The Problematic Helper (Completed Main Story) - Chapter 5
The documents Woo Seok handed over were easily the thickness of an entire book.
It recorded every single move of Mrs. Jang Ho Mook, the woman who founded Bando, in meticulous detail—like the biography of a historical figure.
“You must have had a hard time memorizing all this in such a short period.”
Inside the car heading to Mrs. Jang’s family home in Anseo-dong.
Woo Seok asked in place of Ji Wan, who, as always, remained silent.
“It was interesting. It would have been even more enjoyable if I didn’t have to memorize it.”
With Ji Wan’s black hair perfectly combed back without a single strand out of place and dressed impeccably from tie to vest, he looked colder than usual.
“Director Han, before we go in… I’d like to stop by the restroom for a moment…”
“Ah, yes. I’ll escort you.”
As soon as Do Um pushed open the wooden gate of the main house and went straight to the bathroom, she took several deep breaths in front of the large mirror before finally entering Chairwoman Jang’s room.
“I’m here.”
When she opened the elegantly papered sliding door, the first thing she saw was green plants.
The elderly woman with pure white hair who had been tending to the orchids continued trimming them without even turning around or sitting down.
“Sit.”
It was the first thing the man had said to her since they met—throughout the entire journey here.
Do Um awkwardly sat where Ji Wan gestured and swallowed hard.
“It’s a pleasure to meet you for the first time.”
At Do Um’s greeting, Chairwoman Jang put down the pruning scissors and replied.
“So I’ve heard.”
Even then, she hadn’t met her eyes once.
“I don’t recognize your face—not some entertainer who strips naked on TV, nor a bar girl who plays around with any man who buys her drinks—so yes, as you said, we’re meeting for the first time.”
Her clasped hands trembled.
Ji Wan, sitting motionless with an unchanged expression, didn’t even glance in her direction.
So this was it—the reason Woo Seok told her to stay sharp.
“You’re not an outsider, so you probably know well what kind of family this is. I won’t waste words. I never bring in anyone from a family lesser than my own bloodline. Why would someone who holds all the power bow their head for someone else’s sake?”
The old woman with neatly combed white hair stared straight at Do Um with unwavering posture and gaze.
Even if a corpse she had just buried came back to life, Do Um doubted it would be this terrifying—her jaw shook uncontrollably.
The old woman’s piercing eyes shifted to Ji Wan, who had been sitting silently.
“CEO Seo, please step outside for a moment.”
Without so much as a glance, Ji Wan stood up without the slightest hesitation and left.
Not long after Ji Wan left, a woman in a black uniform entered carrying a tea ceremony set.
It was Hyang In, the team leader from the Anseo-dong tea room.
“CEO Seo specially obtained this precious tea.”
At those words, Chairwoman Jang merely nodded slightly and scanned Do Um sitting across from her.
“Kang Do Um, was it?”
“Yes.”
“So, do you think I look like someone who would be fooled by this marriage?”
“…Pardon?”
“He says he’ll marry you with exactly two weeks left of the deadline I gave him. He’s going through with the marriage but doesn’t even pretend to care about you. So tell me—why should I believe that man’s words?”
“As you know, Grandmother, he’s just bad at expressing emotions. I even like that about him.”
She didn’t know where the courage came from, but it was a convincing answer.
“He’s always been that kind of man… Yes, that’s how he was raised. That’s why I’m even tolerating this unsightly situation.”
Do Um already felt exhausted, and it hadn’t even properly begun.
“He’s the type who never takes a path that isn’t the right one. He’s not the kind of man who keeps a woman hidden on the side, nor someone who would hold a woman without firm conviction—and unless he has her on a leash, he wouldn’t carelessly have a child with her either.”
A heavy silence filled the space between the lush green plants.
“Even if it’s a forced marriage, if a woman who suits his taste flirts in front of him, even a saint would give in. Once a man tastes something, it’s not easy to let go.”
Do Um swallowed dryly.
“Just do that much. After that, I’ll take care of the rest.”
In refined words, the old woman was telling her: just be eye candy for her grandson who takes care of women like it’s his duty.
Her cold eyes met Do Um’s startled gaze head-on.
“Someone who lived without money is far better than someone who chases it and sells their body. At least she’d know her place.”
Through the hot steam rising from the tea cup, the white-haired old woman let out a faint smile.
“I twisted his mother’s leash just to bring one woman into this house. So remember this well: if you mess this up, it won’t just be him who dies—it’ll be his mother too.”
Six months to a year.
It was a contract that started with a set deadline.
So there was no reason to feel hurt by the old woman telling her to just plant the idea of a woman in the man’s mind and then leave.
And yet—despite not even being real lovers, despite there being no real feelings—she couldn’t help feeling wronged.
“I’ll keep that in mind.”
After her neat reply, the rich aroma of well-brewed tea leaves spread through the room.
*****
The wedding proceeded smoothly and swiftly.
Chairwoman Jang silenced the rumors overnight and sat at the highest seat in the venue with a satisfied expression, looking down at her grandson and granddaughter-in-law.
The bride’s family seats and guest section were filled with people Woo Seok had paid to attend.
Throughout the entire wedding preparation process, Ji Wan didn’t show his face once.
Woo Seok carefully filled the groom’s empty role, and the marriage of appearances was carried out amid hollow formalities.
[Bando Construction CEO Seo Ji Wan marries ordinary college student beauty.]The wedding of Bando Group’s prominent illegitimate son was announced to the world quietly, in a single line of news.
*****
Hwaan-dong, an upscale residential area on the outskirts of the city.
The newlywed home was located at the very top of the complex.
The heat rising from the warmed earth turned into a cool breeze at the top of the hill.
Since it was vacation and she didn’t have to go to school, Do Um had been stuck at home for days.
She had expected at least a honeymoon even if the wedding was fake—but let alone a honeymoon, the man who was now her husband hadn’t even brought a single belonging to the new house.
Three and a half days had passed since the wedding, and not a single person had come or gone. More than half of Do Um’s day was spent on the garden bench.
Rrrr.
Who could it be?
The only people who would contact her were her three business major friends, but they had all gone on an overseas trip the moment vacation started. There was no one who would call her.
It was an unknown number.
“Hello?”
—Madam, this is Director Han.
At a time when she was bored out of her mind, hearing a familiar name made her happy.
“Director Han!!”
—Right after the ceremony, I had to accompany the CEO on short notice business trip, so my greetings are late. Everything’s been all right?
“Ah, yes.”
She had learned about Ji Wan’s business trip through the news.
Something about a major shopping mall site in Dubai.
—The reporters, the live-in helper, and the gardener couple will visit tomorrow. Coordinating schedules was difficult, so it got delayed.
“It’s okay. I’ve been eating well with the ingredients you stocked in the fridge.”
—Ah, that’s a relief. Then I’ll stop by briefly tomorrow.
She was just about to hang up.
“Um, Director Han?”
—Yes, please speak, Madam.
A quiet silence followed.
Her hesitation about whether to ask was obvious.
“…The CEO… he’s… doing okay, right?”
After saying it, Do Um squeezed her eyes shut.
She felt like a cold scolding from Ji Wan would come pouring through the phone any second.
After a very brief pause, Woo Seok answered.
—Yes, he’s doing well, thanks to you.
*****
Inside the sedan, Woo Seok turned around after pressing the speakerphone off button.
“Isn’t this a bit too plain, CEO?”
They were on the way out of the airport.
It was clearly a reprimand toward the man who, right after the wedding, left the woman at the new house and hadn’t taken a single step toward it since.
Even so, Woo Seok felt sorry for Do Um, who still asked after her husband.
“If you keep this up, this marriage won’t even last six months. You really don’t understand women—at all.”
“I don’t think a thirty-eight-year-old Director Han Woo Seok who’s still unmarried has any right to lecture me.”
Ahem, ahem.
At Woo Seok’s awkward cough, the driver Mr. Park let out a small laugh.
“Nothing in particular from Anseo-dong?”
The day he brought the woman there.
When Chairwoman Jang told him to step out for a moment, Ji Wan, as planned, sent in Hyang In, the tea room team leader.
If Anseo-dong monitored his every move, there was no reason he couldn’t plant his own person in enemy territory.
Ji Wan had put considerable effort into winning over one capable person for the old woman who was obsessed with tea—someone exclusively in charge of her tea.
That was also why rare teas that would tempt Chairwoman Jang kept appearing at important moments.
According to Hyang In, the head tea room team leader, Chairwoman Jang was suspicious about this marriage that day.
She had looked into the woman, was satisfied with her background of having nothing to lose, yet worried that such people were easily swayed by money.
It was better to move into the new house before the suspicion grew deeper.
“Let’s go to Hwaan-dong.”
The driver Mr. Park and Woo Seok exchanged glances and quickly replied.
“Yes, we’ll go right now.”
*****
Above the garden in Hwaan-dong.
“Aren’t you going in?”
Ji Wan turned and asked Woo Seok, who had followed him out of the car.
“I’ll watch you go inside first, CEO.”
To the hesitant secretary director, the younger boss narrowed his thick eyebrows and snapped.
“What, are you worried I’ll run off somewhere else? Or that I won’t even be able to find my own house?”
At Woo Seok’s sheepish smile, Ji Wan added one more thing.
“Just go. I’ll see you tomorrow.”
Since he had come this far, Woo Seok had no choice but to bow politely and leave.
Now alone, Ji Wan stood still and looked up at the two-story newlywed home.
‘Was this house always this big?’
The woman had been living alone in this huge house for over two weeks.
Only when he reached the front door did Ji Wan realize he didn’t know the passcode and didn’t even have the key card.
He hesitated about turning back, but when he casually pushed the door—it opened without resistance.
‘What kind of woman leaves the door unlocked in this day and age.’
The interior, all white with marble everywhere, was silent.
Even the living room lights were off; only the garden lighting filtered dimly through the unclosed curtains.
‘And why aren’t the lights on.’
Click.
Even after several clear clicks, the living room lights didn’t turn on.
Click, click.
‘Is it broken?’
He had just taken a couple of steps and reached the center of the living room when—
“Kyaaah!!”
A sharp scream pierced the darkness as something pure white charged straight at him.
Thud.
The large man’s hand caught it, and with great force pushed it toward the end of the sofa.
Thump.
Ji Wan collapsed onto the sofa as though thrown, and that soft something landed on top of him.
A faint scent of soap brushed past his nose.
When scheming men desperately battle for her favor in the male harem
This one’s also on my reread list! The rivalry, scheming between the men in the imperial harem are just as intense and thrilling as in classic palace drama novels, where concubines fight to the death. Give it a read, girls! I promise you won’t be disappointed.
Synopsis:
“I am not worthy of her… but I still want to be by her side, even if only as a loyal dog…”
Those were the painful whispers of Yue Guanyi – the proud Crown Prince of the Great Qi, who was torn between deep love and a guilty conscience. Despite holding the supreme power of the Imperial Guard, he still could not forget the dark past when he was sold into a brothel.
Fate played a cruel twist when Qiu Shuzhi – a young female official who had just passed the imperial examinations with top honors – stepped into his life. She did not know that she was the one who had saved him from a tragic fate many years ago. And now, her heart was the target of pursuit for both Yue Guanyi and the powerful Empress Dowager Qin Qing.
While Yue Guanyi only dared to silently care for and protect the one he loved from afar, the Empress Dowager Qin Qing openly expressed his feelings and did not hesitate to take advantage of his power to approach Qiu Shuzhi. The covert struggle between the two most powerful forces in the imperial court began…
Trigger warning: All men in this novel are yandere style.
_____
Please help me, I want to bring you the best possible things.
If you find any chapter or novel with poor translation and editing quality, let me know by commenting directly under that novel or chapter. I will retranslate it as soon as possible.
[Touch the gear icon in the bottom right corner of the screen to move to the next chapter if you want.]
Most Commented This Week
The Villain Has Gone Mad For Me (Completed Main Story)
I’m The Lowest-Ranking Daughter Of A Martial Arts Villain (2 Chapters Left to Complete)
I Became the Assassin Family’s Foster Daughter (Completed Main Story)
Men of the Harem (137 Chapters Left to Complete)
The Duke Only Needs My Child (Completed Main Story)
At the End of Ruin, There You Are (56 Chapters Left to Complete)
She’s a Villainess but her Husband is Handsome (Completed Main Story)
People Aren’t Meant to Be Fixed! (4 Chapters Left to Complete)
My Discarded Fiancé Returned (Completed Main Story)
Summer Must Die (16 Chapters Left to Complete)
I Received The First Time Of My Extraordinary Superior (9 Chapters Left to Complete)
Regret With All Your Might (Completed Main Story)