The Inspector Is Getting Promoted! [EN]: Chapter 177

Prosecutor, You’re Moving Up in the World! – Episode 178 (177/341)

Growth (1)

One year later, 2023.

As originally planned, I should have been promoted to Deputy Chief Prosecutor with the New Year in 2023. However, due to the pressure Choi Gyu-hyun applied to Chief Prosecutor Han Dong-min, I was left off the promotion list and had to take a step back.

However, the Third Deputy Chief Prosecutor was planning to resign soon and join a large law firm, so I was slated to fill that position.

If things proceeded this way, even Choi Gyu-hyun wouldn’t be able to stop it, so there would be no problem with my promotion to Deputy Chief Prosecutor.

It was just a matter of waiting patiently.

And so, on a bright spring day, a month before my promotion to Deputy Chief Prosecutor.

I took out an envelope from my pocket and handed it to Yoon Seol-ha.

“What’s this?”

“A wedding invitation.”

“Pardon?”

I gestured for her to open it, tilting my head towards her.

Yoon Seol-ha opened the envelope, and her eyes widened.

“Ah, Mayor Seong Tae-hyun is getting married!”

“Yes.”

I smiled lightly and explained.

“Mayor Seong knows that the Special Investigations Department, including you, Seol-ha, helped him a lot in getting elected, so he really wanted to invite you. But there are too many eyes watching, so he asked me separately.”

Yoon Seol-ha smiled brightly but then shook her head.

“I appreciate the invitation, but I don’t think I need to go. I was just following the Chief’s orders.”

“Are you really not coming? There will be a lot of famous people there.”

“Have you ever seen me interested in that kind of thing?”

She joked.

“I only work for the Chief.”

“Someone might misunderstand.”

“There’s no one to hear it.”

Yoon Seol-ha replied with a playful voice and then burst into laughter.

“By the way, what’s happening with the two prosecutors Jang Ha-young chose?”

“Ah, you mean Prosecutors Park Gi-won and Nam Min-je?”

“Yes, that’s right.”

Prosecutors Park Gi-won and Nam Min-je.

The two men Jang Ha-young had picked as her successors and introduced to me.

Actually, I was planning to have them compete and decide who would be Jang Ha-young’s successor based on who was more outstanding.

However, I had been so busy with the Seoul mayoral election and other matters that I hadn’t paid attention to them and had forgotten about it.

Now that I was about to be promoted to Deputy Chief Prosecutor, I thought it was time to make a decision.

“Both of them are among the top performers in the Special Investigations Department. They’re constantly vying for first and second place every month, so it’s meaningless to try to determine who’s superior.”

“The one who lands a major case first will take the lead.”

“That seems likely.”

The competition seemed to be fiercer than I thought.

It seemed difficult to make a decision before I officially took on the title of Deputy Chief Prosecutor.

They were constantly keeping each other in check, but there hadn’t been any decisive cases yet.

I was thinking of delegating this matter to Prosecutor Jang Ha-young when Yoon Seol-ha cautiously opened her mouth.

“This is just my personal opinion, but…”

She shared her thoughts.

“Instead of choosing one of them, wouldn’t it be better to keep them both around?”

“You mean maintain a rivalry?”

“Yes. If they have a friendly rivalry, they can both be more efficient.”

“I don’t think the ‘friendly’ part will last…”

I smirked.

“It would be interesting to watch, though.”

I looked at Yoon Seol-ha with a glint in my eye.

“Proceed as you said. But make sure the Special Investigations Department doesn’t split into two factions or become adversarial.”

I lowered my voice and added.

“If that happens, I’ll personally send them all to the provinces.”

When I become a Deputy Chief, Lee Doo-hyung will become the Chief Prosecutor, and Jang Ha-young will become the Deputy Chief Prosecutor.

Lee Doo-hyung and Jang Ha-young’s abilities and charisma were beyond question, so there was no chance of the Special Investigations Department being divided, but I gave them a warning just in case.

Yoon Seol-ha swallowed hard and nodded.

“Understood.”

After a moment of silence, Yoon Seol-ha looked at the wedding invitation and asked me.

“By the way, Seong Tae-hyun’s wedding is very soon. Haven’t you two only been dating for about a year?”

“A little over a year, I think.”

“Is it a shotgun wedding?”

“Not exactly…”

Everyone around Seong Tae-hyun knew about it, so it wasn’t something to hide, but it was a bit awkward to explain.

“They decided to get married, and then she got pregnant…”

“Oh, really?”

“Yeah. It’s a bit ambiguous whether it’s a shotgun wedding or not.”

“When is the due date?”

“Probably around December this year. They were already planning to get married early, but because of the baby, his sister-in-law wanted to get married before she started showing, so they moved the date up.”

“Ah, I see.”

Yoon Seol-ha clapped her hands and rejoiced.

“That’s really something to celebrate.”

“He would be very happy if you went to congratulate him in person.”

She just smiled and turned the question back to me.

“By the way, Chief, don’t you want to have children?”

“We have to. My wife is planning to take a break from broadcasting for a while, so we’re trying hard, but… it’s not as easy as you think.”

Yoon Seol-ha grinned slyly.

“Wow, I’m really curious about what the Chief’s child will be like.”

“Why?”

“The Madam’s looks are beyond words, and the Chief’s genes are amazing. Not only the looks, but also the brains… And didn’t you say the Chief’s brother is a doctor?”

“Ah, yes. That’s right. He got a transfer to Seoul this time and moved here.”

“A son who’s a prosecutor and a daughter who’s a doctor. That’s really an amazing family’s genes. And I know Han Ji-yoo is from a prestigious university, so if you combine those genes…”

Yoon Seol-ha clicked her tongue.

“I think a really amazing child will come out? They’ll live in their own world.”

A smile naturally spread across my face.

“I’d love to have a daughter who looks like my wife or a son who looks just like me.”

At that moment, my phone vibrated.

The caller was Han Ji-yoo.

Yoon Seol-ha raised her eyebrows and pointed behind her.

“I’ll go get a cup of coffee.”

“Ah, yes. Thank you.”

After she left, I answered the phone right away.

-Honey, are you busy?

“No, I’m fine. I was resting. What’s up?”

-I have something to tell you.

Han Ji-yoo’s voice on the phone sounded quite excited.

“Sounds like good news?”

-It is. You might have a heart attack from happiness.

“What is it?”

-From now on, you shouldn’t be called ‘Honey,’ but ‘Dad.’

I stood up from my seat without realizing it.

-I’m pregnant. I just went to the OB-GYN, and they said I’m 5 weeks along!

“Really? Really?”

-Yeah. They can see the gestational sac. I’ll send you the ultrasound picture.

“Wow!”

I couldn’t help but shout.

“Thank you. I really love you, Ji-yoo.”

-I’m the one who’s grateful.

She smiled brightly and ended the call.

-I need to tell my mom and parents-in-law, so I’ll call you again later.

“Okay, go ahead.”

As soon as I hung up, Jo Ara and Yoon Seol-ha hurriedly opened the door and came in.

“Chief, is something wrong?”

They must have heard me shout and ran over right away.

I walked towards the door with a beaming smile.

“Yes, there is. Not just something, but something huge.”

Leaving the two of them tilting their heads, I shouted to the prosecutors in the Special Investigations Department.

“Everyone, please pay attention.”

The prosecutors stopped what they were doing and looked at me.

“We’re having a company dinner tonight.”

I smirked and continued.

“I’m going to be a dad.”

The moment those words were spoken, the prosecutors applauded and stood up from their seats.

“Congratulations, Chief!”

“That’s amazing!”

“Congratulations!”

***

Autumn 2024.

On the front of the desk where I was sitting, a nameplate that read ‘Deputy Chief Prosecutor Choi Seo-joon’ was shining.

It had already been a year and a half since I took office as the Third Deputy Chief Prosecutor, the direct superior of the Special Investigations Department.

Of course, Lee Doo-hyung had succeeded in being promoted to Chief of the Special Investigations Department, and Prosecutor Jang Ha-young to Deputy Chief.

Prosecutor Jung Hyun-woo became the Chief of the Public Security Department, and Prosecutor Hong Seok-jang moved from the Fair Trade Investigation Department to the Science and Technology Crime Investigation Department and became the Chief.

As a result, all the chiefs of the three major departments of the Seoul Central District Prosecutors’ Office were my people, which was a very wonderful situation.

In addition, Jo Ara, who was a Level 9 employee, was promoted to a Level 8 employee. Yoon Seol-ha, who was a Level 7 employee, was promoted to a Level 6 employee.

However, the two of them still remained as my clerk and investigator.

But what was even better than my promotion was….

“Dad!”

Because I had this strapping son.

“Did our Ji-hoon come?”

I took my son, Choi Ji-hoon, who was smiling brightly at Han Ji-yoo, and held him in my arms.

Yoon Seol-ha, who had been leaving work with us, looked at him with a happy expression, as if she were looking at her nephew.

“His pronunciation is already so clear… Isn’t he only 8 months old?”

“Yes, that’s right.”

“I thought it was fast when I heard that he got his teeth at 100 days, but his growth itself is really fast. Is this the power of genetics?”

“It’s thanks to Ji-hoon’s dad.”

Han Ji-yoo, who was watching, put her hand on my shoulder.

“It’s so nice to see.”

Yoon Seol-ha gently grabbed my son’s cheeks a couple of times and said to me.

“I have an appointment, so I’ll go ahead.”

“Okay.”

“Be careful going home.”

“I’ll see you tomorrow.”

She bowed and walked towards the exit.

I walked to the parking lot with Han Ji-yoo.

“You said we’re having dinner with your sister’s family today, right?”

“Yeah. Ji-soo said she’s bringing the twins too.”

Mayor Seong Tae-hyun and his wife had very healthy twin sons in a not-so-shotgun wedding.

They were fraternal twins, but both were sons.

They were born in December 2023, and unfortunately, Ji-hoon’s birthday was in February, so he became a younger brother by one year.

However, thanks to having children around the same time, the sisters were helping each other and getting along well, which made me feel good.

“By the way, if we’re eating out with your sister’s family, you should bring your parents too.”

“They’re on vacation in the countryside right now. They said they even chartered a tour bus from their group?”

“I’m glad they’re doing well. I always felt sorry that they were helping you and your sister so much.”

Han Ji-yoo chuckled and put Choi Ji-hoon in the baby seat in the back seat and secured him.

“You don’t have to worry about my mom and dad.”

“I’m glad to hear that.”

I sat in the driver’s seat and started the engine.

“By the way, I sent your mom and dad some pocket money this time, so you know.”

“They’re my parents, but you seem to take better care of them than I do.”

“That’s how I get loved.”

Han Ji-yoo smiled slyly and glanced at the back seat.

“Oh, and they said they’re coming up soon. I think they miss Ji-hoon.”

“When?”

“They said they’re coming next month or before winter, so I guess it’ll be next month?”

“Okay, please take care of them.”

“What do you mean take care of them? It’s something I should do.”

I don’t know how she can have such a sincere way of thinking.

The more we live together, the more our love grows.

After talking for a while, it didn’t take long to arrive at the restaurant.

I finished parking and got out of the driver’s seat, but my phone rang.

“Go in first.”

“Okay.”

I sent Han Ji-yoo and my son in first and got back in the car to answer the phone.

“Yes, this is Choi Seo-joon.”

-This is Go Seong-tak.

“What’s going on, Mr. Go?”

I had entrusted the task of brainwashing Seong Tae-hyun to the Hand of God, Go Seong-tak [a person with exceptional skills in manipulation and influence].

It had been going on for almost two years, so he wouldn’t call unless there was something special.

Since he was helping Seong Tae-hyun with his work, I didn’t want him to arouse suspicion by being caught contacting me frequently.

-There was something strange about the nuance of the conversation we had today, so I thought I should tell you, so I called.

It seemed like there was a problem with persuading Seong Tae-hyun.

I calmed my emotions and said.

“Tell me.”

Go Seong-tak sighed deeply before finally opening his mouth with difficulty.

-The thing is….