New Employees With an Annual Salary of 1 Trillion Won - Chapter 15

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Chapter 15. Overdrive Gear (5)

 

 

 

Each department of GL Group had contracts with numerous subcontractors.

Our Product Development Department 3 was no exception, and since subcontractor management was usually handled by manager-level employees, Manager Kim knew quite a few companies.

 

“This place is pretty well-known for molding analysis. It’s a company started by a department manager who retired from GL Group’s home appliances department, and they handle analysis not just for GL but also for large corporations like Samjin Electronics.”

“For such a place, the building looks a bit shabby.”

“What kind of capital would someone who used to be a salaried worker have? It’s much better now compared to before. They even have 100 employees. Let’s go in first.”

 

I followed Manager Kim into the office called ‘Kang-il Analysis.’

As soon as I opened the door, the first impression that came to mind was just one thing.

 

A chicken coop.

Nearly 100 employees were crammed together in a narrow space doing computer work.

Looking at the randomly arranged desks with no order whatsoever made me feel suffocated.

Moreover, the interior was so thick with cigarette smoke that the view ahead was hazily blurred.

 

“President Kang! I’m here!”

“Oh, Manager Kim~ Long time no see! Your face has gotten thinner by half. Product Development Department 3 got sold to a private equity fund, right? Should I prepare a position for you?”

“I have to endure as long as I can. At least I’m still getting the same salary I received at GL, so that’s fortunate. But I heard the workload has decreased lately, are you doing okay?”

“Well, our work follows cycles, you know. When there’s a lot of development work, we get busy, and when there isn’t, we have to twiddle our thumbs like now.”

 

The two chatted naturally like old friends.

Though there seemed to be an age difference, Manager Kim continued the conversation with his characteristic smooth talking style, linking arms with President Kang.

 

“This is Employee Lee Jung-hoo from our department. He might come here often from now on. Don’t feel too disappointed even if I don’t come.”

“Oh my~ Nice to meet you. You’ll have quite a hard time working under Manager Kim.”

“Not at all. He takes good care of me.”

“But you didn’t come just to say hello, right? You want to assign work?”

“Yes. We want to assign a few molding analysis jobs. Can it be done quickly?”

“Of course it can be done quickly. Just look at the office once. See how many guys are playing games instead of working.”

 

I was already counting.

About 30% of the employees were doing other things.

The extremely inefficient scene made me feel suffocated again.

 

“Then it’ll proceed quickly, right? But don’t do it too carelessly. We’ll be assigning subcontracted work frequently from now on, so you need to guarantee quality for me to save face.”

“When have we ever done work carelessly? Trust us, we handle work properly. However, the cost will be quite high, is that okay? I’d like to give you a discount for old times’ sake, but you know the program license costs aren’t trivial.”

“You can handle it at the level GL Group used to assign, right?”

“Of course that level is possible. Okay, shall we draw up the contract now?”

 

The contract proceeded really swiftly.

Manager Kim immediately called the Department Manager about the successful contract, and when we sent the contract by fax, Tiger Fund transferred the subcontractor fee right away as if they had been waiting.

 

But why won’t this strange feeling go away?

There was nothing wrong with the contract, and while the company’s work environment was a mess, it wasn’t a place with poor skills.

 

“Wow, private equity funds are really sharp when it comes to money calculations.”

“I don’t know the details either, but I heard Tiger Fund has more holdings than Samjin Electronics. Of course, they probably wouldn’t need to spend that much in Korea.”

“Nothing beats having a reliable financial backer. Well, now that the contract is done, we should have a meal.”

“Another kimchi stew lunch box today? I’m seriously saying I want to come here often just for that kimchi stew alone. Whatever they use for flavoring, the umami taste is incredible.”

 

Watching Manager Kim speak with saliva pooling in his mouth, President Kang waved his hand and laughed.

 

“Kimchi stew is a bit much for a guest who came after a long time. I know a decent place, so let’s go. And I’ll introduce you to a good person too.”

“A good person? Who are you talking about?”

“You’ll know when we get there. You know the hotel Chinese restaurant up ahead, right? Let’s go there.”

“Wow, that’s a nice place. They charge over 10,000 won just for jajangmyeon, right? In the neighborhood, you can eat for 2,500 won.”

“If I’m treating, it should be something expensive. Stop complaining and follow me.”

 

We headed to the hotel Chinese restaurant as President Kang led the way.

With the sudden schedule change, I calculated first.

The current time was 12:30, and even calculating meal time and travel time, it wouldn’t delay enough to break my routine.

 

So we entered the Chinese restaurant.

We were guided not to the main hall but to a private room.

And inside, there was a completely unexpected person waiting for us.

 

“Nice to meet you. I’m Assistant Manager Park Young-tae from GL Group’s HR team.”

“Assistant Manager! It’s really been a long time.”

“I’m really glad to see you too. It’s even more pleasant to see Employee Lee Jung-hoo again like this.”

 

Was this it?

As soon as I met Assistant Manager Park Young-tae, a strong sense of rejection rose up.

 

A face I had seen only once during my job interview.

The HR team, known as the power organization within GL Group.

And a person known to have more power than most department managers despite being an ‘assistant manager.’

It was Assistant Manager Park Young-tae.

 

“I had an appointment with President Kang, but I wanted to see old colleagues after a long time, so I made this request. I apologize if this is an inconvenience.”

“Oh, not at all! I’m really glad to see you like this, Assistant Manager.”

 

Even Manager Kim, who would normally take control of the atmosphere with his smooth talk, was stumbling over his words.

Though he usually spoke freely to anyone, his mouth seemed frozen by the sharp aura that Assistant Manager Park Young-tae emanated.

 

“Let’s talk while we eat.”

“Oh my, thanks to you, Assistant Manager, I’ll get to feast after a long time. And Manager Kim, didn’t I tell you earlier? I’d introduce you to a good opportunity.”

“Don’t tell me… the good opportunity is GL Group?”

“Assistant Manager Park will tell you the details himself.”

 

An awkward silence flowed in the room while the food was being set up.

And when the server left and closed the door, Assistant Manager Park brought up the main topic.

 

“Please return to GL Group. We’ll recognize your years of service as they are and place you in the department you want.”

“Return to… GL Group? But we have contracts with the private equity fund, so changing jobs would be difficult.”

“You just need to return the retention bonus. GL Group will handle all other issues.”

 

GL Group return proposal.

It was a proposal that would completely destroy the department environment I was painstakingly building.

I broke out in hives worse than when I had seen any irregular thing.

 

“Employee Lee Jung-hoo should come back with us too. I’ll make sure you can continue working in the same department as Manager Kim.”

“I’m fine.”

“Don’t answer too hastily, just contact me within this week. Here’s my business card, please call that number.”

 

I had no intention of taking the business card.

But Manager Kim tactlessly and carefully accepted Assistant Manager Park’s business card.

Various emotions showed on Manager Kim’s face as he received the business card, which made me even more irritated.

 

“Well then, let’s eat.”

“Thank you for the meal! It’s been a while since I’ve had a proper meal.”

 

President Kang devoured the food with his characteristic exaggerated reactions,

but I only fiddled with my spoon, and Manager Kim seemed half out of it as food kept spilling from his chin.

 

The meal time, weighed down by tension, ended quietly like that.

Assistant Manager Park, who stood up from his seat, gave his final greeting.

 

“I’ll be waiting for good news. I have something to discuss separately with President Kang, so let’s go out first. Oh, and please keep today’s conversation secret from others. Especially from Department Manager Cha Ik-hyeon… it would be better not to tell him.”

 

We soon left the Chinese restaurant as well.

I spoke to Manager Kim, who was standing blankly in front of the restaurant for a long time without saying anything.

 

“Manager, what are you thinking about? You’re not seriously considering going back to GL, are you?”

“Am I crazy to go back there? Do you know how much I’m earning now? I need to buy a house to get married next year, now is the time to save money. But what about you? I saw your eyes wavering when Assistant Manager Park was talking earlier.”

“I have no intention of going either. I’ve finally gotten to do what I want to my heart’s content, so why would I go back?”

“Right? Our home is Product Development Department 3 now. Where would we go?”

 

It was a satisfying answer.

I was relieved that Manager Kim didn’t seem to want to change jobs.

 

Now that I had heard his answer, it was time to return to the company.

The schedule was already 30 minutes behind, and I was about to hurry back to the company,

but grumble, Manager Kim’s stomach expressed strong hunger.

 

“Are you hungry? Should we go eat kimchi stew?”

“Kimchi stew? Great! That fancy food earlier was rejected by my mouth.”

 

A meal suggestion I would never normally make.

But I made the difficult decision to go to a Korean meal restaurant for Manager Kim, who had rejected the job offer.

 

“Ah~ This is the taste.”

 

Manager Kim inhaled the kimchi stew for a while, satisfying his hunger.

When his stomach was somewhat full, he seemed to have something curious and looked at me.

 

“But you, why didn’t you file any patents when you were at GL Group? With your skills, shouldn’t you have had at least one by now?”

“Although I belonged to the Patent Team, no one expected such work from me. I never received proper training, and there was no senior who assigned me work separately.”

 

Manager Kim looked at me pitifully.

But I didn’t think that life was bad at all.

It was a routine where I only had to do predetermined work according to exact routines.

Of course, in the early days after joining, there were times when I had to spend time like a waiting stone with nothing to do, but I was able to quickly fill my routine by searching for work to do.

 

“Really? How do you create patents when you’ve never learned?”

“I learned by watching from the side. To organize materials and prepare meetings, I had to know the Patent Team’s work.”

“Amazing. I don’t think I could have endured it. Sorry I couldn’t take care of you in advance.”

“It’s okay.”

“Hey! Let’s have a drink!”

 

It really was okay.

But Manager Kim kept offering alcohol, feeling sorry about something.

Since drinking before work hours ended was absolutely unacceptable, I only pretended to receive the glass.

 

“You’re really a tough guy. How did you endure that life?”

“I was really okay.”

“You endured it because of the IMF, right? There are quite a few people who keep resignation letters in their pockets. I would have quit long ago if it weren’t for that time. Well, thanks to that we made it this far, so it worked out in the end.”

 

The misunderstanding kept growing.

It wasn’t because of the IMF, and it wasn’t difficult either.

I really went to work just because I liked the company life routine.

Uncomfortable with this conversation continuing, I brought up a different topic.

 

“Should we keep the promise Assistant Manager Park mentioned?”

“You mean not telling the Department Manager?”

“I actually think we should tell him.”

 

To protect Product Development Department 3, there should be no secrets.

Manager Kim might harbor other thoughts unnecessarily.

 

“We should, right?”

“I’ll report it as soon as I come to work tomorrow. See you tomorrow.”

 

We emptied the entire bottle of soju and quietly stood up from our seats.

Although Manager Kim wanted to drink more, I forcibly ended the drinking session for tomorrow’s work.

 

***

 

The next day.

I came to work at 7:51 AM as usual.

But unlike usual, Manager Kim had come to work earlier than me, and all the department members were gathered around him.

 

“Employee Lee! Ohhh~ I heard you received a scouting offer from Assistant Manager Park?”

“How did you know?”

“Manager Kim told us everything. He said your eyes were shaking mercilessly? Is it true?”

“Absolutely not. I never once thought about changing jobs.”

 

It comes out like this?

It wasn’t me whose eyes were shaking, but Manager Kim.

But I didn’t bother pointing it out.

Manager Kim’s face showed no signs of wanting to change jobs.

 

“Alright~ Everyone who received a scouting offer from GL, raise your hands~ Who else is there?”

“Me too. But you know, if it’s scouting, shouldn’t they raise the salary? Who would go with a salary freeze condition?”

“I got the same offer too. How much am I making now, why would I go back for less than that?”

 

Seven out of ten people received scouting offers, but no one was thinking of changing jobs.

Rather, the department members who heard the conditions reacted with “What is this?” and became even less willing to switch jobs.

 

“The patent results we created must be quite profitable. If GL wants to take us back to that extent. But changing jobs now isn’t a good choice. Which large corporation would give this much money as patent compensation? Changing jobs… it’s not too late to do it after our company gets acquired.”

“My dream is to secure a solid share before the acquisition and retire!”

 

As expected, my plan was right.

Who would want to leave the department when they’re giving such huge bonuses?

 

An era where the shadow of the IMF still lingered.

Nothing was more important to office workers than their annual salary.

There was no reason to abandon their current job that guaranteed stability and high income.

And there was one more piece of news that would make them stay.

 

“And here’s one more piece of good news, Saera Technology’s stock price has finally broken through 2,000 won again.”

“I’d have no regrets if it just comes back to break-even. You don’t know how much I’ve been worrying.”

“Actually, I want to sell now, but we can’t touch it for 3 months. I’m going crazy from the frustration.”

 

While the department members were laughing, chatting, and excited about stock talk.

I quietly read news related to Saera Technology.

Looking at the articles with consecutive positive content, I felt certain once again.

 

It’s moving.

The gears spinning faster than before.

Now it was finally starting to accelerate properly.

Saera Technology’s stock price would skyrocket soon.

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