I Must Become Like Them
The door to the Vice Chairman's office burst open, and Lee Sang-jong rushed straight up to Lee Mun-jong.
"Brother! Brother!"
Lee Mun-jong, who had been seated at his desk handling paperwork, looked up with his pen still in hand, staring in disbelief at the figure charging into the room.
"Couldn't you at least say you were coming? Or knock before barging in—or tell Secretary Kim? This isn't our house! What if I'd been in the middle of an important meeting with a guest?"
"That's not important right now."
Watching Sang-jong let his words go in one ear and out the other, Mun-jong pressed his fingers to his temple and shook his head.
"So what are you planning to do now?"
"Do about what, out of nowhere?"
"Daeguk Fertilizer!"
"Daeguk Fertilizer?"
"Yes. The one Kim won the bid for at two hundred billion and one thousand won, exactly as he planned. What are you going to do about it?"
Mun-jong let out a sigh, set his pen down on the desk, and rose from his chair. He gestured for Sang-jong to follow and walked over to the reception sofa.
"Sit down and talk. What am I supposed to do about it? Does Ilhyeon Construction want Daeguk Fertilizer that badly?"
"No, Brother!"
Sang-jong shook his head in frustration as he dropped into the seat.
"What good would it do Ilhyeon Construction to take Daeguk Fertilizer? More importantly, you know we don't have the spare capacity for it."
"I know Ilhyeon Construction has no room to move after you burned through eighty billion on that Jisan Cement mess. So why bring up Daeguk Fertilizer?"
"Why dredge up the past now, Brother… Anyway, do you think I came here because I want it? I came because things went exactly the way Kim said they would."
Mun-jong simply nodded in silence at his brother's words.
"In the end, we won the bid for Daeguk Fertilizer, so nothing could be better. Grandfather mentioned the company even on his deathbed, and Father has always wanted it. That part is good. But… we bought it a thousand won higher. Not a hundred million or a billion—just a thousand won."
Sang-jong leaned back against the sofa and continued.
"Anyone looking at it would call that a satisfying price. We completely flattened Homyeong Group's noses. But what if Father sees it that way too?"
"Are you worried Kim might become a threat? Or is this still about the Jisan Cement business?"
"Brother. I'm not talking nonsense here."
Sang-jong's gaze carried the unspoken message that he wasn't the only one thinking this. Mun-jong gave a light chuckle at that look.
"Even so, the guy is completely useless. Why bother paying attention to someone like that?"
"Take a look at me—the one bitten by that completely useless guy."
Sang-jong thrust his arm straight out and pointed at it.
"Because of him, it feels like I've lost an entire arm."
He lowered his arm and pressed on.
"I lost eighty billion. Eighty billion. I can't pin all of it on him, but you know, I know, and Father knows he's connected to it. And now that same man has gone and won Daeguk Fertilizer. How do you think Father is going to look at him?"
"It's true his gaze will change."
"Exactly what I'm saying."
Believing Mun-jong had finally understood, Sang-jong straightened his posture.
"So let's clean him up before he grows any bigger."
"Clean him up?"
Mun-jong narrowed his eyes as he studied his brother.
"And just what do you mean by 'clean him up'?"
The chill that entered Mun-jong's voice was new, but Sang-jong seemed not to notice and continued without concern.
"I thought if we kept throwing him in front of Father at the Pyeongchang-dong house, Father would cut him loose. But that hasn't happened at all. Instead of being cast out, he's doing nothing but things that delight Father. So I'm saying we need to get him out of Father's sight."
"Ah~ that kind of cleanup."
Mun-jong had already slipped back into his usual manner. He leaned against the sofa just as his brother had.
"You're right. Getting him out of Father's sight would be best."
"Brother, do you have any good way to remove him from Pyeongchang-dong?"
Sang-jong had thought only of removing Kim Seong-ho from the house; he hadn't considered the method. Mun-jong looked at him with a faint smile.
"A perfect method just came to mind. So don't worry. I'll handle it myself."
Only then did Sang-jong release a sigh of relief. It felt as though he might finally settle the grudge left by the Jisan Cement affair.
The two men in the Vice Chairman's office spent a thoroughly satisfying stretch of time—not because of the Daeguk Fertilizer bid, but for an entirely different reason.
When Kim Seong-ho came home from work, Lee Gyeong-eun came all the way to the front door to greet him.
"Welcome home. You must be tired."
"Tired? But why wait out here at the door? Aren't you cold?"
"Cold? After hearing your news I couldn't just sit inside waiting. I wanted to see you even a little sooner. You won the Daeguk Fertilizer bid today, didn't you? And in the most satisfying way."
"What did I tell you? I said I could do it, didn't I?"
At his words Gyeong-eun beamed, her face lighting up like a child expecting a present.
"What about Choi Byeong-mu's face? Did he look like he'd just chewed on something foul?"
She asked with genuine curiosity, and Seong-ho described the scene in such careful detail that it was as if he had brought the moment home with him. Gyeong-eun's expression grew animated, as though she could see it all playing out before her eyes.
When they reached the entrance to the house, Gyeong-eun tugged lightly on his arm. Seong-ho stopped and looked at her questioningly; she spoke in a low voice.
"My brothers are here."
"Your brothers?"
"Eldest Brother and Second Brother came to congratulate you on winning Daeguk Fertilizer, but… something feels off."
Seong-ho smiled and reassured her.
"If that's why they're here, it's fine. Nothing to worry about."
"How am I not supposed to worry…"
Gyeong-eun looked up at him with a face full of concern and spoke softly.
"Father and my brothers are far more frightening people than you think."
Seong-ho quietly took her hand and answered inside himself.
I know that better than you do, Gyeong-eun. That's why I'm going to become just as fearsome as they are.
No one understood better than Kim Seong-ho just how terrifying the people of the Ilhyeon Group could be. And he had decided that he himself must become every bit as terrifying.
Only then will I be able to return everything they gave me, exactly as it was given.
He soothed Gyeong-eun and gestured toward the house.
"Shouldn't we go in now, Gyeong-eun? We can't keep the Chairman waiting too long."
"Yes…"
Still gripping the hand of the woman who continued to watch him with anxious eyes, Seong-ho stepped inside.
As the door opened, a tall man came into view. Lee Ung-hyeon, who managed all household affairs at the Pyeongchang-dong residence, stood waiting for Seong-ho's arrival.
"The master has instructed that you come straight to the study the moment you enter."
His expression was as blunt as ever.
"He also said the youngest young lady is to come with you."
"Yes. I understand, Uncle."
Hearing Gyeong-eun's reply, Lee Ung-hyeon bowed his head, turned, and left. Gyeong-eun watched his retreating back for a moment before speaking to Seong-ho.
"Uncle isn't being that way because he dislikes you. He's always been a bit blunt and short with words."
"I know. That's why Father-in-law trusts him with the household, isn't it?"
"That's true. It's why he can handle all the endless troubles of a house like ours."
A bitter look crossed Gyeong-eun's face. She knew better than anyone that her family was different from others.
"We should go. Everyone will be waiting."
Seong-ho smiled at her, took her hand, and headed for the study where Lee Tak-hyeon, Chairman of the Ilhyeon Group, was waiting.
When they entered the study, Lee Mun-jong and Lee Sang-jong were already seated side by side, waiting with Lee Tak-hyeon. Seong-ho glanced once at the two brothers, then bowed to the Chairman.
"Chairman. I've returned."
"At home you may call me Father-in-law."
A smile so broad it nearly reached his ears, Lee Tak-hyeon stepped forward and clapped Seong-ho on the shoulder.
"You did splendidly with the Daeguk Fertilizer bid. You saved us fifty billion—fifty billion!"
"Thank you. Fortunately Homyeong Group bid two hundred billion, so we won by a hair's breadth."
"Nonsense, nonsense. Didn't everyone expect it? Hahaha. Well done. Very well done."
As Tak-hyeon repeated his praise with clear satisfaction, Sang-jong's face twisted. Mun-jong quietly pressed a hand against his brother's thigh, wary that Sang-jong might do something foolish.
Once Tak-hyeon had returned to his seat, Mun-jong gestured toward Seong-ho and Gyeong-eun.
"Kim. You've worked hard. Come sit with Gyeong-eun."
Seong-ho gave a slight nod of acknowledgment and sat on the sofa with his wife.
So they mean to move on the very first day after the bid? Well, that suits me fine.
He smiled silently at the transparent schemes written across Mun-jong's and Sang-jong's faces.
Mun-jong watched Seong-ho's quiet smile for a moment, then turned to Tak-hyeon.
"I'm so glad you followed Kim's advice instead of mine, Father. If you'd done as I urged, we would have thrown away fifty billion."
He glanced back at Seong-ho and continued.
"And he even flattened Homyeong Group's noses for us. What could be more satisfying? I can only think Heaven must be on your side, Father."
"Hahaha. Yes. Heaven must be on this Lee Tak-hyeon's side to have sent me a son-in-law like that."
At the exchange between Mun-jong and Tak-hyeon, a smile bloomed on Gyeong-eun's face. She took Seong-ho's hand and spoke to her father.
"Dad. What did I tell you? I said you'd be completely taken with him."
"True. Our youngest has a good eye for people. You brought home a real prize."
Seong-ho waved off the praise while discreetly studying the expressions of Mun-jong and Sang-jong. Mun-jong maintained a perfect poker face, determined to reveal nothing. Sang-jong, however, could not manage the same; his face flushed red with open displeasure.
Well then. Shall we begin?
Seong-ho already knew the two brothers had come to Pyeongchang-dong with schemes carefully hidden. He was waiting for those schemes to surface—and as if hearing his wish, Mun-jong slowly began to reveal the designs he held against him.