I Will Raise This Family to Greatness - Chapter 205

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Chapter 205
Secretary Yang looked flustered.
He seemed surprised that I knew about such matters.
“Sung-guk, is this a reliable source? If not, we have a few contingencies prepared on our end.”
“This will have far greater impact than celebrity dating scandals or breakups. Your brother’s incident will be buried quickly anyway.”
“Understood. I’ll look into it first and then release it.”
“We have 24 hours. In that time, please complete the background investigation on Shin Young-ah, and we’ll file the police report after confirming the Girl Group members’ locations—preferably making it clear that Na-hee is involved. When Jeon Tae-guk’s hyung speaks to them, they’ll respond accordingly.”
“Yes, Sung-guk.”
Secretary Yang answered while visibly astonished.
It was as if he now saw me as Chairman Jeon Jae-hyung would.
And before long, Secretary Yang found himself speaking to me with formal respect.
That meant he no longer viewed me as merely a child model for Samjeon.
I decided to wrap up this situation quickly.
“Secretary Yang, please handle this right away and have the Protocol Team stationed around the Suite Room.”
“Yes….”
Secretary Yang bowed quickly and left the Suite Room.
Jeon Tae-guk sat in a chair with a dejected expression, sipping whiskey.
“Sung-guk, what’s going to happen to me when this gets out? People will see me as some pathetic guy who got blackmailed by Girl Group members, right?”
[Jeon Tae-guk, you already know you’re pathetic, don’t you?]
I stroked my chin thoughtfully.
“Hyung, if you need to give an interview, tell it like this.”
“How?”
“I’ve been into hip-hop music lately. That’s why I visited the club, and I had arranged to meet Bang Mu-hyuk to discuss an audition. I became interested because he was a singer from a talent agency he runs, and since we were around the same age, we quickly became friends. When he learned I was the heir to Samjeon Group, he asked if I could rent a Suite Room at Samjeon Hotel, and I rented the hotel room as a favor to fit in with my friends.”
The broad strokes were true, but what Jeon Tae-guk actually expected wasn’t to hang out with friends in the Suite Room—it was a secret meeting with Na-hee, which was the only part that differed.
“We drank while talking about music with friends, but I don’t remember anything. When I came to, my clothes were off, and I received strange photos from Na-hee, whom I thought was my friend.”
“If I tell it that way, how will people see me?”
[How else? As a gullible chaebol, obviously.]
I gripped Jeon Tae-guk’s shoulder firmly.
“Hyung, it’s fine to experience something like this while you only have the title of Samjeon Group heir. You’re still young, just a university student. Everyone makes mistakes when they’re young. What’s more important for you is how you act once you become an actual executive at Samjeon Group. Just remember that going forward.”
Jeon Tae-guk drank his whiskey with a bitter expression.
“Sung-guk, but Bang Mu-hyuk. If the Girl Group that Na-hee belongs to gets destroyed because of this mess with me, he won’t completely hate me, right?”
“That’s when you should invest unconditionally. Money speaks louder than anything.”
“Sung-guk, sometimes when you say things like that, you remind me of our late Grandfather. He used to hold my hand tight from when I was young and tell me all sorts of things. Among them, he said never to trust even family… Today, that saying really comes to mind.”
Jeon Tae-guk stared blankly out the window.
I also gazed quietly at Seoul’s night view.
The night view of Seoul was beautiful on the day I died too.
* * *
Secretary Yang was reporting the entire situation to Chairman Jeon Jae-hyung.
Chairman Jeon Jae-hyung raised his eyebrows. Something seemed odd.
“Sung-guk said he wanted things to proceed this way?”
“Yes. We’re currently searching for someone named Shin Young-ah.”
“Shin Young-ah… Is she a major figure in the art world?”
“Based on her background, she’s a veteran in the art industry who even served as director of the Sunmin Art Museum. She graduated from Yale and has lectured at Dongsong University as well.”
“She sounds competent. But you’re saying if we dig deeper, something even bigger will come out?”
“Yes….”
Secretary Yang paused for a moment before continuing.
“Chairman, though this is based on a brief investigation, this woman also has connections with the Madam.”
“That would make sense given the art museum circles.”
“Nothing concrete has emerged yet, but from what we’ve learned so far, this woman appears to be connected to political circles as well. You should urgently tell the Madam to clean up any private dealings or favors with this Shin Young-ah. All of it.”
“I understand….”
Chairman Jeon Jae-hyung’s expression grew grave.
The presidential election was already just months away. In such circumstances, any entanglement with political circles could only spell trouble.
“But… Secretary Yang, how did Sung-guk find out about this?”
“We haven’t been able to determine that.”
“First, let’s handle this matter cleanly, and then we’ll investigate how Sung-guk came to know about it.”
“Yes, Chairman.”
Secretary Yang answered quickly and then gauged the Chairman’s expression.
“Is there anything else?”
“Chairman, please don’t be too harsh on Young Master Tae-guk. Honestly, he didn’t do anything terribly wrong.”
“The damage is already done. We’ll see how well he handles the aftermath. Such situations can happen anytime in the future, so learning how to manage them is part of growing up, isn’t it?”
Chairman Jeon Jae-hyung seemed to be almost enjoying this crisis.
* * *
The night grew deeper and deeper.
While I hadn’t slept a wink, Jeon Tae-guk sipped whiskey before dozing off in the corner of the sofa.
[He really has it easy….]
How could someone so carefree manage the position of a corporate conglomerate chairman, one of the heaviest burdens in the world?
[Why am I even worrying about the Samjeon Group…. I have my own problems to deal with.]
Ding!
At that moment, Jeon Tae-guk’s phone rang loudly.
The sudden noise startled him awake with a jolt.
“A message….”
“Hyung, wipe the drool off your face first.”
“Slurp—”
Jeon Tae-guk wiped the saliva from his mouth and quickly checked his phone. His expression fell immediately.
“What… it’s just an advertisement.”
“Hyung, Na-hee or whoever hasn’t contacted you at all since that blackmail incident?”
“Yeah….”
Jeon Tae-guk nodded heavily.
“But Sung-guk, did Na-hee really have no feelings for me at all?”
[Sigh… I’ve never seen someone so pathetic. He deserves prison food, and he’s asking about feelings?]
I answered as objectively as I could.
“Hyung, if I had feelings for you, would I have done something so terrible to you?”
“I suppose… I just needed someone who would love me for who I am….”
“Hyung, the fact that you’re the heir to Samjeon Group is part of who you are. Finding someone who can love that part of you too—that’s what you need to accomplish in this life.”
“You really do talk just like our father sometimes.”
Ding.
A message notification chimed at that moment.
Jeon Tae-guk immediately checked his phone.
The way his eyes wavered told me it was from a woman—Na-hee.
“Hyung, it’s Na-hee, isn’t it?”
“Yeah….”
“What did she say?”
“She changed her mind.”
From the look on Jeon Tae-guk’s face, things were heading in a worse direction.
“What do you mean?”
“Instead of 5 billion, she’s demanding 1 billion per photo. Starting tomorrow at noon, she wants 1 billion per hour. If we don’t pay, she’ll release one photo every hour after that.”
“How many photos are there in total?”
“According to Na-hee, there are ten.”
She’d quickly realized that 5 billion was nothing to Samjeon Group.
“Sung-guk, what should I do?”
“Ask for time to think until tomorrow morning. Plead with her, saying that even for a chaebol, it’s not easy to gather tens of billions of won all at once.”
“Okay, I understand.”
Jeon Tae-guk quickly sent a message, then moved to another room and even pleaded with Na-hee directly.
Of course, Na-hee wouldn’t listen.
I quietly went to a corner of the Hotel Suite Room and closed the door.
Then I called Secretary Yang.
After the phone rang a few times, Secretary Yang picked up.
– Sung-guk, has something else happened?
“The price has been adjusted to 1 billion per photo. They’re demanding the money be deposited by tomorrow at noon, and if not, they’ll release one photo every hour starting from noon.”
– Sigh… they’re truly vicious people.
“Secretary Yang, we need to bury this issue with another issue. I think the Shin Young-ah incident needs to break first, before Tae-guk’s case.”
– Then….
“It needs to go out as a breaking news report tomorrow morning. You’ve already investigated it, haven’t you?”
– We have, but we’re still in the verification stage, Sung-guk.
“Verification can happen after it breaks. Release it as quickly as possible. That way, Tae-guk’s case will be buried.”
* * *
Morning had arrived before I knew it.
I must have dozed off on the sofa after watching Jeon Tae-guk exchange messages with Na-hee until dawn.
When I opened my eyes, Jeon Tae-guk was sprawled out sleeping at the end of the sofa.
[Seriously, because of who, am I stuck here at this precious time instead of being with my family!]
Truly, what a carefree man he was.
I briefly took the phone from Jeon Tae-guk’s hand to check it.
Until 4 AM, Na-hee and Jeon Tae-guk had been exchanging messages.
Most of them consisted of Jeon Tae-guk pleading while Na-hee coldly refused.
When Jeon Tae-guk said he wanted to visit Na-hee at her home to see her face and talk, she replied that she couldn’t because she was staying at the Dormitory with other friends.
The Dormitory?
I quickly called Bang Mu-hyuk.
Bang Mu-hyuk answered the phone groggily.
– Sung-guk, do you know what time it is?
“Sir, could you tell me the address of the Dormitory for the Girl Group that’s debuting this time?”
– Why do you need that?
“There’s a friend named Na-hee there, right?”
– Sung-guk, how do you know that?
I answered briefly and plainly.
“Sir, listen carefully from now on. This girl Na-hee seduced Jeon Tae-guk from the Samjeon Group, drugged him with alcohol, took naked photos of him, and is now blackmailing him with them.”
All I heard through the phone was rough breathing.
“The Samjeon Group will get involved in handling this. You need to be prepared.”
– W-wait, Sung-guk. Is this really true?
“Sir, hurry and prepare damage control at the company level.”
– If this Girl Group goes under… I’ll… I’ll be ruined too.
“Sir, please tell me the Dormitory address.”
– Th-that is….
“Sir, Samjeon is trying to secure the original photos. If you cooperate, Samjeon won’t just sit idle. I promise you that.”
After a short sigh, Bang Mu-hyuk spoke as if he’d made a decision.
– Na-hee’s Dormitory is Rose Villa, Unit 402.
“Thank you, sir.”
I hung up and called Secretary Yang.
Secretary Yang’s voice didn’t sound like he’d just woken up.
He’d clearly spent the night digging into Shin Young-ah and devising countermeasures.
– Sung-guk, what’s the matter?
“Looking at the messages between my brother and Na-hee, it seems this girl Na-hee is staying at the Dormitory. Rose Villa, Unit 402 in Nonhyeon-dong. File a report and raid it with the police in the morning to secure the original files. And how is the Shin Young-ah situation progressing?”
– Sung-guk. How did you find out that woman has falsified credentials and that she became the chief director of this Biennale with help from a powerful figure in the current administration?
“I’ve been following this Biennale because I’m interested in art. I thought it was strange that all the equally qualified candidates were rejected. And Shin Young-ah, she’s very active on FaceNote, claiming she majored in art history at Yale, but every sentence she writes in English is grammatically incorrect. That alone proves falsified credentials. And for someone with such fake qualifications to beat out strong candidates and become the chief director of the Biennale—obviously someone was backing her.”
– Hmm….
Secretary Yang seemed somewhat skeptical.
But no matter how much he dug, he wouldn’t be able to find out how I knew about that woman.
“Please hurry, Secretary Yang.”
– Yes, Sung-guk.
I hung up the phone.
* * *
9 AM news.
Shin Young-ah was shown being escorted by police from her home, dressed in casual clothes.
Jeon Tae-guk, who had just woken up, yawned widely upon seeing Shin Young-ah on the screen.
“Sung-guk, who exactly is that woman?”
“The person who will save you, hyung.”
“How is she going to do that?”
The moment Jeon Tae-guk asked, a cascade of suspicions about Shin Young-ah scrolled across the bottom of the screen.
The fabricated academic credentials were one thing, but what truly captured the public’s attention was something else entirely.
– Investigation underway into how Ban Mo, Policy Director of Cheong Wa Dae, sponsored Shin Young-ah’s appointment as Chief Director of the Biennale.
Those words alone set the internet ablaze.
Ban Mo, the Policy Director of Cheong Wa Dae, was nearly thirty years older than Shin Young-ah, and he was a married man. Moreover, he was the VIP’s closest confidant.
I had carefully blended infidelity and politics—two things people loved most—to save Jeon Tae-guk.
At that moment, Jeon Tae-guk checked his phone and jumped to his feet.
“Sung-guk, what do I do? Na-hee posted my photos all over the internet.”

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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