The Inspector Is Getting Promoted! [EN]: Chapter 86

Prosecutor, You’re Moving Up in the World! – Episode 86

Subversion (1)

The day before the Lunar New Year holiday.

Before heading down to my hometown, I visited the house of former High Prosecutor General Kim Seok-won.

It hadn’t even been a month since his retirement ceremony, but since it was a holiday, I decided to pay my respects.

Previously, due to the Kim Young-ran Act [a South Korean anti-corruption law], I always bought appropriate gift sets that didn’t exceed 50,000 won [approximately $40 USD], but now that he was a private citizen and not subject to the Kim Young-ran Act, I prepared top-quality Korean beef and dried yellow corvina [a type of fish] sets.

“Hello, Chief Prosecutor.”

“Is that our Choi Prosecutor?”

He greeted me warmly with the title he always used.

“Have you been well?”

“Has it only been a few days since we last saw each other? Hahaha, come on in.”

I went inside the living room and handed him the gifts I was carrying.

“Oh my, you brought so much.”

“Now that you’re not a public official, I felt comfortable preparing them.”

“Hahahahaha, thank you.”

The Chief Prosecutor’s wife looked at the dried yellow corvina and Korean beef with wide eyes.

“Oh my, these precious things…….”

“I’ve wanted to give them to you all along, but I couldn’t, hahaha.”

Kim Seok-won smiled contentedly and led me to the sofa.

“Sit down.”

“Yes.”

The living room scene that caught my eye on the way to the sofa felt different than before.

To be precise, it was desolate.

When he was in office as High Prosecutor General, the living room was piled high with all sorts of gifts, and it was filled with the scent of coffee as if guests were constantly coming and going, but this time there was no sign of that at all.

The saying, ‘People attend the wake when a Prime Minister’s dog dies, but don’t even go near the Prime Minister’s funeral,’ really hit home.

Now that he had retired and become an ordinary person, everyone must have stopped visiting.

Kim Seok-won’s wife brought coffee with a rich aroma.

“It’s hot, so drink it slowly.”

“Thank you.”

She gave a kind nod and headed to the kitchen.

As I lifted my teacup, Kim Seok-won said with a smile.

“Why did you prepare so much? I can’t do anything for you now.”

“I didn’t do it expecting anything in return. I’m giving it as a sign of gratitude.”

“Your words alone are kind. I should have prepared something too…….”

“No, I wouldn’t accept it even if you gave it to me. And I’m still a public official, so I can’t receive it, hahahaha.”

He slowly looked at me and said.

“Thank you so much.”

I could feel the sincerity in his words.

He seemed genuinely grateful that I had visited even after his retirement.

“I’m going to keep visiting in the future, are you going to thank me every time?”

“That’s enough. Why do you keep trying to visit?”

He said something he didn’t mean.

“I’ll come during Chuseok [Korean Thanksgiving] too, and I’ll come until I retire. Just make sure you have coffee ready.”

“By then, I’ll be in my grave, so come to my funeral and have a bowl of yukgaejang [spicy beef soup] before you go.”

“I have a big appetite, would it be okay if I had two bowls?”

“Kyahahahahat!”

Kim Seok-won burst out laughing at my joke.

It was probably the biggest laugh I had ever seen from him.

“How’s the factory? I heard it’s been completely revamped this time?”

‘Factory’ is slang in this field for the Prosecutor’s Office.

Seeing him freely use slang, I definitely felt that he had become much more relaxed than what I had seen so far.

“Everyone’s too busy trying to figure each other out.”

“Is there anyone you’re particularly wary of?”

“There is one. A guy who came from the Busan District Prosecutors’ Office… Do you know Park Jae-pil, who used to work with you, Chief Prosecutor?”

“I know that friend. He came as my replacement as High Prosecutor General this time.”

“Yes. Kang Jung-sik is Park Jae-pil’s right-hand man, and it seems he brought him along and appointed him as the head of the Public Security Department of the Central District Prosecutors’ Office.”

“Really?”

His brow furrowed slightly.

“Park Jae-pil is no pushover…….”

If Kim Seok-won said that, it meant he could really be a threat.

“Bringing him to the Central District Prosecutors’ Office, and even as the head of the Public Security Department, means he’s openly declaring he’s going to take down a few people in the Central District Prosecutors’ Office. Have you had any conflicts?”

“No. I’ve only exchanged greetings in passing.”

“Okay. Keep your wits about you and be wary. Park Jae-pil is very skilled at setting traps and framing people.”

“I understand.”

“I was almost caught by him a few times, but I managed to push him out to the provinces as I climbed up……. I knew he would make a comeback, but I didn’t expect him to make such a spectacular revival.”

He seemed lost in reminiscence as if old memories were coming back to him.

But that was only for a moment, he put down his teacup and relaxed his expression.

“Ah, was it too heavy of a topic for the Lunar New Year?”

“No. I want to hear more about High Prosecutor General Park Jae-pil.”

“Then is it okay if I tell you a few more things?”

“Yes, please do.”

“Okay. That friend, he…….”

***

“Did you have a good Lunar New Year?”

“Of course.”

Yoon Seol-ha had a content expression.

“I added an extra zero to the allowance I used to give, and they were so incredibly happy. It made me happy too.”

“You did well. Let me know if you need anything at any time.”

“What you’re providing now is more than enough.”

She smiled brightly as if she was truly satisfied.

“How was it for you, Prosecutor?”

“It’s the same as always. It used to be ‘When are you going to get a girlfriend?’, but now it’s changed to ‘When are you going to get married?’ That’s all.”

At those words, Yoon Seol-ha reflexively sparkled her eyes.

“So when are you handing out wedding invitations?”

“I don’t know, I don’t either.”

I said, closing my eyes, and immediately changed the subject.

“How’s the investigation related to Chief Prosecutor Seo Gi-woong going?”

“Ah, I looked into it, and it’s really amazing.”

“Amazing?”

“Yes.”

She stuck out her tongue.

“I even checked to see if there was a slight smell of something fishy, but he’s the cleanest person I’ve ever looked into. There’s not even a speck of dust, let alone a stain.”

“I thought Chief Prosecutor Seo Gi-woong would be like that.”

Yoon Seol-ha wrinkled her nose and nodded, and began her briefing on Seo Gi-woong in earnest.

“I don’t know what he does. I’m curious what he lives for.”

When you reach the position of Chief Prosecutor, it’s common to enjoy light sports like social golf, but Chief Prosecutor Seo Gi-woong doesn’t do any of that either.

“Doesn’t he exercise at all?”

“All he does is go for a jog in a nearby park after dinner when he finishes work early. If you look at his lifestyle, you’d think he was a robot.”

“Hehehe…….”

“The only hobby I’ve identified is reading? There’s nothing else.”

There’s no common ground to become close.

There’s no way to even start a conversation.

“Was there anything else?”

Yoon Seol-ha chuckled and nodded.

“Yes.”

“Heo.”

“At first, I wondered if I was incompetent, but there was nothing no matter how much I dug.”

In my judgment, Yoon Seol-ha is an authority in this field that most people can’t follow.

If she couldn’t find anything, it’s either really nothing, or something that no one knows except his family.

“His family was the same. His son attends an arts high school and is an ordinary aspiring novelist, and his wife seems to deliberately not work.”

“Deliberately?”

“Yes. It seems like she eliminated the possibility of problems from the start in case her actions could harm the Chief Prosecutor.”

This is more than a paragon of integrity.

A person who wouldn’t even have a speck of dirt even if you scrubbed him with a Korean exfoliating mitt [a rough cloth used for exfoliation in Korean bathing culture].

The closer you get to someone like this, the more you fall for them, and it’s really easy to manipulate them from behind…….

The more I know it’s hard to have, the more I want it.

“The couple has a very good relationship, and the family seems to be very close. So they spend more time with each other than with outsiders.”

“So his wife doesn’t do any external activities at all?”

“No. Instead of income-generating activities, she runs a volunteer organization.”

At those words, my ears perked up.

“A volunteer organization?”

“Yes. She’s practically the head of the volunteer organization, and the main place she works is an orphanage called Somangwon.”

“Tell me more about it.”

“It’s just an ordinary orphanage. It’s run on donations, and it seems the Chief Prosecutor deliberately doesn’t pay any attention to it because he’s afraid of rumors.”

“So it’s safe to say that his wife is the director of the orphanage?”

“It’s not just safe to say, she’s actually listed as the director. The orphanage is also the main place where she works in the volunteer organization she runs.”

It felt like a faint ray of light was shining in the dark.

“Have you investigated the size of the orphanage or its operations?”

“Yes.”

Yoon Seol-ha took out a thick file from her bag and handed it to me.

“The orphanage itself has a long history. It’s been around for about 20 years, and the wife…… that is, the Chief Prosecutor’s wife, has been in charge for about 7 years now. But recently, one of the nearby orphanages closed down, and half of the children there were divided and came here.”

I listened while quickly reading the data.

“The number of children increased from about fifteen to twenty-four in an instant, so there seem to be some problems with the internal facilities and operations.”

At that time, I found the operating expenses item in the data.

Since it was a volunteer organization, the details of the usage were transparently disclosed, so it was clear and I could see it at a glance.

“The number of people has increased, but the operating expenses are the same?”

“Yes. It seems the organization itself is struggling with financial difficulties because it operates on a donation-based system.”

As soon as I heard those words, the corners of my lips went up.

I’ve found it, a breakthrough!

“Then we should approach it from this angle.”

Yoon Seol-ha nodded as if she had read my mind.

“Yes. Since the Chief Prosecutor isn’t sociable, the influence from his household will have a stronger effect.”

There’s no answer if you try to approach the Chief Prosecutor directly, but it’s a different story if you go through his wife.

This might be more effective than getting directly close to Chief Prosecutor Seo Gi-woong.

Yoon Seol-ha immediately handed me the orphanage’s phone number and asked.

“Then shall we find out how to donate to the orphanage?”

“Yes. But…….”

I twisted my lips into a smirk.

“Find a way to sponsor the organization anonymously.”

“Anonymously?”

She tilted her head.

“Yes. I’m going to meet with the director of the orphanage 1:1 and then donate anonymously.”

“Ah!”

Yoon Seol-ha exclaimed as if she was impressed.

“Wow, I really can’t keep up with the Chief’s ideas.”

I gave a light smile.

“Then make an appointment for a day when the orphanage’s schedule is free as soon as possible.”

“I understand.”

I got up from my seat after seeing her pack up the data.

“Contact me if any problems arise.”

“Yes.”

Yoon Seol-ha turned back to me as she slung her bag over her shoulder.

“Ah, that’s right!”

She clapped her hands as if something had come to mind.

“There’s one thing I left out.”

“What is it?”

“It’s about the Chief Prosecutor’s son.”

I focused on her words with a glint in my eyes.

“Is there something there?”

“Your son is a huge fan of Han Ji-yu.”

“…….”

Yoon Seol-ha is the one who teases me the most about dating Han Ji-yu among the people around me.

“Yes, that’s really important information.”

She said, feigning innocence.

“I just said it to make you happy.”

“If I ever get married, Investigator Yoon will have to pay a huge amount of congratulatory money.”

“Of course. I’ll have to write you a blank check.”

She never loses in these kinds of words.

“You have to work to earn that congratulatory money. Go to work quickly.”

“Shall I?”

She turned around with a wink.