"They're already asking us. What are you going to say when we send out the press release?"
"We'll sign a contract with the top image coordinator company. Experts will create it based on these initials."
"What? A coordinator?"
"Yes. They'll be responsible for managing and maintaining our company's external image from now on. And Chairman Song and the CEOs of our subsidiaries will also be involved in image making."
"Image making? What's that? Hey! Are we raising actors? Growing celebrities?"
"The 21st century will be an era where we eat and live with images. Corporate image is directly linked to sales. Anyway! Don't worry today and enjoy it. It's a good day, isn't it?"
On TV, after CEO Jo Dae-ho's inaugural speech ended, introductions of the heads of each subsidiary followed.
Now it's time for the reception to begin.
"Uncle. You should go and show your face. You're the rightful leader of this group, aren't you?"
"You? Won't you greet them?"
"I feel like I'll get caught up in annoying conversations. I saw some of the big bosses with grandfathers. I'll just skip it."
He wanted to avoid the uncomfortable looks he would receive from them. Isn't today a bit special?
Out of the A-jin, no... HW Group building.
The building still bears the name A-jin, but it will change soon.
It's a day to celebrate, but it's also a day to make just the right amount of flattery. He shouldn't forget his grandfather, who loves attention.
After all, there are many people who give stern advice and die, but are there not also those who die from flattering too much?
"Director, where would you like to go?"
Kim Yoon-sik, the assistant, opened the car door.
"To the Chairman's residence."
"Yes."
"Oh, by the way, if you pass by a supermarket, please buy me a bottle of Jinro soju."
"Soju? You don't even drink alcohol much..."
"On a day like today, we have to have a drink."
As elated and proud as he was, he wanted to drink to his heart's content and get drunk, but this was just the first step. Today, he would have just one drink. A light toast. Save the celebration for later. Success comes in abundance.
"Huh? Why are you here so early? The banquet must be in full swing by now."
As they entered the study, Grandfather was reading the news. The second founding ceremony of the A-jin Group was quite a big news event. It was continuously reported.
"Thanks to you, Grandfather, I've become the owner of the A-jin Group. How could I enjoy this alone? I came to share a celebratory drink with you."
I took a bottle of soju from a black plastic bag.
"What's this? Why did you bring the unlucky company's alcohol of all things?" Grandfather frowned as he looked at the Jinro soju bottle with a red label.
"Isn't this a liquor with a 70-year history? I'm sure the founder of Jinro, Chairman Jang Hak-yeop, never imagined that a single soju brand could last 70 years. And even though the company failed, this product is still selling, isn't it? Jinro soju won't disappear in the future."
"Even if the owner changes, some products never disappear... That's something I like. Haha. Alright, pour me a drink."
Could he sense my desire to say that Jinro soju is the future of Sunyang? Ah, it's a bit different. Perhaps because he inherited the bloodline, he doesn't see a change of ownership?
"Congratulations, our grandson. You've done well. When I was your age, all I had were a few gold teeth, but you, you've achieved this at the age of twenty.
"Well, Grandfather, you never had a grandfather like me who could give you a spacious ranch at the age of ten. Thank you. It's all thanks to you."
Grandfather shook his head. "No, there are plenty of chaebol grandsons in South Korea who owned multi-million won ranches when they were ten years old. Those guys are in their twenties or thirties now. Many may have forgotten what they received, but you're the only one who's been multiplied by a thousand or ten thousand times. What you have now isn't because your grandfather treated you well. It's something you built with your own strength. You can be proud of it. Haha."
Grandfather filled my glass with soju and clinked it lightly.
The two of us emptied our glasses in one gulp.
"This soju, I've drunk so much of it, but now I can't taste the flavor."
I felt the same way. How much soju and pork belly have I consumed? But it's not about the taste. I couldn't even remember the exhilaration of the first sip of soju.
Grandfather and I, even if it was just for a brief moment, remained silent, both staring at the red soju label.
It's a somewhat amusing sight. An old man and a young guy getting lost in the same memories.
Grandfather, breaking free from the memories, was the first to speak.
"How is the progress with Dae-ah Construction?"
"We're negotiating with the banks, making concessions gradually to proceed smoothly, and the team is calculating the specific amounts. As for the money Kang Moo-sung embezzled, we're in the process of recovering it as soon as it's discovered."
"The prosecutors must be working hard."
"We've been quite generous with their compensation."
Grandfather studied my complexion.
"But Kang, he's refusing to hand over the proceeds from the stock sale, isn't he?"
"Yes. Even if they threaten to arrest all his children and grandchildren for embezzlement of public funds, they remain unmoved. Money... It's terrifying."
Watching my agitated state, my grandfather spoke seriously.
"No, that's a mistaken thought."
"Really?"
"The proceeds from that stock sale are Kang's last weapon. I've judged that it's not the right time to use that weapon yet. Since you can only swing it once, I'll do it when the time is more decisive."
Swinging it here means giving up the proceeds from the stock sale.
"Could it be? Kang still has a chance?"
"If his entire family gets arrested and convicted, the stock proceeds will probably go to fines, won't they?"
"Right, but how could there be a chance?"
"Instead, you won't be able to touch that money either. It'll go into the national treasury."
I still didn't understand my grandfather's intent.