Did I Ever Love You?

Chapter 7: A New Chapter

"I knew it would be like this. It's great that the Director has returned, but the workload has increased tremendously. There's no time to even have a cup of tea. Isn't it right, manager?"
Assistant Ju Yeon, sitting next to her, was complaining to Ji Yeon.

Kang Hyun was very aggressive in expanding his workload, and he worked late into the night every day.

This led to an increase in the workload for all teams under him.

Ji Yeon's workload also increased by about 20% more than usual, and she had to work more attentively to keep up with everything.
"My boyfriend keeps complaining about why I'm so late these days, but he can't get angry because it's because of work. Anyway, it's hard."
"Oh my! Assistant Ju Yeon, you have a boyfriend?"
Ji Yeon asked in surprise.

She thought Ju Yeon might be harboring a crush on Director Lee Kang Hyun since she seemed so happy about his return.
"Yes, of course. We've been dating for over two years now? We initially met at C&C and were a company couple, but my boyfriend changed jobs. Definitely, when we were a company couple, we had to be very careful and meet secretly, but now we can meet freely and it's great."
Assistant Ju Yeon was looking blankly into space as if recalling those times.
"I thought you had a crush on the Director. I completely misunderstood."
Ji Yeon said awkwardly, laughing.

"Ah~ Director Lee Kang Hyun is totally like a pie in the sky! Should I say he's like a celebrity you can never have? And even if you're lucky enough to become his girlfriend, how painful would it be? If I had a boyfriend who was that handsome and that capable, I'd be unable to sleep for worry someone might snatch him away. Sigh~ Just thinking about it, it'd be an exhausting life."
Ju Yeon flippantly shook her head.
"Hmm... still, I wish he'd be my boyfriend for just one month. Just to get a feel for what it would be like."
As she said this, Ju Yeon laughed gleefully, as if she was imagining something.
"Oh, right! Manager, are you joining the meeting with the sales department later?"
"Yes, I was invited too."
The planning department Ji Yeon belonged to was one of the teams under the strategic planning department led by Director Lee Kang Hyun, and that day was the day of the meeting between the sales department and the strategic planning department that took place every quarter.
"Manager, don't be surprised when you attend today's meeting."
"Surprised? Why?"
"You're going to see the 'Dragon and Tiger' in person, which you've only heard about."
"Dragon and Tiger?"
"It's a nickname we've given, 'Yong' is Executive Director Cha Min Woo from the sales department and 'Beom' is our Director Lee Kang Hyun. Ah, the official title for our Director is Executive Director, but everyone calls him Director."
"But why..."
"Director Lee Kang Hyun and Executive Director Cha Min Woo don't get along well. I don't know what it's like on a regular basis, but there's quite a lot of conflict during meetings. Sometimes it feels like a real fight between a dragon and a tiger, with a tense atmosphere as if they're going to tear each other apart."
Assistant Ju Yeon looked far away as if imagining the scene.

"Both of you are handsome, so if you were friendly with each other, it would look good to everyone. But both of you have such handsome faces, there's the irony that even your fights look cool."
Ji Yeon didn't think Ju Yeon didn't understand.
'Cha Min Woo was indeed handsome in a manly way. But, Cha Min Woo's face couldn't compare to Director Lee Kang Hyun's, could it?'
Cha Min Woo had a strong, slightly rough, masculine appeal.

On the other hand, Director Lee Kang Hyun had long arms and legs, and even in a suit, you could see his well- developed lean muscles, a proportion like that of a foreign model?

His skin was also fair, and at times, he even seemed prettier than a woman in some aspects.

If it weren't for that cool gaze, he might have been mistaken for a model.
'Anyway, I have to be careful not to catch Cha Min Woo's eye at the meeting.'
A few hours later, about 50 people gathered in the meeting room, and Ji Yeon chose to sit as far into a corner of the conference room as possible to be less noticeable.