You Have Been Defended [EN]: Chapter 285

You’ve Been Defended – Episode 285

About three hours had passed since I received a call from Kang Min-jae, informing me that they had successfully apprehended the meter reader.

I was reading the newspaper, waiting for the next report, when a call came in on a burner phone that I rarely used.

It was Tae-shik.

– Boss. It’s me, Tae-shik.

“Boss? Why are you calling me that?”

– The meter reader might be listening.

Tae-shik whispered.

When Kang Min-jae called earlier, it sounded like he was in the car, but now it’s quiet around him, so it seems like he’s arrived at his destination.

“Are you calling from next to the meter reader right now?”

– Of course not.

“But how would the meter reader hear it?”

– Who knows? Maybe that bastard has bionic ears.

“Seriously. Anyway, thanks for your hard work.”

– Hard work? You’re the one paying for everything, Boss. Hehe.

“What are you doing now?”

– I’ve already searched the meter reader’s body, and there’s nothing suspicious. I’ve got the meter reader’s phone. But, ha, this bastard’s keeping his mouth shut? He’s not saying anything. It would be easier if that bastard would rat out everyone up to the top. So, I was wondering if I could get permission.

“Permission for what?”

– Well, honestly, if we knock out a tooth or two, they get scared and open their mouths, right? But Kang kept saying, like a softy, that we can’t do that. So, I called to ask if it’s okay to rough him up a little.

In most situations, after securing someone, the next step is naturally torture.

Even though it’s an outdated idea, securing someone means using all sorts of threats to get what you want, and the most effective threat is violence.

But this much illegality is enough.

Doing more than this doesn’t suit my temperament, and it could cause problems later.

The reason I secured the meter reader is, first, because he’s not the type of person you can persuade by following him around and talking to him like I do with other cases.

Second, it’s to easily check the things he has.

Like the phone Tae-shik confiscated, and at least we can get his fingerprints or DNA.

Third, it’s to send a kind of message to Wooshin.

In a situation where I have to deal with them, who are tightening the screws on me to the point of killing people, it’s a message that I won’t just use gentle methods like I’ve done so far.

– Oh, right. Boss.

“What?”

– Did you hear about this from Kang? That the meter reader had a copy of your lawyer’s phone?

For a moment, I was speechless.

It was absurd.

He had a copy of my phone.

I decided not to ask the fundamental question of when he copied my phone.

Such a question is meaningless to Wooshin.

“That’s ridiculous.”

– You don’t seem too surprised?

I wasn’t so much surprised as I was dumbfounded, and I’d been screwed over by Wooshin so many times that I couldn’t be surprised anymore.

In my previous life, there was constant wiretapping, of course, so I changed my phone frequently and even used several for different purposes.

I was so aware of the dangers of phone cloning, but in the end, I was helpless when they called me out using Secretary Oh’s number.

“I was surprised.”

How far has my information leaked to them?

If I had to guess when it was copied, it would be after I took down Lee Jung-chan and his son, at the earliest.

If they had copied my phone before that, Wooshin would have known that we were going to expose Lee Jung-chan and his son, and they would have tried to prevent problems from happening to Lee Jung-chan, in whom they had invested astronomical amounts of money.

Above all, I used both a 2G phone and a smartphone from last year, but I’ve only been using a smartphone since the beginning of this year.

And the one that was copied is also a smartphone.

Of course, I can’t rule out the possibility that they copied the 2G phone as well, and the smartphone I’m using now, but the possibility is very low.

They probably did the copying work around the time I finished dealing with the Lee Jung-chan and son case and started working on the Dongjin case in earnest.

That’s about the time Wooshin would have decided that they needed to actively monitor me like this.

Anyway, what’s clear now is that they’ve copied my phone to eavesdrop, check my location, and figure out who I’m contacting, thinking of me like a rat in a trap.

The information gap between them and me is probably satisfying their chronic desire to dominate.

They probably think that I’m already widely known as a murderer and that I’m running away with my tail between my legs, so there’s nothing more I can do.

They predict that I’ll either continue to live as a fugitive or be caught, struggle, and eventually end up in prison.

I’m so sick of it.

I could talk for three or four days straight about why I hate Wooshin, but if I had to give one more reason, it would be this.

The attitude of holding power comparable to a nation and looking down on individuals.

But from now on, it won’t be so enjoyable for them.

The person who brought a weapon to my house and had my cloned phone has been kidnapped, so no matter how much the representative of Hanlim Corporation says that he’s a trustworthy guy and not to worry, it won’t be taken at face value.

They’ve experienced it, so they know.

Like Choi Jong-hyun, who has the nickname Pitbull, I don’t let go once I bite.

– Anyway, Boss. Can I beat up the meter reader?

“No.”

– Then do we just leave him like this? Just leave him alone?

“Just having him is enough. First, ask the National Intelligence Service [South Korean intelligence agency] to unlock the meter reader’s phone, and check if they’ve installed any additional trackers on the phone. If there’s a tracker, it’s dangerous there. We might have to move him somewhere else.”

– I’ve already secured several locations from the beginning. Don’t worry. If the National Intelligence Service says there’s something strange, I’ll move him right away. And I sent the meter reader’s phone to the National Intelligence Service 15 minutes ago, so they’ll call when they receive it.

“Besides the meter reader, ask the National Intelligence Service to check Oh’s, Kang’s, and Sang-gil’s phones for any signs of cloning or hacking.”

– Sang-gil too?

“Yeah. Maybe Wooshin won’t be eavesdropping on the people around me at this stage, but it can’t hurt to be sure.”

I don’t remember exactly, but I contacted Sang-gil directly several times when I was working on the Dongjin case.

I met Tae-shik in person and talked to him, so at least he seems to be free from the cloned phone issue.

Since my phone was cloned, everyone close to me has probably been compromised, but the only one I’m immediately worried about is Sang-gil.

Of course, I’m also concerned about Park Young-gi and Lee Se-hwa, but there’s not much time left until the presidential election anyway.

Once Lee Se-hwa is elected, Wooshin won’t be able to touch her easily, so I can rest assured to some extent.

But Tae-shik’s family is different.

They are my important force.

If Wooshin tries to cut off my limbs and touches Tae-shik’s family…

– Why Sang-gil?

“Because he might be in danger. And even if that’s not the case, Sang-gil should be careful for a while after this case is over. He’s been too exposed. Anyway, let’s talk about that later.”

– Okay. We’ll get our phones checked for hacking history, and open the meter reader’s phone to check what’s inside. Is that right?

“Yeah. Good work.”

I hung up the phone and listened to the news that was playing in the background.

It’s still about me and Lee Jung-chan.

Aren’t they tired of it? It’s been several days already…

“…Suddenly my ear is itchy.”

Is someone talking about me?

No, of course, many people are talking about me.

…This uneasiness is probably Kang Min-jae, isn’t it?

* * *

“Hyung, where are you?”

– I think it’ll take me about 15 more minutes. Should I grab a seat first?

“No, it’s okay. I’ll just smoke a cigarette in front of here.”

– Okay. I’ll be there soon.

Although he suffered a slight ankle sprain, the moment when an employee can give the most impression to the employer is when the spirit of injury shines.

In fact, the acupuncturist at the clinic said that there was no problem other than a few scratches on the skin, so he told me not to exaggerate, but Sang-gil really hurt.

I was worried about what to do if I couldn’t use my legs like this.

‘Still, that old man isn’t a quack.’

Now that I’m doing ankle exercises, it turns out well without any discomfort.

“Looking at it like this, it looks fine.”

Sang-gil put the meter reader’s face sent from Tae-shik on his phone and stared at it for a while.

When I first heard Tae-shik say that he probably hadn’t gone to the army, I snorted, but now that I look closely, he seems to be at most 22 years old.

Sang-gil was planning to meet Life Betting again today and ask if he had ever seen the meter reader here.

Tae-shik said that depending on Life Betting’s answer, there may come a moment when he has to get a confession from the meter reader.

This is because if Life Betting answers that he saw the meter reader here that day, he will be at least a co-principal [joint perpetrator] or accomplice within the legal framework. (In fact, Sang-gil didn’t understand what he was talking about in this part, and he thinks Tae-shik probably doesn’t either.)

Cha Joo-han, who heard the story that Life Betting saw the men in suits that day, said that they were not the culprits, but Wooshin’s henchmen sent to directly confirm Lee Jung-chan’s death.

And he said that the culprit must have been disguised as a fisherman.

If he’s right, it seems that the probability that Life Betting saw the meter reader directly is almost zero.

Because the meter reader is not a person directly hired by Wooshin’s upper management, but a gangster who subcontracts.

That’s why Sang-gil hoped for the first time that Cha Joo-han’s prediction was wrong.

If those men in suits are the culprits, and the meter reader was one of them, and Life Betting answers that he saw the meter reader’s face, isn’t the game over?

“Ah, but what should I say to that old man to bring it up.”

Life Betting still thinks that Sang-gil is just someone who is interested in this case.

But if I suddenly show him a picture and ask, ‘Did you see this bastard that day?’, wouldn’t it look suspicious to anyone?

Sang-gil scratched the back of his head and sighed.

“…”

It was then.

He felt an eerie presence behind him.

Sang-gil felt the hairs on his skin stand on end and grabbed the small Swiss Army knife that he always carries in his pocket in case of an emergency.

Could it be that the Hanlim Corporation guys followed him here?

Just like they kidnapped the meter reader, are they planning to kidnap him and exchange hostages?

What should I do then?

Should I fly kick his vital points and run away?