Chapter 70

The sky was bright, and the summer sun was still glaring, making the early morning feel scorching.

Jin Yunho's laptop on his desk was still brightly lit, clearly indicating that he had not slept all night.

At 8:40 AM, Song Enzhi was the first to arrive at the office.

"Prosecutor Jin, good morning... Did you stay up all night?"

After greeting, Song Enzhi took the initiative to tidy up the files scattered around the room.

Jin Yunho rubbed his dry, red eyes, closed the laptop, and said in a low, hoarse voice:

"Good morning. ...I was reading and lost track of time. I'll go freshen up. When Shin Donghae and Yoon Gukhong arrive, please inform them to get ready. We'll be heading out soon."

After saying that, he picked up the emergency shirt he had prepared and walked out.

"Understood." Song Enzhi stopped what she was doing, held the files with both hands, nodded, and bowed in acknowledgment.

---

After washing up and changing into a clean shirt, Jin Yunho returned to the office. As he approached the door, he heard Shin Donghae and Yoon Gukhong bickering.

"Inspector Yoon Gukhong, our team has such a big case, and you still manage to leave on time and go home to slack off?"

"Hehe, no, I was out collecting personal information on Kim Taecun yesterday, completing the task assigned by Prosecutor Jin."

"Hmph, that's just an excuse. I think you just went home to slack off."

...

Before long, these two started arguing, which was quite a headache.

Jin Yunho pushed open the door, intending to mediate, and said, "What's with all the chatter this early in the morning? Hurry up and..."

Jin Yunho stopped in his tracks at the door.

In front of him, Secretary Lee Hyeona was sweeping the floor at the door, turned around, and smiled at him.

However, that wasn't the main point. The main point was what Lee Hyeona was wearing.

Yesterday, Jin Yunho had scolded Lee Hyeona once and set a底线 (底线 means 'bottom line' or 'limit'), telling her that she must wear formal attire to work.

Lee Hyeona listened and indeed wore formal attire to work today.

However, her formal attire was quite peculiar!

High heels, black stockings, a pencil skirt, a blazer, a floral white shirt, and a blue bow tie around her neck—she looked like a flight attendant.

Uniform temptation?

Yesterday, he told Lee Hyeona that as long as she wore formal attire, she could dress however she wanted.

And this Lee Hyeona really took it to heart, dressing up in 'flowers' today.

Jin Yunho patted his slightly dazed head and was speechless.

He walked past the 'flight attendant' without stopping, completely ignoring Lee Hyeona, threw the shirt he had changed out of onto the table, and said directly:

"Secretary Lee Hyeona, go help Inspector Shin Donghae with his makeup to make him look more mature."

"Makeup?"

"Stop talking and do it!"

"Understood." "Understood."

Twenty minutes later, after applying makeup, Shin Donghae indeed looked much more mature. Jin Yunho praised Lee Hyeona, and she beamed with joy.

"Shin Donghae, Inspector Yoon Gukhong, take the results of your work yesterday. We'll go to the Gangnam Prison to visit our Kim Taecun. Let's go now."

"Understood."

---

Jin Yunho, Shin Donghae, and Yoon Gukhong didn't waste time. A few minutes later, they were on their way to the destination.

In the car, Shin Donghae was driving, and Yoon Gukhong was in the passenger seat, half-turned to report the results of yesterday's investigation to Jin Yunho in the back seat.

This awkward posture was not intentional on Yoon Gukhong's part.

In Korea, if a subordinate and a superior are in the same car, the subordinate must never sit next to the superior. If there are four people, the extra person must find a way to follow.

Therefore, Yoon Gukhong had to sit in the passenger seat and report to Jin Yunho in an awkward position.

There are many rules in society, and if you don't have the ability to break them, you can only follow them silently. Attempting to break these rules recklessly will only give others a handle and make you a laughingstock.

Yoon Gukhong thought this was only natural and reported to Jin Yunho in detail without any resentment.

After listening, Jin Yunho praised Yoon Gukhong and then turned to look out the window, lit a cigarette, and frowned in thought.

Yoon Gukhong had found the police officers who had handled Kim Taecun's case in the past, as well as his former subordinates and friends. From these people, he learned that:

Kim Taecun had a brutal and fierce side, as well as a cautious and cunning side. Moreover, he had a very clear purpose in his actions and was extremely disciplined in his daily life.

Just as Jin Yunho had analyzed last night, Kim Taecun was not an ordinary person.

---

At noon, the sun was high and scorching.

In the solitary visiting room of the Seoul Gangnam Prison, a man with a dark and sinister appearance sat quietly in the dimly lit room.

"Click"

The heavy, dark door opened, and a prison guard walked in and said, "Prisoner Kim Taecun, you have a visitor."

As soon as he finished speaking, a person walked out from behind the guard: Shin Donghae.

The guard nodded and left the room.

Shin Donghae stood at the door with a bag in his hand, scanning the room. He looked at Kim Taecun sitting in the chair and then walked in, pulled out a chair, and sat down opposite Kim Taecun.

After a moment of silence, Kim Taecun spoke first: "Is it you who wants to see me?"

Kim Taecun was from Gwangju and spoke with a heavy Jeolla dialect (a general term for the dialects of Gwangju and Jeonju), with a clear final tone. He also used formal language when asking the question.

Shin Donghae nodded: "I am Shin Donghae, a third-level prosecutor at the Seoul Gangnam District Prosecutors' Office, responsible for verifying your behavior in prison."

Kim Taecun leaned back slightly, crossed his arms, and carefully examined Shin Donghae, who was wearing makeup, and shook his head: "You don't look like it."

Shin Donghae raised an eyebrow: "Oh? Tell me why you think I don't look like it. You should know that only someone with my identity can see you on a non-visiting day."

Kim Taecun tapped his face: "Korean men do wear makeup, but few wear full-face makeup. Those who do are either celebrities or... gay. Clearly, you are neither.

So, the only explanation for your full-face makeup is that you are trying to hide your age. Considering your voice, your actual age is younger than you look. Your real age should be between 25 and 27."

"Too young to be a prosecutor."

Shin Donghae touched his freshly made-up face and smiled interestingly: "Oh, you're quite good at analyzing? Is it just the age issue? You know, there are many smart people. I wore makeup to look more mature."

Kim Taecun slightly lifted his chin and said almost decisively: "I am sure you are not a prosecutor. You look more like an investigator working with a prosecutor."

Shin Donghae leaned forward with genuine interest, listening: "Tell me, how did you figure that out?"

Kim Taecun looked down to the left, briefly recalling, and said: "I have interacted with prosecutors many times and know them well.

When prosecutors enter an unfamiliar interrogation room, their attention is usually focused entirely on the suspect. Their first target is usually the suspect.

Observing the environment around them is usually the job of their assistant, the investigator. I think this behavior is related to their division of labor.

When you came in, you first observed the environment and then looked at me. Therefore, I concluded that you are not a prosecutor but an investigator."

Shin Donghae slowly leaned back in his chair and exhaled.

"Phew." In the monitoring room next to the visiting room, Yoon Gukhong also exhaled and praised: "Impressive, this Kim Taecun is not simple at all. I didn't expect him to guess Inspector Shin Donghae's identity so quickly."

At that moment, Jin Yunho was sitting in a chair, fiddling with a pen, his eyes fixed on the monitor.

He had a faint smile on his face and asked without turning his head: "How long did it take?"

"The silence lasted 1 minute and 34 seconds, the conversation lasted 2 minutes and 8 seconds, totaling less than 4 minutes." Yoon Gukhong looked at the stopwatch in his hand and reported three sets of numbers.

Upon hearing this, Jin Yunho's smile deepened.

"Our Kim Taecun is indeed not simple."