» The Youngest Son of Sunyang
Reborn Rich - Chapter 269
[269]Snake's Head 2
The cunning mister had completely shed his sly expression, now only showing one that matched his sharp features.
"You mean to buy me with money? With all due respect, I am not a man of such value. I am merely a lawyer, acting as legal counsel to Madam Lee through my connection with the Sunyang Arts Foundation."
"How much do you get paid?"
"Pardon?"
"I'm asking how much you get paid as legal counsel for my grandmother."
"You don't need to know."
Perhaps offended by the blunt, even somewhat vulgar, question, his voice began to rise slightly.
"Stop poking around unnecessarily and tell me what you want. Do two men really need to spend the night in a hotel room?"
First, I needed to let this man understand his predicament. I had to firmly impress upon him that if he wanted to handle my grandmother's directives properly, even groveling on his knees wouldn't be enough.
"Please excuse me for a moment. I need to make a quick call."
Ignoring his frown, I turned on the phone's speaker.
After the dial tone ended, a low, deep voice came through.
"- Hello?"
"Good evening, Chief. This is Jin Dojun of Sunyang."
As soon as I stated my name, a voice brimming with delight resonated through the speaker.
"- Oh my, look who it is! Director Jin. Long time no see."
"How have you been, Chief?"
"- Living a sorrowful life in the opposition party, I can't say I'm doing well. The oppression is severe. Haha."
"Still, haven't you been promoted after the general election? Senior Vice Floor Leader. Haha."
The Senior Vice Floor Leader of the main opposition party.
Upon realizing the identity of the person on the phone, Director Sangpil Cheon could not hide his bewilderment.
"Chief, I'd like to offer you a gift. Consider it a congratulatory present for your promotion."
"- Oh, a gift is too much.... The orchid you sent was more than enough."
"This gift, however, you might find particularly pleasing."
"- What could it be? I'm getting a unique feeling about this."
"I recently returned from a business trip to New York and discovered some suspicious activities at the New York Consulate General."
"- Consulate General?"
"Yes. It appears that staff members of the New York Consulate General are involved in the illicit smuggling of our nation's priceless cultural heritage."
"- What? Smuggling out? Are you talking about actual smuggling?"
"Yes. It's clear smuggling. As you know, diplomatic pouches are exempt from customs inspection, and it seems they exploited that loophole."
"- These crazy bastards! We should rip them open and see what makes them tick!"
A loud shout erupted through the speaker. Sangpil Cheon was already ashen.
"Please calm down. I'd like to discuss this matter urgently, so how about we have dinner together tomorrow evening?"
"- Of course. I'll clear my schedule even if the sky falls apart. Please tell me the full story then."
"Understood. That'll be all for now..."
As soon as I turned off the speaker, Sangpil Cheon's shouts erupted.
"W-what are you doing right now? National treasure-level cultural artifacts? What in the world is this...!"
"Because the illicit smuggling of cultural heritage has more destructive power than the illicit smuggling of mere artworks. The outcome will likely be this: while the accusation of the Consulate General smuggling national treasure-level cultural artifacts is baseless, they *did* smuggle out high-priced artworks of equivalent value. Well... six of one, half a dozen of the other, it's all the same."
"Stop this at once! If you continue like this, you won't get a single thing you want!"
"Look here, Mr. Sangpil Cheon. With that mind of yours, how did you ever survive by my grandmother's side?"
"What? I've been tolerant, but now you're going too far...."
"Do you still not understand what I want?"
At my stern expression, the man who had been shouting closed his mouth.
After glaring at me for a while, he sighed.
"Damn it.... You have no intention of stopping, do you."
At his sigh, I pressed the intercom.
"Bring the liquor I prepared."
The hotel staff brought Balvenie whisky, glasses, and ice, placing them on the table.
"It seems our general discussion is over, so let's have a drink."
Sangpil Cheon gulped down a couple of glasses in quick succession, each costing a staggering 350,000 won.
As if the warm alcohol had soothed his insides, he spoke in a calmer voice.
"If you're not going to stop, why did you even meet me? You could have just proceeded without me."
"Not stopping is merely a means to achieve what I want. And what I want is something else entirely."
"Enough with the word games, shall we?"
"Everything my grandmother, Madam Pilok Lee, possesses."
Sangpil Cheon poured another drink.
"Tell me what's possible. Madam Lee has two sons who are Sunyang Vice Chairmen. They won't stand idly by; they'll smooth this over by any means necessary."
"I think so too. The accepted boundary for my family is the prosecutor's office; they might appear before prosecutors, but they never stand in court. In court, it was always their closest confidants who stood, awaiting sentencing."
"That way, they can still wield power from the outside. Whether it's a suspended sentence or release on medical bail...."
He suddenly fell silent.
He was a quick-witted man with a sharp mind. He had already envisioned everything that was about to unfold.
The person who drafted the secret contract was Sangpil Cheon himself, and Grandmother, who insists she doesn't speak English at all, had merely signed as instructed by her trusted lawyer. She believed that the contract was not for secretly selling off paintings, but for renting them out for an exhibition at a New York gallery.
The scoundrel who had secretly sold off all the paintings until now was Sangpil Cheon, and Madam Pilok Lee had only just now realized this fact.
Finally, she collapsed from the shock of betrayal by a trusted confidant and was hospitalized.
Isn't that an incredibly elaborate scheme?
"You are the one who orchestrated the embezzlement of the foundation's artworks until now, aren't you? Then who will the arrow be aimed at? The most suitable target is you, Director Cheon."
The more he drank, the clearer his mind became, not because it was expensive, high-quality liquor, but because of the inescapable danger that made him anxious, uneasy, and fearful.
Watching him, I asked.
"What is it?"
"What are you talking about?"
"The incredible spirit of sacrifice among those who consider themselves closest confidants. No, should I call it a substitute mentality? They are merely individuals who receive a salary from Sunyang Group, yet they ruin their lives to take the fall instead. I'm talking about the reason for that."
"A young child like you wouldn't understand, even if you died and came back to life. The years you live will eventually reveal the reason to you...."
"Pfft...!"
To hear such words, from me, who had died and come back to life, thus knowing the reason. I couldn't hold back the laughter that burst forth.
"My apologies. I just thought of something from the past, and..."
I gave a slight bow of my head to his frowning face.
If you die and come back to life, no... you'll know before you die. That it was nothing but idiotic slave mentality.
"Now, enough with the useless talk. Tell me what's possible. It's impossible to take everything Madam Lee owns. Let's compromise at a reasonable level."
"There is no compromise. I will take everything my grandmother has, and if she doesn't go to jail, someone else will eat bean-rice instead. For a very long time, at that. I want both of these things."
As he shook his head in disbelief, I threw out one last remark.
"In particular, I must acquire the chaemyeong shares."
Rather than being surprised by the mention of chaemyeong shares, Sangpil Cheon wore a relieved expression.
"So that's what it was! The shares!"
I don't know what suddenly crossed his mind, but his expression changed. It was as if he had seized victory.
"Then the story changes. I don't know how you found out about the chaemyeong shares, but those shares will end up in the hands of the two Vice Chairmen anyway. You know, don't you? Your family members go crazy for shares."
"Of course. That's precisely why I'm pressuring Grandmother to get them, isn't it?"
"You know that and you're still doing this? If I just hand over the shares, the two Vice Chairmen will resolve everything. Of course, someone will go to jail, but it won't be me. Because I'm absolutely essential for converting the shares to real names. Hahaha."
How utterly absurd.
That undeniable slave mentality, content with so little, believing everything to be resolved. Why didn't he understand that everything would change if he just thought one step further?
"Director Cheon, apart from you, there's no one loyal enough to go to jail. Maybe for Sunyang's Chairman, but who would go for a mere old woman? And they wouldn't even guarantee a position like an affiliate president, would they?"
"You don't need to worry about that. Money is also a very good compensation."
Lawyer Sangpil Cheon emptied his glass with a very refreshed expression.
He had confirmed there would be no negotiations, and now he knew what I wanted.
All that was left was to devise a plan.
This plan, too, became simple. Since I wouldn't stop, all he had to do was find a suitable fall guy and place everything on his back; then it would be over.
Sangpil Cheon, having emptied his glass completely, licked his lips and stood up.
"Good liquor, I enjoyed it. I'd like to drink the whole bottle, but I'll save that for another time."
"But there's something you haven't answered yet; why don't you tell me before you go?"
Though Sangpil Cheon thought my plan was already ruined, perhaps because of my still calm and confident expression, he couldn't easily leave the room.
"What are you talking about?"
"The number you truly want, even if you don't fully realize it yourself."
"Stop it, will you? It's becoming unsightly."
"No, why is talk of money unsightly? Is there anyone who dislikes money?"
"I hold chaemyeong shares. Do you know how much those shares are worth? If I had truly wanted to, I could have swallowed those shares whole myself. I'm not swayed by money, so give up."
"Shares aren't money. And dare you even think of swallowing chaemyeong shares whole? You just managed them because it was impossible to do otherwise. If you had swallowed them, your life would be in danger. Don't pretend to be such a loyal subject. It's disgusting."
The truth always cuts deep.
Perhaps because of that pain, Sangpil Cheon's face contorted.
"If I hand over the documents to the opposition party tomorrow, there'll be no turning back. And if this matter escalates significantly, a tremendous amount of unexpected money will appear."
"What are you talking about?"
"Does the person who created the secret contract still not know? I'm talking about the insurance money."
"I-insurance...?"
"If the secret transaction is revealed to the world, it's a breach of contract, isn't it? Then you can claim the insurance money. A whopping 1.8 billion dollars! At the current exchange rate, that's over 2 trillion won."
He gulped.
"I just need to get my principal back. 600 million dollars. That leaves 1.2 billion dollars. What do you think? Wouldn't a number like this match your deepest true desire, one you don't even fully realize yourself?"
1.3 trillion won.
At this overwhelming number, Sangpil Cheon forgot his intention to leave the hotel room and stood there dumbfounded.
"You don't have the power to protect the shares, but I do. Even if all the chaemyeong shares are transferred to my name, I won't die without a trace. And I guarantee your safety. Oh, and the 1.2 billion dollars, you can just put that in an offshore account, right? You know how to do that well, so take care of it. You're the kind of person who can't swallow shares, but can swallow money, aren't you?"
Even I, who had only been drinking coffee until now, poured a glass of liquor and gulped it down in one go.
As the thrilling aroma flowed down my throat, my body instantly grew warm.
"Today, we've toasted separately like this, but next time, let's clink our glasses and toast together. To the moment I possess the shares, and you possess 1.3 trillion won."
Leaving Sangpil Cheon, who was still standing dumbfounded in the hotel room, I exited first. Whether he would grasp the hilt of the knife I held along with me remained to be seen, but I had no doubt he would accept my offer.
A person who would instantly reject 1.3 trillion won would have rejected all the dirty work under my grandmother from the start and would have already severed ties with Sunyang.
Right now, his mind might be complex with all sorts of tangled thoughts, but as time passes, only one simple and clear number will remain.
Numbers are a truthful language that never causes misunderstanding.
And the sweetness offered by the number 1.3 trillion is so truthful that no one can doubt it.