Chapter 7: The Heir’s Strategy

For over a decade I served as a dogsbody for the Soonyang Group, countless times I’d been in and out of this mansion, yet the only places I was ever allowed were the living room and kitchen.

Along with the bedroom, the one place I could never enter was this study.

The chairman’s office on the 27th floor of Soonyang Group headquarters was the official workspace, but all the group’s decisions were made right here.

This study was a place only accessible to family, presidents of subsidiaries who ran the group and those with real power.

Now I too had gained the right to enter this place.

Not as Chief of staff Yoon Hyun-woo, but as the grandson.

I stepped into the study and scanned the interior.

The study was no different from a large conference room.

In front of the chairman’s large desk was a conference table that could seat a dozen people, already occupied by the chairman’s children and the group’s power players. This was expected.

While there might be birthday celebrations, it was only natural they’d discuss pressing matters when gathered.

What surprised me was that Jin Young-jun, the eldest grandson, was sitting in my father’s place.

My father’s absence was understandable. After all, wasn’t he the outcast son?

But Jin Young-jun was barely twenty, a college student preparing to study abroad.

Compared to others here he was just a kid. His presence meant the line of succession was already set.

Was being reborn into a chaebol family a chance given by God, but was I already too late?

Was ten years an age gap I could never overcome?

Everyone misunderstood me as I stood there lost in thought with my head bowed. They thought I was terrified.

“Hey Do-jun, raise your head. Men grow up fighting with their brothers. Haha.”

Jin Young-jun, trying to act like the eldest brother, laughed heartily as he spoke.

“Be quiet! This isn’t a place for you to open your mouth. Weren’t you told to just listen?”

Jin Young-jun scratched his head as his father, and my uncle, Vice-chairman Jin Young-ki, shouted.

The Chairman took my hand.

“Do-jun.”

“Yes, Grandfather.”

“Kneel beside me until I tell you to stand. That’s your punishment.”

Was this punishment? Or education?

It might be punishment for ten-year-old Jin Do-jun, but for forty-year-old Yoon Hyun-woo it was a management lesson.

I couldn’t miss a single word of the strategies these people who built the Soonyang empire would produce.

I knelt quietly beside my grandfather.

“Tell me what you all think. What’s going to happen?”

The meeting that had been interrupted because of me resumed.

“You know his stubbornness, don’t you? It’s the end of his term, but he won’t fall. He’ll probably go for a frontal breakthrough, don’t you think?”

“A frontal breakthrough?”

“A hardline crackdown.”

“Isn’t it already a hardline crackdown? Are you suggesting deploying the military?”

“That’s right.”

What?

End of term? Crackdown? Military?

Were they talking about the current state of affairs instead of company management?

“We need to consider other directions too. Over a million people gathered across the country today. If the military is deployed, it might become two million, not just one.”

“They won’t be scared even in front of guns and bayonets?”

“The flames of anger are burning right now. If it were dying down, they might fear guns, but deploying the military would be pouring oil on the fire. The current administration won’t be unaware of that.”

“So? What are you trying to say? Are we preparing for the administration to collapse? Do you think the next president will be from the opposition?”

“It’s possible that…”

Bang!

The president of subsidiaries who was voicing his opinion quickly shut his mouth as the Chairman slammed his hand on the desk.

“It’s possible? Of course, it’s possible. It’s also possible it won’t be. Do you think I’m wasting my precious time listening to that kind of useless talk?”

“I, I’m sorry.”

Everyone hung their heads at the Chairman’s roar.

“Just tell me which guy’s side we should be on. Vice-chairman!”

“Yes, Chairman.”

“You go first. Who is it?”

Although they were father and son, they addressed each other by their company titles in this formal setting.

Perhaps because of the weight of being Vice-chairman, my uncle Jin Young-ki couldn’t answer easily.

Jin Young-ki in his mid-forties. And his son Jin Young-jun.

These two had framed me for everything and even ordered my murder.

Now that I’d returned to the past, I wouldn’t let that happen. But even if I wasn’t the target, it could happen to anyone anytime.

I was curious about Jin Young-ki’s answer, a man I once deeply respected.

What kind of insight did he possess?

“It’s not a regime that will collapse and the successor is clear. Demonstrations have been constant for the seven years since this administration took power. I think it’s just a bit more severe now.”

As the eldest son spoke, the second son Jin Dong-ki and the third son Jin Sang-ki, who were also present, agreed without hesitation.

“I think so too.”

“Me too…”

With the crown prince and princes voicing the same opinion, the ministers, the presidents of subsidiaries, also leaned towards the current administration staying in power.

Something was off.

In three days the president would make an emergency announcement.

Wasn’t it a declaration of surrender?

The people would win.

By now, even the Blue House must have had some outline.

It was hard to understand how Soonyang Group, which must have had more than a few connections in the Blue House, could still be in the dark.

Could it be that Soonyang Group’s network in political circles was still weak at this time?

I kept listening to their meeting, putting these questions aside.

But not a single word was said about the group’s management; they only debated about whose coattails to ride on.

It was almost pathetic.

As chaotic as the times were, this wasn’t what I wanted to hear. I expected high-level discussions about establishing management strategies to respond to change, predicting how the surging demands for democratization would transform this world, things that ordinary company employees wouldn’t even think about.

But they were foaming at the mouth, treating riding the coattails of the powerful as if the group’s survival depended on it.

I felt both disappointed and bitter.

Was this the reality of corporations in the 80s?

In the end, the meeting concluded with the misguided prediction that the current administration would continue.

“That’s it. Everyone leave. And keep your ears open for information.”

At the Chairman’s words, everyone filed out of the study.

“Get up now.”

A gentle voice, like a grandfather’s.

I tried to get up quickly but it was impossible. I slowly straightened my stiff legs and barely managed to stand. The Chairman’s gaze as he looked at me was filled with pride. It was the warm gaze of an ordinary grandfather.

The Chairman, who had me sit beside him, spoke.

“Well done, our Do-jun.”

“Yes?”

“It was quite a long time, but you didn’t frown once, nor did you show any sign of discomfort. Even an adult would have shifted around because of leg discomfort… You were steadfast.”

I was so engrossed in listening to their opinions that I hadn’t even noticed my legs hurting. I hadn’t even realized how much time had passed.

“But there’s one thing I’m curious about. How have you changed so much?”

The original Jin Do-jun must have been no different from his older brother Sang-jun.

He must have been timid, always cowering under his powerless and scolding parents.

Such a child now resorting to violence to protect what was his, it was natural for them to be surprised and curious.

The truth was I had changed because I was a different person. Well… I couldn’t exactly say that.

“Me?”

“Yes. Was it during the new year when I last saw our Do-jun? It’s only been half a year, but you seem like a different person. Makes me wonder if you’re really my grandson. Haha.”

I gauged the Chairman’s mood and racked my brain for a suitable answer. There was only one appropriate response.

“I’m not going to hold back anymore.”

“What?”

“Father and Mother kept telling me to just endure it, so I did, but I can’t take it anymore. I’m angry.”

Damn it, if only I could squeeze out some tears now…

How could I possibly cry now!

But perhaps he found it even more commendable that I could say this so resolutely.

The Chairman silently pulled me into a hug.

He seemed to be empathizing with the hardships I must have endured, feeling pity for me.

This was the time to deliver another shock. A shock so big it would knock him off his feet.

“Grandfather.”

“Yes, tell me anything.”

“Make friends with all three of them.”

“What do you mean? Make friends with all three?”

“What you were talking about earlier. The next president.”

“…?!”

The pity in his eyes as he looked at me changed.

I gave him a punishment, but he listened to the whole conversation? A mere ten-year-old child.

Moreover, he had synthesized all the information and even came up with a clever idea, it was only natural he’d be surprised.

“The president is the most powerful person in our country, but if you don’t know who it will be, isn’t it good to just make friends with all of them? All three are powerful enough to become president, so do you have to be friends with just one?”

I spoke in the most childlike tone I could muster, leaving out any difficult words.

“All can be friends…”

“Can’t you?”

“Of course, you can. The more friends the better. Haha.”

The Chairman, holding me tightly, even let out a satisfied laugh.

Should I stop here for today?

In a few days when the June 29 Declaration came out, just a little hint about who to really side with would shock him once again.

I had to make him a grandfather completely smitten by his ten-year-old grandson’s brilliance, unable to escape.

I was not too late.

“Do you want to go out and play now, Do-jun? Grandfather has some work to do.”

Bathed in the Chairman’s loving gaze, I left the study.

***

Left alone in the study, the Chairman sank deep into thought.

Then, picking up the receiver, the Chairman called somewhere.

– Yes, Chairman.

“Immediately deliver five to YS and DJ each.”

– Both of them, sir?”

“Yes. Tell them it’s to treat their hardworking subordinates to some meat during these trying times, and throw in some appropriate pleasantries.”

– I understand. What about that side…?”

“Just send ten for now. Don’t forget to say that we hope they resolve the chaotic political situation well.”

– I’ll keep that in mind, Chairman.”

The Chairman, putting down the receiver, let out a chuckle.

A ten-year-old grandson uttering such insightful words.

He had been thinking too much in extremes.

When he asked them to predict an uncertain future, they all gave uncertain answers. They barely managed to offer speculative responses like the current administration would surrender or hold on.

If he had asked them to come up with a response to an uncertain future, someone would surely have suggested spreading the risk and hedging their bets.

After all, these were people with sharp minds.

But to think this answer would come from his ten-year-old grandson!

Why had he only now discovered such a clever side of him?

The Chairman quietly summoned his eldest grandson, Jin Young-jun.

He wanted to check the potential of the one who would become the third chairman of Soonyang Group.

Jin Young-jun hurried over at his grandfather’s call, a slightly nervous expression on his face.

“Young-jun.”

“Yes, Chairman.”

“Ahem, I’m your grandfather now.”

“Ah, yes. Grandfather.”

Jin Young-jun’s face turned red with tension. He had to distinguish between public and private matters. But it wasn’t easy to perfectly cater to his grandfather’s constantly changing moods.

“You only listened today. But you must have thought about it, right? Let’s see your answer sheet. I’ll grade it.”

The current administration had just over six months left. It was a clear lame-duck situation, yet citizens poured into the streets daily, shouting for the overthrow of the dictatorship and the abolition of the constitution. Moreover, next year the Olympics, a global event, would be held.

What would become of this chaotic period? This was the problem, and he had to write his answer.

“Well… um…”

At school, he had seen countless students throwing stones and Molotov cocktails and running from tear gas.

The police always dispersed the demonstrators.

The power difference was overwhelming. Demonstrations every day, dispersal every day.

College students could never win against the authorities.

Having organized his thoughts, Jin Young-jun carefully filled out his answer sheet.

“I think the current protests are at their peak. If the president deploys more police… and even some military troops, I think it will quiet down.”

“So the current administration will be extended?”

“Yes. Naturally, the current president’s friend and successor will likely become the next president.”

“Then this grandfather should trust your words and side with that person, right?”

“Yes?”

Jin Young-jun felt a cold sweat run down his neck.

His grandfather was smiling gently, saying he would entrust the group’s future to his prediction.

Of course, that wouldn’t happen. But this was a test.

If he puffed out his chest and showed confidence, he’d be held accountable if his prediction was wrong. But backing down now would only make him seem indecisive.

The Chairman, looking at his grandson’s troubled expression, clicked his tongue inwardly.