The Country Life Diary of a Gangster's Secretary-Chapter 117

Sungjin grinned playfully. In the early days of leading Taesung, Lee Hyuk had ruthlessly dealt with any rotten roots that emerged. He would cut them off without considering any background circumstances. Because of that, Taesung was often labeled as a "gangster company," a stigma that was hard to shake.

Lee Hyuk didn’t care much about public perception or the fact that his employees feared him, as long as the company made money. As a result, Taesung’s performance improved, but the turnover rate among employees also reached its peak.

"It’s not that I’ve mellowed out, it’s that I’ve changed. Don’t you remember? Early on in the business, I got into serious trouble with Hyesung."

"Oh, that’s right."

There was one significant clash between Lee Hyuk and Hyesung during those early days. It was the first and last major argument in the six years they had worked together.

"Is it true that you fired Team Leader Choi from the HR Department?"

The smell of cigarette smoke stung Hyesung’s nose, causing him to frown.

"Yeah."

Hyesung sighed deeply as he looked at Lee Hyuk, who was smoking in his office. Lee Hyuk barely glanced at him before looking away again.

"What was the reason this time?"

"He was one of the guys involved in the corruption during the recent recruitment process."

Lee Hyuk’s sharp eyes seemed to say, "Why are you even asking?" Recently, a hiring scandal had rocked the company, making things quite tense.

The scandal started with internal whistleblowers revealing that HR team leaders had colluded to get their acquaintances hired at Taesung.

"The one who led the recruitment corruption was Team Leader Lee from the second HR department."

The person most directly implicated in the scandal was Team Leader Lee from the second HR department. In the process, Team Leader Choi from the first department got caught up in it as well. As soon as this was discovered, Lee Hyuk didn’t bother with further investigation and immediately fired both team leaders.

"Secretary Chun, there’s evidence suggesting that Team Leader Choi might have been involved in the corruption as well."

Lee Hyuk stubbed out his cigarette in the ashtray. His nerves had been on edge lately. Taesung was in a crucial phase, rapidly growing by securing various contracts and officially launching its business.

It was unusual for a company founded by a former gangster to grow so quickly in such a short time.

However, Taesung still struggled to shake off its image as a gangster-run enterprise, and the public perception remained negative.

But Lee Hyuk didn’t show any intention of changing that perception. His philosophy was that as long as the construction company won contracts and built good buildings, that was all that mattered. This had led to frequent clashes between Hyesung and Lee Hyuk recently.

Sungjin once commented that what had made them such great partners during their time in the Taesung gang might have become a hindrance as they moved to this new stage in their careers.

He also warned that if they didn’t adjust to this new way of working, they might never find the same rhythm they once had.

As Taesung began its ascent, Lee Hyuk became increasingly on edge. His frequent smoking in front of Hyesung, who he knew hated the smell, was a sign of that tension. Normally, he would never smoke around Hyesung.

But Hyesung wasn’t the type to back down, even if Lee Hyuk was on edge.

"Well, the information I got from HR staff tells a different story. I heard that Team Leader Choi was actually trying to stop the corruption. Regardless, it’s unfair to fire someone based on circumstantial evidence without a thorough investigation."

"Where there’s smoke, there’s fire. The fact that there’s any suspicion at all is a problem."

"Exactly—it’s just suspicion."

Hyesung’s voice began to rise.

"Even if he did participate in the scandal, the right thing to do is to conduct a thorough investigation before firing him. There might be mitigating circumstances."

Lee Hyuk let out a scoffing laugh. At the same time, Hyesung frowned.

"Secretary Chun, you have to cut off rotten roots before they spread and contaminate the rest. You’re talking about thorough investigation and procedure, which sounds great in theory, but have you considered the time and cost of such an investigation? It’s easier to just cut them off and move on. We can always hire competent replacements."

Lee Hyuk ran a frustrated hand through his hair.

"If you understand, go home. You’ve been working overtime a lot lately. Get some rest—you don’t look so good."

"…Lately, I’ve been missing the old version of you, sir."

Lee Hyuk’s hand froze as he was flipping through documents.

"The current version of you feels a bit strange to me. Did you hear that a few more employees submitted their resignations the other day?"

"What are you trying to say?"

"Even back when you were a gangster who solved everything with your fists, there was a certain humanity to you."

Hyesung’s eyes were heavy and serious. His voice was quiet, but it made Lee Hyuk feel uneasy for some reason.

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"You were someone who, even after being tough on your subordinates, would buy them a warm bowl of soup afterward. You cared about your people more than anyone else. That’s the version of you I knew. That’s why I believe Taesung has come this far without crumbling. That’s why I decided to follow you—to see how far someone like you could go."

"Secretary Chun…"

"Sir, the moment someone joins Taesung, they become part of your family. They’re not tools to be discarded and replaced at will. If you don’t understand that, you won’t achieve the success you desire."

Lee Hyuk bit his lip hard. He had seen Hyesung this calm and composed before, but it was rare. When Hyesung was like this, he didn’t need to raise his voice to be intimidating. There were no curses in his words, yet they felt icy.

"I’m planning to meet with the fired Team Leader Choi. I’m going to investigate the details of this recruitment scandal myself. From my interactions with him, I don’t believe he’s the type to be involved in something like this."

"Hyesung, why are you doing this?"

Lee Hyuk sighed deeply, his face etched with irritation and exhaustion.

"You said earlier that if a rotten root remains, it might spread to others."

Lee Hyuk clenched his fist tightly as Hyesung slowly walked to the door and grabbed the handle. Despite the brief action, there was no hesitation in Hyesung’s movements.

"At this point, I’m curious about how you’ll deal with someone like me, who plans to approach this so-called rotten root directly. If I end up being just like them, will you throw me out as well?"

"You…!"

Lee Hyuk shot up from his seat so quickly that his chair crashed into the wall with a loud bang.

"But... it doesn’t really matter to me. The current version of you isn’t cool at all."

Hyesung swung the door open. Lee Hyuk’s eyes widened with anxiety.

"Oh, and stop smoking in the office. The smell bothers me every time I come in."

Hyesung’s voice was colder than ever as he walked out, slamming the door behind him. Lee Hyuk stood there, staring blankly at the closed door, completely stunned.