If You Want to Shoot the General, Shoot the Horse First
"From here on out, it's not deduction based on clues—it's just my speculation pieced together, Aunt."
Jeong Chae-won slammed the table repeatedly to vent her frustration over this dark chapter of her past she'd dragged back out. It was solid hardwood, finished with high-grade varnish, so the only thing that hurt was her wrist. But she ignored the minor pain, perking up her ears like she was hanging on every word.
"First off, as I mentioned earlier, my dad—Cha Seong-taek—distanced himself from you once the scandal blew up. He probably paid off people around him to keep their mouths shut, and in exchange for never seeing you again, he kept sending you living expenses... or maybe he threw in some blackmail on top to seal the deal."
"……."
"After that, you must've felt a huge sense of loss, but since you had the promise of ongoing money, you stayed quiet. …But then a massive variable hits."
Cha Do-yeon cleared his throat. "Cha Seong-taek, the chairman of the group, suddenly passed away from illness."
Life is a nonstop chain of unpredictable twists. Turn one more page in a thick book, and some monumental event awaits. From her perspective back then, it must've been pure chaos—like a dream she couldn't wake from. The man who'd hugged her saying he loved her, then cut her off when the scandal leaked, was now gone via obituary. Her mind probably couldn't sort out what to do next. Only she knew how she felt at the time.
"What were you thinking back then, Aunt?"
When he asked her directly, she ground her teeth. "…You want it polite, or straight-up?"
"……."
"Fine, since your kid's here, I'll tone it down a bit. I thought that wolf-in-sheep's-clothing bastard finally croaked good and proper! When they said it was a heart attack, I wanted to piss on his grave!"
That's what she said. Despite her warning of politeness, the curses flew, but it seemed like she was actually holding back.
How does it feel when your solid, powerful lover turns into an enemy? Given Cha Seong-taek's personality, he'd have had her under surveillance so she couldn't contact Jeong Su-ran, and he'd probably wanted to eliminate the threat entirely. He'd shaken her mentally to the point she'd consider suicide.
Jeong Chae-won's tragedy was falling for a man at a young age who was buried in ruthless business calculations. The more she dwelled on the past, the more venom filled her eyes, turning her into a ghostly figure. He watched her face closely, and as if seeing a specter from her past, she smirked at him.
"Talking shit about Dad to his face kinda sucks, huh?"
"Eh?"
He glanced at the room corner piled with liquor bottles. "Not really. I don't have some deep paternal love anyway. After hearing all this, I'm leaning toward your side, Aunt."
"!"
No way was he going to defend Cha Seong-taek just because of family ties after this story. Besides, the one hogging everything now wasn't even his real kid.
"More importantly, why'd you stay holed up at home after that? With Dad dead, wasn't it time to get back out there?"
Her eyes clouded over even more. She hesitated, like there was worse news to come.
"…Everything you said is spot on. After your dad died, the ongoing support money he promised instead of a gag order? Poof—gone. And as you know, I wasn't even mentioned in the will."
She sighed. "I wasn't expecting much as a distant uncle-by-marriage relation, but being treated like I didn't exist—like a loach in the Nakdong River—hit hard."
"……."
"My daily life was already in ruins. I figured I'd be scraping the bottom forever like this, so even if it meant dragging up the old scandal and getting filthy, I tried stepping out once."
Just recalling that time choked her up, making her cough. She bit her thumb hard, as if anxiety and unease washed over her from the mere thought. "If it hadn't been for that bitch from hell, Cha Seon-mi…."
Ahh….
The name alone made him sigh inwardly. It clicked instantly. He could picture exactly how it went down.
As the eldest sister, she'd block any threat to the company at the source. She'd chased out her own blood sister like a flea, so she'd see this scandal-tainted aunt as a risk if she got anywhere near the group's spoon. And back then, as the biggest heir to Father's legacy, she had free rein. She'd pressured her harder than Dad ever did to keep her mouth shut about the past. It was easy to imagine her crushing her pride without a dime.
"And then…"
"? Who else besides Seon-mi noona?"
She drifted into thought, staring into space, then shyly changed the subject like she didn't want to remember.
"…It's nothing. Anyway, that's my story. Now you get why I gave you the cold shoulder, right?"
"Well…."
Broken by Dad, then smacked down hard again by his ruthlessly calculating daughter. He felt sorry for her. He could easily empathize with the shrimp crushed by whales.
Still, she needed to realize she was addicted to money's taste. Time had passed since those big events—long enough, with her original capital and time, to pull herself together. Her stagnation was because she couldn't let go of her greed.
From college days, or even before, through Cha Seong-taek, she'd tasted money's convenience, power, and luxury. That's why she couldn't escape this isolated, vanity-filled life. It showed when she snatched the luxury bag without hesitation.
He grinned. That's why he could use her.
Time to offer a solution to this pitiful woman tangled in tragedy.
"Alright, Aunt. You've spilled everything, so let's do some business together."
"………Business?"
"Simple. Let's get revenge together."
She snorted. "You wanna go piss on your dad's grave too? Makes sense… you were a discarded kid first."
"Yeah, he ditched me for my fuckups, but pissing on a corpse like some grave-desecration poem is pointless. Waste of time."
He brushed it off casually, then tacked on his real goal. "Revenge on the dead means nothing, so let's hit the living."
"The living…?"
To his aunt's confused face, he dropped the three-syllable name. The one she was probably cursing inside already.
"Jeong Su-ran. In other words—let's ruin my mom together."
She flinched in shock. Real madness meeting fake madness. Her sister's name out of nowhere made her avert her eyes awkwardly.
"Your dad did all the trashy shit. Why drag my sister into this…."
"We're this far in—let's be real. I already know. You resent the hell out of Mom."
"……."
Her face twisted in frustration at how precisely he nailed it. Simple, really. Tracing the big events from her view, after Cha Seong-taek died, her aimless rage had to land on one of two targets. One: the Hwaryeong Group's kids living it up in Korea. Two: their mom, still the wife of a corporate chairman.
Jeong Su-ran knew nothing about the affair linking her sister and husband. That made it burn hotter in Aunt's eyes. Her once-admired sister still saw Cha Seong-taek as a wise husband, oblivious to his dark side. It must've disgusted her to see him idolized.
She'd once enjoyed money and trysts with her sister's husband, but humans are selfish creatures who only see their own side. And now, her sister lived the perfect opposite life: elegant with her fancy hotel, while she rotted at home in squalor. A soaring eagle vs. a hawk forgetting how to fly in a cage.
"What… are you gonna do about it."
"Sounds like you're interested."
He smirked behind his mask. He was about to snag a prime card: his aunt.
The enemy's enemy is a friend. After getting booted, Cha Seon-mi had taught him a good lesson.
Rustle, rustle…
"This'll take time, so here's my card."
"? Why not just say it now?"
"If you're serious, come to the company yourself. You need to clean up and sort shit out first anyway."
"……."
He glanced around the messy room, giving her a hint. He stepped back half a pace, widening the gap again.
A full-bellied hawk doesn't hunt. When she's starving like now, that's prime time to let her chase.
"By the way, I'm not with Hwaryeong Group anymore."
"?! W-what?"
"Internal issues—decided to go independent. Sign's not changed yet."
She must've been off the news grid in her hermit life. Time to settle accounts and clean up was essential.
"Unlike your fantasy of us kids feasting, it's cutthroat here too. Might even share the goal of not just ruining Mom, but toppling Hwaryeong altogether."
"Topple… Hwaryeong?"
Her lips twitched faintly as she mulled the word. Flames sparked in her eyes again.
Now she'd come to the company even if he tried to stop her. Good enough—he stood.
No need to see him out, he said. Before he left, she asked one last thing.
"You really Cha Do-yeon?"
"Huh?"
"You're nothing like the kid I remember or the rumors… You always this sharp?"
She eyed him suspiciously. He shrugged it off casually.
"What're you talking about? I'm your cute nephew, aren't I?"
Woof! Woof!
"Woof! Woof!"
"…What're you doing?"
After the long talk, he stepped into the yard to find U Mi-ae squatting in front of a wildly tail-wagging dog. She shot up at his voice, brushed off her clothes, and turned with a straight face.
"Ended quicker than expected?"
"Did it? Felt like two hours. …More importantly, what were you doing in front of the dog?"
"Good it wrapped up fast. I'll call the car for the next schedule."
"Nah, this was the big thing today—no rush. But it was definitely woof-woof-ing, right?"
"Texted them. Parked nearby—three minutes tops. Shall I guide you out the gate?"
U Mi-ae dodged stubbornly, trying to gloss it over. He approached with a teasing grin, fixing her tilted hair as she bowed awkwardly to avoid excuses.
Dog lover, huh? Chatting it up like that?
"……."
She finally lost for words, cheeks flushing shyly as she retorted defiantly.
"Who could hate such a cute symbol of loyalty?"
Dog enthusiast. Discovering this side of U Mi-ae, he slipped an arm around her waist. He patted the cute bitch's hips, then stole a kiss.
"Ah… Young master♥"
He agreed. He could raise as many loyal bitches to hunt with him as he wanted. Plenty of room in his pack.
She showered. She usually washed up, but this time the winter ice-water blast scrubbed it all away. Refreshing. More than her body, her scattered mind cleared up.
Life soaked in stagnation now pulsed with vitality and fresh purpose.
Creak! Shutting off the faucet, her real face reflected in the bathroom mirror for the first time. A faint smile bloomed on her usual blank expression, and she muttered darkly.
"Yeah… Time my big sis tasted some bitterness too…."
Out she went and tidied the house. As her nephew said, clearing each bit felt like shedding the past.