Chapter 10

In Professor Choi Jung-deok's office at Seoul National University.

Kim Yun-ho raised the issue of wanting to verify the grade of Lee Min-joon's graduation thesis.

In return, Professor Choi readily agreed, flipping through Lee Min-joon's thesis and confidently saying, "You might be overthinking it. Students' theses are initially reviewed by their course instructors, then re-reviewed by associate professors, and the final grades are given by me and a few other professors. There's no way there could be any problems."

"Found it. This is Lee Min-joon's graduation thesis, rated as excellent, quite impressive," said Choi, who soon found a folder and handed it to Kim Yun-ho.

Kim Yun-ho, with over two or three decades of experience in the judiciary, was well-versed in reviewing legal papers.

He read through it carefully from beginning to end, and similarly, found no issues.

However, a smile gradually spread across Kim Yun-ho's lips. No problems were the biggest problem! Indeed, there was something suspicious about Lee Min-joon's graduation thesis.

Think about it, how could a college student be so meticulous in writing a thesis, with over 30,000 words, without a single mistake?

Especially for a graduation thesis, one should focus on a particular point and expand the discussion to highlight the key points. In doing so, it's inevitable to overlook other areas, making it easy to find points of contention in the argument.

But in Lee Min-joon's thesis, whether in terms of logical rigor or the direction of the argument, there were no issues at all, leaving no room for debate. It was as if a martial arts master had honed his skills to perfection, with no weaknesses.

This was absolutely impossible for a college student like Lee Min-joon to achieve. Someone must have written it for him!

After hearing Kim Yun-ho's analysis, Professor Choi also noticed this and picked up the thesis to review it again. Gradually, his brows furrowed, his kind smile disappeared, and soon his face was filled with coldness.

"Scoundrel, disgrace! How could such a thesis receive a high score? It's... it's utterly shameful." Professor Choi fumed, his face red with anger.

Kim Yun-ho comforted him a few times and then asked, "Professor, can you tell who wrote it?"

Professor Choi threw the thesis on the table, leaned back on the sofa, and sneered, "Haha! I didn't expect it to be someone close to me."

Kim Yun-ho leaned forward and tentatively asked, "Instructor Yoon Sang-myung?"

Professor Choi closed his eyes and nodded weakly.

Kim Yun-ho's eyes narrowed, and he clenched his right hand, feeling very excited. Finally, he had found a breakthrough.

"Professor, I won't disturb you. I want to go and see him."

Professor Choi shook his head, "No, no need to avoid me. I can handle it. Besides, I want to know why he betrayed my trust."

Kim Yun-ho nodded in agreement. With Professor Choi present, it would be easier to break Yoon Sang-myung's psychological defenses.

As Professor Choi's assistant, Yoon Sang-myung was also at work today. A phone call from Professor Choi brought him in.

Yoon Sang-myung had been in a terrible mood recently. His mother's condition had worsened again, and she had to be hospitalized. His newborn child was also sick, and he had to work during the day and take care of his family at night, leaving him exhausted.

Moreover, Kim Yun-ho's visit yesterday had made him nervous. "Could he have figured something out?" he thought anxiously.

He had planned to make things difficult for Kim Yun-ho, hoping to make him give up and stop poking around. His identity as a prosecutor always made him uneasy. But Kim Yun-ho had perfectly handled the situation and gave an excellent lecture, which only increased his unease.

When he entered Professor Choi's office, his heart sank. He never expected Kim Yun-ho to be there, and even more surprising, he saw Lee Min-joon's sister, who he had met once, sitting with him. Could they really be investigating Lee Min-joon?

"Teacher, you called me?" Yoon Sang-myung tried to calm his nervousness and asked Professor Choi.

Professor Choi closed his eyes and asked in a low voice, "What's going on with Lee Min-joon's thesis?"

Thump, thump...

Yoon Sang-myung's heart raced. He tried to act innocent, "Teacher... I don't understand what you mean."

"Still lying!" Professor Choi suddenly opened his eyes, his left hand pounding the armrest of the sofa as he roared, "I've been your mentor for nearly ten years. Do you think I don't know your writing style? I trusted you so much, giving you the responsibility to review the first draft, and you pulled a 'switcheroo' on me."

Yoon Sang-myung couldn't argue, nor could he deny it.

He had planned it well: Professor Choi was very busy, responsible for reviewing many students' theses, and usually only skimmed through them, focusing on the core arguments, and then combined the first and second reviews to give the final grade.

That's why he had the audacity to write the thesis for Lee Min-joon under Professor Choi's nose. But if Professor Choi had carefully reviewed the thesis, it would have been easy to spot the ghostwriting.

Seeing Professor Choi so furious, Yoon Sang-myung knew he was caught. There was no point in arguing anymore!

He stood there, his legs trembling, large beads of sweat rolling down his forehead, quickly soaking his shirt.

Seeing Yoon Sang-myung's guilty appearance, Professor Choi felt a sharp pain in his heart. He signaled to Kim Yun-ho with his eyes, then closed his eyes and turned his head, unable to bear looking at Yoon Sang-myung.

Now that the matter was confirmed, Lee Min-joon's graduation thesis indeed had issues, and it was written by his course instructor, Yoon Sang-myung.

Following Professor Choi's signal, Kim Yun-ho stood up, walked to Yoon Sang-myung, and stared into his eyes, saying:

"I think you've guessed it. I'm the intern prosecutor secretly investigating the case of Lee Min-joon's victimization."

"Let me announce my findings: After my investigation, you are the only one with a significant conflict of interest with Lee Min-joon. In other words, you are the prime suspect."

"You wrote the thesis for Lee Min-joon, helping him get a high score, which allowed him to rank in the top 50 and secure a spot in the bar exam."

"But after cheating, Lee Min-joon had a change of heart. On the day of the incident, he went to you to confess. You were afraid of being exposed and losing your job, so you refused. A heated argument ensued, and in a moment of desperation, you attacked him with a rock from the roadside."

"Am I right?"

As Kim Yun-ho spoke, he kept his eyes fixed on Yoon Sang-myung, putting immense psychological pressure on him.

But after hearing Kim Yun-ho's words, Yoon Sang-myung's face was filled with veins, and he loudly protested, "No! I didn't! I didn't attack him with a rock, I didn't!"

Seeing Yoon Sang-myung's intense reaction and emotional state, Kim Yun-ho was surprised. Yoon Sang-myung didn't seem to be lying. Could his reasoning be wrong, and Yoon Sang-myung not be the killer?

Kim Yun-ho didn't let go of this lead too soon. He thought for a moment and then said in a low voice:

"You know I'm an intern prosecutor, and now you know I'm investigating this case on someone's behalf. Let me tell you something you don't know."

"Lee Min-joon is not an ordinary person. His family is powerful, and their influence is beyond your imagination. I'm an example; they can find a soon-to-be prosecutor like me to do their bidding."

As he spoke, Kim Yun-ho pointed to Li Xiaoran, whose face was pale, and introduced her.

He turned back and continued to stare at the shocked Yoon Sang-myung, a demonic smile on his face, and said:

"Facing such power, I am insignificant, and so are you. If I report this to Lee Min-joon's father, I'm sure an angry and heartbroken old man will not let you off. You will face unimaginable and brutal retaliation. Don't argue; I'm just stating a fact."

Noticing Yoon Sang-myung's trembling body, twitching lips, and bulging eyes, Kim Yun-ho knew the intimidation was working. He then switched to a more soothing tone, "If you're smart, you should confess everything early to gain some forgiveness and avoid greater harm to yourself and your family!"

The mention of his family being harmed deeply affected Yoon Sang-myung, making him very afraid. After years of struggling in society, he knew how dark it could be. He knew Kim Yun-ho was right. Powerful people wouldn't care about the lives of ordinary people; they would do anything to satisfy their desires.

He collapsed to the ground, crawling to Kim Yun-ho, and clung to his pants, pleading:

"Please, it wasn't me. Please believe me! Yes, I did write the thesis for him, but he didn't know. Later, when he discovered the issue with the thesis, he met me by the lake that night and confronted me. He even threatened to report me for writing the thesis for him and other students. But I didn't attack him, I really didn't!"

"Please believe me, I'm telling the truth! It wasn't me! Please, please believe me."

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