Chapter 23
Chapter 23
I wasn’t sure what mindset I should have.
Thinking about my father, Jeong In-seok, anger would naturally arise—he was the sworn enemy. But thinking about my mother, Kim Mi-rim… he was still my grandfather, after all.
I tried to steady my mind, but no matter how hard I forced myself to feel positively, I came to the conclusion that I couldn’t. Even if he was my grandfather. He was the one who tore my parents apart, who tried to kill my father. The man who, at just fifty-six, had caused my father’s death.
If my parents had married normally, if I had been born into that life… perhaps I’d have known a happy family. Perhaps I wouldn’t have lived such a harsh, grinding life until the age of twenty-seven.
“Don’t you need any further explanation?”
“Well… let’s hear it in person.”
The man in the front seat, Secretary Choi, looked nervous, but I answered bluntly. The car was heading northeast from Seoul toward Gapyeong. No doubt, shadows were trailing us. Why is it that all the rich people build villas around Yangpyeong and Gapyeong?
“We’re almost there.”
“Yes.”
“And for what it’s worth… absolutely, absolutely do not anger the Chairman. I beg of you.”
I chuckled softly at Secretary Choi’s warning.
“That’s something you should tell him in reverse,” I said.
“Pardon?”
“He has no knowledge of me. If I get angry, do you know what might happen?”
“No… that is…”
Unknowingly, my throat had gone dry.
Kim Gwang-deok, eighty-five years old, had lived a tumultuous life, fearless of fire or water. Many of his deeds were legal, many were not. He was still connected to nationwide networks capable of doing the dirtiest work.
I felt my pulse quicken. Though most men would be waiting for death at eighty-five, Kim Gwang-deok was still fiery. If someone said the wrong thing in his presence, real danger could arise. Secretary Choi had witnessed such incidents before. Forty years of serving him, he knew this. Today, something was about to happen. Kim had called Kim Du-chil… yet this young man sitting before him didn’t seem like someone who would yield. Sparks would fly when these two met.
[gulp!]
Secretary Choi tried to swallow, but his throat merely quivered.
“Do you know who I am?”
“You are Kim Gwang-deok, 2nd Chairman of Seyun Group, my mother’s father.”
“Hooh…”
Kim Gwang-deok lifted the corners of his mouth, clearly impressed. He must have already investigated me. I was no ordinary thirty-year-old, and that made this conversation easier.
“Then this will be quick. I have a proposal for you.”
“Please.”
“Won’t you follow me? I can give you wealth and power you can’t even imagine.”
“Hahaha…”
“You laugh?”
The gentle expression he had carried on his face now disappeared, replaced by raised eyebrows.
“You said you work at a computer company. How much do you earn?”
“Well…”
Starting with money?
“No matter how hard you work, it’s probably under a hundred million won. Working as a mere servant is useless.”
“….”
“The bloodline of the Pyongsan Kim clan deserves more than petty wages.”
“….”
“If you heed me, I could give you ten billion won in cash immediately. You could live as a CEO, hearing the title of chairman while walking proudly.”
“Hahaha… ten billion won?”
“Why don’t you believe me? That’s money you’d never touch as a lifelong worker.”
Apparently, he thought my disbelief was because the sum was too large. A hundred billion wasn’t a stretch—I had earned that much in a day before, just in Korea.
I stopped smiling and stared into Kim Gwang-deok’s eyes. Though nearly ninety, his vigor rivaled men in their fifties or sixties.
I thought he might be reaching out to reclaim his bloodline. Bitter feelings arose, but I had anticipated this scenario.
“Forget that useless IT company… I’ll find you a CEO position! You know Hyoyeon Construction, right? They’re about to participate in Ukraine reconstruction. Spend a year or two there, and your wealth could reach hundreds of billions.”
Kim Gwang-deok sensed something off. Usually, a person would jump at this kind of bait, yet I stared back unemotionally.
“I expected you’d speak differently,” I said.
“Differently? What do you mean?”
“I meant… saying, ‘Didn’t life get tough for you? You worked hard. Thank you for growing up safely, and I’m sorry.’”
I looked him in the eye. Kim Gwang-deok glared, but I didn’t flinch. His eyes, like an old tiger ready to devour, were nothing but comical to me.
“You’re arrogant… how dare you speak to an elder this way…”
“One question,” I interrupted.
“….”
No answer. I continued.
“Why did you oppose the union of my parents? And why attempt to kill my father?”
“I forgot one thing… you carry that bastard’s bloodline, don’t you? Yes, you are that son of that man.”
“Answer me.”
“Do you, a penniless orphan, dare to covet my daughter? The Pyongsan Kim clan had a marriage arranged! Because of that man, everything went to ruin. If not for him, our family would be ranked in the top five business empires. Generations would live in luxury. Do you understand?”
So it was about power, money, and family legacy. I could only smile wryly. It’s pointless to be angry at someone who doesn’t even speak sense.
“The scenario is this, isn’t it?”
“What scenario?”
“You plan to make me CEO of Hyoyeon Construction, send me to Ukraine for post-war reconstruction, embezzle money under the pretense of bribes to politicians, then use that money to take over Hyoyeon Group?”
“What did you just say?”
Kim Gwang-deok’s face drained of blood; his eyes widened.
For the first time in his life, someone young had seen straight through him. How did I know about Ukraine reconstruction?
“Coming here, I had a small hope… that my grandfather, who tore my parents apart and tried to kill my father, might feel some guilt and apologize. But… sigh.”
Kim Gwang-deok was too shocked to speak.
“My mind feels lighter now. I doubt we’ll meet again.”
I stood and left the living room.
“That… that brat…”
He had never experienced anything like this. He thought I was just a young upstart, yet I seemed like a master who had lived hundreds of years. His mind spun. By the time he gathered his wits, I was long gone.
“Secretary Choi! Secretary Choi!”
He called, and I heard the door open. Choi hurried in.
“Yes, Chairman!”
“Did you tell him how I planned to use that brat?”
“What do you mean…?”
“Did you tell him I intended to make him CEO of Hyoyeon Construction?”
“No, Chairman. You never mentioned it to me.”
“Ah, right.”
Indeed, I hadn’t said a word to Choi.
“Where are the Du-chil guys? Bring them! I can’t just let that brat leave gracefully.”
“Well, Chairman… I just saw them… they’re all unconscious.”
“What? How much did they drink? Did someone give them alcohol?”
“No, they haven’t been given anything yet. They seem to have been beaten…”
“Beaten? By whom?”
“I don’t know.”
[grind grind grind]
Kim Gwang-deok’s teeth chattered. Choi flinched.
War seemed imminent—or maybe the battle had already been lost.
“I can’t escape Vice Chairman’s grasp wherever I go,” said Jeong Jin-woo, sitting in the back of the car with Ko Yun-seok.
Ko Yun-seok merely smiled at his somber expression.
“How was meeting him?”
“Hmm… I’m not sure.”
The words carried much weight. Yun-seok waited silently.
“Perhaps it’s emptiness I feel,” I admitted.
“Empty?”
“I felt anger, resentment… but he is, after all, my grandfather. And with your warning about the worst-case scenario…”
Information about my grandfather and Hyoyeon Group had been regularly reported to me. Hyoyeon Construction entering Ukraine post-war reconstruction, the internal struggle leaving Gwak Jeong-jin and Gwak Yi-jin sidelined…
Kim Gwang-deok had pulled similar stunts in Libya, Mexico City, and Russia, embezzling vast funds. One of the construction managers’ bodies was found, but two remained missing.
“It was bitter. I even wondered if I should avenge my father. But when the target is my grandfather… I hesitated.”
“Your father felt similarly. The man who tried to kill him was the father of the woman he loved most.”
“So what did he decide?”
“After the killers left… he let it be.”
“Why? Father suffered so much…”
“Because of you, Jeong Jin-woo.”
‘Father…’
He had thought so deeply about finding me, even considering the burden I’d carry as the son of the man who killed my father. My heart twinged.
“I’ll just live without worrying.”
“Not avenge your father?”
“What good would it do? My father left it alone. I’ll leave it be, too.”
“Then someone else might get hurt.”
“Greed only invites anger. Now that he’s retired… why would he call me here? Unless he directly handed me the money, no one else would step in.”
“True… Chairman is….”
“Still, keep your radar active. He calls nationwide gangsters. Truly irrational.”
“Family matters are hard to intervene in. Your father thought the same. Except for Chairman Kim Gwang-deok.”
“Sad and frustrating. Why live like that?”
Meeting my grandfather after thirty years, he seemed intent on cornering his grandson. Would reclaiming the group be worth sacrificing his own grandson? I no longer called him family.
“Ah, sorry. Prepare two doses of the highest-grade herbal medicine.”
“Herbal medicine? Why now…”
“One for your mother, one for the Chairman.”
“I’m fine. Still vigorous.”
“Take care while you’re healthy. You wouldn’t do it yourself, so I’ll manage it.”
Family isn’t about blood. Family is those who cherish and care for you. After twenty-seven years of living with a false family, real family had only briefly crossed my path. My mother and Vice Chairman Ko Yun-seok are truly precious. Family, for me, is those who look after each other. Like Vice Chairman beside me.
“Why do you look at me that way?”
“Pride, that’s all. Ha ha ha.”
Ko Yun-seok laughed heartily, watching me.