The Regressed Chaebol Grandson Finds It Hard to Forgive - Chapter 34
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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 34. Jo & Jang (1)
“Can you handle it?”
“Of course! It’s nothing.”
“It has to be done right.”
“Leave it to me. I dare say Sa Bae-ja and his ilk…….”
The Jeon-o Room Salon, located in Gangnam.
Wang Jin-deok, the academic affairs director, had summoned Lee Jang-yong, a math teacher.
Glug, glug.
Whiskey filled the glass.
“Right, Sa Bae-ja can’t be allowed to top Cheongwha High School. In all of history, students like that have never placed first in midterms. Especially not in math.”
“Exactly! First in math without even attending a cram school? The kid’s no genius.”
The two men were perfectly in sync.
They were the type who chose profit over principle without hesitation.
Wang Jin-deok had his eye on the position of principal.
It was an absolute necessity to stay on good terms with the parents of Cheongwha.
The words of parent association presidents who passed through his flattering hands were as good as royal decrees.
Lee Jang-yong, who agreed with such matters and shared his vision.
He lived for the pleasure of subjugating brilliant children through mathematics alone.
This time, Sa Bae-ja and Ha Tae-woong had poured cold water on Lee Jang-yong’s greatest joy.
An unforgivable transgression.
“I’ll handle what comes after. Make sure it’s clean.”
“Heh heh. Don’t worry, sir.”
A sinister gleam settled around Lee Jang-yong’s mouth and eyes.
“If you handle this well, you’ll make department head.”
“Thank you, sir.”
“Set it up for next week. And beat that bastard in front of the whole school!”
“Yes, sir!”
“Anyway, let’s have some fun now.”
“I’ve been waiting for this. Heh heh.”
The academic affairs director, who had pocketed a generous allowance today.
Though the sun hadn’t fully set, he’d booked a room early and taken his seat.
Always the type to end his entertainment early to stay in his wife’s good graces.
With Lee Jang-yong, he occasionally arranged these outings, the two of them instinctively matching their rhythm with practiced discretion.
Beep.
Wang Jin-deok deftly pressed the call button.
And then.
“You’re here early today?”
“Take good care of him. He’s a junior I’m close to.”
“Don’t worry. I vouch for Se-ra—she’s a good one.”
Wang Jin-deok’s de facto mistress, the young madam, entered with a woman in her early twenties.
The eyes of the unmarried, aging teacher Lee Jang-yong widened instantly.
‘Stupid bastard.’
Lee Jang-yong, a teacher obsessed with mathematics to the point of madness.
Wang Jin-deok bit back a subtle sneer as he watched Lee Jang-yong’s vacant expression.
He could see clearly as day how that mad math teacher would work Sa Bae-ja over next week.
‘All I have to do is watch the show and pocket the envelope. Heh heh.’
A world turning like perfectly meshed gears.
“Ahh…….”
Wang Jin-deok and Lee Jang-yong’s coarse hands groped at the two women.
The air in the room suddenly grew thick and hot.
* * *
In my past life, I learned one thing with absolute certainty.
Every legal problem that arises in the Republic of Korea has one answer: Jo & Jang.
Even the man who killed my father had Jo & Jang lawyers attached to him.
Expensive Jo & Jang lawyers—the kind no truck driver could ever afford.
Even then, I knew the Haroon Group stood behind the perpetrator.
But what difference did it make?
There was nothing I could do at the time.
My father was clearly the victim, yet no one defended him.
The prosecutors and judges who should have prioritized the victim were fumbling from the start against Jo & Jang’s lawyers.
A fatal accident caused by a signal violation!
What was clear was that the truck driver was a suspect under the Special Act on Traffic Accidents.
But thanks to Jo & Jang taking the lead, he was released on a suspended sentence in the second trial.
The deposit was a mere thirty million won.
A three-year sentence was handed down in the first trial.
But in the second trial, it was reduced to a suspended sentence.
The Supreme Court upheld it as though everything had been decided from the beginning.
I experienced Jo & Jang’s terror back then when I knew nothing.
The humiliation and shame of that time remain vivid in my memory.
This time, I won’t be the one suffering.
I came here to strike first.
What I can promise is a real war with the Haroon Group—one where blood will spill.
Starting with Jo & Jang, the very shield and spear of the Haroon Group…….
“How did you find us?”
I parked the car in the underground lot.
As soon as I stepped out onto the first floor, the reception desk staff confirmed the purpose of my visit.
A place with over a thousand lawyers alone.
Add patent attorneys and accountants, and the Jo & Jang Law Firm employed roughly four thousand staff in total.
What was unusual was that Jo & Jang wasn’t a legal entity.
Lead attorney Jang Mu-yeol and the associated lawyers were employed through contract arrangements.
When a specific problem arose, you just severed the connection to that case.
It was a structure that ensured perpetual profit.
They had built networks capable of controlling not just the Republic of Korea’s judicial system, but its administrative and legislative branches as well.
One must never make Jo & Jang an enemy.
In this life, partnership with them is essential.
I need Jo & Jang’s cooperation absolutely for the astronomical sums of revenue I’m anticipating and for safe financial management.
“I’d like to receive a Comprehensive Legal Service.”
“I’m sorry?”
At my mention of Comprehensive Legal Service despite appearing so young, the female employees present looked surprised.
“I’m thinking of roughly 1.2 billion won annually for the service fee.”
“……!!”
Annual service fees of 1.2 billion won.
Wide eyes were only natural.
It was hardly a small amount in revenue terms.
For a legal service fee rather than litigation retainer fees, it was a generous sum.
The kind of large amount you could charge mid-sized companies with solid foundations.
“Is that not possible? Then I’ll have to approach another firm…….”
“C-client! Please wait just a moment. Jo & Jang prides itself on providing the finest legal services in the Republic of Korea. Please, allow me to show you to our consultation room.”
The treatment changed immediately with the service fee amount.
The reception desk employee guided me with deference, her manner completely different from her initial gaze.
The instant shift in attitude confirmed what I already knew—Jo & Jang truly was something else.
There was nothing vulgar about it.
The woman promptly guided me to a consultation room on the first floor.
During that time, many employees came and went constantly.
The auras each employee radiated were distinctly different.
What was remarkable was how many of them gave off a surprisingly clear, clean light.
Of course, many others radiated muddier auras as well.
What caught my eye most was that tainted golden sheen with black undertones!
It appeared to be the light given off by those who had sold their conscience for money.
Once you joined Jo & Jang, remaining a lawyer of principle was virtually impossible.
Such was the fate of a lawyer bound to win at all costs for the powerful clients you served.
“Tsk.”
I clicked my tongue inwardly.
I entered one of several consultation rooms.
There were multiple rooms of the same design.
The level of client confidentiality appeared equally thorough.
The interior of the consultation room was soundproofed and quiet.
A clean glass desk and chairs, a vase with fresh flowers arranged in it.
A small refrigerator in the corner, a single painting on the wall—that was all the space contained.
“Before the attorney arrives, shall I prepare a beverage for you?”
“Bottled water, please.”
“Of course.”
The female employee set a bottle of bottled water and a glass on the desk.
What sat before me was French mineral water.
Glug, glug.
I poured the water into the glass.
I leaned back in my chair and stretched my legs comfortably.
Somehow, it felt as comfortable as my own home.
The ease that comes with a solid backing is brought entirely by money.
Even here at Jo & Jang, that power was unmistakably at work.
Here, I wasn’t the lesser party—I was the one in power.
Emotionless reason dominated my consciousness.
Jo & Jang was no pushover.
If not now, when they know almost nothing about me, it would be difficult to contract with them in the future.
I wasn’t entangled with the Haroon Group yet.
No incident, no agreement—nothing had happened.
Currently, the Haroon Group operated through its internal legal team.
Only after my father’s fatal accident did the truck driver case lead to their contract with Jo & Jang.
Knock, knock.
The door slid open.
About five minutes had passed.
Two people—a man and a woman—entered the consultation room with the knock.
“……!!”
A neatly dressed middle-aged man in a gray suit, followed closely by a woman.
I was momentarily startled when I saw her.
Found her!!
A woman radiating a clear, pure light.
She gave off a distinctly different aura than all the other Jo & Jang attorneys I’d glimpsed.
Joy naturally drew a smile across my lips.
This was the attorney I’d been hoping to find.
Her appearance was also quite fine.
Chestnut-brown wavy hair cascading past her shoulders.
A sharp nose bridge and clear skin—large silver-framed glasses suited her exceedingly well.
A slender frame dressed in checked gray slacks, perfectly complemented her form.
A harmonious appearance that commanded admiration.
“I’m Senior Attorney Kim Gyeong-min.”
“Ha Tae-woong.”
I accepted the card, but I had nothing to give in return.
“Hmm…….”
Attorney Kim Gyeong-min stared at me silently when no business card emerged from my side.
My youthful appearance seemed to trouble him slightly.
His wavering gaze suggested his mind was quite muddled.
He seemed uncertain whether I was a high-value client or simply eccentric.
I shifted my gaze toward the female attorney.
“I’m Attorney A Yu-ra.”
The long, pale hand extending the card was impressive.
“Client, regarding the service you desire…….”
“I see—this isn’t a litigation matter then.”
“No, not yet.”
“……??”
Of course, Attorney Kim Gyeong-min knew nothing.
Nothing about what would unfold after I signed with them today.
They would soon find themselves mired in a vast, deep quagmire of litigation.
I clasped my hands together.
I added a meaningful smile to my lips.
“I’m requesting comprehensive legal services covering all matters related to myself and my direct family members. The contract term is a minimum of ten years. The annual payment is 1.2 billion won—one hundred million per month. For any litigation or other legal matters, I’ll pay additional fees per case.”
These were remarkably generous terms.
The stunned expressions on both faces proved it.
“However…….”
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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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