In Love With An Idiot

Chapter 17: Acting Managing Director

“Erng resigned?”

 

Tycoon Achi stared at the resignation letter before collapsing into the chair of the hospital’s Deputy Director. Khun Nid had rushed in looking thoroughly flustered. That bloody little brother of his! Didn't he know how to show some gratitude?

 

It reminded him of the television drama Love Destiny, which one of his patients had told him about. There was a scene where the male lead scolded the female lead. He rather fancied borrowing those lines to give Erng a proper telling-off.

 

“You insolent little brat! You have no sense of time or place! Your thinking is completely warped, you haven't got a clue, and you're cold-hearted! Not an ounce of compassion for your own older brother! How can you abandon your responsibilities, neglect your work, and just leave Araya behind? Khun Nid, look what he's done to me!”

 

“What did you do to make Khun Erng so angry, Tycoon? Well, there you go. You love teasing your little brother, don't you? Now he's giving you a taste of your own medicine. Looks like you'll finally have to manage Araya yourself. Board meetings, marketing meetings, site visits... You won't have any time left to wander around outside Chofa Bank at two in the morning!”

 

“...Khun Nid, whose side are you actually on?”

 

“Yours, of course! His resignation takes effect in seven days. Khun Erng is being very considerate, you know. He's even helping to clear up his work before he leaves. Khun Ta is so busy his hair's practically turned white. He's giving me a run for my money! If you take over managing Araya, the company's definitely going under. I'm worried about you, Tycoon, but I'm worried about myself too. Please go and make up with Khun Erng. Someone who can't even tell the different shades of house paint apart isn't going to be able to sell houses and condominiums!”

 

“Khun Nid, you really are on my team, aren't you?”

 

“Of course! I've already been whispering to every department that this year's bonus will be at least three months' salary. But there are still several months left until the end of the year. If Khun Erng disappears, that three-month bonus might end up being only ten days!”

 

“Haah... What a headache.”

 

The chairman, who held the position in name only, was genuinely beginning to feel stressed. That bloody Erng! Of all the things he could do, he'd gone straight for the ultimate weapon and resigned!

 

Why did he have to get so angry over Pei? Couldn't he see that his older brother had only been looking out for him?

 

Apparently not. He didn't see it, didn't even acknowledge it, and then went and kicked him while he was down!

 

“Shall I call a doctor? Perhaps we should admit you to hospital. You could pretend to be in a coma. Khun Erng might take pity on you and come back to work.”

 

“Khun Nid, are you really on my side? If you've secretly switched teams, just tell me! Fine, I get it. I'm nothing but a cheap knock-off Chinese tycoon from Shenzhen. Can't do anything except look handsome all day. All right, for the sake of your bonus and Araya's future, I suppose I'll have to negotiate with my precious little brother.”

 

“Exactly! Whatever Khun Erng says, just listen and accept it. Keep reminding yourself: it's for Araya's future, for your own future, and for Nid's bonus too. Nid still has children to feed...”

 

“Enough, enough! I know! But let me think about how to approach Erng first. He's so angry that it won't be easy. Besides, we're both grown men. Having to make up by linking little fingers would be rather embarrassing.”

 

“There's also a board meeting at the end of the month, Tycoon... All the shareholders will be attending. If Khun Erng isn't there...”

 

“Khun Nid, go and buy me some oranges. I think I'm coming down with a cold.”

 

“Shall I arrange for you to go straight into intensive care? I'll take care of everything.”

 

“That's enough! Off you go. I'll handle it myself.”

 

Once the room had fallen silent, psychiatrist Achi Araya let out a quiet laugh. It had been a long time since he'd had a proper argument with his younger brother. They were both far too old for that sort of thing now.

 

Erng had never been particularly hot-tempered. That was precisely why Achi enjoyed teasing him so much. His younger brother always let him get away with it. This time, however, Erng must have finally realised just how important Paopei was to him. He'd probably lashed out at Achi because he genuinely believed he'd nearly lost Pei.

 

But if it hadn't been for an older brother like him, would Pei even have remained by Erng's side until today?

 

Why couldn't that brat look at it from that perspective?

 

Oh, well. They could talk about it later. Erng wasn't particularly difficult to deal with, and there were plenty of ways to handle him. For now, though, Achi needed to earn himself a little sympathy.

 

“Khun M, my business has been having a few problems lately. Nothing too serious yet, but would you be interested in helping me manage Araya? I think it's about time we started building a future together.”

 

“Tycoon, I'm afraid I'm just about to go into a meeting. If you require financial advisory services for our VIP customers, please contact Chofa Bank's call centre. We have specialists in financial planning and investment who are far more qualified than I am and will be happy to assist you. Thank you for placing your trust in Chofa Bank. Goodbye.”

 

Not only had he failed to receive any sympathy, but he'd been treated coldly as well!

 

Honestly! Calling him a VIP customer when his credit card was constantly reaching its limit. Every time he rang the bank, they claimed there was a problem with the system. His card certainly seemed to have a remarkable number of problems!

 

“Deputy Director, the Director would like to see you. The Ministry of Labour has requested an inspection.”

 

The Revenue Department had already been. The Medical Council had already been. And now the Ministry of Labour?

 

Wonderful! Why not invite the whole bloody lot?

 

But could they make their final stop the district office, please? They might as well register their marriage and get it over with!

 

Since he couldn't find anyone to help him manage the business, the only solution was to persuade his extremely capable younger brother to return to work. Running the hospital was already exhausting enough. Honestly, was showering his younger brother with love still not enough? How could Erng be so cruel to him?

 

He even made the effort to send him selfies every single day, yet Erng never bothered opening them. He sent him games on LINE, but Erng never played those either. Cookie Run, LINE Let's Get Rich, ROV... No matter which game he invited him to play, his brother refused.

 

As a psychiatrist, Achi needed to keep himself updated on practically everything. His patients came from all sorts of social backgrounds, and sometimes their interests were quite specialised. Teenagers, in particular, enjoyed playing games. It wasn't as though he wanted to play them himself. It was part of his job!

 

He'd better ring his most important ally. Otherwise, the board meeting would be a complete disaster. Actually, the whole of Araya might collapse!

 

And the share price had only just started climbing!

 

It was the second day without P'Erng. Although, honestly, it didn't really feel as though he'd gone anywhere. P'Erng had called me at nine o'clock last night, and we'd ended up talking until three in the morning. We talked for so long that I fell asleep with the phone still against my ear. When I woke up, he still hadn't hung up!

 

Luckily, P'Erng was the one who'd called, because there's no way I could afford a phone bill like that. I don't know why he didn't just call me on LINE. Use your 5G, P'Erng!

 

It was actually rather strange how much P'Erng and I had to talk about. It was almost as though we'd never spoken to each other properly before. I don't even know what I talked about, but it must have been an absolute mountain of things. P'Erng was fun to talk to as well.

 

It reminded me of being a teenager, leaving a call connected while falling asleep. Not that I'd ever actually done that before. I'd just seen people sharing stories about it on Facebook. Even though I came to work with dark circles under my eyes from lack of sleep, I felt strangely happy. Unfortunately, that happiness soon turned into chaos because my phone wouldn't stop ringing, and deliveries kept arriving.

 

I'd been running around like a headless chicken all morning!

 

Yesterday, I'd gone to the cinema with Pong, but that idiot fell asleep halfway through the film. He was properly fast asleep too, even though the film was really good!

 

Milan got embarrassed when I sent him a LINE message telling him he'd done brilliantly. I just wanted to encourage him!

 

Milan's acting had improved so much compared to his earlier films. Although, if you looked at his performance overall, he was still ridiculously stiff. But I'm his fan!

 

Of course I have to support Milan with everything I've got!

 

“Delivery for Khun Paopei!”

 

Another LINE MAN delivery!

 

This time, it wasn't food. It was a huge box. I had a feeling it was from P'Erng again. But what on earth had he sent me this time?

 

How did someone who was supposed to be a busy executive have so much free time to keep ordering deliveries?

 

Pei was confused!

 

“Aaaaaah!”

 

Oh my goooood!

 

This is ridiculous!

 

Inside the box was a lion plushie!

 

It was sooooo soft!

 

Its mane was made from curved pieces of fabric that looked like flower petals. It had tiny little ears and the funniest face!

 

Oh?

 

There was even a scarf around its neck with a name tag attached. Little Erng.

 

“P'Erng, what are you playing at?”

 

I'm so embarrassed... Did he seriously send me a little version of himself?

 

And he actually named it Little Erng!

 

It doesn't look anything like him!

 

But Little Erng was exactly the right size to fit in my arms. Ahhh, he's so comfortable to cuddle!

 

“You're too cute!”

 

I couldn't resist squeezing his round little cheeks over and over again. And now I wanted to squeeze the real P'Erng's cheeks too!

 

He's seriously too adorable. When I won't let him come and see me, he sends a plushie to take his place. How am I supposed to stop missing him like this?

 

“What should I do, Little Erng? Pei misses P'Erng.”

 

Having this funny-looking little lion sitting beside me made the whole world seem brighter and more cheerful. I took a photograph of Little Erng and sent it to P'Erng. P'Erng isn't very good at typing on LINE. He says his fingers are too big. But when I sent him the picture of Little Erng, he replied with a selfie.

 

[P'Erng is better to cuddle, you know.]

 

Hmph!

 

How full of himself!

 

He didn't even smile in his selfie!

 

No peace sign, no little finger heart, nothing!

 

That's not how you're supposed to take a selfie!

 

So I sent one back, making a little finger heart for him. I even tilted my head slightly and used one of those cute photo filters.

 

[Still can't compete with little Paopei.]

 

[I want to cuddle little Paopei.]

 

[It hasn't even been three days yet.]

 

[Didn't sending Little Erng to make up with you work?]

 

[No, it didn't.]

 

P'Erng sent back a crying sticker. Chatting on LINE was another new activity I'd only just started doing with P'Erng. Last night, I'd complained that he shouldn't send me SMS messages anymore. He should use LINE instead so he wouldn't waste money. P'Erng does have LINE, you know.

 

But he doesn't really talk to anyone on it apart from P'Eurn. P'Eurn seems rather lonely sometimes. He likes taking selfies and sending them to P'Erng. Maybe it's his way of relieving stress?

 

But P'Erng never opens P'Eurn's messages. I once saw it happen when we were watching television together. As soon as a message from P'Eurn popped up, P'Erng immediately put his phone down. I'm an only child, so I don't really understand relationships between siblings.

 

“Araya Headquarters, good afternoon.”

 

“Pei, it's me.”

 

“P'Eurn! Hello! Who would you like me to transfer you to?”

 

“I'm calling for you, Pei. I was going to ring your mobile, but I thought I'd see how the reception staff answer the telephone.”

 

P'Eurn's familiar laughter came through the receiver. Sometimes P'Eurn would ring and ask me to transfer him to someone else because he couldn't remember any of the internal extension numbers. Most of the time, he wanted me to put him through to Khun Nid. Yes, that's right. P'Eurn couldn't even remember his own secretary's extension number.

 

“What is it, P'Eurn?”

 

“Are you free this evening? I'll take you to a restaurant that does amazing stir-fried cabbage. Have you got anything planned after work? Or are you going somewhere with Erng?”

 

“Pei's free! Where shall we meet, P'Eurn?”

 

“Come to Restaurant XXX. Around half past six.”

 

“Okay!”

 

I used to have dinner with P'Eurn quite often. He liked finishing work around three or four in the afternoon, which was usually about the time I got back from university. So he'd often invite me out for something to eat. Back then, I used to talk to P'Eurn about P'Erng too. The restaurant he'd chosen was inside a shopping centre in the city centre.

 

I took a motorcycle taxi there, and it only cost forty baht. Araya isn't directly beside a Skytrain station, although it's less than five kilometres away. The traffic gets terrible after work, so taking a motorcycle taxi is much easier. I brought Little Erng along with me because I needed to take him back to my flat afterwards.

 

“P'Eurn, hello! Wow, this restaurant is fancy!”

 

“The fish here is delicious. I've already ordered two or three dishes. If there's anything else you fancy, go ahead and order it.”

 

“I'm all right for now, thank you.”

 

“A lion plushie?”

 

“P'Erng gave it to me. Its name is Little Erng. Don't smile like that! Pei didn't name him! P'Erng chose the name himself, so I didn't even get to call him Little Cabbage!”

 

“Have you two made up, then?”

 

“W-Well... P'Erng said he's courting Pei, but Pei hasn't accepted him yet.”

 

“Good! Don't rush into a relationship with him. Otherwise, I won't be able to steal you away for dinner anymore. That bloody Erng will definitely get possessive if I'm spending time with you. Make him work for it a little longer, Pei. While you're still in the promotional period, you should be as demanding as you like!”

 

P'Eurn winked at me. He lowered his voice into a conspiratorial whisper, as though we were plotting something wicked. But because it was P'Eurn, I couldn't help laughing. We chatted for a little while before several dishes arrived at the table. The snow fish steamed in soy sauce looked absolutely delicious!

 

And so did my stir-fried cabbage!

 

“Eat plenty. You need to put a bit of weight on. Once we've finished eating, we'll talk about work.”

 

“Chofa Bank has already announced when they'll start interviewing new employees. There's a position available for you too.”

 

“Really?”

 

“Do you still want to change jobs and get away from Erng?”

 

Deep down, I hadn't really wanted to change jobs in the first place. Back then, I'd only been trying to force myself to get over P'Erng. But now that I thought about it, if I took P'Erng out of the equation, I hadn't actually been working for very long. I barely had any experience yet. It probably wouldn't look very good if I rushed into changing jobs so soon.

 

“Pei's starting to think that because I haven't been working very long, maybe changing jobs already wouldn't be a good idea. They'd probably ask why I wanted to leave, especially since Araya's a big company too.”

 

“It's entirely up to you, Pei. You're an adult now. You can make your own decisions.”

 

“Thank you, P'Eurn. I think Pei would rather stay where he is for now.”

 

“Mm. In that case, there's something I'd like you to help me with, in my capacity as the tycoon of Araya.”

 

P'Eurn's expression suddenly became serious, with a hint of uneasiness. I'd never seen him look like this before. P'Eurn always seemed so kind and easy-going.

 

“What is it, P'Eurn?”

 

“There's an important position in the company that's about to become vacant. The person currently holding it has resigned. Normally, we'd follow the proper recruitment process and find someone new to take over. But because it's such an important position, one that directly affects the future growth of Araya, I don't want someone I can't trust sitting in that chair. It could affect the company's finances too.”

 

“Th-Then why are you telling Pei about it? Shouldn't you discuss it with P'Erng, Khun Nid, or Khun Ta...?”

 

“I don't think Khun Ta can be trusted.”

 

My eyes widened at P'Eurn's words. Could it be?

 

Had P'Eurn noticed something suspicious about Khun Ta too?

 

Did that mean I'd been right all along?

 

Khun Ta really did have some kind of secret plan!

 

An evil scheme!

 

“And Erng probably wouldn't believe me anyway. I don't want to argue with him, so I thought I'd find someone to fill the position temporarily while I secretly contact someone new whom I can trust. We can't leave such an important position vacant. I need to make the first move. You understand, don't you, Pei?”

 

“Yes, Pei understands. But... can Pei really help you?”

 

“Of course. It's an important position, so I can't just let someone I don't trust take it. I need someone reliable to hold the position until I find a suitable replacement. Once I've found that person, we can work out what to do next. I don't want to hire someone else only to dismiss them later. That wouldn't be right, and it could disrupt all sorts of things.”

 

“If I went directly to Human Resources and explained everything, it wouldn't look particularly good either. It would seem as though I were using my connections to give someone special treatment, even though I shouldn't. That wouldn't be fair. And if someone started spreading rumours that I'd hired someone through favouritism, it would damage Araya's reputation.”

 

“But I think I can trust you, Pei. Can't I?”

 

“Yes! Of course you can! Pei has never even thought about stealing a single baht from you, P'Eurn! Pei doesn't want anything from you either!”

 

“Very good. In that case, I'd like you to transfer to another position temporarily.”

 

“Huh? Pei?”

 

“That's right. You'll only be holding the position in name for now.”

 

“I-I don't think I can do it...”

 

P'Eurn reached across the table and took my hand. The look in his eyes made me realise just how serious this situation was. What should I do?

 

Was I really going to have to help P'Eurn and P'Erng save Araya?

 

“Please help me, Pei. You and Erng are the only people I can trust.”

 

“All right... But how long would I have to do it for?”

 

“Probably... no more than a week. The person I'm planning to bring in will probably be impatient to start work straight away. I'll also give you an extra twenty thousand baht in position allowance this month.”

 

“Whoa! That's loads of money! Are you sure that's all right?”

 

“Of course. The normal salary for this position is much higher than that. Please help me, Pei.”

 

“Okay! Pei will do his absolute best! But... but... what position is it?”

 

“Acting Chairman of the Board of Araya Public Company Limited.”

 

WHAAAAAAT?!!!