#152. Up, up. 5
Woojin was talking while looking at Minjae, but he was talking to his mother.
As Minjae stared blankly at the candy, a faint smile appeared on Woojin’s lips.
“It’s sweet”
As the traffic light turned green, Mom held Minjae's hand and they crossed the crosswalk.
“Let’s go, Minjae. We’re going to meet all sorts of strange people.”
Woojin briefly watched the backs of the two crossing the road, following the hat.
At that moment, Minjae, who was crossing the crosswalk with his mother, raised his head and looked at Woojin.
As Woojin waved his hand, Minjae looked up at his mother and said.
“Mom, what is the camel that remembers the night?”
The mother, who had just finished crossing the crosswalk, hesitated at her son's words.
There is a saying that a camel will not run away even if it is tied to a rope all night and the rope is untied in the morning.
It means that you remember last night and feel tied down and unable to escape from that place.
'I'm tying up my son?'
I felt annoyed as if I was listening to some crazy person's nonsense.
"let's go."
As she was walking along as if leading her son, she suddenly looked down at Minjae.
My son's face with a gloomy expression.
Suddenly, that thought occurred to me.
I can't remember the last time I saw my son smile.
“Minjae. Mom says this so that our Minjae can do well.
“When Minjae grows up, he will know what Mom meant.”
"yes……"
Don't laugh.
“Minjae. What do you want to eat?
Today, Mom will make Minjae whatever he wants to eat deliciously.”
"tteokbokki……"
The mother, who was walking, stopped and flinched at the sound of her son's voice, which was as loud as a mosquito's.
It wasn't because I remembered scolding him for not eating that kind of thing, but because the words of the person who had seemed crazy to me a moment ago flashed through my mind.
'Parental pressure is a lack of what one has not achieved.'
When Minjae wasn't around, I often enjoyed snacks.
Here, a thought suddenly occurred to me: Did Minjae mention tteokbokki instead of some other food?
Because every time I said I wanted to eat tteokbokki, I said no.
It was a question that arose really suddenly.
“There is a very high possibility that taste will be inherited.”
Mom suddenly turned around at the sound of a voice coming from behind her.
That guy was crazy.
“It may not be the case now, but when Minjae was young, he would have often seen his mother eating tteokbokki.
And we probably ate together too.
I was already accustomed to my mother's taste since I was little, and it continues to this day.
“There is even the Caligula effect at work.”
The Caligula effect refers to the fact that the more free will is forcibly restricted, the more resistance there is.
This is called reactance, where when you are told not to do something, the desire to do it grows even more.
When you tell people not to do this, not to do that, or to prohibit something they never thought of, sometimes a kind of curiosity about what that something is can grow.
The primal unconscious hates to be bound or have its free will violated.
It means always having a desire for freedom.
The Caligula effect of psychological reactance starts here.
At the sight of his mother's surprised face, Woojin waved the plastic bag containing fruit and ice cream and brushed past her hat.
No, I added one more thing.
“If you want Minjae’s life to be successful, I think it would be better for him to study what he wants to study.
“Minjae, fighting.”
So Woojin muttered as he walked away, leaving his hat behind.
“It’s a crime to follow someone around and meddle in their business.”
Woojin, who had experienced the hardships, somehow looked satisfied.
And I walked slowly, looking around as if I was watching people.
80% of the people visible were looking at their phones.
Woojin, who was observing their expressions one by one, nodded.
The reason they were looking at their phones was to satisfy their needs.
Woojin also looked at his cell phone as if he couldn't be left behind.
To react to the environment and blend in with the surroundings.
“I can’t fall behind either.”
Woojin muttered again, flipping through his phone.
“Lanchinsilan, rubbingbong, wannaseu~”
Woojin nodded his head, rattling off new words.
“You really can’t stop studying.”
If you want to become ordinary.
“Rbtb, rbtb… … ”
————————————
3 days later.
The luxury foreign car that Woojin was driving was skidding along the road.
In the passenger seat, Lee Hye-rim was dressed calmly, but her face looked tense, unlike usual.
“Think of flexing your clown muscles.”
Lee Hye-rim felt much more at ease after thinking about what Woo-jin said.
It was at this moment that I realized that not only my mind but also my facial muscles were very stiff.
“Still, I can’t help but feel a little nervous.”
Woojin, who had stepped on the brakes at a red light, looked at her.
“What if we looked at our families as NPCs?”
“NPC?”
“Yeah. Just like the characters in the game.
Like originally annoying characters, originally scary characters, originally greedy characters.
The important thing here is that the scammer is on your side.”
“A fraud?”
“The owner of Shinwha Group, Chairman Lee Jeong-moon, thinks positively of you, Hye-rim.”
Lee Hye-rim couldn't help but smile in disbelief again.
Compare people to game characters.
I'm talking about families that others envy or fear.
In that way, the car that Woojin was driving was able to arrive at Chairman Lee Jeong-moon's house.
Since I arrived an hour early, it seemed like no one had arrived before me.
Lee Hye-rim said as she got out of the car like before.
No, the behavior has changed a little.
He put his cell phone in his bag and called Woojin.
So that the family conversation can be shared with Woojin.
“See you later.”
When Woojin nodded, Lee Hye-rim went into the house.
Woojin, left alone, opened the glove box and took out a few photos.
They were Chairman Lee Jeong-moon's children, two sons and two daughters.
The first was Lee Jeong-ho, the second was Lee Hye-rim's father Lee Jeong-cheol, the third was Lee Jeong-mi, and the fourth was Lee Jeong-hye.
Today, they were going to refute and pressure Lee Hye-rim.
Woojin put the photos back in the glove box and plugged in his earphones to his phone.
And I turned the volume down to the lowest setting.
It was enough sound for Woojin, who had sharper ears than others.
So Woojin put his earphones in and finished preparing to figure out how they were designed.
————————–
“What are you doing here?”
The eldest aunt, who had just come in, asked Lee Hye-rim as she got up from the sofa.
“My grandfather asked me to attend.”
My aunt looked puzzled, but soon regained her composure.
“You took over the GH Construction site?
“It’s a good thing it worked out well. What would have happened if it had gone wrong?”
The field that his son was interested in was construction.
Of course, I also had some shares.
“I think it’s fortunate that the results are good.”
The aunt let out a hollow laugh at Lee Hye-rim's calm tone.
“I got lucky and it worked out.
Are you so arrogant? Anyway… … ”
She stopped herself from mentioning Lee Hye-rim's mother, who is no longer in this world.
Because I didn't feel it was worth it.
“What about grandfather?”
“He is in the study.”
After hearing that, my aunt sat on the sofa and crossed her legs.
In this way, Lee Jeong-moon's children came in one by one and spoke to Lee Hye-rim.
Everyone was asking me why I was here.
Her father, Lee Jeong-cheol, who usually doesn't open his mouth much, rarely spoke to Hye-rim.
Woojin listened to their voices without fail, and the image of Lee Hye-rim sitting on the sofa appeared in his mind.
Amidst the laughter and chatter, Lee Hye-rim's voice was not heard at all.
This is what family gatherings were like for Lee Hye-rim.
Woojin muttered as he thought of Hye-rim.
“You’ve held up well so far.”
At that moment, Chairman Lee Jeong-moon's voice was heard.
“Are you eating your meals on time?”
The charming voice of my second aunt, Lee Jeong-hye, was heard.
“I couldn’t even eat because I was in a hurry to come here because I missed my dad.
“I was hungry a little while ago, but when I look at your face, I don’t feel hungry anymore.”
“Hey, what do you think? The golf course is convenient because there’s not much to do?”
“Yes. I have a few more… … ”
“Jeong-hye, the one in Cheongpyeong is yours. Don’t look at it with your eyes.”
“How many department stores does your sister own?”
The voice of the eldest son, Lee Jeong-ho, was also heard.
“Jeongmi, Jeonghye, it’s been a while since we’ve seen each other and you’re talking about the department store golf course again?”
In that way, we exchanged greetings and stories about various things.
Like before, Lee Hye-rim's voice did not come out.
Instead, a faint sound of leather crinkling could be heard.
Woojin could tell.
It seems that Lee Hye-rim is holding her bag as if trying to calm her pounding heart.
“The reason I asked you to gather here today is simple.”
The surroundings became quiet at the sound of Chairman Lee Jeong-moon's voice.
But that calmness quickly disappeared with the chairman's next words.
“SH Construction plans to increase capital by issuing new shares to its major shareholders.”
"yes?"
“Father. What are you talking about all of a sudden?”
“A paid increase?”
Everyone was surprised by the tone of voice.
“As you all know, Hye-rim worked hard this time.
“I plan to give 7% of SH Construction’s friendly shares as a gift. No one should get involved.”
There was a brief silence again.
Everyone's eyes would have been fixed on Lee Hye-rim like arrows.
A gaze like that I've never received before.
The same would apply to Chairman Lee Jeong-moon.
He would be looking at Hye-rim as if observing her.
As if to say, can I overcome this pressure?
It was a place where Lee Hye-rim took a kind of test on her grandfather.
Lee Jeong-hye raised her voice.
“Dad! It’s a kid! That’s ridiculous!”
“Father, even so, isn’t the stake a bit much?”
“That’s right, Father. Think again.
“If friendly shares go to someone like that, the company will be in a bad state… … ”
At that time, Lee Jeong-cheol, Lee Hye-rim's father, blurted out a word.
“What kind of girl is my daughter? Tell me.”
“Brother. That’s not what I meant… … ”
“Take good care of Jeongwoo. I heard that he often hangs out with other kids while studying abroad.”
“Did you see that, oppa? Why are you saying that? What about the fairy?”
"stop."
“Dad! Think again about handing over your stake! You’ll be in big trouble if you do!”
“Hye-rim has already accomplished a great thing. She deserves praise. There’s no need to argue anymore.”
The chairman's voice became as cold as ice.
“Don’t get involved. If you insist on participating in the paid capital increase… … this father won’t stay still.”
"dad……"
Sighs could be heard here and there.
Woojin's eyelids, which had been closed, slowly opened.
“Hye-rim, fighting.”
That moment.
Lee Hye-rim, who had been looking down at the table, raised her head.
The stiff movements disappear and the body becomes slightly loose as if the muscles are loosening.
The look in your eyes and your posture also change.
Chairman Lee's gaze, who was watching Hye-rim Lee, changed as if he was saying something, and Hye-rim continued speaking as if telling everyone to listen carefully.
“Thank you, Grandpa. I will accept it well.”
The pitch of the voice is constant and there is no shaking in the eyes.
“I recently purchased a 4% stake and met the requirements to become a major shareholder.
If I have the remaining 7%, I will have 11%. I am thinking of working harder to secure the 7% stake as well.
If you become the largest shareholder of SH Construction… … ”
Lee Hye-rim slowly turned her head towards her first aunt.
“I will make sure to tell Oppa Jeong-Hoon to make sure you get your dividends.
So, aunt, don't worry too much."
