The master of Taeseong, Cha Taeseong, also known as the Fire Bulldozer.
He was so robust and well-built that his age seemed meaningless.
With fierce, piercing eyes, broad shoulders, and a voice like a steam locomotive.
He was a man whose words and gaze held power.
President Cha raised his hand.
“Coffee here! No, wait. Bring me Ssanghwa tea with two eggs floating in it.”
I glanced down at the sweet-smelling cocoa in front of me.
As expected, cocoa is not something you should spend money on.
If you’re going to drink something anyway, Ssanghwa tea, which is good for your body and stomach, is better.
“Oh my, my child! How can you look exactly like Seongjun!”
President Cha suddenly lifted me up and sat me on his knee.
“I can tell just by looking at your face. There’s nothing more to consider. Try calling me Grandpa. I’m your grandfather.”
To be honest, I was a little bewildered.
‘What’s this? President Cha isn’t the type to warmly welcome someone he’s meeting for the first time. If anything, he’d more likely get angry and throw them out.’
I looked back.
Kim Secretary was nodding with deep satisfaction, and Mother was smiling awkwardly as if a bit troubled.
‘There’s no need to antagonize someone who’s welcoming you with kindness.’
I smiled brightly and answered as politely as I could.
“Yes, Grandpa. It’s nice to meet you for the first time.”
“Oh, what a good child. What’s our baby’s name?”
“Cha Jeonghyeok.”
“Right, right, Cha Jeonghyeok it is. Ta-da, Grandpa bought you all these gifts, just for you.”
At President Cha’s gesture, a muscular man who looked to be about two meters tall approached.
Wearing a suit, he was carrying a pile of gift boxes, big and small.
“I didn’t know what my grandchild would like, so Grandpa got one of each type.”
“Thank you, Grandpa.”
“Your father’s overseas at the moment, so he couldn’t come. But you’ll see him soon. I already sent someone to bring him back right away.”
“Really? Thank you, Grandpa!”
Excited, I quickly bowed with both hands.
‘This is great. I was already pestering the Grim Reaper at every opportunity to shake up Father’s dreams.’
That’s how dreams are.
If you dismiss them as just nightmares and ignore them, nothing comes of it.
But if President Cha sends someone and forcibly intervenes, the story changes.
“Does that mean I can spend this Christmas with Dad?”
Is that too much to hope for?
“I’ll do my best!”
“Wow! Grandpa, you’re the best!”
I gave him a big thumbs-up.
The one thing I absolutely wanted to prevent was Father dying in a plane crash on New Year’s Day.
President Cha burst out in a hearty laugh.
“Oh my, did I buy too many toys? Director Go, put those on the table over there.”
“Yes, President.”
“Jeonghyeok, why don’t you open your presents over there? I need to have a word with your mother. Kim Secretary, help with the presents.”
“Yes, President.”
I moved to the next table.
Of course, I left the sweet-smelling cocoa behind without a second thought.
Swish.
I pushed the gift boxes toward Kim Secretary.
“You heard Grandpa, right? Go ahead and open these.”
“……”
All my attention and focus was on the other table.
Snap.
As soon as I snapped my fingers, the Grim Reaper quietly appeared like a wisp of smoke.
‘Time to eavesdrop.’
[Really?]
‘I don’t want to miss a single word.’
The Grim Reaper, by now, didn’t even bother to ask or argue and simply raised his voice as if it were natural.
He looked absolutely worn out.
President Cha glanced at his wristwatch.
“I’ve already been briefed, so there’s no need for details. Five minutes will do.”
That meant Mother would get only five minutes.
“I’m not interested in whatever messy circumstances you’ve had until now. What matters is that child is my grandson, and what’s more important is how we’ll raise him from now on.”
President Cha gulped down the hot Ssanghwa tea.
Shuddering from the heat, he immediately downed the ice water next to him.
Crunching on ice, President Cha asked,
“You nearly died from coal gas poisoning, right? Is that why you came to see me?”
“Yes. As I said, I thought you should know about the child. Jeonghyeok will be entering National School soon, but he’s still not registered in the family registry.”
“Come to think of it, I heard you cut ties with your family.”
President Cha nodded readily.
“Good. I’ll register him in the Cha family. Don’t worry about the minor details; we’ll take care of everything.”
“Thank you, President.”
“And another thing.”
President Cha spoke.
“Are you trying to use the child to enter the Cha family?”
“No.”
Mother shook her head.
“I know very well that Seongjun is engaged to the daughter of the Ukwang Group.”
“Yes. There are many business entanglements. Marriages between chaebol families are only broken for business reasons, not for personal feelings. Even if there’s an illegitimate child, that won’t change.”
“……!!
It’s business. I understand, so I quietly stepped back. The child is a 30 billion won matter, and marriage is marriage.”
Thirty billion won in this era is equivalent to 1.5 trillion won in the 21st century—a huge sum.
President Cha glanced at me.
“You should have just taken the envelope back then. You wouldn’t have had to struggle empty-handed.”
President Cha gestured to the burly man holding the gifts.
“Now that I know, I can’t send away the mother of my grandson empty-handed. Director Go.”
“Yes, President.”
“Give her a couple of apartments in Gangnam and a prime commercial building that brings in plenty of rent in this child’s name.”
“Understood.”
“That’s more than enough for raising my grandchild for seven years. Thank you for your hardships.”
President Cha spoke firmly.
“So don’t worry about the child anymore. You should focus on finding your own path.”
“Pardon?”
“I mean, you should remarry. Ah, since you didn’t register your marriage, you’re clean on paper. If you leave with this much real estate, you’ll be welcomed in a pretty good family.”
“……!”
“If you refuse to back down and insist on breaking off a 30 billion won engagement, I can’t help it. Even your own family that you cut ties with will get dragged in. Consider this a warning.”
I couldn’t take it anymore.
I jumped up.
“Mom, I’m sleepy!”
I hopped down from the chair.
Standing next to Mother, I bowed deeply.
“President Cha, it was nice to meet you today. And you can take back the toys—I don’t need them.”
“President Cha?”
President Cha looked into my eyes in silence.
“Why? Is something wrong?”
“I thought the gifts were meant so we could get along. But it turns out, they’re just a handout to make us go away. Do you think I’m a beggar?”
I turned to Kim Secretary.
“Mister, about that bribe. I was going to accept it to get along, but things have turned out this way, so just consider it a handout.”
It was a clear message to take the money and leave.
“If children are children and marriage is marriage, then business should just be business. I didn’t expect you’d be running a business by selling your own children. I didn’t think you’d be that incompetent. Mom, let’s go.”
“I’ve reserved a room at Taeseong Hotel. I’ve also moved the stuff from the inn, so let’s go upstairs.”
President Cha smiled gently.
“I can’t let my grandchild sleep in such a shabby place. You probably don’t have anywhere to return to after being kicked out of the Kuro-dong Shanty House.”
“Who says we don’t have a home? We bought a house today!”
President Cha looked over at Kim Secretary.
This must not have been in the report.
“If you could buy a house for just ten million won, it must be another shanty, I’m sure.”
He didn’t even bother to hide that he’d investigated us.
It wasn’t worth responding, so I picked my ear with my pinky.
“I’ll remember what you said. Please tell Father to have a good marriage.”
I flicked the earwax and grinned.
President Cha looked down at me with a rather odd expression.
“Jeonghyeok, think carefully. Are you really going to follow your mother like this?”
“Of course.”
“You’re still too young to understand, but depending on which parent you follow, your future will change completely. If you choose your father, you’ll live your whole life without worrying about money. But if you follow your mother, you’ll have nothing but hardship ahead.”
“So what?”
I raised the hand holding Mother’s hand.
“Even if money is great, how could I abandon the mother who gave birth to and raised me? Would you want to take in a child who’d throw away their own mother?”
I snorted.
“I wouldn’t even bother looking at someone like that. President, you must have a strong stomach.”
I bowed deeply.
“Allow me to say farewell. I hope you have a prosperous future with your business partner and a 30 billion won in-law.”
Without looking back, I walked away.
Mother kept glancing back, looking very troubled.
I pulled her along by the hand.
“Mom, even if you try to bow and scrape, you’ll only suffer in your in-law’s house. Not taking the envelope? Good job, Mom! That kind of thing always becomes a weakness later!”
Just look at the bribe ledger from Ukwang Construction that I hid away.
If you do a little favor in the subway construction bidding, you’ll get your pockets filled.
But in the end, that becomes a noose around your neck.
“Don’t worry. I’ll make sure you live in comfort, Mom.”
I winked with one eye.
“You trust me, right?”
I’ve got what it takes.
If they have a problem with us being empty-handed, that makes things easier.
‘We’ve got 180 billion, no, plus another two billion!’
With this much, even the stiff President Cha will eventually soften.
There’s nothing like a little bribe to grease the wheels of a relationship.
‘Did you think I’d just hand over the ledger like an idiot? Trust someone you’ve only just met? No way.’
The bribe only goes that far.
I grinned, touching the pages of the ledger I’d stashed away in my pocket.
‘Only a fool would show all their cards at once.’
Just as I was holding Mother’s hand and leaving Taeseong Hotel—
The president of Ukwang Construction entered the hotel lobby with a group in tow.
Familiar faces appeared.
‘He’s bringing people involved with the Line 2 Subway to Taeseong Hotel for all to see? This is basically a declaration of war. President Cha will be pretty upset when he sees this.’
How lucky.
I was planning to create this very situation.
How could things be falling into place so easily, even without me lifting a finger!
‘When whales fight, the shrimp get rich.’
When the angry whales clash, they’ll scramble for any weapon that can kill the other, even if it means acting like a pushover.
In short, it’s a chance to sell at a much higher price than usual!
No wonder I was humming to myself.