Lee Hyun-woo, who misunderstood Kim Ah-young as having a hasty personality.
However, when it came to joint ventures, he also decided to handle things quickly.
This was because he believed that the timing was crucial for entering the Japanese market next year by preparing now.
It seemed that Lee Hyun-woo was not the only one thinking this way, as Kim Ah-young contacted him again in the evening.
(Hyun-woo, it’s me.)
“Oh, hey, Ah-young.”
The two now greeted each other naturally, like friends.
Then they got straight to the point.
(How’s your schedule today?)
“Today? I’m free.”
(Ah, then I’ll let oppa know, let’s meet later.)
“At the hotel?”
(Yes, at our hotel.)
Coincidentally, Lee Jung-woo, who had just finished school and started work, was listening to his brother’s conversation next to him.
He was initially curious when he heard Kim Ah-young’s name, and his ears perked up when he heard the word “hotel.”
Even though he knew that she was a director at 【Seorabeol Hotel】 and could guess the meeting place, he couldn’t help but feel intrigued.
After Lee Hyun-woo finished the call, he gave an order that surprised Lee Jung-woo even more.
“Lee Jung-woo, if you’re free, you’ll need to come with me to 【Seorabeol Hotel】.”
“Me too?”
“Yes, since you are the person who makes decisions in the company when I’m not around. So you need to come along.”
“Oh, well… alright. Understood.”
Although the company hierarchy was never officially announced, Lee Jung-woo was widely recognized and acknowledged as the second-in-command.
Having co-founded the company, suffered hardships together, and recruited numerous talents essential for growth, who would argue against that?
However, as the saying goes, “a position shapes a person,” and with the rapid growth of 【Jungle】, it seemed he was not yet ready to meet bigwigs, expressing anxiety in the car.
“Hyung, I’ll just stay quiet and listen there. I’m afraid I’ll make a mistake because I’m so nervous.”
“What’s wrong with you? This isn’t like you.”
“What do you mean, not like me?”
“You used to be so bold.”
“Well… I used to be, but I became timid somewhere along the line. Oh! I know when it happened.”
“When?”
“After we started 【Jungle】! From then on, you and I switched roles. You, who used to be so conservative, pushed things forward without hesitation, while I watched anxiously from the side.”
“Haha, really?”
“What changed you so much, hyung? Or maybe this was your true nature?”
“Maybe it was. Anyway, don’t be intimidated when we meet later. You are, after all, the co-founder of 【Jungle】.”
“Ah, that’s not true. You’re the founder; I was just someone who ended up helping out.”
“If that’s how you feel, I’ll have to take Yu-cheol to important meetings instead of you.”
“……!”
Since Lee Hyun-woo was driving, he couldn’t see Lee Jung-woo’s expression, but he must have been shocked.
Sure enough, he immediately surrendered.
“Alright. I’ll be the nominal co-founder. But I have no intention of taking over your company.”
“What a strange thing to say.”
“You know, sometimes the heirs of conglomerates fight amongst themselves.”
“Yeah, it happens often, not sometimes. Even the owner of 【Guseong】 got there through a fierce battle. But you know what’s important?”
“What?”
“Our father is not a conglomerate owner.”
“Oh… right.”
“So, there’s no inheritance to fight over.”
“Yes, yes. I understand. Oh, there’s one more thing I wanted to say.”
“Were we siblings who didn’t talk much? It seems like we’re having a new kind of conversation today.”
“It’s an opportunity to talk about things we couldn’t before. By the way, Min-woo is taking a leave of absence next semester.”
“Why?”
“Yu-cheol is returning to school. And I’m still attending school too.”
“What’s the problem with that?”
“If a manager is frequently absent, work won’t progress smoothly.”
“Such excuses. Especially since Min-woo talks as if he’s always diligent… Well, at least he doesn’t slack off at our company.”
“He’s very enthusiastic. To spill a secret, he’s thinking of dropping out of school.”
“Really?”
“What? Hyung, don’t you dislike that?”
“I would stop you if you did that, but Min-woo isn’t my direct sibling. And he’s already not very diligent at school, so I don’t think he would learn much more.”
“That feels a bit like favoritism….”
“Sorry, I love you too much.”
“That’s not it. You’re making things easier for Min-woo while insisting we attend school rigorously….”
“As I said earlier, you guys should continue learning. Undergraduate, and even graduate school if possible. So you can later teach courses at our company properly.”
“What are you talking about?”
“Recently, I noticed senior employees teaching new hires a lot, saying they’re not adequately prepared.”
“Ah….”
Lee Hyun-woo had often seen such scenes while walking around.
It must have been frustrating for seniors directing juniors.
He understood, having experienced it in a past life.
Although they must have learned it at school, he had to teach new hires to distinguish between what to use and what not to use in actual work.
Lee Hyun-woo planned a more systematic education for this purpose.
“You guys are experts who applied theories learned at school to real-world practice. So, continue learning broader and deeper theories and gain experience to contribute to nurturing future generations. That’s my wish.”
“Darn, so you mean we have to keep attending school.”
“Think of it as investing in the future.”
Lee Hyun-woo was already paying for the tuition of his brother and Jang Yu-cheol.
So, it was appropriate to call it an ‘investment.’
“Seeing you, hyung, you always seem to have a plan.”
“Not always, but I do have a rough outline of the next step.”
“Not detailed, but broadly planned. Can I ask about overseas expansion? What’s after Japan?”
“That’s for after Japan is confirmed. It’s still in the verbal stage.”
Many projects fall through halfway.
Of course, with 【Guseong】 and 【Software Bank】 involved, the chances of that happening were very slim this time.
Later, when he met Kim Tae-hyun, Lee Hyun-woo spoke more definitively about entering Japan than he did with his brother.
“If we start preparing now, early next year is the best time. Since it’s not a manufacturing industry, we can start immediately once we complete the technical exchange and personnel setup.”
“I’m envious. Should I dabble in the portal business too?”
“If you enter, I’ll teach you a lot.”
“Wow… you’re not even wary of me.”
Lee Hyun-woo responded with a smile to Kim Tae-hyun’s joke.
“There’s no reason to be wary. I’m reassured that 【Guseong】 will be expanding the ecosystem with us.”
“Then I won’t do it.”
“Why?”
“We don’t enter new businesses to be second. That’s why I’m looking forward to entering Japan. It’s practically… a bloodless entry. But it’s a shame it won’t be under the 【Guseong】 name.”
“You’re pretending to back down, but if you come in and flood the market, I can’t guarantee anything.”
“You keep changing your story. You said we wouldn’t be pushed back, but now you’re saying you can’t guarantee it. Anyway, I’m not very interested in it here in Korea.”
Lee Hyun-woo listened to Kim Tae-hyun’s words and smiled meaningfully.
Suddenly, he recalled a portal site that emerged from 【Guseong】 but later separated as an affiliate.
‘I’m really curious about what will happen if 【Navy】 emerges in this life.’
Even if it did, it would eventually separate from 【Guseong】.
However, Lee Hyun-woo was confident that if that site entered through an intra-company startup at 【Guseong】, they wouldn’t be pushed back.
Having already secured a significant lead in many areas and knowing the pitfalls portal sites frequently faced in his past life, he had no reason to fear.
“By the way, hyung, I have one request.”
“What is it?”
“Please make a good server.”
“A server? Why are we suddenly talking about that while discussing the Japanese portal expansion?”
“It’s a related issue.”
“What?”
“Recently, our company tested ADSL and found that the storage of graphic data, not just text data, will significantly increase. So….”
“You’re about to explain something complex. Make it simple. I hate headaches.”
Interrupting him, Kim Tae-hyun nodded as Lee Hyun-woo continued his explanation.
“In short, we need to store money, but the piggy bank is too small. Recently, our company has been working on ways to reduce the size of the money. If 【Guseong】 could help increase the piggy bank, it would be great.”
“You know me well. When you explain it in terms of money, it makes perfect sense. I almost understand it all. The piggy bank is the server, and the money is the data you mentioned earlier, right?”
“Exactly.”
“So, what benefits us is that wherever ADSL is connected, whether in Japan or elsewhere, if data surges, they will need servers, right?”
“As a businessman, you understood it once. I don’t need to explain further.”
“Alright. I’ll talk to the server developers.”
“It will require significant investment.”
“Now you’re openly interfering in management.”
“Please take it as sincere advice. You said you hate being second, so please be number one in the server manfacturing field.”
“My, you sure have a way with words.”
Though he seemed incredulous, Kim Tae-hyun was actually taking Lee Hyun-woo’s advice to heart.
After all, what he heard made perfect sense.
Then he looked at his sister who is silent the whole time and asked curiously.
“Why aren’t you saying anything?”
“Listening to your conversation makes me feel wronged.”
“What are you talking about?”
“It sounds like you plan to expand to other places besides Japan, but there’s no benefit for me. 【Jungle】’s overseas expansion, 【Guseong Electronics】’s server development, etc… But what can I do with the hotel? No matter how I think, I only introduced my friend and it bring good things for oppa.”
“Hey, you’re investing too.”
“I have something to say about that. 【Jungle】 has 40%, oppa has 26%, even Son Jung-yi, who we met recently, has 25%, and I only have 9%. So, Hyun-woo.”
“Yeah?”
“I don’t know where the next expansion will be after Japan, but can you let me invest more then?”
“Hey, how’s that fair? 【Jungle】 and 【Guseong Electronics】 have business similarities, so they cooperate.”
Although Kim Tae-hyun was an executive at 【Guseong Systems】, he also held more shares in 【Guseong Electronics】 than his siblings.
Naturally, he would benefit more.
Seeing the siblings bicker, Lee Hyun-woo awkwardly laughed.
‘Surely there won’t be a sibling rivalry at 【Guseong】, right?’
