The Former Chaebol Heir Excels as President

Chapter 10: The Age of Barbarism (3)

I was stunned, unable to close my mouth in awe.

My friends’ eyes fixed on me were clearly moved.

Time swallowed sound, as if trapped in a vacuum.

Oh Man‑seok, lying on the floor, had fainted.

His eyelids trembled over the whites of his eyes.

The vice‑class president came from the back of the classroom with a kettle and poured water on Oh Man‑seok’s face.

“Uff! Uff‑uff!”

Blinking his eyes, Oh Man‑seok looked around in a daze, as if he still didn’t know what had happened to him.

Fighting was all about momentum.

Still, I couldn’t be cowardly and beat someone who hadn’t even regained consciousness; if I put it nicely, I thought, I needed to justify it.

One Chinese idiom came to mind immediately.

“Oh Man‑seok! Just because you’re class president doesn’t give you the right to oppress your classmates. Hua wu shi ri hong (花無十日紅). Even the most beautiful flower cannot stay red for ten days. Don’t delude yourself that your power is great. It’ll last at most a year.”

Even I thought I sounded cool.

Oh Man‑seok belatedly registered what was happening and started to glare at me.

‘Huh? This isn’t what I meant?’

I had secretly expected that my classmates would take my side and isolate Oh Man‑seok.

But no one came to help me.

Oh Man‑seok sprang to his feet.

It felt like he was about to throw a hook to my stomach or an uppercut to my chin any moment.

My prediction hit the mark.

“You bastard!”

At the exact moment when Oh Man‑seok’s right fist came aimed at my side…

It was truly just self‑defense.

Thinking I had to dodge and deflect his punch, I shifted my body to the right and tapped him with my hand.

But then…

My finger pressed hard into Oh Man‑seok’s Adam’s apple.

“Guhk! Guhk‑guhk! Gak!”

A pig‑slaughtering sound rang out as Oh Man‑seok collapsed to the floor.

By a strange coincidence, speed, force, and position aligned perfectly, hitting a vital point.

“Wow! After reading Bruce Lee’s book, he really became Bruce Lee!”

“Shit! He was a martial arts master!”

So the rumor had already spread.

The vice‑class president grabbed Oh Man‑seok’s arm.

“President, let’s go to the nurse’s office.”

Right now, Oh Man‑seok was having difficulty breathing, so securing an open airway in a comfortable position was crucial.

I stepped forward to help Oh Man‑seok with good intentions, but he startled and took a step back.

By the shape of his mouth, I could tell he was saying, ‘Don’t come near.’

Oh Man‑seok, supported by the vice‑class president, left the classroom.

It was only that my body had moved first out of a simple protective instinct.

“Wow! Kang Cheonmyeong! That felt so good.”

“Well done! That gorilla bastard deserved to be punished at least once.”

“Where did you buy that Bruce Lee book?”

“You really went to Shaolin Temple during winter break, right?”

My classmates approached, showering me with cheers and questions.

Until that moment, I didn’t know what to expect.

I had no idea I was about to face a harsh punishment.

“This bastard was late on the first day, and now he thinks school is his playground.”

I had to lie down and take hits on my butt and thighs with a club.

Not even from the homeroom teacher, but from the discipline teacher.

Whack, whack! Whack, whack!

I had never experienced such violence before.

If it were my father from my past life, he would’ve stormed in with a baseball bat and turned the discipline teacher to shreds. But my current parents were from the lower class.

Since I had accepted reality, I clenched my teeth and endured.

“This son of a bitch doesn’t know his place! You dare beat the class president?”

Whack! Whack!

Every time the club struck my thigh, sparks exploded in my head.

The pain spread from the impact point, climbed my spine, and reached the crown of my head.

“You think you're something just because you’re smart? Character comes first. Do you think being good at studying forgives everything?”

There were so many things I wanted to say back.

‘Can a teacher be a piece of shit and get away with it? Whose side are you on, anyway? You’re clearly biased because he’s the development committee chairman’s son!’

The words I wanted to say got stuck in my throat.

I knew I’d only get beaten more if I spoke.

“Sir, please stop. He’s my student, so I’ll discipline him myself.”

It was the homeroom teacher’s voice.

“Brats like him need to be beaten to a pulp to come to their senses. This slippery eel is muddying the water.”

“I’ll take care of it.”

Clack—

The club fell to the floor, and the discipline teacher left.

The homeroom teacher sat in a chair and said,

“Kang Cheonmyeong! Do my words sound like dog shit to you? I said the class president’s words are as good as mine, didn’t I?”

“Yes.”

“Then what happens to my authority if you beat the class president in front of everyone? I thought you’d be tame since you were always first in middle school. But you’re a goddamn lunatic.”

I heard the sound of paper flipping.

And then he continued,

“Your mom and dad are working so hard. Shining shoes, working in a factory. Didn’t even finish middle school.”

A few days ago, I had filled out a household survey. I had just written the truth, and now he was using it as ammo to attack me?

How petty.

“Why did they have so many kids anyway? Busy just trying to survive, yet they still do everything else.”

I was reaching my limit of patience. No matter the relationship between teacher and student, there were lines you shouldn’t cross.

The teacher had already crossed it.

“Hey, you! If you’re born in the mud and want to become a dragon, just study. Don’t act like some justice warrior. If you do, you’ll live in the gutter just like your parents. They had a bunch of kids and managed to save one — you.”

“You bastard!”

I finally exploded. Saying they popped out kids like lottery tickets and I was the one winner?

Did he think children were lottery numbers?

“That was a mistake, sir. Why are you insulting my parents?”

“This brat’s lost it! Did you just curse at me? You motherfucker!”

The homeroom teacher lost it. He kicked me in the head and stomped on me while I was down.

I covered my head with my arms and got beaten for over ten minutes.

Labored breathing.

Even the teacher was exhausted from hitting me.

“You little shit! Bring your parents here tomorrow! If not, you’re expelled!”

To avoid expulsion, I had no choice but to tell my mom.

The next morning, my mom came to school and kneeled in front of the teacher, begging.

That was the first time I realized that the powerless had nothing but submission and pleading for mercy.

I wrote ten pages of reflection and was given a ten‑day suspension.

My mom apologized to me.

“Cheonmyeong, I’m sorry for being a worthless mom.”

It wasn’t my mom’s fault.

It was this damned world’s.

Saturday afternoon.

I was lying face down on the floor, naked down to my underwear.

Kang Daemyung applied ointment while sniffling.

“Hyung-ah, that must hurt a lot.”

“It doesn’t hurt.”

“It’s all blue.”

“I said I’m fine.”

The truth was, it hurt like hell.

Whenever my thighs or butt touched the floor, it stung so much I had to lie on my side.

“Hyung-ah, I’m done applying it.”

Kang Daemyung turned on the fan and set it to rotate. The wind stung every time it hit me.

“Hyung-ah, did the teacher hit you?”

“No. I got into a fight with friends.”

“Hyung-ah, you didn’t win?”

“They’re in the hospital now. They’re in more pain than me.”

“Then you won, Hyung-ah.”

“That’s right.”

Just a moment ago, Kang Daemyung had been on the verge of tears, but now he was smiling brightly.

At that moment, the door opened and Yeonhwa walked in.

“Ugh.”

She sighed the moment she saw me.

“Such a little thing, already sighing.”

“Yeonhwa, Hyung-ah sent the bad guys to the hospital.”

Yeonhwa understood the situation.

She was a very smart kid.

“That’s right. Those guys can’t even walk—they’re lying in the hospital now.”

Yeonhwa put down her bag and snatched the ointment from Kang Daemyung’s hand.

“You have to spread it evenly. You missed this part.”

She applied ointment to the top of my butt and the side of my thigh, rubbing it in hard.

“Hey! That hurts!”

“This way, it absorbs into the skin faster. The protruding nail gets hammered, you know.”

“You even know sayings like that?”

“I learned it at school.”

“Clever girl.”

“They say some people change a lot after puberty. Are you one of those cases, Oppa?”

“Everyone changes.”

Slaaap—

Yeonhwa smacked my butt with her palm.

“Ah! Seriously!”

“You should change just the right amount. The whole family’s flustered. You’ve never caused trouble, and now you’re suspended? You really seem like someone else.”

“Okay, okay, so stop hitting me. It feels like my skin’s splitting.”

“Then why’d you do something to get hit?”

“I didn’t do anything wrong.”

“Then what was it?”

I wanted to argue because it felt so unfair, but then I realized I was arguing with a kid and shut my mouth.

Then a voice came from outside.

“Cheonmyeong!”

“Oppa, it’s Seok‑gu Oppa.”

“So?”

“He came with Jeongseok. He’s showing you his notes.”

Even if we had something like a sworn brotherhood, it still felt embarrassing for Ji Jeongseok to see this house. But what’s done is done—he’s already seen it.

“Hold on.”

I put on my underwear and pants and said to Yeonhwa,

“My friends are here, so take Daemyung out and play.”

“Okay. Daemyung, let’s go.”

“Yeonhwa, let’s go to the playground.”

“Sure.”

Yeonhwa and Kang Daemyung left, and Yang Seok‑gu and Ji Jeongseok came in.

Yang Seok‑gu looked at me cautiously.

“Did I do something unnecessary?”

“It’s fine. Poverty isn’t shameful—just horribly inconvenient.”

“I’m not the one making you uncomfortable, right?”

Ji Jeongseok asked carefully.

“Poverty’s uncomfortable, not you. You’re my friend, but I’ve got nothing to offer you.”

“Water is fine. You can float a leaf in it.”

“Haha. Since there’s no fridge, don’t expect anything cold.”

“Got it.”

I poured water from the kettle and handed it to them.

Yang Seok‑gu took a sip and scrunched his face.

“Since you’re not coming to school, Wang Dohun’s been having a field day. Midterms are coming soon—what’ll you do?”

“No need to worry. I’ll definitely rank first.”

“How? I heard Wang Dohun’s even getting private tutoring.”

“I’ll show you.”

Ji Jeongseok opened his bag and pulled out a few notebooks.

“I took notes diligently because of you. Thanks to that, I focused better on studying too.”

“Thanks.”

“The parts I marked in red pen are the ones the teacher said would be on the exam.”

“Great.”

I was curious about the class atmosphere.

Was Oh Man‑seok still reigning as king of the jungle?

“How’s the class president? Still the same?”

“He’s riding a tiger. But…”

Yang Seok‑gu looked at Ji Jeongseok, as if seeking permission.

“It’s okay. You can talk.”

“Maybe because Jeongseok’s dad is a colonel, no one messes with him.”

Just as I thought.

The colonel who assaulted the gym teacher was Ji Jeongseok’s father.

“And since people know I’m close with you guys, they don’t touch me either. It’s like I’ve got a solid backup now.”

Yang Seok‑gu chuckled.

“The colonel who took down Dokka was your dad, huh.”

“I couldn’t keep taking beatings while attending class. It’s cowardly, but I leaned on my dad’s power.”

“Sometimes you need iijejei (以夷制夷). Not that your dad’s a barbarian or anything.”

“Cheonmyeong, you know so many idioms. What does that one mean?”

Yang Seok‑gu was impressed.

“It doesn’t exactly fit here. It means to subdue barbarians using barbarians.”

“Right. Jeongseok’s dad isn’t a barbarian.”

Ji Jeongseok looked around the room.

“Can I look around your room?”

“Yeah. There’s not much to see though.”

Ji Jeongseok took off his shoes, entered the room, and stopped in front of the bookshelf.

“You have a Hyung.”

“He goes to Yeonje University.”

“Wow! Impressive. You’ve got some good books here. Can I borrow a few?”

“Sure.”

There was some unknown commonality between my oldest brother and Ji Jeongseok.

I didn’t know what it was exactly.

Then Yang Seok‑gu’s eyes lit up as if he remembered something.

“Cheonmyeong, want to go on a group date the day after tomorrow? One guy can’t make it because of church, so we need a replacement.”

A group date, huh.

I never got to do one even once in school.

Now I was curious.