Chapter 6: The Birthday Party

As I descended to the dining room on the lower floor a multitude of gazes landed upon me.

They were seated at three বিশাল tables.

Well-dressed men, easily identifiable. These were the key figures of the group including the presidents of its subsidiaries. I recognized a few of their faces.

Their appearances hadn’t changed much, even after thirty years.

These key figures were husbands, fathers and sons but their loyalty to Chairman Jin Yang-cheol superseded any love for their wives and children or filial piety towards their parents.

They were butlers who had landed the position I’d always dreamed of, or to put it more nicely, they were his bodyguards. Chairman Jin Yang-cheol listened to them in return for their loyalty.

I must make these people my allies.

The children sat at one of the tables.

One older brother and eleven cousins.

When I spotted Jin Young-jun, my eldest cousin, the very person who drove me to my death as Vice-chairman thirty years later, my whole body trembled.

If I had a gun in my hand I might have shot him dead right then.

The chosen ones sat at the last table.

Although all they did was be born as Chairman Jin Yang-cheol’s offspring, that was the sole qualification needed to sit at this table.

Five heirs.

And their spouses…

Wait a minute!

Why are there only nine? One person is missing.

Why isn’t my mother here?

I looked around but still couldn’t find her.

As Chairman Jin Yang-cheol took his seat at the table two chefs appeared carrying a cake adorned with sixty-six candles.

“Happy birthday, Mr. Chairman.”

“Happy birthday, Father. May you live a long and healthy life.”

“Happy birthday, Grandfather!”

The sycophants exclaimed with bright smiles, after the chairman blew out the candles they clapped so hard the house might have come down.

Only two individuals didn’t smile and lacked enthusiasm in their clapping.

They were my father and my older brother.

No matter how much they’ve fallen out of favor, how could they look so dispirited? What is our family’s place in this household?

I found the answer as soon as I spotted my mother.

She couldn’t join us. No, she had no time to sit at the table.

All the women except the men, the mother-in-law, sisters-in-law and sisters.

They were constantly ordering my mother around.

“Sister-in-law, please bring some more soup.”

“Youngest, please get us some cold water. With ice.”

“Sister-in-law, please clear these empty dishes.”

Treating her like a maid.

Of course, as the most junior member, she could be asked to run simple errands. But that’s something you’d see in an ordinary household.

There are five people working in this kitchen. Including the housekeepers, there are over ten people handling chores. There’s no need for my mother to be running back and forth.

This is blatant hazing. No, bullying is a more accurate word.

Seeing this made my blood boil.

The intensity of my anger was no different from when I first saw Jin Young-jun.

Although it had been less than a hundred days since I started living with my mother, I was truly feeling the warmth of her boundless love for me.

Also, my anger towards my father, who was stuffing his face while ignoring the people bullying my mother, made me even more furious.

With a husband like that, the bullying and disregard must have been even worse.

My older brother Sang-joon, sitting next to me, had surely witnessed this scene many times, but he still seemed to find it hard to bear.

His tightly closed lower lip was trembling.

So this is why he threw a tantrum about not wanting to come to Grandfather’s house.

I felt a bit sorry for scolding him earlier, not knowing what he was going through.

Just wait. Someday, I’ll make sure these women kneel before my mother.

In the end, my mother barely ate anything for dinner and was practically chased into the kitchen to do the dishes.

After dinner the grandchildren split into two groups.

The teenagers discreetly disappeared somewhere, while the younger elementary school kids gathered around their grandfather.

“Alright, you rascals. Let’s go upstairs. Haha.”

Aha, the upstairs playroom is only accessible with Chairman Jin’s permission.

What a meticulous old man.

He never lets go of his CEO mindset, always trying to control and show off his power, even to his grandchildren.

I was dumbfounded but followed them upstairs.

Just then, I felt a hand stroking my head.

“Our Do-jun, you’re the star today.”

The hand belonged to Jin Young-jun.

When I saw him my hair stood on end, but I forced a smile.

Perhaps because of our ten-year age difference he was smiling at me. He looked like a kind older brother who adored his youngest sibling.

Let’s see how long that smile lasts.

“This is Do-jun’s present so Do-jun gets the first turn. You all go after him. Understand?”

Chairman Jin gave the children a firm reminder before heading downstairs.

As soon as Grandfather disappeared, someone shoved me hard on the shoulder.

“Move it! Brat. I’m first!”

What a little punk. My face turned red with anger. As I clenched my fist and prepared to step forward my older brother Sang-joon grabbed my wrist.

“Yes, older brother, Kang-jun should go first. We can go later.”

My brother already looked terrified.

Kang-jun? Jin Kang-jun? That’s a familiar name.

I racked my brain.

Ah, that’s him. The eldest son of the third son, Jin Sang-ki. When I died this guy was the executive director of Soonyang Telecom.

This guy’s father, Jin Sang-ki, lost in the succession race and begged on his knees to have his son taken care of.

I now learned that Jin Kang-jun was a rotten egg from a young age.

He was known for constantly getting into fights even after becoming an adult.

He was the type to throw punches before words, not just assaulting employees but also getting into countless altercations with staff at restaurants and bars.

I didn’t care about these kids’ toys anyway, but then I remembered how this guy’s mother acted like the eldest sister-in-law ordering my mother around during dinner.

So, what should I do?

Should I let it go? Or should I take some small revenge?

The deliberation didn’t take long.

I decided to take some small revenge, but I needed a bit more time to think about what other gains I could make.

If possible, I wanted to make a strong impression on our founder grandfather today. It seems we only meet a few times a year so I need to show myself off every chance I get.

With my mind made up I acted immediately.

When my brother Sang-joon saw the strange smile on my face, his eyes widened.

He probably realized it was the same smile I had in the bathroom earlier when I was splashed with hot water.

I winked at my brother then walked over to my cousin Jin Kang-jun with a smile.

The guy was so engrossed in imitating a cowboy on the low-humming mechanical horse that he didn’t even notice me approaching.

“Having fun?”

“What?”

As Jin Kang-jun, distracted by the horse’s movements, glanced back I kicked the horse’s backside with all my might.

Thud!

The rocking horse and Jin Kang-jun fell over making a loud noise.

“Ouch!”

Oh no! Did I break his leg? His scream is sharp.

It doesn’t matter.

Growing up with injuries makes the bones stronger, it’s good for him.

The five young cousins in the playroom were so shocked they could only gape, unable to make a sound.

I tapped Jin Kang-jun on the cheek, he was still screaming in pain from his leg being pinned under the horse.

“Don’t ever touch my stuff again.”

From outside I heard the pounding of footsteps running up the stairs.

The women rushing over after hearing the scream. One of them turned pale.

“Kang-jun!”

They lifted the fallen horse and checked on the child, turning the playroom into chaos, but one person stood frozen, staring only at me.

It was my mother.

The children were chattering like sparrows, but she probably only heard one sentence.

Do-jun pushed him!

She looked at me with a forlorn expression, unable to handle what was about to happen, but I smiled brightly and winked at her.

Unfortunately, Kang-jun’s mother saw this.

“You, you crazy bastard!”

Slap, slap!

As her hands slapped my cheeks back and forth my mother rushed over and pulled me into her embrace.

Poor woman.

She can’t even utter a single word, only thinking about protecting me.

The eldest sister-in-law’s hand rose again. Her eyes were filled with venom, as if she wanted to grab both of us.

“What are you doing? How dare you lay a hand on him!”

“F, Father…”

When Chairman Jin appeared the playroom became as silent as if cold water had been poured over it.

He surveyed the room taking in everything at a glance, then immediately gave an order.

“Kang-jun’s mother, take the child to the hospital immediately.”

“Yes, yes.”

A few people carried the child, whose cries and moans were mixed in pain, out of the room. Chairman Jin then ordered the remaining people.

“Everyone go downstairs. Now.”

With a hopeful thought I grabbed my mother’s hand and tried to leave last.

“Do-jun, you stay!”

Just as I expected. This is what I wanted.

When I let go of my mother’s hand she couldn’t take a step, filled with anxiety and worry. However, under Chairman Jin’s cold gaze she bowed her head and went downstairs.

Once we were alone Chairman Jin glared at me and said.

“Was it you?”

“…Yes.”

“Why? Why did you do something so dangerous? And to your older brother!”

“It was mine, but older brother Kang-jun took it first.”

“What? You’re saying you hurt your brother over something so trivial?”

Chairman Jin frowned deeply, showing his anger.

“No. I wasn’t trying to hurt my brother, I was trying to break the horse.”

My unexpected answer made his frown disappear, replaced by a look of great surprise.

“I’d rather break my things than let others take them. So that no one can have them…”

I trailed off and lowered my head.

“You won’t let it be taken?”

“Yes.”

I slightly lifted my head to check Chairman Jin’s expression.

Success.

He was clearly trying to suppress a smile.

He must have glimpsed the necessary ruthlessness needed to lead a kingdom. The ruthlessness to not let even a handspan of territory be taken. That’s an essential trait for war with outsiders.

“Although you say you didn’t intend to hurt your brother, the result is that he was hurt. You must be punished for your actions.”

Chairman Jin took the lead, and I followed behind, pretending to be contrite.

Chairman Jin took me to his study.

When the study door opened my heart pounded.

To be able to enter this place!