Office Romance Scandal (Completed Main Story) - Chapter 13
At the end of Hae Jin’s words, the strangely slow rhythm of his steady breathing—was it just her imagination? His gaze still faced the window, yet his reflection in the glass stubbornly stared straight ahead.
She had asked calmly, but the pounding in her chest was impossible to ignore—after all, she was more curious than anything about his answer.
He’d said he hadn’t seen it. Just a few days ago, he’d coolly replied that he knew absolutely nothing about her background. Of course, he could have found out in the meantime—but hadn’t she told him to prove it through actions?
Yet it felt like far too short a time to prove anything. Could it be that he’d known from the very beginning? The thought that his words might have been a lie left a bitter taste in her mouth. Even if he’d said from the start that he knew everything, would anything really have changed?
In any case, her actions would have remained the same—because where she stood had already been decided.
Tae Hong hadn’t uttered a single word by the time they reached home. In the deep, heavy silence, only the steady tapping of his fingers on the steering wheel could be heard. When Hae Jin unbuckled her seatbelt, she felt as if the tightness in her chest had eased slightly.
Unable to bear the oppressive atmosphere any longer, Hae Jin finally spoke first. Knowing that the meaningless passage of time would never resolve their situation, she wanted to hear his answer clearly.
“Since when did you know?”
It wasn’t even a difficult question. Tae Hong’s eyes, which had just blinked shut and reopened, turned toward Hae Jin. She, too, turned her head to meet his gaze. To her surprise, his expression—despite his earlier silence—was oddly calm.
“Since last week, if you’re asking when exactly.”
A simple, clean answer.
“If you’re asking how I found out—it’s because I looked into it.”
A confident, unhesitating reply.
And precisely because of that, it felt strangely irritating.
“Looked into it?”
“I was just curious about who Assistant Jeong Hae Jin really is, so I did a little research.”
Hae Jin, who had been unconsciously nodding along, abruptly stopped and whipped her head back toward Tae Hong.
“Ah, no—I mean, um, how much exactly did you find out?”
“Before that, there’s something I want to say first.”
Hae Jin swallowed hard. Though she’d already asked the question, he’d preemptively issued a warning before giving his answer.
She couldn’t predict whether his next words would be affirmation or denial—all she knew for sure was that his eyes, locked steadily on hers, were filled with seriousness.
“For your information, when I bring someone onto my team, gathering this level of information is just basic procedure.”
So that was why the Strategic Planning Team rarely hired new people—and why they’d held a welcome party for their first new member in ages.
She realized that to someone who struggled to trust others, investigating her—the person constantly glued to his side—was simply routine.
“I understand. I’ll keep that in mind while listening. So… how much exactly did you find out?”
Hae Jin waited for Tae Hong’s reply. The very notion of being “investigated” made her feel stripped bare from head to toe.
“Your name: Jeong Hae Jin.”
As he casually recited details like scanning a personal profile, Hae Jin’s eyes fixed on his lips. Tae Hong proceeded to list the basic items from the resume she’d submitted—nothing unusual, nothing out of place—until suddenly, he paused.
“Oh, Assistant Jeong Hae Jin—did you know you’re known as the ‘perfect daughter’?”
“I’m aware.”
Caught off guard by the unexpected question, Hae Jin answered without defense.
“Then how about ‘daddy’s friend’s daughter’?”
Daddy’s friend’s daughter? Dad… friend… daughter?
The moment Hae Jin’s face twisted in confusion, Tae Hong didn’t miss a single detail of her expression.
“So you do know. Now that I look closer, Assistant Jeong Hae Jin isn’t just some random parachute hire after all.”
Good grief. This sudden counterattack—completely unexpected—sent her previously eased tension surging back. He clearly knew she was the daughter of the Zion Group, but what if he misunderstood and thought she’d only gotten this job through Jun Tae’s influence as the daughter of a failed company?
“I’m a proper parachute hire, sent straight down the Chairman’s line. Did he ask you to spy on me or something?”
It was a reversal.
This time, Hae Jin couldn’t answer his question. Though no sharp thorns were visible, his words cut deeply. The more she thought about his question, the more unfairly she felt treated.
“I only took this job because the Chairman offered good money to personally monitor you—a rugby-ball-shaped team leader, he called you. There was no deal about reporting your private life or anything like that.”
Because that was the truth.
Tae Hong stared intently into Hae Jin’s eyes. Outside the car, bright LED streetlights illuminated the road clearly—but their glow didn’t reach inside.
Though his face remained half-shadowed, barely visible, she could still feel his unwavering gaze fixed firmly on her.
“Fine. Let’s assume that’s true.”
At that exact moment, the easy calm in his eyes sharpened abruptly. His perfectly composed, piercing stare made her heart shrink.
“But Assistant Jeong Hae Jin…”
Just hearing her name made her tense body flinch. His gaze remained locked on her, pinning her completely—body, mind, eyes—leaving nothing free to move.
“If the Chairman happens to propose some other kind of deal, please let me know.”
“Why?”
“Because I’ll pay you more.”
Was he suggesting she switch sides to his team? He already knew she was Zion’s daughter—and better than anyone else, he knew that company had already collapsed.
He understood that money was ultimately the bait—and so he was simply turning it back against them.
“Once you’re on my team, I won’t tolerate betrayal from my members.”
This was yet another warning from him.
“Don’t betray my trust.”
Hae Jin felt goosebumps rise at Tae Hong’s softly murmured words.
If the betrayal he spoke of meant reporting every detail to Jun Tae, then she had nothing to betray. Jun Tae had approached her only because she met specific conditions—someone capable and skilled at handling crises—and nothing more, nothing less.
So why did the word “trust” echo so vividly in her mind the moment it left his lips? Why did his voice, filled with such earnest longing, specifically speak of “trust”?
Cut off from her parents and emotionally unsteady, she had nowhere to place her wavering heart. She understood better than anyone just how powerful it felt to have someone who believed in you standing beside you.
“Thank you for driving me home today.”
Not knowing how else to respond, she offered a brief, polite thanks instead.
“I’ll pick you up by nine tomorrow.”
“What?”
Her mind was tangled between betrayal and trust—and now this sudden, bolt-from-the-blue statement? Tomorrow was her precious golden weekend, and she’d already planned to spend it brilliantly!
Her voice leapt two octaves higher in shock, and she quickly clamped her mouth shut out of embarrassment.
So… does that mean only “you, ma’am,” have to come in?
She suppressed the thought deep inside. Her slumped shoulders answered for her. Just as she was about to get out, Tae Hong spoke again from behind.
“Zion launched the Eli Hotel, right?”
Her hand, already reaching for the door handle, froze mid-air. Eli Hotel was one of the world’s most prestigious hotel chains, and when rumors first spread about its planned launch in Korea, numerous corporations had jumped at the opportunity.
Of course, they’d inevitably lost out to the conglomerates’ overwhelming scale. But Hae Jin had meticulously outlined every potential issue that might arise if the notoriously high-handed Eli Hotel entered Korea unchanged.
Rather than pushing a standard pre-contract negotiation, she’d directly highlighted the realistic adjustments they actually needed from the start.
She’d wondered whether her approach would even work—but in the end, Eli Hotel partnered with Zion. Though the press had tried several times to interview the project lead, Hae Jin had declined every request.
Thus, there’d never been any public material about her—but somehow, Tae Hong knew it all instantly.
“Don’t you ever think about properly putting that planning talent of yours to use? It’d be fun—launching a hotel brand in Korea, after all.”
Hae Jin’s eyes flickered. Was this what he meant by “trust”?
“I’ll see you tomorrow.”
If that was his trust, she had no desire to betray it.
**
Even driving alone to the meeting location, he hadn’t planned to attend Hae Jin’s welcome party.
He wasn’t really the drinking type outside official schedules—and besides, team bonding didn’t have to happen only over company dinners.
Yet suddenly, the sight of himself driving alone felt oddly unfamiliar. Had he already grown accustomed, in such a short time, to Hae Jin driving him around?
People really do adapt quickly. He finished his schedule with a quiet chuckle—then, briefly again, found himself wondering: What’s Jeong Hae Jin up to right now?
It was honestly ridiculous. He knew perfectly well they were holding her welcome party—she was probably having a great time bonding with the team.
Even though the image in his head was crystal clear, he still felt curious. How much had she drunk? What kind of expression was she wearing while laughing and chatting with the team?
The thought that he might be missing out on Jeong Hae Jin’s many expressions made him unconsciously wrap up his work early.
He then casually asked one of his team members for a report-related file—and used that chance to find out the dinner location. All the way there, a smile never left Tae Hong’s face as he drove alone.
When he arrived at the dinner venue, it was quite a sight. They’d claimed it was their first team dinner in ages, yet the number of empty bottles scattered around far exceeded his expectations. And as he walked in nonchalantly, the expressions on his team members’ faces upon seeing him were equally something to behold.
Had they seen something they shouldn’t have?
He felt slightly disappointed—but hearing Byung Soo’s surprisingly flattering comments about Hae Jin softened his mood. Maybe that’s why, despite intending just to make a brief appearance and leave—just to show his face and go—
Manager Lee Byung Soo, while escorting Manager Kim Yeon Jung out, grabbed Hae Jin just as she tried to slip away alone.
His body had moved before his mind could catch up.
He realized it was already too late to pull back his outstretched hand. So he walked ahead casually toward his car, and seeing Hae Jin follow behind made him smile again.
But then, hit by her sudden, sharp question, Tae Hong was genuinely flustered.
Moon Tae Hong—were you drunk? To slip up like that, saying things you never normally would…
He must have been internally laughing at himself, wondering just how much he should actually say. Clearly, those thoughts had carried him all the way to Hae Jin’s front door.
It would’ve been easy enough to brush it off by saying he’d just looked at her resume—but in the end, he’d told the truth.
Maybe it would sound funny to say it was because her eyes, fixed so brightly on him, had made him lose control and blurt it out.
Honestly—even though she’d entered as her father’s parachute hire, the more he worked with her, the more he liked her working style. Unlike teammates who always seemed intimidated by him, her habit of saying exactly what needed saying in just the right measure was actually kind of endearing.
Most of all, he hated the thought of letting her talent go to waste. Now that she was in Yeon Chang, he wanted her to receive solid support and land some major projects.
That was the appropriate extent of what he hoped for from Jeong Hae Jin—and he truly believed that.
**
Woken by sunlight streaming through the window, Hae Jin rubbed her eyes and immediately reached for her phone.
Tae Hong wouldn’t arrive for a while yet. It was her precious golden Saturday—meant to be spent brilliantly—yet her movements as she slowly dressed felt sluggish.
She suppressed the urge to stay in bed longer and left home a bit earlier than necessary. Stopping by a coffee shop, she ordered two cups. Last night’s tossing and turning had finally led her to an answer.
Tae Hong’s sincerity—as both her workplace superior and team leader—lingered in her mind like an afterimage. And that oddly mismatched gaze of his—what was that about?
“Don’t betray my trust.”
Her hands should’ve felt cold from the ice—but her heart burned warmly instead. Between trust and betrayal, she wanted to choose trust.
Just as he’d said about offering coffee to those who needed it—she wanted to become the kind of teammate Moon Tae Hong truly needed.
Male lead is a clingy little husband
One-line summary: The male lead is initially an arrogant, noble, love-deprived brat, later a cute, clingy, scheming little jealous one.
Introduction:
One day, Lu Yuner’s soul transmigrates into a female-dominant world. She enters the Imperial Academy and takes up the position of a doctoral instructor, teaching classes and grading schoolwork.
One day, she encounters the young prince Su Qingwan secretly skipping class from the male academy.
As a result, Su Qingwan is punished.
From then on, Su Qingwan sees Lu Yuner as a “thorn in his side”.
But before long, this “thorn” becomes the person he cherishes most, and he goes to great lengths to win Lu Yuner’s affection.
Mini scene 1:
One day, the sun is high in the sky but Su Qingwan still hasn’t gotten up for class.
Servant Xiaoyuan: “Young prince, it’s time for class. You’ll be late otherwise.”
Su Qingwan says arrogantly: “I’m not going. I am the esteemed prince, my status is so noble, why should I suffer this hardship? Besides, isn’t learning all this just to please women? Hmph, they’re not worthy!”
Mini scene 2:
After Su Qingwan falls for someone, he completely changes. He no longer skips class and diligently learns how to be a good husband and father. But he discovers that Sister Yuner is always surrounded by admirers.
Drunk and overcome with jealousy one day, he clings to Lu Yuner, crying beautifully like a pear blossom in the rain.
Su Qingwan: “Qingwan likes Sister Yuner.”
Lu Yuner: “Young prince, you’re drunk.”
Su Qingwan: “Qingwan isn’t drunk. Qingwan likes Sister Yuner, likes you so much, likes you to bits…” Before he can finish, Lu Yuner’s eyes flash with emotion and she leans in closer.
[Reading Guide]
1. The female lead is gentle, gracious, humble and polite but not weak. The male lead is initially an arrogant, noble, love-deprived brat, later a cute, clingy, scheming little jealous one.
2. 1v1, a bit torturous in the beginning but definitely sweet later on.
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I like his honesty and my god there is communication.