A Chairman Who Has No Regrets - Chapter 90



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The Chairman Who Doesn’t Regret Episode 90 – The Right Way to Go (2)

A place that looks like a high-class restaurant.

“Why did you come all this way?”

David chuckles at my question.

“The mayor likes it.”

“In this case, will I get my salary this month?”

“I guess the rumor that our training center is doing well these days has spread to the district office.”

“aha.”

I wonder if he made his dinner appointment here because he thought it wasn’t his money. It seems he was right to put up with the Paris medicine.

Knock knock.

As I opened the sliding door, which was covered in a nice paper, I saw that the mayor, who was alone with his chopsticks, had already started eating. He slurped down his japchae and motioned for me to sit down at the seat opposite him.

“Sit down, sit down. I ate lunch early so I was hungry, so I ate first.”

“Yes, Uncle, you did well.”

I sat across from him and looked down at the lavishly laid table. I didn’t really feel like reaching for my chopsticks. Isn’t it important to eat with someone? There’s no reason to eat with someone like a fly.

“So what’s going on?”

The mayor asks while chewing on the bandit.

David said, patting me on the back.

“It’s this guy again today.”

“Oh my, this is the pride of Sanggye-dong. I heard there’s a documentary coming out soon?”

It seems the rumor has spread there too.

Why does my bastard like Sanggye-dong more when it appears in the documentary? He must know that the documentary content will be good. If it had been unfavorable to them, he probably would not have cooperated with the filming. He would have blocked the filming itself. It was a time when such barbarism was alive and well. Suppression of the press was rampant.

They must want to blind the people.

That way, they can live for a long time. Knowing that their fate was already decided, I got to the point without saying anything.

“Chief, please send a warning to the shantytown.”

“Warning?”

“I think it would be a good idea to send a reminder letter as well.”

“No, what are you talking about all of a sudden?”

“Wouldn’t it be faster to develop once the paperwork is completed? Then, foreigners who come to our country during the Asian Games can come see the shantytown.”

“Hmm, I heard that the people in the shantytown are mostly cooperative? I heard that the land and house prices there will go up too.”

The source of the rumor may have been the district office. The district mayor may not have spread the rumor, but some of the sensible civil servants must have.

Even if the people living in the shantytown don’t know exactly, the people in the district office will know. Since the district office head is pushing and actively supporting it, there is a high probability that they will understand that the development of the Sanggye-dong shantytown is natural.

Pfft, pfft, pfft.

The mayor who rips off the steamed ribs in a dirty way.

“Please send warning notices, reminder notices, and orders for demolition of illegal structures to all houses that are not currently listed in the building register.”

The mayor, who had finished wiping the seasoning off his fingers, put down the bone with the flesh cleanly torn off and spoke.

“If that’s the case, the residents will be quite dissatisfied.”

If someone saw me, they would think I was a mayor who takes care of the residents. Would such a person suddenly take me to a house like this for a dinner date?

What he was saying now was like asking if there was a decent carrot. He was asking for something tastier since his stomach was full, like money.

“Hey, Uncle, I’ll treat you to a nice dinner.”

“Hey, Imma, people who have nothing to lose are the ones who are more afraid. How much trouble was there when the Jungnangcheon vagrant village was being cleared out? Go ask your father. It was such a mess back then, many of the district office workers were injured.”

I interrupted their conversation and spoke to the mayor.

“I’m not asking you to proceed with the demolition. I’m asking you to give off the impression that you’re going to do it. I’m asking you to do what you were supposed to do.”

“Hey, if someone heard me, they’d think I didn’t do any work. I just held back because someone asked me to.”

“Yes, so please do it again now. If you finish it quickly, there won’t be any homeless houses in the shantytown when the documentary airs, right?”

“Well, that’s just the people who live there.”

A pig is greedy.

I tried to use it as a fly repellent to get rid of dung flies, but it turns out it’s not even a fly repellent. It feels like maggots keep getting swarmed when I try to get rid of flies.

“Well then, let’s end this project here.”

It would be a mistake to judge me by putting me on the same level as those who are blinded by greed.

And dealing with these pigs was something I was very familiar with. Those who only think about what goes into their mouths are always narrow-minded.

If he had been a pig playing in big waters, he would have barely sat in the mayor’s seat, or he would have risen to a higher position.

The mayor seemed rather embarrassed by my rudeness.

“Experience, no, that’s not what I mean. I’m asking if there is anything that can help our Nowon-gu.”

How do I cook this?

Should I fry it, grill it, or stir-fry it?

As many methods pass through my mind, it is David, not me, who answers the mayor.

“If we succeed in turning it into a tourist destination, the entire district will experience economic growth. Uncle, there are some areas over there where hot spring water gushes out, and they survive all year round with a seasonal business during the winter. But isn’t Sanggye-dong a tourist destination that doesn’t have a seasonal business?”

I wonder if you were interested in my work.

Every single word that comes out of David’s mouth is correct.

“It’s an adventure, but there’s no guarantee that it will be successful.”

“Let the Sanggye-dong pride take care of that, and you just need to prepare the seats. Support- Nowon-gu District Office, the best tourist destination in Seoul.”

He doesn’t even have oil on his lips, but he moves so smoothly. His clever way of talking, sometimes teasing and sometimes nagging, isn’t bad at all. Since he’s trying to save me some work, I’ll try to keep up with his pace.

I consciously lifted my butt off the cushion.

“The two of you, let’s talk. I’ll stand first.”

David also tries to dissuade me.

“Hey- Are you going to appear on the Lunar New Year special scholarship quiz tomorrow or the day after?”

“Yes, that’s right.”

“Isn’t that the director of this documentary?”

“That’s right.”

“That director was filming this documentary as if his life was on the line, so if it fails… he’ll be really upset.”

“Of course, because it’s a waste of time.”

“Then, aren’t you going to get so angry that you start digging into why the project fell through? You’re almost done filming the documentary, aren’t you? There are quite a few documentaries that end with this: “The project couldn’t go on because of someone.”

“Well, it’s not like there isn’t any.”

What a back-and-forth threat.

That’s an interesting twist.

But what was even more surprising was that the mayor’s face looked bad, as if the threat had worked. It was still the middle of winter, but he wiped away the sweat and coughed in vain.

David, who is quick-witted, seemed to have a good grasp of the mayor. It was a game of poker where he had already seen the cards and was playing them, so it seemed like it was a game David could not lose.

“I can’t possibly stop a project I’ve worked so hard on. Tsk, I don’t know if it’ll be of much help to the district or not, but I guess I’ll have to put in some effort.”

“Oh, really, Uncle?”

“Yeah, it’s not that difficult, and since it’s only for some shantytowns, it’ll be quick.”

“Oh my – that’s a relief. Our district mayor can’t appear on TV like that.”

The mayor nodded at David’s words, but he got off before me.

“I was thinking of having a drink with my nephew for the first time in a while, but he got up first.”

Like a dog running away with its tail tangled.

The mayor hurriedly got up from his seat.

David and I sat quietly and watched him go.

“Yes, Uncle, I will finish eating and then get up.”

“Okay, tell Dad to come see me.”

“Yes, come in.”

The mayor glances at me and leaves the room.

He ate so greedily that the dishes in front of him were scorched.

Knock knock!

David frowned as the door closed.

“Anyway, he’s really greedy. He even wants to buy drinks just to help me with some paperwork.”

It seems they weren’t exactly close.

“Can people change like that? Tsk tsk. Hey, eat some food. It’s already been resolved.”

David places a serving of braised short ribs on my plate.

“Oh my, look at those eyes. Those eyes. Were you going to blow the mayor’s balls off?”

Did you feel that?

Anyway, his perception is incredibly quick.

“Let’s just leave it. If good people sit down, we’ll just get tired and it’ll be hard to control. Control.”

He tells bitter stories so casually.

But that’s how the world is, and that’s how it is in South Korea today, so I didn’t say anything else. I just nodded and waited for David to eat.

“Aren’t you eating?”

“Yes, I’m planning to eat out tonight.”

“Child, you should have said it earlier. Let’s go! Mom’s stew is tastier than this.”

“Well, I guess so.”

“Aww, I’ve lost my appetite.”

No matter how expensive the food is.

I guess it really matters who you eat with.

**

People flocked to Bokdeukbang from the morning.

They say even a snail can roll around, but was that the case with maggots? Or was the mayor, who was cowering like a dog, afraid that his name might be mentioned negatively in the documentary?

Anyway, perhaps because they moved so quickly, chaos broke out among the shantytown residents in just two days.

“Elder! What is this! Isn’t this our house?”

They don’t even pay attention to me and just urge Bokdeokbang Kang Noya.

“What are you talking about! Of course, since the contract has been terminated, the house should return to its original state!”

“No, how could that be! We terminated our contract with that student over there! We terminated it with the country!”

“True- Me. Where did the district office workers move after seeing you? Did they move after seeing that young man over there?”

Their gaze falls on me.

I continued drinking the grain tea I had been drinking without paying attention to them. Today, the black barley tea from Kang Noya was the best.

“Does that make sense, sir? Government officials are being cautious because of high school students! Isn’t this all because of you using tricks behind the scenes?”

“These people are really!”

bang.

Kang Noya suddenly stood up from his seat after hitting the table so hard that it broke. It was hard to believe that the gray-haired old man was angry, but his demeanor was so fierce. It seemed like he had the experience of a veteran who had been through many hardships in the real estate business.

“Hold on, hold on, you guys are going too far! Don’t you have any shame? No conscience! Do you know who built houses and land in the shantytown? Do you know how much effort that young man put in, running around and opening his pockets! Just get out of here! There’s no work to be done.”

A man who smelled of alcohol and was yelling loudly spoke urgently.

“Elder! Where can we go? If we don’t comply with the order to demolish illegal structures, we will be punished. Please spare us. We will sell it again. Okay?”

Just a warning.

One order.

With that kind of courage and the will to sway like a reed in such a situation, did you dare to do something like that?

I guess I was a little greedy because I was living a little.

“You guys, you’ve got the wrong address! If someone were to hear me, they’d think I’m the one who’s going to sign the contract! Who would buy that land and buy that house with money? Huh? Who would spend a lot of money to develop that place? There’s still a lot of undeveloped land in Gangnam and everywhere else in Seoul, so why would they develop a useless Sanggye-dong, and a shantytown at that?”

“But, sir, what the city hall employees said was definitely different!”

“What do those low-level civil servants know! Do you really believe that they opened the bowl? Ugh-”

“Then what should we do, sir?”

“I told you I got the wrong number!”

Kang No-ya shouts and then glances back to check my reaction. As if I wasn’t the only one who felt his gaze, the man hurriedly approaches me and extends his hand to me.

“Up to there.”

At my words, the man’s hand that was about to grab my hand stops in its tracks.

“Don’t touch it carelessly.”

“Uh, uh… That, that’s right… Student, save us, I’ll sell it again! Okay?”

I looked straight into his eyes and said.

“10 times the deposit, did you say that was also a scam?”

“That, that… Where would we have that much money? Student, please understand.”

“I was just being considerate up to that point.”

“Uh, yeah?”

“Why would we pay money to buy buildings that are going to be demolished anyway because they are illegal structures? It would be easier if the land were vacant.”

He swallows hard and seems to be chewing on my words over and over again.

A cold silence descends inside the estate.

“If you thought I was a fool, you were wrong.”

They can’t even make eye contact with me properly.

“A favor should have been accepted as a favor.”

Kang Noya swallows hard.

Why would he be nervous? It was other people’s fault.

This morning, I tapped out the new contract that Kang Noya had asked me to write as if it was really okay to do so, and then I looked straight at the man who had been causing a commotion at the hospital and said:

“Please stamp it.”

“Are you going to let me sell it again?”

I can’t help but laugh.

“The conditions have changed. I will guarantee you residency for the next 10 years. After that, you can leave. The house is being sold at the current market price of 300 won per pyeong.”

He ignored the man who made a face that said, “This is ridiculous,” looked at Kang Noya, and said.

“Only those who wish to do so, please sign the contract.”

“Yeah, that’s right.”

“Three hundred, three hundred won! Who would put that on their nose!”

There is no change at all.

It’s so real that I wonder if that’s the person who was begging to sit down on the street right away.

I shook my head and looked straight at them, then said.

“So, you should be satisfied when the favor is just a favor. Don’t you know that regret is slow no matter how fast it is?”

They blush and avoid my gaze, perhaps feeling ashamed of their actions.

I picked up the contract again, waved it around, and spoke to everyone as if to notify them.

“Put your fingerprints on it, and I’ll give you something to live on.”