I Will Raise This Family to Greatness - Chapter 165

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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 165
One billion dollars….
Over one trillion won.
If I accepted this amount, Mark and I could live our entire lives without working, just enjoying ourselves.
I could easily establish an entertainment agency for Min-guk, and let Ji-hee pursue whatever studies she desired.
If I were content with modest satisfaction, I could build a house on the riverbank of some city and spend my life fishing—this money would make that possible.
But! With this money, I cannot surpass the Samjeon Group!
At the same time, they’re valuing FaceNote at merely one billion dollars?
FaceNote will grow into a group worth not one trillion won, but one trillion dollars—over one quadrillion won in Korean currency!
I stared at Jerry Chang.
In the business world, there are no permanent allies or enemies.
In my previous life, Chairman Jeon Jae-hyung always said this.
Never reveal your true intentions.
I forced a smile to my lips and scratched my head as if bewildered.
“Hmm… Jerry…. This proposal is quite unexpected.”
“Am I being too aggressive?”
“Aggressive investors succeed.”
I gave Jerry a slight compliment.
Jerry smiled with satisfaction. He was an amateur—too easily revealing his true thoughts.
Now was the time to buy myself some time.
“Jerry, Mark and I are co-CEOs, and… I never dreamed such a proposal would come. If Yahoo could send the proposed terms via email, I think I need to discuss this with Mark.”
“Of course. The proposal I made today is something I’ve thought carefully about for a long time. And I have another proposal to offer as well.”
What?
I waited for Jerry’s next words.
“I’d like Sung-guk and Mark, who developed FaceNote, to remain as FaceNote’s CEOs. Of course, all these conditions will be included in the contract.”
“That’s a very interesting proposal.”
I moistened my lips and lied.
[Not interesting at all! Jerry, how dare you try to get FaceNote for free!]
Jerry continued with a slightly flushed face.
“I’ll prepare the contract and send it within a few days.”
“Then let’s discuss the rest after I see the contract.”
Jerry extended his hand to me.
“Sung-guk, I hope this won’t be our last meeting.”
“I hope so too.”
I offered a business smile.
* * *
After Jerry Chang left, Mark and Lim Mi-mi stared at me with confused expressions.
“Sung-guk, are you going to accept Jerry Chang’s proposal?”
“Mark, first let me see the contract Jerry sends….”
[I’m not going to accept it. But….]
Mark’s face was already flushed with excitement.
“Sung-guk, that’s so much more than what Microsoft offered! Do you realize what we’ve accomplished in just a few years? A billion dollars… will I ever be able to touch that kind of money in my lifetime?”
[Mark, you have no idea… we’re going to handle far more than that.]
“Mark, let’s think about this once the contract arrives….”
“Yeah, Sung-guk…. But… I’m feeling pretty torn about it.”
Mark spoke honestly about what was weighing on his heart.
“We’ve been so exhausted from work lately. Working without weekends….”
I’d noticed Mark struggling recently, but I didn’t let it show.
Mark and FaceNote were inseparable.
[Mark looks so worn out… should I dangle a carrot in front of him?]
“Oh, Mark. What are you doing this weekend?”
“No plans.”
I’d completely cleared my schedule for the weekend to fulfill Min-guk’s dream of going to Disneyland.
I raised my eyebrows casually and asked Mark and Lim Mi-mi.
“If you two have nothing to do this weekend, want to go to Disneyland?”
“Sung-guk! Disneyland is the dream of all Americans.”
Mark snapped up my bait immediately.
In moments like this, I answered with composure and indifference.
“Mark, you’ve been to Disneyland before.”
“That was so long ago I don’t even remember it.”
Lim Mi-mi beside him answered urgently as well.
“Boss, Disneyland is a dream for North Korean people too!”
Mark and Lim Mi-mi nodded simultaneously.
[Sigh—this carrot is expensive.]
Mark caught the look in my eyes and patted my back.
“Sung-guk, you were muttering to yourself again, weren’t you?”
“I don’t really understand why people love Disneyland so much. It’s just crowded, and the rides aren’t even that fun.”
“Because there’s dreams and love there.”
Mark answered with a suddenly bright face.
But I felt a bit worried.
Disneyland wouldn’t be able to turn Mark’s heart around right now.
It could only buy us a little time.
[What do I do going forward?]
I let out a sigh.
* * *
A loud alarm went off from somewhere.
[That’s not my alarm sound….]
I felt Min-guk and Ji-hee, who had been sleeping on either side of me, bolt upright. Then they shook me awake.
“Oppa, it’s morning. Wake up.”
“Hyung! We have to go to Disneyland….”
What time is it, anyway?
I fumbled around and found my phone, then checked the time. 5 AM.
“The flight isn’t for hours yet….”
“Oppa, wake up. Come on?”
At the same moment, I heard movement from outside the room.
It was the sound of Mother and Father moving about busily after waking early.
There was no way I could sleep in under these circumstances.
Just then, Min-guk shouted to Ji-hee.
“This won’t do, Ji-hee. Come on, jump into bed!”
“Okay, oppa!”
Before the words even finished, Min-guk and Ji-hee leaped onto the bed and started bouncing.
“Hyung, you’re awake. Please stop jumping.”
“Jeon Ji-hee, grab my left arm.”
“Okay!”
“Hyung, get up already!”
Min-guk and Ji-hee each grabbed one of my arms and started pulling.
[These moments are best when I pretend to resist before getting up.]
I feigned reluctance as I took their hands and rose from bed.
“Hyung, you’ve really gotten lazy as you’ve gotten older.”
Min-guk grumbled while wiping sweat from his forehead.
I quickly ushered Min-guk and Ji-hee toward the bathroom.
“You two wash up first. Go!”
“Go!”
Min-guk and Ji-hee dashed into the bathroom.
Just then, my phone rang. It was Young Secretary Yang.
“Hyung, what’s going on so early in the morning?”
– Sung-guk, be ready by 7. We’ll prepare on our end too.
“Hyung, where are we going?”
– We’re all going to Disneyland together, remember? Oh, it seems your father didn’t mention it…. We’ve rearranged all the plane tickets and hotel reservations. Mark and Lim Mi-mi said they’re coming too, right?
“Hyung, when did you contact everyone?”
– You seemed busy with work, so I took care of everything. Is that okay?
“Thank you, hyung.”
– Don’t mention it. The Chairman spent all this as a commemoration of you staying here, so just say thank you to him later.
“Ah, yes. Then, see you later, hyung.”
I hung up and scratched my brow.
My dream of a simple family trip shattered completely.
* * *
“Wow. Hyung, is this first class?”
Min-guk exclaimed in delight, his wonder evident.
“Min-guk, I booked all of this.”
Jeon Tae-guk even pretended to be impressive in front of young Min-guk.
Before Jeon Tae-guk could show off any further, I quickly grabbed his shoulder.
“Tae-guk, thank you so much for going to all this trouble.”
“It’s nothing. By the way, have you ever been to Disneyland?”
“I went once with my family when I was younger.”
“Honestly, I go whenever I’m bored… it’s not that great, but I figured your family probably doesn’t have much experience with it, so I thought we’d go together. I’ve already booked a VIP tour, so you won’t have to wait in line.”
[I’ve done that too, Jeon Tae-guk.]
But I forced a smile anyway.
Either way, I’d saved myself some money.
“Thank you, hyung.”
Young Secretary Yang, witnessing this exchange, gave a subtle thumbs up.
Jeon Tae-guk shrugged and took his seat.
Mark and Lim Mi-mi sat down behind me.
The two of them seemed to have grown closer during their stay at the hotel with their families.
Just then, I heard Mark’s voice from behind.
“Mi-mi, let’s ride this together.”
“Wow, that looks like so much fun… Mark, but I also want to see this. Don’t guys usually not care about parades?”
“No, I like them!”
[Hmm… something’s suspicious….]
But I didn’t let it show.
It was about time Mark finally broke free from being single anyway.
* * *
The entire two-night, three-day Disneyland trip had come to an end.
Everyone was utterly exhausted and had collapsed into sleep when I opened my laptop.
I checked the emails I’d missed in the meantime.
There was an email from Jerry Chang. Naturally, it contained a detailed contract regarding the previous proposal.
I quickly shared the email with Mark and sent him a message.
– It’s the contract Jerry sent. We have a meeting at 10 AM tomorrow.
– Sung-guk, aren’t you tired?
– Not at all. By the way, we need to discuss this between ourselves, so tell Mi-mi to come in at 2 PM tomorrow.
– Uh… Mi-mi says she understands.
Wait a minute?
How is Mark answering for Mi-mi right away?
Could they possibly be together….
I shook my head vigorously.
And I glanced at the clock.
11 PM.
[Why are a man and woman together at this hour!]
* * *
“Sung-guk, you should eat breakfast before you go.”
“Father, I’m sorry. I have something important to do today. Let’s have dinner together after I get back from the office.”
“Sung-guk, we’re leaving the day after tomorrow. We have to eat dinner together. You understand, right?”
“….”
I stopped abruptly in my tracks.
[Has it already been a week….]
A pang of longing washed over me—not just a little, but quite a lot.
I’d always lived surrounded by a bustling family… but Min-guk was leaving… and everyone else would go too… which meant I’d be alone again, wouldn’t I?
“Oppa, are you going to the office?”
“Yeah.”
Ji-hee saw me off as I headed to the office.
[I won’t get to experience this kind of farewell anymore….]
At that moment, Ji-hee squeezed my hand tightly.
“Oppa, don’t go to the office. Play with Ji-hee instead, okay?”
“I wish I could….”
I really did wish I could.
Mother quickly scooped Ji-hee into her arms.
“Sung-guk, go to the office now. I’ll prepare your favorite jjajangmyeon and boiled pork for dinner later.”
“Mother, how will you make jjajangmyeon?”
“I’ll go to Chinatown later and buy the ingredients. You know our Sung-guk loves jjajangmyeon and the boiled pork your father makes more than anything in the world.”
“Okay, Mother… I’ll be back.”
I trudged toward the office with heavy steps.
* * *
Mark had come in earlier than expected and was reviewing the contract.
“Mark, you came in early….”
“Yeah… I wanted to read through the contract again…. Sung-guk, you’ve read it all, right?”
“Yeah….”
Mark was staring at the contract with a serious expression, reading it over and over again.
I’d dangled Disneyland as a carrot in front of Mark, but if he decided to sell, I would have to fight him on it.
“Mark, what do you think?”
“Honestly… I don’t like this contract.”
Mark answered firmly. It was an unexpected response.
In fact, Mark had seemed exhausted the day he met Jerry Chang and had shown great interest in the massive sum of one billion dollars.
“Mark, what don’t you like about it?”
“This clause. It says that as CEO, I’d have to work overtime and weekends when necessary.”
“Mark, we originally worked without distinction between weekdays and weekends anyway.”
“That was because we wanted to. I’m fine when I do things because I want to, but I absolutely hate being told what to do.”
He was rejecting one billion dollars just because of working hours?
“Mark, you could just sell everything and not take the CEO position. You could live your whole life playing with that money.”
“Sung-guk, no matter how much money a person has, they need work. And FaceNote is something you and I built together. I’m going to protect FaceNote to the very end.”
Mark had definitely changed somewhat over these past few days.
“Got it. I never planned to sell anyway. I’ll send Jerry a polite rejection email this afternoon.”
“Yeah, Sung-guk… Sung-guk, we’ve run out of coffee. I’ll go grab some.”
“Sure.”
Mark stood up from his desk and left.
A short while later, Lim Mi-mi arrived at work.
“Boss, what did you decide about Yahoo’s offer?”
“Lim Mi-mi, you already know, don’t you?”
“Huh? Boss, what do you mean by that?”
I smiled with ease.
Jerry Chang’s contract contained a clause stating that employment succession for any staff member other than Mark and myself would be difficult.
Mark’s absurd excuse to reject Yahoo’s offer was entirely because of this condition.
Disneyland truly was a place where dreams and love existed.
Lim Mi-mi looked slightly flustered.
“Lim Mi-mi, don’t worry. I’ll keep it a secret until Mark tells you himself. Thank you so much for dating Mark.”

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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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