Then I will go to Korea too.
As soon as I returned to Shanghai, with Bo Xilai's permission, I went straight to the hospital to meet the survivors.
The area around the hospital was cordoned off by armed police in case of any accidents.
I passed the checkpoint and arrived at the hospital. As I got out of the car, the commander of the armed police greeted me.
"I will guide you."
I nodded and followed him into the hospital.
Even inside the hospital, armed police officers were standing everywhere.
"Security is pretty tight."
The commander answered as he entered the elevator waiting on the first floor.
"There were three criminals who entered the operating room, but only one came out alive. The secretary personally ordered that the hospital be controlled in case there was an attempt to kill the only witness."
Well, we killed the Witness to silence him, but killing the witness would be easier.
The elevator arrived at the patient room floor straight away without stopping even once.
"Here it is."
The commander opened the door to the sickroom. The smell of disinfectant wafted in.
Inside the dark hospital room, only the mechanical sounds of various electronic devices could be heard.
I went into the sickroom with Chief Ma. Before the commander closed the door, he left a final message.
"He's an important witness. Just ask him a few questions, and don't kill him."
Instead of answering, I nodded and slowly walked towards the bed.
A man was seen lying on the bed, seemingly dead.
"I know you're awake, so stop pretending to be asleep."
At those words, the man slowly opened his closed eyes and looked at me.
His eyes shook as he checked my face.
"You recognize my face, after all. Let me ask you a few questions. If you answer correctly, I will take responsibility for your life. If you understand, blink twice. Then I will remove the oxygen mask so you can answer."
The man blinked twice. With a slight nod, Chief Ma removed his oxygen mask.
"Huh······. Huh."
I started asking questions to the man who was breathing heavily as if he was having difficulty breathing.
"Is the person who ordered me to be killed a legitimate person?"
The man slowly opened his mouth.
But the small voice mixed with his heavy breathing made it difficult to hear what he was saying.
As soon as Director Ma listened, the man spoke again.
"The client says he doesn't know who he is, boss."
I didn't expect much from this. It was rare for the perpetrator to know the client.
"Who gave the direct order?"
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Director Ma brought his ear to his mouth again.
It was a small voice compared to the loud machine noise, but Director Ma managed to understand and relay the words.
"It is said that the boss of the organization gave the order directly."
"Organization? What kind of organization?"
I kept asking questions. I could see that the man was struggling, but I couldn't stop.
"It is said that this is a place where retired soldiers from the Chinese military gather and work."
"I guess you're some kind of mercenary."
I asked many questions after that, but I did not hear any meaningful testimony.
Because this guy was just a pawn.
He said that he didn't even know who I was and that he was just guarding the stairs to protect his comrade who was sniping.
After a few more questions like that, the man's breathing became so heavy that he had difficulty answering.
The electronic devices inside the hospital room were making loud noises and beeping.
The ward door opened and doctors, nurses, and the commander who had guided me earlier came in together.
The medical team put the oxygen mask back on the man's mouth and began to quickly treat him.
The commander asked me with a blank face.
"Let's go back now. It seems like it would be too much."
"Yes. I've told you everything I wanted to ask."
There was nothing to regret. I had already figured out everything I needed to know anyway.
The commander saw us off with the same politeness as when we arrived at the hospital.
I left the hospital and went to see Boshirai.
"Mr. Kim, welcome."
I shook hands with Boshirai and sat down. He pointed to a stack of documents on the table and said,
"These are the facts and evidence we have discovered so far."
I slowly read through the materials that Boshirai had prepared.
Then I noticed something that caught my eye and lowered the document slightly.
"It's not suicide."
Bo Xilai told me that he had decided to rule out Weizheng's death as suicide.
But what was written in the material was different.
Murder. Two words caught my eye.
"Yes. If it is revealed that a big shot like Wi Jeong-seong was murdered, there could be great internal chaos. That's why the Crown Prince's Party and the Public Hearing Group have come together and decided to end it with suicide."
It's a personal death, but it's a political issue.
I nodded and continued reading the documents, stopping at a photo of a man.
"Who is this man?"
Boshirai answered my question immediately.
"He is the head of the organization that attempted to assassinate President Kim Moo-hyeok. We are already tracking him."
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"What were you doing?"
"He was in the intelligence bureau of the People's Army. He took off his uniform due to various incidents, and since then, he recruited soldiers from special forces and did various jobs. Even in Beijing, they said they didn't know his true identity."
I listened to Boshirai's explanation and looked at his photo carefully.
It was a face I had no memory of.
"You found it faster than I thought."
"A lot of evidence has come out of the House of Wisdom."
He put down the papers and laughed at Boshirai's answer.
Boshirai rolled his eyes and looked at me, as if he was embarrassed by my actions.
"Am I the only one who finds this weird?"
"Is there a problem?"
His cautious question made the corners of my mouth rise even higher.
I have no interest in playing on a board that someone else has already made. I felt really dirty.
"A group that no one knew existed appeared. But as if someone had planned it, everyone found out the leader's photo and what he had done in just a few days. Doesn't it seem too good to be a coincidence?"
"······."
"I feel strange."
"Are you saying that someone did this on purpose? A person who would······."
"Well, think about it carefully. I can already think of one person."
Ye Xiaotong. He is said to be the best lobbyist in China, and he is very good at arranging things.
I chuckled again as I recalled her face.
"Who is that?"
"I'll let you know later when I'm sure."
Boshirai was curious, but I just laughed and avoided answering.
Because it wasn't a name that could be spit out here.
"First of all, thanks to you, I was able to overcome a situation that was almost difficult. I will definitely repay this favor next time."
"Haha. No, it's nothing compared to what you've done for me, boss. It's okay."
"That's that, and this is this. Once the surroundings are all sorted out, I'll create a hole for you to make money so you never have to take bribes from anyone again."
Bo Xilai's face brightened. In the end, money was everything in Chinese politics.
The reason Bo Xilai could not give up his position on politics was ultimately because of the political funds he provided.
"Instead, never accept money from anywhere else. You must keep yourself safe until the next leadership is formed. And never turn your back on the central government."
"Of course. Why would I have any reason to fight with the central government?"
I knew how Boshirai grew into a big shot.
So I warned him again.
"I tell you again, do not rebel against the central government's policies, whatever they may be."
Let's speak firmly. Boshirai swallowed dry saliva and nodded.
After confirming the appearance, he stood up from his seat.
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"Once my schedule is over, I will return to Korea. See you next time."
As soon as I left Bo Xilai's office, I took out the business card I had received from Ye Xiaotong.
Then I called her.
- hello.
"This is Kim Mu-hyeok."
- Oh my! President Kim Mu-hyeok! What brings you here?
A bright voice came over the phone.
"I wish we could meet now, where are you?"
― It's an honor that Mr. Kim asked to meet me first. But what should I do? I think it'll be difficult. I'm here to catch a flight to Korea.
"Is that so? Have you decided to meet your father?"
- Yes. I'd like to meet and talk. This is all thanks to what Mr. Kim told me. Thank you.
Her hoarse voice, emphasizing the word "thank you," seemed to stick to my ears.
"Then I will go to Korea too. Let's meet in Korea. I will introduce you to a good restaurant."
― I'll be waiting. It's time for the plane to take off now. The flight attendant will ask you to turn off your cell phone. Then, see you in Korea, President Kim Moo-hyuk.
With those words, the call ended. I looked down at my disconnected phone and let out a hollow laugh.
"I knew it would be Ye Xiaotong."
Just from that call and her actions I was convinced who the author of this ridiculous play was.
I put my phone away and said to Director Ma.
"Let's go to the airport. The person I'm supposed to meet is already on a flight to Korea."
* * *
Ye Xiaotong arrived in Korea and went to the hotel.
She sat on the edge of the bed, fiddling with her cell phone and thinking for a long time.
In Yeshaotong's left hand was a piece of paper with Woo Young-shik's phone number written on it.
"Tao. What should I say?"
"Tell me who you are and ask to meet, boss."
"······Will you welcome me?"
Yeshaotong came to Korea to meet a man called her father.
But once I arrived in Korea and unpacked, all sorts of thoughts came to my mind.
"······."
Tao didn't give a hasty answer. It was even more difficult for him to answer because he knew well how she felt.
Ye Xiaotong smiled slightly at that reaction and took a deep breath.
"Okay. Let's call first."
Yeshaotong dialed the number written on the note. Music came from the other end of the phone.
It was my mother's favorite chanson.
Before the song even ended, a connection sound was heard and a man's voice was heard.
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- This is Woo Young-sik.
"······."
- Hello. This is Woo Young-sik.
The first time I heard my father's voice, it was deep and low, and it was a good, trustworthy voice.
- If there is no answer, I will hang up.
I'm learning Korean, but I'm not very good at it.
But now Ye Xiaotong realized that his words were not good, so she opened her mouth.
"This is Ye Xiaotong. Is this Woo Young-sik's phone number?"
Yeshaotong spoke in English.
―······Yeshaotong?
The answer came half a beat late. Ye Xiaotong continued speaking with a little urgency in response.
"Yes. This is Ye Xiaotong. Is this Mr. Woo Young-sik calling?"
I could hear fluent Chinese coming over the phone.
- That's right. I'm Woo Young-sik.
"Do you know who I am?"
- I know. You are the granddaughter of Yesan Ping.
"No, that's not it. You know who I am. Let's meet up. Let's talk."
―······.
There was no answer to the question of whether to meet. Ye Xiaotong, who was getting anxious, spoke again.
"I'm in Korea now. I really need to meet you."
―······Where are you? I will go find you.
Yeshaotong called out the hotel and room number where she was staying.
- Let's go right now.
With those words, Woo Young-sik hung up the phone first.
"······I'm shaking more than I thought."
Her hands were shaking after finishing the call, and Tao handed her a glass of warm water without saying a word.
"thank you."
She drank the water Tao gave her and calmed down, then rummaged through her bag.
It was a photo of Woo Young-sik that I found in an internet article.
"Why didn't I know? They look so similar."
His and Woo Young-sik's eyes and noses are so similar.
She waited for Woo Young-sik while fiddling with the photos.
About an hour passed. There was a knock on the door.
At the same time, Ye Xiaotong clutched her chest. Her heart felt like it was going to burst.
"Boss, I will open it."
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Tao moved to open the door on behalf of the very nervous Ye Xiaotong.
"No. I'll open it."
Yeshaotong, who had stopped him, looked in the mirror and adjusted her expression.
After barely calming my trembling heart, I walked over and opened the door.
Woo Young-sik was standing in front of the door.
"Welcome. Please come in first."
Yeshaotong stepped aside with an indifferent expression and said.
Woo Young-sik also went inside without saying a word.
The two people sat facing each other like that. Ye Xiaotong looked into Woo Young-shik's eyes, which looked just like hers, and asked.
"Are you my father?"
"Where did you hear that?"
"Does that matter now?"
"······."
"You're asking me if I'm your daughter."
"······."
Woo Young-sik didn't answer.
"If it's true, it's true. If it's not, it's not. Just tell me."
Woo Young-sik didn't open his mouth until the end.
"Tell me what you said. You did what I told you to do for me and then you stepped down in disgrace! What did I ask you to do for me? Do you think a daughter you don't even know would be grateful?"
Ye Xiaotong raised her voice as she spoke, but Woo Young-sik just looked at Ye Xiaotong's face silently.
After pouring out her words for a long time, tears finally flowed from Ye Xiaotong's eyes.
"Do you know how much I wanted to call you dad? Do you know how I felt growing up without a dad?"
Woo Young-sik's expressionless face broke at her words, "Father."
< Then I will go to Korea too > End
< I understand it in my head >