Chapter 245: An Unexpected Offer

“Chief Prosecutor. I know you’re busy with official duties, so thank you for making the difficult trip.”

“Don’t mention it. Isn’t this where I’m expected to be?”

“Was your journey here comfortable?”

“Seeing as there wasn’t a single reporter lurking around this neighborhood, it’s clear you’ve taken extra precautions.”

Kim Seok-hwi, the Chief Prosecutor of the Seoul High Court, found it peculiar that only a dozen or so police officers were loitering around the site of the Korean economic giant’s passing, merely helping with parking. He could only surmise that the Soonyang Group had intervened.

“It’s not so much that we intervened, but rather the volatile political situation right now. Every reporter with a camera strapped to their shoulder is camped out in Yeouido, you know? No media outlet has the bandwidth to focus here,”

“Ah, I see. Things are about to explode over there too…”

The Chief Prosecutor, having come to pay his respects, calmed his excited heart as he spoke with the two vice-chairmen who had quietly called him aside.

Chairman Jin had called him to his study for a brief chat before he was promoted to Chief Prosecutor.

He had hoped that if he was called upon once more, he might even become the Prosecutor General, but that opportunity had vanished forever.

He had come merely to offer condolences, having given up on further advancement, but being summoned by Chairman Jin’s successors couldn’t help but make his heart flutter once more.

“Chief Prosecutor.”

“Yes, please speak.”

Chief Prosecutor Kim Seok-hwi perked up his ears.

“With the passing of our father, who was the pillar of this group, we are facing significant challenges.”

“What are you talking about? With the two vice-chairmen standing strong… Now that there are two pillars, wouldn’t it be even more solid?”

“We have two pillars, but the single cornerstone is weak. Therefore, we are trying to plant two new, sturdy cornerstones, and we desperately need your help, Chief Prosecutor.”

The Chief Prosecutor quickly caught on to the underlying meaning in Jin Dong-gi’s polite demeanor.

Clearly, there were issues in the two sons taking control of the Soonyang Group.

If it were a legal matter, they would seek out a large law firm or a high-ranking legal professional who could offer preferential treatment due to their past positions.

They would give a high-ranking legal professional a large sum of money to resign from public office, then hire them as their exclusive lawyer.

Isn’t that the ABC of how conglomerates solve legal issues?

If it wasn’t a legal issue, then it meant they needed his current power as the Chief Prosecutor.

Either way, these were good opportunities he couldn’t afford to miss.

“Just say the word. Haven’t I been indebted to the late Chairman Jin more than once or twice? Of course, I have to help.”

The Chief Prosecutor, who had been speaking with a bright smile, stopped when he saw the two vice-chairmen’s expressions. The two men staring at him had deeply furrowed brows.

The flustered Chief Prosecutor quickly retraced his words to see where he had gone wrong.

And he realized he had used the wrong word.

“Oh dear, I misspoke. Helping… please don’t misunderstand. I should do it, of course.”

The two men’s expressions eased at the words ‘should do’.

“It’s a relief to hear you say that.”

Jin Young-gi nodded, and his younger brother continued.

“We want to remove the cornerstone our father used and plant cornerstones for us brothers, but there’s someone obstructing us. They’re sitting firmly on the old cornerstone and won’t budge.”

“Oh, is that the case?”

“Yes. If we were to act as we wished, we’d just pick that person up and throw them out… But since they were someone Father valued, we’ve been holding back out of respect. However, we can’t stand idly by any longer.”

Jin Young-gi added another remark.

“Respect and courtesy are important, but if they prevent the pillars of the Soonyang Group from settling properly, what will happen? If Soonyang falters, won’t the Korean economy falter?”

The Chief Prosecutor was dumbfounded by their invocation of the national economy for something as trivial as solidifying the management rights of a private company, but he had to agree to seize the opportunity. And he had to do it sincerely.

“Of course. When the leader wavers, the rest are bound to be in disarray. Soonyang’s management rights must be firmly established.”

The Chief Prosecutor understood what they wanted.

“Who is it? I will lend my strength to remove that person.”

At the Chief Prosecutor’s words, the two brothers exchanged glances and then spoke.

“It might be a bit of a challenge. It’s Chief of staff Lee Hak-jae.”

“Excuse me? Chief of staff Lee…?”

Chief Prosecutor Kim Seok-hwi’s eyes widened.

This wasn’t some outdated, stubborn executive. This was the man who, until just a few days ago, had been wielding influence on behalf of Chairman Jin.

Chief of staff Lee Hak-jae’s influence was far-reaching. He was not someone who would remain passive knowing someone was sharpening a knife behind his back.

Seeing the Chief Prosecutor’s expression stiffen in an instant, the two brothers spoke.

“It seems Chief of staff Lee is indeed a formidable figure, judging by how the famed Chief Prosecutor of the Seoul High Prosecutors’ Office, who can make even flying birds fall, is so tense.”

“He’s nothing more than a kite with a severed string. Without Soonyang’s backing, he’s just an unemployed middle-aged man who was kicked out of the company.”

Jin Young-gi said nonchalantly, but the Chief Prosecutor’s expression didn’t brighten.

The moment he ordered a background check on Lee Hak-jae, it would reach Lee Hak-jae’s ears. And he would inevitably receive an angry call from the Prosecutor General, which was not a comfortable prospect.

Jin Dong-gi needed to ease this coward’s mind. This process had already begun; they couldn’t afford to consider each person’s circumstances.

“Chief Prosecutor.”

“Yes.”

“Do you know about hyenas?”

“Hyenas? The ones that only eat rotten meat…”

“You’re mistaken. Hyenas are capable of eating rotten meat, but in reality, they are pack hunters.”

“Ah, is that so?”

The Chief Prosecutor felt slightly displeased, wondering if he was being compared to a hyena.

“Have you ever seen a pack of hyenas hunt an old lion?”

“An old lion? No, I haven’t.”

“Actually, an old lion, having been chased away by a younger male, isn’t much of a threat. But other predators fear it simply because it’s a lion. However, hyenas are very intelligent. The bravest one in the pack approaches and nudges it.”

What was this about? Was Jin Dong-gi comparing himself to the brave hyena?

“But the old lion merely roars loudly and doesn’t attack the hyena that touched it. It sees dozens of hyenas. Its only recourse is to threaten them to prevent a simultaneous attack. In fact, it can’t even be sure of winning a one-on-one fight, so it has no choice.”

The Chief Prosecutor understood the point of this story. It wasn’t about the hyena; it was about the old lion.

“The pack of hyenas understands. That old lion has no power and isn’t a threat… Now, only the final fate of the lion being brutally torn apart by the hyenas remains.”

“Are you asking me to be the bravest hyena?”

“Of course not. How could our Chief Prosecutor do such a thing? The Criminal Planning Division of the Ministry of Justice will handle that. You, as the Chief Prosecutor, just need to signal the other hyenas to attack simultaneously.”

The Chief Prosecutor’s expression brightened considerably.

At least he had avoided being the infantryman charging at the front. Even if the successors of Soonyang demanded it, he had bought time to assess the situation.

If Lee Hak-jae wasn’t an old lion but merely looked old, and still possessed strong teeth and claws, he could simply back out.

The Chief Prosecutor’s face lit up again.

“No problem at all. If there’s nothing else, I’ll take my leave. I’m afraid I’ve taken up too much of your time. The mourners must be waiting in line.”

“Let them wait. You are more important, Chief Prosecutor. Haha.”

Jin Dong-gi spoke insincerely, and Jin Young-gi added a word.

“When our mother returned from Europe this time, she brought back a few paintings. Among them is a piece by a French artist whose value is currently soaring. It’s in your car, Chief Prosecutor. You can hang it at home and enjoy it, or you can resell it to our Soonyang Art Foundation.”

“Oh, my… You really didn’t have to go to such trouble….”

“Not at all. I’m no expert in art, but even I can tell it looks like a very expensive painting.”

The painting wasn’t what mattered. The fact that it could be resold was what was important.

What good was paint smeared on canvas if you kept it at home? A thick wad of bills was far more beautiful.

The Chief Prosecutor retreated, continuously smiling as if he had forgotten this was a funeral.

“Will that guy do a good job?”

“Who can you trust? We need to mobilize everyone we can.”

The brothers seemed tired, repeatedly pressing their temples.

“Let’s go downstairs. We have more people to meet.”

“Who is it this time?”

“Branch managers from state-run banks. They hold our shares, which are about to become worthless. We need to soften them up beforehand.”

The two men dragged their weary bodies downstairs.

* * *

“Here is today’s list.”

Assistant Manager Kim Yoon-suk approached me and slipped me a piece of memo paper.

“Anything unusual?”

“I’ve marked it on the memo. Also, it seems there’s a painting in the trunk of the Chief Prosecutor’s car.”

“A painting?”

“Yes. It’s definitely a large frame, they said. It was carefully wrapped in a box and cloth.”

“What about money?”

“None so far. It’s all paintings.”

A new method of money laundering.

Give a painting and then buy it back. Since the painting’s origin is unknown, there’s no need to record who sold it. However, the money paid when buying the painting back can be processed as a business expense.

A new tactic to write off bribes as expenses.

“Any other notable points?”

“The people who had the longest private conversations were all from the prosecution, including the Ministry of Justice.”

“The prosecution?”

“Yes.”

This was strange.

The political situation was so uncertain due to the President’s impeachment. Shouldn’t they be having more discussions with politicians?

But the prosecution?

If the prosecution were aiming their knives at our group, I’d understand, but there were no signs of that.

If it’s not the company, then it’s a person…

Could it be me?

Was my grandmother trying to mobilize the prosecution under the guise of her open attempts to remove me from the group? Was this what the conversation in my grandfather’s study was about?

Even if the prosecution investigated me, they wouldn’t find anything.

But isn’t it easy for the prosecution to fabricate charges or dismiss existing ones?

Just because it’s my grandfather’s funeral doesn’t mean I can let my guard down. They are using his funeral to plot.

It seemed I needed to prepare countermeasures to avoid regret.

“Assistant Manager Kim, discreetly prepare a car. I’m going home now.”

“Yes, sir.”

Assistant Manager Kim didn’t ask for a reason and rushed out immediately.

* * *

I compared the names on the memo Assistant Manager Kim had given me with the notes my grandfather had left behind and created a list of overlapping names.

The first thing I needed to figure out was who the prosecutors who came to the funeral today were targeting among my uncles.

If my face was on that target list, it might be difficult to counterattack, but I needed to make the prosecution tear up that target list themselves.

After organizing what needed to be done, I had Kim Yoon-suk, who was waiting in the living room, prepare money.

“Get 2 billion won as quickly as possible.”

“How should I distribute it?”

“Divide it into 100 million won bundles.”

“Understood.”

Assistant Manager Kim seemed to sense the urgency and quickly rushed out.

Shortly after, CEO Oh Se-hyun grumbled as he entered.

“Hey. You could have just called, why meet in person? Aren’t you busy?”

“I am busy, but there are people making me even busier.”

Seeing my serious expression, Oh Se-hyun asked with a concerned look.

“What’s wrong?”

I explained what had happened today in detail and handed him the memo.

Oh Se-hyun began to examine the memo closely.