The Empire's Servant - Chapter 16

The assistant was sitting at the meeting table with Gang Jun, examining the documents submitted by the Cheonha Group’s legal department.

Gang Jun could not hide his bewilderment at the contents that had changed from before.

Can we really receive these documents? Gang Jun thought deeply for a moment before speaking.

“Sunbae-nim, are we allowed to have these documents? Aren’t these crucial pieces of evidence? Is this not a mistake?”

They were records of the Cheonha Art Museum’s entry log and Hyun Baek Hap’s official schedule book.

Information about the Cheonha Group’s stock ownership and assets was also included.

Furthermore, if anyone received even 10 won from the Cheonha Group’s art museum, their name would be on the list.

Ha In was also surprised by the large amount of important information.

However, she was not in a position to simply stand next to her junior prosecutor and express admiration. She calmly examined the documents with a composed attitude.

“Based on this information, we can make the justification for summoning Hyun Baek Hap for investigation more solid.”

Just when Ha In wanted to further strengthen her justification for the summons investigation, Je Guk sent the exact documents she needed.

She was extremely grateful to him, but she spoke dryly without showing it in front of Gang Jun. These were the documents she needed right now.

Indeed, his assistance greatly empowered the direction and speed of the investigation.

However, there was one thing that bothered her.

Ha In’s identity would be revealed if the summons investigation proceeded.

She was unsure if it was okay to have Gang Jun go in her place again this time.

There had been remarks from higher-ups about Ha In not going in herself during the previous summons investigation of Je Guk’s director.

It was not right for her to keep pushing important schedules to Gang Jun when she was clearly the senior.

Ha In hesitated. It was not because she was afraid of Hyun Baek Hap.

However, if Hyun Baek Hap mentioned anything about the past upon seeing Ha In… Just imagining it made Ha In dizzy. But it was something she would have to face someday.

And it was something she had decided to endure for the greater cause.

“Sunbae-nim, but will Hyun Baek Hap willingly respond to the summons investigation?”

Gang Jun tilted his head.

“She won’t respond willingly.”

Ha In answered without much thought.

It was clear to her how Hyun Baek Hap would be scheming right now.

It was also obvious that Chairman Lee would be acting as her puppet.

“We need to make her come out. That’s why we’re working so hard like this.”

Ha In flipped through a few pages of the documents in front of her.

It was the investigation plan for people on Hyun Baek Hap’s side.

Ha In looked at the news being broadcast on the muted TV. It was about the Cheonha Group’s judicial risks.

She had heard the same news on the radio on her way to work this morning.

The media had begun releasing articles, sensing the atmosphere that a full-fledged investigation into Madam Hyun Baek Hap would begin.

No matter how powerful Hyun Baek Hap was, there would be limits to acting however she wanted in a large corporation.

The top priority was for her to be recognized as someone who needed to be removed for the sake of management.

* * *

Thankfully, the head of the legal department moved according to Je Guk’s instructions without nitpicking.

Unless the head of the legal department was a fool, he must have sensed something strange about Je Guk’s actions.

However, he followed Je Guk’s wishes without even asking for a reason.

Je Guk felt grateful but also burdened that the head of the legal department trusted him.

His sense of responsibility to overcome this judicial risk well grew.

The report on Chairman Lee’s desk was a report containing the profile of a hypothetical person without Ha In’s information.

Je Guk headed to the chairman’s office after being informed that Chairman Lee had arrived at work.

“Oh, Je Guk. You didn’t even respond when I called you. What brings you here?”

Chairman Lee spoke sarcastically, showing a displeased expression.

Je Guk also found it uncomfortable to face Chairman Lee, but he tried not to show it and act according to his position.

“I came to report on the progress.”

Je Guk did not mention the report Chairman Lee was looking at first.

He decided to wait until Chairman Lee brought it up himself, in case he became suspicious.

“You must have heard the news this morning. We are compiling articles related to the Cheonha Group’s judicial risks.”

“Hmph.”

Chairman Lee made a displeased sound.

“We tried to block the articles, but since many media outlets are already covering it as top news, we are currently observing the situation.”

Je Guk had received a report before the articles were released.

At first, he was angry, but he thought it was rather fortunate. It would be an opportunity for everyone to know that Hyun Baek Hap was a troublemaker.

“Everything I do these days is frustrating. The current situation is not good, what have you been doing?”

Chairman Lee reprimanded Je Guk in a displeased tone.

Does he want to blame someone? Je Guk wondered what Chairman Lee was thinking.

“Forget it. If we just take care of the pesky prosecutors, it’ll be over soon. Tsk.”

Chairman Lee brought up pressuring the prosecutors again.

“I’ve said several times that pressuring the prosecution will do no good.”

“Again! Again!”

Before Je Guk could finish speaking, Chairman Lee shouted. But Je Guk was not intimidated by Chairman Lee’s momentum at all.

Raising his voice only made Je Guk more calm and collected.

“This case is not a problem that can be solved by applying external pressure. It may backfire.”

Chairman Lee even hit the desk as he got up from his seat.

“Just like your mother, you’re so hypocritical!”

For a moment, Je Guk could not believe his ears.

It was a remark that completely disregarded his late mother’s good deeds.

It was a remark that revealed Chairman Lee’s true feelings. In the past, he would have thought it was an impulsive remark, but now it sounded different.

Je Guk almost sighed. He tried to calm down, suppressing his emotions inwardly.

His patience with Chairman Lee had hit rock bottom.

He became curious about what Chairman Lee was so afraid of being exposed.

“What are you so afraid of that you’re acting like this?”

Je Guk asked straightforwardly. Countless words came to mind, but it was the most composed question.

“What?! I am the chairman of Cheonha Group! What do I have to be afraid of in this world!”

Chairman Lee shouted loudly as if to clearly show that he was the boss.

To Je Guk, such commanding words from Chairman Lee seemed more precarious than threatening.

There were plenty of reasons why he should not act as if the Cheonha Group was entirely his own. The Cheonha Group was not solely owned by Chairman Lee.

When the Cheonha Group was in crisis, Je Guk’s maternal relatives provided a lot of support.

As a result, Je Guk’s maternal relatives held board positions and shares in the Cheonha Group.

Although his maternal relatives did not directly exert influence, their stake was also quite substantial.

Above all, it was an inappropriate remark for someone in the position of a chairman responsible for thousands and tens of thousands of employees.

Je Guk was disappointed that when the company was in crisis, the chairman merely said, “I am the chairman!”

“If you are the chairman, please act like one and maintain composure. Do you really not know that this judicial risk was created by Ms. Hyun Baek Hap?”

Je Guk tried his best to suppress his voice that kept rising.

“What? Ms. Hyun Baek Hap? Did you just call your mother Ms. Hyun Baek Hap!”

Je Guk would rather bite his tongue and die than acknowledge Hyun Baek Hap as his stepmother.

Feeling the limit of his patience, Je Guk closed his eyes tightly and opened them. Then he looked straight at Chairman Lee.

That chilling gaze made even Chairman Lee’s anger subside.

“I will tell you one last time. If the chairman’s office or the Cheonha Art Museum mishandles this matter, I will not stand idly by either.”

The chairman was angry but could not act recklessly towards Je Guk.

But now, what his maternal relatives had said made sense.

It was not because Je Guk was his son, but because his mother had left all her inheritance to Je Guk, giving him more Cheonha Group assets than Chairman Lee, so he was being cautious.

He did not want to believe those words, but he could no longer deny them.

At that moment, Chairman Lee’s chief secretary knocked and entered.

For him to interrupt the private conversation between the two, it must be an urgent matter.

“I apologize for interrupting.”

The chief secretary bowed his head to express his regret.

“What is it?”

Chairman Lee spoke with an indifferent expression.

“Madam has collapsed just now.”

Je Guk did not believe those words.

It must be another one of Hyun Baek Hap’s tricks. Even if it were true, it was clearly not something to worry about.

“What happened!”

“Ms. Lee Je Ni has been banned from leaving the country.”

As expected, that was the reason.

It seemed that Lee Je Ni being banned from leaving the country had infuriated her, but if she were someone who would collapse like that, she would not have been able to make things this bad in the first place.

“What?!”

However, Chairman Lee became enraged as if pouring oil on fire.

“Tell the head of the legal department to take care of it right now!”

The furious Chairman Lee was restless.

Fortunately, he did not immediately chase after the head of the legal department.

If it were up to Je Guk, he wanted to withdraw the legal department as well.

It was too much of a privilege for someone like Hyun Baek Hap to receive assistance from Cheonha Group’s legal department, where the top legal experts were gathered.

However, if Hyun Baek Hap were to appoint an external law firm now, it would only be a matter of time before Ha In’s existence was exposed.

For Je Guk to control the situation until the appropriate time came, the Cheonha Group’s legal department needed to be in charge of the case.

“Now I feel better! Secretary Kim, what are you doing! Hurry and get the car ready!”

Je Guk turned away from Chairman Lee as if putting aside his complicated thoughts.

He comforted himself, thinking that it was enough that he had hidden Ha In’s existence one more time.

There was not much time left. In the meantime, Je Guk had to put his heads together with the head of the legal department and devise the next plan.

Chairman Lee was not someone who would hold back just because someone stopped him.

With Chairman Lee’s personality, he would have already lost his temper by now, but he was suppressing it out of consideration for Je Guk.

It was uncertain how long this method would work.

Male lead reborn without memories — but he still falls for her.

The person he finds displeasing in this life turns out to be his cherished wife-master in previous life…

Xie Zhi and Fang Xianxing who had known each other for less than three days through a blind date sat in the same car in front of the civil affairs bureau. They had a disagreement and failed to get married.

Xie Zhi immediately took out his phone, slid through his contacts, and randomly selected the next marriage candidate.

The woman snatched his phone and hung up. Looking at his phone wallpaper, she awkwardly changed the subject: “An ancient painting, eh? It looks pretty good, it’s just that the person in the painting looks a bit like me.”

When he heard this, he sarcastically mocked her for being so delusional, completely unaware that, the person in front of him was the reincarnation of Wen Ru, the famous prime minister of Yuan Shun whom he most admired…

The female CEO who doesn’t want to get married with a divorce agreement in hand × The male archaeological researcher who will only get married if he’s sure he can get divorced