TOIGC 59

Chapter 59 …

Groundwork (1)

“Sigh… have I really lived my whole life just to hear something like that? I feel such a deep sense of despair and self-loathing…”

Watching Choi Deokbae heave a sigh deep enough to hollow out the earth, Yoongi offered a wry smile.

“Come on, it’s not a joke.” “Look at him. Look at that guy ego-tripping until the very end.”

Yoongi’s smile only grew bitter.

“I’m serious, though. I’m genuinely planning to pull this off using my face.”

At that, Deokbae’s despairing expression shifted into one of profound skepticism as he stared at Yoongi.

“For real…?” “Yes, for real.” “I don’t get it at all.”

Hearing Deokbae’s muttered disbelief, Yoongi chuckled softly and continued his explanation.

“Luxury goods aren’t really trending in Korea right now. The biggest reason is that the previous administration heavily suppressed that kind of thing.” “True, come to think of it, you can tell just by how department stores aren’t even that popular yet.” “However, we happen to have JSD in our corner.”

JSD had successfully been promoted to Chief of the Presidential Security Service the day before yesterday. The very day after his promotion, JSD had invited Choi Chulkyu and Yoongi straight to his residence, proving beyond a doubt that he had no intention of icing them out after his rise in power. Furthermore, with the relatives of both JD and JSD slated to secure spots in several of the mini-department stores, bringing luxury goods into the domestic market was guaranteed to face zero restrictions.

“So you’re saying the issue isn’t whether we can import luxury goods, but whether we can actually secure the contracts.” “Exactly. Mid-to-high-tier brands would probably sign with us without much fuss, but ultra-luxury brands guard their brand image like their lives depend on it. Getting them to sign won’t be easy.” “Right, but how on earth are you going to use your face to lock down a contract? I’m completely lost.”

Watching Deokbae struggle, Yoongi let out a soft sigh.

“Explaining it probably won’t do any good, so just stick around and see for yourself.”

Shaking his head in exasperation, Deokbae could do nothing except tear his hair out in sheer frustration.

Only Yoongi and Choi Chulkyu occupied the conference room today. In one sense, it was a private one-on-one meeting. In another, it highlighted just how shockingly narrow Yoongi’s talent pool currently was. Considering he was only a first-year middle schooler, having two close right-hand men and an elite architectural designer at his beck and call was already an extraordinary feat; yet Yoongi acutely felt the limitations of his circle.

“Didn’t you mention taking a quick trip to Europe soon? I mean, I love getting called in like this, so I’m not complaining.”

Since they were off the record, Chulkyu spoke to Yoongi casually, and Yoongi responded with an equally relaxed, open demeanor.

“Up until now, having Secretary Ryu around while I pushed projects forward was enough to keep things running smoothly. But it’s about time I had an expert handling legal matters.” “Fair enough. Secretary Ryu isn’t exactly a legal specialist, and hiring outside lawyers from scratch every single time is a massive headache.”

Nodding in agreement, Chulkyu tossed out a casual suggestion.

“How about signing an exclusive retainer with a decent law firm? That ought to be quite helpful.”

Yoongi shook his head.

“Not a bad idea in theory, but hiring a firm that already handles business for other corporations carries way too much risk. We’re an organization built on a foundation of heavy confidentiality; creating potential blind spots for information leaks is the last thing we want. A formal retainer contract will have to wait at least until I’m an adult.” “In that case, what if I ask Father to lend us the Samwoo Group’s legal team?”

It was a reasonable thought, but not one Yoongi was eager to pursue.

“Also not ideal, mostly because Chief Secretary Lee Sungwon isn’t someone I can completely control just yet, at least not to my satisfaction.”

Chulkyu nodded in silent agreement.

“True, bringing the group’s legal team into the fold could open up that kind of vulnerability. Even by my estimation, Secretary Lee is the type to quietly stockpile personal leverage in preparation for the day Father passes away.”

That didn’t mean Lee Sungwon was guaranteed to betray them. However, if Kihyeon were to pass away down the road and Yoongi happened to treat him coldly or try to sideline him, Sungwon was precisely the kind of person who could walk out the door carrying all their sensitive intel straight to a rival corporation. While Yoongi intended to treat his people fairly, creating unnecessary risks at this juncture went against his core philosophy, instantly eliminating the Samwoo Group legal team from contention.

“Yoongi, if I had to distill what you’re looking for down to the essentials, is it roughly this? First, someone who can act as your dedicated secretary at a moment’s notice, much like Ryu or myself. Second, someone well-versed in the law. Am I on the mark?”

Seeing Chulkyu hit the nail right on the head, Yoongi smiled and nodded.

“Spot on.” “In that case, what about your eldest brother-in-law?” “My eldest aunt’s husband?” “Yeah. He’s currently a senior prosecutor, but when the regime shifted recently, his political faction collapsed, and he got shipped off to a regional post. If you approach him with an offer, chances are you’ll get a positive answer.” “How old is my aunt’s husband again?” “I don’t recall the exact number, but somewhere in his late forties?”

Watching Chulkyu struggle to remember, Yoongi shook his head.

“No good. He’s way too old.” “Hmm… you think so?” “If he were close in age to my eldest aunt, maybe. But the age gap between them is so vast that he’d almost certainly try to pull rank and throw his weight around to control me.” “Honestly, I can’t even argue with that. After spending years living the high life as a senior prosecutor, he’s probably way too used to playing neighborhood bully.” Chulkyu paused. “What about the second brother-in-law, then?” “My third aunt’s husband?” “Yeah. From what I recall, he made it through the Judicial Research and Training Institute with decent scores, but he’s a bit too naive and gullible…” “Gullible?”

The word naive instantly piqued Yoongi’s interest.

“Yeah. Some large law firm supposedly sweet-talked him into skipping out on the judge and prosecutor exams, promising him a spot. He trusted their word, gave up the bench, and settled for becoming a civilian attorney…” “And?” “And the law firm hung him out to dry. From what I gathered, they slipped someone else into the position instead, completely screwing over my poor brother-in-law’s career.” “Didn’t Grandfather protest?” “I don’t know the exact details, but given that Father didn’t make a peep about it, the pressure must have come from a corporate group with far more muscle than ours.” “Ouch…”

Samwoo Group certainly possessed enough clout to comfortably secure a spot within the top 100 conglomerates. However, reversing that logic meant there were at least ninety more powerful corporate groups sitting above them. If it had been a son targeted in such a manner, Kihyeon would have gone to war; but because it was a son-in-law, Kihyeon had no choice but to swallow his rage, grit his teeth, and back down.

“So what is he up to these days?” “His personality was never cut out for corporate lawyering anyway—he really should have gone into the judiciary as a judge or prosecutor. He managed to scrape his way into a decent firm initially, got canned, hopped to another office, got canned again, and now he’s forced to run a solo practice where he probably can’t even pull in enough to cover loose change.”

It was a tragic story, but the corners of Yoongi’s mouth slowly curved upward into a smile.

“Just based on what you’ve told me, I like the sound of that second option a lot better. Do you think we can set up a meeting for this evening?” “He’d probably come running over with bells on. Though, just to be thorough, why don’t we invite the other brother-in-law along too? Having options to choose from beats meeting just one person, right?”

Figuring there was no harm in casting a wider net, Yoongi nodded, and Chulkyu stepped out into the living room to pick up the telephone receiver.

Inside the Samwoo Heavy Industries president’s residence, the air conditioning hummed aggressively against the midsummer heat.

The reactions of the two visitors—active senior prosecutor Seo Jong-oh and rookie attorney Cho Chung-woo, who had arrived together at the home of their wife’s brother—differed just as sharply as their respective career trajectories.

“Come to think of it, I hear you’re practicing law these days?”

Sitting side by side on an empty living room sofa, Seo Jong-oh broke the silence, clearly fighting off boredom.

“Pardon? Ah, yes…” “How’s the attorney life treating you?” “Well… it’s not exactly easy.”

Watching Cho Chung-woo click his tongue in suppressed misery, Seo Jong-oh smiled inwardly. In truth, Jong-oh knew the exact reality of Chung-woo’s situation through his wife. By all accounts, Chung-woo should have been sitting on the judicial bench or working at a top-tier law firm; instead, he was stuck running a dingy office in a quiet corner of Gyeonggi Province, struggling even to make rent. While his father-in-law chipped in to help cover living expenses, anyone could see he was in a wretched spot.

“Really? Is there a particular reason?”

Even though he knew precisely why things had gone sideways, Jong-oh deliberately feigned ignorance. Having also been demoted and banished to the provinces following the regime shift, finding someone even more miserable than himself provided a comforting balm to his ego. With just the two of them sitting there, Jong-oh was reveling in a potent sense of superiority.

“I suppose… law practice just doesn’t quite suit my personality.”

Chung-woo mumbled a vague excuse, but Jong-oh had zero intention of letting the conversation drop there.

“That’s why I told you so back then. I warned you that private practice wouldn’t fit you and urged you to stick with the prosecutor’s office or the judiciary. If you’d come in as a prosecutor, I could have pulled some strings to look after you, tsk tsk.”

Chung-woo had only been practicing law for a year, meaning Jong-oh—who had been demoted two years prior—was in no position to pull strings for anyone. But since it was an empty boast anyway, Jong-oh tossed it out freely to gorge himself on superiority.

“Hahaha…”

As Jong-oh basked in satisfaction at Chung-woo’s hollow laugh, Choi Chul-ho emerged from the master bedroom.

“Ah, sorry for the wait. I was tied up on the phone.”

Even in his mid-forties, Chul-ho boasted a sun-baked bronze complexion and a physique radiating robust health. His mere appearance caused both Jong-oh and Chung-woo to instinctively snap upright and adjust their postures.

The law is far away, but a fist is close at hand.

That maxim held just as true for legal professionals as anyone else. Yet inside his head, Jong-oh was busy looking down on Chul-ho.

Tsk tsk, with nothing upstairs, he’s still running around flexing his muscles even at his age. Beats me how someone like that managed to spawn a freak of nature like Yoongi. Must have been the mother’s genetics kicking in. Then again, they do say brains come from the mother’s side.

Naturally, voicing those thoughts out loud was out of the question. Instead, Jong-oh adopted a subtly veiled tone to poke fun at Chul-ho.

“Hyung-nim, your physique is as rock-solid as ever. I’m genuinely envious of your health. With people constantly dragging me out to drink imported whiskey and whatnot all day, I barely have a spare minute to work out.”

It was a thinly veiled brag about rubbing elbows with powerful figures and drinking expensive liquor, but Chul-ho merely chuckled good-naturedly.

“What else is a guy like me supposed to do? Just grind it out with physical labor, I suppose. Though I’ve taken up golf recently; figured it counts as a sport, and it actually fits my style well enough. Well, I mostly just show up to hit the ball while everyone else handles the actual work.”

Chul-ho’s remark carried zero hidden malice, yet Jong-oh managed to extract a sense of inferiority from it anyway.

Hmph, so he just saunters around playing golf all day, is that it?

Suppressing a scowl, Jong-oh decided to scratch at Chul-ho’s nerves one more time.

“By the way, Father-in-law’s affection for Yoongi these days is truly something else. At this rate, he might end up bypassing your turn entirely.”

In any normal context, it was an immensely disrespectful thing to say, but Chul-ho simply brushed it off with a hearty laugh.

“If he does, that’s fine by me. I was actually scratching my head wondering how to handle all the heavy intellectual lifting down the road anyway. If my son wants to step up and practice filial piety, any father would welcome it with open arms. I’ve got a dutiful son—a genuinely dutiful son. Hahahat!”

Finding that his provocation had landed with zero effect, Jong-oh once more forced down a sour expression, keeping a polite smile plastered on his face as he steered the conversation onward.

“Ah, by the way, Yoongi is already waiting for us in the study. Haven’t you gone in yet?”

Startled, Jong-oh and Chung-woo—who had been lingering in the living room—turned their gazes toward the study door. At Chul-ho’s prompting, they awkwardly pushed the door open and stepped inside.

“You’ve arrived?”

The scene that greeted them as the door swung open featured Yoongi sitting squarely in the head seat at the table. At that sight, the expressions of Seo Jong-oh and Cho Chung-woo fractured in completely opposite directions.