I won't say no
There was no way to stop this from happening.
If I couldn't stop it, I'd rather bring it into a state where I could control it.
So I made Oh Hyeon-woo the head of the investigation.
― Muhyeok, you said you put me in charge of the investigation······. Are you saying you want something?
As expected, Oh Hyun-woo. He's incredibly quick-witted.
I started talking with a snicker.
"Right. Can you help me, Hyunwoo?"
― It's a request, so I have to listen. But you know that this is an issue that I absolutely cannot minimize, right? Not only the Blue House, but even the media is watching intently. The moment you try to minimize or cover it up, not only mine, but even my grandfather's honor······.
Oh Hyun-woo trailed off. I could fully understand what he was worried about.
"What are you thinking? I have no intention of asking you to cover it up or minimize it. Just tell me as much as you want. Instead, just take Han Hyun-soo out of there."
- Han Hyun-soo? What's your relationship with that crazy guy?
I couldn't help but laugh at Oh Hyun-woo's question in shock.
"Haha! Well, he's crazy, Hyunwoo. Do you think that this investigation will completely wipe out the Church of Heaven?"
- No. If it was going to disappear, it would have disappeared when Han Seong-jin was caught. Since pseudo-religions have the survival instinct of a cockroach, they will be safe this time too.
Oh Hyun-woo also had the same thoughts as me.
Just as it has survived tenaciously even after its leader disappeared, the Church of Heaven will survive this time as well.
"I'm the same way. That's why I'm saying this. It's better to have Han Hyun-soo, who can be controlled, as the leader. He's afraid of me."
― Hmm······. No matter what, this is such a big issue that I can't decide it alone.
"I know. What can I do for you?"
- You explain to the President directly. I can persuade the Prosecutor General.
I never thought you would say something directly to the President asking him to move.
No, but the Prosecutor General is confident that he can persuade you. When did Oh Hyun-woo become such a big shot?
Even with the influence of his grandfather, his growth was surprisingly fast.
― The president's will is too strong. There must be political reasons. That's why he must have taken such a strong stance to turn all eyes to the Church of Heaven.
"Okay. I'll convince the President."
- If you do that, then leaving out Han Hyun-soo won't be a problem. By the way, I didn't know you were involved in this.
Since this is a part that doesn't need to be explained in detail, I decided to just gloss over it.
"I just happened to see it."
- Do you know Myeongsu?
"I only know vaguely. I didn't tell you in detail on purpose. If you get involved in something like this, it will hurt Myeongsu's political career."
- Anyway, Myeongsu is really precious. Am I okay?
Oh Hyun-woo grumbled grumpily. Anyway, I told you, he's a fun guy.
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"You can do it on your own."
― Okay. I have to go out and search for now, so let's contact each other later.
I offered some words of comfort to help ease Oh Hyun-woo's burden.
"Please, Hyunwoo. I'm sure Han Hyunsoo will cooperate well too."
- What? Why him?
"Because that's how he survives. He won't mobilize his followers to physically block the search and seizure."
― Oh, that's good to hear. Just in case, I even prepared a riot police unit. You know how much opposition there is every time a cult is exposed······.
Whenever the leaders of the cult were in danger, they would run away with their followers.
In the process, if church members were injured, the prosecution was criticized.
This was one of the reasons why it was difficult for politicians and prosecutors to crack down on cults.
"Good luck. Meet up with Han Hyun-soo. He may be crazy, but he's crazy in a nice way, so we'll be able to communicate."
― Now that you mention it, I'm curious. Let's get in touch later.
After ending the call with Oh Hyun-woo, I fiddled with my phone for a while and thought about something.
But the worries were short-lived.
I immediately called President Yoon Chang-ho's personal number.
The call was connected before it could even ring a few times.
"Mr. President, this is Kim Moo-hyuk."
- President Kim.
Yoon Chang-ho called me in a voice that was full of fatigue.
"I heard that this bloodshed has caused a stir both domestically and internationally."
― Phew······. That's right. This is driving me crazy. Public opinion in Korea may turn its attention to the Church of Heaven, but the Chinese government is completely unwilling to engage in dialogue.
I could sense deep agony in his deep sigh. I could guess how much Yun Chang-ho had suffered in China.
"It wasn't Hu Jintao's idea. He said it was Jiang Zemin who made the move."
― What?! How could you······. Oh, you were close friends with Prime Minister Wen Jiabao.
"I heard that Luo Gan, the secretary of the Political and Legal Affairs Committee, is leading this case."
― Yes, I received the report. But no matter how much I think about it, I can't understand it. I can't figure out what Chairman Jiang Zemin is gaining by pressuring us.
"This is just my guess······."
As I hesitated, Yoon Chang-ho urged me on.
- Mr. Kim, please speak quickly.
"It seems like they are trying to tame Korea."
- Tame us?
"Yes. China and South Korea are inseparable. North Korea is even more so. However, North Korea is currently taking the same actions as South Korea. They are doing various projects and working together on oil and gas pipelines. If things continue this way, China's influence on the Korean Peninsula will completely disappear. Jiang Zemin seems to be thinking of using this opportunity to tame South Korea."
― Even though I received such a report, it is still unpleasant. They are trying to tame us with something like this. How ridiculous they must have thought of us······.
There was a note of displeasure in Yoon Chang-ho's voice, but once he brought up the topic, he couldn't stop talking.
"The Chinese Communist Party is that kind of people. Jiang Zemin, of course, and Hu Jintao are the same. They think that China is the center of the world and that everything should be in their hands. The more the Korean Peninsula develops, the more they will try to squeeze the Korean government."
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- Then what should we do?
"Well… I'm looking for a way. But I'm not sure. The bloodshed in Gangnam was just a pretext. Even if it wasn't for that, this would have happened anyway. It's all politically related, with the 7th mining district, North Korean development, and relations with Russia."
- Are you saying that even if you come forward, there's nothing you can do?
Yun Chang-ho muttered in a disappointed voice.
It seemed like he was expecting something from me too.
"Of course I don't intend to leave it like this. But I can't guarantee it. Even if we block the attacks this time, they might find another excuse later. No, I will definitely do that."
- Phew. Still, I have to do something about it. I can't let this happen.
"Are we sending the Joseonjok to China?"
― That can never happen. Our people were hurt. If we can't punish them, then we're not a normal country.
Yoon Chang-ho answered firmly. I nodded in satisfaction, feeling relieved by those words.
"Okay, I'll take a closer look at that and find a solution."
- Thank you. If President Kim could step forward, I could ease my worries a bit.
I didn't mean to thank you for the call, but I ended up taking it unintentionally.
I coughed slightly and got back to the main point.
"The reason I'm calling you today is not for anything else, but because of the Church of Heaven."
- Heavenly Church? Why would you······.
"I would like you to exclude Han Hyun-soo from this investigation."
Yun Chang-ho did not readily agree with what I said.
- President Kim. We need to shift all responsibility to the Church of Heaven, but how can we exclude the leader from that?
"The Church of Heaven will not disappear. It may either hide itself further in the shadows or even oppose the authorities."
- That will be the day when the Church of Heaven disappears.
Yoon Chang-ho answered firmly. A tough stance is good, but this time it wasn't it.
"But I would like you to exclude Han Hyun-soo. It would be better if someone controllable were in charge of the Church of Heaven."
―······Are you involved in this situation?
"I think I bear some responsibility for this incident. I am the one who saved Han Hyun-soo and sent him back to Korea."
Yoon Chang-ho let out a sigh over the phone, his head complicated.
"I didn't know things would get this big. I didn't know those crazy guys would call in the Joseonjok and try to kill Han Hyun-soo, and I didn't know they would act so thoughtlessly. But I don't plan on avoiding responsibility because of that. That's why I'm trying to handle it like this."
It was a story that could have been hidden if I wanted to hide it. But I told it honestly to Yoon Chang-ho.
It was because I thought of Yoon Chang-ho as my partner.
Yun Chang-ho let out a deep sigh after hearing my story.
― I kind of expected it. If something like this were to happen in Korea, I would definitely expect you, President Kim, to be involved to some extent.
Instead of answering, I smiled bitterly. Well, that's true.
― Let me ask you one thing. Is it true that you didn't know that there would be bloodshed in Gangnam?
"I kind of expected it. I knew that ethnic Koreans were coming, but I didn't know they were crazy enough to use guns."
It was true that he had no idea that innocent civilians would be hurt.
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Who would have thought that Kim Min-woo would only hire real, crazy guys who have no tomorrow?
- So, the Southeast Asian organization that stopped the Joseonjok was mobilized by you?
"The mercenaries were guarding Han Hyun-soo. It seems that Han Hyun-soo called for additional support from somewhere."
Just because I didn't hide it doesn't mean I could tell the whole truth.
Because I can't let the sparks fly to Cheonha Group.
― Mr. Kim, I am the President of Korea. I understand to some extent that you have received the instigation of Cheonha Group.
It was natural that information about major events taking place in Korea would fall into his hands.
But that doesn't mean he really knows everything. Nor should he.
"But my answer will still be the same. And it is good for the President to think that way. If the identity of Cheonha Group is revealed to the world, it will not be good for the President either."
- Are you threatening me?
"That's not true. I don't care if Cheonha Group disappears. However, the underworld will never disappear."
Yun Chang-ho's voice was heard over the phone.
I continued speaking without stopping.
"Isn't it true that there haven't been any minor conflicts since the Cheonha Group came into existence? We can't completely stop the distribution of drugs, but the reason Korea is still safe from drugs is because the Cheonha Group doesn't intervene in drug smuggling. If the huge entity called the Cheonha Group disappears and small and medium-sized organizations run rampant like before, there will be even greater chaos. If you want, you can investigate the Cheonha Group. If you need my help, I'll help you."
If I had to raise my hand between Cheonha Group and Yoon Chang-ho, I had to unconditionally side with Yoon Chang-ho.
But maybe because he had been drinking a lot of political stuff, Yoon Chang-ho quickly understood what I meant.
―······I understand what you mean.
"Thank you. Could you please exclude Han Hyun-soo?"
- So that's why you put Oh Hyeon-woo in charge of the investigation.
"I won't say no."
― There are a lot of eyes watching this. It won't be easy for Han Hyun-soo to get away.
"The damage should be reduced to some extent. As long as he is not arrested, it doesn't matter. The Church of Heaven will cooperate with the investigation."
- Well, let's do that. By the way, do you know where Han Hyun-jin and Han Hyun-woo are?
Mentioning Han Hyun-jin and Han Hyun-woo meant that they were going to leave out Han Hyun-soo.
In any case, being a bullet shield was necessary.
"Perhaps Han Hyun-soo smuggled it out of the country."
- So you're saying he's dead. This is really difficult. It's difficult when there's no one to take responsibility.
"I think it would be good to reassemble Han Seong-jin and package it well."
― Han Seong-jin That man is also pitiful. What a disgrace he must have suffered in his later years.
"It's your own fault. You joined hands with Cheongpunghoe and tried to attack me and your grandfather."
If that hadn't happened, I wouldn't have bothered getting involved with that dirty religious group. My mouth was bitter as I spoke.
- I guess I'll just organize it like that for now.
"thank you."
- Instead, please pay some attention to the Chinese side of the issue.
"Okay, I understand. I have to do some training."
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After a long, drawn-out phone call, my head started to hurt.
As I pressed my temples, Director Ma handed me some headache medicine.
"I need to hurry up and get some rest. Please hand over the data to the Japanese reporter, Director."
He tilted his head back and swallowed the medicine.
I looked up at the ceiling where the large ceiling fan was spinning for a moment, then lowered my head again.
The table was cluttered with all kinds of paperwork.
It seemed like I had to move diligently to quickly sort out the mountain of work and return to Korea.
* * *
As Kim Moo-hyeok said, Han Hyeon-su actively cooperated with the search and seizure.
After leaving the search and seizure to the prosecutors and investigators, Oh Hyun-woo had tea with Han Hyun-soo.
"Mr. Han Hyun-soo."
"yes?"
"Let's get on with it. Let's get on with it. Let's get on with it this time."
"······All right."
A polite answer came back, unexpectedly for the leader of a cult.
Oh Hyun-woo raised an eyebrow at the sight, tilted his teacup, and crossed his legs.
"I hate people like you."
Oh Hyun-woo did not hide his disgust and criticized Han Hyun-soo to his face.
Han Hyun-soo flinched, but he continued speaking without stopping.
"Since Mu-hyeok asked me to spare your life, Mr. Han Hyun-soo will be safe. However, you should be prepared to get hurt quite a bit. Do you understand?"
Han Hyun-soo nodded. Right now, there was nothing else Han Hyun-soo could do.
"Where are Han Hyun-jin and Han Hyun-woo?"
"I don't know."
"What did you hear me say? Let's just get along? Did you kill him? If you want to live, shouldn't someone else take responsibility?"
Han Hyun-soo wiggled his fingers at Oh Hyun-woo's sharp question.
Han Hyun-jin and Han Hyun-woo were still alive. However, I had no intention of handing them over.
"······I really don't know."
"Then who will take responsibility for you?"
To put it nicely, I'm saying that you can't understand what I'm saying.
Oh Hyun-woo clicked his tongue and glared at Han Hyun-soo with his eyebrows furrowed.
< I won't say no > End
< Let's solve it through conversation first >