Chapter 122: A Spy Among Us?

“Aunt, did you happen to place anyone by Uncle’s side?”

“Huh? What do you mean, anyone?”

She really looked down on her husband. She had someone watching each of her older brothers to see what they were up to—though they were probably being watched in return—but she hadn’t placed anyone with her husband.

“I assumed you’d have made one of his secretaries or aides one of your people. Weren’t there people who followed him since his days as an assemblyman?”

“Ah….”

My aunt had decided her husband wasn’t a threat. And now she was paying the price for that negligence. Including me, damn it.

“President Jin, it seems there will be changes around Mayor Choi. Seoul’s annual budget has surpassed 10 trillion won for the first time this year. How could flies not be drawn to that kind of money?”

Wouldn’t it be about three times that in twenty years? Whether it’s now or twenty years from now, life doesn’t seem to change much, except taxes keep going up.

“So, you’re saying someone is whispering sweet nothings in my husband’s ear?”

“It’s highly likely.”

My aunt found Oh Se-hyun’s opinion hard to accept. Which was understandable.

Who in their right mind would urge someone to fight the prosecution? Her husband’s current actions were definitely his own choice.

I watched my aunt and Oh Se-hyun exchange opinions, but their conversation went in one ear and out the other.

Who could it be?

To disregard your wife, who is both a financial lifeline and essential for the presidential election, it couldn’t be just a fly; it had to be an eagle that had latched on.

Until I knew who it was, any nagging from the sidelines would be pointless.

“Aunt.”

“Yes?”

The two of them stopped talking and turned their attention to me.

“Among Uncle’s close aides, is there anyone you could potentially sway? Anyone come to mind?”

“Hmm, I didn’t really pay attention….”

“Use your connections to find out. Uncle values academic background and connections within the prosecution, so look for someone who doesn’t fit into those circles.”

My aunt nodded. She was a quick-witted woman who understood my meaning instantly.

“And stop nagging him for now. It seems like everything he’s been holding back is exploding. No one can stop him.”

“Hold back? Hold back what?”

Wives, whether they’re daughters of chaebols or ordinary people, have one thing in common: they believe they endure much more and are more patient than their husbands in their marriages.

Just as I was about to speak, Oh Se-hyun, unable to contain himself, interjected.

“President Jin, men who live with their in-laws can’t even stand up straight. Mayor Choi was a lawyer, but he lived as an unemployed man without taking on any cases, didn’t he? Even his family relied on the Soonyang Group to make a living. Didn’t he just nod along to whatever you said? He’s been suppressing his pride.”

He spoke with fervor, as if it were his own situation, but it didn’t seem to resonate with her. There was no point in saying more, so Oh Se-hyun just sighed.

This was about as far as I could get discussing things with my aunt. Just by looking at her, wasn’t it clear she was out of control?

Until I found out who was fueling my uncle’s recklessness, it seemed I had no choice but to watch.

* * *

“Goodness, how could something like this happen?”

Oh Se-hyun clicked his tongue in disbelief, while I couldn’t believe my eyes.

“What on earth happened overnight?”

Even after laying out the major daily newspapers on the table and comparing them, my eyes weren’t deceiving me.

Starting with Hanseong Ilbo, every newspaper was praising Mayor Choi Chang-je’s courage.

They lauded his bravery as the son-in-law of the Soonyang family for revealing the speculative activities of his own family, stating it required extraordinary resolve that an ordinary person couldn’t even fathom, showering him with so much praise it was embarrassing to witness.

And there were also cautious calls for the prosecution to investigate.

Even though there were no illegal circumstances, the newspapers were completely on the side of the Seoul mayor, even provoking the prosecution.

“Hey, could your grandfather be pulling some strings?”

“Absolutely not.”

He’s not the type to easily go back on his word.

But even Hanseong Ilbo was fawning over my uncle! It didn’t make sense.

If yesterday’s attack was just a taste, shouldn’t today be the time to launch a full-scale offensive?

“Uncle, it seems our uncle-in-law has landed himself a major sponsor.”

The shameful sight of the media bowing down to a politician only happens when they are pressured by power or money.

The position of Seoul mayor isn’t one that major media outlets would fear, so it must be about the money.

“A sponsor?”

“Yes. A huge sponsor who can promise to plaster advertisements in every major daily newspaper.”

“Let’s see….”

A sponsor with this kind of financial power would fall into two categories.

A chaebol, or a construction magnate.

Real estate pre-sales make up the majority of newspaper advertisements. New products from major chaebol companies fill the full-page ads, while pre-sale advertisements densely fill every nook and cranny.

Isn’t changing the zoning of land a piece of cake for the Seoul mayor?

“I see. He’s found a strong financial backer, so he’s not listening to his wife at all. This guy’s escaping his in-law life.”

I threw the newspapers down.

I wasn’t angry at my uncle’s frivolousness. I was angry at my own shortsightedness for thinking I could make such a person president and have him as a reliable partner.

He’s barely been in the mayor’s office, and he’s already going around finding sponsors!

Oh Se-hyun silently watched my fuming.

He probably sensed that things had already gone beyond the point of no return.

“I’m sorry, Uncle, for showing you this side of me.”

“It’s not your fault. We were both wrong about him.”

“We should be satisfied with securing the DMC. If we stick with Uncle, who knows what kind of trouble might come our way.”

“I think so too. A guy who only chases after people who suit his taste is hopeless. I don’t know who the sponsor is, but he’ll definitely be used and discarded by that person.”

Having reached a consensus, I shook it off. My uncle was no longer our ally.

* * *

President Jin Dong-ki inwardly clicked his tongue as he looked at the people with their heads bowed, wondering how his father would deal with these people who were just causing trouble.

Chairman Jin called out to his eldest grandson, who was sitting furthest away with his head down.

“Young-joon.”

“Yes.”

“How much money did you lose?”

“It, it wasn’t much.”

“How much!”

“A little over sixty billion won.”

Jin Young-jun’s voice shrank at his grandfather’s shout.

“It’s not much money, but you can’t fix it, can you?”

Jin Young-jun, with his head bowed, kept his lips tightly sealed, like he had swallowed honey.

He could only wonder how long his period of reflection would be and where his exile would be. He hoped it would be Europe or the US.

“Dong-ki.”

“Yes, Father.”

“Find an apartment in Geoje Island. Soonyang Heavy Industries has some company housing there, right?”

“Yes.”

“Have that apartment wallpapered and get new flooring tomorrow. Stock it with necessary appliances too. Your nephew will be staying there starting tomorrow, so make sure to take special care of it.”

“G-Grandfather.”

Jin Young-jun’s face turned pale as he urgently called out to Chairman Jin, but he closed his mouth again when Vice-chairman Jin Young-ki shot him a sharp look.

“What’s the job title for the person in charge of the shipyard’s material warehouse?”

“Team leader.”

Jin Dong-ki quickly answered the sudden question. He didn’t know the warehouse manager’s job title, but from tomorrow, it would definitely be team leader.

“Get a business card made for him too.”

“Yes.”

Chairman Jin looked back at his eldest grandson and said,

“What are you doing, grandson? Go pack your bags quickly.”

Jin Young-jun gave his father a pleading look for help, but Vice-chairman Jin Young-ki gritted his teeth and shouted,

“Get out of here! Go down to Geoje Island and don’t move until you receive further instructions!”

Confirming that there was no one to save him, Jin Young-jun left with his head down.

“Dong-ki.”

“Yes.”

“You give the further instructions your brother just mentioned. Watch what he does and bring him back when you think he’s become a decent human being. And eldest son.”

“Yes.”

Vice-chairman Jin Young-ki was gripped by the fear that his son’s life might be over as of today.

“You clean up the mess your son made. There might be a prosecution investigation. If any evidence of embezzlement or breach of trust comes out, Young-joon will go to prison. If you don’t want your son to do jail time, you’ll have to clean things up perfectly.”

“…Yes.”

Chairman Jin let out a long sigh. One down.

“Seo-yoon.”

“Yes, yes.”

Startled, Jin Seo-yoon raised her head and stared at Chairman Jin’s lips. She was on tenterhooks, wondering what kind of punishment would befall her.

“You’re getting a divorce from Husband Choi.”

Chairman Jin’s bombshell silenced all his children.

Jin Seo-yoon in particular could only move her lips; no words came out.

“Since that guy wants to shed the label of Soonyang’s son-in-law so badly, let’s grant him his wish. Wouldn’t everything be resolved if you two divorced?”

“F-Father. How can you say that…? Are you okay with me going around with a divorcee label?”

Just as she was about to cry due to a fundamental sense of hurt, Chairman Jin’s bombshell declaration didn’t stop.

“If you divorce, I’ll put the department store, hotel, condo, and golf course in your name. I’ll completely spin them off so no one can take them away from you. How about it?”

“F-Father!”

This time, his two sons shouted. They were more concerned about a cash cow subsidiary being spun off than their younger sister’s divorce.

“I won’t force you. I don’t want to be a father who pushes his daughter into divorce. The choice is yours, Seo-yoon.”

A cold chill permeated the study.

“I’ve been thinking wrong all along. I tried to bring in capable people to entrust Soonyang to… but not anymore. It seems better to get rid of the incompetent ones. From now on, anyone who causes trouble or makes mistakes will be sent to an island. They’ll have to be removed from the family registry to set foot in Seoul again.”

Everyone swallowed hard. It was practically a declaration of the official succession race. Was it because of his age? He must have thought he couldn’t delay it any longer.

Now, to avoid being pushed out, even a single minor mistake was unacceptable.

* * *

“The US?”

“Yes. I probably won’t be back this year. I have quite a few things to do there.”

My father and Oh Se-hyun’s surprised gazes turned to me.

“I’m going to visit my brother Sang-joon and my mother, and also learn a thing or two working at Miracle in the US.”

Seeing my expression, Oh Se-hyun nodded at my father. He seemed to think it would be good for me to take a break to clear my complicated thoughts.

But my father didn’t see Oh Se-hyun’s nod.

“What do you have to do in the US? You have plenty of things to take care of here.”

“Uncle will handle those just fine. Right, Uncle?”

“Yes, leave DMC to me. I’ll make sure it proceeds without a hitch.”

Oh Se-hyun poked my father in the ribs and nodded vigorously.

My oblivious father belatedly nodded along.

I did want to rest a little.

But an article in today’s newspaper shook me.

It was a translated interview with an American, who happened to be Bill Gates.

The interviewer asked Bill Gates what he feared most, and Bill Gates replied,

“At this moment, twenty-year-olds making something in a shabby garage.”

Bill Gates and Steve Jobs both started in a garage.

I need to find the next Bill Gates or Steve Jobs. Fortunately, it’ll be easier than finding a Mr. Kim in Seoul.

Because I know the names of the companies and people.