I’d Rather Live as a Villain - Chapter 76



76 Who is there to say anything to you?

Daedo Restaurant.

I had only heard stories about it, but this was my first time visiting.

And those stories weren’t heard just anywhere.

It was only to the extent that I heard about such a restaurant in conversations between my grandfather and father-in-law during breakfast while living in Pyeongchang-dong.

My grandfather really enjoys the food at this restaurant.

Whenever he loses his appetite, especially during the sweltering summer, he quickly regains it by having a bowl of rice in cool green tea water with dried yellow corvina at Daedo Restaurant.

The restaurant wasn’t as luxurious as I had expected.

Of course, there was a man who seemed to be the owner, guarding the counter, wearing a gold Rolex and designer glasses, which was somewhat impressive.

From the entrance, a 90s vibe emanated.

It was like the entrance to a Korean restaurant one might find abroad, perhaps?

The dolls standing on the counter, the framed pictures on the wall behind it, the Hahoe masks…

It was a restaurant that stayed true to the 90s luxury dining atmosphere one could expect to find.

“When did you arrive?”

I had come without much thought, as the reservation was under my father-in-law’s name, but to my surprise, the restaurant owner recognized me.

As soon as I entered, the owner guarding the counter muttered to himself, “Dining with the son-in-law, I see. Well, it makes sense for such a distinguished guest.” He then personally escorted me to a private room.

Alone in the room, adorned with vintage decor, I aimlessly studied the shockingly priced menu when my father-in-law arrived.

“I’ve just arrived myself.”

“Sit down, sit down.”

It was quite an unusual restaurant.

Clearly a favorite of my grandfather’s, and the exorbitant prices indicated a high-end establishment, yet there was no service to speak of.

With such prices, one would expect dedicated service in this room, but there was none.

So, I quickly rose to take my father-in-law’s coat and hung it on a stand-style hanger in the corner.

That’s when an unbearable awkwardness began to set in.

The presence of my father-in-law.

Perhaps it would be less awkward if I thought of him not as my father-in-law but as the chairman.

It wasn’t difficult per se, but there was a persistent discomfort and awkwardness that couldn’t be easily put into words.

Moreover, unlike my grandfather, my father-in-law was a man of few words, making it even harder to know what to do in a meeting like this without my wife.

“My son-in-law enjoys sashimi. He always has it when he comes here, and today, it would be nice to prepare a plate of it as well.”

My father-in-law ordered directly from the owner, and it was amusing that he didn’t specify the type of fish for the sashimi. The owner understood immediately and agreed to prepare it right away, which was refreshingly straightforward.

What excited me more was that this place wasn’t specialized in sashimi.

Just looking at the basic table setting, all the utensils were made of brass.

Even a glance at the menu revealed specialties like dried yellow corvina and fermented skate and pork, typical of Jeolla Province cuisine. I was inwardly eager to see how the sashimi ordered by my father-in-law would turn out.

“What about drinks?”

My father-in-law looked at me.

“What shall we drink?”

At first glance, this place was all about soju or beer.

Despite its high prices, it certainly wasn’t a place that sold traditional liquor.

“I’ll have whatever you’re having.”

“When I come here, I drink makgeolli.”

Makgeolli?

Oh.

I hadn’t considered that, but makgeolli with the menu he ordered didn’t seem like a bad combination.

Makgeolli pairs subtly well with the raw fish slices, indeed.

And isn’t makgeolli with fermented skate also quite a fine match?

Anyway, to the point where such trivial things caught my attention, the one-on-one seating with my father-in-law was definitely uncomfortable.

But that discomfort was gradually melting away with a glass of makgeolli.

“How is it? Tastes good?”

As a side dish, cockles were served, and they were insanely delicious.

I immediately understood why people sing praises of Jeolla-do cuisine, Jeolla-do cuisine… with just one cockle.

The moment I popped a cockle into my mouth, my eyes unwittingly widened, and seeing my reaction, my father-in-law asked with a satisfied smirk,

“Isn’t it delicious?”

“This place really knows how to do business. They’ve been maintaining the quality of their food meticulously for decades, ever since the owner’s mother.”

After that, dishes like flounder stew, skate-and-pork belly combo, fresh oysters, assorted raw fish slices, and finally, barley-dried yellow corvina kept coming in without pause. Normally, one would worry if two people could finish all this food, but this time, I was confident we could devour it all.

It was hard to distinguish what was ordered and what was part of the basic side dishes, as each dish came out on large plates.

With those diverse and fantastic dishes as sides, my father-in-law and I shared a bottle of makgeolli, and that’s when I started to relax a bit.

Especially with the salty Jeolla-do cuisine, it was time to cleanse the palate with rice in green tea water.

My father-in-law had already started ‘drinking’ his rice, so I just went along without much thought.

But then, he took a big piece of fish from his share of yellow corvina and placed it right on top of the spoonful of rice I had dipped in green tea water.

“…”

At that moment, I received a strange feeling as a gift.

Surely, I couldn’t be tipsy from just two glasses of makgeolli.

Even more so since my dining companion was my father-in-law, and at the company, he’s the chairman. It’s impossible to get drunk in front of such a person with just two glasses of makgeolli.

Yet, I felt an odd sensation, as if my emotions were swelling beyond my control.

“Try it. It’ll be good.”

I’m not usually an emotional person, and this wasn’t supposed to be an emotional setting, but for a moment, I felt a sense of nostalgia for the times I spent with my father long ago, as I watched my father-in-law place the fish on my rice.

My father was a typical man from Gyeongsang-do.

A very warm person, but not one to express it well.

Yet, occasionally, when we grilled pork belly at home, he would always place the best-cooked meat and mushrooms on my plate first.

Barley-dried yellow corvina.

No matter how expensive this place was, how special could a piece of fish be?

It was just a “Wow, this is delicious…” kind of special.

But the barley-dried yellow corvina that my father-in-law personally served me tasted good in many ways.

“I’ll pour you a drink.”

I wanted to join in and offer a piece of dried yellow corvina to my father-in-law too, but I refrained, worried that it might come off as trying too hard or being misinterpreted as overdoing it.

So, the best I could do in that moment, in that place, was to fill his empty glass with a fresh serving of makgeolli.

The atmosphere, initially stiff and awkward, began to soften gradually, and by the second bottle of makgeolli, my father-in-law started to ask various questions about the water industry business.

Of course, there wasn’t a single question he asked that was difficult to answer.

They were all about my determination, and the attitude and stance I take towards the business.

Then, albeit briefly, the conversation turned to my relationship with my wife, and despite the obvious pain, he advised us to try again and have a child together.

“Yes, I’ll give it my best.”

“That’s good. And… oh, right. I put it inside my jacket.”

Suddenly, my father-in-law stood up from his seat.

He walked over to where I was, turned around, and headed towards the coat hanger where I had hung his jacket earlier.

From the inner pocket of his jacket on the hanger, he took out a white envelope and returned to his seat.

“This.”

“What is… this?”

“It’s a cash gift.”

“…A cash gift?”

“How many times have I given you a cash gift, Mr. Yoon? Not to you directly, but under the pretext of using it for the office staff in the European division, for the overseas branch employees’ dinner expenses.”

“Yes.”

“This one is for you, Mr. Yoon.”

A cash gift?

Have I done something to deserve a cash gift?

“This morning, President Min briefly visited the group’s headquarters.”

“President Min?”

“He came and spoke so highly of you.”

Why?

“Listening to President Min praise you, Mr. Yoon, I suddenly felt good.”

He smiled.

With a slight grin, he held the earthenware cup filled with makgeolli and gently shook it.

“It’s not uncomfortable to hear. If President Min goes to such lengths to speak well, it means you’re really doing a great job. And it makes me wonder, who in the water industry will reward our son-in-law for his good work?”

Reward…

Indeed.

Despite working myself to the bone over the past year, I never harbored any expectations or thoughts about the rewards that would fall into my hands.

But that’s only natural.

After all, I’m not running this race with the immediate rewards in mind.

“A person who can praise you when you’ve done well, who can recognize your efforts, is essential. At least, I had someone like that for me. And I did the same for Young-jin and Moon-jung. But then…”

After emptying his cup of makgeolli, my father-in-law continued.

“I’ve been too harsh on my son-in-law, more than necessary.”

“You were never harsh.”

“Too strict in my evaluations, perhaps.”

Ah…

“I don’t know why I did that. Unknowingly, I found myself being conservative in evaluating you, Yun.”

“Perhaps because I sit in a position that’s prone to criticism.”

“A position prone to criticism? Was the head of the European division at Mulsan such a position?”

“Beside Kang Moon-jung. That’s my place at Daeyoung. The title of head of the European division is just for show.”

To that, my father-in-law nodded in agreement.

“You weren’t harsh. You were more anxious about me than anyone else, and I believe you still are.”

Holding the cash gift from my father-in-law, I looked down at it for a long while before speaking again.

“Thank you, father-in-law. I’ll use this allowance to enjoy a nice meal with my wife.”

“Are you still just rowing the boat?”

“…Pardon?”

“Didn’t they say a helmsman just rows? I’m asking if you still hold the same belief.”

To that question, I replied.

“The person I respect the most at Daeyoung is my grandfather. But the person I acknowledge as the most remarkable is you, father-in-law.”

“Remarkable? In what way?”

“Always working behind the scenes to craft grandfather’s image, doing your utmost to solidify that image.”

At some point, I began to think.

Maybe my position is not unlike that of my father-in-law, who has spent his life within Daeyoung crafting grandfather’s image.

“I too believe that living my life at Daeyoung in that manner is my role.”

“Hmm…”

“Father-in-law, may I ask you just one thing?”

I felt a slight buzz, soft and mellow.

But it wasn’t just the alcohol that emboldened me.

Envelope of cash.

As Mr. Min handed it to me, praising my work, I felt truly encouraged by the honest words of my father-in-law, who seemed pleased with my performance.

“What? Go ahead and ask.”

“How did you handle it, sir?”

“Handle what?”

“When someone tried to tarnish your image, or spread harmful rumors about your position, how did you respond?”

He seemed to grasp the essence of my cautiously broached question immediately. Holding his breath for a moment, he looked at me and then emptied his half-full glass of makgeolli.

Then he answered,

“First, I’d calculate.”

“Calculate?”

“I’d consider whether responding would benefit our company, Daeyoung, or cause harm.”

“…”

“Yoon, you should do the same. Think of it as your company. You’re the owner. Can you act impulsively anytime? No, you can’t. You have to be more careful. The actions you take, every step you make, will be given meaning by more and more people. You’ll have to be even more cautious than now. Acting on impulse? I couldn’t do that. Instead, I tried to be calmer and carefully considered the consequences of my responses.”

“And if, after all that consideration, you decided that a direct response was necessary?”

After holding his breath once more, he replied,

“Then you tear into them as if there’s no tomorrow. That can also instill a sense of fear in others, warning them not to speak or act carelessly.”

“Should I do the same?”

I quickly took the bottle he was holding and filled his empty glass.

Suddenly, he crossed his arms in front of his chest, and with his arms still crossed, he lowered his head and stared at his glass for a long while.

Still looking down at his glass, he said,

“That’s not something you need my permission for. Yoon, within Daeyoung, you’re not someone who needs permission; you’re someone who takes responsibility. As long as you can turn the outcome in your favor… who would have anything to say against you?”