Chapter 54: Chairman Yoo’s Test
“Why me?”
Even as he voiced his doubt, Itaegyeom calmly held the steering wheel.
He had been listening to Yoo Yeon Seo’s incessant rambling that made him lose his mind, until she finally opened her mouth.
“He must be curious about one of my few friends.”
“Friend?”
Itaegyeom looked back in surprise. Luckily, they were stopped at a red light.
“Hey, watch the road.”
“Are you and I friends?”
“Why, aren’t we?”
They were an entertainer and a manager, but they also bickered and bossed each other around over trivial things… They were the same age and got along well enough, so they could be considered friends by now, right? Yoo Yeon Seo said it without much thought.
“Well, yeah… I guess so.”
Itaegyeom, who had been promoted from a slave to a friend, closed his mouth. Im Seunghyun, who was sitting in the passenger seat, smiled faintly.
‘He’s embarrassed.’
Even though Itaegyeom complained to him about Yoo Yeon Seo’s personality, he still did his job well.
“But don’t you have any friends? You should be more sociable.”
“I can live without them.”
“Oh, right…”
He was a third-generation chaebol, so he wouldn’t have any trouble living even if he had no friends. Itaegyeom rolled his eyes to the passenger seat.
“Secretary hyung, aren’t you nervous?”
“I’ve met the chairman before.”
“Oh, really…? How is he?”
“Well…”
Im Seunghyun wondered if he should tease the nervous Itaegyeom, but he held back.
He had made a lame excuse when Yoo Yeon Seo fainted before, so he didn’t know what he would say if he panicked today.
“You don’t need to be so tense.”
“That’s easy for you to say, hyung. You’re good at everything. I’m just a commoner.”
That was true.
He was nervous when he first met the head of the family, but Im Seunghyun, who was quick-witted, realized that Yoo Yeon Seo’s family was just a typical dysfunctional one.
“Don’t think of him as the chairman, but as your grandfather…”
“That makes me even more nervous.”
How weird would Yoo Yeon Seo’s grandfather be?
Itaegyeom felt goosebumps on his arms.
They arrived at Chairman Yoo’s mansion on time, except for a brief traffic jam. Itaegyeom opened his mouth in awe.
“Wow… Is this one house?”
The long fence alone gave him an idea of the size of the mansion.
“Is it okay to come empty-handed?”
“My grandfather invited us without any notice, what gift are you going to buy?”
Yoo Yeon Seo opened the gate as if she was used to it.
The mansion hidden behind the high fence made Itaegyeom open his mouth again.
“What’s that house over there?”
Yoo Yeon Seo stopped in her tracks.
It was the house he often saw in the memory synchronization. It was the house where Yoo Gunmin and Iheeseo, the two sons, lived.
“It’s an annex, no one uses it now.”
He had asked Yoo Yeonho about it when he first entered this mansion. He heard that the annex had been abandoned for a long time since Iheeseo’s death. Moreover, they planted trees densely like a fence to hide the entrance of the annex.
Even when he came for the holidays, the family and relatives seemed to avoid looking at the annex on purpose.
‘Come to think of it, grandfather and grandmother are still living in this house…’
Wasn’t it creepy to live in a house where someone died? It couldn’t be that they had no other house to move to. Yoo Yeon Seo felt a strange sensation in his stomach.
“I’m here.”
“You’re here.”
Chairman Yoochangho, who was wearing casual clothes, was standing in front of the entrance. Itaegyeom swallowed his saliva.
He reached out his hand to Im Seunghyun first. Im Seunghyun shook his hand.
“Secretary Im, long time no see.”
“Hello, chairman.”
Im Seunghyun was the reliable person that Yoo Yeonho told him about. He recognized his face as the employee who first noticed Yoo Yeon Seo’s memory loss.
Thinking that he was getting old and unstable, Chairman Yoochangho turned his head to Itaegyeom, who was standing stiffly next to him.
“So, you’re Manager of Yeonseo?”
“Yes, yes. I’m Itaegyeom.”
Itaegyeom rubbed his thigh with his palm and grabbed Chairman Yoo’s hand. His hand was wrinkled, but it was strong.
‘He’s just like a neighborhood grandfather…’
He had an image of a chairman wearing a black suit and sitting sternly. Itaegyeom relaxed a little.
“Thank you for accepting my invitation.”
“Don’t just tell me to bring him. He’s uncomfortable.”
“Is that so?”
Chairman Yoo turned his head. Itaegyeom, who met his eyes, tensed up again and said, no, no!
“Do you have to wait for this old man to contact you first?”
“You sometimes call me, don’t you? But, why did you call the manager and Im Seunghyun too…? Are you too interested in me?”
“Ahem…”
Yoo Yeon Seo swallowed his laughter. He had figured out his grandfather’s personality after meeting him a few times. If he had to define it… A decent father? No, that was too harsh to compare him to his father.
Anyway, why did his original self put up a wall against this easy-to-understand grandfather? Did they have no contact at all?
Chairman Yoo felt a new emotion as he watched Yoo Yeon Seo talk comfortably.
“I’m here.”
Yoo Yeonho joined them for this meal. They greeted each other briefly, and finally sat down at the table.
“Help yourselves.”
Itaegyeom almost dropped his chopsticks in nervousness, but fortunately, Chairman Yoo and Yoo Yeonho’s attention was focused on Yoo Yeon Seo.
“Are you not filming anymore?”
“You told me to help with the company work.”
The conversation was mostly Chairman Yoo asking questions, and Yoo Yeon Seo giving short answers. To a third party’s eyes, they didn’t look like a close grandfather and grandson.
But Chairman Yoo had a smile on his lips.
He had ended his conversation with Yoo Yeon Seo by being scolded by his angry grandson, who then fought and argued with him. He couldn’t believe that they were having a calm conversation like this.
“I’ll make you work hard after you graduate, so enjoy your school life while you can.”
“What do I know about running a business? I told you to give up.”
“You’ll learn when you go to school. So, when are you filming?”
“I don’t know. I’m still choosing a work.”
Chairman Yoo wanted him to film his next work soon, so he could give him a more splendid support than Yoo Gunmin’s coffee truck, but Yoo Yeon Seo wondered why he was acting like this and suspected that he hadn’t given up on the company work yet.
“By the way, how is he when he works? Secretary Im, you never tell me anything.”
Oh… Yoo Yeon Seo looked at Im Seunghyun with a curious eye. He thought he would tell the chairman. He turned his gaze and poked Itaegyeom, who was sitting next to him.
‘Hey, do well.’
Im Seunghyun was keeping his mouth shut, so you’re not going to say anything weird, right? He even promoted you from a slave to a friend.
Itaegyeom spoke with a trembling voice.
“I’m working hard. I get along well with the other actors too.”
“Really?”
“Yes, I heard that he has a lot of people looking for him now…”
Chairman Yoo said with a meaningful expression.
“Well, good for him. I thought he would be bitter after being abandoned on the street.”
“Cough!”
“He must have done something hateful, right? I understand. You should have thrown him away further, shouldn’t you?”
“Choke, cough…”
I covered my mouth with my hand as I let out a snort.
“Stop teasing him, Grandpa.”
Yu Eun-ho was the only one who tried to stop him.
Yoo Yeon Seo looked at me with a blurry gaze as I turned red in an instant. He would have felt like throwing away his original body with a bad personality, but now he thought, ‘Why did you abandon him… He’s better than nothing.’ He felt that he had been influenced by his original body a lot.
“Where are you going?”
“Bathroom.”
It wasn’t an illusion that my stomach was churning. As Yoo Yeon Seo got up from his seat, Yu Eun-ho also got up after receiving a wink from Chairman Yoo.
“Mr. Im Seung-hyun, please come this way…”
Im Seung-hyun hesitated for a moment and followed Yu Eun-ho outside.
‘Don’t leave me alone, Hyung-nim!’
When I was left alone with Chairman Yoo, I cried out desperately in my mind. Chairman Yoo opened his mouth first.
“You, do you earn more than average as Yeon Seo’s manager?”
“Huh? Yes… I do.”
“Do you want to earn more?”
I widened my eyes in surprise. It seemed like he was serious, judging by the atmosphere. I was already excited about how much he would offer.
But, why would Chairman Yoo of Jusung offer a job to a mere manager? What did he see in me, who had no skills?
“Money… It would be nice to have more, but why me?”
“That’s right, you’re the only one who can do it.”
What, what is it?
I felt a sense of foreboding.
“From now on, you just have to report to me what Yeon Seo did and who he met.”
“What?”
“Everything.”
I frowned as I couldn’t understand.
“That sounds like you want me to…”
Spy on Yoo Yeon Seo. I trailed off, and Chairman Yoo nodded.
“That’s right.”
“May I ask why?”
I felt my head cool down.
“That guy, he shouldn’t be an entertainer.”
“…”
“He has no talent. Even if he’s doing well lately, how long will that last?”
What?
There was a rumor in the industry that Chairman Yoo of Jusung and Vice President Choi Yu-jin of JSENM were secretly pushing Yoo Yeon Seo from behind.
Was that not true?
I felt confused.
“I want Yeon Seo, that kid, to do business instead of entertainment. I think he has enough ability for that.”
“…”
“Don’t you think so too?”
I did. Until two years ago.
“Still, I don’t understand.”
“You don’t need to understand. It’s just a grandfather’s interest. He never listens to me.”
“But…”
How can he ask a manager to monitor his grandson?
“Five times your current salary.”
I gasped and swallowed at Chairman Yoo’s bombshell.
“If your report is diligent, I’ll give you extra gifts. Do you like cars? Watches?”
“Uh…”
“You don’t have to hesitate. You just have to follow Yeon Seo’s schedule and report what he did. Like writing a diary.”
“…”
“Will you accept my offer? I’ll reward you well. I promise.”
It was a sweet offer with a staggering condition and a promise from Chairman Yoo of Jusung. Who would refuse it?
“I…”
***
Im Seung-hyun, who followed Yu Eun-ho, smiled faintly.
“President, you’re really mischievous.”
“Did you notice?”
“Yes.”
So, Chairman Yoo was testing me.
He invited me without any hesitation and put me on the spot. It might seem arrogant, but he was the president of Jusung, so he could do it.
“Since you didn’t call me, I passed, right?”
“Mr. Im, you passed a long time ago.”
That was a nice thing to hear. Im Seung-hyun had been working as Yoo Yeon Seo’s secretary for over a year and had gained the attention of the head family, securing his position in the company.
How many employees had the personal numbers of the president and vice president? There was probably only Im Seung-hyun.
“I’ll apologize to the manager separately.”
“Directly from the director? I’ll just tell him well.”
“No.”
Yu Eun-ho shook his head. He felt more comfortable apologizing in person.
“Do you think he’ll pass?”
“Well… It shouldn’t be too hard.”
Im Seung-hyun smiled slightly. If it was the 12th manager, he wouldn’t know, but I thought he would keep his loyalty.
“It’s a good thing, I had a question for you, director…”
“Tell me anything.”
Chairman Yoo and Vice President Choi trusted Im Seung-hyun as well. He had to keep up the good relationship.
“About the young master… What was his original personality like?”
“His original personality?”
“Yes, he doesn’t seem to have a bad personality now…”
Im Seung-hyun remembered what I said, that even if he lost his memory, his nature wouldn’t change.
‘If his personality now is his original nature…’
There must be a reason why his personality became bad.
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