Chapter 1615: Invading (5)

Time and tide wait for no man.

Even if one tried so hard to endure the soul-crushingly slow passage to time, even if one desperately wished for time to pass them by slowly…

The passage of time was fair to everyone. And that story remained true for the Martial Assembly and Kang Jin-Ho, too.

***

“And now, we’re going to cut the tape, everyone!”

Kang Jin-Ho used a pair of scissors to cut the five-colored tape held by one of the guests. That prompted a round of applause to burst forth from the crowd.

I’ve done this before, yet I still feel out of place.

A hint of discomfort seeped into Kang Jin-Ho's expression. He still couldn't understand why so many important people wanted to attend the opening ceremony of a welfare foundation and turn it into an unnecessarily high-profile event, but…

Apparently, everyone else does it, so I guess I have to do it, too.

As long as Kang Jin-Ho lived in this country, it'd be impossible to not participate in things that everyone else did. As if to prove that notion correct, didn't he receive many inquiries regarding when he'd do the ribbon-cutting ceremony, even though nothing had been finalized yet?

“Congratulations, Chairman Kang.”

“Thank you,” said Kang Jin-Ho while staring awkwardly at the person congratulating him.

It was none other than the smiling Goh Han-Bong, still holding the end of the tape.

How should Kang Jin-Ho explain this?

One could say it was a great honor to have the country's Prime Minister attend the opening ceremony of one's welfare foundation. Not only that, but also participating in the ribbon-cutting ceremony and even offering photoshoot opportunities on top of that, too? Such a thing would have been considered an absolute godsend in any other circumstances. Even so, to Kang Jin-Ho…

“Chairman, he is genuinely happy with what you’ve done today.”

“…”

Kang Jin-Ho couldn't help but think, It’d be nicer if you don’t bring up stuff like that here, though.

“While many entrepreneurs and leaders of industry try their hardest to evade their tax obligations and put on a facade, we are very proud of what MK has done. It's encouraging that the labor department or the Korea Workers' Compensation and Welfare Service has not received a single complaint yet from your employees, even though MK had opened its doors some time ago. That can only mean your employees are happy with their environment, after all.”

That didn't surprise Kang Jin-Ho in the least. After all, anyone who dared to do that would get dragged into the depths of Hell by Lee Hyeon-Su and get skinned alive, after all!

No, besides all that…

The MK employees used to roll around on ice buck-naked during their Assembly days ostensibly for training purposes. And they were forced to smile while jumping into the proverbial flames of hell, too! So they wouldn't whine about the difficulty of office work unless something extraordinary forced their hands.

I mean, even I know that their work environment isn't that great.

The workload the MK employees had to deal with was murderous, to say the least. And the amount of overtime they put in would be too embarrassing to mention in public, too.

In the beginning, it felt as if the company had too many workers compared to the amount of work they dealt with. However, the combination of Kang Jin-Ho's unrelenting drive and Lee Hyeon-Ju's managerial style of leaving no stone unturned had eventually given birth to a hellish workplace the likes of which the world had not seen before.

Of course, it still rewarded its workers richly with bonuses and sky-high wages. Of course, life wasn't all about money, so Kang Jin-Ho still felt his face burn up in shame at the mention of how nice his company was to work for.

Goh Han-Bong continued to speak. “That already is a role model for the others to follow, so for you to establish a welfare foundation like this as well! We at the Korean government aren’t quite sure how to express our gratitude, Chairman Kang.”

“Your gratitude? That's a bit…”

“And on top of that, he is even considering honoring you with an Order of Civil Merit as well.”

Kang Jin-Ho flinched. “An Order of Civil Merit?”

“Yes. We believe you are more than qualified enough to…”

“Please don’t. Restrain yourselves, please.”

When Kang Jin-Ho freaked out and urgently waved his hands, Goh Han-Bong tilted his head in confusion. “I beg your pardon? Chairman, this is an incredible honor that…”

“Kekekeke~!” Jeong Hong-Geun, who had been listening to the two men's conversation from nearby, cackled loudly. “Prime Minister, an order like that is nothing more than a white elephant that attracts unwarranted public scrutiny and judgment. Worse still, we can't even trade it away for extra cash. If you are serious about rewarding Chairman Kang, the better option is a reduction in taxes.”

Goh Han-Bong chuckled magnanimously. “Hahaha! You know that's difficult for us to do.”

“I’m sure it won’t be as difficult as most people think it is. As long as the holder of the highest office in our country is serious about it, passing a special law or two shouldn’t…”

“Will you listen to this guy? That thieving bastard still can't help himself but talk about money in an event like this!? Eiiing! What a greedy bastard!”

Jeong Hong-Geun’s expression crumpled hideously, and he snapped his head in the direction of that voice. And when he saw Hwang Jeong-Hu standing on the other side of the Prime Minister, he began rebuking his business rival.

“What should a businessman talk about if it's not about money?! Did your brain rot into a mush after getting old, you fool?”

“A man should know that there's a right time and a right place for everything. Only beasts can't differentiate that. Beasts, I say! Then again, you can't tell the difference, can you? When you've been living like a beast all your life!”

“W-what?! How dare you, you stinking old fart!”

Kang Jin-Ho groaned deeply. “Please, stop doing that in public.”

“Kuh-hum.”

“Tsk.”

Kang Jin-Ho turned his head slightly to glare at the abominable bastard who thought it’d be a good idea to bring these two irreconcilable enemies together in one place.

That abominable bastard, Lee Hyeon-Su, came closer while smiling awkwardly. “Everyone, let us head inside and continue our chat.”

“Mm.”

“Yes, let’s.”

“Thank you, sirs. We have prepared various refreshments inside for you to enjoy.”

On the surface, at least, this was an extravagant event. The Prime Minister's presence was already major news, but that wasn't all, as even leaders of two of South Korea's top-ten corporations were in attendance, too. On top of that, even the important officials from various government departments and the minister himself were present, too—of course, their statuses weren't quite noteworthy enough for them to be spoken in the same breath as those three, but still.

Hwang Min-Su’s jaw fell slightly while observing this scene from some distance away. “Wow… Our chairman really was a big fish.”

“I told you. He's been a big fish all along,” said Lee Hyeon-Ju with a gentle chuckle. “It's just that our chairman has never been interested in showing off all the power he wields, you know? However, even before he established MK or the Seongsim Welfare Foundation, our chairman was already one of the most powerful movers and shakers of our country.”

“Well, I’ll be…”

Hwang Min-Su sighed deeply. He wasn't sure how this was possible, but the proof was right before his eyes, so he had no choice but to accept it as the truth.

Even though he doesn’t sound like a gold spoon, either…

According to Hwang Jeong-Hu, it sounded like Kang Jin-Ho was an ordinary person before his high school days. Hwang Min-Su must've heard a dozen-plus times about how Kang Jin-Ho had climbed up to his current position with his own power from there, after all.

Damn. If only I hadn’t gone on that fishing trip with my father. I wouldn’t have gotten compared to someone else’s son at my age…

Growing closer to his stubborn father was certainly a good thing. However, Hwang Min-Su never expected Hwang Jeong-Hu to suddenly morph into a boomer who couldn't help but compare his child to another man's once the walls surrounding his heart had come down. That surprised Hwang Min-Su somewhat, because it looked as if Hwang Jeong-Hu had already given up on the dream of his sons achieving great things.

Of course, that wasn't important right now. What was important was, though…

“…You know, I never imagined getting the cold shoulder treatment like this. Goodness me, to think that they wouldn't even ask me to join the ribbon-cutting ceremony…"

Hwang Min-Su was the president of one of MK's divisions. Even if MK wasn't ranked among South Korea's top ten companies yet, it should still have some clout in this country's business world. So, for him to get relegated to the role of a background character hanging around in the far back like this…

Lee Hyeon-Ju curiously asked, "Sir? Are you unhappy about that?"

“No, that’s not it.” Hwang Min-Su replied immediately to make himself clear. “I’m just amazed by how things turned out.”

Lee Hyeon-Ju chuckled softly. “I get how you feel, sir. I’m also not best pleased by this situation, you see? The correct thing would’ve been for me to act as the MC of this event, so how dare that guy snatch that role away from me?”

She furrowed her brow deeply while glaring at Lee Hyeon-Su in the distance.

Hwang Min-Su tilted his head slightly. “I thought you two were seeing each other?”

“Yes, but that's that, and this is this. I like him as a man, but him stealing my work is something else, you know? If it were up to me, I would've thrown him into a lake or something."

She sighed deeply. Of course, what she said wasn't exactly true, since her involvement in the creation of the Seongsim Foundation was minimal. That meant she didn't meet the qualifications to lead this event, but she still felt annoyed at being forced to stand back here while Lee Hyeon-Su was out in the front.

…Because this situation seemed to mirror their statuses within the Martial Assembly.

I will not lose to you, Lee Hyeon-Su!

Embers of competitive flames flew out from Lee Hyeon-Ju’s eyes.

Romance was romance, while work was work; she swore to herself to snatch the second-in-command position away from Lee Hyeon-Su one day.

Meanwhile, Lee Hyeon-Su continued to usher people inside. "Now, now, everyone! Let's all go inside. Hyeon-Ju! Miss Lee! Could you please ask the caterers to bring us more refreshments? Thanks!"

“…?! What the heck!”

Lee Hyeon-Ju gritted her teeth, but still nodded away. She didn’t want to ruin this event, after all.

***

Even after everyone had entered the venue, they had to keep their mouths shut as the air between the two titans of the industry remained tense. The two titans were, of course, Hwang Jeong-Hu and Jeong Hong-Geun.

The only thing these two shared in common was that they were both representative figures of the current generation of business leaders. But things like their personalities, personal styles, and even their ways of life were diametrically opposed. No wonder these two men were still glaring at each other with such naked suspicion!

“And why did you worm yourself into this one?”

The first one to fire the opening salvo was, somewhat unsurprisingly, Hwang Jeong-Hu.

“What kind of stupid question is that? I'm in a business partnership with Chairman Kang! Of course I must be here. What about you, though? You think you can leech off us by showing your ugly mug here?!"

“Say what?!” Hwang Jeong-Hu’s brows shot up, the glare in his eyes getting sharper.

However, Jeong Hong-Geun still tutted away, unimpressed. "I hear Jaegyeong has not been doing well lately. Which makes sense, since you've gotten senile with age! Why don't you just goddamn retire already and go live in a retirement village?!"

“And why don’t you crawl inside a casket already, you bastard?!”

“What was that, you fool?!"

“What, what! Wanna have a go?!"

The two old men shot up to their feet and glared fiercely at each other. Kang Jin-Ho, currently stuck between the two, could only hold his head with both hands in despair.

This is Hell!

If Kang Jin-Ho had a wish, that would be establishing the Seongsim Foundation quietly without the attendance of these two old farts. Because he just knew this kind of nonsense would happen if he held a large-scale opening ceremony.

Kang Jin-Ho groaned deeply, but before he could say something to calm the situation down…

“Gentlemen? You’re troubling Chairman Kang by doing this on this wonderful day.”

“…Kuh-hmm!”

“Mm…!”

Goh Han-Bong's calm voice was enough for the two chairmen to sit back down without any further complaints. That was because they didn't want to trouble Kang Jin-Ho, and the one cautioning them was none other than the Prime Minister of this country.

Rather obviously, they didn't want to ignore the Prime Minister's advice in the presence of so many people. Of course, no sane businessman would want to get on the Prime Minister's bad books, whether people were watching or not.

Right, the really weird one is this guy right here.

Hwang Jeong-Hu couldn’t help but view Kang Jin-Ho in a renewed light just then.

Would South Korea’s Prime Minister attend the opening ceremony if Jaegyeong had established a new subsidiary or started a new business venture? Of course he wouldn’t.

Even if Hwang Jeong-Hu had opened a welfare foundation of his own, the highest-ranked government official attending the opening ceremony would be the Minister of Health and Welfare. However, the possibility of that happening was low.

Yet the lazy-arsed Prime Minister still put everything aside and showed up here just because Kang Jin-Ho was having an opening ceremony for his welfare foundation.

“Huh. Huhuhuh. Well, I’ll be…”

In short, it meant Kang Jin-Ho had surpassed Hwang Jeong-Hu even in terms of influence. That realization left Hwang Jeong-Hu feeling rather proud. But he was also somewhat flustered by how far Kang Jin-Ho had come in such a short time.

Goh Han-Bong continued to speak. "This is a joyous occasion, gentlemen. Since that's the case, shouldn't we be exchanging joyous greetings, as well? Badmouthing each other constantly makes it harder to express your goodwill, after all."

“Yes, that’s true.”

“Mm… Indeed. My apologies.”

Once the two old men had calmed down, Kang Jin-Ho glanced at Goh Han-Bong in slight shock and appreciation. He had been thinking that the Prime Minister's presence today was an overkill, so seeing him being so useful proved to be a pleasant surprise.

Goh Han-Bong grinned brightly before standing up. “Then… Do you mind if I borrow Chairman Kang for a little while? I had a message to deliver, you see?”

Hwang Jeong-Hu and Jeong Hong-Geun acquiesced without too much resistance.

“It’s not a problem. You’re the busiest out of all of us, after all.”

“Haha, it’s fine with us.”

Goh Han-Bong shifted his attention to Kang Jin-Ho after getting the two chairmen's understanding, a subtle grin on his face. “Chairman, there's something I'd like to discuss with you in private, so… I hope you'll graciously humor me.”

“Oh, uh… Of course.”

When Kang Jin-Ho got up, Goh Han-Bong glanced at Lee Hyeon-Su next.

“Chief Lee, please accompany us as well. I get a bit nervous if I’m speaking to Chairman Kang alone, you see?”

“Haha, of course.”

Hwang Jeong-Hu’s expression grew unreadable as he watched the trio disappear into the corridor. “Jin-Ho… You sure have grown up, haven’t you?”

Jeong Hong-Geun tutted loudly. “Stop talking nonsense and eat these strawberries. They are pretty good.”

“Why? Are they Japanese strawberries? Looks like it, since you like eating them so much!”

“What the hell is wrong with you, you stinky old fart?!”

The two men resumed bickering again, prompting the other guests to sigh deeply.