Chapter 65

After disciplining Lee Hwina, Kim Yunho had just come down from the rooftop when he received a message about a meeting in the criminal department.

On his first official day, he had met the people in the criminal department, but he hadn't had much interaction with them. This meeting was his first time attending.

Standing at the door of the criminal department meeting room, Kim Yunho paused slightly, tidied his suit, and then pushed the door open and stepped inside.

Kim Yunho, dressed in a suit and tie, exuded an exceptional and distinguished air, making him the focus of everyone in the room as soon as he entered.

There were already four people in the room, all of whom Kim Yunho had met before. Three of them were third-level prosecutors at the same level as him, and the other was a middle-aged man with thick glasses, the deputy chief prosecutor of the criminal department, Dong Seongdu.

Seeing Kim Yunho, their expressions varied. Dong Seongdu was the first to greet him: "Prosecutor Kim, you will sit here from now on."

Dong Seongdu pointed to the end of the conference table, indicating where Kim Yunho should sit.

"Yes, thank you," Kim Yunho replied politely, bowing.

As a newcomer, it was only natural for him to sit in the least desirable spot, and Kim Yunho did not mind.

However, when he sat down, he noticed something unusual about the seating arrangement. Only he and Dong Seongdu were on one side of the table, while the other three prosecutors were on the opposite side, enthusiastically discussing their cases without engaging him.

Are they isolating and excluding me?

Kim Yunho felt the distance and subtle rejection from the other three prosecutors. After a moment's thought, he smiled wryly.

He was only 25 years old and had already become a third-level prosecutor. The other three, who looked to be in their thirties, had worked hard for many years to reach their current level.

With a ten-year age gap and no extensive experience, it was understandable that the other three prosecutors would feel uncomfortable and distant towards him.

Not only had he not yet settled into his team, but he was also being isolated by his colleagues. This was not going to be an easy time.

Understanding the current situation, Kim Yunho felt a bit depressed. He sat alone, staring at the table in front of him, wondering how to break this deadlock.

Before Kim Yunho could come up with a solution, the meeting room door opened again, and the head of the criminal department, Luo Sendao, and the chief prosecutor, Luo Wenshan, entered, discussing something.

The five people in the room immediately stood up and bowed.

Luo Sendao nodded in acknowledgment, then sat at the head of the table, facing the door. Luo Wenshan sat directly opposite him, with his back to the door.

After they were seated, Luo Sendao habitually touched his shiny bald head and formally introduced Kim Yunho to the others.

Kim Yunho stood up again, bowed to everyone, and gave a brief introduction of himself.

There wasn't much to introduce, as he had no formal experience as a prosecutor. The色魔案 (色魔案 refers to a specific case involving a sex offender, which is a bit awkward to translate directly) was a unique case, and the other prosecutors were already aware of it, so there wasn't much more he could say.

After the formalities, he sat back down and listened quietly to the meeting content.

Luo Sendao, who chaired the meeting, was the overall head of the criminal department, responsible for assigning work, summarizing cases, and evaluating prosecutors.

The content of this meeting was to assign work.

Every Monday morning, the criminal department held this work meeting. After a general criminal case was reported to the prosecution office, Luo Sendao would review the case, analyze its urgency, and then assign it to the appropriate prosecutor.

For urgent and major criminal cases, he would hand them over to Chief Luo Wenshan.

Luo Wenshan, based on the workload, might ask Deputy Chief Dong Seongdu to assist. If the task still couldn't be completed on time, he would select other prosecutors to help.

In summary, Luo Sendao was responsible for assigning work, Luo Wenshan and Dong Seongdu handled major and urgent cases, and the four of them, including Kim Yunho, handled general criminal cases.

After Luo Sendao assigned the work, he gave each prosecutor a form listing the case name, the deadline for completion, and relevant notes to help them understand their tasks.

Dong Seongdu helped distribute the forms, and the other three prosecutors each received theirs, but Kim Yunho's hands were empty.

He looked at Chief Luo Wenshan, who he was familiar with, and received a reassuring glance in return.

Before Kim Yunho could think further, Director Luo Sendao spoke again: "Pay attention. The deadlines for the cases assigned this week have been extended, so you can adjust your work schedules accordingly. Additionally!"

Luo Sendao raised his voice, and the other prosecutors, knowing that the important part was coming, sat up straight. Even Kim Yunho, who was not familiar with Luo Sendao, could tell.

Luo Sendao rubbed his shiny bald head and said seriously:

"Given the harm caused by organized crime to society, successive Korean governments have placed great importance on combating it.

In 1980, the 'Sweeping Away Social Scourges' policy was implemented to combat organized crime.

In 1990, the 'Struggle Against Crime' campaign was launched.

After nearly three decades of strict enforcement, the activities of organized crime have been effectively controlled.

According to statistics, as of 2005, 20,789 members of organized crime have been arrested. To this day, 1,170 key members from 274 gangs are still in prison, including 133 'boss-level' criminals.

Although the activities of organized crime have been effectively controlled, many subsequent issues have arisen.

First, too many members of organized crime have been arrested.

Korean prisons are now overcrowded, and the government has spent a large amount of resources on incarcerating these criminals.

Second, many of these people are young adults just entering society. The government also wants to educate them so that they can reform and contribute to Korean society after their release.

Therefore, the Korean Ministry of Justice and the Supreme Prosecutors' Office have made a joint decision."

At this point, all the prosecutors, including Kim Yunho, stood up, waiting for Luo Sendao to announce the order.

Luo Sendao took out a document with a red seal and read it aloud: "The Seoul Gangnam District Prosecutors' Office Criminal Department is to investigate the good behavior of the heavy criminal Kim Taevun in prison and determine whether he has shown remorse and has reformed.

If the situation is true, Kim Taevun will be released early to set an example for other incarcerated members of organized crime."

Upon hearing this order, the other three prosecutors were visibly shocked, as if they had encountered something very frightening.

Kim Yunho had not heard of the name, but from the others' expressions, he could tell that Kim Taevun was a very difficult person. This task did not look easy.

After reading the order, Luo Sendao glanced at Chief Luo Wenshan and nodded, indicating: "This task has been specifically assigned by the Supreme Prosecutors' Office to our department.

Chief Luo Wenshan, as the highest-ranking prosecutor, I will not be involved. You are in charge."

After saying this, Director Luo Sendao wiped the sweat from his bald head and left the meeting room.

The remaining people waited for Chief Luo Wenshan to assign the task.

Please don't choose me, please don't.

This task was clearly a big problem, and the other three prosecutors were praying in their hearts to avoid this trouble.

Deputy Chief Prosecutor Dong Seongdu was not as nervous.

He had always worked with Luo Wenshan. With the head, Director Luo Sendao, out of the picture, there was no reason for the deputy, Luo Wenshan, to take on this task alone. Therefore, he could also avoid this big problem by following Luo Wenshan.

Kim Yunho, sitting in the least noticeable spot, was also thinking.

Although he was new to the job, he had the experience and insight from his previous life. Combining the order with the others' reactions, he made an effective analysis of the situation.

Releasing Kim Taevun to set an example for other incarcerated members of organized crime was a good intention.

However, it posed a significant challenge for the specific prosecutor handling the case.

Releasing him would fulfill the requirements of the Ministry of Justice and the Supreme Prosecutors' Office.

But if the judgment was wrong and Kim Taevun had not reformed, and he continued to harm society after his release, the prosecutor who made the decision would bear all the responsibility and the blame.

Not releasing him would avoid the risk and the blame.

But not releasing him would mean defying the will of the 'grandfather' Ministry of Justice and the 'father' Supreme Prosecutors' Office, which would clearly be a death sentence.

Releasing him is difficult! Not releasing him is also difficult!

This is truly a deep pit!

At this moment, Kim Yunho also joined the others, silently praying: Please don't choose me for this unlucky task.