You Have Been Defended [EN]: Chapter 325

You Have Been Defended – Episode 325

As Lee Yejin had predicted, Kang Minjae’s reaction to the opening ceremony was instantaneous when I told him about it.

“Seriously! I’ll look into the catering. Oh, should we send out invitations too? I’ll make a list of who to send them to. And we need good music. I should start listening to classical music today to create a playlist! Should we buy flowers? Flowers always liven up the atmosphere at banquets. No, even between men, flowers create a good atmosphere! Ah, you guys really don’t know anything!”

Kang Minjae’s enthusiastic voice still echoes in my ears.

Anyway, thanks to Kang Minjae’s tireless efforts, we secured a great office location and the interior was well-done, so I trusted him to handle the opening ceremony preparations. I told him to go ahead with it.

Everything unfolded exactly as Lee Yejin had foreseen.

It seems Kang Minjae was completely transparent to her.

With most of the preparations finalized, I figured it was time to contact my parents.

It also seemed like the right moment to tell them about establishing the corporation.

During my last visit, they’d expressed their disappointment about me always informing them of things so late.

I’d been trying to wait until things were certain to avoid causing them unnecessary worry, but this time, I resolved to tell them promptly.

“Oh, Juhan? What’s up? Why are you calling?”

My mother answered the phone almost before it finished ringing.

“What were you doing?”

“I was watering the flowers. They’ve bloomed beautifully. You know how Mom was worried they were just budding and blooming late? When I went out today, they were in full bloom.”

“Really?”

“Yeah. You should see them; it’s a shame you’re not here. They’re gorgeous.”

“What’s Dad doing?”

“Your dad went hiking. He couldn’t even go to the mountains because his knees hurt when he was working, but these days he’s running around like crazy. He even bought new hiking boots. Isn’t it funny?”

In my previous life, he suffered from arthritis and passed away due to the side effects of Anthrozole [a medication used to treat cancer, but can have side effects].

In this life, he’s climbing mountains at his age, which feels like a significant victory and reward.

I chuckled softly, and my mother laughed along with me.

It’s still a novel experience, considering that in my previous life, this was a situation I couldn’t even have dreamed of at this age.

Even if they were alive then, both my father and mother would still be working due to their tight financial situation.

This life is going well, right?

Probably, it is.

“But what’s the matter? Why did you call?”

“I’m currently running an office, you know. I’m planning to convert it into a corporation.”

“A corporation? How is that different from now?”

“In simple terms, you can think of it as a more structured and organized company.”

“Oh, really? Then you must be doing well to do that?”

“That’s right.”

“Good for you. Are you moving the company location too?”

“Yes. But it’s near the current office. It’s a bit more on the main street, and it’s also bigger.”

“Really? Aren’t you overdoing it?”

“No. It’s okay.”

“Mom should go see it with Dad sometime. I want to see how well my son is doing.”

“Yes. I’m planning to have a small gathering with acquaintances and have some champagne on the opening day. Come with Dad then.”

“Can we go to such a place?”

My mother has said things like that occasionally in the past and still does now.

Unlike me, they didn’t have extensive education and don’t know much about the professional world, so they worry that I, a ‘successful lawyer,’ might be embarrassed by them.

When I hear those words, it sometimes breaks my heart.

It’s true that I am what people commonly call a ‘well-educated person,’ and it’s true that there are many such people around me, but that doesn’t mean I can look down on ‘uneducated people.’

Not having learned much is not a fault, and not knowing much is also not a fault.

The problem lies with the person who uses it as a reason to look down on others.

“Come. I’d be happy if you came.”

“Okay. I don’t know if I have clothes to wear to such an event. I should look for something.”

“Yes. Oh, and…….”

And?

“I need to come up with a new name as it becomes a corporation, but I haven’t thought of one yet.”

“Really? I don’t know if we should get a good name from somewhere to give our son good energy?”

“Just, Mom, you name it.”

“……Mom?”

“Yes.”

A long silence followed, and my mother answered with an awkward laugh.

“Mom is not good at that.”

“There’s no such thing.”

“Really. How can Mom name such an important name?”

“Still. Please think about it with Dad.”

“Juhan, still,”

“Then I’ll be waiting. Don’t be too late. I need to report it soon. Then I’ll hang up.”

“Oh, you! Juhan!”

I hung up the phone, leaving behind my mother’s urgent voice.

Whatever it is, it will be better than ‘At Chagang!’ [Likely a humorous, undesirable name from a previous conversation].

Sitting on the sofa and habitually turning on the television, I began to wonder what I should do today.

Since there’s nothing I need to do for work until the new office opens, I’ve been spending rather boring time these days.

I sometimes go to see if there’s any furniture I need, but that’s only for a short time.

I also use the gym inside the villa, but that’s also only for a short time.

I wish it would open soon.

* * *

“Putting things in the office like this makes it feel like a real fresh start.”

I gathered with Office Manager Oh and Kang Minjae at the new office, which was soon to be opened.

Since the interior work and cleaning were all finished, it was time to prepare for the move in earnest.

We had already closed the previous office and separated the documents to be discarded from the documents to be taken, so we only brought what we needed from there.

The desks and bookshelves we used there were sold off at a reasonable used price because the new tenant wanted to use them.

“Ah, it feels awkward to work in one space and then have separate spaces like this.”

Office Manager Oh said, stroking his new desk.

Kang Minjae had designed it so that each of us would have our own office, arguing that we couldn’t use this large office like before, now that it was a law firm.

So I also got a personal office, and I’m quite positive about this change.

Because if the space is divided, Kang Minjae will bother me less than before.

Above all, since there’s a door, he’ll be less likely to suddenly appear and look at my monitor screen.

“Let’s work together in my room, Office Manager. I think I’ll be too bored.”

“It was your idea, Attorney.”

“Still. Then shall we gather in our conference room and work? Only go to our respective rooms when we have clients.”

“I’ll work alone.”

“Tch.”

We finished organizing our rooms and gathered in the conference room.

Nameplates, computers for each of us, and even small things like pencil holders were ready, but there was one thing that was not yet ready.

“It’s a bit of a shame that there’s no office sign. We haven’t been able to put it on the elevator information panel yet.”

“We need to decide on the office name quickly. Our representative attorney, have you thought about it?”

Office Manager Oh looked at me and said.

I got goosebumps at the sound of ‘representative attorney’ and rubbed my arm, and Kang Minjae sighed.

“I still think Cha & Kang & Oh is the best.”

“No, why are you including me? I’m not a lawyer. And Cha & Kang & Oh is too long. Let’s go with Cha & Kang.”

“Ah, how can I leave out Office Manager? Cha & Kang & Oh is the best.”

“No, please leave me out…….”

Just as the debate over whether it was Cha & Kang or Cha & Kang & Oh was heating up, I spoke up.

“Actually, I have something in mind.”

“Oh! Cha & Kang & Oh, as expected?”

“Not that. Actually, my parents named it.”

“What is it?”

“Jeongdo.”

“Jeongdo?”

“Jeongdo (正道), meaning the right path.”

It was the name that my father had texted me not long after I asked my mother to name the corporation a few days ago.

“[Juhan, I’ve been thinking about it for a long time after hearing you. At first, I was embarrassed, and I was worried that it was too much for us to name a law firm, so I hesitated for a long time. But I thought there must be a reason why you asked, so Mom and I put our heads together.

There were a few things I thought about. At first, I just wanted the office to do well, so I thought I should name it with a prosperous name. But the more I thought about it, the more I thought about it. It’s your company, so what do you want to achieve? I think it’s right to name it with the name you want to achieve.

At that time, you came home and talked about what you wanted to do, right? Of course, Mom and Dad still just want you to live peacefully and prosperously, but as long as you have something you want to do firmly, Mom and Dad think it’s right to wish for that too.

So I decided on Jeongdo. Using the characters for ‘right’ and ‘path.’ I think what you said about wanting to help the weak was also meant to take the right path that lawyers should take. These days, there are many people who become lawyers to make a lot of money and gain fame, but Mom and Dad are proud that you seem to be taking the right path.

Juhan!

Take the right path. I hope that what you want to do will always be something with the right values. Our son, we are always proud of you.]”

I couldn’t show the text to Office Manager Oh and Kang Minjae, and there was no need to reveal the personal story behind the name.

“Jeongdo……. Jeongdo. That’s good. I’m in favor.”

“I’m also in favor. I think it’s a name that suits our office, no, our company well.”

“Then I’ll report it as Jeongdo.”

I’m sorry to Choi Jonghyun and Jo Bongjoon, who were racking their brains on the day of the housewarming, but it seems like a pretty good name has emerged.

“Then we need to create the office BI [Brand Identity] now! How about writing it in large Chinese characters and writing Korean next to it? I’ll look for someone who’s good at Chinese calligraphy!”

And Kang Minjae’s true agenda emerged.

He might not have cared what the name was.

As long as he could take the lead in creating his business cards and the office BI.

“Isn’t Attorney Kang’s grandfather famous for being good at calligraphy? How about asking your grandfather?”

At that moment, Office Manager Oh made a suggestion.

Kang Minjae slammed the table and jumped up.

“My grandfather! That’s perfect! If no one objects, I’ll ask my grandfather right away.”

“Wouldn’t the elder be a little uncomfortable?”

“He’s retired anyway and just reads books at home all day. And he does a lot of calligraphy. How hard would it be for him to write just two letters! How great would it be if he could help his grandson at times like this! Huh?”

I know he’s already getting a lot of help.

He even made the tremendous sacrifice of providing his private residence as a hideout for his grandson’s boss, who was framed as a murderer.

“Ah, Grandpa? It’s me. Ah, we’re at the office we moved to now, and we’ve decided on a name. But the office logo…….”

Kang Minjae went out of the conference room while talking on the phone.

Office Manager Oh looked at Kang Minjae and laughed as if he couldn’t stop him, and I sighed.