Homeward Bound 2
I met with Lee Hak-jae several times, and we even shared a few drinks. Of course, he always made sure to pocket the “rice cake money.”
“Finally, I get to see the face of the boss of the knife-wielders.”
“Come on, ‘knife-wielder’? That’s a term we use among ourselves. It stings when civilians use it.”
“Civilian, huh… So now I’m just a nobody to you? Even though you eagerly took the money I gave you?”
“Let’s get the facts straight. You didn’t give me the money, did you? You were just the delivery guy. I got paid by Sunyang.”
The Inspector General spoke without hesitation about receiving money from a conglomerate. It meant no one was watching through a two-way mirror, and there were no recordings.
Go home. And Sunyang’s money…
Now I finally knew who hired these knife-wielders.
“I forgot you were the kind of guy who could easily stab the delivery guy for the one who paid you.”
Lee Hak-jae stood up abruptly at the Inspector General’s entrance and addressed the planning director, who was standing at attention.
“Make sure you align yourself properly. This person you think is your lifeline? When I was the one handing out the money, he couldn’t even lift his head in front of me. Oh, there was this one time…”
“That’s enough.”
The Inspector General’s face twisted, and Lee Hak-jae burst into laughter.
“Was it at a drinking party? Anyway, I accidentally flicked some cigarette ash into his glass. It was a mistake. But suddenly, he picked up the glass and downed it in one go. I didn’t even have time to stop him. And then, you know what he said after wiping his mouth? Haha.”
“Director!”
The Inspector General shouted, trying to stop Lee Hak-jae, but it was no use.
“He said, ‘If it’s from you, Director, I’ll gratefully accept anything.’ Hahaha.”
The Inspector General clenched his teeth, glaring at Lee Hak-jae before relaxing his expression.
“So, if you want to be treated like that again, just go home. What kind of mess is this?”
Lee Hak-jae finally said what he’d been holding back.
“Is this mess because of the homeowner?”
“They’re asking you to come back quickly.”
“Is that all? They seem to misunderstand… I’m retired. It’s not like I’m plotting something.”
“That’s why they specifically asked. To train you to be a dog that listens well to its master and send you back. Go back and do as your master says. Then I’ll take the glass you flicked ash into again.”
Lee Hak-jae glanced at his watch and stood up.
“If I leave now, I should be home before midnight.”
The Inspector General subtly blocked the door.
“I need a definite answer. I have to earn my keep too…”
Lee Hak-jae chuckled softly.
“My friend, you’re delusional. Know your place. You’re just a messenger. Even if I look like a mangy dog, with one phone call, I could have you sent to a rural district office. Move aside!”
The Inspector General flinched at the sharp rebuke and stepped back.
Once Lee Hak-jae was gone, the two remaining in the interrogation room sighed.
“Should we head out too? Seems like our work here is done.”
“Is this enough?”
The planning director asked with a worried look.
“Share all the data we’ve gathered with the Seoul High Prosecutor’s Office. And give it to the Southern District Prosecutor’s Office too. Just like that guy said, we’re just messengers, so this should be enough.”
The Inspector General patted the planning director on the back.
“Let’s go. How about a bowl of hangover soup?”
“Comrade, if you take one more step from here, I’ll abandon my loyalty to the chairman. That’s my answer.”
Early in the morning, Lee Hak-jae met Vice Chairman Jin Dong-gi and tossed a thick envelope onto the table.
“It’s been a while since I’ve heard you call my name, Director… No, brother.”
“I’m not a director or anything anymore, so I can call you by your name, right? Why? Does it bother you?”
“No, it’s just nostalgic.”
Jin Dong-gi’s wide smile showed he wasn’t lying.
“I was going to meet your brother, but I came to you instead. At least I think you’re someone I can have a conversation with.”
“You made the right choice. My brother’s all about yelling and shouting, isn’t he?”
Jin Dong-gi opened the envelope Lee Hak-jae had tossed and examined its contents.
After a while, Jin Dong-gi frowned.
“You’ve already abandoned your loyalty to Father, haven’t you? Seeing how you’ve collected all this, it looks like you were always ready to stab him in the back.”
“I couldn’t do it a third time. The kids are grown now. I didn’t want to show them standing in court anymore.”
He’d been in and out of the prosecutor’s office countless times. He’d stood in court and heard not guilty verdicts more than once.
But he’d also been sentenced to prison twice. Although he didn’t serve time due to suspended sentences.
Jin Dong-gi, still frowning, shook his head.
“You didn’t trust our father. He never asked you to take the fall three times. It always ended at two.”
“It ended at two because there were plenty of others to take the fall. But I took the fall because there was no one to replace me. If there’s no one to replace, the chairman would send someone three, four times.”
Jin Dong-gi relaxed his expression and put the documents back in the envelope.
“Don’t be mistaken. Do you think Father spared you because he was afraid of this kind of material? Not at all. He didn’t use you as a scapegoat anymore because he felt sorry for making you take the fall twice. Even if you had a truckload of this kind of material, Father wouldn’t bat an eye.”
“What?”
“Look at me. Do I look scared?”
Jin Dong-gi handed the envelope back to Lee Hak-jae.
“Take it to the police or the prosecutor’s office. You can even spread it all over the media.”
“If you really looked at the contents, you wouldn’t say that so easily.”
“I did. Illegal donations, tax evasion, insider trading… It’s a bombshell. The media would jump on it like fish in water.”
Lee Hak-jae knew why Jin Dong-gi was so confident.
Even if the media made a fuss, it would last at most a month. Sunyang had the power to quiet the noisy world in just a month.
But silencing it would cost a fortune. Especially when there’s solid evidence of illegal activities like this.
They’d have to pay at least several billion in taxes and penalties, and both vice chairmen would have to hold public apology events.
In exchange, he’d serve a prison sentence.
But Lee Hak-jae knew that the second generation wouldn’t waste billions and endure the humiliation of a public apology just to put him behind bars.
“Then you know the price, right?”
“Of course. But this time will be different.”
“No, it won’t. It’s the same pattern, and the result won’t change.”
“Are you so cornered that you’re losing your mind?”
Jin Dong-gi turned on the TV, as if mocking Lee Hak-jae’s certainty.
The TV was broadcasting breaking news.
As of March 12, 11:55 AM, with 193 out of 271 members in favor, the impeachment motion is passed according to Article 65, Paragraph 2 of the Constitution!
The National Assembly’s impeachment committee submits the original impeachment resolution to the Constitutional Court!
“Didn’t you know today was the day?”
“So what? Anyone who needed to know already guessed it, right? It’s nothing new.”
Jin Dong-gi tilted his head, seemingly surprised.
“How long has it been since you left the field that you’ve lost your touch?”
“What do you mean?”
“Don’t you understand the significance of the president’s impeachment? It’s a get-out-of-jail-free card.”
“A get-out-of-jail-free card?”
“The impeachment has captured the attention of the entire nation. For the next two or three months, no one will care about the power struggle between my brother and you. In other words, the president’s impeachment is a get-out-of-jail-free card for the prosecution and media to completely ignore the material you’re going to submit.”
Lee Hak-jae couldn’t say anything.
In two months, it would be over.
Sunyang Group would quietly push advertising to the media, and journalists would indulge in lavish drinking parties.
The prosecutors who covered up the case would be rewarded with promotions or resign and become high-paid lawyers for Sunyang Group.
Meanwhile, he’d be preparing for trial in detention, with all sorts of charges piled on him.
Seeing Lee Hak-jae’s hardened expression, Jin Dong-gi’s lips curled into a smile.
“Looks like you’ve finally caught on that this time the pattern is different. Thanks to 193 members of the National Assembly, we’ll come out unscathed, and only you’ll stand in court. At least there’s a silver lining. Your trial won’t even make the news, so your kids won’t see it.”
Lee Hak-jae knew that Jin Dong-gi’s scenario wasn’t far from the truth.
“What you want from me is the establishment of a holding company, right?”
“What else could it be? Finish it perfectly and retire cleanly. I’ll make sure you get a generous severance package.”
Jin Dong-gi spoke more candidly to the now-silent Lee Hak-jae.
“Honestly, I’m quite disappointed in you. I’m sure Father asked for your opinion on the succession plan, but you never once supported me, did you? Among us siblings, I’m the one fit to be the successor, right?”
This time, it was Lee Hak-jae’s turn to smile.
“Still stuck in that delusion? The evaluation of a successor was something the chairman and I agreed on. You weren’t it.”
Jin Dong-gi shouted in disbelief.
“You think Young-gi is better than me? What’s the criteria? Ambition? The drive to push through no matter what?”
“You’re still mistaken. Jin Young-gi was born the eldest son, and that was everything. But to the chairman, being the eldest son meant a lot. That’s all he benefited from.”
Jin Dong-gi’s expression twisted even more.
“Don’t tell me… Yoon-gi…?”
Lee Hak-jae nodded.
“The chairman and I weren’t wrong. Just look at Yoon-gi now. Even if Do-jun and Oh Se-hyun helped him, he’s made a name for himself in the media world, where the old guard is everywhere. And you? Even if you mobilized Sunyang and gave it your all, do you think you could dominate a field in just ten years?”
Jin Dong-ki couldn’t answer confidently.
“I guarantee you, Yoon-gi will take over the Korean entertainment market. If he hadn’t been fooling around while studying abroad, or if he had shown any interest in the arts, the chairman would have handed the group over to him long ago. You and the others would have been left with a golf course or a foundation at best.”
“So, is that why Father showered Do-jun with so much affection?”
“That’s part of it. If Do-jun weren’t so young, he would have been a threat to you all. Or maybe he already is? After all, he did take a whole 10%.”
“I acknowledge Do-jun’s capabilities. That’s why we’re transitioning to a holding company, to ensure he doesn’t become a threat. If Young-gi and I see Do-jun growing to a point where he becomes a real danger… we won’t just sit back and watch.”
“That’s something you inherited from the chairman. Heh.”
Lee Hak-jae almost said, “You inherited from both your parents.”
When you can’t win fairly, you don’t hesitate to use any means necessary. Legal or not, it doesn’t matter.
Lee Hak-jae tossed the documents he brought onto Jin Dong-ki’s desk again.
“Take your time and look them over. If you think it’s something you can ignore, bring in the prosecutors and stab me in the back. Let’s see who comes out on top. I’m prepared to take the hit.”
“Hyung!”
“Don’t call me that. It’s embarrassing.”
His casual remark carried a weight that was hard to ignore.
Leaving Jin Dong-ki with a stern expression behind, Lee Hak-jae exited the main building of Sunyang Group.
Many employees still saw him as the second-in-command of Sunyang, and they bowed their heads as he passed. But Lee Hak-jae felt uneasy.
Those same employees who bowed to him today would soon point fingers, calling him a traitor who betrayed the chairman’s trust and embezzled Sunyang’s money.
Lee Hak-jae realized he had grown old. In the past, he wouldn’t have cared about others’ perceptions, but now the word “honor” weighed heavily on him.
At 5:15 PM, as he returned home, the president’s powers were suspended, and the prime minister began acting on behalf of the president.