Real Man

Chapter 488:

The next day, Team Leader Shim Byeong-jik’s remarkable timidity continued.

He even bothered to mention to Yoo-hyun that he was going to eat eel again.

“Everyone loves eel so much.”

“Yes. Enjoy your meal.”

“…”

The team members’ expressions were not very bright, but Team Leader Shim’s choice did not change.

The same thing happened the following day, and the day after that.

Team Leader Shim insisted on taking his team members to eat eel.

Yoo-hyun clicked his tongue at his absurd behavior.

He had no reason to care, so he walked out with a light step.

He was used to eating lunch alone by now.

There were many restaurants around Hansung Tower, but today Yoo-hyun chose a rice soup restaurant.

The lunchtime of the Group Strategy Room was 30 minutes earlier than other places, so the restaurant was quiet.

Drrr.

The rice soup restaurant owner greeted Yoo-hyun as he opened the door and entered.

“Yoo-hyun, I see you a lot these days.”

“There’s no place like your cooking, auntie.”

“That’s nice. I appreciate your words.”

“It’s the truth, not a lie.”

“Hoho. Come on, sit down. I’ll give you extra meat.”

The owner smiled pleasantly at Yoo-hyun’s manner and hummed a song as she prepared the food.

Yoo-hyun took out a spoon and placed it on the metal table, then looked around the restaurant out of habit.

His eyes caught the frames lined up on one wall.

They were certificates that Jung Ye-seul had received from college, and the most recent one was an excellence award.

She barely made it to college, and ran around selling newspapers to become a reporter. It was an amazing sight.

“It’s a wonder.”

Yoo-hyun admired Jung Ye-seul’s surprising transformation and checked the contents of the certificate. He blinked his eyes.

“Wow.”

Thud.

The owner put the rice soup on the table and asked.

“What? Is something wrong?”

“Auntie, is Ye-seul graduating this semester?”

“Yes. She’s a senior. Time flies, doesn’t it?”

“Yes. It really does.”

It seemed like yesterday when he took her to school on his motorcycle, and now the little girl was a senior.

Yoo-hyun chuckled and the owner sat down on the chair across from him.

“I feel the same way. I can’t believe you’re a team leader already.”

“Ah, yes. I was promoted a bit faster. I’ll enjoy the meal.”

“Yes. Eat well.”

Yoo-hyun scooped up a spoonful of the boiling soup and put it in his mouth.

The clear and refreshing soup was superb.

The owner looked at him with a warm smile and put a piece of radish kimchi on his spoon.

“Are you not having a hard time these days?”

“Not at all. Why would I have a hard time?”

“But the noisy people from before are all gone. And you come here alone for lunch.”

She must have been worried about him for a while, since he kept coming alone.

Yoo-hyun smiled with his eyes and said.

“I like it better this way. Thanks to you, I can have a quiet conversation with you, auntie.”

“Well, that’s true. Hoho.”

Yoo-hyun talked a lot with the owner while eating.

The owner kept giving him more side dishes.

These small moments of everyday life were a great joy to Yoo-hyun.

It was when his rice soup was almost empty.

Drrr.

The door opened and a noisy sound came in.

“Team Leader, this is the right place. Why do we have to eat eel every time?”

“Right. I’m sick of eel. I can’t eat it anymore.”

“But why a rice soup restaurant? Eel has soup too.”

“This place is much better. There’s no comparison.”

As Team Leader Shim stepped into the restaurant, saying that, he saw Yoo-hyun and was shocked.

“Come on, let’s go in… Huh.”

The team members behind him were also surprised and blinked their eyes.

“…”

Yoo-hyun snickered and gestured.

“Sit down. I’m done eating, so I’ll get up soon.”

“Huh? Oh…”

“It’s natural to get tired of eating the same thing. Team Leader, the soup here is really amazing, so please try it.”

As Yoo-hyun was about to get up from his seat, the owner clapped her hands and exclaimed.

“Oh, are you Yoo-hyun’s team leader?”

“Huh? Ah, yes. Yes, I am.”

“Oh, please take good care of him. You don’t know how much he praises his team…”

The owner blabbered on, hoping to help Yoo-hyun somehow.

The atmosphere was awkward, but the owner didn’t stop.

Yoo-hyun decided to end it before it got too long.

“Auntie, the team members have to eat too.”

“Oh, my. I’m sorry. I was too happy to see you.”

She must have been very worried about him to be so glad to see his team members.

Yoo-hyun was about to leave, but he said something to meet the owner’s expectations.

“Then, please give them some delicious food. Make me proud.”

“Don’t worry. Just trust me.”

The owner winked and went back to the kitchen to prepare the food quickly.

She looked like a mother caring for her son, and it touched his heart.

Yoo-hyun vowed to repay her kindness and greeted his team members lightly.

“Then, enjoy your meal. I’ll go ahead.”

“Uh, uh.”

“Please come in.”

There was an awkward exchange, and Deputy Shin Nak-kyun bowed his head a little deeper than before.

It was after Yoo-hyun left.

Deputy Na Do-yeon’s mouth twisted into a bitter smile.

“Why do we look so pathetic?”

“…”

“Damn it. It’s annoying.”

The silence was broken by Deputy Park Geun-deok, who spat out his displeasure.

He didn’t like the feeling of being looked down on by someone he had never paid attention to.

Team Leader Shim Byeong-jik felt the same way.

But that was only for a moment.

Thud.

Food that they didn’t order filled the table, and everyone was bewildered.

“It’s on the house, so don’t be shy.”

“All of this is on the house?”

Especially, Team Leader Shim’s eyes widened.

The owner smiled brightly at them.

“I’m so grateful to Yoo-hyun for taking good care of me. You all look so handsome and beautiful, and you must have kind hearts too.”

“…”

Everyone felt guilty and no one said a word.

For a while, only the sound of chopsticks was heard.

The food was surprisingly delicious.

That evening, Yoo-hyun told Park Young-hoon, whom he met at a pub, what happened at lunch.

He, who usually didn’t laugh at any jokes, burst into laughter.

“Puhahaha. What kind of ridiculous people are they?”

“I know, right?”

“When I watch TV dramas, the group strategy room people look so smart. But why do your side people look so stupid?”

“It’s the same everywhere. Do you think your team is any different?”

Park Young-hoon rolled his eyes at Yoo-hyun’s question and soon nodded.

“Yeah, I guess. Our team leader got a DUI, the deputy bastard cheated on his wife, and the colleague bastard got into a fight with a newbie.”

“Kuku. That’s worse.”

“It’s worse, but we don’t get bonuses like you. You’re lucky. You got a lot of bonuses.”

Yoo-hyun was surprised by Park Young-hoon’s sudden confession.

“What are you talking about? Why are you jealous of the customer’s bonus?”

“You’ve saved over 100 million won with your bonuses. And you’re going to spend it all at once. How can I not be jealous?”

“You don’t look sorry?”

“Of course. You should spend some money. You’ll turn into shit if you save too much.”

Park Young-hoon said something reasonable for once, so Yoo-hyun made a generous offer.

“Okay. Then, to celebrate, I’ll buy you a drink.”

“Of course. You have to buy me more when you think about the t-shirt settlement. That’s right.”

Yoo-hyun blinked at the unexpected words.

“What t-shirt? Oh, the palm?”

“Yeah. It will go into your B account at once.”

“Did it sell well?”

“Of course. It’s selling like crazy since Jang-woo beat up the Japanese guy. Look, there’s one over there too.”

Yoo-hyun turned his gaze to where Park Young-hoon pointed and chuckled.

There was a couple wearing palm t-shirts at the table behind Yoo-hyun.

As he had felt before, this was something completely out of his expectation.

“There’s really all kinds of things.”

“It’s hard to believe, but it’s true. Hey? There’s news about your company over there?”

Park Young-hoon, who was answering Yoo-hyun’s words, looked at the TV on the wall and said.

“…”

Yoo-hyun silently looked at the same place.

The news headlines were scrolling at the bottom of the TV that was showing a music program.

Yoo-hyun’s expression looked serious, and Park Young-hoon’s voice also became serious.

“What’s that? Is the strike related to you?”

“It’s a group matter.”

“But don’t you have a union management team in your subsidiary? Do you have to manage that kind of thing in the group strategy room?”

“Usually, they handle it themselves.”

Park Young-hoon nodded as if he expected Yoo-hyun’s answer.

“Well, yeah. A high-level talent who negotiates with a Spanish company wouldn’t go to such a place.”

“I don’t know.”

Yoo-hyun smiled meaningfully and shrugged his shoulders.

Narutal Power’s vice president stepped in, and Song Hyun-seung, the director, rolled up his sleeves.

The progress of the work was tremendous.

Hansung Energy’s Spanish solar power plant had passed the 90% mark of the negotiation and was left with the details.

For the bus system part, Deputy Na Do-yeon went to Spain with Hansung SI’s technicians to solve it himself.

Meanwhile, Deputy Shin Nak-kyun ran around like crazy.

He learned by repetition and dealt with the unexpected situations that arose.

Now, even if Yoo-hyun didn’t give him a work list, he reached the level where he could do it on his own.

“Team Leader, should I prepare for an additional meeting with Narutal Power?”

“Why do you think so?”

“I think we need to meet with the higher-ups if we want to use their infrastructure for sure.”

“Oh, are you right?”

Yoo-hyun praised him and Deputy Shin bowed his head, then stopped.

“Thank… I’ll check and let you know.”

He swallowed the words he was about to say and backed away as if he was walking backwards.

He’s a funny guy.

Yoo-hyun snickered when he was about to turn around.

Deputy Shin bumped into a man who was walking towards him.

Thud.

A sharp voice rang out from the man with a short stature and a solid build.

“Hey, you bastard, are you out of your mind? Is this your living room?”

“I’m sorry.”

“Is that enough if you’re sorry? Will you say the same thing if you make a mistake with a customer?”

He made a big deal out of a small bump.

Yoo-hyun rolled his eyes and Deputy Shin bowed his head.

“I’ll correct it.”

“What correction? What did Team Leader Shim teach you?”

“Then how…”

“That’s enough. Just get out of here.”

The man who pushed Deputy Shin away looked at Yoo-hyun.

His eyes, nose, and mouth gathered on his angular chin were very impressive.

Yoo-hyun recalled the past memories from his unforgettable face and nodded slightly to him, who had worked with him before and was now a team leader of another team.

Then, Team Leader Bae Jae-chan of the Internal Strategy Team turned his head and walked away.

Yoo-hyun had something to ask him anyway.

“I’ll see you soon.”

He projected the upcoming events in his head.