I Will Raise This Family to Greatness - Chapter 126

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Chapter 126
I sat alone in the Airport Lounge, gazing blankly out the window.
Since it was a night flight, darkness had already settled outside.
I watched as the airplane’s lights illuminated the night sky as it soared upward.
[I’m leaving Korea again.]
In my previous life, whenever I left my family to go abroad, my heart felt light and unburdened. But in this life, I felt a pang of reluctance every time I departed.
Min-guk, who had grown bold enough to tease his older brother, and Ji-hee, who called me the best older brother—whether she meant it or not—both weighed on my mind.
[Sigh… I never thought I’d miss Jeon Sung-guk’s siblings like this.]
But what troubled me most was seeing my parents age with each visit.
Mother and Father were already in their mid-thirties.
Lost in sentiment, I took a long sip of milk.
[Ahh—. Milk really is perfect for moments like this. Oh, that’s right! Min-guk poked me about something….]
Before I left home, Min-guk had slipped a letter into my pocket, telling me to read it once I got to the United States.
[When did that kid even write this?]
With a warm smile, I unfolded the letter. It read:
– Hyung, don’t ever forget our contract. I’ll study hard and wait for you!
[That’s it? That’s all there is?]
I checked both sides of the letter, but there was nothing more.
I took another long sip of milk.
For some reason, the corners of my mouth quietly lifted.
[Is Min-guk actually becoming a decent person….]
* * *
“Sung-guk! It’s been forever! Come here!”
The moment I opened the Dormitory door, Mark came rushing over and wrapped me in a tight embrace.
[Back off, Mark. I’ll pass on the male hug.]
I gently pushed Mark away.
“I saw on Face Paper that you were flying in and I’ve been waiting forever. Sung-guk, you look even more mature since the last time I saw you.”
[I was already mature to begin with.]
Mark seemed a bit gaunt, probably from the aftereffects of his European trip.
“Mark, you’ve lost weight. How was the trip?”
“It was just… okay.”
Mark’s energy suddenly deflated.
“Mark, wasn’t the trip fun?”
“Reality was so different from my expectations. You know how you imagine things? Like maybe my soulmate is sitting in the seat next to me on the plane, or I’ll meet my destined person at my destination. That kind of romantic fantasy.”
Mark was something of a romantic when you got to know him. Of course, his biggest weakness was that he had no one to be romantic with.
“Mark, haven’t you been watching too many movies?”
“Maybe. I spent the whole trip eating nothing but bread to save money and walking everywhere, so I couldn’t even tell if it was a trip or some kind of endurance training. And the hostels were absolutely terrible. How are dozens of people supposed to sleep in one room? Guys coming in late, drunk and loud, and others constantly eyeing my backpack. It was truly awful.”
Mark clicked his tongue in disgust.
[I should cheer him up a bit.]
I opened my bag and handed Mark the precious seaweed that Mother had packed for me.
“Mark, this is a gift for you.”
“This! That thing! What’s it called again? That flat green sea creature….”
“Seaweed.”
“Oh, that’s it!”
Mark had devoured seaweed like a madman the last time he visited Seoul.
“Only you could think of something like this, Sung-guk.”
[Getting emotional over such a small thing….]
But I didn’t see my roommate Dennis anywhere.
“Mark, where’s Dennis?”
“Dennis went out to grab pizza. He said he’d show you real American taste as soon as you arrived. But honestly, Sung-guk, I prefer Korean flavors. This green stuff is totally my style.”
“Mark, that’s great with beer too.”
“Sung-guk, how do you know that?”
Mark suddenly stared at me with wide eyes.
“My father told me.”
[Phew, I got through that one.]
“Ah, I see. Your parents are doing well, right? Your siblings too?”
“Yeah.”
Click.
The door swung open and Dennis walked in carrying pizza.
“Sung-guk! It’s been forever!”
[Anyone watching would think we’re a separated family reuniting. Why are they all like this?]
Dennis wrapped me in a tight embrace.
“Dennis, I saw those couple photos you took with Michelle.”
“What do you mean couple photos?”
[Kissing and hugging in photos—if that’s not couple photos, what is? Dennis, you’re going to sweat bullets trying to erase those traces later.]
Mark had already opened the pizza box and handed me a slice.
“Sung-guk, welcome back to America!”
I took a bite of the pizza.
[This really is American taste.]
It was the moment when returning to America felt real.
* * *
– Finally back at the Dormitory!
I logged into Face Paper and changed my location back to Harvard Dormitory.
Immediately, countless comments from friends poured in.
– Sung-guk, when are you going to show us that rib dance?
– Should we throw a wild party before school starts? We’ll have beer, you’ll have milk. Fair, right?
[Tsk tsk. How childish… I don’t have time to waste on parties anymore.]
– Did you have any romantic encounters in Korea?
[Romantic? Not a chance. Life was always meant to be lived alone.]
I drank my milk in solitary silence.
Barely moments after I updated my location, Peter called.
– Sung-guk, welcome back!
“Thank you for welcoming me.”
– Oh, Sung-guk. I was thinking of coming by this weekend to help you set up the studio near school. Does that work for you?
“You’re coming in person?”
– Of course. Grace will be coming with me too.
[Work is just an excuse—it’s a honeymoon, Peter.]
Peter’s voice carried a cheerfulness I hadn’t heard when we first met. Perhaps love truly does change a person.
– And there’s a venture expo in San Francisco during the last week of February. How about going with Mark?
“Sounds good.”
– Then I’ll book your flights and reserve a hotel. See you this weekend.
“Yes, Peter.”
I hung up the phone.
At the San Francisco venture expo, would I get to see Elon again?
* * *
The studio near school—a modest fifteen-pyeong space—became Mark’s and my first office.
Located on the second floor, it offered a view of towering trees just beyond the window, close enough to touch.
“It’s quiet around here, and the school’s nearby, so it’ll be convenient to work while coming and going.”
Peter was right—it was quiet and safe.
“Since you’ll be balancing your studies, I didn’t set up a cot so you won’t overexert yourselves. You need to sleep properly in the dormitory. You’re still at an age where you need your rest, Sung-guk.”
Peter and Grace had personally brought desks, chairs, computers, and all sorts of furniture.
“Mark, I had the computer built to your specifications first. Do you like it?”
“Yes! Now I can really scale up Face Paper.”
Mark immediately powered on the computer and began tinkering with it.
Mark always came alive in front of a computer.
Peter and Grace watched him with satisfaction.
“By the way, Sung-guk. Don’t you think it’s time to change the name of Face Paper?”
“Yes, now that we have an office, we should change from Face Paper to FaceNote, like Charlie suggested.”
“Charlie won’t come back later demanding equity because he came up with the name, will he? Ha ha.”
Peter said it as a joke.
[Peter, I’ve already covered that—I drew up an agreement with Charlie. I gave him the inspiration for the touchscreen method; he shouldn’t be petty about just providing a name.]
“Oh, and… this is just a suggestion from me. Neither of you is completely dropping out of Harvard anyway.”
“Right.”
“That’s correct.”
Mark and I answered simultaneously.
We both planned to balance our studies with FaceNote, our newly named venture.
“Then, what about hiring one employee?”
Peter’s suggestion was completely unexpected.
“An employee?”
Mark scratched his head.
Mark was naturally so shy that he already seemed worried about fitting in with the other unfamiliar staff members.
Mark glanced at me.
“Sung-guk, what do you think?”
“Mark, I honestly think we should hire at least one person.”
“Really…?”
Mark’s voice grew quieter.
“As FaceNote grows, we’ll naturally hire more staff anyway. Since we’re the managers, wouldn’t it be better to hire one person now and get some practice, rather than fumbling through employee management later?”
[Of course, I’ve managed companies with tens of thousands of employees in my past life, so this is no problem for me. But you, Mark—that’s the issue.]
Peter supported me as well.
“I completely agree with Sung-guk! I was thinking we should hire someone to help with the work since you two need to focus on your studies… Honestly, as FaceNote grows, you two will naturally shift from hands-on work to management roles. It’s good to start practicing now.”
“I’m in favor!”
I raised my hand firmly.
[Come on, Mark. Just agree already!]
“Um… I agree too.”
Mark answered somewhat hesitantly.
“So, where should we find talent? Should we ask Charlie to recommend someone from his staff?”
I shook my head at Peter’s suggestion.
“Peter, I have an idea.”
“What is it?”
Mark asked curiously as well.
“We’ll post a job listing directly on FaceNote. We need someone who knows FaceNote well more than anything else.”
“Sung-guk, that’s a great idea!”
Mark brightened up and agreed, his earlier hesitation fading.
Peter looked satisfied too.
“I can’t keep up with how young people think these days. Sung-guk, I completely agree with you!”
“Then I’ll post an announcement changing our site name to FaceNote, and also post a job listing for a programmer to work with us.”
“Sung-guk, can I conduct the interviews myself?”
“Of course.”
[I’ve done so many interviews in my past life that I’m tired of them.]
I readily agreed.
“Wow, this is going to be so fun.”
“Let’s post the job listing today and have resumes sent to Mark’s email while we’re in San Francisco.”
“Resumes… I really feel like a businessman now, Sung-guk.”
Mark was thrilled.
“Let’s post the announcement on both your FaceNote and mine. How about that?”
“I already turned on my computer to write it. Sung-guk, get to work!”
“Got it!”
I quickly sat down at my computer.
And I posted an announcement about two major changes to Face Paper.
– We are changing the name of Face Paper to FaceNote starting today. Who do you think suggested this name?
– Sung-guk, if you’re posting a quiz, you need to offer a prize too.
Mark quickly left a comment.
“I’ll decide the prize!”
– Whoever guesses the person I suggested gets lunch with Sung-guk! Of course, Sung-guk is paying.
“Mark, what kind of move is that?”
“Right? Who told you to post a quiz anyway? I should be the one posting the job listing first.”
Mark quickly posted the job listing.
Tap tap tap tap. Mark’s fingers flew across the keyboard as he composed the announcement.
“Wait, Mark.”
“What?”
“How much salary are we offering?”
“Right… I didn’t think about that.”
Mark and I both turned to look at Peter, our investor.
Peter opened his mouth with a pleased expression.
“We’ll match Silicon Valley’s starting salary!”
“Wow, that’s amazing. Peter, can’t I just get hired?”
“Mark, I’ll pay your salary. Just transfer your stake to me.”
I made the proposal jokingly.
[If he actually falls for it and transfers it, I’d be grateful.]
Mark tilted his head for a moment, then gave me a suspicious look.
“Sung-guk, you’re testing me, aren’t you?”
“Who knows.”
I shrugged.
[This guy Mark has gotten sharper.]
In the meantime, I quickly typed up the job listing myself and hit enter.
Click!
Mark looked at me in surprise a moment too late.
“Sung-guk, what? I was going to post it first!”
“Who told you to get distracted?”
I shrugged and checked the job listing.
– FaceNote is looking for programmers to join us. Gender, age, and education are irrelevant. Anyone interested, please send your resume to Mark’s email
[email protected]
Thank you!

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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