I Will Raise This Family to Greatness - Chapter 360

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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 360
Jeon Mi-jin didn’t respond.
Either way, I had leverage over Jeon Mi-jin, and Jeon Tae-guk was in the same position.
Jeon Tae-guk shrugged his shoulders.
“Sung-guk, congratulations on getting Mi-jin to back off.”
“Isn’t that something siblings shouldn’t do to each other?”
“Sung-guk, this is how the lives of the wealthy work. Brothers, sisters… none of that matters. They’re all just competitors dividing up the inheritance.”
[As if I don’t already know that, Jeon Tae-guk.]
I sipped my champagne slowly.
* * *
“Sung-guk… I don’t think I can keep living in this apartment.”
Sam began speaking with a dejected expression.
Jeon Tae-guk had his arms crossed, and Adam’s face was dark as well.
I couldn’t see a solution either.
“Sung-guk… I didn’t know I was such a sensitive person. I thought it was just the water changing, but it seems like this old apartment has a lot of rust in the pipes.”
In fact, Sam’s face was flushed red at the moment. He scratched his body repeatedly as he spoke.
There was one problem I hadn’t anticipated when I bought the Apgujeong Hansung apartment: the building’s age.
An apartment built in the late 1970s. Over thirty years old now, no amount of remodeling the interior could solve the plumbing issues.
In my previous life, having lived as a tycoon all those years, I had no way of knowing the drawbacks of old apartments.
The same was true for Jeon Tae-guk, and for Adam, who had been living in America.
Sam scratched his body repeatedly while sitting.
“Sung-guk… I wish we could all live together… honestly, I still can barely speak Korean. Without Adam and William, I’m lost all the time.”
Jeon Tae-guk looked at me with a serious expression.
“Sung-guk, I’ve never even thought about this problem before… but looking at Sam’s skin condition, this is a serious issue. No matter how many water purifiers and softeners we use, there’s nothing good about it for our bodies.”
“Hmm… you’re right.”
“Actually, parking is a problem too. Sam and Adam can walk around, but you and I have cars. When we come back after working late, it’s hard to find a parking spot.”
“Hyung, I never told you to work late.”
“Jin-seo is in America anyway, so what am I doing leaving work early?”
Jeon Tae-guk’s shoulders sagged.
“So the problems with this apartment are the contaminated water from the old pipes and parking.”
Just then, Adam raised his hand.
“Sung-guk, and insects. Bugs keep flying up from the sewers.”
That was also because of the old plumbing.
“Sung-guk, why don’t we rent out this place and move somewhere else?”
“You can just go back to Samjeon Palace, hyung.”
“Oh, that’s right… I do have a place.”
Jeon Tae-guk clapped his hands together.
[Please just go back home….]
“But here’s the thing. I came from America and you complained so much that I went to Samjeon Palace and got some sleep.”
“That wasn’t even a week.”
“But sleeping there doesn’t give me good rest. How should I put it… it feels like the land’s energy is off. I keep getting sleep paralysis too…”
Jeon Tae-guk suddenly sprang to his feet and approached me.
“Sung-guk, there’s a newly completed apartment in Hannam-dong… what do you think about it? A lot of my wealthy friends have been moving there recently.”
[Is he talking about Hannam The Hill…?]
A university that once stood in Hannam-dong had been demolished, and a new luxury apartment complex had risen in its place.
With excellent feng shui and built as an upscale development in an area that had only housed single-family homes, it had become the preferred residence for the wealthy elite and celebrities.
“Hyung, what if we move there and the land’s energy is bad again?”
“Don’t worry about that. Han Tae-jin moved there, and I’ve slept at his place after drinking. I slept like a baby. Mountains rise behind it, and you can see the Han River stretching far ahead in the distance—it’s the perfect feng shui location with mountains at the back and water in front. Hansung Automobile is incredibly particular about feng shui, you know. Seeing that Han Tae-jin moved there tells you everything—the land there is among the absolute best.”
That was a fair point.
Both Samjeon and Hansung Automobile were groups extremely sensitive to feng shui.
“Ah… and Han Tae-jin’s place has four bedrooms. It even has a terrace…”
As Jeon Tae-guk grew more enthusiastic, something began to feel suspicious.
“Hyung, were you ever this passionate about finding a house before?”
At that moment, Jeon Tae-guk broke into a grin.
“Sung-guk, the truth is I signed the contract for the penthouse in the building next to Han Tae-jin’s last week. It’s vacant, so we can move in immediately. Four bedrooms and three bathrooms—perfect for the four of us. Of course, you’ll have the master bedroom.”
“I’ll stay at Samjeon Palace. I’ve been separated from my family for too long, and living closer to them doesn’t seem like a bad idea.”
Jeon Tae-guk crossed his arms and flashed a meaningful smile.
“Sung-guk, I knew you’d say that… so I already reserved the Samjeon Palace unit for you.”
“Hyung!”
At this point, Sam and Adam also grew suspicious.
I looked at Sam and Adam.
“Don’t tell me… you two are in on this with William?”
“Sung-guk, my skin doesn’t lie.”
Sam waved his hands defensively.
“So everything else is a lie?”
“It’s not like that. William kept saying it would be nice if we all lived together. And when we actually saw Hannam The Hill, it’s so beautiful because it’s brand new. The floors are all marble, there are three bathrooms, and four bedrooms—so there’s no reason to fight anymore.”
“Sung-guk, I really love that place too.”
Adam chimed in as well.
[So… you all saw the place without me?]
Jeon Tae-guk gripped my shoulder firmly.
“Sung-guk, no matter how much you struggle, you can’t escape us. Since it’s a new building, there’s not much renovation needed. We just need to move in furniture. I’ve already arranged for the best interior designer, so all you have to do is show up.”
“I’m staying in this place.”
I said it firmly.
The water came out rusty and parking was difficult, but if I lived alone, it wasn’t a major problem.
Then Jeon Tae-guk flashed another meaningful smile.
[Could he have anticipated this too? That cunning fox…]
“Sung-guk, I told your parents about the deterioration of this place. They immediately told you to move. Sung-guk, isn’t there one thing in this world you can never defeat? Your parents.”
“Sigh…”
I let out a quiet sigh.
It wasn’t that I disliked moving.
I was well familiar with the layout of Hannam The Hill.
The various amenities were excellent, and there was plenty of parking space.
The space was well-divided, so even living in the same residence, my privacy wasn’t greatly compromised.
The only problem was that Jeon Tae-guk seemed to understand me far too well, and my apprehension only grew with each passing day.
Jeon Tae-guk looked down at me with a subtle smile.
“Sung-guk, you don’t need to thank me. I did all this as a service because I was grateful you gave me leverage over Jeon Mi-jin.”
I glanced sideways at Jeon Tae-guk.
[This old fox keeps growing sharper. I’ll be watching you, Jeon Tae-guk.]
* * *
A month had passed since we moved to Hannam The Hill.
In that time, South Korea’s humid and sweltering summer had faded, and September 2011 had arrived.
A wake-up call came at 6 AM.
It was Kim Mi-so.
Kim Mi-so from Samjeon had been assigned to me after Jeon Tae-guk’s two-week vacation. Of course, she still belonged to Samjeon.
When I answered, Kim Mi-so’s voice came through.
– Representative, you’re awake, aren’t you?
“Yes….”
– Representative, I’ll pick you up in 30 minutes. Today there’s a breakfast meeting between Chairman Jeon Jae-hyung of Samjeon Group and Chairman Koo Soo-young of Hyojin Group at the nearby Namsan Hotel. After the breakfast meeting, you’ll head to the company for a TikTok-related meeting starting at 9 AM.
“Understood.”
I sprang out of bed.
Alpha had hired more employees in the meantime, and now over 50 staff members were working at the company.
The launch of TikTok seemed possible before my discharge.
But because of that, I became even busier.
FaceNote was aggressively launching marketing across Asia ahead of its listing, and YouTube continued to rise. However, various controversies never ceased.
To manage such a hectic schedule, I inevitably needed a secretary, and Kim Mi-so filled that role.
Kim Mi-so was a diligent and meticulous secretary, more so than anyone else.
I quickly washed up and went to the kitchen, grabbing an apple.
I saw Jeon Tae-guk emerge with a disheveled face.
“Sung-guk, you’re already up?”
“I have a breakfast meeting today with Chairman Jeon Jae-hyung and Chairman Koo Soo-young. I need to report on TikTok-related matters.”
“I see…. Give my regards to Father.”
“You should do that yourself.”
I quickly bit into the apple and headed down to the underground parking lot.
* * *
As I got in the car, Kim Mi-so greeted me respectfully.
“I didn’t prepare coffee separately since you’ll likely have it at the breakfast meeting.”
“Please have a Starbucks latte ready for the drive after the meeting.”
“Yes, understood.”
The car carefully exited the parking lot of Hannam The Hill.
In the distance, the silhouette of Namsan Hotel came into view.
“Representative, here are the materials you requested yesterday. I’ve already delivered them to both Samjeon and Hyojin, but I prepared them just in case.”
“Kim Mi-so, let’s not waste paper going forward.”
“The chairmen are quite elderly, you see. Working as a secretary, there are times when you have to consider such things.”
[Hmm… she has a point.]
“Understood.”
I gathered the materials to hand over to Chairman Jeon Jae-hyung and Chairman Koo Soo-young.
At that moment, Kim Mi-so turned back again.
“Representative, I noticed your birthday is September 12th.”
“Please say ‘birthday,’ not ‘birthday.’ It makes me sound ancient.”
“Understood. However, your birthday falls on Chuseok this year. Jeon Tae-guk was hoping to throw you a birthday party with the employees beforehand.”
“I have no intention of celebrating my birthday with the employees.”
“I’ll convey your wishes to him.”
“And Kim Mi-so, you should take the Chuseok holiday off as well. I plan to rest thoroughly during the break too.”
“Thank you. Oh, and… I heard that the FaceNote representative from the United States and Lim Mi-mi are arriving before Chuseok.”
“Please reserve two rooms at Samjeon Hotel.”
“Two rooms? Aren’t the two of them a couple?”
Kim Mi-so looked puzzled.
“I imagine they’re coming to introduce Lim Mi-mi to her parents as well. I’m asking for a room for her parents too.”
“Understood.”
Mark and Lim Mi-mi converging in Seoul… I had a feeling this Chuseok holiday was going to be quite complicated.
Just then, Kim Mi-so’s phone rang.
She answered and turned back to me again.
“Representative, Chairman Koo Soo-young of Hyojin is asking if you could see him ten minutes earlier.”
Since I’d left with plenty of time, I had about ten minutes to spare.
“Tell him I understand.”
“Yes, Representative.”
* * *
“Sung-guk.”
Chairman Koo Soo-young greeted me with his characteristically benevolent expression.
Chairman Jeon Jae-hyung hadn’t arrived yet.
Chairman Jeon Jae-hyung, who didn’t waste a single second, had a tendency to arrive almost exactly on time.
“You must have been surprised that I asked to see you a bit earlier.”
“Not at all. I left with plenty of time, so it was fine.”
“As you get older, you lose your morning drowsiness. I even went to the sauna earlier… Actually, I was planning to talk after the meeting, but my mouth’s been itching to speak. As you age, sleep escapes you, patience wears thin. Perhaps I don’t have many days left.”
“Chairman, please don’t say such things.”
“Hahaha.”
Chairman Koo Soo-young let out a hearty laugh.
“Chairman, what did you want to tell me?”
“Right, I should speak before Chairman Jeon Jae-hyung arrives.”
Chairman Koo Soo-young looked at me with a serious expression, his smile fading.
“Sung-guk, there’s one reason I haven’t been able to sleep properly lately….”
Koo Soo-young paused for a moment.
Just then, the secretary standing behind Koo Soo-young announced the arrival of Jeon Jae-hyung.
“Chairman Jeon Jae-hyung has arrived in the lobby.”
At most, it would take five minutes to reach here from there.
Koo Soo-young looked at me again.
“We’re running out of time. Sung-guk, my concern is that the Hyojin Group has no successor.”
Could it be?
“Sung-guk, would you be willing to inherit my position?”
“….”
Caught completely off guard with no thoughts forming in my mind, the door swung open and Jeon Jae-hyung stepped inside.

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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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