I Will Raise This Family to Greatness - Chapter 261

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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 261
The Spectator Seating was, in a word, a microcosm of not just American but global economics.
The front rows were filled with world-renowned entrepreneurs including Bill Gates, Elon Musk, Sergey Brin, and Charlie Jobs.
Among them, I could also spot Jeon Tae-guk.
At his request to stand shoulder-to-shoulder with these titans, I had arranged a seat for him.
Then the live viewers began flooding into YouTube.
I kept monitoring the YouTube situation while warming up in the Waiting Room.
Mark, who was sweating far more profusely than I was during my warm-up, kept pestering me from the side.
“Sung-guk, if you feel like it’s too much, just throw in the white towel, okay?”
“Mark, you know you’ve told me that more than ten times already, right?”
“I’m just too worried.”
“This is a legitimate match. It’s not the kind where one person has to die for it to end.”
“Yeah, I know. But Mike Tyson is still a heavyweight champion.”
“A former champion.”
George Foreman gripped my shoulder.
“Sung-guk, go in with that mindset. Understood?”
[Ah, so this is what boxing coaches always do before a match.]
George Foreman shouted at me as if casting a spell.
“Sung-guk, you can do this! You hear me? Sung-guk, Mike Tyson is nothing!”
[George, you really know how to make me lose all sense of perspective.]
I would certainly lose this match.
I might even take punches until I was nearly dead.
As Mark suggested, I could throw in the white towel and concede.
But there’s no way to determine the outcome without attempting something first.
That’s why I’m here now, about to face Mike Tyson in the Boxing Ring.
“Now, the blue corner!”
The announcer’s voice echoed from the Boxing Ring.
The timing for me to step into the ring was approaching.
George Foreman gripped my shoulder one last time.
“Sung-guk, do you remember what I told you?”
“Yes.”
“Mike Tyson prefers offense over defense. Especially in a special match like this, he’ll be even more aggressive. He’ll probably throw punches at you relentlessly. Your fists won’t even faze him. Mike’s a right-hander. Wait for the moment when he extends his right hand wide. Got it?”
“Yes, George.”
I heard the announcer’s voice calling me from outside.
“Challenging former heavyweight champion Mike Tyson today is Jeon Sung-guk—the representative of FaceNote and YouTube, and the charismatic man mentioned by Ashley Holmes!”
* * *
“Let’s exchange greetings!”
Following the announcer’s cue, Mike Tyson and I bumped our gloved fists together.
Mike Tyson gave a slight push with his body, initiating the psychological warfare.
I stood my ground, refusing to be pushed back.
The spectators erupted in cheers from the Spectator Seating.
Mike Tyson grinned with his mouthguard in place.
“Sung-guk, don’t push yourself too hard.”
“Mike, I can’t afford to be careless.”
“I was planning to go easy, but looks like I’ll have to teach you a real lesson today.”
“Is it just that you’ve lost your edge now that your prime as a heavyweight champion has passed?”
Our entire exchange carried to the Spectator Seating.
Everyone threw in their own comments, though of course none of it reached my ears.
Scared?
Despite the bravado spilling from my lips, I was absolutely terrified.
Who wouldn’t be frightened standing across from Mike Tyson?
Mike Tyson stared at me as if I were a mouse held in his palm.
“Sung-guk, I’ll have you throwing in the towel before the first round ends.”
“Mike, remember that everything you’re saying is going out live right now. Once words leave your mouth, you can’t take them back.”
I gave his shoulder a subtle shove, and Mike Tyson pushed back aggressively.
The announcer separated us.
“Alright, enough mind games, you two. Let’s begin the match!”
Ding.
Round one commenced.
Mike Tyson approached with heavy, deliberate footwork.
The Mike Tyson I faced in the Boxing Ring was a formidable presence—even the smallest movement radiated threat.
I quickly adjusted my footwork, watching his every move intently.
Then it happened.
Just as George Foreman had predicted, Mike Tyson unleashed a barrage of punches.
I raised my guard to defend.
Thud—thud—thud—thud—
As the relentless combinations continued, sympathetic groans echoed through the Spectator Seating.
Thud—thud—thud—
After taking the onslaught, the referee quickly stopped Mike Tyson and checked on me.
“Are you alright? Can you continue?”
The Spectator Seating fell silent, while Mike Tyson strutted around the Boxing Ring with unbridled confidence.
My answer was already decided.
“Even if I fall, I’ll fall in this Boxing Ring.”
* * *
– Sung-guk’s really going to take more punishment after that?
– He supposedly had special training with George Foreman for a month, but all he got was a better physique. Who knew boxing was such a visually rewarding sport?
– “Even rotten fish is still fish”—that saying comes to mind. Mike Tyson really is a former heavyweight champion.
– Why even hold a match when the outcome is so obvious?
YouTube’s live broadcast viewership had already surpassed 100 million.
Mark and Lim Mi-mi watched nervously, their eyes darting between the live feed and the Boxing Ring.
“Mark, isn’t the Restaurant Owner going to get seriously hurt like this? Shouldn’t we stop him?”
“Mi-mi… the Sung-guk I know would never throw in the towel, even if he collapsed on the ring. And if we stop this match, he’ll hate us forever.”
“True… the Restaurant Owner’s got a grudge that lasts forever, doesn’t he?”
Beside them, Jessie and the Photographer from Bella were continuously capturing images of Sung-guk and Mike Tyson on the ring.
All the while, Jessie cheered relentlessly for Sung-guk.
“Sung-guk! Just a little more! You can do this!”
That was the moment.
Mike Tyson approached with a step, preparing to throw his final punch before the first round ended.
* * *
Mike Tyson’s approach began to appear in slow motion.
George Foreman had shown me a way to land even a single punch on Mike Tyson, and we had devised a plan.
It was to exploit his carelessness.
– Mike’s got everything going for him, but he has a tendency to drop his guard. Especially when he’s facing a weaker opponent.
– You mean he won’t even properly defend against my punches, George?
– Of course not. He’ll probably think your strikes are nothing more than a child’s massage.
– So how should I do this, George?
– You have to make Mike drop his guard. Get on that ring and take a beating from the start.
That’s right. This was our plan.
First, get beaten mercilessly.
Second, get beaten even more mercilessly.
Third, wait for the moment when Mike Tyson lets his guard down.
I had already executed the first and second parts of the plan.
I had been beaten to the point where I couldn’t take any more.
Blood streamed from the cut above my eyebrow, and my face was beginning to swell.
I raised my guard as Mike Tyson approached.
Mike Tyson probably wanted to end this match now, with so little of the first round remaining. He must be desperate to knock me out and become the victor on the ring.
Mike Tyson likely believed I would try to survive the first round by defending.
But that was a grave miscalculation.
I didn’t care if this match ended in the first round or dragged on to the planned three rounds.
My objective was singular.
To land one punch on Mike Tyson’s face.
Mike Tyson approached roughly, spewing words as he came.
“Sung-guk, let’s end this now.”
“….”
I deceived Mike Tyson by feigning a raised guard while clenching my teeth.
That was the moment.
Mike Tyson threw a massive right-hand punch at me. It was clearly a punch with all his power behind it.
And in that instant, I quickly dropped my guard and threw a punch with all my strength at the exposed left side of his face.
Crack!
Thud!
The loud crash of two fists colliding echoed through the air, and I crumpled onto the canvas.
* * *
At least I was still alive, wasn’t I?
How much time had passed?
I opened my eyes, still sprawled across the ring.
The referee checked on me with a worried expression.
“Sung-guk, are you alright?”
I could only blink.
“I’m starting the count now.”
And so began the familiar countdown that echoes through every boxing match.
I summoned every ounce of strength to push myself up.
But my body refused to obey.
I’d watched boxers take knockouts on television and wondered if they were acting. Now that I’d experienced it firsthand, I understood. It was absolutely no act.
“6, 7, 8….”
At that moment, I barely managed to rise.
The spectator seating erupted in cheers, and blood was streaming down Mike Tyson’s face.
The skin above the eyebrow was delicate—it split easily during boxing matches, even from less powerful punches.
That was exactly the spot I’d targeted.
My punch certainly hadn’t been particularly devastating.
But the fact that Mike Tyson’s eyebrow had split and was bleeding meant that everyone watching could perceive me as having landed a genuine, solid blow on him.
I smiled faintly.
And then I collapsed right there on the spot.
I’d probably lost this match, but the crowd would consider me the real victor.
* * *
– Live viewership for the Mike Tyson match surpasses 100 million.
YouTube subscriber count skyrocketing.
And despite losing the match, landing that decisive blow on Mike Tyson. In the end, Jeon Sung-guk captured both prizes!
In exchange for capturing both prizes, I’d earned a thoroughly battered face.
My face was swollen from the beating Mike Tyson had given me, and my entire body was covered in bruises.
The moment I stepped into the office, the employees who saw me screamed.
“Ahhhhh! Sung-guk! Are you hurt?”
“Yes, it’s me. You’ll have to look at this face for a while. Get used to it.”
“Still, it was amazing. You know all our employees were rooting for you yesterday, right?”
“Thank you.”
Every time I passed by, the employees’ gasps and words of encouragement followed in my wake.
“Sung-guk, that handsome face will recover soon.”
[Of course it will. The original’s not going anywhere.]
Several female employees left behind tea and various foods that were good for reducing swelling.
“Sung-guk, this tea reduces swelling. I drank it constantly after giving birth because I was so swollen, and it really worked.”
“Thank you, Liz.”
At that moment, Mark approached and handed me a large box.
“Mark, what is all this?”
“Sergey sent it.”
“Sergey? It’s not a bomb, is it?”
“Surely not….”
I opened the box lid. Inside was filled with medicinal herbs that appeared to have come from a Korean Herbal Medicine Clinic.
“Sung-guk, what is this?”
“When Koreans get sick, they sometimes take Western medicine, but they also visit Korean Herbal Medicine Clinics for acupuncture or tonics.”
“Ah, I think I’ve heard about acupuncture before too.”
“But what exactly is this medicine?”
I opened the card that came with it and checked Sergey Brin’s message.
– Sung-guk, they say this medicine is effective for reducing swelling and protecting your body.
Sometimes when you’re injured, it’s better to treat it the way they do in the country where I was born.
They say it’s from a famous Korean Herbal Medicine Clinic in Silicon Valley, and I hope it works.
So this is what they mean by creating the disease and then providing the cure.
In any case, it was clear that Sergey Brin had switched to my side.
I picked up one of the herbal medicines and drank it down.
In my previous life, herbal medicine was what I ate every season without fail.
[When I go to Korea, I’ll have to visit Teacher Kim in Samseong-dong and get a batch of herbal medicine made….]
Mark looked at me with curiosity.
“Sung-guk… aren’t you going to spit it out?”
“Not at all. Anything good for your body is bound to taste bitter.”
At that moment, my phone rang loudly.
Who could it be?
It was Mike Tyson.
I quickly answered the call.
“Mike, how’s your body feeling?”
– Shouldn’t I be the one asking you that?
“I’m perfectly fine.”
I heard Mike Tyson’s laughter through the phone.
– Sung-guk, you’re acting so proud that you landed one punch on me. Anyway, because of yesterday’s match, my YouTube channel subscriptions increased more than tenfold. So here’s what I’m thinking… why don’t we train properly and have another match at the end of this year, Sung-guk?
“Hmm….”
I thought briefly and answered quickly.
“Mike, I’m never doing boxing again in my life!”

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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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