Chapter 72
Chapter 72
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Translator: uly
Chapter: 72
Chapter Title: The Purge Begins
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Kim Jin-taek spat curses, drool flying from his mouth.
At that moment.
Vrrr—
As if it had heard the profanity, the phone on his desk began to vibrate.
The moment he heard the vibration, Kim Jin-taek snatched up the phone.
On the screen was the name of the person he had been desperately waiting for.
Prime Minister Yoon Dong-gyun.
His senior from high school and university, and his strongest ally.
“Hello?! Senior!
- Jin-taek-ah.
“Yes, Senior. This is a setup. It’s all slander!”
- We’ve already looked into everything. We got the reports. Even the VIP knows.
Kim Jin-taek’s face turned pale at Yoon Dong-gyun’s words.
“Senior!”
- Take some time off. Go work out, read some books while you’re at it.
Click—!
“Senior!! Hey, you son of a bitch!!”
The moment the call ended, more curses poured from Kim Jin-taek’s mouth.
***
The land corporation executives and Busan politicians who had taken bribes through Kim Jin-taek.
None of them were answering their phones.
It was because of a single text message sent to each of their secretaries’ phones.
The dates and amounts of the bribes were listed precisely, though the numbers varied.
They weren’t idiots; they knew something was wrong.
Naturally, they avoided contact with Kim Jin-taek, who would be the first mentioned at Park Jung-ki’s press conference.
This was all part of Lee Dae-hyuk’s scheme.
He had perfectly read the psychology of these high-ranking officials who had broken the law.
What they feared most was losing their honor.
Unless you were a chaebol, even a modicum of honor was necessary to maintain your position—and he knew that.
But Lee Dae-hyuk had never intended to forgive them.
‘I’ll keep using them.’
At the right timing, of course.
Before heading back to the office.
Lee Dae-hyuk’s eyes sharpened further as he watched the news about Park Jung-ki flowing from the building’s electronic billboard.
Kim Jin-taek was just the beginning.
Soon, the great purge would start.
A great purge to disinfect the rotten roots of Korea.
And then.
‘I’ll burn the trash like Yu Jae-man and his owners in the flames.’
With his own hellfire of vengeance.
But first, there was something he needed to settle.
A coffee shop near Daehan Construction.
Lee Dae-hyuk sat smiling across from Jeong Hee-ju.
She was smiling too.
Sitting in the coffee shop with a light heart made her feel like an ordinary person.
‘An ordinary person… That’s weird.’
Jeong Hee-ju realized she had come to see herself as something special.
Just look at the people around her.
Most were gangsters, loan sharks, and chaebol heirs pretending to be ordinary…
‘It can’t be helped.’
A wave of regret washed over her.
She had already stepped into a different world.
If that was the case, she had to live fittingly in that world.
The life of Yurin Capital’s CEO.
“You’re here?”
Was it because she was thinking of the tens of billions she could squeeze from Lee Dae-hyuk?
Jeong Hee-ju beamed as she spoke.
“Putting together the compensation, other costs—totaling 30 billion. Let’s settle it at that.”
“…….”
The compensation talk right as he sat down.
Lee Dae-hyuk let out an involuntary chuckle.
“I just sat down. Haven’t even ordered drinks yet.”
“Isn’t it better to talk money quickly?”
Lee Dae-hyuk clutched his forehead at her response.
Her tone and eyes had definitely shifted to those of a future godmother.
Probably awakened a bit earlier because of him.
‘Is this really good for her?’
He worried sometimes.
But what could he do?
The arrow had already left the bow.
Having sorted his thoughts simply, Lee Dae-hyuk spoke.
“Thank you for approving the Wolfgang matter.”
“Better to chase profits than thanks. That’s what a boss does, right? You even added 5 billion extra for letting Wolfgang go.”
Lee Dae-hyuk had added 5 billion on top of the commission fees, compensation for the deceased employees, and other incidental costs—as payment for releasing Wolfgang.
Yurin Capital had incurred significant expenses too, but with some conscience, they agreed on a fair(?) price.
Of course, separate from the price, when Lee Dae-hyuk said he wanted to hand Wolfgang over to Prosecutor Kim Il-jung.
She had been flustered, it was true.
She didn’t relish killing people, but she didn’t want to send the man who killed two of her employees nicely off to prison either.
Yet she had been persuaded by Lee Dae-hyuk’s words.
“I still can’t wrap my head around it. Using Wolfgang for bigger gains….”
“There’s a prosecutor I’m rooting for.”
“Rooting for? And the prosecutor you mentioned… he’s a real prosecutor, right?”
Jeong Hee-ju stared in bewilderment.
Lee Dae-hyuk continued, looking at her stunned expression.
“Yes. Prosecutor Kim Il-jung. He’s going places.”
“Big or small… But now you’re even sponsoring prosecutors? You really do everything others do, huh—no, not guts, just everything.”
“It’s not sponsorship… Well, call it that. And you know it too, Hee-ju. To survive in this world, you have to do what everyone else does.”
Lee Dae-hyuk changed the subject after answering.
“Haemun Construction is completely done for now. It’ll be left abandoned.”
“Right.”
“Someone’s got to step in. Not full-on gang muscle, but maybe a staffing agency or some light management.”
“So?”
Jeong Hee-ju swallowed hard.
She was certain Lee Dae-hyuk was about to hand her a gift.
After a brief pause, Lee Dae-hyuk spoke.
“Set up a corporation in Busan. I’ll tie in a special contract for dealings with the construction company Jeong Hee-ju creates.”
“1,000 billion plus a special clause like that?”
She knew everything so far had been a counterattack from Lee Dae-hyuk’s land hoarding.
But now.
Not content with 1,000 billion, he was offering to contract with the construction company she would ‘create’.
“We should be grateful. It’s money for sitting pretty. But… will they accept it?”
Lee Dae-hyuk nodded at Jeong Hee-ju’s question.
“They will. That person’s wise.”
“That person?”
Jeong Hee-ju asked again.
It couldn’t be Min Seung-su, president of Seojin Construction, whom Lee Dae-hyuk meant.
“Someone higher up.”
At Lee Dae-hyuk’s answer, Jeong Hee-ju immediately pictured one face.
The ruler of Korea’s economy.
Yu Jae-man’s face.
“…Did you make an enemy of him or something?”
Unable to utter Yu Jae-man’s name, Jeong Hee-ju asked.
Instead of answering, Lee Dae-hyuk gave a gentle smile.
A smile that would melt any woman.
“Ugh… Scary.”
But it sent chills down Jeong Hee-ju’s spine instead.
Still, she didn’t get up from her seat.
Lee Dae-hyuk, this dangerous man.
Plotting with him would surely put her in perilous situations ahead.
But with this man, she had a hunch she could make unimaginable sums.
Tens of billions now, maybe hundreds later.
Jeong Hee-ju resolved to stick by Lee Dae-hyuk, the golden goose.
‘Jeong Hee-ju, were you always this materialistic?’
Feeling the vulgarity deep inside her, Jeong Hee-ju flashed a business smile.
Fine. If I’m materialistic, let’s play it to the hilt.
“…I’ll get the coffee.”
***
Tremble—
Daehan Group headquarters, chairman’s office.
Min Seung-su’s shoulders shook violently as he bowed his head.
“1,000 billion… The kid’s sharp.”
Having heard the full report on everything involving Lee Dae-hyuk from Min Seung-su, Daehan Group Chairman Yu Jae-man remarked.
“President Min Seung-su.”
“Yes.”
“That kid’s name is Lee Dae-hyuk, right?”
Min Seung-su nodded at Yu Jae-man’s question.
“Yes. Chairman Lee Myung-guk’s son.”
“Lee Myung-guk’s son… Chaebol heirs do the funniest things.”
“…….”
Yu Jae-man felt a deep interest in Lee Dae-hyuk.
Min Seung-su had no choice but to report every detail.
Instead of anger, Yu Jae-man listened with fascination.
It was true he’d taken a hit from some punk named Lee Dae-hyuk.
But.
More amusing than unpleasant.
Like hearing tales of valor from a rival clansman.
“They say a tiger’s cub can’t be a dog… This one’s no dog, but a wolf.”
Yu Jae-man stroked his chin and grinned slyly.
Lee Myung-guk, who led Daehan Group, was his fated rival.
Thus, he knew a fair bit about Lee Dae-hyuk.
A depressive suicidal addict.
Daehan Group’s one worry.
For such a lowlife to suddenly snatch 1,000 billion from him.
‘How did this happen….’
Yu Jae-man felt both intrigue and doubt.
‘Is Lee Myung-guk involved? No, he wouldn’t provoke over pocket change. If not, then the kid acted alone….’
It felt like looking in a mirror.
First, cut the media lines that would help Kim Jin-taek or Seojin Construction.
Then wield time as a weapon.
As time passed, the value of the land Lee Dae-hyuk bought would rise inevitably.
Meanwhile, what about Seojin Construction—no, himself?
If the Blue House line kept the investigation going, he might lose everything if things went wrong.
He needed to buy the land Lee Dae-hyuk hoarded now and start construction as fast as possible.
‘The media or Blue House can be smoothed over for now.’
For the time being.
He had that much connections and power.
But in exchange.
‘Need a scapegoat.’
“Fine. I’ll spend the 1,000 billion. But….”
“…….”
“Then what do you do?”
“Pardon?”
Min Seung-su couldn’t continue at Yu Jae-man’s counterquestion.
What he could do now… was one thing.
“I’ll… take responsibility.”
Min Seung-su bit his lip.
He was a businessman too.
He knew exactly what Yu Jae-man wanted.
And in this situation, they couldn’t just brush it all off as ‘rumors’ safely.
“I’ll frame it all as my solo act.”
“Good. Let’s say Haemun Construction took kickbacks, so I worked with Kim Jin-taek for that.”
Yu Jae-man coldly outlined the scenario.
Shift the focus.
Not that Seojin Construction bribed alongside Kim Jin-taek to monopolize Busan’s redevelopment.
But that Min Seung-su acted for personal gain.
“We’ll fabricate the evidence. I’ll set up the scenario tight and feed it to the prosecutors, so rest easy and come back.”
Standing from the chairman’s seat, Yu Jae-man patted Min Seung-su’s shoulder.
“When you return, I’ll have an outside director spot ready.”
“…Thank you.”
Min Seung-su felt wronged in some ways.
But what could he do?
Defy Yu Jae-man further here, and he might really end up dead.
He had to endure.
As if hiding his distorted face, Min Seung-su bowed his head.
“I’ll be going.”
“Yeah.”
A moment later.
Creak—!
As Min Seung-su left the chairman’s office, Yu Jae-man, left alone, gazed out the window.
He had become Korea’s economic ruler through bloody battles.
Presidential candidates watched his mood.
Congressmen, prosecutors, police, judges… countless elites lined up, pledging loyalty.
He ruled Korea.
And now, someone dared oppose him.
He pondered.
Crush him?
Or bring him under his wing?
No answer yet.
One thing was certain.
Lee Dae-hyuk would provide thrilling entertainment.
‘Meeting him in person wouldn’t be bad.’
The year-end founding anniversary party was soon.
Inviting Lee Dae-hyuk then wouldn’t be amiss.
‘This’ll be fun for a while.’
Yu Jae-man smiled innocently, like a child with a new toy.