The Genius Grandson Of The Cash King Becomes A Tycoon [EN]: Chapter 10

#010

“How do you know Yoon Jeong-hoon?”

At the sound of that name from his wife’s lips, Chief Kang Do-hyun was momentarily taken aback.

His wife, however, wore an incredulous expression, assuming her husband wouldn’t know.

Shaking her head, she began to speak.

“Honestly, you barely come home a few times a month, so of course you wouldn’t know. Jeong-hoon is like a younger brother to Cheol-joong. He’s been to our house several times. Don’t tell me…”

Kang Do-hyun felt a slight tension under his wife’s gaze as she squinted at him.

“Huh? Why are you suddenly glaring at me like that?”

“Don’t tell me it’s because he’s an orphan, is it?”

“No, no. It’s absolutely not like that.”

Flustered, he waved his hands vigorously, gesturing no.

His wife looked relieved at his words.

“Right? You wouldn’t be like that.”

Chief Kang Do-hyun was curious about the relationship between the two, which seemed unlikely.

“But how did they get to know each other?”

After a moment of thought, she continued.

“He saved Cheol-joong when he was in danger. You know how Cheol-joong is always causing trouble and getting beat up.”

“That guy was like that. Obsessed with martial arts novels, talking about loyalty and justice…”

“Jeong-hoon also wanted to study, so Cheol-joong is helping him. Cheol-joong says he’s incredibly smart. A genius, he said.”

Chief Kang Do-hyun listened to his wife, but he still found it hard to believe.

“Jeong-hoon looks so upright and studies so hard. And Eun-soo, Jeong-hoon’s friend who comes with him, has such a kind face, like an idol.”

Chief Kang felt strangely unpleasant as he saw his wife’s eyes sparkling.

“Ahem, what? Is he kind-looking? Or is he kind?”

“He’s kind, polite, and a good younger brother to our Cheol-joong.”

After listening to his wife, Chief Kang said with a serious face.

“Honey, this is not something to be taken lightly. It’s important. Okay? Tell Cheol-joong not to hang out with Yoon Jeong-hoon. Got it? It’s a must.”

His wife looked like she couldn’t understand or accept his words.

“No, why are you suddenly like this? At least tell me the reason. I need to explain it to Cheol-joong.”

“No, just tell him to stay away because he’s a bad kid, can’t you do that?”

“He has a good personality, he’s kind, and he studies hard. If you call such a kid bad… who is a good kid then? If you suddenly call him a bad kid, would he believe it?”

Chief Kang couldn’t think of a rebuttal to his wife’s argument.

A silent stillness filled the room.

Eventually, he thought his wife would only understand if he told her the truth.

As only the ticking of the clock could be heard, Do-hyun opened his mouth heavily.

“…He’s an unofficial person of interest for the intelligence department.”

“What? What does that mean? A high school student with no parents is a person of interest for the police intelligence department?”

“You know that prosecutor who takes care of me? He specifically asked me to keep an eye on him unofficially.”

“Ah, you mean Prosecutor Park, right?”

Kang Do-hyun nodded.

“He’s probably related to North Korea. He didn’t tell me the details, so I don’t know much either. Anyway, please handle it.”

“What? North Korea? You want me to… believe that?”

Kang Do-hyun had nothing more to say.

That was all he knew.

He simply kept his mouth shut with a stiff expression.

An uncomfortable and uneasy silence began to fill the room.

After a long while, she opened her mouth with a helpless expression.

“…Okay.”

Meanwhile, Kang Cheol-joong, who had come out for a drink of water, had been listening to the conversation from the master bedroom with interest.

With a hardened face, he carefully returned to his room.

Sitting on his bed, he pondered the contents of what he had heard so far.

‘What, North Korea? If he’s a person of interest for the intelligence department, is he a spy? But how could an orphan be a spy…’

It was an incomprehensible conversation between adults.

Yoon Jeong-hoon, the junior he cared about, had more secrets than he thought.

Cheol-joong went back to his desk, focused on his book, and began to solve problems.

He knew that focusing on something else was the best way to deal with a complicated mind.

***

The bell rang loudly, signaling the end of the last class of the eighth period.

The teacher, having finished the class, opened the front door and left the classroom.

The classroom, filled with boys, instantly became chaotic and noisy.

Jeong-hoon, who hated wasting even a minute of break time, took out his English vocabulary book despite the noise of the children, which was louder than a marketplace.

Recently, he had started memorizing English words during his spare time.

Kang Cheol-joong had taught him not only mathematics but also many learning methods.

The methods he taught were very efficient.

His innate intelligence was combined with efficient learning methods.

He felt like he could aim for the top of the entire school in the second semester final exams of the second grade [sophomore year].

But complacency was forbidden.

He had to secure as much time as possible since he had started late.

While looking at the English vocabulary book, he suddenly thought of Madam Hyun Jeong-ok’s advertisement.

It was an unexpected event for him.

He was slightly embarrassed by the search for Hyun Jeong-ok’s grandson, which had stirred up the whole country for a while.

An event he knew nothing about had occurred.

Jeong-hoon was tormented by the anxiety that the future might have changed.

The anxious worry was somewhat resolved by the President’s Nobel Peace Prize.

And after a few major events happened the same way as in his past life, he was finally able to feel relieved.

However, since the terminal incident that day, he had been quite concerned about the police surveillance.

Since that day, he realized that he was being watched from afar.

It was a fact he didn’t know in his previous life.

Recently, he had been paying more attention to his surroundings.

He noticed that one or two people were watching him occasionally, though not every day.

Jeong-hoon seriously pondered how to approach Madam Hyun Jeong-ok while being watched.

Ideas didn’t come to him easily.

But one thing was certain.

Approaching recklessly would lead to nothing.

No, he would surely die.

The moment he boarded a bus to Seoul, it was clear that the bus would never reach Seoul.

Whether it exploded or fell into a river, the passengers on board with him would surely be annihilated.

He had to find a way to prevent others from being harmed.

They were the kind of people who would use any means necessary to achieve their goals.

An organization that nonchalantly blew up a law firm.

He couldn’t create another innocent victim like Attorney Go Hyun-min.

Jeong-hoon was lost in thought, and Eun-soo, who was sitting next to him, was turning the pages of a poetry book with a sad expression, as always.

-Beep beep, beep beep.

“Hmph.”

Jeong-hoon chuckled briefly at the sound of Eun-soo’s pager.

The hardest thing about returning to the past was the slow internet and the absence of smartphones.

At first, it was almost maddening.

It was a little better if he went to a PC bang [internet cafe], but he couldn’t go every day with his limited allowance.

At first, he ridiculed Eun-soo for using a pager.

Still using a pager… It was a time when PCS phones [Personal Communication Service, early mobile phone technology] were being given away for free.

But for us orphans, cell phone bills were a burden.

He used to use the latest smartphone, but now he was slowly envying Eun-soo’s pager.

“Oh, it’s Da-hye noona’s number?”

“Da-hye noona [older sister/female friend]? Are you talking about Park Da-hye?”

Eun-soo nodded.

“It’s been quite a while since she transferred, but you still keep in touch?”

“Yeah, I keep in touch. She likes me so much, hehe.”

Eun-soo wore a boastful expression.

“What? Are you dating?”

“Pfft, bullshit! I’m just diligently reporting every move.”

Eun-soo said nonchalantly, as if annoyed.

“Huh? To whom? Cheol-joong hyung [older brother/male friend]?”

Jeong-hoon thought Kang Cheol-joong would be a good match for Park Da-hye.

“Right?”

“No, it’s a secret. I’ll die if I tell you this.”

After a moment of hesitation, Eun-soo looked at Jeong-hoon and said.

“Jeong-hoon, I’m going to make a call, come with me.”

“Huh? Why me?”

“Just come, man. Just because. You have nothing to do anyway…”

“I have English words…”

Eun-soo hit him on the back and stood Jeong-hoon up.

“Don’t say annoying things…”

Eun-soo, who went to the old public phone in the school, picked up the receiver.

He dialed the number he already knew by heart.

He held the receiver to his ear and suddenly looked at Jeong-hoon.

“Jeong-hoon, I think I’m going to shit. Just a moment… hold this.”

“What?”

“Quick, it’s coming out, ah…”

Leaving Jeong-hoon, who was holding the receiver in a daze, Eun-soo ran to the bathroom.

Park Da-hye’s voice was heard over the receiver.

“Hello… hello. Eun-soo, speak.”

“Hello.”

A moment of silence flowed.

“Haa,… it’s Jeong-hoon.”

Jeong-hoon was surprised that Da-hye sunbae [senior] recognized him right away.

“Oh, how did you know?”

“…”

Park Da-hye, who unknowingly said Jeong-hoon’s name.

Her heart was pounding with surprise, and she couldn’t say anything.

“Sunbae, uh, Eun-soo suddenly went to the bathroom… please wait a moment. He’ll be back soon.”

“Okay.”

The sound of swallowing could only be heard over the receiver.

Jeong-hoon opened his mouth to break the silence.

“Sunbae, the college entrance exam is not far away, right? You’ll do well. I’ll cheer for you too.”

Although it was cheesy, Jeong-hoon cheered for Park Da-hye, who was a senior in high school with the college entrance exam not far away.

“Really?… Thank you.”

She was in a good mood at Jeong-hoon’s words and spoke in a bright voice.

She asked how he was doing.

“Are you doing well, Jeong-hoon too?”

“Yes, I’m doing well. I’m studying hard too, hahaha.”

“Yeah, I heard from Eun-soo. He said you study even during breaks.”

“Huh? Eun-soo did?”

“… Ah, no, I asked. No, it’s not that I asked, Eun-soo told me. No, it’s not Eun-soo.”

Park Da-hye suddenly spoke incoherently.

“Are you okay? Are you not sick anywhere?”

He thought she might have a headache from studying too much.

“I’m okay. Jeong-hoon, study hard. I’ll go visit after the exam. At that time…”

“Yes. Please come visit. Buy me something delicious when you come down. I miss you, sunbaenim.”

He said something that didn’t suit him because he thought she would buy him something more expensive if he said he missed her.

“Really? Really… you miss me…? I’ll definitely go down after the exam. I’ll buy you everything you want to eat. Wait for me.”

After saying that, she panicked as if she had made a mistake.

She thought that even someone who didn’t have a clue would have noticed.

Her face flushed again, and her heart started pounding.

Jeong-hoon, who was flustered by Park Da-hye’s suddenly excited voice, calmly replied.

“Yes, sunbaenim. Good luck on your exam.”

“Ah, ahem… Thank you. I’ll contact you when I go down.”

Park Da-hye, who regained her composure, said her last greetings in a dry voice and then hung up the phone.

Jeong-hoon, who didn’t understand her slightly awkward and overly excited state, tilted his head.

When he looked to the side, Eun-soo was looking at him and smiling.

“When did you come?”

“Hehehe… a little while ago.”

“You should have said something… I hung up the phone, didn’t you two have something to say?”

Eun-soo said with a nonchalant reaction.

“What do we have to say… I must have called because I was curious!”

“What were you curious about?”

“No, anyway, Da-hye sunbae’s mouth will be hanging from her ears~.”

Eun-soo, who said something incomprehensible, walked towards the classroom.

“What are you saying, you crazy bastard.”

He strongly struck Eun-soo’s arm, who was walking ahead.

“It hurts, you son of a bitch.”

Eun-soo looked a little sad.

He gave Jeong-hoon a bitter smile.

Looking at that expression, he thought he might have hit him too hard.

A man’s friendship is proportional to the intensity of the pain.

“Hey, I’m hungry. Shall we have ramen for dinner, double portion?”

Eun-soo, who was gloomy, brightened up at Jeong-hoon’s suggestion.

“Call [deal].”

Ramen was like magic that instantly made Eun-soo’s sad expression disappear.

They finished dinner with ramen they hurriedly ate at the school store and went into the classroom to open their books.

Eun-soo opened a romance novel instead of a poetry book, and Jeong-hoon began to study the social studies area that he had been putting off.

Only time flowed in the silence.

Everyone was focused on their books.

It was then that only the sound of turning pages could be heard.

“Snore.”

Suddenly, Eun-soo started snoring.

Sure enough, he was already sprawled out on his desk, sleeping.

Thanks to that sound, laughter erupted from the children here and there in the silent space.

“Hey, wake up! It’s noisy.”

“Huh?”

“Sleep quietly, it’s so noisy I’m going to die.”

The children, who had laughed for a moment thanks to Eun-soo’s snoring, soon began to focus on their books again.

At that moment, the back door slowly opened.

“Yoon Jeong-hoon, come out.”

When he turned his head, homeroom teacher Choi Dong-soo was standing at the door with a stiff expression.

The Genius Grandson of the Cash King, Becoming a Chaebol