Episode 48. Is It Okay to Do This? 5.
It was a question that gave him much to think about.
Had I worked for the chairman? All this time······.
He looked back on the past.
There had truly been countless things.
The thoughts he had held back then, and the emotions he had felt······.
Amid the flood of memories from the past, his own figure began to grow clearer and clearer.
And he could see his past self distinctly.
It had never been for the chairman.
For ambition, for inner satisfaction, and at times simply moving by inertia as if out of habit—but in the end, everything had been something he did for himself.
The thought that it had been for the chairman was a recent one.
It had only come after his ambition had disappeared and he had set himself down.
The smile had vanished from his lips at some point, and now faint wrinkles settled around his eyes.
“Life isn’t something you live for others. Isn’t that right?”
Hyeonu met his eyes and spoke.
“Yes. I feel the same way.”
“But even for your own sake, it would be better to help Byeongjun, wouldn’t it?”
“I’m well aware. But as you just said, President, I would be helping him for my own sake.”
No Hyeoncheol looked into Hyeonu’s eyes for a moment, then said,
“For your sake······. Then that means it doesn’t matter whom you help.”
“If I can choose.”
A thought suddenly crossed No Hyeoncheol’s mind.
‘I never thought I’d be having a conversation like this with a guy who’s only been here a month. Heh, this is amusing. I suppose this is why life is fun.’
“But if you’re tied down to Byeongjun, you won’t get the chance to choose, will you?”
“I believe I’ll have grown a great deal after a few years.”
It was a modest way of saying that he was confident he could rise to a position where everyone would have no choice but to pay attention to him.
“I think so too. After a few years, you’ll be very different. The problem is whether the world will wait a few years for you.”
“What do you mean by······.”
“The chairman is already advanced in age, and his children are beginning to show their greed. The moment the gunshot rings out, for whatever reason, it’ll become an all-out war. That could be a few years from now, or it could be right under our noses.”
He was right.
If the war of succession broke out too soon, it would happen before he had grown, and then his choices would disappear.
He would be forced into a situation where he had no choice but to back Kim Byeongjun unconditionally and grow together with him.
That was not such a terrible thing.
Kim Byeongjun was, after all, someone who held a ticket to enter the decisive battle for the next chairman.
In a sense, there was no opportunity quite like this.
But this way did not sit right with him.
He wanted to decide the future after they had both grown further, or at least after he had encountered all the heirs.
For Mancheon’s future and his own.
As he was thinking this, No Hyeoncheol spoke again.
“There is, however, a way to move up those few years you need to grow.”
“······.”
“I can raise you.”
Hyeonu did not show it, but he was quite startled.
He had not expected President No Hyeoncheol to say he would raise him.
The person he ought to be raising was naturally Kim Byeongjun.
“Me······ you mean?”
“There’s no reason I can’t. The chairman left behind children to succeed him. There’s no reason I can’t leave someone behind too. If there’s a difference, it’s that they have blood ties, while we have ability.”
‘The way he says “they” and “we.” Is he identifying himself with me?’
“What do you think? Shall I raise you?”
As he spoke again, Hyeonu heard a rather long inner voice from him.
It meant that a tremendous amount was contained within that brief phrase, “Shall I raise you?”
[No matter who becomes Mancheon’s next chairman, they’ll need a strategist who can support them firmly. You wouldn’t be bad. You have good qualities. Your ability, your inner self······ and you’re young. I don’t think it would be bad to raise you quickly and put you in a position where you can choose. If someone appears who can share the burden I’ve carried alone, nothing could be better.]
Hyeonu’s gaze deepened.
It was because he had learned what President No Hyeoncheol truly had in mind.
He truly seemed to identify Mancheon with himself.
As though he had been born for Mancheon.
Raising me is also for the sake of making a better decision on the next chairman!
However, there was one part where he could not know No Hyeoncheol’s true intent.
The conclusion of what he had just thought inwardly.
In a sense, there was certainly an aspect to it that could be taken as frightening.
It was the picture he had just drawn on the spot.
‘A salaried president from an ordinary employee background will seize the power of life and death over a chaebol family!’
That was the conclusion of his inner thoughts.
Was this truly a pure intention?
If it was pure, there was no problem.
But even if it truly was pure, could that purity be maintained as time passed?
And was there no possibility of other variables arising in the process?
He did not know.
Right now, he could not know anything.
He still knew nothing about corporate structure, and he knew even less what people would become in the future.
But he did not need to ponder his answer to the question, “Shall I raise you?”
Meeting No Hyeoncheol’s eyes, Hyeonu spoke.
“I would be grateful if you gave me the opportunity.”
No Hyeoncheol stared at him silently for a moment as if seeing through him, then snorted.
“Heh, I like it. You speak calmly, but you don’t frustratingly draw back, and you answer every question straightforwardly. I like that.”
“······.”
“All right, you may go now. Proceed with the project well. I have rather high expectations.”
“Yes, President. Then I’ll take my leave.”
As Hyeonu rose from his seat and bowed, No Hyeoncheol brought up the words he had yet to say.
“You like Byeongjun, don’t you?”
“······Yes. I think he’s a good person, and I follow him as such.”
“Byeongjun seems to care quite a bit about you too. So much that he even did something foolish. You understand what I mean, don’t you?”
“······.”
“Help Byeongjun well. He’s still lacking far too much.”
“······Yes, President. I’ll do that.”
Hyeonu bowed once more and left the office.
The reason No Hyeoncheol had said that about Kim Byeongjun was this.
At Hyeonu’s request, he had failed to hide Hyeonu and had told him about it.
If he had thrown his hat into the ring for management succession, he should not have acted that way.
He should have hidden what had to be hidden thoroughly, and acted only for his own sake.
If Hyeonu had felt disappointed, all he had to do was promise him a future and smooth things over.
If even that did not work, he should simply have claimed it as his own achievement and found something else to bestow on him.
But Kim Byeongjun had been unable to do that.
Inwardly, he was still unprepared.
Of course, No Hyeoncheol could understand Kim Byeongjun’s position.
He was still unripe, and the power dynamic between him and Hyeonu was plainly visible.
Kim Byeongjun was clinging desperately to Hyeonu, while Hyeonu saw Kim Byeongjun as one of several options.
He had no choice but to go in with his head bowed.
From Hyeonu’s perspective, he was only helping because they were together.
After all, there was nothing bad about helping him.
At this rate, Kim Byeongjun would probably end up being abandoned.
When Hyeonu had grown, the formidable people he could take as partners would be laid out before his eyes.
Even just looking at the second one, Min Byeongsu, that was the case.
Even so, no one knew the future.
He still did not know how much Kim Byeongjun would grow, and it was also true that he could sense some unknown bond between Hyeonu and Kim Byeongjun.
Because Kim Byeongjun’s actions, in which he kept faith rather than making rational judgments, might exert even greater power.
Like Liu Bei and Zhuge Kongming.
What did Liu Bei have, anyway? A half-baked genealogy, a kindly appearance, and the fact that he merely begged.
In any case, today had been a meaningful and pleasant day in its own way for No Hyeoncheol.
* * *
After leaving the Division Chief’s office, Hyeonu approached the Planning Department Head he had spoken with that morning.
The Planning Department Head, seeing Hyeonu, cleared his throat awkwardly.
“Ahem. Hem, hem.”
A tacit order had come down from President Noh Hyeoncheol, leaving him no choice but to assign dedicated personnel.
Having gotten so angry, it must have been quite embarrassing for him to suddenly change his attitude.
Hyeonu stepped in front of him and bowed politely at the waist.
“I beg you, Department Head. I know you must be very busy, and I’m truly sorry. I’ll deliver results you won’t be ashamed of, so I’d be grateful if you could help me just this once.”
He had saved face in front of his subordinates, and by using the word “results,” he had even implied that this was purely business, with no need to argue.
He had even given him a justifiable cause.
Truthfully, even with a businesslike attitude, simply asking for one staff member was a request he couldn’t refuse—but there was no need to make an enemy.
Acting without considering his position in this uncomfortable situation would have made him an enemy, whereas the opposite would make him an ally; Hyeonu had acted based on this calculation.
He cleared his throat once more.
“Hm, hm. There’s a department head meeting right now, so can I tell you after it’s over? We’ll be discussing personnel support then anyway.”
“Understood, Department Head. I’ll wait.”
“Right. I’ll bring that up as soon as the meeting starts, so you won’t have to wait long.”
He bowed once again.
“I would greatly appreciate it if you could do that. Thank you for your consideration, Department Head.”
“It’s fine. It’s just because we won’t have to hold additional quality review meetings, so don’t mention it. And I’m sorry for getting angry this morning….”
The hostility that had shown on his face that morning had completely vanished.
There was no need to engage in pointless emotional conflict.
As workplace colleagues, the best approach was to move forward amicably, in a direction where both sides came out ahead.
Having also made polite and respectful requests at the Sales Department and Design Office, Hyeonu now went to find Choe Wonhyo, Section Chief of Production Management Team 1.
According to the plan, he needed someone experienced and capable for production; this was because when he had heard him on the phone with a vendor yesterday, he had sensed his expertise.
But he wasn’t at his desk.
After leaving the office to search around, he spotted him coming out of the restroom.
“Hello, Section Chief.”
For some reason, his expression was stiff.
“Follow me.”
The place Choe Wonhyo took him was the rooftop.
Lighting a cigarette, he let out a long sigh and asked.
“Phew… Did you call the headquarters president here to kick out the Division Chief?”
[It was definitely you. There’s no way it’s a coincidence that the president, whom I’ve never seen once since joining the company, suddenly showed up and drove out the Division Chief.]
Was he looking unfavorably on his use of connections?
He had good reason to.
To an office worker, there was no one more loathsome and burdensome than someone who used backdoor influence.
So he dressed it up a bit.
“I reported to my superior that I couldn’t get manpower support, and I suppose it went all the way up to the president.”
“Really?”
“Yes, Section Chief.”
After looking at him for a moment, he let out a short laugh.
“That’s a shame. I was going to cozy up to a guy with connections and get some perks myself. Kekekek, I’m joking. Anyway, well done. I was starting to think that Division Chief was going to drive us crazy. He wanted us to hold another quality review this time—damn, I nearly died. Just because the review gets pushed back doesn’t mean product intake can be delayed. Whew… Anyway, I feel completely refreshed. Not having to see that fossil anymore.”
Hyeonu laughed along with him and opened his mouth.
“Um, by the way, I’d like you to help out with this brand launch project, Section Chief. Full-time.”
“Me? Why do you need me for a brand launch? And full-time, at that. Production management isn’t very important for brand launch prep. The planning team and design office are the important ones. The sales team also needs to be pretty involved.”
“I heard that too, but for this project, I think production is more important than those departments.”
“Why?”
“Because we’re planning to launch this season.”
As if his thought process had short-circuited, he stared blankly and blinked his eyes.
“This season?”
“Yes.”
“But it’s December?”
“That’s exactly why I said we need someone experienced like you, Section Chief.”
Blinking his eyes again, he burst out laughing.
“Kekekek, this guy’s completely nuts. Hey, kid. Say something that makes sense. A brand launch isn’t child’s play.”
Hyeonu had expected this kind of reaction.
To him, who laughed it off as absurd, Hyeonu calmly continued his explanation.
“My goodness, to think there was a way to do a brand launch like this….”
[Is it because he doesn’t know the industry? He’s completely breaking the mold.]
“The planning and sales representatives and a dedicated designer will be here soon, so I’d like to talk again then and get straight to work. The schedule is too tight. You’ll join us, right?”
At Hyeonu’s earnest, wide-eyed gaze, he waved his hands.
“Aigoo, stop looking at me like that. It’s burdensome.”
“I’d really appreciate it if you joined us.”
“Haah….”
Letting out a sigh, he pulled out another cigarette and lit it.
“Phew… First, I’ll get permission from the Department Head… No, I’ll definitely make sure to join. If they send some half-baked kids, there’s no way they’d be able to handle it.”
Hyeonu smiled broadly and bent at the waist in a ninety-degree bow.
“Thank you, Section Chief! I’m truly grateful.”
The corners of Choe Wonhyo’s mouth rose as he watched Hyeonu.
It was because he realized this was a guy who made people feel good—with good ideas, an unyielding tenacity, and a respectful attitude to boot.
And he thought he could understand why headquarters had approved Hyeonu’s absurd proposal, and why President Noh Hyeoncheol had come in person.
No, he had known from the start.
Because he had thought Hyeonu was spreading a virus that drove people crazy.
That thought had been correct.