Free Web NovelIt was around the time the fuss over Cheon Suhan’s slot machine scandal had finally died down.
During the school break, I left for Busan with Myungsoo and Hyunseong.
After dropping the two of them off at their homes, I arrived at ‘our’ house.
The moment I opened the gate and stepped in, a warmth welled up in a corner of my chest.
When I opened the front door, the smell of Grandma’s soybean paste stew hit my nose.
“Grandma! I’m home!”
Grandma, who had been in the kitchen, ran over, wiping her hands on her apron.
“Aigoo~ My baby, you must’ve had a hard time coming all this way. Hurry and wash up. Granny’s got food ready.”
“Grandma, give me a hug first.”
“Why are you acting so mushy? I smell.”
“So what? What’s wrong with my grandma’s scent? It’s the best. If anyone says otherwise, just tell me. I’ll take care of them.”
I hugged Grandma tightly.
Her scent—
It was wonderful!
Grandma patted my back and said,
“Aw, you’ve been through a lot.”
“Grandma, I missed you. Didn’t you miss me too?”
“I get it already, now hurry and wash up.”
“Okay okay.”
I really become a child in front of Grandma.
Why didn’t I realize how happy this was before?
I quickly showered, changed clothes, and came out.
“My baby’s home, so I made all your favorite side dishes.”
“I told you, didn’t I cry in Seoul because I missed your food?”
“Oh, hush.”
Grandma laughed, clearly in a good mood.
She quietly sat and watched me with such warmth in her eyes.
“Let’s eat, Grandma.”
“Go on, eat up.”
I scooped up a big spoonful of steaming white rice and stuffed it into my mouth.
Then a spoonful of her soybean paste stew—this was paradise.
“Is it good?”
“Yeah, Grandma, you eat too.”
“Alright. Let’s eat quickly.”
Grandma smiled as she picked up her spoon.
“How’s life in Seoul? Tough, isn’t it?”
“Not really. It’s fine, except you’re not there. But aren’t you lonely here? Didn’t you feel bored?”
She shook her head.
“No, I’ve been going to the senior center and getting along fine. The weather’s been nice lately, so I’ve been going out on strolls with the other grannies a lot.”
“Well done, my amazing Grandma.”
“Are your in-laws treating you well?”
“Yeah.”
“And school?”
“It’s going well. I go with Myungsoo since we’re at the same school. So it’s not too boring. I’ve gotten really close with my classmates too.”
“My Muhyuk will do well no matter where he goes. That makes Granny so proud.”
“Come on...”
I’d been calling Grandma almost every day from Seoul.
Even if I had plans in the evening, I still called at least every other day because I was worried she might feel lonely.
But no matter how often I heard her voice, seeing her face in person was always better.
That night, I stayed up late just talking with her.
And I spent the day in that warm house like that.
* * *
At a department-office building in Jung-gu, Busan.
Park Dongsu’s office.
“So, what do you think? I can’t make heads or tails of it.”
Park Dongsu was speaking with another man.
The man looking over the documents in front of Dongsu raised his head.
He had a sharp face, not at all fitting for a gangster, and he opened his mouth.
“Boss, is this everything?”
Dongsu nodded.
“Why? Something wrong?”
“This was the gang that used to control the Seomyeon area, right? It seems much smaller than expected.”
“Really? You think I’m pulling your leg? You’d better be careful doing that—it could cost you everything.”
“Hmm...”
The man tilted his head repeatedly as he looked over the documents. Dongsu waved his hand dismissively.
“Come on, don’t forget the ‘War on Crime’ took down all the big organizations. That’s probably why.”
“Sigh... If this is all there is, then I guess there’s no helping it. But why are you letting them stay in control after submitting? No matter how I think about it, I can’t understand your reasoning, Boss.”
“If you just crush them with brute force, they’ll only bark louder. You gotta at least let them find a way to make a living.”
The man let out a deep sigh, clearly troubled.
“This line of work is just as complicated as any other.”
“Of course it is. Oh, right, you haven’t met my dongsaeng, have you? The kid’s freakin’ smart. He’s in Busan right now, so stop by the office later and meet him.”
“If you say so.”
The man’s response was indifferent, but Dongsu didn’t mind.
He suddenly mentioned the man’s name.
“Sanggeun-ah, that’s the kid I told you to go meet. Isn’t it wild? He’s only twenty but has the face of someone who’s seen the whole world. You’ll get what I mean once you meet him.”
With a dry chuckle, Lee Sanggeun replied,
“What’s a twenty-year-old seen, really? I’ve got calluses in my ears from hearing about him. Enough already.”
“Hehehe.”
* * *
That same time.
In a nightclub room in Seomyeon, several men had gathered.
“So what you’re saying, Mr. Byun, is that we should team up and take down Park Dongsu?”
“That’s right. That guy barely has any loyal men left. We just charge in fast, ignore his guys, and go straight for Dongsu. Ain’t that right, gentlemen?”
The four bosses sat in silence, each deep in thought.
They were busy calculating their own gains and losses.
Byun Seongho had merely nudged their greed a little...
‘That bastard humiliated me in front of my men? Let’s see how you like it.’
The oldest-looking man among the four was the first to speak.
“Seongho, and what happens after we take Dongsu out? What about dividing the territory?”
“Aigo~ Brother Gihun, why are you already jumping to that? Let’s take care of him first, and we can talk afterward. Isn’t that right, Mr. Kim, Mr. Son?”
At that, a rat-faced man known as ‘Mr. Son’ opened his mouth.
“No, no. This needs to be settled now. What if we kill Dongsu and then start fighting among ourselves? Are we trying to die together? Let’s agree ahead of time.”
Then a pig-like man with rolls of fat spoke up.
“Brothers, I’m good with whatever. But before dividing up the territory, shouldn’t we ask Brother Saseong first? Our guys need a reason to follow us. Don’t you agree?”
At Kim Byungsoo’s words, the other three nodded.
Son Kangseok, the rat-faced man, cautiously glanced at Heo Gihun and said,
“Brother Gihun, you’re the most senior here, so you should go speak to Brother Saseong. The ranks have to match, don’t they?”
“That’s right.”
“I think so too.”
With everyone’s eyes on him, Heo Gihun muttered,
“Fine, then I’m taking Seomyeon. Seongho, Byungsoo, Kangseok, you guys cool with that?”
“Hmm...”
No one answered, and Gihun frowned.
“Then I’m not going to see Brother Saseong. Why should I carry the burden alone? What, you think I’m some pushover?”
Kim Byungsoo and Son Kangseokquickly responded.
“Come on, no need to get upset. Alright, alright. You take Seomyeon. We’ll figure out the rest among ourselves.”
“Yes, we’ll go with whatever you want, Brother.”
Byun Seongho stayed silent at first.
But under the gaze of the other two, he had no choice.
“Fine, fine. Let’s go with that. Brother Gihun gets Seomyeon. But you make sure to get direct orders from Brother Saseong, understood?”
“Don’t worry. I mean, Dongsu’s hiding out without telling him, right? Brother Saseong’s already pissed at Dongsu. He’s only keeping quiet because he’s still covering for him. But we can handle that instead, right?”
“Exactly~”
Hahaha!
Their laughter filled the nightclub room.
“Alright then, let’s drink. I’ll go see Brother Saseong and pick a date. Seongho, you keep a close eye on Dongsu’s schedule, got it? You know what I mean, right?”
“Of course. I talk to him all the time, don’t I? Once I have a rough date, I’ll take care of the location myself.”
That night, they drank until they were plastered, laughing and talking endlessly about the flower-strewn future they believed was waiting for them.
* * *
It had already been a week since I came down to Busan.
During that time, aside from a simple drinking meetup with the guys, I had done absolutely nothing—just lazed around at home, rolling around like a log.
Then out of the blue, a call came in.
“This is Kim Muhyuk.”
– Oh, it’s me, Yoon Changho.
“Yes, Chief Prosecutor.”
– You’re in Busan, right?
“Yes, I let you know before I came down, didn’t I? Is something wrong?”
– Nothing serious. It’s just... Cheon Suhan’s first trial verdict is coming out soon, right? I wanted to hear what you thought.
“Hmm... I think it’s best to proceed as agreed with my grandfather.”
– Right? I had a one-on-one with the President recently. It was my first time as a prosecutor. He praised me for how I handled this case. Felt damn good, haha.
I laughed politely and responded. ƒгeewebnovёl.com
– It’s all thanks to you. I never imagined coming down to Busan would turn out to be such a blessing. I was ready to retire and go into private practice.
“I’m glad I got to know you, too. You feel more like a college senior or even an uncle to me.”
– Hahaha, you really know how to talk. Anyway, once the first trial verdict comes in, it’s out of my hands. You know that, right? I could still interfere up to the second trial, but if we’re going with the agreement, it’s best I step away. What do you think?
“That sounds good. But what about the lead prosecutor who took the fall? I heard they were talking about offering him a seat in the National Assembly.”
– Sigh... that’s a headache. He insists on staying in the prosecution. But you know how it is—once you’re marked, there’s no going up. And with that nonsense rule about prosecutors being treated as one body, you know the deal.
“He’s staying on as a prosecutor?”
– Yeah. Before the President got involved, the Chief Prosecutor contacted me. I told him to blow it up on TV, that I’d back him. But turns out they already decided to ship him off to Jeju District Prosecutor’s Office.
History had changed.
Originally, he was supposed to run for National Assembly. But because of my involvement, he ended up aligning with Yoon Changho instead.
“Just tell him to go down there for now. I’ll make sure he’s compensated so his life isn’t impacted. You pretend like you’re giving him a money envelope, alright? There’s no one better for a hunting dog than him.”
– Hahaha! You’re a riot. Fine. And if I ever do make it to Prosecutor General, I’ll bring him up to the Supreme Prosecutors’ Office.
“Yes, and if that doesn’t work out, I’ll fund his National Assembly campaign myself. Let him choose.”
– Alright. Let’s grab a meal sometime at that house of yours when you’re back in Seoul.
“Yes, Chief Prosecutor. I’ll hang up now.”
As long as my grandfather was alive, I couldn’t completely eliminate Cheon Sooman and Cheon Suhan just yet.
For now, I had to be satisfied with feeding them some prison food.
“Muhyuk-ah! Come eat!”
Grandma’s voice called from outside, and I stretched and rose from the bed.
“Okay, Grandma! I’m coming now.”
I went out and ate the lunch she had made, washed up, and got ready to head out.
I had to meet Park Dongsu and talk about the state of Busan and our move into Seoul.
If we left it empty too long, other guys would move in.
I had to secure a bridgehead in Seoul as soon as possible... ➤ NоvеⅠight ➤ (Read more on our source) but how well had Busan been wrapped up?
I drove over to the department building.
Climbed the stairs to the third floor and arrived at Park Dongsu’s office.
Two of his men were standing out front. I gave a brief nod and opened the door.
Inside the fairly spacious open office, a few bulky guys were waiting, but Dongsu wasn’t there.
“He’s inside. Please go in.”
Smiling at the unfamiliar-looking heavy, I opened the office door.
“Oi! Dongsaeng! How long’s it been? Damn, good to see you! Come in!”
He hadn’t changed at all.
“Phew...”
I sighed as I shut the door.
The man sitting with Dongsu glanced my way.
He looked a bit unfamiliar in his youth, but I quickly recognized him.
The gangster lawyer, Lee Sanggeun.
He was a lawyer who had made it into the golden real estate zones of Gangnam. A gangster with a license to practice law.
He’d started by helping local gangsters in Busan when he was younger and eventually joined up. I’d remembered and introduced him to Dongsu.
“You’re Lee Sanggeun, right? Nice to meet you.”
“Kim Muhyuk? The one, right? Wow! First time seeing you, but why do I feel like we’re already close? The boss talks about you so much I’ve got your name stuck in my ears.”
“Haha...”
I laughed awkwardly to cover the slight discomfort.
“Dongsaeng, I’m hurt, man. You didn’t even greet me and went straight to Sanggeun? That’s cold.”
“Yes, yes. Long time no see. You’ve put on a lot of weight. You should take care of yourself. No knife could get through that belly now. If you gained it on purpose for that reason, then congrats—you succeeded.”
Dongsu looked dumbfounded.
Even Sanggeun was staring at me like I was nuts.
“Bwahahaha! You crazy bastard. You psycho son of a bitch. This is why I like you! I was worried you’d changed after going to Seoul, but nope. Exactly the same.”
“Let’s sit. We’ve got a lot to talk about once you finish what you’re doing.”
I sat there for about 10 minutes, listening to their conversation.
Once their business was done, Dongsu turned to me.
“So? What’s up? What’s the talk?”
“How much of Busan have you wrapped up?”
“Sigh... why you pressin’ so hard, huh?”
“The situation’s changed. We need to establish a foothold in Seoul as soon as possible.”
“Seoul? Already?”
“Yes. You’ll have to head up to—”
That’s when it happened.
Thud!
Crash!
Suddenly, something shattered and fell with a clatter, curses flying as chaos erupted outside.
Dongsu’s right-hand man, Yang Soohyeong, burst through the door and shouted.
“Boss Dongsu! It’s an ambush, an ambush!”
“What the hell are you babbling about? Who?”
Dongsu and Sanggeun jumped to their feet.
“Seomyeon, Yeonsan-dong, Bosu-dong, Hadan... looks like they all teamed up. They’ve got us outnumbered. Reinforcements’ll take time. What do we do?”
Just then, about a dozen men stormed into the office.
One of them had a familiar face.
Byun Seongho.
“Phew! Dongsu, you bastard. Did you really think you could treat me like that and walk away? Huh? And look at that—your little buddy’s here too. I’ll take care of both of you at once. Lucky day.” ƒrēewebnoѵёl.cσm
What the hell is this now.
I swallowed a sigh.
< What the hell is this now. > End.
