You Have Been Defended [EN]: Chapter 247

You Have Been Defended – Episode 247

A campaign.

I paused, my hand still gripping the glass.

They mentioned an upcoming presidential election, so based on my memories from my previous life, it must be Jeon Jeong-il’s campaign.

In my past life, Jeon Jeong-il suffered a crushing defeat to Lee Jeong-chan and then tried to challenge the presidential election once more, but he lost to Lee Se-hwa in the primaries.

In the current situation, without Lee Jeong-chan, he could be seen as a strong candidate, but the fact that I would be joining his campaign…

“It’s the first time I’ve seen you look so flustered, Cha. Was it that surprising?”

Lee Se-hwa asked, seemingly amused by my reaction.

The main thing a lawyer can do in a campaign is provide legal advice, but Lee Se-hwa probably wants more from me than that.

Otherwise, no matter how reliable I am, there’s no reason for her to choose me out of all the lawyers available.

“Are you saying you want me to join Jeon Jeong-il’s campaign?”

I asked again.

Lee Se-hwa tilted her head, looking puzzled, and replied.

“No?”

Does that mean someone other than Jeon Jeong-il is running as a candidate?

That’s a variable that didn’t exist in my previous life at all.

“You think I can’t beat Jeon Jeong-il in the primaries? You want me to join my campaign.”

Lee Se-hwa?

According to history, Lee Se-hwa doesn’t run in this presidential election.

It’s not that she didn’t win the primaries.

She didn’t even run in the primaries in the first place.

But suddenly, Lee Se-hwa is running for president?

“That’s not what I meant. I just didn’t expect you to run for president, Representative.”

“Is it that surprising? Former Representative Lee Jeong-chan is gone, and the Liberty Justice Party has never received this much support in recent history. I have to run at a time like this. If the bubble bursts in the next presidential election, I might not have a chance.”

She answered frankly.

She’s right.

The Minwoo Party has no chance in this presidential election.

Therefore, the Liberty Justice Party candidate will naturally be elected, and if Lee Se-hwa wants to aim for the next opportunity, she needs to re-establish the government.

But that’s not an easy task.

In my previous life, Lee Jeong-chan of the Minwoo Party was the president, and because the Minwoo Party failed to re-establish the government, Lee Se-hwa got her turn.

“You’re right. If you were to compete against Jeon Jeong-il in the primaries, you would win easily.”

“Are you serious about that?”

Lee Se-hwa narrowed her eyes suspiciously.

“I’m serious.”

“Thank you for saying that. So, will you join my campaign?”

The favor I asked of Lee Se-hwa was to convey a message to Chairman Seol, whose promising young son had become a vegetable, so that he could reveal the innocence of the person who caused it.

Even if they are close friends, and even if Chairman Seol is a reasonable person, it won’t be easy for him to hear such words from someone else.

I know that I asked her for a difficult favor.

But asking me to join the campaign is also a very difficult request.

Joining a campaign means publicly revealing my political leanings.

“It seems you have no intention of replacing it with another favor, Representative.”

“Of course.”

She replied as if she had been waiting for it.

Even while receiving help from Kang Gwan-woong and forming a strategic alliance with Lee Se-hwa, the reason I tried not to have any party affiliation was because I didn’t think having a political color would be good for me.

Above all, people are often resistant to someone becoming famous and immediately jumping into politics.

She doesn’t really need my strategy.

After all, the situation itself is so favorable that it would be strange if Lee Se-hwa wasn’t elected.

She just wants to keep me on her side.

I knew that Lee Se-hwa was telling everyone that she had already laid claim to me, but I didn’t expect her to come on this strong.

“Could you give me some time to think about it?”

“Of course.”

Lee Se-hwa smiled leisurely.

I briefly left the room and went outside the hotel building.

I didn’t decide on a destination, but I naturally headed to the smoking area.

I habitually took out a cigarette and fell into thought.

“Haa…”

Saving Dong-jin is more important than anything else right now.

It was one of the priorities I set when I returned to this life.

If Lee Se-hwa doesn’t convey the message, it’s highly likely that the Hanyoung Group won’t let me meet the guards.

I could try requesting it on my own first, and if that fails, try again through Lee Se-hwa, but…

If I do that, Hanyoung Group will already be upset and won’t be as cooperative.

Didn’t they say that Hanyoung Group wouldn’t even let me meet Dong-jin?

Above all, it’s not like there’s no benefit to joining Lee Se-hwa’s campaign.

Political colors are easily forgotten after the election if I don’t engage in any political activities.

And isn’t Lee Se-hwa’s election almost certain?

If I build a relationship with the future president in advance, it might help me catch Wooshin later.

If I join the campaign, I’ll naturally meet future ministerial-level figures, and even if it’s not Lee Se-hwa, there will be many people I need help from.

Isn’t it true that the president’s influence plays a big role in sending the owner family of a large corporation to prison?

Once I catch Wooshin, I’ll have no reason to stay in this big pond anymore.

Whether an ordinary citizen has political leanings or not, it doesn’t matter, does it?

“Have you thought it over? It didn’t take that long.”

Lee Se-hwa had finished her meal while I was gone and had an empty plate in front of her.

I sat across from her and replied.

“I hate making decisions based on the atmosphere, so I just needed some time to check my thoughts alone.”

“I see. I like that you’re cautious, Cha. So, what are you going to do?”

“I’ll participate.”

She might think she can hold me with this, but looking at the long term, wouldn’t I be the one benefiting?

Isn’t it time to accelerate catching Wooshin?

This administration will be important to me too.

* * *

Lee Se-hwa was a straightforward person.

Some people unnecessarily drag things out even when they know the matter is urgent, but she didn’t belong to that category.

Shortly after, she gave me the contact information of Chief Secretary Bae, who was an aide to Chairman Seol.

She said that if I contacted him, I would be able to meet the guards who were guarding Seol Hyeong-seok’s hospital room.

I contacted him immediately without delay.

The appointment was made at Hanyoung Group’s headquarters.

“I’ll guide you this way.”

Someone came out to the lobby, having received instructions from Chief Secretary Bae.

He gave me a visitor pass and guided me inside the headquarters.

“Chief Secretary, your guest has arrived.”

Not long after contacting him via intercom, a person who seemed to be a secretary took me into the room.

Inside, a middle-aged man with sparse, light gray hair was sitting.

“Hello. I’m Cha Joo-han.”

I handed him my business card, and Chief Secretary Bae carefully examined it while looking at me.

“I’ve heard a lot about you. Representative Lee Se-hwa praised you so much that I was curious about what kind of person you were.”

“Is that so?”

“I heard you’re working hard on our Executive Director Seol’s case.”

It was a humble expression.

As if I were revealing the truth of the incident for Seol Hyeong-seok, not for Dong-jin.

I realized that I would never have seen this kind of favorable attitude if it weren’t for Lee Se-hwa, and I felt dizzy.

If I had just barged in, I might have been treated like a madman.

“We still believe it was Dr. Yang Dong-jin’s order, miss. But Representative Lee Se-hwa said that there must be a reason why you’re digging so deep, and she told me to trust you.”

“I sincerely regret the accident that happened to Executive Director Seol Hyeong-seok. I believe it’s necessary to clearly identify whose fault it is, even for the sake of preventing future accidents. And I think it’s important that no innocent people are harmed, so that the Hanyoung Group doesn’t suffer any damage either.”

“That’s right. The chairman doesn’t want anyone to be unfairly accused either. The doctor and nurse are blaming each other, so we’re in a difficult situation as well. The hospital hasn’t clearly identified anyone responsible yet either.”

“I see.”

The word “Truth” was floating above Chief Secretary Bae’s head.

In any case, I could sense Hanyoung Group’s desire to clearly assign responsibility.

It seems they’re not just venting their anger on Dong-jin.

So, they filed a lawsuit against Dong-jin, who is a doctor, and told Gu So-jeong, who is a nurse, to resign?

After all, if both of them are at fault, the responsibility usually lies with the doctor.

“Shall I call them in one by one?”

Chief Secretary Bae asked me before pressing the intercom button.

I think he said that because he was considering the possibility that they might collude and answer.

But since I have the ability, it doesn’t matter much.

“It’s okay.”

“Is that so? Let those friends come in.”

Chief Secretary Bae spoke into the intercom, and soon four men came inside.

The number of guards was more than I expected.

“The lawyer here will ask questions. Answer as you know.”

“Yes, Chief Secretary.”

“Were all four of you working in front of the hospital room on the day Executive Director Seol had a shock?”

“Yes.”

All four of them are telling the truth.

At first, I thought there was a possibility that the guards wouldn’t remember, but if there were four of them, I thought at least one of them would remember properly.

“I heard that many people came in and out of the hospital room that day. Among them, around 11:30 a.m., that is, before lunchtime. I think you’ll remember that Dr. Yang Dong-jin, the attending physician, and Ms. Gu So-jeong, the nurse in charge, went in.”

“I remember.”

“After that, around 11:45 a.m., Dr. Yang Dong-jin came out of the room first, and then Ms. Gu So-jeong came out. Do you remember?”

“Yes, I remember.”

“Before 11:30 a.m., someone went into the hospital room and came out later than Dr. Yang Dong-jin, after 11:45 a.m. Of course, excluding Ms. Gu So-jeong. Do you remember anyone?”

At my question, they seemed flustered and tried to exchange glances.

But before that, Chief Secretary Bae cleared his throat.

“Are you saying, Attorney Cha, that someone was in the hospital room when the attending physician ordered to inject Executive Director Seol with an antibiotic that causes anaphylaxis [a severe, potentially life-threatening allergic reaction]?”

“That’s right. Someone was eavesdropping on the conversation between the doctor and the nurse inside.”

“If we find out who that person is, we can confirm whether the attending physician really ordered to inject Seol with cephalosporin [a type of antibiotic].”

“That’s right.”

Chief Secretary Bae raised his eyebrows and looked at the guards.

“Answer.”

“…”

“If you know who it is, say who it is; if you don’t remember, say you don’t. Answer. It’s not difficult, is it?”

Chief Secretary Bae put pressure on the guards once again.

“There was no such person.”

[Lie]