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Kang Chan also had extra time, so he called Michelle and told her to announce that they were going to produce a drama by tomorrow.
- That’s impossible, Channy! Even if we’re the producers, we still need to discuss it with Lee Ha-Yeon.
“Just make Eun So-Yeon the main actress. I’ll take responsibility for it.”
- Everyone will laugh at us if we announce that we’re producing a drama with Eun So-Yeon as the lead actress despite the lack of scripts, director, and such.
“Michelle, are you going to do it or not?”
Kang Chan’s words seemed to have flustered Michelle.
- Okay, Channy. I’ll talk to Eun So-Yeon and have it announced tomorrow. But don’t expect it to be given prominent coverage. People will most likely think it’s just a fake announcement made to promote Eun So-Yeon.
“Okay.”
After ending the call, Kang Chan explained the details of their conversation to Lanok, to which Lanok said he understood.
“It seems to me that you don’t like drama-related work,” Lanok commented.
“I can’t even spend a long time watching TV.”
“I see. Do you want to have dinner together?”
French people took so long when eating their meals that it became boring.
Since Lanok couldn’t really leave, Kang Chan accepted his offer.
While they ate, they mostly talked about working out and what they did as hobbies, but as they were served cake for dessert, Lanok brought up his family for the first time.
“My one daughter is the biggest solace in my life.”
It was a hard conversation for Kang Chan to respond to, considering he didn’t have a child.
“If you find someone you truly love, then don’t ever let them get away, Mr. Kang Chan.”
What is he saying? That doesn’t suit him.
But as that thought came to his mind, Kang Chan ended up smiling lightly, having suddenly remembered Kim Mi-Young.
They talked about different topics until 8 pm when Lanok’s phone rang.
“That’s great.”
Lanok ended the call with those words, even though he had only listened the entire time.
“You can go now. It seems like you got what you wanted,” Lanok told Kang Chan.
They all went out of the guest room together and parted ways at the lobby.
Wanting to leave the hotel quickly, Kang Chan went to the front desk.
This novel is available on bit.ly/3iBfjkV.
“Those people already paid for the room, hyung-nim,” said Joo Chul-Bum.
“Alright. You did great today.”
Kang Chan left Joo Chul-Bum and headed home.
***
“Welcome home, Chan. Have you had dinner?” Yoo Hye-Sook asked Kang Chan.
“I ate dinner before going home.”
“Really? Then should we have watermelon?”
Should life be like this?
Kang Chan had lightly washed up and was eating watermelon when Kang Dae-Kyung arrived home.
“Welcome home,” Kang Chan told Kang Dae-Kyung.
“Yeah, thanks.”
He half-heartedly responded to their greeting and sat at the table where the watermelon was.
“Gong Te headquarters contacted us today. They said they’ll cooperate as much as they can regarding matters related to you, and that they’ll load the shipments as soon as they can. What’s going on?” Kang Dae-Kyung asked Kang Chan.
“Ah! The ‘Chiffre’.”
Yoo Hye-Sook looked alternatively at the two of them.
“I had a phone call with branch manager Smithen today. I asked him to contact their headquarters, and it seems like he did. I also asked the person who helped me last time for a favor as well.”
“You should do business. Our employees are stupefied. We thought it would take at least two months because it was a very complex order, considering the ‘Chiffre’ as a whole. The sales department even had a group dinner today because they can handle new orders starting tomorrow.”
“Are you saying that Chany made it so they would import the cars as quickly as they could, Chany?”
“That’s right.” Kang Dae-Kyung nodded. “And because of that, I think we can sell about two hundred more cars right now.”
Yoo Hye-Sook didn’t seem to know what that meant.
Kang Dae-Kyung smiled warmly in return.
“I think the earnings from that would be enough to help the five orphanages we’re planning on supporting for about a year more?”
“Two hundred cars are worth that much?” Yoo Hye-Sook asked.
“That's right!”
Delighted, Yoo Hye-Sook clapped.
“Are you happy?” Kang Dae-Kyung asked.
“Of course! Thanks to our Chan’s help, we can now help more people! Thanks a lot, Chan!”
There probably wasn’t a better compliment in the world than Yoo Hye-Sook hugging him and stroking his back right now.
“You should quickly wash up,” Yoo Hye-Sook told Kang Dae-Kyung.
“You’re telling me to leave right after hearing all of the good news? Okay.”
“Honey!”
Kang Chan also stood up when Kang Dae-Kyung got up.
“Where are you going?” Yoo Hye-Sook asked Kang Chan.
“Please take care of my father. He’ll get upset otherwise. After all, he just got back home from a day’s hard work.”
Kang Chan gave her a pleasant smile and went into his room.
His body, which became dirty throughout the day, now felt clean after coming back home and seeing Kang Dae-Kyung and Yoo Hye-Sook.
***
After running about ten kilometers and going to school a bit early, Kang Chan told Seok Kang-Ho everything that had happened the day before while drinking mixed coffee with him.
“I don’t know everything, but I want to slap that rude bitch in the face,” Seok Kang-Ho commented.
Seok Kang-Ho licked his lips when Kang Chan smirked.
“She completely fooled the people watching her pretending to be nice on TV. I really thought that bitch was a plain and well-behaved lady.”
“You watch those kinds of things as well?” asked Kang Chan.
“It’s hard to avoid it when my wife and daughter ask me to watch it with them. I can’t do anything about it since people keep calling things like that ‘family bonding.’”
While the two of them were having small talk, the kids arrived one after another.
“Should we start warming up now?” Kang Chan asked.
“Why don’t you rest for a few days?”
“Have you forgotten about my regenerative capabilities? Be ready for today.”
Just as the smirking Seok Kang-Ho raised himself from the stands, a car and a van stopped in front of the main gate. Robust men then exited the vehicles and entered the school.
“Who are those fuckers? Huh? Isn’t that president Kim Tae-Jin?” Seok Kang-Ho asked.
Shoot!
He had completely forgotten.
Kang Chan examined the people that came in while telling Seok Kang-Ho what he and Kim Tae-Jin had talked about on the phone yesterday.
The person leading the pack was Kim Tae-Jin.
“Why did you come in person?” Kang Chan asked Kim Tae-Jin.
“How could I miss such a good opportunity?”
After Kim Tae-Jin shook hands with Seok Kang-Ho, he turned his gaze to the employees that came with him.
“Meet Mr. Kang Chan. He’ll be acting as your instructor starting today. And this is Mr. Seok Kang-Ho. He’s a teacher but will also act as your instructor,” Kim Tae-Jin told the employees.
“We’re looking forward to learning from you.”
They stood in such a way that if they had added ‘hyung-nim’ at the end of their sentences, they would’ve seemed like gangsters.
“What are we doing first?” Kim Tae-Jin asked Kang Chan.
“Why don’t we go for a run?”
“That’s a good choice. Where do we change?”
“We have an athletics club room.”
Kim Tae-Jin followed Kang Chan inside the athletics club room and nodded approvingly while looking at their facilities.
Afterward, Kim Tae-Jin and the employees greeted the kids as a group, then let anyone who wanted to run with them join them.
After the female students got changed, the male students and the employees put on sportswear together.
Kim Tae-Jin also walked out in workout attire.
“Now! Let’s get started!”
There were six employees, so they made two three-person rows, and behind them stood the students, Kim Tae-Jin, and Seok Kang-Ho.
Kang Chan jogged slower than usual.
He didn’t want to use a lot of energy since he had already run ten kilometers in the morning.
After about two laps, Kang Chan slightly turned his gaze toward the employees, finding a strange smile on their faces.
They followed Kim Tae-Jin because he confidently said that they would learn, only to find out their instructors were a high schooler boy and a gym teacher when they arrived. Moreover, the kids that wanted to work out with them seemed to be new at this.
‘Is that so?’
It would be difficult to train them properly with that kind of attitude. Hence, Kang Chan decided to dampen the employees’ spirits.
One lap of the sports field was about four hundred meters.
Kang Chan slowly increased his speed, but it still fell short of the speed of his morning workouts.
After about ten laps, the sound of their breathing started to get rough, and half of the kids had dropped out and gasped for breath at the stands.
Kang Chan increased his speed a little bit more.
After sixteen laps, all of the kids had dropped out. At that moment, his speed was already quite similar to his morning run.
“Huff huff. Huff huff.”
His body harshly rebelled against his wishes, as if to say, didn’t you already run this morning?
‘The new recruits are here!’
He saw the six employees gritting their teeth.
It had now become a contest of pride.
‘Alright. Let’s see who wins.’
Gritting his teeth as well, Kang Chan increased his speed a bit more.
He could hear Seok Kang-Ho’s ragged breathing from the very back, but he couldn’t compromise now.
‘Don’t be discouraged by the new recruits.’
The sun shone down fiercely on the sports field, making it feel as if they were in Africa.
“Huff huff huff huff!”
The sounds of the employees' ragged breathing rushed out sporadically.
He had forgotten how many laps he had run at this point.
Nevertheless, Kang Chan increased his speed a little bit more.
It was delightful.
It felt as if his limits, which pain had tightly held onto and prevented from being released, suddenly skyrocketed.
Thud!
When an employee fell to the ground, three other employees collapsed one after another.
After two more laps, only Kang Chan, Seok Kang-Ho, and Kim Tae-Jin remained.
“Please spare us!”
Kang Chan would’ve probably run until he collapsed if it wasn’t for Kim Tae-Jin’s labored shout.
“Hak! Hak!”
Keeping himself up by resting his hands on his knees, Kang Chan exhaled heavily. Meanwhile, Kim Tae-Jin and Seok Kang-Ho had sprawled out in the stands.
The kids tactfully filled a kettle with water and poured it on them. Nobody stopped them.
About five minutes later, Kim Tae-Jin and Seok Kang-Ho pushed themselves up, soaked with water and sweat.
“You did that on purpose, didn’t you?” Kim Tae-Jin asked Kang Chan.
“Hand-to-hand combat is going to be even harder,” Kang Chan smirked as he responded to Kim Tae-Jin’s grudging question.