Chapter 13
First Day at Work (1)
After returning to Ocean Hotel, Chairman Kang called for the hotel concierge.
A young man in a neat suit entered the room and bowed.
“Sir, is there anything making your stay uncomfortable?”
The concierge looked slightly surprised, apparently not expecting someone this young to be occupying one of the hotel's three top-tier suites.
“No, it’s not a service issue. I have a favor to ask.”
A hotel concierge was essentially a personal butler for guests. Whatever the request, it was his job to help.
“Please go ahead.”
“I’m going to need a car starting next week. Taking taxis everywhere is getting inconvenient.”
“Would you like us to prepare one of the hotel vehicles?”
“No. I might be using it all day, so I’m thinking of just getting one.”
A gift to celebrate his official employment.
“Ah, then I’ll contact a salesperson for you. Do you have a particular model in mind?”
“As long as it’s a comfortable sedan. Preferably something that doesn’t stand out. What’s popular these days?”
“In my opinion, a Genesis G80 would be a good choice. It’s Hyundai’s luxury line and—”
“Hyundai?”
As Chairman Kang frowned, the concierge immediately realized his mistake.
Suggesting a Hyundai to someone staying in a suite like this...
“Ah, my apologies. A Mercedes would suit you better.”
“Yeah, a Mercedes sounds about right.”
Chairman Kang was satisfied. In Gangnam, wasn’t a Mercedes even more common than a Hyundai? There was no risk of it attracting attention.
“Would you prefer purchasing one or leasing it long-term?”
Chairman Kang decided he liked this guy. He was quick-witted. Since he was a long-term hotel guest, leasing would indeed be more convenient than buying.
“I’ll lease it. Let’s say for about a year.”
“Understood. I’ll call a salesperson immediately.”
“Don’t send him to my room. I’ll meet him in the lobby.”
“Yes, sir. I’ll call you as soon as he arrives.”
Whether he had caught a big client or a gullible customer, either way worked for him.
Less than ten minutes later, the salesperson arrived in the lobby, and Chairman Kang headed down shortly after.
But as he listened to the salesperson’s explanation, he immediately frowned.
“Why do I need so many documents just to lease a car?”
A copy of a bankbook, a seal certificate, a resident registration document...
Seeing Chairman Kang’s irritation, the concierge quickly thought of an alternative.
“Sir, how about this?”
“How?”
“What if the hotel leases the vehicle for one year and designates it exclusively for your use? As long as you pay the cost, you can avoid all the paperwork.”
Useful indeed.
“That sounds good. Make sure it’s ready by Monday.”
Just then, as if he had been waiting for the opportunity, the salesperson awkwardly scratched his head.
“Sir, I checked our inventory, and the only vehicle available by Monday is a fully loaded S-Class 580. Would that be acceptable?”
Chairman Kang wasn’t clueless. The salesman had landed a wealthy customer and was trying to push the most expensive option.
With a faint grin, Chairman Kang stood up.
“I’ll take it. And find me a driver too. It’s been too long since I’ve driven.”
The concierge bowed.
“I’ll make sure everything is ready for your commute on Monday.”
“Much appreciated. Oh, and bring me a quote for the full year’s lease and the driver’s salary. I’ll pay everything upfront in cash. No problem, right?”
A year’s worth of fees paid in cash upfront.
How could there possibly be a problem?
“We’ll prepare everything with the utmost care to ensure your comfort, sir.”
Chairman Kang patted the concierge’s shoulder once before leaving.
Watching him go, the salesperson clicked his tongue.
“What kind of person is he? He didn’t even ask how much the car costs or what the monthly payments are.”
“There are more rich people in this world than you think. To someone like him, what feels like hundreds of millions of won to us is probably the equivalent of a hundred thousand won.”
The concierge glared at the salesman.
“Don’t overcharge him. If he thinks he’s getting ripped off, he’ll just call another dealer.”
“Don’t worry. I’ll prepare the best possible quote.”
This time, it was the salesperson who bowed.
***
“So you discovered it because you were checking an outsourcing company’s inventory records and thought something looked suspicious?”
President Choi was dumbfounded by Executive Director Kim’s report.
Everything fit together a little too perfectly.
“Yes. This incident showed us that any employee with a sharp eye could uncover transaction records. Going forward, I plan to increase the security level on specially managed vendors so that only department heads and above can access them.”
“That’s your countermeasure?”
“Yes.”
“It sounds reasonable... but why do I feel like there’s more to this?”
“Pardon?”
“He’s just an intern. A fresh college graduate. You’re telling me a kid like that looked at inventory reports and realized something was wrong with the company? What kind of intern even pays attention to that stuff?”
“Well, if you think of him as an unusually perceptive guy... there are people with good instincts, aren’t there?”
“And someone like that got pushed into a support department because he couldn’t survive in sales?”
President Choi shoved a stack of evaluation reports toward him.
“Look at this. These are evaluations from every department. Introverted. Lacks confidence. No business sense. Poor comprehension.”
He tapped the reports.
“And you’re telling me this guy has great instincts? Does that make any sense? He can’t handle ordinary work, but he’s exceptionally good at uncovering corruption? If that’s true, he should become a detective, not work for a company.”
Executive Director Kim knew exactly why President Choi was so irritated.
It was simply his personality.
If even one thing felt suspicious, he couldn’t move on. That meticulousness was what had allowed him to become CEO.
Had it been a weakness instead of a strength?
He would have spent his career as a section chief before retiring as a department manager—or been laid off entirely.
“Sir, we’re planning to keep him around for a year and then fire him anyway. There’s no need to worry too much. Besides, thanks to him we discovered a security flaw in our data management. As far as coincidences go, it’s a fortunate one.”
“So you’re saying we should just look at it positively?”
“There isn’t really another option.”
“Fine. Then where are you assigning him? Sales?”
“Sales should get the candidate they actually want. No department is going to request him.”
“Then where does he spend the next year? As a security guard?”
“I’ll look into it. If nothing works out, we can dump him in General Affairs and have him run errands.”
President Choi carefully studied Executive Director Kim’s expression.
This guy was acting casual, but he was definitely hiding something.
Normally, HR people preferred to get rid of troublesome employees.
The natural response would have been to cut loose someone so unpredictable.
Yes, there was the issue involving the Chairman, but he was only an intern.
They could simply choose not to hire him. Everything that happened during the internship period was confidential anyway. If he started talking, a threat of a massive lawsuit would silence him.
Yet Kim’s attitude almost seemed protective.
President Choi pressed the intercom.
“Send Manager Oh in.”
Why suddenly summon the manager from Choi Sung Trading’s executive secretary office?
Maybe not President Choi’s right-hand man, but at least his right wrist.
Executive Director Kim suddenly had a bad feeling.
“You called for me, sir?”
Manager Oh Tae-ho entered and bowed slightly.
“The secretary office has been busy lately, right?”
“You said yourself that we were busy enough to need more staff.”
Manager Oh had never said such a thing to President Choi. This was the first he was hearing of it.
“Well, the secretary office would certainly appreciate more people. Management has been so focused on cost-cutting that I couldn’t keep asking. I’m surprised you remembered.”
“I’d feel bad taking away an experienced employee, but a new hire should be fine. What do you think?”
“At this point, we can’t afford to be picky. We’ll train them well and make good use of them.”
Executive Director Kim was speechless.
Their coordination was flawless.
They were stealing him right in front of him.
“What do you think, Director Kim? If the position is going to sit empty anyway, the secretary office might as well use him. There are plenty of small tasks around here.”
“If you’re willing to take responsibility, sir, I have no objections. I’m just worried he’s so incompetent that he’ll become a burden.”
President Choi’s eyes gleamed.
To him, that sounded like Kim didn’t want to lose the intern.
“Then it’s settled. Assign him to the secretary office. If he makes a mistake, it’ll be easy to fire him immediately. I’ll take responsibility as president. Fair enough?”
“Understood. I’ll handle it.”
And just like that, Chairman Kang became the subordinate of President Choi—the very man he had once used like his own hands and feet.
**
When Chairman Kang stepped out of the elevator, a female hotel employee and a man hurried over and bowed.
“Sir, this is Assistant Manager Kim Yoon-su. He’ll be serving you starting today.”
Assistant Manager?
A driver with the title of assistant manager?
Chairman Kang blinked.
The hotel employee politely explained.
“He is officially employed by our hotel. If there’s anything unsatisfactory, please let us know at any time.”
So the hotel had arranged both the car and the driver.
“Very well. Assistant Manager Kim?”
“Yes, sir?”
“Lead the way. You know where I’m going, right?”
“Yes. I’ve been briefed. I’ll do my best to serve you comfortably.”
“I’m the one who should be thanking you since I’m entrusting you with the wheel. Let’s go.”
Outside the lobby stood a large sedan.
As Kim Yoon-su respectfully opened the door, Chairman Kang said,
“You don’t have to do that. I can open my own door. My arms and legs work just fine.”
The smell of a brand-new car greeted him as he got in.
It really felt like he was starting something new.
The assistant manager sat in the driver’s seat.
The rookie employee sat in the back.
It was a strange arrangement, but he liked the driver.
It was obvious the hotel had put a lot of thought into selecting him.
Kim focused entirely on driving. He didn’t glance into the rearview mirror or make pointless comments like, “Nice weather today.”
There were even thermoses containing coffee and green tea neatly prepared in the back seat.
“Oh, Assistant Manager Kim.”
“Yes, sir?”
“I haven’t secured a parking space yet. Drop me off at the company and find a nearby parking lot to rent.”
“Understood.”
Chairman Kang pulled out a bundle of fifty-thousand-won bills from his bag and tossed it onto the front passenger seat.
“Use that for miscellaneous expenses. Keep all the receipts.”
“Understood.”
Even after receiving a large sum of money, the man’s expression didn’t change.
A shallow person would have immediately started wondering how long five million won would last—or whether he’d be getting five million every month.
But Kim Yoon-su didn’t even glance at the money.
Nor did he thank him.
To him, it was company expenses, not personal money.
Chairman Kang had worried about whether he’d like the driver, but now he felt relieved. It seemed he had found a good one.
As they approached the company, Chairman Kang suddenly remembered an important fact.
At present, he wasn’t the Chairman.
He was a new employee.
There was no way he could step out of a chauffeur-driven Mercedes at the company entrance.
He quickly told the driver to stop.
“I’ll get off here. Just pull over somewhere nearby.”
“Yes, sir.”
As expected, the driver didn’t ask why.
The man didn’t even look old. What kind of life had he lived before this?
After getting out, Chairman Kang hurried toward the company building.
The acceptance message had said to wait in the lobby, hadn’t it?
He spotted three or four young men who appeared to be successful applicants.
Chairman Kang slowly walked toward them.