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Chapter 3
No….
Which way am I supposed to act here?
The reason I’m acting timid is because Grandfather’s eyes are terrifying!
“I’m not timid….”
“Then why are your shoulders slumped like that?”
“Th-that’s….”
It’s just that my office worker mode automatically activated when I met a chairman.
She had never worked at a company large enough to have a chairman like this, but acting polite in front of superiors had become second nature.
Without even realizing it, she had activated her survival skill.
Shrink her shoulders.
Lower her head.
Make herself as small and unnoticeable as possible.
If she became forgettable enough, maybe her boss would forget she existed.
And if her boss forgot she existed—
Then maybe she wouldn’t get assigned more work.
That was Kim Haena’s survival strategy.
“Isn’t that teacher too strict? Chief Kim, call the kindergarten.”
“Yes, Chairman. I’ll connect you immediately.”
At Chairman Hong’s command, Chief Kim immediately pulled out his phone.
Haena’s eyes widened.
What kind of chaebol family overreaction is this?
“W-Wait!”
“?”
She shot her hand into the air.
If this continued, an innocent teacher would suffer.
No!
Teachers are just fellow Korean office workers too!
Save the office worker!
“I’m not timid!”
“Then what is it?”
“It’s because Grandfather is scary!”
She squeezed her eyes shut and blurted it out.
Well, honestly, Chairman Hong’s face really was scary.
When she noticed the room had suddenly gone silent, she carefully opened her eyes.
The expressions on the two men’s faces immediately made her want to close them again.
“……”
“…………”
Chairman Hong and Chief Kim both fell silent.
“Cough.”
“C-Chairman, perhaps Miss Haena is simply too young to handle your overwhelming charisma….”
“Be quiet! I understand!”
“Yes, sir.”
“So that’s what it was. I thought she’d finally matured….”
Chairman Hong quickly turned away, his face slightly red.
Haena awkwardly scratched her head.
Maybe she had become too obsessed with acting like a child.
Still, she probably needed to act more childlike if she wanted to avoid suspicion.
But what did seven-year-olds even talk about these days?
Dolls?
She had never raised a child before.
How would she know?
Eventually, she settled on a safe topic.
“Th-The food is really good…. Can I have more?”
“!”
Wait.
What did I say that was so shocking?
Why are both of you trembling?
Was complimenting food equivalent to a death sentence or something?
“Haena… wants to eat more?”
“M-Miss is eating by herself…! I suspected something was strange when you ate spinach without complaining!”
“Call the chef. Ask what he put in the food. Did he add something weird?”
Please.
Haena nearly broke into a cold sweat at her grandfather’s dramatic reaction.
“It’s not that amazing….”
“What are you saying, Miss?”
For the first time, Chief Kim looked completely serious.
“Throughout the seven years of your life, you have never eaten more than two spoonfuls of food….”
Two spoonfuls?
As someone who had never once eaten less than a full bowl of rice, Kim Haena was stunned.
But now things finally made sense.
I guess from a family’s perspective, it would be terrifying if a child refused to eat.
Two spoonfuls wasn’t healthy at all.
No wonder they were so emotional.
Nothing worried family members more than a growing child refusing to eat.
Mom used to tell me how grateful she was that I never threw tantrums about food or sleep when I was little….
Parents were all the same.
Even a cold chaebol grandfather wasn’t an exception.
Raising children was hard.
Haena decided she could accept this strange family.
Chief Kim and the nanny, who had somehow moved closer, were even wiping tears from their eyes.
“You’re finally eating properly…! We changed chefs thirty-one times for this day…!”
That just sounds like a black company.
You shouldn’t fire workers like that.
“Thank you, Miss…! We’re so happy you’re eating well!”
Thirty-two-year-old office worker Kim Haena.
Being praised simply for eating her food.
Life as a seven-year-old was something she could never get used to.
After finishing breakfast—which felt more like entertaining a company executive at a business dinner—Haena dragged herself back to her room and collapsed.
If this was the life of a chaebol, she wasn’t impressed.
This wasn’t the life she had imagined at all.
It felt like she was serving her boss twenty-four hours a day.
The worst!
This family’s work-life balance was terrible.
How could she be at home and still feel like she was at work?
Somebody please let her resign.
Only then did she finally take a look around her room.
Wow… a child’s room looks like a palace.
Luxury furniture that she had only ever seen in department store designer showrooms filled the room.
Back then she had wondered who could afford things like this.
Apparently this rich.
I did hear that the real VIPs are the ones who buy furniture and home goods instead of handbags.
That wasn’t all.
The room was enormous.
It looked big enough to play soccer in.
Climbing down from the bed, she opened a door in the corner.
Is this the bathroom? Do chaebol families have bathrooms attached to every room?
A reasonable assumption.
But she was wrong.
Beyond the door was another room.
A room filled with toys, books, and educational materials.
…This is probably my room too, isn’t it?
She had a bedroom and a separate playroom.
The culture shock was immense.
No, Kim Haena. This isn’t a big deal. Rich people having two rooms is perfectly normal. Right?
Don’t be intimidated.
Don’t lose confidence.
She proudly straightened her shoulders and looked around.
Then she noticed another door.
That’s not the door I came through.
Without thinking much about it, she opened it.
This time, she found a walk-in closet filled with children’s clothes.
“?”
No.
Why does a seven-year-old need a dressing room?
Children grew so quickly that their height changed every few months.
Wouldn’t all these clothes only be worn once?
For a moment, Haena felt faint from the sheer extravagance.
Then she noticed a price tag still attached to one dress.
And nearly died.
4.8 million won for a single dress?!
For a child?!
A child who would outgrow it in a year?!
What a waste of money.
What a waste of resources.
My monthly salary after taxes was only 1.87 million won….
A child’s dress costs more than twice my salary.
Insane.
Sweating nervously, she carefully put the dress back exactly where it belonged.
It felt like she would have to compensate someone if she even wrinkled it.
“Miss Haena?”
The beautiful woman from earlier entered.
She seemed to be Haena’s personal nanny.
“So this is where you were. I was looking everywhere.”
“Ah, yes….”
“A new catalog will arrive later. Let’s look through it together. You’ve grown taller, so it’s time to buy some new clothes.”
Are you serious?
With this many clothes?
Earth, I’m sorry.
Haena gave up trying to understand.
“Since you finished your meal successfully, Chairman Hong said you’re allowed to choose any dessert you want today.”
The nanny smiled warmly and picked her up.
She carried Haena back to the main room and sat her down on the sofa.
“Of course, as long as you brush your teeth properly afterward.”
“Ah, okay.”
Dessert?
How special could it be?
She liked sweets, but children’s desserts were probably just things like chocolate or ice cream.
At least, that’s what she thought.
“…?”
A cart piled high with desserts rolled endlessly into the room.
“…??”
Were they opening a buffet in her bedroom?
A dessert buffet?
“W-What is all this?”
“Yes, Miss. We specially ordered it from the Seoul Royal Palace Hotel, your favorite.”
Mom.
Dad.
I wanted to experience rich people spending money.
But not like this.
How could one person possibly eat all of this?
Just as she was about to refuse and apologize to the planet—
“Please wait a little. You’ll be sharing it with your friends when they arrive.”
Suddenly, her misunderstanding was cleared up.
“Friends…?”
“Yes, Miss. The children of the Cheongyeong Group will arrive in about an hour. Chairman Hong said you should enjoy dessert together and socialize.”
Huh?
Cheongyeong Group?
Isn’t that…
The male lead’s family company?
