Former Mastermind To Chaebol Son-in-Law

Chapter 36

Is That Even Possible?

In-hyuk carefully approached Van Hester, who was still eating cookies.

"... Are you really okay?"

"They're delicious."

Seeing the sincerity on his face, In-hyuk couldn't find anything else to say.

"..."

In the meantime, Go Mi-ah finished her work and turned around.

"The program is all set. Now, you don't have to worry about wiretapping or tracking. If you happen to lose your phone, let me know immediately. I'll wipe the system remotely, so... hm?"

As she continued her explanation, her eyes met Van Hester's, who was still munching on cookies.

"Ah... Sorry. I'm a little hungry. (미안. 조금 출출해서.)"

"Does it suit your taste?"

"Good."

"This is the first time I've made white chocolate fruit cookies, and they turned out to be a huge success."

At that moment, both In-hyuk and Hong Yu-geon were taken aback.

The cookies were pitch black with no sign of white at all.

'What was she thinking, putting fruit in chocolate...? And that guy, eating those and saying they're delicious... Unbelievable.'

In-hyuk quietly asked Hong Yu-geon,

"About Van... is his tongue a little strange or something?"

"He can eat things that taste terrible without any reaction, but... I didn't know it was this bad."

Originally, In-hyuk was acquainted with these two in the future.

However, they had only met in professional settings and never shared a meal together, so he had no idea.

Go Mi-ah was now offering another cookie to Van Hester, who was eating well.

Its name was the Rainbow Cookie.

The red, orange, yellow, green, blue, and purple were obvious. He couldn't imagine what was in it...

"Oh, by the way, old man Norman is gathering up entertainment shares as investment conditions these days. Do you know why?"

She was referring to Norman McGrath.

Go Mi-ah looked genuinely puzzled, since In-hyuk would normally only move through AMK Partners to pursue high profits.

But this time, the investment was in the entertainment sector, where significant returns could not be expected any time soon.

Moreover, the bulk of the companies involved had yet-to-be-famous entertainers, making it hard to expect big success.

"Literally, investment."

"Even so, there are too many small entertainment companies in there—the range is too wide. You're not just going for quantity, hoping that even one will make it big, are you?"

"Why? Can't I?"

When In-hyuk replied shamelessly, Go Mi-ah sighed.

"Haa! You might be experienced in dealing with ordinary companies, oppa, but entertainment is different. Wouldn't it be better to just invest in Blue Wing Entertainment, where our DDS is? The company's on the verge of going public."

"Don't try to drag me into your obsession. And haven't you already invested there? I heard there's been an anonymous flood of gifts for DDS's recent activities."

At that, Go Mi-ah averted her gaze as if feeling guilty about something.

"Um... Was it? But that won't cause any problems, right?"

"If I were you... instead of the company, wouldn't it be better to invest in dramas or films starring Ha Eun-ho, who you're so obsessed with?"

"Movie? Our Eun-ho? He's busy enough as a singer—what movie?"

"You never know."

He answered deliberately vaguely.

"Oh, come on! That's nonsense."

Then In-hyuk turned to Hong Yu-geon.

"From now on, if you only communicate through that, things will go more smoothly. Like I emphasized before, make sure never to reveal your identity. And if it gets dangerous, back off, no matter what."

"You don't have to worry about that."

With that, their conversation drew to a temporary close.

* * *

Late at night, in the suite located on the security floor of the Fasiz Hotel.

Baek Ji-woong, chairman of the WISE&WIRE Group, was sitting on a sofa, checking something with a grave expression.

A few moments later, the door opened, and Baek Si-hwan walked silently to stand before him.

"Chairman. As you urgently instructed, I have postponed resigning from the Taeshin Group Security Team."

"Were there any problems?"

Originally, Baek Si-hwan was supposed to go to the US after resigning from the Taeshin Group's security team.

He had already submitted his resignation according to plan, prepared a place to stay, and even lined up a cover job.

However, the sudden order to halt, which wasn't in the schedule, surprised him a little.

"There was still time until the final decision, so it was possible. But... may I ask why?"

Baek Ji-woong hesitated for a moment before speaking.

"The project we had underway in Redboar, USA, has collapsed."

"Redboar... Do you mean the TN SOFT acquisition project? Wasn't that supposed to go smoothly?"

Since Baek Si-hwan had been briefed on it, he could easily recall the details.

"Twenty million dollars of investment funds and a 20% stake went to another company."

"Twenty percent? How...?"

At present, tN SOFT's value was not considered high. Even so, paying about 28 billion won for a 20% share was seen as far too generous.

"It was AMK Partners."

"Wasn't that the firm that, along with Taeshin Asset Management, benefited from the surge in Raisen Energy stock recently?"

Anyone keeping an eye on Raisen Energy would know that name.

"For now, the Organization has decided to place the TN SOFT acquisition on hold. We'll need to look deeper into AMK Partners as well. So you should return to Taeshin Group."

"Should I keep handling Executive Vice President Hwang Won-jun as before? Or will I be joining Team 1 and be assigned to Chairman Tae Gun-seung?"

Baek Si-hwan's original destination was Chairman Tae Gun-seung's personal security team.

But because this team handled the group's supreme leader, they background-checked new members thoroughly.

The minimum requirement was six years of security team service. For Baek Si-hwan, this would be fulfilled only at the end of this year.

It also happened that Kim Seong-tae, who was originally scheduled to join Team 1, had been handled by Baek Si-hwan himself due to his failure during the KQ Group Pyo Jun-woo abduction incident.

Given the timing, if Baek stayed with Taeshin Group, it would have to be in Team 1.

"No, where you'll be going is..."

Baek Si-hwan's expression grew even grimmer as he listened.

* * *

A few days later, at lunchtime.

In-hyuk visited a restaurant in Cheongdam neighborhood called Hoam.

"You always ask to meet here. Do you have a share of this place, by any chance?"

He had never met anywhere else the whole time.

"Didn't I tell you? I invested in this place and run it. I needed a discreet venue in Seoul for business meetings."

"Ah... I see."

"So, what brings you here today?"

At his question, In-hyuk took a breath before answering.

"It's about the Chulsan Capital issue."

Until just before, Jang Hyung-cheol's expression was quite relaxed, but it now turned stern.

"That place... wasn't it only recently that the prosecution and the tax bureau stormed in and caused a mess, before things finally calmed down? Thanks to you tipping us off in advance, we got through it. But is there another problem?"

"It's not new—it's ongoing. To be honest, do you think the raids by those two agencies happened only because of the prosecutors?"

Immediately, Jang Hyung-cheol eyed In-hyuk with an even more serious look.

"Are you saying there was someone else behind the prosecutions?"

"I don't know the mastermind, but I do know who gave them the excuse. If not for that, then there's no way warrants would have come out so quickly."

Jang Hyung-cheol could more or less guess what In-hyuk was saying.

"Don't tell me... there's a traitor among my people?"

"Otherwise, how could Chulsan Capital's internal information have reached the prosecution? You must have considered that possibility, too."

The timing of the prosecution's raid on Chulsan Capital was triggered by the incident involving Rizeburn.

But the gap between the two events wasn't long.

Unless the prosecution had been preparing in advance, things wouldn't have moved so fast.

"Hm... You're right. But from my side, I can't just blindly suspect anyone... but it seems like you already know who it is."

"You must have someone in mind as well, don't you?"

Of course, Jang Hyung-cheol was only human, so he would have put those closest to him on the list of suspects and conducted his own investigation.

"Is it... CEO Han Jae-won?"

"You suspected him, but couldn't find definitive proof?"

"Hmm..."

In the original timeline, Jang Hyung-cheol, the actual owner of Chulsan Capital, was arrested after a raid by the prosecution and tax authorities.

In the aftermath and controversies, most of Chulsan's internal funds vanished thanks to someone's schemes.

With that, In-hyuk took a tablet out of his bag and handed it over.

"This is data on the companies Chulsan Capital financed through investments and loans over the past three years. The money flowed out to a shell company in Myanmar, was laundered, then went through a company called Rush Enterprises, and finally entered a company called Redboar Technology as an investment fund."

Jang Hyung-cheol's hand holding the tablet began to tremble.

"Ha... 164 billion won? How could this much go missing without anyone knowing?"

"I suspect false contracts and cooking the books. Since real profits and interest were understated on the returns, it would have been hard for Chulsan Capital to know."

"You think my eyes are just for decoration? We conduct regular audits of the loan and investment arms—"

He couldn't finish.

"All the internal audit teams and the accounting firm involved in this were Han Jae-won's people. He put them all in place, so it was impossible for you to know."

"This is just unbelievable... Han Jae-won, how could that guy do this to me!"

He looked as though he might flip the huge table in front of him at any moment.

After all, Han Jae-won was Jang Hyung-cheol's right-hand man, someone he had trusted enough to make CEO of Chulsan Capital in his stead.

He would never have expected a betrayal like this, so it was only natural for him to be furious.

"Now that you know who's at fault, it's time to act. What do you want to do?"

This time, Jang Hyung-cheol furrowed his brow even more.

"You almost make it sound like you're offering to deliver the blow yourself."

"I could, if needed. With this evidence alone, prosecution is possible for embezzlement, breach of trust, forgery, and more."

Jang Hyung-cheol's face became stony.

"But if we do that... Chulsan Capital won't get out unscathed."

The prosecution would definitely investigate the source of the funds that flowed into Han Jae-won's shell companies.

If links to the underworld emerged, even Jang Hyung-cheol could get implicated.

"Han Jae-won must have known that, too. The prosecution probably agreed to overlook the money he hid, in return for pinning Chulsan Capital and you."

"You mean there was an actual backroom deal?"

Smash!

Agitated, Jang Hyung-cheol slammed the table with his fist, causing the dishes above to rattle violently.

In response, In-hyuk raised both hands.

"This is just my guess for now, so let's stay calm. But if we consider the most likely scenario..."

"It's certainly the likeliest. So what's your plan? How do you intend to handle Han Jae-won?"

Jang Hyung-cheol's fingers still trembled.

In truth, he wanted nothing more than to drag Han Jae-won out right now and throw him into the sea off Busan as fish food.

"Like I said, your best move is to hand Han Jae-won over to the prosecution in your place."

"You mean... I should give up Chulsan Capital?"

"Sell off the company before things blow up. To somewhere the prosecution—or whoever's behind them—can't target."

"Is that even possible?"

The move to seize the company using the prosecution and Han Jae-won meant their enemies were well prepared and methodical.

Jang Hyung-cheol found it very hard to believe this would work.