The Inspector Is Getting Promoted! [EN]: Chapter 207

Prosecutor, You’re Going Places! (2)

Even if the sky falls, there’s always a way out.

Indeed, there’s no false saying among our ancestors.

After finishing the conversation with President Kyung Dong-soo, I couldn’t help but chuckle all the way home.

To think it would lead to this.

I was almost admiring my own brain for realizing this so belatedly.

Who knew President Kyung Dong-soo would be helpful in this way?

Even with his lame-duck status [referring to a political figure nearing the end of their term], not turning a blind eye was a stroke of genius.

After spending some time feeling proud and praising myself, I calmed down and made a phone call.

He answered after only a few rings.

– Yes, Prosecutor.

“It’s been a while, Mr. Go.”

The person on the other end was none other than the Hand of God, Go Seong-tak.

– How have you be…

He started to ask but quickly changed his words.

– Have you eaten?

He seemed to remember that I was having a headache because of the Jang Young-soon case when he was about to ask how I was doing.

I chuckled lightly and said,

“I’m fine.”

– I’m glad to hear that.

“Are you off work?”

– Yes, I’m on my way home now.

“Do you have any plans?”

– Well, not really…

Go Seong-tak seemed to anticipate what I was going to say and spoke first.

– Would you like to grab a drink together, if you’re free?

“Do you remember my officetel [a studio apartment often used as both an office and residence]?”

– Yes, I’ll head there.

As he said that, I could hear the sound of tires screeching over the phone, as if he had immediately turned the steering wheel.

To come up with a concrete plan before realizing this scenario, there’s no one more suitable than the Hand of God.

I smirked and headed to my officetel.

***

“I’m relieved to see that you look better than I expected.”

Go Seong-tak held his glass with both hands.

“Thank you for your concern.”

I took out a bottle of whiskey from my officetel and poured him a drink.

“No matter what the media says, time will solve everything, so don’t worry too much.”

At his comforting words, I crossed my legs and chuckled.

“I don’t care what the media barks about.”

“Excuse me?”

He seemed surprised, his eyebrows twitching.

“Have you found a way to resolve it?”

“I have.”

I picked up my whiskey glass filled with large ice cubes, tapped it against his glass, and looked him in the eye.

“I need Mr. Go’s help to put that plan into action.”

“Just say the word. I’ll do anything for you, Prosecutor.”

I downed my whiskey in one gulp and leaned towards him.

“I’m going to show the public a story that highlights my image as ‘Hero Choi Seo-joon’.”

“You mean…”

“Yes, that’s right. In short, it’s a show.”

The corners of my lips naturally curled up.

“A prosecutor who is hated by the public but sacrifices himself while serving them… Doesn’t that paint a perfect picture?”

Go Seong-tak’s eyebrows twitched.

“I’m already hooked just from the prologue.”

“I’ve already laid out the framework. I need our Hand of God to add the finishing touches.”

“I’ll do that.”

He nodded with a confident look on his face.

“That’s my specialty, after all.”

I smiled contentedly and began to slowly explain the plan in my head.

***

– Is it the Reincarnation of the Modern Choi Clan, or Just a Simple Misunderstanding?

– Opinions are Divided on Grand National Party Presidential Candidate Choi Gyu-hyun and Choi Seo-joon, Deputy Chief Prosecutor of the Seoul Central District Prosecutors’ Office.

All eyes are on Choi Gyu-hyun, who was named as the mastermind behind the corruption scandal known as the Jang Young-soon Gate, and Choi Seo-joon, who is accused of accepting a large bribe.

Choi Gyu-hyun claims that the entire incident is a smear campaign by another party. He is claiming to be a victim of excessive electioneering and insists that he is being wronged, while Choi Seo-joon is simply caught up in it and vehemently denies the bribery charges, insisting on his innocence.

However, Jang Young-soon, who first raised the issue, left a suicide note apologizing for making false statements and then killed herself.

Therefore, the prosecution and police have stated that they cannot proceed with the investigation based solely on rumors, and the Jang Young-soon Gate seemed to be fading into the background.

However, public opinion differed.

The public believes that Jang Young-soon’s death was not a simple suicide but a murder.

This implies that Choi Gyu-hyun or Choi Seo-joon retaliated because they feared the exposure of the gate’s true nature.

In other words, it is an act of the modern Choi clan.

As a result, Choi Seo-joon, who was once known as the People’s Prosecutor, has lost the public’s trust, and Choi Gyu-hyun’s approval rating has plummeted.

The following are the approval ratings for each candidate at this point, ten days before the presidential election, compared to the early stages of the election.

Grand National Party Choi Gyu-hyun 57% → 41%.

People’s Party Jo Hyun-woong 23% → 30%.

Manse Party Kang Song-moon 13% → 19%.

Other Candidates and Undecided 10%.

Although there is still a significant gap between the candidates, no expert predicted that there would be such a significant change in approval ratings in less than a week.

As a result, there is cautious speculation that the outcome of the presidential election could be reversed.

Choi Seo-joon is also in a difficult position.

The prosecutor, who is supposed to represent the people, is accused of being involved in a 10 billion won bribery gate and even being a murderer to silence people.

According to a survey, more than half of the respondents believe that Choi Seo-joon should not be called the People’s Prosecutor.

(Omitted)

Despite these allegations, Choi Seo-joon maintains that there is no need to actively respond because his innocence has been proven, and Choi Gyu-hyun has stopped responding, saying that he does not want to be caught up in the other party’s smear campaign.

It is unknown whether Jang Young-soon committed suicide or was murdered, but these circumstances raise questions about what lies behind Jang Young-soon’s death.

QS Daily Reporter Lee Joon-hee

They’re doing all sorts of surveys.

A survey on whether to remove the title of People’s Prosecutor… Seriously, do they have nothing better to do?

I clicked my tongue and closed the newspaper.

The most noteworthy point in this article is the approval ratings for the presidential candidates.

Choi Gyu-hyun still has a tremendous approval rating, but considering that it has dropped from nearly 60% to just over 40%, it’s no exaggeration to say that almost a third of his support has disappeared.

In my personal opinion, the number would be much larger than Choi Gyu-hyun expected, but the reality is that his victory still cannot be prevented.

The People’s Party and the Manse Party are performing exceptionally well, attracting Choi Gyu-hyun’s defectors, but their power is still insufficient.

If they knew the approval rating would drop this much, wouldn’t it have been better for the People’s Party and the Manse Party to join forces and support a single candidate? But I shook my head.

It was because he wasn’t a single candidate that Choi Gyu-hyun took these measures and brought the situation to this point.

If he had thought he might be in danger, he wouldn’t have made the move to give up flesh and take bones [a strategic maneuver involving sacrifice for greater gain] in the first place.

Buzzz.

At that moment, my phone vibrated.

The caller was the Hand of God, Go Seong-tak.

“Yes, this is Choi Seo-joon.”

– Prosecutor, I’ve finished casting the actors.

“Is it finally over?”

– Yes. I’ve told them all the scenarios, and we’ve talked about being able to move out as early as tomorrow.

“Thank you for your hard work.”

– It’s nothing. I’ve also made sure to keep their mouths shut, and I’ve promised financial support to their families, so you don’t have to worry about anything leaking out.

“Thank you. I’ll contact you again.”

– Goodbye.

Finally, the preparations for the show are complete.

The scenario and casting are finished, so now I just need to create a position for myself to rise to.

I immediately picked up the receiver and connected to Yoon Seol-ha.

– Yes, Deputy Chief.

“I need to talk to the Chief Prosecutor. Set up a meeting for me sometime this morning.”

– Understood.

***

I took a light breath in front of the Chief Prosecutor’s office.

I had been pondering for a long time since talking to Kyung Dong-soo.

Whether to take refuge in the local prosecutor’s office only during Choi Gyu-hyun’s early term, as he said, or to move to one of the four major district prosecutor’s offices in Seoul.

However, after much deliberation, I came to the conclusion that it was the Seoul Central District Prosecutors’ Office after all.

If I chose the local prosecutor’s office, it wouldn’t be difficult to become the chief prosecutor, but as long as Choi Gyu-hyun was in power, it wouldn’t be easy to return to Seoul.

In that case, I wouldn’t be able to exert much influence on the next presidential election that Sung Tae-hyun is running in, and I would naturally fall behind, begging here and there to maintain my position as chief prosecutor, let alone becoming the prosecutor general.

Therefore, the local option is a pass.

However, if I went to one of the four major district prosecutor’s offices in Seoul, I would be in Choi Gyu-hyun’s sights, so I would be subjected to a one-sided attack.

I could clearly foresee myself being swayed by him throughout his term.

I thought it would be better to go to the Seoul Central District Prosecutors’ Office, where I could properly check Choi Gyu-hyun.

It goes without saying that the chief prosecutor of the Seoul Central District Prosecutors’ Office would not easily give up his position compared to other places.

No matter what I said, the chief prosecutor of the Seoul Central District Prosecutors’ Office could not be someone who would step down out of fear of someone else’s power.

In the end, I had to compete with him.

“Hoo.”

I took a deep breath and opened the tightly closed door of the Chief Prosecutor’s office and went inside.

“Hello, Chief Prosecutor.”

“It’s been a while.”

Chief Prosecutor Hwang Cheol-min.

He is not affiliated with Line 2 [a specific political faction], but I know that he is quite close to Kyung Dong-soo as a high school alumnus.

That’s how he got to the position of Chief Prosecutor of the Seoul Central District Prosecutors’ Office.

Chief Prosecutor Hwang Cheol-min led me to the sofa.

“Please sit down.”

“Yes.”

“You’ve been having a hard time with all the rumors lately.”

“It can’t be helped. As a public figure, I think I have to put up with it.”

He nodded sadly.

“By the way, what brings you here…?”

His eyes were filled with suspicion and anxiety.

Even though I am technically in a lower position in terms of rank, my position in the political world and my influence within the current Seoul Central District Prosecutors’ Office are by no means inferior to Chief Prosecutor Hwang Cheol-min.

In a way, we’re a bit of an uncomfortable pair.

That’s why it’s rare for us to meet and talk like this.

However, I didn’t want to drag it out.

“Let’s get straight to the point.”

I said, looking him straight in the eye.

“I want you to step down from your position as Chief Prosecutor.”

“……Excuse me?”

Bewilderment crossed Hwang Cheol-min’s face.

His emotion soon turned into a hollow laugh.

“Are you serious?”

“Do I look like I’m joking?”

Knowing that I was serious, his brow furrowed.

“How long have you been the Chief Prosecutor? Has it been half a year?”

“It’s been eight months.”

“Eight months…….”

I picked up the calendar on the desk.

Then, I opened it to August, four months from now, and placed it in front of him.

“Then you have about four months left.”

The maximum term that a chief prosecutor can serve in a district prosecutors’ office is two years.

However, not many chief prosecutors fill the entire term.

Especially chief prosecutors like Hwang Cheol-min, who are in office during an election period.

It is a natural fact that when the regime changes, they appoint their own people to key positions.

However, the position of chief prosecutor does not change at the same time as the president is elected, as if the cabinet is being newly formed.

The minimum pretext of the separation of powers had to be observed.

Generally, chief prosecutors who are in office during a change of government are allowed to fill about half of their term.

That’s the unspoken rule in this industry.

Therefore, Hwang Cheol-min will only be able to fill up to one year.

If Jo Hyun-woong of the People’s Party is elected, his term may be slightly longer, but it will not be easy for him to fill two years because he is not affiliated with any line.

Hwang Cheol-min himself would know that better than I do.

He opened his mouth with a serious expression.

“What are you trying to say?”

“I told you.”

I got up from my seat and approached his desk.

Then, I turned over his nameplate.

“I’m telling you to step down from your position as Chief Prosecutor.”

Hwang Cheol-min’s face hardened coldly.

“Don’t say ridiculous things.”

He glared at me with his fists clenched tightly.

“I have a proposal.”

I sat halfway on his desk and opened my mouth.