chapter 27
27. Where is such a place in the world?
“My mom’s cheonggukjang is the best!”
“Hoho! Eat up!”
My mom’s cheonggukjang was amazing.
I couldn’t get enough of it.
Jenny, who is in charge of the kitchen in our LA home, is a great cook and can make almost any Korean dish, so I’ve never had a hard time with food, but cheonggukjang is the only forbidden food she hasn’t tried.
He’s the only one who hasn’t been able to eat the forbidden food, because he’s not cool with it and he asks Jenny to do it, and then George and John and Jennifer all run out of the house.
George says, “Dead body soup?
No, it’s a way of saying it, it’s a dead body soup.
Funnily enough, George’s description was surprisingly accurate.
When I looked up what people call cheonggukjang overseas, I found that it’s mostly called dead body soup or corpse soup.
I couldn’t believe it because the smell of cheonggukjang is similar to the smell of a decomposing corpse.
Of course, some people, even Koreans, are offended by the smell, so I didn’t blame them.
Anyway, after that, I didn’t dare to ask for it.
I’m a trillionaire now, but I never thought I’d feel this much happiness over my favorite cheonggukjang.
Why does it taste so good?
In the evening, Dad and I started drinking soju together.
“Kya! It’s good!”
“You’re getting used to the taste of this shochu, aren’t you? It’s good! It’s been a long time since I drank it with my son. hahahahaha!”
“Hmph!”
“By the way, aren’t you used to drinking soju in the U.S.? You can get soju in the U.S., right?”
Of course, there are very few countries in the world that don’t sell soju.
Especially in the United States.
It’s just expensive.
“Why wouldn’t they? Of course they sell it. I have a whole case at home.”
“And?”
“Well, I don’t get to drink it as much as I thought I would. I’m surrounded by Americans, so I don’t get to drink it as much. I usually just sip beer in my day-to-day life, and if I really drink it right, I’ll eat it.”
“I do. By the way, is your job paying well?”
“Yeah, I’ll never have to worry about money in my life, so don’t worry about it.”
“Hmph, that’s good to hear.”
“What about Dad, he’s not working?”
“You told me to take it easy for a while, so I’m playing. But I’m getting a little tired of playing this after a day or two.”
“Really?”
Dad was adamant about not working for a while.
I thought he’d been very lucky until he rolled in his warranty a decade ago.
It’s a good thing he’s so hip and he’s so smart and he’s so conscientious, or he’d have gotten caught giving it away a long time ago.
Dad is that kind of person by nature.
This kind of person shouldn’t be in business.
The business should be run by someone like Mr. Hong of Daesung Apparel, the company I worked for.
He’s a little too much.
“Yeah, you’re giving me 10 million won a month, so I can meet my friends, buy alcohol, and play golf again without any worries, but I don’t think I’m old enough to play yet, because I have nowhere to go when I wake up in the morning.”
“Hagi, you’ve been busy all your life.”
“So when you come back, we’ll talk about it, and I’m thinking about getting a job somewhere.”
“Why don’t you come for a few days?”
“A few days?”
“I’ll find you a position that’s perfect for you, just wait.”
“Huh? Perfect for my aptitude? What is my aptitude?”
“You like to help others, don’t you?”
“…”
Dad was speechless for a moment.
He had just dragged his family through hell.
“I don’t mean to bring up old wounds, Dad, but you know you really shouldn’t be in business, right?”
“I know, dude!”
“So, since you like to help other people and spread the word and stuff, I’m gonna find you a job. This son of yours.”
“Where in the world is such a job?”
“Wait till you see, I’m going to create one for you, my talented son. Really, Dad, would you like it?”
“Why?”
“Because you have a talented son-in-law like me? I wish I had a son like me.”
“Phew!”
“Hmph!”
The next morning, I headed to Parkdal-dong, Anyang-si.
To a newly built nursery school that I had just moved into.
“Wow, it’s nice!”
This is how I felt when I saw the new nursery school.
The location was right next to a university building in Parkdal-dong, so I didn’t have to worry about any opposition from the neighbors, and there were plenty of parks around.
First of all, the site was 700 pyeong, but when I asked how they bought such a large land for 6 billion won, they said it was a restricted development area.
“No, Ki-dong, how can you buy such a big land? Even if it’s a restricted area?”
I didn’t understand.
It was just a few steps away from Seoul.
“What do you think those buildings are?”
“Those big buildings?”
“Yeah.”
“Isn’t that a university?”
“Puh-ha-ha! I knew it.”
“Huh?”
“Those are the buildings of a company I used to work for.”
“Huh? Where’s the company you had a relationship with? It’s a company that sent you to work for—. What?”
“That’s right, the company that was near the Supreme Court in Seocho-dong relocated here, so the whole area is owned by the Ministry of Defense.”
“Aha! So it’s a restricted development zone?”
“That’s right, the land here was owned by a horse, and it was originally owned by the Army Corps of Engineers and two reserve training grounds, so it can’t be developed in the first place. When we moved the company, there was a lot of opposition.”
“Phew!”
This makes sense.
“They can’t build anything here.
At least it’s a nursery school welfare facility, and Mr. Kim had a hand in making it happen.
“What about the building? That doesn’t look like something you could build with the 4 billion you told me about.”
“Well, I used a little bit of my own strength, and I also had some warmth from various places, so I built it for almost half the price.”
“What kind of power do you have?”
“This bastard looks down on people, doesn’t he?”
“Isn’t it true?”
“sh*t! Hum, actually, as soon as I realized the land was here, I went to the head of the company.”
“So?”
“So what? Since I’m about to do this holy deed, I asked him to help me.”
“Help with what?”
“Well, if you go over by Early, there’s another Corps of Engineers there.”
“Aha! I see!”
“So I went down there with the chief and begged him, and the Corps of Engineers did all the clearing and grading, and I saved a lot of money there, and then when I tried to do it, something happened.”
“What happened?”
“Do you know who built this?”
“Who?”
“It was done by Park Sang-hwan for almost nothing.”
“Who? Park Sang-hwan? The same Park Sang-hwan I know? The thug chairman?”
“Yeah, man.”
Wow, what’s going on?
That thug did this for free?
“Really? How?”
“I’m looking for a contractor, and he shows up at the nursery one day. I signal him and I’m super nervous, and he looks at the facility and he’s like, “Do all nurseries look like this these days?”
“Really?”
“Yeah,” he said, “I’m moving to Parkdal-dong, and he’s building a new nursery school, and he’ll do it for free. He said that freebies are too much of a burden.”
“What’s the matter? Is he a thug?”
“No, he’s not a genius, but he said he was in a daycare center for a while when he was growing up. Anyway, he said he was leaving for his own company, so he wasn’t too happy about it.”
“Can I believe that?”
I’m the kind of person who believes people never change.
“Well, I’m not sure I believe it 100%, but I think there was a little bit of that. Plus, he said his company does good work, and he’d use it to promote his company’s image instead of paying for it.”
“Hmph, and while you’re at it, did you get everything you needed?”
“But where’s the fun in that? We told them they could use it however they wanted, and we invited reporters to pose with Mr. Zhang with a big smile on their faces, so that’s what happened. Later, the site director told me that they lost some money.”
“It’s not a loss if you use it for publicity, right?”
“Maybe in the long run. Anyway, that’s why it only cost 4 billion. You gave me 10 billion, so I’ve got almost 3 billion left over from the land sale.”
Well, that’s something to live up to, getting all your help from a thug.
I guess he’s not a total asshole after all.
If I ever see him again, I’ll have to call him Mr. Chairman.
“Well, good job, Mr. Kidong.”
When I got inside, Mr. Zhang greeted me and showed me around.
“hahahaha! Isn’t it great? Before, it was cramped even for 50 people, but now it’s spacious and comfortable for more than 100 people.”
“I see.”
The new nursery school is really well built.
In order to make it easier for the children to study when they move up to high school, the principle of one room for two people was adopted, and the facilities were excellent, with separate computer labs and study rooms.
What’s impressive is that the children who graduated from high school were given small, single-occupancy rooms so that they wouldn’t be thrown out of society immediately.
“These kids had their own rooms for the first time in their lives, and they loved it.”
“Was it mandatory for them to leave?”
“When they turn 18, their government funding just stops. In other words, don’t keep them.”
“So how are the kids who leave supposed to live?”
“It depends on the local government, but they get a lump sum of about 500,000 won and a monthly subsidy of 200,000 to 300,000 won for three years.”
“How are they supposed to live with that?”
How are they supposed to live with 5 million won in today’s world?
I think they’ll be fine after paying a few months’ rent and eating?
“Well, that’s why we have about 2,500 people falling through the cracks every year, and one in four will be on welfare within six months, so they’re often tempted to turn to crime.”
“Wow, our country really has a long way to go, doesn’t it?”
“Who doesn’t? But at least we’re getting our kids ready to go out into the world, and that’s a good thing, and it’s all thanks to Siju. Thank you.”
“It’s a shame that this is all they can afford.”
“Yes, it is.”
I realized that I had to be really diligent about earning money.
“Can I have a word with you, Mr. Maneuver and Mr. Signal?”
“Yeah, sure.”
A few moments later, the four of us sat down in the director’s office.
“First of all, my brothers had a hard time.”
“Oh, it was hard work, but it was also very rewarding.”
“Anyway, you should get out of here and get ready to come to the U.S. You’ve been studying English, right?”
“We’ve been in the army for a while, so we’ve been studying hard, but what are we going to do?”
“We’re going to leave it with my dad. He’s always liked to help people, and he’s got a lot of social experience, so he’ll be perfect.”
“Oh, I see.”
I was worried that my dad would be in charge of the nursery, but when the director said that he was, everyone was relieved.
“Also, I’m thinking of setting up a separate welfare foundation to do childcare-related work.”
“Separately?”
“Yes, Yang Hye-won’s not the only one with a nursery, so I’m thinking of expanding it a little bit, even if it’s not possible to take care of all of them, so I’m thinking of putting Yang Hye-won’s under the umbrella of the new welfare foundation. Do you think that’s okay?”
“hahahahaha! Ouch! Of course! I’ll file a complaint!”
“Thank you, Mother Superior.”
“I should be the one thanking you, hahahaha!”
It must be good for Director Zhang to continue to have my support.
He is indeed a good man.
“And, Mr. Kidong?”
“Uh-huh.”
“There’s quite a bit of land next to here, is it also the Ministry of Defense land?”
“Yes, it’s Ministry of Defense land. It’s about 1,500 square meters.”
“I need you to find out how I can get that for cheap. I think this is my brother’s last job in Korea.”
“I don’t know, I could look into it, but I think it would be pretty difficult.”
“Do what you can. I’m going to meet with a very prominent gentleman later and ask him to help me.”
“Really? If you work on it from above, we might have a chance, but what about the land?”
“To build a bigger house for the kids. From what you said earlier, it sounds like the most urgent need is for kids who turn 18 and get thrown out into society.”
“Exactly!”
“I see your point, but even if I can get the land cheap, the construction costs won’t be cheap, and I have to think about the running costs, too. Are you sure you’re okay with that?”
“Don’t worry about the money. I’ve already made another big profit for the year.”
“hahahahaha! I’m glad to hear that.”
“This place is perfect. It’s close to Anyang Station, and there are a lot of military bases, so I don’t think there will be too much opposition from the neighbors. Besides, when I looked at the navigation system on the way here, I didn’t see any schools nearby. There are regular elementary, middle, and high schools, an art school, and even a university, right?”
“That’s right, it’s a military base.”
With all due respect to the locals, there really is no other place like it.
Seoul is so big, the traffic isn’t bad, and there are plenty of parks and civic amenities to compensate the locals for the military presence.
“I think you should think about how you’re going to run things, and I’ll introduce you to your father slowly, so you can prepare together.”
“Thank you.”
With that, I went to meet the one person who would help me establish and run the foundation.
Prof. Jang Young-dong.
A tycoon who was a Supreme Court judge until just a few years ago.
He was introduced to me by Jeffrey, who told me that he was his cousin Dangsuk, and that he had decided not to practice law after becoming a Supreme Court justice.
If he did, he wouldn’t be making $10 billion a year.
Since he was always interested in helping people in need, he said that he would contact me if I told him that I was establishing a foundation, saying that it would be helpful.
So, I went to the professor’s office at the school.