Real Man

Chapter 113:

Chapter 113

Choi Min-hee, the manager, did not miss the opportunity.

“Did you just call me a bitch? Do you think I can report this to the company’s complaint box?”

“Uh, that’s…”

He was speechless at her sharp retort.

While the two of them blocked Oh Jae-hwan, the team leader, Yoo-hyun and Park Seung-woo, the assistant manager, dragged Kim Young-gil, the As, outside.

How did Kim Young-gil feel right now?

He must have felt more guilty than grateful for his colleagues.

His unfocused eyes seemed to reveal his inner turmoil.

A person who had been battered and bruised until he became as smooth as a pebble.

A person who always blamed himself for his failures instead of shining like a gem.

Kim Young-gil was such a person.

“I’m fine. I’ll go by myself.”

“As.”

He shrugged off their support and walked away alone.

His back looked pitifully sad.

What kind of person was good at work in the company?

There were many factors, but the most important one was reputation, or image.

‘That person seems like he can do well.’

If you enter with a positive impression, you can get a better evaluation than others even if you do average work.

It’s because people have confirmation bias, which makes them accept only what matches their own thoughts.

Kim Young-gil, who came from the development team, was from a local engineering college.

He had no high expectations from others, since he was neither from a prestigious university nor a foreign-educated person.

The nature of the product planning team’s work was different from that of the engineers, and he had to make a lot of presentations, which was also a hurdle for him.

His poor presentation skills could be covered by detailed materials.

The biggest problem was English presentation.

That was not something he could overcome in a short time.

No matter how hard Kim Young-gil tried by himself, his competitors were too strong.

He needed some confidence, but his timid personality held him back.

-If you can’t do it, you have to try harder! Effort!

Oh Jae-hwan, the team leader, spoke harshly, but he was not wrong.

Kim Young-gil should have tried to fill in his shortcomings instead of avoiding them.

If that was difficult, he should have shown his efforts as much as others would be impressed.

Or he should have had some guts to stand up for himself.

Working hard is not everything.

Yoo-hyun felt frustrated by that.

A few days later, at a pub in front of Hansung Tower.

At the place where the gathering of his peers was in full swing, Yoo-hyun asked.

“Jae-seung, are there really no one from our team who applied for the company’s language course?”

“You mean the English class? I don’t think so.”

Byun Jae-seung from Global HRD (Human Resources Management Team) shook his head and asked back curiously.

“But don’t your team members speak English well? You work with foreign companies all the time. Don’t you need language lessons?”

“It’s different from learning. And it’s free.”

“That’s true. Geez, I’m getting a headache trying to create this good opportunity for you guys.”

“Why?”

“One of the English teachers quit. I have to fill in the gap, but it’s not easy.”

Byun Jae-seung rubbed his forehead as if it hurt.

He was in charge of the language part of the company’s education program.

At first, he was happy to take on such a responsible role, but it turned out to be not so easy when he actually did it.

Managing foreign teachers and organizing feedback from students was not an easy task.

It was even more troublesome when there was a vacancy like this.

He had to interview the teachers and make a report to get the approval of his team leader.

There were many cases of fake resumes, and it was not easy to hire one person because it was related to the company’s security as well.

He had every reason to be reluctant.

Then Seo Chang-woo from the personnel team said.

“When you’re worried like that, you should drink and forget about it.”

“Sounds good.”

Clang!

The glasses clinked and the noisy atmosphere continued.

Yoo-hyun looked around the table after drinking a glass of alcohol.

They had lost much of their rookie look on their faces after a few months.

They looked like they were already at an executive level by talking about their work stories.

Of course, most of them were complaints.

“Why did they make such a stupid seminar system?”

“They want us to make fools of ourselves in front of our seniors.”

They were people who had been recognized at school in their own way.

They had entered the best company without any trouble and with flying colors.

They thought they would live a successful life, but the reality was that they slipped on a seminar.

The seniors’ sarcasm, the negative eyes, the overwhelming pressure.

They were dissatisfied with the reality that was different from their ideals.

“It’s ridiculous that they take everything from us even if we work hard. It’s not like the company is full of thieves.”

“It’s a relief if they take it. Later, they wipe their mouths and ask what the hell we did.”

The complaints naturally spread to others.

They had done nothing wrong, so it was natural to shift the blame to someone else.

“There are so many unreasonable things. Some people are just looking at stocks on their computers and they get all the rewards.”

“That’s right. Some people work all night and get scolded. They say anyone who doesn’t make the line is trash.”

“I don’t know how the company runs like this.”

The seniors who bragged about themselves were nothing special, and the organization was only unreasonable.

It was amazing that such a rotten and problematic company could run at all.

“Our personnel system is the problem. We should cut off all the weirdos.”

“We should replace all the people above. They’re all rotten.”

I have no problem at all!

I tried to do well!

I followed FM and was loyal to the company!

Why doesn’t the company recognize me?

Why is the company so rotten and full of problems?

“Damn it, this shitty company!”

“Kukukuku. Hey, have a drink.”

They washed down their conclusion with a glass of alcohol.

The sound of glasses clinking was heard among the laughter that burst out here and there.

Yoo-hyun, who had been listening quietly, also tipped his glass silently.

He knew too.

They were just venting their complaints as a drinking excuse.

They were not really serious about complaining.

Yeah. Where else could they talk like this if not with their peers?

But.

Why did their complaints, which they spat out like a hamster wheel, feel so empty today?

That’s when Jin Sun-mi from the PR team came close and offered him a drink.

“Oppa, have a drink with me today.”

“Thanks.”

When did she get here?

Yoo-hyun glanced at her and handed her his glass.

Chirp.

“Hehe, you’re welcome. But why are you just listening?”

“Just.”

Jin Sun-mi wanted to find out something more from Yoo-hyun.

She needed some fresh material to supply to the female employee meeting tomorrow.

Her question drew the attention of his peers to Yoo-hyun.

Among them, there was a man who looked particularly uncomfortable.

It was Gong Hyun-joon from the TV sales team.

As Jin Sun-mi kept showing interest in Yoo-hyun, he glared at him with a sharp look.

“Yeah. Yoo-hyun, why don’t you tell us something. Ah, you’re doing well in the company, so you don’t have any complaints, do you?”

“No. It’s not like that.”

His words sounded sarcastic.

He knew that the guy was conscious of Jin Sun-mi since earlier.

He must have a crush on her.

It would be better to clear up the misunderstanding and soothe his young heart, but he didn’t feel like it today.

Yoo-hyun drank his filled glass and let it go.

The atmosphere became slightly awkward, and Kwon Se-jung intervened.

“Yoo-hyun has the ability, so of course he gets recognized. Why do you say that?”

“I know, I know. You’re just jealous. I honestly couldn’t pass the seminar and couldn’t sleep. You and Yoo-hyun did well, so you must have slept comfortably with your legs stretched out.”

“No. It’s not like that.”

“…”

Yoo-hyun looked up from his empty glass.

He saw Gong Hyun-joon’s face with one corner of his mouth lifted.

His eyes were full of jealousy.

He was still young and didn’t know how to control his emotions.

‘Do I want to lecture him like an old man just because I drank some alcohol?’

Yoo-hyun smirked and drank another glass of alcohol.

The alcohol tasted bitter today.

“Yoo-hyun, come on, teach me something. What’s the secret to doing well like you do now?”

“Well. I don’t know.”

Yoo-hyun didn’t have anything to say.

He never tried to do well.

Passing the seminar first was not a criterion for doing well.

“Oh, come on. Don’t hide it. Do you think it’s good to be the only one doing well?”

“But there’s one thing I know.”

But he had something he wanted to say to Gong Hyun-joon, who was living with complaints.

Yoo-hyun put down his glass and opened his mouth.

His changed mood drew the attention of his peers.

Yoo-hyun looked into Gong Hyun-joon’s eyes and said.

“You have to prove first that you’re not getting paid for nothing before you ask such things.”

“What? I worked hard too.”

He was still a young peer.

He should have just smiled and let it go. Why did he have to point it out?

Suddenly, he saw Kim Young-gil’s face on Gong Hyun-joon’s face.

There was a strangely similar corner in them.

That’s why Yoo-hyun’s voice became stronger.

“Do you think you’re loyal to the company? Do you work all night? No. Don’t do that. You’ll only lose your body and mind. The company doesn’t want loyal people, they want people who have skills they can use right away.”

“…”

He was right.

Kim Young-gil was a loyal person to the company.

He worked later than others and tried harder.

Just like Gong Hyun-joon now.

As he was about to open his mouth with a wronged expression, Yoo-hyun cut him off.

“Do you really think you have the skills to compete with and beat your seniors? You can’t answer honestly, can you?”

“It’s different because of the experience. Experience.”

“I know. You just came in, so how can that make sense? But you said you want to go up quickly.”

“…Honestly, you can’t do it without connections or backgrounds. There’s no one who succeeded without a line.”

What was his definition of success?

He wanted to be an executive, so a high position seemed to be his criterion for success.

Then what did Kim Young-gil want?

Did he want to be an executive like Gong Hyun-joon?

He had been with him for five years, but he didn’t know anything about him.

But.

He had something he wanted to say to him.

“Connections? Backgrounds? Lines? Of course they’re important. No, maybe they’re the most important. I know. They seem like cheating. But the company is not a school. It’s a place where fairness and self-esteem matter and the results tell everything.”

“Hmm.”

He shouldn’t hide in fear or cower in self-blame.

The less he had, the more confident he had to be.

He had to face it with that mindset.

“If you want to break through and go up, you have to be a lion. You have to work twice as hard as others.”

“Me too…”

“Don’t just suck up and waste time, but build up your skills so that the company can’t help but need you. Then even if you tell this shitty company to fuck off, they’ll have to hold on to you.”

If he started to produce results without regard for means and methods, the eyes of those around him would change on their own.

The company wants such people, and the bosses want to make them their lines.

“…”

His pupils shook violently at the words that spewed out like a machine gun.

It was not something he should say to him, who had just started his company life.

It was something he should say to Kim Young-gil, who was frustrated and floundering without any tricks.

He had to try harder if he had ambition.

He had to grow himself so that Oh Jae-hwan, the team leader, couldn’t beat him up.

Maybe he looked at him with too sympathetic eyes because of his past regret?

That would not be a helpful direction for Kim Young-gil either.

‘Maybe it would be better for him to wear clothes that suit him…’

The silence continued until his thoughts were disturbed.

“…”

Yoo-hyun came to his senses and said.

“Sorry. I went too far. I’m a bit drunk.”

“No, no.”

As Yoo-hyun apologized, Seo Chang-woo waved his hand.

The other peers also smiled awkwardly.

But the atmosphere didn’t change easily.

They all seemed to be chewing on Yoo-hyun’s words.

Whether it was preaching in front of his peers or cutting Kim Young-gil down.

He went overboard when he had no right to say such things.