You Have Been Defended [EN]: Chapter 535

“People who don’t know the situation well would think so. But it’s clear he’s sniffing around. Even the House of Angels…”

“The House of Angels? Are you referring to the orphanage under that welfare foundation?”

At Kim Chanyoung’s question, Koh Sangjoon silently poured whiskey over the half-melted ice.

Koh Sangjoon had not yet shared the information about the human trafficking occurring at the House of Angels with Kim Chanyoung.

It was unclear whether it was because he didn’t fully trust Kim Chanyoung, or because Kim Chanyoung himself had benefited from the organ trafficking.

This was the first time the story of the House of Angels had come out of his mouth, so perhaps…

“Yes. It was around the time KDL Company announced they had a closed mine in South Sudan and would build a school on the site that he started watching the House of Angels. Building a school in South Sudan is classified as a project under the umbrella of the House of Angels.”

“Isn’t the KDL Company matter settled? You shut it down.”

“Yes. But that’s not all there is to the House of Angels.”

“If that’s not all…”

“I briefly used nominee accounts [accounts held in someone else’s name to conceal the true owner] under the names of the children at the House of Angels. It’s all been cleared up. It was a long time ago.”

Nominee accounts under the names of the children at the House of Angels?

Cha Joohan had never mentioned this.

Could it be that he doesn’t know either?

“How long ago was it?”

“It was several years ago, so there’s nothing to worry about.”

Listening to Koh Sangjoon, it seemed the operation of the nominee accounts had been buried without a trace.

Could it be that they used the accounts of children trafficked to Japan and then covered it up by reporting their deaths?

Cha Joohan had said something similar.

Even if they were sent to Japan with student visas, there would eventually be limits to visa renewals.

At that time, they could be processed as deceased, and their resident registration itself could be revoked so they couldn’t return to Korea.

“Anyway, the reason that bastard is quiet isn’t because he gave up. That much is certain.”

Koh Sangjoon seemed unwilling to bring up the organ trafficking to Kim Chanyoung.

*Isn’t the biggest reason Cha Joohan is watching the House of Angels because of organ trafficking?*

He thought about trying to bring up the story, but Kim Chanyoung decided to postpone it to the next opportunity because he couldn’t think of a way to bring it up without incurring Koh Sangjoon’s displeasure.

It seemed that Goyounsoo was the only son with whom Koh Sangjoon shared information about the human trafficking business.

No matter how much he gained trust, surpassing the children of the legal wife, it would be difficult to surpass Goyounsoo’s position.

“Besides, there was a big accident recently.”

Koh Sangjoon changed the subject.

“A big accident?”

“I was going to kill Cha Joohan. Since the remaining rabble are united around Cha Joohan, I thought things would be easier if he disappeared. But things went wrong.”

“If things went wrong…”

“The dump truck that was sent to kill Cha Joohan hit Kang Kwanwoong’s grandson.”

“Kang Kwanwoong’s grandson? Are you talking about that lawyer in the same law firm as Cha Joohan? Their appearances are quite different. I don’t think there’s any reason to mistake them…”

“Kang Kwanwoong’s grandson intercepted the dump truck.”

“……To stop the accident?”

“I guess so. I don’t know the reason. But Cha Joohan must have known that someone was trying to kill him. Yet not a single article was published. What do you think this means?”

Kim Chanyoung already knew because he had heard about Kang Minjae’s accident when he met Cha Joohan a few days ago.

At that time, Cha Joohan said that he had secured everything, including Chun Jongnam, the dump truck driver who had been commissioned, and those who had been dispatched to kill Chun Jongnam.

So, if an article were to be published, it would probably be after they were handed over to the police.

Koh Sangjoon would also be expecting this much.

“If the article wasn’t published because there was no evidence, it seems to mean that they are waiting for something.”

“Besides, Kang Kwanwoong was murdered, so if you spin a good story about how his grandson was almost murdered, it’s enough to attract public attention. They won’t just pass up that opportunity.”

It was disgusting to see him feigning ignorance when he was the one who killed Kang Kwanwoong.

“The situation is very bad. That dump truck driver has also disappeared, and the guys who were sent to kill him are out of contact.”

“……Could Cha Joohan have taken them?”

“Probably. How can you do a job… How can you do a job like this…”

Koh Sangjoon lowered his voice and took a deep breath.

He couldn’t get angry at Onodera for underestimating Cha Joohan, so he must have vented his anger on Goyounsoo.

But it didn’t seem to be enough.

He was still angry.

“I guess it wasn’t your doing, Father.”

At Kim Chanyoung’s words, Koh Sangjoon looked at him, slightly surprised.

Then, Kim Chanyoung smiled leisurely and replied.

“If it were your doing, Father, it wouldn’t have become such a mess.”

“Yes, you’re right. There were several circumstances. In this situation, if your mother and Cha Joohan are in contact, I think it would be easy to persuade someone as gullible as your mother.”

“It’s true that my mother has gotten much better while living in the United States, but even so, I don’t think it will be easy for her to abandon the image of top star Kim Hwayoung, which she has never let go of in her life. Besides, no matter how much she has cut ties, she is not someone who would abandon me.”

“So?”

“If it is revealed that my mother is having an affair with you, Father, I will inevitably come to the surface as well. Legally, I am supposed to be my maternal uncle’s child, but it’s not like my mother has only been hiding. My story will come out somehow. My mother can’t drive me into a corner. So, don’t worry about my mother. If you want, I can contact her.”

“You?”

“She’ll be angry at first, but she’ll eventually accept me. Then I can test the waters. No matter how much she tries to hide it, I know my mother very well. She’s not good at lying, so I always caught her.”

If Koh Sangjoon falls for this, Kim Chanyoung will be able to contact Kim Hwayoung without arousing his suspicion.

Kim Chanyoung didn’t intend to avoid contacting Kim Hwayoung until Wooshin went bankrupt.

The reason he pretended to cut off contact was just an action to show that he had chosen him, not his mother.

From the beginning, Koh Sangjoon wouldn’t have thought that Kim Chanyoung would never see Kim Hwayoung again.

“Yes, it wouldn’t be bad to test the waters once.”

“Leave my mother to me, and it would be better to relieve even one worry. You must be complicated just thinking about Cha Joohan… Um, about that dump truck driver you mentioned earlier.”

“What about him?”

“Didn’t you say it wasn’t your doing, Father? Then did those guys who tried to kill the dump truck driver – did Goyounsoo send them?”

“Haa, that was Yoonsu… I can’t trust Yoonsu either now.”

Koh Sangjoon clicked his tongue.

Among his children, Goyounsoo is the most reliable.

Looking at the guys who were sent to kill the dump truck driver, it should be seen as bad luck rather than Goyounsoo’s mistake.

Who would have known that Cha Joohan had been monitoring them from the beginning?

Besides, it was the Yakuza side that Onodera had recruited who had been in contact with the dump truck driver since the accident, so they were the ones who did wrong.

“Then does the dump truck driver know who instigated him? I mean, does he know who the person at the top is?”

“He doesn’t know.”

“Then it’s over as long as Yoonsu’s guys keep their mouths shut. Yoonsu would have chosen guys who are tight-lipped. You trust Yoonsu’s judgment, right? Don’t worry too much, Father.”

“I don’t know at all… I don’t know why things are going this way!”

Koh Sangjoon repeatedly drank his alcohol and leaned deeply into the sofa.

He didn’t seem drunk, but his emotions seemed heightened by the influence of alcohol.

It was a sight rarely seen in Koh Sangjoon.

He always tried to show Kim Chanyoung a perfect image, even if it wasn’t the same at the main house.

Kim Chanyoung filled Koh Sangjoon’s empty glass with whiskey.

*If he gets drunk, he might be able to extract a little more information.*

“They’re all just stupid bastards.”

Koh Sangjoon muttered as he drank again as soon as Kim Chanyoung filled his glass.

*He doesn’t know why things are going this way?*

Isn’t it obvious?

It’s because he has an arrogant way of thinking, as if he were a god.

If he thought of others as human beings like himself, it would be impossible to logically conclude that he could just get rid of anyone who got in his way.

If he, as a member of the country, had even a little bit of a mind to abide by at least the minimum laws, even if he couldn’t abide by the trivial ones, things wouldn’t have gone this way.

No one would have lost their lives at Koh Sangjoon’s gesture, and no one would have been sacrificed to fatten his belly.

Naturally, someone like Cha Joohan wouldn’t have appeared either.

*It’s clear that the world is finally working properly.*

The law exists to weed out guys like you from this society, and someone has appeared who is willing to risk their life to make the law function properly.

The law and society are finally playing their roles properly, so what’s so unfair?

“……”

*I don’t know what Cha Joohan’s purpose is.*

I’m just running to see Koh Sangjoon’s downfall, but what does Cha Joohan ultimately want?

He’s a rigid person, so he might believe that the law can reform Koh Sangjoon.

If he thinks so, I want to tell him that his belief is foolish.

Koh Sangjoon will never repent, even if he dies and comes back to life.

Even if he’s imprisoned, he’ll grit his teeth and wait for the day to retaliate against Cha Joohan.

In that case, it might be better to just throw him in a pigsty and skin him, or cut off his limbs, and make him live a life that is worse than death.

“Hoo.”

Kim Chanyoung controlled his emotions, which had already become intense.

When he was very young, he thought that if Koh Sangjoon played the role of his father, he would no longer hate him.

He still doesn’t play the role of his father very much, but compared to before, he seems to think of Kim Chanyoung much more like a son.

But surprisingly, his heart doesn’t soften at all.

“Chanyoung.”

“Yes.”

“……If I told you to go into your uncle’s family register [official record of a family’s lineage], would you do it?”

Koh Sangjoon straightened his upper body, which had been drooping on the sofa, and looked at Kim Chanyoung.

This was an unexpected remark.

“I want to put you in my family register, but that’s not good for any of us. You and I will be caught up in unnecessary scandals. Your uncle is not someone who receives as much public attention as I do. He has no greed, and his reputation is not bad. If we create a story appropriately, people won’t think it’s strange. You won’t have to receive unnecessary scrutiny either. And if you become a member of the Koh family, no one will find it strange that I keep you close.”

Koh Sangjoon’s plan was more detailed than expected.

It seemed like something he had been thinking about for quite some time, rather than saying it impulsively.

“And if you become your uncle’s child, no one will think it’s strange if I take you under my wing in the form of adopting you later. You’re that excellent, so they’ll think that’s why.”

“Father, I have never… I have never thought about anything like that.”

*It seems like it’s time to show tears.*

Kim Chanyoung bit his lip tightly.

He had never acted in tears before, but his eyes became red more easily than he thought.

Koh Sangjoon would consider it tears of joy, but it had a different meaning for Kim Chanyoung.

“I’m not telling you to do it right away. I’m saying let’s do it if you want. Your uncle said it was okay too, so don’t feel pressured and think about it.”

“……There’s no way I would say no.”

Kim Chanyoung lowered his head.

Tears fell on his knees.

*‘So you trust me that much.’*

He covered his face with both hands.

Koh Sangjoon looked at his son with satisfaction, but Kim Chanyoung laughed as if sobbing.