Somehow Raise Her Up
Kim Seong-ho spoke in a calm, measured voice as he explained to the furiously scowling Lee Mun-jong why he had summoned him here.
"There are too many eyes at headquarters. I couldn't go there myself. If I, of all people, had gone to headquarters to see you, hyung-nim, what would people think? And if the Chairman heard about it, what would he make of it?"
"What difference is there between you coming to me and me coming to you? Spare me the excuses!"
Still failing to grasp it, Lee Mun-jong shouted at him.
Kim Seong-ho remained utterly unmoved by the outburst, answering with the same composed expression as before.
"There is a difference. If I went to headquarters, it would look as though I were the one trying to persuade you. If you come to the hotel, it looks as though you are the one bringing me into your fold. Whether I am the subject of the action or you are—that is a considerable difference."
"Persuade? Bring into my fold? What are you talking about?"
Kim Seong-ho smiled at Lee Mun-jong's still-baffled face and continued.
"I want to be on the same side as you, hyung-nim. In that case, wouldn't it look far better if the picture were of you drawing me in, rather than of me walking in of my own accord?"
"You want to be on my side?"
"Yes. Because I support you."
Lee Mun-jong let out a short, incredulous laugh.
"You want to be on my side? Why? Think you'll become President of Ilhyeon Hotel if you throw in with me?"
Bang!
Lee Mun-jong slammed his palm down on the table and roared at Kim Seong-ho.
"Don't make me laugh! You racked up a few results and now you're eyeing the president's seat at Ilhyeon Hotel? A man like you will never sit in that chair. Never!"
"I think the same."
"...What?"
Lee Mun-jong, who had been shouting full-throatedly, faltered for a moment at Kim Seong-ho's words.
"What did you just say?"
"I, like you, believe I should not sit in the president's chair at Ilhyeon Hotel."
"You... mean that?"
"Of course. I have not the slightest desire for the president's seat. On the contrary, I've been troubled because the Chairman seems inclined to hand it to me. That is precisely why I asked you to come here today."
After a quick glance confirmed that the strength had drained from Lee Mun-jong's hand, Kim Seong-ho pressed on.
"The Chairman used the word 'gift' in front of the entire body of presidents. My position right now is extremely awkward."
Lee Mun-jong narrowed his eyes and studied him.
"I don't know if you remember, hyung-nim, but I am a man who finds genuine enjoyment in restructuring work."
"Yes. I remember what you said back at Ilhyeon Watch."
"If a man like that takes the president's seat at Ilhyeon Hotel, his hands and feet would be tied. Would I truly want a post like that?"
Lee Mun-jong stared hard, trying to decide whether the words were sincere. No matter how intently he searched Kim Seong-ho's face, he could read nothing. For years Kim Seong-ho had poured every ounce of effort into never revealing his true feelings in front of this man.
At last Lee Mun-jong gave up and leaned back. Only then did Kim Seong-ho speak again.
"And I want to accomplish far more—together with you, hyung-nim."
"With me?"
"Yes. Aren't you the next master of the Ilhyeon Group?"
The corners of Lee Mun-jong's previously stiff mouth twitched.
"That's right. I am the next master."
"I am carrying out the Chairman's orders for now, but looking to the future, the days I take orders from you will be far longer. So I wish to maintain a good relationship with you. That is my honest feeling."
"Hahaha. Now you're starting to make sense. Yes. The time you'll spend with Father will be shorter than the time you'll spend with me. So if you're going to pick a side, picking mine is only natural."
"I have been standing in your line ever since the Jisan Cement affair."
When Kim Seong-ho bowed his head slightly and mentioned the past Jisan Cement matter, Lee Mun-jong nodded.
"Yes. You did. I had forgotten for a moment."
Feeling that all the days he had spent watching and checking Kim Seong-ho had been wasted effort, Lee Mun-jong smoothed the scowl from his face and looked at him.
"Fine. Then what do you want? Don't tell me 'nothing.' Obviously you want something if you're trying to stand beside me."
"I won't deny it. There is something for which I would like your help, hyung-nim."
"I like the honesty. Speak. Within reason, I'll grant it."
Kim Seong-ho allowed a faint smile to touch his lips at Lee Mun-jong's changed demeanor, then began to tell him exactly what he wanted.
Lee Tak-hyeon had established a standing order that the entire family gather for a meal every Sunday, yet it was impossible for every member to attend all twelve months of the year.
The eldest, Lee Mun-jong, and the second son, Lee Sang-jong, were frequently away on business trips, and the other children were little better. Occasions when the first through fifth children and all their spouses sat down together could be counted on one hand.
Lee Tak-hyeon understood the situation and had never once made an issue of it.
This time, however, he issued a direct order that not a single person was to be absent.
"Is that the best driving you can manage?"
The moment she stepped out of the car, Lee Jeong-eun shrieked in irritation. The chauffeur who had driven Kim Seong-ho on a previous occasion rushed forward and dropped to his knees.
"I am sorry, madam."
"Sorry?"
At the apology Lee Jeong-eun's eyes flashed; she struck the chauffeur full across the face.
Slap!
His head snapped sideways. The man could only keep murmuring apologies.
Even that failed to soothe her. She continued to rant.
"You think I pay you so you can drive like that? If you take the money, you do the work worth the money! Do you take me for a fool? Huh? You think I'm some idiot who just hands out cash?"
Lee Jeong-eun went wild, swinging her bag and kicking the chauffeur. He kept his head bowed and simply endured the blows. He had elderly parents, young children, a wife who cared for those parents in his place, and a sick younger sibling—too many mouths depending on him.
The beating was still going on when the door opened and Kim Seong-ho appeared.
"Noona. You've arrived. Why haven't you come inside yet...?"
The moment Kim Seong-ho showed himself, Cha Yeong-su—who until then had stood to one side pretending not to notice—hurried over.
"Kim Seobang. It's been a while."
Cha Yeong-su caught Kim Seong-ho's arm and drew him a little farther from Lee Jeong-eun, speaking in a low voice.
"Let's wait until her temper cools a bit before we go in."
Kim Seong-ho glanced at Lee Jeong-eun, who was still kicking the chauffeur, and asked,
"Why is noona like this? Did something happen on the way?"
"Well..."
Cha Yeong-su looked back at his wife, grimaced, then spoke with a bitter expression.
"Kim the driver changed lanes more times than she had ordered. She didn't like it, so... aigoo..."
Even as he said it, Cha Yeong-su shuddered at the sheer absurdity of the reason. Then he lowered his voice so only Kim Seong-ho could hear.
"Is your wife like that too?"
Kim Seong-ho could picture the entire scene without needing further details. In his previous life he had watched Lee Jeong-eun tyrannize chauffeurs more times than he could count.
That temper of hers wasn't going anywhere.
Smiling inwardly, he nodded.
"We all carry the Lee name, don't we? Similar enough."
"Right?"
Pleased to have found a comrade, Cha Yeong-su laid a hand on Kim Seong-ho's shoulder.
"You must have it rough as well. As a senior, let me tell you one thing: that damn personality never changes, no matter how much time passes. Early in the marriage I hoped it might soften... never happened. It only gets worse, never better."
Cha Yeong-su shook his head in utter weariness. Kim Seong-ho merely nodded along, offering vague agreement. In truth Lee Gyeong-eun's temperament was nothing like her sister's. Where Lee Jeong-eun treated every person she met as her inferior, Lee Gyeong-eun was invariably polite to everyone, high or low. She had been so reluctant to reveal whose daughter she was that Kim Seong-ho had never even known she was Chairman Lee Tak-hyeon's child until they married.
The two women were polar opposites, yet Kim Seong-ho deliberately claimed they were similar in order to build rapport.
I need Cha Yeong-su.
With so much still to do inside the Ilhyeon Group, Cha Yeong-su was an indispensable piece. By agreeing with him, Kim Seong-ho was forging a sense of shared suffering and imprinting the image of an ally.
"Aigoo. You poor man..."
Feeling a deep kinship with someone in the same predicament, Cha Yeong-su looked at Kim Seong-ho with the eyes of a fellow who had married into this family against his better judgment—and with particular pity for a man who, unlike himself, had no powerful backing.
"Hah... hah... What do you think you're...?"
Only when she was out of breath did Lee Jeong-eun finally stop. Cha Yeong-su decided it was now safe to call her.
"Let's go inside. Kim Seobang is already out here; if we delay any longer the Chairman will be angry."
"Hoo... Fine."
Lee Jeong-eun straightened her clothes, raked Kim Seong-ho up and down with a contemptuous glance, snorted, and walked through the door without a word of greeting. Cha Yeong-su shook his head at the sight, gave Kim Seong-ho a light pat on the back, and followed his wife inside.
Once the two had gone, Kim Seong-ho approached the chauffeur, who was covered in dirt from head to toe, and held out a handkerchief.
"...Thank you."
Tears streaming, the man accepted the handkerchief and wiped his eyes.
"Stay strong. If you endure, good things will come."
Kim Seong-ho offered the quiet words of comfort, then rose and headed into the house where a storm was about to break.
"Dad, we're here!"
Lee Jeong-eun flung the door open and shouted as she kicked off her shoes. Lee Gyeong-eun, who had been helping the aunties prepare food inside, hurried to the entrance still wearing her apron.
"Unni, you came?"
Lee Jeong-eun looked her up and down with open pity.
"What are you doing?"
"I was helping with the work."
"Why are you helping? Are you the help?"
"No, it's not like that..."
"We're paying people to do this. Why are you jumping in?"
"It's nice when family prepares the meal themselves..."
"Aigoo..."
Lee Jeong-eun sighed and shook her head as if conversation were impossible. Then she glanced at Kim Seong-ho, who had just entered behind her, and muttered,
"Husband and wife, exactly alike. No wonder the two of you found each other and got married. A perfect pair of pathetic creatures."
She shook her head again and walked farther inside. Lee Gyeong-eun shouted after her retreating back.
"You can insult me all you want, but don't you dare insult my Seong-ho! What makes you so great that you get to talk about him that way? I told you I wouldn't stay quiet if you badmouthed my husband!"
Lee Jeong-eun pretended not to hear, digging a finger into her ear as she continued down the hall.
"Unni! Can't you hear me?!"
"Gyeong-eun."
Kim Seong-ho gently caught his wife's shoulder before she could charge after her sister. The touch brought Lee Gyeong-eun back to herself; her face flushed.
"I'm sorry... I got a little worked up."
"I know it came from caring about me. But today you need to hold it in."
He met her eyes squarely and smiled.
"Today is an important day for you, Gyeong-eun."
"Hoo... I know. But..."
She let the sentence trail off, then shook off the remaining anger and nodded.
"You're right. Since we've decided to do this, we should do it properly. All right. I'll trust you and hold my tongue."
That she would simply believe him and follow without needing to be persuaded filled Kim Seong-ho with strength.
Well then. Shall we raise Gyeong-eun up a little?
Thinking of the gathering soon to begin, he smiled a deep, quiet smile.