Opportunity Requires the Ability to Seize It (1)
"Ugh!" For a split second, Kim Jeong-seon felt as if a candy had lodged itself in his throat. He pulled his body back, clutching his neck with both hands. The tent swayed violently, and Ryu Geun-tae, caught off guard, found his own torso hunching forward.
"Oh, boy..." Kim Jeong-seon crawled out of the slightly mangled, though not broken, tent. He swallowed hard several times to check his throat before turning to his nephew, who had followed him out. "Hey, why do you have to make your explanations so vivid?"
"It’s a secretary's job to interpret the vague instructions from the higher-ups into concrete actions. Well, since the Samwoo Group isn't exactly one of the top ten conglomerates in the country, I don't have to do anything too heinous, but there are still times when we have to quietly cross a line or two."
"True. Even a guy like me, running a small company in the provinces, has to do dirty work more than once. By the way, is that candy sweet?"
"Hold on a second. Let me set this back up first." Ryu Geun-tae restored the tent to its original shape, stepped back inside, and gestured for his uncle to follow.
"It’s a tent, I suppose, but it’s surprisingly warm. Damn, back when I was a refugee, I had to sleep outside in the dead of winter, risking my life. The world has really gotten better."
"That’s exactly why we need to earn more money. You have to suffer a bit while you're young so you can live like a king later."
"Right. Anyway, is the candy sweet?"
At his uncle's question, Ryu Geun-tae grinned and licked his lips. "It’s sweet. Terrifyingly sweet. That’s why I’ve gained so much weight."
"You... gained weight?" Kim Jeong-seon looked at his nephew with a puzzled expression. He had a standard build; he didn't look like he had gained an ounce. Just as Kim Jeong-seon was about to ask what he meant, the realization hit him.
"Ah...!"
"Do you understand now?"
"Yeah. If you're saying it like that, I guess you really have put on a lot of weight."
"That’s why I can't go anywhere else. I’ve gained too much weight. My only goal in life now is to keep accepting the candy the Chairman gives me and do whatever he tells me to do."
Listening to his nephew, Kim Jeong-seon scratched his right sideburn with his index finger, his expression turning slightly bitter as he smacked his lips.
"But are you really okay with that?"
"What do you mean?"
"I mean, calling yourself a dog. I was just wondering if you don't feel any shame."
It was a valid point, but Ryu Geun-tae let out a scoff. It wasn't a scoff at his uncle, but a sign that his uncle's worries held no meaning for him.
"Uncle, you know how much I struggled before I got hired at Samwoo."
"I know. I know that all too well."
"You only started your own company because you couldn't find a job in Seoul, right?"
"That's right." Kim Jeong-seon gave a bitter smile.
"I’d rather be the dog of a powerful man and be bowed to by guests than live as a bottom-feeder bowing to someone else's dog. And the Chairman isn't the type to treat a loyal subject like a dog. I’m just expressing that I will serve him like one."
A resolve to be loyal like a dog because his master treated him like a human. Ryu Geun-tae truly intended to dedicate everything to Yoon-gi.
"If you're going that far... then I suppose it’s worth placing a bet." Kim Jeong-seon was still hesitant, but there was a 'hooked' tone in his voice.
"Isn't that why you came up to Seoul in the first place? You came yourself, didn't you? Or were you just going to introduce the people you brought and head back down?"
"No, I came up myself. Honestly, I got a feeling about this. And at the very least, I want to make sure my son—no, my grandchildren—can live in Seoul..."
Ryu Geun-tae understood his uncle's heart better than anyone, as he knew exactly what those words meant.
"What about the others? Are they coming up tomorrow?"
It was night. With only a few hours left until the curfew, it would be difficult for the other employees to arrive in Seoul late.
"They're all waiting at the inn. Now that I think about it, it’s a good thing I didn't bring them."
Ryu Geun-tae gave a wry smile. "You did well. Anyway, let's go see the Chairman tomorrow."
"Yeah, let's do that. And let me have some of that candy, too."
"To do that, you must never deceive me, and don't try to line your own pockets before the situation calls for it. I can help you gain more, but I can't erase the sins you've already committed."
"Not even a little?"
"No, not even a little."
Though he looked disappointed, Kim Jeong-seon sighed, then nodded with a refreshed expression. "Fine. If it goes well, it’s a chance to become the president of a subsidiary, so I shouldn't be hung up on small things. Anyway, let’s do well. You’re the only one I can trust, and the only one you can trust is..."
Kim Jeong-seon stopped there, his face flushing as he gave an awkward smile.
"At the very least, the fact that you're my uncle won't change."
"Yeah, that's true, isn't it?"
Clasping his nephew's hand, Kim Jeong-seon cleared his mind, feeling as if he were young again.
***
"Grandpa~!"
A child's voice rang out through Choi Cheol-ho's mansion. The child, bundled tightly in fur-lined winter clothes, was not Yoon-gi.
"Oh, my grandson!"
Choi Ki-hyun, who had been wearing only a tank top, beamed at the arrival of his second grandson and scooped him up as he ran toward him.
"Father, have you been well?"
At the words of his second daughter-in-law, Park Gyeong-ja, Choi Ki-hyun nodded with a pleasant smile. "Yes, I’ve been doing well, thanks to you. It’s cold outside, so let’s head inside first."
As they entered the living room, the air was warm enough that even someone in a tank top would feel comfortable. The warmth hit the grandson's jumper, and dew drops formed on it in no time.
"Where's my brother?"
"They went out for a rare meal together."
No sooner had Choi Ki-hyun finished his sentence than a whining sound was heard.
"Grandpa, I'm hot."
"Yes, you are, aren't you? Then you should take off your coat."
Choi Ki-hyun’s expression as he helped his grandson out of his coat was filled with a warm smile, but Choi Cheol-min, watching that smile, felt only frustration.
'The gaze is different. The gaze.'
It was clearly evident that the way his father looked at his first grandson was different from how he looked at his second. When he looked at Yoon-gi, his eyes overflowed with expectation, but when he looked at Jeong-gi, it was just the look of a grandfather watching a grandson.
'Ugh.'
Choi Cheol-min’s son, Choi Jeong-gi. Born in '71, he was three years younger than Yoon-gi, making him seven years old. They often brought him over before he entered elementary school, hoping to make a good impression on his grandfather, but Choi Ki-hyun’s gaze toward Jeong-gi never changed.
'Damn it, because the kid's mother is an idiot, the kid isn't very bright either...'
Choi Cheol-min didn't think about his own shortcomings; he blamed the frivolity of his wife, Park Gyeong-ja. Because he, of course, considered himself superior.
"I don't want to eat this!"
When mealtime arrived, Choi Cheol-min’s thoughts deepened. Choi Cheol-min's eyes widened at his son Jeong-gi's behavior, as he practically threw his spoon down, saying he didn't want to eat at the table.
"Jeong-gi! What kind of manners are those in front of your grandfather!"
"Waaaaaah!"
At his father's scolding, Jeong-gi began to wail, stood up from his seat, went into an empty room, and slammed the door shut.
"Jeong-gi!"
His mother, Park Gyeong-ja, quickly rose and followed him, and Choi Cheol-min let out a sigh before bowing his head toward his father. "I am sorry. Father, the child is still young and lacks manners..."
The moment his grandson disappeared, Choi Ki-hyun's expression shifted to a business-like demeanor.
"It’s not that he shouldn't do that in front of me; it’s that he shouldn't do that at the dinner table."
Words like cold arrows flying toward his heart. At his father's cold remark, Choi Cheol-min broke into a cold sweat on his back and kept his head bowed. "I apologize. I will make sure to warn him next time."
"It’s fine, it’s fine."
The phrase "Kids can be like that" never followed his father's words. Furthermore, there wasn't a single shred of expectation in the gaze he cast upon his second son as he spoke. It was even colder than when he looked at Jeong-gi, who had just caused a scene and left.
That was why Choi Cheol-min gritted his teeth inwardly.
'This is all because of that bastard Yoon-gi.'
Yoon-gi had set the bar for the grandchildren way too high. Just looking at his own son, Jeong-gi, he was stubborn, and even though they had hired a private tutor, he was only studying at a second-grade elementary level. Growing assets like Yoon-gi? It was out of the question. Furthermore, he didn't even know how to show respect in front of his grandfather.
'What on earth does this woman do at home to raise a kid like that!'
The more he thought about it, the angrier he got, but because he was in front of his father, he couldn't even vent his anger. Choi Cheol-min eventually had to get up from his seat shortly after dinner ended.
"Father, I will come again next time."
"You don't need to go out of your way to make time to come."
"No, it is my duty as a son to visit often."
He answered that way, but as he drove, Choi Cheol-min was burning up inside.
'He would never say that to Yoon-gi...'
At first, he thought his father liked Yoon-gi just because he was his grandson. So, he was certain that once he had a son of his own, the love going to Yoon-gi would shift to his own son. After all, adults usually love the youngest the most. But even after he had a son and brought him to his father, his father's love for his grandson didn't last five years.
[Grandpa, you smell!]
The words Jeong-gi said to his grandfather when he was five. After that, whenever his father treated Jeong-gi, it felt like there was a glass wall between them. And this applied to the other grandchildren as well. It felt as if he found something difficult about them. However, whenever he treated Yoon-gi, he always showed a bright smile and poured out his utmost love.
'If only this kid could do things right, it would help me take over...'
Looking at his son sleeping soundly in his mother's arms, Choi Cheol-min sighed, returned home, and then went back out.
"It's almost curfew, where are you going?"
"I have business to discuss."
"If you go out and find another woman again, you'll be in big trouble."
"It's not like that!"
When Choi Cheol-min shouted, Jeong-gi woke up and started crying, and thanks to that, Choi Cheol-min's house, which was incomparably smaller than his brother Choi Cheol-ho's, began to ring with noise. His brother had been skillfully helping his father for 10 years longer and had already become the president of a subsidiary, but Choi Cheol-min was, at best, a deputy at Samwoo Products.
'Damn it, if only I had been born 10 years earlier...'
The kid was crying, the house was small, and the more he saw his wife, the less he liked her. Choi Cheol-min kicked a random tin can on the street and headed to tonight's meeting place. It wasn't the kind of bar he would usually enter, but an ordinary tavern. It was a 70s specialty where they would close the doors once curfew hit and hold drinking parties inside. Of course, if you were unlucky, you’d get dragged to the police station even after paying off the cops.
'There's still plenty of time until curfew.'
As he sat down, ordered drinks and food, and waited, the door opened, and he saw the person he was supposed to meet today pushing through the steam of the tavern.
"You've arrived. Please, sit."
The person Choi Cheol-min politely stood up to offer a seat to.
"I don't know what to do with myself, as you always welcome me so warmly."
Lee Seong-won, Choi Ki-hyun's chief of staff, sat down in the opposite seat with a bright smile.