God-Given Business Genius - Chapter 170

Clatter.

The sound of someone's spoon touching the dish echoed quietly. In this terribly silent meal, Hyun Ye-won felt as if she was suffocating.

Once a month.

It was an established rule for the owner family of <Hyeonmu> to gather for a meal together.

There was no grand reason for these busy individuals to inconvenience themselves by making time to dine together. Nor was it based on family love with the intention of pleasantly facing each other over a meal.

If that were the case, they wouldn't all be so focused on their food without properly looking at each other's faces.

'If it's going to be like this, why bother gathering to eat together?'

Hyun Ye-won grumbled inwardly. She was thoroughly displeased with spending her precious Sunday evening so meaninglessly.

'No meaning, no conversation.'

Everyone must know that this meal was merely a formality of 'family dining'. Yet, there was only one reason why they participated in this meaningless event without complaint.

It was because this was a rule established by Hyun Mu-jung, the founding chairman who built <Hyeonmu>.

"......"

Yes.

That old man sitting at the head of the table, silently sipping his soup.

His white hair was abundant, and the dried skin characteristic of the elderly made his bone structure even more prominent. He looked as dry as a twig.

Yet, his piercing gaze remained as sharp as ever.

Hyun Mu-jung, the former chairman.

He was still the real power behind <Hyeonmu>, manipulating this family at will.

A man of iron and blood who raised Hyeonmu from nothing. The world praised Hyun Mu-jung's great achievements, extolling his innate sense.

That eye for discerning what to sell was a talent that even the current chairman, Hyun Jung-hu, couldn't imitate.

'Greedy old man.'

Of course, this was Hyun Ye-won's personal assessment.

Despite his failing health, wasn't he still arbitrarily wielding his power over people until the very end?

Although he had passed the position of chairman to Hyun Jung-hu, the board of directors was still filled with Hyun Mu-jung's people. Hyun Jung-hu was nothing more than a figurehead chairman.

'How long does he intend to cling to power?'

With both hands full of power and unwilling to let go, Hyun Jung-hu could only watch with parched lips.

"Ye-won's father."

Suddenly, Hyun Mu-jung spoke. Hyun Jung-hu immediately put down what he was about to eat and responded.

"Yes, Father."

"Is the analysis of this quarter's F&B (Food and Beverage) sector performance complete?"

"It's in the final stages. Our market share in the HMR (Home Meal Replacement) market is rising faster than expected. Particularly, the SKU (Stock Keeping Unit) profitability of our 'Premium Line' has increased by over 12%. Thanks to this, our EBITDA (Earnings Before Interest, Taxes, Depreciation and Amortization) margin in the food sector is being maintained stab—"

Before Hyun Jung-hu could finish, Hyun Mu-jung interrupted.

"How are you organizing the core channels? I heard the market response has been good since the recent expansion of the 'Olive Jelly' brand."

"Yes, rather than increasing directly operated stores for 'Olive Jelly', we've strategically decided to strengthen our O2O (Online to Offline) channels. Especially, in line with the B2C (Business to Consumer) transition, we're also implementing a D2C (Direct to Consumer) model in parallel."

At this, Hyun Mu-jung slightly furrowed his brow.

"But that's not an area where we traditionally have strength... Hmm. Vertical integration is our competitive edge, if we outsource too much or depend on platforms, the risk increases."

"You're right. That's why we're also pursuing a sourcing strategy. We plan to strengthen our unique SCM (Supply Chain Management) to control the entire process from raw materials to distribution."

"Hmm."

Seeing Hyun Mu-jung's lukewarm response, Hyun Jung-hu quickly added:

"With the synergy from the food distribution company we acquired last month, we've secured a stable supply chain, and our R&D center is also accelerating the development of new items. We're preparing to enter the market within 5 years."

"I see."

Finally, a positive response came from Hyun Mu-jung's lips.

"Proceed as such. I'll be watching."

"...Yes."

Sick and tired of work talk. Hyun Ye-won put food in her mouth with an indifferent face.

At that moment, Hyun Jung-hu spoke in a subtle tone.

"Ahem. Father."

"What is it?"

"I'm thinking of creating a position for Tae-sung soon..."

Thud!

As soon as the words ended, a sound came from elsewhere. It was none other than Jeon Hyo-won, sitting opposite Hyun Jung-hu, putting down her utensils loudly.

'Mother seems quite upset.'

Hyun Ye-won kept glancing at Jeon Hyo-won.

Jeon Hyo-won glared at Hyun Tae-sung sitting across from Hyun Ye-won with a fierce gaze. Hyun Tae-sung was brazenly taking a sip of wine.

He was the person who suddenly appeared a few years ago, calling himself 'oppa'. Of course, there was no trace of sibling affection between them.

'Father has finally made his move.'

Hyun Ye-won commented as if it were someone else's business.

"Are you really going to do this?"

The low, anger-laden tone sent chills down one's spine.

"Ye-won's mother. I'm still eating."

As Hyun Mu-jung gave a warning look, Jeon Hyo-won continued in a slightly subdued tone.

"Father, it's because this fellow is talking nonsense."

"What nonsense? Tae-sung is of age now, it's about time we made a place for him in the company."

"You really...!"

Clack!

"Tsk, tsk."

As Hyun Mu-jung put down his spoon and clicked his tongue, Jeon Hyo-won closed her mouth again.

"Both of you, stop it. Do you want to show such unsightly behavior in front of me?"

"......"

"And you, Ye-won's father. You should have discussed such matters well with your wife before telling me."

"I apologize. My thinking was short-sighted."

Short-sighted, indeed.

'He probably thought Mother wouldn't dare to intervene if he brought it up directly in front of Grandfather.'

Hyun Ye-won felt nauseous seeing right through his snake-like intentions.

"And there's an order to everything. If we're creating a position in the company, we should start with Ye-won."

"!"

At Hyun Mu-jung's mention, Hyun Ye-won abruptly raised her head. She felt everyone's gazes pouring onto her.

Especially the gaze of Hyun Tae-sung sitting across from her was particularly intense. It felt like everything she had just eaten was coming back up.

"Father. Tae-sung is older."

"Regardless of age! Ye-won is the one officially registered in our family registry first. Isn't that right?"

Hyun Ye-won deliberately wiped her mouth with trembling hands, wondering why the sparks were suddenly flying towards her.

"Where did you say Ye-won is working now?"

"At <The Song>."

"<The Song>? Ah, that place."

It was a startup that Hyun Mu-jung had vaguely heard of.

Of course, he wasn't recognizing it because he found its existence threatening or irritating. Hyun Mu-jung's gaze was set much higher than to give such an evaluation to a fledgling company that hadn't even gone public yet.

Nevertheless, there was only one reason why he knew about <The Song>.

"We were considering it as an acquisition target."

What?

Hyun Ye-won's eyes widened. This was the first time she had heard about this.

Nodding at Hyun Mu-jung's words, Hyun Jung-hu said:

"Yes, it was one of the considerations due to its strong brand expansion power. Adding a rapidly growing brand to our portfolio could strengthen our market dominance."

"But wasn't the merger and acquisition proceeding with another company? Is there a reason?"

"Yes. Several factors came into play. We judged it better to acquire a small company with different patents, and above all..."

Hyun Jung-hu trailed off for a moment.

"They flatly refused as soon as we brought up the acquisition."

It was still bewildering to think about. We proposed the acquisition in quite a courteous tone, but to be rejected outright.

We thought we had offered a fair price. They seemed to have an unexpectedly dull side.

Of course, if necessary, we could have proceeded with a forced acquisition, but it wasn't worth that much effort.

"Companies with strong loyalty and no willingness to merge are just liabilities even if we acquire them."

"I see. You did well."

After a brief compliment, Hyun Mu-jung immediately turned to Hyun Ye-won.

"Ye-won, you too should stop playing house and come into the company."

"......"

"I've indulged your willful behavior long enough. It's time you came into the company and learned the business. Don't you think? How long are you going to act like a child?"

Hyun Mu-jung's words were absolute.

All power and strength stemmed from Hyun Mu-jung's hands. Because of this, even Hyun Ye-won had never disobeyed Hyun Mu-jung's words until now.

The fact that Hyun Ye-won could live freely, moving from one company to another, was only possible under Hyun Mu-jung's tacit permission.

However, Hyun Mu-jung was now declaring that the picnic was over.

"Father, really. The child does so well when she tries. Ye-won, you can do well, can't you?"

Jeon Hyo-won's excited voice rang in her ears. Across from her, Hyun Tae-sung wore an expression of resentment, as if something of his had been taken away.

Hyun Jung-hu, while not showing it openly, also had a displeased look on his face.

Hyun Ye-won quickly surveyed these people who didn't feel like family, took a deep breath, and declared:

"...I don't want to."

"What?"

"I said I don't want to!"

Hyun Ye-won's voice cut across the dining table.

"Hyun Ye-won! How dare you speak to your grandfather like that!"

Jeon Hyo-won shouted sharply, but Hyun Ye-won stood up from her seat without hesitation.

"I'll be leaving first. I enjoyed the meal today."

Hyun Ye-won said in a tone that didn't sound enjoyable at all. She gathered her coat and strode to the door.

As she turned the doorknob, she suddenly turned back and said to Hyun Mu-jung:

"I'm not interested in <Hyeonmu>."

Clack.

The door swung open loudly, and Hyun Ye-won disappeared beyond it.

"Th-that child! Father, Ye-won is still young. She must not have grown up yet. I'll try to reason with her, so please don't worry too much."

As Jeon Hyo-won fidgeted and defended Hyun Ye-won, Hyun Mu-jung waved his hand dismissively.

"Leave her be."

"Father!"

"When the time comes, she'll return."

Hyun Mu-jung muttered while elegantly using his knife.

"Blood doesn't lie, after all..."