The X-Cop security guards grabbed Kim Han-sang and dragged him out through the back door. He was quiet when he was being held by the security guards, but as soon as they let him go outside the door, he started shouting again.
“You assault people like this in a country ruled by law? I’m a lawyer from a law firm!”
Anyone listening would think being a lawyer is a government post.
Ellie said with a bright smile.
“That’s good to hear. I’m a lawyer too.”
“A-are you impersonating a lawyer right now?”
He probably didn’t expect such a beautiful woman to be a lawyer.
Instead of explaining, Ellie handed him her business card. The business card read “Golden Gate Korea Branch, Legal Team 1 Leader”.
“Anyway, it’s no use even if you offer me billions of won. I’ll never settle.”
He’s not indignant about being hit, but thinking of taking this opportunity to make a fortune?
Ellie said to him.
“Settlement? We don’t really have any intention of settling either.”
At those words, Kim Han-sang was taken aback.
“F-fine. Let’s go all the way then. The guy who hit me was Oh Hyun-joo’s younger brother, right? I’m going to report everything to the media and post it online too. What era are we living in, with this ‘gapjil’ [abuse of power]? Is money everything?”
Korea is indeed noisy these days because of gapjil.
Even if the other person is a bad guy, hitting someone is clearly wrong.
But still…
“Weren’t you the one who used your hands first? Have you considered how shocked the mother and the baby in her womb must have been?”
“Wh-what? What are you talking about?”
“You’re not going to make the excuse that you didn’t know, are you? I wonder what people will say when they find out that a current lawyer forcibly grabbed the hand of a pregnant woman and yelled at her.”
“W-wait a minute. Is that really true?”
Ellie pretended not to hear him and said to me.
“I’m worried. These days, Branch Manager’s morning sickness is severe and her health isn’t very good either.”
I chimed in from the side.
“I know, right? It would be a big problem if she gets shocked by this incident and develops health issues.”
“I think we should have her admitted to the hospital immediately for a thorough examination. Get a medical certificate, and the legal team should step in and handle it well. She won’t be able to work during her rest period, so we should calculate the Branch Manager’s annual salary and claim damages for that amount.”
The base salary of the Korea Branch Manager is less than $10 million. But with bonuses and stock options added, she received about $30 million last year alone. As the Korea branch grows and Golden Gate stock prices rise, it will increase even more this year.
“Even if she’s hospitalized for just ten days, it’ll be over 1 billion won.”
At our conversation, the man’s face turned completely pale.
“H-huh! O-one billion won?”
It’s just that the amounts we’re dealing with these days have become too large, but 1 billion won is a sum that ordinary people can hardly save even if they work their whole lives. How much would a lawyer’s salary be at a law firm, not even a successful major law firm?
Ellie was now wearing a cold smile.
“Why are you so surprised? If we calculate not only assault and intimidation, but also business interruption and losses to the company, it would be several times that amount. First, can I have your business card? You said you would sue us for assault, so we’ll send you the CCTV footage. Let’s settle the rest in court.”
Then he pretended to rummage through his pockets and said.
“I-I think I left my business card at home.”
“Oh, really? Then I’ll contact your law firm. Which law firm did you say it was again?”
“W-well, that is… Ah! I’m sorry, I have urgent business to attend to, so I must be going!”
He slowly backed away and then turned around and ran away.
I laughed, watching him run away.
“As expected, the best way to deal with people who like law is with law.”
Ellie said in a voice that was still not fully relieved of anger.
“If he has any sense, he won’t be able to show up in front of Jessica again.”
***
Hyun-joo, having moved to the branch manager’s office, looked at the blonde young man in front of her. He was tall, had a good physique, and was handsome.
Perhaps because of that, there are more than a few female employees in the company who like him. I heard that there were even a few who confessed their feelings and asked him to date them.
An awkward silence flowed for a moment.
Hyun-joo reached out her hand habitually, then paused. Not being able to smoke cigarettes, which she had been smoking for over 15 years, felt frustrating.
While she was pondering about what to say, Henry opened his mouth first.
“Are you feeling alright?”
“Yes. I’m perfectly fine.”
I was just a little surprised.
Hyun-joo unconsciously stroked her belly.
“Is it really my child?”
Hyun-joo nodded.
“Yes, it is.”
“But why didn’t you say anything? I also have responsibility and rights regarding that child.”
Hyun-joo sincerely apologized.
“I’m sorry. I sincerely didn’t want to make things difficult for you. And I didn’t want to surprise you either.”
She pretended to be fine in front of others, but in fact, when she first found out about the pregnancy, she was unbelievably flustered.
‘Pregnancy is also a first for me, you know.’
If a shock like the financial crisis had struck, wouldn’t she have handled it better than now?
Henry paused, about to say something.
Amidst the flowing silence, all sorts of expressions flashed across his face. Looking at those expressions, Hyun-joo felt like she knew what he wanted to say and what emotions he was feeling.
“Were you planning to handle everything alone?”
“Yes.”
“I won’t let you. It’s not just because of that day or a sense of responsibility for the child.”
He confessed everything honestly. From having a crush on her alone all this time, to asking Jin-hoo and Taek-gyu for help several times.
‘But why didn’t I know?’
No, it wasn’t like she didn’t know at all. She had noticed that he had feelings for her to some extent. However, she just thought it was a common liking between people of the opposite sex, and didn’t know it was such a passionate love.
‘Is this why I’ve been told I have no eye for men?’
Surprised, Hyun-joo stammered.
“D-do you like me that much?”
Henry nodded.
“Yes, I do. You are my everything.”
“Since when?”
“Since the first time I met you. From that moment on, I couldn’t see anyone else.”
“R-really?”
Instantly, her face flushed.
This wasn’t the first time she had heard such a confession. When she was working in the Asia branch, she had received dating proposals or marriage proposals from fellow employees or Hong Kong tycoons several times.
But this time, the feeling was completely different.
Henry stood up from his seat, knelt on one knee, and said.
“Please marry me.”
***
While Hyun-joo noona and Henry were talking, we waited in the meeting room.
“How long has it been?”
“Two and a half hours.”
Taek-gyu jumped up.
“But why is it so quiet? Should we sneak up and check?”
“Wait a little longer. They must have a lot of catching up to do.”
After waiting for another hour, Hyun-joo noona called us to the branch manager’s office. Seeing Henry smiling, it seemed things had gone well.
Hyun-joo noona told us that they had decided to live together and raise the child together for now.
“What about marriage?”
At Taek-gyu’s question, Noona answered.
“That’s going to be a bit later. It’s hard to have a wedding right away anyway.”
It’s the wedding of the heir to Golden Gate and the head of Golden Gate Korea and the third-largest shareholder of OTK Company. This is no exaggeration to call it the wedding of the century in the financial world.
Just preparing for a proper wedding would take months. If celebrities from all over the world are to attend, the schedule would have to be coordinated in advance.
Prominent investors and American politicians would attend as guests. Even if not the president, the governor of New York State would definitely come. (Golden Gate headquarters is in New York State).
By then, she would be heavily pregnant, so if they were to get married, it would be better to prepare slowly and do it after giving birth.
The two of them first went to meet Noona’s parents. Taek-gyu also attended as family at the gathering. Henry being a foreigner and younger than Hyun-joo was not a problem at all. (The fact that Henry is the heir to Golden Gate was decided to be kept secret for the time being).
They were a bit surprised to hear that she was already pregnant, but they were soon delighted and treated Henry like a son-in-law, they said.
“From our parents’ perspective, just the fact that Noona has a boyfriend is more than welcome. They were really worried that she would just work and work and die alone when she got old.”
Henry’s parents are also scheduled to come to Korea soon. Hyun-joo noona had offered to go to the US, but Henry stopped her, saying it could be dangerous for the baby.
And I received a call from the CEO of Golden Gate. James shouted in disbelief.
[Is it really true that a child has been conceived between Henry and Branch Manager Jessica Oh? I’m not mishearing, am I?]
“Yes. That’s how it turned out.”
James was overjoyed.
[Haha! Henry’s child! It was my wish to see great-grandchildren before I die, this is really great news!]
Somehow, I get the feeling we might see a few more in the future.
James offered to donate his penthouse in Manhattan and his mansion in Beverly Hills. Hyun-joo noona declined, saying it was okay, but he asked her to accept it as a gift for the baby, so she reluctantly agreed to accept.
I once read an article that a Chinese tycoon gifted his daughter-in-law, who had given birth to a son, a house worth tens of billions of won, and it seems American tycoons are no less impressive.
Taek-gyu said.
“I should gift them a house to live in Korea.”
Now that a baby is on the way, it’s unreasonable to keep living in a hotel. I agree that they need a house to live in separately.
“For a good house, it’s either a penthouse or a mansion.”
“Wouldn’t a detached house be better for the baby to run around in later?”
Mansions have limited supply and demand, so it’s not easy to buy and sell them. This is especially true if you limit it to the Gangnam area. (This is similar for penthouses). Moreover, properties are not directly listed on the real estate market, and are sometimes traded only among acquaintances.
We also would have had a hard time buying this house if Chairman Chae Young-eun hadn’t been arrested.
“Should we just buy a few villas, tear them all down, and build a mansion?”
“That would take too long.”
For things like this, it’s best to ask someone you know.
I immediately contacted Chairman Im Jin-yong.
“Do you have any decent properties for sale?”
Then he readily said.
[I’ll look into it for you. There might be someone who’s willing to sell if the price is right.]
“Please do.”
The next day, I immediately received a call from Chairman Im Jin-yong.
[Shinsegi Group Vice Chairman Jang Yong-cheol moved to Seopangyo last year, and his previous house in Samseong-dong is vacant.]
Chairman Im Jin-yong and Vice Chairman Jang Yong-cheol are relatives and friends. He had moved a year ago, but there was no urgent reason to sell it, so he hadn’t listed it on the market yet, he said.
The location is in the same block as our house, about a 5-minute walk.
[He said he has the intention to sell if you need it.]
“That’s a relief.”
We went to look at the house ourselves.
It was built a while ago, but it was built well with good materials, so it was neat and tidy. Even while the house was vacant, a caretaker resided there and continued to manage it.
The current market price is about 20 billion won.
Even though it’s smaller than our house, the price is similar because real estate prices have risen a lot in the meantime.
Vice Chairman Jang Yong-cheol took the time to come to the OTK building in person.
Even though we offered to pay a premium, he declined, saying that 20 billion won at market price was enough.
“It’s alright. Just having a connection with CEO Kang Jin-hoo and Vice CEO Oh Taek-gyu through this opportunity is enough for me.”
As expected of someone in business, he has a different sense. He seems to be trying to build a relationship with us rather than getting a few billion won more right now.
As soon as we stamped the contract, we immediately started interior construction. There wasn’t much to fix, and the construction is expected to be completed in a month.
We all looked around the house under construction together.
Taek-gyu suddenly asked with a puzzled expression.
“Come to think of it, usually people get married and then live together, and then get pregnant, right?”
“That’s right.”
“But why is our Noona getting pregnant first, then living together, and then getting married?”
“Come to think of it, you’re right.”
Ellie smiled.
“Come on, what does the order matter? If the ending is good, everything is good.”
“That’s true too.”
Taek-gyu said, looking proud.
“I was worried about when our Noona would date and when she would get married, but it worked out so well.”
