Chapter 72
Chapter 72
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 72
Chapter Title: Taxi Driver Clash
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“Fuck! What the hell kind of traffic control is this shit?!”
The taxi driver’s bellow carried all the way across the road to Kang Hyun and the others.
“…Sir, you didn’t follow our instructions…”
“You crazy cop bastard? The light was green for straight ahead, and you blocked me forcing a left turn!”
“I’m sorry…”
It looked like trouble had found the trio just as they were trying to head out for a peaceful meal.
Even as the police officer desperately tried to stay calm, the taxi driver flew into a rage and started throwing a fit right in the middle of the road.
“…Should we just call another cab? Huh?”
Kang Hyun turned around, but the spot where the two girls should have been was empty.
Startled, he looked ahead and spotted Yu Chae-eun sprinting toward the shoulder where the officer stood.
Panting hard, she unleashed a heated shout at the burly taxi driver.
“Sir! What the hell do you think you’re doing?!”
“And who the fuck are you?!”
“Criminal Code Article 136 Paragraph 1—don’t you know disobeying police orders is obstruction of public duty?”
“What? Obstruction of public duty? I’ve heard every damn excuse! More importantly, who the hell are you to butt in?!”
“I’m a police recruit-to-be!”
“Ha! That’s rich.”
“Mister, that was straight-up obstruction of public duty. This officer was directing traffic, right? You’re the one who fucked up, so why are you pointing fingers at the innocent cop?!”
Yu Chae-eun was doing her best to lay down the full weight of the law sternly, but to the thuggish taxi driver—and even to Yoon Haneul and the officer—her efforts seemed utterly futile.
“You crazy bitch! Know your place before sticking your nose in grown folks’ business!”
The taxi driver bellowed even louder, more furious than before. Yoon Haneul quickly stepped in front of Yu Chae-eun to block his path.
“Yu Chae-eun, enough. Sir, you need to calm down too. We called the cab, so just go on your way.”
“What? You with her? Ha! Never seen such crazy bitches! Didn’t you see I was trying to pick you up quick? And instead of backing me up, you side with the cops?”
“What bullshit is that? You ignored police orders and did that aggressive driving stunt, didn’t you?”
“Can’t you see this mess is because of their shitty traffic control? I was protesting, protesting! The light was green, I wasn’t forcing my way in on their say-so. I was protesting the five-way intersection being blocked, and they told me to turn left, so I did!”
Overpowered by the taxi driver’s booming voice, Yu Chae-eun flinched. Yoon Haneul put an arm around her and spoke up.
“Got it, sir. Then we’ll just call another cab and go.”
“What? You girls messing with me right now?”
“You’re acting dangerously and way too worked up. We’ll be on our way, so sort yourself out.”
“You think you can just walk away after stirring up this shit? You got no responsibility?!”
“…What?”
“What do you mean, we did something wrong?”
“You asking because you don’t know? Why’d you call a cab from the other side of the construction zone and make me go through this hell?!”
He blurted it out without thinking.
“And you keep acting like I’m the one at fault! What did I do wrong? Light was green, I just got up in that cop’s face a bit to say I needed to go straight for my protest! But obstruction? How the fuck is this obstruction? You’re the ones blocking my path!”
But right then,
A cop limped his way into the fray, hesitantly squeezing between them.
“Everyone, please calm down… I’m really sorry! I haven’t been on police duty long, so I screwed up the traffic directions. My hand signals were off.”
Sweat pouring down his face, the officer wedged himself between them with apologies. If anything, it only made things worse.
His excuse just emboldened the taxi driver even more.
Yu Chae-eun bit her lip in frustration, her pretty face scrunching up like she might cry, powerless to act.
That’s when it happened.
“The conscripted police officer directed a straight-bound taxi driver to turn left, but the driver aggressively drove within less than 30 centimeters, pressed up against the officer, ignored the order, protested on his own, then suddenly jerked into a left turn—clipping the officer’s knee with the taxi’s right bumper.”
“And who the hell are you?”
It was Kang Hyun.
He strolled up to them casually, giving the officer a quick once-over.
The officer clutched his leg where the car had hit his knee, fidgeting anxiously as the situation worsened.
Kang Hyun spoke with emphasis, his tone laced with pity for the man.
“Even if the conscripted officer’s traffic control was inexperienced, he was still performing his public duty. Haneul, for an injury like that from a vehicle, how many weeks of treatment do you reckon?”
Kang Hyun turned to Yoon Haneul, who rattled off an answer like a vending machine despite being only a first-year pre-med student.
“Mild left knee contusion—no full two weeks, but at least one.”
Kang Hyun nodded in satisfaction.
“Hear that? Obstruction of public duty is fully established now. Looks like you won’t be leaving quietly.”
“W-what? You little shits… Spouting nonsense!”
“Considering the driver’s experience and age, absent special circumstances, we can assume ample knowledge of taxi turning radius and vehicle handling. Thus, sir, at the time of the incident, you could have foreseen no accident if you’d simply reversed first for safety or gone around the officer. Correct?”
“T-that’s…”
“Officer, chin up. Any issue with what I said?”
“No… You’re right.”
“At a gap of less than 30 centimeters, can we say you lacked the intent to permit this outcome despite fully recognizing the risk of impact to a stationary person? In other words, were you acting unaware of the potential injury? Can we really rule out indirect intent?”
“T-that… I was just protesting why I couldn’t go through here, saying I’d go straight real quick…”
The taxi driver’s sleeves were rolled up high, revealing tattoos, but his words failed him.
In an instant, he went from looking ready to swing to an obedient puppy as he straightened his sleeves.
And he wasn’t the only one turning puppy-eyed.
“…”
Yu Chae-eun stared at Kang Hyun’s back like she was mesmerized.
A man who could shut down someone itching for a fight with mere words.
Plus, his solid build, broad back and shoulders made him look like a celebrity in her eyes.
“Kang Hyun… so fucking cool…”
She was utterly smitten in one go.
Her eyes turned to hearts, the tension from moments ago forgotten as she bounced on her toes in excitement, blinking rapidly.
“Sis.”
“Yeah?”
“Kang Hyun… oppa. Is he always like that?”
“Huh?”
“Never mind! Eek!”
Before Yoon Haneul could even answer, Yu Chae-eun whipped her head away, thrilled. Yoon Haneul shot her a deeply displeased look.
Kang Hyun, glancing back at the scene and leaving the deflated driver behind, scratched his head awkwardly.
‘Ah… That’s not what I wanted.’
The dinner that followed was anything but a simple bite to eat. It turned into a full-blown drinking party before they knew it.
Pork belly with zero cola or beer.
The next day, hazy memories surfaced of the booze-weak adults getting smashed after a few beers, the underage one playing drunk without touching a drop, and them tearing through the college district.
School study room for assignments.
“Ugh… what time is it?”
Kang Hyun, face down on the desk, pried his eyes open with effort and checked the clock. The sun was already high in the sky.
Thank God for break—no classes. Pure luck.
Kang Hyun stretched with great difficulty.
‘Oh, right…’
Memories of his excited ramblings poured out like a waterfall from the sea of his hungover mind, embarrassing him.
He checked his phone. Sometime overnight, a group chat had popped up with Yoon Haneul and Yu Chae-eun chattering away excitedly. Tons of photos from “never forget today!”
- Gotta hit the beach!
- Promise! Promise!
“Ah… I really fucked up.”
Especially promising to hit the beach together before summer ended. His head throbbed.
They’d bulldozed into his planned vacation with Woo Si-hyung and Yoon Chan-rim without checking with the others.
“They’ve gotta okay it first.”
Kang Hyun let out a huge sigh.
On the other hand, picturing Yoon Haneul against a beach backdrop made his face inexplicably flush. He shook his head vigorously to clear it.
August now.
School should’ve been quiet during break, but it wasn’t.
Outside, students prepped what looked like protests, and job-hunters hustled about.
Department assignment materials room.
Kang Hyun had just wearily reopened the laptop he’d borrowed to write his report for Dean Kim Jong-hwan.
*Ding.*
- Got a sec?
The message was from a same-major classmate he knew worked with the student council.
They’d met in March and barely spoken since—not even through this summer. The unexpected contact puzzled Kang Hyun.
- Yeah. What’s up?
- Got something to talk about.
- About a student council senior?
- Nah.
- Where?
- Right outside the assignment room.
The “senior” Kang Hyun mentioned mid-chat was the law school student council president—head of the law department student council.
The college student council, waiting for fall to prep the next round.
Kang Hyun knew a few eager or leadership-type classmates had joined as underclassmen at the seniors’ call early semester.
That council had shown interest in him as the perfect-score CSAT entrant and offered him a spot.
But he’d shot it down flat, and they’d seemed to lose interest.
Until suddenly, their attitude flipped.
When Kang Hyun displayed inexplicably overwhelming skill at Korea University’s mock trial competition.
And beat the top team in his age group on that skill alone—their interest in him exploded anew.
*Clunk.*
The materials room door opened to reveal an average-looking guy in slacks and a neat shirt.
“Been good?”
Kang Hyun’s mind blanked on the name for a second, frowning slightly, but he recalled it and spoke.
Lee Myung-hwan.
“Yeah. Long time.”
“Our classes don’t overlap, so I was bummed. Guess you’re still at school even in break?”
“Got stuff to do. So what’s this about?”
“Uh. This.”
Lee Myung-hwan cautiously handed over a pamphlet.
“Festival event?”
“Not full student council, but just man this one thing.”
“Sit at a booth?”
“Yeah.”
“Whose idea?”
Asking a slammed Kang Hyun to staff an event booth. It might seem minor, but his face darkened.
Participating in the Daedongje festival was a tradition every aspiring next law department student council president had to go through.