An Investor Who Sees Future

Kang Dong-sik is an ordinary parent with a son and a daughter.

He worked at a small printing press with about 10 employees and was nearing retirement age, which was a year away. His son got a job at a construction company and got married the year before last. His daughter, who worked as a secretary at a small company, recently got married as well.

The person his daughter married was her senior colleague from work, which did not sit well with him. If only he worked at a reputable large company, or had a stable job like a civil servant or a teacher, how much better would it have been?

Even though he didn't like it, what could he do if they were happy among themselves? He reluctantly accepted it, pretending to be okay with it.

The issue was the cost of the weddings. After spending to ensure they could afford even a small rental house, they were left with no savings.

Their only remaining assets were an apartment in a small town. The pension he would receive wasn't much, and he would have to wait for another 5 years to start receiving it.

The prospect of working as a security guard after retirement didn't seem appealing to him.

"Some people say they turned their lives around after winning the lottery."

It was just something people said. However, he bought a lottery ticket worth 5,000 won on his way home, not expecting to win first prize, but just hoping for a little luck.

Nevertheless, luck came from a completely unexpected place.

It was an ordinary day when his boss told everyone to turn on the TV as OTK Company was holding a press conference. Kang Dong-sik, who wasn't really interested, went out for a smoke and came back inside. Before taking his seat, he glanced at the TV screen and somehow, the young man's face on the TV seemed familiar.

"Isn't that Jin-hoo?"

He felt silly even saying it to himself.

"Maybe just a look-alike?"

Thinking so and convincing himself, a colleague beside him said, "It is Jin-hoo!"

"Right. He just revealed his name as Kang Jin-hoo."

"Whoa! Th-that's really him?"

Surprised, the coworkers all looked at him simultaneously.

The boss asked,

"Mr. Kang, why the surprise? Shouldn't you be more composed since we know each other?"

"He's, he's my nephew."

"What? Your nephew?"

"He's my younger brother's son."

"Well, now that you mention it… he does resemble Mr. Kang a bit."

The employees alternated their gazes between Kang Dong-sik and the young man who appeared on TV. There was definitely a resemblance in their facial features and eyes.

"That's really something."

"Wow! Amazing. So, he really is Mr. Kang's nephew?"

"Y-yes, but… why is he out there saying such things?"

The real surprise came at the end.

"I am the CEO of OTK Company."

Upon hearing this, the office was thrown into a frenzy.

"W-what? That young man is the CEO of OTK Company?"

"If he's the CEO of OTK Company, how much is his net worth then?"

"Well, it's not less than 10 trillion, is it?"

"What's 10 trillion? It must be at least 20 trillion. They say during Brexit, he earned over 30 trillion."

"Should we believe this?"

It was equally unbelievable for Kang Dong-sik.

"My nephew… Dong-hyun's son Jin-hoo is the CEO of OTK Company?"

Unsure if it was a dream or reality, he stood there in a daze when his phone rang.

The youngest sister was Kang Dong-hwa.

[Oppa! Did you see what Jin-hoo did on TV just now? That was Jin-hoo, right?]

"Yeah, I saw it. Seems like it's him."

"Oh my goodness! What in the world is going on?"

Following that, calls came from his wife and younger brother. Everyone was shocked and didn't know what to do.

The boss patted his shoulder.

"Oh! your nephew is the CEO of OTK Company now. Take good care of us in the future, Manager Kang."

"I will do my best, Sir."

"Isn't this like winning the lottery?"

At those words, Kang Dong-sik suddenly came to his senses.

'Now that I think of it…'

His nephew is a conglomerate with tens of trillions worth of assets! In a way, it's a much bigger stroke of luck than winning the lottery.

How much closer could their relationship be? Jin-hoo is his brother's son!

Kang Dong-sik left work early and headed home. He talked to his family first, then to his siblings.

He decided to contact Representative Je-su first. He was worried that the number might have changed after several years, but fortunately, the call went through.

"Hello, Je-su. This is Dong-hyun and Dong-sik."

"Oh, yes. Hello. How have you been, Sir?"

"I'm sorry, I'm a bit out of it now. I'll contact you later."

"Ah, I understand."

After finishing the press conference, Kang Jin-hoo went straight to the prosecution office. From his mother's perspective, she must be too worried about her son to think of anything else.

He waited calmly. Fortunately, the prosecution dropped the charges shortly after, and Kang Jin-hoo was released unharmed.

When he heard the news, he tried to contact them again, but oddly, the call didn't go through easily.

"Could it be that they're intentionally avoiding us?"

Feeling frustrated, the relatives gathered for a meeting.

"I found out that they seem to be living in that house again."

"This is not the time for that. How about we all go and see them together?" Upon the words of the third sibling Kang Dong-sik, the youngest sister Kang Dong-hwa nodded.

"That's right. Such a happy occasion has come, and we should gather as a family to celebrate. We can also see Jin-hoo's face after a long time."

"Yeah. We haven't had many opportunities to gather in one place, but this might be a good chance to all come together."

Once relatives, always relatives.

How could a relationship connected by bloodlines be easily severed?

***

I got into the car and headed straight to Dongtan, whatever the reason may be.

"Come with me."

Taek-gyu quickly followed and got into the seat next to me.

As soon as I turned the key, I started the car.

"Hey, drive a bit more slowly."

Thinking about my mother surrounded by relatives, I felt anxious.

Since I couldn't reach her, I headed straight to my mother's house.

"But didn't you know that your relatives were coming?"

I sighed at Taek-gyu's question and replied, "I had even forgotten that I had relatives."

My mother is an only child. Her father passed away when she was in middle school, and her mother passed away when I was a baby.

On the other hand, my father was the second of three sons and one daughter. My paternal grandparents passed away when I was in high school, so we often gathered with relatives during holidays.

"After my father passed away, we lost contact."

"Was it because the family fell apart?"

I gave a bitter smile.

"That might be a bigger reason."

Among the four siblings, my father was the most successful.

He wasn't hugely successful, but he could afford to drive a luxury sedan and dine out at restaurants. This meant that among the other three siblings, there wasn't anyone significantly more successful. Therefore, my father was in a position to help his siblings, not receive help from them.

However, after my father passed away and his business failed, the situation changed drastically. My mother, in urgent need, appealed to relatives for money. But she was turned down by all, and that's how the contact was lost.

It's not hard to understand. In tough times, it's not easy to lend money that may be hard to recoup.

It might be upsetting, but I didn't hold any resentment. It just annoyed me that they suddenly appeared and barged into my mother's house.

Senior Sunbae Sangyeop, whose identity was revealed before mine, also reportedly went through a similar experience.

Constantly bothered by relatives visiting, they moved their parents to a high-security luxury villa and changed their own phone number, rejecting all meetings.

"It's like once they find out you've succeeded despite being picky, they want to act all close with you."

While I, whose name and face are known through press conferences, there is little known about Taekgyu. However, everyone knows that Hyunjoo became the CEO of the Golden Gate Korean Branch.

"Do people come to your house often?"

"Is it a big deal if my sister is doing well for a day or two? We don't have many relatives, and everyone is doing just fine. We get inquiries about where to invest, but we're fine."

They arrived home during the conversation. I parked the car in front of the gate.

"Should I come in with you?"

"No, wait for me here."

"Okay." I opened the car door and got out.

The head of the security team who was already there opened the gate for me.

"Did you arrive?"

"Why weren't you blocking the way?"

She bowed her head at my words.

"My apologies. Madam asked them to come in…"

Even without looking, I could imagine it. Considering my mother's personality, she probably couldn't just send them away.

As we entered through the front door, around ten people were in the living room, sitting closely together on the floor as the sofa was not enough.

Fruits and coffee were prepared at the front. Was it necessary to entertain guests like this?

"I'm here, Mother."

In the midst of their awkward expressions, my mother looked up and stood up suddenly.

"Jinhoo, is that you?"

I asked my mother in a soft voice.

"Why did you let them in?"

"But they are your father's family after all, we can't just turn them away, can we?"

Family is there for both good and bad times, they are no different from strangers.

Relatives welcomed me all at once.

"Oh! Jin-hoo is here."

"Nice to see you, Jin-hoo."

"You've become more manly since I last saw you."

Grandfather, grandmother, uncle, aunt, cousin sister, a stranger next to them, and two kids.

"…"

There are so many of them.

Uncle looked out the window and said, "Did you come here by that car? Isn't that a Porsche?"

"Wow. It must be worth over 100 million."

The aunt said, "Jin-hoo even picked out the 7 Series in the yard. Jin-hoo is such a filial son. Your mother is so lucky."

I asked my mother, "Please bring some tea leaves and fruits. Steep the tea well and cut lots of fruits, please."

"Got it."

Mother went into the kitchen, and I sat on the sofa.

Grandfather smiled and asked, "How many years has it been? Did you finish your military service well?"

"Well, how many years has it been? It feels like it's the first time we're meeting since the funeral parlor."

"Really? Anyway, I was quite surprised after seeing the press conference. If something like that happens, you should contact us sooner."

The grandmother nodded her head.

"Yes. I don't know how worried everyone was. Why would the prosecutors arrest an innocent person?"

"That's right. They are very bad people. I used to support Park Si-hyeong too, but after seeing what they did to our Jinhoo, I changed my mind."

The aunt who agreed with her turned to the children next to her and said, "He's your cousin. Remember? You should say hello to Jinhoo."

The children, who now looked like elementary school students, stood up and bowed to greet, "Hello. I'm Kim Jungmin."

"Hello. I'm Kim Mina."

I remember seeing them when they were very young.

"Isn't it time to go to school now?"

"You can skip school for a day. Family gatherings are more important."

In response to the aunt's words, the younger aunt nodded her head.

"Well then. Rather than being good at studying, one should become a person of good character. The lady here seems to be educating the children very well."

The children themselves seem a bit confused about the situation but still seem to enjoy not going to school.

"How have you been, Jinhoo? You've grown so cool."

The one who spoke was my grandfather's daughter and my cousin's sister, Kang Miyoung. She looked pregnant. Next to her was a man I had never seen before.

In his early thirties, with a high nose and thin lips, he seemed to be someone who enjoyed having fun.

"Who's this?"

Miyoung introduced him to me.

"Oh! My husband, Choi Namwoo. He's your brother-in-law, Jinhoo."

He confidently spoke, "Nice to meet you, brother-in-law. Take care of me from now on."

"······."

When did you start using informal language with me?

Even though you are older and in a superior position, it's not necessarily wrong, but it's still lacking in manners.

"Thanks to my brother-in-law, I've been treated differently at work. When I told them I'm going to meet my brother-in-law today, the boss urged me to go quickly and return. Hahaha!"

"······."

So when did we become so close that you go around boasting about someone else's name at work?

I sighed inwardly and spoke.

"Congratulations on your marriage. But when did you get married?"

"It's been 8 months now."

"Really? That means I was already discharged from the military at that time, but I didn't receive any news about your wedding."

"Well, that's······."

When Miyoung sister seemed flustered, the grandmother made excuses.

"Oh my! Get a grip on yourself. This is my first time marrying off a child, so with all the preparations for the wedding, I must have forgotten to inform people."

"Didn't you marry off Yunhu's brother before?"

"Well, I sent him to get married, but sending a daughter off is different."

Grandfather suddenly slammed the table.

"Geez! Where is your mind wandering?"

"Sorry, dear."

It was so awkward to see them pretending, I couldn't bear to watch anymore.

They all seemed to want to look good in my eyes, smiling at me. It felt like they were wearing smiling masks.

I could see the expressions behind the masks – regret for not doing better in difficult times, the hope that at least as relatives they would do something, the parents' hearts in providing for their children, desires for money, and so on.

If you change perspectives and think about it, it's not something that can't be understood.

What if I had just finished my military service and was struggling? And if someone among them had succeeded as much as I had?

Would my mother have also rushed to that house and made various requests? I asked while looking at my relatives.

"So why did everyone come without even contacting me?"

My uncle shrugged.

"It's nothing serious. We just came because we wanted to see your face."

"I see."

I nodded.

"If you've seen my face, then please, get up. I have to go back to work now."

For some reason, no one got up.

My aunt laughed and said, "Even though it's been a long time since our family gathered like this, shouldn't we have such conversations and discussions?"

"But what about? - all that money talk you hear about in the news, like tens or hundreds of billions?" I asked the elder uncle.

"Why does that matter? What's important is that your mother and you are healthy and doing well," he replied.

"Yeah, you're right."

"So, shall we get up now?" the younger uncle quickly asked.

"Perhaps, Jin-hoo, since you're running a business, is there anything we can help with?" even the younger aunt added.

"Well, trust is all that matters, right? It would be nice to work together as a family," my mother chimed in.

The aunt chimed in as if waiting, "Exactly. Like how the Eunsung Group or the Reteg Group operate under brothers handling subsidiaries, it looks good that way."

"······."

Was it really good to see conglomerates run by family clans?

But let's correct the relationship if that's the case.

"The Eunsung Group was torn apart as brothers fought among themselves over subsidiaries, and the Reteg Group is currently embroiled in a power struggle between two siblings over Korea Lite and Japan Lite."

"S-so?"

Everyone came here because they have something they want. Even if I send them back now, they will return at any time.

I loosened my tie, leaned back on the sofa, and said, "If there's something you want from me, please go ahead and tell me."