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“You don’t look good, Channy,” Michelle commented.
“I had a lot of things to do.”
For some reason, Michelle didn’t ask him what he had been up to but instead immediately changed the subject. “The school’s anniversary is next Friday. They’ll be holding the school festival then.”
Kang Chan smirked.
He had just returned yesterday from a battle so brutal that a lot of his men died. However, the school festival was an important event as well.
“The kids worked hard to prepare for it,” Michelle continued. She talked carefully as if she was pacifying a younger brother who had a bad temper. Now that he thought about it, he did ask her to work on the school festival.
“Oh, and the building registration paperwork is in the car. Don’t forget to take it with you. We’ll be cleared to move into the building in two weeks. I know the first floor will be a shopping mall, but how should we divide the rest of the buildings?” Michelle asked as their tea was served.
“I was planning to move my father’s automobile company’s office first floor of offices, but convincing him to do that would be tricky. It doesn’t matter what you do with the rest of the building for as long as it doesn’t overlap with the floors that I’ll be using. Right, what about DI?” Kang Chan asked.
“I’m thinking of giving the company the seventh and eighth floors. Can we do that?”
Kang Chan raised his coffee cup as he laughed lightheartedly. “I just told you that I’m leaving the building management to you, didn’t I? Stop worrying and use the floors as you see fit. I do hope that my mother’s Foundation office will be on the first floor as well, but we can figure that out later.”
“Actually, a finance company contacted us about using the first, second, and third floors for a bank and a brokerage firm.”
Will it be okay for those to be in the same building as Kang Dae-Kyung’s company and Yoo Hye-Sook’s foundation? Wouldn’t various factors overlap?
Kang Chan couldn’t immediately answer Michelle.
“Michelle, I’ll be going to a vacation home with my parents in two days. Can I give you my decision when I get back? For as long as we decide where to put the exhibition hall in the first floor, the rest will be easy anyway, won’t it?” Kang Chan asked.
“A vacation home?”
“Yes.”
They could hear people laughing out loud around them. Perhaps it was because the establishment they were in sold alcoholic drinks like beers and cocktails.
“Our drama ends next week. Since it received quite high TV ratings, I’m thinking of going abroad with the DI employees and the other actors who starred in it,” Michelle said.
“I’ll leave that up to you.”
“Will you be able to join us?”
“This might not be the case for our employees and in-house actors, but the outsourced actors will probably find it hard to accept that I’m a high schooler,” Kang Chan said.
Michelle obediently nodded as her round eyes remained closely locked on Kang Chan.
Something’s wrong—she’s acting somewhat submissive today. There’s no way she’s acting like this because of money.
“Why are you looking at me?” Michelle asked.
“You’re hiding something, aren’t you?”
Michelle smiled mischievously. “Our drama is a success, and I’ve done a good job taking over the building and overseeing its construction. So once I’m back from my trip abroad with DI, let’s go to Bali. Just the two of us.”
No wonder she’s being so obedient.
“What do you think?” Michelle asked.
“You already know my answer, right?”
“Let’s go!” Michelle extended her arms as if she were falling onto the table, then grabbed onto Kang Chan’s forearm and grumbled. From how the men around them reacted, it seemed even the server would raise his hand if Michelle asked if there was another guy who wanted to go with her instead.
“Get your act together,” Kang Chan said.
“Let’s go!” Determined to go with him, Michelle clung to Kang Chan. She didn’t let go even though she was fully aware that the people around them were staring.
“Let’s just hang out for a day instead. I still have to take Cindy and Cecile to dinner,” Kang Chan said.
Michelle sat up and pouted. After staring at Kang Chan for a while, she blinked. “Fine, but I get to decide where we’re going on that day.”
“Sure.”
Michelle was a cut above Kang Chan when it came to choosing restaurants anyway. In fact, he was already planning to ask her to choose where to go for him if she accepted his offer.
“Embrasse moi[1],” Michelle said.
She’s asking me to kiss her here?
The ears of the men around them pricked up when Michelle spoke in French.
“I’ll do that next time. Now! Let’s have a smoke and go home,” Kang Chan said.
“You really make people anxious during moments like this,” Michelle replied but took the cigarette that Kang Chan offered her anyway.
Chk chk.
The two lit up cigarettes.
“We can probably pay our drama’s financial investors by selling the publication rights in other countries,” Michelle said.
Smoking seemed to have returned her to her senses.
How will she react if I tell her that I’m going to France to receive training for about six months?
The two talked for about an hour more before leaving. Michelle dropped Kang Chan in front of his apartment building. Other than deciding that he was going to eat with the DI employees before they went on their trip abroad, they didn’t talk about anything special.
Kang Chan told Woo Hee-Seung and Lee Doo-Hee to meet him tomorrow before heading back home.
***
The next morning, Kang Chan went for a leisurely jog. He still felt as if he hadn’t completely recovered from the fatigue he accumulated during the operation, so he couldn’t overwork himself yet.
After doing push-ups and a few other exercises, he headed back home.
“You should rest!” Yoo Hye-Sook told Kang Chan.
“I’ll feel better quicker if I exercise.”
This conversation would’ve annoyed him in the past, but Kang Chan now felt thankful for getting to have it this morning.
After showering and changing, Kang Chan sat at the table with his parents. Kang Dae-Kyung and Yoo Hye-Sook looked ten thousand times more comfortable at home than at the hotel.
“Did you two get enough rest?” Kang Chan asked.
“Yes. I slept soundly. Something about sleeping at the hotel made me feel uneasy. Fortunately, that feeling disappeared when we got back home,” Kang Dae-Kyung said.
Yoo Hye-Sook nodded in agreement.
Kang Chan enjoyed breakfast and returned to his room. After a while, his phone rang.
Did Lanok put a camera in my house after all?
Kang Chan held up his phone after looking around his room.
“Mr. Ambassador, it’s Kang Chan.”
- Mr. Kang Chan, Are you free at around ten-thirty today? I’d like to see you at the embassy.
“Yes, I’ll be there.”
The call ended there.
When Kang Chan went out of his room, he found Kang Dae-Kyung and Yoo Hye-Sook doing the dishes together.
“Do you need my help?” Kang Chan asked.
“Not at all—it’ll be disrespectful to disturb this moment of ours,” Kang Dae-Kyung joked.
Due to Kang Dae-Kyung’s rejection, Kang Chan made tea instead.
“I’m going to the French embassy,” Kang Chan said.
“Okay. Are you sure you’re free to go to the vacation home tomorrow?”
“Of course.”
After having tea, Kang Chan changed and leisurely got out of the house. He took out his phone before he left the building and called Woo Hee-Seung and Lee Doo-Hee.
“I’ll be heading to the embassy, but let’s have tea first. Are you two up for it?”
- We’re right in front of the apartment.
As soon as Woo Hee-Seung replied, a car came out of the alley and stopped in front of Kang Chan.
They drove off as soon as Kang Chan got in.
“Thank you for your hard work,” Woo Hee-Seung told Kang Chan.
“We all did our part to accomplish the mission. Some of our men even sacrificied their lives for it.”
Kang Chan felt many emotions when he saw Woo Hee-Seung and Lee Doo-Hee.
“We will be guarding you for the time being,” Woo Hee-Seung changed the subject.
“Got it. My only appointment today is a meeting at the embassy at ten-thirty. Let’s go somewhere and have tea before then.”
“I know a good place in front of the embassy.”
Taking only a little while to reach their destination, Lee Doo-Hee parked the car in front of a cafe with a nicely decorated terrace.
“I’ve never been to this cafe before,” Kang Chan commented.
“Their coffee here is quite good as well,” Woo Hee-Seung said.
The three at the terrace and ordered coffee. They then had a smoke.
“How’s Jong-Il doing?” Kang Chan asked.
“I heard that he’s recovering quite well. He can’t come back right now because it’s still dangerous for him to go on a plane, but he’ll probably be able to fly home in about a month.”
“How’s his family doing? I heard he has a wife and a child.”
“They’re okay. Hyungsoo-nim[2] is very strong.”
It can be hard to make great work when its stolen from bit.ly/3iBfjkV.
Woo Hee-Seung’s expression made Kang Chan smirk. They also told him about how Cha Dong-Gyun was doing.
Feeling as if he reunited with his comrades after a long time, Kang Chan spent thirty minutes just talking to them. Afterward, he headed to the embassy.
The agents who were now familiar with Kang Chan guided him in. Lanok then greeted him.
After giving each other a French greeting and sitting down at their seats, Raphael brought over tea and cigars.
“Getting to see you again makes me happy. It was an excellent operation,” Lanok said.
“It was only possible because you supported us. Thank you, Mr. Ambassador.”
Lanok lightly nodded. “Something happened behind the scenes.”
That was yet another thing that Kang Chan was oblivious to. Lanok’s expression seemed different from the time he recommended training, too.
“The UK contacted me. I don’t know why yet, but they want to meet you as soon as possible. I’m hoping to meet them with you if you’re okay with that. What do you think?” Lanok asked.
Kang Chan couldn’t make sense of the situation. “Well, what do you suggest?”
“Meeting them doesn’t seem like a bad idea.”
“I’ll leave the decision to you if you want. However, I’m planning on spending the whole day tomorrow in a vacation home with my parents, so I request that our meeting with them be scheduled after that.” Kang Chan decided to inform Lanok of his schedule before the ambassador could respond since people like him tended to set appointments as early as possible once given the green light. They disappeared just as quickly, too.
“We have plenty of time anyway. I’ll block off tomorrow.” Lanok readily accepted Kang Chan’s request.
1. French for ‘Kiss me’ ☜
2. Hyungsoo-nim is what the younger brother would call his older brother’s wife (basically a sister-in-law). It can be used even when they’re not actually brothers like the case with Woo Hee-Seung and Choi Jong-Il here ☜