episode_0040

The interior of the group was truly a ruthless sheet of thin ice.

A hellish struggle among sisters, aiming for each other’s throats.

From above, Cha Seonmi was constantly eyeing any opening, ready to devour shares, while from below, that utterly untrustworthy wretch, Cha Soeun, had her maw wide open, waiting for the moment she would fall.

Normally, if one person holds strong initiative, it makes sense for the other two to combine forces, but I wouldn’t even hold hands with Soeun even if my wrist fell off.

Because she’s truly like a psycho.

“Hoo…”

The interior was like this, but the exterior was even more severe.

Cha Doyeon… I never imagined this scoundrel would become the biggest obstacle I faced.

No matter how I looked at it, it felt like he had changed overnight.

Rumor has it that his womanizing tendencies are still there, but something is different.

‘Why is he suddenly meddling in the group’s affairs?’

He was originally a single-celled incompetent, content as long as he received his monthly allowance and got to embrace women.

Before, when I subtly brought it up, he was even prepared to dispose of his remaining shares if I contracted to give him several tens of millions (of won) each month, but it felt like being struck by lightning out of a clear sky.

Furthermore, the performance he recently announced was truly in the realm of fantasy, indistinguishable from reality.

The smallest affiliate, which barely scraped by within the group in the past, now had an operating profit of 7.4 trillion won from investments!

I wondered if he’d committed accounting fraud, but he wouldn’t dare publicly announce such results or commit such a brazen act.

In the first place, there was no real need for him to inflate his performance, especially after being kicked out of the group.

“Haaah…”

Ever since the Bitcoin incident, I couldn’t figure him out.

Even if I tried to focus on my own work, it felt like he would pull some other stunt—

RRRING!

“!”

As I pressed my brow, the office phone rang loudly.

It was an alarm that jolted my brain awake once more, even as I racked my mind.

An ominous premonition made me hesitate to pick up the receiver right away.

Feeling certain that something was about to hit, I pressed my warm forehead, took three deep breaths, and then picked up the receiver, only to hear:

“Alright, speak.

……Uh, uh. …So? ……………What?!”

No matter how much I tried to control my breathing, my voice inevitably rose.

BANG!

It was news that could make my capillaries burst just by hearing it, so I trembled and roughly slammed the receiver down.

Then, in my anxiety, I tapped the desk with my index finger before picking up the receiver again and immediately shouting at my secretary.

“Get the car ready right now!”

*

The briefing session preceding the bidding auction for the theme park construction rights, where construction had been halted.

As I stepped into the site, where normally I would send a representative, that detestable face appeared.

“Oh, you came?”

Cha Doyeon.

As if he knew I would rush here at a moment’s notice, he sat in a chair and casually raised his arm.

“Young Lady Cha Hwaryeon, long time no see.”

Along with that traitorous wretch beside him.

Woo Miae, who had openly backstabbed me, brazenly stood beside him, straightening and tidying his collar.

She was deliberately trying to provoke me, but there were too many eyes watching, so I suppressed my anger and endured it.

“I’ll ask quickly and get this over with.

……Why are you here?”

“Huh? What else would I be here for at a briefing session for construction project bidding rights?”

“Ha! The scoundrel who used to live comfortably just skimming off petty commissions, is now suddenly jumping into the construction business?”

Construction of a massive theme park in the city center.

A project that had been promoted for a long time to attract tourism in South Korea, where attractions are limited.

It was a project rumored to be a huge success if completed.

With a foreign mouse mascot that everyone knew as its main theme, and generous subsidies from the city, it was a win-win opportunity for the construction company to make a hefty profit, add attractions to Seoul, and draw in more tourists.

However, things in the world don’t always turn out like fairy tales in a theme park, and the company that had previously been doing the construction went bankrupt.

Blinded by the certainty of a massive success, they aggressively won the bid, only to collapse spectacularly, and the construction site was left neglected for a long time.

I didn’t know the details, but I heard that the time it took to solidify the ground was fatally longer than expected.

In any case, since the company went bankrupt, this was an auction to transfer the construction rights to a new construction company as quickly as possible.

It was a project that garnered considerable attention from Seoul City, so it was being conducted through public bidding.

Perhaps judging this to be lucrative news, Cha Doyeon dared to step foot even here.

“Well? I came here more for investment than for the construction itself.

You see, I happen to know a construction company with an excellent mindset.”

In the seats behind Cha Doyeon, several men in suits were seated.

They stood up separately and bowed 90 degrees to me, making me think they weren’t his subordinates, but then my subordinate beside me whispered, ‘They are representatives from rival construction companies.’

‘Rival companies…?!’

Hearing that, I understood his intention.

Grasping the entire context, it was truly a shock, like being hit in the back of the head.

I had been attacked several times already, but this was the first time my younger brother had bared his fangs at me so directly.

“……You brought in other companies just to push me out? To push out Hwaryeong Construction, the unshakeable industry leader?”

A smirk.

A wince!

Even in this situation, he wore a relaxed smile.

He had always walked around smiling, but he was just stupid, so there was no hidden side behind his mask.

The younger brother swaggering in front of me now was a completely unfamiliar presence.

“You know, I thought you, Noona, had given up.”

“Give up… what?”

“Didn’t I warn you earlier? To give up on this auction because you wouldn’t have the money.”

Then, as if he had just remembered, he let out an “Ah!” and continued,

“Looking at the financial statements that came out this time, it seems you hastily concealed your internal affairs, didn’t you?”

“!!!”

-?

He revealed information that should never be leaked, right in front of everyone.

He publicly exposed the fact that I had squandered company money and “hastily covered it up.”

“Wh-What nonsense are you talking about?!”

“What’s wrong? It’s just a light joke among family.”

He deliberately smirked even more, and said,

“Surely the CEO wouldn’t directly commit accounting fraud. If you get caught squandering company money, you’d have to flip over and go straight to jail, right?”

Gulp!

This scoundrel clearly knew.

He knew the company’s circumstances due to the failure of the short-selling.

He knew the fact that I had committed impropriety to cover up this situation.

My younger brother was definitely tightening his grip around my neck.

His once loose, even empty personality was nowhere to be found; instead, he was pressing me so hard I could barely breathe.

He dared to manipulate me in the palm of his hand.

“D-Driver! Stop, restart the car!”

“? You’re leaving right away without even listening to the briefing session?”

“I only came to confirm because there was an uninvited guest! I’ve already set up a representative, so don’t worry about this side of things!”

First, the situation was disadvantageous, so I hastily left the premises.

If the fact that I manipulated the accounting to cover the losses was revealed, it would truly be the end.

Grind!

If so, I’d have to teach him one thing.

That in South Korea, business isn’t just a battle of pushing others out with brute force.

*

“You know very well, Mayor-nim, why I hastily scheduled this meeting and came to see you, don’t you?”

“…….”

The man sitting in front of me was the Mayor of Seoul, South Korea.

It was probably no exaggeration to say that in Korea, he was the second most powerful person after the President.

If Seoul, the heart of South Korea, stopped beating, then South Korea itself would be in cardiac arrest.

He possessed that much authority.

For instance, to select companies for construction within Seoul City, or to decide who would receive auction contracts.

“It’s a simple matter.

For the currently halted theme park construction bid, you just need to discreetly inform us of the opponent’s bid amount, or award us the contract for a slightly higher sum.”

“…….”

“Yes, as has always been the case.

Given the true capability Hwaryeong Construction has demonstrated so far, it’s an easy matter that anyone would be sufficiently convinced by.”

The Mayor unnecessarily dragged his feet.

He was merely a puppet who had moved according to Hwaryeong Group’s intentions his entire life, yet he wasted time.

However, knowing what this hesitation implied, I took out a small envelope from inside my chest—

“Don’t give it to me.”

“!”

Just as I was about to hand over ‘the envelope containing the allowance,’ he stopped me.

With an uncharacteristically cautious gaze, he clearly conveyed his refusal.

“…You won’t accept it?”

“Yes.

I will not accept it, and this time, I won’t be able to live up to Ms. Cha Hwaryeon’s expectations either.”

“Why, all of a sudden?”

As I put on an expression that looked ready to bite and tear, he turned his head away.

As if my gaze had made him unnecessarily warm, he loosened his shirt tie.

“Th-This theme park project is truly an investment for the future of South Korea.

Having previously been severely criticized by the media for entrusting it to an insolvent company, this time we plan to thoroughly examine the business proposals and their costs, and judge whether they are feasible.”

“You’re suddenly going by the book?”

Dumbfounded, I crossed my arms, then said,

“If it’s truly ‘by the book,’ shouldn’t Seoul City instead ask Hwaryeong Construction, which has consistently ranked as the industry’s number one performer every year? Isn’t that more logical?”

At my remark, the Mayor began to sweat.

He stood up from the sofa, paced restlessly like a dog needing to relieve itself, then subtly hinted.

“I heard that your liquid assets… have severely dried up.”

“!”

I gasped.

Who on earth was spreading this? This story had surfaced again.

Seeing me bite my nails at the uncomfortable truth, the Mayor added, as if certain.

“As you know, this project involves an unusually large sum of money, doesn’t it?

The previous company also only managed to lay the foundation before falling into financial difficulties and collapsing. This time, I’d like to entrust it to a company with solid capital.”

“And that’s just Cha Doyeon, who only managed a temporary flash of performance, and a few companies he brought with him!?”

“…….”

“Listen, Mayor-nim! Let’s be frank with each other.

You, who used to be close with my father, are you now going to abandon Hwaryeong Construction, merely swayed by those baseless rumors?”

The Mayor avoided my gaze.

He was usually a gentleman who would crawl on his belly before our family, not one with this much nerve, but he endured until the very end.

“I can’t promise you the contract, but thinking of our old ties, I will contact the bank on your behalf.”

“That’s enough!”

I stood up then and there.

As a scion of Hwaryeong Group, I glared at him, my pride scratched and tattered into a pathetic state.

“I’ll remember today’s events for the rest of my life!”

“…….”

Even though I gave him one last chance to salvage things, the Mayor turned away.

He unnecessarily stared at the window, which was obscured by vertical blinds and was no different from a wall, making me flip out. BANG! I kicked the door open and stormed out.

I ran down the hallway at a pace that threatened to snap my high heels.

‘Why is everyone around me suddenly acting like this?!’

I couldn’t understand it.

Not only Cha Doyeon, who had changed in just a few months, but even the Mayor I met today had completely changed.

He was a man who had no great courage, a man who would go crazy for pocket money or women given to him, yet he dared to defy me.

His term wasn’t even that long, yet he dared to refuse my offer.

And at this very time when I desperately needed money and connections.

‘………Surely not?’

As I stormed out, a thought, a dreadful ‘what if,’ struck me.

Looking back at City Hall, from which I had already rushed out, I frowned deeply.

***

“She’s gone.”

“Y-Yes…”

He put the phone game he had been tapping away at into his pocket.

As he exited the hidden breakroom where they had met beforehand, the Mayor was wiping sweat from his brow with a handkerchief.

The heater was off, yet he was complaining about feeling flustered.

“Really… will this be alright?”

“What do you mean?”

“It’s just… I’m still afraid of how Cha Hwaryeon will react, of her retaliation. If you’re siblings, you must know her personality, don’t you?”

I chuckled in response.

I approached the man who trembled just at the mention of ‘Hwaryeong,’ brushed his shoulder, and then gripped it.

“You saw the estimated asset report for Hwaryeong Construction that we compiled, didn’t you?”

“…….”

“Noona is already a tiger with all her teeth pulled out.”

Leisurely, I unwrapped a melon-flavored candy from the tabletop, put it in my mouth, and then said,

“Now, all we have to do is wait together.

Starting today, Mayor-nim, you just need to impartially award the construction rights to a financially sound company.”

“Th-That’s all?”

“Yes, you just need to make a judgment, Mayor-nim, on which construction company is more suitable.”

I was serious.

I told him that he didn’t need to engage in the corrupt solicitations my sisters and father, Cha Seongtaek, used to, but simply do his job as mayor.

Fair play.

If he just did this, if he promised fair play, all plans would unfold smoothly.

“Come on, don’t strain yourself.”

“…….”

“You should successfully complete this project, and with the clean money sponsored by the new ‘Hwaryeong,’ you should definitely aim for the next mayoral term.”

*Swoosh,*

The business handshake I extended, soliciting agreement.

CLASP!

The Mayor instantly clasped my hand.

He had extended his hand towards me, a new, sturdy lifeline.

With this, corrupt solicitations were blocked at their source.

The countdown to Cha Hwaryeon’s downfall, marked by her endless cycle of corrupt handshakes, had begun.