Korean Entertainment: My Reborn Self Shorts the Korean Peninsula

Chapter 14 | The End of the Life of Slacking Off

Cao Yisen closed the email, but then thought he should take another look. Just as he moved the mouse back, his shoulder suddenly felt heavy.

Cao Rouli leaned right next to him, half her body squeezing into his chair, getting very close.

"Wait a minute, let me see too."

She spoke as if it were the most natural thing in the world, her hand already resting on the edge of the table.

She had just finished showering, and her hair was still damp and smelled of conditioner. It fell down her shoulders, and a few strands brushed against the side of his neck, tickling him. He subconsciously straightened his back, but he couldn't move away, so he could only grit his teeth and sit up a little, making room for her.

"You're standing so close..."

He coughed. "My screen isn't big enough anymore."

"Stop talking nonsense."

She ignored it completely, her eyes fixed on the screen, and said, "Slowly scroll down from top to bottom."

He had no choice but to reopen the email and scroll down.

The job title section is clearly written:

Big Hit Entertainment Finance Department

"Wow."

She was already impressed after reading the first paragraph. "It looks good. No wonder you asked so many random questions in the interview."

"It's alright."

He said, "I guess it'll just be doing odd jobs."

"Your odd job sounds pretty high-class."

She tapped the screen. "Look at these lines, they're written so beautifully."

She continued reading, and when she saw the salary section, she visibly paused.

Average monthly income: Approximately 320 million Korean won (including performance-based pay)

Appendix: Four major insurances, company internal meal allowance, transportation allowance, accommodation allowance, etc.

She was silent for a few seconds, as if confirming that she hadn't misread it.

"...Wait a moment."

She pointed to the line of numbers and asked, "Is this the probationary period or after I'm officially hired?"

"Judging from the description, it seems that the probationary period is based on this standard," Cao Yisen said. "Of course, performance evaluation should be adjusted according to the situation."

Cao Yisen was more familiar with US dollars, so at first glance, he didn't really understand what the Korean won was like with its string of zeros.

She suddenly exploded, letting out a loud "Ah!" that echoed throughout the small room.

"What?!"

She turned to look at him, her face filled with disbelief. "You just started, and you're already making over three million a month?"

The more excited she became, the closer she leaned towards him, her hair brushing against his neck and making him itch. He had no choice but to shrink back a little, but he didn't dare to retreat too much, afraid that she would notice he was hiding.

"Calm down," he said, pointing to the screen. "This is before tax, sister."

"That's quite high even before tax!"

She glared at her, "How come I feel like after all this time in the group, I'm not as stable as you?"

"You still have a stage to perform on."

He laughed and said, "But I only have a cubicle."

"I want to work in a cubicle right now."

She slumped against the edge of the table, saying, "I'm not going to be an idol anymore. I'm going to go to an entertainment company to collect my salary."

"OK."

He went along with her suggestion, "Then I'll help you submit your resume...?"

"ah!"

She raised her hand and tapped him again, "I was genuinely expressing my feelings, okay? And you're spouting nonsense."

In her excitement, she moved even closer, her hair brushing against his cheek, carrying a faint fragrance. His ears felt a little hot, but he could only pretend not to notice, pushing the mouse down and pretending to continue reading emails.

"Look, they even wrote down the meal allowance."

He changed the subject, "At least we don't have to worry about lunch."

"This is the sentence I envy the most."

She tapped the line at the bottom of the screen lightly with her knuckles: "Salary may be adjusted annually based on experience."

After saying that, she couldn't help but sigh, "How come it feels like your path is more stable than mine..."

"You're stable too," he said, "it's just the pressure is different."

"My stability is based on 'how is the public opinion today?'"

She gave a wry smile. "Your stability is whether you get laid off today."

He couldn't speak, he could only let out a few dry laughs.

She glanced at the job description again, her smile fading as she spoke more seriously: "But honestly, this job is quite suitable for you. You're good at English, can read data, and it's not the kind of job where you have to take the lead right away. I doubt your seniors will find you too threatening."

"That sounds like a compliment."

He tilted his head and looked at Cao Rouli.

"That's a compliment."

She said, "Putting someone like you too far forward would be annoying, and putting you too far back would be a waste. This position is just right, as it makes it easiest to see who is truly busy and who is just busy doing nothing."

As she spoke, she unconsciously leaned a little closer to him. He could clearly feel her shoulder resting on the edge of his arm, and he tensed up for a moment before quickly relaxing, pretending that they were just looking at the computer together normally.

Anyway.

She concluded, "The salary, the benefits, the position... I think it's acceptable."

"I am honored to receive recognition from active idols."

He smiled.

"That's right."

She raised her chin, looking proud, "From now on, I'll be the family representative of the employees in Big Hit's finance department... no, I mean the general operations department."

"What a load of nonsense titles."

He complained helplessly.

She was laughing happily, and the fragrance wafted over with each breath she took. She was so close that she could feel him tense up, his shoulders shrank back half an inch, and his eyes deliberately fixed on the email, not glancing in her direction.

She gave a soft "humph".

"No."

She turned her head to look at him. "I'm your older sister, what are you being shy about?"

His voice wasn't loud, and his tone carried a hint of amusement, yet he spoke very frankly.

Cao Yisen seemed to have been struck by something, his whole body stiffened slightly, and he subconsciously wanted to refute.

"I have no shame."

He cleared his throat. "I'm not an elementary school boy."

"Then why were you dodging just now?"

She stared at him, her eyes saying, "Try to argue with me."

Feeling a little guilty under his gaze, he quickly fired a shot.

"I just—"

He stubbornly insisted, "I don't treat you like a woman."

The words were out of his mouth, and the air fell silent for half a second.

Cao Rouli was stunned for a moment, then jumped up from her chair as if she had been set on fire.

"Who are you calling not a woman?!"

Her eyes widened. "Cao! Yi! Sen!"

The sound wasn't loud, but it was full of momentum.

He immediately raised his hands in surrender: "Wait a minute, could you rephrase that?"

"I've remembered exactly what you said."

She stood with her hands on her hips. "What do you take me for?"

"I...I mean..."

He quickly added, "I don't see you as the kind of 'girl' I need to keep my distance from."

"Then what am I?"

She pronounces her words very clearly.

"Who are you--"

His eyes darted around, and he had no choice but to confess honestly, "You're the kind of person who would hit me on the head with a pillow or burn the ramen and then blame me."

She had been keeping a straight face, but those words made her break down a little, and her lips twitched slightly before she forced them back down.

"no."

She insisted, "What you just said was too much."

"Then I apologize."

He immediately backed down, saying, "I take back what I just said, 'I didn't treat you like a woman.'"

Say it again.

She stared at him.

"it is good."

He sat up straight obediently, looking at her with feigned seriousness. "You are a woman, a very woman, an exceptionally woman."

"Something sounds a bit off...?"

She narrowed her eyes suspiciously.

"So what do you want me to say?"

He shrugged. "I'll say it again, I was just expressing that I'm used to your persona, not denying your gender."

"So you're starting to talk about legal statutes now, huh?"

She rolled her eyes.

He simply laughed and said, "Fine, I admit it, I just spoke too quickly."

She was finally a little satisfied, snorted, and sat down next to him again, but this time she didn't get so close. Instead, she symbolically maintained a small, safe distance from him.

"Don't talk nonsense anymore."

She warned him, "Especially when I look good."

When were you feeling down?

He casually offered a compliment.

She paused for two seconds, then couldn't help but curl her lips into a smile, muttering under her breath, "That's more like it."

--------------------------------------------

At Big Hit's HR department, the HR lady is compiling the list of new hires and preparing to send an internal email to confirm department assignments.

One line of names on the list stands out.

Cao Yisen/Ethan

Big Hit Entertainment Finance Headquarters – Finance Planning Team

She drew a circle on it with a pen and was quite satisfied.

She had personally followed up with this candidate, and the interview feedback was good. She planned to treat herself to a trendy cake on her first day of work as a small celebration.

I had just finished editing the email when the landline rang.

"Hello, Human Resources Department!"

The person on the other end gave their name.

"I am Han Shengshou from PLEDIS."

She immediately sat up straight and said, "Hello."

"I've read the interview report you just sent me."

Han Shengshou cut to the chase, "There's someone who studied in the US, majoring in accounting, what's his name... Cao Yisen?"

"Yes." She immediately found the line on the list. "He's the one our finance department wants—"

"Transfer it to me."

Han Shengshou spoke as if stating something perfectly natural, "Let's go back to PLEDIS."

The HR lady was stunned for a moment, thinking she had misheard.

"...Representative, you mean, a job transfer?"

"right."

He remained calm, saying, "The job duties don't need to change too much. I'll provide the job level and salary according to headquarters standards."

She panicked: "Representative!!! But he applied for a position in our Big Hit finance department, and our offer followed that process. The procedures have all been submitted and signed off."

"The Big Hit system is like a family," Han Shengshou chuckled. "Going anywhere is still going to work."

"The problem is," she lowered her voice, "that we're also short-staffed in finance, so your poaching of people like this isn't exactly compliant with regulations, is it...?"

There was a two-second silence on the other end, then Han Shengshou rephrased his question: "Would you prefer someone who only looks at numbers for their entire life, or someone who occasionally glances at where the company is headed?"

She choked for a moment.

"You saw what he said in the interview."

Han Shengshou continued, "This person will definitely feel bored within three months of sitting in finance."

"I happen to have a position here, not in the core, but enough for him to move around. He speaks good English and understands organizational structures. If you put him in the finance department at Big Hit headquarters, you'll eventually decide that he should either be promoted or leave. If you put him here, we can see which direction he wants to develop first."

The HR lady was still unwilling to give up: "But we also work hard screening resumes and conducting interviews. Just because you said one sentence, someone is poached..."