Real Man

Squeak.

The door opened and a familiar-faced man entered.

Yoo-hyun, who got up from his seat, greeted the man with a big face and a charming smile.

“Uncle Sehun.”

“Yoo-hyun, long time no see.”

Director Ahn Sehun, who smiled brightly, grabbed Yoo-hyun’s hand.

He had been promoted to director two years ago, and his palm was as thick as Yoo-hyun had felt when he was young.

Yoo-hyun, who sat across from him, asked.

“Where’s dad?”

“What’s there to be bored about? There’s plenty to see.”

“What’s there to see here?”

“You know, these bricks.”

Yoo-hyun picked up the brick he had touched earlier, and Director Ahn Sehun, who sat on the sofa, looked incredulous.

“Who would have thought you’re not a brick house son, what’s that to be curious about?”

“I can see the effort. It must have been hard to make these, right?”

“Nowadays, machines do most of the work. It’s much easier. But young people still shy away from it.”

“What do you mean?”

“Just. They don’t like making bricks. They’re not interested in the company.”

Director Ahn Sehun seemed to be worried about the lack of young people in the company.

Yoo-hyun casually asked.

“Did you post a job advertisement?”

“Of course I did. But it’s a rural area, and a small company, so there’s no response.”

“You should pay more then.”

“I do pay a lot. Even for newbies, it’s much higher than the average in this industry. And the benefits are pretty good too.”

“Really?”

“Oh, come on. I’m telling you the truth.”

Director Ahn Sehun thought Yoo-hyun didn’t believe him, and opened his bag to take out a thick pile of documents.

He rummaged through the documents and handed out a sheet of paper.

Swish.

“What’s this?”

“What do you mean, this is our recruitment notice. Take a look.”

Yoo-hyun looked at the paper he handed over.

It was a notice to recruit personnel in specialized fields such as accounting, publicity, etc., and it had a preference for young people.

Was it because of the newcomers who stayed for a while and left?

He thought it would be lax, but the qualifications were quite strict.

They also required some relevant certificates and work experience.

But the salary and benefits level were high enough to compensate for that.

“The conditions are good.”

“I told you. Don’t you have anyone decent around you?”

“Someone decent?”

“Yeah. Your age group is just right. If you come, I can arrange a place for you to stay.”

Suddenly, a person came to Yoo-hyun’s mind.

It was his friend Park Wonseok.

-Maybe I should just go back to my hometown. Seoul is expensive, and I have to find a new job anyway, do I need to settle down here?

Judging from what he had said, he seemed to fit the recruitment requirements.

Of course, that was only if he wanted to.

“I’ll check it out.”

“Okay. If it works out, I’ll treat you.”

“Got it. But how’s the company doing?”

“It’s fine. We’re doing well in our own way.”

“I know. But I’m curious how much.”

He wouldn’t normally be that curious, but thinking of Park Wonseok, he couldn’t help but ask.

No matter how much it was his father’s company, he intended to tell him honestly if there was anything wrong.

“Take a look.”

Director Ahn Sehun immediately took out another paper and handed it over.

Yoo-hyun looked at the first page of the rather thick document and asked.

“This is the supply status.”

“You can tell by looking at this. How many places are looking for our bricks.”

“Hmm.”

Director Ahn Sehun had enough reason to be confident, as there were many trading companies.

As summarized in the previous chapter, the number of trading companies increased every year.

It was as his father had said.

As he looked at the content, Director Ahn Sehun said to Yoo-hyun.

“You know Baekdo Construction, right? Your friend Jun-seok works there.”

“I know. They said they’re using our bricks this time.”

“Yeah. They’re at the bottom of the list. I had a hard time getting that volume. I wouldn’t have taken care of it if it wasn’t for your friend.”

Yoo-hyun chuckled and asked.

“Jun-seok said he used his influence, though?”

“No way. That guy, he came here and bought me a meal. He acted like he was taking care of us, who are the weaker party.”

“That’s funny.”

“I’m not kidding. And look here, Ami Construction is the place with the most orders…”

Director Ahn Sehun leaned in and explained this and that to Yoo-hyun.

He had talked to him several times before about the Hansung Construction contract, so he trusted Yoo-hyun quite a bit.

Thanks to that, Yoo-hyun was able to quickly grasp the details.

Rustle. Rustle.

Yoo-hyun listened to his explanation and looked at the other chapters.

The customers were increasing, and the net profit was high.

They were selling well-made products with good margins.

But the problem was that the sales were stagnant.

Why?

“Shouldn’t you expand the factory at this point? The existing factory seems to have reached its production limit.”

That was the moment Yoo-hyun pointed out the reason.

Clap!

Director Ahn Sehun clapped his hands and widened his eyes.

“Yoo-hyun, you think so too?”

“Yes. I think it’s already a bit late, actually.”

“That’s what I’m saying. There’s a place that says they’ll invest. Look at this.”

Director Ahn Sehun handed over another document with an excited expression.

As he said, there was a proposal for a joint factory for the brick factory.

If they went ahead with this, they could build a large-scale factory on the entire site.

It was a chance to make his father’s dream come true.

Yoo-hyun asked with a curious mind.

“That’s nice. But why don’t you do it?”

“Why won’t you do it?”

“Well…”

Yoo-hyun tilted his head, and An Sehun, the director, gave an unexpected answer.

“Your father, I mean, the president, is strongly opposed to it.”

“My father?”

“Yes. He’s too cautious because he almost went bankrupt in the past. This is a rare opportunity…”

Yoo-hyun left behind the regretful An Sehun and reminisced about the past.

He still remembered the words he heard when he had his first drink with his father, whom he had resented.

-Yoo-hyun, I’m really sorry for making our family suffer because of my foolish greed. I won’t make such a mistake again.

At that moment, Yoo-hyun found the true meaning of living his life again.

He understood his father and wanted to support him instead.

After that, many things changed.

His mother, who had been passive, was now running the largest side dish store in the market.

Han Jae-hee studied abroad and then got a job at the conglomerate Hansung.

The whole family had shaken off the hard past, but his father was still living in the trauma of that time.

“…”

For a while, Yoo-hyun looked at the documents in front of him without a word.

That evening, Yoo-hyun confronted his father.

On the table in the president’s office, there was a bottle of liquor that Yoo-hyun had bought.

His father, who had emptied a glass of liquor with ice, exclaimed.

“Wow! This is really good.”

“How can you like alcohol so much and hold back like that normally?”

“You know your mother’s personality. She’ll nag me to death if I slip up.”

“Then why are you drinking so much today?”

“Because you’re here, Yoo-hyun. I’m counting on you to cover for me today.”

His father, whose face was already flushed, winked at him.

He seemed to have misunderstood something, so Yoo-hyun corrected him.

“I’m not covering for you, I’ll get scolded too.”

“Why?”

“Because I didn’t get a job, what else?”

“Oh, right. Your mother was very worried about that. What are we going to do?”

“Then drink less. It’s better to get scolded less.”

“Hmm.”

His father, who had been pondering for a moment, looked serious.

“Yoo-hyun, come to think of it, this is a problem that can be solved if you just join our company.”

“Not again. Mom won’t agree to that.”

“What’s wrong with our company? Don’t say that and come in. I’ll take good care of you.”

“Then I’ll be accused of being a parachute.”

“Who’s going to accuse you? You’re from Hansung, everyone will like you if you come. Besides, this eco-friendly noise reduction brick was your idea, wasn’t it?”

His father pointed to the brick and tried to persuade him, but Yoo-hyun drew the line.

That was just something he said in passing. The person who made it was the amazing one.

“So what? Our employees are amazing. So how about working with amazing people?”

“Let’s have a drink.”

“Hahaha! You’re so stubborn.”

Clang!

His father laughed brightly and clinked glasses with him.

He must have had a lot on his mind, but he didn’t show it.

As always, he tried to show Yoo-hyun only his bright and cheerful side.

He didn’t seem to want to talk first, so Yoo-hyun brought it up.

“Dad, do you remember what you said when you saw the construction site?”

“What did I say?”

“You said it was your dream to build a big factory there.”

“Oh, that. That’s an old story, what about it?”

His father shrugged his shoulders and emptied his glass.

Yoo-hyun, who was looking at his father, got to the point.

“Didn’t you get an offer to build a joint factory?”

“Huh? Where did you hear that?”

“From Uncle Sehun.”

“Kid, you’ve been talking too much.”

“It’s a great opportunity, take it. The company is doing well, isn’t it?”

Was it because Yoo-hyun’s sincerity came through?

His father straightened his posture and spoke as if teaching him.

“Yoo-hyun, do you know how much it costs to build a factory?”

“About 30 billion won, right?”

“That’s right. At least 30 billion. Aren’t you surprised?”

“What’s there to be surprised about? It costs 3 trillion won to build an OLED factory.”

“You don’t have a sense of money because it’s not yours, but 30 billion is a huge amount of money. You’re a company employee, you’ll never touch that kind of money in your lifetime.”

At that moment, Yoo-hyun thought.

From the shares of Instagram to the shares of Super Punch.

He could give up 30 billion won anytime he wanted.

But this was his father’s business, so Yoo-hyun approached it realistically.

“What are you worried about? The construction company is investing in it.”

“Even if we get an investment, it’s not like we don’t have to spend our money. We have to take on a lot of debt. And if something goes wrong…”

His father hesitated, and Yoo-hyun spoke first.

“So what if something goes wrong? You can get back up.”

“It’s not as easy as you say. You know because you’ve been through it.”

“That was when I was young. Now our family is all doing well.”

“That’s why. I don’t want to ruin our happiness because of my greed.”

His father looked determined.

But to Yoo-hyun’s eyes, it looked like he was avoiding reality.

“Why are you so scared? The lives of your employees depend on your choice.”

“I’m not scared. I just want something stable.”

“Businesses die if they don’t grow. You know that better than anyone, don’t you?”

“That’s… no. Your mother will never agree to borrowing money.”

His father shook his head, trying to refute, and then brought up a more direct excuse.

Yoo-hyun was dumbfounded.

“My mother?”

“Yes. Our house might be in trouble again, do you want that?”

“Dad, mom is the one who turned the whole first floor of the building into a side dish store by herself. Aren’t you underestimating her?”

“That’s because you don’t know. Your mother has a trauma from when the factory went bankrupt. She’ll never agree to it.”

His father was projecting his own story onto his mother.

Yoo-hyun didn’t argue, but offered a condition instead.

“Then, if mom agrees, you’ll build the factory?”

“She won’t agree, why are you saying that?”

“So, if she agrees?”

“Kid, you’re stubborn. Fine, fine.”

“You don’t have to say it twice.”

“You don’t know your mom very well.”

His father finished his glass and shook his head.

He looked confident.