The Dignity of the Chaebol

Do I look like a free person?

“Is it my uncle?”

As soon as she arrived at work, Yeojeong asked Deputy Director Jeong for information about that bastard’s husband.

“Yes, I received a call on my way to the company.” He said he’s my uncle, but he seems to be someone from this company. Who is it?

“…….”

For some reason, Deputy Director Jung burst into laughter.

“Why are you laughing like that?”

“No, no.” You really can’t remember anything. Still, these past few days, it seemed like you were remembering some very old things when I saw you, but I guess that wasn’t the case either.

A long time ago?

“So, who is it?”

“Sir.”

“Is it the boss?”

When I was taken aback, Deputy Director Jung chuckled once again.

“Yes.” The president of Jaekyung Textile is actually your uncle.

The boss?

Then wait a moment.

The name Nam Pil-woo that I saw on the company organization chart yesterday, is he my son-in-law?

Of course, but there wasn’t a single name I recognized on the company’s organizational chart.

And the only thing that gave me some relief was that Hong Jun didn’t place anyone from his wife’s side into key positions in the company. I was simply relieved by that and only checked the names of President Nam Pil-woo and Executive Director Jo Dong-hee, not paying much attention after that, but Hong Jun put Ye Jeong’s husband in the position of President at Jaegyeong Textile?

I thought he was just someone brought in from outside, but he wasn’t.

“Then, Manager Jung, is there anyone else from our family in this company besides the boss?”

“I don’t know about the entire group, but as far as I know, only the president and the manager are in charge of the finance and accounting department.”

Well, it’s not like the people from the group’s headquarters’ strategic planning department, and a deputy in the HR department of one affiliate wouldn’t know the entire family tree of the chairman’s family.

“What kind of person is the boss?”

“Is it the boss?”

“You don’t have to be careful.”

“Yes?”

“You don’t have to be careful with your words in front of me.” “If you help me at the hotel that day, I promised to give you a bonus equivalent to Deputy Director Jung’s annual salary, didn’t I?”

“…….”

“Why would they do that?” If I were in a position to tell my family about my condition, would I have offered such a large reward under the condition that they don’t ask any questions and only answer what I ask, and that they don’t tell anyone about my condition?

“Understood.” Actually, I’ve been hypnotizing myself for the past few days to stop overthinking about the manager. The boss?”

“Yes.” What kind of person is he/she?

Putting myself in his shoes, I think it would be really difficult to answer even if I were Deputy Jeong.

Isn’t the person I have to respond to the boss’s nephew?

He’s the chairman’s son.

Nevertheless, I got a satisfactory answer from Deputy Director Jung.

“To be honest, externally, he doesn’t have much presence as a president.”

Not much of a presence?

“Like other companies, people in the world only remember the names of the direct descendants of the owner.” We don’t know the names of the presidents of the other subsidiaries either. I wouldn’t be that interested either.

I was just nodding my head.

“However, we should see Jaekyung Textile as somewhat different from the subsidiaries of other companies.” Right now, Jaekyung Airlines is the core business of the group, but Jaekyung Textile is the parent company of Jaekyung, no matter what anyone says. Nevertheless, in the case of our president, he has already been the president of Jaekyung Textile for over 15 years, but there isn’t much information about him publicly. Even if people know about Jaekyung Textile, many probably don’t know who the president of Jaekyung Textile is.

“Um….”

This is something Deputy Director Jung is saying because he doesn’t know.

You might not have a presence.

However, the fact that they have led a company for over 15 years without any major controversies speaks for their capability.

And that presence is likely something he controlled himself.

The guy who beat up my brother and nephew is sitting in the chairman’s seat.

What good could come from someone who isn’t even a member of the Son family but has married into it trying to assert their presence?

“But within the Jaekyung Group, he is considered a legend.”

“Legend?”

“Yes, he’s a legend.” The boss is a legend among the employees of our company. He joined as an ordinary employee and became the head of the strategic planning department at the group headquarters in just four years. And then you became a member of the owner’s family.

“How old are you?”

“I believe she is fifty-six.”

Fifty-six.

The conclusion is reached that it was not Hong Jun, but Hong Myung, who led the company when he joined.

When Hong Myung led Jaekyung, he worked at the Group Headquarters Strategic Planning Division.

“Does saying that I was the president of Jaegyeong Textile for over 15 years mean that I became president at the age of forty?”

“Um… yes, that’s right.” Oh, that’s obvious, but I never calculated it that way. I just thought of you as the boss and the owner, someone in a world separate from ours, so I never even considered calculating it, but now that I think about it, you’re right. A true legend is indeed a legend.

“Can I say that it was my uncle, not my father, who stood out in the company since he led the finance department?”

This time, Deputy Director Jung spoke very cautiously.

“This is just a kind of gossip, something that’s been going around among the company employees…”

“Yes, anything is fine.” And in almost all cases, the gossip that circulates among employees is likely to be true.

“Former Chairman Son Hong-myung cherished her dearly, so the former chairman personally introduced his youngest sister to President Nam Pil-woo… that’s what they say.” In fact, the two of them got married while the former chairman was still alive, and after their marriage, they were appointed as the head of the Strategic Planning Team at Jaekyung Textiles here.

Once again, Deputy Director Jung looked at me cautiously and spoke.

“After the former chairman passed away, I heard that the chairman kept a significant distance from President Nam Pil-woo because he was the former chairman’s closest aide.”

“…….”

“But ironically, now the chairman’s closest aide is the president, so I wonder if it was just a rumor that circulated among the gossip-loving employees.”

“Are you saying he was just an ordinary employee?”

“Yes, I heard there was a lot of talk when you got married.” This is a fact. A male Cinderella… something like that. But I don’t know if this is true, but I heard that the former chairman also married an ordinary person.

That’s right.

“So, I wonder if you were more lenient about the choice of your younger sister’s spouse, focusing more on the person themselves rather than their family background… I think about that.”

The eldest, Hong Myung, is more than capable of doing that.

Wasn’t he the one who had an extraordinary affection for his younger sister, Yeojung, more than for me, his father?

When Yeojeong was young, wherever they went, Hongmyeong would always carry or give Yeojeong a piggyback ride.

The one who took care of his younger sister more like a father than her actual father, the one who did such foolish things, was that fool, Hong Myung-yi.

“Manager.”

“Yes.”

“But the information I just mentioned, you really should just take it as a reference.”

“Just for reference?”

“Of course.” I told you, didn’t I? It’s all just gossip that spreads from mouth to mouth within the company. How can I know anything about the boss I haven’t even seen in person a few times? The few times I actually saw him were all from a distance, just like watching a show.

Understood. I will just take note of it. But it still feels sufficient. He asked to see me for a moment, so I’m going to see the boss now.

Please provide the text you would like to have translated.

It was in front of the president’s office.

While one of the female employees from the secretary team was knocking on the door for him, it suddenly came to mind that Jeong-hoon had saved Nam Pil-woo on his smartphone not as “Uncle” or “Boss,” but as “Slave 1.”

No matter how much of a scumbag he is, I thought there must be a good reason for him to have saved his uncle, the president of the company where he is learning the ropes, as ‘Slave 1.’

Is it because he is monitoring Jeong-hoon’s every move within the company and reporting it to my father that he saved it that way?

No.

That can’t be it.

No matter how much that bastard Hong-jun went crazy after I died, blinded by power to the point of pushing out his own brother, would he really have just asked the company president to keep an eye on a wayward son?

If that guy Hong-jun was really that incompetent, he wouldn’t be able to maintain and lead the business even in this sorry state, even though it still falls far short of my standards.

It probably went down the drain a long time ago.

Moreover, Nam Pil-woo, who only listened to Deputy Director Jung, rose to the position of manager in the Group Headquarters Strategic Planning Department within four years of joining the company.

The position of manager in the Strategic Planning Department at the group headquarters is one that requires at least 10 years of service to attain.

And the head of that department essentially has the power equivalent to that of a department head in another division.

To start as a regular employee and achieve such a ridiculously fast promotion, not only must you have the basic skills, but your political acumen must also be top-notch, and above all, you must catch the chairman’s eye.

It’s definitely not a typical promotion.

Someone with that level of capability would have been able to hold the position of president at Jaegyeong Woolen for 15 years.

It’s impossible that Nam Pil-woo would have entrusted such a reckless guy like Jeong-hoon with the role of an observer….

Maybe this could be a very useful card for me right now?

“It seems like you can go in.”

I regained my composure at the secretary’s words and went inside.

“Just sit there for a moment.” You had coffee, right?

“…Yes.”

“Just wait a moment.” I’m busy today. I have to go into the group headquarters. Oh, by the way, there’s a painting that your aunt asked me to bring over, so take your time looking at it.

Nam Pil-woo was so absorbed in processing documents that he didn’t even make eye contact with me.

What on earth could it be?

I met him for the first time today, but in the end, he’s my only son-in-law.

I just thought it would be nice if it was something useful, and took out the contents of the large shopping bag.

It wasn’t that big of a picture.

A painting that is more suitable for placing on a nightstand rather than hanging on the wall.

It was a painting of sunflowers.

I really like the warm feeling.

How long had it been? After finishing all his tasks, Nam Pil-woo came to the sofa seat. His blunt nose, wide-open mouth, and small but sharp eyes were quite likable.

The person is good-looking.

When he was young, he must have been quite a character.

The physique isn’t bad either.

And above all, I liked the way this friend’s smile, which seemed indifferent and cold, looked.

“Did you go to Auntie’s gallery with Jungtae last week?”

Do you all know?

“Um… yeah, I went.”

“These days, it seems like you often visit galleries?”

“Did I?”

“If you’re going to see the painting, I can’t really tell you to go or not go, but if there’s any other intention behind it, wouldn’t it be better to cut down on your visits a bit?”

What on earth is this about?

“I’m a bit concerned.” I was just wondering if you’re going because of the shares your aunt owns in this company.

Even though he was confident in his reason, it was clear that he was speaking as gently as possible, indirectly warning.

“I have no business getting involved with your aunt’s share.” Do you think so too?

Let’s say for now that it’s correct.

The only way I can do it right now is to make him talk a lot and piece together the information.

“That’s right.” That’s not something your uncle should be involved in. It’s our family matter.

“Sigh!”

What? Did I go too far?

“I told you not to call me that at the company, didn’t I?”

“…….”

“Outside the company, you call him Mr. Nam, Mr. Nam… you call him that all the time.” They call me that at the company too. Straighten up.”

“…Yes, boss.”

“Just like you think, I think so too.” The shares of Jaekyung Textile that your aunt holds are separate from mine. You and Jungtae are even more separate from it. Right?

“…….”

“Why are you and Jeongtae so interested in and trying to get involved in my wife’s share, which I am not even involved in?”

The conversation shouldn’t be interrupted.

You need to talk a bit more.

The conversation topic shouldn’t drift off in another direction.

“In the end, isn’t it my father’s company?”

“What?”

“As sons, isn’t it natural for my brother and me to be interested in how Aunt’s share will be handled in the future?”

“Do you have the ability to do that?”

Look at that gaze.