Having Fun is the Best (1)
Han Jun-ho stared at the TV. No matter which channel he turned to, the story was the same: newly built apartments. Luxury apartments. But inside, they were boneless apartments—steel rebar deliberately omitted during construction.
Luxury apartments revealed as boneless buildings. Twenty-two construction workers dead, over fifty injured in partial collapse. Saseong Construction under fire.
"You stupid son of a bitch!!!"
The remote in his hand flew and struck his son squarely in the head.
He had been so proud of his boy. The son who had studied abroad in America and boasted about using the latest, cutting-edge construction techniques. But that so-called advanced method had simply meant skipping the rebar.
"F-father..."
His son was trembling violently. The news was now exposing every corrupt act the boy had committed—omitting rebar, swapping premium materials for cheap Chinese knockoffs.
"Father... w-what do we do... what are we going to do..."
Terrified, his son dropped to his knees, head bowed, sobbing like a child. It was a pathetic, spineless sight that didn't match his large frame at all.
"Pathetic bastard..."
Han Jun-ho's growl carried pure contempt and rage. He had built this company from nothing with his bare fists. Throughout that journey, he had lived by one unbreakable rule: I do not compromise.
At the very least, when building homes where people would live, he had never cut corners on safety. Omitting rebar? Why the hell would anyone do something so insane?
That was exactly why Saseong had become famous for creating buildings that would stand strong for over a century.
And yet... his own son had destroyed it all.
Even so, Han Jun-ho could not abandon his child. No matter how disappointing, he was still his own flesh and blood.
"...I don't know what to do with you."
"Father..."
"Don't come to the office anymore. As for the company... I'm handing it over to Yu-na."
"Father!! Just once! Give me one more chance!!"
He could not let a fool like this lead the company. Han Jun-ho rose from his seat and picked up the phone. He called the deputy chief prosecutor he knew well at the prosecutor's office and spoke in a drained voice.
"...I was the one who ordered this."
He had chosen to shoulder the disgrace himself—for his son's sake.
"...There's a problem with the apartments we're building right now?"
Chairman Han Jun-ho's voice trembled. His expression was one of utter disbelief. His distrustful gaze shifted between me and Han Yu-na.
"Yes."
"My son would never do something like that. Yu-na, no matter what, he's still your brother. To frame him in this way..."
Han Yu-na didn't answer. She simply wore a shocked expression of her own.
"In the construction industry they call it common practice, but... this seems far too extreme to be mere practice."
"......"
Anger began to cloud Chairman Han Jun-ho's face. The look in his eyes seemed to say: Who the hell are you? Some orphan brat daring to slander my son? My son, who grew up watching my management philosophy?
But the truth was the truth. What could I do?
"No matter how much I've stepped back from the front lines, I am still the group chairman. Are you saying these things happened without my permission?"
"Isn't there a managing director named Jang Yun-geol in the company?"
"How did you..."
His eyes flicked toward Han Yu-na, wondering if she had told me. But she shook her head. When he saw her serious, innocent gaze, Chairman Han Jun-ho turned back to me.
"...So you're saying Jang Yun-geol would know the details?"
"Yes. He's in charge of overall business operations. He should know everything."
I didn't know the exact specifics myself. What I had seen was Han Jun-ho's future—one where he took the fall for his son, received a thirty-year prison sentence, and eventually died behind bars.
This healthy, passionate man would waste away in disappointment after watching his beliefs, his management philosophy, and his son's upbringing all crumble to nothing.
"Chairman Han, you're a good man."
He might be at the bottom rung among Korea's top thirty chaebol families, but he was still a chaebol. Even so, he was surprisingly humble.
He never hesitated to help those in need and genuinely wanted to work alongside his employees. He had also built quite a few orphanages, helping kids like me.
"I don't think someone like you deserves such a bitter ending."
"......"
His face had hardened so much that he seemed unable to speak. It looked like he had no intention of listening to me any further.
"...I'll be going now."
"You're leaving already?"
It really did feel like he'd only just arrived. Instead of answering my question, Chairman Han Jun-ho simply turned and left the party venue.
"Chairman! Chairman!"
A few of the guests who had come because they heard he would be attending followed him out. But well...
"Is my job here finished?"
"...Yeah. It is. Though the story that came out was much bigger than I expected."
"What kind of outcome were you hoping for..."
"I just wanted you to catch my father's eye. If you catch the attention of one of Korea's top thirty chaebols, your own recognition will skyrocket too."
She glanced around the room, then brought up the conversation only the two of us had been able to hear earlier.
"But... was that really true?"
"What, the boneless apartments? Yes. Well. If we're only looking at the results, I suppose it's something to apologize to you about, Miss Han Yu-na."
Because of that incident, Han Yu-na would become the successor. Of course Saseong Group would take a massive hit, but she had just thrown away the perfect opportunity to solidify her position as heir.
"There will be... casualties, right?"
"Yes."
Around twenty workers would die, and over fifty would be injured.
"Then it's fine."
She let out a small laugh.
"I have no intention of climbing up on the blood price of people's lives."
That was a relief.
Han Jun-ho could not believe the documents in front of him.
It was all true. The young fortune teller he had met at the party—only because his daughter had begged him to go. Everything that con artist Kang Noah had said was accurate.
How is this possible...
He stared blankly at the contents of the report before letting out a long sigh. He had trusted his son. He had believed in him. But that trust had now completely shattered.
"Bring Han Gyeong-il here."
"Yes, sir."
After the secretary left, it wasn't long before the well-dressed president of Saseong Construction, Han Gyeong-il, entered the room.
"Chairman. You called for me—"
"You pathetic bastard."
"...Pardon? W-what is this all of a sudden..."
The documents flew through the air. Han Gyeong-il picked them up, and his face froze solid.
"H-how did you get this..."
How had it been discovered? He had carefully filled every related position with only his own people to keep it from reaching his father's ears. Just how had his father found out?
Han Gyeong-il desperately began making excuses.
"A-according to the latest construction methods, this much rebar is—"
"Step down from your position as president."
"F-father...!!"
"From the beginning."
Han Jun-ho was ice cold.
"Start over from the very beginning and learn properly."
He ignored his son's wail of despair. As the secretary dragged the screaming man away, Han Jun-ho glared after him before leaning back heavily in his chair. Only a few days had passed, yet he felt like he had aged ten years.
Just who the hell is that man?
Kang Noah. A man who had only just become an adult. Yet he had gotten every single detail perfectly right. What kind of person was he?
Han Jun-ho called for his secretary.
"Look into a man named Kang Noah."
"Yes, sir."
Thus began the investigation into Kang Noah. Shockingly, there was almost nothing to find. He had no connection whatsoever to Saseong. The only tenuous link was the part-time job he had once done with his daughter, Han Yu-na.
Chairman Han, you're a good man.
Kang Noah's words came back to him. A good person. In the world of corporate management, those weren't exactly welcome words. Yet for some reason, they made his spine tingle.
Ahem. Well, I suppose I have lived decently.
He had failed completely at raising his son, but at least he could hold his head high before the heavens without shame. That was why he had grown curious.
"Find out what that friend is doing these days. And... look into Sejin Trade as well."
His daughter Yu-na had claimed she was dating him, but according to the secretary's investigation, there were no signs of that. Perhaps she had only said it to lend weight to Kang Noah's words. Still, the fact that Yu-na was showing interest in him was undeniable.
"If my daughter is interested in someone, I should cheer her on. Of course."
He hadn't misjudged people his whole life for nothing. Definitely not because the man had called him a good person. Thinking this, Chairman Han Jun-ho smiled faintly.
On the wall hung countless photographs of him with children from the many orphanages he had built.
"Alright, that's it for today."
I cut off the desperate pleas of the viewers trying to hold onto me.
The broadcast was going better than expected. Today's earnings alone would come to around two million won. At this rate, I'd be able to break into the rankings on Chajajak. People were already talking about me on internet portals and galleries. My recognition was shooting up fast.
Ring ring!!
Hm? Who could it be? I checked and saw it was Han Yu-na.
"Hello."
"Mr. Kang. This is Han Yu-na. Is now a good time to talk?"
"Yes."
"My father says he would like to meet with you. If you're available, would you mind coming together with me?"
So Chairman Han Jun-ho was calling me. I quickly searched for a news channel on YouTube. There it was—a short report saying that construction on Saseong Construction's current apartment project had been halted.
An internal audit had discovered missing materials including rebar, and the current president had been dismissed.
"Is the chairman doing alright?"
"The stock price took a bit of a hit, but Father is fine. The problem was resolved before it exploded, so there won't be any major issues. There are some legal complications, but Saseong's legal team will handle that part well."
Then we're good.
"I'm free anytime."
I had already done my raid yesterday anyway.
"Then I'll see you tomorrow."
"Yep."
Tomorrow, huh. Looked like I'd be eating something delicious tomorrow night.
The next evening, Han Yu-na came to pick me up herself. She was driving what looked like a very expensive sports car. It practically sparkled—it must have been brand new.
"Do you usually drive something like this?"
"No. I actually prefer a domestic mid-size sedan."
"Then why..."
"I thought you might like it, Mr. Kang."
"I don't even have a driver's license."
"......"
It hadn't even been a full year since I left the orphanage after becoming an adult. Of course I didn't have a license. Besides, I didn't really like driving. Seoul's public transportation was more than good enough.
"I-I see. Actually, I was planning to give it to you, Mr. Kang."
"This thing?"
I didn't know much about cars, but wasn't this worth almost an entire apartment?
"Yes."
"I'll have to decline."
Just give me the money instead. Han Yu-na gave a bitter smile and nodded.
"Understood. Please get in for now."
I climbed into the passenger seat. Damn. It was seriously uncomfortable.
"They say cars like this have excellent exit feel."
She must have read my expression and figured out what I was thinking. Han Yu-na grinned as she spoke.
Exit feel, my ass. I couldn't care less about that.
"Then I'll drive carefully."
The sports car roared away with an obnoxiously loud engine. Huh. Was this the miracle of Moses? Every car that might have cut us off moved aside, and even the vehicles ahead switched lanes to make way.
The surprisingly pleasant drive ended at an upscale Korean restaurant—the same place I had visited before with the Hong sisters.
"Their stir-fried pork is really good here."
"You've been here before?"
"Yes."
"Ah... I see. Anyway, let's go inside."
I followed her in. When we entered the private room in the back, Chairman Han Jun-ho was already waiting.
"Mr. Kang."
"Please feel free to call me Kang Noah."
"No, how could I? You're the person who protected not only our company but also our workers and staff."
Chairman Han Jun-ho firmly took my hand. Then he bowed his head with genuine sincerity.
"I thank you from the bottom of my heart."
"Haha..."
"And... I have one favor to ask."
"Yes? Of course. Please tell me."
"The truth is, our company is preparing one particular project. It's an overseas construction project..."
His eyes sparkled.
"Do you think it will go well??"
Hmm. Overseas construction. I pulled out my cards. The moment he flipped them over, I told him about the future I had seen.
"It's about the construction project in Iran."
"As expected...!! Yes. What do you think? We're currently competing with Daehan Construction for the contract..."
"If you win that bid, you won't get paid."
"Why not? Iran isn't that bad of a—"
"That country is going to war."