The Ex-Husband’s Face Grows Pale
To me, right now, my ex-husband—
No, that piece of trash stared at his own business card for a moment with a baffled look on his face.
Then I saw the corner of his mouth twitch.
Before long, he burst out laughing.
“Pffft! Hahahahahaha!”
“..”
He wasn’t shocked because he was surprised.
He was shocked because he couldn’t believe he might not be the director.
His laughter turned into mockery. It wasn’t even the kind of laugh you used to needle someone; it sounded like he genuinely found it hilarious, and a tear even leaked out of the corner of his eye.
“Hey.”
“..”
“At your age, what’s there to be so embarrassed about? You think printing a business card means everyone’s really going to treat you like a director?”
“.. Damn, that’s embarrassing. You actually dated some guy like you.”
“Get a grip. And where’d you even get that bag? If you’re going to buy a knockoff, at least pick one that looks convincing. You go and choose an Hermès Birkin, of all things—not even Chanel. Do you even know what that is?”
“Th-that... Jungwoo, Seoha came here in a Rolls-Royce this time.”
“.. She probably begged and clung to some rich guy, that’s all. Do you really think that’s possible in the real world? She’s the same girl who, not even a year ago, was swallowing her pride and begging because she couldn’t pay child support.”
He had simply chosen not to believe it.
“D-Guard? What kind of company name is that, anyway, and what does it even do? Did you just print up a card for some one-man business or something? It looks like one of those companies that wouldn’t even show up if you searched for it...”
“Th-that... Jungwoo, it does come up if you search it.”
“What..?”
“You’re a lawyer, but do you think that makes you something special? If you were a human being... if you were once at least the guardian of children... if you’d really thrown away your pride, then you should’ve helped out instead of acting like this. You pathetic piece of trash.”
“.. No way. W-wait, hold on.”
He seemed to honestly think it was impossible, because he hurriedly searched online.
I didn’t know the details all that well myself, so I just watched for the moment.
But...
I at least knew it wasn’t just some run-of-the-mill company, like trash had claimed.
“.. Huh?”
“See? There are articles too. It says the investment was made by something called DE Investment Company...”
“Whoa... If it’s that company, Gangnam’s been going crazy over them lately.”
“You’d know that better than anyone. Aren’t you sort of a finance guy?”
“If it’s DE Investment Company, then of course the whole place is in an uproar. They say it has the Midas touch—every place it puts money into turns into a huge jackpot...”
“And that kind of company invested in Seoha’s firm...”
Once again, all eyes turned toward me.
It struck me all over again just how incredible Doyun really was. I already knew very well that DE Investment Company was his company.
“.. You didn’t scam anyone, did you?”
“A lawyer’s best comeback is to call it a scam? Is that all the cases you get?”
“This—”
He couldn’t even speak with confidence anymore, let alone sneer like he had a moment ago.
And yet, since he clearly didn’t like the situation, his hands were trembling.
It was pathetic. Thinking I’d been with someone like that.
Honestly... I was relieved that I’d raised the kids by myself.
“Why can’t you talk like you did before? Are you thinking about a courtroom fight because you’re a lawyer? You were spewing whatever garbage came to mind because you thought you couldn’t do even that, weren’t you?”
“..”
“Ugh, why would I ever stand in court with you? I’m embarrassed enough already that we were married once, so let’s never see each other again.”
“..”
When he had been certain he was above me, he’d said everything that came to mind, no matter how awful.
But the instant he thought I was above him, he started picking his words carefully.
That made him look even more contemptible.
At least someone consistent would’ve been better.
He only shook,
and not a single reply came out of him.
I turned away.
Because I genuinely didn’t want anything to do with him anymore.
***
Once I’d put distance between myself and that piece of trash,
the people around me filled in again.
“How did this happen... You’re the boss now?”
“What kind of place is D-Guard?”
“Can I ask something sensitive like this...? What’s the revenue like, and what’s your salary? I don’t have any bosses around me, so I’m really curious.”
“You’re asking that at a time like this?”
“Why not? It’s only natural to be curious. Isn’t living well actually the best revenge?”
“That’s true, but...”
If it had been the old me, I probably would’ve kept my mouth shut.
I’d always thought there was nothing to gain from showing off unnecessarily.
But today, I decided not to do that.
Before we came, Doyun had insisted over and over again.
He told me I’d worked so hard for today, so why bother hiding it?
He wasn’t wrong.
“Let’s see... revenue’s around thirty billion won, and my salary changes depending on the situation, but since it’s a corporation, I’m the one who sets it.”
“.. Whoa. That’s insane. Not tens of millions—billions?”
“Even if you lowball the operating margin...”
“So that’s the kind of money you need to drive a car like that...”
From what I’d heard, the operating margin was extremely low, but...
I didn’t bother correcting them.
As my classmates asked questions and I answered them one by one,
the classmate who had invited me here came over little by little, wearing a sour look.
Then he handed me an apology.
“S-sorry. I honestly didn’t think the two of you would show up together today. If I’d known, I would’ve given you a heads-up in advance, but I was just so happy to see you again after so long that, before I knew it...”
“..”
I couldn’t answer right away. I knew perfectly well it was a ridiculous excuse.
But the people around us didn’t know that.
If I let my emotions run loose here, the looks would get strange again.
As expected, gatherings like this were exhausting.
But then.
My friend shouted on my behalf.
“Give me a break. Hey! There’s a limit to how shameless you can be...”
“.. What?”
“Come on, what kind of nonsense are you spouting? If there’s anyone here who doesn’t know what you were thinking, let them step forward. You were trying to screw with her, and then you got flustered when things turned out completely differently.”
“.. W-what did you just say?”
“Did I say anything wrong? Who here doesn’t know you were full of inferiority and insecurity toward Seoha back in school?”
“..”
His face turned bright red. There was no way it was from alcohol.
He didn’t seem like he’d drunk anything at all.
Besides, before my friend stepped in, his face hadn’t been that red.
“I’m fine. Honestly, I’m even grateful. For making a place like this. My ex-husband must have said all sorts of strange things behind my back. I was upset too, so this is actually perfect.”
“Uh, uh...”
“Everyone, let’s not get worked up and just have a drink together. If it’s okay with you, should I go get some alcohol from the car? I’ve been into wine lately, so I’ve got plenty of good bottles...”
“Wow... you really are gracious, aren’t you? But... is it really okay to drink that? Isn’t it expensive?”
“It’s not cheap, but... when else would you drink it if not for an occasion like this?”
I didn’t actually know the prices that well.
Still, there was no way they were cheap.
Honestly, even wine that cost tens of thousands of won already felt expensive to me...
What kind of alcohol wouldn’t be expensive?
And the drinks in the trunk had been specially prepared by Doyun, who’d told me to use them all for this gathering.
After seeing how Doyun really was this time,
I was certain this wasn’t some cheap wine.
Everyone looked at me with eager eyes.
“Wait a second.”
It was actually the perfect chance to stop by the car anyway.
Doyun had said I could come back late if I needed to, but...
I worried I might be keeping him waiting too long.
As I went to fetch the alcohol,
I decided I’d tell him that if it was hard, he could head home first.
“It’s okay, I’ll go alone.”
I headed toward the car.
By myself.
***
Waiting in the car wasn’t boring at all.
It had been a long time since I’d had a moment like this.
I’d spent so long living in a constant state of having to do something.
Doing absolutely nothing, and still letting the time belong to me, felt good.
I wonder how well she’s doing.
Knowing her personality, it wouldn’t be easy...
Still, if the people around her helped out, she’d do fine.
And help they would have to, because the car she’d arrived in and the luxury goods she was wearing were more than enough to spark everyone’s curiosity.
Even better if her ex-husband started picking a fight.
“Hmph...”
After that, I started thinking about myself.
By now I had plenty of money. I’d gathered almost one trillion won.
That was a kind of money most people would never have unless they were one of the major chaebols.
Of course, if you looked at company value, there were plenty of people who owned companies worth more than one trillion won...
But to actually exit that company and turn it into a trillion won in cash, you’d need more than two trillion won in value.
At that point, the company would already be at the level of a mid-sized conglomerate...
Even this was already a tremendous amount of growth.
And yet.
Humans really are endless creatures.
I felt that saying about human greed with every fiber of my being.
Once I’d climbed this high,
I found myself wanting to go all the way up properly.
More buildings, more money.
And beyond that, even the number of employees under me.
I wanted to have a lot of things.
Yeah.
To put it simply...
I wanted to build my own household empire.
So everyone around me could eat well and live well.
Wouldn’t I be satisfied once I reached chaebol status?
Or maybe not?
Who knew. By then, maybe I’d want to go beyond chaebols and become one of the most renowned investors in the world.
The odds were probably pretty high.
While I was entertaining those useless thoughts,
I saw my aunt heading toward the car.
The timing made it look like she’d come to get the alcohol.
I got out to greet her.
“Sorry. I kept you waiting, didn’t I? What should I do...? It looks like it’ll take even longer. I feel like I’m stealing your precious time...”
“Auntie.”
“Yes?”
“This is the most important time right now, and you’re spending it well. You don’t need to worry.”
“.. Thank you.”
It didn’t mean all the weight in her heart had disappeared.
What she’d received in material terms wasn’t all that much, but emotionally, she’d received a great deal.
It had been the strength that helped her keep going after moving to Seoul.
Couldn’t I do even this much?
In fact, the longer my aunt stayed at the gathering, the more proud I felt.
It meant the people around her were holding on to her that much tighter.
“I think everyone will like it. I picked these wines myself.”
“Really...?”
Anyone with even a little sense would know.
They weren’t wines you could easily drink in everyday life.
Wines that cost tens or even hundreds of thousands of won a glass were bound to feel burdensome, even to rich people.
Of course, not to me now.