APOS 04

Chapter 04

A cold sneer formed at the corner of Kang-hyun’s lips.

“You’re planning a celebration when it hasn’t even been two months since my brother’s funeral?”

“If there’s a tragedy in the group, of course we have to cover it up with a happy occasion.”

“…….”

“There’s still a lot of talk among the board members about your brother’s suicide.”

At home, they had disguised Kang-seok’s suicide as an accidental death and held only a private family funeral. They had also made sure to silence everyone so the truth would not leak outside the company.

But there was no such thing as a perfect secret.

Apparently, there was quite a bit of talk among the board members about Kang-seok’s sudden death.

And they intended to cover all of that with news of his marriage.

Unreasonable. The uncompromising monster of Shinsung.

The man who had driven his own eldest grandson into hell simply because he was the eldest and failed to meet his standards.

Kang-hyun instinctively realized that the arrows had now been turned toward him.

But did they really think he would obediently follow orders like his brother?

“They say that ‘that’ is the source of a man’s life. Oppa lost that because of me, so I think it’s only right that I take responsibility.”

But why?

At this very moment, when he needed to escape this crisis, why did Seo-bin’s voice come to mind?

“The spy you planted in America must have reported something like this.”

Tae-yong raised one eyebrow crookedly, his eyes asking what he meant.

“That they never saw me dating any women in America.”

“That’s because there probably wasn’t a woman who met your standards. So this grandfather was going to find a suitable young lady at your level—”

“No. There’s something wrong with this.”

Kang-hyun slowly smiled, briefly lowering his gaze before raising it again.

Tae-yong’s eyes began to waver.

“What do you mean by that…?”

“Your grandson is impotent, Grandfather.”

The atmosphere in the house instantly turned ice-cold, as though someone had poured cold water over everyone.

Perhaps wanting to hide how flustered he was, Tae-yong stood up furiously.

“You rotten little bastard…! Of all the excuses you could make, you chose something so disgusting?!”

Tae-yong hurried toward the exit, but Kang-hyun easily followed him.

“It’s not an excuse. It’s the truth. So what are you going to do now?”

Tae-yong eventually turned around, his face bright red, and shouted,

“You little—!”

At that moment, Ji-seon suddenly pulled Kang-hyun’s arm backward, creating an opening, then stepped between him and Tae-yong.

“Father.”

“Move!”

“I’ll talk to Kang-hyun. Please calm down and go.”

Ji-seon turned her head and warned Kang-hyun this time.

“And you, Kang-hyun, stop being so disrespectful. If you go any further, Mom won’t let it slide.”

At her intervention, Tae-yong pretended to give in and quickly left.

As soon as the sound of Tae-yong leaving through the front door and closing it was heard, Ji-seon collapsed into a seat.

“Mother.”

Kang-hyun quickly bent down on one knee to check on her.

Ji-seon squeezed her eyes shut, then opened them and looked at Kang-hyun with an unsteady voice.

“……It’s not true, right?”

“…….”

“It… it can’t be. Why would my son…? Ah… There’s no way I could have lived all this time without knowing something like that….”

“…….”

“Did I… pay so much attention to Kang-seok… that I neglected our Kang-hyun too much? If that’s the case, I’m a terrible mother. What am I supposed to do, Kang-hyun? No… my son…”

Kang-hyun’s heart grew heavy.

The despair on her face and her rambling words clearly revealed what she was really thinking.

Anyone in the Shinsung family who could not continue the family line would quickly be pushed out of the succession race.

More importantly, Kang-hyun was a leading candidate for succession who had the chairman’s expectations. If this news spread, everyone would immediately pounce on him and tear him apart.

And the moment his grandfather’s expectations turned into hatred, the express highway laid out before him would undoubtedly be cut off.

Her concern for her son’s safety in such a situation was heartbreaking.

“Mother.”

Kang-hyun was about to continue, but firmly closed his mouth again.

He wanted to tell her it wasn’t true, but if you wanted to deceive your enemies, you had to deceive your allies as well.

And although he had gotten the idea from Seo-bin’s actions, he was rather proud of himself for choosing the most unacceptable reason possible within the conservative, reproduction-obsessed conglomerate known as Shinsung Group.

That was why his grandfather had been so flustered when he left.

“Say something, Kang-hyun.”

Kang-hyun answered with a faint smile.

“I’m sorry. But, Mother, your son won’t be cast aside just because he can’t have children.”

“I know. I know that, son.”

“Yes, I know exactly what you’re going to say and what you’re worried about. But, Mother.”

When Ji-seon looked at Kang-hyun with dejected eyes, he gently took her arm and helped her stand.

“There’s no one in Shinsung who is smarter than me. That means no one can hurt me. I’ll be on their board.”

She still looked as though she had something to say, but perhaps the shock had been too great. She tightly pressed her lips together and went into her room.

That night, at a lounge in Apgujeong.

As Kang-hyun followed an employee through the crowd toward a private area, a deep crease formed between his brows.

Why did this bastard want to meet in such a messy and noisy place?

Then again, Do-jun had always liked loud and flashy places.

He didn’t share Do-jun’s taste for entertainment, but Do-jun was the only friend he had kept by his side for such a long time, despite normally being reluctant to let people get close to him. He could make this much of a concession.

He and Do-jun had attended the same science high school. Even after rumors spread that Kang-hyun was the chairman of Shinsung Group’s grandson, Do-jun was the only friend who treated him without prejudice.

Even at a young age, Kang-hyun had known that everyone who approached him had their own motives. So he naturally opened his heart to Do-jun, who saw him simply as ‘Cha Kang-hyun.’

That was why they had remained close and comfortable with each other even after becoming adults.

Creak—

In the meantime, they reached the door.

The guard checked Kang-hyun’s identity before opening it.

A luxurious party hall unfolded before him, with an atmosphere completely different from the chaotic lower floor.

People who had already settled at stand-up tables spaced far apart were drinking and chatting.

And everyone’s attention turned toward Kang-hyun as he entered the room.

But Kang-hyun’s gaze was fixed on only one person.

Lee Do-jun, sitting by the window and enthusiastically waving his arm at him.

As Kang-hyun approached Do-jun’s table, Do-jun greeted him excitedly.

“Damn, America treated you pretty damn well, huh?! You got even more handsome. It’s pissing me off!”

Kang-hyun ignored the compliment and sat down.

He poured whiskey into the bowl-shaped glass right in front of him and raised it.

Not wanting to lose, Do-jun raised his own glass for a self-service toast and drank first.

Kang-hyun gave a disbelieving chuckle and took a sip.

Once the whiskey had softened his mouth, he got straight to the point.

“What’s with Seo-bin?”

“What do you mean, what’s with her? She’s the only princess in our family.”

“Yeah. Your family’s princess. Looks like you don’t know what that princess is thinking.”

“Huh?”

Do-jun waved his hand in the air with a laugh.

“I know everything about our Seo-bin. She’s practically in the palm of my hand. Anyway, how is our princess? While you were in America, she kept asking about you every now and then whenever she remembered. What do you think? She’s gotten really pretty, hasn’t she?”

“Yeah. She’s pretty. Pretty enough that I’d want to try living with her.”

Do-jun’s expression froze.

“What…?”

“Didn’t hear me? Want me to say it again?”

“No, I… heard you. Don’t say it again.”

Do-jun drained his drink as if he didn’t want to hear it twice.

But Do-jun was also the one who broke the brief silence.

“By the way, did Seo-bin properly apologize for what happened that day? She even asked me to arrange a meeting. She’s such a good girl.”

“Yeah, she apologized.”

“And you accepted it?”

“Of course I did. She seemed to have worked really hard for my sake.”

“Of course, of course.”