Real Man

A few days later.

At lunchtime, a large bowl was placed in front of Yoo-hyun, who was sitting at a table in the factory cafeteria.

The white broth in it was steaming.

“Auntie, what is this? It doesn’t look like regular beef soup.”

“It’s good for your body, so just try it. I added a little salt.”

At the cafeteria lady’s words, Yoo-hyun took a spoonful of the broth.

It was slightly greasy but had a rich flavor.

He hadn’t even had a few spoonfuls when he felt his body heat up and his hands and feet become warm.

The cafeteria lady put a small box on the table as she saw him eating.

Thud.

“Take this too.”

“What is this?”

Yoo-hyun opened the box on the table.

There were plastic bags filled with black liquid inside.

“It’s eel extract. It’s good to have one pouch each.”

“Eel?”

“Yeah. What you’re eating now is eel soup. Don’t you like it?”

The cafeteria lady asked cautiously, thinking that Yoo-hyun didn’t like it.

Actually, Yoo-hyun wasn’t fond of eel.

He didn’t have much chance to taste it since he didn’t go out of his way to eat it.

But he felt the tremendous effort behind it, so he smiled brightly.

“No, I like it. It makes me feel strong.”

“Mr. Lee would be happy to hear that.”

“Why?”

“That guy is sick right now. He worked hard for three days to catch and cook them. He did all this for you…”

That’s why he had been quiet lately.

Yoo-hyun stared at the box quietly, and the cafeteria lady changed the subject.

“Oh, he told me not to make you feel burdened.”

“You already told me everything.”

“Ho ho. Well, there are no secrets in this world. Why didn’t he give it to you sooner?”

“What do you mean by that?”

“You know. When your girlfriend came last time, wouldn’t it have been nice if you had eel? Then you would have been warm even in the cold.”

He wondered what she meant, but it turned out to be about Jeong Da-hye again.

Yoo-hyun snorted and waved his hand.

“Auntie, we’re not like that yet.”

“Oh, Mr. Han. You don’t know a woman’s heart. When I was young…”

As the cafeteria lady started her repertoire again, Yoo-hyun quietly took his spoon.

He felt Lee Young Nam’s warm heart in the rich broth.

Spring had finally come to Yeontae-ri, and the flowers bloomed.

A banner hung at the end of the main road fluttered in the gentle breeze.

The number of tourists increased dramatically, and more than half of the shops that had been closed were lit up.

There were also more people who wanted to build or buy houses in the village.

Thanks to that, even the real estate office that had been wondering why it was here was busy.

Yeontae Factory was also busy for another reason.

Ma Jong Hyun, who came to inspect the factory for the takeover, looked dumbfounded.

“You finished the work already? How is that possible?”

“Yes, this is easy. Most of the parts are in the warehouse, so we just replace them if they can’t be fixed.”

Jo Ki Jung, who was doing reassembly work on the conveyor belt, answered.

He didn’t have the same fear in his eyes as before, since he had already decided to leave.

He just treated him as casually as he did Park Chul Hong.

“Huh. Then what about until now?”

“Oh, isn’t this how we always do it quickly?”

Jo Ki Jung shrugged his shoulders, and Ma Jong Hyun frowned.

Min Dal Ki, who was next to him, nudged Yoo-hyun.

“Hey, Mr. Han, you said it was hard. You cried every time you called.”

“I’m different from my seniors. I’m still struggling by myself.”

“Is that what you call it?”

Min Dal Ki snapped at him, and Yoo-hyun tilted his head.

“But isn’t it better if it’s easy? The system is well set up, and you’ll finish your work soon.”

“What’s good about finishing your work quickly in this countryside? It’s better to stay in Mokpo even if you work overtime.”

“Don’t worry. There are surprisingly fun things here. You should learn golf too.”

That was when Yoo-hyun answered with a good humor.

The team leader, Ma Jong-hyun, who was a step behind, growled with a flushed face.

He seemed to want to vent his stress on Yoo-hyun, who had piled up since he came here.

“How dare you. Do you know who you’re talking to?”

But his anger management disorder was cured by a single word from Yoo-hyun.

“You know that you have to submit the handover report to the audit team, right?”

“What?”

“There’s also an evaluation of the transferee’s attitude in this report. Just so you know.”

“…”

Ma Jong-hyun, who had lost his words, was left behind by Yoo-hyun, who winked at Kang Jong-ho.

“Mr. Kang, please proceed with the next course.”

Kang Jong-ho nodded and gestured for the people to follow him.

“Come on, follow me. I’ll explain the material warehouse.”

Buzzing.

The reassembly workers who came to receive the handover followed him.

Min Dal-gi ran over and pulled Ma Jong-hyun’s arm.

“Team leader, let’s go for now.”

“Damn, that kid.”

Ma Jong-hyun, who was moving with a twisted face, pounded his chest with his fist in frustration.

He thought of how he had been fooled by that young guy, who had a backer in the group strategy room, and he wanted to punch him regardless of the audit team or anything else.

Min Dal-gi stuck close to him and whispered.

“Team leader, there’s no need to be bothered by him. Let’s find a way to invalidate or reduce his dispatch.”

Yoo-hyun didn’t hear it, but he could tell by their expressions that they were up to something.

Would it work as they wished?

Yoo-hyun smiled as he watched the two people walk away.

Jo Gi-jeong was in charge of the factory interior, and Kang Jong-ho was in charge of the material warehouse for the handover.

Yoo-hyun was supposed to write the report, but he only had to summarize the final results.

Thanks to that, Yoo-hyun didn’t have much to do during the handover period.

It was best to quietly slip away at times like this.

While everyone was busy,

Yoo-hyun spent some time in his hideout.

He felt so comfortable lying in a hammock and basking in the warm sunlight.

Yoo-hyun smiled leisurely as Shin Kyung-wook’s voice came through his earphones.

-Do you really have no intention of returning now?

“Yes. I like living here right now. There’s nothing urgent right now.”

-Still, Ms. Yeo seems to be waiting for you a lot.

“She’ll do well. The team members are also working hard.”

Yoo-hyun was keeping track of the situation at the company as he received reports from Jang Jun-sik from time to time.

Recently, under Yeo Tae-sik’s leadership, a joint TF was formed by gathering TV, IT, and mobile group members in one place.

There was still opposition from other groups, and there seemed to be a lot of talk internally since it was still early.

Yoo-hyun wasn’t worried at all since this was also a process he had to go through.

He wanted to enjoy his carefree life more than that.

Shin Kyung-wook hit the nail on the head for Yoo-hyun.

-You understand that part too. Is it because of the village?

“The village?”

-Yeah. How sad would the villagers be if you leave, who are the first contributor to the village development?

“Where did you hear that?”

He seemed to have misunderstood something, but he was curious how he knew.

He didn’t mention the details of the village to Shin Kyung-wook.

Especially not something like being the first contributor to the village development.

Yoo-hyun tilted his head as Shin Kyung-wook gave an unexpected answer.

-I saw the home appliance division newsletter. Especially Mr. Lee’s interview was very impressive.

“The newsletter came out. Haha. He really hyped me up.”

-No. Other people were also grateful to Mr. Han. I was surprised.

He didn’t see the newsletter, but he could guess what it said.

It was obvious what the villagers would say.

Yoo-hyun quickly changed the subject.

“You sound like you’re coming back soon?”

-Yeah. I’m trying to go back anyway. How about seeing you this Sunday?

Yoo-hyun hesitated at Shin Kyung-wook’s question.

“Oh, what should I do? Can’t it be another day?”

-Why? Do you have an important appointment?

He wanted to see Shin Kyung-wook, but that was something he could do anytime when he went back.

But this appointment was different.

It was an appointment that would break if Yoo-hyun left, and maybe he wouldn’t be able to come back.

He spoke honestly with his heart.

“Yes, I have a golf booking with the villagers.”

-What? Hahaha. Yeah, you have to keep your booking promise unless your wife dies.

Director Shin Kyung-wook laughed loudly, thinking that Yoo-hyun’s answer was absurd.

From this trivial reaction, he could tell how open-minded he was.

“Thank you for understanding.”

-No, I was curious about how you live anyway. I’ll go down there once.

“Then I’ll treat you to a special course.”

Director Shin Kyung-wook laughed again at Yoo-hyun’s good-natured answer.

-Is this more exciting than living in Korea?

“Of course. It will be more than you expect.”

Yoo-hyun spoke confidently and sparkled his eyes.

His eyes were more certain than when he was at the Apple review meeting.

At that moment.

Inside the strategy office of the group strategy room located in Hansung Tower.

Director Song Hyun-seung, who had furrowed his brow, threw a thin booklet he had crumpled up.

Paralak. Pak.

The flying booklet hit the head of Director Kwon Sung-hoe, who was bowing his head, and fell.

On the front of the booklet on the floor, it said ‘Home Appliance Business Report’.

“You bastard, are you kidding me now? How did you manage to get a deputy who was demoted to receive a factory manager award?”

“That’s…”

“Didn’t you have to report it? How are you going to face Director Yoon now? Tell me the truth.”

Director Kwon Sung-hoe bowed his head sharply at Director Song Hyun-seung’s scolding.

He didn’t check the audit results and didn’t check the timing of the report going out.

It was too big a mistake to make an excuse that he was out of his mind.

“I’m sorry.”

“Don’t say you’re sorry and contact the Mokpo factory. Make sure they see hell for the rest of their demotion period. Or go down there yourself.”

“I’ll make sure they never get up again.”

“Don’t just talk and do it right this time.”

Director Kwon Sung-hoe bowed his head again and quietly left the office.

“There’s no use for anyone. There’s no use for anyone.”

Behind his back, his boss’s criticism pierced him like an arrow.

Director Kwon Sung-hoe clenched his fist and gritted his teeth.

“Yoo-hyun, you son of a bitch. You’ll see.”

Meanwhile, Yoo-hyun, who was lying on a hammock, scratched his ear with his little finger.

“Who did it? Why is my ear so itchy?”

Then he plugged his earphones back into his ears.

A cheerful piano melody that matched well with the breeze flowed out.

Yoo-hyun fingered the air to the rhythm.

He could only play chopsticks on the piano, but he was a pianist in his heart.

A pleasant smile appeared on Yoo-hyun’s immersed lips.