“Before you, a total of eighty-three people, including you, Jiham, went through my tests.”
For a moment, I couldn't believe my ears. If I interpreted Chairman Park Yeongil's words more broadly, that meant eighty-two people had failed miserably.
“What?! That many?”
“It hasn't even reached a hundred. What's the big deal?”
Chairman Park Yeongil answered in an utterly indifferent tone.
“And when did you start conducting these tests?”
“Well... about five years ago, I suppose.”
“And were all the participants delivery riders like me?”
Instead of answering, Chairman Park turned his head toward Chief Secretary Kang Inhan. As though he had read his thoughts beforehand, the man spoke without the slightest delay.
“Cha Jiham is the only delivery rider among all of them.”
“Then who were the others?”
“All kinds of people, from university students to office workers.”
“And how did you choose the candidates?”
“The employees of our company first carried out a thorough preliminary investigation and then approved the candidates.”
“So I was investigated too before being subjected to the test?”
In reality, Cha Jiham had ended up on the list purely by chance. As a result, they had only gathered information about his background after the fact. And in order not to disrupt the overall story, Chief Secretary Kang Inhan had no choice but to lie.
“Yes, of course.”
“Ah, so that's why the chairman knew about my younger sister.”
“I'm curious why I became a candidate in the first place.”
“Do you not know the reason yourself, Mr. Cha Jiham?”
“Me?”
“Shall we leave that topic alone?”
“All right. But I'm curious about something else. What kind of company do you work for, Secretary Kang?”
“If you pass the final test, the chairman will personally tell you everything. Incidentally, most businesspeople in this country know the company that Chairman Park runs.”
I had actually tried searching for information about Chairman Park Yeongil online before. But I hadn't found a single thing connected to him. Judging by that, Chief Secretary Kang Inhan was either lying outright or deliberately making things sound grand.
“I see. Did the people who dropped out know they were being tested?”
“The sharp ones probably suspected something.”
“Huh...”
Chief Secretary Kang Inhan understood perfectly why Cha Jiham had reacted like that.
“Unlike them, Mr. Cha Jiham, you didn't try to act clever or calculate every move. That is why you didn't give up and managed to reach the final stage.”
“And why do your words, Secretary Kang, fail to comfort me in the slightest?”
“Put it down to unnecessary anxiety.”
“Still, I'm curious. Why did those people fail even though they realized they were being tested?”
“They had serious flaws. Some lacked the ability to adapt to circumstances, some lacked perseverance, responsibility, conscientiousness, or simply basic courtesy.”
“Ah, I see.”
“As for the final test, the chairman himself will explain it.”
Chief Secretary Kang Inhan stepped back and yielded the floor to Chairman Park Yeongil.
“The final condition is this: you will join Hangang Group and work there for at least five years.”
'Whoa. He wants me to join Hangang Group? And work there for more than five years?'
Hangang Group was South Korea's leading conglomerate, the undisputed number one in the business world. To enter the company, applicants had to take the company's aptitude test, GAAT. Only after passing that were they allowed to proceed to the interview stage. But the test was infamous for its brutal difficulty. Even acknowledged geniuses failed it in droves. Under those circumstances, how was an ordinary guy like me supposed to pass? Besides, I had given up trying to find employment three years ago, and my brain had become as stiff as stone.
“...Chairman, in order to enter Hangang Group, you have to pass that test everyone calls the national exam. I don't have any confidence that I can do it.”
“Hangang Group also recruits new employees through internships.”
The internship program at Hangang Group was called nothing less than a battle among titans. Graduates from the world's most prestigious universities flooded it with applications. Even top graduates from Seoul National University's business department were often rejected at the document screening stage. How could someone like me, with a degree in Korean Literature from Korea University, possibly get through that first hurdle?
“They say getting into Hangang Group through an internship is harder than passing a thread through the eye of a needle.”
“I'll make sure you pass the document screening.”
“...What?!”
“I'm the kind of man who always stands by his words. So, what do you say?”
'Just who in the world is this chairman? Could it be...'
“Please forgive me, Chairman, but I can't accept your offer.”
“I'd like to hear why you're refusing.”
“A huge number of applicants are trying their hardest to get through that process fairly, and I feel it would be wrong on my part. If I pass thanks to your influence, someone else will lose their chance right before achieving their dream. I don't want to continue this test at the cost of trampling on someone else's efforts. And besides...”
“And besides?”
“Even if I pass the document screening, there's still the interview. And even if I somehow pass that and become an intern, only around ten percent are eventually hired as regular employees. Meanwhile, an intern's salary is barely above minimum wage. I have to support my family.”
“Hm...”
Cutting himself off, Park Yeongil leaned deeply against the sofa and slowly closed his eyes. I sat there waiting anxiously, wondering what decision he would make. Quite some time passed before he finally opened his eyes and spoke.
“Jiham, I give you my word that the total number of people who pass the document screening will remain unchanged. And if you fail the internship interview, the test will automatically come to an end.”
“...Huh.”
“If you enter the internship, I'll compensate you for all the income you'll lose compared to working as a delivery rider. And if an unbelievable stroke of luck smiles upon you and you become a full-time employee, I'll give you a house where your entire family can live. What do you think of my proposal?”
“Before I answer, I'd like to ask one thing.”
“Go ahead.”
“I want to know why you're being so generous to me.”
“Simply because you managed to reach the final stage. Now I await your answer.”
'I'm going to fail the interview anyway, so what difference does it make?'
“I accept your proposal.”
“That's the kind of decisive attitude I like. Secretary Kang, prepare the contract by the end of lunch.”
“It will be done.”
After giving a short answer, Chief Secretary Kang Inhan left for the office. Watching him go, I turned to Chairman Park Yeongil with some confusion.
“Chairman, why do we even need an official contract?”
“What, are you afraid you'll fail the interview?”
“To be honest, yes.”
“Jiham, you know the saying, don't you? Where there's a will, there's a way.”
“Yes, of course.”
“If you truly give it your all to enter Hangang Group, you'll definitely get good results.”
“I'll remember your words, Chairman.”
Just then, the cook came over and informed us that lunch was ready. Following Chairman Park Yeongil into the dining room, I nearly widened my eyes in disbelief. The dining table was overflowing with exquisite dishes I had never seen before.
“Wow, Chairman, thanks to you, I'm really going to spoil my stomach today.”
“Hahaha! Listen to you.”
Chairman Park Yeongil laughed warmly and sat down. Taking a seat opposite him, I asked the question that had been bothering me.
“Chairman, your birthday is something you should celebrate with family, isn't it?”
“I don't have a family.”
Instinctively, I felt there was some painful personal story hidden behind those words, and I had no desire to ruin the festive mood.
“I'm sorry. Looks like I said something I shouldn't have.”
“It's fine. Everything's all right. Let's eat.”
While we talked over lunch, Chief Secretary Kang Inhan returned and took his seat.
“Secretary Kang, is the contract ready?”
“Yes, Chairman. You may review it immediately after lunch.”
“Excellent. Go ahead and eat.”
After taking a spoonful of seaweed soup, Chairman Park Yeongil spoke to me again.
“You tried getting into respectable companies before, didn't you?”
“Yes, of course.”
“And why do you think you kept failing?”
Over the years, I had sent out resumes to more than twenty companies. Thanks to the prestige of Korea University, I often passed the document screening, but I invariably failed the interviews and suffered one defeat after another. I couldn't keep living off my mother forever, so I became a delivery rider, and somehow things had carried on that way until today.
“I was usually eliminated during the interview stage.”
“Perhaps you weren't able to answer the interviewers' questions properly.”
“No, I don't think that was it.”
“Then perhaps the problem was your major.”
At that moment, Chief Secretary Kang Inhan joined the conversation, clearly having something to add.
“Chairman, I investigated in detail the reasons why Cha Jiham failed his previous interviews.”
“Oh? Then tell me what they were.”
“Cha Jiham failed because of a severe lack of confidence, an overly passive personality, and weak foreign language skills.”
Having Chief Secretary Kang Inhan lay out all my weaknesses so bluntly right in front of me was hardly something to be happy about. My displeasure must have been written all over my face, because Chairman Park Yeongil immediately asked:
“Jiham, what do you think about Secretary Kang's opinion?”
“...My language skills aren't that bad.”
Chairman Park turned his gaze toward the chief secretary.
“Cha Jiham's written English test scores are quite good—eight hundred fifty points. However, his conversational speaking ability is extremely poor.”
“And what's the root of that problem?”
“I believe his timidity and passive nature are the decisive factors.”
“A lack of confidence, huh...”
Chairman Park Yeongil fell silent and began tapping the armrest with his fingertips.
Tap. Tap.
Tap. Tap.
Having all my insecurities exposed so unexpectedly, I sat there in utter embarrassment, unable to say a word. Finally, the chairman stopped tapping and addressed the chief secretary again.
“With all that in mind, Jiham is highly likely to fail the internship interview for Hangang Group, isn't he?”
“You are absolutely correct, Chairman.”
“Well, that simply won't do.”
As though he had reached a final decision, Chairman Park Yeongil stood up and left the room. Chief Secretary Kang Inhan immediately gave me an order.
“We should head out as well.”
As soon as we returned to the reception room and sat down on the sofa, the bedroom door opened and Chairman Park emerged. In his hands was a small paper bag. Sitting down in the seat of honor, he extended it toward me.
“Chairman, what's this?”
“My return gift for that rare wild mountain ginseng liquor you brought me. Go on, open it.”
I carefully peeked inside the paper bag. There was an object about the size of a child's fist wrapped in a silk cloth. Unfolding it, I discovered a cube-shaped wooden box. When I opened the lid, I found a round pellet about the size of a quail egg wrapped tightly in gold foil. I instantly realized what it was.
“Chairman, is this ox gallstone medicine?”
“That's right. But this is an especially rare one.”
“What do you mean by 'especially'?”
“I have an old friend. He spent a tremendous amount of time and effort making this medicine by hand. Once you take it, your confidence will practically overflow.”
“I can't accept something so valuable from your friend.”
“Well, I've never had a timid personality, unlike you. And I've already lived long enough, so such medicine is of no use to me anyway.”
If I had stubbornly refused, I probably could have stood my ground, but this time I decided to yield. After all, I was sick and tired of my own timid personality. Of course, it was foolish to expect that one pill would instantly transform me into some assertive leader, but still.
“Thank you so very much for your kindness, Chairman.”
“Don't mention it. Ah, right! You absolutely must take it on the night before the interview.”
“So not on the morning of the exam?”
“The effect is too strong. I was told it should be taken at least twelve hours beforehand.”
“Ah, now I understand.”
I carefully wrapped the wooden box in the silk cloth again and put it back into the bag.
“As soon as you get home, submit your application for the Hangang Group internship.”
“I will.”
The moment I answered, Chairman Park Yeongil shifted his gaze to Chief Secretary Kang Inhan. As though reading his boss's mind, the man immediately went into the office and returned with a transparent document folder. Chairman Park took it and meticulously examined the contract. After confirming that everything was in order, he nodded with satisfaction and handed the folder to me.
The clause stating that “after joining Hangang Group, I must work there for at least five years” somehow left a strange feeling in my heart, but since I was convinced I would fail the interview anyway, I didn't pay much attention to it.
“Secretary Kang, where should I sign?”
At that very moment, a major turning point appeared in my life.