Chapter 1520 Specified (5)

Ha Gwang-Sik dazedly asked, “You are saying... You’ve always been wealthy?”

Kang Jin-Ho coolly nodded. “Yes.”

The veteran reporter grew flabbergasted. “But, uh, from what we’ve heard, your father used to be a taxi driver before opening a cafe of his own.”

“Yes, you heard correctly.”

“So, to say you have a lot of money is a bit... Unconvincing?”

“Why not? There’s no rule saying my father must be wealthy for me to be wealthy as well, after all. I’m a self-made man.”

“Oh... I-I see.”

Ha Gwang-Sik grew even more flabbergasted. He genuinely did not expect Kang Jin-Ho to respond like this. The obvious response to this line of questioning would have been beating around the bush and being as vague as possible about receiving investment or some such, but this...!

And I was planning to use that excuse to launch my attack and make him confess, too...!

Always have been wealthy, he said. What a load of crap that was.

But Ha Gwang-Sik knew he had nothing to counter it with. If they started arguing about the source of Kang Jin-Ho’s wealth, this interview would no longer be about the Caffe Luogo incident. To keep up the pretense, he could ask only about MK and nothing else besides.

Ha Gwang-Sik chewed on his lip before theatrically nodding away.

“Aha, I see. You already had a lot of money and used that to set up MK. Is that it, Mister Kang?”

Kang Jin-Ho casually replied. “It is.”

“You... must be incredibly wealthy, then.”

“Yes. More than you think.”

“...”

Kang Jin-Ho stared at Ha Gwang-Sik, utterly relaxed. Such brazenness left the veteran reporter speechless for a moment there.

“I-I see. Then... Mm.”

Unbeknownst to himself, Ha Gwang-Sik began scratching the back of his head, which was something he did as a force of habit whenever he felt too flustered to continue.

“With the... uh, police’s enthusiastic assistance, it seems the investigation into this incident is rapidly progressing, Mister Kang. What is your opinion regarding this development?”

“I’m grateful.”

“...?” Ha Gwang-Sik stared at Kang Jin-Ho in stupefaction. “I-is that all?”

“Isn’t that enough? Do you need more?”

“...No, not at all.”

All pretense of this being an interview had gone out the window by now.

Kang Jin-Ho smirked at the sight of a flustered Ha Gwang-Sik.

How amusing.

This reporter must’ve investigated Kang Jin-Ho’s background if he knew that much about his father. Which should’ve been unnecessary if they simply wanted to interview him for the Caffe Luogo incident.

Then, how should I go about handling these amateurs?

“Then, allow me to be direct, Mister Kang,” Ha Gwang-Sik spoke, his face slightly flushed with stubbornness. “Don’t you think the police’s assistance has been rather excessive?”

“Not at all.”

“Even though the number of investigators assigned to the Caffe Luogo incident is three times higher than other incidents of a similar nature?”

“That’s up to the police to decide, not me.”

“But, isn’t it because you’ve spoken to the police behind the scenes?”

“Well, we did call the police, so there’s that.”

Ha Gwang-Sik’s brows rose higher. “I’m sorry?”

“We dialed 112 to report the crime, you see? They were quite friendly on the phone, I must say.”[1]

“...!”

Kang Jin-Ho leisurely puffed away at his cigarette while narrowing his eyes. “Do you have any other questions?”

Ha Gwang-Sik smiled, but his eyes were definitely not smiling right now. That was when Bak Gyu-Yeon sitting next to him gripped his waist. However, the senior reporter cleanly ignored that gesture.

“Mister Kang. Didn’t you get arrested for contravening the national security law not too long ago?”

“Yes. But my name was cleared soon afterward.”

“Meaning, you were found innocent by the authorities?”

“I wouldn’t be sitting here if that weren’t the case.”

Ha Gwang-Sik stared straight into Kang Jin-Ho’s eyes. “That incident led to the former Prime Minister Kim Myeong-Chan being arrested instead. For the crime of trying to frame you.”

“Yes, he is in jail. But not for the crime you mentioned.”

“Then...” Ha Gwang-Sik’s tone sharpened even more. “In your opinion, why did Kim Myeong-Chan try to frame you? It didn’t look as if you two shared a troubled history, after all.”

“My guess? He must’ve gone senile.”

“Is that your answer?”

Kang Jin-Ho chuckled softly, then glanced at Lee Hyeon-Su, prompting the latter to shuffle into the position in front of the only exit in the office, effectively blocking it.

“Now, then. Turn the voice recorder off,” said Kang Jin-Ho quietly.

Ha Gwang-Sik flinched nastily. “Mister Kang, we are reporters. You can’t threaten the...”

“Save it. Turn the voice recorder off, now.”

Kang Jin-Ho got up before moving toward the head of the table, then leisurely settled down on it. After reclining comfortably against the cushions, he crossed his legs next.

“It sounds like you have a lot of questions. Fine. I’ll answer some of them. However, everything will be off the record.”

Ha Gwang-Sik’s eyes widened.

Kang Jin-Ho smirked. “What’s the matter? Isn’t this what you wanted?”

His attitude had changed noticeably. His previous friendly-enough tone was gone, replaced by something resembling a predator growling threateningly.

Ha Gwang-Sik was certain now. This had to be the real Kang Jin-Ho.

Without arguing back, Ha Gwang-Sik turned the voice recorder off. He even made sure Kang Jin-Ho saw him turning it off.

Kang Jin-Ho smirked deeply. “It seems you’re strangely interested in me.”

“Yes, I am.”

“In that case, why didn’t you come to me directly? Instead of taking the long way around like this.”

Ha Gwang-Sik grimly replied, “I didn’t think you’d agree to speak to me.”

“Why wouldn’t I? It wouldn’t have been too troublesome for me, anyway,” Kang Jin-Ho leisurely replied while puffing away at the cigarette.

That was when Bak Gyu-Yeon, his face completely pale and stiff like a block of ice, finally broke his silence.

“Excuse me, but... I must apologize, but we’ll have to conclude the interview here. If you don’t mind, may we be on our way now?”

Ha Gwang-Sik hurriedly looked at his junior reporter. “What are you on about?”

“Please shut your trap, senior. Before I use that ashtray to crack open your skull.”

“...!”

Bak Gyu-Yeon really was terrified beyond description right now.

He would never dare anger “regular” chaebols like this, because the aftermath would’ve been beyond his ability to cope with. However, Kang Jin-Ho was definitely not a “regular” chaebol. Not by a long shot! He was someone capable of destroying a sitting Prime Minister of this country. To a man like that, turning a pair of reporters into fish food should be easier than a cakewalk!

Bak Gyu-Yeon definitely did not want to get tangled up in Ha Gwang-Sik’s madness and die today.

“Mister Kang, sir? I don’t want to hear anything from this point onward. Please let me go. I don’t want to die.”

Kang Jin-Ho frowned in sheer flabbergast. “I never said I’d kill you, though?”

“But, but... The atmosphere is...”

Kang Jin-Ho chuckled helplessly, then glanced at Lee Hyeon-Su. “So he says?”

Lee Hyeon-Su growled menacingly. “Honestly, sir? I’m seriously thinking about it right now. Should I just throw them outside the windows from up here?”

It didn’t sound like he was joking.

Kang Jin-Ho might be chuckling, but Lee Hyeon-Su was genuinely furious right now. His original intention was to tease his boss a bit with this interview and maybe use the ensuing article as another marketing stunt, after all. So, for an interview with such a purpose to morph into an interrogation instead!

When he thought about how he got played by these reporters, Lee Hyeon-Su’s expression grew even icier than before.

He coldly muttered, “They sure are fearless, aren’t they, sir? Even if they were dying of curiosity, aren’t they too gutsy to waltz right into the heart of the shady group like ours?”

Kang Jin-Ho groaned softly. Hey, you... If you put it that way, we really sound like the bad guys here, okay?

Of course, Kang Jin-Ho knew he was a bad guy. Even then, he wasn’t bad enough to murder ordinary civilians in broad daylight and bury them somewhere just because they got on his nerves a bit.

Doing so went against Kang Jin-Ho and the Martial Assembly’s principles, after all.

“Okay, so...?” Kang Jin-Ho glanced at Ha Gwang-Sik and asked. “What do you wish to know?”

To his credit, Ha Gwang-Sik didn’t cower and stared right back at Kang Jin-Ho. “Mister Kang. Just what are you?”

“Hmm...?”

“That is what I’m most curious about.”

Kang Jin-Ho casually shrugged. “I see. Before I answer that... What are you, Mister Ha?”

“Me? I’m... a reporter, sir.”

“Then, let’s say I’m MK’s representative.”

“...”

“You can’t expect others to respond properly to rubbish questions like that. If you want to ask something, formulate your question better. Then you will get your answer.”

“But, I...!”

Ha Gwang-Sik abruptly couldn’t think of anything to say.

Things he wanted to ask Kang Jin-Ho? There were too many to count. So many, in fact, that he didn’t even know where to start. However, now that he had the freedom to ask anything, he wasn’t sure of what to ask.

That was when he finally realized something. The “Kang Jin-Ho” he had been chasing after all this time turned out to be an ill-defined idea of something, not a fully formed certainty.

In his estimation, Kang Jin-Ho definitely came from a suspicious background. Maybe he was a powerful big fish in the underworld who committed crimes of unimaginable scale.

However, what about Kang Jin-Ho on the surface? He was far closer to a saint, wasn’t he?

Ha Gwang-Sik already knew that Kang Jin-Ho was running an orphanage, and that he frequently visited that place. And he even knew that it had been nearly a decade since Kang Jin-Ho had gotten involved with that orphanage.

People wouldn’t do that to put on a show to trick others.

Who would try to build up their public image by becoming a patron of an orphanage, all in preparation of events happening ten years down the line? He wouldn’t have a reason to do something so tedious. If Kang Jin-Ho really was as wealthy as he claimed to be, cooking up one or two nice-sounding tales about himself would’ve been a walk in the park, after all!

The employees of this company were also loyal to Kang Jin-Ho. Absolutely so, in fact. Then, the only part that stank badly about Kang Jin-Ho so far was...

“Mister Kang, why did Kim Myeong-Chan try so hard to destroy you?”

Kang Jin-Ho casually replied, “He must’ve disliked me.”

“But, why?”

“Why do you dislike me, then?”

“...?”

Ha Gwang-Sik was rendered speechless again.

Dislike? He certainly couldn’t deny that. The feelings he harbored toward Kang Jin-Ho could never be described as favorable, after all. However, if he were to explain why he felt this way, well...

“People don’t need an excuse to dislike other people,” said Kang Jin-Ho. “Most reasons people use are nothing more than excuses that fit their narratives. No, people simply dislike each other.”

“...”

“Just like how you feel about me,” said Kang Jin-Ho with another smirk. He stared at Ha Gwang-Sik’s shifting expressions. “So? Did you find anything after digging into my background?”

“...”

“Why aren’t you saying anything now that you’re here? You have the opportunity you’ve been looking for, after all.”

“I... I...!”

Ha Gwang-Sik bit his lip, hard.

Kang Jin-Ho stayed still while studying Ha Gwang-Sik before growling softly. “Pursue the truth. Be fearless. People usually call that being brave. Courageous. However, I disagree.”

“...”

“To me, that’s nothing more than reckless bravado.”

Kang Jin-Ho’s smirk deepened into a sneer next.

“One’s sense of justice can be a frightening thing. Because, it can make you feel like everything you do is for the right cause. You think your actions are now justified. Worse still, you even start to think that your sense of justice will protect you from harm, too. Even though what actually protected you until now has been your acquaintances and their desperate efforts. For instance, like your junior reporter next to you.”

Bak Gyu-Yeon nodded urgently, his complexion sickly pale. Without him, Ha Gwang-Sik would have died several times over by now!

“But the people captured by their sense of justice criticize everyone trying to stop them as cowards. They genuinely believe they are courageous. However, do you want to know the truth about them?”

Ha Gwang-Sik’s expression grew grimmer and paler.

“That’s not courage. It’s nothing more than... stubbornness. One born out of a rubbish personality, paranoid delusions, and a venomous drive to be proven right. That’s all.”

Kang Jin-Ho’s words stabbed Ha Gwang-Sik like stakes to his heart.

“In that case, the least they could do is be courageous when it matters. However, what about you? Now that you’ve been given the opportunity, you can’t say a thing, now can you? You’re afraid of what I might say. And you’re afraid of not leaving this place alive after listening to what I have to say. Am I wrong?”

Ha Gwang-Sik wanted to deny it, but couldn’t. His inability to ask anything was proof enough, after all.

“Now, listen closely.”

Kang Jin-Ho chewed his words out.

“If you want to keep a safe distance and run your mouth off—only up to a point where you won’t get hurt, of course—just to satisfy your petty little sense of justice, do it somewhere else. I’m not nice enough to humor you, after all. You want to keep digging into my life? Then, put your life on the line. Resolve yourself to get your throat slit before coming after me. Only then will I make your wish come true.”

Kang Jin-Ho suddenly grinned brightly, then got up to leave.

“I trust that you’ll write up a nice-sounding article. That was the promise, after all. If you have any further questions, leave them in writing. We will answer each and every question as sincerely as possible.”

With that, Kang Jin-Ho stepped outside the office. However, Ha Gwang-Sik didn’t dare get up and see him off.

Clack!

Once the office door closed shut, Lee Hyeon-Su spun around and glared murderously at the two reporters.

“Since our chairman has said so, I will let you both leave here unscathed.”

“T-thank...”

“However...!”

Lee Hyeon-Su’s bone-chillingly cold voice dug into the reporters’ hearing.

“I will only protect you until you reach your respective homes. As for what will happen afterward? I’m sure you can imagine it yourselves.”

“...”

“You will soon understand...!” Lee Hyeon-Su chewed his words out. “...What kind of people we are.”

Cold sweat soaked Ha Gwang-Sik’s back just then.

1. 112 is South Korea’s version of 911. ☜