Chapter 41
Chapter 41
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Translator: uly
Chapter: 41
Chapter Title: Land Hoarding in Jaesong-dong
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The information Park Juseung had obtained concerned key details about the redevelopment projects in Busan’s Jaesong-dong and Haeundae areas, which Seojin Construction had secured.
“Jaesong-dong Zone 2 has great transportation access. Plus, it’s close to the sea. They’re planning to build a few proper buildings there—a department store and apartments too. They’ll make at least a thousand times their investment, right? But the problem is…”
“There are residents refusing to vacate.”
Lee Dae-hyuk saw right through Seojin Construction’s intentions.
They’d leave the dirty work to Busan’s local construction firms.
And handle only the “clean” redevelopment themselves.
If this dirty business got exposed, they’d throw Haemyung Construction under the bus as the scapegoat and claim innocence.
Lee Dae-hyuk, well aware of Yoo Jae-man’s patterns, crossed his arms.
If Park Juseung had gotten hold of this info, the project must already be underway to some extent.
Yoo Jae-man was likely laying the groundwork, spreading bribes through his network of connections.
Connections were essential for snagging a massive project like this solo.
“Haemyung Construction’s president is the high school junior of the former Chief of Staff at the Blue House. But they’re not particularly close. With a five-year age gap, they didn’t even attend school together. They’re just making excuses to watch each other’s backs and avoid prying eyes.”
As if reading his thoughts, Park Juseung handed over another gem of information.
“The former Chief of Staff…?”
“Kim Jin-taek—you know, the guy who appeared on variety shows as a ‘miser.’ Heh heh heh. Turns out he was taking kickbacks from his junior behind the scenes for stuff like this.”
Kim Jin-taek.
At the mention of the name, Lee Dae-hyuk recalled him instantly.
Kim Jin-taek was one of Yoo Jae-man’s mountain club members.
They called it a mountain club, but it was really a gathering of real power players who pulled the strings in Korea’s politics and business, using hiking as a cover.
Led by Seojin Group’s Yoo Jae-man, with Kim Jin-taek in politics, Supreme Court Justice Seo Chan-hong in the judiciary, and Jang Woo-sung, former Director of the NIS.
This quartet’s mountain club lasted until 2021.
All of them received sponsorship from Yoo Jae-man and rose to prominence in their fields.
Supreme Court Justice Seo Chan-hong became the legal affairs director at the world-renowned investment firm JP Morgan.
Jang Woo-sung took the helm at Korea’s top security firm, Shield Company.
And Kim Jin-taek…
‘He rode his clean, upright image all the way to Prime Minister.’
Why risk illegal schemes when money was flowing like water?
Lee Dae-hyuk clenched his fist, thinking of Kim Jin-taek and his cronies who took Yoo Jae-man’s dirty money.
‘To crush Yoo Jae-man, I’ll have to take down those bastards too, eventually.’
But Lee Dae-hyuk knew better.
Dealing with that crew could wait.
Right now, priority was using this intel to squeeze money out of Yoo Jae-man.
‘Hmm… If I move fast, I can pull off some land hoarding.’
Even Yoo Jae-man couldn’t have secured every plot in Zone 2 yet.
He had to act before that.
Timing was everything—even a slight delay could mean throwing away good money for nothing.
‘Though it wouldn’t really matter if I did.’
The capital for land hoarding came from selling Yoo Jae-man’s artwork anyway.
No loss even if it flopped.
Grinning with satisfaction, Lee Dae-hyuk looked up at the awkwardly standing Park Juseung.
“Good work, Maternal Uncle.”
“Yeah. Th-thanks, nephew.”
Park Juseung smiled and replied gratefully.
“…….”
But the veins bulging on the back of his hand as he scratched his nape awkwardly told another story.
He probably wanted to slap Lee Dae-hyuk across the face right then.
But giving in to temper would cost him everything.
‘Hold it in. I have to endure…’
Until the day he could properly sink his teeth into Lee Dae-hyuk’s throat.
Meanwhile, Lee Dae-hyuk smirked as if finding Park Juseung endearing.
No matter how much he ground his teeth in frustration, Park Juseung would keep fetching info and dancing in Lee Dae-hyuk’s palm like this.
.
.
.
Recalling the events from half a day ago, Lee Dae-hyuk flashed a meaningful smile at the stunned Kim Mi-jin and continued.
“Mi-jin Noona, you handle acquiring the land in Jaesong-dong. Pay double or triple the market price if you have to—buy it no matter what.”
“Got it, Young Master.”
“And Kim Jae-woon, use the remaining 700 million to hone your Trading Sense. As I said before, I won’t hold you accountable for any losses.”
“…I’ll make sure there are no losses.”
Was he spurred by Lee Dae-hyuk’s words?
Lee Dae-hyuk smiled faintly at Kim Jae-woon’s gritted response, then clapped his hands sharply.
“Alright, things are about to get busier with plenty of surprises ahead. But for today, clock out early and get some solid rest.”
***
After sending the two off, Lee Dae-hyuk headed to Chudong-hyeon’s gym.
Dressed in training gear in front of the full-body mirror, he wore a refreshed expression.
Even without working out yet, he already felt light enough to fly.
‘Three days, huh?’
Company duties had forced him to skip the gym occasionally.
But he’d kept up the basic training Chudong-hyeon taught him at home, so no flab had crept on.
‘Still, gotta push hard today.’
Even if Kim Mi-jin handled the land hoarding, if Haemyung Construction or Seojin Construction reached out, he’d have to step in.
The deals had to be closed by him, not her.
Once things kicked off, gym time would get even scarcer.
So, he wanted to savor the moment as much as possible.
Shadowboxing in front of the mirror.
Thud thud-! Thud thud thud-!
Lee Dae-hyuk stepped as Chudong-hyeon taught him, throwing punches at the air several times.
Whoosh-. Whoosh-!
‘Not a bad body at all.’
Had he completed all the stamina drills?
Fat had melted away, muscles filled in.
With stamina boosted, he jabbed sharply without tiring.
Definitely felt stronger.
Drip drip drip-!
After about three minutes?
Sweat poured from his body nonstop.
“Haa…”
Stopping shadowboxing, Lee Dae-hyuk caught his breath.
‘Still not my peak condition, though.’
He knew it was greed, but it stung a little.
Even so, building this much strength from a body unused to real exercise was impressive.
With more effort, he could catch up to ‘Kim Gun-woo.’
As regret turned to fighting spirit, Lee Dae-hyuk dropped to the floor for push-ups.
Clap clap clap-!
Applause rang out.
“Wow, Lee Dae-hyuk. I say it every time, but you’re amazing. Truly respectable.”
“Gym Master?”
Chudong-hyeon, who’d arrived unnoticed, was clapping while watching him.
“I thought you started light-hearted, but you’ve got real killer instinct now. What’s up? Got someone you wanna beat to death?”
Chudong-hyeon nailed Lee Dae-hyuk’s motivation.
Without revenge or rage, no one trained this brutally—that was his take.
“…….”
Lee Dae-hyuk’s eyes twitched, struck at the core.
‘He’s sharper than he looks.’
Rage at Yoo Jae-man’s family and Oh Tae-gyu fueled him.
Nightmares of his dying moments still tore at his heart and brain.
But no need to share that with Chudong-hyeon.
“I’ve got a lot ahead. Building my body first—that’s all.”
“Then, how about I test how far you’ve come?”
Chudong-hyeon offered amiably.
But Lee Dae-hyuk knew exactly what that “test” meant.
As a regular, he knew the gym’s rules.
Once a regular reached a certain level, Gym Master Chudong-hyeon sparred briefly.
If he hadn’t seen it, he’d be thrilled.
‘…Can I even walk out properly?’
Recently, he’d witnessed Chudong-hyeon’s sparring.
The so-called “sparring”—a one-minute beatdown in the ring.
‘Does he still hate me?’
At first, Chudong-hyeon had shown fierce hostility, thinking Lee Dae-hyuk stole Manager Yoon Tae-ho from him(?).
But after months at the gym, his gaze had softened considerably.
‘…Guess it’s not hate.’
Lee Dae-hyuk smiled wryly.
He just wanted to test his skills for real.
No reason to dodge, then.
“Please go easy on me.”
“You bet. Give it your all. Heh heh heh.”
Chudong-hyeon grabbed fighting gloves from a nearby table, chuckling darkly.
.
.
.
After his first-day entry test.
Stepping into the ring for the second time, Lee Dae-hyuk felt a strange tension.
Because of Chudong-hyeon standing before him.
A man who’d surpass top-tier to reach the world’s peak.
In any match with ‘rules,’ few in Korea could beat him.
Just touching Chudong-hyeon’s body would make this test a win.
Clacking his gloved fists together, Lee Dae-hyuk spoke gravely.
“As you know, I’m an office worker. The face is… a bit…”
“Don’t worry. Plenty to hit besides the face. One minute. No ground work, no kicks—just fists.”
Grinning like a villain, Chudong-hyeon advanced.
Step-!
Just one step.
Yet Lee Dae-hyuk swallowed dryly without thinking.
Gulp-!
‘Would’ve been fun against his prime self…’
Lee Dae-hyuk bit his lip in regret.
Kim Gun-woo’s ‘sense’ remained, letting him gauge the gap.
Win or lose didn’t matter.
This was a test of his skills.
Still, getting dragged around wasn’t his style.
‘Let’s do this.’
Thwack-! Thwack thwack-!!
Lee Dae-hyuk opened with sharp jabs.
Light attacks, but they nailed Chudong-hyeon’s shoulder and head precisely.
Then.
Chudong-hyeon showed an opening.
Guarding his head left his abdomen exposed for a split second.
Lee Dae-hyuk didn’t miss the sub-second gap.
Whoosh-!!
A weightier right hook targeted the abdomen.
‘This might land.’
Hope swelled—not hope, but data from Kim Gun-woo’s real fights.
He’d never failed to exploit an exposed weakness.
The heavy hook plunged right into Chudong-hyeon’s gut.
But one issue lingered.
He wasn’t Kim Gun-woo now—he was Lee Dae-hyuk.
Speed and power were inherently lesser.
Whoosh-!!
Chudong-hyeon’s counter left uppercut aimed at his jaw.
“Urk!!”
Lee Dae-hyuk reflexively jerked his head back.
But he staggered, off-balance.
Chudong-hyeon, hiding his surprise, pressed the counter.
‘This guy might be a genius.’
Lee Dae-hyuk’s tenacity was astonishing.
Started with trash stamina, so just conditioning at first.
But now, his sense shone through.
Who’d believe two months as a total beginner?
Time to up the difficulty.
Chudong-hyeon surged forward with fiercer momentum.
‘The vibe shifted.’
Sensing Chudong-hyeon ramping up, Lee Dae-hyuk tensed.
But it thrilled him.
A chance to test himself fully against Chudong-hyeon.
‘This spar’s mine to lose anyway. Ditch the guard.’
No stamina left for guarding while engaging.
Sacrifice needed for gains.
Abandoning guard, Lee Dae-hyuk unleashed varied attacks.
Hook. Uppercut. Straight!!!
Precisely angled strikes poured at Chudong-hyeon.
But they barely fazed him.
Incredibly, Chudong-hyeon blocked with diverse defenses.
Hooks to the body: elbow block.
Uppercuts: stopping.
Straights: shoulder block.
All nullified.
Yet Lee Dae-hyuk nearly gasped in awe despite failures.
He felt Chudong-hyeon demonstrating defenses to teach him even now.
‘Good guy.’
Grateful for the consideration—
Chudong-hyeon showed his true colors.
Thwack-!!
A straight to Lee Dae-hyuk’s jaw.
Stagger-!!
Simple, but enough to buckle his legs.
Still, mid-stagger, Lee Dae-hyuk jabbed at Chudong-hyeon.
Of course.
Thud thud-!!
It whiffed again.
Chudong-hyeon sidestepped diagonally with step ducking.
Lee Dae-hyuk’s punch sliced empty air.
And his exposed left side took Chudong-hyeon’s hook.
Thud-!!!
“Urk!”
As the groan escaped—
Chudong-hyeon’s right hook reflexively targeted his jaw.
That instant.
Ding-!! Ding-!!!
The ring bell rang.
The long-ish spar ended at the perfect moment.
“Sorry. Got a bit carried away.”
Chudong-hyeon, finally snapping out(?), apologized sincerely.
He felt ashamed for going full throttle, even briefly, against a weaker opponent.
‘I lost this spar.’
Like an elephant baring its fangs against an ant?
Awkwardness crossed Chudong-hyeon’s face.
Lee Dae-hyuk, meanwhile, looked relieved.
He’d learned tons from the attacks and blocks.
‘This is true strength.’
Not mere brawling—there was ‘class.’
Grasp that ‘class,’
And he’d grow several times stronger.
Plus, gratitude.
His blood boiled after so long.
A proper real fight.
“No, I’m thankful. First real fight in ages—made it fun.”
“Real fight? Were you a school delinquent?”
Chudong-hyeon tilted his head at the reply.
Lee Dae-hyuk smiled bitterly.
“Not kids—adults.”
“Adults?”
“Ah, I’m heading out. Any more and I might drop dead.”
Clutching his nape, Lee Dae-hyuk stepped down from the ring toward the showers.
Watching his retreating back, Chudong-hyeon pondered deeply.
‘Fought adults? Chaebol son got jumped for lunch money after growing up?’