The Conglomerate Family Became A Villain [EN]: Chapter 18

Villain Family of a Tycoon – Who is the Real Villain? 01

– Who is the Real Villain? –

In August 1982, Seoul was experiencing unusually high temperatures and abundant rainfall.

Swishhhhh!

The heavy rain lashed against the window with the intensity of a monsoon.

Citizens hurried home from work, clutching their umbrellas.

“I thought summer was over, but I guess not,” Jung In-hae remarked, gazing down from the VIP room of the Chosun Hotel. She was the eldest daughter of Jung Woo-sun, Chairman of the Daewoon Group.

“They say this year’s El Niño [a climate pattern describing the unusual warming of surface waters in the eastern tropical Pacific Ocean] is particularly strong.”

“El Niño?”

“Didn’t you know?”

Jung In-hae frowned, her voice sharp. “Don’t use English.”

“It’s not English.”

The person sitting across from her was Jung Min-seok, a managing director and the de facto [in reality] successor of Daewoon Group.

“Your problem is that you always act like you know everything.”

She was six years older than Jung Min-seok, the eldest of four sons and two daughters.

“I was just stating a fact.”

Jung Min-seok showed no particular reaction to his sister’s reprimand.

“Must be nice being an international student.”

She and Jung Hyun-woo’s father, Jung Min-hyuk, had been educated domestically, never having studied abroad.

Starting with the third child, Jung Min-seok, the younger siblings had the opportunity to study in the United States as their father’s business prospered.

“I apologize if I offended you.”

“Forget it. What would I do with my younger brother’s apology?”

It was rare for the two of them to share a meal like this.

“So, what’s the occasion for today’s meeting?” Jung Min-seok asked, prompting Jung In-hae to lower her voice.

“Things have been too quiet lately.”

“Pardon?”

“I’m talking about Hyun-woo.”

“Were you interested in Hyun-woo, Sister?”

Jung In-hae put down her knife, retorting, “Are you playing dumb?”

“Playing dumb?”

“You’re the one who put Hyun-woo in the treatment center.”

Jung Min-seok’s eyebrows rose slightly.

“‘Put him’? Someone might misunderstand if they heard that.”

“I can’t be fooled, little brother.”

“Sister.”

“It’s okay. It’s all for the good of our siblings.”

“······.”

Jung Min-seok remained silent, but Jung In-hae continued, cutting her steak and raising her voice at the end of her sentence. “Wouldn’t it be troublesome if Hyun-woo obediently goes to school and graduates?”

“Do you think I would have a reason to be troubled?”

“Hyun-woo is Min-hyuk’s only son.”

“So?”

Jung In-hae sighed briefly. “Ha, haven’t you thought about it?”

“What are you talking about?”

“You’ll succeed Father, but what about after that? If Father gives all of Min-hyuk’s share to Hyun-woo, Hyun-woo will have the largest stake among the third generation.”

Jung In-hae was worried about her own children’s future.

“Daewoon Group isn’t that easy of a company to manage. And Father isn’t an easy person either.”

“But Father cherished Min-hyuk.”

“Not Hyun-woo.”

Jung In-hae raised her voice, holding her knife. “Hyun-woo is Min-hyuk’s only son.”

Jung Min-seok’s eyes turned fierce, and his voice grew louder. “So, are you planning some kind of assassination?”

Jung In-hae backed down as Jung Min-seok’s demeanor changed.

“What am I, a queen from a historical drama? Am I going to kill someone?”

“Then?”

“I’m saying we should give Hyun-woo room to cause an accident.”

Room to cause an accident.

Jung Min-seok had already provided Jung Hyun-woo with that opportunity, but no accident had occurred.

‘I gave him two chances, but nothing happened.’

The memories from the Boston drug rehabilitation center might have been too harsh, preventing him from causing trouble.

‘But staying quiet won’t be easy for him.’

He was a man who believed he controlled everything.

“He takes after his mother and has a fierce personality. You don’t have to worry so much, Sister. An accident will happen.”

“You’re so sure of yourself again.”

Jung Min-seok’s voice lowered again. “Sister.”

“Alright. I’ll watch a little longer. But don’t wait too long. Who knows how Father’s mind might change again.”

Jung Min-seok nodded and changed the subject to the Jang Young-ja scandal.

The Jang Young-ja and Lee Chul-hee financial fraud case, which occurred in May 1982, was considered the largest case since the founding of Korea and shook the country. Their fraud record was so substantial that it remained unbroken until 2011.

***

Classes were unremarkable.

The content was ordinary, and the students were ordinary. What was not ordinary was what happened after class.

Jung Hyun-woo tilted his head, observing the boy approaching him with forced friendliness.

‘Who is this?’

He couldn’t possibly have any close American friends.

‘If I did, they would have called me during my leave of absence.’

But no one had contacted him. This meant he had no close friends.

“Aren’t you Charlie?”

The boy with short hair seemed to know him.

“Who are you?”

“It’s me, Mac! Have you already forgotten? I’m hurt.”

Mac?

MacArthur? McDonald’s? McClane?

Just as Jung Hyun-woo frowned.

“I have some good stuff. Want to take some?”

Drugs.

The source of all his problems was here.

‘This is the guy.’

The boy in front of him was the one who had led Jung Hyun-woo to the drug rehabilitation center.

“No, thanks.”

“Charlie! What’s wrong? Are you acting like this because you went to the center once?”

Jung Hyun-woo decided he shouldn’t give him any leeway.

“Don’t talk to me again.”

As he said that firmly, the boy’s expression changed.

“You.”

He seemed angry at being ignored by an Asian boy.

‘If I cater to every little kid’s complaints, there’ll be no end to it.’

Just as he turned to leave.

“Stop right there!”

With a shout, the boy threw a punch.

Jung Hyun-woo had already anticipated the attack.

‘How predictable.’

Being versatile meant he had good reflexes. Besides, Jung Hyun-woo’s athletic ability wasn’t bad either.

As if he had been waiting, he dodged the boy’s attack and struck the other’s Adam’s apple with a knife-hand strike.

Thwack!

This attack was something he had learned in the Special Forces.

“Gack!”

The boy collapsed with a short scream.

‘Was that a little too much?’

He and the boy had different backgrounds.

‘This guy is a former Special Forces NCO [Non-Commissioned Officer].’

Because he had been poor since he was young, he had completed his service as a short-term NCO, which paid a little more.

“Kyaa!”

“Someone’s down!”

“It’s a fight!”

As the boy fell, the students standing around raised their voices and scattered.

“It’s nothing serious.”

Jung Hyun-woo knocked the boy down and tried to leave the school nonchalantly.

However, the boys blocking his path seemed to have different ideas.

“How dare you hit Mac?”

“Looks like you want to die. Should we kill you here?”

American bullies, huh?

Jung Hyun-woo sighed deeply.

“Haa… Come at me all at once. Let’s finish this quickly.”

The six boys rushed at him simultaneously.

***

“Charlie, what on earth is going on!”

As Sarah raised her voice, Jung Hyun-woo turned his head.

“I had a little fight.”

“This is a ‘little fight’?”

Jung Hyun-woo was lying in Boston University Hospital.

“I only have a few broken ribs and a dislocated finger.”

“Charlie!”

“I had the technique, but I lacked the strength. I’ve been just tapping away at a keyboard in my room every day, so…”

He thought he could knock them all down, but it didn’t work out as he had planned.

First of all, he lacked physical strength, and his body movements were slower than he thought. That’s how it ended up like this.

“Were you being bullied?”

Among the students attending the prestigious private school, there were quite a few who looked down on Asians.

“It’s not like that.”

“Then?”

“There was just a misunderstanding.”

“You’re fighting like this over a simple misunderstanding?”

Just as Sarah raised her eyebrows again, a commotion was heard from outside.

“He’s here!”

“That guy is here!”

“Come out!”

As Sarah turned her head, Choi Kyung-min’s voice was heard.

“This is a hospital!”

It seemed someone had come looking for Jung Hyun-woo.

“Could it be?”

“It looks like the parents of the kids I beat up.”

“You beat them up?”

“It couldn’t have been a one-sided beating, could it?”

Jung Hyun-woo had hospitalized a total of four students, all with serious injuries.

“This is not allowed!”

The moment Choi Kyung-min’s voice rose, the parents rushed into the hospital room.

In this respect, Korea and the United States were not much different.

“Who’s Charlie!”

“Arrest him immediately!”

“He must be judged by the law!”

Behind the imposing parents was even a police officer.

Sarah took a deep breath as she looked at them.

‘Haa, things aren’t looking good.’

As it was a prestigious private school, the parents’ occupations were not ordinary.

‘I heard that there are many parents with professional jobs like doctors and accountants at the school Charlie attends.’

American professional parents.

They were not people Choi Kyung-min could handle alone.

‘I have to step in.’

Sarah stood in front of Jung Hyun-woo’s bed and raised her voice.

“This is a hospital! Be quiet!”

The parents confirmed that her attire was not a nurse’s uniform and raised their voices again.

“Who are you? Are you this kid’s sister?”

“If you’re nothing, get out of the way!”

Sarah didn’t back down and strained her voice. “I am Sarah Hilton! And this child is a guest of our Hilton family!”

She was bothered by using the family name, but it was the only way to get them to back down.

The parents were taken aback by Sarah’s declaration.

“Hi, Hilton family?”

“The real Hilton family?”

Sarah raised her eyebrows and answered their questions. “This boy is a guest from Asia. If anyone wants to fight with our family, I’ll see you in court.”

A lawsuit with the Hilton family.

The United States had many lawsuits, so much so that it was called the land of lawsuits. And most of those lawsuits were won by the side that hired a good lawyer.

The parents knew.

If Sarah Hilton was a real member of the Hilton family, they had no chance of winning.

“But that child seriously injured our son.”

Sarah turned her head to the woman with turquoise eyes.

“This boy was also seriously injured. And there were several people who attacked this boy. I believe that when several people attack one person, that one person’s retaliation is self-defense, isn’t it?”

Her gaze shifted to the police officer standing behind them.

The police officer shrugged at Sarah’s gaze.

“That’s something for the judge to decide, not me.”

“Then we’ll have to go to court.”

Sarah’s clear voice overwhelmed the parents. In the end, the parents could not overcome the breakwater called Sarah and retreated like the tide.

Choi Kyung-min alternately looked at the retreating parents and Sarah, who had stood up to them so confidently.

‘She wasn’t just a demure young lady.’

Sarah Hilton.

She was not just a quiet young lady.

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