The Overly Competent Junior Employee

“Yaaawn……”

Two days later, Dokyung arrived at work early in the morning, letting out a long, lazy yawn. He froze in surprise when he encountered someone coming out of the office.

Dokyung was always the first to arrive at Team 3’s office, but today, Team Leader Seo Jeonghwan had beaten him to it.

Quickly composing himself, Dokyung bowed his head.

“Team Leader, you’re already here?”

“Ah, yes. I have to go out for some field work early this morning. Could I see you for a moment?”

Seo Jeonghwan spoke as if this was a fortuitous encounter, and Dokyung followed him in with a puzzled expression.

“It’s about Ko Eunha-ssi.”

“Ah, yes.”

“The Center Director suggested we could lower the company’s commission a bit. Of course, we’d offer other benefits as well.”

“By other benefits, you mean……”

“How about prioritizing her for overseas travel vouchers or regular gift items like we do for other VIP clients?”

“Ah… I see.”

“Is that not enough?”

At Seo Jeonghwan’s question, Dokyung hastily waved his hands.

“No, that’s not it. I was just thinking for a moment.”

“Have you set up an appointment?”

“Yes, I’m scheduled to visit Ko Eunha-ssi’s agency office this Friday.”

“I see. Good. The adjusted commission rates are written in this document, so do your best. You have full authority for this contract. I need to head out now for my field work.”

“Yes, have a good day.”

Dokyung bowed and then examined the document Seo Jeonghwan had handed him.

The commission rates had been adjusted, indicating that the company viewed Ko Eunha as a must-have client.

“Are they aiming for promotional effects?”

Dokyung furrowed his brow as he looked at the commission rates written on the document.

Of course, this wasn’t unheard of.

It was quite common to adjust commission rates for clients entrusting large sums of assets.

However, offering adjusted rates before the client had even mentioned the amount of assets they planned to entrust was essentially saying they wanted to give the client special treatment.

“Special treatment, they say……”

Securities firms never take a loss.

It meant they wanted something more from Ko Eunha, beyond just a client relationship.

“Isn’t this a bit too hasty?”

Dokyung muttered to himself as he left the conference room.

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“Welcome. Would you like to try a tasting? For 10,000 won, you can……”

“Ah, hello.”

That evening, Dokyung rushed somewhere after work. He had been worried the place might close, but fortunately, there were still quite a few customers inside.

Dokyung took out his business card and handed it to the employee, who accepted it with a puzzled expression.

“I’m Yoon Dokyung from Yuseong Investment Securities. I’d like to ask some questions about wine.”

“Oh, I see… Just a moment, please.”

After Dokyung introduced himself, the employee took the business card and headed somewhere.

This place was one of the three major wine “holy lands” in Korea, where one could get wine recommendations from experts and learn about wine. That’s why Dokyung had come here.

“Wow… It’s crowded.”

Dokyung looked around, noticing that despite it being a weekday evening, there were quite a few customers in the store.

The reason he came here today was to research products he could recommend to Ko Eunha for investment.

“Hello. I’m Kim Seongcheol, the manager of this store.”

As Dokyung was looking around the store, a voice introduced itself, and he turned to bow.

“Hello. I’m Yoon Dokyung from Yuseong Investment Securities.”

“Yes, I received your business card.”

“I have some questions I’d like to ask. Would it be possible to talk for a moment?”

“Of course. Shall we move to a different area?”

The two began walking together at the manager’s guidance.

“Would you like to try a tasting as well? For 10,000 won, you can enjoy wine, paired food, and a wine tasting.”

“Ah, certainly.”

Dokyung paid at the counter, and the manager made a request before leading him to a separate room.

“It’s the first time someone from a securities firm has visited us, so I was a bit surprised.”

“Ah, I see. I should have called ahead. I apologize.”

“Not at all. We aim to be an open space where anyone can come and talk about wine. You’re here to discuss wine, right?”

“Of course.”

Dokyung smiled as he took out a pen and notebook.

Shortly after, as wine and charcuterie (cured meats to accompany the wine) were brought in, Dokyung began the main conversation while tasting and listening to the manager’s explanations.

“Wine is quite popular these days, isn’t it?”

“Indeed. These days, even more people enjoy wine. In the past, people drank to get drunk, but now many enjoy it as a cultural experience.”

Dokyung nodded as he listened to the manager’s explanation.

“With such a wide range of prices, everything from daily wines for everyday enjoyment to premium wines for special occasions sells well, regardless of price point.”

“Are there people who approach wine from an investment perspective?”

“Investment?”

Dokyung had chosen wine as the product to recommend to Ko Eunha.

Thanks to the Ko Eunha studies master’s degree holder nearby, he had learned about what Ko Eunha feared, and she had a vague fear of change.

That’s why she was investing quite heavily in buildings and paintings.

Her obsession with things that don’t change over time seemed to manifest in her preparation for retirement as well.

“Yes. I don’t know much about wine, but doesn’t wine taste better as it ages?”

Dokyung’s theme this time was to help alleviate Ko Eunha’s vague fears.

“Hmm… That’s only half right. There are wines that taste good without aging.”

“I see. So each wine has its own appropriate aging method?”

“Yes, as you said, aging has the effect of bringing out the maximum flavor of wine. Some wines age for 2-3 years, while others can age for as long as 20 years.”

Dokyung nodded and began taking notes of the manager’s words.

“I should explain the chemistry, but that doesn’t seem to be why you came to see me… To put it simply, aging is just one method of enjoying delicious wine.”

“A method?”

“Yes. Customers who visit our store often ask how long they should age wine before drinking it for the best taste. Whenever I’m asked that, my answer is……”

The manager took a breath and smiled before speaking.

“Now.”

It was a short answer, but one that provoked much thought.

“Of course, if it ages, you might taste an even more delicious wine. But this moment, spent with good people, is the best. Wine doesn’t need much time. Isn’t the most delicious wine the one you drink when you need it?”

Dokyung nodded at the manager’s words.

“That’s a great perspective.”

“But that’s probably not the answer you were looking for, Manager Yoon.”

Dokyung’s business card identified him as an Asset Management Manager.

Following the policy of the new president, Sim Juwon, they had replaced the title of PB with Manager, and PBs at team leader level and above were now called Senior Managers.

“To answer your question, wine certainly has appeal as an investment product, and there is demand for it.”

Dokyung began taking notes diligently.

“Do you know that wine has an age?”

“Age?”

“Yes. The vintage written on the bottle you just drank indicates the wine’s age.”

At those words, Dokyung turned to look at the wine bottle, which was labeled “Vintage 1995.”

“So it’s a 1995 wine?”

“Yes. More precisely, it means the grapes used to make this wine were harvested in 1995.”

“That’s strange. The age is based on when the grapes were harvested, not when it was released to the market……”

“While the aging method and other factors affect the taste of wine, the grape, which is the raw material, is the most important. You could say that the quality of the grapes determines the quality of the wine.”

“Ah, I see……”

Dokyung nodded as if he finally understood the manager’s explanation.

“Since wine is a product greatly affected by weather and harvest conditions, wines made from grapes harvested in good years are naturally more expensive.”

“For example……”

“The 1945 Bordeaux vintage wine, called ‘the greatest gift God has given to mankind,’ currently fetches about 45 million won per bottle. Of course, even better or rarer wines can go for hundreds of millions of won.”

He had vaguely thought it would be expensive, but this felt like stepping into a whole new world.

“However, that’s the case overseas. It’s quite difficult to invest in wine domestically.”

Just as Dokyung was marveling at this information, the manager’s words came like a hammer shattering his thoughts.

“In Korea, individuals without a liquor sales license can’t sell alcohol. Of course, you could buy it at an auction overseas, but bringing alcohol into the country incurs enormous taxes. You might have to pay more than twice the price of the wine you bought in taxes.”

“So even if someone brought it in, an individual couldn’t resell it?”

“That’s right. As I mentioned earlier, without a liquor sales license, you can’t resell it at a higher price even after time has passed……”

Dokyung nodded with a disappointed expression as he jotted down the manager’s words. He had thought it was a good approach, but it was laden with legal constraints.

There might be some loopholes if one looked hard enough, but he couldn’t recommend anything illegal to a client like Ko Eunha, for whom image was crucial, and Dokyung himself was not inclined to do so either.

“That’s unfortunate, but I guess it can’t be helped.”

“I’m sorry I couldn’t be of more help.”

“No! Not at all. Thanks to you, Manager-nim, I feel like my eyes have been opened to a new world. And this wine is really delicious.”

The manager smiled at Dokyung’s words and stood up.

“Then please enjoy the wine a bit more, and if you need me again, just call.”

Dokyung also stood up and bowed at the manager’s words.

“Thank you for your valuable time.”

As the manager returned a slight bow to Dokyung’s thanks, he spoke as if something had just occurred to him.

“Ah! I heard something recently……”

Unexpected words flowed from the manager’s mouth, and Dokyung’s eyes widened.

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“I think it would be fine to just go with Taesan.”

A few days later, Ko Eunha and her agency’s CEO were sitting in the agency’s office after several meetings.

“Wouldn’t it be better to hear from a few more places?”

“Will we get better terms by listening to more? Let’s just go with Taesan……”

Ko Eunha responded curtly to the CEO’s words.

“Taesan recommended real estate investment. Do you want those kinds of articles coming out again?”

In truth, she didn’t really want to be here right now. She thought it would be better to just invest the money she earned through hard work into real estate and paintings.

But because of an article that came out a few months ago, she had no choice but to be here.

“Of course, it’s real estate and paintings you bought with money you earned through hard work, but the public perception isn’t entirely positive.”

At some point, her investments in real estate and art had been framed as speculation, and that perception still lingered.

Now, even her investments had to be made with public opinion in mind.

“Taesan is real estate, Seonjin is real estate… Do you think the next one will be any different?”

The CEO sighed at Ko Eunha’s words.

“It might be different, that’s why I’m saying we should listen. If Yuseong says the same thing, we can go with Taesan as you want. Let’s just hear them out……”

Knock knock-

As the two were talking, there was a knock at the conference room door, and it opened to reveal a young-looking man entering the room.

“Hello, I’m Yoon Dokyung, Asset Management Manager from Yuseong Investment Securities’ Leaders Center. We had an appointment today.”

“Welcome. I’m Lee Jinyoung, CEO of Milky Way Entertainment.”

Dokyung took out two business cards and handed them to Ko Eunha and the CEO, and the CEO also gave his card to Dokyung.

“I’m Ko Eunha.”

Ko Eunha also greeted Dokyung, who smiled and gave a slight bow in return.

“Shall we sit?”

At the CEO’s words, Dokyung took a seat opposite them.

“I apologize. Thank you for coming all the way to our office despite the sudden contact.”

“Not at all. It’s only natural that we meet at a time convenient for the client.”

“We have a schedule this evening, so we’d like to hear what Yuseong Investment Securities has prepared right away. Is that alright?”

Dokyung nodded at the CEO’s words and took out a laptop from his bag, placing it on the desk.

“I’ll explain while showing you the screen. The product I’d like to recommend to you is wine futures investment.”

As Dokyung’s prepared screen came up, the two looked surprised and began to focus intently on his words.