Chapter 3.
The Loyal Retainer in Charge of Watching the Young Master, Seo Wangu
Seo Wangu was the most loyal of Do Myeongjin’s loyal retainers.
He had a gentle personality and a pleasant appearance. On top of that, he seemed quite capable, with a wide network of connections in various circles.
In the past, he had received great help from Do Myeongjin.
While Myeongjin brushed it off as “just helping because I could,” for Seo Wangu, it was a life-altering favor.
Determined to repay that favor, he joined the DK Foods executive office as a secretary.
Surprisingly, Do Myeongjin had no involvement in his hiring. Seo Wangu had applied entirely on his own merits and passed the recruitment process for the executive secretary’s office — a position often described as a “needle’s eye” due to its difficulty.
In truth, the opening at that time just happened to be in the executive office, and that’s where he was assigned — it wasn’t his deliberate choice.
As if to prove he was there to repay a debt, Seo Wangu showed no interest in climbing the corporate ladder.
He always completed what he was supposed to do, and never touched anything he shouldn’t.
By the time he reached his fifth year at the company, Do Myeongjin finally acknowledged his sincerity and began entrusting him with tasks that were a bit… tricky to assign to others.
Seo Wangu took even the smallest of tasks seriously, and as a result, he had now become Do Myeongjin’s most trusted aide.
However, aside from the long-serving executives, few people knew about this.
That’s because he never appeared at the forefront and had held the title of “manager” for nearly a decade.
To anyone unaware, he was just another forever-manager.
For reference, the “tasks too awkward to ask others” didn’t refer to shady business or dirty work for the owner’s family. More accurately, they were things too embarrassing to assign to someone else.
For example, something like “babysitting” — like being the personal assistant to Siwan.
Most people would have found the task distasteful, but Seo Wangu responded differently.
“Ohhh! To be trusted this much — I will stake my life to serve Young Master Siwan!”
That was what he exclaimed with genuine emotion when accepting the role.
And indeed, ever since Siwan began learning the ropes as a regular employee, Seo Wangu had devoted himself to “discreetly” supporting him. It was only after Siwan was promoted to director that Wangu began performing his assistant duties more openly.
Still, Siwan had a few grievances when it came to Seo Wangu — the biggest being that he would report every single thing to his father.
If he dared to eat kimchi fried rice in front of him, it was easy to imagine Wangu saying something like, “I apologize, Chairman. The Director was a little late because he was busy stealing an employee’s kimchi fried rice in the break room.”
And to top it off, today’s appointment was a dinner with the chairman and other executives. Eating kimchi fried rice before such a meeting was out of the question.
Siwan looked longingly at the dish.
He at least wanted to know the name of the employee who had brought in that dangerously appetizing kimchi fried rice.
But asking directly seemed risky — Wangu might say something weird.
‘Ah, her employee badge.’
Coincidentally, the woman had left her ID badge face-down on the table.
Siwan took a deep breath. At some point, his face had reverted to its usual cynical yet refined expression.
He gave the woman a slight nod.
“Sorry for interrupting your meal. Then, I’ll take my leave.”
And with that, he walked out of the break room.
Only then did Seo Wangu turn to the woman with a gentle smile.
“That was Director Do Siwan, our newly appointed general director starting today. And I’m his assistant, Seo Wangu.”
Director Do Siwan?
Now that she thought about it, she recalled someone saying that the chairman’s third son would be appointed head of the Food Development Division today.
Startled, the woman jumped up from her seat.
“Oh! Hello! What do I do, I didn’t even greet him properly!”
“Saying everything on your mind out loud is something only a fool does.”
This was the family motto hanging prominently in her house.
It was also the proud work of her father, who was passionate about brush calligraphy.
‘Thanks, Dad. Thanks to that, I still have a job.’
She was immensely relieved that she hadn’t actually said anything out loud — like calling him a weirdo or some new breed of beggar.
She retraced her own behavior from the moment Siwan entered to when he left.
The way she had tried to hide the lunch box by sliding the lid shut still nagged at her.
‘I won’t get scolded for that later… will I?’
Watching her grow flustered, Seo Wangu waved his hand dismissively.
“You can greet him properly another time.”
“O-Okay…”
“By the way, nothing happened, right?”
At the random question, the woman tilted her head.
“What do you mean?”
“Well, I only caught a glimpse, but it looked like the director was holding your wrist.”
“Oh…”
“If you experienced anything that could be considered sexual harassment, please don’t hesitate to report it to the Ethics Office. Chairman Do Myeongjin takes such matters very seriously. There will be no retaliation.”
The woman flailed her hands in surprise.
A secretary telling her to report his own boss? That was a first.
But Siwan had simply admired her stir-fried kimchi rice. She hadn’t felt uncomfortable at all and didn’t want to cause unnecessary trouble for him.
“No, no! He was just observing my kimchi fried rice up close because he said it looked delicious.”
Seo Wangu’s eyes lit up.
“Oh? The kimchi fried rice?”
“Yes. He said it smelled so good, it lured him in.”
“I see. Ah, if you don’t mind — may I ask your name?”
She held up her employee badge.
“I’m Assistant Manager Joo Hana from the Food Planning Team.”
Seo Wangu smiled warmly and nodded.
“Please take good care of the director from now on, Assistant Manager Joo.”
“I-I should be the one saying that…”
“Well then, enjoy your meal. I apologize on behalf of the director for the interruption.”
He gave a polite bow and left before she could respond.
* * *
5:55 PM. DK Foods Headquarters, 10th Floor.
“The Director is coming!”
A male employee ran in and shouted that “Do Siwan” had arrived. The office, which had been busy with people preparing to leave, immediately fell silent.
Those who had packed up their things and were ready to bolt at 6 PM sharp quickly tossed their bags under their desks and rebooted their computers.
A moment later, Siwan entered the office, and everyone, as if on cue, fixed their eyes on their monitors and furiously typed away.
asldkjfalskdfjGrocery list: onions, green onions, tofu, fish cakeI want to go home. I want to go home.Words that end with “ri-ri”: Nagari~
Everyone had opened a Notepad window and was typing random things.
Pretending to be busy in front of your boss — that’s just common sense.
With Siwan’s sharp eyes and stoic face, the atmosphere turned tense. People typed more fervently than ever.
The male employees looked at his eyes and thought:
‘Yikes, look at that stare. Step out of line and I’m dead.’
They kept their heads glued to the monitors, not daring to move their eyes.
The female employees, however, thought something entirely different:
‘Whoa, his charisma is unreal. Will he look at me just once?’
His suit fit so perfectly, he looked like a model in a fashion shoot. Some of them kept stealing glances at him, hoping to make eye contact.
At DK Foods, all executive offices were located at the far end of each floor, requiring them to walk through the office space — an arrangement born from Chairman Do Myeongjin’s belief that “familiarity breeds affection.”
Because of that, both executives and employees found the layout equally uncomfortable.
On the 10th floor, the Food Development Division and the Marketing Division shared the floor, split left and right.
Looking toward his still-distant office, Siwan muttered internally:
‘Ugh… Why is this office so ridiculously wide?’
As he walked toward his office, Siwan suddenly stopped and turned to the staff.
“Aren’t you all getting ready to go home?”
No one answered — unsure of what he meant.
Saying “Yes, of course” might make them look like they were trying to leave before their boss, and no one wanted to risk that.
Seo Wangu, standing close behind him, whispered,
“Sir, your expression. Your expression.”
Siwan reflexively touched his face. At dinner tables, he could smile naturally — but for some reason, it was harder at work.
He remained silent, and the tension grew heavier.
‘Ugh… Should’ve just kept walking.’
As he fretted about how to smooth things over, one familiar-looking employee caught his eye.
A round-faced woman in a baggy hoodie with her hair messily tied up — the Kimchi Fried Rice Girl!
It had been ages since he’d smelled something so delicious.
Even at the earlier executive dinner, he had endured the meal by remembering the scent and look of that fried rice.
He’d even dreamed about that kimchi fried rice (or more precisely, the person who made it).
She, completely uninterested in Siwan, was focused on her monitor, jotting something in her notebook.
As he recalled the image of the heaping spoonful of fried rice, a soft smile crept across Siwan’s lips.
And just like magic, the office atmosphere softened.
Someone finally mustered the courage to answer him:
“We were just waiting for you to leave first, sir!”
A perfect icebreaker. Riding the momentum, Siwan replied in a gentle tone:
“There’s no need for that. I’m only still here because I have work to finish. If you’ve completed your own tasks, don’t hesitate — go ahead and leave.”
Then, with a kind smile, he added,
“I promise that leaving before me won’t ever result in any kind of disadvantage when it comes to evaluations.”
