Chapter 40

EP 8 - The Youngest Granddaughter of a Chaebol (3)

8:00 AM.

The mountain valley sparkled with sunlight reflecting off the snow.

A white lake was gently shrouded in morning mist.

The sound of unknown birds added a refreshing feeling. Although the world was still dim, the rising sun beyond the mountain ridge made the mood fresh.

In that breathtaking scenery, reminiscent of a Chinese film, an old man was sitting by the lakeside.

He was wearing a North Face White Label Delton Jacket in black and a KIA Tigers baseball cap.

Yang Pansuk, who had little interest in baseball, often pretended to be a fan for the sake of local constituency management because the KIA Tigers were based in Gwangju.

Feeling someone approach, he turned around and lowered his mask. As Yang Pansuk smiled and spoke, a puff of white breath escaped his lips.

"Did you come?"

"Good morning, Representative."

"I wanted to go out to the sea in front of Busan, but my life is too precious..."

There are monsters in the sea too.

In any case, they exchanged pleasantries with a bit of banter, but the mood wasn't entirely light. This was because he had asked his assistant not to come.

In other words, it wasn't about fishing.

It meant there was something secret he wanted to talk about.

As a result, we were the only two in this deep mountain. He muttered, looking at his wristwatch.

"You're late. I knew this would happen."

"Excuse me?"

"Hmm, no, it's not that."

He smiled and gestured for me to sit, his eyes twinkling.

"Let's chat a bit after so long."

* * *

"The world is in chaos, yet the political sphere is surprisingly peaceful. When the National Assembly, government, prosecution, and ruling and opposition parties unite, things can be this good."

I sipped a paper cup filled with warm mixed coffee.

"......I feel a bit uneasy seeing them only interested in land grabs and not in hunting monsters."

"Hmm?"

"Isn't it already clear that they are bickering over the planned Seoul reconstruction project? Playing with money that doesn't exist is the most dangerous thing..."

"Since they control the media, the risk has disappeared. There's no one to criticize them. Still, they are playing it cute without causing us any harm."

"I don't think that's the line we should be protecting..."

"What line is there in this situation? Don't make unnecessary enemies; let's just take care of ourselves—"

"Ah-choo!"

"......"

"Ah, sorry. I have a cold..."

I laughed awkwardly and cast my fishing rod. The float bobbed on the lake's surface. I asked Yang Pansuk.

"When is the election?"

According to the current law, the president must be elected within 60 days,

proportional representatives must be immediately filled by existing candidates,

and by-elections for National Assembly members are scheduled for April next year.

"The citizens isolated in Seoul can't vote, and there's no way to determine the fate of the representatives, so it has been agreed to maintain the current system for the time being."

It's a way of saying we will continue to benefit from the current legal framework.

"Hmm. I had a rough idea, but will the people accept this?

Ah! Now we have to make them accept it."

With the political sphere united, there are many ways to 'convince' the people.

First, we could cast the magic of statistics, a long-standing tradition in Korean media. If we report that the approval rating of Acting President Won Okbun is the highest in history, everyone will support her. That's how psychology works.

Or, we could pick on a weakened chaebol and label it as the 'axis of evil,' beating it up. Bullying and soda are always a winning formula.

We could also manipulate the judiciary (originally, the Chief Justice is the head of the election commission) to put the election commission in a difficult position and push them out,

or the two major parties could pretend to reconcile after a fight, which would also work.

There are many methods.

"......With power concentrated, if you have creativity, you can do almost anything."

"That's why we have been fighting fiercely to gain power all these years, isn't it?"

Most of the issues have been resolved by death, but we have firmly secured our place at the top of the pyramid, taking advantage of the power vacuum.

Yang Pansuk presented a vision.

"We need to work with capable and like-minded people to shape a great nation."

It's a way of saying we need to manage the quality of the upper echelons.

To prevent a rolling stone from displacing a settled one.

To maintain our privileges,

we should carefully select and elevate only the right people to the top of the pyramid. That's what he meant.

I looked at Yang Pansuk with a cold eye, and he laughed awkwardly.

"Was it a bit outdated?"

"Yes, it felt a bit like a relic of the past."

"I, really. Since I got this badge, I've been talking more harshly to old people. I need to die before I become even more abusive..."

"Ah, why are you saying that? I'm sorry!"

Yang Pansuk gripped his fishing rod and chuckled. His calm voice echoed in the quiet lakeside.

"......I, to the core, was a democrat."

Yang Pansuk was a former activist. He led a group of dozens of bodyguards and was appointed as a late-career judge, leading several judicial upheavals.

Of course, all that, including his current words,

is in the past tense.

He is just a 13-year politician.

"Regardless of ideology, my uncle was unjustly taken to the Samcheong Education Camp and beaten to death, so it was a natural progression."

Yang Pansuk began to recite modern history.

"However, we did all sorts of things to overthrow the dictatorship, but when the two Kims fought and Roh Tae-woo was elected, how did I feel?"

The 13th presidential election. The division within the democratization movement and the fisherman's gain.

"How did I feel when YS betrayed DJ and joined hands with JP and Roh Tae-woo? At least this led to the dissolution of the Hanahoe, so that's one way to look at it."

The merger of the three parties. Kim Young-sam's betrayal or brilliant move.

"How did I feel as a judge when DJ said he would forgive and pardon Chun Doo-hwan?"

Yang Pansuk stared at me expressionlessly for a long time.

Then he smiled only with his mouth.

"You won't understand. You don't know, and that's natural.

Modern history is not even in the textbooks, and it has become an old story that people don't remember. Tsk... Now, it's just a topic for political enthusiasts to argue about on the internet.

Even when used for propaganda, it's too old to have much effect. Activists are treated as old-timers, and the Sangdo-dong and Donggyo-dong factions are already relics..."

He fiddled with his fishing rod and smiled faintly.

"But, this was my life. I always compromised my beliefs to accept reality, and as I aged, I learned to chip away at myself. Actually, everyone does this, not just politicians."

"......"

"Do you think there's a right answer in politics?"

I shook my head without hesitation, and Yang Pansuk lowered his mask, exhaling a puff of white breath as he continued.

His wrinkled face, which always maintained a conscious smile, showed no trace of a smile.

"Live."

He said the essence of a politician is survival.

"All political progress is merely populism that occurs in the process of survival. Campaign promises to get votes. There's no greater meaning."

He said the role of a politician is an illusion.

"Don't believe in ideology and justice. Both left and right are illusions. There is absolute evil in the world, but no absolute good."

He said the beliefs of politicians are illusions.

"Have you seen only a few people who were torn apart by their beliefs in ideology and justice? There's no need to waste your energy. When you're in your 50s, or even 40s, you'll become a major player in the country.

Don't squander your youth; look at the long term. Don't try to achieve something specific. You will become strong if you survive. That's how the system works in this country."

He told me to live to survive. A 13-year politician negated the dreams and will of a politician.

"Struggle to survive first. Politicians don't have the luxury to look at other things."

This was the first time I heard Yang Pansuk speak in this tone. I unconsciously tensed up, and my shoulder muscles ached.

"......What."

Yang Pansuk smiled.

"I called you to introduce someone. How—"

Vroom. A car approached with the sound of an engine.

Clearly a beginner driver. The car wobbled to a stop, and a woman in a suit hurriedly ran over.

"Speak of the devil."

Yang Pansuk stood up with a slow smile.

"Enjoy your time."

Neither of us had bait on our fishing rods, making it a hollow conversation.

*

"......Ah, um. Mr. Han Seung-moon!"

She, smaller than me, wobbled as she approached.

Her suit looked a bit big on her due to her dark circles and narrow shoulders.

She spoke in a small, hoarse voice, her drooping eyebrows making her look like she was pouting.

"Nice to meet you..."

She swallowed and shook my hand with trembling fingers.

I asked worriedly.

"......Aren't you cold?"

"A, no... I'm fine..."

She was shaking a lot despite saying she was fine.

*

I brought her to my car.

"Phew...! I want to live..."

In this weather, wearing only a suit without a coat is tough. The car heated up quickly after I turned on the heater.

"Here, have this."

"Thank you..."

She smiled faintly and took the thermos I offered.

Her drooping eyebrows made even a smile look like a grimace. It's strange.

Anyway, an intimate time. Was Yang Pansuk playing the role of a madam?

She suddenly smiled bitterly at me.

"You look more tired than in your photos..."

"......Ah, yes. I haven't been sleeping well lately."

"It's okay! I have insomnia too...!"

"R, really?"

The mysterious woman smiled at me with an enigmatic expression and then said casually.

"Oh, right...!"

"......Yes?"

"Wait a moment, I left something in the car..."

She held two high heels and, in stockings, stepped down onto the thick snow.

"Ah, c-cold...!"

She ran over to the car and returned with a briefcase.

"Here...!"

She handed me a document with a strange pout.

"Do you want to flirt with me?"

"......Who are you?"

"I am Cheon Geum-soon, Executive Director of Cheonmok Shipping...! My grandfather is the chairman of Cheonmok Group...!"

"A, yes, Ms. Geum-soon."

"But I don't like that name..."

What do you want me to call you then?

"A, then, what should I call you...?"

She tilted her drooping eyebrows and smiled.

"Sun!"

"Wh, what, Ms. Cheon Geum-soon, and I..."

"Flirt."

"......Yes, it seems you want to maintain a good relationship with me as a person. The contract you gave me seems to be about maseok transactions, but there's content on the back too?"

She handed me a backroom contract.

"Hmm, it's about the Fair Trade Commission, prosecution, divorce, and various other things! Please read it carefully at home..."

"So, you're proposing a strategic marriage to me to achieve mutual benefits. Is that it?"

"Y-yes...!"

"I refuse."

*

"A, no...!"

"A! Why are you doing this!"

Cheon Geum-soon grabbed my wrist with a desperate look.

"I, I have a lot of money!"

"I don't need money."

She nervously bit her nails and made various offers.

"Then... I'll make sure you never get your hands dirty for the rest of your life."

"I don't believe you."

"Do you not need constituency management? I can help with job creation and investment promises... There's a shipyard in Tongyeong..."

"I'm from the Democratic Party; I'll get criticized if I do that."

It was a bit tempting.

"T, that, the case where your aunt made an innocent victim lose a lawsuit and commit suicide..."

"Are you threatening me? My aunt was wrong, but I was a middle school student at the time."

"A, no! Our side's public relations team tried to expose it through JTN, but we managed to suppress it. We also provided compensation to the victim's family... and made sure they kept quiet..."

"......I appreciate that. I'll show my gratitude in another way."

She pouted and said to me.

"Can't we just date?"

"T, if it's a business proposal from Cheonmok Group, please contact me in a more professional manner. I'm not that stubborn."

"I don't want to end it as a business deal!"

"......?"

"I, I can't live without you, Mr. Seung-moon!"

*

......We operate container ships, sell chickens, smelt lead, refine oil, sell books, and do many other things...

A typical large corporation. I think we're ranked around 19th or 21st in the business world. It fluctuates...

But I used to run a department store in Seoul...? It's gone now. Anyway, I was giving a routine business report when the gates opened.

......I barely survived and joined a nearby apartment complex. Yes, in Apgujeong. I was in the Apgujeong camp.

There, for the first time, I experienced hunger, couldn't bathe, saw many people die, and even got sick, thinking I might die...

Representative Han Seung-moon performed a miracle.

......Yes, I wanted to see you a lot after that. But being a politician and a businessperson isn't a popular combination.

I didn't want to be a nuisance, so I just lingered nearby. Finally, through Representative Yang Pansuk, I managed to meet you alone... Hehe..."

Cheon Geum-soon smiled and twirled her hair.

I cautiously asked her.

"Um, then, were you also on the Shinbundang Line—"

"......? Yes? No, I'm from Busan?"

"......"

"But I think this is a scenario that the public can easily accept......

If I just support you with election funds, it would violate the political funding law... So, we need to get married first and then move the money...

To avoid being criticized for political-business collusion, we need a good cover story......

Is that not right...?"