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Chapter 31 — VIP (2)
“How are you going to handle this?”
“C-Chairwoman.”
“Chairwoman, my ass! I’m telling you I’m irritated right now!!”
Inside the private room of an exclusive café located along the center of Gangnam-daero.
Wang Jindeok, the Academic Affairs Director of Cheonghwa High School, had been summoned and was now being interrogated.
The woman before him, radiating a fierce and intimidating aura, was a tiger.
The second daughter of Hanguk Group, Ju Miju—the infamous “Misery” Ju Miju!
Her vicious eyes were filled with irritation.
“There was no exam paper leak. We’ve checked all the CCTV footage.”
“So?”
“Pardon?”
“Are you playing word games with me? Why should my son be pushed down to second place in the entire school? And by some special admissions brat, of all people!!”
Ju Miju immediately exploded into unreasonable shouting.
There was simply no reasoning with her.
Among all the parent association presidents Cheonghwa High School had ever had, she had the foulest mouth.
She had grown up in a family that treated anyone without money or connections as less than human.
To her, the Academic Affairs Director was nothing more than a servant she could order around.
“A solution…”
“Publicly verify that bastard.”
“Pardon?”
“Do I have to tell you even that? Director Wang, don’t you want to become principal?”
“Y-Yes, understood.”
Wang Jindeok widened his eyes and nodded repeatedly.
Deep down, he also believed a verification process was necessary.
He had already become suspicious of the abilities of Ha Taewoong, the special admissions student who had never stood out before.
“And once you’ve gathered evidence, throw that bastard out. Just thinking about him irritates me.”
Ju Miju repeated the word irritating so many times it became unbearable to hear.
“We’ll deal with it according to school regulations.”
“Good… Make sure it’s finished before the grade revision period ends.”
Just moments ago, Ju Miju had been throwing a tantrum like a psychopath.
Now that things were going her way, her expression softened, and she smiled as though nothing had happened.
Cold sweat ran down Wang Jindeok’s back.
He clicked his tongue inwardly at Ju Miju’s unpredictable mood swings.
She had once become infamous because of the Hanguk Air in-flight beef jerky incident.
She had thrown beef jerky at a flight attendant and slapped the chief purser who tried to stop her.
Photos from the incident had later spread online.
Because of that scandal, she had stepped down from her executive position at Hanguk Air.
She had also earned the infamous nickname, “National Bitch.”
Even so, her social influence had not diminished.
She had inherited a considerable amount of shares from the late chairman.
Even her older brother, the current chairman, couldn’t treat Ju Miju carelessly.
“I’ll take care of it as quickly as possible.”
Watching Ju Miju’s expression change from moment to moment, Wang Jindeok lowered his head.
Thud.
A thick envelope was tossed in front of him.
“Gift certificates. Take your family out for dinner.”
“You’re always so generous. Thank you!”
Every time they met, he received gift certificates worth around ten million won.
“I put in even more this time. So make sure it’s handled properly.”
“Yes, ma’am! I’ll serve you with complete loyalty!!”
It was a clear, pleasant voice.
Everyone who heard it turned toward the source.
A beautiful middle-aged woman stood there with a young girl.
At a glance, it was obvious they were no ordinary mother and daughter.
“Madam, you’ve arrived.”
Park Taesu, who had been about to leave, noticed them and bowed respectfully.
The middle-aged woman was the second daughter-in-law of the Oyang Group family.
The wife of Oyang Chemical President Lee Seokjun.
Her name was Han Soeun.
She was the daughter of a well-established mid-sized business family.
Although Oyang Group ranked around 60th among Korea’s conglomerates, its influence far exceeded its size.
They were descendants of Sangchon Lee Jangsu, one of Korea’s wealthiest men during the Japanese colonial era.
Moreover, the older brother of the Oyang Group chairman was the current chairman of Doa Ilbo, one of South Korea’s three major daily newspapers.
Knowing every corporate family inside and out was a basic qualification for a personal shopper.
Although she wasn’t one of the VIPs Park Taesu personally managed, they were at least familiar enough to exchange greetings.
“Manager Park. It’s been a while.”
Han Soeun smiled as she returned his greeting.
Park Taesu was a personal shopper at Hyundai Department Store in Apgujeong.
He managed countless elite clients.
Han Soeun had not yet accumulated enough purchases to be personally assigned to him.
Part of the reason was her shopping style—she never stayed loyal to just one department store.
Different department stores specialized in different luxury brands.
Although Han Soeun’s husband was also the head of a company, it wasn’t particularly large.
That left Han Soeun just slightly below the top tier of VIPs at Hyundai Department Store.
‘Someone Hyoju knows?’
She had come shopping with her daughter.
Tomorrow was the family’s golf gathering.
Since midterms had ended, she had decided to buy her daughter a gift while they were there.
Among her relatives on her father’s side, attending family golf outings became an unwritten rule once the children entered high school.
The current chairman of Oyang Group especially loved sports.
Unless there was an unavoidable conflict, all direct family members were expected to attend.
Her daughter stopped the young man standing before them.
Normally, Lee Hyoju rarely spoke about her school life.
‘He’s tall… handsome… and has such refined manners.’
As Ha Taewoong turned around after hearing his name, Han Soeun quickly examined him.
Not only was he handsome, but his style and presence were sophisticated.
An understated luxury leather watch.
Shoes perfectly balanced with his casual outfit.
Even the wallet in his hand.
He certainly didn’t look like a child from an ordinary family.
More importantly, she noticed how the department store employees treated him.
Park Taesu, the department store’s personal shopping team leader, addressed the student with remarkable respect.
Beside him stood Assistant Manager Yoo, the department store’s rising-star personal shopper.
Having both of them escort him was a service reserved for children of chaebol families.
“Hyoju, who is he?”
Han Soeun asked as she looked at her daughter.
Hyoju hesitated slightly.
“Uh… he’s… my classmate.”
“Classmate?”
The word classmate coming from her daughter’s mouth felt unfamiliar.
Never before had her daughter referred to any boy that way.
“It’s nice to meet you. I’m Hyoju’s mother.”
Han Soeun extended her hand first.
‘As I thought!’
At that moment, Park Taesu became convinced that his instincts had been correct.
Among the wives of major conglomerate families, Madam Han Soeun possessed extraordinary elegance.
She came from the Sangchon Lee Jangsu family, one of the wealthiest lineages this country had ever known.
Although Oyang Group ranked lower than many corporations by objective standards, its financial foundation was exceptionally solid.
Unlike newly rich conglomerates that had accumulated wealth overnight, their family history stretched back generations.
And her daughter was friends with him.
‘Then he’s a student at Cheonghwa High School?’
Park Taesu knew that Lee Hyoju was still in high school.
Specifically, Cheonghwa High School.
If she was still attending high school, then the customer before him must also be a student there.
Lee Hyoju herself was an extremely promising future VIP.
And the person before him was her classmate.
“It’s a pleasure to meet you. I’m Ha Taewoong, Hyoju’s classmate.”
Ha Taewoong bowed politely with impeccable manners.
“May I shake your hand?”
“The honor is mine.”
His calm demeanor and disciplined manners were far beyond those of an ordinary high school student.
‘His family clearly raised him well.’
Park Taesu carefully observed the three of them.
The promising future VIP customer he had marked down was named Ha Taewoong, a student at Cheonghwa High School.
Park Taesu was now certain.
This was someone worth investing time and effort into—a future VVIP.
‘Classmate?’
Lee Hyoju silently savored the word classmate after hearing it from Ha Taewoong.
There was simply no way she could tell her mother that he was a special admissions student.
Besides…
As she looked directly at Ha Taewoong, nothing made sense.
‘That watch… it’s worth at least several thousand dollars. And those luxury shoes… How could someone like him be a special admissions student?’
Lee Hyoju was completely confused.
Not long ago, Ha Taewoong had been practically invisible in class.
But lately, he had become an entirely different person.
He had crushed both the delinquent Oh Gwangjun and the arrogant Oh Seora.
After that, he no longer looked intimidated in class.
He walked with his head held high and his back straight.
He even spoke to her naturally, while everyone else hesitated to approach her.
“What are you shopping for?”
“I need some golf clothes for an appointment.”
“Really? When?”
“Tomorrow.”
“Then shall I help you pick something?”
“I’d appreciate that very much. And please, speak comfortably.”
“Oh ho ho. Shall I? If you’re Hyoju’s friend, may I treat you like a son?”
Even though they had just met, Han Soeun found Ha Taewoong’s polite and cheerful attitude very likable.
“Mom… You’re making Taewoong uncomfortable…”
Instead, Lee Hyoju became flustered watching the two of them.
She had only greeted him on impulse, never imagining things would escalate like this.
Knowing her mother’s personality, it was obvious Han Soeun had taken quite a liking to him.
Ha Taewoong looked at Lee Hyoju.
A bright smile spread across his lips.
“Lee Hyoju. I’m fine with it. We can shop with your mother and have lunch together. Wouldn’t that be nice?”
“L-Lunch??”
Lee Hyoju stammered in surprise.
The original plan had simply been to shop and have lunch with her mother afterward.
Having a third person join them had never been part of the schedule.
“Shall we? Sure. I’ll treat everyone to lunch.”
A bright smile bloomed across Han Soeun’s face.
Meanwhile, Lee Hyoju’s cheeks flushed red.
She quietly bit her lip.
If she revealed right now that Ha Taewoong was a special admissions student, the atmosphere would instantly become awkward.
She had to make a decision somehow.
Looking at Ha Taewoong, she silently pleaded with her eyes for him to excuse himself here.
Grin.
It was the confident smile Ha Taewoong had been wearing so often at school lately.
‘Tch.’
Lee Hyoju realized immediately from that smile that he had no intention of granting her silent request.
She sighed inwardly.
After all, she had been the one who called him her classmate from the beginning.
At this point, she had become genuinely curious about Ha Taewoong.
Someone who had suddenly changed so drastically.
“Fine. Let’s shop and have lunch together.”
Lee Hyoju finally accepted the situation.
“Taewoong, shall we head to this store? The clothes are comfortable for the golf course.”
“Yes, ma’am!”
“Ho ho ho. I like hearing you call me ‘ma’am.’ Then it’s settled. Today, lunch is on me!”
“Thank you very much, ma’am!”
For someone like Ha Taewoong, who had survived a brutally competitive working life, dealing with an innocent mother and daughter was effortless.
“Assistant Manager Yoo. Support him all the way.”
Without taking his eyes off them for even a moment, Park Taesu quietly whispered his instructions to Yoo Areum.
In Park Taesu’s eyes, only VIPs could recognize one another and exchange these silent signals.
A conversation taking place entirely within their own exclusive world.
No matter how many times he witnessed it, it was always a unique—and enviable—connection.
