novel
| ← Ch.260 | Ch.262 → |
The next evening National Assemblyman Chulwoo Chung drove down to Ansan to meet Hyunwoo.
Hyunwoo thought he might be a senior, but he was not. The Assemblyman was only 45.
Like a politician, he had the gift of the gab.
His first impression made Hyunwoo feel that he was like a kind brother in his neighbor.
After exchanging greetings and pleasantries with him for a long time, Hyunwoo mentioned Haenim School.
"By the way, how did you know about Haenim School? It's a small school with only 50 students, " asked Hyunwoo.
"In fact, I overheard something about it by chance from Assemblyman Jungsang Kim as he was talking with his advisor in the National Assembly."
"May I ask who Assemblyman Kim is?"
Hyunwoo tilted his head because his name was new to him. He was also curious about how Kim knew about Haenim School.
"Oh, he is a National Assemblyman with his constituency in Taean County. I thought both of you knew each other well, but it looks like you are not."
"Ah, Taean County!"
Hyunwoo recalled Taeho Min. It seemed he was Assemblyman Kim who was coming down to see Taeho during the weekend.
Hyunwoo told him about his plan to expand Ani & Funny.
Mr. Chung brightened his face and said, "I'm glad to hear that. I was a bit afraid my meeting with you might not go well. I thought as Assemblyman Kim was from your constituency, you would build an alternative school in Taean."
"No, that's not true. I appreciate it if you can help me set up an alternative school anywhere."
As if on cue, Mr. Chung immediately responded, "Please build an alternative school in Sosan. You can rent a vast lot of 10, 000 pyong (3. 3ha) on a long-term lease. If you want it, you can buy it, too."
Hyunwoo opened his eyes wide at his mention of 10, 000 pyong.
Mr. Chung continued, "The mayor of Sosan is affiliated with the same party as mine, and I grew up with him, so I'm very close to him. If you need it, I'll ask him to make a relevant ordinance to help Haenim School actively."
He prepared lots of material to show Hyunwoo.
"You have the map ready, right?" Mr. Chung asked his advisor.
His advisor opened the map. Mr. Chung already set an eye on a specific location as the future site of Hyunwoo's alternative school.
It was a small village called Tapgokri, Umam-myon, Sosan City. It seemed to be in a good location, given that there was a highway linking Daejon and Dangjin as well as Sohae Coast Highway nearby.
What bothered Hyunwoo was that the location was in a very remote place. Though there were two cities Dangjin and Sosan, they could not be called a large city like Seoul or Incheon.
But that was not important.
Waiting for Mr. Chung to stop for a moment, Hyunwoo began to say, "But Haenim School has only 50 students. Do you know that by any chance?"
Hyunwoo thought Mr. Chung was not aware of that.
But that was his mistake.
Tilting his head slightly, Mr. Chung said, "Of course I know that. And I know where your current alternative school is. I also know its principal is Mr. Suyoung Oh, and that most of the teachers there are college students. I even know that even if you want to buy a lot near the school, you can't buy it because they want to make excessive profits by selling it at too high a price."
Hyunwoo's jaw dropped at his remarks. It looked like Mr. Chung had been doing a background check on him for several months.
Hyunwoo got more curious and asked, "Why are you so actively trying to rent such a vast land and invite my alternative, unauthorized school with only 50 students?"
Mr. Chung just smiled at his question instead of replying. And then he looked Hyunwoo in the eye as if he wanted him to figure it out.
But Hyunwoo waited for him to answer.
After some time Mr. Chung opened his mouth, "I'm not saying this just to invite Haenim School. What I am going to invite is the future of Haenim School."
Hyunwoo was so happy to hear that. Mr. Chung's mention of Haenim's future thrilled him.
Mr. Chung continued, "Of course, Haenim School is not a great institution to talk about, and it might still be the same two or three years later. It might not bear its fruit during my or Sosan Mayor's term."
Hyunwoo could feel the sincerity in his words. He felt Mr. Chung didn't approach him just for his own private interests. He has some great vision, Hyunwoo thought.
"But I'm confident that Haenim School will emerge as the best school ten years later. And I'm sure you can grow the school like that. I want to help you achieve your vision, " Mr. Chung said.
Hyunwoo was greatly touched by Mr. Chung's remarks.
But Hyunwoo could not promise him right away.
The future of the students at Haenim School was closely related to its expansion. If he made the wrong decision, their future would also be affected.
He was also supposed to meet Assemblyman Kim over the weekend. He could make the decision after that.
"Can you give me some time to think over your offer?" said Hyunwoo.
"Of course. Please meet Mr. Kim during the weekend, too. The more prudently you think about it, the better. But I'm sure you will decide to build your school in Sosan, " said Mr. Chung confidently.
Hyunwoo also felt like making the decision in his favor.
Taeho Min, who was meeting Assemblyman Jungsang Kim, called Hyunwoo late in the evening during the weekend. He said he and Mr. Kim moved to another place after dinner.
Hyunwoo visited the sushi restaurant where Taeho and Jungsang moved.
Mr. Kim greeted Hyunwoo gladly.
Taeho and Jungsang were much closer than Hyunwoo thought. Taeho comfortably called Mr. Kim 'Jungsang', who in turn called him 'brother. '
After a brief exchange of greetings, they got to the point.
Mr. Kim was also very interested in Haenim School.
But what he proposed was minor, compared to Mr. Chung's, in terms of the size of the lot and subsidies program.
Hyunwoo frankly presented his opinion in the middle of the conservation.
"In fact, I met Assemblyman Chulwoo Chung who has a constituency in Sosan City."
"Ah, Mr. Chung? I know him well"
Mr. Kim responded with a bright look, but it looked like he didn't know that Mr. Chung met him to invite Hyunwoo's alternative school in his constituency.
"He said Sosan City also wanted to invite Haenim School."
"Sosan City, too?"
"When I made a comparison between the two cities, I see there was a big difference. Besides, various conditions such as the location and convenient facilities..."
Hyunwoo frankly told him about his opinion.
Listening to his explanation, Mr. Kim silently nodded and then said, "I heard a lot since when I was a child that I should put myself in the other's shoes. So, I listened to you from your point of view. I think you would have no other choice but to choose Sosan."
Hyunwoo was relieved to hear that. He was worried the two might have bad feelings because of that.
But Mr. Kim was pretty much open-minded about Hyunwoo's feedback.
Maybe Mr. Chung was already aware of his fine personality.
Mr. Kim concluded, "We politicians are doing our job for the sake of the people's interests. Sometimes, we have to sacrifice the interests of our own constituencies for the whole people. I don't think the students should not be at a disadvantage because of our regional self-centeredness."
Hyunwoo felt very satisfied with his remarks.
In fact, Hyunwoo thought that politicians were putting their own interests first before the people.
But he now realized that his prejudice was wrong.
"I can assure you that when I have a good project in the future, let me keep Taean County in mind. I'm sure I can find a good investment item for your county."
"Thanks for saying so. Let's have a drink in a relaxed mood now."
***
Hyunwoo headed for Haenim School. If he had to move the school to Sosan, he would have to ask for the opinion of the students there.
When he arrived, his father was taking a brief break after some research. As if he was lost in deep thought, Duyoung didn't sense his son approaching him.
Hyunwoo covered his father's shoulder with a thick blanket to keep off the cold winter air. Nonetheless, the wind was strong.
"Dad, it's cold out here. I'm afraid you will catch a cold, " said Hyunwoo.
When he heard Hyunwoo's voice, he turned his head.
But he had an unusual expression. He greeted his son very gladly as if he met someone he missed very much.
"Son, you're here at the right time!"
"What's the matter? Any good news?"
"Let's go into my research room first."
Hyunwoo pushed his wheelchair.
When he was in the room, he locked the door first then led Hyunwoo to the corner stacked with lab equipment.
Duyoung's office was full of all kinds of lab equipment such as experiment tubes.
Hyunwoo knew what was inside the tubes.
Duyoung has long been studying microorganisms that broke down petroleum extracts. He looked like a microbes doctor, not a chemical engineer.
In the past, he explained to Hyunwoo microbes several times.
Countless microbes exist in the ground. Some of them were microorganisms that broke down petroleum, such as capitalomas, nocardia, and corynebacterium. Microorganisms such as candida are widely used as microbes that synthesize proteins from petroleum.
He was searching for such microorganisms under the assumption that some microorganisms would improve gasoline performance.
He whispered to Hyunwoo in a trembling but thrilled voice, "I have found it at last!"
| ← Ch. 260 | Ch. 262 → |