The Inspector Is Getting Promoted! [EN]: Chapter 23

New World (1)

The next morning.

As soon as I arrived at the office, the envelope on my table caught my eye.

“Ara, what’s that document?”

Jo Ara glanced at my desk and replied,

“Someone gave it to me on my way to work. They said it was the data the Prosecutor requested, and that you’d know if I said ‘the second son’?”

The second son. Meaning the younger brother.

“Did anyone see you receive it?”

“No. They were waiting when I came out of my house.”

Knowing that the eldest son’s eyes were watching me, they must have approached Jo Ara directly.

Without hesitation, I tore open the envelope, and inside were the accounting books and various documents from Juok Medical.

As expected, documents sent by the second son.

He’s quite capable.

I told him last night, and he delivered it this morning.

“Did I make a mistake?”

Jo Ara asked worriedly, so I shook my head.

“No. It’s the data I was supposed to receive. Thank you for your hard work.”

She breathed a sigh of relief and returned to her seat.

I also sat down at my desk and began to read through the documents one by one.

From the looks of it, he must have thoroughly investigated the slush fund [a secret fund, often used for illegal activities].

These are materials that are unlikely to be made public anyway, but I didn’t hesitate to memorize them.

Even if I don’t actually attack the eldest son, I must not forget to sharpen the sword I’m holding.

Giving the threat that I can stab at any time will scare the opponents.

So, I skipped lunch and organized the data from the second son straight from morning until 2 PM.

The second son must have put a lot of effort into it, as the information about Juok Medical was considerable.

More than anything else, the main content was about the embezzlement of internal funds.

It’s a common occurrence in conglomerates [large, multi-industry companies] as well as general corporations.

The act of laundering corporate funds and putting them into one’s own pocket.

However, the difference is that the amount reaches tens of billions of won [tens of millions of US dollars], befitting a conglomerate.

Simply based on the amount, it’s a sum that could result in at least four years in prison.

Hundreds of billions with just Juok Medical in two years, so the cumulative amount from other affiliates and up to now would be beyond imagination.

However, the problem is that this embezzlement is largely related to overseas companies.

The fight between the eldest and second sons may end as early as tomorrow, but investigations into overseas companies take at least several months to several years.

If a prosecutor exposes this case and the second son collapses, he will be in a miserable situation.

Unless he plans to make a killing by receiving a large sum from the second son and then resigning, it’s hard to expose the case.

Moreover, it’s like boarding a sinking ship, full of risk factors, so no one easily steps forward. Even if someone prepares to expose it, the chief prosecutor and the lines above tightly control and block it, so there’s no choice but to avoid it.

If the second son had secured just a little more stake in the succession structure, I could have greatly shaken the board from the middle and played the situation.

It’s a pity.

Just as I was about to solidify my decision to join hands with the eldest son, my cell phone rang.

“Yes, this is Choi Seo-jun.”

– Oh, Prosecutor Choi. Are you busy right now?

It’s Chief Prosecutor Kang Hyun-soo.

Forgetting even the pride that was crushed in the hospital room and calling again, he must be quite desperate.

“I’m working. What’s the matter?”

– How about having dinner together tonight?

“Is your body feeling better?”

– It’s just a formality of hospitalization. Let’s have dinner together and talk.

I need to play hard to get at least once.

Love that comes too easily gets boring.

“Well, I have a lot of work to do today. There’s a lot of data to check.”

He probably knows that I’ve already contacted the second son, so he must have understood what I meant.

After a moment of silence, he said in a dissatisfied tone.

– It’s not just the two of us meeting.

“Is someone coming?”

– You’ll be very pleased to see him. He’s someone who can satisfy what you want.

In other words, someone from the eldest son’s side is coming.

I don’t know how they’ll come out, but they’re bound to bring a pretty sweet offer.

As expected, good fortune is rolling in like a vine.

“I’ll try to finish work as soon as possible.”

– Okay. Let’s meet at Dobi Hotel in Jamsil at 7 PM tonight.

“Rest well.”

I didn’t give a definite answer until the end.

Keeping them on edge is the most basic and effective way to gain an advantage.

I hung up the phone and hurried to continue organizing the data.

I need to make a usable sword before dinner.

I can’t be late.

***

Thanks to the fact that the data given by the second son was neatly organized from the beginning, I was able to finish it without being late.

Even though it’s the office, I made copies of the data separately in case something happened and left for the meeting place.

I checked the rearview mirror from time to time, wondering if I was being followed, but I didn’t see any cars following me.

As expected, the tail that had been attached so far was from the eldest son’s side.

All sorts of speculations ran rampant in my head as I headed to the hotel.

I’m not sure yet whether the eldest son will make an offer, give a warning, or threaten me.

He was likely to try to appease me, but the latter possibility was not small.

The biggest reason is that the second son is so precarious.

If that’s the case, I don’t intend to back down or bend my knees appropriately.

When money and power collide, the guy who bows his head first will continue to be in the position of the weaker party.

Even if I can’t be the boss against a conglomerate, I should at least be on an equal footing.

I’m just an ordinary prosecutor, but the media and public opinion are behind me.

That’s my biggest weapon. Thanks to that, I can at least get half of what I want.

When I arrived at the place marked on the navigation, the magnificent building of the luxurious hotel stood tall.

A 5-star hotel.

Juok Group also runs a hotel business, but meeting at Dobi Hotel is to avoid the eyes of others.

Well, the hotel is run by the youngest daughter of Juok Group Chairman Lee Jong-ju, so it wouldn’t be good to have a secret meeting caught.

I got out at the entrance of the building, entrusted the car to valet parking, and entered the restaurant located on the 30th floor.

Soft classical music and a classic atmosphere.

In this luxurious restaurant, there was only one table with people sitting at it.

Chief Prosecutor Kang Hyun-soo spotted me first and raised his hand, and I nodded to him and approached the table.

“It’s quite quiet.”

As I spoke, looking around, the man next to Kang Hyun-soo finally raised his head and stood up from his seat.

“I don’t like being involved with other people.”

Gulp.

I swallowed without realizing it.

“Nice to meet you. I’m Lee Cheol-yong.”

Lee Cheol-yong.

The vice president of Juok Group and the eldest son who will become the future chairman, Lee Cheol-yong.

He came out himself.

I thought at best the chief of staff would come out, but he’s moving directly without sparing himself.

As expected, he’s much bolder than the second son.

No wonder the game has tilted towards the eldest son.

I belatedly grabbed his outstretched hand and shook it.

“Choi Seo-jun.”

“Please, have a seat.”

As I sat down on the chair, Lee Cheol-yong subtly gave Kang Hyun-soo a look, and soon he moved to a place out of sight.

Meaning he wants to talk quietly and alone.

“I don’t know if the food will suit your taste.”

There’s no way the food at a 5-star hotel wouldn’t suit my taste.

However, I smiled and only raised my water glass.

“These days, if you pick up anything because of the Kim Young-ran Act [anti-corruption law], you’ll get indigestion.”

No sooner had I finished speaking than he burst into laughter.

“Hahahahahaha!”

The sound of laughter echoed throughout the restaurant, but no one turned their eyes this way.

No, there was no one there in the first place.

“It’s okay. Even if you stab me with a knife, there will be no witnesses here.”

“Even if there are no witnesses, you’ll know.”

“Please eat comfortably. I didn’t put any poison in it.”

I didn’t answer and just smiled.

After a brief war of nerves, he opened his mouth again.

“I’ll get straight to the point. I don’t want to make the Prosecutor my enemy.”

As expected of the vice president of Juok Group.

He doesn’t test the waters, does he?

Well, just by the fact that he came to this place himself without sending his subordinates, I can tell that he’s a bold person.

“Of course, neither do I. If I make one of the top ten conglomerates in Korea my enemy, would I be scared to work as a prosecutor?”

He shook his head with a sly smile.

“Hey, what can you do with money? Those who wield power are the true strongmen. What can we do but take care of this and that so that the Prosecutors don’t have any inconvenience in their lives? It’s just playing with money.”

He came straight to the point, but he couldn’t easily pounce on me either.

That’s because Lee Cheol-yong wouldn’t know what cards I had in my hand.

He probably knows from Kang Hyun-soo that chief prosecutors exchange money, but I also have a photo of Juok Medical delivering funds to Kang Hyun-soo.

In addition, the most important thing is the file delivered by the second son.

Even if he knows it’s data related to Juok Medical, he wouldn’t know exactly what kind of data it is or what content it has.

The game has tilted towards him, but it’s not yet at the stage where he can be sure.

He wouldn’t know exactly what kind of conspiracy the second son is plotting.

Lee Cheol-yong’s voice changed to a serious one.

“I don’t want the trend to be reversed.”

He leaned forward and continued.

“I’m not asking for much. I just want you to quietly cover it up and move on. No one can easily touch this case except for Prosecutor Choi.”

That’s right.

Unlike an ordinary prosecutor, my position is that of a star prosecutor.

When I move, the public and the media pay attention.

The times have changed from the old days.

It’s not an era where you can silence and cover up the media with money.

No matter how much money you pour in, you won’t be able to stop it from spreading to public opinion.

From his point of view, who has already entered the consolidation phase, it’s natural that he doesn’t welcome the attention of the public.

Public opinion is something that no one knows what kind of results it will create.

Isn’t it a situation where even the president is being chased out by the power of the people?

His wish would be to pass over it quietly without making a fire.

However, everyone knows that if you pass over it as a prosecutor, you won’t even get any results.

“Well, I personally think that the position of prosecutor exists to establish justice.”

“You’re in the inspection department, aren’t you?”

“I’m in the inspection department. Since the corruption of the chief prosecutors is involved, it’s my job to find the source and cut off the roots.”

I put down my water glass and continued.

“Coincidentally, I have information about the roots in my hands.”

It’s a word that could sound quite unpleasant, but Lee Cheol-yong’s face didn’t change at all, and he only had a relaxed smile on his face.

And he asked a question instead.

“What do you work for, Prosecutor?”

My goal.

“Do you want to establish justice?”

“If you look for justice in Korea, you’ll starve to death.”

“If not justice, then fame? Or money?”

“Neither is that.”

“Then…?”

“Power.”

I leaned back on the backrest and crossed my legs. And I raised my chin.

“Real power. I’m going to get it in my hands.”

Only then did Lee Cheol-yong’s eyes begin to shine.

He leaned his upper body towards me with a serious face.

“How far do you want to go up?”

I answered without a moment’s hesitation.

“To the end.”

A smile that he couldn’t hide burst out from the corner of his mouth.

“I will help you.”