I Will Raise This Family to Greatness - Chapter 206
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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 206
Life is like a shuttlecock precariously balanced on the net in badminton.
When it falls to the opponent’s side, you score; when it drops to yours, you lose points. It all comes down to luck.
The shuttlecock that had been teetering on the net just moments ago had fallen to our side.
Jeon Tae-guk stared at me with an expression bordering on despair.
Now there was nothing left but to trust in fate.
“Sung-guk….”
I wrapped my throbbing head in my hands and opened my laptop.
Either way, if the photos had been leaked, they’d be circulating across the internet within minutes.
I quickly contacted Jung-woo.
In my previous life, I had no interest in internet culture, and in this one, I’d spent so long abroad that I wasn’t particularly familiar with the Korean online communities that dominated here.
After a few rings, Jung-woo picked up.
– Sung-guk, what’s going on so early in the morning?
“Jung-woo, what’s the biggest internet community site where young people hang out?”
– Hmm… DasCafe or Naver Cafe?
“Got it, thanks.”
– Why are you asking?
“I’ll explain later. Thanks, Jung-woo.”
I hung up and accessed the website Jung-woo had mentioned.
I checked the trending keywords and found Jeon Tae-guk’s name at the top. Related keywords included Samjeon Group and Samjeon Group Heir.
I took a moment to steady myself, then clicked on a post titled “The Samjeon Group Heir’s Indiscretion.”
There was Jeon Tae-guk, lying shirtless.
[So that’s what they mean by ‘ignorance is bliss’….]
I quickly shut the laptop and called Secretary Yang.
Secretary Yang answered almost immediately.
– Sung-guk. You’re calling about the leaked content online, aren’t you?
It seemed Samjeon was already moving quickly to contain it.
“I think we need to make an example. We should immediately press charges against Na-hee for attempted extortion as a Girl Group member.”
Jeon Tae-guk, who had been listening to the call, tried to stop me.
“Sung-guk, isn’t that too harsh?”
[Jeon Tae-guk, be grateful you weren’t born as my brother in this life….]
I clenched my teeth.
“Brother, from now on, you’ll be a target for attacks simply because you’re the Samjeon Group heir. If we let this incident slide now, what do you think will happen?”
“But… Na-hee is a Girl Group member, and… she has a future ahead of her.”
[He’s really spouting nonsense about her future….]
“Brother, does someone thinking about their future drug your drink and take compromising photos like that?”
[Jeon Tae-guk, please come to your senses!]
“Ah, fine.”
Jeon Tae-guk curled up on the sofa.
I resumed my conversation with Secretary Yang.
“Secretary Yang, let’s push something stronger now.”
– You mean about Shin Young-ah?
“Yes. Release the real names of his closest associates, and you have photos, right?”
– This morning, I captured photos of Shin Young-ah leaving the Gwanghwamun officetel where she lives.
“Contact the portal sites so it doesn’t trend in real-time searches, and release the photos of Shin Young-ah right away. There’s no other way at this point.”
– Understood.
I hung up with Secretary Yang and looked down at Jeon Tae-guk, who was huddled up in a ball.
“Brother… everything will be resolved now.”
“Sung-guk, aren’t you hungry?”
It was truly an unexpected question.
If it were me, I’d want to discuss how this incident would unfold and what countermeasures to prepare, but Jeon Tae-guk was a completely different person from me.
“Brother, how can you be hungry at a time like this?”
“Want some jjajangmyeon?”
[Sigh… jjajangmyeon is totally unfair!]
* * *
– This is an officetel in Gwanghwamun where Shin Young-ah resides. This morning, footage was captured of Ban Young-hoon, the policy director at Cheong Wa Dae, leaving this location.
Jeon Tae-guk and I ate jjajangmyeon while watching the news in the Suite Room.
The affair of the VIP’s closest associate, the Cheong Wa Dae policy director, captivated people’s attention far more than Jeon Tae-guk’s naked photos. Moreover, with the presidential election approaching, the opposition party found it more advantageous to amplify this news.
Thanks to Samjeon Group acting swiftly and the opposition party providing supporting fire, Jeon Tae-guk’s nude photos spread briefly before fading away.
Jeon Tae-guk stared at the news with a shocked expression, unable to look away.
“Sung-guk, so that man and that woman are having an affair?”
“I’d call it a romance.”
“Wow, that’s insane. But Sung-guk, I’m genuinely curious about this… how on earth did you get that information?”
I gave him the same excuse I’d told Secretary Yang.
“I checked that woman’s FaceNote profile, and her English was terrible. But she listed Yale University on her resume, and she’s supposedly the chief director of the Biennale… Something seemed off about it all, so I just threw it out there to see what would happen. But even I didn’t expect it to go this far.”
I ate my jjajangmyeon quietly.
“Sung-guk, but now that the incident has completely died down… shouldn’t we drop the charges against Na-hee for attempted extortion? I’m worried the whole thing might blow up again.”
[Jeon Tae-guk, please don’t show mercy only to women.]
I took a sip of water and looked at Jeon Tae-guk.
“Brother Tae-guk, Chairman Jeon Jae-hyung will probably ask about this. When he does, don’t say anything like that. Tell him the reason you pressed charges against Na-hee for attempted extortion is as a lesson—to show what happens when someone messes with Jeon Tae-guk. You want to make sure nothing like this happens again by using this incident as an example, especially since you’ll continue to associate with ordinary friends in the future.”
“Sung-guk, why do you talk so ruthlessly?”
Jeon Tae-guk, now that he’d escaped the crisis, quickly broke into a grin again. Well then!
“Brother, aren’t you afraid of Chairman Jeon Jae-hyung?”
“Oh, right. Father!”
“If you speak as I’ve instructed, Chairman Jeon Jae-hyung will likely forgive everything… and at the same time, he’ll approve the investment in Bang Mu-hyuk’s company.”
This was what I wanted.
Based on the character of the girl group members, whether it was Na-hee or whoever, an incident like this would have erupted eventually.
In any case, the incident that erupted because of Jeon Tae-guk had worked somewhat in my favor.
It was all because of Bang Mu-hyuk’s company.
Na-hee or whoever she was would eventually cause trouble like this, and Bang Mu-hyuk would end up losing the group after investing so much money and effort.
Naturally, I would suffer economic losses, and at that moment, I had planned to extend a helping hand to Bang Mu-hyuk. By emptying my personal funds….
But thanks to Jeon Tae-guk, I didn’t have to deplete my personal savings.
“Sung-guk, but… I won’t be able to see the audition, will I?”
“Hmm… I’ll ask Bang Mu-hyuk. It’s supposed to be this evening anyway.”
“Sung-guk, please. Please just ask once. If a talent like me joins that company, it’ll really take off!”
[Talent, my foot—more like a sucker!]
Just then, Jeon Tae-guk’s phone rang.
Jeon Tae-guk answered it quickly.
“Secretary Yang, what’s going on? Father? Ah… come pick me up in thirty minutes.”
After hanging up, Jeon Tae-guk stared at me with a blank expression.
“Sung-guk, Father’s really calling for me.”
“Hyung, just say it exactly as I told you.”
“Wait! Sung-guk, I need to write down what you said so I can memorize it on the way.”
[Jeon Tae-guk, you can’t even memorize this?]
Of course, even in my previous life, his intellect wasn’t sharp.
[A genius like me has to be understanding.]
I sighed deeply and began writing down what he needed to say.
“Sung-guk, I’ll speak well to Father, so make sure I get to meet Bang Mu-hyuk. Got it?”
“Just remember—this meeting comes with conditions.”
“Got it. I’ll invest in Bang Mu-hyuk’s company even if I have to empty my own pockets!”
* * *
Sitting before Chairman Jeon Jae-hyung was the secretary of Lim Myung-baek, the opposition party’s presidential candidate in this election.
“The candidate was honestly quite surprised.”
….
Chairman Jeon Jae-hyung quietly sipped his coffee.
Under normal circumstances, petty politicians wouldn’t dare speak to him, but election season was the only time they could approach him directly. Especially if they were a frontrunner.
Particularly in such cases.
Chairman Jeon Jae-hyung looked at the secretary, signaling him to continue.
The secretary quickly understood his intent and went on.
“The truth is, our candidate has been leading consistently, but there was criticism that we lacked a decisive moment. So we’re grateful that you’ve provided such a crucial turning point to our campaign.”
“What do you mean?”
Chairman Jeon Jae-hyung feigned ignorance.
In politics, one had to be careful with every word.
At that moment, Secretary Yang, standing nearby, interjected appropriately.
“It seems you’re referring to the Shin Young-ah incident. It appears you know that our Samjeon Group provided the source.”
“Ah….”
Chairman Jeon Jae-hyung then pretended to understand.
“We simply believed that wrongs must be corrected.”
“Absolutely right. We understood that Samjeon Group’s action wasn’t meant to aid our campaign, but rather stemmed from a righteous conviction to root out the corrupt practices of the current administration.”
The secretary quickly wrapped up his words. Then he quietly sipped the coffee Chairman Jeon Jae-hyung had offered.
“The candidate asked me to meet with Chairman Jeon Jae-hyung once. Frankly, didn’t the previous administration face some controversy over the various privileges and benefits Samjeon received?”
“Secretary, as you know, large groups like ours face accusations of preferential treatment no matter what we do.”
“I understand. Then, let me convey this message. The candidate said he won’t forget this favor.”
“As you know, a prominent company like Samjeon can’t directly involve itself in elections.”
“I understand.”
The secretary nodded repeatedly.
“But… tell him we’re supporting him internally.”
“Of course. I’m truly grateful for this.”
The secretary stood and bowed at a ninety-degree angle.
After the opposition candidate Lim Myung-baek’s secretary left, Jeon Jae-hyung wore a peculiar smile.
“Secretary Yang…”
“Yes, Chairman.”
“What exactly did Jeon Sung-guk just do for us?”
“There have been many complaints circulating from Candidate Lim Myung-baek’s camp about Samjeon Group’s lack of support over the years.”
Chairman Jeon Jae-hyung knew this well. But for some reason, he had no desire to support Candidate Lim Myung-baek.
Candidate Lim Myung-baek, a former salesman from Hyunbo Group—Samjeon’s competitor—had built his campaign on the “salesman’s miracle,” and all the benefits were going to Hyunbo Group.
Moreover, Hyunbo Group itself believed that if Candidate Lim Myung-baek won, it would be advantageous to them, so they were providing full support.
There seemed to be no opening for Samjeon Group to wedge itself in, and Chairman Jeon Jae-hyung’s pride wouldn’t allow it either.
But with this incident, all of Candidate Lim Myung-baek’s grievances were essentially resolved.
“Chairman, this incident will serve as a catalyst to question the morality of the current administration, which has been perceived as clean… and naturally, the credibility of the presidential candidate put forward by the current administration will decline.”
“The lame duck effect will accelerate even more…”
Just then, a knock sounded, and Jeon Tae-guk entered.
Jeon Tae-guk approached Chairman Jeon Jae-hyung with his body hunched.
“Father… were you looking for me?”
“Secretary Yang told me. You’re filing charges for attempted extortion?”
“Yes…”
Jeon Tae-guk immediately sensed that his father’s tone was different from when he was usually angry.
What’s this? This strange intonation?
“Why file charges? The Shin Young-ah incident already faded away, and if you’re not careful, people might bring it up again?”
“It’s a kind of example. To show what happens when you mess with me, Jeon Tae-guk. Father, there will be times in the future when I associate with ordinary friends, and I wanted to use this incident as a warning so it never happens again.”
And he quickly added what Sung-guk had told him.
“With the Shin Young-ah incident and the full-scale presidential race now underway, I don’t think my case will be brought up again in a major way.”
Hearing this, Chairman Jeon Jae-hyung smiled with satisfaction.
Of course, he also thought that all of this was the work of Jeon Sung-guk, not Jeon Tae-guk.
“Very well. Handle this incident as you see fit.”
“Ah, yes…”
Jeon Tae-guk nodded quickly. Then he asked casually.
“Father… actually, I was thinking of meeting Bang Mu-hyuk, the representative of the Girl Group’s agency, personally. I wanted to make an investment.”
“Since we lost one girl group, give him some compensation in the form of investment.”
Chairman Jeon Jae-hyung approved very readily.
And Jeon Tae-guk simply couldn’t believe how effortlessly everything was unfolding before him.
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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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