Chapter 57: The Price of Loyalty

CRASH.

Go Jong-tak hurled the Ilun Construction files toward the window. The potted orchid beside him toppled to the floor with a loud clatter.

“Useless, every last one of them.”

Go Jong-tak mercilessly stomped on the shattered orchid, grinding it into the floor as if it were Cha Kang-hyuk himself.

Truthfully, he wanted to do more—just run it over with a truck and be done with it.

He grabbed the intercom, his nerves fraying, and called for his Secretary.

“Get in here.”

At his order, the Secretary rushed into the room. She took in the wreckage and gasped in shock. Anyone could see the mess was no accident—he’d smashed the pot on purpose.

“L–Lawyer…”

“What are you standing there for? If you see it, clean it up. Now.”

“I’ll call the Cleaning Person.”

“How long do you expect me to wait for them? Do it yourself, right now.”

“But…”

What if she cut herself on the sharp shards while cleaning?

She hesitated, slowly backing away.

At that moment, Go Jong-tak’s voice thundered down on her.

“Hey!”

She might have the title of Deputy, but to Go Jong-tak, that meant nothing.

To him, the Secretary was nothing more than a dog that ate for free.

“When I say clean, you clean. Why are you so slow? If you can’t do this, just quit. There’s a line of people who’d kill to work here.”

“S–Sorry…”

Normally, she would’ve fetched a broom and swept up, but Go Jong-tak’s temper had her so rattled she started picking up the shards with her bare hands.

“Ah…!”

“Clumsy and useless. At this rate, will you finish before the day’s over?”

“I’ll do better.”

Go Jong-tak didn’t spare a glance for her bleeding hands.

He only found her pathetic attempts at working even more irritating.

Just then—

Knock, knock, knock.

A polite knock sounded at the door.

It was the second-year Assistant Attorney he’d sent out earlier to gather information.

“Come in.”

“Lawyer—oh!”

“What’s so surprising? Haven’t you seen my Secretary mess things up before?”

“But… her hand is bleeding…”

“Tsk. When you have no brains, your body suffers for it.”

Go Jong-tak glared at his Secretary, who was on the verge of tears as she picked up the broken pot.

He kicked his desk in frustration.

He wanted to snap her out of it, but it only made everyone more anxious.

“Crying, are you? If you’d just grabbed a broom from the start, none of this would’ve happened.”

He was yelling at her to hurry, but she hadn’t had a chance.

The Secretary had plenty to say, but she held her tongue.

There was no beating Go Jong-tak in an argument, and even if she did, with his personality, he’d never let it go.

He’d find any excuse to punish her.

She hid her bleeding hand behind her back and hung her head, not realizing it only grated on Go Jong-tak’s nerves further.

“Forget it. Go get a broom.”

“Yes…”

“No, never mind. I’ll go myself. Make sure it’s spotless by the time I’m back.”

“Understood.”

Tears streaming down her face, the Secretary bowed and started to leave, but his irritated voice stopped her.

“Where do you think you’re going? Reserve the Meeting Room first.”

“…Yes.”

Useless.

Just a small cut, and she’s so flustered she can’t even remember her job.

Loosening his tie roughly, he headed toward a small Meeting Room not far from his office.

“A Secretary who doesn’t even know the basics…”

He sat down in a chair, grumbling at the lack of even a glass of water.

It didn’t matter that he’d just told her to hurry and clean the office—he’d already forgotten.

“She was probably too busy cleaning up.”

“Still, she should know her priorities. Frankly, I’d fire her on the spot.”

Not that she’d last much longer anyway.

No Secretary had survived more than a year under Go Jong-tak.

The second-year Assistant Attorney completely understood.

There was no reason to work under Go Jong-tak except to rack up achievements.

‘Ah, there’s one more.’

He was also part of Lee Han-Woong’s direct line.

As one of the most powerful hands under the Lee & Yeon CEO, he couldn’t show any dissatisfaction.

Others who had spoken up had paid the price.

The Assistant Attorney pressed the intercom on the Meeting Room table to call his own Secretary.

He made sure all sorts of tea and refreshments were set out for Go Jong-tak.

“Was Attorney Yoon Yi-hoon the only one Cha Kang-hyuk met with today?”

“I believe Attorney Yoon Yi-hoon’s Secretary was also present at the meeting.”

“The Secretary?”

Go Jong-tak frowned.

“Why was Attorney Yoon Yi-hoon’s Secretary at the meeting?”

“She’s also Attorney Ahn Gyeong-hun’s Secretary, so…”

Bang.

Before the Assistant Attorney could finish, Go Jong-tak slammed the table.

“I don’t even want to think about those unlucky bastards.”

One of them had the nerve to speak up to his own Secretary, and the other used it as an excuse to wring out the highest possible fees.

Above all, the humiliation he felt now was all because of them.

“I see. Still, since Attorney Yoon Yi-hoon and his Secretary were called, it must be about the Club Incident. Attorney Yoon is the case’s assigned Assistant Attorney.”

“Doesn’t that make it even stranger? What’s left to discuss about the Club Incident? And if Head of Headquarters Cha came, why is Ahn Gyeong-hun just sitting still?”

If Cha Kang-hyuk called, even CEO Lee Han-Woong would come running barefoot.

“Attorney Ahn had a trial this afternoon, so he was away.”

“Hm. So they showed up without notice. Well, that’s just like Head of Headquarters Cha…”

Even he would have run out at dawn if Cha Kang-hyuk had called.

Cha Kang-hyuk himself never caused much trouble, but those around him never left him alone.

Especially Woo Jin-gon and his friends.

No doubt, after this incident, he’d cut ties with those troublemakers.

‘Hmm, that means Cha Kang-hyuk’s cases will decrease.’

He was hot-tempered and loved sports a bit too much, but it wasn’t enough to need a Lawyer.

The Cha han Construction Secretary’s Office could handle most of it.

‘So I’ll have even fewer chances to see him.’

Despite all his efforts, he’d ended up on Cha Kang-hyuk’s bad side.

He’d practically licked his boots in loyalty.

“Damn it. I can’t let this slip away.”

CEO Lee Han-Woong was right.

Cases were still coming to the Construction Team, but little by little, Legal Counsel was shifting to Ahn Gyeong-hun.

“It’s not much now, but if Cha Kang-hyuk takes the Royal Seat, it’ll all change.”

He was certain after seeing him today.

Cha Kang-hyuk had completely turned his back on him.

If Cha Kang-hyuk ever became Chairman of Cha han Construction, their relationship would be over.

“But Chairman Cha is still strong. That won’t happen.”

“That’s true.”

Seeing Go Jong-tak’s expression soften, the Assistant Attorney eagerly rubbed his hands together.

Unless the Head of Headquarters Case miraculously ended in acquittal, or even just probation, Chairman Cha wouldn’t be pleased.

“Heh. Should’ve ended it back when it all blew up.”

People are so fickle.

When it looked like his son would be sentenced to prison, he just wanted to avoid jail at any cost, but now that some time had passed, he felt regret.

It wasn’t as if his son had done it on purpose, and yet he only got probation.

Didn’t that tarnish the heir’s dignity?

But when the truth first came out, it was different.

It must’ve felt like coming back from hell. He probably wanted to bow in gratitude.

If they’d received the verdict right then, he’d have been the hero who revealed the truth, the center of all media attention.

“Heaven must be on our side.”

“Indeed.”

Given Chairman Cha’s health and age, he could easily last another twenty years.

It was in their genes. The previous Chairman was still running job sites into his seventies.

‘Twenty years. By then, I’ll be CEO myself.’

Legal Counsel? Our team’s handling more and more of that.

It’s only natural—the Construction Team’s always been strong in that field.

Besides, with all the cases they’d handled, they weren’t about to pull out over something minor.

Unless Cha Kang-hyuk actually got acquitted.

“For now, let’s focus on building ties with Ilun Construction.”

“Yes, the signs are very promising.”

“Right. I didn’t expect to land a case contract in just one meeting today.”

His anger had actually helped him focus in the meeting.

Call it motivation.

The more cases and clients, the better.

At last, Go Jong-tak straightened the tie he’d loosened in frustration.

“Of course—what else would you expect from me?”

“Absolutely. You’re the master of construction law.”

“Park, you’ve gotten much better at flattery.”

“It’s not flattery—it’s the truth!”

“Hahaha.”

It was obvious flattery, but it didn’t bother him.

Thanks to Cha Kang-hyuk, his mood had soured, but Ilun Construction would make up for any lost Legal Counsel.

Go Jong-tak threw his head back and laughed heartily, then spoke with determination.

“We have to win the Ilun Construction Case. No matter what.”

Who cares about the dead?

All that matters is freeing Ilun Construction from blame.

That’s our job.

Go Jong-tak bared his teeth in a sly grin.

I stopped by the Break Room to prepare for the Woonseon Engineering Tax Evasion Case meeting, and ran into Attorney Yoon Yi-hoon, who had just returned from court.

He grabbed a paper cup, filled it with cold water from the dispenser, and gulped it down.

Then, checking to make sure no one else was around, he spoke.

“Phew, Yoo-hee. I honestly feared for my life just now.”

“For your life? Who besides Head of Headquarters Cha could make you feel that way? Did calling him a grasshopper really put your life in danger?”

“…I told you, I’m not a grasshopper.”

“I didn’t say you were. Head of Headquarters Cha is, remember?”

“Ugh, now I’m determined to win, just out of spite.”

“Wanting to win doesn’t mean you will. If Head of Headquarters Cha does well, you’re bound to lose.”

“Pfft. You really trust that gym rat?”

“He’s going to study hard this time…”

Honestly, I was nervous too.

I was worried I’d get called a grasshopper.

If I lost the bet, I’d have to wear it, no questions asked.

What’s worse, if I lost, Attorney Yoon Yi-hoon would get to pick the outfit.

The winner would choose what the loser had to wear…

‘Cha Kang-hyuk! You can’t lose!’

…Please, save me.

I’ve avoided studying my whole life, so I was really anxious about the result.

“Whoa, judging by your face, Yoo-hee, you’ve already lost.”

“No, I haven’t…”

Ugh…

“So, what happened today that made you fear for your life?”

“Oh, I ran into Lawyer Go Jong-tak on my way here.”

Ah, that.