“Earlier, I noticed Lee Je Ni hesitating when she saw you. I’m not sure if it’s what they call a lapse in judgment or if she had a change of heart after seeing you.”

Ha In barely managed to keep her eyes from wavering.

Gang Jun was a polite and diligent junior to Ha In. Moreover, he was an obedient junior who followed her words without objection, but he was also a prosecutor.

She didn’t want to give him any room for suspicion.

“Perhaps because Hyun Baek Hap was deliberately hiding it, but it seems Lee Je Ni avoided appearing at official events or actively participating.”

Gang Jun wasn’t trying to interrogate Ha In. He was asking out of genuine curiosity.

Despite understanding his intentions, she struggled to control her emotions.

Thinking about Lee Je Ni brought back memories of what happened at the Cheonha Group mansion, making her heart pound so loudly that her ears rang.

“I saw her a very long time ago.”

“Where was that?”

She couldn’t bring herself to say she saw her at the Cheonha Group mansion.

“I happened to see her while studying. From a great distance.”

In trying to avoid the topic she didn’t want to discuss, that’s how it turned out.

“Ah, you must have attended the same academy then.”

Academy, she had no choice but to go with that. Should she call it an academy, considering she did learn something even during that time of suffering?

“She was the same back then as she is now. Distracted, rude, and mean.”

Gang Jun nodded.

Ha In held onto herself as she kept getting pulled into the distant past.

“Shall we get going? I have some things to wrap up.”

“Yes, let’s go.”

Having dinner with Gang Jun allowed Ha In to somewhat lighten the burden on her heart regarding him.

Upon arriving at the office, Ha In hastily contacted Lee Je Guk.

– I might be working late. Don’t worry and get some sleep.

Even though she said that, she knew Lee Je Guk would wait for her. So she tried to finish up work a little faster.

* * *

Lee Je Guk, having clashed with Chairman Lee as much as possible, was feeling uneasy.

Seeing the text from Ha In, Lee Je Guk was still in his office.

– Dinner?

Without saying much else, Lee Je Guk asked Ha In if she had eaten dinner.

– Yes, I ate.

– What did you eat?

– Meat soup.

Rather than saying Ha In had meat soup for dinner, it would have been more plausible to say she skipped a meal.

– I ate with a junior colleague at the beef soup restaurant in front of the prosecutor’s office about an hour ago.

As if knowing Lee Je Guk’s feelings, Ha In sent another text. It seemed like she was ready to answer the 5W1H.

But if she meant a junior colleague, was she referring to Choi Gang Jun? That meat soup, was it the meat soup he needed to be concerned about? Knowing it wasn’t a big deal, it still bothered him that Ha In had eaten face-to-face with another man.

That meat soup really got on his nerves.

– Good job.

That’s how he replied, but Lee Je Guk was secretly bothered by the fact that Ha In had a meal with another man instead of him.

That meat soup was extremely irritating.

At the sound of a knock on the door, Lee Je Guk put down his phone and looked towards the door.

“Director, the head of the legal department is here.”

“Yes, please show him in. And bring some warm tea.”

Lee Je Guk got up from his seat and came to the conference table.

He felt sorry that he could only offer warm tea to the hardworking head of legal, when he should be treating him to at least meat soup. They couldn’t find time to eat together even if they wanted to.

The head of legal entered and politely greeted Lee Je Guk.

“You must be going through a lot. Please have a seat.”

The head of legal placed a report on the seat where Lee Je Guk would sit. Before looking at the report, Lee Je Guk first examined the head of legal’s face.

“You’re working too hard.”

He omitted the word “these days” from his greeting. Since the legal risks erupted, the busiest person was the head of legal.

“Not at all.”

The head of legal was consistently humble. Somehow, he didn’t show any signs of fatigue. Whenever Lee Je Guk saw the head of legal, he felt that managing one’s condition was also a skill.

“Chairman Lee still hasn’t said anything about whether he will attend the summons for investigation.”

It must be a difficult decision for Chairman Lee’s pride and stubbornness. While the Cheonha Group would wait for Chairman Lee’s disposition, the prosecution would not.

“The prosecution has also expressed their intention to issue another summons.”

Lee Je Guk nodded.

“Now, it must be difficult for Chairman Lee to hold out as well. With the search and seizure of the company, Lee Je Ni’s arrest, and the increasing pressure.”

“Yes, that’s right. If I may be so bold, the longer Chairman Lee holds out, the more difficult it becomes for the Cheonha Group.”

Lee Je Guk looked over the report brought by the head of legal with a grim expression. The report also included an analysis of the internal atmosphere within the prosecution.

“Looking at the internal atmosphere of the prosecution, they initially assigned one of the top ace prosecutors at the central district prosecutor’s office, and the determination of the prosecutor in charge is unwavering.”

Lee Je Guk knew that all too well even without the head of legal mentioning it.

“And regarding the unexpected search and seizure the other day, there was pressure from the head prosecutor.”

He didn’t know there was such a background to the search and seizure that came to the company. It was something that had caused Ha In a great deal of distress. She had also apologized profusely to Lee Je Guk.

Thinking of her agonizing alone over it made his heart heavy.

“I heard the head prosecutor directly obtained the warrant.”

If a superior had gone that far, it would have been difficult for Ha In to simply refuse from her position.

“Considering there are even rumors that the prosecutor would be replaced if they didn’t produce results from the search and seizure, it seems they made a strong move.”

At those words, Lee Je Guk felt suffocated. He realized that Ha In had held out much longer than he had thought, all the way to the line.

“Prosecutor Cheon Ha In’s style is so thoroughly strict that we were on edge, but at some point, the flow of the investigation became calm. I felt she was being very considerate of the company’s position.”

Lee Je Guk knew the reason for that as well.

“So there was some negligence on our part. I apologize.”

“How could that be the head of legal’s fault?”

Lee Je Guk tried to attribute everything to his own fault.

“Looking at the atmosphere within the prosecution, it seems they will push hard until Chairman Lee appears.”

“Has the audit results and summary of legal issues been passed on to the chairman’s office?”

“Yes.”

He hoped that Chairman Lee would now personally feel the crisis the company was facing.

* * *

Some time ago, Lee Je Guk had also reported the audit results to Chairman Lee. At that time, it was a document that wasn’t even on Chairman Lee’s mind.

Not only was the situation getting serious, but with the prosecution repeatedly saying they would summon him, he looked over the documents to at least create a justification for not having to personally appear.

It was a breakdown of the subcontracting budget approved by Chairman Lee. And it detailed how the actual budget was used.

The approved budget was not used as intended and was scattered and turned into cash.

Reviewing the contents, Chairman Lee made a “Hmph” sound, expressing his doubts.

Being someone who didn’t trust anyone but himself from the beginning, he didn’t readily believe the documents presented by Lee Je Guk and the head of legal, who were out of his favor.

So, unable to trust the contents, he told his chief secretary to look into the facts.

Contrary to what Chairman Lee wanted to believe, feedback came back that all the documents were true.

Just then, Hyun Baek Hap came to the hospital room to attend to Chairman Lee.

“This is data collected by our audit department some time ago. Is this true?”

Hyun Baek Hap had already noticed what Chairman Lee was trying to pursue, but she feigned ignorance again this time as well.

“What is this?”

“It says this is my company money that you embezzled.”

Chairman Lee’s voice was already full of sharpness. Hyun Baek Hap knew Chairman Lee’s temper better than anyone.

“What? Chairman, that can’t be. Someone must have made a mistake. I only acted according to what was reported to me.”

Hyun Baek Hap put on an expression of knowing nothing.

“There’s not a single person to trust. But it’s right to at least verify the results from our audit department, isn’t it?”

“I’ll take a close look at it too. And I’ll ask the people below. It could be some mistake, right?”

Hyun Baek Hap spoke with a frozen expression. Yet she still made remarks to leave herself an escape route.

“Ugh! What rotten luck!”

Chairman Lee grumbled to himself. The more he thought about it, the angrier he became.

If the audit results were true and Prosecutor Cheon Ha In was trying to get close to the Cheonha Group’s secrets because of this, there was no telling how big the case could grow.

At the sound of Chairman Lee’s anger, Hyun Baek Hap swallowed her saliva and tried to sit close beside him. But he swiftly avoided her.

“I’m tired today. I want to be alone. And sort out my thoughts a bit.”

Startled by his reaction, Hyun Baek Hap didn’t show it. She became uneasy, wondering if Chairman Lee knew something else.

“I heard Lee Je Guk stopped by. Did he stand up to you again?”

“Even if he does, who would dare to side with him? It’s annoying, so let me rest.”

Chairman Lee expressed his annoyance with his entire body and expression.

This was the first time Chairman Lee had treated Hyun Baek Hap this way. Rather, he was someone who sought out Hyun Baek Hap when he was tired.

Hyun Baek Hap’s insides were churning with anxiety. Before further provoking Chairman Lee’s anger, Hyun Baek Hap left the hospital room. And she called Chairman Lee’s executive secretary.

“Yes, you worked hard today.”

Hyun Baek Hap wanted to see if she could extract anything from the executive secretary, but he was Chairman Lee’s man.

Hyun Baek Hap wanted to rip up the documents in her hands right away, but in order to see how far things had been exposed, she had to read them even if she had to force herself.

Opening the documents, Hyun Baek Hap’s mouth fell open. Traces of them digging in more detail than she thought were noticeable.

“No, how did they…?”

For now, she denied it, but the moment Chairman Lee’s trust was shattered, it would be the end for Hyun Baek Hap.