Chapter 265:

Words : 1400 Updated : Oct 9th, 2025

Chapter 265: Chapter 265 Soon after, Executive Go Jun-ho rushed over. He saw the panel that had just barely displayed the screen and clapped loudly, praising them. Clap clap clap clap clap. “Hahaha. Well done.” “The team members worked hard.” Senior Kim Ho-geol tried to share the credit with others, but Executive Go Jun-ho patted his shoulder. “Team Leader Kim, you did a great job too. Are you ready for the demo now?” “Huh? Sir, that’s...” Kim Ho-geol stuttered at his sudden words. “What’s wrong? This looks good enough to do it tomorrow. Don’t you think?” “...” No one answered Executive Go Jun-ho’s question. The atmosphere became silent as a mouse. Why? It was a great achievement, but it was far from being ready for a demo. To do a demo, they would have to pull several all-nighters. “Why are you so unsure? It looks easy to me.” “Sir, we still need more time.” Kim Ho-geol asked for his understanding, but Executive Go Jun-ho tilted his head. “Why? You did it right away last time.” “...” That’s right. Executive Go Jun-ho was not someone who had done any groundwork. He had done it too fast this time and last time, so he thought it was normal. Kim Ho-geol said with a flustered expression. “This time is different from last time. We have to adjust everything from scratch, and there are still many unresolved issues.” “So what? Senior Min Su-jin will take care of it. Right?” Whether they liked it or not, Executive Go Jun-ho was only pushing forward. Senior Min Su-jin was also confused and mumbled. “Yes? Ah, yes...” “Good. I’ll report to the business director right away.” “Sir, wait...” “Team Leader Kim, have some confidence. I’ll pay for it, so go have a nice dinner with your team.” “...” Dinner or not, they couldn’t even go home at this rate. Executive Go Jun-ho didn’t seem to know or care about the team members’ feelings. He turned around with a bright smile. He walked away with his phone in his hand. Behind his back, they heard him talking on the phone. “Group Leader, yes, yes. We did it. Yes. I’ll call the business director...” The hot mood instantly cooled down. Kim Ho-geol coughed and said. “Ahem. Let’s work a little harder since we’re doing this.” “Team Leader.” Senior Min Su-jin let out a single word of scream. Everyone quietly moved away from her side. It was best to stay out of the way at times like this. That day, Yoo-hyun didn’t pick up his bag even after the end-of-work song played. He ate dinner at the office and stayed at his seat even after the sun set. People were nervous when Yoo-hyun stayed behind. Lee Jin-mok, who was passing by, asked him why he was still sitting there. He looked very anxious. “Yoo-hyun, why are you still here?” “Everyone is working hard.” “Hey, don’t do something you don’t usually do. It makes me itch on the back of my head.” “Just relax.” Yoo-hyun was dumbfounded, but it wasn’t just Lee Jin-mok who thought that way. People flinched whenever Yoo-hyun passed by. As if Executive Go Jun-ho had come near them, they felt uneasy. The part leader was no exception. “Oh, you scared me.” “Did you do something wrong?” “No, you just walked by.” “This is the walkway, you know?” Yoo-hyun asked with an incredulous expression. Jung In-wook in charge shook his hands frantically. It didn’t seem like he was doing anything else. On the monitor was the schedule that Yoo-hyun had made before. “Anyway, I feel uneasy when you’re here. There’s something about you.” “That’s weird.” Yoo-hyun pulled a chair next to him and sat down. Jung In-wook in charge frowned and said. “What? Why?” “Let’s wrap it up soon. We have to work tomorrow too.” “Really?” “Kim in charge is a workaholic. He’s waiting for me to finish, so how can I leave?” “I think I know what you mean.” Yoo-hyun nodded and looked back. There were lights on all over the office building. It was almost midnight, but there were still many people guarding the office. Mr. Jung In-wook came up next to him and Yoo-hyun said bluntly. “They’re working hard.” “They’re just resting when they’re not busy, that’s all.” He answered lightly. It was a typical engineer’s answer that Yoo-hyun hadn’t heard for a long time. They walked for about ten minutes and arrived at the rice soup place next to the factory. It was late, but the rice soup place was crowded with people. Looking at their faces, they seemed to be in similar situations. Yoo-hyun took out some alcohol from the fridge and laid it on the table before the rice soup came out. Senior Min Su-jin looked at him incredulously and said. “If you drink like this, you won’t be able to work tomorrow.” “Just drink moderately. Mr. Jung will take responsibility.” Yoo-hyun said to the people who were sitting at two tables. Mr. Jung In-wook got angry. “Hey, why do you keep saying that to me?” “I heard that you call someone responsible by saying responsibility.” “Geez, really. You’re dead today.” “Yes. That’s what I want.” Mr. Jung In-wook and Yoo-hyun joked with each other and people laughed. The part atmosphere became quite light. Was it because of the light mood? Maybe it was because the rice soup was delicious or because of the alcohol. After one or two drinks, the table became lively. They stopped talking about work at first. Personal stories came and went, and stories about life filled the space. Senior Maeng Gi-yong emptied his glass and sighed. “I wonder what’s left after working like this.” “Right? It’s hard to buy an apartment even if we work our whole lives.” “I can’t even change my car because of my kid.” Senior Min Su-jin and Mr. Jung In-wook added a word each. Then Lee Jin-mok in charge said sarcastically. “Right? I thought we would make a lot of money working for a big company.” “We’re all the same as wage earners, what can we do?” Senior Maeng Gi-yong replied and Mr. Jung In-wook filled his glass and said. “Well, at least we can open a chicken place with our retirement money.” The chicken place, the end of the company talk, came out. But Senior Maeng Gi-yong denied that too. “That’s not possible either. The rent is too expensive these days.” “Really? Then what should we do...” “We should be grateful that we’re not fired.” “Who knows? If they tell us to leave, we’ll leave.” The conversation between Senior Maeng Gi-yong and Mr. Jung In-wook became more and more depressing. It was then that Lee Jin-mok in charge lifted his glass and changed the mood. “Hey, why are you talking nonsense? We have to work all night again tomorrow anyway.” “Yeah. He’s right. Come on, cheers.” Mr. Jung In-wook also lifted his glass and everyone else did too. Clang. Yoo-hyun drank alcohol and took in the new scenery. It was a normal conversation of everyday life, having rice soup and pork belly in front of them at midnight. There was nothing special about it. It was just a common worry that office workers would have. They weren’t seriously looking for an answer either. They just needed a conversation to go with their drinks. This series of events would help them cheer up and work hard again tomorrow. He didn’t know their feelings. Yoo-hyun understood that this was the joy of an engineer. But. Why did he feel so regretful? Yoo-hyun smiled bitterly when he was thinking about it. Senior Maeng Gi-yong poured alcohol into Yoo-hyun’s glass and asked. “Yoo-hyun, what do you think?” “About what?” “What should we do? We can’t just do company work, right?” He could have jokingly told him to open a chicken place or something. Or he could have advised him to buy stocks or borrow money to buy an apartment. Of course, he would have ignored it meaninglessly. But Yoo-hyun wanted to give him a more realistic answer.

Chapter 265:

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