Chapter 59

Chapter 58.

Early in the morning, the gates of the Main Residence where the NK Chairman lived swung open. The atmosphere was subdued by the procession of black cars lining up and entering.

Among them, Jang Chae-hui, despite thinking she had rushed, was among the late arrivals. Seeing the NK Group people gathered in small groups talking, Jang Chae-hui skillfully slipped away. She didn’t have the luxury to join them and discuss why such an incident had occurred.

Instead, she quickly scanned the faces of the people. Finding no one she wanted, she wondered if she should look elsewhere or quietly wait in the hall.

“Why are you looking around so much?”

Just then. At the familiar voice from behind, Jang Chae-hui quickly turned around to identify the speaker.

“You…”

Chaeheon, coming down from the second floor, was dressed casually, unlike the others. He looked as if he had just woken up there, his disheveled hair loosely ruffled by his hand, causing Jang Chae-hui to unconsciously point at him with her index finger.

Seeing her finger, Chaeheon retorted indifferently.

“Were you looking for me?”

“Why are you here?”

Only the Chairman and his wife stayed at the Main Residence. Rooms weren’t offered unless there was a special occasion, so it was a place for coming and going. But with Chaeheon here, Jang Chae-hui asked in surprise, drawing the attention of others as well.

“Isn’t that Chaeheon?”

“Hello, Uncle.”

Chaeheon bowed his head and greeted with a poker face, but his uncle’s reaction was far from ordinary.

“What’s going on? Did you really catch Hyeon-seong?”

“No, I didn’t.”

Chaeheon shook his head. Jang Chae-hui gave him an incredulous look at his calm demeanor. She had heard about their uncle yesterday and had called Chaeheon all night. She hadn’t been able to ask him directly because he hadn’t answered a single call, but she wasn’t unaware of the situation.

But with Chaeheon denying it, Jang Chae-hui wondered if she should press him further.

“Uncle went himself.”

However, at Chaeheon’s subsequent reply, Jang Chae-hui’s mouth fell open silently.

Jang Chae-hui wasn’t the only one shocked. As everyone expressed their bewilderment and indignation at having been “played,” their uncle, Jang Jin-gyeong, became red-faced with anger.

“Are you toying with an elder now?”

“I never did such a thing. I just stated the facts as they are. I said Uncle Hyeon-seong went to the prosecutor’s office of his own accord.”

“And you’re saying you had nothing to do with it?”

“That…”

Chaeheon paused, about to say something, then spotted someone and fell silent.

“Ahem.”

At the Elderly Man’s uncomfortable cough, Jang Jin-gyeong immediately softened his aggressive stance.

“Father.”

It was NK Group Chairman Jang Han-gyeong.

“What are you all standing around for?”

“We were just asking if Chaeheon was involved in this matter.”

“Useless nonsense… Everyone, come in.”

As the Elderly Man entered with his hands clasped behind his back, Jang Jin-gyeong and everyone else looked at Chaeheon, then reluctantly turned away. Chaeheon, being furthest from Chairman Jang Han-gyeong, followed from behind with an innocent expression.

“Jang Chae-heon.”

Jang Chae-hui clung to Chaeheon’s side.

“How did you do it?”

She didn’t believe Chaeheon when he said he hadn’t done it. That’s why Jang Chae-hui desperately wanted to hear how, especially since she hadn’t been able to catch him herself.

“I told him to set a trap. If he’d just waited patiently, it would have come…”

“You…”

Jang Chae-hui, flustered, called Chaeheon’s name, then flinched at his gaze.

“Don’t forget that I almost became a scapegoat because of this.”

His eyes, which had been languid and seemingly indifferent to everything until now, changed. A gaze that could make someone tense in an instant. It held Jang Chae-hui captive as if she were in an invisible prison.

As others began to turn their heads at the heavy atmosphere, Chaeheon smiled. Then, as if nothing had happened, he returned to his usual self.

“Consider yourself lucky that I turned it into a negotiation.”

“Are you going to tell me what you mean…?”

“No.”

Chaeheon dismissed her as if it were out of the question. And as he followed the others, Jang Chae-hui trailed after him, with a look that suggested she had missed something important.

“We made no promises.”

“Ugh!”

Because Chaeheon pointed that out sharply, Jang Chae-hui’s expression crumpled in indescribable frustration.

With NK Chairman Jang Han-gyeong seated at the head of the table, the NK family members took their places. From the vice chairman to the presidents of subsidiary companies, each occupied a seat, meaning no one present could be disregarded.

Only one person seemed out of place in such a gathering. It was Chaeheon, who was still just a university student.

He was at the very end, as if intending to quietly observe. However, it wasn’t as if others paid no attention to him, as he might have hoped.

They wondered why Chaeheon was there, and Jang Chae-hui even asked him directly. Chaeheon merely said he came because his grandfather told him to. Of course, no one believed that literally, but it wasn’t the most important thing at the moment, so they quickly moved on.

“Why on earth did Hyeon-seong cause such a stir…”

Jang Jin-gyeong, Chairman Jang Han-gyeong’s second son, was still visibly agitated, unable to suppress his anger.

“Sister-in-law, you tell us. Why did this happen?”

Jang Jin-gyeong’s arrow was aimed directly at Kim Hae-na, Jang Hyeon-seong’s fiancée. She, who had been as quiet as Chaeheon, calmly raised her head and met Jang Jin-gyeong’s gaze.

“What is wrong must be corrected.”

“What an irresponsible…”

“Irresponsible? It’s simply the right thing to do. Isn’t it perhaps time to abandon the custom of creating such Contracts?”

“So you’re saying you haven’t married yet, and you’re waiting to see how things turn out before committing?”

“That would be good too.”

As Kim Hae-na didn’t back down an inch, Jang Jin-gyeong glared at her. Not just Jang Jin-gyeong, but many others created a hostile atmosphere, yet Kim Hae-na didn’t flinch. At her demeanor, Chaeheon secretly smiled, amused, then quickly erased it.

He laughed because he realized that his uncle’s actions weren’t something he had cooked up alone. While others might not know, those two, at least, seemed to want to stir up this stagnant, rotten water.

“Enough.”

Chairman Jang Han-gyeong stopped Jang Jin-gyeong from getting agitated and flaring up again.

“Father!”

“Silence!”

As Jang Jin-gyeong raised his voice, Chairman Jang Han-gyeong suppressed him with an even louder one. And that wasn’t all. Everyone sensed the dignity he exuded.

“What did you do so well to raise your voice, to keep raising it?”

“But Father. What Hyeon-seong did is like putting a knife to our throats.”

Although Jang Jin-gyeong acted as if he had been wronged, Chairman Jang Han-gyeong didn’t bat an eye.

“All those responsible will step down. Know that! That is the way to save the others.”

Chairman Jang Han-gyeong struck the table as if bringing down a sword.

“Don’t think you can just hold your breath for a moment and everything will be fine.”

At Chairman Jang Han-gyeong’s determined words, everyone began to stir. It wasn’t just Jang Jin-gyeong anymore. Everyone except Chaeheon and Kim Hae-na spoke a word or two, trying to persuade him somehow. But no matter what they said, Chairman Jang Han-gyeong had already made his decision and would not reverse it.

“Silence!”

At his single word, everyone fell silent, and the previous commotion subsided all at once. Seemingly pleased with the silence, Chairman Jang Han-gyeong looked around at everyone, then made another decision.

“Those responsible will go to the prosecutor’s office on their own, and the vacant positions will be filled with suitable personnel. One of those positions will go to Chaeheon over there, so be aware of that.”

Now understanding why Chaeheon was present at this gathering, everyone was shocked, and Jang Chae-hui stammered as she began to speak.

“Chaeheon is still a university student… isn’t he?”

“What does that matter? I’ve been regretting not putting that fellow to work until now, and he says he’ll do it.”

As Chairman Jang Han-gyeong’s voice softened for the first time, Jang Chae-hui looked back at Chaeheon. She muttered in disbelief, her eyes seemingly asking if it was true.

“He’s really going to step into the front lines.”

Not just anyone, but the Chairman’s most cherished grandson?

Others were just as surprised as Jang Chae-hui. Those among them who were involved with the Contract looked at Chaeheon with particular discomfort. They were of the same bloodline, yet one was cast aside while another was treated with great importance. It was an undeniably bitter replacement.

Chaeheon, now the sole focus of everyone’s gaze, rose from his seat as if he had no choice. He politely bowed his head in greeting and then cleared his throat a few times.

“I had intended to work my way up from the bottom, but given the circumstances, I will work diligently regardless of what title you bestow upon me.”

“Why is the fellow who never cared suddenly…”

Chaeheon heard Jang Jin-gyeong’s incredulous muttering and smiled.

“I didn’t care before, but now I do.”

When he caught Jang Hyeon-seong, he hadn’t particularly intended to use it to his advantage, but that changed midway. So Chaeheon came to his grandfather and negotiated again. To get what he desired most…

This was the first action Chaeheon took after breaking up with Lee Jun and staying at the Main Residence.

That day, as Jang Hyeon-seong’s story spread through news and the internet, NK Group’s calm lake began to churn.

And things also began to happen for Lee Jun, who was waiting for Haein to return.