I Will Raise This Family to Greatness - Chapter 425

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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 425
The party was in full swing.
The music was lively, and Mark, Mi-mi, and the employees were all enjoying themselves as never before.
This was truly the day I had dreamed of for so long.
FaceNote had gone public, and Mark and I had become among the wealthiest people in the world.
Yet despite the festive atmosphere, my heart felt strangely heavy.
[Surely I’m not acting like this because of Secretary Kim Mi-so. Me? Surely not….]
Jeon Tae-guk, who had been rejected by Secretary Kim Mi-so, wandered over with a wine glass in hand. He was better-looking than I’d expected.
I’d already overheard the outcome, but I asked anyway.
“Brother, did you ask Secretary Kim Mi-so to date you?”
“Secretary Kim Mi-so is apparently against marriage. And she said she has no intention of dating right now. She said it’s not that she dislikes me, so my heart isn’t too heavy about it.”
[How is that not her saying she dislikes you? That was a polite rejection!]
Jeon Tae-guk sipped his wine.
“Brother, you’re taking rejection pretty well.”
“It’s not rejection, she said. She just doesn’t want to date right now. Secretary Kim Mi-so.”
“Brother, are you pretending not to know? Or do you genuinely not understand?”
“Understand what?”
“That’s a perfect rejection.”
Jeon Tae-guk stared at me intently.
“Sung-guk.”
“Yes?”
“Do you always have to salt other people’s wounds? I’m trying to comfort myself right now.”
Jeon Tae-guk knew the truth but was deliberately acting composed.
“Brother, the wound will heal soon.”
“Yeah, I guess I just need to drink tonight.”
Jeon Tae-guk gulped down his wine.
Just then, I heard someone calling my name loudly.
“Sung-guk! Where are you?”
That familiar South African accent!
I quickly waved toward Elon Musk.
“Elon!”
“Sung-guk, congratulations on the IPO! You’re richer than me now, aren’t you? That kills me.”
Elon Musk really couldn’t hide his true feelings.
In fact, looking at the facts alone, Elon Musk would become wealthier than me.
But I had a feeling this life might be different.
Because I didn’t just have FaceNote—I also had YouTube, Instagrim, and TikTok.
If we were to compare the total market capitalization of these four companies later… there was a possibility I could surpass Elon Musk in this life.
I quickly handed Elon a glass of wine.
“Elon, why does that matter? What’s important is that we’ve both succeeded.”
“Haha. That’s true. Sung-guk, honestly, I’ve been wanting to do one SNS business myself. What do you think—should I jump in now?”
“Hmm… you want to develop a new SNS right now?”
“Yeah.”
Elon Musk nodded in agreement.
[Elon, I know your future.]
I smiled faintly and looked at him.
“Elon, instead of developing something new, consider acquiring an existing SNS platform. Something like Twitter, for example.”
“Twitter?”
“Elon, you post on Twitter whenever you’re bored these days.”
“That’s true… but I should think about it seriously. People call Sung-guk the king of SNS, after all.”
FaceNote, Instagrim, TikTok, and YouTube.
My empire.
Elon seemed envious of it.
“Since we’re in the age of SNS, I really envy that title.”
Elon sighed softly and swept back his bangs.
I’d heard he’d had a hair transplant recently, and his previously sparse hairline had filled in considerably.
“Right now, money’s pouring endlessly into Tesla and it’s tough, but if I start making money like you said, I should buy Twitter instead of developing something new. It’ll probably generate more buzz anyway….”
Of course, those words would become reality.
“Elon, in that case, can I reserve a Tesla?”
“Really?”
“I’ll be your first customer.”
“Then I should post this news on Twitter right away.”
Elon Musk immediately posted it on Twitter.
– Tesla’s first customer is the king of SNS, Jeon Sung-guk!
* * *
The lively party had ended.
Everyone had left, and the FaceNote headquarters stood empty.
But I didn’t want to leave.
I sat quietly on the stairs, sipping wine alone.
Then I heard rustling behind me.
Who was it?
I turned around to find Secretary Kim Mi-so standing there with an embarrassed smile.
“Secretary Kim, you didn’t leave?”
“I didn’t feel right leaving you alone, sir. Besides, you’ve been drinking. I haven’t, so I should drive you to the hotel.”
“I was planning to sleep here. Secretary Kim, you should go back to the hotel and get some rest now.”
“Actually….”
Secretary Kim Mi-so offered an ambiguous smile.
“What’s wrong?”
“Actually… I’m scared to drive alone through this unfamiliar American land in the middle of the night.”
That was something I hadn’t considered.
But it was understandable.
It was a familiar place to me, but for Secretary Kim Mi-so, it was entirely unfamiliar.
“I hadn’t thought of that, sir.”
“If I’ve interrupted your time, I can quietly wait in another office and leave once dawn breaks.”
“No, no. Since we’re here anyway, let’s sit together and have some wine.”
Secretary Kim Mi-so carefully sat down beside me, holding the wine.
“Sir, I… have something I’m curious about.”
“What is it?”
“How are you feeling right now? FaceNote just went public. That’s truly a remarkable achievement.”
“To be honest, right now… I’m not thinking about anything.”
Secretary Kim Mi-so looked at me with a slightly puzzled expression.
“I think it’s more accurate to say I don’t feel like it’s real yet. The news keeps saying I’m now among the richest people in the world, the king of social media and all that. But for me, it’s just wake up, work, go home, and work again… that’s all there is.”
“Sir, why don’t you date someone? Or pick up a hobby.”
“Hmm… it seems like there’s still so much more I need to do.”
In that moment, was it my imagination that a hint of regret crossed Secretary Kim Mi-so’s face?
At that instant, I wanted to know what was really going through her mind.
“Um… Secretary Kim…”
“Yes, sir?”
“Earlier, Jeon Tae-guk confessed something, didn’t he?”
“Ah, you heard?”
I nodded quietly.
“But… are you truly opposed to marriage? Or…?”
“Ah, well…”
As Secretary Kim Mi-so hesitated for a moment, I heard another rustling sound from behind.
I turned around to see Adam rising from the sofa. He must have fallen asleep buried under a pile of cushions.
“Adam?”
“Sung-guk… where did everyone go?”
Adam let out a long yawn.
“Everyone went home.”
“That seems to be the case.”
Adam looked around the empty office and scratched his head. Then he looked at me and Secretary Kim Mi-so.
“Did I… interrupt you two?”
“Oh, no.”
“Adam, no!”
Secretary Kim Mi-so and I waved our hands dismissively at the same time.
Adam forced a smile.
“Well, that’s a relief.”
“Adam, come sit with us and have another drink. Our company wouldn’t be here without you.”
Adam sat down on the stairs with an awkward expression.
I handed Adam a glass of wine. He scratched his head and looked at me.
“Sung-guk, I’m sure you’ve heard many congratulations, but congratulations on FaceNote’s listing. You’ve truly accomplished something remarkable.”
“Thank you, Adam.”
[I wish you’d leave right now instead….]
I swallowed my disappointment.
And the three of us, unexpectedly gathered together, spent the entire night at the FaceNote headquarters sharing wine.
* * *
The phone rang loudly.
I barely opened my eyes and stared at my phone.
In the end, Adam, Secretary Kim Mi-so, and I didn’t return to the Hotel until dawn broke.
And now it was 10 a.m.
Only about two hours had passed since I’d fallen asleep.
But this was a call I couldn’t ignore.
It was from Barack Obama himself.
I gathered my wits and cleared my throat.
“Mm. Mm.”
And I quickly answered the phone.
“Barack…”
– Sung-guk! Congratulations on FaceNote’s IPO. I figured you’d be swamped yesterday, so I called a day late.
Barack Obama’s bright voice came through the phone.
But there was something urgent about it.
“Thank you, Barack.”
– Sounds like you partied all night from the sound of your voice.
“Exactly right.”
Though it was a modest celebration.
– Sung-guk, I have a favor to ask you.
As expected, Barack Obama wouldn’t call without a reason.
“What is it, Barack?”
– Can you fly to Washington right now?”
“Right now? Barack, what’s going on?”
– I’m sorry for the sudden request, but you know there’s a presidential election this year, right?
“Of course.”
This year was a U.S. presidential election year.
Of course, Barack Obama was already running for reelection, and the opposing party had fielded a candidate with far less recognition than Barack Obama, so the situation was essentially expecting Barack Obama’s victory.
– A major variable has just emerged.
“A variable?”
Was there a variable I didn’t know about….
What was certain in any case was that Barack Obama would succeed in his reelection.
– I think we need to discuss this in person. I’ll send my private jet right away, so come over here.
“Of course, Barack.”
* * *
When I arrived at the White House aboard the private jet Barack Obama had sent, he greeted me with a bright smile.
“Sung-guk, it’s been what, how long? Every time I see you, you seem to get more impressive.”
“Please don’t say such things. I haven’t been sleeping well—my face shows it.”
I feigned a touch of modesty.
“Anyway, Barack, what’s so urgent that you called me all the way out here?”
“Sung-guk, I’d like you to take my proposal back to South Korea and present it to the President.”
Barack Obama’s expression grew serious. What he meant was,
“You call it a proposal, but it’s something that absolutely must be realized, isn’t it?”
“Ha, I can’t fool you, can I?”
Barack Obama pressed his large hand to his forehead. His face was troubled.
“The truth is, we just renewed our strategic arms agreement with Russia, but it’s practically as if there are no provisions regarding nuclear weapons. We need to discuss a nuclear stability agreement that prevents nuclear weapons from being used in terrorism and restricts nuclear weapons development as well.”
If the American public learned that the nuclear weapons clause had been omitted from the strategic arms agreement with Russia—the most crucial agreement for American security—it would certainly damage Barack Obama’s approval ratings.
To prevent that, it seemed he planned to hold an international conference on the nuclear stability agreement to suppress public opinion.
Barack Obama continued.
“Barack, is it possible you want South Korea to host this conference?”
“As expected, you’re a genius.”
If North Korea were to acquire nuclear weapons, it would become the most threatening nation in the world.
That’s why discussing a nuclear stability agreement made sense, and there was no better place than South Korea, which borders that very North Korea.
“To be honest, I do think it’s quite urgent….”
The reason Barack Obama was rushing was obvious.
There was little time left until the presidential election in November this year.
On security matters, even a single unfavorable issue could reverse approval ratings at any moment.
“Barack, I’ll meet with South Korea’s VIP to ensure the nuclear stability agreement conference proceeds without a hitch before the election.”
“Can you do that?”
“Of course.”
Barack Obama embraced me with his long arms.
[Barack, nothing in this world is free.]
I whispered quickly into Barack Obama’s ear.
“Barack, I’d like to livestream the presidential debate on YouTube.”
Barack Obama whispered back while still holding me.
“Sung-guk, you’re truly a born businessman. We’ll hold the presidential debate on your YouTube channel.”
I patted Barack Obama’s back.
As always, our deal was perfect.

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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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