chapter 50

when Ha Jin-seong was half-lying on his chair, gazing at the ceiling. The noise from outside grew louder, and then the door swung open.

"If you barge in so recklessly, sir..."

"I said I had something to say."

"Still, you should follow the proper procedures."

Ha Min-hyuk let the secretary's words flow through one ear. Right now, the most important thing was to see Ha Jin-seong.

"Leave us."

Ha Jin-seong took charge of the situation. He gestured for the secretary to leave and pointed to a chair for the visibly excited Ha Min-hyuk.

"You seem to have a lot to say. Go ahead."

"Why did you do that?"

Neither Ha Jin-seong nor Ha Min-hyuk cared about treating each other according to their respective positions within the company. Right now, they were more interested in having a more engaging conversation.

"Last time, you came as an observer, so what about this time? Why did Hyung go as the representative for the bid?"

"I haven't heard that 'Hyung' sound for a long time."

Ha Jin-seong playfully responded to Ha Min-hyuk's words. Normally, just seeing Ha Minhyuk would irritate him, but now he felt like laughter was bubbling up uncontrollably.

I should have done this from the beginning. Ha Min-hyuk was going wild in a much more satisfying way than openly ignoring and tormenting him.

Ha Jin-seong forced a smile and looked at his stepbrother.

"What's so great about having brothers? Give me this project."

"...What?" Ha Min-hyuk wa s suprised for a moment.

"If it's about results, I'll give you something even bigger. So hand this over to me."

Ha Jin-seong hadn't interfered with this project. Through Ha Jin-woong, he had assigned other tasks to the people he had gathered. And he even went as far as to be affectionate towards Ha Min-hyuk, so it seemed like Ha jin-seong had become sentimental overnight, but that wasn't the case.

"I've met someone important through that, someone I should meet often."

Ha Jin-seong gently adjusted his tone, lifting Ha Min-hyuk's spirits.

Ha Min-hyuk couldn't say a word in the face of Ha Jin-seong's newfound tenderness, which he hadn't seen in him

just a few days ago.

Shouldn't ha jin-seong be uncomfortable from the moment I came here? And on top of sending his secretary away, he keeps laughing. Instead of the disdainful gaze that used to suspect my lineage and look down on me, now he's filled with joy.

Seeing Ha Jin-seong's drastically changed smiling face, Ha Min-hyuk wiped his arm against his forehead. He felt a shiver run down his spine, which he suppressed, but suddenly he remembered the reason why Ha Jin-seong was behaving like this.

"..No way!"

Ha Min-hyuk looked at Ha Jin-seong with an anxious expression.

"That's right. I have an interest."

In that instant, the face of a certain person appeared in his mind.

"He's someone who wouldn't even flinch at being scouted, so I wanted to observe him up close. I'll give him enough reason to be mine"

Ha Jin-seong spoke in the same tender tone he used with his younger brother, Ha Jin-woong.

"So, be accommodating. Since we're the brothers who will lead this company in the future, it's something you can give to this older brother, right?"

He never treated Ha Min-hyuk like a younger brother.

This was suspicious to the point where it wouldn't be surprising if it was meant to put Ha Min-hyuk at ease and then strike him unexpectedly.

"Don't look at me like that. This time, I'm being very generous and accepting you."

Still unable to dispel Ha Min-hyuk's suspicions, Ha Jin-seong pondered on what to do. Then suddenly, he noticed an invitation card placed to the side and suggested.

"Let's go there together."

***

Shin Tae-oh temporarily postponed his meeting with Seongha Interior. It was a bit

disappointing that one appointment had gotten messed up, and there was no guarantee of the next one.

So Se-hyeon came alone to the Seongha Interior office. Just as he arrived, Secretary Han Jeong-hwa, who had been waiting, called the CEO.

"CEO Park Ha-seong is here."

A man as tall as Shin Tae-oh, with a sturdy physique, came out. To be honest, at first glance, he seemed more inclined towards sports than artistic sensibilities. In particular, his double eyelids left quite an impression.

"I'm Ahn Se-hyeon."

"Please come this way."

As Se-hyeon followed Park Ha-seong's guidance and entered, he couldn't take his eyes off his back. No, he could only see his back. It was so broad that it covered everything else.

He was someone who gave me a strong first impression, something I had never experienced before while comparing it to the original work.

Park Ha-seong was a person who wasn't even mentioned by name in the original work. I've seen many people so far. Among them were well-known figures like Ha Min-hyuk and Yoo Jin-ha, but there were also many people like Park Ha-seong who were not famous.

So why did I think of the original work when looking at Park Ha-seong? It was because of his presence.

Even with such a strong presence, he doesn't even have a single line in the actual work. That was fascinating, which made me stare at Park Ha-seong even more intently.

"I was curious about why SR Construction sought me out in the first place."

As Park Ha-seong spoke, Se-hyeon's gaze lightly scanned the surroundings and returned.

Curious about why they sought him out... It wouldn't be completely unfounded.

There were quite a few business cards from various construction companies around him at the moment.

"The CEO has taken notice of your artistic results."

Regardless of how Park Ha-seong appeared, Se-hyeon could only honestly respond.

"However, I couldn't keep my promise to the CEO," Park Ha-seong said, looking somewhat apologetic. He readily admitted his mistake, and observing him at that moment, Se-hyeon couldn't help but feel a slight concern about his innocence and whether he was suited for business.

If he presents himself like this...

"How would someone like me be able to influence CEO Shin Tae-oh?

"I believe there will be another opportunity for you. The CEO was deeply impressed by the recent yacht interior you designed."

"How did he come to see it? That's correct."

Seeing Park Ha-seong reflecting on his words, Se-hyeon realized that it was a wise decision to gather information before coming.

By establishing this connection now, he could arrange a meeting when Shin Tae-oh visits next time. That's precisely the role of a secretary—to preemptively smooth out any tasks or requests that the superior desires.

With the sudden occurrence of the Consortium event, Se-hyeon felt the need to prepare a wider range of options in advance.

"While I was considering if there was anything else, I happened to come across this opportunity."

"That's exactly what our CEO is looking for. He wants to move away from uniform houses and seek individuality."

Se-hyeon enthusiastically played along and lifted Park Ha-seong's spirits.

"After hearing you say that, I really want to meet him in person. By the way, I recently took charge of a project, would you like to take a look?"

Se-hyeon nodded, showing his interest.

"I put a lot of effort into the place we chose to host the party this time. The goal was to create a feeling that hasn't been seen before while not drastically altering the existing structure."

Park Ha-seong showed Se-hyeon the photos on his tablet.

"It's certainly different from ordinary parties."

"Yes, we divided the space and decorated each section with a unique concept."

Se-hyeon carefully examined each photo and listened attentively to Park Ha-seong's

explanations. After all, this is the venue for the upcoming party, and he the one who

designed it like this.

"I've seen it well. Here's my business card."

Having met the CEO and handed over his business card, Se-hyeon stood up from his seat.

"Are you leaving now?"

"Yes."

"But it seems like we only exchanged greetings?"

"Ah..."

Se-hyeon understood the reason behind Park Ha-seong's confusion and kindly explained further.

"I came here just to exchange greetings. If there is anything to discuss, it would be conveyed by the CEO's instructions."

Se-hyeon felt regretful that he wasn't able to saw park Ha-seong's face last time he came.

"Then, I'll see you again."

As Se-hyeon turned around, he had a satisfied expression on his face.

When Tae-nyang mentions Seong-ha, I should connect them right away.

***

Upon returning to the office, Se-hyeon walked with heavy steps upon hearing that Lee Jin-ho was looking for him.

'It's suspicious. Should I not go?'

For a moment, se-hyeon had the impulse to pretend he didn't notice and pass by, but he quickly dismissed the thought. He had to go since he was calling him from above.

"Come on in."

He approached cautiously, wary of Lee Jin-ho's warm greeting. Lee Jin-ho had always been kind to him. But when he approached with that smile, he knew there was something more.

"I won't be able to take on any additional tasks this week."

Being Shin Tae-oh's personal secretary already kept him busy enough. On top of that, he had other tasks to handle, so he felt uneasy when Lee Jin-ho approached him with a smile.

"Don't worry about that. I'll take care of it."

Just as he suspected, Lee Jin-ho wanted to assign him some work.

"What is it?"

Even if Se-hyeon didn't want to, he quickly gave up because it seemed like he had to take it on anyway.

"Here's an invitation."

Lee Jin-ho handed it over with a knowing smile, as if he expected Se-hyeon to accept it. Sehyeon took the invitation and quickly scanned its contents. He understood that it was a sudden event.

"Ah!"

As soon as he saw where it came from, he nodded immediately.

A charity party.

"You can attend with the CEO."

"Ah... It's not the Chief, but me?"

"I wish it were me, but the CEO hasn't been in a good mood lately."

Se-hyeon subtly nodded. Shin Tae-oh's mood hasn't been great lately, to begin with. He couldn't pinpoint the exact reason, but he knew when it started.

When Se-hyeon handed over the "gift" to Yoo Jin-ha. After that, a weekend had passed, and Shin Tae-oh remained the same.

"Let's start with this."

Se-hyeon waved the invitation to shift the conversation to Shin Tae-oh.

It was a VIP-exclusive private party, and not only Shin Tae-oh but also Ha Min-hyuk and Ha Jin-seong would be attending.

What Will happen during this time?

According to the novel, throughout the party, Ha Jin-seong immediately approached Yoo Jin-ha and clashed with Ha Min-hyuk, with Shin Tae-oh getting involved as well. It was literally a grand spectacle.

"I'll go and attend."

If it's such a spectacle, it's only natural to attend.