The Dignity of the Chaebol

“My name is Jeong Hyunsoo, Manager.”

“Jeong Hyunsoo, the deputy…?”

“Yes.”

Before exchanging much conversation, I could roughly gauge how my grandson, Jeong Hoon, the owner of this body, had been treating the company employees and how they felt about him.

Jeong Hyunsoo, while introducing himself, couldn’t shake the suspicion that I might be playing a prank on him, and he was being cautious.

“How old am I?”

“You were born in 1994.”

1994… so how old is that?

I had assumed he was around 24 or 25, looking delicate like a gigolo, no matter how much he ate. But it seems he’s older than I thought.

“So when did I join the company?”

“Just under six months ago.”

Looks like his studies took a while.

Well, since he’s not the eldest, it was probably important to make sure he studied well to support the firstborn.

He was made a manager when he joined.

That was a good move.

When I got my eldest, Hong Myeong, into the company, I made sure he started as a manager at the headquarters, and Hong Jun also started as a manager in the strategic planning department of the company.

“But really, do you not think I should go to the hospital?”

“Maybe you should.”

Would going to the hospital really solve anything?

“But before that, let me ask a few things. I’m just really confused right now.”

“….”

“I think it would be really good if Deputy Manager Jeong knows me well.”

“….”

“Then I won’t need to do the same thing with others, right? I want to keep this problem I’m facing as quiet as possible. I’ll be back to normal soon. That’s how I feel. So, I just want the only person who knows about my current condition to be you, and I’d like to keep your mouth shut as well.”

“….”

“Can you do that for me?”

“Yes, it shouldn’t be too difficult. There aren’t many people in the company who know much about you.”

“What do you mean?”

“Besides being the second son of the chairman, the company doesn’t know much about you. Even in the HR department.”

“HR department? So, I’m part of the HR department?”

“Yes.”

HR.

Not bad.

Anyway, Jeong Yeop will be leading it, so it’s a good idea to focus the second son on HR.

“How could the company not know much about me after six months?”

“That… I think it’s something only you, Manager, can answer.”

“…?”

“You’ve only shown up for work, but you haven’t interacted with anyone in your department. During work hours, you didn’t really talk to anyone.”

“That doesn’t make sense. How can someone working in HR not communicate with others at work?”

Jeong Hyunsoo tilted his head and spoke.

“It’s really strange.”

“What else?”

“It’s hard to believe someone who says they don’t even remember who they are or their age can judge what’s right and wrong about working life.”

I guess this person still doesn’t believe me…

“Jeong Hyunsoo, Deputy.”

“Yes, Manager.”

“What’s your current salary in the company?”

“It’s just under 50 million.”

For a moment, I wondered why a deputy’s salary was so high, but then I quickly realized it was because of the 30 years that had passed.

“How many years have you been in the company?”

“Two years.”

A second-year HR deputy with a salary of 50 million…

It seems that even after 30 years, the cost of living hasn’t increased that drastically.

For now, I slowly examined the hotel room and tried to estimate how much Jeong Hoon had been spending.

If he was using a room like this for a brief pleasure, it’s likely he spends money like it’s water.

What an annoying guy.

“Then let’s do this.”

“What do you mean?”

“I’ll give you a little something for your trouble.”

“Something for my trouble? Why?”

“Depending on how things go, I could give you an extra payment roughly equivalent to your current salary.”

Jeong Hyunsoo furrowed his brow deeply, staring at me intently.

“Of course, I won’t give it all at once. The person sitting in front of me right now is you, Jeong Hyunsoo, but I could easily find another option. Who knows? I might not get the help I expect from you. In that case, I’ll have to look for another option. Don’t you think so?”

“……”

“Anyway, I’ll give you a down payment of around 10 million won today. Consider it an advance. And the rest, I’ll give you each time I ask you for something important. That’s how I want to do it, but I’m not sure what you think, Deputy Manager Jeong.”

“Well…”

“There’s no such thing as a free lunch. If you want something, you have to pay the corresponding price.”

“No, Manager, I…”

I quickly raised my hand to stop him from speaking.

“For you, Deputy Manager, this shouldn’t be too difficult. But for me, it will be a huge help.”

“What kind of help can I provide?”

“Don’t worry about it.”

“Yes?”

“What I mean by giving you the 10 million won today is that you shouldn’t question or doubt it. Just think of it as an advance. That’s all. Don’t worry about what’s going through your head. But don’t ask me why.”

“……”

“I don’t know what’s going on either. I can’t explain this situation to you, and I don’t think I can get you to understand and accept it while trying to make sense of it myself.”

“Ah…”

“I’m not joking with you right now, Deputy Manager, but I can’t just ask you to blindly believe that this isn’t a joke. So, trust the money, not me. And you should trust me with the same amount of faith I’m offering you. What do you think? Can you do it?”

After a moment of hesitation, Jeong Hyunsoo nodded gravely.

“What’s taking you so long to decide? Do you think I’m asking you to steal something or kill someone? I’m not asking for anything that would harm the company. If you think what I ask might hurt the company, you can let me know. That’s all you need to do.”

“Yes, I understand. I’ll do it.”

With Jeong Hyunsoo firmly bound by money, I began asking more questions.

“How is the position of Jaekyung Group right now?”

“By position, what exactly do you mean?”

This guy is really frustrating.

“I mean, what’s the ranking in the business world?”

I swear… I can’t believe myself.

This is what I’ve been most curious about.

“Do you want it by industry, or do you want the total ranking?”

“Tell me both.”

“Jaekyung Group itself rose to 28th place last year, entering the top 30 domestic rankings again.”

28th after rising? Hah, hahahaha… this is truly pathetic.

“In the aviation industry, we’ve maintained 1st place for over 10 years, Jaekyung Textile is ranked 3rd in the domestic industry, and Jaekyung Foods is 6th in its industry. Those are the rankings from last year, both in overall business rankings and industry-specific rankings.”

They’ve managed to keep aviation in first place.

Well done.

Really well done.

But…

“……”

“……?”

What’s going on? Why did he stop mentioning industry rankings?

“Do you have any other questions?”

“Is that all?”

“What? What do you mean?”

“Is that it for aviation, textiles, and food?”

“Yes, that’s correct, but…”

“Is that all of the subsidiaries?”

“Yes, currently the three are aviation, textiles, and food… those are the only ones.”

I had a feeling a sense of unease was lingering in my mind.

“Today, Jaekyung Group announced that it will undergo organizational restructuring, leaving only aviation, food, and textiles, and rapidly closing down a total of 11 subsidiaries, starting with construction.”

No way.

It can’t be.

It shouldn’t be… but the ominous feeling wouldn’t go away.

“Then, could it be…?”

“Yes.”

“No.”

I said no, but I ended up asking anyway.

“Chairman… my father’s name, what is it?”

“Chairman Son Hongjun.”

Again, I had the illusion of hearing the ominous news anchor’s voice from the bottomless pit of light.

“Chairman Son Hongmyeong, the head of Jaekyung Group, was found dead this morning at 8 AM in his bedroom, having hanged himself.”

No. It can’t be. It shouldn’t be.

“Wait, wait a minute. Then… I have an older uncle, right…?”

“Ah… you’re talking about the late Chairman Son Hongmyeong?”

“Yes, that’s right.”

“He… well…”

I unconsciously swallowed hard.

“It was over 20 years ago, during the IMF crisis… he… well, he made an extreme choice, and the whole country was in uproar.”

“……!”

“Are… are you okay, Manager?”

So, all those news reports I heard from the bottomless pit of light were true?

Then, my son, Hongmyeong, really did that foolish thing?

Why!?

This feels a hundred, a thousand, a million times worse than when I was diagnosed with terminal pancreatic cancer.

“Manager? Manager!”

I couldn’t breathe.

It felt like someone had struck me hard in the pit of my stomach with a sharp heel, and I couldn’t swallow.

“Manager! Water… just a moment! Please, stay still!”

After taking a sip of the hotel water that Jeong Hyunsoo brought me, I started to calm down a little, but the shock of Hongmyeong’s foolish decision still kept me trapped in grief.

“So, now Jaekyung Group’s chairman is Son Hongjun, not Son Hongmyeong, and I am now the second son of Son Hongjun, right? Is that correct?”

“Yes, that’s correct, but… even so, the chairman and… well, your father’s name… you shouldn’t speak so recklessly…”

“What about Jeongtae?”

“Are you talking about the executive director at headquarters?”

“Is Jeongtae currently an executive director? Let’s see… he was born in 1991, so isn’t he too young to hold such a position? When did he start working at the company?”

“I’m sorry, I’m not sure about that. Should I check right away?”

“No, no. There’s no need for that. Then what about Jeongyeop?”

“Who?”

“Jeongyeop. Son Jeongyeop. Son Hongmyeong’s first son, Son Jeongyeop.”