I Will Raise This Family to Greatness - Chapter 458

—————

This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com

—————

Chapter 458
It was now February 2013.
Secretary Park Sung-hee had her wedding and left for a honeymoon in Jeju Island.
Perhaps because of that, Jeon Tae-guk had been pressing the security code to our home’s entrance since Saturday morning.
Beep, beep, beep, beep.
[I really need to change that password….]
Click. The door opened and Jeon Tae-guk shuffled in, looking disheveled.
I paused mid-sip of my coffee and glanced sideways at Jeon Tae-guk.
“Sung-guk, just pour me a cup too.”
“There’s some already made, hyung. Help yourself.”
“You know you’re the only person in South Korea who treats me like this, right?”
“Ji-hee does too.”
“Ji-hee’s cute, so I let her get away with it.”
Jeon Tae-guk poured himself coffee and sat across from me.
“Why are you staring at me like that on a Saturday morning?”
“I’m thinking about starting Family Business Production Company. I was looking over some documents the lawyer sent.”
“That production company you’re starting with the Disney exclusive rights you bought from Sun-hee unnie?”
“Yes….”
Jeon Tae-guk took a sip of coffee, then looked at me with a puzzled expression.
“Sung-guk, I’m genuinely curious about this. You’re already one of the richest people in America, right? That means you’re wealthy on a global scale.”
“It’s all stocks. I don’t have that much in tangible assets.”
My tangible assets were still far behind what I had during my time as Samjeon’s heir apparent.
No national treasure paintings, no hidden funds stashed through shell companies.
That’s why I was still hungry.
“If you sold your stocks, wouldn’t you be richer than me?”
“I’m not running businesses just to grow companies and sell them off. I want to keep expanding my own ventures.”
“Anyway, I can’t win arguing with you. But shouldn’t the businesses you really need to focus on now be FaceNote or TikTok? Instagrim and YouTube are growing like crazy these days, and now you’re saying you’ll also start a Family Business Production Company?”
“Hmm….”
I took my eyes off the computer screen for a moment. Then I sipped my coffee and chewed over Jeon Tae-guk’s words.
Jeon Tae-guk wasn’t entirely wrong. Honestly, I was already juggling too much, and if I added Family Business Production Company on top of everything else, I might sleep even less than I do now.
“Sung-guk, I’m right, aren’t I?”
Jeon Tae-guk was being annoyingly smug in front of me.
What I couldn’t bear was that Jeon Tae-guk was actually right.
“Hyung, I’ll admit it. But if I just sleep one or two hours less than I do now, I think I can handle the Family Business Production Company without any problems.”
“Sung-guk, you’re already sleeping less than five hours a day. And you’re saying you’ll cut another two hours?”
I drank my coffee.
“I’m still in my early twenties. I’m at an age where I have energy to spare. I should work while I can. Later on, even if I want to work like this, I won’t be able to.”
[Jeon Tae-guk, this is all hard-earned wisdom. Take note.]
The stamina of your twenties truly couldn’t be underestimated. The problem was that most people in their twenties spent that stamina on playing rather than working.
“Whenever I see you like this, you talk as if you’ve already lived a whole lifetime.”
[I’ve seen death before, so I’ve lived through everything that matters.]
I drained my coffee in one long gulp. The cup was empty.
“By the way, Sung-guk… I’m coming to your place for Lunar New Year again this time. Now I don’t even have anywhere else to go.”
“You didn’t visit our place much anyway.”
“That’s different—back then I chose not to go even though I could, but now I can’t because there’s nowhere to go. Mom will probably be in Hawaii, and Dad is apparently leaving early for a business trip to Germany.”
Jeon Tae-guk let out a quiet sigh.
I understood well enough—in my previous life, it wasn’t divorce, but I grew up with parents who didn’t get along.
Whenever I needed comfort from family, they were never there for me.
I took another sip of coffee. That’s when a sharp, tingling pain shot through my chest.
No way?
I urgently clutched at my chest.
“Sung-guk, what’s wrong?”
Jeon Tae-guk jumped up from his seat in alarm.
“My chest feels a bit tingly….”
“Wait… is something wrong with your heart?”
“….”
I shook my head instead of answering.
I had annual health checkups, but there had been no mention of heart issues in this life. There was no family history either.
So why was my chest hurting today?
“Park Secretary is on his honeymoon right now…. Who should I call… Oh, Secretary Kim!”
Jeon Tae-guk paced back and forth, then immediately called Secretary Kim Mi-so.
“Secretary Kim, call an ambulance from Samjeon Hospital. Sung-guk’s chest is tingling!”
Could it be that my heart was also problematic in this life?
* * *
A VIP room at Samjeon Hospital.
Director Ha of Samjeon Hospital looked down at me lying on the bed with a stern expression.
Behind Director Ha, I could see Jeon Tae-guk and Secretary Kim Mi-so, both still wrapped in worry.
“CEO Jeon Sung-guk…. I’m going to ask you a few questions now.”
“Yes….”
“CEO Jeon Sung-guk, how many hours of sleep do you typically get?”
“Hmm… about five hours, though there are many times I sleep even less than that.”
“Recently?”
“After returning from the Sundance Film Festival, with jet lag and accumulated work, I think I’ve been sleeping only an hour or two a day.”
“Good heavens….”
Director Ha looked at me with an expression of disbelief.
“This is more serious than I anticipated.”
“Director, is there something wrong with my heart?”
“No, there isn’t. Your heart is perfectly fine.”
Director Ha pressed firmly around my chest area.
Each time, a sharp, tingling pain radiated through me.
“This area bothers you, doesn’t it?”
“Yes, how did you know?”
Director Ha withdrew his hand and offered a subtle smile.
“Your posture while sleeping seems poor. I suspect you’re sleeping incorrectly, causing your muscles to tense up.”
At that moment, Jeon Tae-guk and Secretary Kim Mi-so, standing behind Director Ha, exhaled in relief while their lips twitched slightly.
Director Ha continued.
“Right now it’s just muscle tension, so if you stretch diligently and receive some physical therapy, you should be fine. But what concerns me most is your sleep duration. No matter how young you are, that little sleep will inevitably strain your body, CEO.”
“Director, I’ve already told Sung-guk to reduce his work and get more rest.”
Jeon Tae-guk grumbled from behind.
“It’s fortunate you have people around you who care so much. As a doctor, I have just one thing to say: protect your health while you’re young. You might think you’re fine now, but with so much work and frequent business trips, sleeping this little will inevitably lead to organ disease as you age. Do you understand?”
“….”
When I couldn’t answer readily, Jeon Tae-guk interjected.
“Director, since I live next door, I’ll monitor you thoroughly!”
Director Ha turned sharply toward Jeon Tae-guk.
“By the way, your health checkup results came back. It seems you need to go on a diet.”
“Ah, Director… you should tell me these things privately!”
“If I tell you quietly in private, you don’t listen, do you?”
Director Ha spoke sternly to Jeon Tae-guk.
“Still, though….”
“You seem to be having a drink every night. For your health, increase your exercise and reduce your drinking. Then the weight will come off naturally. Understood?”
“Ah… yes.”
Jeon Tae-guk answered reluctantly.
* * *
Due to Director Ha’s recommendation, I had no choice but to lie in the hospital bed all day.
I took a long nap for the first time in a while, and with the IV drip, the pain near my heart disappeared and my body felt considerably lighter.
But my mind was filled only with thoughts about Family Business Production Company.
Just then, the hospital room door creaked open and Mother entered. Secretary Kim Mi-so appeared behind her.
“Sung-guk, are you alright?”
“Mother, you heard everything from Secretary Kim, right?”
“Yes… but the doctor said you need to manage your health from now on, didn’t he?”
“Yes. So I wanted to discuss something with you….”
“What do you need to discuss with me?”
“Mother, did Ji-hee tell you that I bought the exclusive Disney distribution rights?”
“Yes… Ji-hee was thrilled. She said once she passes the bar exam, she’ll join that company and learn the business.”
Mother suddenly looked at me with a stern expression.
“Don’t tell me… Sung-guk, you’re planning to take on more work? Are you going to operate that production company too?”
“Well….”
Originally, that was the plan.
But if I said that now, I felt I’d get a smack on the back from Mother, so I swallowed my words.
“No. I think it’s best to just set up the production company and entrust this work to a professional manager.”
“That’s a relief… Both your mother and I are worried you’re taking on too much work.”
“Mother, but I want Family Business Production Company to live up to its name.”
“What do you mean by that?”
Mother’s brow furrowed slightly.
“Mother, remember when you ran the production company with Kim Mi-young?”
“That was different back then—you were modeling and Min-guk was doing child acting, so I did it for you both.”
“We had Lim Sun-mi back then too, and we managed several actors. We even brought in Director Kwak and produced broadcast programs….”
“That’s true, but it’s been a long time since I left that work. I’m not confident anymore.”
Mother looked nothing like her former self—her confidence had vanished.
The image of her taking buses all the way to Itaewon when I was a baby model was nowhere to be found.
“Mother… what if I become the CEO of Family Business Production Company, and you take care of the company’s operations?”
“Sung-guk, please don’t do this. These days, many companies hire professional managers anyway.”
“Mother, I’ve told you before. This is Family Business Production Company. It’s literally a family business. And even if I sit in the CEO chair, I’ll interfere as little as possible. I’ll simply work and make decisions only on investments and production when I find promising directors or projects. We need to establish the company properly so that when Ji-hee passes the bar exam and comes back, the company will still exist.”
Mother let out a quiet sigh.
“Sung-guk, you won’t listen even if I try to stop you, will you?”
Mother knew me better than anyone.
“But I have conditions.”
And Mother had trained me better than anyone.
“What conditions, Mother?”
“As you said, you’ll be the CEO of the company, and I’ll handle the company’s operations. Since I have an accounting background and experience from SKJ, it shouldn’t be too difficult. In return, you’ll exercise regularly. And you’ll be in bed by midnight. How’s that?”
“Hmm…. I can’t promise, but I’ll try my best.”
Mother immediately looked at Secretary Kim Mi-so.
“Secretary Kim, please contact the lawyer and have them draw up a contract for this.”
“Yes, ma’am.”
Secretary Kim Mi-so hurried out, and Mother looked at me with a determined expression.
“Sung-guk, let’s write up a contract.”
“Mother, who writes a contract about going to bed after midnight?”
“Because I know you won’t keep it unless there’s a contract.”
[Blood really is thicker than water, they say.]
Our family’s stubborn nature clearly came from Mother.
“Fine… but I’m adding exception clauses too.”
“By all means.”
I extended my hand to Mother.
“So, Mother… you’re joining Family Business Production Company?”
“I have no choice. It’s a family business, after all….”
Mother squeezed my hand firmly.
“Mother, there’s a director I’d like you to look into first.”
“Sung-guk, get some rest first….”
“Mother, just look into that one director for me.”
“You really are impossible to stop.”
Mother shook her head in resignation, as if she had given up.
“So which director do you want to meet?”
“Director Bong Joon-ho, who directed 【The Han River Monster】.”
“That director is incredibly famous.”
He was certainly one of the most renowned directors in South Korea at the moment.
And in a few years, Director Bong Joon-ho would become world-famous after winning the Academy Award.
I absolutely had to produce that Academy Award-winning film, 【Parasite】, through our Family Business Production Company!

—————

This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com

—————