The Shadow of Doubt
Broker Jang Ki-tae continued speaking with a rather serious expression.
"Even this much... Honestly, the police won't be too concerned...
...After all... the local police... can't keep chasing after such trivial violence cases forever...
...So, in time, it will quietly be buried."
"Is there a chance that things go wrong?
If Kang-soo... finds out that I... did this...
...What then?"
"There won't be any such incident.
Kang-soo... no matter how... his past career was brilliant...
...He's in his late forties.
He can't handle young bloods.
Moreover... it's not just one or two people.
There's a saying that there's no business in a gang of three...
...So, just... lightly... give him a scare.
It's too... arrogant..."
Park Young-ho, the executive director, honestly, thinking about the humiliation he suffered then, even now jumped out of bed in a cold sweat every time he slept.
Even though he was his company superior... and he was more than ten years older...
The situation where he was cursed at fiercely and threatened by someone younger than himself... even thinking about it now, it made him want to piss himself.
Thinking that throughout his life, he hadn't experienced such a moment of terror, the executive director Park Young-ho was.
"Proceed...
Well... it's not about killing...
...That level is fine...
...Just... thoroughly... hide the fact that I ordered it...
Manager Jang, check again..."
"Yes... if there's anything from the executive director...
...We'll proceed cleanly.
The incoming costs... we'll process with our company's slush funds."
Following Manager Jang's words, Park Young-ho executive director nodded his head.
The two were in a situation similar to an economic fate community, managing the company's secretly created slush funds together.
Park Young-ho executive director thought he wanted to see Kang-soo beaten to a pulp once.
***
Ma Kyeong-il the pharmacist... sat blankly in the back office of one of the pharmacies he operated...
Lost in thought for a moment.
It was the pharmacist Ma Kyeong-il who had his second meeting with the cafe public sub Ji Hye-in just yesterday.
After experiencing other public subs in the cafe like Mi-ran or Ji-hwa... Ma Kyeong-il the pharmacist had felt some disappointment...
After meeting Ji Hye-in again and having a relationship... and even meeting her in the early morning hours... his mind was hazy again, just like the first time.
If there was anything changed in the meantime... it seemed like her appearance had become even more pure...
Previously... he had explained that he allows oral sex but doesn't swallow...
...Now... he explains that he swallows the oral sex...
...And actually... after performing oral sex, he had her directly eat it.
It was the first time for the pharmacist Ma Kyeong-il to have semen in a woman's mouth...
...And the first experience of a woman swallowing it.
So... he was in a bit of a mental shock.
A day had passed, but the pharmacist Ma Kyeong-il couldn't get out of the aftertaste of meeting the cafe public sub Ji Hye-in yesterday.
Especially yesterday... seeing Ji Hye-in in a very plain summer one-piece dress... he fell head over heels at first sight.
Seeing the beautiful and well-maintained body women coming to the pharmacy... all of them...
Besides husbands... maybe they have men...
...Or perhaps doing the meat toilet role for several men like Ji Hye-in... Ma Kyeong-il was falling into such a misconception.
Now... all married women in the world were suspicious.
Of course, extremely fat married women who are ugly, unattractive, and have no body management weren't suspicious.
It was just that somewhat good-looking and clean married women were all clearly falling into the misconception that they definitely have secrets hidden from their husbands.
Ma Kyeong-il even started doubting his own gentle wife... whether there's something he's not aware of, some secret.
***
Yoo Kang-soo, who had switched to an insurance company and signed a new employment contract.
It was a one-year contract, but he had inserted a clause that if neither side objects after the one-year contract is completed, the contract will automatically renew.
In other words... if he works hard and his performance is good... it could automatically renew for 2 years... 3 years... and so on.
Yoo Kang-soo was working really hard with the thought that this was the last chance in his life.
So... he didn't go home on weekends, worked hard for a whole month, and Yoo Kang-soo had already turned two malicious insurance fraud cases into lawsuits.
And the first monthly salary received was also a satisfying amount, making Yoo Kang-soo in very good spirits.
If he had known this would happen... he would have thought to switch jobs earlier, even if his body was a bit sore and difficult...
...Yoo Kang-soo was thinking that.
Before dinner... Yoo Kang-soo called his wife Ji Hye-in.
The reason Yoo Kang-soo was in a good mood... recently, almost every evening, he video calls with his wife Ji Hye-in...
The wife... always being at home.
Seeing that his wife... now rarely does company dinners... almost every day takes early leave from work and is at home...
...It just... made him feel a bit sorry and in a good mood, Yoo Kang-soo was.
Thinking about the video of his wife hugging and kissing Yeom Seong-bong... even just thinking about it, he really hated it...
...But just the thought that later, when old and gray, his wife Ji Hye-in would trim his nails and take care of all his needs... it was nice and good...
...So, all the past painful things were being forgotten by Yoo Kang-soo.
Yoo Kang-soo parked his car near the one-room apartment used as lodging and walked a bit to enter an old-fashioned soondae-guk restaurant near the traditional market alley.
Since he parked the car at the lodging... and had called his wife Ji Hye-in... he thought to have just a light half-drink.
Yoo Kang-soo who had just finished another insurance investigation today... was in a slightly good mood.
Because if the investigation results come out as he thought... he would feel refreshed and cool.
Yoo Kang-soo was ordering soondae-gukbap special size with one bottle of soju... and eating that way.
Since it was summer, everyone was wearing short sleeves, and young men with full tattoos on their arms... as Yoo Kang-soo was eating soondae-guk at the restaurant, a group came in midway and ordered soju and assorted meats and started drinking.
They were a bit noisy, so Yoo Kang-soo glanced at them and quickly averted his eyes.
Because their eyes met.
A young man in his early 30s who looked like a delinquent approached Yoo Kang-soo.
"Hey... what are you looking at...
...I'll gouge your eyes out, you bastard..."
The young man looked much younger than Yoo Kang-soo...
...Not only speaking in informal speech to Yoo Kang-soo, but also using rough words and curses.
"Sorry...
...I think I made a mistake."
Yoo Kang-soo bowed his head deeply to apologize.
"You bastard... scared shitless..."
The young man... tapped Yoo Kang-soo's shoulder once and went back to his seat.
Yoo Kang-soo... thinking not to get entangled with such neighborhood delinquents... quickly finished the soondae-guk and, leaving some soju, quickly got up from his seat.
Yoo Kang-soo... was feeling a bit annoyed... but thinking that even just not getting involved in a dispute was fortunate.
Yoo Kang-soo was entering the alley to go inside the market area.
"Hey... there... wait a second..."
Yoo Kang-soo turned around.
The young man who had started a dispute earlier saying what are you looking at... was with three other men.
"Excuse me... are you talking to me?"
"Then... who else is here besides you?"
Yoo Kang-soo thought the atmosphere was strange.
The four young men seemed to be the group who were sitting at the same seat earlier eating soju... but the other one was a young man who was eating soju at another table.
Yoo Kang-soo thought the atmosphere was really strange.
"I... made a mistake.
...Please forgive me just this once..."
Yoo Kang-soo apologized first.
Then... the delinquent who had tapped Yoo Kang-soo's shoulder earlier... opened his mouth again.
"This guy is really funny...
...Is this a sincere apology?
...Kneel down right now, you ungrateful bastard..."
As Yoo Kang-soo stayed still...
...Several men took a step forward.
"Hey... sorry... I'll apologize..."
Yoo Kang-soo apologized again.
Since he didn't want to cause trouble with neighborhood delinquents... he just apologized and immediately knelt down.
Then... one of them suddenly started filming the scene with his phone.
Yoo Kang-soo now had certainty.
That these guys... were deliberately starting disputes now...
...And deliberately starting fights... Yoo Kang-soo had clearly noticed the signs.