Wednesday, March 11th.
Today, I walked into the office holding a hot Americano.
Hoping that Senior Manager Kim Seok-hun, who had been drenched in coffee and fled home early yesterday, would come at me once again.
And yet, why was it?
Even though I arrived at work right around nine o'clock, Senior Manager Kim Seok-hun didn't even make eye contact, staring only at his monitor.
Had yesterday's shock still not worn off?
Even better.
As long as Senior Manager Kim didn't bother me, corporate life could not have been more comfortable.
Thinking it didn't matter either way, I was about to ignore it when Assistant Manager Park Jong-il, sitting at the desk next to mine, blinked his big eyes and stared at me.
“What's with that look?”
“What is this now? Did you get a girlfriend or something, Manager?”
“What are you talking about?”
“This tumbler. You bought it on the first floor, didn't you? I thought that cost over 30,000 won….”
“Why? Want me to buy you one too?”
Jong-il's eyes widened endlessly.
Was this really something to be that shocked about?
If he found out that a 1.4-million-won espresso machine was currently out for delivery, those big eyeballs of his might pop right out of his head.
-Ding.
The guy's eyes shifted toward the notification window of my internal messenger app.
“It is from Senior Manager Kim, isn't it?”
Did this mean he didn't even want to exchange words with me?
Perhaps because he hated leaving a paper trail, he never even used the internal messenger app, yet he had sent me a message.
-Report to the Division Head's office by 9:30 AM.
It was a rather out-of-the-blue message.
I hadn't seen him take any phone calls this morning, and he had left early yesterday, which meant this summons had been decided even before that….
Was this how a petty man took his revenge?
I had nothing to lose.
Because I had no desire to talk to him either.
I wanted to ask the reason for the sudden summons, but I didn't want to walk over to Senior Manager Kim just for that.
It had been a year since the Division Head took charge of the Integrated Development Division.
Although I had run into him a few times in passing, I had never once had a conversation with him.
Looking at the message telling me to be there by 9:30, I checked my smartwatch.
Being summoned by the Division Head, who only ever dealt with department heads, felt a bit unsettling, but there was no change whatsoever in the diary app.
Since it always warned me about major incidents, it seemed nothing serious had blown up.
Let's just go see.
Everyone feared the Division Head, but I didn't feel nervous in the slightest.
Wasn't the Division Head a salaried worker just like me?!
Thinking thoughts I wouldn't have dared entertain in the past, I headed toward the Division Head's office at an unhurried pace.
“Good morning, Division Head. I am Kang Jin-hyeok.”
“Right. Have a seat over there.”
Up close, his presence felt far heavier than when I had only seen him from afar.
However, there was no reason at all to feel intimidated.
As I slowly took my seat, a report lying on the table caught my eye.
The report was turned squarely toward me, as if meant to be seen.
It was the Mullae-dong commercial district analysis report I had written three years ago.
“Why are you staring at it like that? Is it a report you know well?”
“Yes. It is the report I wrote when Mullae-dong was selected as one of the candidate sites for the fashion outlet.”
“Just as I thought. Then we shall be able to have a proper conversation.”
After muttering those cryptic words almost to himself, the Division Head continued.
“However, it seems this report was not chosen in the end. Even though a great deal of effort clearly went into it.”
I had no idea why he was taking an interest in a Mullae-dong report from so long ago.
Had he found out that I had become the owner of the Daeyeong Precision building?
There was no way.
I hadn't done anything that would start a rumor.
I had submitted the form to the Audit Team, of course, but not even the Division Head would know about that.
Unless someone formally raised an issue, personal asset records were never disclosed.
And even if he had somehow found out, it didn't really matter.
It might invite misunderstanding, but there was nothing illegal or against regulations about it.
If they gave me a hard time over it, I could simply start my own business a little earlier than planned.
Not having a preparation period would be a shame, but I had no intention of continuing corporate life while walking on eggshells.
“That is correct. When we became unable to purchase the building next door, the decision went to Namyangju instead of Mullae-dong.”
“That must have been disappointing. According to the contents of the report, you wrote down several alternative plans as well.”
I remembered.
Inside the report, I had also included contingency plans in case we failed to acquire the Daeyeong Precision site.
The proposal had been to construct an additional apartment-style factory complex to gather the ironworks owners in one place, and build the fashion outlet on the vacated site.
“I was not disappointed. My role is only to analyze; making the final decision is not my place.”
“Even so, were you not curious as to why Namyangju was chosen?”
“I heard it was chosen because it was the more profitable direction. Anything beyond that is not something I am in a position to know.”
-Tap. Tap. Tap.
Was it a habit of his?
The Division Head's thick fingers drummed against the report on the table.
“I would like to hear your honest thoughts. Do you also believe the company gained a greater profit by choosing Namyangju?”
I couldn't tell the intent behind his question.
However, I had never been the type to worry about such things in the first place.
If asked for my honest thoughts regarding a report I had written myself, answering truthfully was my duty as a commercial district analyst.
“Although the Namyangju Branch is showing good sales right now, from an overall, long-term perspective, I am certain Mullae-dong would have brought in a far greater profit.”
“An overall, long-term perspective?”
“Yes. Gathering the small business owners in one place through an apartment-style factory complex would have planted a very positive public image. Through that, we could have targeted the entire 4-ga ironworks complex as well. Most importantly, it was a plan that aligned with our corporate value of mutual growth put forth by the group.”
The Division Head's eyebrows, which already jutted out fiercely like a tiger's, twitched.
“Mutual growth, you say? What is mutual growth as you see it?”
“Helping one another.”
“Helping one another…. Do you believe they have the capacity to help us?”
I didn't know what he was getting at, but there was no need to hesitate over something I had thought about for a long time.
“Because no one can know what tomorrow holds. Did our Seongun not have days like that once as well?”
It was a story written in the Chairman's autobiography as well.
I knew the Chairman's corporate philosophy well.
It had also been the biggest reason I decided to join Seongun Group.
“And so you came up with the apartment-style factory complex? And you still hold the same view now?”
“My view has not changed. If we choose a method that drives out existing residents, the backlash will be fierce, and people will gradually turn away from Seongun. It may sound idealistic, but I believe goodwill comes full circle.”
Had he learned mind reading too?
The Division Head's sharp eyes locked onto my face.
“Interesting. I have heard your thoughts well. Now, let us get to the main point.”
What's this?
We had already talked quite a bit, and yet he was saying we were only now getting to the main point.
Meeting him face-to-face for the first time, the Division Head was a man whose inner thoughts were impossible to read.
***
Division Head Baek Kang-jin had first taken an interest in Jin-hyeok through the Etoile Bakery Sillim branch.
The heartwarming story of the Etoile Sillim branch had spread across the internet as a “goodwill event.”
Franchise inquiries had increased from all over, and an event selling croque monsieur at an affordable price had been rolled out at Etoile Bakeries nationwide.
That had piqued Kang-jin's curiosity.
No matter how loudly the Chairman preached mutual growth, it meant nothing if the employees didn't follow through.
Jin-hyeok's action—stepping up to help even while knowing full well he could suffer disciplinary disadvantages—was the exact image Kang-jin had been looking for.
Having taken an interest in him, Kang-jin had read through every single report Jin-hyeok had ever written over the course of a week.
And he had been able to tell.
That Jin-hyeok was the employee who came closest to the corporate value of mutual growth that he and Chairman Choi had established when founding Seongun Group.
However, having practically led Seongun for decades, Kang-jin wasn't the type to judge a person by reports alone.
He had seen it countless times.
Those who spouted flattering words just to catch the Chairman's eye never ended well.
Talk is cheap.
Putting words into action is what's hard.
Kang-jin wanted to read Jin-hyeok's true sincerity.
Although quite a few answers he liked had come out of their conversation just now, Kang-jin still wasn't completely certain.
“Regarding Etoile Bakery. Why did you make that decision?”
First a Mullae-dong report from three years ago, and now the Etoile Bakery matter whose disciplinary committee ruling had already concluded.
At the Division Head's unpredictable way of jumping between topics, Jin-hyeok scratched his head.
“Are you referring to the croque monsieur event?”
“Yes. What were you thinking when you suggested such an event?”
“Given the nature of an area packed with gosiwon students, I judged that the store could not be saved without an event tailored to them.”
“Is that all? Even knowing you would be penalized for it? How strange. It was not even a franchise store that you analyzed in the first place.”
The Etoile Sillim branch had been planned by Senior Manager Kim Seok-hun.
And that wasn't all.
Managing an already operating store was the job of the Franchise Operations Team.
In more ways than one, Kang-jin was curious about Jin-hyeok's true motives.
“Since the Commercial District Analysis Team had made a flawed recommendation, I believed we ought to show a sense of responsibility. Most decisively, I could clearly see that the Sillim branch could be revived with just a small event.”
“And you did not care about the repercussions you would face in the process? Even if you did not anticipate a disciplinary committee, falling out of your department head's favor could not have done you any good.”
Jin-hyeok smiled inwardly.
If he had been afraid of that, he wouldn't have lasted ten years under Senior Manager Kim Seok-hun.
He did want to rise to the position of Team Leader, of course, but far more important than that was the reason Jin-hyeok had joined Seongun in the first place.
“I did not wish to abandon my convictions for the sake of career advancement. And that will remain true going forward as well.”
Reading the firm resolve in Jin-hyeok's eyes, Kang-jin deliberately frowned and asked.
“Corporate life cannot always work that way. Nor is there any guarantee that your views are always right. What about this, then? What if I were to give you an order that goes against your convictions?”
Jin-hyeok answered immediately, as if he didn't even need to think about it.
“My actions will not change depending on who the other person is. Because the moment I abandon my convictions, there is no longer any reason for me to do this work.”
Kang-jin, who was rarely ever surprised, was left momentarily speechless.
He had phrased it indirectly, but it was a declaration that he would choose resignation over failing to uphold his convictions.
It was not something an ordinary employee could ever say right in front of the Division Head, of all people.
“Huhu. In that case, I am thinking of entrusting a task to you….”
Only then did Jin-hyeok understand.
Bringing up the report from three years ago and the Etoile Sillim branch incident had all been building up to this very moment.
“May I ask what kind of task it is?”
“There is a store that the Franchise Operations Team has judged to be beyond revival. The Baristas Gimpo Janggi Branch. Could you look into whether there is truly no way to save it?”
It was an unconventional work order.
Giving a direct order while bypassing his Team Leader? And for a location that another team had already declared beyond revival, at that?
If he found a way to save it, the Franchise Operations Team that had declared it hopeless would be put in a very awkward position.
The arrows of resentment would naturally fly straight at Jin-hyeok.
At an order from the Division Head, who couldn't possibly be unaware of that fact, Jin-hyeok sank into thought for a brief moment.
An order handed down right after discussing mutual growth.
Jin-hyeok could tell.
This was a test of sorts.
“What is the matter? Did you not say that the Commercial District Analysis Team ought to show a sense of responsibility? Surely you are not hesitating because you are worried about what the Franchise Operations Team might think?”
Sure enough, that was it.
He was telling him to prove that the words he had spoken about his convictions weren't empty talk.
Having grasped the other man's intent, Jin-hyeok's professional pride stirred.
Ten years as a commercial district analyst.
He had devoted himself silently to this work without ever worrying about anyone else's approval.
“Understood. I will analyze whether there is a way to revive the Baristas Janggi Branch and report back to you. However, there is no guarantee that the answer you want will come out, Division Head. Because I will judge everything only after seeing the site in person.”
At Jin-hyeok's confident demeanor, Kang-jin wore a pleased smile.
Because the more he looked at him, the more he saw the image of Chairman Choi in his youth overlapping with him.
***
After Jin-hyeok left the Division Head's office.
A man rose from the massage chair placed in the corner of the room.
“You really have a wicked sense of humor, Division Head.”
“Did you get a good rest?”
Director Choi Tae-sik of the Future Strategy Office at Seongun Group headquarters.
He was the hidden son of Chairman Choi, who was publicly known to have only two sons and three daughters.
“How much did you hear?”
“Everything, right from the start. When you told me I looked tired and had me sit over there, you did that on purpose, didn't you? So I would overhear this conversation?”
“Huhu. You misunderstand. I was simply worried about you after you pulled an all-nighter before coming here. Do you think I would offer that chair to just anyone?”
Tae-sik let out a laugh as if admitting defeat.
The man who had built Seongun Group into what it was today alongside his father.
He was a man who had lived his entire life with every last detail calculated in advance.
“In any case, I ended up unintentionally eavesdropping on your conversation. He must be an employee from the Commercial District Analysis Team?”
“Indeed. I have been troubled because the Team Leader of the Commercial District Analysis Team is not to my liking at all, and that young fellow might just be the alternative.”
At those words from Kang-jin, who almost never praised anyone, Tae-sik reflected on the conversation between the two men just moments ago.
“I think that was the first time I have ever seen an employee not get intimidated in front of you, Division Head. However, he did not seem to have the slightest interest in currying favor—do you think he can be of help?”
“We shall see as we watch him. Besides, the one he will be of help to is you, not me.”
“What do you mean by that?”
“I am referring to the Chairman's directive. Depending on the outcome of this task, I think it would be good to entrust that project to him.”
A mega-scale project of Seongun Group known only to a select few.
Under the Chairman's directive to construct a landmark unique to Seongun, the Future Strategy Office had been moving busily.
The problem was that they had been unable to come up with a proposal that satisfied Chairman Choi.
Building a luxury shopping mall exclusively for the top one percent, a supertall skyscraper, a geometrically shaped building, and so on.
They had put forward all sorts of plausible proposals, only to have every single one rejected.
Kang-jin knew the reason all too well.
A landmark representing Seongun had to embody the corporate value of mutual growth.
That was the very reason Kang-jin had taken an interest in Mullae-dong.