Those Plotting Dirty Deeds
He decided against reminding Baek Geum—currently draining a bowl of kimchi broth with gusto—that China would not be among the launch markets this time around.
China hadn't even been mentioned among the initial service regions. So why was the man getting all worked up on his own?
It wasn't as if Jinwoo had lied to him.
The day would come soon enough when they'd expand into China anyway. He'd have to tell him to push the China launch as soon as possible.
Revealing his identity to Baek Geum still left a faintly uneasy taste, but at least the man understood the code of the martial world. He wouldn't go around shooting his mouth off. And if he did, well—there was nothing to be done about it.
Thanks to Baek Geum's enthusiastic involvement, the Munpia acquisition was proceeding at a rapid clip. Before long, three versions of Munpia would launch simultaneously: Arabic, French, and English.
"Yoon Jong-seok sent over a prototype. He also asked if he might meet with you—the investor—sometime soon."
"Team Leader Yoon?"
"Yes."
Three hundred million won invested, and already the man had completed a prototype. A dog that ran itself ragged across the entire world. Running Dog, that was.
"Send me the materials and the link."
"Of course. And regarding the meeting?"
"I'll decide after I see the product."
"Understood. Ah, and... there's one more thing. I'm not sure whether I should mention this..."
"What is it? Go ahead."
"I considered handling it myself, but I believe this is something the Chairman needs to know. Some of the directors have been playing games."
"Games? What kind of games?"
"You'll know what I mean. We hold several alluvial gold mining rights in Cambodia, and because there are so many tributary streams, only the person in charge knows the exact locations. We've received intelligence that the director responsible has been in contact with another company, trying to transfer some of those tributary mining rights."
"If that's the case, can't we just handle it according to company regulations?"
"We could. However... the company he's been in contact with is one you're quite familiar with, Chairman."
"Speak freely. Which company?"
"Bando Jewelry."
Bando Jewelry. The company run by Noh Mira's father—the man who, until a few years ago, had been Jinwoo's father-in-law.
"Handle it according to company regulations."
"Are you certain that's all right?"
"Wouldn't that be better? And who is the director in charge?"
"I believe you already know who it is, Chairman."
"Pardon?"
Ko Yoon-seok looked at Jung Jinwoo and let out a quiet chuckle.
"Did you bring the money?"
Noh Gyeong-se, a man in his middle years, smiled as he addressed Jo Seong-gi sitting beside him.
"I prepared two hundred million, just as you said. You brought yours as well, I trust?"
"Of course I did."
He lifted a paper bag and gave it a tap.
"Hand over the money. We should put it all in one bag. Splitting it between two would look strange."
"Give me yours, sir. I'll put it in mine."
"No—you give yours to me. This paper bag is a luxury brand, after all."
As if anyone would believe that.
"Surely you didn't fail to prepare the money properly?"
Noh Gyeong-se's eyes seemed to dart about for the briefest of moments.
"Hahaha... you're a sharp one. I was in such a rush I only managed to bring fifty million."
"This is how you're going to play it?"
"We'll just make up the difference when we pay the success fee later."
A cheap trick. He should have just been honest from the start. Not that anything this man said could be trusted anyway. But what was he supposed to do about it now? He could hardly call the whole thing off just because the man hadn't brought the right amount.
"Hah... just hand it over."
"Y-yeah, all right..."
Reluctantly, Noh Gyeong-se passed over his paper bag. Jo Seong-gi checked the money and transferred it into the bag he'd brought.
"Don't forget. We're on the same side! Your father and I worked together for over thirty years."
"Shall I... call you Father-in-law, then?"
"Ahem... ahem..."
Noh Gyeong-se cleared his throat at Jo Seong-gi's words.
SG Global and Bando Jewelry had collaborated for many years. They would receive gold, silver, jade, ruby, and sapphire rough from the precious-metal mines operated by Seyeon Development. SG Global sold them overseas, while Bando Jewelry handled the domestic market. When domestic inventory ran high, they pushed it overseas; when overseas sales were sluggish, they redirected it inward. It had been a rock-solid alliance.
That close relationship between the two companies had fractured for two reasons.
After Seyeon Development became Hyoyeon Development, the domestic mines had been stripped of anything worth extracting. They'd failed to secure overseas precious-metal mines as well, and the dwindling supply of rough stone had shattered the principle of splitting domestic and overseas sales. That was the first cause.
The second was that the two companies, once bound by marriage, had become nothing to each other after Noh Mira and Jo Min-gi's divorce.
"Do well today. I went through a lot of trouble to set this meeting up."
"Yes. I hope you'll do well yourself, sir."
Noh Gyeong-se glared at Jo Seong-gi. He was old enough to be the man's father, and had once been his in-law—and yet the younger man spoke to him with such insolence. He was trying everything he could to get on Jo Seong-gi's good side, but that icy tone of voice made his affection for the man evaporate on the spot.
"Say... have you ever..."
"Yes?"
"Our Mira. Have you ever thought about seeing her?"
What kind of world did this man live in, suggesting that he—who had once been Mira's brother-in-law—should go and meet his former sister-in-law, the man's own daughter?
Jo Seong-gi hid the grimace that threatened to crease his face and looked at Noh Gyeong-se with a carefully blank expression.
"I know it sounds absurd... but this isn't the Joseon Dynasty. If two people are lonely and at loose ends, they can meet, can't they? Mira told me you were always kind to her. Always treated her well."
"I did?"
"Didn't you? Even after the divorce... Mira seems to still have some fondness for you..."
It was the kind of thing that would leave people speechless if they knew, but he had, in fact, been on the receiving end of Noh Mira's advances more than once. She'd call him over to the house, saying she'd prepared a gift for her brother-in-law—and coincidentally, every single time, Jo Min-gi had been away on an overseas business trip. His sister-in-law Noh Mira would greet him in heavy lipstick and revealing clothes.
What she'd been after was obvious.
The memory made his stomach turn, but Jo Seong-gi kept his face carefully neutral. He wasn't lonely, and he wasn't at loose ends. And even if he were—why would he ever go near that filthy rag of a woman?
A dimwit like Jo Min-gi might not have known, but everyone who attended those gatherings was well aware that Noh Mira was a slut. Ah—that idiot Jo Min-gi probably didn't even know those gatherings existed. And besides, the child hadn't even been his.
"No."
"Is that so? The world people live in isn't all that complicated. Don't overthink it. If you're interested, just reach out... no, wait. I probably shouldn't get involved. Mira should contact you herself..."
"That's enough."
Noh Gyeong-se, who had been about to press on, shut his mouth.
After Jo Seong-gi's father, Jo Hwan-gyu, had died and the in-law relationship had dissolved, the collusive partnership between Bando Jewelry and SG Global had effectively collapsed. If he could just wrap Jo Seong-gi around his finger, work would get a lot easier. And that divorced woman with a kid in tow, Noh Mira—he needed to get her off his hands one way or another if he was going to die in peace. She was his daughter, but she had a fox-like prettiness to her face, and she'd kept her figure surprisingly well for a mother. If he could just snag one decent man for her...
"This deal is truly important."
He decided to change the subject.
"I know."
"People don't realize it, but the real prize companies are a different breed. We're meeting a truly important big shot today, so we have to get this man on our side no matter what."
Jo Seong-gi looked at Noh Gyeong-se with cold eyes. Was the man senile? Why did he keep repeating the same thing over and over? That was why they were here in the first place, and Jo Seong-gi was already putting up with this nonsense as it was.
A knock sounded at the door.
"Ah, that must be him."
Noh Gyeong-se shot to his feet, and Jo Seong-gi did the same.
"Oh, hello, sir! Welcome!"
"Please, come in."
"A pleasure to meet you. I'm Jo Seong-gi."
"Ah, yes. I know. SG Global, right? Have a seat."
A man who looked to be in his early fifties sank into the sofa and crossed his legs. Narrow, sharply slanted eyes, an excess of crow's feet at the corners. A slightly receding, shiny forehead. Even at a glance, he radiated the kind of presence that said he was not a man to be taken lightly.
"I wasn't originally going to come, you know..."
"We're well aware of the trouble you've taken to be here."
"I understood what you were getting at. But company business is company business. Even an executive with full authority can't just do whatever he wants. No matter how small an alluvial gold operation it is, it's still a gold mine—and gold is more expensive than money, isn't it? You were so insistent, though, so I came by just to say hello."
"Of course. Of course we understand. We're not trying to impose on you, Director. We just hoped you might help us out a tiny bit."
"Hahaha. If it were as easy as you make it sound, I'd help you. But this is something I'd be putting my own neck on the line for."
"Come now, we're all just trying to make a living. It's not as if we're demanding the impossible. If you'd just slice off a third of the tributary rights..."
"You're taking this too lightly. It's not as simple as you think. We didn't get this for free. We paid the Cambodian government for those mining rights. On top of that, we have to grease the palms of the local provincial governors. If we'd gotten it for nothing, I'd just slice it off and hand it over."
"You should have said so sooner."
Noh Gyeong-se looked at Jo Seong-gi and gave a nod. Jo Seong-gi pulled out the paper bag.
"What's that?"
"Nothing at all. You've been working so hard, Director. We thought you might like something good for your health."
"Heh heh. You gentlemen are going to get someone in serious trouble. Are you trying to send me to prison for bribery?"
"Oh, come now. We just put together a little something that won't leave a trace. After all, the best kind of gift is the kind that doesn't leave a paper trail, wouldn't you agree?"
"Ahem... ahem..."
When the paper bag was placed beside him, he casually peeked inside. Bundles of fifty-thousand-won notes, a hundred to a pack, ten packs to a bundle—about five of those. Two hundred and fifty million won.
"Oh my. What's all this? This... well, this wouldn't even be enough to give a man indigestion."
In other words, it wasn't enough.
"Once we receive the tributary rights, we'll take care of the rest as discussed. And as we extract the gold, we'll slip you a little extra along the way."
"Ah, I really shouldn't. This is far too dangerous..."
The man furrowed his brow, pretending to wrestle with the decision, then snapped his head up.
"All right! We all help each other out in this world, don't we? Let's do it."
Jo Seong-gi, who had been sitting silently, looked at the man and spoke.
"Forgive me for asking, but... would it be all right if I visited the company?"
The world was full of con artists, after all. Two hundred and fifty million won was pocket change compared to what they'd be pouring in going forward. He had to confirm everything for certain before any large sums were invested.
"Hey now. You're making the Director uncomfortable. What kind of thing is that to say?"
"No, no! That's fine. I like it. I like a man who handles things clean and precise. That way the split will be accurate later on too, right? Come by anytime. We'll have a cup of tea in my office."
"Then I'll come by tomorrow."
"This guy... you're embarrassing Director Hwang..."
Was it even reasonable to hand over a bribe and then turn around and doubt the man?
"So I just go to the JW Building and ask for you, Director?"
"Yeah. Come in and tell security you're there to see Hwang Seong-sik, Director of JW Development."
Hwang Seong-sik narrowed his already-slit eyes even further and stared at Jo Seong-gi.
"How far do you want this to go?"
"Put him away for about a year."
"That'll drive the price up a bit. As you know, first-time offenders don't typically go to prison unless it's something serious. That means the work has to be more precise. More people to grease, more places to stick money."
"How much would it take?"
Kim Gwang-deok glared at former Prosecutor General Jo Dong-jo.
"You'd need at least two billion, wouldn't you? Prosecutors and judges are putting their careers on the line. You have to cover the hazard pay."
"Two billion?"
"Yes. That's the absolute minimum."
"Ahem! Ahem! Isn't that a bit greedy? It used to be five hundred million, didn't it?"
"The cost of living has gone up considerably, sir. Ten years ago, maybe, but not now. Back when Park & Cha Law Firm was around, you could just tell them, 'Even if you lose your job, I'll send you there,' and that was that. Now the best they can hope for is a professorship, so the hazard pay has to be set that much higher."
Jo Dong-jo. A legal broker.
A prosecutor through and through who had been stripped of his robes on corruption charges just as he was about to be promoted to Prosecutor General. He and Kim Gwang-deok had been in lockstep for the past thirty years.
Even the most innocent man, once he fell into Jo Dong-jo's hands, would end up in prison. And even the most heinous criminal, if he slipped Jo Dong-jo enough money, would walk free with a not-guilty verdict.
That kind of power was impossible to wield through prosecutorial revolving-door privilege alone. His influence reached across the entire prosecution service and into the judiciary's judges, and he had rock-solid connections with newspaper publishers and the political establishment. It was a safe bet that Jo Dong-jo's filing cabinet contained the crimes and corruption of more than half the country's power elite.
"Fine. I'll do it your way, Prosecutor General."
At Kim Gwang-deok's words, Jo Dong-jo broke into a bright smile.
"But... why do you want to put away a greenhorn like that? From what you've told me, he sounds like a nobody. What could a thirty-year-old department head at some IT company have possibly done to get under your skin?"
"There's something there, I tell you. Ever since that bastard showed up, everything I've tried to do has gone strangely sideways and fallen apart. I don't know what it is, but I know he's connected to it."
"What is it you're trying to do, sir? What is it you want? Why not just leave it to me? Give me one of the big ones, and I'll clean everything up exactly the way you want it."
One of the big ones. He meant ten billion won.
At Jo Dong-jo's words, Kim Gwang-deok's face shifted into a smile. Where did this man get off making such a transparent pitch?
Handing Hyoyeon Group's surgery over to Jo Dong-jo would be like putting a cat in charge of the fish. This was a man who would fabricate corruption that didn't even exist and then strip every last won of the slush funds for himself. Jo Dong-jo's filing cabinet almost certainly contained a few files on Hyoyeon Group and Kim Gwang-deok as well.
"I'd like that, but this is a personal matter. Just take care of that bastard for me."
"Shall I make it loud? Or keep it quiet?"
"Quiet, if possible."
"Violent crime? Or... financial?"
The menu's gotten quite diverse.
"I'll leave that to your discretion, Prosecutor General."
"Very well. Then the deposit—one billion up front. The balance when the job is done. And I'll let you know separately about any additional expenses that come up along the way. Success fee is ten percent."
"Understood."
At Kim Gwang-deok's words, Jo Dong-jo rose to his feet.
"Then I'll get to work immediately."
The legal broker, Jo Dong-jo, gave Kim Gwang-deok a slight bow and turned away.