This is the second time Vincenzo has worn the yellow stripes on his arm, first when his mother died, and now when his grandfather died. He stood by the coffin where his grandfather's last bed, with his uncle and aunt to receive the respects of the mourners. His back was sore and he kept bowing many times, because there were so many mourners. Not only relatives and friends of the deceased's family, Issume Holding employees, shareholders, partners from other companies, even government officials. The Geumga family also came to offer their condolences.
Meanwhile, Cha Young helps serve soju and yukaejang to the mourners. Sometimes Tae Ra also helps, but she has to calm her sister who is so devastated by the death of their grandfather. Yoo Ra feels that Grandpa died from exhaustion while attending her wedding, and she wasn't home when Grandpa had a heart attack, so it was too late to save him. Her husband and all her family reassured her, that grandfather died not because of her, but that it was the time. Grandpa is very old and suffering from his illness, now let him rest in peace. After all, he died in the midst of happiness. All his wishes have been achieved and leave no regrets.
~~~
As a male descendant of President director Park, it was Vincenzo who brought Grandpa's photo to the cemetery. Snow fell again after the grave was covered by soil. The whole family lays flowers in front of the gravestones and pays their last respects.
Vincenzo stared blankly at his grandfather's gravestone. He didn't cry, but he still felt sad. They had only met a few weeks ago, but Vincenzo already had feelings for his grandfather. Although he was still not satisfied with interacting with his grandfather, Vincenzo let him go. Continuing to sit on the bed and wheelchair, equipped with devices to keep his heart working, difficulty moving even to defecate and urinate must also be helped, all these inconveniences will not be experienced by Grandpa because he is now rest in peace.
~~~
49 days later, the Park family held a memorial service for grandfather's death. Vincenzo and Cha Young came with their children who was then taken care of temporarily by the maid at the house.
Today's agenda is not only the 49th anniversary of grandfather's death. Yoo Hee Jae came for the reading of the will from the grandfather and the distribution of the inheritance.
The whole family gathers at the living room. Yoo Hee Jae opened the sealed envelope in front of them, then read it out.
- The position of president director of Issume Holding was handed over to Director Go Sung Ho.
- Mr. Park's residence will be given to his daughter, Park Ha Na. She also got rice fields and vegetable fields in Gyeongju, also the old house in the village.
- Park Tae Ra got an apartment complex consisting of 4 towers in Dobong-gu, an office building in Mapo, and Baekgeum-dong, an area built for shopping centers, restaurants and street food (such as Itaewon, Myeong-dong, etc.)
- Park Yoo Ra got a penthouse for her wedding present, a family villa in Jeju, and hotels in Seoul and Jeju.
- Park Joo Hyeong got a penthouse and office building in Gangnam, which turned out to be an office building rented by Jipuragi. He also got the Four Season Mall.
- Share distribution:
~ 20% Park Ha Na
~ 20% Go Seung Hoon
~ 15% Go Tae Ra
~ 15% Go Yoo Ra
~ 15% Park Joo Hyeong
~5% Jang Do Jin
~5% Lee Sang Hyun
~5% Hong Cha Young
- Money from deposits and insurance, as well as gold and gems will be divided equally.
"I think that's fair enough," said Mrs. Park.
Director Go also nodded in agreement. In his heart, he was actually worried that the position of president director would be given to the newly discovered grandson. But for more than 40 years of knowing the president director who eventually became his father-in-law, President director Park is a rational person. He did not arbitrarily choose the right person to lead his companies. Not based on blood and family relations, but based on their abilities. Many CEOs in Issume Holding subsidiaries are appointed not from family ties, but through selection based on performance. In addition, President director Park must also consider the feelings of the Ha Na family. If he immediately gave the position to Joo Hyeong, there might be a civil war.
"Fair?" Everyone turned to Tae Ra, "Eomma thinks this is fair?"
"What?"
"Is this the result of me toiling for the company for 15 years? That 15 percent stake, that old apartment, and that deserted shopping area? What are those two doing?" Tae Ra glanced at Yoo Ra and Vincenzo. Her sharp eyes stopped at Vincenzo, "especially him who just appeared, didn't contribute anything, but got the same luxuries, even more than me. Is this really fair?"
Director Go took a deep breath. Apparently the civil war is still going on.
"According to me, your grandfather is fair enough. In fact, what Joo Hyeong gets is not more than what you get. Have you forgotten that what Eomma and Appa have now, you and Yoo Ra will get later? Meanwhile, Joo Hyeong only has what Grandpa has given, and that's his right. If anyone wants to protest, it should be Joo Hyeong, not you," said Director Go.
"There are things that cannot be shared," Tae Ra turned to Vincenzo, "give me the Four Season Mall, penthouse and building in Gangnam, you can take all the shops in Baekgeum-dong."
"Then Yoo Ra," she turned to her sister, "I'll take care of the hotels. You're a doctor, you won't have time to take care of the hotel, will you? I'll share the profit with you 20% later. 5% of you two's shares, give it to me. Then for my husband, give him the CEO position of Issume Construction. He has devoted himself for 20 years there, but why did his position only reach to architect manager? I thought that after Eomma resigned, Harabeoji would give the position to him, but he gave it to a stranger instead. Does that make sense?"
"I agree with Tae Ra. It's not that I want a position or wealth from my in-laws' family, but I also feel that the share percentage distribution is unfair. Please respect our efforts in running the company so far more properly. I also object to my share of being equalized with Sang Hyun -ssi and Cha Young-ssi," said Do Jin supporting his wife.
"That's what I said, how is it possible to equalized between Do Jin who has been a part of this family for almost 10 years, with the two of them that have only been a few years, even days."
Cha Young, who was 'trapped' in this drama of inheritance, could only gape and be stunned. She glanced at her husband who did not show any expression.
Actually she was not too surprised to see families fighting over inheritance rights, both from conglomerate families and ordinary families. She is often appointed as the lawyer of one of the warring parties, and enjoys this soap opera as Yoo Hee Jae is now doing. But this time she was not a spectator, but one of the actors in a makjang drama. Hopefully there won't be a throwing water scene.
"Tae Ra-ya, don't be like that. I'll share mine with both of you, 10% each. Eomma doesn't need shares. Don't bother your younger siblings, Tae Ra," said Mrs. Park.
"Eomma is very strange, you are not usually like this. The mother I know is an ambitious person. You did everything possible to stay in the CEO chair, even though you ended up losing it. Oh, don't you know who made you lose that chair? " Tae Ra pointed at Cha Young with her chin, “that man's wife's father.”
Cha Young is flabbergasted. She could have guessed this beforehand. But getting good treatment from them made her think that this would not be brought up again. Meanwhile Vincenzo started to show his angry expression. His jaw clenched and his teeth chattered. He didn't care if they insulted him, but not his wife and late father-in-law.
"Eomma has given peace money to the injured workers, the case file has also been withdrawn. But her father kept bringing up the case until you were forced to resign so that Issume Construction still won the public's trust. Don't you feel angry? Why are you even treating them so well? Or... are you just pretending to be nice?"
"Tae Ra!"
"Take it all," Vincenzo finally spoke, "I don't need anything from Grandpa. Without his wealth, my family and I can still live happily. If necessary, just delete my name of your family card."
"Joo Hyeong-ah..." Mrs. Park was gasped.
"Vin..." Cha Young whispered as she tugged at the sleeve of her husband's coat.
"I came not for wealth or position, but only to meet my grandfather. Now that Grandpa is gone, so I will also go," Vincenzo got up.
"Cha Young-ah, come on," Vincenzo pulled Cha Young's hand to join him.
Yoo Ra slams the table, "why is it like this? Grandpa just left us, why are we even bothering about the division of his wealth? Grandpa will be sad there if he sees us like this. Tae Ra Eonni, I thought you were just ambitious, but you are so greedy! You want my share? Go ahead, take it all! I can still live on my salary as a doctor."
Sang Hyun also stood up, "I also refused 5% of my shares. I can still make Yoo Ra happy with the salary from the government."
"Ehm..." Yoo Hee Jae cleared his throat, "there is still one clause that I haven't read. If one or more people refuse to accept the inheritance, or if there is a fight over the inheritance, then all shares will be distributed equally among all employees of Issume Holding, the assets will be cashed in and distributed to orphanage children, the homeless and the poor."
"WHAT???" Everyone (except Vincenzo) was wide-eyed.
Vincenzo smirked, "that's much better. It would be more beneficial if this abundant treasure were given to people who need it more."
"No... it can't be like this... It's really unfair! Hey you," Tae Ra pointed at Vincenzo, "you must be the one who planned all this, right? You instigated Grandpa to make such a ridiculous will, didn't you?"
Vincenzo makes Cha Young stand up and take her away, ignoring Tae Ra's screams and mrs. Park's plead for him to stay and cancel the refusal of his share of the inheritance.
"I will take this case to court!!!" Tae Ra's hysterical.
In a room, Rosé and Hye Ji color a picture book together while joking, laughing, getting along and at peace unlike their parents. Shi Jin also slept peacefully in a maid's arms. The world of children is indeed full of peace.
~~~
A month later...
Tae Ra actually filed an inheritance lawsuit in court. She didn't want to listen to all the persuasion from her family. She is very stubborn.
Today, a family mediation effort will be held first, if they still don't get a meeting point, then the case file will be continued to the court. And when it comes down to it, the media will definitely be able to smell freshly baked hot news.
Vincenzo ignored the summons from the court. He doesn't care. He can inherit or not, will not have much effect on his life. He himself already has the inheritance of Fabio Cassano.
But Cha Young continues to persuade him to attend. Not to get inheritance, but to solve problems. After all, Vincenzo was still blood related to them.
So they came to the courthouse.
The whole family has gathered with their respective lawyers. Here, Cha Young is not only the granddaughter-in-law in the family, but also as a lawyer and spokesperson for her husband. Yoo Hee Jae continues to represent the Park family, while Tae Ra hires a lawyer from another law firm. A judge arbitrates between them.
After a long discussion for several hours, they finally agreed on a few things:
- Vincenzo handed the Four Season Mall to Go Tae Ra
- 15% of Vincenzo's shares and 5% of Hong Cha Young's shares will be handed over to Go Tae Ra. The reason is that Vincenzo is too lazy to attend shareholder meetings. Actually he was a little worried if too many people knew him, afraid that his background would be hacked.
- Vincenzo retains the penthouse, the building in Gangnam, and the money and gold.
- Hong Cha Young got gold and 5 sets of gold and diamond jewelry.
- Go Tae Ra handed Baekgeum-dong to Vincenzo
- Go Yoo Ra handed over the operation of 3 hotels to Tae Ra. They sign an agreement that Tae Ra will share the hotel profit of 35% to Yoo Ra.
After all signed the consent form, the judge knocked on the hammer and declared the case closed.
"So, our business ends here. Don't interfere with each other. I will still visit Grandpa's house once a year to hold his death anniversary with you, but other than that day, we live separately," said Vincenzo, which was more aimed at Tae Ra.
"Joo Hyeong-ah, our house will always be open to you, also to your wife and children," said Mrs. Park.
Vincenzo only answered with a faint smile and left the room with Cha Young.
~~~
"Huff... finally..." Cha Young stretched her arms high, "dealing with the Chaebol family is tiring, let alone being a part of them."
"Which is more tiring, the mafia family or the Chaebol family?"
Cha Young thought as she walked to the parking lot.
"Rosé's time to go home is still 1 hour away. Shall we go home first?" Ask Vincenzo.
"Let's go to the penthouse first. I want to see how luxurious the penthouse Tae Ra is fighting for."
"How about Shi Jin?"
"We'll buy a nice dinner for Mrs. Jang and Mr. Lee."
Vincenzo drove his car out of the parking lot at the courthouse.
"Chaebol," replied Cha Young on the way.
"Huh?"
"The answer of earlier question, which is more tiring? I choose the Chaebol family."
"Why?"
"I've handled many cases of inheritance rights, even worse than the Park family. The cases can go on for years without being resolved. Relationships between families end up being damaged."
"Between members of the mafia family, there is also a struggle for position and inheritance rights, even killing each other. The Cassano family, is one example."
"Chaebol families can also killing each other. It's just that their method of killing is not as clear as the mafia who just shoots. They make it look as if the victim has an accident or is poisoned, so they can get inheritance and insurance from the family who died. For me, being stabbed in the back is much scarier than being pointed at by a gun from the front. At least I can repent before I die, hahaha..."
Vincenzo's car entered the gates of Zeus Palace. He showed a card to security, then they could enter the parking lot. They took a special elevator that took them directly to the residence at the top of the tower.
Cha Young gapes as the elevator doors open, only to see a pair of large doors with carved golden dragons. If you just sell the door, you might get billions of dollars. She was even more stunned when the door was opened.
This residence is really super-duper luxurious, consisting of two floors with a modern minimalist design but still there is a luxurious impression from the circular staircase and crystal chandelier in the middle. The furniture is complete, ready for occupancy. There was even a grand piano in the corner of the room lit with spotlights, if Rosé played the piano there she would feel like she was on stage.
There are three bedrooms on the second floor, all of them are luxurious, not only are there bathrooms in each room, in the largest bedroom there is also a mini home theater.
"No wonder Tae Ra insisted on wanting this penthouse and only gave it up after we gave her the Four Season Mall."
"So do you want us to move here?"
"Hm..." Cha Young tapped her chin, "no."
Cha Young sits on one of the sofas, "It's luxurious, but I'm more comfortable living at my father's house. There is also a fairly large and beautiful yard, the children can play freely. We might as well have a dogs or cats, while the penthouse is limited and there are many rules when we wants to raising pets. The distance between the house and Rosé's school and tutoring center is also closer than here. And it must be very tiring to clean a place this large."
Vincenzo chuckled, "In that case, we can hire a housekeeper."
"But we definitely need a lot of housekeeper."
"We have a lot of money."
"Save it for the future or a more profitable investment."
"Then what are we going to do with this penthouse if we don't live in it?"
"Let's just rent it out. We'll move here later when Shi Jin grows up and needs his own room, or if we have another child..."
Suddenly Vincenzo sat closer and closer.
"Not now!!!" Cha Young pushed her husband.
~~~
A few days later, Vincenzo went to Baekgeum-dong which is located a bit on the outskirts of Seoul, close to the expressway to Incheon. He came as a visitor, not a new landlord. He wanted to see how the business there was going. And apparently the situation is much worse than what Tae Ra said.
Not only empty of visitors, but this place is more suitable to be called slum. The buildings are unkempt, there is a lot of garbage scattered on the street, there are even a rat passing by in front of Vincenzo. Many shops are closed and no longer operating. Vegetables and fruit sold in the stalls are no longer fresh.
Vincenzo walked into the fried chicken restaurant which looked nicer and cleaner than the others. He ordered a portion of fried chicken. But he stopped at one bite, didn't even swallow it. The chicken is not fresh anymore and a bit smelly.
"Damn! I shouldn't have given the mall to Tae Ra," Vincenzo grumbled.
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To be continue...
Fyi, Baekgeum-dong doesn't exist in the real world, guys. If so, maybe it's just a coincidence.😆
If you've watched Strongest Deliveryman, it tells the story of a deliveryman who lives at a jajangmyun restaurant in a shopping area. Along the way there are stalls and places to eat. Well, more or less Baekgeum-dong in this story has a function like that, but because sales are down again (because of the pandemic time maybe 😂), so the location is like the shops in Best Chicken episode 1, if you've watched that too hehe... Or can be likened to the condition like Plaza Geumga in the early episodes of Vincenzo. Now, Plaza Geumga has returned to success.
Will Vincenzo be able to rebuild the dying business?
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Bonus pic
Tae Ra and Vin are sworn enemies since ancient times hahaha😂...