MWFL 26

Chapter 26 

What Are You Doing Here?

Hyun Chan quietly looked at Shinwoo before letting out a small chuckle.

“You know how powerful Chairman Han is. You think I have some kind of weakness over him that I can use against him? Even a passing dog would laugh at that.”

“Then are you saying Chairman Han is giving everything away for no reason, just as I said?”

“No. That’s where you’re mistaken.”

For the first time, Hyun Chan’s voice became firm.

“If we look at it strictly from a business perspective, we benefited more relatively speaking, but Chairman Han gained plenty as well.”

“What did he gain?”

“You think I can explain it to someone who doesn’t have even the slightest interest in his father’s business?”

Even so, Shinwoo remained silent, continuing to stare at his father as though he intended to hear the answer no matter what.

Hyun Chan made an exasperated expression, but eventually opened his mouth.

“To give you just one example, thanks to the AI-based automatic subtitling and voice-conversion technology we were the first in the industry to develop, Daol has now become the Korean company with the largest number of overseas real-time media processing solutions.”

“……”

“If we were to put that achievement into monetary terms, it would be worth enough to acquire our entire company and still have money left over.”

Pride seeped into the man’s face as he looked directly at his son.

“Do you really think a man in a position to wield influence across both the business and political worlds would invest in something that offered him no benefit? That’s impossible.”

“……”

“In short, Chairman Han saw our potential and gave us an opportunity, and I turned that opportunity into a complete success.”

Hyun Chan finished speaking in a clear voice and smiled gently.

“Now you understand, right? Stop saying ridiculous things about me having some kind of weakness over Chairman Han when you don’t even know the whole story.”

There wasn’t even the slightest trace of a lie in his father’s gentle expression as he looked at him again.

Am I being unnecessarily suspicious?

Even when he tried to change his mind, the inexplicable uneasiness lingering inside him refused to disappear.

“Fine. What about the contract and the marriage?”

“Those were both requests Chairman Han made to me because Soo-hee wanted them.”

It was what Shinwoo had already expected.

“I don’t like saying this myself, but it’s true that you aren’t exactly the kind of son-in-law that family would ordinarily be satisfied with.”

Shinwoo looked at his father, who gave a bitter smile as he said it.

It was an undeniable fact that anyone would have to acknowledge.

“But Shinwoo. There’s no parent who can defeat their own child. Since Soo-hee desperately wants this, Chairman Han wants to grant her wish too. So try to understand.”

“I’m busy enough trying to survive myself. Why should I have to understand another family’s circumstances?”

“As I said before, this is practically a blessing that fell right into your lap. Honestly, even I’m tempted by the prospect of becoming Chairman Han’s in-laws.”

Shinwoo knew very well that it was a position anyone would covet.

“Then keep wanting it without expecting the result you want. It doesn’t cost you anything to be greedy.”

The only problem was that Shinwoo had absolutely no desire for that position.

“Shinwoo. Do you hate it that much?”

“For me, this isn’t even something worth deciding whether I like or dislike. I think I’d be better off sleeping instead of wasting my time worrying about something like that.”

Seeing that his son didn’t even want to spare it a thought, Hyun Chan let out a short sigh.

“And you just said there’s no parent who can defeat their child. So you should give up too, Father.”

After finishing in his usual neat voice, Shinwoo stood up.

Realizing there was no point continuing the conversation, Hyun Chan nodded and rose as well.

“Since you’re here, stay for dinner. You were really planning to leave without eating?”

“I’m watching my diet. I’ll just go see Grandpa before I leave.”

“All right. He’s in the room on the first floor.”

After Shinwoo disappeared from sight, Hyun Chan sat back down on the sofa.

“Ah. That boy is so stubborn. Everyone is desperate to get on Chairman Han’s good side. Why on earth does he hate it so much?”

He shook his head and muttered to himself.

Just then, Yoon-joo came upstairs.

“Did Shinwoo go into your father’s room?”

The moment he saw his wife, Hyun Chan spoke first.

“Yes. He did. What did Shinwoo say?”

Yoon-joo already knew what they had discussed.

“What else? He says he doesn’t want it.”

“Then what are you going to do?”

Yoon-joo asked cautiously as she sat down across from her husband.

“Chairman Han is extremely determined to get the two of them married, so I’ll talk to him after some time has passed.”

“To Chairman Han? Are you going to tell him you won’t let them get married?”

“No. If I did that, we’d lose every business deal we currently have in progress.”

The man’s eyes, which had remained calm until then, sharpened.

“How do you think I got this far? I have to convince that brat Shinwoo somehow.”

Veins stood out on his forehead, revealing his irritation.

“But is it really true that Chairman Han is pushing for the marriage simply because his daughter wants Shinwoo?”

The man raised his lowered gaze and stared directly at his wife.

“There’s no other reason.”

His voice was firm, as though warning her not to ask anything more.

“If it weren’t for Soo-hee, we wouldn’t be living this comfortably. The reason Chairman Han even learned about our company was because of Soo-hee.”

The IT company Synex, which Hyun Chan had operated for more than twenty years, had survived in the market for a long time but had never achieved any particularly remarkable growth.

Five years ago, as the AI market began rapidly expanding, Synex participated in a government-sponsored investor relations event for small and medium-sized businesses, hoping to attract investment from major corporations.

A representative from Daol Media Group, who had attended the event, became interested in the technology Synex was developing.

One day, while the two companies were actively discussing a contract, Chairman Han requested a meeting through his staff.

It was somewhat unusual.

Even when a contract was being negotiated, it was rare for the chairman of a major corporation like Daol Media Group to meet the other party personally.

“My daughter is a devoted fan of Player Cha Shinwoo, so she wanted to meet him in person. She also told me that you are Player Cha’s father.”

Chairman Han personally cleared up the mystery at their first meeting.

After that, Hyun Chan frequently met Chairman Han privately as well.

He had explained to Shinwoo that he had successfully turned Chairman Han’s opportunity into a major achievement, but honestly, Chairman Han had invested in Synex with almost excessive generosity.

The moment Chairman Han brought up the possibility of Shinwoo and Soo-hee getting married, Hyun Chan realized it.

All those investments had been part of an effort to help the company that would eventually become his in-laws’ business build itself into a suitable partner.

Even Hyun Chan could see that Soo-hee’s feelings toward Shinwoo had gone beyond simple affection and were closer to obsession.

Even so, he couldn’t afford to let an opportunity that seemed to have fallen straight from the heavens slip away.

“Do you think I’m being greedy right now too?”

Yoon-joo didn’t answer her husband immediately. She remained silent.

“It’s not even a difficult question. Why are you thinking so hard?”

“I don’t think you’re doing this just for your own benefit. And what does my opinion matter anyway?”

Her voice was calm, and her expression was so composed that it bordered on emotionless.

She generally didn’t show much emotion, but when it came to Shinwoo in particular, she was always as indifferent as she was now.

Perhaps that was only natural. He wasn’t even her biological child.

“All right. Just don’t worry about it.”

“Yes. I’ll go downstairs and prepare dinner.”

Yoon-joo quietly stood up and headed back downstairs.

At the same time, Shinwoo was sitting across from his grandfather, Cha Yong-won.

“Our superstar has actually come all the way to see his grandfather. What an honor.”

The elderly man gazed affectionately at his grandson as though he wanted to keep him in his eyes forever.

“Grandpa. Isn’t ‘superstar’ a little old-fashioned?”

“I’m an old man, so what can I do? As far as I’m concerned, it’s the highest compliment.”

Shinwoo gave a small laugh and nodded.

“How are you feeling? I heard you were hospitalized with pneumonia recently.”

“I’m completely recovered now. I’m so frustrated that I want to go out and exercise, but your father won’t let me.”

“It’s cold, and there’s been a lot of snow, so it’s dangerous. Put up with being frustrated for a while. You need to start thinking about your age now, too.”

The old man shot his grandson a sidelong glance at the scolding, then smiled and nodded.

“Did your father talk to you about getting married?”

“He told you too?”

“He didn’t give me the details. He just said that if you called me, I should convince you that it was a good opportunity.”

Shinwoo suppressed the hollow laugh that almost escaped.

Under normal circumstances, Shinwoo actually spoke with his grandfather more often than with his father.

Even after his son and daughter-in-law divorced, the old man continued to look after his former daughter-in-law and grandson.

Even back when he wasn’t as financially comfortable as he was now, he would occasionally send money to Shinwoo’s mother to help with living expenses.

When Shinwoo was in middle school, his grandfather sometimes came to watch his games. Whenever he did, he arrived carrying bags full of snacks for the baseball team.

Because of his stepmother’s presence, Shinwoo had always been careful when talking with his father.

As a result, he naturally ended up having more conversations with his grandfather, who was easier to talk to.

Apparently, his father had decided to use that relationship to persuade him.

“So what did you tell him?”

“What else could I say? I told him I’d leave the decision up to my grandson. I’m always on your side.”

The irritation that had crept in because of his father disappeared, and Shinwoo gave a faint smile.

At that moment, the phone in his hand vibrated.

Without saying anything, he showed his grandfather the glowing screen.

His grandfather understood that Shinwoo was indicating he was going to step out to take the call and nodded.

Shinwoo immediately stood and walked toward the door.

Bang!

He quickly opened the door, then suddenly froze.

It was as though someone had been standing outside, listening to their conversation.

“Mrs. Na. What are you doing here?”

Yoon-joo was standing extremely close to him.