“Does Director Choi feel this kind of mood every day?”

Hong Jang-gun widened his eyes and stared at me blankly.

The surprise revealed on his face could not be hidden.

Choi Seo-jun also spoke as if he still had not escaped from the shock.

“No, but even so, the White House.”

Both of them did not know what to do at the unexpected development, but I, the person involved, quietly put down the tablet and stood up calmly.

“Do not be too surprised. It just moved up a little bit.”

My voice was very composed.

Hong Jang-gun scratched his head and let out a low lament.

“Sigh, Representative, your way of holding and shaking people is truly the best.”

Choi Seo-jun spoke while approaching me.

“Representative, please tell me about this kind of thing in advance. Ah, what should I prepare first? To think it is tomorrow of all days. The time is too pressing.”

I smiled lightly and said.

“It is okay if you do not worry too much. Because all preparations are already finished.”

“What kind of….”

Choi Seo-jun held his forehead and felt troubled.

“You say preparations are all finished. Words are easy. Do you know how many things there are to take care of from now on. Protocol, attire, even, there is nothing.”

He could not endure the frustration and raised his voice.

“If it is the White House, we should at least have tuxedos, but it will be a big problem if we go like this.”

Hong Jang-gun also chimed in and nodded.

“Director Choi’s words are right. No matter how urgent it is, shouldn't we have at least the minimum formality.”

However, making the two people's worries colorless, I composedly stood up from my seat and headed to the room.

There was no hurry or hesitation in my footsteps.

A moment later, I came out holding a travel bag.

When I opened the zipper, neatly folded custom suits and high-end tuxedos revealed their appearance one after another from within.

Even shoes and accessories were all there.

I spoke as if it were nothing.

“This was prepared in advance in Director Choi’s size. The shoes are also custom-made, so they will be comfortable. Now, and this is Advisor Hong’s.”

In an instant, Choi Seo-jun’s eyes widened.

“You say this is mine? When did you prepare all of these?”

I wore a composed smile at the two people's surprised expressions and shrugged my shoulders.

“Because coming to America, you never know, right? Whether we might end up going to even the White House. That is why I brought them prepared in advance.”

My tone was composed, but to the two people's ears, it sounded like an absurd story.

Hong Jang-gun still could not close his mouth and spoke while looking at the suit I had prepared.

“While having prepared such things in advance, what do you mean by 'you never know'.”

Choi Seo-jun also shook his head with a still dazed expression.

“It has not been just once or twice that I have been like this. Advisor Hong will also know once he spends time together with the Representative, but he is a person who lives for the fun of teasing people.”

I said while organizing the bag.

“Well, is that not what preparation is originally? Preparing for a situation that might possibly exist. That is not something wrong, is it?”

To the two people, my words sounded like teasing on purpose.

Hong Jang-gun clicked his tongue and shook his head.

“At this rate, Director Choi will one day faint from surprise because of the Representative.”

Choi Seo-jun also grumbled while crossing his arms, but I smiled for a moment and then moved my gaze outside the window.

I slowly opened my mouth while appreciating the sunlight of the strange foreign land.

“I also did not know I would end up spending Christmas in the United States. If I had been in Korea, I would have had a party with family or company family members….”

For a moment, a shadow was cast on my face, but soon I spoke with a composed appearance.

“Well, it is a bit regrettable but it is okay. Instead, tomorrow we will end up having a truly boisterous day.”

In Choi Seo-jun’s view, the smile I wore looked evil for some reason.

***

Next day.

Starting with the local US media, Korean and major world media began to report all at once.

[3rd generation Korean chaebol invited to the White House on Christmas Eve]

[HJ Partners Representative. Appears on the core stage of US politics]

[White House, exceptionally proceeds with an unofficial invitation]

Various broadcasting stations put out various analyses.

Things like how this was not a simple business invitation.

Introducing myself while saying I am a figure who could become the link between the US capital market and Asian business circles, saying it could be a political signal.

Various speculations were rampant, but the front pages of Korean economic newspapers were also plastered with my photo.

On internet communities as well, various words were exchanged saying that a modern-day chaebol drama had become reality.

When evening came, the front of the White House in Washington D.C. was filled with lights announcing Christmas.

Dozens of cameras were already stationed in front of the main gate, and the press corps was moving busily, fighting for spots to get the optimal angle.

One black limousine slowly approached and stopped.

A baptism of flashes poured down like a heavy rain.

The person who opened the car door and stepped out first was Director Choi Seo-jun.

He avoided the reporters' gazes with his head lowered as if he were nervous.

A flawless high-end custom suit elegantly wrapped around his tension.

Next, Advisor Hong Jang-gun stepped out of the car and stared at the scene with a dignified appearance.

On his face, the composure trained for many years was permeated.

And finally, I revealed my appearance.

With a stylish black tuxedo, shoes with a subtle luster, and even a tie matched perfectly.

My appearance without a single stray hair was reminiscent of a Hollywood star stepping on a red carpet of a famous film festival.

Dozens of shutter sounds poured out like a waterfall.

The voices of reporters pushed in like waves.

“Who arranged the background of the White House invitation?”

“What kind of talk are you planning to share with the President today?”

“Is it related to the Korean economy?”

I only wore a smile and did not say even a single word.

Confidence overflowed from my appearance as I moved my steps leisurely.

Behind that, Choi Seo-jun and Hong Jang-gun followed as if guarding me on the left and right.

The silhouettes of the three people blended with the dazzling Christmas decorations and headed to the White House entrance, creating a scene like a frame of a movie.

The gazes of the whole world were all focused on them.

In the center was I, the young businessman who was a mere eighteen years old.

The first thing my group and I encountered upon entering the inside of the White House was the view of the grand yet flashy East Room.

As the largest place in the White House, it was a place perfectly decorated for a special banquet tonight.

On the ceiling, a huge crystal chandelier was shining while boasting its dazzling golden luster, and red ribbons commemorating Christmas were elegantly placed between the large oil paintings decorating the walls.

Christmas decorations seeped in everywhere, fully revealing American tradition and authority.

On top of that, dozens of cameras were stationed in various places, and in the screens being broadcast live to the whole world, big shots of the US political and business circles revealed their appearances one after another.

At that moment, my gaze met an individual located far off on one side.

It was indeed Chairman McCain.

Having officially risen to the position of Chairman yesterday, he was boasting an even more dignified momentum tonight.

Around him, several veteran congressmen were gathered, occasionally glancing at me and whispering among themselves.

When McCain’s and my gazes met, he wore a significant smile and lightly nodded, acknowledging me.

Meanwhile, in a corner of the party hall, another gaze was watching me.

Spencer Ashford.

He was the representative of Ashford Holdings.

With impressive blonde hair, he observed me while holding a glass containing champagne.

All sorts of speculations arose in his head.

To him, who needed years of networking management until being invited here, my appearance felt confusing yet unwelcome.

Exactly at that time, a subtle air current lingered around me.

It was because of the figure who approached me.

The heir of the Rockefeller family, Alexander Rockefeller.

The name that comes to mind first when thinking of oil tycoons.

And he was a man symbolizing the typical American upper class.

He held out his hand to me while wearing a smile that was not excessively ostentatious.

“Are you indeed the representative of that famous HJ Partners? I am Alexander Rockefeller.”

“Nice to meet you, I am Lim Hyunjun.”

In his low voice, curiosity was sufficiently contained.

He gripped hands with me and his eyes sparkled, then unable to hold back his curiosity, he asked.

“It is truly a pleasure to meet you. I heard that you earned a lot of money through oil derivative products. To speak frankly, I was curious. How did you accurately predict such a flow?”

In Alexander’s voice, a characteristic dignity was felt.

As a man with an oil empire at his back, he is a person who always craves new opportunities.

That very point is also the reason why the Rockefeller family has been able to reign at the peak of the American upper class for generations and continue their wealth and power.

Alexander slightly raised the corners of his mouth while waiting for an answer.

He wore a friendly expression, but it was a momentum as if he would bite and tear if the opponent spat out even a single word carelessly.

“Surely you will not say it was simply luck.”

Alexander added and subtly looked down at me.

“To dismiss it as simply luck, a large profit of this level could not have been achieved. Or did you just go on an adventure?”

Unlike the challenging tone, a kind smile covered his inner thoughts.

Indeed, he possessed a temperament worthy of a chaebol heir.

However, I had no shaking at all at such words.

Rather, I took in Alexander’s persistent gaze composedly and replied softly.

“Always, for everything, the results prove the skill. I merely believed in what I saw.”

It was a short but resolute and clear answer.

In an instant, interest spread fully in Alexander’s pupils.

An opponent who passed the bait he threw as if it were nothing was a long time coming for him.

“Haha. It is interesting.”

He laughed slowly and lightly rubbed his chin with his hand.

“If there is no conviction, it is hard to speak like that. Indeed, the rumors were not for nothing.”

The air around them heated up strangely.

In fact, there were many who watched the two people conversing from the side while holding their breath.

Watching a fight is not always fun.

Alexander’s expression changed softly.

He took out a business card from his inner jacket pocket and then held it out to me and asked.

“As we talk, I am becoming more curious. This is my business card.”

I glanced once at the business card I received and then pulled out my own and handed it over.

Alexander wore a faint smile while looking at my business card.

“What kind of field are you keeping your interest in these days? It seems like there might be something you are eyeing besides oil.”

He still revealed his curiosity while exploring the opponent.

The corners of my eyes curved.

“I have a lot of interest in various fields. And since Synapse Tech is also scheduled to be listed soon….”

“Ah, I have also heard the rumors. The technological prowess was quite good.”

There was an individual who cut in beside the two people.

“It is an interesting story.”

Along with the low voice, the gazes of the surroundings focused on one person.

The big-shot investor of Wall Street, Gordon Soroso.

He is a figure who becomes a hot topic just by appearing.

Even though he was at an age close to seventy, his eyes were still sparkling.

“Synapse Tech. I also saw a report recently, and for a startup, it possessed surprising technological prowess.”