Chapter 06
“I told you, there isn’t anyone. I think I mentioned it last time too.”
“Well, that’s truly one of the world’s eight wonders. Someone as tall and handsome as Assistant Manager Cha, and a rising star at the country’s top conglomerate, yet you don’t have a girlfriend. If you ask me, it seems like your standards are just too high…”
“What standards would someone like me have? That’s not it. Here, stop with the useless chatter and take your glass.”
Cha Jihu grasped the soju bottle, and Manager Kang raised his glass with both hands to receive the alcohol, but kept talking.
“By the way, you know Deputy Manager Lee Sangjun from the Global Marketing Team, right? The one we worked on that project with last year.”
“Of course I know him.”
“I heard he’s getting married early next year.”
“Oh, really?”
“Yes, but his wife isn’t Korean.”
“So she’s a foreigner?”
“Yes. I heard she’s Japanese.”
“An international marriage.”
“Yes. These days, international marriages don’t seem all that rare. Are you interested in an international marriage, Assistant Manager?”
“Me? Well…”
Now that he thought about it, Cha Jihu had never really imagined marriage with a foreign woman, though dating one wasn’t entirely out of the question.
“What does it matter which country someone is from? As long as she’s a good woman who can sincerely love and care for each other, that’s what counts. Don’t you think?”
“That’s true. But wouldn’t it be even better if she’s pretty? Haha.”
Cha Jihu almost let slip that no matter how pretty a woman’s face was, you should never associate with one who sees her husband as a pushover. But since it wasn’t the appropriate place for such talk, he quickly held his tongue.
‘No need to say anything that might stir up controversy.’
Indeed, alcohol should be consumed in moderation. A single mistake at a company dinner like this could put you in the gossip mill, which could be fatal to your corporate life. Cha Jihu quickly pulled himself together.
The dinner continued into the second round. That was the first time in recent memory. Everyone was tipsy, and all sorts of conversations flew back and forth. It was past 11 when the drinking session finally ended.
“Team Leader, Deputy Manager, get home safely. I had a great time today.”
“Yeah, yeah. You too, Assistant Manager Cha. See you tomorrow!”
“See you all tomorrow!”
Everyone scattered in their own directions. Just as Cha Jihu was about to head toward the subway station, Assistant Manager Yu A-ri stopped him.
“Assistant Manager, let’s take a taxi together. You can drop me off on the way.”
“Sure, why not?”
Their homes were in the same direction. So when they had late nights working on projects together, they’d done so a few times before.
Cha Jihu lived in Wonhyo-ro, and Assistant Manager Yu lived in Hannam-dong. When they took a taxi, she always got off in front of the UN Village. The UN Village is a famous wealthy neighborhood. The first time they left work late together and Cha Jihu learned she lived there, he was quietly surprised. She never showed any signs of being from a wealthy family.
‘I guess she really does live here since I’ve seen her go inside the village. I wonder when I’ll ever be able to get a house in a place like that.’
That’s what he’d thought back then.
The two got into the taxi. Cha Jihu was feeling drowsy, but with Assistant Manager Yu beside him, he tried his best to fight off the sleep. Just then, she spoke to him.
“Assistant Manager, do you really not have anyone you’re seeing?”
“Me? Haha, why would I lie? And if I did, wouldn’t you have noticed while we worked together on the project all this time? You’ve never seen me having a cozy phone call with anyone.”
“Hoho, that’s true. But there’s no way someone like you has no dating experience. It’s not that you have zero interest in women, is it?”
“Honestly, I don’t. I think now is the time to focus on work.”
At Cha Jihu’s words, Assistant Manager Yu felt a pang of disappointment. She also wondered if this man was brushing her off because he’d sensed she had feelings for him.
“I see.”
“What about you, Assistant Manager Yu? Are you secretly seeing someone without anyone knowing?”
“No, not at all! Assistant Manager, you really… I’m not the type who’s good at keeping a poker face.”
“Haha, is that so? Then I’ll have to find someone suitable for you. I’ll set you up on a blind date.”
“Go ahead. If he’s as great and capable as you, Assistant Manager, I wouldn’t mind meeting him. I’m not really into someone who’s too naive and bear-like.”
“What? So you’re saying I’m like a fox?”
“Ah, no, that’s not what I meant.”
“Haha, just kidding. Don’t get flustered.”
Before they knew it, they’d arrived in Hannam-dong. Assistant Manager Yu, who always asked to be dropped at the entrance, had the taxi pull up right in front of her house today. She must have been more drunk than usual. The taxi wound through the alleys and stopped at the place she pointed to.
“This is it. Assistant Manager, get home safely. See you tomorrow.”
“Yeah, go on in.”
He watched the house she was heading toward.
‘Whoa, that’s insane…’
It was clearly a fairly large mansion. The fence was high, and vines hung over it. There were even steps leading up to the gate.
“She’s a rich man’s daughter, isn’t she?”
As they left the village, the taxi driver commented while looking in the rearview mirror.
“Seems that way.”
“She’s your coworker, right?”
“Ah, yes.”
“The house she just went into—diagonally across from it is where the Vice Chairman of Samel Group used to live.”
“Really?”
“Yes. I heard he’s moved to Seongbuk-dong now, but anyway, this area is packed with political and financial bigwigs. They say top celebrities have been eyeing it lately too. If you’re born, you should live in a place like that at least once before you die. Anyway, your coworker’s family must be incredibly wealthy. I’m envious, haha.”
Cha Jihu found himself turning his head back. The entrance to the UN Village, growing farther away, came into view.
‘Could I ever live in a place like that?’
Just then, a notification popped up on his phone.
- Assistant Manager, thank you so much for the ride. I put a card in the right pocket of your suit jacket. Use it to pay for the taxi and give it back to me tomorrow. Sweet dreams.
Cha Jihu was startled and checked his pocket. Sure enough, there was a credit card.
‘What? Do I look like someone who can’t even pay for a taxi?’
Just as his pride was about to be slightly wounded, another message arrived from Assistant Manager Yu.
‘I’ve gotten so many rides from you, so I was determined to pay for the taxi today. But I didn’t know how much it would cost to get to your place, so I did that. I hope you don’t take it the wrong way. Anyway, see you tomorrow.’
Cha Jihu’s heart immediately softened. Now that he thought about it, this girl was not only equipped with full-on consideration but also knew how to handle people’s hearts. She was leagues ahead of someone else he could compare her to.
‘Still, no. In this life, I can’t repeat the same mistakes. If I can’t meet a truly good woman, I’d rather live alone. To do that, I have to make the most careful choice possible.’
His resolve was firm. The taxi soon arrived at his villa in Wonhyo-ro. Once inside, he skipped even a shower and passed out on the sofa.
The next day, Cha Jihu ran into Assistant Manager Yu A-ri in the break room and handed back the card he’d received the day before.
“You didn’t have to do that. I was going to pay with my own money, but I didn’t want to refuse your gesture, so I used it. Thanks.”
“Like I said in my message. I’ve been getting rides from you all this time.”
“Still, I’m your senior. Don’t do that again.”
“Okay, Assistant Manager. By the way, how’s your stomach feeling?”
“I took it easy during the second round, so it’s not too bad.”
“Here, drink this instead of coffee. It’s dried pollack soup broth.”
“Dried pollack soup?”
“Yes, they say it’s the best cure for hangovers. I brought a lot. Since you’re the first one in the break room, you’re the lucky winner. Hoho.”
Assistant Manager Yu opened her thermos and carefully poured some dried pollack soup broth into Cha Jihu’s cup. Just seeing the steam rising made his stomach feel lighter.
“Thanks, I’ll enjoy it.”
Really, how could two women be so different? He found himself wondering why this girl hadn’t caught his eye in his previous life. Of course, it was probably because he’d been dating someone else at the time.
Back at his desk, Cha Jihu had some spare time and let his attention wander for a moment. He checked the current stock prices and was pleasantly surprised.
‘Oh! It’s gone up a lot in just a few days!’
He’d bought some blue-chip stocks based on memories from his previous life. At first, they seemed to dip briefly, but this week they’d skyrocketed. He was excited.
‘If I’d been more into stocks back then, I’d be able to select and predict even more accurately now.’
Before his regression, he’d never dabbled in stocks or real estate investing. He’d simply believed that if he worked hard, did his best, and saved diligently, he could achieve his goals. Of course, that value system had protected him from major failures. But the kind of luck that some people around him had—making big money in a short time—never came his way.
‘Not that I regret it. At least I never had to live struggling to pay off debts.’
But now things were a little different. At the very least, he knew which companies would grow solidly over the next 15 years. And he knew roughly when apartment prices would spike sharply. However, Cha Jihu didn’t have enough capital to make large-scale investments or buy a property outright. Since he knew the future with certainty, he could use leverage to trade stocks or take out a collateral loan to buy an apartment—but he chose not to. No matter how much he’d regressed, there was no guarantee that this world would perfectly mirror his previous life. He didn’t think it was wise to take on infinite risk. Instead, he’d been steadily accumulating blue-chip stocks within his means. In the long run, even that would yield considerable profits.
‘Not dating really does help money pile up quietly.’
Since breaking up with An Jiyeon decisively, he’d gained not only financial breathing room but also more time. That meant more energy to invest in his present and future—for no one but himself. Cha Jihu was thoroughly satisfied.
Buzz, buzz.
Just as he was smiling inwardly at the rising stock prices, his phone rang. He checked and saw it was his best friend Park Minsu. Come to think of it, they hadn’t spoken once since their trip to Japan together.
- Hey, let’s actually keep in touch.
“You called, so that’s enough.”
- What a cold bastard. Make time tomorrow evening. Let’s have a drink.
“Tomorrow? It’s already Friday, huh. Sure, why not.”
The next evening, the two met at a spot in the city. Cha Jihu told him he’d broken up with An Jiyeon.
“What? Really?”
Park Minsu was shocked, wearing the exact same expression as when he’d heard about his friend’s divorce in the previous life—only his face was younger.
“That’s how it turned out. So from now on, don’t bring her up anymore.”
“Well, nothing you can do about it. It’s not because of another woman, is it? Don’t tell me it’s because of that American girl we met in Japan?”
“You’re ridiculous. Would you break up with your girlfriend just because you had a couple drinks with some woman during a trip?”
“…I guess not. Then what was the reason?”
“Don’t try to dig into it too much. You’ll only get hurt. By the way, that American girl sent me an email.”
At that, Park Minsu nearly spat out his drink.
“What? Really? Whoa, that girl’s definitely interested in you, isn’t she?”
“Don’t overreact. It was just a casual email. Saying thanks for the help back then. Nothing more, nothing less. She didn’t say she was coming to Korea or that she wanted to see me again. So please, just leave it as a light memory. Here, take your drink, man.”
“Still, it’s a bit disappointing. Honestly, that day was the highlight of the Japan trip. I really wish we could meet those girls again.”
“If they come to visit? You’d need me to be the guide anyway.”
“Hmm, true. I can’t speak English well. Tsk, I should really study English too. You’re lucky, being good at English.”
As Park Minsu envied him, Cha Jihu was indeed gifted with languages. He was fluent not only in English but also in French and Japanese. Maybe it was genetic—his younger sister was also majoring in English. Among them, his English was particularly impressive, even surprising native speakers. He’d never studied abroad in the U.S., yet he spoke like a local. He was even familiar with British English and could imitate it quite well. Perhaps that’s why the head of the Global Marketing Team at his company was always eyeing him hungrily.
“Yeah, you should make up your mind and give it a try. It’ll come in handy somehow in life, right? Here, have another drink.”
“Let’s order some hot fish cake broth. With the temperature dropping, that’s what I’m craving.”
Come to think of it, autumn was deepening.
