The headquarters in Jeju Island, two subsidiaries, and two subsidiaries in Seoul stepped on the accelerator to enter 【Jungle World】.
Finally, with the completion of the Jeju Data Center, they began moving into the location in Jeju Island first.
Next, locations in Seoul moved in, and by this time, many partner companies had already settled in Jeju Island.
Naturally, as the population surged, the real estate market in Jeju Island overheated.
Although apartments were being built, it was not enough to meet the demand of people flocking all at once.
Especially since there was a high demand for both family units and single-person households, special measures were taken.
After discussions with various motels and pensions in Jeju Island, cooperation was sought to accommodate single-person households from partner companies.
It was an inevitable makeshift solution due to the lack of supply.
However, 【Jungle】 had already built dormitories for single-person households, so there was no major issue.
The scale of the dormitories was so massive that even Jeju Governor Goo Chang-mo had to make a plea.
“I’m really sorry, but could we allocate some of the dormitories to partner companies? We’re urgently requesting this as many officetels will be completed before this summer.”
“Of course, we should do that.”
But I wonder if this will solve the problem.
Since research complexes were also moving into Silicon Beach, all the accommodation in Jeju Island was becoming overcrowded.
When I got home, Kim Ah-young expressed the issue accurately.
“From what I know, even 4 and 5-star hotels, as well as those below, are fully booked. Tourists have to wait several months to make a reservation.”
“Really?”
“Even guesthouses are screaming with joy. There will probably be a housing war for the time being.”
“Then your real estate value must have skyrocketed.”
“Huh? Oh… well…”
Kim Ah-young smiled awkwardly.
Originally, her father, as well as her grandfather, owned a considerable amount of real estate.
After her grandfather passed away, most of the land in Jeju Island inherited from him came into Kim Ah-young’s hands.
She had already received a lot, but after the plan for 【Jungle World】 was announced, she bought out all the land from her parents, siblings, and relatives.
At the time, real estate in Jeju Island was not expensive.
However, with the aftermath of 【Jungle】 moving its headquarters, the value skyrocketed several times, making Kim Ah-young a land tycoon in an instant.
“Oh, sorry. Did I say something unnecessary?”
“No, no. I knew it would rise and bought the land in advance. But I didn’t expect it to be this much.”
“Future taxes will be interesting, don’t you think?”
“Right. Not just for me, but you as well.”
Recently, the two were ranked number one in terms of couple assets in South Korea.
It was inevitable since one was a stock tycoon, and the other was the daughter of a conglomerate family.
“We should probably donate to a foundation, right?”
“That sounds good.”
They already had a foundation in their names.
It was called 【Wooyoung Foundation】, combining Lee Hyun-woo’s ‘Woo’ and Kim Ah-young’s ‘Young.’
They had operated independent foundation corporations before, but after getting married, they merged the foundations, making it the largest in the country at once.
Thus, combining Lee Hyun-woo’s interest in jobs and Kim Ah-young’s interest in education, they began to have a positive impact on employment and education issues in Jeju Island.
“We can solve the housing supply issue, save on taxes, and manage the image of both companies. It seems like a good idea.”
This time, they seem to be thinking of expanding into the housing supply issue as well.
Upon hearing his wife’s words, Lee Hyun-woo grinned.
“Even though beauty is in the eye of the beholder, my wife is perfect no matter how I look at her.”
The idea presented seemed to include a business perspective while doing good deeds.
It reminded him of the philanthropic couple Bill Gates from his past life.
They, too, were interested in social issues and improved their not-so-good image with massive foundation funds.
『Lee Hyun-woo and Kim Ah-young couple donate 5 billion won to improve housing culture in Jeju Island』
The next day, they made a large donation, producing good news on the portal.
But a few days later, an event overshadowed this news for the couple.
It was the news of Kim Ah-young’s pregnancy.
In fact, it was a bit late.
So, they had been secretly worried about not having a child.
“Are you that happy?”
“Yes, of course, I’m happy.”
After visiting the hospital, Lee Hyun-woo couldn’t wipe the smile off his face.
The feeling of having a child, which he had experienced in his past life, felt special again in this life.
“Now we have to plan our lives anew, including the child. That excites me a lot.”
With Lee Hyun-woo so happy, how could Kim Ah-young feel?
She, too, had been desperately hoping for a child.
She had been worried for a while.
Wondering if there was a problem with either of them, if they should get tested, or what to do if she had a problem.
‘Thank goodness.’
Interestingly, Lee Hyun-woo kept thinking ahead.
“I heard that as the population in Jeju Island grows, schools are also lacking.”
“Of course they’re lacking. But are you already thinking about sending a child who hasn’t even been born to school?”
“Oh, is it too far?”
“Yes, it is. Talking about kindergarten even now is early.”
“I see. I ‘overdid’ it. I was trying to prepare faster due to the issues arising from the population surge.”
When she heard it, Lee Hyun-woo’s reasoning seemed quite reasonable.
In fact, wouldn’t it be true that Jeju Island and the companies moving in here hadn’t made any preparations during that time?
Even 【Jungle】 had built dormitories after countless reviews, modifications, and supplements during the planning stage.
The problem was that they had only thought about 【Jungle】.
The number of partner companies that had formed relationships over the past few years had significantly increased in proportion to 【Jungle】’s growth rate.
If they couldn’t enter Jeju Island immediately, several ongoing projects would be delayed.
To prevent this, Jeju Island and companies like 【Jungle】 had made desperate efforts, but the result was a shortage of supply.
‘Maybe we do need to hurry even more.’
They were also Koreans. Until they had a child, they might not have known they were such people, but now that they were thinking about their child’s future, they couldn’t help but focus on the education infrastructure.
“No, thinking about it again, I think you’re right. We need more kindergartens and elementary schools in the future.”
She was a child education major and had donated a lot to the education infrastructure in Jeju Island through 【Wooyoung Foundation】.
Thus, she knew well how lacking the educational infrastructure here was.
Consequently, while various educational theories floated in her mind, she unconsciously began planning the education infrastructure during their way back home.
“Wait, there’s something more urgent than education.”
“Huh? What is it?”
Once she thought of something below the surface, other tasks followed like pulling a sweet potato vine.
“What if the child gets sick? Even getting an appointment at the university obstetrics and gynecology department this time was a hassle.”
“That’s right… We need to build a hospital first.”
Kim Ah-young expanded on the topic Lee Hyun-woo brought up, and the couple felt acutely that ‘living in Jeju Island’ wasn’t going to be easy.
Honestly, if it were just the two of them living here, there might not have been such issues.
However, with 【Jungle】 moving its headquarters, 【Seorabeol Hotel】’s headquarters also relocating here, and not only partner companies but also research and development complexes moving into Silicon Beach, they realized there was still a lot to be done in Jeju Island.
This time, it seemed like they had to tackle it on a scale different from creating a food truck street or making vacuum cleaners and mini fans.
‘Still, we have to do it.’
When a child is born, people tend to view the world centered around their family, and as a human, Lee Hyun-woo’s feelings about it surged instantly.
Isn’t this the same feeling all parents have?
Now, about eight months later, the child who will see the light of the world, wanting to create a good environment for them, is not a feeling only Lee Hyun-woo would have.
So, the decision they made was soon featured on the portal again.
『Lee Hyun-woo and Kim Ah-young expand the business scope of 【Wooyoung Foundation】』
Looking through the content, it stated that the foundation’s focus, which had been solely on jobs and education, would now also emphasize healthcare, culture, and welfare.
It didn’t mean they would pay less attention to jobs and education.
As proof, news that shook Jeju Island once again broke out.
『【Wooyoung Foundation】 considers acquiring 【Seogwipo University】』
The announcement of acquiring a university almost implied that an investment would be made.
Naturally, it would involve investing in education and taking more responsibility for jobs by educating, nurturing, and producing graduates to enter society.
Then, soon after acquiring 【Seogwipo University】, the couple’s intentions became clear.
『【Seogwipo University】 is pushing to establish a medical school』
That was exactly it.
Of course, the establishment of a medical school required government approval, and before that, social consensus was necessary.
The biggest part was that the medical community had to give the okay, and Lee Hyun-woo and Kim Ah-young pushed this through with force.
What could ‘force’ mean here?
It would be nonsensical to say that money and connections weren’t involved; naturally, they won the favor of the medical community by donating a massive amount of support funds.
Then, after consulting with Jeju Island and proposing it to the government, things proceeded smoothly.
Other matters aside, the lack of opposition from the medical community made the process easy.
‘Wow, if it were the 21st century, this would have been really difficult…’
Once again, they realized that the power of money couldn’t be ignored.
Taking it further, they announced various visions.
The plan to establish a medical school at 【Seogwipo University】 also meant that they intended to build a university hospital.
Lee Hyun-woo and Kim Ah-young set the scale of this university hospital to be the largest in the country.
By acquiring just one university, they could simultaneously affect education, jobs, and healthcare.
However, no matter how quickly they proceeded, producing doctors and building a hospital wouldn’t happen overnight.
Accepting that it would take several more years, they had to turn their attention to other areas for creating a better environment.
“Honey… I… I feel something unusual…”
The time taken for the current process was already significant, and now the child was about to see the light of day.
“Waaah~ Waaah~ Waaah~”
In January 2002, a baby boy was finally born.
Is it the second act of life, or for Lee Hyun-woo, should it be called the third act of his life?
The life of being a parent had begun.
