Outside Income (2)
The team leader also asked bluntly about the rumor that had recently been spreading through the company.
“And I’ve been hearing whispers about a split from the affiliates... It seems our employee Kim Su-ji’s name is in the middle of that rumor too?”
“I don’t really know about that yet...”
“Will you tell me first once you do?”
“Yes, Team Leader.”
“You can go.”
“I’ll see you tomorrow.”
After Su-ji left the office, the person who seemed to rank just below the team leader among the staff walked up beside his desk.
“Team Leader. Do you have any new information?”
“No. She says she doesn’t know yet.”
Information about the affiliates had only just begun to leak out.
“Still, it looks like our young lady is receiving the chairman’s full affection. While the two young masters are being made to work, he’s planning to hand the young lady an affiliate as soon as she starts at the company...”
The team leader, who had been thinking of sending him off after a suitable answer, took his eyes off the monitor and turned around.
“Assistant Manager Park. Is that necessarily a good thing?”
“Isn’t it?”
The team leader had his own scenario in mind.
“ST Group is a giant company. And yet they’re handing over a solid affiliate right out of the gate?”
“Huh?”
Only then did Assistant Manager Park start thinking it through, and he reached the conclusion quickly.
“Then does that mean the young lady is being completely excluded from the succession race...”
“Doesn’t it look like they’re saying, ‘Take this and get lost’?”
“Then the young lady is finished with this...?”
“Our chairman is a pretty conservative man. If he’s going to pass things down to his children, I doubt he’d even think of anyone but his sons.”
“Ah...”
“That’s the way it looks for now, but there’s still plenty of time. More importantly... why are you worrying about this instead of doing your work, Assistant Manager Park?”
“Hehe. I was thinking that if our young lady emerges as a strong contender in the succession race, I might latch onto her. Getting a chance to work with the young lady doesn’t come around every day...”
“Honestly. You should be thinking about becoming team leader after me. With your current performance, even a promotion looks hard.”
“That’s why I’m looking for a shortcut.”
“Get back to work!”
“Yes, sir!”
After Assistant Manager Park turned away, most of the office could be seen hurrying back to their tasks. It was obvious they had all been deeply interested in the conversation between the two men.
“You people are unbelievable... Assistant Manager Park, check the schedules for the stores scheduled to open in the department store and report the changes to the incomplete items as of yesterday.”
“Yes, sir. I’ll organize it and report back by tomorrow!”
“Manager Jung, you said you were bringing the store opening promotion plan. When exactly are you bringing it?!”
“It’s almost done.”
“Deputy Lee! Didn’t you say you were going to call the interior contractor and check the parts of the work that are delayed this time?”
“They said they’re too busy to come in today...”
“Then tell them not to think about working with us anymore! Find another contractor and get a quote!”
“Yes, sir!”
A storm of work swept through ST Fashion MD Team 1 after Su-ji stepped away. And Su-ji, who had been listening in from outside the office, finally started walking again.
“...”
She knew she was going to receive an affiliate thanks to James, but she had no way of knowing what her father was really thinking. Through those conversations, however, she had roughly guessed just how far her father had already looked ahead.
Father may have thought that far ahead.
But it was only a guess, not the truth. As James had said, if the affiliate was something she received through the merit of 1.5 trillion won, then it could also be part of an investment for the future.
Maybe James oppa’s abilities are even more extraordinary than I thought...
With complicated feelings, Su-ji quickly headed out of the company.
* * *
Meeting Ju-ho at the cafe, Su-ji felt unreasonably embarrassed. Her two brothers were running themselves ragged at the company and only drawing salaries for it, while she had just entered the company and was already about to receive an affiliate.
“...Even the eldest brother is worried?”
“Of course.”
“Sigh. If even my kind, sweet eldest brother is worried...”
“Then am I not kind?”
“The younger brother is quick with numbers. That means you know how to look after yourself, so don’t misunderstand.”
Jung-ho, the eldest, was the first son of ST Group, but he was not especially greedy. He had always yielded to his younger siblings and lived as a steady, dependable eldest son should. Ju-ho, on the other hand, never let even the smallest thing slide. Whether it was food, clothes, or even toys, he couldn’t stand having less than his brothers.
“This is too big. How can Father decide something this important without even discussing it with us?”
“...Has Father ever discussed company matters with us before deciding?”
Chairman Kim Seong-oh had always been that kind of man. In company matters, there had never once been an instance of him discussing things with his family first. Especially when it came to issues like the split of affiliates or gifts of shares, those decisions were entirely Chairman Kim’s domain.
“That’s true, but this time it concerns us too!”
“Us? Isn’t it more accurate to say it concerns me, and not us?”
“How is this only your matter?”
“Then go ask Father. Why are you asking me? I only heard about it today too.”
“...”
Ju-ho had come to his younger sister because he couldn’t possibly go and complain to his father himself.
“You... now that I look at it, were you just planning to swallow it whole?”
“What? Anyone hearing that would think I was stealing something from you.”
“...”
“How am I supposed to stop the owner from giving it to the person he wants to give it to?”
“Then you just say you don’t want it!”
At Ju-ho’s words, Su-ji felt a secret sense of relief.
If my little brother is going to act like this, then I’ve got something to say too. This isn’t the first or second time something like this has happened...
Thinking of her second brother, Ju-ho, who had always gotten greedy and insisted that he should receive everything too, she knew she needed to sort this out clearly from this point on.
“Honestly, I was a little embarrassed about being the only one to receive it.”
“Right? We’re all the same children. That doesn’t make any sense.”
“Then you think things should be divided fairly, little brother?”
“Of course!”
“Good. Then I’ll give up the affiliate this time.”
“That’s an excellent decision! Su-ji.”
“Then later we’ll divide up ST Group fairly too?”
“Th-that’s...”
Ju-ho slowly realized the direction of the conversation had gone wrong.
“Why? You said the children should be treated fairly, didn’t you? Then I should get a share too, right? ST Group stock should be divided into precise thirds. Just as you’re Father’s son, I’m Father’s daughter too.”
“...”
Ju-ho shut his mouth tightly. Dividing up ST Group stock was absolutely not something he wanted.
“Then I should start by demanding shares in ST Electronics, right? That’s fair, isn’t it? I’ll call Father and tell him I’m giving up the affiliate...”
“W-wait, Su-ji.”
Su-ji brought the conversation, which had been proceeding exactly as expected, back to the original topic.
“Do you still not understand Father, little brother?”
“Father does what?”
“I mean how Father sees his daughters!”
“...”
From the time they were young, Chairman Kim Seong-oh had raised his sons as the heirs who would succeed him. Jung-ho and Ju-ho had never heard it directly, but everyone around them treated the two of them as the successors to ST Group.
“Do you really think a father like that suddenly changed his mind?”
“Well...”
That was impossible. Ju-ho had never even imagined that Su-ji could become the head of ST Group, and her father would think the same.
“He’s not an idiot. Do you really think he’d come running to his younger daughter and tell her to give up an affiliate over something like this? Did even your eldest brother know you came to me?”
“...”
What Su-ji had told him about their mother being worried and their brother being concerned had only been partly true. Their mother had merely been curious because she didn’t know how things were unfolding, and their brother Jung-ho’s reaction had amounted to nothing more than, “Oh? So that’s how it is?” The rest had all been Ju-ho’s own assumptions.
Big brother must definitely have thought all the way through this.
Jung-ho was a figure who was both gentle with his younger siblings and, to their parents, a dependable eldest son. He was also a son who rarely made mistakes, thanks to his thoughtful nature and composed behavior.
“So the eldest brother doesn’t seem to know you came to me? Well, that figures.”
“...But he did seem worried!”
“No way, little brother.”
“How could he not be worried? Your brother and I are working so hard just to get on Father’s good side!”
“That’s exactly why you keep losing to the eldest brother.”
“What do you mean by that!”
“The eldest brother probably already guessed everything. What would happen if I received the affiliate this time, I mean.”
“...What?”
Su-ji began dressing up the office gossip she had overheard as though it were truth.
“Say I, who have no foundation in the company and no merit to my name, suddenly got gifted a profitable affiliate!”
“Ugh!”
Ju-ho wanted to shout at her not to accept it right this second, but he kept silent for the sake of the conversation to come.
“Then why do you think Father would hand that over to a daughter like me? Think about it!”
“Uh...”
Still unable to figure it out, Ju-ho looked at her as though she were hopeless, and Su-ji lowered her voice.
“So I’d take it and get lost.”
For Su-ji, the words were unusually sharp. But because she said them that way, they struck even harder.
“!!”
That’s it? If the affiliate is all there is, then Father is completely excluding Su-ji from the succession race with this split...
Su-ji repeated herself to Ju-ho, as if to drive it home.
“He’s saying I should be satisfied with this and give up everything else!”
“Ah...”
The affiliate being split off this time was indeed substantial, but if it was the price of eliminating one competitor, it was more than acceptable.
“Do I really have to spell it out before you understand?”
“...Damn it.”
Only then did Ju-ho begin to understand his father’s intent.
“The eldest brother must have heard the rumor and instantly read Father’s mind. That’s why he hasn’t contacted me even once! Because he feels sorry! Because he has nothing to say to me, since I’m the one who’s ending up with only this much!”
“Hey. Don’t get so worked up...”
“Since it’s come up, I’d better make this clear to the eldest brother too. If any more talk starts up behind my back, I won’t be able to take it.”
Then she immediately called Jung-ho. She had already switched on speakerphone, as if she wanted Ju-ho to hear too.
“Y-you don’t have to call him...”
“Little brother, keep your mouth shut.”
“Tsk.”
Not long after, Jung-ho answered.
-Hello?
“Big brother. It’s Su-ji.”
-Oh. Su-ji. What made our pretty little sister call me?
“Don’t dodge the question when you know everything already.”
-...Are you very upset?
“The affiliate is fine with me too. I can accept it.”
-Sigh. All right. Please understand Father. What could we do about his mind?
“...”
Ju-ho could tell from that much alone that his brother had understood everything.
“But it’s annoying that little brother came all the way to the company where I work.”
-What? Ju-ho did that?
“He was making a scene, telling me to spit out the affiliate Father’s giving me.”
-That brat...
“So I should spit out the affiliate? Tell Father I can’t accept it?”
-...Pass Ju-ho to me.
“It’s on speakerphone. Little brother can hear everything too.”
Jung-ho spoke briefly through the phone.
-Ju-ho. Come to the company. Let’s talk face-to-face.
“B-brother, I...”
Apparently not wanting to drag out the conversation with Ju-ho any longer, Jung-ho turned back to Su-ji.
-Su-ji. Your brother is truly sorry about today. I should have taken care of Ju-ho in advance...
“Please take care of him starting now. I feel like any time something happens, he’ll be the first one to come running to me.”
-Still, I’m glad our younger sister has such a generous heart. You even understood Father’s feelings so well.
“...”
In truth, Su-ji had only vaguely guessed it from the employees’ conversation, and even that might not have been the truth. But to let this matter pass smoothly, she had to admit it. Only then could she block the friction that might arise around taking hold of the affiliate.
“To Father, I’m just a daughter anyway. So he’s handing over a shell affiliate after sorting out the important shares too.”
“Huh?”
Ju-ho had only heard the rumor that the affiliate would be split off and become Su-ji’s property; he didn’t know that the holding company shares had already been transferred.
-That’s right... I’ll make sure to take care of you later.
“Thanks, big brother.”
-Ju-ho, you’d better come to the company right now. It’s been a while since you got some proper discipline.
“B-brother.”
-I’m busy, so I’m hanging up.
The call ended with a click, and silence settled between them.
“...”
“...”
It was Ju-ho who spoke first.
“Hey. If you’re going to tell on me to Brother, what am I supposed to do!”
“Nyah-nyah! Once you get to the company, Big Brother’s going to chew you out hard!”
Chairman Kim Seong-oh was always busy with company affairs, and because of that, Jung-ho had taken on the role of father figure for Ju-ho and Su-ji. The eldest son had filled the space their father left behind.
“Fine. I’m leaving.”
“Hurry up and go. You’ll just get scolded more if you’re late.”
“Tch.”
Ju-ho quickly stood up and hurried to get ready to head back to the company. Then, almost as if speaking to himself, he left a short line behind.
“...Sorry.”
Without giving Su-ji time to answer, he turned and left the cafe.
“Taxi!”
“...”
Watching her little brother catch a taxi and head back to the company, Su-ji said quietly, “My brothers. I’m not an idiot. Thinking you can take me lightly ends today.”
Before she met James, Su-ji would have given up easily too and lived according to her father and mother’s wishes. But now she had met James, and she was awakening to a new life.
Next is ST Fashion.
Su-ji had no intention of being satisfied with just one affiliate.
---