Chapter 1: Marriage Before Our Thirties (1)
“This will be the last time I ask, so Seung Hee… will you go out with me?"
It was a glorious and sunny day. Cherry blossoms floated down in numerous amounts and covered what was once a ground piled with snow.
“I"m sorry.”
On that blindingly beautiful day, Seung Hee heartlessly turned her back from him. She glanced back after a few seconds and stared at his face, which drooped in sadness and disappointment.
“If you don"t accept me…”
“I"m going to kill myself."
“Mrs. President, what are you thinking about?”
The company employee Hye Soon called out for Seung Hee, who seemed absent-minded as she recalled one of her nightmares.
“Hm? Oh, it"s nothing.”
A poisonous yet doll-like appearance stood out in a daze. She lowered her eyes, causing her long eyelashes to cover her cat-like eyes. Seung Hee then raised both her hands and ma.s.saged her temples.
“It"s just about my dream from last night. It was a nightmare.”
“Oh, it must be due to stress from your investment.”
Hye Soon nodded as if she understood.
Recently, the manager of an investment-connecting company contacted Seung Hee about their visit that was taking place today. However, Seung Hee couldn"t stop thinking about the dream from last night. The tone of it was so suspicious and strange.
Seung Hee hadn"t dreamt of this nightmare in a while. She thought that it had come and gone, but it seems that she was wrong. Usually, after she gets these nightmares, bad days seem to follow. She believes that these nightmares are due to her mixed luck; however, she wonders if it may be due to her state of mind. She can"t explain it, but she keeps getting these random feelings of anxiety.
Seung Hee sighed as she leaned back against her chair.
"I just wish that 5 billion won would drop down from the air. With that, I can finally reach 20 billion won."
“Yes. Unfortunately, money makes money. It"s not the people that make money.”
Hye Soon replied as she then also sighed. With just a sigh, anxiety seemed to spread like an infection.
"I can"t. I can"t collapse now."
Seung Hee sat up from her chair and straightened her back to start working. Soon, the door of the office opened.
"How are you all?”
It was Yang.
Seung Hee jumped up from her seat.
“You"re here. Let"s talk in the conference room, if you don"t mind.”
Seung Hee got up, walked around her desk, and guided Mr. Yang to the conference room before following inside.
“Is this room soundproof?”
Yang said quietly as he sat on one of the chairs in the room.
Seung Hee, sitting opposite of Yang, then replied.
"Well, I don"t really know, but I"m sure no one will hear if you speak quietly."
"What the heck is he going to say?"
Because of Yang"s suspense, Seung Hee"s heart has become even more entrenched with anxiety.
A year and a half ago, Seung Hee started a company with only a capital of 30 million won. She established Twinkle a.s.set, a small a.s.set management and tech service system operating company. But, before she established her business, Seung Hee got a job at a large company like everyone else at her age. However, Seung Hee was brighter than the rest. She had a deep desire to run her own business, and so she left the company and set up her own business. Since then, it had been running smoothly. The three coworkers that she had hired were happy also. Though they don"t have sizable salaries, they are very hopeful about the company"s growth.
“Chairman Wu.”
“Please speak.”
“I think the investor knows you. He seemed very interested and curious about you.”
“Really? Who is he?”
“Well, I can"t tell you yet.”
Yang took a note out of his chest pocket and carefully pushed it in front of Seung Hee. Seung Hee"s brow furrowed as she read the note which contained the name of a resort in Gangwon-do, a room number, and a date.
“That"s the meeting place.”
“……Does he want all of my employees to come too?”
“Of course not.”
"I"ve been wanting the two of you to meet for a while."
“Please explain to me why the meeting place is so far from here. Do you live in Gangwon-do? Are you running that resort or something?"
“No. That"s not it.”
“Then, do I live at Gangwon-do now?"
“No. It"s not like that.”
Yang shook his head repeatedly. He felt that they were just wasting time arguing about this.
“I"ve told you this already. I don"t like sponsors.”
“Who"s getting sponsored? All you have to do is meet him at least once.”
"Then why do we have to meet in that specific room? Is he interested in me in another manner?"
“Chairman Wu. Everything is going to be okay.”
"Director, I am not going to comply with your request."
“Chairman Wu!”
Yang hurriedly lowered his voice and tried to relax his tense body, worried that their conversation may leak out of the conference room.
“Is it that hard to do just one task? Billions of dollars would come rolling in!”
“Yes, but it will be corrupt money that will go into your pockets.”
“What?”
"Are you a pimp or a croon?"
"Y-yah, Chairman Wu.”
"Twinkle a.s.set really needs to rely on those kinds of things?"
As Seung Hee kept pondering, Yang sighed and made another suggestion.
"Okay, okay. I"ll talk to him and change the meeting place at a hotel in Seoul instead of the Gangwon-do resort. Happy?"
"It"s a good opportunity for you! After all, you"re at that age. You don"t know. You might have a connection with him, and it would probably lead up to marriage!"
"Let"s get this straight. I am not that desperate as to travel far into the heart of Gangwon-do to go to a resort with the intention of marrying someone because I am at that age. I am an independent woman, and I will be going solo for the rest of my life."
Seung Hee said this with a firm and robust tone. She was br.i.m.m.i.n.g with so much confidence and fierceness that it made Yang shiver.
Yang"s mood became bitter as he crumpled the note up and placed it back in his pocket.
“Chairman Wu. If you continue living so transparently, you will only become more transparent until you disappear."
“You can live as white and as pure as a blank piece of paper, but at some point, you"ll become an idiot instead."
“Goodbye.”
Seung Hee said coldly.
Yang, who was now offended, barged out of the room.
The three employees who were eavesdropping by the door quickly moved out of the way and became stiff as a meerkat while slowly turning towards Seung Hee. Their boss is a bit too fierce.