Chapter 121: Let’s Escalate Things to See the Confirmation

Park Jinhyeok saw Oh Seoyoung crumbling before his eyes.

She was breaking down far too easily.

This was just the beginning, yet she already seemed to be losing her mind before it even started.

Seeing Oh Seoyoung like this, Park Jinhyeok felt anger toward his past self.

‘Was I really going to give up everything over someone like this? How pathetic.’

Park Jinhyeok spoke to Oh Seoyoung, who still couldn’t figure out where to look.

“Make a good choice and come to me. If you refuse, I can just push forward with my plans. You could also ask the Chairman for help. And you,” he turned to Park Seoeun. “A solution? Can you come up with a solution? Then go ahead and make one. If I find it reasonable, I’ll accept it.”

“Okay. Oppa. I’ll come up with a solution, so please wait for now. Since we’re family, we can resolve this amicably.”

At Park Seoeun’s words, Park Jinhyeok let out a sneer and turned away.

Onsandang, who had just come out from the kitchen where she was preparing food, grabbed Jinhyeok’s sleeve.

“Young Master. You should at least have a meal before you go.”

“Now is not the time for a meal. My presence will only make everyone uncomfortable, so I’ll take my leave first.”

After speaking, Park Jinhyeok gestured with his chin toward where Oh Seoyoung and her children were.

Park Seoeun was holding onto Oh Seoyoung, urging her to explain the details.

Park Sanghyeok was just fiddling with his phone beside them, seemingly uninterested in the situation.

Perhaps, for Park Sanghyeok, this scene wasn’t too far from what he had expected.

Onsandang was visibly disappointed that Park Jinhyeok was leaving without eating the food she had made.

However, witnessing a scene she had never seen before, she seemed somewhat satisfied and smiled at him.

“You did well. I don’t know what’s going on, but you did well.”

“Grandma. Just wait a little longer. The day I return to this place isn’t far off.”

“Alright. This old woman can wait. So take care of yourself and come back slowly, even if it takes time. As long as you’re alright, this old woman is alright too.”

Though saddened to see Park Jinhyeok leave without even a warm spoonful of rice, Onsandang saw him off, pleased by his decisive demeanor.

When Park Jinhyeok opened the gate and left the Hannam-dong main house, Kim Jun-woo was waiting for him outside.

“How did it go?”

“I’ve thrown out the bait, so they’ll move.”

“Why not just deal with it directly?”

“If Oh Seoyoung weren’t legally my mother on paper, I would have done that. And if Sanghyeok weren’t involved, I would have followed Manager Kim’s suggestion as well. But this is different from dealing with my uncle. This involves our family’s reputation and my own standing.”

Park Jinhyeok looked back at the firmly closed gate of the Hannam-dong main house.

He had already confirmed everything.

Artworks had been embezzled. Given that recently embezzled pieces had appeared on the market, it seemed the genuine works he saw in the warehouse had already been disposed of.

If that was the case, as he told Oh Seoyoung, all he had to do was take the fakes from the warehouse and reveal them to the world, and it would be over.

But Park Jinhyeok thought he couldn’t handle it that way.

Even though Oh Seoyoung had been a thorn in his side all this time, on paper, she was still registered as Park Jinhyeok’s mother.

Even if everyone now knew their relationship was terrible, Park Jinhyeok couldn’t just draw a sword and cut her down.

The world looks coldly upon those who harm their own parents with their own hands.

The world’s judgment was that parents are parents, even if they’ve done wrong.

So, Park Jinhyeok decided to give Oh Seoyoung a chance.

If she came to him, knelt, and begged for forgiveness, he would open a path for her to survive.

Of course, from her perspective, it might not seem like a path to survival, but from Park Jinhyeok’s standpoint, it was showing the utmost leniency.

“Now we just wait. Whatever happens will be her choice.”

As Park Jinhyeok got into the car, it sped off toward his home.

*

On Oh Seoyoung’s side, despite some time passing, there was no sign of movement.

He thought she would at least make some move to cover up the current situation, even if she didn’t come to apologize.

But no action was taken.

It was so quiet that Park Jinhyeok began to think her choice was to simply let time pass.

However, this quiet period didn’t last long.

During an unexpected visit from Han Jihyeon, he learned about Oh Seoyoung’s movements.

“What brings you here?”

Han Jihyeon, looking around Park Jinhyeok’s room, accepted a cup of tea from him.

“I was curious about where you work.”

“That doesn’t seem to be the only reason you came.”

Park Jinhyeok said as he sat on the reception sofa.

Han Jihyeon lingered, pacing around the office as if there was more to see.

“Really? Is that how it looks? That’s strange. I really came out of curiosity…”

“Is that so? Then we don’t need to have a conversation. Please, look around. I’ll get back to work.”

As Park Jinhyeok started to lift himself halfway off the sofa, Han Jihyeon turned and sat down opposite him.

“No. I came because I have something to say.”

Seeing her demeanor, Park Jinhyeok sat back down.

“It seems there’s something that has greatly piqued your interest. You look very pleased.”

“Yes. I am pleased. Or, to be precise, I’m very curious about how things will proceed.”

“Would you tell me what has captured your curiosity so much?”

Park Jinhyeok sat back in a relaxed posture, waiting for Han Jihyeon’s words.

Han Jihyeon set down her teacup and spoke.

“You might not know this, but there’s a rumor circulating in high society lately.”

“A rumor in high society?”

“Well, it’s a place where women gossip and backstab… but the women who gather there aren’t ordinary, you know.”

“I’m aware. But what kind of story is going around there that prompted you to visit me in person?”

Han Jihyeon looked at Park Jinhyeok, who was squinting his eyes, and spoke with an expression that said she couldn’t hold back any longer.

“Your sister has entered the market.”

“What does that mean?”

“Park Seoeun has been put up for sale.”

Park Jinhyeok thought for a moment about what Han Jihyeon meant, then made a surprised face.

“Are you perhaps talking about Seoeun’s marriage?”

“Why wouldn’t I be?”

“She’s only twenty-three, right? Or twenty-four? And Sanghyeok is still here… I’m still here. Are you saying Seoeun has entered the marriage market?”

“Yes. That’s why people are extremely curious. They’re wondering what’s happening at DS Telecom.”

After a moment of thought, Park Jinhyeok let out an involuntary scoff.

He was on the verge of sighing at the image of Oh Seoyoung making such a decision.

Han Jihyeon quietly watched Park Jinhyeok.

She silently observed him thinking, scoffing, and then sighing.

Park Jinhyeok looked up at Han Jihyeon, who was staring intently at him.

He sensed her eyes were filled with curiosity about the current situation.

“You seem curious.”

“Yes. I am curious.”

“Others might not know why this happened, but I think you would.”

“Yes. As you said, I know, so I’m not curious about that.”

“Then what are you curious about?”

“What happens after this. How you’ll resolve it. How it will end. I wish time would hurry up so I can see the result.”

“Why is that?”

“Because it’s similar to my situation.”

At Han Jihyeon’s answer, Park Jinhyeok nodded.

As she said, Park Jinhyeok’s situation and Han Jihyeon’s situation were very similar.

In some ways, Han Jihyeon’s situation was even more complicated, to the point where one could say Park Jinhyeok was in a better position than her.

“I had actually given up to some extent. I was just going to go with the flow and live as I lived. But seeing you, my thoughts are gradually changing. Watching you solve things one by one, I feel a sense of vicarious satisfaction.”

“Is vicarious satisfaction enough? You should do it yourself.”

“Yes. I plan to. That’s why I wanted to see the outcome of your situation before making my own choices. That’s why I wanted to know the result quickly, so I brought you the information. I thought it might speed up the conclusion.”

“Thank you.”

“You owe me one more thing now. Your debt is snowballing. What do you plan to do about it?”

“I’ll settle my surroundings and repay you. Don’t worry. I’ll make sure you don’t regret your investment.”

“Good.”

Han Jihyeon seemed satisfied with Park Jinhyeok’s firm answer.

She trusted his attitude more than any promise of repayment.

Park Jinhyeok crossed his legs, folded his arms, and tapped his fingers for a moment.

Then, smiling at Han Jihyeon, he spoke.

“Since you’re helping me anyway, could you help me a bit more definitively?”

“You want me to find out who she’s connected to, right?”

“Yes. That’s correct. I need to know that to prepare properly.”

“Alright. I like increasing debts. And I hope this story has a happy ending.”

“I’ll do my best to meet your expectations.”

Han Jihyeon left Park Jinhyeok’s office with a brief farewell, saying she would contact him again later.

As soon as Han Jihyeon left, Park Jinhyeok called in Kim Jun-woo.

“Leak to the press that DS Telecom plans to sell its art collection.”

“Excuse me? Sell the art collection?”

“Yes. Also say that we’ll use the proceeds to establish a foundation to support low-income students…”

“Wasn’t that just something you said to pressure Director Oh?”

“Right. At first, it was just talk. But now, we can’t just leave it be. To see how they react, we need to escalate things.”

“Sir. But the artworks aren’t genuine, are they?”

“That’s not my concern. That’s a problem for them to worry about. Proceed as planned. Let’s see what happens.”

Following Park Jinhyeok’s instructions, Kim Jun-woo immediately got to work.

The next day, news outlets were flooded with stories about DS Telecom’s foundation establishment.

People applauded the announcement, accompanied by Park Jinhyeok’s photo, stating that during difficult times, they would help their struggling neighbors and use every penny of the proceeds for the foundation without keeping any profit.

The expected reaction from the Byeoksong Art Museum did not come.

They merely expressed support for DS Telecom’s decision, asking to be informed of the auction date.

Park Jinhyeok laughed as he received the report through Kim Jun-woo.

“Interesting. So there’s no reaction from Director Oh’s side?”

“No. They only suggested holding the auction at their museum.”

“They want to host the auction? Why?”

“It seems they want to use this opportunity to raise the profile of the Byeoksong Art Museum.”

“So they’re only concerned about their profile? The fakes in the warehouse haven’t moved at all?”

“No. They haven’t moved. And the whereabouts of the genuine pieces are also unclear. You don’t think they haven’t been disposed of, do you?”

“No. They’ve been disposed of. They definitely have.”

Park Jinhyeok was certain based on his experience at the Hilton Hotel.

He didn’t think Oh Seoyoung would keep the items without disposing of them.

“Good. Tell them we agree. Let’s see how far they go.”

Park Jinhyeok decided to watch and see what Oh Seoyoung’s plan was.

Interest in DS Telecom’s art auction grew steadily.

It received even greater attention after the list of items was released.

The list included names of emerging artists who had recently garnered significant attention.

Since these were artists just gaining recognition in the art world, holding onto their works would clearly be profitable later.

Therefore, news that these works were being released drew praise for DS Telecom’s choice.

People were giving high marks to DS Telecom’s decision to forsake greed and raise funds for charity.

“If these were all genuine, I would have participated too. The pieces that have come out are so tempting that my mother already told me she wants to contact you separately, Jinhyeok.”

Han Jihyeon said as she scanned the art list in Park Jinhyeok’s office.

“You know which pieces are genuine, so why not just pick out the genuine ones?”

“Shall I? The pieces from the Hilton are genuine, right?”

“Yes. They are genuine.”

“Good. Then maybe I’ll buy this one and this one?”

Han Jihyeon sat in the office she was visiting for the second time with an overly calm and comfortable demeanor.

Park Jinhyeok was now receiving her not on the reception sofa but at his desk.

After spending a long time choosing artworks of interest, Han Jihyeon placed her hands on the desk, took a sip of tea, and turned her gaze to Park Jinhyeok, who was watching her.

“Aren’t you going to ask why I came today?”

“You’ll tell me when the time is right. Tell me when you’re comfortable.”

Park Jinhyeok was extremely relaxed.

Han Jihyeon had come for one reason.

She had deliberately tried to tease him and make him anxious by doing other things first upon arrival, but Park Jinhyeok didn’t seem like he would fall for it.

Han Jihyeon raised both hands as if admitting defeat.

“Tch. I can’t win against you.”

“Not at all. I’m very curious, so please tell me. Who is it?”

“You know how to be smooth too, don’t you? Alright. I’ll tell you. Talks are underway with the son of former Minister of Land, Infrastructure and Transport, Assemblyman Kang Mun-sik.”

“Who? Kang Mun-sik’s son?”

It was a completely unexpected person.

He thought she would look within the chaebol circle, but Oh Seoyoung had gone beyond expectations and turned her gaze to the political world.

“Unexpected, right? We talked a lot about that too. Still, it doesn’t seem like a bad choice. Since Kang Mun-sik is a heavyweight who served four terms with Busan as his district. His family itself is from the local elite, he served as a minister, has a solid position in the party… it seems like a decent choice overall.”

“That’s Kang Mun-sik. What about the son?”

“I don’t know. I’ve never heard of him at all.”

“You’ve never heard of him?”

“No. There should have been opportunities for him to mingle with us, but I’ve never seen him. Even if they didn’t include him during his first or second term, once he became a minister, people would reluctantly accept him, but he never showed his face then either. There are just rumors I’ve heard…”

Han Jihyeon looked up at Park Jinhyeok for a moment with an enigmatic smile.

“Why are you smiling?”

“Because I heard a story similar to yours. The reason he doesn’t mingle with us is that it’s hard to mess with us, so he’d rather hang out with ordinary kids and mess with them instead… I heard a story very similar to yours.”

At Han Jihyeon’s words, Park Jinhyeok frowned.