You Have Been Defended [EN]: Chapter 218

You Have Been Defended – Episode 218

Last night’s emergency press conference by the Minwoo Party [a fictional political party] energized their supporters online.

[cat***: Reporter Choi Jong-hyun is so cruel! How can he shove a camera in the face of someone who’s been disabled for years, just had surgery, and is recovering… So cruel.
dog***: Is the issue that important… more than a person? Those who watched the video directly know that Lee Se-hyung is standing very precariously… It’s good to reveal the truth, but the people at the event must have thought there was a fire and evacuated, which will leave them with terrible trauma… I hope reporter Choi Jong-hyun is punished.
ㄴfuc***: Are your ears blocked? Are you blind? They explained that Choi Jong-hyun didn’t do it, so why are you talking about Choi Jong-hyun; and what’s with the ‘precariously’ talk, he was standing perfectly straight lol I thought he was a stone statue lol]

It’s impossible to know if they were really Minwoo Party supporters or just paid shills.

“Isn’t Lee Se-hyung really pitiful? It’s bad enough that he’s disabled, but now he’s being suspected of faking it.”

“Right. He must feel so wronged.”

“But when I watched the video, Lee Se-hyung was just holding the bodyguard’s hand; it didn’t seem like he was getting much help walking? And after the bodyguard disappeared, he was standing fine on his own.”

“He can stand on his own, though. And just holding hands can slightly shift his center of gravity, making it easier, you know?”

“Really? Hmm, still, isn’t it a bit funny? Lee Se-hyung is just Lee Jung-chan’s son, so why is the Minwoo Party making a statement about Lee Se-hyung? He’s hiding behind them. If someone needs to make a a statement on his behalf, shouldn’t it be the foundation where Lee Se-hyung works?”

“No, the Liberty Justice Party [another fictional political party] told Lee Jung-chan to explain first.”

“Exactly. Then Lee Jung-chan should do it himself. Why is the Minwoo Party making a statement about Lee Se-hyung? Let’s be honest, Lee Se-hyung isn’t anyone special. He’s just a social worker who has a good dad. And since when has the Minwoo Party listened to the Liberty Justice Party?”

“Do you like the Liberty Justice Party?”

“Huh? Why are you suddenly talking about that? And what does that have to do with anything? I’m just saying this situation is strange.”

“I just thought you seemed desperate to criticize Lee Se-hyung.”

“Are you a Minwoo Party fanatic? Is everyone who criticizes Lee Se-hyung a Liberty Justice Party supporter?”

I overheard people talking while waiting for my coffee at the cafe, and I could feel that public opinion was leaning towards Lee Se-hyung.

I wonder if Lee Jung-chan and his son slept well last night.

“Good morning.”

I walked into the office with my coffee to find Secretary Oh and an unfamiliar figure sitting across from each other at the consultation table.

“Ah, you’re just in time.”

Thinking it was a new client coming for a consultation, I walked towards my desk to put down my bag without a second thought.

“Attorney.”

The voice calling me sounded familiar.

I turned my head and saw the face of the person sitting across from Secretary Oh.

It was Pastor Lee Kang-jin, the head of the Light and Salt Foundation [a fictional charity].

“Pastor, what brings you here?”

The reason was obvious.

But I pretended not to know and sat down next to Secretary Oh.

“Ah, well, I know it’s rude, but there’s something I wanted to confirm, so I came to see you.”

“Please, speak freely.”

“Ah, before that, I’m sure you saw the news, but there was no fire at the event that day. Thankfully, there was no damage either. Attorney, were you hurt at all?”

“No, I wasn’t.”

“I see! That’s a relief. Well, then…”

Lee Kang-jin hesitated for a long time, rolling his eyes.

He probably was.

He didn’t want to say the wrong thing and lose a generous donor who had contributed 500 million won [approximately $375,000 USD] from the start.

“…As you know, a reporter filmed Lee Se-hyung, a social worker, walking and evacuating from the scene that day and broadcast it online. Because of that, Lee Se-hyung received a lot of criticism. Fortunately, things have calmed down since the Minwoo Party’s explanation yesterday.”

Lee Kang-jin opened his mouth with difficulty.

I didn’t answer or make any gestures that would reveal my emotions, and just waited for him to speak.

“According to what I heard from the police, and from watching reporter Choi Jong-hyun’s broadcast of Lee Se-hyung that day, it seems like the commotion that day was orchestrated by someone to reveal that Lee Se-hyung’s disability was an act.”

“Is that so?”

“…Yes. So, our foundation has been checking the list of people who attended the event that day and trying to find out who was responsible.”

“That’s definitely necessary.”

“…Right.”

Lee Kang-jin wiped his sweat with a handkerchief and smiled awkwardly.

“I’m not suspecting you, Attorney, but given the situation… I heard that you previously defended Jo Bong-joon, who broadcasts with reporter Choi Jong-hyun…”

“Ah, yes. That’s right.”

“And I know that you appeared on their broadcast at that time and that you’re quite close to them.”

“Yes.”

“…So,”

He didn’t bring up the question of whether he suspected me first.

The fact that the head of the welfare foundation had come all the way here alone was the same as expressing his desire to have a gentle conversation so as not to upset me as much as possible.

He secretly thought of me as a suspect, but in case I wasn’t, he wanted to make sure I didn’t feel bad.

There’s nothing more embarrassing than asking someone like that, ‘Did you do this?’

“Of course, we don’t think you have anything to do with this, Attorney, but other donors who attended the event that day talked about you a lot.”

[Lie]

Wouldn’t it be better to just say that they put the situation together and realized I was a pain in the ass?

I almost felt sorry for him as he struggled to bring up the topic with all sorts of cushions.

“And you told us that you would be visiting with three escorts. We gave out all three name tags that we had prepared. But no one at the event saw anyone else with you besides Attorney Kang Min-jae…”

“I’m not sure about that either. The staff at the event checked our office’s business cards and said they would hand out the name tags, so that’s what we told our employees. But suddenly there was a fire—oh, not a fire. Anyway, that incident happened and there was a power outage, so we couldn’t meet up. I think they arrived right before the incident happened…”

“Excuse me, is the person you’re talking about the secretary here?”

Lee Kang-jin pointed to Secretary Oh.

Was he going to compare the CCTV footage to find out?

I smiled faintly and replied.

“No. We have a few more employees who haven’t come to work yet. They’re Christians, and they’re usually interested in welfare, so I was going to have them attend the event… I didn’t know they would be suspected like this. I donated with good intentions and attended because I was grateful for the invitation… It’s a bit embarrassing to be suspected because of this unfortunate incident.”

At my words, Lee Kang-jin waved his hands and hurriedly replied.

“Ah, Attorney. That’s not what I meant…”

“As you know, I was once unfairly investigated in the news for real estate and stock issues, but I was cleared. Of course, it was covered up well because it turned out I wasn’t guilty. Actually, since then, I’ve decided to give back the wealth I’ve accumulated to society. So… I looked into many places and chose the Light and Salt Foundation. But if this happens, I’m afraid my donation will be a burden to the foundation. I’ll have to look for other charities in the future.”

I said with a very apologetic expression.

Then Lee Kang-jin not only waved his hands but also fidgeted and didn’t know what to do.

“Attorney, no. Oh, I didn’t mean it that way. I was just trying to make sure everything was clear, so I took the liberty of asking, but I was never suspecting you. As I said again, the situation is…”

“I understand what you’re saying, Pastor. I would have suspected me too. I suddenly donated a large sum of money the week before the event, and coincidentally, I’m also friends with reporter Choi Jong-hyun. But, who would donate 500 million won just to do something like that? No matter how much money you have, 500 million is a lot of money to anyone.”

“Of course, yes. Of course. I know very well what your intentions were when you donated.”

Lee Kang-jin was sweating profusely and even looked like he was about to cry.

Was he going to catch the culprit or catch the cash cow?

In that conflict, he chose the latter.

“Since it’s an event I personally attended, I’m also looking into why this happened. As a matter of fact, I checked with reporter Choi Jong-hyun, and it seems like someone else planned this incident. Well, if I’m being misunderstood because of my friendship with reporter Choi Jong-hyun, I think it would be better to prove that reporter Choi Jong-hyun was just acting on a tip and clear my name. What do you think?”

“Oh, that’s up to you, Attorney.”

Even though this incident happened, it was a situation where he could be even more suspicious for taking on Choi Jong-hyun’s case.

This way, it connects well so that even Kang’s involvement in Choi Jong-hyun’s case is not suspicious.

“First of all, we have an attorney in our office named Kang Min-jae, who attended the event with me that day. I’ve assigned him to reporter Choi Jong-hyun. I’ve also handed over the evidence.”

“Is that so? You’ve been through a lot, all because of us…”

“No. We have to be sure. Rather, I’m wondering if the informant put the blame on us and slipped away. Whoever it is, they created the situation they wanted without being exposed.”

“You’re right, Attorney.”

“We’ll also look into it a bit more on our end. Pastor, please relax for now.”

“Thank you, Attorney. And I’m really sorry if I’ve upset you.”

Lee Kang-jin bowed even lower and said.

This was a complete role reversal.

Lee Kang-jin seemed eager to leave, grabbing his coat and walking quickly towards the door.

“Then I’ll be going now, Attorney.”

As Lee Kang-jin left the office, Secretary Oh finally burst into laughter.

“He came to argue, but he couldn’t even stand up to you, Attorney.”

Secretary Oh stifled his laughter.

I cleared the cup that Lee Kang-jin had left behind and replied briefly.

“I guess this is why money is so scary.”

“Money is scary. What can’t you do with money in Korea? Oh, I think the police are giving a briefing this morning. It’s probably happening right now?”

Secretary Oh replied, turning on the television with the remote control.

[Today, the police announced that it is impossible to compare the CCTV footage in connection with the incident at the Light and Salt Disabled Welfare Foundation. According to the police, they have secured footage of men wearing black masks attaching foreign substances to the CCTV cameras on the entire first floor where the event was held, and they plan to search for these masked men as the perpetrators.]

Just in time, good news was flowing from the news.

Korea is a powerhouse of CCTV.

Knowing that they would be caught on CCTV, they wouldn’t have started this without taking care of that one thing.

Lee Kang-jin probably hasn’t received the report yet, but it will be difficult to compare the CCTV footage one by one and find out who it is.

But still, the police’s handling of the case is frustrating.

The incident happened the day before yesterday.

The day of the incident was late, and the fire department started the investigation first, so we can ignore that, but they couldn’t even confirm that foreign substances were attached to the CCTV cameras yesterday?

It’s ridiculous that they’re announcing it now.

Well, whatever.

If the handling of the case is not good, it’s good for us.

Anyway, we’re in the role of the ‘champion of justice’ in the comics.

The champion of justice must not reveal their identity, and the public institutions trying to reveal that identity must be frustrating.

“Okay, now that the Minwoo Party has made its statement, let’s move on to stage 2.”