The judge asked. First, the chief prosecutor took the oath and sat in the witness stand. He complained about how difficult it was to work with Line during his prosecutor days.
He seemed like someone not afraid of the consequences of perjury. The judges showed no reaction to his whining.
After his rant was over, Nan-seul stood in the witness stand as the next batter. She swore according to the procedure, even though she would likely lie.
The prosecution’s attorney asked Nan-seul questions, of course, pre-arranged and leading questions.
“Witness, the issue of the plaintiff receiving a bribe was concluded with a non-indictment disposition. Do you consider it a reasonable outcome?”
“No. It is not. Our prosecution plans to reveal the truth through a re-investigation.”
“You must have reasons to be convinced that there is a criminal fact.”
When the prosecution attorney asked Nan-seul, she sparkled her eyes.
“An amount in the billions as a bribe can shake anyone. Moreover, from the plaintiff’s perspective.”
Prosecutor Yoon Nan-seul smiled widely, raising her eyebrows. Line firmly resolved not to be shaken by whatever she might say.
“The plaintiff has led an extremely unfortunate life. She lost her parents right after birth and was raised by her grandparents.”
Her seemingly casual words caused confusion among those inside the courtroom.
“Witness, are you attempting to disperse the essence of the case with a personal attack?”
Hae-in was angry, but she carefully inquired. Line, clenching her fists as if her pride had been injured, only stared into space. Ju-hyuk’s breath was trembling with anger.
“Prosecution, refrain from irrelevant stories not related to the case.”
With the judge’s restraint, Yoon Nan-seul’s testimony came to an end. Finally, Ju-hyuk took the witness stand. Line closed her eyes as if resigning herself.
She could endure Chief Prosecutor’s insults and Yoon Nan-seul’s personal attacks, but the words coming from Ju-hyuk’s mouth felt like a dagger ripping through her chest.
“How was the plaintiff’s daily life at the prosecution?”
The prosecution’s lawyer threw a prearranged question at Ju-hyuk.
“Prosecutor Jin Line was a vicious person.”
When Ju-hyuk spoke, Line bit her lower lip.
“Oh, in what way?”
“She was someone living only for her job.”
The prosecution’s lawyer, bewildered by Ju-hyuk’s words, shuffled through his notes and turned around. Chief Prosecutor and Yoon Nan-seul had already left, and the central district prosecutor was quietly sitting in their place.
“Ah… In that case, implicated in bribery, damaging the honor of the prosecution…”
“The honor of the prosecution is being undermined by the prosecution itself!”
Ju-hyuk shouted, cutting off the lawyer. The chief prosecutor watched Ju-hyuk with his fist clenched.
“Bribery? If there were any flexibility to accept and enjoy bribery, there wouldn’t have been such a fallout within the organization called the prosecution. I wouldn’t have ended up here like this today. The non-indictment due to insufficient evidence was truly a fair and accurate result.”
“Um… Prosecutor Choi?”
The defense lawyer pushed the microphone in front of Ju-hyuk, but he had no intention of playing along.
“The real reason for dismissing Prosecutor Jin Line is not because she took a bribe. That wouldn’t stick, and she was dismissed for conducting an investigation without compromise and without yielding to senior’s words.”
Line, who was convinced that Ju-hyuk would make unfavorable testimony, lowered her head in complex emotions surging within her.
“Jin Line, raise your head. And refute. Say you were unfairly dismissed.”
“Uh, witness… I only ask that you respond to my questions…”
Suddenly, the prosecution’s lawyer began to intervene to stop Ju-hyuk. Ju-hyuk pulled something out of his pocket like a final blow. It was a recording device.
“The prosecution submits additional evidence.”
Ju-hyuk activated the recorder right there. In the recorded conversation, there was the voice of Chief Prosecutor, mocking the reason for Prosecutor Jin Line’s dismissal.
The contents also included instructions for Ju-hyuk to make false statements, along with the statement that firing one prosecutor if he set his mind to it was no big deal. Chief Justice couldn’t lift his face in embarrassment.
“Hey! Only agreed-upon evidence… Prosecutor Choi… This is really embarrassing.”
The defense attorney tried to stop Ju-hyuk, shedding tears, but it was in vain.
“Your Honor, Prosecutor Jin Line’s dismissal was unfair. It’s an unjust dismissal. The bribery allegations that the Disciplinary Committee raised have already been cleared of charges. Investigating a hundred times won’t change the outcome.
Prosecutor Jin Line did not receive any bribes. If she had actually taken bribes, I will accept the punishment for perjury. I am the witness. That’s all.”
Ju-hyuk concluded his passionate speech and left the courtroom. Emotions surged within him, but the courtroom remained emotionless.
“Do you have anything to say, plaintiff? Consider this final statement.”
This statement meant that the court wouldn’t drag out the trial and had reached a conclusion.
Line stepped forward and stood there. It felt strange to stand in court not as a prosecutor but as the plaintiff.
And she felt grateful and sorry to Ju-hyuk, who tried to protect her until the end. Line coughed awkwardly and spoke with difficulty.
“I want to return as a prosecutor, to the prosecution. Through the just and fair judgment of the court, please prove that the disciplinary action of dismissal against me was unjust. That’s all.”
Line had many things she wanted to say, but she kept them all buried. She found solace in the fact that Ju-hyuk had expressed his views on her behalf.
After the trial, Line barely managed to stand upright, feeling her legs losing strength. She tried to appear composed, but being human, it was impossible to be entirely unaffected.
“Senior, are you okay?”
“I’m fine. Thank you for your hard work.”
As Line and Hae-in were about to move, Chief Justice approached in front of her.
“Prosecutor Jin, seeing you like this again.”
Line didn’t harbor strong resentment towards the Chief Justice. But today, she didn’t want to see him even for a moment.
The Chief Justice had a lot of authority. For instance, whether the case would go to appeal depended on him. In that sense, it wouldn’t hurt to show it to him, but Line didn’t continue the conversation.
The seat he occupied was a position of power, and she didn’t want to be seen as trying to grab that leash.
“I might be resented.”
“Yes, I resent you.”
Line looked straight at him. When the Taesung case was transferred to the Central District Prosecutor’s Office, there were several meetings on who would take charge of the case. Chief Justice nominated Line.
No one knew that Line would become the victim when the Taesung case exploded. It wasn’t even the Chief Justice’s intention, but he had no choice but to consider Line as the culprit.
“Even if I were the head of the Central District Prosecutor’s Office, the decisions made by the Disciplinary Committee…”
“You couldn’t have prevented it. I understand. Still, resentment is free, and I will express it as I please. Well then.”
Line left abruptly. Hae-in followed Line. Hae-in couldn’t help but admire Line’s attitude. It was unimaginable for a junior prosecutor to show such an attitude to the Chief Justice.
“Um, Senior, are you okay?”
“What do you mean?”
Come to think of it, I couldn’t decide what to ask first. From Yoon Nan-seul’s shameless testimony to Ju-hyuk’s heartfelt statement, and the recent conversation with the Chief Justice…
“Nothing was wrong at all. In fact… I’m worried about Senior Ju-hyuk.”
Line hurried, hoping to catch a glimpse of Ju-hyuk, but he was nowhere to be seen.
An Indifferent Woman is the One Men Desire the Most
One-line summary: The female lead is actually cold-hearted and extremely rational. She has stage-by-stage relationships and won’t two-time, but there will always be someone who secretly likes her.
This novel has the following triggers, so if you’re sensitive to these, please don’t read:
1. The female lead has had many relationships, but she treated each one seriously and broke up properly.
It’s just that the men unilaterally pestered her incessantly. For the female lead, when she doesn’t like someone anymore, she simply doesn’t like them.
(This applies to her relationships with Male Lead 1, 2, 3, and 4 as well, but she’s loyal in each 1-on-1 relationship!)
2. In this novel, Male Lead 2 and the female lead kiss in a car, and Male Lead 1 sees it and beats up Male Lead 2.
The female lead calls the police and sends both Male Lead 1 and 2 to the police station! Male Lead 1 begs the female lead not to break up with him.
3. Male Lead 1 has a gentle appearance but an obsessive personality.
Male Lead 2 has a delicate and soft appearance, slightly green tea-like (two-faced).
Male Lead 3 is a youthful college student and a smart person who has secretly liked the female lead for a long time.
Male Lead 4 is the female lead’s father’s special assistant, a business elite with deep, hidden thoughts.
4. At the beginning of this novel, the female lead has already broken up with Male Lead 1 (Chapter 4) and gotten back together with Male Lead 2 (ex-boyfriend).
5. Enter with caution if you have triggers!!!
