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Chapter 3…
“Is this the place?”
The taxi came to a stop on a steep hillside road in Seongbuk-dong.
A towering stone wall and a tightly shut gate stood before him. His eyes fell on the nameplate beside it.
[Kim Seok-jun]
There was no mistake.
It looked exactly as he remembered from the one and only time he had come here with his father in his previous life.
Taking a deep breath, he pressed the doorbell.
Ding—
The mechanical chime of the intercom broke the silence.
“Who is it?”
A wary woman’s voice came through the speaker.
“Hello. My name is Kang Sunwoo. Is this Executive Director Kim Seok-jun’s residence?”
“My husband is Kim Seok-jun… but where are you from? Do you have an appointment?”
“If you could tell Executive Director Kim Seok-jun that Kang Taejin’s son is here to see him, he’ll understand.”
Silence followed.
It sounded like she was confirming something inside.
Click.
A moment later, the electronic lock released.
Sunwoo straightened his clothes before pushing the gate open.
He crossed a neatly landscaped garden, and as he approached the two-story Western-style house, the front door opened. The woman whose voice he’d heard earlier greeted him.
“Welcome.”
“Good afternoon. I’m Kang Sunwoo.”
“Please come in. He’s waiting in the living room.”
“Thank you.”
Inside the spacious living room stood an elderly man.
His hair was completely white, but his back remained perfectly straight.
“Oh my, look who’s here. You’ve grown so much. It’s been a long time since I last saw you—you were just a child then.”
Kim Seok-jun.
The loyal retainer who had served Chairman Kang Manho like his own shadow.
The legendary strategist known throughout Sunjin Group as the keeper of its treasury, the man who had saved the company during its financial crisis in the early 1990s by controlling its funding lifeline.
When Kang Taejin became chairman, he had tried to persuade Kim Seok-jun to stay.
But Kim had simply replied that new wine belonged in new wineskins and retired without hesitation.
Sunwoo bowed respectfully.
“It’s been a long time, sir.”
“So… do you still remember me?”
“Yes. I remember coming here with my father when I was about twelve and watching the two of you play baduk.”
Kim Seok-jun smiled warmly and patted his shoulder.
“You’ve got a good memory. I attended Chairman Kang… I mean, your father’s funeral. But you weren’t there when I came.”
“I was…”
“I heard. They said you collapsed from the shock. At your age, losing your father like that… no wonder. Well then, don’t just stand there. Sit.”
Following Kim’s invitation, Sunwoo sat down.
Soon the housekeeper returned with chilled sikhye, its surface floating with tiny pieces of ice.
“Thank you.”
Once she left, Kim picked up his glass.
“So then… you must still be busy dealing with the funeral. What brings you to visit an old man all of a sudden?”
“You came to pay your respects, but I wasn’t able to thank you personally. So… I wanted to express my gratitude.”
“Hahaha! What a thoughtful young man. You’ve really grown up.”
Kim looked at him with the gentle affection of a grandfather.
Sunwoo set his glass down.
“And… there’s something else I wanted to tell you.”
“Something to tell me?”
“My father left me some final words before he passed away.”
He swallowed deliberately, pretending to struggle with the memory.
“He told me that… if anything ever happened to him, I must come and find Executive Director Kim Seok-jun.”
Of course, it was a lie.
His father had admired Kim Seok-jun deeply, but he hated troubling someone who had already retired.
Still…
Sunwoo needed a reason to be here.
“Chairman Kang Taejin said that?”
“Yes.”
“He said you’re the only person who can help me now.”
Kim burst into hearty laughter.
“What help could I possibly give? I heard President Kim Ja-young is taking over management tomorrow. Didn’t the board already approve it? According to Sunjin Group’s bylaws, once the board decides, she can immediately assume the position.”
A chill ran down Sunwoo’s spine.
So…
His mother must have rejected Chairman Kang Taeyong’s proposal earlier today and decided to run the company herself.
The decision hadn’t even been announced publicly.
Yet this man, who had retired over seven years ago, already knew.
‘Look at this old fox…’
That meant he still had connections inside Sunjin Group.
Not just ordinary connections.
Connections at its very core.
His instincts had been right.
Kim Seok-jun still held influence.
“I… hadn’t heard about my mother’s decision yet.”
“Really? Well, your mother is no ordinary woman. She’ll do just fine. There’s no reason to drag an old retiree like me back into company affairs.”
It was a polite refusal.
A clear line drawn between them.
Your mother will handle the company.
Leave me out of it.
But Sunwoo had no intention of backing down.
“I’m not asking you to help Sunjin Group.”
“…Hmm?”
“I’m asking you to help Kang Sunwoo.”
“I need your guidance.”
Kim’s expression slowly changed.
The kind old grandfather disappeared.
In his place stood a cold-eyed man who seemed capable of seeing straight through him.
“Why should I help you?”
“Because I need someone who can lead me.”
“Hahaha. Me? We’re practically strangers. Besides, don’t you have your eldest uncle and your other uncles? Surely they’ll help you.”
“They’ll only see me as a child who needs protection.”
Sunwoo met his gaze without flinching.
“And I’m different?”
“Aren’t you?”
“Just now… the way you looked at me.”
“You weren’t looking at me like a child.”
“You were evaluating me.”
Kim’s eyebrows twitched.
“…”
“And my uncles… and even my grandfather’s brothers… they’re no longer my family.”
“They’re my enemies.”
“Hmph.”
“Right now they’re probably wondering how they can take Sunjin Group away from my mother… and from me.”
Kim quietly placed his teacup on the table and leaned back.
A faint smile curled across his lips.
“Well now… hearing words like that from a high school student is certainly something.”
“I don’t intend to lose everything.”
“So?”
“I know exactly how to prevent it.”
Kim let out an amused laugh.
“Hahaha. Forgive me. You sound so serious.”
“So you know how to keep it?”
“Yes.”
“Well then… let’s hear it.”
He still treated Sunwoo’s confidence as nothing more than youthful bravado.
Sunwoo took a slow breath before speaking clearly.
“We sell the resort.”
“And we grow the trading company.”
“…What?”
Kim Seok-jun’s eyes shook.
* * *
“Was I dreaming?”
“A mere high school student… spoke to me as an equal.”
Silence filled the living room.
Kim Seok-jun hadn’t moved until every last piece of ice in his glass of sikhye had melted.
The eighteen-year-old’s voice still echoed in his ears.
“Grow the trading company…”
When Kim had raised his objection…
“As you know, the era of general trading companies is over. Manufacturing subsidiaries export directly now. Brokerage commissions don’t have a future.”
“That’s true.”
“The traditional trading company is dead.”
Sunwoo had agreed.
Then he overturned conventional wisdom.
“But the trading company as a supplier… is only just beginning.”
“Supplier?”
“Your eldest uncle took Sunjin Motors.”
“Your younger uncle took Sunjin Heavy Industries.”
“What do they absolutely need to build cars and ships?”
“Steel… oil… parts.”
“Exactly.”
“We take control of that lifeline.”
Sunwoo’s eyes gleamed.
“Until now, trading companies have been treated like subcontractors selling other people’s products.”
“But if we secure overseas mines, oil fields, and steel mills before anyone else…”
“Everything changes.”
“You mean resource development?”
“Not merely development.”
“We create a monopoly over the entire value chain.”
“If they want to build cars…”
“If they want to launch ships…”
“They shouldn’t be able to obtain even a single bolt without going through Sunjin Trading.”
Kim had unconsciously held his breath.
“While the manufacturers fight bloody battles on the front lines…”
“We’ll sit comfortably behind them, supplying the raw materials and collecting tolls.”
“That’s the future of a trading company.”
“And it’s the only way to reunify Sunjin Group.”
It reminded him of an old Jewish proverb.
Those who sell picks and shovels make more money than those digging for gold.
That child…
Had applied that ancient wisdom directly to Sunjin Group in 2003.
“Making money isn’t the goal.”
“Once this structure exists…”
“My uncles will have no choice but to answer to the trading company.”
“If they try to source materials elsewhere…”
“They’ll end up paying even more.”
“…Good heavens.”
Just recalling the conversation gave Kim goosebumps.
An eighteen-year-old had identified the exact leverage needed to overturn an entire corporate power structure.
Not by buying shares.
Not by defending management rights directly.
But by controlling the real economy itself.
‘Neutralize management control by controlling the supply chain.’
Cruel.
Practical.
Brilliant.
When he’d looked into that boy’s eyes…
Kim had felt a shiver run down his spine.
Because they reminded him of someone.
“…He’s just like him.”
His mind drifted back to the late 1980s.
Back when he had been a director at Daesung Trading, one of Sunjin Trading’s rivals.
At the time, Sunjin Group had been struggling under reckless expansion, and Kim had often criticized its mismanagement behind closed doors.
Then one day…
The office door burst open.
A massive man strode inside.
It was Kang Manho.
The founder of Sunjin Group.
“Are you Kim Seok-jun?”
Everyone had frozen at the sight of the rival chairman.
Kang Manho casually sat on Kim’s desk.
“I hear you’ve been tearing my company apart every time you drink.”
“Well?”
“Criticize it to my face.”
“Tell me exactly what’s wrong.”
Young and fearless, Kim had done exactly that.
He had listed every flaw without holding back.
When he finally finished, he expected retaliation.
Instead…
Kang Manho slapped his knee and burst into laughter.
“You’re absolutely right!”
“Not a single word was wrong!”
“Chairman…?”
“Resign today.”
“Come to my office tomorrow.”
“What?”
“If you know what’s wrong…”
“You must know how to fix it.”
“Bring me the solutions.”
“I’ll hand you the keys to my treasury.”
“Fix everything however you like.”
The audacity to walk into enemy territory…
Recruit the man insulting him…
And entrust him with the company’s finances.
The wild instinct that gambled everything on ventures everyone else called insane…
Kim vividly remembered Kang Manho.
Slowly, he looked toward the empty seat where Sunwoo had been sitting.
“Hahaha…”
“So I’ve been drawn in after all.”
He had never sensed anything like this from Kang Taejin.
The boy resembled not his father…
But his grandfather.
No—
He was even sharper.
If Kang Manho had been a sledgehammer…
That child was a finely crafted pickaxe.
“Hahaha…”
A strange smile spread across Kim’s lips.
The excitement he’d forgotten since retirement slowly returned.
“I thought Sunjin Group’s fate had ended when Chairman Kang passed away…”
Looking into the empty room, he murmured quietly.
“It seems blood truly cannot lie, Chairman.”
“I may finally be able to hand over what you entrusted to me.”
“At last… I can lay down this burden.”
* * *
“Haa…”
A sigh escaped Sunwoo’s lips.
It was because of the assignment Kim Seok-jun had given him yesterday.
“You said you don’t want to be treated like a child.”
“Then earn money yourself.”
“I don’t care how.”
“Bring me one million won within a month.”
“If you can do that…”
“I’ll acknowledge you as an adult.”
He had done his best to persuade Kim using everything he’d learned from both lives.
Especially about selling the resort.
In his previous life…
He hadn’t realized that truth until it was far too late.
Somehow he’d convinced himself the resort belonged to Seona and shouldn’t be touched.
Because of that misunderstanding…
Every plan had unraveled.
He’d been forced to sell off all of the truly valuable businesses instead.
‘The problem is… how do I earn one million won?’
Getting one million won wasn’t difficult.
But Kim hadn’t told him to find the money.
He’d told him to earn it.
He could always get a part-time job.
But…
‘Is that really what Executive Director Kim wants?’
The man’s eyes had changed the moment Sunwoo asked for his help.
He wasn’t simply watching him.
He was evaluating him.
Trying to see through him.
If that was the case…
Then the assignment wasn’t about the amount.
It was about how he chose to solve it.
‘I need a different approach.’
The focus wasn’t on earning one million won.
It was on the method.
As he sat deep in thought—
“…Sunwoo.”
Someone gently tapped his shoulder.
Turning around, he saw a neatly dressed male student looking at him with concern.
[Lee Minjae]
Right.
He remembered him.
The class president.
They’d never been particularly close, but Minjae was responsible and had occasionally looked after the quiet, withdrawn Sunwoo.
“You okay?”
“Yeah. I’m fine.”
“That’s a relief. The teacher said you didn’t have to attend classes for a while. You should rest at home.”
“There’s nothing for me to do at home.”
“I guess that’s true…”
The class president scratched the back of his head awkwardly before checking his watch.
“Club activities are about to start. Aren’t you going? Everyone’s already heading over.”
“Club activities?”
Sunjin High School.
Perhaps because it had been founded by his grandfather, even in 2003 it emphasized holistic education much like future autonomous private high schools.
Club activities were taken quite seriously.
‘Which club was I in during my previous life?’
He searched his memories.
Nothing came to mind.
No—
Because there hadn’t been one.
“Oh, right.”
“You never joined a club, did you?”
Seeing his expression, Minjae hurriedly added,
“Yeah… clubs weren’t really my thing.”
Sunwoo gave a faint smile.
He was the founder’s grandson.
A third-generation chaebol heir.
That label alone had made both teachers and classmates uncomfortable around him.
He himself had hated the attention.
Whenever club time came around, he’d hide in the library and sleep.
He had isolated himself.
But this time…
‘A club…’
A piece of the puzzle clicked perfectly into place.
‘That’s right.’
‘That person was at this school.’
A slow smile spread across his face.
Maybe…
He already had the answer he’d been looking for.
Both the person he needed…
And the way to earn money.
“Class President.”
“Hm?”
“Where does the stock investment club meet?”
“I think I saw there was one.”
Minjae blinked in surprise.
He stared at Sunwoo before hesitantly asking,
“Uh… why our club?”
“Our club?”
“I’m in the stock investment club.”
Bingo.
Sunwoo immediately stood up.
“Perfect.”
“Let’s go.”
“Huh? Go where?”
“To club activities.”
Grabbing his bag, Sunwoo grinned.
“Lead the way, Class President.”
