Chapter 70
Chapter 70
Chapter 70. MOTHER (1)
Baek Shin-woo followed Im Hee-yeon and arrived at Qingdao Jiaodong International Airport in China, then they were moving by car.
Until then, the two had not had much conversation.
Shinwoo, who had been looking out the window, spoke for the first time.
"Is the destination still a secret?"
"You'll know when you follow me."
For such a secretive move, the car they were in was surrounded by security vehicles on the road.
However, the composition of these guards consisted only of Special Security Team 5 members under Im Hee-yeon.
This also meant that where the two were going should not be known.
The car continued to drive southeast of Qingdao. After a while, it continued up a hill and entered a large mansion built in the middle of the mountain.
It was a place with a clear view of Qingdao city and the sea.
'Is this where a Chinese tycoon lives?'
From the front gate of the mansion to the inner mansion, armed security forces were stationed along the road and in various parts of the yard. Just by the atmosphere, one could not help but notice that this was an unusual place.
The car continued to climb and stopped in front of the mansion.
"Team Leader Song, please wait here."
"Please be careful."
The bodyguards were ordered to wait in the car.
At that moment, an old man dressed as a butler walked out of the mansion's entrance and said in Chinese.
"It's been a while, Miss."
"Indeed, Butler Hwang. How have you been?"
It was Hwang Jin-yoo, the butler of the mansion. His gaze turned to Shinwoo, who was standing next to Im Hee-yeon.
"I'm always the same. Is this the young master next to you?"
Shinwoo, who was listening to their conversation, also spoke up.
My name is Bai Xinfei.(I am Baek Shin-woo.)"
Hwang Jin-yoo and Im Hee-yeon were slightly surprised by his fluent Chinese pronunciation.
"Thank you for the introduction. I am Hwang Jin-yoo, the butler here. Please feel free to call me Butler Hwang."
Hwang Jin-yoo said that and led them into the mansion.
In the meantime, Im Hee-yeon quietly asked Shinwoo.
"...You can speak Chinese too?"
"A little."
"That doesn't sound like a little."
Just now, although it was a simple introduction, the pronunciation itself was so natural that it could be mistaken for a Chinese person.
"It's not that difficult."
As the conversation ended, Hwang Jin-yoo's guidance led them to a large glass door at the far left of the first floor of the mansion.
Inside was a greenhouse full of green, like a botanical garden. In the middle of the garden-like setting, a middle-aged woman was reading and drinking tea with the help of a maid.
"Madam, the young lady has arrived."
"Thank you. You can go and do your work."
As Hwang Jin-yoo stepped back, Im Hee-yeon went and stood in front of her.
"I'm sorry for visiting so late, Madam."
The middle-aged woman placed a bookmark in her book and looked at Im Hee-yeon. She was a woman with short brown hair and looked to be in her early 50s.
"Are you going to do this every time I see you with resentment?"
"......"
"Are you really going to do that?"
At the continued urging, Im Hee-yeon sighed and said again.
"I'm sorry. I visited too late. ...Mother."
Only then did the woman smile brightly, get up from her seat, and hug Im Hee-yeon tightly.
"That's right. Daughter. You have to call me that, Mom. I almost felt really resentful. And don't say you're sorry to Mom when you haven't done anything wrong."
"...I understand."
This time, the woman made eye contact with Shinwoo.
"Is that our Hee-yeon's son?"
"...Azure Feather Group Chairman Cheon Hye-rin, I presume. I am Baek Shin-woo."
"Good pronunciation. But have we met before?"
Cheon Hye-rin, the chairman of Azure Feather Group in China, had never appeared in public. The location of her home was also unclear, so it was difficult to know her face unless you had met her in person.
Of course, Shinwoo knew her because he had met her before. Not now, but before the regression...
"No, we haven't."
"Then how do you know me?"
It was impossible to explain the reason right away.
"My information network isn't bad either."
Cheon Hye-rin exclaimed at Shinwoo's confident appearance in front of her.
"Oh ho. I heard that your business skills are quite good in Korea, and you're even confident? You're indeed our Hee-yeon's son."
"I don't like those words."
"You're prickly just like her."
Shinwoo was slightly annoyed by her constant, not-so-complimentary compliments.
"Rather than that, please tell me what kind of relationship the two of you have."
They clearly called each other mother and daughter.
But Im Hee-yeon's biological mother had passed away 26 years ago due to acute leukemia. Moreover, Cheon Hye-rin, the chairman of Azure Feather Group, had never married nor had any children.
"You heard it. Hee-yeon is my daughter."
Cheon Hye-rin smiled brightly and pulled Im Hee-yeon into a tight hug.
But Im Hee-yeon had a rather uncomfortable expression.
"She's my adoptive mother."
"Adoptive mother?Adoptive mother.
There were several dictionary meanings. A mother who came into being through the father's remarriage, a mother who raised you but did not give birth to you, a mother connected by righteousness.
Myung Joong-hwan could not have married Cheon Hye-rin, and Im Hee-yeon had not lived in China for long. Then the last meaning was the most appropriate.
"We became connected when I was in college in the United States, and we've been living like this ever since. I received a lot of help while working at MH Group."
"Is that a normal relationship? She saved my life. If it weren't for my daughter, I would have died on the streets."
Thinking about it a little, it was amazing that Im Hee-yeon was able to rise to her current position without any foundation after joining MH Group.
Of course, her business skills were outstanding.
But there was no way Myung Joong-hwan's children would have left Im Hee-yeon alone. They would have used all sorts of tricks to trample on her in some way.
"...I never dreamed that the two of you were in an adoptive mother-daughter relationship. I didn't know there was such a story."
"Human relationships are truly mysterious."
After the greetings, the three sat down in the chairs at the table. Steam rose from the warm tea that the maid had poured.
"This is Wuyi Mountain Mother Tree Da Hong Pao that I obtained with difficulty. I hope it suits your tastes."
It was a high-end tea that cost 1.9 billion won per kilogram. Of course, it was difficult to obtain the quantity, but Cheon Hye-rin was nonchalant, even indifferent.
"It smells good."
"What about Shinwoo? Ah, he's my daughter's son, so I can call him comfortably, right?"
She was already speaking informally.
"...Do as you please. The tea isn't bad."
"That's a relief."
For a while, only the sound of tea drinking was heard between the three.
Then Cheon Hye-rin said to Im Hee-yeon with a satisfied expression.
"What brings our daughter here? I heard that something ominous happened to her son in Korea. Is it because of that?"
The series of events that happened to Shinwoo were briefly reported in the news, but they soon subsided.
Even so, the fact that Cheon Hye-rin knew about it meant that she had paid that much attention.
"That's right. And the atmosphere within the group isn't good."
"It's because of Myung In-chul, right? You should have dealt with him sooner. It wouldn't have been difficult if you had received my help before."
"You know that's impossible."
Cheon Hye-rin's Azure Feather Group. Furthermore, Chinese capital and power could shake MH Group, a leading company in Korea.
No matter how much Cheon Hye-rin was acting for Im Hee-yeon, the level of the situation would be different.
"Then, what do you want me to do?"
Im Hee-yeon thought for a moment and then spoke.
"If... something happens to me, I would like to ask you to take care of Shinwoo."
At that moment, Cheon Hye-rin's face froze as if covered in ice.
"It sounds like someone is after your life... is that right?"
"There was an incident earlier this year. There haven't been any attempts since then, but looking at their organization, there may be no next failure."
It was about the time when she met Shinwoo at the cafe. The man Shinwoo caught at the time was even tracked down and lost.
Since they still hadn't found any trace of him, she couldn't shake off the ominous feeling even after several months.
"What kind of bastards are they! And why didn't you tell me right away?!"
Cheon Hye-rin was about to rush into Korea and turn everything upside down.
"I thought you would do this. Besides, I think those guys started targeting Shinwoo instead of me."
"You mean the incident where Shinwoo almost died? You couldn't catch those guys either?"
"That's right."
Im Hee-yeon realized that the situation was not safe in her own way.
At this, Cheon Hye-rin let out a long sigh.
"When you canceled your plan to come to China after finishing your work, I should have brought you here no matter what."
"You know my situation."
"That's why I should have done it even more! You can live comfortably right away, why go through such hardship!"
That was the reason why Im Hee-yeon persuaded Shinwoo to live with her.
Shinwoo also realized this after listening to the conversation.
But if she had left alone without that being established, she thought that Shinwoo would be left alone in Korea and become Myung In-chul's prey.
"Please understand that it was inevitable."
"More than that, instead of asking me to take care of Shinwoo, you should find out who those guys are. That's the priority, right?"
"They haven't shown themselves since then. Even if I check around President Myung In-chul, who is the most likely suspect, there is no connection."
Cheon Hye-rin didn't want Im Hee-yeon, whom she thought of as her own daughter, to suffer. However, she also knew very well that Myung Joong-hwan of MH Group would not stand still if she recklessly dragged her to China.
"How about I lend you my strength?"
"You know the reason why that's not possible better than I do."
"Instead, I can lend you someone with good skills. I can connect you with someone who doesn't leave any traces."
Cheon Hye-rin of Azure Feather Group was a capitalist with a significant stake in the underworld funds before she was one of the top businessmen in China.
Of course, the connections she mentioned were likely to be figures belonging to the dark side.
"I'll think about it."
Im Hee-yeon also judged that she could not handle the situation quietly at this point, so she was willing to accept that level of help.
Shinwoo took advantage of the silence between the two and interjected.
"I don't know why the two of you are trying to decide everything with the person involved right in front of you."
"Were you very upset because we left you out?"
Cheon Hye-rin stared at Shinwoo and smiled as if she was slightly amused.
Of course, Shinwoo's displeasure deepened when he saw that.
"Not really. Rather than that, don't dig into the identities of those guys. Chairman Cheon's life could be in danger if you do."
Im Hee-yeon was startled.
At the same time, Cheon Hye-rin next to her couldn't help but be dumbfounded.
"My life? It feels like Shinwoo knows who those guys are?"
"Because I know."
In an instant, the faces of the two people hardened coldly.
And Im Hee-yeon glared at Shinwoo and said.
"How do you know that?"
"The Managing Director also knows their only clue, right?"
The trace that was not found on the man Shinwoo caught. However, Song Tae-hoon and the other bodyguards found the trace on the clothes while fighting with the unidentified men.
"You mean 666?"
"That's right."
"So you were the one who tore it off?"
"He was also the guy who was targeting me. And those guys are much more dangerous than the Managing Director thinks."