Chapter 13 - Let’s Work Together (1)
Chapter 13: Let’s Work Together (1)
It was Chairman Joo Yeong-eun of the KH Group.
The person who had summoned Vice Chairman Park Hong-ju.
The conversation just ended a little while ago.
It was past 9 PM.
Inside the chairman’s office at KH Group headquarters.
After the usual greetings were exchanged, Chairman Joo Yeong-eun spoke her first words.
“Director Choi Jong-gyu will be heading to Yeongsan High School as the chairman. President Jo Sang-ik will go to the Geumhwa Historical Foundation… No, it’s probably better if I just show you this.”
With that, Chairman Joo Yeong-eun slid a sheet of A4 paper towards him.
Vice Chairman Park Hong-ju, who accepted the paper, couldn’t help but let a bitter smile form on his face.
‘They’re all… leaving like this.’
The paper was filled with familiar names in tiny print.
People who had built KH Group together with the late Chairman Joo Tae-san.
Now, they were all stepping back from management, effectively heading towards retirement.
Their vacant positions would soon be filled with new faces chosen by Chairman Joo Yeong-eun.
“……”
Vice Chairman Park Hong-ju had always known this day would come, but facing it in reality brought a bitter and empty feeling.
With his lips tightly sealed, Vice Chairman Park scanned the destinations of his old colleagues.
Then, he heard a soft ‘tap-tap’ sound from somewhere.
“Hmm?”
Vice Chairman Park Hong-ju looked up.
At that moment, words escaped his lips that even he hadn’t expected.
“Yeong-eun!!!”
It wasn’t ‘Chairman.’
“Are you biting your nails again? How many times have I told you that it’s bad luck…”
Chairman Joo Yeong-eun, who had her thumb in her mouth, blinked her eyes in surprise.
She appeared slightly flustered, but the one truly startled was Vice Chairman Park Hong-ju.
‘W-What…’
It was an old habit that had slipped out at the most unexpected time.
When Vice Chairman Park Hong-ju was still in his thirties and Chairman Joo Yeong-eun was just a little girl who had recently started school.
He used to nag the young Yeong-eun, who constantly bit her nails, telling her that it would bring bad luck.
But that was a long time ago.
“Ch-Chairman, I-I didn’t mean…”
How could he scold a grown corporate chairman about biting her nails?
Vice Chairman Park Hong-ju scratched the back of his neck with an embarrassed expression, but a peculiar smile was already spreading across Chairman Joo Yeong-eun’s face.
“To the Vice Chairman…”
Chairman Joo Yeong-eun changed her tone.
“To Uncle, I’m still a kid, aren’t I?”
“W-What are you talking about?”
Whether it was due to the word ‘Uncle’ or simply because he was too flustered, Vice Chairman Park Hong-ju unconsciously lowered his tone.
“I swear it’s not that. I’ve told your father many times while he was alive. Yeong-eun, you’re an extraordinary person. You’ll lead KH Group well.”
As he spoke those words, something gnawed at Vice Chairman Park’s heart.
“The reason I haven’t stepped down until now is because…”
“I know.”
Chairman Joo Yeong-eun cut him off.
“Because of your promise to my father.”
A spot in the top ten of the business rankings.
Chairman Joo Yeong-eun’s tone grew a little more serious at that point.
“But let me make it clear here. KH Group’s entry into the top ten… I have no intention of leaving that responsibility to you, Uncle.”
“……”
Vice Chairman Park’s eyes wavered.
“Is it because of the situation in Russia? I’ve said it several times already, but if it’s about the risks there, I…”
“The Russia line is part of it. But that’s not all.”
Chairman Joo Yeong-eun’s voice grew more resolute than ever.
“That’s my role, Uncle.”
“Your… role?”
“To enter the top ten of the business rankings, to go to the Blue House and have a meal with the president… Do you think I only made that promise with you, Uncle?”
Chairman Joo looked at Vice Chairman Park.
“That promise is important to me too. It’s a promise I want to fulfill on my own, one I don’t want to hand over to anyone else. Even if that means…”
Chairman Joo’s gaze shifted to her thumb.
“Even if it means becoming permanently estranged from the only person who can tell me to stop biting my nails.”
“……”
Although he didn’t show it outwardly, Vice Chairman Park was quite surprised at this moment.
It wasn’t Chairman Joo Yeong-eun’s determination that surprised him.
After all, she was the one who had turned all the KH Group executives to her side. If something like this shocked him, it would be ridiculous.
No, what surprised Vice Chairman Park was how comfortable he was with this situation.
‘It seems… I’m finally ready to let go a little.’
The promise made with the late Chairman Joo Tae-san.
It had been both the driving force and the greatest burden that kept Park Hong-ju going all these years.
But now, someone else had appeared to take up the challenge in his place, allowing him to finally consider stepping back with a sense of peace.
Although Vice Chairman Park Hong-ju was only just now beginning to think about ‘retirement,’ it seemed that Chairman Joo Yeong-eun had a slightly different plan.
“Here, take this.”
Chairman Joo Yeong-eun pulled out a small pouch from her desk drawer and handed it to him.
Vice Chairman Park accepted it, his face filled with curiosity.
“What’s this…?”
“Open it.”
Chairman Joo Yeong-eun said.
“It’s something my father held onto until just before he passed.”
“Your father?”
Puzzled, Vice Chairman Park opened the pouch.
A moment later, what came into view was a single gold ring.
Its shape seemed somewhat familiar.
“Wait, this is…”
“Yes.”
Chairman Joo Yeong-eun nodded.
“The symbol of my father’s premature excitement.”
Upon hearing Chairman Joo’s words, Vice Chairman Park couldn’t help but chuckle.
“Indeed, there was no greater example of premature excitement than that.”
The ring was a prototype of the ‘KH Cannons Championship Ring,’ made at the instruction of the late Chairman Joo Tae-san back in 1996.
At the time, KH Cannons had advanced to autumn baseball for the first time since their founding.
Overwhelmed with excitement, Chairman Joo Tae-san ordered the creation of the championship rings even before the playoffs had begun.
Vice Chairman Park Hong-ju had tried to dissuade him, saying it was too early and that they could make the rings after winning the championship, but Chairman Joo Tae-san insisted on making them, claiming he could smell victory.
Of course, the KH Cannons were eliminated before the ring even reached Chairman Joo Tae-san.
“I thought he would’ve thrown it away a long time ago, after all the teasing I gave him about it being a symbol of premature excitement… but it seems he kept it all this time?”
In response to Vice Chairman Park’s question, Chairman Joo Yeong-eun gave a bitter smile.
“I thought so too, but… one day, when I visited him in the hospital, he was holding it in his hand.”
She said there hadn’t been any particular words.
He didn’t ask her to take care of the baseball team, nor did he ask her to win a championship one day.
He just sat there, clutching the ring in his hand, staring blankly out the window.
“Honestly… that’s why I planned to keep this a secret until the end. That my father still had such strong feelings for the baseball team.”
It was Chairman Joo Yeong-eun’s confession.
“The baseball team doesn’t contribute to the group’s operations, it just attracts unnecessary criticism… And more than anything, I knew I couldn’t take care of the team as meticulously as my father did, so I planned to sell it off at the right time.”
“And now?”
Vice Chairman Park asked as he held up the ring.
“So why are you showing this to me now?”
“Because I’ve found someone who can take care of the team in my father’s place.”
Chairman Joo Yeong-eun smiled slightly.
“I thought it was time for you to retire and rest, but… seeing you today, you look as energetic as ever.”
“……”
“Even when it was just a routine ground ball to the infield, you ran with all your might, determined to be safe at first… Watching that, I made up my mind.”
“So you’re saying…”
“Yes.”
Chairman Joo Yeong-eun nodded.
“Uncle, I want you to take charge of the baseball team.”
“And if possible…”
“I’d like you to fulfill my father’s wish, the one he never spoke out loud, on my behalf.”
“Your father’s final wish…”
Vice Chairman Park Hong-ju stared down at the ring resting in his palm.
He clenched the ring in his hand shortly after.
* * *
Three days later.
Ji-seop, who had returned to *Superstar Baseball*, was sitting in front of the computer in the consultation room.
“Hmmm…”
Ji-seop stared at the computer monitor with a serious expression.
After a long moment of contemplation, he clicked the mouse, and the sound of booing came through the speakers.
[YOU LOSE! TRY AGAIN!]
The message signaling Ji-seop’s defeat appeared.
As Ji-seop clutched his head in frustration, Director Oh Su-man, who had been sipping his mixed coffee nearby, spoke up.
“Ji-seop.”
“Yes?”
“Why don’t you just play another game?”
Director Oh Su-man chuckled bitterly.
“I’ve been watching you play for a while now… Haha, I’ve never seen anyone so bad at internet poker in my life.”
“……”
“Games are just for fun, aren’t they? Why torture yourself over it when there are plenty of other entertaining things to do?”
Director Oh Su-man probably didn’t mean anything by it, but his words felt like daggers stabbing into Ji-seop’s chest.
Because the internet poker game Ji-seop was playing wasn’t just for fun.
‘To join the professional poker league next year, I need to achieve at least Platinum rank on this site…’
It was an unexpected hurdle.
Back in the days of the American independent leagues, Ji-seop had always won whenever he played poker with his teammates.
Sure, his ability to read opponents’ minds played a big role, but he also believed he had a natural talent for poker.
However, the internet poker site was filled with too many skilled players, and the more games Ji-seop played, the further his rank seemed to drop.
‘Damn it, this is a problem…’
He had heard rumors that there was a special program in the United States that trained professional poker players.
But he also heard that just enrolling in the program would cost thousands of dollars.
At this rate, he had no idea how much initial investment capital he would need or how long it would take to become a professional poker player.
‘Ah, this is driving me crazy, seriously…’
Cracks were starting to appear in what he had thought was a perfect plan.
Just as Ji-seop was racking his brain to figure out how to patch those cracks,
Brrrr- Brrrr- Brrrrrr-
His phone, placed on the computer desk, began to ring.
“Hmm?”
As he picked up his phone and checked the caller ID, Ji-seop tilted his head in confusion.
It was someone he hadn’t expected to call.
He had already received payment for the lessons, and he’d been compensated for the mercenary game as well, so what could this be about?
With that thought, Ji-seop pressed the ‘Answer’ button on the screen.
“Hello.”
Ji-seop spoke.
“What can I do for you, Vice Chairman?”