Chapter 73: Preliminary Skirmish

There was a gentle smile on Second Uncle's face as he enjoyed his massage.

“Inkyung’s was the most refreshing. You go ahead and pick first.”

“Nice!”

My cousin, who had been massaging Second Uncle’s shoulders, cheered and began rummaging through the box.

For daughters, the generational syllable is Kyung; for sons, it’s Hyuk.

Take the middle characters apart and you get ‘In-Eui-Ye-Ji-Shin’—Benevolence, Righteousness, Propriety, Wisdom, and Trust.

So at Uncle’s house, which has only daughters, there’s Inkyung and Euikyung; at Second Uncle’s house, which has only sons, it’s Yehyuk, Jihyuk, and Shinhyuk.

‘Even Father used “Daegimanseong” as the generational name in the middle character. These names are so simply made.’

That’s why there’s Daejun, Gijun, Manyoung, and Sungjun.

“All done picking.”

Inkyung noona chose a bundle of Namjin concert tickets, a stack of Taeseong Theater movie tickets, a few records of the latest pop albums, and an Alain Delon bromide.

“You know the rules, right? Then here’s your question.”

“Yes.”

“What did you get from your maternal family last year?”

“One unit at Geumjo Apartments and two at Hyeonmu Apartments.”

“Then what did you get for your birthday last year?”

“A horse, 0.1% shares in Taeseong Motor, and a Picasso painting.”

“What’s been troubling your parents the most lately?”

“Euikyung’s not in good condition? Is there more? Hmm, maybe Mom getting annoyed about her gray hairs and more wrinkles? Not really sure about that.”

“Alright. You can take everything you picked.”

“Hehe, thank you, Uncle.”

The other cousins massaging Second Uncle’s arms and legs picked up their pace.

“This time, it’s Jihyuk’s turn.”

“Ooh! Dad, ask me anything. I can answer it all!”

“About that Geumjo Group girl who was in your class. I’m thinking of arranging your engagement with her. What do you think?”

“Ugh! No way!”

“Why not?”

“She’s really ugly and fat!”

“That’s all? You’re not saying no for some other reason? Like, maybe she has a boyfriend, or a nasty habit?”

Watching that, I let out a dry chuckle.

‘Unbelievable.’

Second Uncle was extracting secret information using items the kids liked as bait.

‘But, from the kids’ perspective, it’s not such a bad trade. These days it’s hard to get foreign goods, and everyone’s crazy about foreign culture.’

It’s not like anyone would take back the gifts received from the maternal family or parents, just because they mention them.

For kids that age, being able to bring things to school that aren’t easily found in the market is a skill in itself.

Bringing those things to school would cause a commotion.

‘It’s a win-win for Second Uncle too.’

Second Uncle frequently went overseas for trade and distribution.

So for him, getting those kinds of items was probably very easy.

In exchange for a few goods, he could quickly figure out changes in his nephews’ and nieces’ assets.

That must be why he came to the basement playroom instead of attending the affiliates’ executive meeting.

“What’s our youngest nephew’s name again?”

“It’s Cha Junghyuk.”

Second Uncle moved closer to me.

“So, nephew, why haven’t you even tried to rummage through the box?”

He set a chair in front of me and sat down as he asked.

“Is there nothing in there you want?”

“Are you asking me a question now?”

I quietly set aside the children’s magazine I had been reading, the latest issue of ‘Comic Kingdom’.

“You always say there’s no such thing as a free lunch, Second Uncle. So, I thought I should follow your rules as well.”

“Not bad.”

“If you want to ask for something, you should pay an equivalent price. That’s the rule, right? So, this is my first debt.”

I raised one finger.

“Haha, you got me there. So, what’s your answer?”

“I just want to be left in peace.”

“Don’t bother those who are minding their own business? Did I hear you right?”

I had deliberately chosen a phrase that could be interpreted in different ways, but he understood me perfectly.

“Why are you insisting on tallying up debts? If there’s nothing you want in the box, what will you take in return?”

“That would be the second debt, wouldn’t it? Are you okay with that?”

“You have to give a proper answer if you want to tally it as a debt. Pay up properly.”

“Of course.”

Life is all about give and take.

If you get money, you should earn it, and if you’re going to owe a debt, you have to provide an appropriate service.

I raised a second finger.

“There’s nothing in the box that I want, but there is an answer I want from Second Uncle.”

“An answer you want, huh...”

“I’m saying I’ll pay a question back with a question.”

“So, you mean in exchange for my question, you’ll ask me one too?”

“Shall I make that the third debt?”

“No, let’s leave that one out. If I have to owe a debt, I won’t waste it on such a trivial question.”

Second Uncle laughed quietly.

He straightened his posture and rolled his sleeves back down.

“Here’s the third question. What were you supposed to get from your maternal family?”

“I don’t know.”

I raised a third finger.

“You don’t know? You promised earlier. If you’re going to tally it as a debt, you have to give a sincere answer.”

“I’ve never even been to the maternal family, so what could I possibly have received?”

Second Uncle tilted his head slightly.

“Normally in this situation, wouldn’t you say ‘I didn’t get anything’?”

“Should I tally that as the fourth debt?”

“Ha...?”

As I curled another finger, Second Uncle looked at me like I was some kind of thief.

“Isn’t that too trivial for an extra question? You were the one who promised to answer sincerely.”

“It’s not a question you added for no reason, is it? You must have had a reason you needed to check, so you slipped in another question, didn’t you? That’s why I’m tallying it as the fourth debt.”

I waved my hand, with only my pinky finger sticking straight up.

“Please choose your questions more carefully from now on. I’m answering sincerely. I hope Second Uncle gives me a sincere answer in return.”

Second Uncle’s smile, which always hovered on his lips, grew even deeper.

“Fine. Why did you say ‘I don’t know’ instead of ‘I haven’t received anything’?”

“Because I really don’t know. If the maternal family set something aside for me and I said otherwise, that’d be a lie. And if there really is something, I wouldn’t refuse to take it.”

Second Uncle’s eyes narrowed to slits.

But the sharp glint that flashed through them couldn’t be hidden so easily.

“Then let this be the last question.”

“Alright. Since you said it’s the last one, I won’t take any more questions until Second Uncle settles his debts. How about that?”

“Deal. I heard you met President Shim of Taeseong Chemical separately earlier. Why was that? What was your business with him?”

How did he know that I met President Shim of Taeseong Chemical with Secretary Kim?

So why ask me instead of President Shim?

“I heard that Mom and I came here in exchange for Taeseong Chemical. Earlier, President Shim came to say goodbye to Dad. So, I said goodbye too.”

“Be a bit more sincere.”

“We talked about Taeseong Chemical.”

“...Taeseong Chemical? What did President Shim say to you?”

I waved my closed hand, all five fingers curled in.

“We agreed: no more follow-up questions, right? Now it’s my turn.”

“Hm, this should be interesting. What is our nephew curious about?”

“You offered President Shim the position of President of Taeseong Food, but there’s already a president there, isn’t there?”

Taeseong Food is the core affiliate of Taeseong Distribution.

No way would Second Uncle not have his own trusted person in such a place.

And yet he’d said he wanted to bring over President Shim of Taeseong Chemical.

‘Not a move a culprit would make.’

If it was an overseas branch head at Taeseong Trading, maybe.

Kicking out your own person to fill a seat is harder than making a new seat for someone.

So I had to ask.

“Are you aiming for President Shim, or for my father?”

Second Uncle, who had been fiddling with his watch, suddenly stopped moving.

He didn’t answer, just stared at me in silence.

“That’s an interesting question.”

Second Uncle began fixing his tie, which he’d loosened earlier.

He buttoned up, returning to the look he’d had when we first met.

That meant he’d be leaving soon.

“Shim or Sungjun. Is there really a need to distinguish between them?”

I understood what Second Uncle meant by that answer.

President Shim was one of Father’s people.

If you took away the capable President Shim, Father’s power would naturally wane, and his standing would be weakened.

“Second question. Why did you insist on sending President Shim to an overseas branch?”

“Instead of asking for further explanation, you’re moving on to your second question?”

Second Uncle scratched the bridge of his nose instead of answering.

“Trying to settle my debt, and now I’m about to go further into debt. How did you know I wanted to assign President Shim to an overseas branch?”

“Is that because of Uncle, or because of my dad?”

Our eyes met.

Neither of us spoke.

A heavy silence suddenly descended between us.

“Nephew, what was your name again? Was it Junghyuk?”

Just then, two people came down to the basement.

Secretary Yang, who assisted Second Uncle, and President Shim of Taeseong Chemical.

“President Shim, why have you come down to the playroom, when you should be in the study?”

“The young master was sitting on Grandfather’s lap eating tteokguk, wasn’t he? I thought he might have indigestion, so I brought some digestive medicine.”

President Shim of Taeseong Chemical took some children’s digestive medicine out of his suit pocket.

“Even when they call it an affiliate executive meeting, there isn’t really much to say. They keep asking all these tiresome questions even though it’s supposed to be confidential, so I just ran away.”

President Shim of Taeseong Chemical narrowed his eyes when he saw Second Uncle and me sitting face to face.

“Gijun, I think it’s time you headed upstairs. After all, Secretary Yang even came down here to fetch you.”

“Hm, you didn’t come all the way here just because you had something to say to me, did you?”

“Well, I did want to thank you properly.”

President Shim stepped in front of me.

Then he bowed a full ninety degrees in a very formal greeting.

“Thank you very much for considering me important enough to offer Taeseong Food. Please understand that I can’t accept, as I have duties to fulfill.”

“It would have been fine if you’d honestly said you didn’t like my terms.”

“Wouldn’t it be rude to demand even better terms? I have important duties involving Taeseong’s future, the grand strategy, and strict security.”

President Shim of Taeseong Chemical grinned.

“So I just came to say you probably won’t need to come up with better offers.”

“A clear answer, huh. Telling me not to hope, even a little? Hahaha.”

Second Uncle stood up from his chair.

“I understand your decision perfectly, President Shim.”

Second Uncle turned to me and smiled.

“Junghyuk, tally the remaining debts in the ledger for now.”

That meant the skirmish was over.

Second Uncle offered his hand not to me, but to President Shim.

“President Shim, don’t draw such a firm line. You never know what might happen. Who knows? Maybe you’ll end up working with me for Taeseong. See you next time.”

Second Uncle turned away with a laugh.

Secretary Yang picked up the box of papers that Second Uncle had brought and followed after him.

Only after confirming that Second Uncle had completely left did President Shim finally speak.

“Young master, you wanted to tour the Taeseong Chemical plant earlier, didn’t you?”

This was the real reason President Shim had come to the playroom.

The reason I’d asked for a tour of the Taeseong Chemical plant was simple.

According to the Taeseong Group report, the conclusion about the Taeseong Chemical accident was summarized briefly.

‘I thought it was just a safety accident, but Cheolgu-uncle used the word “suspect” while digging into the connection between the deceased Kim Kwangpil of Ugwang Construction and Taeseong Chemical.’

Just in case, I wanted to check everything thoroughly.

In that accident, 23 people died and 166 were hospitalized.

This Taeseong Chemical fire was the decisive turning point that started Taeseong’s decline.

‘If a fire were to break out at Taeseong Chemical right at this moment, what would happen?’

It would be chaos.

Unlike in the past, talk of a takeover was already in the air.

If you were to pick the people who’d take the biggest hit from the fire, it would definitely be President Shim of Taeseong Chemical and Grandfather.