Chapter 06

The Scheme

In the uncomfortable silence between the husband and wife, a knock sounded at the door.

“Come in!”

The door swung open, and as soon as Chief Choi entered, Dongwan turned toward him as though he had been waiting impatiently for his arrival.

“What happened?”

“The PR team is doing everything it can to contain the situation, but it looks like we won’t be able to stop all the articles from coming out.”

“What?”

“On top of that, we’ve been receiving a lot of inquiries regarding the termination of our exclusive contract with Do Dahee, our brand ambassador.”

“We’ll deal with that contract later. First, stop every single article about Geonwoo!”

Chief Choi looked troubled as he replied, “The news has already spread too far, so I don’t think that will be easy. Furthermore, media outlets have been flooding us with requests for interviews with the young master…”

“Interviews? What the hell are you talking about now?”

“Both reporters and the public seem to be focusing most of their attention on the young master.”

“Unbelievable…! Sigh. Has the younger one left the country yet?”

“No. The young master didn’t board the plane. Apparently, he’s currently being questioned by the police.”

“What? Questioned by the police?”

“Yes. That’s why Vice President Hyunwoo went straight to the police station himself, accompanied by Attorney Song.”

At those words, Lee Myunghee was utterly horrified.

Hyunwoo rushing over there was already a problem, but he had even taken a lawyer from the company’s legal team to the police station!

Wasn’t that practically the same as publicly announcing that Jang Geonwoo was the chairman of Taesan Corporation’s son?

“Hyunwoo, that little brat! How many times have I warned him about this?!”

Why was he so determined to look after that Jang Geonwoo bastard? What if he ended up losing his share of Taesan because of him?

Because of her son, who doted on his half-brother despite their different mothers, Lee Myunghee pressed a hand to her forehead.

“Tell Attorney Song this: No matter what happens, he must handle this matter as quietly as possible. And make sure the media can’t blow it up any further!”

Yet even as Jang Dongwan shouted his orders, breaking news reports continued to pour in.

— Public Attention Turns to Chaebol Family’s Youngest Son, Who Saved Do Dahee When She Was on the Brink!

— Taesan Family’s Second Son Returns to Korea After Twenty Years! Will the Succession Battle Take a New Turn?

— Jang Geonwoo, Second Son of Taesan Corporation’s Chairman—Who Is He?

— Hero Who Saved Do Dahee Turns Out to Be a Doctor Who Graduated at the Top of His Class from J Medical School, America’s Most Prestigious Medical School!

The existence of Jang Geonwoo, the illegitimate son whom Chairman Jang of Taesan Corporation had desperately wanted to keep hidden, was now exposed to the entire world, accompanied by a dazzling array of headlines and flattering descriptions.

The police station was in utter chaos, with people shouting from every direction.

Sitting across a desk from a detective, Geonwoo wore an expression of complete indifference.

“This backpack belongs to you, correct?”

“Yes, that’s right.”

After being asked to come to the station with them so they could provide him with a change of clothes, Geonwoo had followed without complaint. When the detective in charge brought over his backpack, he nodded.

“I was just about to go looking for it. Thanks for finding it. Well, I’ll be on my way, then.”

“Hold on. We haven’t finished questioning you yet.”

“Questioning me?”

“We found some suspicious items in your backpack.”

Geonwoo frowned at the detective’s refusal to return his bag without further explanation.

Meanwhile, the detective began laying out the contents of the backpack on the table, one item at a time.

Sunglasses, a mask, leather gloves, tape, a compass, a mini flashlight, a multi-tool knife, a collapsible three-section baton, a grappling hook—and the most conspicuous item of all was a pill organizer containing several different kinds of tablets.

Individually, none of these items was particularly strange. They were all fairly common objects. However, laid out together like this, they certainly looked suspicious enough to raise questions about whether an ordinary person would carry them around.

“Do all of these belong to you?”

“Yes, they’re all mine. Is there a problem?”

“Actually, we’ve been seeing a surge in crimes lately, including stalking and random attacks on strangers. We’re checking things as a precaution.”

Come to think of it, the detective had been acting a little strangely toward him.

Just as Geonwoo was beginning to feel irritated, a familiar voice called out.

“Jang Geonwoo!”

When he turned around, he saw Jang Hyunwoo standing there. He had brought quite a few people with him, including his new bride, Kim Luna, a lawyer, and several bodyguards.

“What the hell, hyung? How did you know I was here?”

“As soon as I saw the news, I went to the hospital. They told me you’d left with a detective, so I followed you here. Are you okay? I heard you jumped into the river. You’re not hurt, are you?”

Geonwoo shrugged as though it were nothing.

Over the years, he had faced dozens of life-threatening situations on battlefields far more dangerous than this one. He had nearly died more times than he could count.

And yet, realizing that someone had rushed over simply because they were worried about his safety felt strangely moving.

“I’m fine. But why did you bring her along?”

He was referring to Luna, who stood behind Hyunwoo, looking at him with obvious concern.

She immediately bristled and shouted, “Hey! I came because I was worried about you! Do you think I wanted to come here? I only followed Oppa because he was coming!”

“Just like always, still following your big brother around everywhere.”

“Hey! If you’re jealous, just say so. Where there’s a needle, there’s thread. Of course, I’m going to follow him!”

“Luna, don’t call Geonwoo ‘hey.’ You need to address him properly now. If you act like this in front of the elders, we’ll both get scolded.”

“But, Hyunwoo Oppa, it feels so awkward to call him Young Master…”

“Trust me, it feels just as awkward for me, sister-in-law.”

At Geonwoo’s teasing tone, Luna looked ready to fire back another retort, but she caught Hyunwoo’s warning glance and obediently shut her mouth.

While the two of them bickered, the lawyer took out a business card and handed it to the detective.

“I’m here on behalf of Taesan Corporation’s legal team.”

The moment he heard the name Taesan Corporation, the detective’s attitude changed dramatically.

“Young Master, you may leave now. We’ll take care of everything here.”

“Can I take my backpack now, then?”

“Oh, yes, of course. P-please, go ahead.”

Geonwoo roughly brushed his still-damp hair back and picked up his backpack.

“What’s the big deal? Why bring the company’s entire legal team along? Father’s going to have a heart attack if he finds out.”

“More importantly, do you know who the person you saved is?”

“More or less. I heard she’s a famous celebrity.”

“Famous doesn’t even begin to cover it. She’s a global star. She’s also the exclusive model for our company.”

Geonwoo had already learned her name and recognized her face from a pamphlet. Remembering Do Dahee’s face as she had lain on the verge of death, he nodded indifferently.

“You probably haven’t checked yet since you don’t have a phone, but your name is plastered all over the internet. You’ve even made it onto the TV news.”

“Why?”

“Why do you think? A member of a chaebol family saving a top star instead of an ordinary citizen is bound to make headlines.”

“I never told anyone about my background.”

“Apparently, a reporter who went to the hospital got your name from the police.”

Frowning, Geonwoo shot a glance at the detective. Seeing how the man was avoiding his eyes, he immediately figured out who had leaked his personal information.

“You know how scary reporters and internet users can be these days. Once someone catches their attention, digging up their personal information is a piece of cake.”

“Does Father know, too?”

“He probably already does. Anyway, let’s go home. You must have missed your flight by now.”

“I’m not sure going home is such a good idea.”

“There are too many eyes on you right now. Reporters are swarming outside, too. Come with us.”

With a sigh, Geonwoo had no choice but to follow Hyunwoo and the others.

The VIP ward at H Hospital was under extremely tight security, with access strictly restricted.

The actress Yoo Mina, who had recently caused a nationwide stir with her suicide attempt, was being hospitalized there.

According to media reports, she had been unconscious for several days, lying in a coma with no telling when she might wake up.

However, inside the hospital room, Yoo Mina was sitting upright in bed, looking perfectly healthy.

She casually tossed aside the magazine she had been flipping through, apparently bored with it.

“How much longer do I have to stay cooped up in here?”

“I told you already. Just put up with it for a month.”

The man who replied in a disinterested tone was Han Junsang.

He was the manager who had personally discovered Do Dahee years ago and was now the CEO of the agency to which Yoo Mina belonged.

Han Junsang was notorious in the entertainment industry for his nasty personality. The reason he had managed to stay in the business for so long was largely because people saw him as the man who had discovered Do Dahee and made her a star.

Of course, that image had taken shape because he was constantly boasting that he was the one who had raised Do Dahee to fame.

However, by the time Dahee had become a top star, her agency had accumulated far too many problems. Scandals involving the company’s CEO embezzling money, managers abusing their authority, and unfair contracts kept erupting one after another. Naturally, these controversies also damaged the public image of the agency’s artists.

In the end, Do Dahee refused to renew her contract with the agency. Instead, she joined a newly established company founded by a former manager who had left the old agency.

Han Junsang had naturally assumed that Dahee would stay by his side until the very end. When she left, he felt as though she had stabbed him in the back.

From that moment on, he began to hate Do Dahee for betraying him and walking away.

But after switching agencies, Dahee’s career soared to even greater heights. Meanwhile, the other artists Han Junsang had nurtured failed to achieve any notable success and quietly faded into obscurity.

Preventing Do Dahee, who was thriving so brilliantly, from advancing any further had eventually become his obsession.

With that goal in mind, Han Junsang took Yoo Mina under his wing. Mina had once been positioned as Dahee’s rival in the entertainment industry.

Her supposed suicide attempt and the fake suicide note had both been schemes devised entirely by him.

“CEO, I… I’ll really be okay, right?”

“Of course. I told you to trust me, didn’t I?”

“You promised. I absolutely want to be the lead actress in my next project.”

“I told you, I know! Just wait and see. Once Do Dahee has fallen so far that she disappears from the industry altogether, you can take her place. Dramas, movies, commercials—Mina, I’ll make sure you get everything you want!”

As the man made one grand promise after another, Yoo Mina quietly clenched both hands into fists.