Chapter 54: Even Beasts Don’t Kill Family

“I’ve been thinking about it and something seems off so I did some digging. Don’t you find it strange Uncle? It’s odd that Grandfather received no news at all. It’s as if someone deliberately blocked the information…”

Cheon Su-han’s eyes flickered uneasily.

As I thought he knows something.

The light in the lawyer’s visiting room flickered unsteadily.

“No matter how estranged they were, Mom was still Grandfather’s youngest daughter. Isn’t it strange that neither the police nor prosecutors noticed such basic personal information? If they had known they would’ve contacted him.”

“What exactly are you trying to say?”

“Don’t you find it strange Uncle?”

“Even if it’s strange how could I know about something that happened over a decade ago?”

I nodded at his words.

“That’s true. I thought so too. But as luck would have it someone who knows about that incident has appeared.”

“What?”

Cheon Su-han’s voice rose.

“Yes.”

“Who? Who knows about that incident?”

The question was wrong.

If he were my brother it should be ‘Who killed my sister?’

“Is that important? The content is more crucial isn’t it? The target was our mom, it was carried out by two men and the name that came from their mouths was Teacher Pyo. That’s about it for now? Also…”

I trailed off slightly and Cheon Su-han’s expression turned ashen, probably thinking I knew more.

“I plan to tell Grandfather. I don’t know who Teacher Pyo is but he’s likely someone connected to Grandfather. The person who blocked the information is probably close to Grandfather too. That person…”

“No I really don’t know! I didn’t know!”

Cheon Su-han reacted violently rising from his seat.

I looked up at his face with emotionless eyes.

He turned his head away from my cold gaze.

“‘Didn’t know’… That sounds like you knew something.”

“That’s…”

“Sit down.”

Cheon Su-han sat back down weakly.

“Tell me what you know. Prove that you weren’t involved. If you uncles were really involved in Mom’s death then Mom… it’s just too pitiful.”

My voice trembled slightly.

I prayed it wasn’t true.

Even though I was certain I truly prayed it wasn’t true.

But Cheon Su-han stuttered out the truth I didn’t want to believe.

“I-I really didn’t know. I found out after Mi-suk died. Yes I found out belatedly. If I had known I would have done everything to stop it.”

My hands under the desk trembled violently.

Cheon Su-han who had been rambling now seemed not to see me in front of him.

“It was that bastard Teacher Pyo who killed her. I really didn’t know. My older brother blocked the information going to Father… I only found out later and fought with him. It’s true. By the time I knew it was already over.”

This bastard Cheon Su-han is just an idiot. Nothing more than Cheon Su-man’s puppet.

Seeing his pathetic state made me even angrier and I shouted.

“Then you should have at least told Grandfather! If you were Mom’s brother you should have told him! Fuck are you even human? Even beasts don’t kill family you bastards!”

My whole body started trembling with rage.

I get why they tried to kill me.

A bastard who turned a blind eye to his sister’s death wouldn’t hesitate to kill his niece.

“How could you even think of killing your sister? She left quietly saying she’d live quietly without Grandfather’s wealth or anything. Why did you have to find and kill her? Why? Just why!”

Cheon Su-han bowed his head trembling violently unable to say anything.

I spat out words at him.

“I hope your claim of finding out later is true. If you’re still lying to me now I’ll kill you. Parole? Pardon? Don’t expect them. I’ll take everything you’re enjoying now. I’ll make it happen.”

I stood up abruptly from my seat.

As I stumbled while walking Manager Ma caught me.

“…Manager let’s go. Home.”

I left the visiting room supported by Manager Ma.

* * *

Chairman Cheon was looking at Cheon Ji-soo in front of him with disapproving eyes.

Cheon Ji-soo couldn’t even meet the Chairman’s eyes and just kept his head down.

“Aish you useless fool are you still living like that?”

“I’m sorry.”

“Why do you keep doing things to be sorry for! Is this how the eldest grandson behaves? How long are you going to disappoint me?”

Chairman Cheon heaved a deep sigh looking at Cheon Ji-soo who was silently bowing his head.

“Fine what do you want to do?”

“Father says I should join Il-sung but I’m not confideent Grandfather.”

“Not confident? You useless fool are you giving up without even trying?”

“But…”

“Don’t make excuses. Even your younger sister Ji-soo says she’s willing to join the company and learn from the bottom up. As the older brother are you going to keep living like this? Do you plan to continue living like this doing nothing?”

“…”

Chairman Cheon heaved another deep sigh.

“Myung-hoon come in.”

Chief Ha entered at the Chairman’s call.

Cheon Ji-soo glanced at him briefly then turned his head away again.

“Give this fool two buildings in Gangnam.”

“Which ones should I transfer?”

“Whichever are the most expensive just transfer them.”

“I’ll prepare the transfer of ownership and hand them over.”

As Chief Ha left Chairman Cheon sighed again looking at Cheon Ji-soo.

“That should be enough for you to live as you want without Su-man’s help. Whether you squander it all or whatever do as you please. This will be the last thing I give you so get out of my sight I don’t want to see you anymore.”

“I’ll contact you in a few days. I’ll prepare the documents and transfer them back to you without any issues. We’ll take care of the taxes on our end.”

Cheon Ji-soo left Chairman Cheon’s house barely acknowledging Chief Ha’s words. It was an unexpectedly quiet exit considering his usual behavior.

* * *

“Please drive somewhere quiet for a moment.”

At my instruction Manager Ma drove to a parking lot by the Han River.

I got out of the car when we arrived at the riverside.

The cool river breeze brushed my face but it did nothing to cool my burning anger.

I stood lost in thought gazing at the frozen river.

‘I can’t believe there was such a backstory to my parents’ death. But did Grandfather really not know? Or did he know but couldn’t abandon his children?’

The anger faded leaving only questions.

‘What if Grandfather knew when I told him? What if he asks me to forgive them?’

I was confused.

Knowing Grandfather’s attachment to family I had been postponing my revenge against the Cheon brothers.

But after seeing Cheon Su-han trembling and confessing I couldn’t postpone it any longer.

‘If he already knew and turned a blind eye could I go against Grandfather’s wishes and take revenge?’

It was a problem without any clear answer no matter how much I thought about it.

How much time had passed?

“The wind is cold. Let’s go back to the car.”

Manager Ma called out to me.

I had been standing in the river breeze for so long that I was cold to the tips of my hair.

“Manager what should I do?”

“Do whatever you want to do.”

“Even if it goes against Grandfather’s wishes?”

Manager Ma who had been silently looking at me opened his mouth.

“What are you afraid of? That the Chairman might know? Or that you might lose everything? Are you afraid of being abandoned like this?”

I laughed bitterly at the question that seemed to pinch my heart.

Right what am I afraid of now?

I’ve already died and come back to life once.

Manager Ma who had been observing my expression added.

“I will follow wherever the boss goes. Even if it means parting ways with the Chairman. That’s also what the Chairman wanted when he brought me back to Korea.”

Manager Ma’s reassuring words shook my heart.

“The boss is different from the Chairman. You don’t need to become the same as him. I hope you’ll become a different kind of boss than the Chairman.”

“Thank you.”

“I’m sorry I spoke out of turn.”

“No please stop me anytime you think I’m about to make a wrong choice. Let’s go now.”

I patted his sturdy shoulder as he bowed his head.

We drove back to Pyeongchang-dong.

As I entered the house Chief Ha greeted me.

“Where’s Grandfather?”

“He’s in the study.”

I took a deep breath standing in front of the study door.

“Grandfather it’s Mu-hyeok.”

“Come in.”

As I opened the study door and entered Grandfather greeted me with a gentle smile.

“Where have you been since morning?”

“I had some business to attend to.”

Grandfather who had nodded slightly asked seeing my stern expression.

“Did something happen?”

“…Did you know? That my parents’ death wasn’t a robbery but a murder carried out on someone’s order?”

In an instant the smile disappeared from Grandfather’s face.

No matter how long I waited the answer I was hoping for didn’t come.

So you did know.

Since when?

From the beginning? Or recently?

“You knew didn’t you? Then why didn’t you tell me?”

In my previous life I thought Grandfather was a cold-blooded person without blood or tears. I resented him and at the same time lived desperately trying to gain his approval.

But when I came back and saw a Grandfather very different from what I remembered I thought I had been wrong. I thought Grandfather was just an ordinary person to his family and decided I should serve him well in this life.

But now I really don’t know.

I couldn’t understand Grandfather’s true feelings.

“Please say something. Why did you pretend not to know? When did you find out? Did you know before you met me and still turn a blind eye?”

Grandfather just looked at me with sad eyes without saying anything.

That was as good as an affirmation.

“What were you going to do if I never found out what happened?”

“…Then what should I have done? Mi-suk Su-man Su-han they’re all my flesh and blood. Should I have killed my own blood with my own hands?”

Grandfather’s voice was trembling.

“Su-man didn’t kill her directly. He only blocked the information coming to me.”

Cheon Su-man’s name came up.

It meant he knew everything.

That our mom died at the hands of the Cheongpung Group and that Cheon Su-man was the one who cooperated by blocking all the information.

“So you wanted me to get along with them? To call the people who killed my parents uncle and follow them? Do you think they would have let me live after you passed away? Or if I had found out about this later how much do you think I would have regretted and resented you?”

“…”

Now I understood everything.

Why Grandfather chose me as his successor in my previous life even though he was dissatisfied with me.

It must have been half guilt about my mother and half unwillingness to pass it on to the Cheon brothers who were involved in her death.

In the end it was because Grandfather couldn’t properly conclude things that I ended up dying at their hands.

I thought I would never cry again but tears were already flowing from my eyes.

“Why did you stay quiet when you knew who the culprits were?”

“I’m sorry. I only found out recently. I couldn’t pressure them based on suspicion alone without any evidence.”

“…No evidence? Couldn’t you have just asked my uncles? You just turned a blind eye Grandfather. You might as well have killed my parents yourself.”

At those words Grandfather’s expression turned pained.

“Try to understand. It was all for you…”

“Don’t say it was for me. I can never forgive my uncles. Even if they didn’t kill them directly. No matter what reason there might have been it shouldn’t have happened.”

“Mu-hyeok you can’t be like this too.”

“If there’s no evidence then I’ll gain enough power to pressure them with just suspicion. I’ll gain that power myself. I’ll take revenge directly. Please deal with my uncles yourself Grandfather. I’m begging you.”

I looked into Grandfather’s eyes as I said this.

There were tears in Grandfather’s eyes.