You Have Been Defended [EN]: Chapter 228

“What’s with this sudden crisis?”

Choi Jong-hyun looked flustered as he scrolled down with the mouse wheel.

It had been 20 minutes since the first article related to me appeared in our economic news.

I could see a few more related articles popping up after that.

But a crisis?

Should I call this a crisis?

I read a few more articles before getting up from my chair.

“Where are you going?”

“The broadcast is over for today, so I’m going to head home. I’m tired. I need to take a hot shower and sleep.”

“Huh? You’re going home and sleeping in this situation?”

“I’ve said it repeatedly from the beginning, haven’t I? That there might be a situation where I’m suspected as the informant.”

I was putting on my coat and grabbing my briefcase when Jo Bong-joon rushed over and sat me back down at my desk.

“I’m tired, I tell you.”

“They’re framing you as a criminal or something. Do you know what trouble you’ll be in if you get caught here? And what if the prosecution starts digging into this properly? The testimony is already coming out like that; they’ll quickly figure out that Cha is behind this broadcast if they really try.”

He spoke rapidly, unlike his usual self.

It’s not that I don’t understand their worries.

Lee Kang-jin had said something to me right after the incident broke.

He questioned why I had requested invitations for three people, but only Kang appeared at the event, making him suspicious.

Of course, since it couldn’t be confirmed with CCTV, I brushed it off by saying they seemed to have arrived right after the incident broke, but if they really tried to piece things together, they could find out.

“If it’s confirmed that Cha is really the informant, our broadcast could also be in trouble.”

“Bong-joon is right. If that happens, it’s only a matter of time before it’s known that you’re closely associated with our broadcast.”

If the moment comes when I’m suspected as the informant, it wouldn’t be difficult to confirm that I’m connected to this broadcast.

The house where Jo Bong-joon and Choi Jong-hyun live together is also under my name, and I frequent this place.

From the beginning, I wasn’t trying to keep my stake in this broadcast a secret, so it’s not like it’s the end of the world if it gets out.

Still, it’s better if it doesn’t.

I slowly nodded.

“I understand your concerns. But that won’t happen.”

“Why are you so sure?”

It seems like it will be a long explanation.

I glanced at my watch for a moment.

Ah, I won’t be able to sleep early today either.

* * *

I overslept.

I only checked the time and hurriedly prepared to go to work.

Other than drinking a glass of water, I didn’t have time to watch the news or read the newspaper as usual.

I practically ran to the parking lot and got in the car, but it seemed like I wouldn’t be able to avoid being late today.

Without even taking the time to tune into a radio channel, I merged onto the main road.

Come to think of it, I don’t think my alarm went off today either.

“…Where did I put my phone?”

I reflexively checked the phone holder, but it wasn’t there.

Just as the light turned red, I rummaged through the jacket pocket I had carelessly placed on the passenger seat.

The phone was off.

I connected the phone to the charger and turned it on, and countless alarms started going off.

There were nearly 30 missed calls.

And as soon as I turned it on, Kang Min-jae called me.

“Oh, it’s me.”

I roughly switched to speakerphone and continued the call.

-Where are you, Attorney Cha? Why did you turn off your phone? I was worried.

“I’m on my way to the office now. I’m almost there. I’m in front of the Gyodae Station.”

-Then don’t come to the office, go somewhere else.

“Why?”

-Haven’t you seen the news today?

“I overslept today.”

-Ha, there are tons of reporters in front of your house… Secretary! They’re trying to open the door!

“Why reporters?”

Unexpectedly, I reflexively pulled the car over to the side of the road, just before Gyodae Station.

-This morning’s news is saying that you’re the informant! And the problem is, this morning they reported that Lee Se-hyung attempted suicide? Fortunately, he was found early and didn’t die, and he’s been taken to the hospital… So now it’s like you made Lee Se-hyung try to kill himself, or something…

“Attempted suicide? Which hospital was he taken to?”

-Wooshin Hospital.

“They’re planning to play this together.”

The closest general hospitals to Lee Jung-chan’s house are two.

One is Jisan University Hospital, and the other is Wooshin Hospital.

Wooshin Hospital is about 10 minutes further away.

But if the ambulance went to Wooshin Hospital, isn’t it obvious?

Wooshin might not have completely cut ties with Lee Jung-chan.

They won’t be able to ride the same boat, but since they’re involved, they’re making a deal to help to some extent.

Instead of being surprised, I just laughed.

Even if he really attempted suicide, I have no intention of retracting my ridicule.

If he committed a crime against the people and now chooses suicide to escape, that’s just cowardly.

If you commit a crime, you should be punished accordingly, and you should also accept the corresponding criticism.

“Haa, this has become troublesome.”

-It’s not just troublesome! Anyway, don’t come to the office now, and maybe don’t go to your house either, just in case, and not the studio either!

“Okay, I understand. But are Kang and the secretary at the office now?”

-Yes. Ha, we’re trapped.

“I knew the reporters would like this gossip more than anything important…”

I grumbled annoyedly and drove the car again.

If I can’t go home, can’t go to the office, and can’t go to the studio, I thought I should go to a nearby hotel.

If I keep sitting in the car and wandering around, I might end up driving around Seoul like this.

As soon as I checked into the hotel, I requested today’s newspaper and ordered some simple room service.

No matter how urgent the work is, I have to fill my hungry stomach.

I turned on the television and first flipped through the news channels.

There were so many incidents happening right now that I had a hard time finding a place that was talking about my story.

[Amidst rampant speculation that Attorney Cha Joo-han is the informant who first revealed Lee Se-hyung’s disability fabrication to the world, Attorney Cha Joo-han’s background is drawing attention. In 2008, Attorney Cha Joo-han was suspected in the murder case of Kim Cheol-hwan and Yeo Hee-sook…]

I appreciate you reciting my resume, but that’s not the information I want.

Another channel.

[…Attorney Cha Joo-han participated in the investigation as a special investigator for the prosecution during the Myunghwa Pharmaceutical Antrozol Alpha ingredient manipulation case. Some say that the reason why Attorney Cha Joo-han, who only defended Jo Bong-joon, an internet broadcaster who was sued for spreading false information, became a special investigator is not understandable.]

[If Attorney Cha Joo-han is really the informant, why did he use such violent methods? It is true that Lee Se-hyung committed a crime, but…]

After checking this and that, I think I roughly understand.

I remember there was a debate about whether the informant was a ‘hero or a criminal.’

Anyway, the internet is a medium that is used a lot by young people, and young people generally form a confrontational structure with the established powers to some extent.

That’s why they might see me as a hero for exposing the Myunghwa Pharmaceutical case and revealing Lee Jung-chan’s corruption.

But when you come out of the internet, the world is a little different.

Moreover, with Lee Se-hyung’s suicide attempt on top of that, some public opinion that still hasn’t broken away from Lee Jung-chan seems to be criticizing me as a cowardly guy who revealed Lee Se-hyung’s flaws in a violent way.

The tone of the news and newspapers being reported now is also like that.

Overall, it is inducing a negative view of me.

I saw Lee Jung-chan going to the prosecution in a wheelchair, and I thought he would do a show of collapsing to temporarily suspend the investigation.

I didn’t know Lee Se-hyung would be a hidden card.

Well, it’s a slightly more profitable way for Lee Se-hyung to pretend to attempt suicide.

It can also temporarily suspend the investigation, turn the attention elsewhere for a while, and put pressure on me.

“Chief Cha, this is Cha Joo-han. Is it a good time to talk?”

I immediately called Park Young-gi.

-Attorney Cha, I called you this morning, why is it so difficult to reach you?

“I’m sorry. My phone battery ran out and it was turned off.”

-Did you see the news? I heard that reporters are all over in front of Attorney Cha’s office. Are you okay?

“Yes. I checked into a nearby hotel just in case and checked the situation first. Lee Se-hyung attempted suicide.”

-It seems like a lie, anyway.

As expected, it’s Park Young-gi.

I didn’t think he would naively believe that news.

“Yes. That’s probably right. I think this idea came from Wooshin’s head.”

The idea of covering up an issue with another issue is common, but the reason why I decisively suspected Wooshin was that they chose me as the target.

Wooshin would have had many other celebrity issues, but they didn’t reveal them.

In fact, Lee Se-hyung’s suicide attempt is not the best choice for Lee Jung-chan and his son.

They can buy sympathy, but it is easy to face a backlash.

In particular, if Lee Se-hyung really didn’t die and comes back to life, then he will be added to the stigma of being a coward who tried to escape from his sins.

However, the fact that they made this choice seems to mean that Wooshin has decided to abandon Lee Jung-chan from Wooshin’s point of view, no matter what conversation they had with Lee Jung-chan.

However, I wonder if it was a trick to harm me by using Lee Jung-chan and his son, who are already full of resentment towards me, while pretending to give Lee Jung-chan a lifeline.

Even if the media talks about the same incident, the nature of the incident changes if the tone changes.

Lee Se-hyung’s suicide attempt is like that.

If you can criticize Lee Se-hyung’s choice, you can also criticize the informant who drove Lee Se-hyung to death.

Wooshin chose the latter, and it seems that they intend to make me a public enemy.

I’m not surprised.

They’ve been eager to kill me for a long time.

“Chief Cha, I think it’s time to ask you for a favor. Let’s release the Myunghwa Pharmaceutical case right away.”

I guess they still don’t know, but they’re not the only ones who can cover up an issue with another issue.