You Have Been Defended [EN]: Chapter 319

“Look at this, look at this.”

Jo Bong-joon, who stayed up late searching the internet for reactions until dawn yesterday, was unusually awake early, staring at his phone.

I wondered what was up, seeing him sitting on the sofa in his running clothes, scratching his stomach right after showering. It seemed he’d woken up early to check the reactions that had accumulated overnight.

“This is really something, Attorney Cha. Did you see this?”

He rushed over and showed me his phone.

[‘Chan-Joon♥Yena’ Idol Official Couple Birth

The owner of the heart cake in Chan-joon’s SNS is Yena

Yena, carefully getting to know Chan-joon since 2 months ago……]

Rumors of a romance between members of the two most popular idol groups were all over the internet.

Naturally, their stories dominated the top of the real-time search rankings.

Of course, that didn’t mean that the core search terms ‘Secretary Go Yoon-soo’ and ‘Lee Jung-chan Murder Contract’ had disappeared, but the main pages of the portal sites were soon flooded with idol stories.

“What did I say? I told you a dating scandal would break out.”

“I thought it might, but they were being too obvious. I didn’t think they’d be *this* blatant.”

“But Attorney Cha, you’re number 4 in the search rankings.”

[1. Chanjoonyena

2. Yena

3. Chanjun

4. Cha Joo-han]

He zoomed in on the top of the real-time search rankings and smiled wryly.

“Ah, it’s a shame. Attorney Cha was number one until I went to bed.”

“I’d rather Secretary Go Yoon-soo get more attention than me.”

“No. It was impossible to put Go Yoon-soo in jail with this case, right? And Sung In-ho is already out of the picture anyway. So Attorney Cha should focus on rebuilding your reputation. You have to regain your tarnished image.”

He showed me a screen with my name searched.

Most of the results highlighted the part where I said on the show yesterday that Sung In-ho wouldn’t have commissioned the murder out of personal feelings.

There were also articles discussing my criticism of the media.

What I found particularly laughable was the sight of some internet media outlets that hadn’t stopped transcribing, even in this situation.

It was absurd to see them turn my words into articles, even though it was a criticism of *them*.

It wouldn’t have been funny if they had criticized me for criticizing them.

“What, this bastard.”

I was watching the screen Jo Bong-joon was showing me when he suddenly frowned.

[Thoughts on yesterday’s broadcast featuring Attorney Cha Joo-han – Discomfort with the phenomenon of the victim’s claims being recognized as truth without verification]

It was a blog post with a surprisingly high number of views.

Jo Bong-joon clicked on the title irritably.

[Attorney Cha Joo-han, who was accused of murdering former Minwoo Party leader Lee Jung-chan but was acquitted, appeared on an internet broadcast yesterday, hosted by former *Iljung Daily* reporter Choi Jong-hyun and private investor Jo Bong-joon, and became a hot topic.

Attorney Cha Joo-han argued that Secretary Sung of W Group, who is currently detained for soliciting the murder of former Representative Lee Jung-chan, was instructed by someone else to commission the murder.

In addition, Attorney Cha Joo-han criticized the media, comparing it to a person endlessly pouring alcohol into a *Gyeongeongbae* [bottomless jar, symbolizing insatiable desires].

The *Iljung Daily* morning newspaper was the first to report that Attorney Cha Joo-han was named as a suspect. At the time, the death of the deceased was embargoed [a news blackout]. Therefore, reports about the suspect who killed the deceased could not be reported either.

The important fact here is that Attorney Cha Joo-han has now been acquitted, but at the time, he was a suspect, not a witness. Of course, just because someone is named as a suspect does not mean that information can be disclosed, but it was not a violation of reporting ethics to the extent that it deserved criticism such as ‘trash journalism’, ‘media that does not live up to its catchphrase value’, or ‘media that distorts the truth’.

The writer would also like to express his deepest condolences for the difficulties Attorney Cha Joo-han has experienced. However, even though it is an internet broadcast, I cannot help but point out that Attorney Cha Joo-han’s remarks in a place where many people are watching and where he is inevitably attracting a lot of attention were somewhat rash.

Why did Attorney Cha Joo-han himself argue that Mr. Sung, who is currently detained for soliciting murder, requested the murder of the deceased due to ‘external factors’? Furthermore, in the broadcast, he revealed the specific affiliation and title of the suspect Sung, saying that he was the chief of staff of W Group. Isn’t this ‘double standards’? If not, I wonder what you’re going to do.]

Oh, it’s a criticism of me.

The image I had expected from journalists has finally emerged.

Of course, I knew I would be criticized for ‘If I do it, it’s romance; if others do it, it’s an affair’ [a Korean idiom for double standards].

“How can our broadcast be the same as *Iljung Daily*? Are you kidding me? We logically explained that Sung In-ho couldn’t have commissioned the murder out of personal feelings, but we never wrote a novel without any basis, right? And revealing Sung In-ho’s identity—Sung In-ho has already been arrested, and everyone knows that he’s the chief of staff of a large company, so everyone knows his title. Is this the same? Is this guy crazy? Who wrote this?”

Jo Bong-joon was furious and checked the writer.

“Jung Min-cheol? Isn’t this the guy? The guy who made a fuss when Min-jae said on the broadcast that there was no situation where Attorney Cha could kill Lee Jung-chan, and he was arguing inside the reservoir [referring to an intense online debate]? When Min-jae refuted, he was doing something like refuting the refutation of the refutation! Just looking at the bold letters and italicized letters makes me want to throw up.”

Now that he said that, I felt like I knew who he was.

I checked Jung Min-cheol’s email address.

The media company he belongs to is not a major newspaper, but his name as a reporter carries some weight.

He had a lot of SNS followers, and the number of comments on his blog exceeded a thousand.

“Isn’t this guy the one who got money from Wooshin?”

Jo Bong-joon grumbled.

But looking at his postings so far, he doesn’t seem like the kind of person who would get money from Wooshin and write articles.

In the first place, even if he is a famous reporter, Wooshin, who can control the giant newspaper company *Iljung Daily* at will, would not have any reason to ask this person to write a manuscript.

“I don’t know if we should refute this or take the article down.”

Jo Bong-joon said in a somewhat impatient tone, checking the number of ‘likes’ that were increasing in real time.

I understand.

The reporter Jung Min-cheol is trying to frame me.

It’s an article that claims that there’s no reason to believe everything the victim says, and that he’s harming others in the same way while claiming to be a victim himself.

“It will backfire. Besides, isn’t the attention gathered on our case somewhat diminished because of the idol dating scandal? No matter how much attention that article gets, only a few people will read it. Forcing the article to be taken down or refuting it is like pouring oil on the fire.”

“Ha, that’s true… I’m so unlucky.”

I’m trying to cultivate a positive image for the final goal, but even so, I don’t think there shouldn’t even be forces trying to refute me.

That’s virtually impossible, and if that were possible, it would be the same as saying I would become a dictator.

If you receive attention, people will inevitably try to slander you.

What I need is a positive image that is strong enough to stand up to these people and win.

Therefore, I cannot act more rashly.

“Let’s watch a little longer. Sung In-ho will confess soon anyway. The reporter Jung Min-cheol also asks what he will do if it’s not Sung In-ho… Since that’s not the case, if Sung In-ho confesses, that person will be proven wrong.”

I know that people who preach both sides and criticize everyone often package themselves as ‘outsiders born with a rebellious spirit’.

Because I’ve seen it so many times.

These people are everywhere.

They’re in the legal profession, they’re in politics, so there’s no reason why they wouldn’t be in the media.

Of course, it’s not always wrong to be on both sides.

However, in some cases, playing both sides often acts as a refuge for cowards.

Nothing in the world is without flaws.

There are loopholes on both the right and wrong sides.

Anyone can emphasize ‘objectivity’ while taking a step back and digging into the loopholes on both sides.

No, maybe he’s trying to find ethical flaws in someone everyone pities and say, ‘Are you still going to pity this person? Anyway, people are vulnerable to public sympathy,’ and laugh at them.

Whatever it is, it’s a method mainly chosen by cowards who are not necessary for developing any discourse.

We will continue to meet these people in the future, and we cannot react every time.

We have to let them indulge in their own logical pride and go our way.

* * *

The next afternoon, news broke.

[Murder Solicitation Suspect Mr. Sung Admits to Crime]

“Perfect timing.”

We hadn’t been able to clean up the office even after the seized items were returned, so we gathered late to tidy up.

Secretary Oh fixed his gaze on the television that was turned on to one side and let out a hollow laugh.

“There must be a reason why they do that even though it’s all obvious, right? No matter how predictable it is, it’s the best way, so I think they couldn’t give up.”

Kang Min-jae said, sitting in front of his laptop.

[Large Company Chief of Staff Mr. Sung Confesses to Murder Solicitation…

Mr. Sung, who commissioned the murder of former Minwoo Party leader Lee Jung-chan, confessed to the police today that he had solicited the murder.

Mr. Sung claims that he had to contact the deceased for work-related matters and that he was subjected to verbal abuse by the deceased each time.

The deceased allegedly made abusive remarks to Mr. Sung, such as ‘You have no parents,’ ‘Did your mother like giving birth to someone like you and having a son?’, ‘Don’t let your dirty hands touch me, you trash,’ and even slapped him.

Mr. Sung said, ‘When the deceased caused controversy and was unable to run for president, I thought this was justice and tried to calm myself down, but I couldn’t bear the rising anger,’ and revealed the reason for soliciting the murder.]

What Koreans can’t stand the most is insulting their parents.

I was curious what kind of humiliation they would talk about, but it seemed like they were trying to gain sympathy by telling a story of hearing ‘parental abuse’ that resonates with people.

Did Lee Jung-chan really say that to Sung In-ho?

I don’t know.

Judging from his usual personality, I don’t think it’s impossible, but that doesn’t mean he necessarily did.

The dead have no voice.

Even if no one has ever heard such words, if Sung In-ho says that he heard those words when they were alone, there is no one to refute it.

[pa*** : Lee Jung-chan’s words were harsh. But that doesn’t mean you can kill someone.

oa*** : Lee Jung-chan • President • Would • Never • Say • Such • Nonsense • • • Even • If • He • Did • • You • Must • Have • Acted • In • A • Way • To • Deserve • Such • Words • • • Don’t • Blame • The • Dead • • • Punish • The • Murderer!!! • • Return • The • President!!!

ㄴcs *** : oawhatever, this guy showed up again… He comes out to every Lee Jung-chan article and does this..ㅋㅋㅋㅋ

al*** : Attorney Cha Joo-han’s words came trueㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ Building up with a current affairs program and confessing that he killed him because of personal feelings… And the idol dating scandal that broke out yesterday…ㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ

zX*** : Since he confessed, there’s nothing more to report, so it’ll just pass by, and they probably broke the idol dating scandal to cover it upㅋㅋㅋ Now that the public’s attention is focused on the idols, it’s perfectly over^^

ad*** : Do you think the public is stupid? Did you think that if you did this, we would all be done and lose interest? We will check until the end whether the suspects pay a reasonable priceㅋㅋㅋ

qqqjj *** : When I see this, I think Wooshin must have done this dozens of times… I start to think about whether there were any people who died who were related to Wooshin.]

It seems like it was a good choice to predict Sung In-ho’s actions on the show.

No matter what Sung In-ho did, people weren’t surprised; instead, they started to figure out the hidden intentions behind it.

This is enough for me.

Even if I can’t catch Go Yoon-soo, even if I have to just watch Sung In-ho take the fall [cut off his tail], I have stopped President Shin, who will kill me in the future, and Sung In-ho, who will become Go Yoon-soo’s henchman in the future.

Above all, isn’t my victory just that people are starting to pay attention to Wooshin’s behind-the-scenes actions?