Chapter 225: Sudden Turn of Events

No sooner had the article about Chairman Joo Kwang-shik injecting 100 billion won of his personal fortune into Daehyun Card been published, than the banks, Daehyun Card’s creditors, decided to provide 100 billion won in emergency funding.

It was clear that Chairman Joo Kwang-shik could finally breathe a sigh of relief.

He wasn’t the kind of miser who would sell off a card company because he begrudged spending a measly 100 billion won. The fact that he’d even discussed the acquisition despite having such an easy solution meant there was definitely another trick up his sleeve.

“They’ve reached a dramatic agreement with the bank creditors,” Vice President Jang Do-hyung announced, bursting in with the news.

Having rushed out to verify the news the moment he saw it, Vice President Jang Do-hyung even relayed unconfirmed rumors.

“At first, he made a big show of how easily he’d resolve things, but then he kept delaying, making all sorts of excuses, until the creditors issued their final warning. That’s when he apparently decided to cough up his personal funds.”

“That grandstanding didn’t mean he was actually going to sell the company, did it?”

“He was boasting about pulling funds from Daewoo Motors.”

Chairman Joo Tae-shik of Daewoo Motors helping his younger brother?

That was even harder to believe than the tale of Nolbu helping Heungbu.

Pondering why Chairman Joo Kwang-shik had made such bold claims, I shook my head.

I decided to stop thinking about their family affairs or why they tried to drag Miracle into it.

Now was the perfect time to expand our operations.

Last year, LG Card became the first in Korea to surpass ten million cumulative customers, reaching the peak of its external growth, but now it was starting to cry out in pain.

This was the result of issuing credit cards with just a signature and no credit check, which included not only the unemployed but even high school students.

LG Card was on the verge of bankruptcy due to the accumulation of non-performing loans and had requested public funds from the government.

They had presented their final cards—giving up management rights and applying for a workout—and were now awaiting the government and creditors’ decision. The government and creditors were discussing whether to inject a whopping 2 trillion won in public funds.

The credit card market was thus in a period of simultaneous collapse and reconstruction, and fortunately, Soonyang Card had preemptively secured its position in the reconstruction.

Just as we hadn’t coveted Daehyun Card, we would watch LG Card’s troubles from the sidelines.

Wasn’t that the company Shinhan Bank would later pour a staggering 7 trillion won into acquiring? I didn’t feel the need to mobilize such a massive amount of capital right now.

Even investing one-hundredth of that amount would be enough to stand out in the collapsing credit card market.

In times of chaos like these, it’s better to shed arrogance and cautiously take one step at a time.

* * *

The biggest turmoil was in the political arena.

With the upcoming general election next year, the political landscape began to fluctuate wildly.

The President was attempting reforms by creating a new political party, and the remaining members became an even more radical opposition than the existing one.

The ruling party started as a tiny, minor party, the third-largest in the National Assembly. In this situation where the opposition held the majority, they were resorting to any means necessary to win the upcoming 17th general election.

In particular, they began to pressure the President and the ruling party by bringing up presidential election funds, a sensitive issue for everyone, unaware that this would boomerang and cost them dearly.

Illegal presidential election funds were the most concerning issue.

I, too, had provided illegal presidential election funds. While other chaebols were full of loyal subordinates who could take the fall for violating election laws, I had no such loyalists.

If the media mentioned my name and decisive evidence emerged, it would be me standing in the Prosecutor’s Office photo line.

I had no one to put forward as a scapegoat, and I didn’t want to do that anyway.

Noah’s Ark was built during a sunny period before the rain, and as they say, better safe than sorry.

I quietly called Executive Director Woo Byung-joon to my home.

“There’s something I need to confirm.”

“Please tell me, Chief of staff.”

“Regarding the last presidential election, I want you to trace the election funds I prepared and handed over.”

“Why suddenly that…?”

“Hasn’t the political world started launching smear campaigns? It seems the opposition, in particular, is stirring the pot, even mentioning a special investigation to look into the election funds. I don’t want any trace of me to surface. Executive Director, if you find any trace of me during the reverse tracing, please eliminate it.”

Executive Director Woo Byung-joon blinked a few times before asking back,

“Does ‘eliminate’ include people?”

Eliminate people?

This shocking statement left me speechless for a moment. Seeing my reaction, Woo Byung-joon offered a faint smile.

“I think you misunderstood. You’ve been watching too many movies.”

“Wh-what do you mean by ‘eliminate’?”

“It means removing them from Korea. Sending them abroad until the issue blows over. Did you really think I meant killing them to silence them?”

“Sorry. I guess I have been watching too many movies. Haha.”

I tried to laugh away the awkwardness, but it wasn’t easy. Woo Byung-joon, however, didn’t seem to mind.

“You said it was impossible to trace the funds back then, that the money had gone through several rounds in the US.”

“Yes.”

“So, you just want me to check if it’s traceable now?”

“Exactly. Just give it a once-over.”

“You sounded so confident that it was impossible. Are you feeling uneasy?”

“Just in case.”

“Understood. I’ll look into it. But…”

Executive Director Woo Byung-joon looked me straight in the eye and spoke slowly.

“Who were the people who actually saw the cash? Especially the ones who brought the money to the studio apartment.”

“I told you they were trustworthy. There’s no issue there.”

“This is a fight between political parties ahead of the general election. They’ll fight tooth and nail. They’ll throw every resource they have at it. That includes the prosecutors and the police. If they target you, Chief of staff, they’ll start with your inner circle. If they shake down the people around you and threaten them, loyalty and trust will shatter more easily than a wine glass. That’s human nature.”

This man must have witnessed countless betrayals. He always assumes the worst.

But he didn’t realize the contradiction in his own words.

“The person who packed and delivered the money at the studio apartment was you, Executive Director. So, should I look at you with suspicion too?”

He seemed taken aback and didn’t respond immediately.

After a moment of silence, he nodded.

“I see. While telling you not to trust even those who have been with you for a long time, I failed to show you my own trustworthiness.”

“That’s not exactly what I meant. My trust in you will solidify over time. I’m not in a rush.”

He fell silent again. It was impossible to guess what he was thinking.

“I think we need to shorten the timeframe. To be honest, I’ve grown fond of you, Chief of staff.”

He even offered a rare smile as he pulled out his cell phone from his pocket.

He unlocked his phone, fiddled with it, and showed me his contact list.

“This is Chief of staff Lee Hak-jae’s number. I’ll delete it.”

He deleted it before I could say anything.

“And this is Chairman Jin’s number. I’ll delete it too.”

“E-Executive Director. Th-that’s…”

It was too late. He had deleted both numbers.

“I don’t answer calls from numbers not saved in my phone. How’s that?”

He might still remember the important numbers of those two. If not, he could go to the office and check again. In some ways, it wasn’t a big deal.

But this man was trying to show a symbolic gesture to gain my trust. Wasn’t he demonstrating his willingness to follow only my orders?

As he said, he had greatly reduced the time it would take to build trust. Was it my turn to reciprocate?

“Representative Oh Se-hyun of Miracle provided the funds. And one of his employees brought it to the studio apartment.”

Woo Byung-joon smiled again.

“I’m well aware of your relationship with Representative Oh. He’s a trustworthy person. But the employees…”

“I’ll send them to the US within the week. Under the guise of training, I’ll send them to Miracle Headquarters in New York. They’ll be happy about it too. We’ll call them back after the general election next year when things have calmed down.”

“With you being so quick and thorough, I don’t think there’s any need to worry. Still, just in case, I’ll retrace the trail of the funds you mentioned.”

Woo Byung-joon quietly got up from his seat.

“Is there anything else you need me to do?”

“Can I ask you one thing?”

“What is it?”

“About eliminating people earlier, does that… by any chance include actual killing?”

Had there really never been any instances of silencing people by killing them?

“Is there anyone you need killed?”

He had a knack for making people feel dumbfounded. Speechless, I chuckled dryly and shook my head. Executive Director Woo also laughed and left.

* * *

“Just go. It’s not like you’re immigrating. Why did you even come all the way here?”

“You little rascal. Just looking at your luggage, it seems like you are immigrating. How can a guy who’s only staying for three months have so many bags?”

“My wife packed them. She’s planning to settle down there for good.”

As December arrived, Oh Se-hyun packed his bags as if he had been waiting for this moment.

My father, despite his busy schedule, had also taken the time to come to the airport to see him off.

He felt he was repaying Oh Se-hyun for looking after his son. For a full ten years, no less.

It was only natural for him to come to the airport to see off such a friend who was leaving for a foreign country.

“Anyway, you get settled in. I’ll be there soon.”

“You in Kota Kinabalu? Do you even have time to visit? You’re the kind of guy who can’t even take a proper vacation.”

“I’m going to film a show there. This guy keeps pestering me to promote his resort. He’s even offering to cover the production costs, so I’m going to schedule it for next year. Thanks to him, I’m getting a free ride too.”

“That’s great news. Bring a lot of famous people. I’ll treat you all handsomely. Hehehe.”

The two continued to exchange lighthearted jokes.

They avoided using any words that would evoke farewell. They knew that after this moment and a few months, it wouldn’t be a true goodbye.

Parents shed tears as they watch their daughter get married, but after the wedding and honeymoon, when they start visiting each other again, they realize it wasn’t a farewell after all.

The two of them knew this well.

I knew it well too.

In my past life, my mother cried buckets when I went to the military, but with frequent leaves, she seemed to forget that her son was even a soldier.

“When you go to Kota Kinabalu, please get some exercise. The resort’s fitness center is really well-equipped.”

“Stop nagging. Going to a place with fresh air and sunshine will make me healthy even without exercising.”

Oh Se-hyun nudged me in the side.

“More than that, I’ll be even healthier if you stop sending me emails. Don’t bother me with unnecessary things. Got it?”

“I’ll send you daily reports. Hehehe.”

“Cheeky.”

My father, looking at Oh Se-hyun who was smiling brightly at me, said,

“Go on in. Your wife is waiting.”

“Hey, watch your honorifics! She’s my sister-in-law, not my brother’s wife! You’re two years younger than me!”

My father laughed and pushed Oh Se-hyun away.

Oh Se-hyun, entering the departure gate, kept turning back and waving.

As his figure completely disappeared, I barely managed to hold back the tears that were about to burst out.

If my father hadn’t been there, I would have cried my eyes out.

“Let’s go. Oh, do you have to go to the office?”

“No. I’m going home for dinner tonight for the first time in a while. I’ll call Sang-joon too. Let’s have our whole family together for once and have a nice time.”

“Are you finally growing up? Seeing Se-hyun go far away makes you want to be a good son? Hehehe.”

Just as my father was about to put his arm around my shoulder, my phone rang loudly.

“Huh? What’s this old man want?”

“Who is it?”

“The director of the medical center. Did another VIP get admitted?”

My father tilted his head and answered the phone.

“Yes, Director. This is Jin Yun-ki.”

The airport was noisy, so he covered his other ear with his hand as if he couldn’t hear well.

“Yes? Who is it…? What?!”

Suddenly, my father’s face turned pale, and his phone slipped from his hand.