The Chaebol Junior (2)
The female student, whose arm had been grabbed so abruptly, shot Merrill a look of utter disbelief. However, her expression wavered with a sudden loss of confidence. After all, Merrill was like a brilliant sun that had risen in this very room. No matter how bright the moon or the stars might be, they could never outshine the sun—that was the reality. Yet, sometimes, there are those who refuse to bow to reality and take action.
"W-w-w-what? Who are you?"
Though she had taken action, the lack of confidence in her voice was painfully obvious. Merrill, on the other hand, shouted back with a voice brimming with absolute certainty.
"I'm Yoon-gi's wife, so what! You bitch!"
Profanity, like anything else, requires practice to roll off the tongue. Since she was desperately trying to use rough language she had never spoken before, her pronunciation was, predictably, a bit off. Regardless of Merrill's awkward delivery, the female students nearby were forced into a stunned silence.
[Wife]
If this place were the savanna, the king of the beasts would be the lion. And the only creature capable of defeating the king of beasts is none other than the lioness. In that sense, Merrill was the lioness in this room. A lioness who had monopolized the lion all to herself.
Merrill’s expression looked as if she were about to bite the throats of the female students who were like Thomson's gazelles trying to seduce Yoon-gi. Consequently, the girls tucked their tails and backed away, stumbling over their own feet.
"I mean, why would a wife follow him to a place like this..."
"She’s not even a student at our school..."
"Ah... I was hoping to make some connections with a chaebol..."
As the girls, cowed by Merrill’s presence, retreated to their seats and muttered to themselves, Merrill shot Yoon-gi a triumphant smile.
"You weren't expecting anything, were you?"
"Of course not."
Yoon-gi beamed and gathered Merrill’s hands into his own. Merrill’s eyes fluttered wildly, and she pointed to a spot at the table.
"L-let’s just sit over there!"
"Sure."
Satisfied by Yoon-gi’s unhesitating response, Merrill offered a faint smile and headed toward the seat she had indicated, still moving with a slight, nervous hesitation.
'Not a bad spot,' Yoon-gi thought, impressed by Merrill’s eye for detail as he sat down. Merrill was next to him, a third-year male senior sat across, and a first-year female classmate sat to his side. Naturally, the atmosphere was bound to be awkward.
'This is exactly why I hesitated to come.'
In truth, Yoon-gi had only decided to attend because of the earnest requests from the first-year and second-year representatives.
"Hyung, you have to come!"
"You really need to participate. You know that, right?"
He had no reason to refuse, so he came, but he never expected it to turn out like this. Yoon-gi gave a bitter smile and spoke first.
"I’m sorry. It’s not that I didn’t know the atmosphere would be like this, but I really wanted to attend."
Yoon-gi didn’t shift the responsibility for the current situation onto others. After all, he believed that he was the one who had made the decision.
"Huh? Oh... no! What could you possibly have done wrong...?"
Yoon-gi offered another bitter smile to the senior who was awkwardly using formal, polite language.
"No, why are you using formal speech? Please, speak comfortably. This isn’t an official company event; it’s a private gathering. I’m really fine with it, so please, relax."
"Are you... sure?"
"I told you, didn't I? You’re making me feel bad. Even if I entered a year late, I’m still your junior."
"Oh... alright. Um..."
The atmosphere remained awkward. But surprisingly, Merrill stepped in.
"Oh my, that outfit is pretty. Where did you buy it?"
At Merrill’s words, the first-year student sitting across from them looked surprised before answering in a low voice.
"Huh...? This...? I just bought it at the market..."
The student hadn't imagined that Merrill might be older than her, and since Merrill was American and didn't care much about the nuances of Korean honorifics, their conversation flowed more naturally than expected.
"Really? They sell things like that at the market? It’s so pretty. It’s not easy to find clothes like that even in the States."
The outfit the student was wearing certainly looked decent. It wasn't enough to truly wow Merrill, but clothes were just a stepping stone.
"Don't you have a great eye for fashion? If you're interested, would you like to meet a designer? Or how about attending a fashion show in Paris?"
"A, a fashion show? Paris?"
Koreans in the 2010s would know that European travel was often overrated in many ways. But to Koreans in the 80s, Paris was truly the city of love and romance. In an instant, the psychological distance between the student and Merrill vanished.
"Yes. If you're okay with it, I'll take care of the plane tickets and the accommodation. How about it? I have a designer friend I'm close with, too."
"I, is that for real? You’re not joking, are you?"
"Of course not. 'Honey', that’s okay, right?"
Merrill deliberately emphasized the word "Honey" as she asked Yoon-gi.
"Huh? Of course. Should I prepare the private jet?"
It was a conversation that was, by commoner standards, completely out of touch with reality. But the student was simply overjoyed by the fact that she was going to Paris.
'Merrill, you’re really trying hard.'
Yoon-gi could see the beads of sweat forming on the back of Merrill’s neck. It was proof that she was doing her absolute best to hold her ground. Because of that, Yoon-gi felt even more affection for her.
Slurp-
Yoon-gi naturally took a spoonful of the tuna stew sitting on the table. At that sight, the senior sitting across from him let out an exclamation without realizing it.
"Wow..."
"Hm? Why?"
Merrill had done her part, so now it was Yoon-gi’s turn to do his.
"Huh? Oh, no. I was just surprised that you eat things like that, too."
"This? Tuna stew?"
The senior nodded.
"Yeah, I thought rich people didn't eat stuff like that."
"Hey, what did you think we ate, then?"
"I thought you only ate things that were good for your health. And expensive things. Like beef ribs, you know?"
Yoon-gi chuckled and waved his hand.
"Hey, healthy food doesn't taste good. Unhealthy food is the delicious stuff. And it’s not exactly bad for you, either. All the new products from YK Samgang are things I’ve tasted and approved myself; do you think I’d make them with ingredients that are bad for you?"
"Wait? You taste them yourself?"
The senior’s eyes widened. And Yoon-gi’s eyes widened even further.
"Isn't that obvious? How could I sell something that doesn't taste good?"
"Wow..."
The senior’s reaction was only natural. Even up until the 2010s, rumors like this circulated: [Chaebols never eat ramen. They use trash ingredients that are bad for your health.] [Chaebols never eat convenience store lunch boxes. They use inedible ingredients.]
Of course, that wasn't true. Chaebols ate ramen, tteokbokki, sundae, and triangle kimbap just like everyone else. If they were made with trash ingredients in the first place, they wouldn't even pass the inspection of the Food and Drug Administration. While there were occasionally companies caught using bad ingredients, they generally used materials that were perfectly safe for human consumption. Of course, in the 80s... it might have been a bit risky, but at the very least, if anyone at YK slacked off on hygiene or ingredient management, they would be fired immediately.
"It’s not that snacks are bad for your health; it’s that eating only snacks is bad for you. I’m confident in our company’s products. If you want, buy some at the store later and bring them here. I’ll eat them right in front of you. Hey, come to think of it, that would be free snacks for me, right?"
At Yoon-gi’s witty remark, the senior burst into laughter.
"Pfft, haha, wow, this is actually funnier than I thought."
"Funnier than you thought?"
The senior nodded.
"Yeah. Honestly, I was incredibly nervous. I was wondering why you had to sit right in front of me. But your wife... Merrill, was it? I read about her in the papers."
Merrill smiled brightly and nodded.
"Yes!"
"Right, Merrill. Merrill-ssi is so bright, she’s having a great conversation with her, and you and I are talking well, too. It’s fascinating and fun."
"Hey, I’m a person, too. You don’t need to feel so uncomfortable."
"I guess so. I think I was too swayed by the rumors going around."
YK, being close to the military regime. If you get on YK’s bad side, you end up in Namyeong-dong. In a sense, that was true, but it was also undeniably exaggerated in many ways.
"Oh, right. I’m Im Seon-ho. Third year."
"I’m Choi Yoon-gi. A cute first-year."
Yoon-gi shook hands with Im Seon-ho.
"I, I’m Kim Geum-young, oppa. Also a first-year."
First-year Kim Geum-young, wary of Merrill’s gaze, bowed lightly to Yoon-gi instead of shaking his hand.
"Right, I look forward to working with you."
Yoon-gi accepted Kim Geum-young’s greeting with a smile, and the conversation between the two began to expand into a conversation among the four. But then.
"Wow, is this the rumored YK Chairman? And this is the wife of the Chairman freshman?"
A second-year student from another table, who seemed to have already downed more than a bottle of soju, approached Yoon-gi and Merrill. He then subtly reached out to put his hand on Merrill’s shoulder.
"Nice to meet you. I’m a second-year..."
A moment later, a scream erupted from the second-year.
"Aaaah, ughhh!"
It was a scream that sounded painful just to hear. Yoon-gi was holding the second-year senior’s arm with his left hand, smiling brightly.
"Senior, do you want to die?"
Seeing this, Im Seon-ho thought to himself, 'He’s cute, but terrifying...'
If Merrill was the lioness who had monopolized Yoon-gi, Yoon-gi was the lion who had monopolized Merrill. A hyena who dared to challenge the lioness naturally had to pay the price to the lion.
Around the time Yoon-gi had clearly imprinted his character at the law school freshman orientation, Won-hee was also busy clinking glasses with his juniors, classmates, and seniors at his own orientation.
"Hahahaha!"
It was a truly pleasant atmosphere. Because Won-hee was a second-year, his year of experience had made him quite capable of holding his liquor. Therefore, he could easily match the mood of the lively drinking party. In Yoon-gi’s case, his existence was so overwhelming that people around him naturally felt burdened, but Won-hee was different. It was only slightly known that he was friends with Yoon-gi, so there wasn't a perception that he was an untouchable being.
"Right. You said you were friends with Yoon-gi, the one who entered the law school as a freshman? Is he that generous in his daily life, too?"
A senior asked. Won-hee answered without a moment’s hesitation.
"Yes. If he considers you his person, he pours infinite love into you."
"What? Love?! Look at this guy?"
"Ah, you know it’s not like that. Well, if I were a woman, I would have seriously considered it, though."
[Hahahaha!]
Laughter erupted in the drinking party once again. It was a truly enjoyable atmosphere. People naturally moved around to drink with others, and as a result, one might end up drinking with someone they didn't quite click with. Just like now.
"I heard your family is quite wealthy, too, senior?"
The face of the freshman, who looked quite drunk at a glance, was flushed.
"Huh? No, well..."
Won-hee gave a bitter smile and vaguely brushed off the question. However.
"Senior, why are you so spineless when you’re a 'person of means'? People like us should be confident anytime, anywhere."
'Ah...'
Won-hee felt as if his own dark history from the past was resurfacing.