CHAPTER 262: I Immediately Called the Number from the Text
I immediately dialed the number from the text message. I needed to confirm if it was really Lee Jeongchan, and more importantly, figure out why the hell he'd sent me something like that.
He might not even pick up, but if he'd gone to the trouble of sending it, the least he could do was verify himself, right? Manners and all.
"Yes."
It was a short, one-syllable response, but I could tell right away. It was him. So why? He was holed up at home awaiting trial. His crimes were severe enough that he'd been detained initially, but he'd been released midway due to health issues.
I wasn't thrilled about that situation, but since the consensus was that he'd end up serving time after the trial anyway, I'd been content to watch and wait. Never in my wildest dreams did I expect him to reach out to me.
And even if he did, I'd figured it'd be curses or resentment hurled my way—not an offer to expose Wooshin.
"This is Cha Juhan, Representative."
"Looks like you got the text just fine. So, have you given it some thought?"
"...Before that, I'm curious why you would hand over materials like this to me."
It could be a ploy to feed me fake documents and undermine my credibility. Maybe Wooshin planned to dismantle my claims perfectly and make me look like a fool. I couldn't rule out that this was a mission straight from them.
"I thought Lawyer Cha would have figured it out. Guess I overestimated you."
But if I had to guess why he was handing this over to me, one hypothesis stood out. Abandoned by Go Sangjun—the man he'd once called brother—Lee Jeongchan wanted revenge on Wooshin. And he figured I was the only one who could make proper use of whatever he had.
Up to now, I'd taken down all sorts of big shots. Through trials or public scandals. Did the prosecutors or journalists fail because they didn't know how? I doubted it.
Those who got their hands on massive intel were too terrified of the enormous forces behind it. They buried cases or got shut down by higher-ups. In my previous life, I'd seen plenty choose to cover up the truth out of fear of exposure.
But I'd dragged every case I touched into the public eye and gotten them to trial, no matter what.
Taking on Wooshin in this country was like launching a suicide bombing. And even then, you might only hurt yourself while they walked away unscathed. All the suspicions and criticisms against Wooshin kept piling up, but to them, it was just barely ticklish rumors.
In that context, if Lee Jeongchan thought even handing this info to someone trustworthy would just get it buried—or worse, land him right back in Wooshin's clutches—what then? I'd toppled a viable presidential candidate like him, so maybe he saw hope in me.
If so, choosing me wasn't a bad call.
"I get what you mean. For now, I'd like to meet and talk it over."
"You know I don't have much time."
"If dawn today works, I can see you right away."
"...Tomorrow night would be better. Not today."
"Understood. Pick a time and place that's convenient, and I'll come to you."
Lee Jeongchan hung up without a word.
I locked eyes with Kang Minjae, who was staring at me in stunned disbelief.
"Tomorrow night."
"Wha—let's head up first. And we gotta meet Bongjun hyung and Jonghyeon hyung too. What the hell is going on?"
Kang Minjae snapped out of it after letting out a string of awed "whoas," like he couldn't believe it.
"Gotta pay respects to the elders and get going quick."
Since I'd said I'd stay the night, my parents and aunts looked disappointed when I mentioned urgent business pulling me back to Seoul. They had a laundry list of legal questions for me and insisted I stay longer, but I promised to visit again soon and finally made it to the car—trunk stuffed with hastily packed food they'd loaded up in the meantime.
It didn't take long to reach Seoul in the dead of night. On the way, I gave Jo Bongjun and Choi Jonghyeon the rough rundown: Lee Jeongchan wanted to hand over Wooshin intel. They could barely contain their excitement—even though they were out drinking, they ditched that for a meeting, saying they couldn't show up buzzed.
I hadn't planned to wake Oh Yanghun, figuring he'd be asleep, but he texted that Choi Jonghyeon's call had roused him and he was getting dressed.
"Cha lawyer, Minjae! Hurry up!"
By the time we reached the studio, they were all set. Well, "all set" meaning takeout coffee, bread, and snacks laid out before the meeting.
"No way—what's Lee Jeongchan's deal, dropping bombshell info on Cha lawyer like that?"
Jo Bongjun fired off the question before we even sat down properly. They looked thrilled. Lately, they'd been scraping by with stock broadcasts to hold onto viewers, so they'd been pretty down...
I played the short recording of my call with Lee Jeongchan without delay. Then I explained my theory on why he'd chosen me.
"But I'm a bit worried."
Once the playback ended, Oh Yanghun spoke up quietly.
"This could be a trap. Sure, Lee Jeongchan has plenty of reason to hate Wooshin. But his faction's forming a new party, and even if he serves a few years, he'll come back to politics there. Isn't handing over Wooshin dirt a bit reckless for a guy like that?"
"Hmm, yeah, that makes sense when you put it like that."
Choi Jonghyeon nodded in agreement.
"Wooshin's been bankrolling his politics all this time, right? Even if they ditched him, he's eaten well from their table for years—revenge feels kinda funny. If Wooshin got in trouble, he'd have jumped ship anyway. Plus, he's been Iljungilbo's editor-in-chief for ages and kept tight with Go Sangjun. Those guys' combined influence in this society is insane—would he really bite the hands that fed him?"
Choi Jonghyeon tilted his head, repeating how weird it was.
"You sure Wooshin really abandoned him? Wasn't his release from detention their doing?"
At Jo Bongjun's question, Choi Jonghyeon shook his head.
"Iljungilbo's been way too aggressive on him for that. Even if it's smoke and mirrors, the tone's brutal. Se-yeon said it feels like they're fully cutting him loose."
"What's the vibe in political circles?"
From what I knew, they saw Lee Jeongchan as done for. Even if he served time and returned, president was off the table—maybe a few terms as an assemblyman scraping by on his concrete base. He'd run for president, sure, but a fringe candidate like him had zero shot.
"They think he's toast too. Iljungilbo coordinates with Wooshin, but they read the room."
Choi Jonghyeon echoed the sentiment.
"So, you guys think it's a trap?"
"Yeah, probably? The stuff he gives could be fake, or meant to throw us off."
"But how would Lee Jeongchan know what we know about Wooshin to even try disrupting us?"
"Doesn't matter if it's Wooshin who knows. Remember when Myeonghwa Pharma bugged your office?"
"That was ages ago, and we only talked there back then. After, we switched to the studio. And Cha lawyer ran that bug detector thing everywhere afterward to check."
I'd been sweeping the office periodically for bugs in case Wooshin planted any, but I hadn't realized it came off as paranoid.
"So what's our conclusion? Lee Jeongchan's really gonna hand info to Cha lawyer?"
"Fuck, maybe when we show up, some thug's hiding to smash the back of your head with a frying pan and kidnap you."
With no consensus in sight, Jo Bongjun threw up his hands and started spouting nonsense.
In truth, I could verify Lee Jeongchan's intentions by meeting him and using my ability. But I couldn't say that here, so time for a practical wrap-up.
"Anyway, passing on this chance out of trap fears would suck on every level. We meet, check it out, grab the materials. Then we vet them ourselves."
"Fair point."
"If we're really worried about a frying-pan ambush, we call Taesik and have him watch your back. Sounds good."
"If it worries you that much, sure."
We stayed in the studio until the wee hours, so I didn't wake until past noon. I skip breakfast often, but after sleeping in, I figured I should eat—mother's packed food filled me right up.
From yesterday's meeting, Taesik's crew, Kang lawyer, and Choi Jonghyeon would shadow me near the meetup spot. Even though it was still daytime, prep had everyone buzzing. They'd all gathered at the studio when I suggested moving together.
Lee Jeongchan hadn't specified time or place yet, so plotting routes was tricky, but the plan came together solid. I'd planned to go solo—no big risks sensed—but better safe.
"Feels like we're shooting a spy flick, huh."
And they seemed pretty hyped prepping too... I wanted to tease them but let it slide.
By evening...