Chapter 32: Chairman Song Young-ju and Song Hyun-su

“Do you know where this is?”

“Yes.”

I took a fresh look around.

The residence of the honorary chairman of Daehyeon, ranked first among conglomerates.

It was a house similar in size to Grandfather’s.

Just then, the door opened and a man who looked like a secretary came out to greet us.

“They’re waiting for you. Please come in.”

Grandfather nodded lightly and followed him. I too followed behind Grandfather.

As we entered, Chairman Song was waiting at the front door to welcome us.

“Oh my, Chairman Cheon! It’s been so long!”

“Chairman Song, it’s been a while.”

“Hahaha, that rascal’s still as stubborn as ever. How many times do I have to tell you to call me hyung?”

The first time I met the Daehyeon chairman was at his funeral.

Grandfather’s health had deteriorated, so I visited the funeral hall in his place.

“Is that sharp-looking kid next to you the grandson you’ve been bragging about? He looks quite like you, Chairman Cheon.”

At those words, I bowed deeply.

“It’s an honor to meet you, Chairman. I’m Kim Mu-hyeok.”

“Yes, yes.”

Chairman Song nodded and led us to the reception room.

Chairman Song, who had been chuckling, finally spoke after we sat down.

“Well, well, what’s the reason for moving that heavy bottom of yours?”

Grandfather glanced at me once, then shrugged towards Chairman Song.

“What big reason could there be? Just came to say thanks for the help and introduce my grandson. Killing two birds with one stone, you know.”

“Huh, the great Chairman Cheon personally introducing his grandson? You must be getting old too. Weren’t you the man without blood or tears?”

I couldn’t help but glance sideways at Grandfather’s expression.

But despite Chairman Song’s blunt words, Grandfather’s face remained impassive.

“Speaking of no blood or tears, aren’t you the same, Chairman Song? You won’t pretend not to remember when we first met, right? I wondered if you were a construction company boss or a local thug.”

“Hehehe.”

The two of them showed no intention of emerging from their reminiscence for quite some time.

I found myself listening intently to their vivid stories, captivated without realizing it.

“Why on earth did you decide to get into politics? You should have just kept doing what you were doing…”

The atmosphere grew somber.

As Grandfather chided Chairman Song with a sigh, Chairman Song replied in a bitter, weak voice.

“It was disgust that drove me to it. They’re always demanding money, and then with every change of power, they hunt us conglomerates down like rats. So I thought I’d give it a try myself… Sigh…”

“So you plan to keep holed up at home, watching the government’s every move?”

Chairman Song shook his head.

“The kids should handle things now. You and I, we’re at an age where we should step back, aren’t we? Though… I suppose you can just sit around playing with money till you die. I’m envious…”

Grandfather feigned a frown and joked.

“I guess you don’t need my money anymore, eh?”

“Haha, are you threatening me with money again? Just kidding, just kidding. Enough small talk, what’s the real reason you’re here?”

Grandfather turned to look at me.

“Mu-hyeok, step outside for a moment. I’ll call you back in.”

At those words, I stood up without protest and went outside.

As I came out of the reception room, Chief Ha, who had been talking with Chairman Song’s secretary, bowed politely when he saw me.

“Have you come out, young master?”

“Yes, I was told to wait outside for a bit. Would it be alright if I went to the garden?”

Chairman Song’s secretary, catching my eye, took the lead.

“I’ll guide you. Please, this way.”

I followed the secretary alone to the garden.

The summer sun was scorching, but under the shade of the trees, it was quite cool.

I looked up at the sky where the branches of the garden trees stretched out.

“Feel free to look around. Would you like me to assign someone to accompany you?”

“No, thank you. I’d like to think alone. I’ll call if I need anything.”

Chairman Song’s secretary excused himself.

I strolled slowly through the garden. The greenery of the pine trees and shrubs surrounding Chairman Song’s house was lush.

I sat on a bench tucked away in a corner and became lost in thought.

‘I wonder what Grandfather and Chairman Song are discussing.’

Daehyeon Chairman Song Young-ju.

A few years later, when he dies, Daehyeon, which was ranked first in the business world, will be torn apart and split into several groups.

After that, until the day I died, the Il-seong Group rose to that positiion and reigned supreme.

Grandfather’s stocks and the stocks I would start amassing from now on.

‘It’s about whose hand we raise.’

The future would change dramatically depending on my decision.

It was then, as I was deep in thought.

I sensed someone approaching.

I looked up to see a young man staring at me.

“Who are you?”

That was his first words to me.

I recognized him at a glance.

Song Hyeon-su, grandson of Daehyeeon Chairman Song.

I stood up and extended my hand.

“Hello, I’m Kim Mu-hyeok.”

“Ah, I’m Song Hyeon-su.””

Song Hyeon-su, who had been tiltiing his head for a moment, seemed to realize his mistake and grasped my hand.

I smiled and introduced myself first.

“My grandfather came to meet Chairman Song and brought me along. They said they needed to talk, so I came here to cool off and rest for a bit.”

“Ah… I see. I saw an unfamiliar face and was curious, so I came over. But you look familiar… Have we met before?”

Ah, no wonder…

I replied sheepishly.

“…You probably saw me during the College Scholastic Ability Test interview.”

“Ah! The ‘studying was the easiest’ guy?”

“Yes…”

“Haha, I laughed so much watching that interview. Were you really serious? I’ve always wanted to ask if I ever met you.”

“Haha… Please forget about that.”

“Ahahahaha!”

Unlike me, who was smiling awkwardly, he let out a genuinely hearty laugh.

Judging by his expression, he seemed quite friendly.

“Ah, I suddenly burst out laughing… I’m sorry if I offended you.”

I waved my hands, smiling wryly.

“Not at all. I must have been temporarily insane back then. It’ll probably be a dark past I’ll carry for life…”

“Come on, I think it’ll be fun to look back on when you’re older. You were in law school at Korea University, right? Is your dream to be a prosecutor? Or a judge? Something like that?”

“No, not really… For now, I’m planning to take the bar exam once. I’ll decide whether to take the second part later.”

“I see. I’m in business administration. I didn’t have the grades for Korea University, but fortunately, I got into a prestigious university. I’m about to graduate, and I’ll probably study abroad. Hahaha.”

Before, we had only briefly crossed paths at the funeral, but talking to him for this long, he turned out to be quite talkative.

It was a completely different image from his charismatic future self.

Song Hyeon-su and I continued ourr conversation, losing track of time.

* * *

The door to the reception room closed. Chairman Cheon, who had been watching Kim Mu-hyeok’s retreating back, urned back to Chairman Song.

“Chairman Song, I have a favor to ask.”

“A favor?”

“Yes, a favor.”

“Well~ I’ve lived long enough to hear the word ‘favor’ from your mouth. What is it?”

Chairman Cheon picked up the teacup in front of him with a thoughtful expression.

“I’m planning to transfer most of my shares to my grandson soon. That includes quite a few shares in Daehyeon affiliates.”

“Ho, so you’re really planning to groom him properly, I see. And?”

Chairman Song looked at Chairman Cheon with interest.

“I’d like you to meet with him once a week, if possible, to give him advice. Even once a month would be fine.”

“…”

Chairman Song stared at Chairman Cheon for a long time without answering.

Finally, as Chairman Cheon put down his cooled teacup, Chairman Song let out a dry laugh.

“I see you’ve made up your mind about your successor. Are you sure about this? Skipping a generation… Passing it directly to your grandson will cause a storm in your family. And he’s not even your direct grandson, is he? Will your sons understand?”

Chairman Song asked worriedly. But Chairman Cheon seemed firmly resolved.

“For now… As long as I’m alive, there’s no need to worry. I don’t want him to live the same life I did. He needs to come out into the light. I’ll pass on the illegal businesses to my sons and teach him how to live in the light.”

“Do you like him that much? No matter how you look at it, he’s only twenty. Isn’t it too early?”

“Take some time to look him over. He’s no ordinary kid.”

Chairman Cheon’s eyes grew distant.

Chairman Song, guessing who he was thinking of, silently watched him.

“…He sees things even I don’t. He’s smart, but when he needs to be firm, he knows how to stand his ground. How could my sons compare?”

“Hm… I never imagined I’d see this side of you. I’ll make time to talk with him. Will that do?”

“Thank you.”

“If you’re thankful, why don’t you try calling me ‘hyung’ for once?”

As Chairman Song joked playfully, a faint smile appeared on Chairman Cheon’s lips.

* * *

While I was talking with Song Hyeon-su in the garden, Chaiirman Song’s secretary came to find us.

“The chairmen are calling for you.”

At the secretary’s words, we ended our conversation.

“Alright, Mu-hyeok. Let’s grab a drink sometime.”

“Yes, hyung. I hope we can have another moment like this.”

After exchanging goodbyes with Song Hyeon-su, I followed the seccretary back to the reception room.

“You called for me?”

As I entered the room, Chairman Song pointed to the sofa next to Grandfather.

“Yes, have a seat.”

“Alright.”

As I sat down, Chairman Song just stared at me intently, lost in thought.

It was an awkward moment with no conversation.

After staring for a long while, Chairman Song finally spoke.

“Come to my house every Saturday from next week.”

“Pardon?”

“Chairman Cheon asked me to give you some advice on this and that.”

I looked at Grandfather with a surprised face.

But Grandfather’s expression remained unchanged.

Chairman Song continued in a casual tone.

“We’ll decide whether to keep meeting after we talk next time. Even if it’s Chairman Cheon’s request, if it’s not beneficial for me, why would I waste time meeting a young kid like you?”

While silently listening to his words, I was busy trying to guess Grandfather’s intentions.

“Book smarts and street smarts are different. I didn’t even finish elementary school. But is there anyone in this country who doesn’t know my name? Don’t think the world is easy just because you’re smart.”

“Yes, I understand.”

I nodded without saying much.

Chairman Song added, as if extracting a promise.

“If you understand, that’s good. Still, since Chairman Cheon personally came to ask this favor, I’ll meet you a few times. Try to impress me. If you do, you’ll gain a lot too.”

“Yes.”

Chairman Song looked at Chairman Cheon, who had been listening silently.

“Chairman Cheon, will this do?”

“Thank you.”

Chairman Song spoke to me in a slightly softer voice.

“Next time you come, I’ll introduce you to my grandson. You’re about the same age, so you should get along well. He’s a senior in college, I believe.”

“If you mean Hyun-su hyung, we just met. We were chatting in the garden when he approached me.”

“Oh? You’re already calling each other hyung and dongsaeng? You know how to navigate the world at such a young age. Chairman Cheon doesn’t know what you know.”

Chairman Song glanced at Chairman Cheon as he spoke.

So this side of him exists too.

Grandfather was also impressive, not changing his expression at all.

Grandfather soon stood up.

“We’ll be going now. From next time, I’ll just send my grandson.”

“Alright. And please look into that loan we talked about. These days… you know how it is.”

Ah…

I suddenly remembered that the current president was quite uneasy because Chairman Song had received 168% support in the presidential election.

‘Didn’t they say he put pressure on banks to block loans and conducted intense tax investigations?’

I headed to Pyeongchang-dong with Grandfather after leaving Chairman Song’s house.

Grandfather didn’t say a single word until we arrived home.

Only when we got home did he casually say one thing to me.

“Learn a lot.”

Then he went into his study.

I entered my room with a confused feeling.

‘Did I… really know Grandfather properly?’

My mind was unsettled by Grandfather’s actions, which were completely different from before.

That evening,

The 9 o’clock news anchor’s voice reported:

– Early this morning, Mr. Lee, a gang boss based in Busan who wielded influence nationwide, in the prison where he was incarcerated…

‘It seems Uncle has made up his mind properly. That’s good… I don’t have to abandon him…’