Free Web NovelAfter talking with Ye Xiaotong for about thirty more minutes, I said my goodbyes and left the room.
When I went down to the hotel lobby, Woo Youngsik was waiting.
“President Kim.”
He grabbed me as I tried to walk past him and head outside.
“Senior Secretary. You’re still here?”
“Let’s talk for a moment.”
I could roughly guess what he wanted to say.
Still, to stop me this openly—he must have been quite desperate.
“This isn’t the place. How about a drink?”
Woo Youngsik nodded, and I took him to the hotel bar.
We were assigned a quiet private room. After going in, we sat facing each other alone.
“Why did you do that?”
The moment he sat down, Woo Youngsik demanded an answer.
“Revealing your existence was my way of showing respect to your daughter.”
“How is that respect! You were trying to shake Xiaotong.”
He didn’t bother hiding his emotions, raising his voice openly.
“Why are you deciding your daughter’s thoughts on your own?”
“What?”
“Now that she knows about your existence, whatever choice she makes is entirely up to Ye Xiaotong.”
Woo Youngsik froze, his mouth slightly open as if he had been struck.
Of course, I had intended to shake her—but there was no reason to tell him that.
“Ye Xiaotong is an adult. She can think and decide for herself. You can’t make assumptions about her feelings and force your will on her. Even if you are her father.”
“......”
He seemed °• N 𝑜 v 𝑒 l i g h t •° deep in thought after hearing that.
An employee entered with drinks, briefly interrupting the conversation.
After the employee left, I opened the whiskey and poured it into two small glasses.
Then I slid one toward him.
“Let’s have a drink first.”
I tossed the whiskey back in one go. The sharp burn as it went down my throat cleared my head instantly.
Woo Youngsik followed my lead, downing his glass as well before setting it down. The strength of the alcohol made him frown slightly.
“Strong, right? Still, it’s good whiskey. When talking with someone like you, this is the least we should drink.”
Even though I joked, he said nothing, just staring at the empty glass.
I filled a glass with ice and poured more.
“Did you wait for me just to complain about me telling Ye Xiaotong about you? If that’s all, I’d be quite disappointed.”
I pushed the filled glass toward him and poured myself another, watching him.
“Aren’t you curious what I talked about with her?”
Woo Youngsik looked at me blankly.
I let out a small laugh, swirling the glass to melt the ice. The sound of ice clinking against glass rang crisply.
“The Ye Xiaotong you think you know... do you really think that’s her true self?”
“What are you trying to say?”
“The Ye Xiaotong you know is only a fragment of who she is. I, for one, think far more highly of her than you do.”
After this incident, my opinion of her had completely changed.
Not only were her abilities as a lobbyist exceptional, but I could also see the ambition of a true kingmaker.
Even when the Shanghai faction was determined to kill me, she presented evidence they couldn’t refute and completely blocked their movements.
That alone was enough to raise my evaluation of her.
“Because of your request, I had no intention of joining hands with her. But now... that’s no longer possible.”
“President Kim!”
“As I said before, she came to me first. She judged that working with me would help her achieve what she wants. You have neither the right nor the authority to stop her. If you want to stop this, don’t try to persuade me—persuade Ye Xiaotong.”
Perhaps because I spoke with perfect logic, Woo Youngsik bit his lip and glared at me.
“Do I look easier to persuade, while you don’t even have the confidence to persuade your own daughter?”
“......I told her to forget me.”
I couldn’t help but laugh at that.
“Are you mocking me?”
He frowned, glaring at me. I waved my hand and stopped laughing.
“No. I just thought you’re unbelievably rigid.”
“Hey, President Kim!”
“Did it look easy for her to come all the way here? She found out about a father she didn’t even know existed. She must have agonized endlessly before coming. Even after arriving, she must have struggled over whether to contact you.”
Woo Youngsik said nothing.
“Just as it’s difficult for you to go to her, it must have been just as difficult for her to come to you.”
“What are you trying to say?”
“Accept her sincerity.”
“I can’t. My existence will not help Xiaotong in any way.”
“I don’t understand why you’re so certain. Don’t you think your words could hurt her? Telling your daughter—who came all this way—to forget you? You shouldn’t have done that.”
Woo Youngsik and Ye Xiaotong needed to grow closer.
Because she needed him as a weakness.
“......I’ll handle it myself.”
He wasn’t someone whose stubbornness would break easily.
Pushing further would only cause resistance. I shrugged and took a sip.
Pressing too hard would only backfire. He would keep replaying my words anyway—this was enough.
That was also why I deliberately set the mood like this and shared drinks alone with him.
“As for your daughter... handle that yourself. But what about the proposal I made before?”
I had suggested he enter politics. He shook his head without hesitation.
“I have no intention of doing that.”
“I won’t force you. But isn’t it a waste to step back like this?”
“I’m a man with many sins. For someone like me to enter politics...”
As expected, stubborn to the end. If I let him continue, he would ramble endlessly, so I cut him off.
“I’m telling you to atone for those sins.”
“......”
“Do you think stepping back will erase what you’ve done? Carry those sins on your back and work for the country.”
“What do you want from me?”
“Well.”
My original plan had been to shift the political system to a parliamentary cabinet system.
But no matter how much we swayed public opinion, even with Yoon Changho’s approval ratings high, resistance to constitutional reform remained strong.
At this rate, amending the constitution within Yoon Changho’s term was impossible.
That meant we needed to prepare his successor in advance.
But Lee Myungsoo was still too young to be a presidential candidate, and among the senior politicians, none were suitable.
In the end, I made a decision.
Just as I had made Yoon Changho president, I would raise someone new.
Woo Youngsik, with his clear weaknesses, was the ideal candidate—but I couldn’t fully trust him yet.
“Start with the Jongno by-election in three months.”
“......”
“If the people choose you, then pursue politics. If not, you can give up then.”
He remained silent.
“I’m giving you a chance. And it’s also the best way for you to atone to President Yoon Changho.”
At the mention of Yoon Changho, Woo Youngsik’s face darkened.
I checked my watch and finished the whiskey in my glass.
“I’ll be going now. Think seriously about what we discussed today. About your daughter—and your future. Contact me when you’ve made up your mind.”
I left him behind and walked out.
* * *
A few days passed after meeting Ye Xiaotong and Woo Youngsik.
“Ye Xiaotong returned?”
“Yes. She flew back to China this morning.”
“And Woo Youngsik?”
“He went to the airport to see her off.”
I nodded with satisfaction.
So they decided not to cut ties after all.
Then I’ll be hearing from him soon.
“Contact the Black Bear intelligence team in China. Assign all available personnel to Ye Xiaotong. Tell them to keep digging and report anything new immediately.”
“Understood.”
She now had a significant weakness.
If her influence exceeded my expectations, I would simply use her.
“The Jongno by-election candidate hasn’t been decided yet, right?”
“No. It’s quite chaotic.”
I couldn’t help but laugh.
With the president’s approval rating nearing 60%, whoever the ruling party nominated would win.
Naturally, everyone without a parliamentary seat was scrambling to run.
I immediately took out my phone and called Lee Myungsoo.
— Hey, Muhyuk.
“Busy? If not, come to the Myeongdong office.”
He grumbled before hanging up.
He’ll be here soon.
“Why do you keep calling me around like this!”
Sure enough, a short while later, Myungsoo stormed into my office.
“I just wanted to see your face. Sit down first.”
“If you’re calling someone over, at least buy them food.”
“What do you want? Let’s order delivery.”
“Delivery? Then let’s get jjambbong. It’s cold—I want something hot.”
“Sounds good. Now that you mention it, I want it too.”
“Order jjajang too. We’ll share.”
Laughing at his request to add sweet and sour pork, I called Manager Ma.
Since we were ordering for the staff anyway, I had the Myeongdong Hotel Chinese restaurant prepare and deliver the food.
“So why did you call me?”
“The Jongno by-election.”
“Ha...”
The moment Jongno was mentioned, Myungsoo sighed.
“What? Something wrong?”
“It’s driving me crazy. Do you know how many people are pressuring me to let them run?”
“You must’ve narrowed it down at least.”
He frowned but nodded.
“I got it down to three. The problem is none of them want to step aside.”
“Three?”
“One from the Conservative Party, one from my side, and one former Blue House secretary.”
“A Blue House secretary? Did the Blue House give an order?”
He shrugged.
“They didn’t say it outright. But resigning right before the by-election? It’s obvious—they want the seat.”
“No prior discussion with you?”
“The President just told me to handle it.”
“Tell me their names.”
He listed the three candidates. Only one name was familiar to me.
“Is that man Park Seok really trying to come back into politics?”
“If it goes to a primary, he’ll probably win.”
Park Seok had served four consecutive terms in Jongno.
After the Conservative Party collapsed, he announced his retirement and disappeared from public memory.
“Sounds like he’s aiming for the presidency next.”
As Myungsoo said, he wasn’t coming back just to be a mere assemblyman.
“They just keep coming back no matter how many times you get rid of them.”
Myungsoo sighed and nodded.
I had no intention of supporting Park Seok. ƒreewebɳovel.com
“Park Seok is absolutely out.”
“I know. But I can’t just push someone in on my own—it’s too much of a burden. If the Blue House ordered it, it’d be easier.”
“Hmm. Then let’s just pick someone else entirely.”
“What? That’ll cause chaos.”
Just as I was about to respond, the food arrived.
Jjajang, jjambbong, and sweet and sour pork were set on the table.
“Oh, Myeongdong Hotel does delivery?”
“Delivery? The staff went to pick it up. Let’s eat first.”
I scooped some jjajang into a bowl and handed it to him.
“Thanks! Want some jjambbong too?”
“No, you eat.”
He grinned and grabbed a piece of sweet and sour pork.
After finishing the meal quickly, we resumed talking over instant coffee.
“Ah, I’m full.”
Myungsoo leaned back into the sofa, smiling lazily.
I smiled as well.
“So—you want to push someone new?”
“Yeah. Let’s bring in someone completely new.”
“Is there someone who can make every faction shut up?”
“What about Senior Secretary Woo Youngsik?”
“What? That man? No way!”
Startled, Myungsoo spilled coffee from his paper cup onto his pants.
I handed him tissues.
“You’re such a mess.”
“Hey, is that what matters right now? You know better than anyone what Woo Youngsik did!”
“Still... if it’s him, everyone will keep quiet.”
“That’s true, but wrong is wrong. Even if the public doesn’t know, you and I know—and the President knows.”
He shook his head firmly.
“A traitor betrays again. And you want to bring him back? I’m against it.”
If it were anyone else, I would have simply ordered it.
But not with Myungsoo.
“Listen to me first.”
I opened my mouth to persuade him.
