his personal physician, Director Park, wouldn't prescribe it, saying it would put too much strain on his heart. He had been drifting through his days listless and bored, robbed of life's greatest pleasure, when a few days earlier Executive Vice President Lee, the head of asset management at a fairly sizable securities firm, had told him something extraordinary — something that promised to breathe life back into him.
His interest had been genuinely piqued. And so today, he had met the young man — a cousin-in-law of Executive Vice President Lee's. The fellow had a kind, likable face with clear, honest eyes, which gave Chairman Jang the feeling that he was hearing nothing but the unvarnished truth about the elixir's effects. And even if nothing else could be trusted, the wine itself was indisputably superb. It was so good that every other drink he'd ever had now seemed undrinkable by comparison.
As for the rest of its promised effects — well, he would simply have to run an experiment tonight with his young lover.
Ji-hye had met Chairman Jang five years ago. She was a junior madam at a room salon back then, and when he offered to be her sponsor, she quit the bar business for good and took over the tea shop he set up for her. All the shop required was to keep things running as they were — Chairman Jang already deposited over ten million won a month into her living expenses. Even the forty-eight-pyeong apartment she lived in now had been quietly transferred back into her own name by the Chairman. In a word, she wanted for nothing.
If there was a single thing missing in her life… well, that was the thing.
She was barely in her late thirties, and the desires still burning at their peak were hard to contain. Chairman Jang stopped by occasionally for a meal, nothing more — these days he wouldn't even attempt the main event, whether the pills worked or not. So she was dying of loneliness night after night. But seeing another man was out of the question. If Chairman Jang ever found out, her current happiness would come crashing down around her, and fear kept her from doing anything about it either way.
Then today, Chairman Jang had called. Close up the tea shop early, go home, shower, and wait for him. The old man must have found some mountain ginseng and snake wine somewhere, she'd thought. And so here she was, freshly scrubbed, body immaculate, fully prepared, waiting for the Chairman to arrive.
Around nine o'clock, Chairman Jang flung open the apartment door and strode inside. He looked for all the world like a triumphant general returning from a victorious campaign.
Wearing a grin from ear to ear, he stepped into the living room and immediately seized Ji-hye's hand, pressing it against his manhood. Good heavens! This was not the Chairman Jang she usually knew. It felt like she was gripping a massive tree branch — and the thing was so rigid beneath her fingers that she might have mistaken it for the equipment of a man in his twenties. And the damn thing was glaring stiffly up at the ceiling.
Chairman Jang was beside himself with pride. He showered in record time and led Ji-hye into the bedroom. All that remained now was to ravish his young lover. He threw himself at her as valiantly as a young lion on the savanna.
From the moment she had touched him, Ji-hye had let herself hope. Even in her youth she had rarely encountered anything so magnificent. And sure enough, the Chairman's force as he pressed into her was extraordinary. She had never once experienced anything like this. She was certain now that she was done for — utterly, hopelessly done for. Wherever he got it from, the man has clearly drunk a genuine miracle medicine. This is completely different from usual.
"Ah! I'm dying… I feel like I'm flying to Hong Kong tonight."
But this was only the beginning. As if clearing a backlog of overdue approvals in a single sitting, Chairman Jang intended to ravish his young lover until dawn.
Young-hoon had gone out for a glass of draft beer with his brother-in-law Ki-jin at the fried chicken joint in front of their building. Just then, Hee-joo's number flashed across Ki-jin's phone. He snatched it up in a panic, and his wife's voice came pouring out — where are you, get home now.
"Brother-in-law, I think that wine of yours works on women too. Your sister never used to be this frisky, but lately she's been killing me every single night."
"Huh? That's strange. I heard you're the one wearing her out?"
"What nonsense! Who is it that showers the second she walks in the door and waits for me in something scandalous, huh? Nobody's being worn out here, I'll tell you that. Not that it's bad these days — I get treated like a king at home. She says she's being crushed under me all night, then first thing in the morning she piles my rice bowl high with meat side dishes and acts sweet as pie? Anyway, brother-in-law — how are you dealing with all that surging vitality of yours? Don't tell me it's the Eagle 5 Brothers?"
"I handle my own business, thank you very much. Just make sure you pay for my drinks properly, brother-in-law."
"Don't worry. You know how deep Chairman Jang's pockets are. He'll probably hand over at least one jang."
"One jang means… whoa, a million won?"
"For such a small pot, you've got a small imagination. In my estimation, you could take anywhere from fifty million to a hundred million."
"What?! What did you say?"
"Why so shocked? You restored a pleasure he'd lost from his life — of course you should be compensated that much. Do you have any idea how rich Chairman Jang is? He's got over two trillion won in cash alone. With real estate included, some say he's worth more than five trillion, but only the Chairman himself knows the exact figure."
"Still, there's the production cost of the wine to consider…"
"Brother-in-law, do you really think rich men like that count pennies while they drink? It's the taste that matters. Men who'll pay any price for a drink that tastes good — those are the rich. And if the drink also protects their health? Game over. You think a man like that would fork over a mere million won? Besides, if we land Chairman Jang's money in my firm, I'll get a monster performance bonus — and I'll give you half of it."
"How much is this bonus, exactly?"
"The company promised me two percent, so… call it six billion won."
"WHAT?! You're telling me you're getting a bonus worth a hundred and twenty years of my salary?"
"Which is exactly why I threw myself at this deal like my life depended on it. And it looks like Chairman Jang has taken a shine to you, so cultivate that relationship. Who knows — it could change your whole life."
"Well… thank you, brother-in-law. For everything, really."
"By the way, brother-in-law — between us… there's one more VVIP. A friend and rival of Chairman Jang's. I'd bet the house that tomorrow morning, the Chairman is going to brag about it to him shamelessly. Which means my phone is ten-thousand percent going to catch fire tomorrow. So when it does, throw your weight around one more time. Please."
"If it's good for you, it's good for Hee-joo too, right? I'll help as far as I can reach."
Just then, evidently unable to wait a second longer, Hee-joo called Young-hoon directly.
[You! I'm only going to say this nicely — send your brother-in-law home NOW!]
"Whoa, why are you threatening me?"
[If he's not through that door in five minutes, you're a dead man, little cousin.]
"Fine, fine. I'll send him right in. But tell him to just hold hands nicely tonight and sleep. Bye."
"Yikes, brother-in-law, I'd better head in. Something tells me the atmosphere is not friendly."
"Go on. Try not to give yourself a nosebleed tomorrow morning."
Parting with Ki-jin, Young-hoon trudged back home, oddly deflated. Chairman Jang and his brother-in-law were both feasting on the elixir's effects, while he himself had nowhere to pour his overflowing vitality. That night in the shower, he mistreated the poor Eagle 5 Brothers once again.
Ki-jin, for his part, was subjected to a mandatory shower the instant he walked through the door. Hee-joo was waiting in the bedroom, eyes gleaming. Very well — tonight, I shall become a beast once more.
Hee-joo and Ki-jin wrestled furiously atop the bed until the small hours. Come morning, one of the two was unlikely to be getting up.
Friday, November 3rd. Fire Friday — the burning Friday. As always, Young-hoon pulled out his work notebook and organized the day's schedule.
There was one important event today. The pre-production announcement for Love After Separation was being held at the Castle Hotel at five in the afternoon, and Five Girls would be in attendance to perform two OST songs. Come this evening, he figured, A Loving Heart would ignite like a wildfire. He could see it coming without even watching.
Through a string of coincidences, Young-hoon had somehow ended up attending the announcement event himself, which was why he now stood there in a full suit, dying of awkwardness. LK Electronics had a free dress code, so as long as you weren't actually unpleasant to look at, you could wear whatever you liked. Consequently, the unfamiliar suit made him feel like a fish out of water.
First, he needed to confirm whether the event expenses had been wired to CEO Lee Jae-man. He was also curious about last night's news from Chairman Jang — Ki-jin would probably call around ten. And if there was time, he should check the real-time music chart rankings, though he doubted much had changed yet. There was nothing special to do at the office today, either; with the quantitative evaluations having wrapped up in October, everyone was in a relaxed, slackened state.
He wandered to the lounge and brewed himself a cup of bean coffee, savoring it slowly. It tasted terrible. I could make coffee that actually tastes good — when am I going to get that business off the ground? The to-do list is a mountain…
While he was lost in these idle daydreams, the employees trickled in one by one. Nearly everyone who knew him asked the same question: "Got a blind date today?"
Deputy Hong, of all people, showed up on time for once. Yesterday he'd stormed out in a fit of temper, and today the little weasel was already spouting his usual obnoxious drivel.
"I don't get it, Assistant Manager Kim. You put on a suit and still look like some country bumpkin. Your face doesn't carry it, so the clothes just fall flat."
Oh, you insufferable little brat. Short as a stub and ugly as a rat, and you're out here critiquing other people's looks? Young-hoon cursed him inwardly but gave nothing away on his face. He had no desire to pick a fight for no reason, so he just grinned and let it slide.
"You're right, Deputy Hong. I am a country bumpkin."
The moment Deputy Head Cho arrived at the office, he summoned Deputy Hong to the conference room. Apparently there was no morning meeting today. Inside, the two of them huddled in deep conversation for quite some time.
"What was with you storming out of the office yesterday?"
"I was pissed, so I went to confront my uncle."
"Yeah? And what did the Group HR chief say?"
"He says the Group HR team regularly audits the personnel records of all the affiliates. During the end-of-last-month audit of LK Electronics, they came across my attendance records — and apparently every single day was marked as normal work. From his own observation, I'm absent plenty of days. So they did an internal check. He claims they're preparing for a management reshuffle right now, and it was a warning — don't cause your father any unnecessary embarrassment, that kind of thing. Anyway, that's that."
"So it was nothing after all? And here I was worrying myself sick."
"Honestly, why did you have to mark my attendance as one hundred percent perfect anyway…? Learn some restraint, sir."
"You're up for promotion next year, Deputy Hong. When promotion reviews come around, the personnel evaluation matters, but attendance counts for a lot too. That's why I've been managing it for you."
"Well, if that's the case, I've got nothing to say. Say — I skipped my shower coming in early this morning and I feel grimy. How about we hit the sauna for a full session?"
"Why not."
The moment they left the conference room, Deputy Head Cho and Deputy Hong bustled out of the office, muttering something about urgent fieldwork. Fieldwork at the sauna, no doubt about it.