You Have Been Defended [EN]: Chapter 200

It was my second time stepping into former President Kang Kwan-woong’s residence in Pyeongchang-dong.

My contact with Kang Kwan-woong had been limited to occasional simple messages conveyed through Chief Secretary Kang, whom he used like an errand boy, so I hadn’t had the chance to see his face.

More than anything, it was true that he, who had said he would watch over me, hadn’t called me during the recent Myunghwa Pharmaceutical case.

As I entered the open garage, Chief Secretary Kang was waiting.

“It’s been a while, Attorney Cha.”

“Yes, it has.”

“Come in. It’s very hot, isn’t it?”

The garage was air-conditioned, so it wasn’t hot at all, but I replied appropriately, “It is.”

“We need a cool rain to pour down at times like this.”

Chief Secretary Kang muttered in passing.

*That’s a dangerous thing to say.*

2010 left me with many memories, one of which was Typhoon Kompasu, which directly hit Seoul.

There were several casualties, and it caused hundreds of billions of won in damage to local governments.

Windows shook so violently that they broke, and large signs on the main streets were blown away by the wind and found in alleys.

“How is the Elder?”

“He’s taking a walk in the garden.”

As I came out of the garage and climbed the stone steps, a wide garden unfolded.

Kang Kwan-woong was sitting alone on a refreshment area built on a wide green lawn, reading a book.

“Elder, Attorney Cha has arrived.”

“Welcome.”

Kang Kwan-woong put down his book and adjusted the glasses that were perched on the bridge of his nose.

“It’s been a while, Elder.”

“Yes. Sit down.”

Chief Secretary Kang pointed to the chair opposite Kang Kwan-woong, and he himself also took a seat.

I thought Kang Min-jae would be the first to come out and make a fuss when I came to this house, but there was no sign of him.

“It seems a bit early for dinner. And there are more people coming. Let’s have some tea before we go in.”

“By ‘people coming,’ do you mean Attorney Kang?”

“No, I told Min-jae to go out and play. He wouldn’t even dream that you’d be here.”

Told him to go out and play, as if he were dealing with a child.

*I also feel like I’m playing with a child when I’m with Kang Min-jae.*

Anyway, there are more people coming.

If not Kang Min-jae, then who could it be?

Just like the day I first met Kang Kwan-woong, I thought of a few people in my head, but no one came to mind.

Chief Secretary Kang picked up the ocher-colored tea set and filled Kang Kwan-woong’s empty cup.

And he poured me a cup of steaming tea as well.

*It’s already so hot, and now hot tea outside.*

*I already feel like I’m sweating.*

“The Myunghwa Pharmaceutical case is your work, isn’t it?”

Kang Kwan-woong came straight to the point without any warning.

Should I deny it? I nodded obediently.

“Yes.”

I had decided to make Kang Kwan-woong my backer.

When we first met, there was a need to play it cool to some extent, but now it was time to get down to business.

Kang Kwan-woong must have sensed it to some extent and left a message that he would watch over me.

“Are you pleased with the result?”

“There’s still a lot of work to do.”

“This isn’t enough to satisfy you?”

He chuckled and brought the teacup to his lips.

“There are still procedures left until Antrozol Alpha is completely 폐기(discarded [disposed of]).”

“I see.”

Kang Kwan-woong nodded slowly and paused for a moment.

I didn’t say anything more and waited for him to speak.

“Honestly, I was very surprised. You’re a person who knows how to use public opinion very well. You’re someone who knows how to light a fuse and start a big fire.”

“You flatter me.”

It started with commissioning a medical journalist to investigate the side effects of Antrozol Alpha.

But people don’t really care about the fact that there are side effects to a drug.

Unless they are the ones taking the drug.

So I scouted Cho Bong-joon, an expert in the stock market.

As the firepower increased on that side, these facts were spread all over the internet communities.

And then I targeted the broadcasting stations, which are always struggling for material.

After that, I touched Myunghwa Pharmaceutical’s reputation as a company and escalated the case into a legal battle.

When people’s interest had gathered to some extent, I began to release evidence that would be perceived as provocative.

Because the process was spectacular, it became a story.

It became an interesting ‘썰(story [anecdote])’ rather than a boring current affairs issue.

People reacted to the fun.

As a result, even the prosecution was moved.

Anyone who understands this series of processes will know, but in order to grasp the exact flow of this case, one must recognize the existence of ‘Cha Joo-han.’

Only then can you see the storytelling that I have woven.

Otherwise, the existence of Cha Joo-han would be nothing more than a person who defended Cho Bong-joon and became a commissioned investigator at the call of the prosecution.

Kang Min-jae thought that the reason I was involved in this case was because I knew Cho Bong-joon.

He had no idea that I had created this case, so everything Kang Kwan-woong was saying was a conclusion derived from his insight.

“And you seem to have an excellent ability to bring out the necessary evidence in the right place, and to find it. I’ve heard enough about that from Min-jae, even if it wasn’t this case.”

“You flatter me.”

“You’ve become quite a prominent figure with this case. You were naturally a famous person in the legal profession, but now that horizon has expanded. So every action you take will be noticed.”

Kang Kwan-woong tapped the book on the table with his fingertips and continued slowly.

“Now you can tell me. Tell me your true feelings that you’ve been hiding in front of me, pretending to be noble.”

In short, what is your purpose in doing all this?

Until this case, I could have simply said that I was fighting against injustice as I saw it, for the sake of realizing justice.

But the Antrozol Alpha case is one that I created.

Kang Kwan-woong, who doesn’t know that I learned about the problems with Antrozol Alpha in my previous life, would have thought that I had discovered Antrozol Alpha while digging around to find flaws in Wooshin.

And it’s better for me if he thinks that way.

“Don’t you already know, Elder?”

“Are you testing me?”

Kang Kwan-woong asked, narrowing his eyes.

“Do you want to confirm whether I have completely grasped your inner thoughts?”

I have already been tested by him several times, knowingly or unknowingly.

But that reverse, that is, me testing him, would be rude.

He is a big figure in the political world, and I am a rookie who needs to get help from him.

It would be different if this was our first meeting, but I already highly value him.

There’s no need to test him.

And there was no reason to hide it anymore.

I need his power.

If his test is over, it’s time to draw a conclusion.

“I apologize if you thought so. I was 고민(pondering [thinking hard]) how to express my goal.”

“How to express it?”

“Yes. I was afraid that it might sound like a 허황(grandiose [wild]) dream to you. I want you to like me, not to see me as someone who has futile dreams.”

Kang Kwan-woong laughed at my answer.

“I thought you were a stiff friend, but you know how to flatter.”

It’s not flattery, it’s the truth.

But it doesn’t matter if you think it’s flattery.

My biggest weakness is that I can’t say empty words, so there was a possibility that I would be thought of as someone lacking in social skills.

…Jung Chang-yoon said that to me too.

“It may be a 허황(grandiose [wild]) dream. But that’s not a problem if you have the ability to back it up. If I thought you were just good at 수작(maneuvering [scheming]) and had no ability, like a 속 빈 강정(empty shell [show without substance]), I wouldn’t have met you twice like this in the first place.”

He narrowed his eyes and made 자글자글(crinkling [fine]) wrinkles, as if he was in a good mood.

“Now, shall we pinpoint the target? Is your goal Go Sang-joon, or Wooshin as a whole?”

“Didn’t I tell you that I was afraid it would be seen as a 허황(grandiose [wild]) dream?”

Kang Kwan-woong laughed again at my answer.

“You mean the latter.”

“That’s right.”

“Do you have a blueprint?”

“I do, but it’s still abstract. I need to verify whether the necessary people are suitable for the job. It seems too early to share the blueprint.”

“Necessary people. Is Min-jae in that blueprint?”

I couldn’t answer Kang Kwan-woong’s question quickly.

In fact, it’s closer to ‘no’ right now.

That’s not because I don’t believe in Kang Min-jae’s ability, but because I don’t know his will.

Also, it’s because I don’t want to involve him in this dangerous work.

But I wasn’t sure what answer Kang Kwan-woong wanted.

No matter how 초탈(detached [indifferent]) Kang Kwan-woong is from human relationships, blood is thicker than water.

If I say yes, he might get angry, saying that I’m trying to put his grandson in danger.

If I say no, he might get angry again, saying that I don’t believe in his grandson’s ability.

*Ha, it’s difficult.*

It was a moment when I realized how little I had lived paying attention to what others thought.

I used to answer without 고민(hesitation [thinking]) in these situations.

That’s why it’s even more difficult.

“The reason you helped me in the first place, Elder, was of course because Attorney Kang asked you to, but I thought you helped me because you saw something in me. Wasn’t that the case?”

“It’s true that I decided whether to help you or not after seeing you that day.”

“Then, it seems that whether Attorney Kang exists in my blueprint or not is not important in giving me an answer as to whether you will lend me your strength.”

“That’s right. I was just curious.”

Kang Kwan-woong answered unexpectedly coolly.

“Min-jae has nothing to do with me being your strength. It’s not because you’re Min-jae’s boss, but because I like you. But Attorney Cha, you have a 얄미운(밉상 [unlikeable]) side to you. Seeing that you’re trying not to answer until the end.”

Kang Kwan-woong glared at me.

That 모습(figure [look]) strangely overlapped with Kang Min-jae.

The genes don’t go anywhere.

“When I became president, our country had sacrificed a lot due to rapid economic growth. It was an era when important values were naturally regarded as unimportant. I made a lot of effort to restore those many values. As you know, that’s why I received a lot of criticism for having 허황(grandiose [wild]) dreams.”

Kang Kwan-woong said bitterly with a distant look, as if he had returned to the old days.

“That’s why I can’t 함부로(rashly [carelessly]) say that the dream you’re dreaming is 허황(grandiose [wild]). I put the prerequisite that ability must be supported earlier, but in fact, I think anyone can dream, even if they don’t have the ability.”

“……”

“And I was the one who lacked that ability.”