"Hello, Mrs. Park," although Lisa was a bit surprised, she still greeted Mrs. Park politely.
"Do you have time to meet?"
"Now?"
"Yes." Mrs. Park nodded.
"Alright, why don't you pick a place, and I'll come find you." Lisa knew that Mrs. Park wouldn't look for her for random reasons. Therefore, she agreed to meet with her.
"Why don't I send the driver to pick you up?"
"Sure, I'm at South Hill Manor," Lisa stated her address.
"Alright, see you soon then." Mrs. Park sounded very gentle.
"Mrs. Park? Don't tell me she's Jimin's mom?" Jennie was stunned.
"Yes, that's her."
"Why is she looking for you?"
"I don't know, haha, but I've met her twice before and she was really nice to me. She seems educated and is respectable." After meeting Mrs. Park, Lisa realized just how unfortunate it was for her to have someone like Mrs. Jeon as a mother-in-law.
So, Lisa took a liking towards Mrs. Park.
"Alright, I'm going to leave then. We'll catch up another day. You have to come with me to try on wedding dresses."
"Okay!" Lisa nodded.
With that, Jennie left South Hill Manor...
Mrs. Park's driver was very fast, sending an Audi R8 to South Hill Manor not long after Jennie's departure.
"Miss Lisa, I'm here to pick you up upon Mrs. Park's request."
"Okay." Lisa nodded and got into the car.
On the way there, she didn't forget to flirt with Jungkook...
She sent over an 8.88 Won money transfer on WeChat. It was quickly accepted by Jungkook.
He replied, "Doll, you're so generous!"
"Of course, other wives usually give their husbands lesser allowance than this. Aren't I great to you?" Lisa sent over a smiling emoji.
"Thank you, Baby, for being so generous..." Jungkook was at a high-level meeting, but he couldn't help but smile at his phone.
Everyone sitting in the meeting became confused. They didn't dare to question their boss as they were terrified of his temper.
" Sir, should we go on?" Assistant Lee asked quietly.
"Continue," Jungkook raised his head and replied calmly.
"Yes, sir. Regarding our market growth in this quarter..." The marketing director continued on...
With his head down, Jungkook continued chatting with Lisa, content as could be.
Was it really appropriate to court your wife on WeChat while in a meeting?
President Jeon, do your parents know this playful side of you?
Assistant Lee was truly worried about his boss...
Sure enough, after his presentation, the marketing director intentionally asked, "Sir, I've finished my presentation. Do you have anything to add?"
Jungkook put down his phone and looked around. He then said, "We're now nearing year-end. It should be peak season, but you're telling me that the increase is no more than 8%. Are you kidding me? During last month's meeting, I stated that 10% was the guaranteed baseline and nothing below that was acceptable. You're telling me that you're happy with 8%? Do I have something to add? What can I add? I'll give you half a month to raise the 2%. If you fail, your department will not be given a year-end bonus."
The marketing director's forehead was suddenly drenched with cold sweat...
He had thought that since the president was busy playing on his phone, he wouldn't be paying attention to his presentation. He was actually quite relieved that he could escape a scolding. To his dismay, however, his boss had the ability to multitask. Yes, he was playing with his phone, but he was also paying attention to everything that was being said in the meeting. How incredible...
At the sight of the marketing director being scolded...
The administrative director weighed in, "President Jeon, it's not their fault. Everyone tried their best."
Jungkook gave the female director a cold sneer and asked, "I know how much the pressure the marketing department endures, that's why the employees in their department get paid much more than the others. Don't think for a second that just because you're in the administrative department, you don't have other things to do. For the 30th anniversary party, if the public relations department didn't help you out, do you really think you could've handled it? For the year-end party, I'm giving the job solely to your department. You still have less than 20 days to prepare. If the results fail to meet my standards, you will be held responsible."
"President Jeon..." The female director wanted to slap herself. Why didn't she stay quiet?
Now that the president was all fired up, she was dragged into the situation as well.
The year-end party was no cake-walk, and 20 days was not really enough...
"Does anyone else have something to say?" Jungkook asked coldly.
"President Jeon...after Director Yerim left our department, our results have been steadily declining. Back when Director Yerim was here, at least three out of ten designs were passed, but last time, none of the 20 designs we submitted passed. I think that we should bring Director Yerim back. I've spoken to her personally. She also feels that she's not suitable as the general manager of our branch in Japan. I hope that President Jeon can consider the big picture." The speaker was a manager who worked in the design department. He was a former employee underneath Yerim. After her departure, he truly struggled to manage the department, leading him to make such a brave request.
Jungkook watched him calmly and asked, "You're so reliant on Director Yerim. What if she quit? What will you do then? Will you ask me to bring her back?"
"No... President Jeon, that's not what I meant."
"Instead of elevating your own skills, you rely on an employee that already left... I wanted to give you a chance but clearly, you're not up to it. From now on, you can return to your original position. I will appoint a new director for the designs department. I hope you all remember this, JC was not built by a single person; it was always a team effort. No matter who works here, JC will always survive, but not all companies will give you chances like JC does."
"President Jeon... I'm only saying this because I want the company to do better. I just think that Director Yerim is very capable." The man looked like he was about to cry.
"I can see who's doing well and poorly in the company. I will not keep useless people around but I will definitely keep talent when I recognize it. How I delegate people is my business, I don't need you to teach me... If you have the time to worry about that, why don't you reflect on your own work? Find a way to produce better designs instead of seeking outside help."
Not only did Jungkook take away the director of design's position, but he also scolded the other company executives as well...
The director of designs slowly looked down, feeling first-handed the wrath that was Jungkook's sharp tongue.
The room fell into silence...
"Any other questions?" Jungkook stood up and fixed the cuffs on his black suit.
Everyone remained silent...
"Sir, the sales department has yet to receive their bonuses for this month. Should it... be dispersed along with their salaries this month? Or should we wait until next month or the end of the year?" The speaker this time was Assistant Lee.
Back when Jungkook's father was the president, the rules were different. Due to the sales department's high bonuses, they were usually calculated every three to six months. Now that Jungkook was president, it was calculated monthly. However, because of Jungkook's recent low mood, the sales director steered away from bringing this up. He was smart enough to only complain to Assistant Lee about the matter.
So when Assistant Lee suddenly remembered this, he raised the concern, unintentionally scaring the crap out of the sales director.
At the sound of Assistant Lee's voice, the male director from sales jumped up and declared, "President Jeon, don't worry. We can wait. It's no big deal. The company is currently going through hard times. Everyone understands, and we're not in a hurry."
Jungkook nodded as he looked at Assistant Lee. "Pay them. The sales department works very hard, running around every day making sales. There's no need to delay their bonuses, it's not a staggering amount to begin with. Tell the finance department to pay them monthly. If an employee is in need, they can apply for advance payment. Of course, they will need their superior's approval first."
"Got it, President Jeon," Assistant Lee smiled. The president was indeed kind; he always did what was needed to be done.
The executives sighed in relief after Jungkook left the conference room...
"President Jeon is scary. I'm afraid of him. Every time I see him, a gust of cold air comes along."
"Haha... yeah, after all, our boss is famous for being cold and domineering."
"The sales department did pretty well, President Jeon was really generous just now." The other directors all looked at the sales director enviously.
"The president knows about our hard work. Haha... everyone stop comparing."
*
Jungkook returned to his office just in time to see Tzuyu's call.
He didn't answer, however, as he felt like she had been contacting him quite frequently.
Even if it was nothing, Lisa probably wouldn't appreciate it.
Likewise, if Jimin contacted Lisa as frequently as Tzuyu contacted him, he wouldn't be happy either.
Therefore, he wasn't going to pick up the phone, no matter how much it rang...
"Sir, why hasn't Young Madam come to the company recently... are you guys really in a fight?"
With so much gossip on the newspapers, Assistant Lee was a little worried about Jungkook and Lisa's relationship.
Truthfully speaking, he was a fan of the Liskook couple. He truly believed in their love.
"When are you so into my personal life? Aren't you overstepping your role as an assistant?" Jungkook raised his head and stared at Assistant Lee, scaring the latter out of his wits...
"Haha, sir, please don't be angry, I'm just curious... my wife is a fan of Young Madam. She even fights for her against the slandering netizens! She asks me about you guys every day... I don't even know how to respond." Assistant Lee continued his charade of being dumb and innocent so that his boss wouldn't get mad...
Sure enough, Jungkook's expression calmed down quite a bit upon hearing what Lee said.
"Tell your wife to not worry."
"Hm? Then does this mean that you guys are fine? Haha, I knew it! How could you fight with Young Madam! You love her so much!"
Assistant Lee was very happy upon hearing the president's words...
With a pen spinning in his hand, Jungkook planned out how he could go see Lisa that night.
He always thought that romance novels were a joke. How could one day of not seeing each other seem like three years? It was bullshit.
Now that he was in the situation, however, it made so much sense... It wasn't just three years, it felt like a decade!
He missed having Lisa in his arms while they slept, cozied in his embrace like a kitten.
"Doll, I want to find you at South Hill manor tonight," he messaged her.
"No."
"Doll..." Jungkook actually began to act cute for the first time ever.
Lisa almost gave in, but as soon as she remembered that she was set up, she knew she needed to find the person behind all of this. So, she bit her tongue and said, "Be good, Kook. We need to work together and catch the bad guy!"
"Then how will you repay me?" Jungkook asked proudly.
"In any way you want," in order to calm him, Lisa went all out.
"Really?"
"Really."
"Then after this thing passes, I want to do it ten times a night."
"..."
"I'm going to try every position with you."
"..."
"Oh, right, I also want you to wear sexy lingerie and dress up like a playful bunny."
"..."
A playful bunny? How could he think of something so lame? He really was incredible.
"Jungkook, you are the president of a major corporation. Can you not be such a pervert?" Lisa was speechless.
"Someone wise said that it's okay to be perverted towards your own wife."
"Go away..." Lisa was completely done with him.
The car soon entered a high-end residential area...
"Aren't we going to a restaurant or a tea house?" Lisa expected the meeting place with Mrs. Park to be an elegant and quiet place. Why were they in a residential area?
"Mrs. Park told me to bring you to her home."
"What? Her home?!" Lisa completely lost her cool.
So this was the military district family housing, the most famous residential area in the city?
It was said that this residential area was intensively fortified.
An even more exaggerated rumor said that every mansion had its own underground tunnel. In short, the place was something made of dreams.
Lisa never imagined that she would one day step into Jimin's family house, a place that was almost magical.
With Mrs. Park being the hostess, she suddenly began to doubt her safety.
She heard a story before about a woman who had rejected some rich gentleman's love.
His family used their connections and kidnapped the woman back to his home. After he forced himself on her, she went crazy.
She was later sent to a prison in some city. Afterward... it was said that she died of a disease.
No one knew of her whereabouts and ultimately, her family never saw their daughter again; not even her body was found.
It was stories like these that made Lisa shy away from people with too much power; they had too many shady secrets.
It wasn't something that could be fathomed by ordinary people...
With this thought brewing in her mind, Lisa began to worry. She was truly afraid for her life.
She didn't want to worry Jungkook, so she didn't dare to text him.
She ended up messaging Jennie instead.
"Jen, I'm at the Park Residence. You don't need to reply. I just wanted to tell you where I am."
Understanding the meaning behind Lisa's text, Jennie didn't reply.
She was a little bit worried about Lisa so she made a call to Taehyung.
"queen Jen, what can I do for you?" Taehyung laughed.
"What kind of person is Jimin's mother?" Jennie asked directly.
"Why are you asking me this all of a sudden?" Taehyung was confused by the question.
"What's with all the questions? Just hurry up and answer me." Jennie felt impatient.
"Auntie Park's super nice. We used to hang out with Jimin at their mansion a lot, and she was really gentle, many times better than my mother." Taehyung liked Mrs. Park very much.
"Okay, I got it."
Hearing Taehyung's description of Mrs. Park, Jennie relaxed quite a bit. After all, being best buddies with Jimin for so many years, Taehyung definitely knew what kind of person Mrs. Park was.
If that was the case, then Mrs. Park wouldn't do anything to Lisa, right?
She wouldn't hurt her just because of her son's bad publicity, right?
– Park Mansion Entrance –
With Grandpa Park and Mr. Park traveling all the time, there was rarely anybody at home.
Mrs. Park would spend her time meeting with friends, traveling, and attending charity events and business dinners.
She also sang songs from the 90s during BigHit's anniversary parties.
The car slowly came to a stop. Just as Lisa got off the car, Mrs. Park came out of the house.
She was wearing a bell-sleeved cashmere top, a pearl necklace, and a skirt. Everything matched up nicely and the nude color looked very cozy.
"Lisa, come in." Mrs. Park took Lisa's hand warmly into her own and began walking into the house.
"Are you cold?" Mrs. Park asked.
Lisa shook her head. "No, I was in the car the whole time. The temperature was perfect."
"Aaheun, put on a pot of rose tea."
"Yes, ma'am."
The maid was very busy, cutting fruits and brewing tea.
Lisa couldn't help but feel awkward. It was the first time that she was treated so warmly by someone who was her mother's age.
The few times that she went to the Jeon Manor, Mrs. Jeon was always cold, and they were almost guaranteed to fight.
"Mrs. Park did you want to talk to me about something?" Liss asked quietly.
"Yes, there is. Wait here for me. I'll be right back."
With that, Mrs. Park went upstairs, returning shortly after with a thick photo album in her hands.
She sat down beside Lisa closely, her motherly scent warming the latter's heart.
Although the outside world painted Mrs. Park as a scary woman, one who would do anything to protect her son, Lisa didn't get that vibe from her; she had actually taken a liking towards this woman.
"Lisa, come here, I want to show you Jimin's baby pictures." With that, Mrs. Park flipped open the photo album.
A picture of a chubby baby presented itself in front of Lisa. On his forehead was a red dot, and covering his little body was a red belly wrap.
He was placed in a bamboo basket, pouting, his brows furrowed, cute as the Ginseng Baby...
"Haha, is this really Jimin?" Lisa couldn't' help but giggle.
"Yes, let me tell you... back when I was pregnant, I wanted a girl. When I saw that Jimin was a boy, I was kind of disappointed. I kept trying to dress him up like a girl. After he grew up and understood the difference between the two genders, he stopped letting me put red dots on his forehead. Haha." Mrs. Park was very happy talking about Jimin's childhood.
Lisa couldn't help but giggle...
She couldn't imagine that the Young Master Park, a man of such status, had such an embarrassing childhood.
More specifically, it was his mother who surprised her, a mother whose life's goal was to embarrass her son...
"Oh, don't forget to eat the apples. I hand-picked them from our own garden, there are no pesticides on them." With that, Mrs. Park took a small red apple and stuffed it into Lisa's hands.
Lisa didn't refuse. She took a huge bite out of the apple, natural as could be.
Mrs. Park continued to flip through the photo album. She pointed to a photo and introduced, "This was taken during his third birthday. His grandfather had a business trip but didn't want to leave him behind. In the end, I took him and followed his grandfather to the army base in the western mountainous area. We stayed there for more than 10 days. When we came back, his face looked like a red potato, truly 'plateau red'."
"Hahahaha..." Lisa couldn't help but laugh out loud. Mrs. Park's description was too spot on.
It was just ruddied cheeks, the type that one gets when they're in the wind for too long, but Mrs. Park's 'plateau red' was truly ingenious.
"This one too, this one's really funny... I brought him to Disneyland in the U.S... We met a little girl there who thought that he was a girl, since he was really pretty. She kept following him, calling him her older sister. In the end, Jimin couldn't take it anymore and told her that he would cut off her pigtails if she kept calling him 'older sister'. She started to cry, thinking that Jimin was being serious."
Lisa didn't say anything, she just kept laughing...
"Oh, and this, this was when he was 10. He received second place for a mathematical olympiad. Both his grandfather and his father were super happy, but he wasn't happy because he didn't come first."
"He was a straight-A student when he was a kid?" Lisa looked slightly surprised. She couldn't imagine Jimjn as a good student.
"Yes! He was brilliant at math. He was very bright... but he hated studying. Apparently, he didn't want to turn into a nerd." Mrs. Park continued to flip through the album, laughing.
Then, a photo of him in a military uniform appeared...
It was lisa's first time seeing Jimin in uniform. Surprisingly, he looked quite valiant... the uniform fit him perfectly, and he looked especially handsome in it.
There were two pictures, one with him in a camouflage uniform, his skin incredibly dark from being under the sun the whole time.
The other was of him in a formal uniform, his hand in a military salute, handsome as ever.
"When he left for the army that year, I cried for a long time. I really couldn't let him go. I knew he would suffer a lot, but it was his own choice and I couldn't stop him. Do you know what kind of soldier he was?"
Mrs. Park looked up at Lisa and asked.
Lisa shook her head. Since she was never interested in him, she never asked him about his past.
"He was in the special forces."
"Special forces? Isn't that dangerous?" Lisa was surprised.
"Yeah... when he went to the west, I wouldn't agree to it no matter what. It was truly too dangerous... Really, it's not something we can imagine. Not only was the climate horrible, but the west is also where we intersect with an extremely dangerous country. On the surface, everything seemed calm, but underneath that calmness were turbulent waters. Three of Jimin's teammates died during one of their missions."
"That's really scary..." Lisa couldn't imagine a rich kid like Jimin being in the special forces.
"Yes! Because of this, his father and I had a huge fight. I wanted him to be discharged, but he stayed for two more years and came home just as he was about to be promoted. He really didn't want to come back. Although he looks like he doesn't care about a thing in the world, he's actually quite patriotic. He had always thought that patrolling in the frontiers was the most honorable thing he's ever done. Ultimately, his grandfather gave the order for him to be discharged. I'm sure that you know by now, that he is the Park Family's only son. After I gave birth to Jimin, my health deteriorated and we couldn't have another child. So, to us, he is really really important."
Mrs. Park used two 'really's to emphasize the importance of Jimin to the Park Family.
Lisa nodded. She didn't reply, she only listened.
"This one was taken when he was discharged and opened his company. He was quite young then."
"Yeah, he looks more mature now," Lisa commented on the photo as she continued biting into her apple.
"This one was taken during the last lunar new year. We went to the South Sea..." She pointed at Jimin, who was wearing an orange t-shirt and black beach pants, paired with a pair of brown sunglasses. He looked very handsome, like a superstar.
As she flipped through the photo album, Mrs. Park continued to tell Lisa funny stories about Jimin.
After they finished looking through the pictures, Mrs. Park closed up the album and said to Lisa, "I'm very impressed by you. Despite the potential damage to your reputation, you testified for Jimin. Most women would protect their own interests and could care less about others."
"It's nothing, Mrs. Park, after all, I was a witness," Lisa replied calmly.
"Then did you expect what would happen after you testified?"
"Of course," Lisa laughed, completely unbothered.
"If you knew this would happen, why did you do it? Aren't you afraid of ruining your reputation?" Mrs. Park asked Lisa in a serious manner.
"Um... how should I put this? To me, I value how I view myself more than how others view me... I don't want to do wrong onto others, that's my bottom line," Lisa enunciated every word...
Mrs. Park gazed at her with admiring eyes and said, "I'm very grateful for the things you've done for Jimin."
"No, he's the one who's been protecting me. That's why he didn't say anything about our meeting. I actually think that testifying is something I should do. It's nothing noteworthy. Please don't see me as someone who's great..." Lisa said honestly.
"This is why I like you." Mrs. Park looked at Lisa lovingly.
Lisa felt a little bit embarrassed. She tilted her head downwards and chewed slowly.
"Ma'am, dinner is ready."
"Let's go eat dinner."
"Mrs. Park, you're too kind. I should go."
Lisa felt that it was inappropriate for her to stay for dinner. After all, she didn't have a tight bond with the Park Family.
"Don't worry, Jimin isn't coming back until later. I know what you're worried about. Stay for me? I'm the only one at home."
Hearing this, Lisa couldn't refuse any further and followed Mrs. Park into the dining room.
"I heard that you really liked seafood... so I went to the market this morning to buy some. It's very fresh."
"Thank you, Mrs. Park." Feeling slightly awkward, Lisa pulled out a chair and sat down.
The table was filled with seafood... scallops, squid, conches, sea rabbits, crab, prawns...
It was a big seafood feast.
"Don't worry, we're just going to chat about everyday things," seeing a tensed-up Lisa, Mrs. Park explained.
"Mrs. Park, I'm a very straightforward person. Can you tell me why you asked me to come here today?"
Mrs. Park put down her chopsticks and smiled at Lisa. After a while, she said slowly, "I actually just wanted to ask, are you really having issues with your husband?"
"Uh..." Lisa was truly surprised. She didn't expect Mrs. Park to ask her such a question.
"If... and I'm only talking about if... you and your husband really do end up like what the media's been reporting, and you do break up in the end, could you possibly give Jimin a chance?"
Lisa was now even more shocked...
Is Mrs. Park... confessing to me for Jimin