Chapter 6
The Youngest Son of the Eunhae Trading Company Chapter 6
Chapter 6. Prevent the Fire at Jaegyeong Hall (2)
It was a simple bet, and it wasn't something to be embarrassed about.
Besides, he must have thought that I wouldn't be able to pass.
I got up from my seat with the documents I had prepared and headed straight for Chief Administrator Yoo So-ak.
I entered the Chief Administrator's office.
Chief Administrator Yoo So-ak asked me without even looking at me.
“What is it?”
“I have finished the work you gave me.”
“...What?”
Chief Administrator Yoo So-ak looked up at me with a puzzled expression.
“You're done already?”
“Yes.”
His expression quickly changed to one of annoyance.
He must have thought that I had rushed through the work, which is why he was looking at me that way.
I confidently handed him the documents.
It took less than half a second for his expression to change to one of shock.
He asked with a stern expression.
“Who taught you how to fill out these documents?”
Who else would have taught me?
You taught me how to fill them out.
It was difficult to learn.
But I couldn't answer that.
“I learned it by looking at other documents.”
“You referenced other materials to write this document... You numbered them and organized them separately. Who taught you to do that?”
“I saw it in other materials, so I tried writing it that way.”
I replied with a smile.
“The reference documents were excellent, so I learned a lot just by reading them. I think it's probably thanks to Chief Administrator Yu's guidance.”
Chief Administrator Yu looked at me silently for a moment. Then he said to me,
“You organized it much better than I expected. You pass. You may leave for today.”
As I expected, I passed.
When I left Chief Administrator Yoo's office and returned to my desk, the female clerks approached me with curious expressions.
“How did it go?”
“Well...”
I picked up the documents scattered on my desk.
The female clerks seemed to think I was trying to organize the documents and tried to cheer me up.
“Don't be so discouraged. Getting approved by the Chief Administrator on your first try is like winning the lottery…”
Tuck
I handed him the documents and said, “You passed.”
“What?”
“Then please organize them.”
* * *
Yoo So-ak headed to the Finance Office with a tired look on his face. In fact, he had left work at the beginning of the day.
Yoo So-ak headed to the Jaegyeong Hall with a tired look on his face again today.
In fact, he had just finished work at the beginning of the hour.
That meant he had come to work without even getting three hours of sleep.
“I'm crazy. Why did I... Why did I let myself be swayed by the Trading Company's words...”
That was his catchphrase.
He was a talented person in the past, but for some reason, he quickly left his hometown and was inspired by the words of Captain Eun Gil-sang, who became a member of the Eunhae Trading Company.
And now, he works as the chief administrator of the Eunhae Trading Company.
It was his habit to complain about how he was working so hard because he was fooled by the captain's words, but it was just a habit.
To Yoo So-ak, Captain Eun Gil-sang was the man who saved his life.
He is a man who never forgets a grudge, but also never forgets a kindness.
He has already decided to devote his life to Eunhae Trading Company.
He quickened his pace.
He had stopped by the captain's office before coming to work at the Ministry of Finance today, so he was running a little late.
When he entered the Jaegyeong Hall, those who were on duty jumped up from their seats.
“Are you here, Chief Administrator?”
Yoo So-ak nodded in response to their greetings.
“Yes, good morning.”
He said to the officials.
“Please tell Eun Seo-ho to come to my office when he arrives.”
The officials replied to Yoo So-ak.
“Yes, we will.”
Yoo So-ak smiled unconsciously as he thought of Eun Seo-ho.
“I was so disappointed on his first day, but I was completely wrong.”
Eun Seo-ho had prepared a flawless report for his first task.
Ten days had passed since then.
He was now impressed by Eun Seo-ho's ability to quickly and accurately handle all the tasks he had been given.
“He's as skilled as if he's been working for decades...”
Even if he is a genius, there are some things that don't make sense.
A genius is someone who is exceptionally intelligent, not someone who is meticulous and organized at work.
Then why are there expressions such as “desk jockey” and “armchair scholar”?
Such things can only be learned through practical experience.
All successors to the Trading Company had to undergo five years of practical training, but that was not a fixed period.
Once the heads of the Finance Department, the Clan Department, and the Trading Department declared that the practical training was complete, the training was over.
In Yoo So-ak's mind, Eun Seo-ho should have been declared successful at least ten times already.
However, he couldn't do so because of the eyes watching him.
Eun Seo-ho's two older brothers had all undergone three years of practical training at the Finance Office.
There was no need to make him stand out unnecessarily.
However, it was already meaningless to test him by giving him various tasks and letting him learn through practical experience.
“It would be best to let him gain a variety of experiences.”
The most suitable place for that was right by his side, as his assistant.
He decided to take Eun Seo-ho as his assistant.
Of course, if Eun Seo-ho heard that, he would be terrified.
As a special apprentice, Eun Seo-ho belonged to the Finance Bureau, so his appointment was under Yoo So-ak's jurisdiction, but he was still the son of the captain of the Trading Company.
Therefore, he obtained permission from the head of the Trading Company.
That was why he had just stopped by the head's office.
“Hmm! It's not that I need someone to assist me with my work. It's just that I think it wouldn't be a bad idea for one of the Captain's sons to work at the Finance Department. Yes.”
Yoo So-ak muttered to himself as he entered his office.
* * *
I headed to the dining room to eat breakfast.
My two older brothers were already there.
“Good morning,”
said my eldest brother, Eun Jeong-ho, looking at me.
“I heard you've been climbing the mountain behind our house early in the morning lately. Is it for your health?”
“Yes.”
Actually, it was for martial arts training.
It was time to start practicing martial arts outdoors because there were too many people watching me at home.
My brother Jung-ho said,
“It's good to be healthy, but don't overdo it.”
“Okay, I won't overdo it.”
As always, my brother Jung-ho was very considerate.
Then my younger brother Eun-jin-ho said,
“Come on, Hyung! It's just climbing the mountain behind our house in the morning. You worry too much.”
“But I'm worried you'll get sick again.”
“That's why you need to exercise more. You've grown taller and stronger lately. It's all because you started exercising in the morning.”
After saying that, Jin-ho asked me casually, “So, do you want to learn martial arts again?”
“By the way, do you want to learn martial arts again?”
“Martial arts?”
“When you work for a trading company, you need to be able to protect yourself.”
Just because he was the heir to a trading company, he did not neglect martial arts.
It was just that his priority was higher than his work at the trading company, but he still tried to learn martial arts as much as possible.
Sometimes, when dangerous moments arise, martial arts allow you to escape from danger.
That is why both Jung-ho and Jin-ho were learning martial arts from the Chief Administrator.
The Chief Administrator, who is also the Captain of the Eunpungdae, the military force of the Trading Company, was greatly indebted to my grandfather, so he volunteered to become the Chief Administrator to repay that debt.
As a way to repay that favor, he passed on his martial arts skills to the successors of the Trading Company.
He declared that he would not marry until he had repaid his debt, and he remained unmarried until his death.
Actually, I also practiced martial arts with him when I was young.
However, I had to stop when I started to get sick.
It was fortunate that I only learned the outer arts.
If I had also learned the inner arts, my life would have been even shorter.
The martial arts of the Chief Administrator were those of Yanggang.
They were completely opposite to mine.
It was difficult to explain this, so I kept my martial arts training a secret.
I smiled and replied to Jin-ho.
“I'll think about it.”
At that moment, my grandfather and parents entered the dining room, and we began our meal.
This morning, we had rice porridge with chicken.
Unless there was something special, our Trading Company's breakfast was usually porridge.
As I was carefully eating the hot porridge, my father called me.
“Seo-ho.”
“Yes, Father.”
“I hear you're doing well at Jaegyeonggak these days.”
“Ah, I'm just doing what I'm told.”
“That's also a talent.”
I felt shy at my father's praise.
“That's why the Chief Administrator asked me separately this morning. He wants to use you as his assistant.”
“Oh, really... No, why?”
My voice rose without me realizing it.
An assistant to Chief Administrator Yoo!
That was something that had never happened in the future I had experienced.
My father replied to my question.
“Why? It's because you're good at your job, of course.”
“So you're giving me permission?”
“Of course. You belong to the Finance Office, so I don't need to give you permission. Isn't that right?”
My grandfather laughed heartily at my father's words and added,
“That picky guy wants to keep you by his side! How amazing!”
“Yes, he is. Ho ho ho.”
Following my mother, my two older brothers also expressed their admiration.
“Wow! That's amazing.”
“My little brother is talented.”
“...”
Amidst the congratulatory atmosphere of my family, it became a foregone conclusion that I would work as Chief Administrator Yoo's assistant.
.
.
.
I was a little, no, very embarrassed to be working as Chief Administrator Yoo's assistant.
Actually, today is a very important day.
It is the day when a major fire broke out, causing a huge loss to the Trading Company.
I was the only one who could prevent it, but I needed time to do so.
But now I was working as Chief Administrator Yu's assistant.
As an assistant to Chief Administrator Yu, who was always busy!
I should have just asked for something easier to do.
I sighed and headed for Chief Administrator Yu's office.
Chief Administrator Yu stood up and greeted me.
“Are you here?”
It was different from the first day when he just looked up from his seat.
“I heard you called me.”
“Yes, starting today, you will be working as my assistant.”
I looked at the papers piled precariously on the desk and swallowed hard.
Working as Chief Administrator Yu's assistant meant that I would have to process all those documents.
Now was my last chance to decline the position of assistant.
“I am grateful that the Chief Administrator appreciates my abilities. However, I have only been on the job for ten days, and now you want me to be your assistant!”
“Are you feeling overwhelmed?”
“I apologize.”
“Hearing you say that, I am even more convinced that I must have you as my assistant.”
“...?”
Chief Administrator Yu smiled and continued.
“You even possess the virtue of modesty.”
So Chief Administrator Yu took my refusal as modesty.
I really am refusing...
“I understand why you feel burdened. However, I believe that a person's abilities shine brighter when they are used where they are needed. And it would be great if your abilities helped the Eunhae Trading Company grow even more.”
He asked me.
“Don't you care about the Eunhae Trading Company?”
“....”
Don't I care about the Eunhae Trading Company?
Of course I do.
Chief Administrator Yu must have wanted to provoke me.
That means he has made up his mind.
In that case...
“All right. I will work as your assistant. But I have a condition.”
“Please tell me.”
“First, please make sure I can eat my meals on time. And please make sure I can leave work on time.”
“All right.”
“And I will start work tomorrow.”
“Very well.”
The first condition is for my future plans.
And the second condition is to prevent today's fire.
When I returned to my seat, the members of the Yeochang approached me.
“Are you here, young master?”
“Yes. I just came from seeing the Chief Administrator.”
“I see.”
I was going to work as Yu's assistant starting tomorrow, but I couldn't tell him that yet.
Yu had asked me not to say anything, probably for security reasons.
Come to think of it, Chief Administrator Yu didn't trust people very much.
Perhaps that was why he didn't have an assistant until he died of overwork, which made it even more unexpected for me to become his assistant.