Chapter 128: A Cracked Bowl Leaks

The entire family gathered for dinner.

Grandfather did not once pick up his spoon.

While his wife and children ate their meal, Grandfather sat alone, pouring himself drinks.

It was straight soju.

“About that subsidiary of WooKwang you brought back from the Blue House luncheon. What are you planning to do?”

“If it’s WooKwang Automobile and Heavy Machinery, of course you’ll merge them with Taeseong Automobile and Heavy Machinery, right?”

“Oh my, Brother. What are you saying? Are you telling me you’re going to take what Father prepared for us without lifting a finger?”

“Sister-in-law, that’s a bit harsh, isn’t it? ‘Without lifting a finger’? So what, are we supposed to keep WooKwang and Taeseong running separately?”

“Is there some rule that only eldest brother gets to manage the automobiles and heavy machinery?”

The two daughters-in-law giggled sweetly, gently pressing him.

“Father, things have been really tough for me lately. You’ll help me, right?”

“Why else is there an eldest son? Please help me, Father. Please?”

Only my mother, the youngest daughter-in-law, bowed her head in embarrassment.

With a sharp sound, Grandfather set his soju glass down.

“Why is it that the only thing you all talk about at the dinner table is business? I called you to the dining room, not the conference room, didn’t I?”

Grandfather had already nearly emptied a bottle of soju.

“Father, come now. What could be more important than this?”

“This is a matter of Taeseong’s future. How often do we get a chance to swallow up WooKwang’s subsidiaries?”

“Please, just tell us. How important must this announcement be to keep us waiting this long? It’s not like you to drag things out.”

“You called us separately, before gathering the Taeseong Group executives, didn’t you?”

Grandfather once again tilted the soju bottle, pouring himself another glass.

“This is the last glass. Can’t you even wait for me to finish this?”

His voice sounded uncharacteristically heavy.

Sensing an opportunity, the two daughters-in-law spoke up.

“What about Taeseong Chemical? With the casualties from the WooKwang Fire, the union’s gone on strike, there are protests, and public opinion is in shambles. It’s a mess.”

“This is why people say you have to marry into the right family. Why did you have to go and ruin a perfectly good chemical company for nothing? Good grief!”

“Just let my husband handle it. Even my father will help, so we can resolve the issue cleanly.”

“We’re not asking for much. If you’ll just merge the automobile and heavy machinery divisions for us······.”

Aunt set her chopsticks down with a sharp click.

“I can’t stand this. So greedy, honestly. People would think you’re the owners of Taeseong Chemical.”

“Why? Are you interested too?”

“Don’t you know Taeseong Chemical is supposed to go to Seongjun?”

“But the youngest brother-in-law already gave up, didn’t he? So now it’s up for grabs.”

Grandfather clicked his tongue.

“How many times do I have to tell you? No business talk at family dinners.”

Only then did the room fall silent.

Everyone quietly focused on eating.

Whenever the eldest uncle tried to awkwardly clear his throat and speak, the eldest aunt poked him sharply in the ribs.

The second uncle was just reading the mood, Aunt pouted and picked at her side dishes, and Father was as reserved as ever.

“It seems that, even though we’re all sitting here for a rare family meal, we have nothing to say to one another unless it’s about business.”

A hollow chuckle slipped out.

“So this is the fruit of my patience. No wonder people criticize me. I guess I really am better suited to living as Chairman Cha than as a half-hearted father.”

Grandfather stared at his soju glass for a long time.

“Did I ever tell you why I named you after ‘Great success comes late’?”

“Of course. How could we not know that?”

Cha Dae-jun, the eldest son, answered with a smile.

“You said that, during those difficult and harsh times, you resolved: ‘Even if I go hungry and suffer, I’ll raise my children well and see them eat their fill!’ That’s why you chose those names.”

“Right. And do you know why I had your children named ‘Benevolence, Righteousness, Propriety, Wisdom, and Trust’?”

“So that, once we were living comfortably, we wouldn’t forget the basics of being human. To stay humble.”

“That’s right. But now, I think maybe I was wrong. I should have chosen ‘Family harmony brings all success’, or better yet, ‘Cultivate oneself, manage the family, govern the state, bring peace to the world’.”

Grandfather sighed quietly.

“They say a cracked bowl leaks from within and without. I wanted to warn you not to become hollow, but in the end, I myself am the bowl that leaks from within.”

His eyes, as they looked over his children and daughters-in-law, darkened.

“I have no face to meet your late mother.”

A word forbidden in this household slipped out.

The children all turned to look at Grandfather and the grandmother sitting next to him.

Grandfather gazed down at the soju glass in his hand, while Grandmother sipped her soup as if nothing was amiss.

“After I received that cement factory and started a construction company, I was busy making money. Working day and night, I was hardly ever home. Delivering cement nationwide, running construction projects all over.”

Before long, even the sound of utensils clinking against bowls faded away.

“Thanks to that, your late mother must have suffered raising three children all by herself.”

Grandfather rolled the soju glass between his fingers.

“We fought a lot. When I finally managed to come home, maybe once a month, she would ask if I planned to become a money-making machine, if I wasn’t going to be a father to my children. What would happen to the kids, how could she live like this.”

The children pressed their lips tightly together.

“Back then, I couldn’t understand her. After all the hardship, things were finally starting to get easier; if I just pushed a little harder, I thought things would be fine. Why couldn’t she see that?”

Grandfather let out a low sigh.

“Why did she have to nag and criticize me over small things, when I was working myself to the bone for the family? Couldn’t she just say I did well, thank you, good job? Instead, she only blamed me, and I raised my voice in return.”

Grandfather fiddled with the soju glass in his hand.

“I was her husband, but I didn’t even know she was that ill. I didn’t realize she was raising the kids alone, sick as she was.”

With a bitter twist to his lips, Grandfather went on.

“I was busy making money. Busy running the business, promising to give my wife and children a better life, dreaming of growing the company. But it was all my own greed.”

His children’s sighs drifted quietly around the table.

“When I got the telegram about your mother’s death, I rushed home from the countryside. Only then did I notice the state of our household. I was so ashamed. I had no excuse, no face to beg for forgiveness.”

It was a story none of them had ever heard.

“My eldest son, only twelve at the time, washed his dead mother with a damp cloth and covered her with her prettiest dress. Hearing how he brought the younger siblings to say their last goodbyes—that broke me.”

Grandfather looked at his eldest son with deep affection.

“Trying to feed his little siblings, he burned himself cooking ramen. He fetched medicine for his sick mother, washed their clothes in cold winter water, did the dishes, washed the rice and cooked it······.”

When his voice began to tremble, Grandfather drained his soju glass in one go.

“I handed out major subsidiaries to each of you early on. Provided company funds as needed, paid for the grandchildren’s education, and handed out real estate and stocks to keep up appearances.”

Grandfather looked down at his empty soju glass, forcing a wry smile.

“I told myself that, as long as I made sure you had your rice bowls, as long as I supported your dreams, I’d done my duty as a father. I tried to console myself with that.”

Clack.

“Fine, I admit it! I’ve failed as a father! I’m ashamed in front of my children and my grandchildren! Maybe I succeeded as a businessman, but as a father and a husband, I’m worthless.”

This was the reason he drank straight soju tonight.

“Because I couldn’t even manage my own family, I made excuses to avoid meddling in yours. I kept busy trying to cover my own failings as a father. This is the result.”

Grandfather clenched both fists tightly.

Grandmother silently placed her hand on his, resting on the table.

“So what if Taeseong Chemical gets ruined? My son wants to live happily with the woman he loves, to take care of his wife and children—shouldn’t a father help him achieve at least that much?”

Grandfather looked over his children one by one.

“I believed you’d understand how I felt. I thought you’d be satisfied just seeing your brother happy.”

His eyes, as he looked at his children, seemed awfully lonely.

“But instead, you glare at your younger brother for losing Taeseong Chemical, and you fight each other tooth and nail to grab one more subsidiary.”

The daughters-in-law meekly lowered their eyes.

“I thought a family should cover each other’s flaws, and treat one another with love and tolerance. But I’ve realized that’s not enough, and I even got the order all wrong.”

No one said a word.

“Fine, I admit it. I became a father but couldn’t even teach my children proper manners. Who else can I blame? It’s all my fault for being inadequate.”

A deflated laugh escaped Grandfather’s lips.

“Taeseong is one family? How can I shout such slogans when I can’t even manage my own household? I have no right to say it.”

Grandfather squeezed his eyes shut.

“All this time, I’ve agonized over how to resolve things as a father, but it all feels pointless and empty now.”

It was a low, weary sigh.

“For all my blind greed for money, from now on, I’ll focus on being the head of Taeseong Group instead of a father.”

“What?”

“I won’t fret over the family affairs any longer. Your mother will be in charge from now on.”

He gestured to Grandmother.

“It’s been thirty years. She’s raised you for more than twice as long as your late mother did. She’s earned the right to be called Mother. Stop calling her Madam Jeong and call her Mother.”

“Chairman?”

“And you, don’t call me Chairman anymore. This isn’t the office, and you’ve never been an employee. There are plenty of nice ways to address your husband—honey, dear, darling, and so on.”

It was a declaration.

“If you don’t like it, don’t do it. I won’t force you. But my will won’t remain the same.”

“Your will?”

“I told you already. From now on, I’ll live as Chairman Cha instead of an untrustworthy father. And as a chairman, I’ll assert my power with money and shares.”

The two daughters-in-law were speechless.

“My daughters-in-law, I’m sorry for making you suffer because I couldn’t raise my sons right.”

“Father?”

“If you hate it so much, get a divorce and leave. I won’t stop you anymore.”

“D-divorce?”

“Yes. If a person can’t be fixed, what can you do? Throw the trash in the trash bin and go.”

The two daughters-in-law’s mouths fell open.

After all, they’d worn out their tongues complaining in front of Grandfather—‘I can’t take this anymore,’ ‘I want a divorce,’ ‘It’s too hard,’ and so on.

“If you want to stay in this house, you’ll need to fulfill not only your roles as wife and mother, but also the duties of a daughter-in-law you’ve been ignoring until now. Other households live that way too.”

Grandfather turned to Grandmother.

“And you, don’t hold back. If you want to put them through some in-law discipline, do it.”

The daughters-in-law silently recoiled in shock.

Only Grandmother smiled with mysterious satisfaction.

“If they behave badly, let your temper fly. Overturn the table, grab them by the hair and shake them, make them kneel and throw water in their faces—do as you wish.”

But Grandfather wasn’t finished yet.

“As Chairman Cha, I’ll now talk about business, which you lot are so curious about. Youngest daughter-in-law.”

“Yes, Father.”

“As promised, Taeseong Chemical is yours.”

“What?”

Mother exclaimed in shock.

But the other children and daughters-in-law were just as surprised.

“What?”

“All of a sudden?”

“Why?”

Grandfather cut them off.

“She earned it, so I’m rewarding her.”

“Rewarding her?”

“What exactly did the youngest sister-in-law do to get Taeseong Chemical handed to her?”

Grandfather slammed his hand on the table.

“This is company business. Do I need your permission or your understanding for every little thing?”

“······.”

The children and daughters-in-law pressed their lips together, suppressing the urge to shout in disbelief.

Mother, wide-eyed, just looked back and forth between the note in her hand and Grandfather’s face.



A note from an anonymous supporter helping Taeseong.

It was me, delivered through Secretary Kim.

Father glanced at Mother, noticed the note, and narrowed his eyes.

“As for WooKwang Construction and WooKwang Securities, which were included in the conditions for acquiring Taeseong Chemical, we’re giving those up.”

“What? Why?”

“It’s His Excellency’s will.”

“What exactly did His Excellency say······.”

“This is company business. Do I owe you a report?”

“······.”

This was nothing like the conversations they’d had at the dinner table before.

“WooKwang Shipbuilding, Automobiles, Heavy Machinery, Research Institute, Hospital, and Pharmaceuticals. Those are not for Taeseong, but for JH Investment.”

“What?”

“Let’s just say it’s an agreement between the government and Taeseong.”

“What on earth······!”

Everyone stared wide-eyed at Grandfather.

They clearly wanted him to explain further, but there was no chance.

“In ten years, I’ll hand over the position of head of the family.”

It was a bombshell announcement.

“For anyone in the Taeseong family, I won’t care about status, background, or qualifications. Whoever is capable of leading Taeseong will inherit it.”

Grandfather snorted.

“Take as much as you can by your ability, bring in as much as you can with your talent, and grow it as much as you like.”

With those words, Grandfather sprang to his feet.

“But I won’t give it to anyone who forgets what it means to be family. How can I trust someone who’d raise a knife to his own kin to lead Taeseong? Taeseong is one family!”

Without looking back, Grandfather strode out of the room.

“Father!”

“Father, wait!”

Startled, the children and daughters-in-law hurriedly stood up, trying to follow after him.

“Have you all forgotten who called this meeting, or are you just ignoring me?”

Grandmother had called the meeting.

She pressed her fingertips together in a triangle and smiled coldly.

“Do I look like an X to you?”