A Chairman Who Has No Regrets - Chapter 55



Only Krnovel

NBC News’ First Newsroom, Education Bureau.

The door suddenly opens and Park Sang-cheol squeezes his body in.

“No, please! Director!”

Park Sang-cheol, assistant director of a scholarship quiz program that gets angry all of a sudden.

Baek Su-cheol, who was sitting on the editorial office chair with the look of a delivery man, turns his head with a creaking sound.

“why.”

“No, please, get off work. How many days has it been since the day before filming, two days ago, and today? Huh? Sister-in-law, you called and made a fuss!”

Baek Su-cheol spoke in a voice as dry and twisted as the sand of the desert.

“The portion doesn’t come out.”

“Ah! I really wonder if anyone will say that the ratings are really low-”

Park Sang-cheol, who had been walking towards Baek Su-cheol with a loud thump as if he was angry, watches closely as if he had never been angry and is absorbed in the broadcast that Baek Su-cheol had edited.

“Wow- I can really only see this girl. The director really focused on this girl when editing?”

Baek Su-cheol shakes his head at Park Sang-cheol’s words.

“Just this kid, just this kid. Just press the buzzer and answer correctly. What’s the big deal, the other kids didn’t do anything anyway.”

“Oh, right. That’s right.”

“That’s the problem, that’s it.”

“The editing seems really good. Where can I touch the scissors? Why on earth aren’t you leaving work?”

Park Sang-cheol’s expression is one of complete incomprehension.

Baek Su-cheol shook his head and said.

“3 minutes left.”

“yes?”

“I can’t fill 3 minutes.”

Park Sang-cheol, who had been watching closely again, nods his head. It was true that the length was 3 minutes short.

It was so fun and engaging that I forgot about it, but the running time was definitely short.

“Oh… I see.”

Baek Soo-cheol nervously scratches his hair, which looks like it might drip oil if he squeezes it.

“I just realized that being good can be a problem. You’re too good! You’re too good!”

He looked like he was about to die, and Baek Su-cheol suddenly started yelling at him. Park Sang-cheol quickly pulled his upper body back. Soon, Park Sang-cheol frowned.

“Aww- Why are you yelling all of a sudden! Huh? Even though I worked with the director since I was a rookie director, isn’t that really too much?”

“That’s not important, kid!”

“My sister-in-law calls me and yells at me, and the director yells at me in the editing room. It’s so embarrassing that I can’t even be a broadcaster.”

Baek Su-cheol laughs in vain.

“Since I can’t even finish the 3 minutes, you and I will end up sitting on the street. That’s great, my wish of not being able to be a broadcaster has come true.”

Park Sang-cheol shakes his head.

“Hey, you rascal, don’t you have any sense of duty? You should at least think about how to feed your children first.”

“I’ve been thinking about that, kid. I’ve been like this for a week already! Am I here because my house is uncomfortable? Even if I roll around in dog shit, my house is comfortable.”

Park Sang-cheol tilts his head.

“Wasn’t it Lee Seung?”

“I don’t know, kid, it’s just like the afterlife right now.”

“When I came into the editing room, I thought there was a corpse moving around, but now it looks a bit more human.”

Baek Su-cheol smiles brightly.

He also felt that his mind was clearing up a little after talking with Park Sang-cheol.

“Whoa- Sangcheol, this is seriously a big deal. I can’t even think about it for 3 minutes.”

Park Sang-cheol points to a screen with his finger and says.

“How about we just leave out this scene where they’re talking about leaking the problem?”

“what?”

“Looking here, I see that camera number 3 took the picture.”

Baek Su-cheol blinks his eyes and becomes lost in thought.

“It was edited so that only this guy, who was going to be a full-time student anyway, was visible.”

“I didn’t edit it so that only he can be seen, you little brat.”

“Either that or that. If you add in the commotion about the leaked questions here, and then right after that, an English speed quiz or something comes out and the audience and these guys are surprised, then mentioning the leaked questions isn’t even a problem.”

Baek Su-cheol turns his head and stares at Park Sang-cheol.

“What, what’s with that look?”

“This kid, is he doing his work like work now?”

Park Sang-cheol laughs in vain.

“Is that a compliment? Or an insult?”

“That’s a compliment, you punk, a compliment.”

“I don’t usually compliment you, but please go home today. Sister-in-law, you’re really going to kill me, I’m scared!”

“Okay, kid, just finish this.”

“Are you really going in? I begged and pleaded with you to stop you because your sister-in-law was following you to the broadcasting station.”

“Oh! Are you my wife? Huh? Are you my wife?”

Park Sang-cheol speaks with an expression that shows he hates the world.

“Then you should have already killed him, calling him your husband.”

“What the- kid?”

“Ouch, it stinks! Wash up! I’m leaving work early.”

“I gave it a compliment and it tried to sit on top of my head.”

Park Sang-cheol sticks out his lower lip in a spiteful manner and imitates Baek Su-cheol’s speech, which is tongue-tied from exhaustion.

“I gave you a little alcohol and you’re going to lick my lips. Look at that crooked tongue. You’re really going to die! No, just die. I’ll be the director of the scholarship quiz.”

Baek Su-cheol shook his head as if he had lost.

“Anyway, that’s not normal either.”

“If there’s anyone in their right mind among the broadcasters, tell them to come out and see. The director himself is not sane.”

“Get out- get out!”

Park Sang-cheol turns around without hesitation and opens the editorial office door.

“Hey, Sangcheol.”

“Ah- why again!”

“Pak-shi, are you really warm?”

“Please speak, please.”

Baek Su-cheol said, pointing to the very small screen.

“Hey.”

“Huh? Him?”

“Oh, put the thing with my personal information on it on my desk.”

“Hey, I told you to get off work-”

“Stop talking nonsense and do as I say-”

“Oh my, here we go again.”

Park Sang-cheol opened the door with a start, shaking violently.

Baek Su-cheol’s words are heard at the back of his head.

“And there’s an envelope on the desk. Take it. It says it’s your sister-in-law’s birthday?”

Park Sang-cheol hurriedly opened the closing door again.

“Oh my! You have to say that quickly!”

“Even if you do that well, it’s still a mess.”

“That’s right! If you had done it right a long time ago, I wouldn’t have made a fuss!”

“You’re definitely not normal, stop talking nonsense, get off work today, and make sure to upload your personal information!”

“Oh, I’m possessed – I’m possessed.”

Park Sang-cheol closed the door, shaking his head. The corners of his mouth went up.

“How much did you put in-”

Park Sang-cheol hums and heads to Baek Su-cheol’s desk. He, too, is completely captivated by the allure of the envelope of money. Just like Baek Su-cheol, who is deeply enamored with the charm of Jeon Kang.

**

I was lost in thought in front of the Dangrangcheon River, where only cars occasionally passed by. Perhaps it was my wish that the complicated worries in my head would be washed away by the flowing water.

“Is this it?”

I asked the sky where nothing could be seen.

Not to someone up there. To the Sage of Omaha, who was laughing leisurely in his head and muttering that he was investing in his heart.

“You couldn’t have done it either.”

That’s reality.

It’s not easy.

I keep seeing my mother’s face.

My sisters’ faces.

The faces of the children and people of Sanggye-dong pass by. They keep tempting me. They wag their tails to tell me to go down a harder and more difficult path.

“Huh? All right!”

Somewhere far away.

I turned my head reflexively at the sound of someone calling me.

“Kim Gyu-il?”

Why would that guy show up there?

And the kids from Sanggye-dong were flocking around the guy.

“What are you doing here? Didn’t you go to the store today?”

Maybe it’s because he knows that we go to the store together every day, but his question seems to be based on his understanding of me.

“Oh, today.”

Are you that happy to meet me?

Smiles spread across the children’s faces.

Still, seeing those guys makes my complicated thoughts disappear, so I don’t feel so bad.

“Why are you guys here?”

Kim Kyu-il answered with a smile.

“Jungwoo and Hyeongseok, Hyo-yong are here to help.”

Names I’m hearing for the first time.

It seems like the names of the children have always been overshadowed by Jo Sang-geun, Kim Gyu-il, Kim Seong-hak, and Hwang Dong-su.

Kim Seong-hak stares at me intently and then laughs out loud.

“Hey, hey, Jeon Gang.”

“uh.”

“You don’t know who Jungwoo is?”

This guy is quick-witted.

Hwang Dong-soo asks with his eyes wide open.

“Hey, class president. You really don’t know?”

Kim Gyu-il chuckles and pushes forward three children whose faces he only knows.

“Guess, guess.”

The three guys who were pushed forward are frowning. They have expressions that make it seem like they really don’t know.

I wondered if it was possible to guess a name by looking at their face. I stared at the guys.

“Should I tell you?”

As soon as Jo Sang-geun nods his head to what he said while chewing bread, Kim Seong-hak and Hwang Dong-su rush in and cover the guy’s mouth with bread.

“You eat some bread.”

“Be quiet! I’m curious.”

Three nameless children standing in front of me.

They’re all kids who are always like shadows, so why can’t I remember them?

No, it would be more accurate to say that I don’t remember exactly.

“That’s right.”

The guys tilt their heads at the unintelligible monologue.

Those three had one thing in common.

All of them are children living in shantytowns. Their circumstances are a little more difficult than other children.

“You petty brat.”

Suddenly, a frown forms.

The fact that I wasn’t very close with the kids in Sanggye-dong to begin with, and the fact that I didn’t pay any attention to the three kids in front of me at all. In the end, isn’t it all because I was so materialistic?

The children living in this shantytown will soon.

Maybe for life.

Maybe because I knew it wouldn’t appear in front of me again, I didn’t even bother to remember it.

I don’t know if anything has changed.

I think that even though we know so well that if we do nothing, nothing will happen, we may end up doing nothing.

Those guys took the time and cared for me, but I never even thought to remember their names.

“What are you talking about, keep going?”

I was still the monster of capitalism itself. In my selfish desire for a little more comfort, I forgot the promise I made on the first day and continued to make mistakes.

“Could you tell me your name? I’ll definitely remember it from now on.”

So, I spoke to them honestly and honestly, without hiding or adding anything.

The three guys have slightly regretful expressions on their faces, but soon burst into laughter.

“Don’t write on the blackboard?”

“Without even telling the teacher?”

“Just forget about it.”

As if there was no need to feel sorry.

Consideration for children who mix jokes in their stories.

“Oh, I will. I won’t write it down, I won’t be early, and I won’t forget.”

I made a pledge again.

“I am Noh Jeong-woo.”

“I am Na Hyeong-seok.”

“It’s Ahn Hyo-yong.”

I repeated the faces and names of the three guys over and over again in my mind.

Now we must not forget.

I asked the guys with a forced smile.

“But where are you going as a group?”

The guys each show off what they’re holding in their hands.

“They said they were doing some construction work, so we wanted to help out.”

Only then can you see it.

The shovels and gloves in the guys’ hands, and the old, rolled up rags.

I knew what kind of construction it was without even asking. It must have been the road leading to men who had taken off their coats and were building a shelter even in the bitter winter wind.

The wind of redevelopment blowing in Seoul.

The wind of development blowing in Korea.

Sanggye-dong is still spared from that wind, but soon it will tear these children and people apart more cruelly and harshly than the bitter winter wind.

With that thin pipe.

With that old cloth.

Can people stop the cold wind blowing at 172 Sanggye-dong?

“It must be hard because the ground is frozen.”

Hwang Dong-su responded as if nothing had happened to the words that came out of his mouth.

“It’s okay, there’s this guy here who’s just plain strong.”

Jo Sang-geun shows off his Pacific Ocean-like shoulders, giving them a strong stance.

Kim Seong-hak says, shaking his head.

“If he had been told he could eat land, he would have eaten all of Seoul’s land.”

The kids laugh out loud at the guy’s joke.

I also burst out laughing.

I think that might be possible if Sanggeun is that guy.

“Hey, let’s go quickly.”

The children nodded at Kim Gyu-il’s urging and said goodbye to me.

“Puppy, I’ll see you tomorrow morning-”

One, two.

Children heading to a construction site.

People who are willing to try anything.

But I didn’t even try to fulfill my mother’s wish. I gave up on poverty relief before it even started, even though it was difficult for even the king.

Kim Gyu-il turned around and shouted at me.

“Hey, Jeon-gang! If you’re not busy, do you want to go together?”

The guy’s clumsy seduction.

It seems like a fatal temptation.

“Okay then.”

I don’t know what will happen though.

Yes, that was my mother’s wish.

I have to try something.