I Will Raise This Family to Greatness - Chapter 232

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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 232
Does patience truly absolve even murder? Three times over?
Or am I simply restraining myself because he’s my blood brother, even though my anger is boiling over?
My hands trembled.
In that moment, Min-guk shot up from his seat and thrust a notebook toward me.
“What’s this?”
“Hyung, while I was at the office, I wrote down everyone who talked trash about you.”
“What?”
“Just look.”
I quickly opened the notebook.
Inside were dates, times, locations, and the exact names of everyone who had insulted me.
– December 2nd. 2:00 PM. Men’s Restroom. Blonde hair falling to the shoulders. Thick-framed glasses. Scruffy beard. Overpowering cologne smell whenever he passes. Acts like he’s cool all the time.
From the description alone, I could immediately tell who it was.
“It’s Justin.”
Just as Min-guk said, Justin had a very distinctive style, and he clearly thought it looked quite cool.
What Justin had said was recorded very well.
– Says the boss pushes work too hard because he’s a teenager with good stamina, calls him a workaholic.
And the person who had gossiped with him was also noted.
– Short hair, Black. Looks about two meters tall. When he smiles, he resembles Michael Jordan, so I told him, and after that, whenever he sees the boss, he gives him food.
It was Nick.
– Nick says the boss doesn’t date because he has free time, so the blonde guy counters that he can’t date rather than doesn’t, saying the boss is boring because he can’t date.
Snap—
I closed the notebook.
“Hyung, there’s way more in the back. Come on, flip through and read it all. It seems like most of them think you’re overworking them, and that’s why they can’t date.”
“Jeon Min-guk, who told you to investigate the staff?”
“I didn’t investigate—I just wrote down what I heard. Hyung, seriously, when I listen like I’m taking an English listening test, I hear everything. Or maybe I hear it better because it’s trash talk about you.”
Min-guk stroked his chin with his hand.
“Jeon Min-guk, your English still isn’t perfect. Are you sure about what you heard—whether it’s insults or compliments?”
“Hyung, I can at least distinguish the nuance between insults and compliments. But mostly they say they can’t date because they only work. That with your face, not being able to date is boring. Isn’t that exactly you?”
Min-guk blinked and looked up at me.
I clenched my teeth hard.
And I pushed the mock exam papers toward him again.
“Jeon Min-guk, with this level, don’t you think you can’t get into Harvard?”
“Tsk, changing the subject.”
“I’m not changing the subject—I’m returning to the original topic. Jeon Min-guk, are you going to study? Or start training again?”
“Hyung, it’s only been two weeks.”
“Math and science might be difficult if your foundation is weak, but with two weeks, you should’ve gotten perfect scores on memorization subjects!”
“See? You’re so talented that you don’t understand how hard it is for others.”
“Didn’t you confidently say your IQ is over 160?”
“Hyung, anyway, Korea’s break starts in two weeks. Let me think more carefully about my future here, so don’t pressure me so much. I’m not an employee getting a salary from you!”
Min-guk headed into his room with the test papers, looking deflated.
I even heard the click of the door lock.
[Good grief, what a handful.]
Whether in my past life or this one, having a younger brother was always a source of headaches.
* * *
Late that night, I called Bang Mu-hyuk.
Of course, it was early morning in Korea.
– Sung-guk, I heard the news. Min-guk is with you now, right?
“Yes, sir.”
– Min-guk’s been in a bit of a slump lately, so I was worried. That’s why I prepared this workshop for him… Anyway, is Min-guk doing okay?
“He said he wanted to study, so I had him study, but honestly, I don’t see much of a future in this approach.”
– The kid’s got a sharp mind, though.
Bang Mu-hyuk let out a heavy sigh.
“Sir, do you know why Min-guk’s been in such a slump lately?”
– Well, I’ve been bringing in more trainees. The competition between them has gotten pretty intense, and it seems like he’s been lost because of it.
[Exhausted by competition? How much competition will he face in life!]
I calmed my frustration and asked Bang Mu-hyuk carefully.
After all, when it came to managing trainees, Bang Mu-hyuk had far more experience than I did.
“Sir, what should we do in a situation like this?”
– Honestly, Min-guk just needs to get his head straight. Looking at his talent, it’s a shame he’s in this situation, but this path is really long and difficult. His own willpower is what matters most. If you force someone who doesn’t want to do it, they’ll leave eventually anyway. That’s why I didn’t contact him on purpose. I thought it would be better if Min-guk wandered around for a bit and came back on his own if he wanted to.
“So you’re saying I should just watch over him for now?”
– Right. He’s still young enough to wander and start again later, and he might even find what he really wants.
“I understand. Anyway, the whole family will be coming in January for President Barack’s inauguration. I’ll keep him with me until then and observe him carefully.”
– Okay… Sung-guk, don’t be too hard on Min-guk.
Of course, I’d already been hard on him plenty.
“I will.”
I answered calmly.
* * *
6 a.m. The alarm went off, and I heard Min-guk stirring awake.
Min-guk came into the living room and let out a long yawn when he saw me already up.
“Hyung, should I study math before breakfast?”
“Math isn’t a subject where you improve overnight. You have to work at it consistently every day.”
“Hyung, can I have just one cup of coffee?”
“You said you wouldn’t drink it because you’re still growing.”
“I’m going to raise my score on the mock exam in two weeks, no matter what!”
“Are you going to study at the office again this time?”
“Of course, hyung. There’s no better place to practice English listening comprehension.”
I handed Min-guk a freshly brewed cup of coffee.
Then I rummaged through my bag and pulled out a small digital camera.
“Hyung, what’s this?”
“You’ve done YouTube before, right? Try filming whatever you want with this. You can film yourself studying, or… maybe having the camera in front of you will help you focus better on your studies.”
“Film it for what, hyung?”
“You came to the States too late and don’t have any special talents. In America, you need all sorts of skills and extracurricular activities to get into college, so put effort into YouTube and document your school years.”
Whether Min-guk went to college or became part of Sevens and swept the world—YouTube would become the foundation of his life either way.
“Okay!”
Min-guk answered brightly.
* * *
First, I felt the need to improve YouTube’s streaming environment, just as Sam had suggested.
Only with an improved streaming environment could music videos from popular artists be uploaded and capture people’s attention.
But ultimately, it all came down to money.
“Sam, I’m thinking about offering HD-quality video streaming. Is there a way to do it?”
“HD quality….”
“As a regular user, there are still limitations, so if we want to run music videos from major talent agencies, we need at least this level of quality, right?”
“Ah, that’s true, but… the thing is… we’re really short on staff to launch that service. Sung-guk.”
“I understand. I’ll reinforce the team soon. For now, keep working with your staff, Sam. While we’re expanding personnel, let me see if I can get support from FaceNote to fill the gap.”
“Yes, Sung-guk.”
After Sam left, I called Sergey immediately.
“Sergey, it’s Sung-guk.”
– I’ve heard YouTube’s been running incredibly hard lately. It seems to have found some vitality again.
[Spare me the compliments.]
“Sergey, I need to expand our staff… Can you either send Google employees or connect me with investors?”
For a moment, there was silence on the other end of the line.
Then I heard Sergey clear his throat a few times.
– Sung-guk… I’m sorry. We don’t have much support we can offer.
“Sergey, Google still owns most of YouTube’s shares. What do you mean Google won’t provide support?”
– You know how negative everyone is about YouTube. And with you buying shares and taking the CEO position….
Sergey Brin didn’t say anything more.
“Sergey, so Google’s dumping this on me to catch its breath right now? Now that it doesn’t matter if it goes under, you’re fine with it?”
– Sung-guk… it’s not like that.
“Sergey, I’m going to do my best with what I can do. Think about revising the contract this month!”
I hung up in anger.
[I knew I couldn’t trust those Russians!]
The fortunate thing was that the contract had a clause allowing modifications if user numbers increased during the agreement period.
I had asked for increased equity rather than incentives, and my share increased by 3% for every million new users.
The reason we could contract in million-user increments was because YouTube’s current situation was that dire.
From a future perspective, this was a masterstroke.
I calmed my anger and began searching the internet.
The first people who would utilize YouTube once we started offering high-definition streaming.
They were none other than the major talent agencies.
* * *
“Hyung, why are the record labels searching for something?”
“Jeon Min-guk, you’re not studying and doing something else?”
“Hyung, it’s mealtime right now.”
[If only he’d stop talking!]
“Oh! Hyung… isn’t this where Michael Jackson released an album?”
“Yeah, that’s right.”
Before I could even finish my answer, Min-guk mimicked Michael Jackson’s moonwalk.
“Hyung, I’m really good at this, aren’t I?”
“Jeon Min-guk, didn’t you say you were done with dancing and music and would focus on studying?”
“Michael Jackson is just our hero. Just because I can’t become a singer doesn’t mean I can’t listen to music. Hyung, are you going there?”
“Yeah.”
“When?”
“I have an appointment set for the day after tomorrow.”
“Hyung….”
Min-guk grabbed my arm with a pitiful voice.
And he looked up at me the way he did when he was three years old.
“Hyung… can’t you take me with you?”
“Just going there doesn’t mean you’ll get to see Michael Jackson.”
“I know. But still, this record label isn’t a joke—famous singers have released albums here. I just want to see it for myself.”
“Hmm….”
I paused for a moment.
I needed to set conditions for Min-guk.
“Hyung, are you thinking about setting conditions right now?”
[This kid… he’s not ordinary.]
“Hyung, I’ll study really hard after we come back from here! Just trust me once.”
“Of course you’ll study hard. Until President Barack Obama’s inauguration ceremony ends, you decide your own future. And you know you’ll need to write a contract stating you’ll commit your life to that plan for the next ten years, right?”
“Yeah!”
Min-guk nodded his head.
I booked two airplane tickets.
* * *
In front of Sony Music Headquarters in New York.
Min-guk, still smaller than me but now approaching the mid-170cm range, clung right behind me and gazed up at Sony Music in awe.
“Hyung, it’s amazing….”
I went to the lobby to confirm my appointment and pointed to Min-guk.
“This is my younger brother who came with me. I had requested a special tour program for him.”
“Ah, I see. We’ll proceed with a special tour program while you’re in your meeting.”
I grabbed Min-guk.
“Follow along well, and if there’s any English you don’t understand, just smile and shrug your shoulders. Got it?”
“Yes, sir!”
Min-guk excitedly followed the staff member who would be conducting the tour program.
I smoothed down my hoodie and headed to the elevator to meet with the investment manager.
* * *
“So Michael Jackson really comes here, and Whitney Manhattan too?”
“Of course. They’re all singers who’ve released albums with us. We do a lot of promotions, so they often stop by to chat.”
Min-guk gazed around Sony Music Headquarters with wide, curious eyes.
The manager pointed to a space with his finger.
“That’s where Michael stays when he comes.”
“There’s a space just for that?”
“Michael’s particular about things. He only meets people in familiar surroundings.”
“Is there any chance he might come today?”
“I don’t know Michael’s schedule that well. If it’s empty, I’ll show you around.”
“Really?”
Min-guk followed the manager toward the space where Michael Jackson stayed whenever he visited Sony Music Headquarters.
Just then, a sound echoed from the empty room.

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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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