Chapter 67: Auntie’s Heart

Was it my imagination, or were hearts about to float out from Auntie's eyes? Just then, I heard the staff at the luxury boutique whispering quietly among themselves.

"Oh my, they say that's the president's nephew."

"Did she have a nephew that young?"

"No wonder the little guest was buying up everything so boldly. There was a reason."

Everyone was watching us.

They were all tense, wondering which luxury shop I'd head to next.

In a flash, Auntie's gaze turned sharp as she swung her bobbed hair around and looked back.

"Is everyone really this idle? I can't tell if this is a market or a department store."

Her voice was pointed and crisp.

"Director Kim, how exactly are you training the staff? Of all places, luxury boutique staff, discussing a customer's identity right in front of them?"

"I'm sorry, ma'am! I'll make sure to thoroughly reinforce training from now on!"

The middle-aged man called Director Kim broke out in a cold sweat, and the staff who'd been whispering turned pale.

They were doomed to a future of tears as the price for running their mouths carelessly.

"Department store profits come from quality products, and the reputation comes from quality service. Especially in the luxury boutique, I've always said we must provide Korea's best service to our customers."

"We'll correct it!"

"Everyone here, including those who spoke up, write a statement of reflection and prepare for a pay cut."

Only after these penalties were announced did the boutique staff bow deeply and shout.

"We're sorry, President!"

"It won't ever happen again!"

Auntie spoke decisively.

"I can see exactly how Taeseong has treated VIP customers up to now. You work with the mindset that you'll just apologize after making a mistake, right?"

"We're sorry!"

"You think an apology fixes everything? Does it make the customer's upset feelings go away? So if I just fired all the staff and said sorry afterward, would that solve the problem?"

Her crisp, pointed voice and perfect diction—each word hit your ear like an arrow.

Now I understood where her reputation for being prickly and difficult came from.

"Are you going to keep standing around, gawking and abandoning your posts? Can't you go back to work right now? Do you really want to get fired?"

The boutique staff scattered like a swarm of cockroaches.

Auntie crossed her arms, glaring at their fleeing backs.

"If people say Taeseong Department Store is dead last, they wouldn't be wrong. It's all my fault for not managing the staff, so who can I blame? Hah!"

Her voice dripped with annoyance.

Yet the moment her eyes met mine, her icy gaze seemed to melt like chocolate.

Was it just my imagination?

Auntie's tone was still cold.

"So you're Sungjun's son? Hmph, you really can't deny your roots—you look just like Sungjun did at your age."

"Hello, Auntie."

"Not only are you cute, but your manners are perfect. Hmph, is this about helping each other out in hard times? Did your mother teach you that?"

Her tone was grumbling and pointed, but strangely, I could feel her fondness and delight.

What was that?

Yoo Jongtae quickly covered my ears with both hands.

'That aggressive, sharp way of talking is easy to misunderstand. Auntie definitely needs a personal translator.'

She was saying I looked like Dad, so she accepted me as her nephew, and asking if Mom had tried to help her.

But Yoo Jongtae wiggled his eyebrows like a caterpillar.

"Hey, what are you doing here? Where's your mom? Did she go to the restroom?"

This was odd.

It sounded like she was worried I might be scared, left alone like a lost child in a strange department store.

"No, she’s at home helping Dad with his work right now."

"So you came alone?"

Yoo Jongtae, who'd been standing behind me, stepped forward.

"I, Yoo Jongtae, accompanied young master here!"

"Good. Team Leader Yoo, please take our Jung-hyuk back home. Director Kim, refund all of Jung-hyuk's purchases today."

"Yes, President. I’ll restore everything immediately."

Her attitude was definitely cold. But was it the warmth in her eyes when she looked at me?

It felt like she wanted to keep me from getting scolded by my parents for spending too much money.

"Our young master just achieved the highest single sale in Taeseong Department Store history. Could you be a bit more gentle and kind to him?"

There's no way Yoo Jongtae, quick as he is, could miss Auntie's kindness.

But unlike his usual smooth self, he responded stiffly and tensely.

"For the sake of VVIP client management."

"I just said everything's been refunded, and the sales don't count, didn't I?"

"This is disappointing. You're so coldly rejecting our young master's goodwill. Is it really that hard to be gentle and kind?"

Yoo Jongtae looked Auntie straight in the eye.

"You said yourself, an apology doesn't fully restore hurt feelings. Please, I'm asking you."

His hands were still clamped over my ears.

"If you make our young master cry, I won't stand for it either."

He was threatening to take on Auntie if he had to.

I pried Yoo Jongtae's hands off my ears.

"Auntie, you don't need to cancel the department store sales."

"Hm?"

"End-of-year sales are the department store's report card, its pride, its face."

"...What?"

"This is the biggest sale season of the year. It's when customers open their wallets the most. Since I had to get Christmas and New Year's gifts anyway, I wanted to buy them at Taeseong Department Store if possible."

I gave her a bright smile.

"Mom always says Taeseong Department Store is the best in Korea. It's the place to buy the finest goods in the country. That's why I came, you see?"

Auntie's pointed lips twitched.

I started counting on my chubby fingers.

"Mom gets to enjoy great gifts, I get to see Auntie, Auntie gets to boost her sales... Or do you not like me being here, Auntie?"

"N-no! Who said that?"

Auntie tossed her bob and turned her head sharply.

I was making one thing clear.

I was offering to fill the sales gap left by fleeing Taeseong VIP clients.

Auntie cleared her throat.

"Are you going to just keep standing there?"

She meant she was worried my legs would hurt after walking so much.

"Alright, enough with the spitting. No need to persuade me further."

She meant I didn’t have to try so hard to convince her.

"What do you like to drink? Cocoa? Job’s tears tea? Citron tea?"

She was saying she didn’t mind having me around.

She didn’t want to send her nephew back after meeting him for the first time.

"Double eggs in sweet black herbal tea, please."

"Well, at least your taste isn’t outdated."

Does Auntie like sweet black herbal tea too?

She made it sound like two eggs is the golden ratio.

Am I understanding her right?

Sometimes, translating women’s words feels harder than anything.

Is it just me?

---

Slurp!

Auntie and I sat side by side on the sofa in the president's office, sipping sweet black herbal tea.

The snack on the side was puffed rice.

That was Auntie's special touch.

"There's something Mom said that I don't understand. I meant to ask you if I ever met you—can I?"

"What is it?"

"Why do wealthy ladies come to the department store?"

"Because that's where they sell expensive, quality goods."

"Then people would just flock to wherever sells the same things cheapest, right?"

"Not always. The really rich ladies don't come for discount items—they come to show off their dignity and wealth."

"I get it."

I nodded.

But Auntie cocked her head.

"Doesn’t it sound crazy to say people don’t just want to buy things cheap?"

"That's why I asked you, Auntie. Mom answered like this: 'Who says a department store is just for selling goods? You should sell service, too.'"

"Huh?"

"If you want to win over rich lady customers, you have to give them a reason to keep coming back."

"What?"

Auntie's eyes grew wide.

"Auntie, rich ladies like things that look obviously expensive. They spend time and money to show visible elegance."

Auntie closed her mouth, ears pricking up.

"And since long ago, nothing draws rich ladies like skin care. It's not something you do just once and you're done. It's totally different from just buying a product."

As I finished, Auntie gaped.

She'd caught on to what I was saying.

"A reason VIP customers must keep coming back to Taeseong Department Store!"

Exactly!

"People want special service. Something they can only get at Taeseong."

"A unique service that no other department store offers! Taeseong's differentiator!"

That's it!

"Rich ladies have their hair done every morning at expensive salons, right?"

Auntie's own hair proved it.

You couldn't maintain that glossy bob without careful, daily attention.

She must have spent a lot of time blow-drying every morning.

"You can trust your hair to a pro, but what about skin?"

Upper-class ladies, past and present, spare no expense for beauty.

But since they're paying big, they expect the best service.

But in these days, skin care services were primitive at best.

"You can't ignore visible skin, and you can't meet people without wearing makeup."

There weren’t widespread dermatology clinics, nor proper facial salons.

So even the richest had to buy cold cream and do their own skincare.

Auntie's voice trembled.

"Don't tell me you want to offer professional skincare at the department store?"

This was a proven historical sales tactic for ladies.

The direct sales strategy that rivaled the Yogurt Ladies—cosmetic home visits!

Back when cosmetics shops were rare, people mainly bought cosmetics from door-to-door sales.

But by the 80s and 90s, as cosmetics shops spread nationwide, stores started offering in-shop massage services to draw customers in.

"High-end cosmetics, pro massage therapists, and luxury skincare, all at Taeseong Department Store?"

"And a personalized ledger for each customer to record everything in detail."

"Tailored customer service!"

How nice when someone understands you instantly.

"That way, rich ladies will have a real reason to come to Taeseong Department Store?"

"Of course! Skincare needs consistent treatment!"

My goal was to give Auntie a good pretext to bring VIPs to Taeseong.

The actual selling was up to her.

Auntie clapped her hands.

"That's it! A luxury skincare salon! Use the cosmetics we have, rotate our current staff!"

But that's not all.

I pointed subtly.

"A whole floor is empty. Why not build rooms there and turn it into a massage parlor?"

"Then we don't need to invest a fortune opening a separate shop! Good! We've had that empty space forever with no takers anyway!"

"Light scented candles for their mood, spray perfume, too."

"Sell high-end functional cosmetics, sell the massage service, and if they like a candle or perfume, sell that too?"

That was all I needed to say.

I smiled sweetly.

"That's what Mom said. I didn’t really get it, but Auntie, you seem to know exactly what it means. I’m glad I asked you."

"Oh, you precious child! You clever thing!"

Auntie grabbed me in a hug.

She rubbed her cheek all over mine and laughed in delight.

"They say you can't hide your blood, but our Sungjun would never do something this adorable! This must be from your mom—no, my new sister-in-law!"

Auntie picked me up and rocked me.

"Why didn't my sister-in-law come herself and send this little cutie to deliver such a sharp tip instead?"

"I don’t know. Mom said she doesn’t know anything about it."

"Hm?"

"She hasn’t met Auntie yet, so no one can say anything about it."

I was letting Auntie take all the credit.

Auntie couldn't hold back a huge laugh.

"My, what a sense for these things! I really like my new sister-in-law—her heart, her smarts, everything."

Auntie beamed.

"Will you tell your mom I’ll never forget this favor?"

Nice!

"Did you know? My father’s business creed was 'Reward generously!' I totally agree."

Auntie flicked her bobbed hair back and spoke primly.

"If you receive a favor, you should repay it with another. Tomorrow at the family dinner, I’ll have to show my goodwill too."

Yes, that's it!

Those words made me smile.

"I hear all the wives are sharpening their claws over Taeseong Chemical. Don’t worry. No one will lay a hand on your mom—this Auntie will protect her, no matter what."

Objective complete!

I hopped off the sofa, put my hands together, and gave a deep bow.

"Auntie, thanks for the tea. I'll be going now."

"What? Already? Wait, you haven’t even finished the puffed rice... ahem, um, is there anything else you need?"

Auntie sounded like someone who’d give me anything I wanted.