Chapter 8

ⓒ Youngwan (映完)

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The atmosphere in the personnel department of Hyunjin Corporation was far from good.

"Isn't this going too far?"

At Oh Jae-joon's protest, Min Hong-gi, the head of the personnel department, frowned.

"That's true. But are you going to protest about it? Are you going to go to the vice president and say you can't get the documents approved?"

"Shouldn't I at least do that? Honestly, there are plenty of SKY University graduates who can't get their documents approved. Some people work their asses off to fill one line on their resume, studying for TOEIC, writing papers, and doing volunteer work, but this is just too much, isn't it?"

"Too much. It's too much."

"Then, should I go to the vice president…"

"What would you say to the vice president? Don't you know where this came from? The president directly assigned this to us. What do you think the vice president would say if you told him?"

"…"

Oh Jae-joon lowered his head without a word.

He had pushed the issue out of excitement, but upon reflection, he realized it was unreasonable.

Currently, the owner of Hyunjin Corporation was President Song Eun-chae. President Im Ji-hoon, who was originally the husband of President Song Eun-chae, had taken over the presidency due to his poor health.

Given the severity of his end-stage renal disease, no one thought President Im Ji-hoon would return, and no one questioned President Song Eun-chae's management of the company.

President Im Ji-hoon and President Song Eun-chae together owned more than 40% of the company's shares, so the possibility of any issues with management was minimal.

In this situation, when President Song Eun-chae instructed the personnel department to bring the resume of the applicant who applied to Hyunjin Life, the department was secretly curious about who the parachutist would be.

However, this seemed strange even for a parachutist.

"Perhaps the president is testing our loyalty?"

Oh Jae-joon's suspicion was not entirely unfounded.

In fact, Min Hong-gi immediately responded to Oh Jae-joon's suspicion.

"Testing us? Why?"

"Even though the president has taken control, Vice President Yang Cheol-gi is still very powerful, isn't he?"

"That's true."

Oh Jae-joon felt a surge of anger at Min Hong-gi's indecisive tone, "That's true," but he kept it to himself and continued.

"Is the president trying to check if you're on Vice President Yang's side?"

"But Vice President Yang's line is the Yonsei line. Is there anyone in our company who doesn't know that?"

"Still, the president might want to be sure."

"That's true. Anyway, don't report to the vice president and just approve it. Sometimes, I think we should be grateful that our company doesn't have an entrance exam."

"Since the president will conduct the interview personally, won't he find out during the interview?"

"Wait, does the president know the state of the resume and still want to approve it? Or, if he sees the resume and is shocked, and then calls me, we're both in trouble."

"Surely not…"

"Damn, it's chilling."

Min Hong-gi shivered as if he had a chill.

No matter how he thought about it, he felt he needed to confirm.

"How do you plan to handle this?"

"I need to check with the president again. This isn't about defying the president but just double-checking. There shouldn't be any problem."

Although he was speaking to Oh Jae-joon, Min Hong-gi felt he was making a commitment to himself.

After wandering with the resume for a while, Min Hong-gi finally knocked on the president's door.

"What is it?"

Min Hong-gi had only had a private meeting with the president once since joining the company.

That's why he was extremely nervous, and his tension was clearly felt by President Song.

"I came to report on the person you mentioned, Choi Young-hoon."

"Choi Young-hoon? Who is that?"

Min Hong-gi realized he would have been in trouble if he hadn't come.

Despite the cold sweat running down his back, he felt relieved and quickly responded.

"Previously, the applicant who applied to Hyunjin Life…"

"Oh, I remember. Yes, why?"

"The resume seems a bit strange. There's nothing recorded except for the photo, name, and address…"

Min Hong-gi handed the resume to President Song.

President Song Eun-chae didn't understand what Min Hong-gi was saying until she saw the blank resume, which was almost like a blank sheet of paper.

"Oh my. Hahaha!"

Was it because it was too absurd?

President Song Eun-chae covered her mouth with the resume and burst into laughter.

Min Hong-gi, unsure whether to laugh or not, just watched until President Song stopped laughing and then asked.

"Is this the right person?"

"Yes, it's the right person. The address is also correct, Goseong, Gyeongsangnam-do."

Young-hoon couldn't register his address at the boarding house, so he used the address of his original home in Goseong, Gyeongsangnam-do.

"Should we approve it as is?"

President Song Eun-chae thought for a moment.

She had expected him to be lacking, but she didn't think he would be this level of candidate.

Even as the president, if she approved such a candidate at the interview, she would lose the trust of the executives.

"Bring him to me on the interview day. Don't tell anyone else."

Min Hong-gi sensed the firmness in President Song's tone.

This matter was to be kept a secret within the personnel department.

"Understood. The information about this person will not leave the personnel department. How about the 5th floor of the old building?"

The new building was where Vice President Yang Cheol-gi was, and the interview was also to be held there, so Min Hong-gi intended to bring him to a different location.

"That's good."

President Song Eun-chae smiled in satisfaction.

*

Young-hoon didn't feel happy at all when he received a text message saying he had passed the document screening and was invited for an interview.

He didn't think they would reject him at the document stage for a job in insurance sales.

Even Jeong Bosal, who had farmed all her life, started insurance sales after turning fifty, so he was confident he wouldn't be rejected.

The only thing that puzzled him was the 5 PM interview time.

"Why is the interview so late?"

Although puzzled, he thought there must be a reason and only had his suit tailored to fit him, which he had bought in Dongdaemun.

Four days after receiving the text message, he arrived at the headquarters of Hyunjin Group in Euljiro, Jongno-gu.

"Wow…"

Such a large building.

Standing in front of the large building in the heart of Seoul, he realized once again how different his life in a mountain temple was from the secular world.

Walking confidently into the headquarters, he saw security guards and beautiful receptionists, whom he had only seen on TV.

Young-hoon walked up confidently and said,

"I'm here for the interview."

The female receptionist looked surprised.

"Interview? Now?"

"Yes, they said to come by 5 PM."

"Isn't there some mistake? The interviews started at 9 AM, and it's not here but in the new building…"

Suddenly, he had a feeling something was wrong.

He even thought someone might be playing a prank on him when someone hurriedly approached him.

"Are you Choi Young-hoon?"

Turning his head, he saw a muscular man panting.

The employee badge around his neck confirmed he was an employee here.

"Yes, that's me. I'm here for the interview."

"I've been waiting for you. Please follow me."

"Okay."

As he followed the man, he saw the female receptionist tilting her head in confusion.

Although he sensed something was off, he didn't think anyone was trying to scam him, so he followed silently.

They went deep into the 5th floor of the building, which was strangely quiet with no one in sight.

"Here we are. You're the only one for the interview. Please be careful with your words and actions as you're meeting the president. Good luck."

The man gestured for Young-hoon to open the door and go in.

The mention of the president confirmed that something was wrong.

"Thank you."

Young-hoon opened the door and saw a middle-aged woman standing straight and looking at him intently.

Although it was different from what he had expected, he knew how to handle the interview.

"Hello, my name is Choi Young-hoon."

"Please sit."

She gestured to the single chair in front of her.

As Young-hoon sat down cautiously, she asked,

"You must have noticed that the interview atmosphere is unusual, right?"

"Yes, I heard it's the president."

"That's right. I called you separately on the recommendation of President Song Byung-chang of Myeongil Finance."

"Oh, I see."

"First, I want to clarify that this isn't an interview for Hyunjin Life. Our company is Hyunjin Corporation, and you are currently in the public recruitment interview for Hyunjin Corporation. President Song thought highly of your abilities, so he arranged a separate interview. Don't be nervous. If we don't think your skills are needed here, we'll send you to Hyunjin Life, which is a good company. Don't worry."

The reason he wanted to work in insurance sales was not only because he thought it suited him but also because he was aware that he didn't have a good university degree or various qualifications and language skills.

He didn't know exactly what Hyunjin Corporation did, but he knew that to work for a large corporation like this, one needed considerable qualifications.

"Is it possible for me? As I wrote in my resume, I have nothing…"

"I know. That's why I arranged this separate interview. Now, let's stop the unnecessary talk and start the interview. What are you good at?"

"Excuse me?"

"From your resume, it says you studied in a temple all your life. If you just played around while others were studying hard in school, there would be no reason for the company to hire you."

President Song Byung-chang must have praised him too much.

He was grateful but a bit uncomfortable.

Although the comment poked at his pride, he didn't feel bad; it just made him feel uneasy.

"From your resume, it says you want to be a good employee. So, show me why you're better than other applicants."

He realized he didn't need to force an answer.

"I'm good at reading people."

"Good at reading people?"

"Yes, I'm quite good at reading people."