Constrained to Start (8 Chapters Left to Complete) - Chapter 8
What kind of person is this? If he says he’ll treat it as if it never happened, does it really just vanish?
Ra Jin was utterly dumbfounded by his decisiveness as he turned away without a shred of hesitation.
She understood this was Prosecutor Kang Ji Ho’s workplace and that he didn’t want to be misunderstood—but even so, this level of cold detachment? If he was going to act like this, he shouldn’t have brought up the fact that she’d been with Kim Yu Jun in the first place.
It felt as if she’d just taken a thorough shower only to put her old clothes right back on.
Now that Kim Yu Jun’s name had already come up, whether she liked it or not, if something needed to be sorted out, there was only one answer:
A quick meeting and a clear explanation.
Once her thoughts settled somewhat, the trembling in her heart gradually calmed. Ra Jin let out a light breath and reached out her hand.
“Please give it to me. Your phone.”
For an instant, his expression shifted ever so slightly—then vanished without a trace.
“I don’t plan on spreading this around.”
His tone was utterly businesslike, as if telling her not to worry. Didn’t he realize how much that very attitude bothered her? Ra Jin nearly blurted something out.
But she deliberately kept her composure and met his eyes again.
“If Prosecutor Kang Ji Ho gives me your phone, I’ll enter my number.”
The Minister’s voice drawing closer, as if about to burst in any moment—and this man standing firm as a rock.
Besides, she’d tucked the business card he’d handed her neatly into a drawer without even saving his number. She couldn’t possibly wait until she finished the rest of today’s schedule and got home.
‘Are you really going to act like this just because I hesitated for a moment?’
If so, the one who wanted it more would simply have to be more proactive. Ra Jin opened her bag and pulled out her phone.
“Or, would you mind scanning this instead?”
She held out her phone toward him again. He stared at her blankly, as if questioning whether she’d really not saved his contact yet.
“I was worried it might auto-sync through KakaoTalk.”
She offered this explanation before he’d even asked.
“I hadn’t heard from you, so I was trying to add your number—still can, even now.”
“No! Really, it’s fine.”
Without further words, Ra Jin gestured insistently for him to just go ahead and enter his number. At that, he moved his perfectly straight eyebrows slightly and tapped the keypad with precise, tidy motions.
He didn’t stop until he’d even pressed the call button—then finally pulled his ringing phone from inside his jacket.
“I’ll think over the time and place and get back to you.”
“After 8 p.m. would be best.”
“I’ll keep that in mind.”
Once everything was settled, as if nothing had happened, he turned away again. Fine, she could accept his quiet nature—but was it really possible to have absolutely no expression at all?
From the bouquet placed in the center of the sofa, he stared straight ahead as though trapped behind an invisible wall.
Setting aside his status as a top celebrity adored by the masses, this kind of treatment felt almost refreshing—no, maybe more like astonishing. Ra Jin was simply bewildered.
As she blankly stared at his profile, frozen like a paused screen, the door swung open accompanied by the Minister’s hearty laughter.
[This is the timeline separator]The sky was perfectly clear, not a speck of dust in sight.
Petals fluttered in the gentle breeze blowing from beyond the mountain. Ji Ho, standing before the brown glass door, watched the scene intently.
Suddenly, Ra Jin’s face—flushed like a falling petal—flashed into his mind.
‘Was that the right thing to do?’
Ji Ho asked himself.
Her gaze circling anxiously as if she had something to say, her lips parting then closing again without a word, and the way her eyes had instantly flickered at the mention of Kim Yu Jun.
It had all irritated him far too much.
Mulling over his own words and actions, Ji Ho slowly descended the stairs.
If it hadn’t been a meeting with the Minister, he wouldn’t have acted so rigidly. But he also couldn’t openly reveal the reasons behind his own circumstances to her. She probably had no idea that, while not his best effort, it was still the most he could manage.
“Whew…”
The moment Ji Ho stepped onto the final stair, his jacket pocket buzzed.
“Oh, Ho Jin. Yeah, I just came out. Right, I’m heading off. Going.”
Despite his words, Ji Ho strolled leisurely through the blossom-filled air as if taking a springtime walk.
“Aren’t you being a little too relaxed?”
The moment Ho Jin opened the passenger door, he tossed out that remark.
“The weather’s great today. It’s spring, springtime.”
Apparently finding this sudden talk of spring absurd, Ho Jin let out a faint chuckle.
“We’ll go over the details on the way.”
As Ji Ho fastened his seatbelt, Ho Jin’s car shot forward in an instant.
“The Minister is exactly as we expected.”
“You mean he’s on Myeong Jin’s side?”
“Of course, there’s no concrete proof yet—just strong suspicion.”
Ji Ho murmured, his arm resting on the window frame.
“Since Madam’s nephew had that awkward entanglement with Myeong Jin, they’ve probably already discussed things.”
“What exactly did the Minister say?”
“He expressed high hopes for the special investigation and gave us excessive praise—then casually asked about our search schedule.”
“Heh! He asked about the search schedule? That’s practically a declaration of support for Myeong Jin.”
The prosperous shadow cast by Myeong Jin Group.
Truthfully, Ji Ho hadn’t realized who exactly was hiding within it. But shortly after taking over the special investigation, figures began revealing themselves one by one. Was it a disaster or a stroke of luck that Myeong Jin had already claimed the most influential among them—the Minister?
Ji Ho was overwhelmed by emotions he couldn’t quite name.
With the special investigation yielding no substantial results, Myeong Jin’s influence had only grown stronger than before.
“Have you spoken with Ms. Park Ra Jin?”
“Sort of.”
“You went all that way just to see her, and ‘sort of’ is all you got? No wonder you started rambling about spring.”
Amused by Ho Jin’s nonsense, Ji Ho let out a soft laugh.
He’d always been too busy with urgent matters to spare half a day just to receive an award—so he’d consistently skipped such events. Today, however, he’d forced himself to attend solely because he’d heard she’d be there.
In fact, for the past ten days, Ji Ho’s routine had been coming home at dawn and leaving again at dawn.
Though he’d occasionally thought of Ra Jin in passing amid his busyness, he never imagined they’d end up sharing tea together.
“Tell me more. Was there anything special?”
“You’ll see for yourself when you meet her.”
“Meet? Meet who? The goddess herself?”
“Prosecutor Yeo Ho Jin. At this rate, you’ll crash the car before even meeting her. Watch the road.”
Ignoring Ji Ho’s remark, Ho Jin kept pressing for details about the beginning and end of Ra Jin’s conversation.
“If she was that flustered at the mention of Kim Yu Jun, doesn’t that mean she knows something?”
“Who knows.”
“You said their relationship didn’t seem purely business-like.”
That meticulous Kim Yu Jun leaking confidential information?
Under normal circumstances, Ji Ho would have dismissed that outright as absurd. But after witnessing Kim Yu Jun’s demeanor in the hotel lobby, it no longer seemed entirely impossible.
“We’ll just have to wait and see.”
“Those slippery bastards from Myeong Jin—they really grind my teeth.”
“Hah. Just as the Deputy Chief said—no progress whatsoever. None at all.”
“Exactly. Without solid grounds, we can’t just raid OH Entertainment—and of course, no warrant would be issued either.”
Frustrated, Ji Ho massaged his stiff neck.
“If only the goddess could pinpoint a few solid leads, it’d clear things up a bit.”
Ever since overhearing Ra Jin’s conversation ten days ago—albeit unintentionally—Ji Ho had begun tracing the connection between Kim Yu Jun and the agency.
Every time he followed Myeong Jin’s suspicious fund flows, the trail would veer off unexpectedly, causing him to lose it repeatedly. There was clearly something going on, yet everything was disturbingly legal, almost too perfect.
So intricately fragmented were the transactions that even six specialists working nonstop for ten days had only managed to circle around the edges.
“Didn’t we get the documents from Myeong Jin Securities’ U.S. branch today?”
“Yeah. Now just looking at numbers makes my stomach churn. How are we supposed to get through all that?”
Ho Jin pounded the steering wheel as he spoke.
“Let’s find a way to press charges first, then investigate further.”
“Wouldn’t it be faster to figure out how to win over the goddess? Nothing’s more reliable than insider help.”
“What’s there to ‘win over’? If Ms. Park Ra Jin refuses, that’s it.”
“But given this situation, isn’t it worth trying?”
Trying, trying—it’s all about trying.
As Ho Jin said, time was running out, documents piled up like mountains, and manpower was desperately insufficient.
Ra Jin’s insight into the agency’s affairs was sorely needed—but…
Was it too much to burden her, the one who’d fled the hotel like she was running away, the one whose hands trembled at the mere mention of Kim Yu Jun?
Ji Ho gazed blankly at the street, where flower petals drifted like rain.
Was it really right to persuade her using the noble-sounding justification of investigative legitimacy? He couldn’t decide.
“Ugh, I don’t know. Not even I do.”
In that moment, fatigue from countless overtime hours weighed heavily on Ji Ho’s eyelids. Pressing firmly on his aching temples, he let Ho Jin’s torrent of reasoning wash over him like a downpour.
Just then, his jacket pocket vibrated briefly.
It was Park Ra Jin—she was the one.
[This is the timeline separator]Screee—
Ji Ho’s SUV groaned loudly as it entered the hospital’s underground level 4.
Approaching 10 p.m., he slowly circled the expansive parking lot searching for the spot Ra Jin had specified.
Each time he passed one of the square pillars lined up in rows, the fluorescent lights overhead flickered against his windshield.
“Check this area too.”
He muttered, scanning each sparsely parked car one by one.
It was considerate of her, given her recognizable face—and also made sense, since neither of them stood to gain from being seen together by too many people.
Whether it was people or dashcams, extra caution never hurt, so Ji Ho’s eyes sharpened as he surveyed his surroundings.
“Perfect.”
At the very back of the parking lot,
Spot A1 sat isolated, walled off on all sides as if it were a private garage. Still, just to be safe, Ji Ho turned his car so the driver’s seat faced the outer wall, out of view.
9:45 p.m.
After checking the time, Ji Ho switched off the ignition. As the engine’s hum faded into silence, the vast space fell into a vacuum-like quiet.
Leaning deep into his seat, he faced the cold concrete wall.
He smiled faintly, thinking about what she might tell him today and what he could possibly gain from it.
It was foolish to pressure or expect too much from someone he’d only met four times. But if he simply listened to whatever clarification she wanted to offer, perhaps a gap would appear—one through which he might finally coax out some words.
“Whew.”
Ji Ho reclined his seat and gently closed his eyes. Resting his hands over his dry, tired eyes, he exhaled slowly and steadily.
‘She hasn’t even left the decision to me. Don’t push too hard.’
He reminded himself to be “cautious”—more than ever before.
Tap tap—
At the sound of a quiet knock, Ji Ho’s eyes turned toward the passenger seat.
A silhouette wearing a deeply pulled-down cap glanced warily around. The moment he unlocked the doors, she leapt into the seat like a cautious rabbit, still on high alert.
“Ha… Hello. Hah…”
“You’re here.”
“Hah, ha… Yeah.”
“Did you run all the way?”
“Huh—I was worried someone might recognize me… Had to sprint from Mom’s room all the way down the stairs…”
He pictured her running from the 15th floor to B4, face completely covered—no wonder she was so breathless after racing down those dark emergency stairs.
Still catching her breath, she tugged her mask down to her chin.
Her face, free of makeup and fairer than in daylight, panted with her pink tongue peeking out—like a white puppy just finishing a long, exhausting walk.
They were meeting officially, with serious matters to discuss—yet why did this utterly worn-out puppy-like sight seem so amusing…? For a moment, he let out an uncontrollable chuckle.
‘You’re driving me crazy.’
Male lead Asks for a Divorce Every Day
It’s not often you come across a plot like this in the female-dominant genre — make sure to check it out!
This is a novel I’m planning to reread as well.
The male lead is strong, skilled in martial arts, and not the usual fragile type you often see in matriarchal novels.
Meanwhile, the female lead is a scientist—rational and logical. Even when she falls for the male lead, she doesn’t let her emotions cloud her decisions.
If you push through the first few chapters, you’ll gradually find the story really intriguing.
It has a mix of mystery, detective elements, and romance.
The author’s writing style is like crafting a puzzle—except they deliberately leave out a few pieces, making it hard to predict what happens next, yet keeping you hooked.
In the end, everything will come together and be explained.
One-sentence summary: Wife, stop playing with beakers and look at me!
In a laboratory accident, research scientist Zhu Wansheng accidentally travels to a matriarchal world. The original owner of the body is an eighteen-year-old only daughter of a wealthy rouge merchant, already married with a handsome young man.
Zhu Wansheng grins: Nice! She always said she was heaven’s favorite granddaughter. After a life of toil in her previous life, she can enjoy blessings in this one.
However, her joy lasts no more than three seconds as bad news arrives: the original owner’s family is about to go bankrupt, and her husband wants a divorce.
Even worse, she’s stuck with a research system full of restrictions.
Zhu Wansheng: ? Is this the destiny of a research dog?
——
Faced with this mess, Zhu Wansheng pours herself a bowl of wine to drown her sorrows. In her drunken haze, her husband arrives.
His figure is imposing, holding a long sword, with a dignified air that captivates Zhu Wansheng.
Gu Yingqing, however, looks at the alcohol-reeking Zhu Wansheng with undisguised disgust and coldly asks, “Divorce or not?” The intoxicated Zhu Wansheng mumbles vaguely, “I think… it’s not… it’s not… impossible!”
——
The next day, after sobering up, Zhu Wansheng is full of energy, rolling up her sleeves ready to make a big move. As for yesterday? She has no memory of it.
Zhu Wansheng is ambitious; a research dog fears nothing!
Upgrading rouge, extracting fragrances, producing perfumes, researching lipsticks… all shall bow to the power of modern technology!
The original owner’s dying rouge shop is revitalized. Her mother is pleased and with a wave of her hand, passes on the family business to her. As she takes control and her experimental results gain popularity, it’s the pinnacle of her life…
——
But there are always those who can’t stand to see her doing well. Jealousy, scheming, assassination attempts – they want nothing less than her life.
The person who has always kept his distance from her suddenly holds her tightly in his arms, eyes full of concern.
She is unharmed, but he falls into a pool of blood…
Zhu Wansheng feels guilty, “I can grant you one wish.”
Gu Yingqing tentatively circles his arms around her, carefully resting his head in the crook of her neck, pleading softly, “I regret it. Can we not divorce?”
Zhu Wansheng: ? When did I agree to a divorce?
[Small Theater]
The newly developed rouge is beautifully packaged, and Zhu Wansheng is eager to try it.
Gu Yingqing suddenly appears: “My lady, may I apply it for you?”
Cool fingertips lightly brush her lips. His Adam’s apple bobs as he leans in for a light bite.
Zhu Wansheng: ?
Gu Yingqing: It smells so good, I wanted to taste it…
On a warm spring day, Zhu Wansheng tries a new perfume: “Spring Night.” Gu Yingqing corners her against a wall.
Warm breath lingers on her neck.
“My lady, from now on, may I test the fragrances for you?”
[Humorous female scientist vs scheming live-in son-in-law male lead]
[Touch the gear icon in the bottom right corner of the screen to move to the next chapter if you want.]
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