The Draft
"Ah..."
"Ah..."
It was truly a synchronized sigh. Yoon-gi and Won-hee both let out a groan, not a syllable different from each other. After a moment, Won-hee asked, sounding perplexed, "Hey, why are you acting like it's no big deal?"
In reality, even though the cursed phrase "physical examination" had been dropped, Jin-soo looked completely unfazed. "Me? Oh, my dad said I'll be assigned as a Bangwi. He said I only have to serve for six months."
In the 2010s, a Bangwi was similar to a public service worker. However, given the era, it was closer to a "commuter soldier with a short service period." Originally, as of 1988, the service period for a Bangwi was one year and six months, but in certain cases, a six-month service was possible.
"Why!" Won-hee shrieked. He was having a headache over the military, and he couldn't believe Jin-soo only had to do six months as a Bangwi.
"I'm an only son."
"What?"
"And my father is an only son, too."
"So what!"
"That means the son gets a six-month Bangwi assignment."
Although the system was abolished in 1992, if you were an only son and your father was also an only son, or if your father had passed away, or if both parents were over 60, you were eligible for the six-month Bangwi status.
"Ah, damn it! I got a Grade 1!" Won-hee let out a string of profanities. People who don't know might wonder why he's cursing over "something like this," but it was absolutely not "something like this." Among South Korean men, there is no one who goes to the military because they want to. Even if they hypnotize themselves into thinking it's necessary, no one wants to throw away two years of their life. And it wasn't even two years; at this time, it was two years and six months.
Won-hee had to run laps around the parade ground for two and a half years, while Jin-soo would be done in six months—and as a Bangwi at that. "Father! Why aren't you an only son? Sob, sob..." Won-hee collapsed onto the floor of Jin-soo's studio apartment, striking a pose of utter despair.
"Huuuuh..." A sigh came from the side. Only then did Won-hee sigh along with him, sitting down cross-legged and looking at Yoon-gi. "Yoon-gi, don't you have anything?"
"Nothing."
It was a firm... no, a hollow answer from Yoon-gi. That was right. Yoon-gi was also in a situation where he had to go to the military without any exceptions.
"Wasn't your grandfather a veteran of the Korean War?"
"Veterans don't get military service benefits for their children or grandchildren."
In reality, families of war veterans had zero military benefits. Benefits only applied if the veteran had been severely wounded in combat or killed in action. To put it simply, "severely wounded" meant missing all the fingers on one hand or all the toes on one foot. Furthermore, these benefits only applied to the sons, so even if Choi Ki-hyun were a disabled veteran, one of his sons—like Choi Cheol-ho—would be the one to receive the benefit, and it was far removed from Yoon-gi.
"Is there no one in your family who participated in the independence movement?"
"Independence activists don't get military benefits either."
It was an unexpected fact, but the children of independence activists received no military benefits. In a way, it was a natural fact, considering what kind of figures composed the government formed after liberation.
"Aren't you married?"
"Marriage has nothing to do with Bangwi status."
"Doesn't having a kid work?"
At Won-hee's question, Yoon-gi shook his head with a stern expression. "Even if I go to the military, there's no issue with supporting my family, so I wouldn't qualify for Bangwi, and besides, I don't think of Merrill as a baby-making machine."
Won-hee realized he had made a mistake unintentionally. "Ah, sorry... I really didn't mean it like that."
Unless heaven sent them a child, Yoon-gi had no intention of forcing an unplanned pregnancy on Merrill just for the sake of potential military benefits. Of course, in the 2010s, having a child made one the first priority for selection as a "full-time reserve." There were even cases where people succeeded in getting full-time reserve status by having a child with their girlfriend, only to face difficulty later because they couldn't make a living.
"I didn't know, so it can't be helped..." Yoon-gi generously accepted Won-hee's apology.
"Yeah, I'll be careful next time. By the way... what about height? You're tall, Yoon-gi."
"I'm not tall enough for that."
In reality, even before the criteria were tightened, you had to be over 190 centimeters tall to be assigned to supplementary service. However, Yoon-gi's height didn't reach 190 centimeters, so it was impossible.
"Ah, is there really no answer? Come to think of it, I heard you can go as a Bangwi if you get fat. Should I just pack on the weight and get a re-examination?" Won-hee asked, truly desperate. In those days, many wrestlers were indeed assigned to supplementary service because their base weight was substantial. From the 2000s, gym trainers often received public service status. They were people who could bulk up to get the classification and then lose the weight after entering service. But Won-hee was not a gym trainer.
"If you do that, you might get used to the fat body and end up living fat forever. Don't do it." Yoon-gi recalled what a colleague from his labor days had told him. [The owner of the gym in my neighborhood saw a TV trainer lose 20kg in a month, so he thought he could do it too and gained 30kg, but he couldn't lose it, so he closed the gym and opened a restaurant.] Yoon-gi sincerely stopped Won-hee, thinking that Won-hee would likely end up the same way.
"Ah, is there really no way? I'm going crazy. I hate going to the military so much..." Won-hee, who had been talking until this point, looked at Yoon-gi as if an idea had struck him. "Yoon-gi, couldn't you get American citizenship if you wanted to? You could do it if you used your connections."
Yoon-gi shook his head with a serious expression. "I don't want to get out of the military by doing that. And if I did, it would have a huge negative impact on the YK brand."
Yoon-gi was a manager who knew how to take responsibility. Therefore, he knew full well what kind of negative impact such a shortcut would bring. 'Didn't that Steve guy, a star in the 90s, choose American citizenship believing in his own popularity, only to trigger a nationwide backlash?' Yoon-gi wasn't stupid enough to ignore past cases, so he decided that he had no choice but to go to the military, even as he let out a sigh.
Yoon-gi felt his blood boil at the sight of Choi Deok-bae giggling on the side, but there was nothing he could do. He just looked enviously at Jin-soo, who had a peaceful expression because he only had to do six months as a Bangwi; he was in the same situation as Won-hee. No, actually, it wasn't the same. Because Yoon-gi's military service was a very important issue for other people as well.
***
"You really have a high tolerance for alcohol." At N's words, Choi Cheol-ho gave a sheepish smile and scratched the back of his head.
"My family has a natural capacity for it. Maybe that's why, when I was young, I could drink a whole bowl of makgeolli and still race my bicycle through Jongno."
"Hahaha! I can somehow imagine it. You were called the 'Bicycle Kings of Jongno,' right?"
"Yes. But I wasn't stealing bicycles, mind you!"
"Hahahahaha!"
Because Choi Ki-hyun was relatively older and a seasoned figure, it was difficult for N to approach him without formality. But it was a different story for Choi Cheol-ho. Choi Cheol-ho was someone who treated everyone comfortably without formality. That was why N would occasionally meet Choi Cheol-ho to share a drink.
"Come to think of it, doesn't Yoon-gi have to go to the military soon?" When N asked with a slightly serious expression, Choi Cheol-ho also nodded with a troubled look.
"That's right. He doesn't say anything, but he must be under a lot of stress..."
"If Yoon-gi goes to the military, I don't think it will be very good for the YK Group. No, it would be a bad thing for South Korea as well."
Indeed, as Yoon-gi exerted a massive influence on South Korea, it was clear that his military service would bring about various unfavorable situations for that influence.
"Well... still, what can we do? Everyone else goes, so he has to go... I wish I could go in his place. Hahahaha!" Choi Cheol-ho laughed loudly on purpose and raised his glass. Then, N also laughed, clinked his glass, and asked in a subtle tone.
"Shall we just exempt him outright? By saying something like, 'He has made many contributions so far, so it is understandable'?"
However, Choi Cheol-ho shook his head.
"Yoon-gi would be the one who wants that the least. He cares about his image."
"Hmm... is that so? Phew, still, I wish there was some way..."
While N and Choi Cheol-ho were talking like this, other people were also talking about Yoon-gi's military service.
***
"President Ryu, what should we do about Yoon-gi's military service?" At Choi Cheol-ho's words, Ryu Geun-tae also sighed, as if he were having the same worries.
"That's my concern too. I've investigated in various ways, but there is no way to get the Chairman out of military service."
Ryu Geun-tae had investigated from various angles to see if there was a legal way to exempt Yoon-gi. However, there was no way to exempt him by any means. Many people misunderstand that the "exemption rate" in the 80s was high. But that was absolutely not the case. Although it is said that the active-duty enlistment rate in the 80s was 50 percent, most of the remaining 50 percent served as Bangwi soldiers, not complete exemptions. The rate of complete exemption was high only immediately after the IMF. If you applied for the military and it wasn't decided for three years, you were completely exempted, and during the IMF, there were many such exemptions because the number of military applicants skyrocketed.
"How about we intervene?" At Choi Cheol-gyu's words, Ryu Geun-tae pondered and shook his head.
"I haven't not thought about that, but the Chairman is not the type of person who would like us to do such things secretly, and even if we asked, he wouldn't give his permission."
What Choi Cheol-gyu had suggested was document manipulation through a low-level official. In other words, he was hinting at a three-year exemption, but Ryu Geun-tae understood that and shook his head.
"Haa... it's a shame that Yoon-gi is so textbook-like in that regard. It would be great if he could just do one day of military service like JD's relatives."
JD had one of his relatives enlist as an officer and then discharged them that same day, finishing their military service. Choi Cheol-gyu wanted to ask N to use such a method, but since the person in question would surely refuse, he just let out deep sighs. This was the same for Ryu Geun-tae.
"What to do..."
The two men's worries echoed deeply in the room.
***
Whether the physical examination date was approaching or not, he had to live his school life, so Yoon-gi spent his university life diligently. It was possible because he had been relatively free with work recently. If work became busy, he would have no choice but to neglect his university life, so Yoon-gi was faithful to this moment.
"Yoon-gi, let's go eat!" shouted senior Im Seon-ho, a third-year student, approaching from the front. Yoon-gi raised his hand and nodded at the senior. But suddenly, shock appeared on Im Seon-ho's face.
"Hey! Yoon-gi! Look out!"
Yoon-gi wondered what he was talking about and turned his head toward the back just in case. 'What is it? If something dangerous happened, Grandfather would have told me?' The moment Yoon-gi was thinking this.
CRACK!
The metal bat swung by Kim Son-hwan struck the back of Yoon-gi's knee, and Yoon-gi's "cruciate ligament" was shattered instantly. It was the very cruciate ligament that, if shattered, would grant a military exemption.
"Argh!"
For the first time in a long time—no, for the first time since he was reborn—Yoon-gi let out a scream.
"You crazy bastard!"
Im Seon-ho, who was far away, ran over and delivered a dropkick to Kim Son-hwan. "Ugh!" Kim Son-hwan, who took the full weight of Im Seon-ho's feet, rolled on the floor, and at the same time, he was subdued by Yoon-gi's bodyguards who were waiting in the distance. Kim Son-hwan's action would have been absolutely impossible if it were outside the university. Yoon-gi had kept his bodyguards at a maximum distance inside the university. Because it would interfere with the students' study atmosphere. It was something he did because Choi Deok-bae would surely detect crisis situations, but this time, Choi Deok-bae hadn't warned him at all.
'H-Grandfather, why...?'
Yoon-gi reached out both hands toward his somewhat twisted knee and spoke to Choi Deok-bae as if in resentment.