Alliance Breakdown 1
There are some things you can say out loud.
“If Uncle doesn’t agree, next week’s board meeting might not even happen, right?”
“Agree? So you think I’m just an accomplice in all this? A younger brother who just follows the eldest’s orders?”
“I hope that’s the case.”
“Sorry to disappoint you, but if I get involved, I lead. I don’t follow.”
“Hmm… So the board meeting will definitely happen.”
“Yes. And the outcome won’t change. Once it’s over, you’ll find no one in the Sunyang Group willing to follow your lead.”
His confident words made me give a bitter smile.
“I thought I hadn’t done anything to fall out of your favor, Uncle. Seems I was mistaken.”
“When you, as a grandson, inherited shares in the group, you fell out of everyone’s favor. If you’d just received a bank account or a house deed like the other grandsons, I might have placed you in a key position. Your talent is too valuable to waste.”
His words were filled with sincerity.
“So, you’re saying you only allow smart nephews, but no competition?”
“Competition?”
Vice Chairman Jin Dong-ki’s face flushed red.
“I might acknowledge that word when you’re thirty years older. No matter how talented you are now, you’re just a kid who can’t help but get overwhelmed. Management isn’t just about numbers. It’ll take you a long time to understand that.”
“How much longer do I need to learn?”
“I already told you. Learn for another thirty years.”
I scratched my head, looking a bit troubled.
“This is… problematic. I planned to finish learning in about three years. By thirty, shouldn’t I be using what I’ve learned?”
“Well, that’s for you to decide. You’ve asked all your questions, right? Then you should leave. Oh, and someone else will be using your office starting next week. You might want to pack up your things while you’re here.”
Vice Chairman Jin gestured towards the door.
Before bowing and leaving, I left him with one last remark.
“Make sure you don’t miss the news tonight. You’ll hear my answer.”
He snorted at the mention of the news.
“Planning to denounce your uncle for taking your inheritance? Reporters will swarm like bees. It’ll be quite the hot topic. But… do as you wish. If it helps you vent your anger, that’s good.”
“Do you think I’d go on the news just to vent?”
I smiled as I bowed, sensing a hint of surprise from him.
My second uncle might end up skipping dinner tonight.
“I’m a prosecutor from the Seoul Central District Prosecutors’ Office. Originally from the special investigations unit, but after causing a ruckus, I got demoted to the criminal division. He’s sure to be transferred to a provincial office in the next reshuffle, so he’s already fiddling with his resignation letter.”
Vice President Jang Do-hyung handed over a personnel file as he explained.
“Who introduced him?”
“A high school senior of mine, now a lawyer, worked with him during his special investigations days. Recently, he’s been visiting often, seriously considering opening his own practice.”
“Seems like a charge-first, think-later type.”
Looking at the cases this prosecutor handled, I could imagine the headaches he must have given his department head.
But he’s not just driven by a simple sense of justice.
The cases he tackled were all significant. He knows that even if he fails, targeting big fish can lead to success.
“But he hasn’t had any successful cases. They all ended inconclusively, leaving him with a tarnished reputation.”
“You’ve given him a hint, right?”
“Yes. He thinks it’s the perfect case to leave the prosecution with.”
The car weaved through the narrow streets of northern Seoul. To shake off the eyes and ears of my uncles trailing me, driving around the busy city a few times was the best way.
After losing the tail, I headed to a quiet barbecue restaurant in northern Gyeonggi Province.
The name ‘Garden’ suggested it was an old establishment, complete with a spacious garden, so there was no need to worry about anyone secretly taking photos.
As I opened the door to the private room where the sniper awaited, two men stood up abruptly.
The older man was likely the lawyer, a friend of Vice President Jang, and the nervous-looking man was the sniper I needed.
“Ah, it’s an honor to meet such a famous person. Haha.”
Ignoring the middle-aged man who was trying to be jovial while handing me his business card, I spoke to Vice President Jang instead.
“Vice President, we need to have a serious conversation, so please dine in another room. We can do introductions later.”
“Oh, yes.”
The lawyer, who had been about to hand over his card, hurried out at Jang’s signal. He seemed to have hoped for a connection with a chaebol family, judging by his heavy steps as he left.
“Let’s sit, Prosecutor.”
“Oh, yes.”
The man, approaching his mid-thirties, didn’t seem too anxious or tense.
It was clear he had let go of any expectations.
“I heard you’re leaving the prosecution soon.”
I poured soju into the glass in front of him as I spoke.
“Yes, that’s how it turned out.”
“That organization can’t stand outliers. I’ve heard it’s worse than the military.”
“Jin Do-jun… Oh, what should I call you…?”
“It’s fine. We’re university alumni, aren’t we? Feel free to call me comfortably.”
He slapped his forehead.
“Oh, right. I forgot. You’re from our department, aren’t you? It’s not common for a third-generation chaebol to be a law school graduate, so I didn’t think of it.”
“I’m not used to it either. I enrolled but never really studied… Haha.”
In our country, academic connections, especially university ones, are the strongest. Regional ties are blurred due to the lack of class distinctions, and high school connections aren’t as welcome for those with superiority due to random assignments.
But universities gather similar types, creating a stronger bond than any other place.
This man, who had seemed uncomfortable just moments ago, suddenly looked at ease, thanks to our shared university connection.
“Still, our junior is quite impressive. Most of those kids just rely on their family background and fool around, but your grades were outstanding, right?”
He seemed to have a lot of grudges against chaebols, given his harsh words. It was clear he had often been pressured to halt investigations into corporate corruption.
“We don’t have time for old stories. Let’s save the soju and alma mater talk for after this is over.”
He put down the glass he was holding.
“You’re in a hurry, I see.”
“Yes. We need to hit the news tonight.”
“Tonight?”
“One phone call is all it takes to mobilize reporters. The script is ready, but we lack an actor.”
“Isn’t the casting already done? I came here with a promise of a hefty guarantee.”
He grimaced, but I smiled.
“As a director, I need to check the acting skills.”
I slid a stack of documents towards him.
“Take a look at the script first. The audition comes after.”
The prosecutor, a candidate for the lead role, quickly opened the documents.
As he meticulously read through each page, there were moments when his eyes lit up and times when he gulped down water, perhaps feeling frustrated.
By the time the heat from the ungrilled charcoal had cooled, he closed the documents.
“Someone’s missing.”
“Finding out who that someone is, is the prosecutor’s job.”
“Do I need to find them?”
Judging by his understanding of where the script was headed, his quick thinking was commendable.
“No. It’s a story where we don’t know who the culprit is by the end.”
He subtly gestured with the cigarette between his fingers, seeking permission.
“Go ahead.”
I nodded, and he took a deep drag of the cigarette.
“The overseas slush fund worth hundreds of billions is a problem, but embezzling money under the guise of acquiring a non-existent foreign company… That’s heinous.”
Even though he was about to leave the prosecution, he seemed genuinely angry, enough to ignite a pure sense of justice.
“Embezzlement, breach of trust, illegal transfer of assets abroad… For amounts over 5 billion, the minimum is ten years.”
“Up to life imprisonment is possible. Plus, the statute of limitations is ten years, so there are still three years left.”
“You didn’t just fool around in law school. You know your stuff.”
“I had to brush up on the law while organizing this material. It’s been a while since I last looked at it. Haha.”
The prosecutor didn’t seem to have the luxury to laugh along. He knew his role wasn’t to fully uncover this crime but just to stir the pot and leave it at that.
Like the ungrilled charcoal on this table, where the heat had already dissipated.
“Junior, if I blow this up, it won’t be easy to handle. No matter how I see it, the owner of this money is definitely someone from the Sunyang Group. You can’t get this level of detail without internal documents.”
I read the curiosity in his eyes. He surely knew the truth that knowing too much can be dangerous, yet curiosity is a powerful emotion that can make one forget the risks.
“I’ll handle the conclusion. You just need to light the fuse. And unnecessary speculation only makes things uncomfortable for both of us. Why are you doing this when you should know better?”
“It’s not that… If it fizzles out, I’m completely done for…”
The prosecutor, who had been acting familiar by calling me ‘junior,’ couldn’t hide his embarrassment and stammered.
“Didn’t you come prepared for this? Didn’t you hear that you’d be taken care of?”
“Yes, I did, but…”
“Then decide now. Don’t waste time rolling your eyes at a busy person!”
As I raised my voice, he visibly lowered his stance.
Those who have wielded power are sensitive to the demeanor of someone with even greater power. He immediately started watching my reactions.
“I don’t know how much a civil servant’s pension is, but I’m offering enough to ensure you never have to worry about money again. Are you still concerned about the future?”
“Alright. I’ll trust you, junior, and use my prosecutor’s badge properly for once.”
He gathered the documents with a flourish, his voice booming.
“The key points to emphasize at the press conference are…”
“Trust me, junior. Leave it to the lead actor. This isn’t my first rodeo, and I’ll nail the important parts better than anyone.”
Watching his confidence shine through, I picked up the soju bottle with a smile.
“Please take care of it, senior.”
He grinned back, extending his glass, and I filled it respectfully with both hands, like any good junior would.
“Make sure everything’s ready for the evening news.”
“The reporters are already on standby, and the news department has promised full cooperation. They said it would get at least two minutes of airtime, possibly even leading the segment.”
On the drive back to Seoul, Vice President Jang Do-hyung calmly reported on the day’s preparations.
“The meeting with the Prosecutor General is all set, right?”
“Yes. He was hesitant at first, but when I mentioned it was on behalf of the late chairman, he agreed without a second thought.”
“Good work.”
Jang Do-hyung glanced at me, then pulled out a sheet of paper.
“What’s this?”
“It’s a list I obtained in advance. It seems the director is trying to disrupt the board meeting.”
I had a hunch about the list.
“These are the people who will be appointed as your right-hand men at the board meeting.”
The organizational chart of the new executives and directors of Sunyang Financial Group was laid out clearly.
“Yes. Some of them are quite irritating.”
“Well, this situation has its advantages. We can clearly distinguish who’s who and clean house.”
“Yes, we’ll dismiss them all…”
“No.”
I shook my head briefly.
“Dismissing them isn’t enough. We need to ensure they leave with a stain on their reputation that makes anyone frown. Reassign them to regional branches or customer service, and have the audit team dig up even the tiniest mistakes. Even if they resign, they shouldn’t leave on good terms.”
Seeing my determination, Jang Do-hyung nodded vigorously.