The Regressed Chaebol Grandson Finds It Hard to Forgive - Chapter 69

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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 69. The Crown Prince (8)

“What happened at school today?”

Ilseong RF Villa in Daechi-dong, a ten-minute walk from Cheonghwa High School.

Go Mi-hee, his mother, who had once lived in Ilseong’s Itaewon Town but moved here for the sake of her only son.

She paused mid-peel of a thick apple.
Noticing something odd in her son’s expression, she asked carefully.

She had lost her husband to death when her son was young.

Her husband, Kang Jae-yun, had passed away in a traffic accident abroad during a business trip.

When their paths crossed, his career had taken an impossibly steep upward trajectory.

But in the end, that connection had become the reason for his death.

Had her young son not existed then, she might have given up on life altogether.

Go Mi-hee had moved to Daechi-dong, keeping her distance from her family for the sake of her son’s future.

Outwardly, she was the matriarch of Ilseong Hotel, but at home she was simply an ordinary parent of a third-year high school student.

“…… Aren’t you asking because you already know?”

Her son countered, biting into a slice of apple.

Before he entered his teens, the two of them had been much closer than they were now.

As time passed, her son had grown more reliable.

It was perhaps natural that Go Mi-hee, being alone, depended on him greatly.

Beneath his taciturn exterior, her son was deeply sensitive.

The influence of Ilseong’s family culture simply made him speak little.

His mother, Go Mi-hee, knew his nature very well.

“So that’s why I’m asking. He’s from Ha Ryun Group?”
“That’s what people are saying…… And it seems to be true.”
“It seems to be true?”
“Just a feeling.”
“Hmm…….”

Her son, whose instincts had been sharp since childhood.

Go Mi-hee’s brow furrowed slightly at his words.

Born into the Ilseong family with a silver spoon, she had grown up like a princess.

She had received the overflowing love of her late father, a man whom people around her had feared.

During his lifetime, when someone mentioned Go Geon-hyo of Ilseong, no one could even meet his gaze.

Yet toward his daughters, he had been infinitely tender and warm.

He had put her brother Go Jun-yong through strict business training to build his abilities, but she was an exception.

He had handed the hotel over to her early as her portion.

Ilseong Group operated on the principle of son succession.

No matter how talented the daughters were, they could not pass the Go family name to their children.

Fate had been cruel to Go Mi-hee, who had forsaken that in favor of love.

After losing her husband in a foreign land, her son had become everything to her.

And so she had never wanted to trouble him in any way.

“Don’t worry. I’m not easily shaken by such things.”

Her son, Kang Jun-woo, set down his fork and looked at Go Mi-hee.
His gaze had hardened further.

At the depth in his eyes, Go Mi-hee felt reassured at last.

“Mother.”
“What? Would you like more?”
“No. I’m curious about something.”
“About what?”
“Even if Ha Ryun Group has a cold educational philosophy…… is it really possible to enroll a grandson as an Outcast?”
“…….”

Go Mi-hee said nothing more.

She, too, had received information quickly from the school.

There were more than one or two people acting as her information sources.

Everything took priority when it concerned her son Jun-woo.

“Is there something I don’t know?”

Sharp-witted Kang Jun-woo stared intently at the silent Go Mi-hee.

“That Outcast student’s father is Ha Dong-hwi.”
“So he’s from Ha Ryun Group?”
“Yes, but…… he was expelled a long time ago.”
“What??”

Kang Jun-woo was taken aback.
Ordinarily, he took little interest in matters outside of his studies.

His mother, Go Mi-hee, rarely brought up business-related matters beyond his academics.

“Chairman Ha Cheol-gon earned the nickname ‘The Ruthless Tyrant.’ He expelled Ha Dong-hwi for refusing to follow his orders.”
“I see…….”

The heartless world of the chaebol families.

Kang Jun-woo thought to himself.
When he was young, he had often played nestled in his grandfather’s arms.

Yet those around him had feared his grandfather more than they feared a tiger.

That was the position of a chaebol patriarch.

Men of ice who ruthlessly excised emotion for money and power, even casting out blood relatives.

“Don’t get too involved in that matter. Soon…… Ha Ryun will make a move.”
“……Understood.”

A bitter taste suddenly flooded Kang Jun-woo’s mouth.

The Outcast, Ha Tae-ung, who had not answered his summons.

They had never met face-to-face, but his audacity had impressed him.

Throughout his formative years, nearly everyone had simply watched his every move.

Always lonely amid invisible admirers, Kang Jun-woo had never met his equal.

The one and only person who had elegantly refused his command.

It was for this reason that he had come to regard Ha Tae-ung as a worthy junior.

“I’m heading to the academy.”

Kang Jun-woo rose from his seat.

“All right…….”

As her dependable son turned away, Go Mi-hee felt as though she had placed a great burden on his shoulders.

‘I’m sorry…… Mother is.’

A burden she could not tell him to set down—Ilseong itself.

As long as her son Jun-woo lived as a citizen of South Korea, it was a burden he must bear.

His life, too, was no different from that of a star.

* * *

—Thump-thump, boom boom-thump~♬

Deep jazz bass laid down the foundation.

Jazz centered on the bass, that muscular chord-keeper and conductor of rhythm.

Piano, drums, and saxophone wove their harmonies into the warm sound.

‘There’s a place like this?’

A-yu-ra, who had spent her university years and lawyer’s career in the Seoul metropolitan area.

Since joining Choen & Jang, she had visited nearly every upscale establishment worth knowing.

Which meant satisfying the tastes of senior attorneys was notoriously difficult.

Most client meetings took place at well-known hotspots in Gangnam.
Yet even A-yu-ra had never been to this whiskey bar before.

It was located in the basement of a building in a back alley of Cheongdam-dong.

The sign at the entrance was not particularly conspicuous.

Normally it was the kind of place you’d walk right past if you weren’t paying attention.

The signage read J&W.

The interior was dimly lit throughout.
It felt like stepping into a secret room.

Dark brown sofas nearly black, recessed halogen lights in a wooden-paneled ceiling, and a subtly glowing chandelier.

The low overall lighting was striking.

The bartender stood out too.

An elderly gentleman with a smartly groomed mustache, dressed in a crisp shirt and bow tie, attended to customers.

He gave a light nod of acknowledgment as A-yu-ra stepped inside.

A-yu-ra responded naturally by lowering her head slightly.

Photographs of great jazz musicians decorated all four walls.

From the museum-quality care evident in the display, one could glimpse the proprietor’s genuine passion for jazz.

‘Not yet?’

After receiving the phone call, A-yu-ra’s mind was busy.

The sudden late-night meeting request had caught her off guard.

Her phone had rung just as she arrived at her Officetel after a late evening at work.

Today, attorney Kim Gyeong-min had left early for a personal matter at home.

At Choen & Jang, where results spoke for themselves, punctual arrivals and departures held little significance.

Drowning in minor tasks on her way home, A-yu-ra’s heart had raced wildly the moment she answered Ha Tae-ung’s direct call.

Though he was younger than she, he was far from being a naive youth.

The charisma of a confident man that he had radiated from the podium of the Grand Auditorium at Cheonghwa High School—where only wealthy students studied—lingered in her mind.

After that moment, the students had treated him as their Crown Prince.

Clack-clack.

The Officetel, close to the firm.

She hurried inside and changed out of her work clothes.

She chose a Double Trench Long One-piece Dress—fresh and distinctly feminine, perfectly suited to her pretty heels.

It was a luxury piece she had set aside specifically for a friend’s wedding several weeks away.

She had been saving it carefully for that occasion.
But now the urge to wear it felt irresistible.

A dress code that would not be tolerated at Choen & Jang’s offices.

She would have to endure unseen pressure from watchful eyes.

The interior of Choen & Jang was a twenty-four-hour battlefield, minus the guns and swords.

One noticeable misstep in appearance, regardless of competence, meant elimination.

Smooth as silk.

“Is this your first visit?”
“Yes? Yes…….”
“Thank you for finding us. Tonight, my eyes are well-treated.”

In the quiet atmosphere, the jazz melody eased A-yu-ra’s tension.

Though legally an adult, he was still enrolled in high school.

“……??”

Following the bartender’s gaze, A-yu-ra turned toward the entrance.

“……!!”

Her half-turned body froze mid-motion.

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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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