You Have Been Defended - Chapter 207
The next day, everyone except Choi Jonghyeon and Oh Yanghun, who'd turned in early, was still reeling from the hangover. As expected, Jo Bongjun was half-dead, surrounded by empty soju bottles. I only woke up because of him—clinging to the toilet and retching every ten minutes with a wretched "Urk!" So, that says it all.
Of course, Kang Minjae, who was staring pityingly at Jo Bongjun, wasn't in much better shape. Choi Jonghyeon and Oh Yanghun, feeling sorry for us, brought back some haejangguk from a nearby restaurant, but none of us could stomach even a single spoonful. We were supposed to check out of the pension by 11 a.m. and head back to Seoul, but getting in a car like this? We'd probably puke our guts out halfway there and die.
In the end, we hurriedly looked up nearby accommodations and unexpectedly extended our MT into a second day. The place Kang Minjae found in a panic wasn't some ordinary pension—it was the best hotel in Gangneung. The room had a terrace overlooking the sea, and there were plenty of amenities inside.
"Hey, wanna hit the hotel bar tonight for some whiskey?"
"Hyung, are you kidding? Don't even mention the letter 's' in booze. My mouth still tastes like alcohol. Ugh, I think I'm gonna hurl."
"You got more to hurl?"
"Nah, I shouldn't... but I feel like it. Be right back!"
Jo Bongjun collapsed in front of the toilet and slammed the bathroom door shut. After a long commotion, he finally settled down and checked the hotel info pamphlet in the room. Naturally, his eyes landed on...
"Anyone wanna hit the sauna?"
"Me."
"Me too."
"Ah, I was thinking of soaking in the tub myself."
Everyone except me raised their hands.
"What about you, Cha?"
"I'll go to the sauna too. It'll be boring if I'm the only one left out."
"I won't be bored."
"You will."
"I don't think so."
Jo Bongjun tilted his head, nodding as if to say "Got it," then picked up the phone and dialed the sauna extension.
"We have five guests here who want to use the sauna right now—is it okay to just head straight over?"
Ha, so my opinion was ignored from the start. In the end, I was dragged to the sauna against my will.
"I can't remember the last time I went to a sauna with you, Lawyer Cha."
With towels wrapped around our waists, the five of us sat side by side in the sweltering sauna. Oh Yanghun and I had often pulled all-nighters at work, so saunas were our go-to for cleaning up. It wasn't frequent, but we'd scrub each other's backs. Things had been too busy lately, so yeah, it had been a while.
No sooner had we settled in than Jo Bongjun, his face beet red from the heat, started slapping his chest and sweating buckets.
"By the way, Cha."
"Yes."
"That source you gave me the other day."
As soon as Choi Jonghyeon spoke, all eyes turned to him. True to form for workaholics, even on a break, it was shop talk.
"Source? What source?"
"Oh, looks like Office Manager Oh and Kang haven't gotten the update yet."
"If it weren't for the MT, it would've gone out yesterday."
"Cha always doles it out in drips instead of just spilling it all at once."
"You two kept complaining there was nothing to report on, so I gave you a heads-up early."
"Nah, it's like you know more but feed it to us bit by bit."
"No way. I can't tell you what I don't know."
Oh boy. Choi Jonghyeon had always been quick on the uptake—tricky.
"You drop a hint and then suddenly come back with 'I figured this out' or 'Found that.' You're holding out on us, aren't you?"
Oof, busted?
"No, that's not it. When we went to Jinsung together for the Minghwa Pharma case, remember? If Lawyer Cha had known everything, he never would've gone to those lengths. He put in a ton of effort."
Kang Minjae jumped to my defense. Moments like this made me glad I'd brought him on board. I'd decided to team up with them now, but I couldn't reveal this was my second life, so I wasn't sharing my full blueprint. Still, I provided the right materials at the right times. Dumping too much too soon would raise suspicions, so hints it was.
"So what was the source Lawyer Cha gave you?"
"He said the FDA director might have a connection to Lee Jeongchan."
"Lee Jeongchan? The Minwoo Party presidential candidate?"
Kang Minjae blinked wide-eyed, as if the name was out of left field.
"Primaries haven't happened yet, so it's not set in stone, but barring any upsets, it'll be him."
Choi Jonghyeon replied. He was famous as a Wooshin expert, but his real obsession shone with Lee Jeongchan. In my previous life, Lee Jeongchan won this election, became president, and served out his term unscathed. But a president's dirt always surfaces after the fact. Choi Jonghyeon had relentlessly raised suspicions about him even during his term, appealing to politics buffs but failing to capture national attention—thanks to National Intelligence Service meddling. He never gave up, though, and in 2018, he uncovered Lee Jeongchan's hidden scandals that no one else knew. And right now, in 2010, I'm the only one who knows what even he doesn't yet.
"Cha mentioned it, but it's kinda thin. That's the sort of thing anyone could wriggle out of."
"What's the link between the FDA director and Lee Jeongchan?"
"Ah, their backgrounds. Both from Yeongdeok. That's it—no shared schools or family ties."
"Yeongdeok? Hmm, it's not a big city, so not many big names from there. In this world, they could easily band together..."
Kang Minjae trailed off uncertainly, and Choi Jonghyeon picked up.
"What Cha meant was, that kind of hometown tie means a connection's possible. If we can link a heavyweight like Lee Jeongchan to the Minghwa Pharma case, it'll blow wide open."
The Minghwa Pharma probe was still ongoing. I'd sketched the big picture and laid out leads; the rest was up to the prosecutors. But Wooshin Group wasn't new to this game. Even with focused raids, they hadn't nailed the core of the FDA or Minghwa Pharma yet. From what I'd seen, they'd only nabbed a few small fry who'd taken bribes big and small.
Truth be told, it was borderline for a special prosecutor team, so there was talk of a task force, but nothing concrete. These investigations dragged on for months as a rule. Anyway, since Choi Jonghyeon and Jo Bongjun's broadcast had started with Minghwa Pharma, we'd poke there more—and tie in a few extras. Not that my personal grudge against Lee Jeongchan played no part.
"Hyung, you're the Lee Jeongchan expert. Heard anything?"
"I'd have spilled already if I had. Never heard about any FDA link."
"Nailing Lee Jeongchan would be huge. That guy's no slouch of a bastard."
"Damn right. Total bastard."
"But even if he's tied to Minghwa Pharma, won't it be just a scratch for him?"
True enough. I only knew about the FDA-Lee Jeongchan connection—nothing more. It might not even relate to Minghwa Pharma. But consider this: Suppose Candidate Lee Jeongchan gets hit with Scandal A during the race, and the fallout leads to a full scrub-down. That FDA tie becomes prime chum amid the frenzy—"Lee Jeongchan again?" It's not big enough standalone, but timed with the ongoing Minghwa probe? It'll synergize like the Big Bang, dragging his candidacy into question.
"We'll find a way to make it hit hard."
"So we're taking down both Lee Jeongchan and Minghwa Pharma completely? That's too grand a scheme. Lee Jeongchan's a big fish. Toppling a politician like that with our little plot? Damn, I'm getting chills—excited ones."
Why Lee Jeongchan mattered to us? Simple. From his political debut to now, Wooshin Group had bankrolled him. They were his sponsor. You take, you pay back. Look at how Wooshin ballooned into a mega-corp during his term—the answer's clear. Sideline him, and we curb Wooshin's growth. Essential work, only doable in 2010.
"Cha, you're not holding out on more, right?"
Jo Bongjun narrowed his eyes at me.
"I'd say if I knew."
I knew Lee Jeongchan's corruption, but no hard evidence. Like knowing Antrozol Alpha from Minghwa had issues but not about the pharmacist hiding in that fishing village. Too early to spill. Had to play it like we dug it up naturally.
"Fair enough."
"Hyung, when are you gonna drop this 'Cha the Oracle' theory?"
"It's a gut feeling! Reporter's instinct!"
"...Excuse me, hyungs. Sorry to interrupt."
"Nah, we're done. Spill it, maknae."
Jo Bongjun turned to the grim-faced Kang Minjae with a kind smile.
"What? Why the sour face?"
"...I've been wanting to say this."
"What?"
"...How long do we have to stay in this sauna? It's roasting me alive! Argh! Too hot! I can't take it anymore!"
With that, Kang Minjae bolted upright and fled the sauna. And just like that, we all evacuated one after another.