Still, I Will Live As The Son-In-Law Of A Conglomerate [EN]: Chapter 33

33. 11th. Keeping it Small to Start (1)

Lost in my thoughts, I shook my head. What if Jang Su-yeon saw us on a date?

Then, a thought struck me.

Jang Su-yeon’s maternal family, specifically her mother Hwang Na-yeon, is the younger sister of Hwang Hyeon-seong, the chairman of *Joguk Ilbo* [a fictional newspaper company]. Although the Hwang family of *Joguk Ilbo* intervened in the succession dispute of Shinseong Group and increased Jang Ho-geon’s share, Shinseong Group was still in danger of being eaten away by the *Joguk Ilbo* people, like a piece of cheese.

“What’s wrong? Is something bothering you?”

I responded to my grandfather’s worried question.

“No. I heard from Hayeon that if the consulting contract is signed, she’ll be staying at the hotel.”

“What are you talking about? Why would she stay at a hotel when she has a perfectly good house?”

“Well…”

To dispel the idea that Jang Ha-yeon, as a member of a *chaebol* [large South Korean conglomerate] family, freely uses the Goryeo Hotel as if it were her own home, she said she would document her daily life to prove that she was staying at the Goryeo Hotel for work. When I told my grandfather this, he exclaimed.

“My goodness… that child is very determined. This grandpa has ears and has heard the story… Hehehe.”

“So… I was wondering if Haedong Group could cover her accommodation expenses.”

My grandfather, who had been laughing heartily, blinked a few times and then frowned.

“What’s this I’m hearing? Are you asking me to fund your little romance?”

I spoke firmly at my grandfather’s words, which immediately suggested a love affair.

“Our family is Haedong Group, and Haedong Group is our family, so if you pay for her accommodation from the company account, no one will say that you treat the company as your private property. Right?”

“Hmm… continue.”

“And instead of giving her a lump sum, if you pay for her room on a daily basis, only for the days she uses it, it will look more transparent and there will be no room for misunderstanding. What do you think?”

Even among the *chaebol* families, where using company assets for personal gain is often taken for granted, my grandfather was exceptional. He was the type of person who would pay the full price even if he personally placed an order with Haedong Corporation to get something, so I took advantage of that.

As I calmly explained my thoughts, my grandfather unfurrowed his brow.

“Write down what you want to include in the contract. What you want to include will have to be made into a side agreement, but I’ll take a look and add to it.”

“Grandfather?”

“If you’re thinking of getting on Ha-yeon’s good side, you’ll have to think carefully about what you write. For your information, Jang Ho-geon seems to have a lot of complaints about his in-laws, the Hwang family, hehe.”

I already knew that Jang Ho-geon was wary of the Hwang family, including his wife Hwang Na-yeon, even without my grandfather telling me.

Also, side agreements, which are written as attachments to the main contract, are free to be disclosed. That’s why sometimes side agreements are more important than the main contract. If I had to write a contract anyway, it was time to show my skills.

I brought some paper and wrote down the contents of a side agreement that would screw over the Hwang family in front of my grandfather.

“Tell me why this will work.”

“The first reason is that our group handles hundreds of billions in transactions annually. The second is that Jang Ho-geon and Hwang Mi-yeon will both be convinced that it will fill in the gaps in Jang Su-yeon and Jang Min-jae’s shallow careers. Of course, we’ll have to create a separate side agreement that only adds the clause that you will pay for Ha-yeon’s accommodation.”

Jang Su-yeon and Jang Min-jae also graduated from Seoul National University, but because they were admitted based on their grades, they entered departments that were completely unrelated to business administration, compared to Jang Ha-yeon, who majored in business administration, and Jang Yong-jae, who majored in economics.

The intention may be different, but whether it’s Jang Ho-geon or Hwang Na-yeon, they both want to improve the ‘specs’ [qualifications] that Jang Su-yeon and Jang Min-jae lack. It was a worthwhile bait.

My grandfather nodded after hearing my answer.

“Good. I’ll tell Chief Ko to add the payment of accommodation expenses with my money on the day of signing. I’ll have to let Chief Ko pay off the debt he owes to Lee Su-han.”

“What are you talking about?”

My grandfather told me about the time when Ko Seung-ju first met Lee Su-han because of this consulting project and failed to understand his true intentions. I blinked at the unfamiliar story.

‘Ko Seung-ju, who has a sky-high pride, has been caught doing something wrong. Mr. Lee Su-han, you’re in big trouble, hehe.’

My grandfather was taking care of Ko Seung-ju’s revenge like a mafia boss, but I didn’t show it and nodded.

“Yes, Grandfather.”

“Instead, make sure Ha-yeon pays for her accommodation every day with her own money. That way, you can make Jang Ho-geon owe you and keep *Joguk Ilbo* in check, understand?”

“Thank you, Grandfather.”

My grandfather and I looked at each other and smiled.

***

Following Lee Dae-soo’s instructions, Ko Seung-ju prepared the contract and met Lee Su-han at a Japanese restaurant in Seoul.

“Have you made a decision?”

In response to the question of whether Shinseong Group had decided to accept the contract to consult on Haedong Department Store, Ko Seung-ju replied with a blank face.

“They’ve decided to accept it.”

Lee Su-han clenched his fist under the table at Ko Seung-ju’s answer.

If the fact that this contract was signed spread inside and outside the group, the guys who had been clinging to the Hwang family, the maternal family of the next owners, Jang Yong-jae, Jang Su-yeon, and Jang Min-jae, would be shaken.

The frightened guys would somehow show signs, so it was only a matter of time before the Jang family weeded out the parasites who were taking money from the Jang family while clinging to the Hwang family.

Unlike his pounding heart, Lee Su-han nodded calmly.

“The business restructuring of Haedong Corporation will be easier. Congratulations, brother.”

“Congratulations, my foot. Take a look at this first and then talk.”

Ko Seung-ju, who had been joking around, handed over the file he had placed on the floor. Lee Su-han glanced around and opened the file with a stiff expression.

“…Brother?”

Lee Su-han was surprised to see the contract, which contained a lot of information that contradicted his expectation that it was a good deal and would be accepted immediately. He glared at Ko Seung-ju. Was he throwing a wrench in the works?

“The chairman said that Chairman Jang seems to have brought us in to keep Chairman Jang Ho-gyeong of Shinsegi and *Joguk Ilbo* in check.”

Lee Su-han’s body tensed without him realizing it at the words that pierced the core. He thought they wouldn’t know his and Jang Ho-geon’s intentions, but they were all figured out?!

Not to mention that they had even realized that he had violated the unwritten rule of the business world that they wouldn’t interfere with the owner family if they could help it. The old fox was cunning; Lee Dae-soo’s intuition was sharp. Very sharp.

“Bro, Brother…”

“If I had known your and Chairman Jang’s intentions earlier, we wouldn’t have had to leisurely chew on fish fillets.”

Ko Seung-ju spat out roughly in a dry voice and emptied his glass.

Clang!

Ko Seung-ju slammed the empty glass down hard.

“Do you think our Haedong is a joke?”

“Bro, Brother…”

Ko Seung-ju didn’t take the murderous look out of his eyes even though Lee Su-han was stuttering.

“Chairman Jang Ho-gyeong is one thing. Since they’re separate families, it’s competition between groups. But you’re dragging us into Chairman Jang’s family fight?”

Ko Seung-ju coldly rebuked Lee Su-han. He was dragging Lee Seong-min and Haedong Group into the dogfight between Jang Ho-geon and the Hwang family of *Joguk Ilbo*!

It wasn’t even worth mentioning that he was angry at his own naivety in trying to handle it well, thinking that Lee Seong-min’s efforts were commendable and that he would facilitate the restructuring.

“…I’m sorry, Brother.”

Lee Su-han had no choice but to apologize because it was revealed that he had violated the unwritten rules of the business world. Even if the ranking was much lower than Shinseong, Haedong Group, where Lee Dae-soo, a maverick in the business world and a social butterfly, was still alive and well, wasn’t it?

At Lee Su-han’s apology, Ko Seung-ju pretended to be angry and said with a calm face.

“It’s okay. It’s already over, and let’s just say we’ve settled the debt from the last deal. Now that the chairman has agreed, there’s no need to make a fuss anymore.”

Ko Seung-ju was cheering inwardly, but on the outside, he tried to calm down. He needed to drive Lee Su-han into a corner so that he could have a reason to prevent Shinseong from entering the distribution business, even with the condition of marriage between the two families.

Ko Seung-ju brought up the topic in a subtle voice to Lee Su-han.

“Even if Shinseong Group consults on our Haedong Department Store, if Haedong and Shinseong are to be joined by marriage, there may be a clause that prevents them from entering the distribution business. Don’t you think?”

Lee Su-han’s jaw muscles twitched at Ko Seung-ju’s question. Wasn’t it a natural thing?

If Shinseong Group were to reunite, it would be inevitable that they would take over the distribution business, and if this were to happen, the losses would be enormous.

However, if they were to break the consulting deal that they had proposed, it would also be a matter of saving face. In addition, it was also a matter of giving up Lee Seong-min, who would selflessly protect Jang Ho-geon’s most beloved daughter, Jang Ha-yeon, so he was racking his brains.

Looking at Lee Su-han’s stiff face, Ko Seung-ju continued to speak nonchalantly.

“But it’s separate from the Yeongdeungpo shopping mall joint venture, and we don’t even know if the two of them will get married, do we? If you look at the next chapter, you’ll think it’s worth signing our chairman’s request as a side agreement. Check it out.”

Ko Seung-ju nonchalantly held out his hand and told Lee Su-han to check it out.

Chairman Lee Dae-soo not only froze the 8.3 private loan, but also believed that his eldest son died in a car accident because he was manipulated by Jang Ho-geon, so he hated Shinseong Group and Jang Ho-geon.

Apart from that, he didn’t hold back on his affection for people, whether they were employees or family members, so even if he thought of Jang Ha-yeon as Lee Seong-min’s spouse, he never showed it. Ko Seung-ju was confident.

Wasn’t ‘calculation impossible’ already written on that snake-like Lee Su-han’s face?

As Ko Seung-ju thought, Lee Su-han’s head was also in turmoil. So, he didn’t know whether he was going to marry Lee Seong-min to Jang Ha-yeon or not, so he had no idea what he was thinking.

‘I don’t know, damn it. I have to look at the contract first and then decide.’

Lee Su-han stopped the mental gymnastics and looked at the two contracts on the next page.

“This is…?”

Lee Su-han was speechless. Weren’t these contracts like looking into his and Jang Ho-geon’s minds?

“How is it? Wouldn’t it be enough to save our chairman’s face? Hehe.”

Unlike Ko Seung-ju, who was laughing quietly and filling the *cheongju* [refined rice wine], Lee Su-han couldn’t laugh.

As the man he was looking at said, if he could sweep away the Hwang family of *Joguk Ilbo* and their hangers-on with the side agreements he had just seen, he would want to sign them right away because they were such a coveted joker.

However, he couldn’t easily say yes when he thought about Jang Ho-gyeong’s Shinsegi Group, which he would have to merge with someday. Wasn’t the decision maker Jang Ho-geon in Seonguiwon [Jang Ho-geon’s residence/office]?

Lee Su-han sighed and held out his glass to Ko Seung-ju.

“Give me a drink, Brother. I’ll drink this and see the chairman.”

“Okay. If you can make the deal, I’ll follow you with not just one drink, but a whole barrel, haha.”

Ko Seung-ju laughed heartily and filled Lee Su-han’s glass with alcohol, then emptied his glass, which collided with his. He felt like he had to drink a glass of strong alcohol to forget today’s sense of defeat and tell Jang Ho-geon.

***

Lee Su-han left Ko Seung-ju with that glass as the last one and headed to Seonguiwon while calling Jang Ho-geon. After passing through the gate, he got out of the car and went straight into the office.

“You’re suffering because of me these days. Did you drink again?”

“Hic!”

Lee Su-han hiccupped at Jang Ho-geon’s question, who was sitting on the sofa and smiling. He had used up a whole bottle of mini mouthwash in the car to get rid of the smell of alcohol because he had come in a hurry, but there was no greater embarrassment.

“I’m sorry, Chairman.”

“Use it in moderation, my friend. At our age, we have to take good care of our teeth. There’s a reason why there’s such a thing as dental fortune among the five blessings, haha.”

“I’ll keep that in mind, Chairman.”

Jang Ho-geon, who had been laughing heartily, took a light breath when he saw Lee Su-han’s embarrassed smile.

“Did you get new conditions from Chief Ko?”

“Yes. Here it is.”

Jang Ho-geon received the documents, opened them, and sighed.

“Did that old man figure out what I was thinking…?”

“I think so. No, I’m sure. Chief Ko told me that it was Chairman Lee’s idea. If we sign the contract as it is, the re-entry into the distribution business will be blocked if the two of them get married.”

He was a formidable old man after all. He knew exactly what he was intending.

Although the ban on entering the distribution business was in place, Jang Ho-geon snorted as if he wasn’t too worried. Haedong, which had even lost its private loan funds, was no match for Shinseong, was it?

“Don’t worry, Chief Lee. The only companies that can stand up to Shinseong are Taehyun and Geumgang. Even if the two children get married, we can just take over the distribution division of Haedong Corporation later. We’ll just have to throw them some money.”

Only then did Jang Ho-geon smile at Lee Su-han, who was nodding.

“Don’t be so surprised. I called because of business.”

“You could have asked me to do it, but you went to the trouble of…”

Jang Ho-geon waved his hand at Lee Su-han.

“It seems like we’ll have a lot of business with Haedong in the future. You can’t be running around every time something like this happens, can you? The chief of staff of Shinseong Group isn’t a clerk at the community center, haha.”

Jang Ho-geon’s intentions were consistent in both words and actions. He couldn’t let Lee Su-han, who was more like a younger brother than his own, and who was as busy as he was because of him, waste his precious time.

“Thank you, Chairman.”

Since Lee Su-han had accepted Jang Ho-geon’s intentions, he didn’t stop him any further and simply followed him.