I Will Raise This Family to Greatness - Chapter 499

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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 499
A week had passed since Jeon Mi-jin was hired as Ji-hee’s manager.
Ji-hee continued her studies diligently, while Jeon Mi-jin primarily managed the various advertisements and sponsorships that came Ji-hee’s way.
Though it would be more accurate to say it was the secretaries’ work rather than Jeon Mi-jin’s directly.
As I and Ji-hee had anticipated, the secretaries Jeon Mi-jin brought were more thorough than anyone else.
They prioritized non-profit advertisements over commercial ones, just as Ji-hee preferred, and proceeded with work in a way that wouldn’t interfere with her studies.
Ji-hee emerged from her room with her school bag slung over her shoulder.
“Big brother, I checked my horoscope for fun today, and it said you should be careful about gossip.”
“Ji-hee, you can’t trust things like that.”
“Anyway… that’s what it said. I’m heading to school.”
“Have a good day.”
Our brief exchange ended, and Daniel, standing beside me, broke into a smile.
“CEO, I don’t have a younger sister, so I think it would be adorable if she told me my fortune like that. Why are you always so expressionless?”
“Because she’s usually not that cute.”
“So this is what real siblings are like?”
“Probably. Daniel, could you tell me today’s schedule?”
Daniel outlined today’s itinerary.
Most of it was no different from usual.
“Oh, and CEO, lunch today will be with the employees.”
“Did we normally do that?”
“CEO Mark and Lim Mi-mi do it casually and often, but you’ve been so busy that there hasn’t been much opportunity. There have been many requests from the company to set aside time to talk with CEO Jeon Sung-guk, so I mentioned it to you last week and you said to schedule it during lunch. Don’t you remember?”
“I remember that, but I didn’t know it was today.”
“Starting tomorrow, the schedule is packed, so it was decided on short notice.”
[I won’t even be able to eat lunch comfortably.]
But this was what came with being a CEO.
Even lunch was work.
* * *
Several large pizzas were laid out on a table tucked away in a corner of FaceNote.
Lunch consisted of pizza, salad, and beverages.
Most of the employees were people I was seeing for the first time.
I had been in Korea for a while, and in that time the staff had grown several times over, making it impossible for me to know every face personally.
Daniel introduced them to me one by one from beside me.
“Here are Tom and John from the development team. Sean and Harry. Annabel and Ron. And this is….”
“Hello, CEO.”
An outgoing-looking female employee introduced herself directly.
“I’m Michelle Moore from the Marketing Team. I joined FaceNote after you went to Korea, and my lifelong dream has been to work with you.”
Daniel whispered beside me.
“She’s apparently a devoted fan of yours, CEO.”
“Daniel, I have many fans.”
“Ah… Indeed, CEO, you certainly know yourself well.”
The lunchtime meeting proceeded pleasantly with enthusiastic participation from the employees.
With one exception.
“I joined FaceNote because of you, CEO. Seeing you in person, you’re even more impressive than I imagined.”
Michelle Moore’s demeanor was somewhat excessive.
“Michelle, thank you. But let’s give the other employees a chance to speak too, shall we?”
“Oh, yes… I apologize.”
Yet every time the conversation ended, Michelle Moore would interject.
“CEO, are you seeing anyone these days?”
“Michelle, that seems unrelated to work.”
“Ah… I’m sorry.”
But her apologies were hollow—she immediately continued with another question, persistently probing into my personal life.
I decided to cut the lunch meeting short with the employees.
“Let’s wrap up here for today. I’ll arrange a more relaxed gathering next time. And since I’m staying in the United States now, please don’t hesitate to contact the company with any questions or concerns.”
The employees left with disappointed expressions, the awkward atmosphere lingering because of Michelle Moore.
Just as I was catching my breath, Michelle Moore approached me again.
“CEO, would it be alright if I gave you this as a gift?”
“What is it?”
“Just a little gift from my heart.”
“Thank you.”
I accepted the gift from Michelle Moore and quickly excused myself.
* * *
Daniel stared at the gift Michelle Moore had given me with a worried expression.
“CEO, don’t you think you should open it?”
“It’s probably nothing serious. Cookies, maybe… something like that.”
“Still, you never know. There have been bomb threats lately….”
Now that he mentioned it, there had been an incident where suspicious packages containing white powder were delivered to the homes of various Silicon Valley CEOs.
“CEO, let me open it for you.”
“Daniel, I’ll do it. If it’s a bomb meant for me, it’s better if I’m the one who gets hurt.”
I spoke casually, but internally I was breaking into a cold sweat.
America was a place where anything could happen to a young, wealthy CEO at any moment.
I carefully unwrapped the gift Michelle Moore had given me.
“Daniel, fortunately it doesn’t seem to be a bomb. And there’s no white powder either.”
The moment I opened the box, an album fell out.
And the instant I opened the album, I was utterly horrified.
“CEO….”
Daniel was equally speechless.
The album contained composite images of my photos from various media outlets merged with photos of Michelle Moore, making us look like an affectionate couple.
Of course, the composites were so poorly done that anyone could tell at a glance they were fake.
“Daniel, please call Mark, Lim Mi-mi, Kim Mi-so from the Marketing Team, and the Legal Team as well.”
“Yes, CEO!”
* * *
Mark, Lim Mi-mi, Kim Mi-so, and the legal team all stared at me with expressions of utter disbelief as they examined the album.
“Sung-guk, what on earth is this?”
“It’s a gift from Michelle Moore, a female employee who works in the Marketing Team.”
“That’s insane….”
Lim Mi-mi muttered under her breath.
I turned my gaze toward Kim Mi-so.
“Ms. Kim Mi-so, could you explain something about this employee named Michelle Moore?”
“Michelle Moore works in Marketing Team 2, so I only know her by sight. But there was something odd about her. Ever since she found out that I worked as your secretary in Korea for a long time, she’s been playing some rather malicious pranks on me.”
“What kind of pranks?”
“Well… I was hesitant to mention it because I thought it might cause a misunderstanding.”
“Daniel, please call in the Marketing Team Leader. Ms. Kim Mi-so, you’re dismissed.”
“Yes, sir.”
Kim Mi-so left the office with an unsettled expression.
The Marketing Team Leader, who arrived shortly after, began recounting what had transpired.
“Sir… I was actually planning to terminate that employee soon anyway. She’s been relentlessly harassing not only Ms. Kim Mi-so, but any female employees who showed interest in you or spoke about you.”
“Harassing?”
“These were clearly dangerous actions. For example, she’d put cleaning solution in the cup Ms. Kim Mi-so was drinking from… things like that.”
Everyone in the office was shocked by this revelation.
“My goodness… Sung-guk, isn’t this stalking? A criminal offense?”
“Possibly….”
I stroked my chin thoughtfully for a moment.
“Team Leader, how is Michelle Moore’s work performance?”
“Quite poor, actually. In fact, I recently discovered several falsifications in Michelle Moore’s resume. Claims about experience at Google, for instance. When I verified with Google, it turned out that Michelle Moore had been fired from there as well for submitting a fraudulent resume.”
“Team Leader, proceed with termination on the grounds of resume falsification.”
The legal team provided an appropriate justification.
Mark’s voice grew heated.
“Sung-guk, this isn’t something that can be resolved with just a termination. This stalking puts you in danger.”
“Of course I’ll report this to the police. The photo album and various circumstances should serve as evidence. I’ll need to file for a restraining order.”
“Let’s move quickly. Once someone like that gets fired, they might show up at the office with a gun the next day.”
These days, it had become a recurring social problem when terminated employees would open fire in offices the following day.
“Then, let’s report to the police first. After that, we’ll proceed with the termination. And… starting tomorrow, let’s station bodyguards throughout FaceNote.”
“Yes… that should put my mind at ease.”
Mark finally uncrossed his arms.
“But, sir.”
Lim Mi-mi looked at me with anxious eyes.
“What is it, Ms. Lim Mi-mi?”
“Your home is the concern. From what I often see in Hollywood gossip, stalkers do break into celebrities’ homes. No matter how secure the security is, they find openings.”
“Don’t worry about that. My neighboring house belongs to the Samjeon Family. And Ji-hee’s manager is the daughter of the Samjeon Family. Within a 500-meter radius of the area, no strangers are allowed to approach.”
“Then, that’s a relief.”
“Well then, let’s put this incident behind us and get back to work.”
Though something felt off about it, we all returned to our positions.
* * *
As our legal team filed a stalking complaint against Michelle Moore with the police, her termination was being processed simultaneously.
The stress of handling this all day had even brought on a migraine I rarely experienced.
I knocked on Mark’s office door.
“Sung-guk, you alright?”
“Mark, do you have any migraine medication?”
“Hold on.”
Mark lived with migraines and always kept emergency medication on hand.
“Sung-guk, here.”
I accepted the migraine pills Mark offered me.
“Mark, working here really does bring all sorts of surprises.”
“I’ve always envied how popular you are. But seeing things like this happen is actually frightening. Sung-guk, for a while, make sure you always go around with Daniel and the Bodyguard. Understood?”
“Yeah. I’ll take it to heart this time.”
Just then, I heard Daniel’s voice from a distance.
“CEO!!!”
Daniel burst through the office door, breathing heavily.
“Daniel, what’s wrong?”
“CEO, there’s a strange post on FaceNote causing an uproar.”
It was obvious who had written the strange post.
“Mark, check it out.”
“Uh…”
Mark checked FaceNote and turned the monitor toward me.
“Sung-guk, look at this.”
– I’m reporting FaceNote CEO Jeon Sung-guk!
[They’re reporting me?]
I read through the post carefully.
– I am an employee who has worked at FaceNote.
The post was written anonymously.
It was obviously written by Michelle Moore.
I continued reading the post.
– FaceNote is expanding globally under the name of a new SNS for a new era, but CEO Jeon Sung-guk’s management of the company is not, which is why I’m writing this complaint.
1. CEO Jeon Sung-guk handles excessive workloads alone under the guise of work efficiency. This is nothing short of dictatorship!
2. CEO Jeon Sung-guk spends FaceNote headquarters’ money like it’s his own personal funds through relocations and such.
3. Because CEO Jeon Sung-guk works without lunch breaks, employees feel pressured to do the same.
But as soon as I saw several of the accusations, I burst out laughing.
“Ha ha. Sung-guk, what is this?”
Mark burst out laughing too.
“For such a grand title, these all sound like compliments about me?”
Even Daniel, who had been tense, finally let out a breath of relief.
“CEO, look at the comments. Everyone’s asking if Jeon Sung-guk has become Iron Man or something?”
“Same here. Is this even an exposé or just praise? There are a few insults scattered in, but they’re practically endearing.”
I relaxed my tense shoulders.
“Still, I’m grateful Michelle exposed me instead of pulling a gun.”
“Sung-guk, don’t let your guard down. No one knows what someone who posted something like this might do.”
“Right, which is why I’m going to make this incident an example.”
I would implement a complete and permanent blocking measure to ensure Michelle Moore could never approach me again.
“What exactly are you planning to do?”
“Michelle Moore will definitely come looking for me if I don’t respond. That’s when I’ll reveal to the world that Michelle Moore has been stalking me. Only then will she never be able to approach me again.”
[Michelle Moore, you picked the wrong person to mess with.]

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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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