The Regressed Chaebol Grandson Finds It Hard to Forgive - Chapter 19

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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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Episode 19. Acquisition and Exploitation (1)

“Tae-woong… this, what is this?”
“What?”
“…this bank account…”

Friday.
As soon as class ended and I stepped out of the classroom, Ji-woong was waiting.

His face had gone pale as ash.
He thrust his smartphone directly into my hands.

“Five hundred million won just came into the account?”
“…you, you put it in?”
“Me? Haha. I’m a poor person. Where would I get that kind of money?”
“Then… who’s Jo Hui-jung?”
“O Seo-ra’s mother.”
“O Seo-ra??”

Ji-woong’s expression was utterly baffled.

After regular classes ended, I found that five hundred million won had been deposited into my account as well.

Ji-woong’s grandmother’s account—I secured it around the end of lunch period before things could blow up.

“This is your grandmother’s account, right?”
“Yeah. Since she’s getting on in years, I keep it. This smartphone is under her name too.”

Attorney Kim Jung-ryul really works at lightning speed.

I’d asked for a quick deposit, and it was confirmed the moment class ended.

I’d requested that he add tax provisions to the settlement agreement to handle everything.

“What you endured for a year—that’s compensation for your effort.”
“But that’s…”
“O Seo-ra. Things will stay quiet from now on. So let’s go look at an apartment in Sillim-dong after midterms.”
“Sillim-dong?”
“You’re going to attend Seo National University.”

I said it as though it were already decided.

“Me?”
“Trust me. An apartment near campus is the best investment.”
“Okay, okay.”
“You can do online banking, right?”
“Yeah. I have the public digital certificate installed.”
“What’s your limit?”
“I maxed it out… up to a billion.”
“I’ll send you an account number. Lend me that money for just a week.”
“Huh??”

Ji-woong was taken aback at the request to borrow money for just a week.

Which made sense—five hundred million had just landed in my account too.

Still, it seemed odd that I’d ask to borrow money despite that.

“Don’t trust me?”

Park Ji-woong stared at me expressionlessly.
If he refused now, his fortunes would end right here.

Five hundred million wasn’t a small sum.
But it wasn’t nearly enough capital to become a good prosecutor down the line.

An honest prosecutor?
Forget it.

Money was what let you resist every temptation!

This was an excellent opportunity to secure that capital.

A chance to multiply it several times over, even if our situations weren’t identical.

“Ah, got it. I don’t need this much money anyway.”

Ji-woong repaid my trust with his own.
The size of his goodwill was unexpectedly generous.

No wonder he’d risen to lead an MZ Gangster Organization.

“Keep five million. Go buy some Korean beef with your grandmother. Premium cuts.”
“Really?”

At the mention of Korean beef, Ji-woong’s eyes gleamed.

Looking at him now, the guy seemed remarkable in his own way.

Five hundred million, and he was happy to be told to keep just five million.

“Trust me. I’ll make sure you walk a smooth path from now on.”
“Yeah, I’ll trust you!”

Just one day.
That’s how long it took to become friends with Ji-woong.

Since both Ji-woong and I were sophomores, early admission was impossible anyway.
But we already knew all the College Entrance Exam questions.

“But I don’t get it. Why did O Seo-ra’s mother send me such a huge amount? I thought she’d sue.”

Ji-woong had been worried about it too.
He’d mentally prepared himself to some extent.

After all, I’d poured food all over O Seo-ra’s head—reasonable to be concerned.

“Lawsuit threats are something we handle ourselves. Don’t worry about it and just study.”
“Tae-woong…”
“You’re going to live a different world, a different life from now on.”

Pat, pat.
I gave Ji-woong’s shoulder a reassuring tap.

Right before the regression, the violent crimes that had swept across South Korea.

Park Ji-woong—the leader of the MZ Gangster Organization that had sent chills through the nation.

Now he’d become the gentlest of lambs.

“Yeah… I’ll study hard and become a prosecutor.”

Ji-woong’s eyes shone with clarity.
A decidedly brighter energy radiated from him.

“A prosecutor? You, a thug?”

A venomous voice cut in from behind.
It was O Seo-ra.

O Seo-ra in her gym uniform instead of her school uniform.

Lasers practically shooting from her eyes.

It seemed she hadn’t run into her mother yet.

“My mom came to school, you know? Just wait. I’m gonna see you both locked up!”

O Seo-ra gnashed her teeth, brimming with confidence.
Malice oozed from her like an open wound.

Redemption seemed utterly impossible.
She was the textbook example of a human being beyond all hope.

Click-clack, click-clack.

“O Seo-ra…”

With the sharp sound of heels, a familiar voice called her name.

Jo Hui-jung, her mother.
An icy coldness emanated from her as she approached.

“Mom!!”

O Seo-ra called out happily, beaming at her mother.
And then.

“Mom, it’s these guys. These worthless poor losers…”

Crack!

“Aaahhhhh!”

In an instant, O Seo-ra’s face snapped to the side.

The scream that burst from the powerful blow echoed down the hallway.
Typical behavior for an uncouth woman.

“What, what?”
“Isn’t she O Seo-ra’s mother??”

Students who’d finished class flooded into the hallway, murmuring at the scene unfolding before their eyes.

“Come here!!”

Upon spotting me, O Seo-ra’s mother slapped her daughter without so much as a glance in my direction.

She immediately hooked O Seo-ra’s arm and turned to leave.

“…what, Mom…”

O Seo-ra, stunned senseless, was dragged along.

She was so shocked she forgot to even cry.

Already, her pale cheek was reddening and swelling slowly.

A bottle of soda exploded in the hallway of Cheonghwa High School’s sophomore classroom corridor.

It was the kind of scene I’d have liked to keep as a souvenir.

“Come on. Your mom told you to follow.”

I passed smoothly beside O Seo-ra as she was being dragged, offering a helpful comment.

“This is why home education matters, you know. The rot starts at home and spreads outside. Tsk.”

I delivered my sincere concerns with genuine care.

But O Seo-ra could only be pulled along in silence.

“Ahhhhhhh! Ahhhhhhhh!”

A moment later, a blood-curdling scream echoed from the far end of the hallway.

* * *

What is he?

Lee Hyo-ju, who’d been packing her bag, stopped in her tracks.
She watched the entire scene unfold in the crowded hallway.

Everyone knew O Seo-ra was obnoxious.

There was a rumor that her father was a real estate nouveau riche and a thug.

It was a rumor that had circulated more than once.

Even among parents, there was a standing warning not to get involved with O Seo-ra if possible.

But Ha Tae-woong had caused a problem.

He’d clashed head-on with O Seo-ra—the one everyone else avoided.

O Seo-ra’s family was in a completely different weight class from O Gwang-jun’s.

A regular chief prosecutor father versus a wealthy real estate magnate father in Gangnam.

“Ugh… ugh.”

O Seo-ra ran out of school crying like a child.

The watching students stood there dumbfounded.

Poor Ha Tae-woong had truly lost it today!

“Ha Tae-woong, didn’t you hit O Seo-ra in the cafeteria?”
“Yeah. But why did her mom do that?”
“I can’t make sense of it…”

Students who’d heard the rumors clustered together, whispering.

Normally, if it was O Seo-ra’s mother, she should be the one slapping Ha Tae-woong.

But instead, her own daughter O Seo-ra got hit by her.
Right there in the hallway where everyone could see.

“There’s something going on…”

Lee Hyo-ju couldn’t make sense of it either.

Cheonghwa High was a playground disguised as a school—the domain of the upper class.

It operated on a completely different level from what ordinary people thought of as a typical high school.

Behind the students stood their parents, controlling the distribution of wealth and power.

They formed the Parent Council and wielded influence through various schemes and political maneuvering, just like in society at large.

And in that place, poor Ha Tae-woong had seized victory.

Poor Ha Tae-woong had gone on a rampage across the school today.
He’d thrown the whole place into chaos.

During class, he’d been called to see the PE Teacher.

That teacher was known among students as the Parent Council’s lapdog.

From the mood of things, at minimum he’d face suspension.

But Ha Tae-woong returned to the classroom unscathed.

“Ha Tae-woong… what are you?”

Lee Hyo-ju stared blankly at Ha Tae-woong as he walked away confidently, his back turned to her.

His tall, somewhat lean frame looked remarkably solid.
He almost seemed like a giant.

“…”

The school life that had felt tedious and monotonous until now.

A faint, indefinable smile spread across Lee Hyo-ju’s lips.

* * *

“Perfect!”

The time when students poured out of school all at once.

The campus as spring arrived was absolutely beautiful.

The thick old trees, as aged as the school itself, added to spring’s elegance.

Ginkgos, cherry blossoms, and various ornamental trees.

Hard to believe such a nature-friendly space existed in central Seoul.

Crunch, crunch.

I walked across the campus with leisure for the first time.

In the past, I’d had to flee school the moment class ended.

A poor person wasn’t granted access to nature’s bounty.

Instead, I’d always felt diminished by this school’s atmosphere.

Today, with shoulders squared back, I savored the natural beauty I’d been denied.

Ji-woong had gone home first.

“From now on, no one will dare challenge me.”

A historic day that shook the entire foundation.

The one who’d scorned me trusting his backing got a fist; those who’d despised me as a poor person based on wealth and power got their grandfather’s reputation tarnished.

“Never again will I tolerate it. If anyone blocks me… I’ll run right through them!”

The past days of endurance, of being toyed with by the privileged majority, flashed by like a panorama.

I no longer wanted to live like that.

“Complete ownership, no matter what!”

I’d own everything I wanted.

I rejected the life of contentment with payday chicken and a single can of beer.

Ding!

Just then, I heard the pleasant sound of a golf club striking a ball.

“Golf is great!”

It reminded me of when I first joined the company.
I’d been ridiculed for quite a long time because of golf.

Not just executives, managers, and team leads—even the junior staff knew how to play golf.

They held golf outings every weekend and bonded over screen golf after work during weekdays.

Meanwhile, I, without even a cheap golf club, had become the butt of their jokes.

“A golf practice range at school? Are you serious?”

Golf is mandatory in Cheonghwa students’ PE classes.

After school, the Cheonghwa High School Golf Practice Range is favored by teachers and parents alike.

With twenty bays, it’s modest in size but one of the few outdoor ranges in Gangnam.

Of course, there’s also an indoor screen golf facility in the basement.

The Cheonghwa Group set it up as a talent development investment initiative.

I headed toward the golf range.
Since next week was exam period, no students were visible.

Instead.

Ding!

A tall, slender woman swung with a crisp sound.

Her golf skirt fluttered appropriately with the power of her swing.

Beautiful!

“Ahn Hyun-ju…”

A Korea’s representative beautiful female pro golfer once expected to confidently compete on the LPGA Tour.

She’d collapsed after an unsavory scandal broke.

Afterward, she came to Cheonghwa High as a golf instructor.

Just this year.

Ding!

The swing seemed light, but fury was woven into it.
The aura radiating from her body was a deep red.

It seemed the color of rage accumulated deep within.

“Ma’am!”

I called out to her.

“…??”

Ahn Hyun-ju turned, midway through her swing setup.

Her eyes widened in surprise.

“…!!”

No matter how many times I look… she’s an exceptionally beautiful golfer.

In the golf world, judged by skill, her beauty is also top-tier.

Her height well over 170 centimeters, with a lean, athletic frame honed by sport.

A small face, a sharp nose, large eyes…

Her ponytail reached about shoulder length.

Her standing form was a work of art.

Drop by drop.

A bead of sweat on her forehead traced her cheek and ran down past her chin.

“Who are you?”
“I’m Ha Tae-woong, a sophomore.”

I answered briskly and walked toward her.

“What’s the matter?”

Unlike the female students, her voice carried mature sophistication.

It was the kind that naturally refreshed the ears.

“I’m an ardent fan of yours.”

I meant it sincerely.
In a few years, she’d overcome her slump and conquer the LPGA.

She’d successfully make her comeback, her beauty unchanged alongside her recognized skill, becoming a top celebrity.

I offered both hands respectfully and requested a handshake.

“Oh, okay.”

Ahn Hyun-ju, slightly taken aback, removed her glove and offered her hand.
A bare-handed handshake with her.

Her hand felt soft…

-Would you like to Acquire Golf talent? or Exploit it?

Huh??
Acquire? Exploit??

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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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