Hacker.
According to 【Other People’s Stories】, which is popular these days, the definition of a hacker is as follows:
- A hacker is a person who possesses expert knowledge in the field of computer systems or programming.
The image of a hacker commonly known among the general public is actually that of a cracker, who commits crimes among hackers.
A hacker is used in a broader sense and can be referred to as a kind of ‘computer expert.’
Lee Hyun-woo, out of boredom, looked up the definition of a hacker on the internet and then contacted Oh Min-woo.
“Hello, computer genius.”
(Why are you calling all of a sudden?)
“More and more people are looking for you. And there are other things to talk about, too.”
(Like what?)
“You’ll need to meet with the Director of Science and Technology to get the details, but it seems that the national institution’s computer network was breached by a cracker. So, they’re all in an uproar over there.”
(Oh? I once thought about breaking in myself.)
“Heh…”
Lee Hyun-woo felt glad that he had brought Oh Min-woo on board.
If he had been let loose in society, he might have become a famous cracker.
(By the way, seeing you use the term cracker, it seems you’ve studied a lot. Are you planning to correct the misused terms?)
“As if I could correct it. I just said it to convey the meaning clearly to you. Anyway, how about it? Are you intrigued?”
(Of course, I’m intrigued. By the way, hyung. Ah, since you’re not at work today, can I call you hyung?)
“Of course.”
(But hyung… do you know you’re a bit hypocritical?)
“Me? No, why?”
Lee Hyun-woo asked back, seemingly unaware of what Oh Min-woo was implying.
The answer came immediately.
(You emphasize work-life balance to us, but you’re doing all kinds of work yourself.)
“Oh… that… that? I’m going to take a break now.”
Since his father’s affairs were mostly verbally agreed upon, there was little room for Lee Hyun-woo to intervene.
So, he thought it was okay to return to a life with evenings free, but another criticism came his way.
(Then why do you push all sorts of new things at us, knowing we have a lot of work? And you step back just a bit, pretending to give us a choice. Don’t you think that’s a bit cowardly?)
“Oh… that…”
(You have nothing to say, right?)
“Phew, you’re right…”
He was hit right on target.
Lately, he had been doing a lot of things under the guise of good deeds, leading to such hypocritical situations frequently.
When Oh Min-woo pointed it out, even a curse slipped out of Lee Hyun-woo’s mouth.
“Damn…”
(Oh, you’re even using words you don’t usually use. It feels very human and nice.)
“Shut up. It’s annoying.”
(If I made you feel bad, I’m sorry.)
“No, it’s fine. You’re right. If I emphasized work-life balance, I should have set an example myself.”
(In that sense, don’t you think it’s time to enjoy a bit today?)
“Enjoy? With what?”
(How about a night out after a long time?)
“A night out?”
(I’ll keep it a secret from Ah-young noona.)
Hearing this, he was honestly tempted.
‘Yeah, if I’m going to take a break, I should take a proper one.’
In the end, Lee Hyun-woo succumbed to the devil’s temptation.
“Alright! But let’s not do any booking.”
(Not do the highlight of the night out?)
“If that’s not guaranteed, I’m not going.”
(Ah, so this is why you shouldn’t go with someone who’s already taken. Fine, I’ll make a big concession. Just trust me and leave today to me.)
Lee Hyun-woo chuckled.
‘Come to think of it, would this guy really not do any booking even if he said he wouldn’t?’
He could certainly go to the night out and arrange for booking with all sorts of sweet talk.
Then would it be necessary to hide it from Kim Ah-young?
Because of this, he decided to tell Kim Ah-young everything when they met for lunch later and set off soon after.
In fact, as soon as Lee Hyun-woo met Kim Ah-young, he brought it up.
“I feel like I’ve been working all the time lately, so I’m thinking of going to a night out tonight.”
“Oh? Really?”
“Yes, how about you join if you’re okay with it?”
Kim Ah-young smiled and shook her head.
“No.”
“No?”
“Yes, you’ve become too famous, and because of that, even my face is known to reporters. Moreover, digital cameras are quite widespread these days.”
What Kim Ah-young said was true.
At first, the world was changing gradually.
But these days, many things were being expedited unexpectedly in certain fields.
One of those things was digital cameras.
This was due to the effects brought on by portal sites, online shopping, and blogs.
“No matter how we block the reporters, there’s no way to handle it if a photo gets posted on a blog.”
“Ah, so that’s why you wanted to meet in this enclosed room today.”
“That’s part of it, and I also didn’t want to be conscious of others’ eyes.”
Recently, there had been quite a few restaurants with rooms like this in Gangnam.
Lee Hyun-woo had come to the place Kim Ah-young suggested, and it turned out there was a reason.
“Well, then I guess I have to give up on the night out, too.”
“No, you should enjoy it today since you’ve been working hard.”
“Huh? Really?”
“Of course. You may not know how I think, but I have a pretty big heart. And I trust you a lot.”
“Haha…”
Lee Hyun-woo awkwardly laughed, and while cutting her steak, Kim Ah-young recalled what Park Min-sook had advised her.
- If you try to hold on to a man too tightly, he’ll try to break away. Sometimes, you need to let go generously. Then he won’t hide or lie about things.
Park Min-sook had said this because it was a bit awkward to mention it directly, and Kim Ah-young, who understood it at once, decided to let Lee Hyun-woo go today.
And since she had made up her mind, she quickly changed the subject to the U.S. without dragging on the same topic.
“Oh, how was the U.S.?”
“It was good.”
Lee Hyun-woo briefly summarized his experience in the U.S.
His father’s affairs, the absolute pitch macaroni, and even SNS.
He also mentioned that 【Jungle USA】 was doing well.
“Lastly, many companies in the U.S. are using our search engine.”
“Really?”
“Yes, the PC communication company 【Dial Online】 has already decided to adopt our search engine, and the network-famous 【Sesco】 is almost decided as well.”
“Oh? Really? Both are really big companies.”
“The former realized it’s not the era of PC communication anymore, and the latter seems to be testing.”
“Testing?”
“Yes, to see if 【Jungle】’s search engine is technically superior to 【Yahoo】’s.”
“Judging by the way you said it with a confident expression, I guess the answer is clear?”
“I can’t help it. Others do the evaluation. And we still don’t know for sure. Among the American customers, only about 1% are using our company’s search engine.”
Kim Ah-young smiled.
‘No matter what I ask, he explains it so specifically and in detail. He wouldn’t lie to me.’
It would probably be the same even if he went to the night out tonight.
Lee Hyun-woo would tell her everything without hiding anything.
Thinking this, she agreed with Lee Hyun-woo’s words.
“Then how long do you think it will take to capture the remaining 99%?”
“No matter what, we can’t capture all of it. But I’m aiming to capture more than half as this year’s goal. Ah, speaking of which, I have a lot of goals this year. Soon, I’ll have to go to Taiwan and Hong Kong as well.”
“Oh, right. You said you’re promoting 【Jungle】’s portal site there? And holding concerts.”
“Yes, that’s right. We’ve been working on it continuously. Our team leader Kang has been working hard on it.”
She knew that team leader Kang referred to Kang Dong-ho.
She had visited 【Jungle】 so often that she was familiar with all the key members.
The surprising thing was that each of these key members had outstanding abilities.
Watching from the side, she once again admired Lee Hyun-woo’s talent for nurturing people.
Sometimes she wondered.
‘Am I too biased?’
But no matter how she looked at it, Lee Hyun-woo’s abilities were top-notch.
He was also the best boyfriend and the best partner.
Believing this, she had no choice but to let him go to the night out generously.
However, in the evening, when Kim Ah-young got home, she started walking around her room.
‘What if a pretty girl at the night out talks to him? What if she links arms with him? What if she approaches him intentionally knowing who he is? What if that gets caught on camera? What if it ends up in the news? What if it gets posted on a blog?’
These were the thoughts that filled her head after parting with Lee Hyun-woo.
She had been too hasty.
And this might become a habit, leading him to go to night outs more often and openly in the future.
Her generous decision might come back to bite her.
While she was thinking this, her phone rang.
(Sister-in-law, it’s me.)
“Oh? Jung-woo.”
(I heard you told my brother to go to the night out today?)
“Yes, he’s been working too hard. He needs to enjoy life a bit.”
(Sister-in-law, you’re every man’s ideal type.)
Without knowing her thoughts, Lee Jung-woo praised her, leaving Kim Ah-young to continue with a composed voice.
“Isn’t this something everyone does?”
(No. My ex-girlfriend used to hate it. Anyway, sister-in-law, you’re amazing.)
“……”
(But men can be unpredictable, so I’m heading there now with the team leaders and almost all the key startup members.)
“Oh, okay…”
(I’m calling to let you know that I’ll be keeping a close watch, so you don’t have to worry at all.)
“Ah, you shouldn’t. It’ll make him feel like he’s being watched.”
(Sometimes, a little surveillance is necessary.)
“There’s no need for that…”
(Anyway, I’ll be keeping a close eye on him on your behalf, so you can rest easy. Also, thank you so much for going to the department store with my mom. My brother was really happy about it.)
“I was the one who enjoyed it. I even got a gift from your mother.”
(The more I talk to you, the more I envy my brother. Ah, I’ve arrived. Ending the call now. See you later.)
“Yes, take care.”
After ending the call, Kim Ah-young finally let out a sigh of relief.
“Phew…”
It seemed she wouldn’t easily let him go to a night out again next time.
But.
‘Is Hyun-woo going to the night out to relieve stress, or to work?’
If all the team leaders and key startup members gathered, it was certain that a meeting would occur rather than just having fun.
Suddenly, it felt like Lee Hyun-woo’s day wasn’t a holiday after all.
‘Could it be that God has given my boyfriend a real knack for work?’
