The Former Chaebol Heir Excels as President

Chapter 17: Let’s Make Some Money (2)

Mid‑November.

With the money I’d saved from delivering milk and weekend part‑time work, I embarked on a delivery‑service business.

The money was woefully insufficient, but Ji Jeongseok solved that part.

He listened to my business plan and got excited, saying it would definitely succeed.

Maybe because he was from a well‑off family, he readily handed over ₩500,000 from his bank account.

“How much is the rent here?”

“I rented it for ₩50,000.”

“Wow! They’re letting you rent cheaply because they like you.”

Ji Jeongseok looked at me with eyes full of admiration.

Of course, as he said, the owner of the carpentry shop had rented it cheaply because he liked me.

Because Kang Cheonmyeong had built trust with the neighbors over a long time, we received a lot of help.

Above all, the big advantage was that the carpentry shop had plenty of parking space.

“The chair is creaking.”

The wooden chair Ji Jeongseok sat on wobbled.

The office furnishings were failed pieces that the carpentry shop had made, so they were imbalanced or uneven.

Still, it was lucky to get the desk, chairs, and even the round table for free.

“You have to start like this at first. It’s good that we’re saving money.”

“Of course. Feels like heaven is helping us. I have a good feeling.”

“We can last three months, so let’s hustle until winter break.”

“It’ll go well. I believe it.”

Ji Jeongseok moved to the chair next to me and asked,

“Have you hired delivery people?”

“I got five.”

“The chicken‑shop uncle in our neighborhood liked it. When he was delivering by himself, orders piled up, and when he hired a delivery person, no orders came. It’s a dilemma.”

“The Olympics are coming next year, so the opportunity will come.”

“Olympics?”

Ji Jeongseok blinked as if he didn’t know.

“When the Olympics are held, lots of foreign athletes will come. What kind of food do they eat? They eat hamburgers, pizza and stuff. So lots of foreign fast‑food places will open.”

“Wow!”

Ji Jeongseok couldn’t close his mouth.

“You’re really amazing. Did you even foresee that?”

“You have to prepare thoroughly for business.”

“As expected, you’re a genius. Definitely not ordinary.”

“In Gangnam now, there’s a chicken‑shop with a grandfather statue, and a Wendys selling hamburgers.”

“You mean there’ll be more of them?”

“Then deliveries will increase too.”

“Wow! That’s great!”

Ji Jeongseok laughed brightly, then asked with concern,

“By the way, how about your mom?”

At first, my mom had opposed it.

Not doing well at school was one thing, but she didn’t like the idea of sending her son into the money‑making market because of her incompetence.

But eventually she heard my plan and accepted it.

‘It’s your life. If you can take responsibility, go ahead.’

She always said that.

She emphasized responsibility and didn’t stop me from doing what I wanted.

She just made me promise to quit if my grades dropped significantly.

[Delivery Emperor]

That was the company name, and on paper, the representative was my mom.

Since it carried her name, it absolutely had to succeed.

“My mom always supports me when I say I’ll do something.”

“If I had a son like you, I’d become a cheerleader!”

“Ha ha.”

Ji Jeongseok and I laughed together as Yang Seok‑gu came in. He carried a bundle of pamphlets in both hands.

I walked over and took the bundle from him.

“Good job.”

“Wow! I thought I’d die on the bus. Anyway, I brought a thousand copies.”

“It's heavier than I thought. I thought they'd be light since they’re thin.”

“I’m the one who brought them. You guys couldn’t have.”

“Ha ha. Yeah.”

Securing franchises was crucial for the delivery‑service business, and Yang Seok‑gu played a big role there.

Persistence and charm were his strengths.

Yang Seok‑gu didn’t give up persuading restaurant owners until they agreed.

So we were able to include nearly a hundred restaurants in the pamphlets.

He sat in front of me and asked,

“Is the sister who answers the phone coming in tomorrow?”

“Yes.”

“I think if we do it the way you said, it’ll work. But how do you know so well?”

From my previous life experience, I knew the delivery system very well.

At this time, there were only Chinese‑delivery men with metal lunchboxes and Korean‑food aunties carrying trays on their heads, so delivery services were an unfamiliar era.

They both listened to my plan and, saying it was perfect, gave me a round of applause.

“Anyone can figure it out if they study. It’s the law of supply and demand.”

“Are we really going to make a fortune?”

“You’ll choke and die from drinking kimchi soup before it’s cooked. If we pass out the pamphlets today, tomorrow’s Sunday, so we’ll get a rough idea.”

“I’m convinced!”

When Ji Jeongseok raised his voice, Yang Seok‑gu agreed too.

“Me too!”

“Are you good at riding bikes, Jeongseok? Seok‑gu and I are used to deliveries.”

“You saw my athletic skills in P.E. class, didn’t you? I’ve even ridden a motorcycle.”

“Perfect. If the phones catch fire tomorrow, you two will have to do deliveries too.”

“I hope that happens.”

Our first business area was the Professors’ Apartments, Military Apartments, and the Mansion Complex.

They were neighborhoods where the middle class or higher lived, and had many families, so the market potential was good.

I looked at them and said,

“Let’s start distributing pamphlets now. Seok‑gu, you take the Professors’ Apartments, I’ll take the Military Apartments, and Jeongseok, you handle the Mansions.”

“Why am I not going to the Military Apartments?”

“You live there. Wouldn’t it be embarrassing?”

“What are you talking about! Everyone knows my dad is a colonel. If I pass these out, they’ll probably order to look good in front of me!”

“You’re right. Then let’s switch.”

Ji Jeongseok had a confident look on his face.

We had now become a complete trio.

Suddenly, I became curious about why Jeongseok had gotten close to us.

“Jeongseok, I have a question.”

“What is it?”

“I’m curious why you tried to be friends with us.”

“Me too. You’re a rich kid. I still don’t get why you’d want to hang out with guys like us who live in illegal housing.”

“It’s simple. You two seemed really close, and I wanted to be part of that.”

“That’s it?”

“Yeah. You looked close enough to make me jealous.”

“Then we’re the eternal trio. Like a peach garden oath, right?”

Yang Seok‑gu looked at me for confirmation.

“Peach garden oath.”

“Same thing. Let’s make our own peach garden oath.”

“Alright.”

We stacked our hands and shouted “Fighting!”

In my second life, I was curious what kind of relationship I’d form with these guys, and how we’d all change in the future.

These were emotions I could never feel in my previous life.

Feeling these strange emotions one after another, I was changing.

The place I was in charge of was the Mansion.

This was a neighborhood where the middle class lived, and I was used to it from delivering milk here.

It was a five-story building with no elevator, so I kept running.

After finishing three buildings and moving to the next one—

Yikes!

I ran into Woo Ah‑mi.

“Oh?”

“Kang Cheonmyeong! What are you doing here?”

She looked at the bundle of pamphlets in my hand.

“Are you doing a part-time job passing out flyers?”

“Oh? Do you live here?”

“I just moved in recently. But what are you doing exactly?”

There was no need to lie to Woo Ah‑mi.

“I’m starting a small business.”

“A business?”

Woo Ah‑mi opened her eyes wide and snatched the pamphlet from my hand.

“What is this? Delivery Emperor? What’s this about?”

She flipped through the pages, checking restaurant names and menus.

“Is it delivery?”

“It’s a delivery service. When a restaurant gets an order, we send a delivery person.”

“This is a business? How do you make money?”

“Restaurants with low order volume can’t afford a delivery person. Paying a regular monthly salary is a burden.”

“True.”

“And if the delivery employee quits, it becomes a big headache for the owner.”

“Definitely.”

Woo Ah‑mi showed strong curiosity.

“That’s why this job is necessary.”

“But how do you make money?”

“For now, we won’t make any. But once it goes well, we’ll charge commission fees from the franchises and also from the delivery workers.”

Woo Ah‑mi stared at me.

“What?”

“You’re really unusual.”

“What is?”

“How are you still doing well in school?”

“I studied based on the textbook.”

“There you go again. That line’s not funny anymore.”

“It’s the truth.”

Woo Ah‑mi handed me the pamphlet and said,

“You should make the pamphlet prettier. Add food pictures too. It’s the color era now.”

“I made it like this because I didn’t have money, but next time I will.”

“If I order food from here, it’ll help you too, right?”

“Of course.”

“Then I’ll take one.”

Woo Ah‑mi stared at me for a while.

“What now?”

“Can you keep the promise you made with me? A student isn’t studying and keeps getting distracted.”

“I always keep my promises.”

“Really? Then let’s promise again.”

Woo Ah‑mi gave me a doubtful look and reached out her hand.

We hooked our pinkies and stamped it with our thumbs.

“If you break the promise, it’s over between you and me!”

“Huh?”

“Study hard.”

“Got it.”

The promise with Woo Ah‑mi was important, but I also had a mission to rebuild our household.

Seeing Woo Ah‑mi gave me strength.

Humming, I handed out the rest of the pamphlets.

Bicycles and motorcycles lined up in front of the carpentry shop.

There were five delivery workers in total.

They worked at Chinese restaurants and chicken shops.

These weren’t popular places, so they decided to do both jobs.

Each delivery person earned 10% of the sales.

If they delivered an 800‑won bowl of jajangmyeon, they earned 80 won, but if they delivered several, the profit increased. It was the same with other foods, so the delivery workers accepted the condition. The store owners also liked the setup since they didn’t have to pay a fixed salary, just 10% off sales.

10:30 a.m.

I waited by the phone.

Next to me were a local older girl, Ji Jeongseok, and Yang Seok‑gu.

Everyone was tense.

10:50 a.m.

Twenty minutes passed, but the phone didn’t ring.

Yang Seok‑gu grew worried.

“Lunchtime’s coming, and no one’s called.”

“It’s still a little early. Calls will come after 11.”

I hoped my words would become reality.

After 11, just as the mood was sinking—

Rrrring—

The phone rang.

I quickly picked up.

“Hello?”

— This is Haesan Chinese Restaurant. Please send a delivery person.

“Understood.”

I checked the location of Haesan Chinese Restaurant on the map on the desk.

Daerim‑dong.

I explained to the neighborhood girl sitting next to me.

“When a call comes, you check the restaurant’s location and tell the responsible delivery worker.”

“That doesn’t sound hard.”

“It’s not hard if the calls are spaced out, but if they keep coming, it gets confusing. We might even run short on delivery workers.”

“That would be a good thing, right?”

“Just watch carefully how I do it today.”

“Okay.”

Listening to our conversation, Yang Seok‑gu urged me.

“What are you doing? You need to inform the delivery guy!”

“Hold on.”

“Why?”

“If a nearby call comes in, they can go together. Cooking takes time anyway.”

“Wow! You’re right. Delivering several at once will save time.”

“At first, we’ll focus on areas around each restaurant, but if it gets busy, we’ll have to group by delivery location for efficiency.”

“Wow! You really are a genius.”

Like magic, the next call was also from Daerim‑dong.

I called the responsible delivery worker and emphasized the importance of good service.

“Mister, if you deliver the food with a bright smile, the customer will be happy too.”

“There you go again! My ears are going numb. Got it.”

He seemed satisfied since he was going to two places in one trip.

After sending off the first delivery worker,

Something amazing happened not long after.

As lunchtime approached, the phone started ringing off the hook.

Ji Jeongseok got excited.

“Cheonmyeong, we need another phone. The line’s on fire!”