The Price of Justice
After Choi Kang-wook informed him that he needed to collect the judgment document for the Price of Justice case, Yoo Jae-won ended the call and dialed another number on his mobile phone. He entered more than ten digits and pressed the call button. The phone began to ring.
"Hello, this is the office of the director of the Central Public Opinion Research Institute."
He had expected to hear Kim Young-chul's voice, but instead a young woman's came through the line. Kim Young-chul had given him what Yoo Jae-won thought was a direct number, yet it turned out to be the office line. Already feeling betrayed by Kim Young-chul, the sensation only grew stronger.
"Hello? May I speak with Director Kim Young-chul?"
"Pardon? The director? Do you have an appointment?"
An appointment just to make a phone call? It seemed the nickname "Little President" was well-earned.
"No. But if you tell him my name, he'll take the call immediately. Please inform him that Yoo Jae-won of ID Group wishes to speak with Director Kim Young-chul regarding the Japanese colonial-era victim lawsuit."
Having no interest in arguing with a secretary, Yoo Jae-won cut straight to the point.
"Yoo Jae-won? Chairman Yoo Jae-won?"
Fortunately, the secretary seemed to recognize the name and asked in surprise.
"Yes, this is him."
"Ah! I'm terribly sorry, but the director is currently on a business trip and cannot take your call."
A business trip? Why mention that now? Already irritated, Yoo Jae-won grew even more annoyed. Still, it would not do to vent his anger on an innocent secretary, so he held himself in check and continued.
"Then please page him and tell him I need to speak with him right away. I'm extremely upset about the outcome, which is completely contrary to what the director assured me, and I must hear his explanation and subsequent measures."
"Understood."
"Page him immediately."
The secretary, who had been pleased at the mention of Yoo Jae-won, was startled by the heavy tone that followed. After emphasizing "right now" once more, Yoo Jae-won ended the call.
Since Kim Young-chul also knew Yoo Jae-won's mobile number, he decided to wait. Five minutes passed as he stared at the phone. Given the secretary's demeanor, she must have paged him the moment the call ended, yet there was still no response. That meant Kim Young-chul had not even checked the pager.
Unable to shake his frustration, Yoo Jae-won left the mobile phone where it was and picked up the landline instead. He did not know when the mobile might ring, so he used the wired phone. The number was quickly dialed, and the ringing soon followed. The call connected with a click even before the third ring.
"Hello?"
"Ah, is that you, Jae-won?"
Unlike with Kim Young-chul, the call with Prime Minister Jeon Myeong-heon connected instantly. Dialing Jeon Myeong-heon almost always resulted in an immediate connection. Whether it was good chemistry or perfect timing.
"What's the matter?"
"Ah, Grandfather. It's about something else."
Yoo Jae-won immediately brought up the court ruling. He succinctly explained that the first trial had concluded and that Kim & Jung Law Firm, the plaintiffs, had lost.
"You lost? What did Kim Young-chul say?"
Since he had previously told Jeon Myeong-heon about the deal with Kim Young-chul when advising forgiveness for Jeon Jae-jun, there was no need for lengthy explanations.
"I still can't get through to him. This is the first time I've been stabbed in the back so hard. It stings."
"He's probably out somewhere drinking with someone again. Are you going to appeal?"
"Of course I have to. But the appeal isn't the issue right now. This was something I mentioned to the President during my last visit to the U.S. Yet the court still ruled this way."
"Oh ho, the father and son duo both screwed you over, huh."
"Yes, so from now on, I'm going to do things my way."
"Good, that's what a man should do. Is there anything I can help with?"
"Yes, but not right now. I'll let you know when the time comes."
This case could not be resolved in court. The only solution was a political one. Therefore, Jeon Myeong-heon's help was essential, and his straightforward offer of assistance was like gaining an army of thousands.
Ring ring.
Just then, the mobile phone on the desk rang. His intuition told him it was from Kim Young-chul.
"Grandfather, it seems like Director Kim Young-chul is calling now."
"Is that so? Then call me again later."
"Oh, right! Please just tell President Kim that Yoo Jae-won is very disappointed."
"Alright. I'll pass it on at tomorrow's cabinet meeting."
After finishing the call with Prime Minister Jeon Myeong-heon, Yoo Jae-won picked up his mobile phone and answered.
"Chairman Yoo?"
As soon as he answered, Kim Young-chul's urgent voice came through.
"Yes, have you heard about the ruling?"
"I have. I received word a little while ago, and I'm quite perplexed myself. I'm mobilizing people to find out what happened."
"The ruling has already been made. What good will investigating do?"
"Well, there's the appeal, isn't there?"
"The appeal? I doubt things will improve there either. We won't know until the judgment document comes out, but our legal arguments were flawless, and the evidence was perfect. I have no choice but to choose another method."
"Another method?"
"I have to give back what I received. I'll make sure those judge wannabes realize what a huge historical mistake they've made. Director Kim, please help me out this time for sure."
"Hmm, well... I need to understand what exactly you're planning..."
Kim Young-chul trailed off, unable to easily agree or disagree.
"Even the great Director Kim Young-chul finds the judiciary burdensome, it seems. Understood. Then I'll handle it myself."
"Surely not. I was just curious about Chairman Yoo's method and was thinking it over."
Yoo Jae-won's provocation worked easily. There was a saying: You could enter as you pleased, but leaving was another matter. If the first trial had produced a proper result, it would have ended there, but now they had to see it through to the end.
"The judicial panel must have gone mad. They said the judgment document needs some polishing and will be issued in a week."
Choi Kang-wook's furious voice came through the receiver. It seemed the judicial panel knew how significant this matter was and was using every trick to suppress controversy. One of those tricks was delaying the official judgment document. They had banged the gavel and ruled against the plaintiffs, but the document explaining why such a ruling was made could not be obtained.
"I expected as much. By the way, from what Lawyers Jung Byung-woo and Kim Chang-hwan said, we were supposed to win originally, but then it suddenly changed?"
"Yes, as you know, Chairman, we had complete dominance in the early stages of the trial. Then suddenly the brakes were applied, and the trial dragged on, but it was resolved after you met President Kim during the Korea-U.S. summit. So Lawyers Jung and Kim were relieved, but just a few days later, the ruling completely changed."
Yoo Jae-won nodded at Choi Kang-wook's words. Indeed, when Jung Byung-woo contacted him saying the closing arguments were scheduled, he had said they could expect a good result. At that time, Jung Byung-woo had not been baselessly optimistic. For Yoo Jae-won, who had the common sense of the mid-21st century as his baseline, it was unbelievable, but in this era, it was not unusual for lawyers and judges to meet in court for tea or drinks. Especially for a senior like Jung Byung-woo, who had gone through Gyeonggi High School, Seoul National University Law School, and topped the Judicial Research and Training Institute, starting his first posting in Seoul on an elite track, it was even easier to approach without hesitation. His only flaw was that he had investigated the Busan Group too thoroughly, but within the judiciary, there were still many who followed him. The same went for Lawyer Kim Chang-hwan. Though his academic background was slightly inferior to Jung Byung-woo's, as a former judge rather than a former prosecutor like Jung Byung-woo, Kim Chang-hwan could navigate the courts more easily. Above all, both were partner lawyers whose names were on the ID Foundation's law firm, which was their greatest strength. The two, who generously treated their juniors with entertainment expenses and special activity funds, were truly good seniors. Those who received such treatment naturally reciprocated, building rapport and sharing useful information. The news they had passed on to Yoo Jae-won was obtained in this manner. However, it had gone awry at the crucial moment, and Jung Byung-woo's disappointment was considerable.
"Use every means and method to find out who pulled the strings."
Still, Yoo Jae-won held no grudge against Jung Byung-woo. The problem was the person who had suddenly shaken the board from behind. It was Yoo Jae-won who had encouraged Jung Byung-woo and Kim Chang-hwan to be good seniors to their juniors and had generously provided activity funds. Moreover, to find the person who had shaken the board from behind, utilizing judicial connections was the best method.
"Yes, we're already working on it. We'll find them soon."
Choi Kang-wook's voice was filled with determination. Come to think of it, Chief of Staff Choi Kang-wook was also a legal professional. He too was as enraged about this judicial catastrophe as Yoo Jae-won. Incidentally, though Yoo Jae-won had not intended it, ID Group had an unusually high number of former legal professionals. Thanks to that, they could respond most effectively to this judicial crisis.
"By the way, are Grandmother and Grandfather okay?"
Only after venting his anger for a long time did he think of the grandparents who had come forward as plaintiffs. Having heard the ruling directly in the courtroom, the shock must have been considerable.
"They were surprisingly calm. They said the government has been ignoring this issue for over 40 years. If it were something that could be easily resolved, they wouldn't have started in the first place, and instead, they comforted our shocked lawyers."
Even hearing it calmly relayed through Choi Kang-wook made his heart ache.
"It's late at night in San Francisco. You should get some rest, Chairman."
Looking at the clock, it was past 11 PM.
"Alright. Then we'll continue this tomorrow."
Yoo Jae-won, still mindful of his height, tried to maintain his sleep schedule as much as possible. After all, it was common knowledge that growth hormones were secreted during sleep. After hanging up, he went to the bedroom and lay down, forcing himself to sleep. Normally, Yoo Jae-won would fall asleep instantly upon lying on his back, but tonight, sleep did not come easily.
The next day.
Yoo Jae-won woke up late because he had gone to bed late. It was past 10 AM when he awoke, so it had not been a restful sleep. His body felt stiff. If he were an office worker, he might have wanted to take a day off, but Yoo Jae-won still sat in front of his computer and began his day. The first thing he checked was the news page on Nextcom. Usually, he would check U.S. news first, but today, he looked at the Korean news page first.
"I knew this would happen."
A clicking sound escaped his tongue. It was because the news about the loss in the Japanese colonial-era victims' lawsuit that had broken yesterday was nowhere to be easily found on the news site. The editing rights for Nextcom's main news page belonged to Nextcom. However, they had not actively exercised that authority yet. Still, based on a few rules, it was decided whether an article would go to the top of the main page, the bottom, or move to a detailed section page. Articles that made it to the top of the main page were prioritized as front-page headlines from newspapers, high-quality in-depth reports, or currently hot issues. Yet no matter how much he scrolled, there was no article about the results of the forced labor and comfort women damages lawsuit.
"They're deliberately burying it."
Yoo Jae-won wondered if it had been like this before. Thinking it might not appear only on the main page where only important articles were posted, he began viewing the paid scan copies. In Korea, articles in electronic document form uploaded to Nextcom were still being directly posted by stenographers from the news team. While in the U.S., media outlets already did electronic editing and sent them directly to Nextcom, Korea was far from making that transition. Thanks to this labor-intensive process, not all newspapers could be uploaded. Therefore, to view omitted articles, one had to view the paid scan copies.
"There it is."
Fortunately, he found a small article. It was briefly mentioned as a palm-sized article on the society page. Either the reporters were not interested, or the desk only allowed it to be published at this level, but this was certainly the extent of interest shown in Korea toward Japanese colonial-era victims. Organizations like the Comfort Women Issue Research Institute or forced labor victim groups had been formed long ago, and they held regular protests in front of the Japanese embassy every Wednesday, yet this was the level of coverage. Naturally, this trend was not good for Yoo Jae-won at all. Especially the fact that the judiciary was moving according to the tastes of a minority was even more undesirable. According to Yoo Jae-won's grand plan, a massive power struggle would inevitably unfold in Korea, and the final victory or defeat would be decided in the courts. If the judiciary was in such a broken state, no matter how thoroughly one prepared a lawsuit, there was a 99.999% chance of a futile defeat. Now was the right time for judicial reform. The regime's approval rating was in the high 80s, an enormous figure, and there was no doubt about the President's anti-Japanese consciousness. Of course, trusting that had led to this stab in the back, but it also meant they now owed Yoo Jae-won a great debt, so they would have to show more proactive action from now on.
"I have something to reflect on too."
After lying in bed last night and thoroughly reviewing the lawsuit, he found exactly one shortcoming. If he found a shortcoming, the natural course was to correct it immediately, so Yoo Jae-won picked up his mobile phone and pressed speed dial 4.
"ID Investment, Vincent Greenhill speaking."
The phone was answered immediately, even before a single ring. Previously, they had communicated via ID Talk, but now that mobile phones existed, the phone was much more convenient than ID Talk. Especially since Vincent Greenhill always kept his phone nearby during business hours, it was far more convenient than ID Talk.
"President Greenhill, it's me!"
"Yes, Chairman. Please speak."
"I need some emergency funds. Please transfer 100 million dollars from my investment bank account to a Korean account."
The deficiency he had identified last night was that he had not spent enough money. In this lawsuit, the only places Yoo Jae-won had opened his wallet were for Kim & Jung Law Firm and the victim groups. Looking closely, there was some money that had gone into the judiciary, but that was only the envelopes containing about 300,000 won each that Jung Byung-woo and Kim Chang-hwan had given to their juniors as treats and pocket money. Though such gatherings were not just once or twice, since they had spent only such small amounts without knowing how expensive justice was, it was no wonder they had failed. This time, he intended to spend money properly and buy that so-called justice once and for all.