You Have Been Defended [EN]: Chapter 559

You’ve Been Defended – Episode 559

I’ve been staring at the phone on the bedside table for 30 minutes now.

The time is 8 AM.

“What is it? Lawyer Cha, don’t tell me you still haven’t called?”

Tae-shik, who was coming home after relieving Sang-gil, saw me and let out a dumbfounded laugh.

“I had my reasons.”

“It’s probably an excuse, but I’ll listen. What was the reason?”

“The broadcast ended at 1 AM. And my parents go to bed before 12.”

“So?”

“What if I suddenly called them while they were sleeping, woke them up, and told them I was kidnapped, almost died, and even got stabbed in the stomach?”

“They’d be very surprised.”

“See?”

There was a very legitimate reason why I couldn’t contact my parents.

Even if I, who never does such things, suddenly called in the early morning, they would be surprised by that alone.

And then I confess all that?

That’s the same as saying I won’t let my parents sleep that day.

“That’s true, but you should have called by now. I think they’d be awake? When I went to your house, they seemed to wake up early.”

“They wake up around 8 on weekends.”

“Then they must be awake now. Call them quickly.”

Since when was that guy such a filial son that he’s pressuring me like this?

I’m under a lot of stress right now.

Frankly, if I reveal this, my parents will immediately come up to Seoul and tell me to quit whatever I’m doing.

“If you were me, do you think it would be that easy?”

“What’s so difficult about it? Is it because you feel like you’re worrying your parents?”

“Worrying them? Well… it’s not that simple, but to put it simply, yes.”

“Lawyer Cha, when did you start being so good at studying?”

“Why are you suddenly asking that?”

“No, just answer me.”

“Well… I think it was from elementary school.”

“When did you start getting tall?”

“I was above average until middle school, but I grew a lot in high school.”

“What was your lowest grade in the entire school?”

“I don’t remember well, but… I think it was around 3rd place.”

Tae-shik crossed his arms, which didn’t quite fit anymore because of his muscles, and looked down at me with a crooked stance.

“You’ve never worried your parents in your life, have you? From the moment you were born, your parents must have been so happy because of your face. Plus, you’re incredibly smart. You study insanely well. There’s no need to worry since your lowest grade was 3rd in the entire school. And there’s no need to worry about whether you’ll grow tall. You said you were above average even when you were small.”

“…Why are you suddenly talking about that?”

“They raised you like that, and now you’re even rich. How happy must your parents have been, not having to worry about anything while raising you?”

“So, it’s okay to worry them now?”

“That’s right. They say raising children is full of worries, but it’s also full of great joy. That’s the fun of raising them. But when they raised you, they probably didn’t have any worries. So, even if you show amazing achievements, your parents probably weren’t as happy as other parents.”

“……”

“So, in game terms, raising you was too easy mode. Is easy mode fun? It’s not fun. Ah, you don’t play games, so you don’t understand.”

“No, I understand that.”

“Right. So, you need to worry them at least once so that your parents can get immersed in the Cha Joo-han raising game.”

I don’t know if my parents are still playing the Cha Joo-han raising game since I’m already grown up, but after hearing Tae-shik’s words, I didn’t want to talk about it anymore.

How flustered would they be if I suddenly turned an easy mode game into a hard mode game?

Besides, I’ve already worried them.

A while ago, I stopped by my parents’ house, and I found an amulet in my car’s glove compartment.

When I asked my mother what it was, she said it was an amulet to help me meet a good person and start a family.

Of course, I didn’t take the amulet when I scrapped the car, so it’s gone now…

Anyway, my mother is worried about my marriage to the point of making an amulet.

If that’s not worrying her, then what is?

“You probably think you’re already worrying them by not getting married.”

“……”

What is it?

Since when has Jang Tae-shik been so perceptive?

“It’s obvious. But it can’t be helped. You’re a psychopath.”

“Do you even know what psychopath means?”

I think he said it thinking it meant something like asexual.

“Anyway. Seeing you think you’ve only worried them with that, it’s obvious. Think about my mom. Compared to her, your parents must be in super easy mode. Ah, my mom didn’t really raise me that hard, so she probably didn’t even think it was super hard mode.”

“She probably did. You were crazy since you were a kid, right?”

“Hey, did you see that? And I was kind of cute when I was little?”

Tae-shik frowned and picked up my phone on the bedside table.

But he couldn’t unlock it, so he put it down annoyedly.

Then he took out his phone and started calling someone.

“Ah, Mother. Hello. This is Jang Tae-shik, who visited you with Lawyer Cha back then. You’re awake! Lawyer Cha said he has something to tell you.”

The longer Tae-shik spoke, the whiter my face felt.

I gave him my parents’ contact information in case of an emergency, but I told him not to call unless it was absolutely necessary because they would worry.

But he called them for this?

I wasn’t even ready.

“Lawyer Cha, here you go.”

Tae-shik smiled and handed me the phone.

If the call wasn’t connected, I would have cursed at Tae-shik.

“…It’s me.”

─ Joo-han? Is that you?

“Yes.”

─ You said you had something to say? What is it?

Judging by her cheerful voice, she doesn’t seem to have heard about the broadcast yet.

When I checked the portal site this morning, it was plastered with related articles, so I thought at least one of my relatives would have contacted them…

“…Well, something happened to me recently.”

─ Something?

“Yes. I’m fine now, but I had an accident… I got a little hurt.”

─ Were you hurt badly?

“Just a little… I’m fine now.”

─ How much is a little? Did you even get hospitalized?

“Yes. At Dong-jin’s hospital. You know? Myungwoon University Hospital…”

─ How long were you hospitalized?

“I don’t remember exactly, but just for a few days.”

─ You keep saying that, and it sounds suspicious. Should I ask Dong-jin?

I unconsciously downplayed the situation, but I thought she would be more surprised.

It’s a relief, but…

Why do I feel a sense of unease in my mother’s reaction?

She’s not usually like this.

“Did you see the article?”

─ Yes. Your father was watching the broadcast with reporter Choi Jong-hyun and Jo Bong-joon last night and was surprised to hear about it. Your aunts and uncles called a lot too.

“…You watched the broadcast?”

─ Do you think your mom and dad are too stupid? Of course, we saw it when the articles were so noisy. Besides, we often looked them up because they were the ones who helped you when you were falsely accused.

She still uses a feature phone [a basic mobile phone with limited features], and there’s no computer at her house, so how did she see it?

─ You remember Soo-yeon’s house next door when you came down last time? Your mom told Soo-yeon’s mom that she wanted to find your article, so she must have told Soo-yeon. So, Soo-yeon picked out a laptop for her and taught her how to search the internet. It’s so grateful that even her son doesn’t do that.

I’m not grateful at all at this moment.

I think she’s talking about the people I met when I went down with Tae-shik and Kang Min-jae.

Kang Min-jae did it, but I gave them legal advice, and they’re repaying my kindness with enmity.

“I’m sorry. For telling you late.”

─ Looking at the date on the article, it seems like you were already healed when you came down then?

“Yes. …Why didn’t you contact me even though you knew yesterday?”

─ Joo-han.

“Yes.”

─ Your mom and dad don’t want you to do dangerous things. I’ve told you many times. But seeing that you, who have never worried your mom and dad until now, aren’t listening, it seems like you think it’s something you have to do. Is that right?

“…Yes.”

─ If you think it’s the right thing to do, your mom and dad have decided to support our Joo-han. If we keep telling you not to do it when you’re already having a hard time, it’ll be more stressful than helpful. And… I wonder if you’re hiding it because we keep telling you not to do such dangerous things.

“……”

─ And you’re a bit stubborn. Haha. So, I didn’t contact you to pretend I didn’t know. But I’m grateful that our son tried to tell me the truth?

“I’m sorry.”

─ It’s a relief if you know you’re sorry. You can do it if you really have to, but you know how hard it was for your mom to give birth to you, right? Your mom gave birth to you so well, but a knife in that body… that kind of thing…

My mother’s voice had been cheerful all along, but as soon as the story of the knife came out, it was filled with tears.

She must have been holding back because she thought I would worry.

There was a moment of silence, but soon my mother cleared her throat and continued.

─ That kind of thing is still a bit much. You know? Don’t push yourself too hard. If anything happens, be sure to let your mom and dad know…

“Yes.”

─ Then I’ll hang up now. Your dad must be coming in now after his morning hike. I hear the sound of the door opening.

“Yes, I understand. I’ll contact you again.”

─ Just in words?

“…This time, really.”

─ Okay, son.

I stared at the phone that had been disconnected and soon handed it to Tae-shik.

“He’s an old man who’s eaten enough, but he got scolded by his mother. It’s the first time I’ve ever seen the great Cha Joo-han talk so pathetically.”

Feeling that my expression wasn’t good, Tae-shik started teasing me.

My mother’s words that she didn’t contact me even though she saw the article were truly surprising.

No, beyond surprise, it was even shocking.

Seeing her trying to look like she was okay made me feel even more guilty.

“I’m canceling the words ‘Don’t die for me’.”

“Yes?”

“Now, if a knife comes at me, you take it instead. I have to be filial from now on.”

I spoke harshly to Tae-shik, but I’m grateful that he forced me to make the call.

If it wasn’t for Tae-shik, I would have seen that my parents weren’t contacting me and thought, ‘They probably don’t know yet,’ and never told them.

I think they wanted me to bring it up first.

“Geez. Funny.”

Of course, with all this noise, Woo-shin probably won’t send anyone with a knife in front of me, though.

* * *

“…is in an uproar right now. You know, that lawyer who was falsely accused of killing Lee Jung-chan before. The one who always messes with Woo-shin.”

“Ah, Kang Kwan-woong’s grandson?”

“Kang Kwan-woong’s grandson is in the same company as the person who was falsely accused.”

“Ah! Oh, I remember. He was in the news a lot for a while. The really handsome one?”

“Woo-shin tried to run that lawyer over with a dump truck, but Kang Kwan-woong’s grandson was hit instead and barely survived.”

“Wow. Was that really revealed?”

“There’s a video circulating on Facebook?”

“Crazy… Where’s the video?”

I had fully confirmed that the public’s reaction on the internet was explosive after yesterday’s broadcast.

Even at a time when the fire should have subsided because many people were asleep, posts continued to be uploaded, and it was a fixture in the top real-time search terms.

The same is true now.

[1. Kang Kwan-woong’s Grandson Accident

2. Dump Truck Woo-shin

3. Attempted Murder with Drum Can]

From 1st to 3rd place were solid, and if you look a little further down, there’s also the keyword ‘Jeongdo Law Firm’ around 10th place.

Even the traffic to Jeongdo Law Firm’s website exceeded today and went down.

If the National Intelligence Service hadn’t quickly restored it, I wouldn’t be able to access the site even now.

Not only that.

[Former President Kang’s Grandson Kang Min-jae’s Revelation, It Was a Contract Killing?]

[Woo-shin Sniper Lawyer Cha Joo-han, Not the First Murder Threat]

[Lawyer Cha Joo-han, Almost ‘Concrete’ on the Ship… Who is the Culprit?]

[Looking at the Criminal Records of the ‘Attempted Concrete Murderers’?]

[Lawyer Kang Min-jae, I Can Talk Now… Repeated Murder Threats]

[Top 10 Mysterious Traffic Accidents of Famous People in the 2000s]

The most-watched news rankings were covered with stories from yesterday’s broadcast.

Even derivative articles that had nothing to do with our work were ranked in popularity.

“Everyone’s talking about the broadcast.”

Tae-shik said, bringing coffee and sitting across from me.

We came to a large cafe in a downtown area called a hot place [a trendy and popular location].

It was to confirm whether it was the same offline, even though it was confirmed that it was very popular online.

“I overheard other people’s stories while getting a coffee refill, and there were quite a few people talking about the broadcast.”

“The table next to us was talking about it just now too.”

“The reaction is definitely huge. No matter how crazy it gets, everyone is busy talking about themselves when they come to a cafe. We caught three tables.”

“Well, isn’t that a natural result? I used the former president’s grandson to attract attention.”

Said the former president’s grandson.

From the moment he came to the cafe, Kang Min-jae pretended to go to the bathroom and checked if others were talking about us.

In fact, it was Kang Min-jae who suggested coming here when I said I wanted to check the offline reaction.

“But people keep glancing at us, so haven’t they been caught?”

Kang Min-jae lowered his head and whispered.

“Who else would it be but someone wearing a hat, sunglasses, and a mask? You’re clearly trying to hide your identity, so you’ve stimulated the psychology of wanting to know who you are even more.”

“You’re wearing glasses and a mask too, Lawyer Cha.”

“I’m wearing glasses, so they’ll just think I didn’t wash up.”

“I’d think that too. Or wouldn’t they think I had a lot of plastic surgery?”

Listening to him, it seems like that’s how it looks.

“Should we go to one more cafe? There are four floors there. It’s so noisy that you can’t even hear the person in front of you. It seems like it’ll be more certain if we go there.”

“Just say you want to eat a lot of bread from a famous cafe, just say it.”

Kang Min-jae had already eaten four scones.

“No, that’s not it. Their campagne [a type of French sourdough bread] is delicious, but it’s not at all.”

I wish he would wipe the bread crumbs off his mouth before he spoke.

“This level of topicality is perfect. My phone and mailbox are about to explode.”

[[Kyungjin Ilbo] Request for Interview

[TOP News] Request for Coverage on Dump Truck Accident

[Korea News] Hello, this is reporter Song Yun-hee^^ (Interview Request)

[OBS] We would like to offer you an appearance on Hot Ten News.

[Social Issue Moa TV] Is an interview possible?

[Social Issue Moa TV] Is an interview possible? (Written is also fine^^)

[Daily Report] I would like to share more details regarding the dump truck accident.]

I showed Kang Min-jae the main mailbox of Jeongdo.

“I’ve seen enough of the atmosphere. Let’s go now.”

“The other hyungs [older brothers/male friends] will be here later, so let’s buy them coffee too. Just a moment, I’ll order quickly and come back.”

“It’s okay. Those people will buy it.”

“Those hyungs are buying it?”

“No, but those people will buy it.”

* * *

“Wow, it’s been a while since we’ve had such a commotion. Before coming here, I went to a cafe in the downtown area to buy coffee to see the atmosphere, and everyone was talking about our broadcast?”

Choi Jong-hyun and Jo Bong-joon said, coming into the house with a carrier full of coffee.

Instead of answering, I shifted my gaze to Kang Min-jae and said.

“See? I told you they’d buy it.”