Chapter 23: Physical Evidence Isn’t Necessary

While Uncle Cheolgu ate, I finished my meal first and went for a walk in the garden with Mother.

Taeseong Group’s bodyguards were on alert by the gate and near the garden.

I bowed deeply to the bodyguards.

“Uncles, thank you for standing guard and keeping us safe in this cold weather. Please go inside to eat and warm yourselves up.”

The bodyguards smiled kindly.

“I saw there’s quite a pile of firewood in the shed. Should I light a warm bonfire for you?”

“Thank you, uncle.”

Thanks to them, Mother and I could sit on a garden bench and warm ourselves by the fire.

“When you have a bonfire, you have to roast something like this.”

Mother smiled brightly as she placed potatoes and sweet potatoes into the fire.

“It really feels like we’re on a trip. Look at all those twinkling stars.”

Still seated on the bench, Mother looked up at the sky.

“On the way home every day after selling vegetables, the stars must have always been this bright. Why didn’t I ever think to look up at the sky?”

It’s because there was never any peace of mind.

Life must have been overwhelming, just trying to make ends meet.

A young woman, with nothing, raising me all alone—
She must have suffered a lot.

“Our house is really nice, isn’t it?”

“Yes.”

“I didn’t notice during the day, but at night, it has a certain charm. They must have put a lot of effort into landscaping this garden.”

Of course. Do you know how much money was poured in here?

The golden grass and flower beds are one thing, but everything, from the ornamental trees and decorative bonsai, to the massive garden stones and flagstone pathways, are all the result of extravagant spending. Only the finest, placed by a top-tier gardener with painstaking care.

“Jeonghyeok, you met your grandfather earlier, right? How was it?”

“What do you mean, how was it? I got annoyed because he looked down on you, Mom.”

“Don’t be like that. I was actually happy, because it feels like there are more people in the world who love you now.”

“He used Dad as a pretext to run his business, and now he wants to cast you aside for it. I don’t need a grandfather like that.”

“But he’s not wrong either. Compared to your dad, I…”

So she’s saying that following her would be a hard road.

That old geezer really had a nasty way with words.

“So you’re telling me to go with Dad? Could you live without me, Mom?”

“……”

“See? You can’t answer. I can’t live without you, either.”

I hugged Mother tightly.

She patted my back gently.

“If you follow your dad, you’ll live in luxury. Nice clothes, nice cars, meet great teachers, go to college. You could live your whole life without worrying about money. You’ve had such a hard time because of me until now.”

“What’s so special about a chaebol family? Just because you have more money and power, does happiness come by itself?”

I shook my head.

“I can make my own money, and I can gain power on my own. If I can’t protect my family, then I don’t need either.”

I built up money and power for one reason: to protect my family, my own people.

“The only thing I really want to know is this. Mom, do you still love Dad?”

“Yes.”

“A little?”

“No, a lot.”

“Then you’d want to marry him, right?”

She looked bitter.

Mother softly stroked my hair.

“Sometimes, no matter how much you love someone, you still can’t marry them. It’s because I lack so much.”

What Mother lacks is money and family background.

When did chaebol families ever care about personality or ability when bringing someone into their family?

‘There’s nothing I can do about Mother’s family, but if it’s money, I think I can take care of it.’

I adjusted Mother’s scarf.

‘I’ll have to give my Mother a splendid bridal sedan ride and send her off in style.’

If the father I’ve never even seen rejects us, then so be it.

If that happens, I’ll just take care of Mother and never look at my father’s side again.

Still, I should leave a window of possibility open until the end.

‘I’ll make sure no one even dares to put my Mother through in-law suffering. I’ll make it so she’s adored as the precious daughter-in-law.’

There’s nothing I can’t do.

‘Why am I suddenly getting so motivated?’

And just then, a perfect opportunity came.

For that reason, I was itching to meet Uncle Cheolgu as soon as possible.

He seemed completely fine, as if his staggering earlier—needing support from the Taeseong Group bodyguard—had been a lie.

Uncle Cheolgu bounced back in no time.

“Wahaha, now I finally feel alive! I thought I’d die of hunger.”

So all that haggard, lifeless look was just from starving.

A body sturdy enough to withstand Central Intelligence torture, and a spirit that can’t be broken even in death!

I like it.

“Burp! I’m full! As expected, the top-class Japanese chefs at Taeseong Hotel! Their skills are truly amazing!”

The Taeseong Hotel chefs looked satisfied, like they’d just revived a dying beggar.

Uncle Cheolgu busily sent thumbs up and finger hearts toward the chef brigade.

The cleaning ladies cheered him on while cursing his workplace in unison.

Mother even handed Uncle Cheolgu a paper bag filled with fried hardtack.

Watching my warm and lively household, I let out a long sigh.

“Hoo…….”

Hey, this isn’t the time for you to be relaxing and joking around here!

“Uncle.”

“Alright. I’m coming, I’m coming!”

I dragged Uncle Cheolgu back outside.

To help him digest, and also to walk in the garden.

The chilly winter wind whipped around us, and the bonfire crackled beautifully.

“Ugh, it’s cold! Kid, since our bellies are full, can’t we talk while warming our backs on the hot floor inside?”

“With people coming and going to fix and clean the house, will you be alright?”

“Oh, but the night air is just perfect—cold enough to clear my head!”

Uncle Cheolgu pulled out freshly fried hardtack from the paper bag and crunched on it.

Just moments ago, he’d been stacking up empty plates—his appetite was monstrous.

He even grabbed a fire poker and prodded the potatoes and sweet potatoes roasting in the fire, smacking his lips.

“Uncle, I need more information that’s not written here.”

I waved a piece of paper I’d taken from my pocket.

The item that President Cha and Kim Secretary wanted.

A page cut out from Ukwang Construction’s bribe ledger.

I tapped that part with my fingertip.

“Suspicion is enough. I don’t care if there’s no physical evidence.”

This time, Uncle Cheolgu tapped the blank space he’d left.

“Information I couldn’t write here because there was no evidence. The circumstances and grounds that made me so sure. That’s what I want.”

“Kid, in the world of adults, you know, what’s more important than suspicion is evidence.”

Uncle Cheolgu let out a long sigh.

“I have no ties to Taeseong. So I at least need solid evidence for those high-ups at Taeseong to even pretend to listen, or to make them move their heavy butts.”

He furrowed his brows deeply.

“Ukwang’s cover-up was so tight, it was like a fortress. The media ignored it, Central Intelligence moved, the insider at Ukwang Construction died, and Taeseong’s traitor went into hiding.”

He fumbled around his pockets, clearly craving a cigarette.

“But thanks to my hard work, I narrowed it down to two places.”

I also have two places in mind. Uncle, you too?

“Damn it, if only Kim Gwangpil of Ukwang Construction, who smuggled out the bribe ledger, hadn’t died! He asked to meet to explain everything and requested protection, but that night Kim Gwangpil was found dead in his home…”

Why did you suddenly stop talking when you were on a roll?

“Forget it. Pretend you didn’t hear. I’m saying all sorts of things with a kid around. Anyway, you just stay out of this.”

“It’s too late. I’m already involved. Didn’t you see earlier? Kim Secretary, who serves the Chairman of Taeseong Group, came looking for me and demanded this.”

I shrugged my shoulders.

“I even accepted a bribe. But what do you think will happen if I just hand this over as is?”

“…Kid, you’re really going to get yourself killed.”

Hardly. Not at all.

I could give this blank paper to Kim Secretary, and there’d be no problem.

After all, what Kim Secretary wanted from me was the three cut-out pages.

Whether they’re blank or not, that’s not my responsibility.

Besides, I’m not the one who wrote the bribe ledger anyway.

But Uncle Cheolgu is different.

‘The one who’ll end up dead at Kim Secretary’s hands isn’t me—it’s you, sir.’

Uncle Cheolgu spoke solemnly.

“Kid, don’t worry. I’ll find evidence by the day after tomorrow. That’s enough.”

This guy is seriously mistaken.

“Uncle, wait a moment.”

“Hm?”

“Strictly speaking, it’s not your job to verify and solve this issue, is it?”

“What?”

“That’s Kim Secretary’s and President Cha’s job. It’s Taeseong Group’s problem. Shouldn’t Taeseong be the one to find the evidence?”

“…042+?”

“You just need to give President Cha and Kim Secretary enough reason to take this seriously and make them act. That’s enough.”

“Is that so?”

“Of course. You saw it, right? Somehow, I’ve ended up connected to Taeseong Group like this. Besides, Taeseong came to me first, bringing a bribe, and offered to solve the problem.”

“You’re right.”

“So, we’re good?”

“We’re good? Wahahaha! It really works? Then it doesn’t matter if there’s no evidence now?”

That’s right.

‘It would actually be a problem if Uncle Cheolgu tried to go digging for solid evidence to shake up Taeseong Group.’

Who’d be happy if Central Intelligence openly started poking around the company?

What about the plunging stock price? What would others think?

‘If the Cheongwadae Security Office asks why, what can you say? Ukwang spread bribes everywhere using Taeseong’s money, so Taeseong and Central Intelligence are conducting a joint investigation? That won’t work.’

The government, waving the banner of rooting out corruption, strictly forbids bribery among high-ranking officials.

Bribes—whether given, taken, or linked—will all be punished without mercy.

Taeseong can’t escape responsibility for failing to manage their money properly.

President Cha’s anger will target the one who exposed this dirty laundry.

I stepped up to prevent such a disaster.

I smiled brightly.

“So from now on, Uncle, you need to fill this out properly.”

If Uncle wrote carelessly, I’d fill in the missing parts myself.

I’d learned some forgery skills while working at the pawnshop.

I placed the Mongblanc Fountain Pen Kim Secretary left into Uncle Cheolgu’s hand.

“In your own handwriting. Directly. Every circumstance, grounds, reasoning, predictions—everything you know. Make sure you sign and stamp it.”

“Alright!”

Uncle Cheolgu winked with one eye.

“Loyalty, loyalty! You’re right! Whatever, it’ll all work out somehow. After that, ‘Whatever happens, happens!’ That’s it!”

He then obediently started to write.

‘What’s this? Why is it shining?’

Why is this rough scrap paper suddenly shining with a golden light?

Just how big is the secret he’s writing down?

‘Wait? This is information I didn’t know? So that’s how these things are all connected?’

What I know is just the traces of Taeseong Group—
In other words, information as a result, skipping the whole process.

But what Uncle Cheolgu was writing was the causes and the entire process of the incident.

‘How the hell does he know all this?’

Turns out, this wasn’t just a simple case of Ukwang using 2 billion won in bribes.

Whether two of Taeseong’s subsidiaries would go under or not,

Whether they’d helplessly lose the subway Line 2 construction contract,

Whether they’d lose 3 billion won in private funds—all these issues were tied together in one big mess.

‘I was just planning to push out the maggots infesting Taeseong Construction, but is the scale about to get even bigger? I smell money!’

No wonder that golden light was flashing!

This time, I really hit the jackpot.

As expected of Uncle Cheolgu! I knew I could count on you!