I Will Raise This Family to Greatness - Chapter 368

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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 368
“Mark, lend me the Porsche!”
I stopped Mark as he had just arrived at the office.
“Sung-guk, what’s wrong?”
“Charlie… Charlie doesn’t seem well.”
“Go ahead and take my car.”
Mark quickly handed over the keys to his Porsche.
I immediately drove Mark’s car to Charlie Jobs’ home.
There wasn’t much time left now before I would see Charlie Jobs for the last time.
* * *
Screech—
I parked the car at Charlie Jobs’ house and rushed inside immediately.
Just then, Laura, Charlie Jobs’ wife who happened to be outside, called out to me.
“Sung-guk…”
Laura’s voice was trembling.
“Where’s Charlie?”
“He made it through another crisis this morning… He’s found some stability now and is talking with his autobiography writer. When he heard you had come to America, he wanted to see you right away.”
Laura was holding back her sorrow with great effort.
“Sung-guk, go in and see him. He’s been missing you so much.”
“Yes…”
I quickly headed toward the room Laura indicated.
And I steeled myself.
No matter what state Charlie Jobs was in, I would greet him with a bright smile.
* * *
Charlie Jobs lay beneath the window where California’s sunlight streamed in. He looked even more gaunt than the last time I had seen him.
Charlie Jobs smiled faintly when he saw me.
“Sung-guk…”
“Charlie…”
We called each other’s names and said nothing for a long moment.
Charlie Jobs, standing at death’s threshold, bore the marks of illness far more visibly than I had imagined.
I gazed at Charlie with as composed an expression as I had resolved to maintain before entering this room.
Charlie Jobs slowly gestured to me.
“Sung-guk, come closer… I… was just… telling the autobiography writer… about… you…”
Charlie Jobs, once an eloquent speaker, now had to pause repeatedly just to complete a single sentence.
My heart ached sharply at the weight of it all.
I sat in the chair beside Charlie Jobs’ bed.
The writer handling Charlie Jobs’ autobiography gave me a subtle nod of acknowledgment.
“I’ve heard a lot about you. Charlie wanted to include your story in his autobiography, so I was gathering details.”
“My story?”
“Charlie said so himself. That you’re the only genius he genuinely acknowledges.”
My chest tightened in that instant.
[Charlie, the truth is… I’m living my second life…]
I nearly let those words slip from my lips.
Charlie Jobs, a world-renowned genius, saying something like that….
Charlie Jobs looked at me with a more relaxed expression.
“Sung-guk, you’re quite… shocked, aren’t you? Our Laura… she contacted…you….”
“Yes….”
When I received Laura’s message, I thought Charlie Jobs was about to die. Fortunately, that wasn’t the case, but it was certain that Charlie Jobs didn’t have much time left.
“I’m still… alive.”
“….”
Instead of speaking, I gave a small nod.
As the atmosphere grew heavy, the Autobiography Writer quickly interjected.
“Charlie, I need to talk with Sung-guk, so don’t interrupt for now. Understood?”
Charlie nodded with difficulty.
The Autobiography Writer straightened his posture and looked at me.
“Sung-guk, Charlie Jobs told me that when he first met you, it felt like he was seeing his younger self.”
[Charlie, even facing death, you should speak the truth. I was far more handsome and far more intelligent than you.]
I smiled faintly.
“The moment I first saw Charlie, I thought to myself that I should never become that stubborn when I grew up.”
At my words, Charlie Jobs laughed for the first time.
“Sung-guk… but… now… aren’t you… completely stubborn….”
“Well, I’ll ask my employees about that.”
It was pointless to ask.
My employees would undoubtedly say I was an even tougher person than Charlie Jobs.
“Charlie, I told you not to interrupt.”
“Ah, I… understand….”
Charlie laughed and closed his mouth.
The Autobiography Writer began asking me various questions.
“Charlie wanted to include in his autobiography your thoughts on his sponsorship when he provided you with Apple’s office space. And how that sponsorship felt to you as well.”
“Honestly, I came to the United States at a young age from Korea. People whose names I’d only heard—Charlie Jobs… Bill Gates… I got to meet them through FaceNote. Just receiving sponsorship from people who captivated the world and changed it felt like a form of recognition.”
“I don’t think this will make it into the autobiography, but Sung-guk, who gave you more inspiration—Charlie or Bill? Honestly, both of them helped you tremendously in your business.”
I glanced at Charlie Jobs.
Charlie Jobs was staring directly at me.
“We all know why Apple creates fanatics. Charlie always told me this: if you want something, never compromise, and get it by any means necessary. If he saw how I manage my company now, it’s clear that Charlie’s words had an enormous influence on me.”
“The winner of this question is Charlie.”
Charlie Jobs smiled faintly even as he lay in bed.
My conversation with the Autobiography Writer and Charlie Jobs continued for about an hour.
Mostly the Autobiography Writer asked me questions, while Charlie expressed himself by nodding or shaking his head as he watched me.
The Autobiography Writer closed his notebook.
“Sung-guk, you filled in the blank spaces in Charlie’s autobiography.”
“Me?”
“We already know quite well about Charlie’s success, his personal life, and his adversarial relationships. The media has covered those extensively. Of course, through this autobiography, we’ll come to understand Charlie’s inner thoughts. But what I found most regrettable while writing was wondering what kind of influence Charlie had on his juniors who shared similar aspirations. That was the part that troubled me.”
Even as the Autobiography Writer spoke, I could feel Charlie gazing at me with warm eyes.
“But today, meeting Sung-guk resolved that for me. A genius chosen by someone with standards as high as Charlie’s. I think Charlie realized that this genius would transform the world he himself had already changed, once more.”
* * *
I promised Charlie Jobs that I would visit him every day while in the United States, then returned to the Hotel.
I felt I now needed to explain to Jeon Tae-guk why Jin-seo had no choice but to break up with him.
As I opened the door and stepped inside, the room was still dark, and I could see the silhouette of Jeon Tae-guk lying on the bed.
[Jeon Tae-guk, really….]
I cursed inwardly while drawing back the curtains.
As sunlight poured in, Jeon Tae-guk finally stirred.
“Too much sunlight.”
“Hyung, do you know what time it is?”
“People always ask that even when they know the time. Just tell me to get up already.”
“Get up, hyung. Have you eaten?”
“You know I hate eating alone.”
So he hadn’t eaten.
“Order room service or let’s go out. I haven’t eaten either.”
“Yeah… Sung-guk, did you meet Jin-seo?”
This was what Jeon Tae-guk really wanted to know.
“Yes… I did.”
“Did she tell you why we broke up?”
“Yes.”
I answered firmly.
Since they were already separated, the best approach was to settle things cleanly and quickly.
“What was the reason?”
“She said Samsung was burdensome.”
“Samsung?”
“Yes. You know what Samsung probably did to her, hyung.”
Jeon Tae-guk nodded silently.
“Without even telling me, you probably had people assigned to watch Jin-seo.”
“That made her uncomfortable. And as a result, her feelings for you cooled.”
“Sigh….”
Jeon Tae-guk exhaled a low sigh. Then he suddenly sat up.
“If Samsung is burdensome to her, then I’m burdensome to her. I can’t abandon the title of Samsung’s heir, so if she finds Samsung burdensome, she’s not someone who can be by my side.”
Jeon Tae-guk recognized the situation with remarkable composure.
[Jeon Tae-guk, now he truly looks like Samsung’s heir….]
Jeon Tae-guk looked at me calmly.
“Sung-guk, let’s eat. I’m hungry.”
“Understood, hyung.”
Jeon Tae-guk came to his senses and quickly changed into fresh clothes.
“By the way, how is Charlie doing?”
“Not well at all.”
“So Apple is ending an era like this… I should probably sell off my Apple stock.”
“You were holding Apple stock, hyung?”
This was the first time I’d heard that Jeon Tae-guk owned Apple stock.
“I’m an Apple fanboy. I bought some shares out of my admiration for Charlie. If Charlie’s about to leave this world, I need to sell now. Apple stock will plummet once Charlie passes.”
I looked at Jeon Tae-guk with slightly surprised eyes.
Perhaps because of his separation from Jin-seo, Jeon Tae-guk was acting far more rationally than before.
“Sung-guk, what do you think?”
“It will definitely drop. People won’t accept Apple without Charlie for a while.”
“That makes sense. Apple’s releasing a new product this week, so I should pay close attention to it. It’s the first product coming out after Charlie stepped down as CEO. Looking at that product will probably give me a rough sense of how Apple’s innovation will flow going forward.”
[Jeon Tae-guk, did you take some medicine while I wasn’t looking?]
The Jeon Tae-guk who had separated from Jin-seo was a completely different person from yesterday.
Feeling my gaze, Jeon Tae-guk shrugged his shoulders.
“Sung-guk, after breaking up with Jin-seo, I lay in the hotel bed and thought about a lot of things. Honestly, I’d already guessed the reason for the breakup before you even told me… But then I realized something. The fact that I’m Samsung’s successor is something I can’t change, and a woman who can’t accept that isn’t someone who can truly understand me.”
I nodded slightly.
“So… from now on, it seems right to meet someone who can understand me. I should do some work befitting a Samsung successor….”
“You thought it through well, hyung.”
[Jeon Tae-guk, are you finally growing up?]
Jeon Tae-guk stretched his arms wide. Then he looked up at the sky.
“Sung-guk, in that sense, I’m going to take a trip to Las Vegas.”
“Las Vegas? Why?”
“Heartbreak is always forgotten through gambling.”
[Well, of course….]
People really don’t change after all.
* * *
I slowly pushed the wheelchair carrying Charlie.
Charlie, having regained some strength, wanted to breathe in the fresh air outside.
“Charlie, did you see the iPhone 4S presentation yesterday?”
“Yes… The innovation… is lacking….”
Charlie critiqued coldly, regardless of the fact that it was his own company.
“Still, people will buy iPhones. That’s the consumer structure you created, Charlie. There are people who haven’t bought Apple products, but there’s no one who’s only bought them once.”
At my words, Charlie Jobs smiled faintly and looked at me. Then he opened his mouth with a somewhat heavy voice.
“Sung-guk… I was never… afraid of death my entire life… but… I think that was all… my arrogance.”
Before death, Charlie Jobs was becoming smaller.
“Charlie… dying is nothing.”
At my words, Charlie looked at me with slightly surprised eyes.
“Sung-guk… as if….”
“As if you’ve experienced death before, right?”
“Yeah.”
Charlie nodded slightly.
“Charlie, the truth is… I’m living my second life.”
“Sung-guk… I’m not in the mood for jokes…”
“Charlie, it’s not a joke.”
I spoke calmly.
It was a fact I had never revealed to anyone during this lifetime.
“Charlie, this is probably the first and last secret I’ll ever share with you.”
Charlie looked at me with startled eyes.
I calmly revealed how I had died clutching my heart in my previous life, only to be reborn in this one.
“Charlie, I was actually reborn carrying all the memories of my previous life. That’s why I could excel beyond others at such a young age.”
“Sung-guk…”
“Charlie, so don’t fear death. Another life will unfold for you after death as well.”
After hearing my words, Charlie gripped my hand tightly.
“Thank… you…”
And I said goodbye to Charlie and parted ways.
Of course, it was a “see you tomorrow” kind of farewell.
But less than an hour after I left Charlie’s home, news arrived that Charlie had passed away.
It was the moment an icon of this era disappeared.
And I would never know whether Charlie had understood my final words.
[Charlie, live a long life in your next one!]

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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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