To My Brother’s Friend - Chapter 67

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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 67
“Mother, this is Lee Yoon-ho, the representative of Uno Holdings I mentioned to you before.”
At Kim Jung-yeon’s introduction, a man of visibly poor quality bowed with an ingratiating smile.
“How do you do, Director! I’m Lee Yoon-ho, and I’ve always admired and respected you. My, seeing you in person, you’re truly beautiful. If you hadn’t mentioned it, I might have been so bold as to overstep and wonder if I could take your lover’s place, haha!”
Though his designer clothes gleamed with polish, his vulgar gaze and cheap manner of speaking could not be concealed.
Yet this was hardly Jin Seo-ryeong’s first encounter with men of this ilk.
As Hee-jo’s absence began to be filled by Kim Jung-yeon, her surroundings had gradually attracted these self-styled “entrepreneurs”—moths drawn to flame.
“I heard you met that Representative Kim fellow first last time? When I heard that, I couldn’t sleep. How dare he approach you with such petty business ventures—I was absolutely furious.”
“…Yes, hehe.”
Jin Seo-ryeong lifted her teacup with grace, though a peculiar weariness had settled around her eyes.
Ever since Hee-jo had abruptly stepped down from the Vice Director position and disappeared.
After the initial bewilderment, Jin Seo-ryeong had taken Kim Jung-yeon under her wing with relief.
The chaos caused by the woman claiming to be Hee-jo’s biological mother had never leaked outside, and that was entirely Kim Jung-yeon’s doing.
Thanks to Kim Jung-yeon’s swift action in silencing the situation and managing the aftermath, Jin Seo-ryeong’s dignity had been preserved.
From that day forward, Jin Seo-ryeong’s trust in Kim Jung-yeon had deepened to the point of blindness.
But joy was short-lived.
At first, she had moved like a shadow, carefully catering to Jin Seo-ryeong’s preferences, but once she had secured her position, Kim Jung-yeon gradually began to reveal her true nature.
When I heard whispers from those around me that Jung-yeon was selfish and cunning, I dismissed it as mere jealous complaints.
She had always been nothing but courteous and affectionate in my presence.
Yet Kim Jung-yeon, who had insinuated herself into my daily life with the warmth of family, soon began orchestrating gatherings like today’s.
“By the way, my mother and my uncle also expressed a desire to meet you.”
“…Me?”
“Yes. Since you have such deep knowledge of the arts, they wondered if you might help in discovering and supporting the talents of underprivileged children.”
It was a polished package, but ultimately a request to become a source of funding.
“At that time, I was thinking of listing Beomho under the sponsors’ names. Would that be alright?”
“That seems difficult. You’re still—”
“Why not? It raises our image and provides publicity. A mistress of the house with refinement and artistic sensibility—it’s perfect, isn’t it? Besides, I’ve already mentioned it to everyone.”
An arrogant attitude that demanded I clean up what she had already said.
For some time now, not only Kim Jung-yeon but her entire family had begun peddling the Beomho name everywhere as if they were in-laws of the Beomho Group, aggressively expanding their business ventures.
Smooth-talking investment specialists, relatives with no substance, and an endless stream of requests for favors.
‘…At least that child never dragged such vulgar people before me.’
Jin Seo-ryeong felt the back of her neck stiffen as she forced a smile.
Seeing Representative Lee Yoon-ho behind Kim Jung-yeon, his vulgar gaze fixed upon her, a burning heat rose from deep within.
It was not only Kim Jung-yeon who tormented Jin Seo-ryeong.
The greatest problem was that her son, Kwon Yeol, had not been coming to the company.
The eldest son, who had declared on the very day Hee-jo disappeared that he would withdraw from all business affairs, had—true to his nature of always keeping his word—not set foot in the company even once since then.
As a result, it was the employees and Jin Seo-ryeong who were dying from the strain.
I felt acutely how immense the tasks were that Kwon Yeol had been commanding with his unparalleled ability and speed.
His absence had become a gaping void, slowly bringing the group to its knees.
Jae-yeol and another, forcibly deployed in his brother’s stead, were barely visible these days. The only place I could see their faces was in Chairman Beom’s study.
Jin Seo-ryeong recalled the voices of her sons filtering through the crack of the open door.
“Grandfather, you know how it is. Please tell us where Sister-in-law is. We’re dying here. Do you have any idea how bleak the atmosphere at the company has become? We’re drowning in work, but with no decision-maker, everyone’s just tiptoeing around….”
“I agree with Jae-yeol. We can’t handle this. Just recently, both Metro Fund and Goldman Global officially notified us that without Kwon Yeol, it’s difficult to continue the contracts. They said businesses that don’t have his personal credibility backing them carry too much risk.”
Jae-yeol, who had been summoned to the Family Home from the Scholarship Foundation, and even the second son, who rarely spoke up, were unusually voicing their concerns.
While the Headquarters felt Kwon Yeol’s absence keenly, the Cultural Foundation was experiencing Hee-jo’s absence acutely.
When Hee-jo—who had quietly managed the foundation’s complex accounting and catered to the temperamental whims of the prominent society wives—disappeared, the foundation fell into crisis.
“Director, this approval needs to be expedited. The partner companies are flooding us with complaints.”
“You want me to handle this too? Can’t the staff handle it on their own?”
“Originally, the Vice Director managed everything from the preliminary investigation to vendor meetings. Without the Vice Director, you’re the final decision-maker, Director… We can’t proceed arbitrarily.”
“Director, I just received word from the Han Young Foundation that they’re canceling their donation pledge. They said they can’t trust the foundation’s transparency without Yoon, the former Vice Director….”
Hee-jo had somehow earned the deep trust of those demanding society matrons and political figures.
She always seemed to be quietly at my side, but when exactly had she built such connections?
Yes, the girl was quiet and not particularly entertaining, but her work was flawless.
She moved silently and efficiently, arranging everything so perfectly that I never had to worry about a thing.
“Madam, an acquaintance has stopped by nearby. Would it be alright to have her come for a moment? I’m certain it will be helpful to you.”
Kim Jung-yeon’s excited voice rang out loudly.
But there was also the matter of covering up Hee-jo’s biological mother’s intrusion, and more importantly, there was the promise that if Kwon Yeol married, Sayoung Group would invest core shares and substantial business lines—something that couldn’t be easily dismissed.
Jin Seo-ryeong forced her twitching lips upward into a nod while thinking to herself.
‘Things were better when Hee-jo was here….’
* * *
Beom Hun-young shared the same deep regret.
As the eldest grandson he had trusted and relied upon, his absence was far too great.
“Things seemed better when he was here.”
When Kwon Yeol stepped away, circumstances unfolded in unexpected directions.
Kwon Yeol’s absence was not merely an operational void.
The perfect system he had built and the overseas networks he had established could not function properly without “Beom Gwon-yeol” as their central axis.
“We can find a replacement easily enough, but there’s no one who can command the board as perfectly as he does. And he’s my direct grandson at that. The other two have ability, but they’re not suited for management….”
As Chairman Beom spoke his rare words of weakness and regret, Seok Ki-young bowed his head silently.
He harbored the same thoughts.
In fact, everyone in the Beom Residence likely felt the same way.
Hee-jo had always treated even the household staff with kindness and courtesy.
When she was here, there was a subtle warmth that permeated the house, but now there was none.
The moment his wife disappeared, Kwon Yeol’s eyes turned cold, and the household walked on thin ice every day, watching his mood.
“The daughter-in-law met with some unsavory characters again, I hear.”
“Yes, through an introduction from Kim Jung-yeon….”
“Their family is declining, so they’re desperate to entangle themselves with Beomho however they can.”
Sayoung’s prestige and political connections had sufficient utility.
Particularly, they were the only family with the legitimacy that Beomho desperately sought, and a daughter of marriageable age suited to Kwon Yeol.
He had thought that if their prestige were combined with Beomho’s assets, it would create a perfect union.
But when the carefully wrapped packaging was peeled away, Sayoung proved to be far more deeply rotten than anticipated.
He had concealed his corruption through dense networks of political connections, but now he had reached a point where even that filth could no longer be hidden.
As reckless overseas resort development projects collapsed one after another, critical warning lights flashed across his liquidity situation.
The losses were staggering—particularly those stemming from Jung-yeon’s extravagance and failed investments, as his only daughter.
Though he had managed to cover things up reasonably well, it had not escaped Chairman Beom’s discerning eye.
“You seem to be concealing it adequately, but at this rate, collapse is merely a matter of time.”
Was there any value in Sayoung Group worth pouring vast sums of money into to salvage?
No matter how he examined it, it was like pouring water into a bottomless vessel.
Instead, it would be far more profitable for the Group—dozens of times over—if Kwon Yeol returned and resumed the stalled Global Infrastructure Project, restoring the fractured partnerships.
“Summon Kwon Yeol. I’ll tell you where he is. Have him return at once.”

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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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