ACTSV chapter 29

“Did you… buy that toothpaste here?”

As Jingyeom nodded as if he didn’t understand why he was pretending not to know, Im Gipyo’s lips curled slightly.

“Do you have a transaction receipt?”

“…A transaction receipt?”

“Yes. If you bought it here, you would have written a transaction receipt. You should have one, and we should have one as well.”

Jingyeom’s head creaked like a broken machine. He glanced sideways at Jinwoo and shook his head. It meant he didn’t have a transaction receipt.

They hadn’t exchanged such things. These days, it was common to throw away receipts without keeping them, so he hadn’t even thought about needing one.

Seeing Jingyeom quickly back down, Im Gipyo added more to his words.

“I talked with Jingyeom the day before yesterday. We never sold any toothpaste. Are you sure you’re not mistaken with another place? Sometimes, when you have multiple interviews in a day, you can get confused.”

His tone was so natural and calm, it was hard to think he was lying.

If they had gone to several places, Im Gipyo’s expression, which showed no change, might have made one doubt themselves, thinking, ‘Did I get confused?’

It was true that without a transaction receipt, there was no clear evidence that they bought the item here. Moreover, the plain box, which could be found anywhere, wasn’t proof either.

Jingyeom knew they wouldn’t refund easily, but he didn’t expect to be caught up by the transaction receipt.

He knew he needed a purchase receipt for a refund. However, he had thought of this as an investment in the business, not a purchase of goods, so he had overlooked it.

Jinwoo and Wonbeom had come along, but now Jingyeom wondered if they should just leave, and his shoulders drooped.

As Im Gipyo spoke, Jinwoo, who had kept his mouth tightly shut, raised his eyebrows.

It was replaying exactly how Jingyeom had shrunk back due to the forceful words he had pushed earlier.

He didn’t like it. He didn’t want to see Jingyeom shrinking back in any situation.

At that moment, Im Gipyo delivered a decisive blow.

“Jingyeom, I thought well of you… I didn’t expect you to lie and backstab us like this. And you even brought your friends…”

Seeing him trying to blame Jingyeom, Jinwoo’s hands clenched.

Blue veins bulged on the back of his tightly gripped hands. He wanted to pull the toothpaste out of the box and throw it straight at the man’s face.

He didn’t even like hearing Jingyeom’s name from that mouth, and the blaming tone was extremely irritating.

But before Jinwoo could step in, Jingyeom slammed his fist on the table. The loud sound echoed in the meeting room, drawing all eyes.

Jingyeom shouted with an unfair look on his face.

“Lying! I came here the day before yesterday with Sanghoon hyung, so call him and we can talk! You have CCTV here, right? The CCTV will prove I came in empty-handed and left with the box!”

Though he thought he had come up with a good idea, Im Gipyo merely raised his eyebrows slightly. His expression even held a hint of arrogance.

“Sanghoon? Sure, call him. Unfortunately, the CCTV is under maintenance.”

As Jingyeom’s mouth opened in disbelief, Wonbeom spoke in a low voice.

“No CCTV? That’s convenient. Oh, and… I’m curious about this company.”

Wonbeom’s casual comment sent a chill up the man’s spine for no reason, raising the hairs on his arms.

Jingyeom, who was about to contact Sanghoon, turned around in surprise. They had come for a refund, but now he was suddenly curious about the company?

Jinwoo also narrowed his eyes, wondering what Wonbeom’s intentions were with such a comment.

“Why are you curious about our company?”

“Just interested.”

“…”

Im Gipyo glanced outside.

The large men who had entered were now sending out the staff who had stayed despite lunchtime.

Though there were no windows in the meeting room, Wonbeom and Jinwoo could somewhat guess what was happening outside. They sensed the bustling movements. Only Jingyeom was unaware.

Im Gipyo, who had been looking outside, turned his head back to Wonbeom.

“Did Jingyeom tell you something?”

“The marketing strategy is very interesting. Must have raked in quite a bit of money.”

As Wonbeom shrugged, Im Gipyo frowned.

Realizing it would take time, Jinwoo pulled out the chair in front of Wonbeom. He then seated Jingyeom there.

Though he didn’t want to sit him too close, he was preparing for any sudden developments. If needed, he could send him to the back.

Jingyeom looked up at Jinwoo in confusion, then turned his head to look at Wonbeom.

He was now resting his chin on his clenched fist, elbows on the table.

In his black suit and sunglasses, his posture with his legs crossed made him look like someone who should be kneeled before. Shaking off that image, Jingyeom shook his head.

He didn’t know what these two were planning, but he decided to stay still, trusting they had a plan.

Im Gipyo was trying to figure out what these guys were up to.

Based on his experience, they didn’t seem like people who would back down easily. Regretting letting them inside, he glanced at the door and then closed it.

The closed door separated the meeting room from the outside.

Im Gipyo sat in the seat closest to the door.

“You just barged in here… and now you’re curious about the company? Are you looking for a job?”

“Not a job, an investment.”

At the word “investment,” Im Gipyo’s expression finally changed subtly.

Wonbeom took out a business card from his pocket and flicked it onto the table. The black card spun and stopped just within Im Gipyo’s reach.

Jingyeom, watching the card fly, turned in surprise and whispered.

“Investment?”

“Why?”

“Aren’t we here for a refund?”

“You get a refund. I’ll listen to it and decide if it’s worth investing.”

“…What?”

Jingyeom’s slightly parted, crimson lips quivered in disbelief. The look of incredulity was evident.

It was clear that Wonbeom knew what was involved here, so Jinkgeom couldn’t understand why he was talking about investment.

Tak Wonbeom was an exceptionally skilled businessman. The rapid growth of the loan company he had entered into various fields a few years ago was largely due to his efforts.

As soon as he took the position of director, he efficiently handled the loan company and aggressively expanded into other businesses.

Now, the company had grown to the point where it was involved in every sector.

Even though he had been in the director position for several years, he was already being mentioned as the next chairman.

Wonbeom reached out and pulled the armrest of the chair Jingyeom was sitting in towards him. Jingyeom’s body jolted as the chair was swiftly pulled back, turning him to face Wonbeom. The canvas bag he had been holding was crumpled.

When Jingyeom swallowed unconsciously, Wonbeom’s lips curled slightly in a smirk. He was definitely different from Baek Jinwoo. His reactions were so clear that it oddly made Wonbeom want to provoke him more.

When Jinwoo grabbed the backrest to pull the chair back again, Wonbeom tightened his grip.

For a brief moment, Wonbeom and Jinwoo’s eyes met. Although they were both wearing sunglasses, it was clear that their gazes connected.

Wonbeom, still keeping his gaze on Jinwoo, leaned in and whispered in Jingyeom’s ear.

“Watch carefully.”

“…Watch what?”

“Everything that will happen from now on.”

Jinwoo was confused about whether the words were directed at him or Jingyeom. His preference for certainty made his reaction seem vague and unclear.

After finishing what he had to say, Wonbeom straightened up.

He then lightly tapped Jingyeom’s cheek with his index finger. After hesitating briefly at the soft, smooth skin, he withdrew his hand and looked at it.

‘…I need to let him go.’

Soohyuk, who had been staying in a hotel in Korea, had come home complaining of boredom.

With him by his side, Wonbeom suddenly felt that his actions were starting to resemble Soohyuk’s. Reaching out to someone like this was definitely not his usual behavior.

“Don’t touch recklessly.”

As Wonbeom’s hand fell away, Jinwoo growled and pulled Jingyeom’s chair back towards him, turning it so Wonbeom couldn’t see.

Jingyeom could only roll his eyes at the unfamiliar sensation of the voice in his ear and the touch on his cheek. If Jinwoo had done it, he would have smiled brightly, but with Wonbeom, his mind was a mess.

Even before coming here, Wonbeom had been acting strangely.

‘…Is he sick?’

Jingyeom concluded that the sane Wonbeom would not approach him in this manner.

“…It hurts.”

His cheek was stinging from being rubbed so much. Jinwoo was wiping the cheek that Wonbeom had touched with his suit sleeve.

“Endure it.”

Jingyeom’s sunglasses rattled and his cheeks turned red, but Jinwoo’s actions showed no sign of stopping.

Im Gipyo furrowed his brow at the behavior of the three men and picked up the business card in front of him.

“HAM Electronics Sales Director?”

He had assumed that the card was from someone high-ranking because it was handed over so confidently, but it turned out to be a sales Director.

Letting out a disbelieving chuckle, Wonbeom spoke up again.

“I heard that besides toothpaste, they have many other products. There are also many promotional gifts to give to customers… If I get the products here, it means I also get some profit. They benefit from selling a lot of goods, and I benefit from pocketing some extra money.”

It was suspicious but not a bad proposal.

In reality, network marketing, or rather multi-level marketing, was more like a human marketplace, drawing people in to spend money rather than earning profits from selling products.

However, this approach had its limits.

These days, many people were aware of the multi-level marketing profit structure, so it was not easy to convince them. Therefore, selling products was also one of the ways to generate additional income.

Recalling his recent poor performance, Im Gipyo fell into brief contemplation.

“…Please wait a moment.”

Feeling uneasy, he stood up. Although he was uncomfortable, since he wasn’t committing to a deal immediately, it seemed worth having a discussion.

As he left the meeting room, he made sure not to forget to close the door. It seemed he had been trained to be meticulous about locking up.