Chapter 634

“You must have married a wealthy woman.”

Jang Pil-nyeo was feeling disgruntled. The wretched bastard must have seduced some wealthy woman. After all, he had a great body like his father and was quite handsome, taking after his beautiful mother.

‘What a bitch!’

Gim Mal-sun was tearing up. Back then, she would have immediately broken into sobs, but now she had her son to rely on. Mu-ssang held his mother’s hand firmly as she stepped forward. An evil spirit like Jang Pil-nyeo just needed to meet her match.

“Watch your mouth. You can’t talk to me like this.”

Jang Pil-nyeo felt like she was slapped on the face and almost lost her balance. Her ears rang and her knees almost gave way. She strained to gain control and tried to gather herself together. Her negative energy was something that could intimidate even Bak In-bo so she glared at them menacingly.

‘Ugh!’

Mu-ssang glared back at her with his steely eyes, which made Jang Pil-nyeo avert her eyes instinctively. She felt as if she was faced with a tiger and not a human. She wondered if the man was really the boy who used to work for her and whom she abused daily.

[Are you saying you should have never adopted me? But you never fed nor clothed me anyway. Don’t call me a viper’s son. I’m not your son nor have I ever taken anything from you. I may well be just a slave to you.]

She could still hear the snarling words he had said on the day he left them. Mu-ssang was like weed that survived the farmer’s hand. A raging fire burned in her chest. She wanted to run up to him and slap him on the face that instant, but couldn’t bring herself to make the first step forward.

‘Who is that?’

She scrutinized the imposing “young lady” next to him. She seemed like she has taste too. She felt intimidated by this woman with a slender figure, who had a classy posture and was covered by designer goods from head to toe.

“Looks like you are a gigolo to some wealthy bitch.”

Now she is implying that Mu-ssang was a prostitute.

“Has your eyesight worsened that much?”

“Haha!”

Gim Mal-sun laughed, covering her mouth. Before, that toxic gaze would have made her cower in fear, but not anymore.

“You wretch! Watch your mouth. Why are you here?”

“I have business to attend to. Anyway you don’t look so well. Take care of yourself.”

Mu-ssang replied calmly.

“It’s none of your business. Look at you, still disrespectful to your elders as always.”

Jang Pil-nyeo roared.

“You still consider yourself an elder. If you really are one, then act like one. An elder is supposed to be able to speak from the heart, while a non-elder cannot control what comes out of his mouth. You seem like the latter one to me.”

Mu-ssang smirked.

“What is that wretch saying?”

Jang Pil-nyeo frowned deeply. Her smallpox scars were flushed. Long ago, his face was enough to give her a headache, and his words would always upset her stomach. But now, his every word seemed to make her blood flow backward.

Gim Mal-sun’s lips took on a certain smile. She found it funny that someone she had hated for so long couldn’t recognize her. The change in her facial expression was quite amusing too.

“Sister, there are so many people around here. It will only make you lose face if you argue with them.”

Jang Sang-su dragged Jang Pil-nyeo to the side. He knew she couldn’t beat Mu-ssang when it comes to eloquence and charisma. The wise decision was to just excuse themselves.

“You two are fired!”

Jang Pil-nyeo directed her rage towards the security guards. Both of them, who had saluted Mu-ssang earlier immediately paled. They were like krill that got caught in a fight between two whales. And now, they have even lost their jobs.

“Please forgive us, ma’am!”

The two guards knelt down and begged.

“Shut up! You are animals!”

The guards’ faces turned grim at her chilly response.

“Why are kneeling? You did nothing wrong. Stand up right this moment!”

Gim Mal-sun yelled without fully realizing it, but the two guards didn’t respond. Jang Pil-nyeo had the authority to fire them, not her.

“Stand.”

A low voice rumbled.

“Yes, sir.”

The guards stood back, confused.

“Don’t worry about it and just keep doing your good work.”

Mu-ssang tapped them on their shoulders.

“Thank you, sir.”

The guard who recognised Mu-ssang bowed immediately. They really were just mere employees who got caught up in a fight between an aunt and a nephew.

“You wretch!”

“We don’t have time, sister.”

Jang Sang-su tried to assuage Jang Pil-nyeo’s anger, which was about to reach boiling point. They were not going to gain anything by arguing with the charismatic Mu-ssang and the classy lady next to him.

“Wretch!”

Jang Pil-nyeo was not able to overcome her anger, even as she was being dragged away. On her way to the elevator, Jang Pil-nyeo turned her head around abruptly. Her button-like eyes were burning with rage.

“You shall pay for this.”

Everyone could hear the sound of her grinding teeth.

“Sister, we can do anything to him after the shareholder meeting. Let’s go.”

Jang Sang-su dragged Jang Pil-nyeo into the elevator.

“Hahaha!”

Gim Mal-sun guffawed, filling the whole lobby with merry laughter. Was that really Jang Pil-nyeo? That woman earlier was but a husk filled with so much rage, it was probably the only life force left to keep her going. Was she really the cruel woman from her past? Pity had overcome hatred at this point.

“Mu-ssang, how could we have feared a woman like that before?”

“It was not fear but disgust, the same way we would step away from sewers that are full of rats and feces.”

“Yeah. She is just a pile of shit that’s all.”

“I’m glad you see it now.”

Mu-ssang grinned. He had achieve his first goal: his mother no longer feared Jang Pil-nyeo.

“You did well there.”

Gim Gi-taek smiled and added. He too, felt catharsis somehow.

Inside the auditorium on the eighth floor of the Hyangsim Building, a banner said “Interim Shareholder Meeting.” As usual, the space was full of shareholders talking about their interests. But there weren’t a lot of people around since Hyangsim was unlisted. The employees from the General Affairs department barely needed to do anything.

The shareholder composition of Hyangsim was simple. The shares were never distributed and none were reserved for the employees. The owner and his family, plus 15 normal shareholders including acquaintances of Bak In-bo, and the Jangs. In total, 20 shareholders all in all.

Today’s shareholder meeting was centered around the fight between the owners, Bak and Jang. Given the simple composition of the shareholders, rumor has it that Jang Gi-su had the advantage in terms of the number of votes. The Jangs’ eyes were already glinting with greed, fully expecting that they will be appointed to the core positions. The public shareholders were starting to worry about Bak In-bo’s downfall.

Dividends were the main interest of the public shareholders, more than who is actually steering the company. With Bak In-bo as the head, Hyangsim grew by 50 percent every year ever since it was founded. From a public shareholder’s perspective, with Hyangsim’s dividends ranging from 12 to 20 percent, it was like the goose that laid golden eggs. They tolerated Bak In-bo’s rule despite his toxic personality, because they feared that doing otherwise would threaten the goose’s well-being.

“Have you heard from your son yet?”

Jang Gyeong-ju asked with a hushed voice.

“Something must have happened. It has been more than a month!”

Jang Gyeong-mo sighed deeply with a downtrodden face. Their eldest son, the proverbial beam of their family, had been missing for more than a month. On top of the police investigation, they had utilized all the connections the Jang family had but still couldn’t find a single clue as to his whereabouts.

“Oh, no. The prosecutor and inspector went missing at the same time.”

Jang Gyeong-ju was as anxious like an ant whose antenna had fallen off.

“We cannot employ the Marlin syndicate anymore. Chi-su ended up the same way too. Misfortunes have befallen our family!”

Jang Gyeong-mo couldn’t stop sighing.

“Uncle, we have the shares. Why are you still worried?”

“That’s true, but…”

Jang Sang-su said. The two old men continued to frown.

“Your worrying will not conjure him up here. Only worry about the votes if we are losing.”

Jang Pil-nyeo blurted out.

“Why do you say such a thing?”

Jang Gyeong-ju eyed his sister’s reaction.

“Why not? Our family is on the brink of collapsing. We have to focus on this matter.”

“Yeah. Bak In-bo is not someone who can remain patient after being provoked. The quiet is very disconcerting.”

Jang Gyeong-ju decided to mingle with the public shareholders. They needed every last vote they could get.

“Please enter, dear shareholders. The meeting will begin shortly.”

An employee announced.

The auditorium was heated enough to cause one to perspire, but tension reigned over the space. The 20 Jangs looked confident while the public shareholders looked grim. The banner in front of the auditorium said “On Dismissal of the Chairman” and “On Appointment of the Chairman.” Without Bak In-bo, Hyangsim didn’t seem to have a bright future ahead.

Sitting on the platform, Jang Gi-su locked eyes with Jang Gyeong-ju who was seated in the front row. Jang Gi-su got the message and proceeded to recheck their status. They had 207,142 converted shares and 20,000 shares from Yeo Man-deok. Including Hui-ja’s shares, that will be an additional 16,000. With 15,000 shares from the public shareholders backing them, their shares have reached 51 percent at last.

Even if U-tak voted for his father and had the backing of the public shareholders, they still had the majority shares. For this very showdown, they had liquidated all of their assets, and even took out loans from loan sharks. Today, their ordeal will finally come to an end.

Jang Gi-su waved his hand as if to say “Don’t worry”, but Jang Gyeong-ju’s face didn’t brighten. His son-in-law, seated on his seat on the platform with a calm face, bothered him greatly.

‘Sorry, brother. That place will be mine now.’

Jang Gi-su took a glimpse at Bak In-bo. His jaundiced face was pitiful. Had he not attacked the Jangs and cut off their cash flow, he wouldn’t have to suffer so much.

“Where are the two uncles? What happened?”

Jang Pil-nyeo asked in a low voice. Jang Gi-su looked around at the attendees. He couldn’t find Jang Gyeong-taek and Jang Gyeong-nam.

“They said they are on the way, you know they tend to tardy.”

Jang Gi-su was indifferent. There was still 10 minutes before the beginning of the meeting.

“Oh, Mu-ssang!”

Ms. Jeong recognized him and seemed overjoyed.

“Am I late?”

“No. We’ll begin soon. Oh my!”

Ms. Jeong fixed her gaze at Gim Mal-sun. Mu-ssang waved away.

“She’s my mother.”

“This is the Gim Mal-sun?”

Ms. Jeong’s eyes opened wide in awe. She inadvertently gave Mal-sun a once-over, still hardly able to believe it.

“Open the door, Miss.”

Gim Gi-taek hurried.

“I see!”

As soon as Mu-ssang, Gim Mal-sun, and Gim Gi-taek entered, the door to the auditorium slammed shut. Supposedly, only shareholders could enter, but Ms. Jeong and the rest of the employees were too mesmerized by the mother and the son, and didn’t think to reject their entry. And even if they had considered the rule, but who would say no to Mu-ssang? Ms. Jeong glared at the shut door.

“She’s his mother? I should really pay more attention to skincare!”

Ms. Jeong muttered weakly. She resented her rough skin which was becoming slacker and slacker every day.

‘They’re here!’

Bak In-bo smiled imperceptibly. He located his nephew who had just entered the space.

‘Who’s that?’

Bak In-bo wondered. Right behind his nephew, a young lady was escorted by Gim Gi-taek. He noticed that his gestures were way too polite as he guided the young woman.

‘He didn’t age well!’

Mu-ssang and Jin-sun never actually said anything, but Aunt Hadong and Yeon-sun had told Gim Mal-sun everything. Jang Pil-nyeo looked as vile as her personality, but Mal-sun didn’t expect her husband to age the same way, in fact, she pitied his shriveled-up face. Thanks to her capable son, only she could evade the touch of time.

“Thank you for being here. I’m sure you’re all busy.”

The emcee’s words blew away Bak In-bo’s curiosity.

“The total number of shares are 507,142. The shares present are 506,142. With the attendance of 99.8 percent, the interim shareholder meeting will now begin.”

The emcee rapped the table with his gavel.

“Now the chairman will greet the attendees.”

Bak In-bo stood and stepped up to the podium.

“I am sorry for inconveniencing many of you due to my health concerns. First, we will discuss the dismissal of the chairman.”

A public shareholder raised his hand before he could use his gavel.

“Everyone’s busy, so why don’t we discuss the two topics at the same time? I’m busy too. I have sprouts to tend to otherwise I don’t get to eat.”

“Hahaha!”

“I concur. I’m busy too.”

The shareholders’ laughter managed to break the ice.

“We have received a request to discuss the dismissal and appointment of the chairman. Do we hav any objections?”

“No.”

“Then with your approval, we will proceed to discuss the matter now.”

Bak In-bo used his gavel. Jang Hak-su, another nephew of Jang Pil-nyeo, raised his hand right away.

“The current chairman, Bak In-bo, is unable to fulfill his role due to his health problems. While the CFO Gim Pan-sul has a history of embezzlement. This shareholder requests the dismissal of Chairman Bak In-bo and CFO Gim Pal-sul. I also request the renewal of terms for Directors Jang Pil-nyeo, Jang Gi-su, and Jang Gyeong-ju. Also, I request the appointment of Jang Sang-su as our new director.”

The Jangs babbled on.