[Where are you now? It’s a bit noisy around you.]

Seung Jun’s voice was heard again.

“Oh, no. No, it’s not.”

Shin Young’s mother quickly came out of the kindergarten. She had to be on her best behavior for Han Seung Jun, the Vice President, even if it meant begging.

Wasn’t he the one who held the lifeline for her and her husband?

“I’m sorry, Vice President. I did receive my husband’s call earlier. My husband is good at his job, but his personality is like that. I don’t know what upset you, but I would appreciate it if you could generously forgive him.”

Shin Young’s mother pleaded with Seung Jun as if she had become a different person. Seung Jun laughed lightly.

[Ah, it’s not that I was upset. It seems you don’t know why it turned out that way.]

“Then, could it be because of me at Gold Land… Oh, I was actually going to apologize separately for that, but I didn’t know what to do. If possible, I will meet the employees again and apologize to them.”

[What’s the point of doing that now. Let’s forget about that.]

But this man. Somehow his voice and way of speaking seemed familiar.

It’s strange. How do I know Vice President Han Seung Jun? Isn’t he someone from a different class than us?

[Actually, I called to express my gratitude. Thanks to that, we found evidence of illegal lobbying between our employee and President Bang Doo Sik a few years ago. Thank you.]

His tone was so calm that it sounded to Shin Young’s mother like he was genuinely expressing gratitude.

“Oh, no, Vice President.”

[And it seems the child takes after the parents. I heard Shin Young hit our Yu Min last time. She threw a robot at him.]

Only then did Shin Young’s mother realize who the other person was.

That man who suddenly appeared and gave her Gold Land tickets, and the man who repeatedly showed up and caused trouble.

“You, could it be…”

[And she spread very bad rumors about me too. You are quite vicious in many ways. I wonder why you live with such a mean spirit. Now I even feel sorry for you.]

“No, this can’t be. So you deliberately gave the Gold Land tickets? To lure us into a trap?”

[Well, I gave them so that Shin Young could get along well with Yu Min. Is that how you think of it? What trap? You were the one who got angry. You cursed in a way I’ve never heard before in my life.]

Shin Young’s mother felt like her mind was in a mess.

To think that the JK Group Vice President, whom she had to impress no matter what, was that man. And that he had that kind of relationship with Yu Min’s mother. How could such a thing happen in this world?

This doesn’t make sense. Why is the world doing this to me? What did I do so wrong?

[I investigated, and it seems you’ll be having a hard time soon. The house you’re living in now belongs to someone else. If you don’t know, you should look into it now. It looks like you’ll be out on the streets soon due to reckless business expansion.]

“What, what did you say?”

[I’m busy, so I’ll hang up now.]

Even after hanging up, Shin Young’s mother couldn’t come to her senses.

It was shocking that the man was the JK Group Vice President, and it was also unbelievable that the house she was living in belonged to someone else.

‘That can’t be. This doesn’t make sense.’

Her legs felt weak.

When she went back into the kindergarten, Seol Ah was talking to Yoon Sung’s mother. Shin Young’s mother approached Seol Ah and dragged her away.

“Let’s talk for a moment.”

“What is it this time?”

“Do, do you know Vice President Han Seung Jun?”

Surprised by those words, Seol Ah quickly went outside the kindergarten with Shin Young’s mother. How did she find out?

Facing each other, Shin Young’s mother read the answer from Seol Ah’s surprised face. That man, Han Seung Jun, was really the Vice President.

“How do you know a man like that? Were you really his mistress?”

At the mocking words with one corner of her mouth raised, Seol Ah’s brow furrowed.

“Shut up.”

“What did you say?”

“If you keep spouting nonsense about mistresses one more time, a slap in the face won’t be the end of it. I’ll make sure you can’t walk around with a proper face.”

Perhaps it was because Seol Ah’s attitude had turned cold like never before, or perhaps it was the shock of realizing that man was really Han Seung Jun. Shin Young’s mother looked at Seol Ah with blank eyes and lowered her gaze.

“No, I… I really can’t believe it, I…”

Shin Young’s mother was sobbing before she knew it.

“The director is waiting, so let’s go in and talk.”

As Seol Ah turned to leave, Shin Young’s mother spoke again.

“I’m sorry.”

Seol Ah stopped in her tracks.

“I’m sorry, we’re already ruined. The house is not ours anymore. The company is bankrupt, and we’ll be kicked out of the kindergarten soon. What are we going to do now?”

Thick tears were flowing from Shin Young’s eyes.

Seol Ah shrank back, feeling an eerie sensation. Why is she suddenly acting like this?

“Please don’t do this to me. Go inside quickly.”

As she tried to leave again, Shin Young’s mother grabbed the hem of Seol Ah’s clothes.

“I didn’t know better. I’m sorry. Please save me. What are we going to do now? If the company goes bankrupt and we have nowhere to live, what are we going to do!”

Shin Young’s mother suddenly knelt on the floor. Seol Ah, startled, took Yu Min and left without a word.

The director who followed helped Shin Young’s mother up.

“Ma’am, why are you doing this here? Let’s go inside and talk.”

“I’m begging! I’m begging Yu Min’s mother! Waaaaah, I’m begging so desperately!”

The director was also at a loss on how to deal with the thrashing Shin Young’s mother. But she couldn’t just leave her like that in front of the kindergarten.

The children were frightened, and the mothers who came to pick them up were also startled.

With no choice, the police were called, and Shin Young’s mother was forcibly put into a police car.

Seol Ah and Yu Min saw the police car pass by on their way home. Shin Young’s mother could be seen crying through the car window.

Seol Ah turned her head to the other side, feeling uneasy.

*

“The child’s mother and the father, there’s not a single decent person.”

Seung Jun bit his lip tightly and took a deep breath.

Upon investigation, it was found that Bang Doo Sik couldn’t let go of his greed and recklessly expanded his business. He even took out loans using his decent house as collateral.

While supplying products to JK’s headquarters, he constantly engaged in irregularities. When replacing filters, he deliberately used low-grade products, and when products were broken, he deliberately disposed of them after repair and pretended to buy them again to pocket the money.

If he kept working that way, it was bound to be exposed someday.

Seung Jun closed his eyes tightly. As he rubbed his aching temples, there was a knock on the door.

“Yes, come in.”

The person who opened the door after hearing his voice was Director Nam. His expression didn’t look good.

“Vice President.”

Hearing the sorrowful voice, Seung Jun sensed that something had happened.

“What is it?”

“She, she left again.”

He didn’t need an explanation to know who had left. It was the fourth time this year. The youngest secretary had left. This time, it hadn’t even been a full month.

“What do you mean she left? She was fine just this morning.”

“When she didn’t come back after lunchtime, I called her, but her phone was turned off. And an hour later, this message…”

Seung Jun’s brow narrowed as he looked at the cell phone Director Nam handed him.

− I’m in too much pain. I’ll come after I give birth to everything.

“What, give birth to what? Is she pregnant or something?”

It was absurd that she left with just one message, and her spelling was a mess until the end. This youngest secretary kept making spelling mistakes, to the point where Seung Jun had specially called her and gifted her a thick spelling book.

But it seemed she hadn’t even looked at that book.

“There’s work piling up right now, and we don’t have the luxury of spending time on recruitment again. How about we quickly hire people who can manage for the short term, even if it’s just temporary? Even if we have to hire full-time employees again later.”

Director Nam was also exhausted from letting go of four employees in a year. Every time a new person came, they had to teach them the work and get them adapted, but then they would leave, and it was a repetitive cycle. It was about time he got tired of it.

“Director Nam, don’t you have any diligent people around you? I don’t need anything else, just someone who will learn the work persistently.”

“I don’t really have anyone around me like that.”

“I see. Around me…”

As Seung Jun sat with his fingers interlocked, deep in thought, a person’s face came to his mind.

“There is one person.”

“Is that so? Who is it? We don’t need anything else, just someone who is quiet, diligent, and has a strong sense of responsibility to not quit quickly.”

At the mention of responsibility, the corners of Seung Jun’s mouth curved up softly.

“Responsibility. That person has a very strong sense of responsibility. Quiet and diligent too. They may be lacking in other aspects, but…”

“Then that’s fine. I will do my best to teach them somehow.”

They have a personality that learns well too.

Seung Jun nodded. He picked up his cell phone.

After a few rings, the sound of someone answering could be heard.

[Yes, elder brother, what is it?]

Jin Cheol’s voice was innocent as always.

*

“Shin Young quit the kindergarten?”

The next day, Seol Ah, who had dropped off Yu Min, went to the director’s room after being told she wanted to talk for a moment and heard unexpected news.

“Yes. Yesterday, I was a bit concerned about having to call the police. So when I called, that’s what they told me.”

This kindergarten had a long waiting list and was also popular in the area.

It must have been difficult for Shin Young’s mother to get in too.

“They said they are moving.”

“Moving?”

“Yes. They said that was the plan, so they withdrew. Anyway, you don’t have to worry anymore. Shin Young won’t be coming from today.”

Seol Ah nodded her head, feeling uneasy.

It was fortunate if it was, but she still didn’t feel very good about it.

‘Could it be that the Vice President contacted them?’

There was a huge difference in Shin Young’s mother’s attitude before and after receiving the call yesterday. It was also strange that she suddenly found out Seung Jun’s identity.

Then, could it really be…

After leaving the kindergarten, Seol Ah took out her cell phone. Should she call?

Seol Ah pondered for a moment but eventually put the phone back in her pocket. I know my own heart. I’m just trying to use this as an excuse to talk to him.

It was humiliating and miserable. Her heart had turned towards him again without her realizing it. This situation where she thought of him from time to time.

There would be no reason to call first or ask for anything now. That’s how it should be. Because she wasn’t alone. If she made a mistake, Yu Min would also receive an indelible wound.

That was unacceptable.

Seol Ah steeled her resolve.

However, that afternoon, due to a completely unexpected incident, she had no choice but to break her will in the end.

[I’m sorry, Yu Min’s mother. Who would have thought the boiler would burst like this and leak water? It seems like your house will be unusable for the time being.]

It was after receiving a call from the landlord.