PGTYB CH 06

Chapter 6. I Love You

After finishing our brief conversation on the rooftop, we went back down to the office.

It was my first day as an intern.

Since I didn’t know what kind of work I was supposed to do yet, I was sitting awkwardly at my desk.

My senior coworker had just told me to ask him anything I wanted, but how could an intern take those words completely at face value?

However, contrary to my expectations, it seemed that my senior really had meant it when he said I could make use of him as much as I wanted.

As soon as we came downstairs, I asked the team leader to explain our team.

“Team Leader, since today is our first day, I think it would be good to establish our team’s goal.”

“That’s a good point. I think I have a general idea of how things work now, so let me explain.”

He wrote on the whiteboard in the office:

Special Strategy Team

“First, the goal of our Special Strategy Team is extremely simple. There’s only one. Results.”

“…”

“The operating funds assigned to our team are five billion won. You might wonder what we’re supposed to do in the financial industry with that amount of money, but the significance goes beyond the amount itself.”

Five billion won was a huge amount of money to me.

But I had to think from the perspective of Changseong Investment & Securities, not my own.

The company probably managed funds worth trillions of won, so five billion wasn’t actually that much.

But apparently there was something more important about it.

“These operating funds give us complete freedom. If we use this money to buy a roasted-sweet-potato machine and sell sweet potatoes in front of the company, and we make a profit from it… then our team has achieved results.”

“…”

“As long as it’s within the law, even if we made money through gambling, we’d still be recognized for producing results. There isn’t a single other department in this company that has been given this kind of freedom.”

“…”

“It’s an absurdly generous condition. But that also means we’re carrying an enormous amount of responsibility. If we produce results, we can do almost anything. But if we can’t produce results despite having this freedom… our team’s evaluation will probably be brutally clear.”

I swallowed without realizing it.

I could clearly sense my brother-in-law’s intention.

He wanted to see whether I had ability or not.

He was telling me to prove it once and for all.

“At first, I wondered why they would give our team this kind of freedom…”

He glanced at me.

“But I think I understand the reason now. It might be troublesome to dig too deeply into it, so let’s leave it at that. Whether we like it or not, we’re all on the same boat.”

That was the team leader’s basic explanation.

Then my senior coworker spoke.

“I agree with what the team leader said. If I may add my personal opinion…”

“…”

“This is unquestionably a tremendous opportunity. Normally, companies are places where people are often judged by internal politics rather than ability. But at least now, we have a chance to be judged based on our actual skills.”

“…”

“And by the managing director, who could be considered the real owner of this company. Of course, we don’t know yet whether his interest is temporary or permanent. But one thing is certain. If we produce results, there’s a high chance he’ll continue paying attention to us.”

It’ll probably be permanent.

“So instead of wasting time on unnecessary things, I think we should focus entirely on producing results. Most importantly, we should center everything around our intern.”

“…”

“As long as the intern is here, whatever results our team produces, we’ll be protected from interference by other departments. We probably won’t be able to avoid hostile looks and criticism. The people who mocked us for being exiled here could eventually find themselves in a position where their own jobs are threatened.”

“…”

“But I want to give this opportunity everything I’ve got. If our team produces results, and the intern… no, if Do-jin is at the center of those results…”

My senior coworker smiled.

It was the first proper smile I’d seen from him.

“Under the managing director’s protection, we’ll be able to move freely. Our futures will also be somewhat secure. So, in the end, whether our team remains a strange deviation within the company or becomes a legend…”

Once again, everyone’s eyes turned toward me.

“Seems to depend on you, Do-jin. So please, don’t worry about reading the room. Make use of everything our team members can offer you.”

“…Yes, Assistant Manager.”

“This is also a personal request, separate from being your senior. No matter how hard I work, I can’t change the company… but I think you’re different. It’s also a bit of self-promotion on my part. If I’m useful, use me as a weapon. Of course, I’m not relying on personal affection. As long as this team exists, I’ll continuously prove my usefulness.”

“…”

“M-me too! I haven’t been with the company long, so I don’t know how much help I can be, but I want to do my best!”

“Ahem. I’ll ask the same of you. At least I’m not someone who keeps a separate agenda and causes trouble for the company. I just want you to know that.”

The words we’d exchanged on the rooftop

had now been openly explained to the entire team along with the team’s purpose.

Hmm…

Rather than pressure,

I felt more enthusiasm.

Everyone was saying they wanted to help me right away, regardless of what personal benefit they might get from it.

So for now—

“I’ll do my best. I’d appreciate everyone’s help.”

Instead of denying their expectations, I wanted to show my determination.

It was better than saying, I’m not really that kind of person or I just happened to say those things.

This would be more helpful for producing results.

My sixth sense was telling me so.

I was burning with determination.

I’ll gladly throw myself into the fire if that’s what it takes to turn our Yura into Princess Pyeonggang.

Since I still lacked knowledge, working overtime was unavoidable.

Even though it was my first day, and it was Friday.

I had to work hard.

Rather than leaving on time, everyone stayed behind and taught me the basics of the job, along with whatever information they thought would be useful.

After all, my success was practically directly connected to our team’s success.

The determination of all four of us was burning brightly.

But then—

“What are you all doing?”

“…M-Managing Director?”

My brother-in-law had come to the Special Strategy Team’s office.

Everyone had already experienced this situation once at lunch, but no one had imagined they’d experience it again in the evening.

They froze on the spot.

I wasn’t much different.

Did he come to check whether we’re working hard?

Or did he come to see if we’ve already left work on time?

“Haah… I had a feeling, so I came by.”

Everyone froze even more.

The managing director had sighed.

“You’re all clearly motivated, but no working overtime.”

“…”

“What are you all doing? Are you seriously refusing my orders?”

It happened instantly.

The determination that had been burning like a raging fire disappeared as if someone had sprayed it with a fire extinguisher.

Everyone gave awkward smiles and hurriedly started preparing to leave.

“Oh, I was just about to leave anyway!”

“Ahem. I have plans with friends tonight…”

“Oh my goodness. Is it already this late? I was having so much fun working that I didn’t even realize I was working overtime.”

“…”

It was a tearful struggle.

The team members finished preparing to leave in just three minutes and hurried out of the office.

They even wished me a good weekend.

But we were all burning with determination just a moment ago….

I was left alone.

Honestly, my brother-in-law scared me too.

Could it be…?

Maybe, contrary to what he said earlier, he doesn’t actually want us to produce results?

All kinds of thoughts flashed through my head in an instant.

But I quickly realized that I was mistaken.

“Do-jin.”

“Yes, Brother.”

“You can be ambitious, but my little sister is pregnant. If you neglect your family by working overtime on your very first day, what does that make me?”

“Ah…”

It felt like someone had hit me hard on the head.

Success was good.

But that was only because I wanted Yura and me to be recognized.

At the very least,

our happiness couldn’t simply be about success.

“I’m not doing this because I’m afraid my little sister will complain to me or anything…”

“…Yes, Brother.”

“Listen carefully. Eight hours is enough. Human beings have limits when it comes to concentration. Even office workers probably spend less than two hours a day actually focusing completely on their work. The rest of the time is spent doing simple tasks rather than concentrating.”

“…”

“Do you think I created this team so you could learn those kinds of tasks or do simple labor?”

“…No.”

“Exactly. If that were what I wanted you to learn, I would’ve simply placed you in a busy department instead of creating this team.”

I focused on what my brother-in-law was saying.

“Listen carefully. What you need to learn isn’t how to do ordinary office work like trading, research, sales, and so on. What you need is the broad perspective to understand how to make money.”

“…”

“You said you wanted to succeed. Did you mean you wanted to succeed as an office worker? You said you wanted to turn Yura into Princess Pyeonggang. Then don’t you have to earn the recognition of the so-called chaebol families?”

“…Yes.”

“Do you think the chaebol families will recognize you just because you become the best-performing employee and eventually become a company president? Absolutely not. Ultimately, the path you need to take is to choose a major direction, generate profits from it, and prove yourself with numbers.”

I understood what my brother-in-law was trying to say.

The life I’d lived until now had been ordinary and normal.

But the life I was trying to live now was different.

It was a special life.

And I wanted to earn the recognition of the most special people of all.

Suppose I became the most successful employee in the company and eventually became the president of a major corporation.

Would the people who looked down on Yura suddenly recognize me as amazing?

What about her family?

Weren’t they born into that world from the very beginning?

Just as my brother-in-law said,

the path I needed to take wasn’t to become the best employee.

I needed to decide the company’s major direction,

move forward in that direction,

and prove it with numbers.

“Learn the basics, but boldly discard the unnecessary things. Don’t even bother learning strange office politics. Right now, there isn’t a single employee at Changseong Investment & Securities whose approval you need.”

“…”

“The direction you need to move toward is the opposite. You need to reach a point where the employees of Changseong Investment & Securities are trying to gain your approval.”

“…Yes, Brother.”

“It won’t be easy. This all happened suddenly for you. I hope you understand that I’m not looking down on ordinary people or office workers. I’m talking about something different.”

“Of course, Brother.”

“Good. I’m sure you’ve understood what I mean.”

Until just now,

I’d thought my brother-in-law didn’t welcome me and was telling me to prove myself because of that.

I was wrong.

He genuinely wanted me to prove myself.

And he was giving me as much help as he could.

At this point, it was almost as if he was openly cheering me on and telling me to succeed.

It wasn’t a test.

Could it be…

Is this what brother-in-law love feels like…?

There was no other explanation.

I’ll work hard, Brother.

I had gained one more reason to prove myself.

I was genuinely moved.

On the way home,

I kept thinking about what my brother-in-law had said.

Come to think of it, my annual salary wasn’t what mattered.

Even if I earned 100 billion won a year, that alone wouldn’t mean I’d proven myself.

What mattered was how much the company grew.

I realized that clearly.

I finally understood what Father-in-law had said.

If I wanted our Yura to be recognized as Princess Pyeonggang,

then the path I had to take was no longer simply the path of Kang Do-jin.

I had to walk forward as the husband of the youngest daughter of Changseong Group.

There was a certain pressure that came with that.

It was a road I would have to overcome.

When I arrived at the annex,

I saw Yura waiting for me with dinner prepared.

“Did you make this yourself?”

“Of course! You worked hard today, so I should at least do this much!”

“What about your university classes?”

“I took a leave of absence too.”

“…”

Well,

it would be strange for her to continue attending university while pregnant.

“You worked hard today.”

She loosened my tie and kissed me on the cheek.

She genuinely seemed to be telling me that I’d worked hard.

Right.

With such a lovable wife,

how heavy could this pressure really be?

The food was delicious, too.

I enjoyed my dinner.

“Do-jin, there’s somewhere I want to take you.”

After dinner, we went somewhere together, with Yura pulling me along by the hand so I could digest my food.

When we arrived—

“…Why are we here?”

“Of course I had to give my husband a gift now that you’ve gotten a job. You’re going to work hard outside, so how could I not give you even this much?”

“…”

“You weren’t planning to take a taxi to work every day, were you? You’d feel awkward taking a car driven by a chauffeur, right?”

“…”

I would.

But wouldn’t I also feel awkward driving around in a luxury foreign car like this?

“Don’t worry. I saved my allowance and invested it, so I’m giving this to you with my own money.”

“…I love you.”

As a husband,

accepting a gift from your wife was also a virtue.

If someone can refuse when their wife offers them a foreign luxury car as a gift, then let that person throw a stone at me.

Instead,

I would risk my life to prove that my lovely wife had made the right choice.