At that moment, Senior Go Seong-cheol approached Yoo-hyun with a bottle of liquor.
“Come on, Yoo-hyun, have a drink.”
Senior Go Seong-cheol filled Yoo-hyun’s glass and confided his feelings with the help of alcohol.
“I can’t believe I’m seeing you again, Yoo-hyun.”
“You’re happy to see me, right?”
“Puahaha! Of course. You can’t get any worse than before.”
Senior Go Seong-cheol laughed loudly at Yoo-hyun’s answer.
Across the table, Team Leader Hwang Seong-ik chimed in with a smirk.
“Hehe! Senior Go said you were a psycho back then, remember?”
“Hey! Why do you have to bring that up?”
Senior Go Seong-cheol flared up, but Yoo-hyun replied calmly.
“Everyone said that about me.”
Everyone was laughing and chatting in a friendly atmosphere.
The wall between Part 1 and Part 2 was completely gone here.
There was no sense of distance between them.
No one could tell that Yoo-hyun was a dispatched employee.
It was proof that Yoo-hyun had blended in with the team.
When everyone was drunk, Chief Kim Ho-geol came over to Yoo-hyun.
He also had a flushed face from drinking too much.
He gestured to Yoo-hyun.
“Yoo-hyun, can I talk to you for a bit?”
Yoo-hyun wanted to hear what he had to say anyway, so he got up without hesitation.
Yoo-hyun came out of the restaurant and sat on a bench outside with Chief Kim Ho-geol.
The place was different, but it felt similar to the last time they had a conversation after the dinner.
Of course, he enjoyed the dinner more this time and drank more alcohol.
Maybe that’s why Chief Kim Ho-geol brought up the old topic.
“What you said about real politics.”
“I think I understand a little bit now.”
Was it because Yoo-hyun’s answer was too blunt?
Chief Kim Ho-geol suddenly chuckled.
He snickered for a while and then looked at Yoo-hyun and said,
“You’re really amazing.”
“Just. You’re like someone who came to teach me.”
Chief Kim Ho-geol hit the nail on the head.
But he couldn’t reveal his true intentions, so Yoo-hyun changed the subject.
“I didn’t mean it that way.”
“No. It really helped me a lot.”
“I’m glad you think so.”
Yoo-hyun didn’t bother to reply.
He could feel his sincerity in his voice mixed with pauses.
He hesitated for a moment and then continued.
“I was shaken a lot back then.”
“The past doesn’t matter. You’re doing great now.”
Yoo-hyun comforted him, and he blurted out what he had been hiding.
It was something he couldn’t say easily without alcohol.
“To be honest, I resented the team members sometimes.”
“Well, I wished they would do their jobs well, but they seemed to be not moving at all.”
“You probably can’t understand that.”
No, he understood it perfectly well.
No one knew better than Yoo-hyun about the leader’s frustration towards his subordinates.
But he didn’t need to bring it up, so he just listened.
Chief Kim Ho-geol sighed and continued.
“Sigh… But it wasn’t like that.”
“It was my fault. When I changed, the team changed too.”
“That’s right. That’s why the leader’s role is important.”
Chief Kim Ho-geol nodded at Yoo-hyun’s words.
“Yeah. Back then, I was too busy trying to keep up with you that I didn’t see the team members.”
“You’re doing well now.”
“It’s strange. Your words are comforting me, even though you’re an employee.”
It wasn’t just a casual remark.
Yoo-hyun pretended not to notice and smiled lightly and asked,
“What does it matter who said it?”
“Hehe. You’re right…”
He took a breath and then brought up another old conversation with Yoo-hyun.
“Do you think our project will go well as you said before?”
“Then… I think I’ll have something to say to you too.”
“Then let’s wait for each other until then.”
The two people smiled at each other.
The Preceding Product Team was changing.
Maybe each individual couldn’t feel the difference in their skin.
They didn’t produce any surprising results or come up with any groundbreaking alternatives.
But those small differences add up and make a difference in the outcome.
It creates a big change that makes your eyes widen.
Such a change is more clearly seen when you step back and look at it.
Inside the conference room on the second floor of Ulsan Plant 4.
There, Vice President Go Jun-ho, who was receiving a report on the project progress, asked Senior Maeng Gi-yong.
“I heard the IC order went out. How did you finalize the protocol?”
“We followed Apple’s development progress and confirmed it. We adopted the MIPI method and increased the number of communication lines to accommodate the resolution.”
“Hmm, Apple hasn’t confirmed it yet, right?”
He was confident in his answer, so Vice President Go Jun-ho probed him a little.
It was not to scold him, but to test him.
But Senior Maeng Gi-yong showed a very surprising attitude.
“Yes. We informed Apple about that. If they decide on a new interface, we will adjust accordingly.”
“So you’re going to develop a new IC later?”
“We’re thinking of a revision rather than a new development. We made the initial version bulky without considering the cost to accommodate that.”
He used to be hesitant and defensive, but now he made a decision on his own and produced a result.
And the alternative he suggested was simple and clear.
Vice President Go Jun-ho nodded and praised him.
“Good. There’s no point in saving money on the prototype and wasting time. You did well.”
It was not only Senior Maeng Gi-yong.
Everyone from circuit to panel expressed their opinions actively.
They were quite specific and reasonable, so there was nothing to criticize.
Some of them even proposed unexpected solutions.
Vice President Go Jun-ho asked Team Leader Lee Jin-mok in surprise.
“You’re going to make a mockup that Enjoy reading on NovelHub - your free online novel platform. I think we need to Enjoy reading on NovelHub - your free online novel platform.”
“Semiconductor? Have we ever made a mockup here?”
“I contacted the company that worked on the color phone mockup, and they were pretty good. I’ll report the results as we proceed.”
“Okay. Go ahead and try.”
Team Leader Lee Jin-mok’s confident attitude pleased Vice President Go Jun-ho.
Of course, not all the solutions were satisfactory.
He stopped Senior Son Mu-gil from Part 2’s opinion.
“I get what you’re saying, Son, but wouldn’t it be better to go ahead with the panel part first?”
“Yes. We’ll proceed with the schedule as a priority, and also prepare a backup plan in advance.”
As if he expected it, he immediately gave an answer.
All these changes came as a surprise to Vice President Go Jun-ho.
Just a few months ago, he was so disappointed with the Preceding Product Team.
They were nowhere to be seen now.
They were like completely reborn, active and proactive.
The report was over in less than 30 minutes, and Vice President Go Jun-ho was sure this would work.
His heart burst into a cheerful laugh.
“Hahaha! Kim, what kind of magic did you do to your team?”
“It’s all thanks to the team members who worked hard.”
“Wow, I can hardly recognize the Preceding Product Team I knew. You did a great job.”
The team members bowed their heads together.
Their excited expressions showed how they felt right now.
They felt like they had achieved everything by getting recognition from the scary Vice President Go Jun-ho.
The operation of a complex organization was simple when you cut it down .
You could move people with a word, not money.
Yoo-hyun was thinking that when Chief Kim Ho-geol spoke up.
“Director, Yoo-hyun especially worked hard among us.”
“Hehe. I know that without you telling me.”
Yoo-hyun greeted him with a stiff expression at the unexpected compliment.
Then Vice President Go Jun-ho raised his hand and asked the team members with a playful expression.
“You don’t have to be humble. Everyone here must feel the same way. Right?”
“Yes. Director is right.”
Was it because the mood was bright today?
Team Leader Jeong In-wook answered first, and voices came from here and there.
“Yoo-hyun had a lot of trouble.”
“He simplified the goal so it was easier to work.”
“He also organized the collaboration with Part 3 well.”
“The schedule was tight, but it was clear so we could focus.”
Various flattering compliments followed.
In the middle of that, Team Leader Lee Jin-mok blurted out something.
“The soccer game was the best.”
The conference room burst into laughter.
It didn’t seem like a place where they reported to Vice President Go Jun-ho.
It was such a light-hearted atmosphere.
Everyone’s laughter and warm encouragement hit Yoo-hyun’s chest hard.
He rubbed his ticklish chest and thanked them.
“Thank you for your kind words.”
“Yoo-hyun, if you keep this up, you’ll see the results you made, right?”
As soon as Yoo-hyun finished speaking, Vice President Go Jun-ho jumped in.
His face was full of mischievous smiles that didn’t suit him.
Yoo-hyun quickly gave him the answer he wanted.
“Haha! That’s what I like about you.”
It wasn’t just an empty remark out of excitement.
If they made a good prototype, they would surely catch Apple’s eye.
The plant investment was a natural consequence.
Because they had achieved that in the past when they did worse than this.
But Yoo-hyun wanted more than that.
He wanted to get more from Apple.
That asset would be a breakwater to prevent the spin-off and mass layoffs in the future.
He put his heart into one more word.
“Director, you’ll see more than what you think.”
“Haha! Then I’ll have to grant you another favor?”
Only the two of them knew the conversation, and the others blinked their eyes.
Yoo-hyun answered confidently.
“Yes. Then you’ll have to grant me a bigger favor.”
“Haha. Just make it happen. I’ll grant you anything.”
Yoo-hyun thought of someone at that moment.
It was Vice President Lee Tae-ryong.
He was someone Yoo-hyun knew very well in the past.
‘Well, it’s time to make a move, right?’
Yoo-hyun smiled deeply.
At that time, in the office of Product Development Part 3 in Ulsan Plant 3.
There, Circuit Team 3 Leader Ham Jong-gil was speaking with a stiff expression.
“Director, based on the current situation, there should be no problem in making a high-resolution panel within the schedule.”
“Hmm, I heard the product planning team is setting up a demo date with Apple?”
“Yes. Apple is also curious about it.”
Vice President Lee Tae-ryong, who was listening to the report, said something meaningful.
“When the demo date is set, we’ll make some news.”
“I don’t know exactly about that part.”
“I see. Okay. You can go now.”
After Senior Ham Jong-gil bowed and left, Vice President Lee Tae-ryong’s face crumpled.
“Ha! It’s going smoothly, huh…”
He couldn’t let this go on as it was.
That wasn’t his style.
He thought for a while and then picked up the phone with a sneer.
As soon as the call was connected, his mouth burst into a familiar voice.
“Hello, Tanaka-san. Hi!”
At the same time, his mouth curled into a characteristic smile.
After the report was over, Team Leader Lee Jin-mok came over to Yoo-hyun who was sitting at his desk.