Chapter 173
Chapter 173
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Translator: crow
Chapter Title: Yushin Abolition (2)
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Yushin being abolished was, in practical terms, nothing more than swapping out one wrapper for another.
But that didn't mean it had no impact.
"Now this country is truly starting to move toward democracy. Even the ironclad Jo Sung-jun regime couldn't resist the tide of the times and has finally bowed to the flow of democratization. Everyone, let's use today's small victory as a stepping stone and march forward toward liberal democracy. For democracy!"
The chants from democratic activists gathered in groups like the Anti-Regime Mountaineers had become familiar enough to reach my ears.
Their morale was sky-high, piercing the heavens.
Clearly, the new packaging had sparked some courage.
Our regime had always emphasized substance over form, but in truth, form was just as important to people as substance.
Because perceptions change based on appearances.
Think about how, when meeting someone, you judge their looks before their inner qualities.
"Your Excellency, voices calling for democratization are growing louder these days. Some are even saying we should reduce the power of the Security Command and the KCIA while we're at it."
I'd seen this coming.
I knew these voices would erupt.
"Shall we quietly grab a few as examples, take them to a safe house, and give them a beating?"
Pointless nonsense.
"Don't even think about it."
The atmosphere was already set.
Yushin was shattered.
There was no reason to buck the manufactured flow.
"More importantly, did you look into that?"
"You mean the European fashion companies? Louis Vuitton, Chanel, Hermès—their business isn't doing great. Why bother acquiring them?"
We have to buy them.
They'll be assets to pass on to my children.
Once the quartz crisis hit, I planned to snag a few watch brands too.
"Just proceed as instructed."
This was beyond logical explanation.
So I had no choice but to issue the order.
"Understood."
I met one-on-one with the KCIA director several times a day, but now I'd cut it back to once a week.
The same went for the Security Command.
It was a formal measure for power dispersion following Yushin's abolition.
We'd also held new elections for the assembly.
This time, we'd massively expanded the seats to 600, securing 480 from the Grand Governance Assembly and safely crossing the constitutional amendment line.
The number of seats was satisfactory, but the opposition's vote share was higher than expected, which was concerning.
Even with money politics and gerrymandering, letting them get this much meant they'd effectively scored below the constitutional line in real terms.
'Support for the Grand Governance Assembly is lower than I thought, separate from personal support for me.'
It wasn't strange.
Disparities between support for a specific politician and their party were common even in modern times.
Still, we'd cleared the line, guaranteeing four years.
The next four years.
There was much to do.
I invited my political rivals to the official residence.
Under the Yushin system, rivals had been like air—barely noticeable—but not anymore.
"Thank you all for accepting my invitation."
"How could we refuse an summons from Prime Minister Lee?"
The mood was better than expected.
Or maybe they were just good at masking their expressions.
I exchanged greetings with my rivals.
These were people I'd clashed with repeatedly through political maneuvers over the years.
From those who'd been sent to reeducation camps on my orders to those sentenced to labor reform, they were all ones who'd suffered under my rule.
Many were from the Anti-Regime Mountaineers, grinding their teeth at me.
"Professor, thank you for coming."
"I never imagined I'd be here when they dragged me off to the reeducation camp."
As expected, these people harbored grudges against me.
Well, after forcing them into that hardcore Jo Sung-jun series regimen, how could they not?
I hosted a banquet for my rivals and discussed the future direction of governance.
"There will be no more surveillance or torture of politicians. I promise."
Of course, that was the official line.
Unofficially, I left room for it.
After treating my rivals to lunch, I returned to the residence, where the KCIA urgently requested a private meeting.
Wondering what it was, I listened—and it was quite serious.
"Just now, police picked up some kids over student protests for questioning, and one died during interrogation."
It had happened shortly after abolishing Yushin and promising a new Korea.
Handled poorly, it could wound the regime badly.
"What are the police saying about handling it?"
"As per routine: cremate the body and hand it over to the family."
That's how it was done under Yushin.
Kept the noise down.
But Yushin was over now.
With extralegal rule ended, that approach wouldn't fly.
I puffed on my cigar for a long while, deep in thought.
How to handle this.
"Make the responsible police officers take the fall. Promise to look after the rest appropriately."
Better than dragging it out and messing up the picture.
"But that will tank police morale."
Probably.
They thought they were being loyal, but the regime wasn't protecting them.
Still, trying old ways after the rules changed was their mistake.
I'd explicitly ordered no torture, yet they'd botched it—their fault.
"Doesn't matter. Handle it that way."
"Understood."
After sending off the KCIA director, I pondered.
Even with Yushin gone, how to break organizations' inertial habits.
The answer was simple.
Give them a new goal to refresh the atmosphere.
'Illegal immigrants would be perfect.'
The Republic was swarming with Chinese and Japanese illegals.
Tens of thousands crossed the Yellow Sea, East Sea, South Sea, and Liaodong borders yearly.
Russians were numerous too, but a drop compared to East Asians.
I summoned the police and prosecutor chiefs, ordering a push on the "war against illegal immigrants."
"How can we sit by while tax-dodgers burrow into the empire, sucking the lifeblood from the Korean economy? Shouldn't we tackle this first?"
"Absolutely right, Your Excellency."
"Police, shrink your anti-communist units and set up a special task force for immigrant crackdowns. Prosecutors too."
"Yes. We'll act immediately."
Yushin might be gone, but my power remained.
I had the media promote the war against illegals too.
Thanks to that, the student torture-death incident buried easier than expected.
We punished the culprits, but it could've blown up—diverting public attention worked wonders.
I pushed the illegal immigrant war hard for a while.
Caught infiltrators got deported to their countries, no exceptions.
Russians included.
The war brought solid approval ratings for a time.
But the fun didn't last.
"The horrific reality of torture in safe houses."
Out of nowhere, a bombshell from the well-controlled media.
'Is this some independent outlet?'
Major media had censorship desks reviewing every story.
But with Yushin gone and media entry barriers lifted, independents had proliferated.
These independents often leaned anti-dictatorship by nature.
"Your Excellency, I'm sorry."
Kim Jeong-gil bowed deeply.
Who could've foreseen this from Jeong-gil?
"Never mind. Report the situation."
"Yes, Your Excellency. The assembly is raising this issue and pushing for a hearing."
A hearing.
I could refuse, but going hardline would tarnish our image.
After trumpeting Yushin abolition, acting like Yushin days would make people think what?
"Don't send the KCIA director to the hearing—that'd be awkward. Send a deputy or staffer."
"Pardon? You're accepting the hearing?"
"Or should we reject it?"
Crisis is opportunity.
Time to show humility, let them feel the difference from Yushin era.
If any idiots got out of line, quietly discipline them.
"Having KCIA at the hearing will damage your prestige."
"I know, Jeong-gil."
I knew, but I'd decided to bear it.
From the moment I shed Yushin's armor, expecting zero needles was greedy.
"But what can we do? To make them believe Yushin is truly gone, so no one thinks I'll hand power to my bloodline."
Abolishing Yushin was the first step to democratization—and blocking hereditary succession for my line.
Many steps lay ahead.
Yushin had crumbled, but my power stood firm.
I was still the dictator gripping the Republic.