The Inspector Is Getting Promoted! [EN]: Chapter 158

Climbing the Tightrope (3)

Bzzzz.

As I arrived near Gangnam Chaplin, a text message arrived.

-From: Kyung Dong-soo

-I didn’t mention anything else to Assemblyman Jo Hyun-woong, just that the Prosecutor wanted to meet him. I hope the conversation goes well.

He set it up so I could talk without revealing all my cards from the start.

Of course, since I was the one who initiated contact, I wouldn’t be able to seize 100% control, but I’d be able to stand on somewhat equal footing.

That alone was a significant consideration.

It felt like making Kyung Dong-soo my ally was a stroke of genius.

As I entered Gangnam Chaplin, Assemblyman Jo Hyun-woong was already there, waiting for me.

As expected, with a woman on his arm.

“Good evening, Assemblyman.”

“Prosecutor Choi, it’s been a while.”

He greeted me with a welcoming wave.

“It’s been a while since I’ve been to a bar, so I started ahead of you because I was so thirsty. I hope that’s alright?”

“Of course.”

I shook his hand lightly and sat down across from him.

“Have a drink first.”

“Yes.”

Assemblyman Jo Hyun-woong tilted the bottle and asked.

“What brings our Prosecutor Choi to see me?”

“I contacted you because I wanted to have a very serious conversation with you, Assemblyman.”

“A serious conversation…”

He clinked his glass lightly and downed it in one go.

I followed Assemblyman Jo Hyun-woong’s lead, emptying my glass and setting it down. He then asked cautiously.

“So, is this meeting official or private?”

I smiled and replied.

“It’s not just private, it’s very private.”

Assemblyman Jo Hyun-woong nodded slowly and looked at the woman he was caressing, saying.

“Looks like I need to send someone out, not just call another woman in?”

Assemblyman Jo Hyun-woong winked, and the woman left the room on her own.

Once we were alone in the large room, he smiled and leaned towards me.

“The President contacted me directly.”

“Yes. You’re the only one besides the President who I can contact the 2nd Line [referring to a specific political faction or group of influential figures].”

“Even people in our line find President Kyung Dong-soo difficult to approach… I guess there’s a reason people keep talking about Choi Seo-joon, Choi Seo-joon.”

He smiled and added.

“Oh, and for the record, I didn’t tell anyone else in the line about today’s meeting, so don’t worry.”

“Thank you.”

This is why you need to meet the head honchos, not the small fry.

I didn’t jump straight to the point, intending to raise his spirits a bit more by starting with superficial talk.

“How do you see this year’s local elections, Assemblyman?”

“Local elections…”

He slowly picked up a piece of tuna belly from the table and said.

“As always, the other regions will be divided between the Great Korea Party and our People’s Party, and it seems only Gangwon Province will be taken by the Manse Party this time.”

“Isn’t the People’s Party dominant in the Seoul metropolitan area?”

“Not necessarily. We’ll probably be able to take the Incheon Mayor and Gyeonggi Governor positions, but Choi Gyu-hyun is putting all his weight behind Na Kyung-joon in the Seoul mayoral race, so retaking Seoul won’t be easy.”

He looked at me with a glint in his eyes.

“Do you perhaps have some good intel? Or has your relationship with Assemblyman Choi Gyu-hyun soured…?”

Instead of answering, I raised my eyebrows and lifted my glass.

I clinked glasses with him and downed two more drinks before slowly opening my mouth.

“Choi Gyu-hyun’s mindset is firm. He intends to establish his position by making Na Kyung-joon the Mayor of Seoul, and then use that as a base to run for president himself.”

“I see.”

As the rumors suggested, he wasn’t strong with alcohol, and his face flushed red instantly.

“Well, Na Mayor is a former military officer, so it must have been good for image-making.”

“Yes, that’s right. Besides being a soldier, Na Kyung-joon graduated from a prestigious university’s ROTC program, so he has many connections. And on top of being a military man, he was also the head of a volunteer organization, making him the perfect person to appeal to the public with an upright and uncorrupt image. Above all, he’s disciplined, so there’s no need to worry about betrayal.”

“Since he already holds the Seoul mayoral position and Assemblyman Choi Gyu-hyun is backing him, he should be able to win the next Seoul mayoral election without much difficulty. From our perspective, it’s more rational to aim for Incheon and Gyeonggi rather than Seoul.”

The People’s Party has already given up on the Seoul mayoral race.

If that’s the case, the story becomes even easier.

If I give the People’s Party the position they’ve given up on, my proposal will be incredibly sweet to Jo Hyun-woong and the 2nd Line.

He must have figured I’d find out to some extent anyway if I investigated the local elections, so he told me the overall picture without hiding the key elements.

No, he must have thought that he needed to tell me this much in order to hear my hidden intentions.

Coming at me like this meant he had opened his heart to me, which made it less of a burden for me.

This guy is no ordinary person.

“To compete with the Seoul Mayor, we need to take the remaining parts of the Seoul metropolitan area, the Incheon Mayor and Gyeonggi Governor positions, and have our side win those two positions for the next four years.”

Assemblyman Jo Hyun-woong continued candidly.

“Choi Gyu-hyun has completely ruined the two lines. Of course, thanks to that, I’ve gained real power… but it’s still a headache.”

Assemblyman Jo Hyun-woong’s words were true.

Until now, the 1st and 2nd Lines had a mix of assembly members from the Great Korea Party and the People’s Party, and they dominated key positions while suppressing the Manse Party. However, this structure began to change as Choi Gyu-hyun revealed his ambition to run for president.

He filled key positions in his 1st Line with assembly members from the Great Korea Party and pro-Great Korea Party figures, leaving People’s Party assembly members with no place to stand.

Inevitably, People’s Party assembly members flocked to the 2nd Line, and through internal reforms within the line, Assemblyman Jo Hyun-woong gained real power.

With the Great Korea Party solidifying as the 1st Line and the People’s Party as the 2nd Line, it wouldn’t be easy to mix again like before.

Unless there was a special opportunity, this system would likely continue.

“I’ve told you what the People’s Party is thinking.”

Assemblyman Jo Hyun-woong looked at me slyly.

“Tell me what you’re thinking, Prosecutor.”

There was no need to delay any longer, so I went straight to the point.

“Even if you produce the Gyeonggi Governor and Incheon Mayor, you’ll only have half of the Seoul metropolitan area, won’t you?”

“That’s right. The most important thing is the Seoul Mayor.”

I twisted my lips into a smirk and said.

“I think if the People’s Party takes the Seoul Mayor position as well, they can suppress the Great Korea Party for four years… What do you think, Assemblyman?”

For a moment, his pupils shook, but he quickly regained his composure and replied.

“Are you trying to make Na Kyung-joon betray Choi Gyu-hyun after he’s elected?”

“No.”

“Then do you have someone in mind for the Seoul Mayor position?”

I clasped my hands together on the table and looked at him seriously.

“How about Assemblyman Sung Tae-hyun?”

“Sung Tae-hyun?”

“Yes. Just as President Kyung Dong-soo was elected by advocating communication to bridge the generational gap and is doing a good job running the country, Sung Tae-hyun can use his young age and economic knowledge as weapons to gain a pretty good response.”

“Are you saying that Sung Tae-hyun will move to the 2nd Line?”

“That’s right.”

“He seems like a good friend for the Seoul Mayor position, but…”

Jo Hyun-woong inhaled and tilted his head.

“As I said before, even if it’s me, it’s hard to openly support him from the 2nd Line if he’s under the Great Korea Party.”

I offered a simple solution.

“What if he joins the People’s Party?”

His brow twitched.

“Are you saying that Assemblyman Sung Tae-hyun will change his party affiliation?”

“It’s not just Assemblyman Sung Tae-hyun who’s going.”

I smirked.

“I’ll be joining the 2nd Line with him. I’ll become Assemblyman Jo Hyun-woong’s reliable blade.”

For a moment, a look of joy flashed across his face.

From his perspective, my joining would be as precious as gold.

Not only have I established myself as a powerful figure in the Seoul Prosecutor’s Office, but the head of the Seoul Central District Prosecutors’ Office is also occupied by a figure from the 1st Line.

Most of the prosecutors belonging to the 2nd Line are not able to exert their power properly, and some of them are even showing signs of trying to switch lines.

In that situation, if I join the 2nd Line, the prosecution structure will change drastically.

Even if it doesn’t suppress the 1st Line, it can at least stand on equal footing.

When it comes to politics, the two things you need to exert real power are money and strength.

Here, strength doesn’t mean power or gangsters, but weapons to defeat your enemies. The most representative strength is the prosecution.

If you join hands with the prosecution, you can threaten to arrest the other party, and you can also evade the law and get away with it when you’re in danger.

From his perspective, my joining is not just welcome, but desperately desired.

That’s why he came to this meeting.

As expected, Jo Hyun-woong didn’t hesitate for long.

“If you join us, Prosecutor, we’d be grateful, but…”

He asked, unable to hide his worried expression.

“The problem is Sung Tae-hyun. All of his political base is in the Great Korea Party. Are you sure he’ll be okay with it?”

“That’s why I’m meeting with you, Assemblyman, to get confirmation.”

I winked and filled his glass.

“If you guarantee the People’s Party nomination, Assemblyman Sung Tae-hyun will abandon the Great Korea Party. I’ll take responsibility for that.”

Jo Hyun-woong looked at his glass and slowly pondered.

However, I added words to prevent him from thinking too deeply.

“With Kyung Dong-soo firmly in place as president, and taking not only the Gyeonggi Governor and Incheon Mayor positions but also the Seoul Mayor position, the People’s Party can aim for the next presidential election.”

His saliva went down at the word presidential election.

There’s no way someone who’s at least the party leader wouldn’t dream of the presidency.

The more you push at times like this.

“The Incheon Mayor and Gyeonggi Governor positions aren’t confirmed, but if you join hands with me, Sung Tae-hyun is definitely ready to be raised to the Seoul Mayor position.”

For a moment, his eyes sparkled.

“Is that so?”

“Of course.”

I confidently puffed out my chest.

“How do you think I became close to President Kyung Dong-soo?”

Jo Hyun-woong unknowingly inhaled.

That’s because, regarding the fact that I helped Kyung Dong-soo get elected in the last presidential election, the people in the 2nd Line were only speculating, and no one was certain.

Because Kyung Dong-soo and I weren’t talking about it.

In this situation, if I show the card I’m holding, it’s perfect for the other party to be deceived and 넘어오다 [neomeo-oda: to be 넘어오다 is a Korean expression that means to be 넘어오다].”

“I’m the hidden kingmaker.”

I could tell just by looking at his eyes.

Jo Hyun-woong had already 넘어오다 [neomeo-oda: to be 넘어오다 is a Korean expression that means to be 넘어오다].

This is the art of conversation that makes it seem like you’re doing him a favor while hiding your flaws.

It would have been quite difficult for me if Jo Hyun-woong hadn’t accepted, but if it proceeds like this, it will seem like I’m helping him instead.

The fact that I poured drinks continuously before getting to the point had a very excellent effect.

After finishing his 고민 [gomin: deliberation or worry], he said resolutely.

“I understand.”

He revealed his ambition for the presidency in his eyes and lifted his glass.

“Then I promise you that you’ll definitely get the Seoul mayoral nomination.”

“I look forward to working with you.”

“I’m the one who looks forward to working with you.”