I Will Raise This Family to Greatness - Chapter 325

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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 325
Apgujeong Hyunsung Apartments.
Located right along the Han River.
In 2010, the real estate market was clearly in decline.
Every property I saw while driving past displayed urgent sale signs.
Soon Father’s car came to a stop in the parking lot of Apgujeong Hyunsung Apartments, which bore the unmistakable marks of time.
And I was somewhat surprised.
It was located right along the Han River, among the most coveted units in Apgujeong Hansung Apartments.
“Dad, you really bought here?”
“Your father went through quite an ordeal to secure this place.”
Then Father moved ahead of me with a slightly quickened pace. His silhouette unmistakably radiated excitement.
“We completed the registration last week and finished everything. The previous tenant moved out as well.”
Father had prepared everything without my knowledge.
We stepped into the aged elevator.
Father pressed the button for the eighth floor.
“What do you think? Good floor, right?”
“Yeah.”
The moment we arrived on the eighth floor, Father unlocked the door to unit 803 on the right.
A vacant apartment, disheveled after the previous tenant’s departure, came into view.
Though it was an older building with traces of renovation work visible, even that appeared aged.
“I deliberately chose a place that hadn’t been fully renovated. Since our son has such refined tastes, I thought it would be better to redesign everything according to your preferences.”
[Dad….]
I couldn’t speak, afraid my voice would tremble.
Thinking of Father viewing apartments across the city with my tastes in mind, my throat tightened.
Father grabbed my hand as I stood there dumbfounded and pulled me forward.
“Come here. This is the master bedroom, and… these are the smaller rooms. They said the actual usable space is 42 pyeong, but it feels different from modern 42 pyeong units. Oh, and… the Han River!”
Father pulled my hand toward the kitchen where the Han River was visible.
“Since Hyunsung Apartments was built long ago and people prefer south-facing units, the Han River is only visible from the kitchen side. Your father didn’t know that and went to the real estate agent demanding an apartment where you could see the Han River from the living room….”
“Dad….”
In the end, I called out to him with a trembling voice.
Father glanced at me deliberately, then gazed out at the Han River.
“Sung-guk, this father wanted to give our eldest son at least one house before sending him off to marriage. Do you remember when your father and mother started in a single room?”
“….”
[How could I possibly forget that?]
“Your father was born with nothing…. Sung-guk, my wish was for you and your mother to have many children and live happily together. And to earn a lot of money so that when our children get married, I could give each of them a house…. Sung-guk….”
Father looked at me intently.
“Sung-guk, thanks to you, your father has achieved all his dreams.”
“It’s not because of me. You achieved this through your hard work.”
“You helped your mother and father tremendously from childhood, working as a child actor. When your father knew nothing, you told me to buy a restaurant and I did it without hesitation. Looking back now, I don’t know what possessed me, but I listened to your young words and started the business, acquired apartments, even expanded operations…. For your mother and me, you were the only person in this world we could truly trust.”
[Dad, I consider it my greatest fortune to have been born into this family.]
Father pressed the key firmly into my hand.
“Sung-guk, this is your home now. We’ll need to rush the interior design if you want to show it to Emma when she visits.”
“Dad, that’s embarrassing….”
“When you tell me you’ve chosen a woman, I don’t care about her hair color, skin tone, or anything else. That’s how much I trust my son’s judgment. You understand?”
“Yes, Dad.”
I barely stopped myself from asking, [Dad, but what about the gift tax on this?]
I didn’t want to spoil Father’s touching moment.
I gazed at the Han River while gripping the key tightly in my hand.
At last, I had a home registered in my own name!
* * *
– CEO Jeon Sung-guk and Emma Watton enjoying a secret romance in Hawaii!
– Their date spot is Starbucks?!
Emma Watton and I each opened our laptops—I worked on business matters while she tackled her schoolwork.
Of course, I could see paparazzi swarming outside the Starbucks, but that wasn’t a concern for us right now.
“Sung-guk, can you look at this for a moment? It’s for my East Asian History class, and this section covers the Korean War. Can you verify if my research is accurate?”
“Of course.”
I quickly read through the report Emma had written.
Emma never did anything halfway, whether it was work or studies.
“Emma, if you emphasize how the Incheon Landing Operation turned the tide of the war, I think your report would be much more compelling.”
“The Incheon Landing Operation? I’ll look that up.”
And we both returned to our respective tasks.
I was reviewing résumés for the structure of TikTok, the new SNS platform I was launching in Korea.
With backing from Hyojin Group and Samjeon, word spread that I would be directly operating the company, and many applicants submitted their résumés.
I saw plenty of engineering geniuses from Seoul National University, KAIST, and other top Korean institutions.
[Hmm… I need something beyond just credentials….]
In truth, even at FaceNote’s headquarters in the United States, highly qualified applicants would quit within months due to the demanding development environment.
“Sung-guk, what’s troubling you?”
“I need to hire people for the new company I’m establishing in Korea, and it’s proving difficult.”
“Our actors have to audition for roles too, right? Why not give them what you’re looking for and have them complete a task?”
“Hmm… that’s actually a decent idea….”
[The company already has a reputation for excessive workload, so adding an assignment during interviews might be too much. But it really is the most effective method….]
I finally made my decision.
“Emma, thanks for the idea. It seems like that’s the only viable approach.”
Just then, Jeon Tae-guk called.
He clearly knew I’d come to Hawaii for a date with Emma.
What could this be about?
I answered the call.
“It’s me, hyung.”
– Sung-guk, I have something to ask you….
“Right now?”
– Yeah.
“If I’m going to Korea the day after tomorrow, can’t we talk about this there?”
– It’s just… I feel embarrassed talking about it while looking at your face….
[Jeon Tae-guk, when are you ever going to grow up?]
I had no choice but to nod.
“Go ahead, hyung.”
– About the new SNS company you’re setting up. Would it be okay if I transferred there?
“What about the FaceNote Asia branch?”
– Yang Chul-soo will be joining soon anyway, and we’re continuously expanding staff here. Besides, the workplace romance with Jin-seo is getting a bit awkward.
“Hyung, is this just your own thinking?”
– I’ve discussed this issue very thoroughly with Jin-seo as well.
“Hmm… In any case, it’s true that Samjeon is sponsoring our company. If you want to transfer, you should go ahead.”
If Jeon Tae-guk transferred, it would be much easier for me to leverage Samjeon’s personnel.
– Really, that’s okay?
“Of course. Let me think about your position. Since things have come to this, why don’t you start working here right away?”
– Huh? You’re on vacation right now, and it’s the weekend in Seoul?
“You know there’s no such thing as weekends when working with me.”
– Ah, I forgot about that. Sung-guk, let me reconsider….
“Hyung, the decision is already made. I’ll send you the resumes I’ve filtered. Have these people summarize the future of FaceNote, YouTube, and Instagrim on four pages of A4 paper and send it within a week. At the same time, contact the Samjeon Group HR department and ask them to verify whether there’s any false information in the resumes these people wrote.”
– But Sung-guk, I’m genuinely curious… what do you and Emma do when you’re dating?
“Emma does her schoolwork, and I work. That’s it, right? Then, I’m counting on you!”
I quickly hung up the phone.
Then I sent all the filtered resumes to Jeon Tae-guk and looked at Emma.
Emma was just closing her laptop with a gentle smile.
“Sung-guk, when I wrote about how the tide of the Korean War turned with the Incheon Landing Operation just like you said, my Korean War report became much richer.”
“Emma, are you all done?”
“Yeah. I just sent an email to the professor.”
“So, what should we do now?”
“Want to sprawl out on the beach, drink beer, and read?”
“That’s exactly what I wanted.”
* * *
– Is this what exemplary students’ dating looks like? CEO Jeon Sung-guk and Emma Watton working, doing assignments, and reading on the beach.
– CEO Jeon Sung-guk and Emma Watton’s tearful farewell at Hawaii Airport!
– The exemplary dating style of CEO Jeon Sung-guk and Emma Watton becomes a huge trend in America. Thanks to them, Starbucks is booming!
– Starbucks presents CEO Jeon Sung-guk and Emma Watton with three years of free Starbucks vouchers!
– CEO Jeon Sung-guk and Emma Watton donate the free Starbucks vouchers to charity. Exemplary in romance, exemplary in charity!
– Emma Watton’s “Harry Potter and the Cursed Child” Korean premiere confirmed! Arriving December 2nd. However, her departure date remains secret.
– Paparazzi from around the world are entering Seoul to cover CEO Jeon Sung-guk and Emma Watton’s Seoul date.
– Will CEO Jeon Sung-guk walk the red carpet for “Harry Potter and the Cursed Child”? All eyes are on him!
– CEO Jeon Sung-guk, heated by his romance with Emma Watton, officially announces he will serve his military service starting 2011 as CEO of a defense contractor sponsored by Samjeon and Hyojin Group!
– Is Emma Watton really becoming a Hollywood rubber shoe for me?!
Articles about me and Emma Watton poured out daily from both Hollywood and Korea.
The atmosphere grew even more heated because of my military service issue, now confirmed.
“People really do seem interested in other people’s love lives.”
It was Jeon Tae-guk, who had just seen the articles about me and Emma Watton.
“William, but are you really okay being apart from Lim Jin-seo?”
“I already told you over the phone. Actually, FaceNote Korea is in a growth phase with increasing staff, and being the successor to Samjeon is already a burden. On top of that, if it becomes known that I’m in an office romance, honestly wouldn’t the employees find me incredibly uncomfortable? Oh, there’s more. If it becomes known that Yang Chul-soo, who’s coming as branch director, was once my secretary…”
[Jeon Tae-guk, the very existence of Samjeon’s successor is inherently inconvenient to others.]
I toured the office I would soon use for TikTok.
Since the office was a joint investment between Samjeon and Hyojin Group, we decided to lease an entire floor in the building where FaceNote was currently located, rather than at Samjeon Headquarters.
It was far less burdensome for me to work while commuting between the two locations.
I stood by the window of the TikTok office, looking down at the main avenue of Gangnam, Seoul.
[So this is where I’ll be serving my military service…]
Just then, Mother called.
What was this about?
I quickly answered the phone.
“Mother, what’s the matter?”
– Sung-guk… you received a notice to report to the Military Training Center on December 24th.
“What?”
I raised my voice in shock.
I had anticipated receiving the enlistment notice immediately since I hadn’t requested a deferment, but I never dreamed the Ministry of Defense would be this diligent.
– Sung-guk, there’s less than a month left now… Should we tell Emma about this?
“Yes, Mother. I’ll handle that myself.”
I hung up the phone with a somewhat deflated voice.

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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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