Chapter 23. Whale Hunting (6)
1:30 a.m.
It was time to talk to the night editor.
Department Head Jang Junyeol was sitting in the editor-in-chief's seat, completely absorbed in the golf channel.
Scrape.
Harok pushed his chair back.
Step, step.
He had just started walking toward the editor's desk when a familiar face appeared outside the newsroom doors, staggering drunkenly.
Bang, bang.
"Open the door."
It was Lee Munhong.
Why did this guy come back after drinking instead of going home?
He was so drunk that he apparently couldn't even remember where he'd put his company ID card.
Harok hurried over and opened the door.
Slide.
The automatic doors opened, and Lee Munhong came in shouting at the top of his lungs.
"Oh, look who it is. Star reporter Baek Harok. The bastard who thinks he's better than everyone..."
"Department Head, why aren't you going home...?"
Thud.
Instead of answering, Lee Munhong shoved Harok in the chest and staggered toward his desk.
He zigzagged so badly that Harok felt nervous just watching him.
He's going to seriously hurt himself if he falls.
Plop.
After what looked like a dangerous acrobatic routine, Lee Munhong somehow managed to reach his seat and sit down.
Whenever newspaper department heads sat at their desks, they had a habit of automatically grabbing the mouse and checking the article editor.
"Let's see."
Scroll, scroll.
Harok had never realized how nerve-racking the sound of a mouse wheel could be.
"Hm?"
He found it.
"Hey, Baek Harok. What's this?"
Harok rushed over to Lee Munhong's desk.
"What do you mean?"
"This seventh-edition story Yubin sent in... It names the chaebol who was on drugs? Kwon Jaegwan?"
"Y-Yes."
Lee Munhong stared at the monitor with bloodshot eyes.
Did the editor-in-chief order him not to publish Kwon Jaegwan's name?
Harok tensed.
That morning.
"Department Head Lee, keep a close eye on anything involving Handong Group."
Wi Seongman had personally come over to Lee Munhong's desk to deliver the request.
"What's going on with Handong Group?"
"Their eldest son is always causing trouble. If a story comes up, block it appropriately."
Appropriately?
How exactly am I supposed to do that appropriately?
Lee Munhong had immediately become irritated.
Since Kim Yeonghwan became editor-in-chief, interference from the industry department had become increasingly blatant.
What is this, the Fifth Republic?
Are we getting reporting guidelines now?
"Fine."
Lee Munhong had answered carelessly because he couldn't be bothered arguing.
Back to the present.
The memory of that morning's conversation with Wi Seongman sent Lee Munhong's irritation soaring.
"So this is the article he was talking about..."
Tap, tap.
He slowly read through the article, pressing the down arrow on the keyboard.
But the expression on Lee Munhong's face wasn't angry.
If anything, he seemed to be enjoying the story.
Harok watched every change in his expression with intense nervousness.
Tap, tap, tap.
Lee Munhong began scrolling faster.
"...This bastard isn't just bad. He's a complete piece of shit."
He muttered to himself as he read.
Finally, he reached the end and leaned back in his chair.
"Seol Yubin wrote this?"
"Yes."
"She writes this well? She only just finished training."
"I... edited it a little."
Scratch, scratch.
Harok scratched his head awkwardly.
Lee Munhong opened his eyes wide and stared straight at him.
"Phew. What a waste. You're good at reporting, good at writing... and honestly, having a shitty personality is practically an advantage in this profession."
So this was what people meant when they said drunken words were honest words.
The truth Lee Munhong had kept inside came spilling out while he was completely drunk.
"I'm sorry."
"The industry department asked me during the day to stop any Kwon Jaegwan article from coming out... Did you know that?"
Fuck.
We're screwed.
Harok couldn't think of a good answer.
He simply watched Lee Munhong's expression.
"You bastard. You knew and deliberately slipped it into the edition change, didn't you?"
Fine.
Let's appeal to his conscience.
"Would I have gone this far if there had been another way? You read it yourself. Kwon Jaegwan is genuinely a terrible human being."
"If this runs, won't Handong pull its advertising?"
Ah, for fuck's sake.
Since when did they write articles while worrying about advertising?
This wasn't Yellow Times.
"..."
"...Damn it. The reality of journalism these days is fucking disgusting. Now the industry department acts like our master. Our master. Honestly, what you said to the editor-in-chief wasn't wrong. What kind of journalist is an industry reporter anyway...?"
Lee Munhong suddenly exploded into a rant.
Did he drink too much?
After passionately venting for a while, he suddenly collapsed back against the chair and closed his eyes.
Silence.
"Uh, Department Head... Yubin's article..."
"Huh? What about Yubin's article?"
"The one you just read..."
"I don't know. I'm completely wasted. I don't remember what I saw. I don't even remember coming here."
What kind of move is this?
"So what should I do with the article?"
Lee Munhong opened his eyes halfway and looked at Harok.
"You're the night desk. Handle it yourself. I told you, I'm not here."
Yes!
Harok practically sprinted toward the night editor before Lee Munhong could change his mind.
"We have a seventh-edition update from social affairs."
"Hm?"
Night operations moved quickly.
The article was immediately placed on page 23.
A few minutes later, an editor brought Harok the seventh-edition proof for page 23.
[Handong Heir Kwon Jaegwan Used Drugs... Investigation Expands into Business World]
His name was printed huge right in the headline.
Harok was extremely satisfied.
The final byline read:
[Reporters Seol Yubin and Baek Harok]
Harok had deliberately put his own name on the article.
He wasn't trying to steal credit from his junior.
Handong Group would almost certainly sue over this story.
There was no way he was going to let Yubin bear the lawsuit alone.
Harok picked up a red pen and checked the proof one last time for typos.
"Department Head, aren't you going to read it?"
"I've never seen that article. If the editor-in-chief asks tomorrow, make sure you answer properly."
"Yes, sir!"
Lee Munhong waved one hand without even opening his eyes.
Thanks for the final gift.
Harok grabbed the proof and hurried to the editing desk.
"No typos. It's good."
"What about the headline?"
The editor had the mouse cursor hovering over [Transmit], waiting for Harok's answer.
"How could someone as insignificant as me possibly nitpick a headline written by you, Senior?"
Gejji butda was newsroom slang for arguing over or nitpicking something.
"You little bastard. Flattery now?"
Click.
The editor smiled and pressed the mouse button.
It was done.
Tomorrow morning, Handong Group and the Daehan Daily editor-in-chief's office would both explode at the same time.
Harok went over to Nam Sangjun, who was working the night shift.
"Sangjun, the article just went out."
"Yes, I saw it."
"Put it online right now."
"Understood."
"Don't overthink the headline. Just use the same headline from the print edition. That way, even if the editor-in-chief complains later, you can sidestep the blame."
"Yes, Senior."
Perfect.
Every last detail.
In Harok's previous life, there had been endless rumors that Kwon Jaegwan used drugs.
But not a single article had ever named him.
Kwon Jaegwan had gone on to become chairman without any trouble.
But how could an owner addicted to drugs possibly manage a company properly?
Handong Group's influence had gradually declined.
Several affiliates went bankrupt.
Countless employees lost their jobs.
Maybe this life would be different.
If the drug story came out and, with a little luck, Kwon Jaegwan was even arrested?
Handong Group might pass to the second son, Kwon Jaejun.
Kwon Jaejun wasn't exactly brilliant either.
But at least he wasn't a walking disaster like Kwon Jaegwan.
He probably wouldn't destroy the company quite so badly.
[Yubin: Published?]
[Harok: You're still awake?]
[Yubin: Too nervous to sleep.]
[Harok: Even the great Seol Yubin gets nervous?]
[Yubin: I'm a delicate woman too.]
[Harok: --;]
[Yubin: (•ˋ _ ˊ•)]
[Harok: Oh, really.]
[Yubin: Did it go out?]
[Harok: Yeah.]
[Yubin: ꒰՞˶ˊᵕˋ˶՞꒱]
[Harok: Go to sleep now.]
[Yubin: ꒰ ᵕ༚ᵕ꒱Zz]
Four hours later.
5:40 a.m.
Handong Group PR Office.
"Deputy Chief... This... this..."
Assistant Manager Lee Gayeon from PR Team 1 was checking the morning papers when she suddenly became speechless.
"What? Did something come out?"
"There's an article about Vice President JK's drug use."
"What? Give me that!"
Whap.
Deputy Chief Kwon Taean snatched the newspaper from her hands.
Page 23 of Daehan Daily.
[Handong Heir Kwon Jaegwan Used Drugs... Investigation Expands into Business World]
Kwon Taean's mouth fell open.
He immediately dropped everything and called Kim Hyeongseok, head of PR Team 1.
"What is it?"
"Director, Daehan Daily's social affairs page has an article about our vice president's drug use..."
"What?"
Their worst fear had come true.
"It's on page 23. In yesterday's first edition, the article was [Celebrity Drug Investigation Expands], so it looks like they changed it overnight during the later editions."
"Have you contacted the executive director?"
"Not yet..."
"Call him immediately. I'm heading to the office now."
Kwon Taean was just about to hang up when Kim Hyeongseok spoke again.
"Wait. What about online?"
Clack, clack.
Kwon Taean searched for Daehan Daily and opened the website.
"It's the homepage headline with the exact same title."
"You've got to be kidding me... We were completely stabbed in the back! Call the executive director right now."
"Yes."
Phew.
Kwon Taean couldn't help sighing.
Of all days, why did an enormous crisis like this have to explode while he was on morning-paper duty?
6:40 a.m.
Executive Director Mun Byeonggeol arrived at the PR office.
"Good morning, Executive Director."
Step, step.
He ignored Kwon Taean's greeting and walked straight into his office.
"Everyone, in my office."
Kim Hyeongseok had just arrived as well and followed him inside.
"I'm calling Chief Secretary Park Gukjong now. Listen carefully."
Mun Byeonggeol took out his phone, put it on speaker, and called the chief secretary.
"Yeah. I read everything. What's the plan?"
"First priority is stopping the article from spreading."
"Can you stop it?"
"We'll try to persuade outlets with advertising first. If they still publish, we'll warn them to be prepared for a lawsuit."
Normally, a major conglomerate didn't threaten lawsuits over ordinary news articles.
But because the story involved the owner who was about to inherit the group, they had practically lost all reason.
"And?"
"We'll distribute an explanation saying the vice president used narcotic painkillers while receiving treatment for a chronic illness."
Silence followed briefly.
"I'll deal with the police side first thing this morning. If anything else happens, coordinate with the legal team."
"Understood."
Click.
Mun Byeonggeol pulled out a handkerchief and wiped the sweat from his neck and forehead.
"All right. You heard him. Send the explanation to every reporter assigned to us right now."
"But this was a social affairs story."
Kwon Taean raised a hand.
"Exactly. Good point. We need to stop the social affairs departments at other newspapers from rewriting Daehan Daily's article."
"Shouldn't we start with the evening papers?"
"Split them up and go directly into each newsroom. Especially Muna Daily. They can't be allowed to follow it."
"You don't need to worry about Muna Daily. They're extremely corporate-friendly..."
PR Team 3 Head Jo Jaesik, who had arrived late, spoke up.
"You think Daehan Daily published this because they aren't corporate-friendly?"
Jo Jaesik immediately fell silent.
"Who's writing the explanation?"
"PR Team 1 will handle it."
"Call Handong Medical Center and have them prepare an interview immediately."
"An interview about what?"
"About the chronic illness. What else? Say he's suffered from it for years and has been taking narcotic painkillers. Then say he may have mistakenly crossed the line into illegal drugs..."
"If we say something false, there could be legal problems..."
Jo Jaesik objected again.
"What? Problems? We're all about to lose our jobs and you're worried about problems? I don't care whether the hospital director does it or the deputy director does it. Make them do it."
Jo Jaesik opened his mouth to argue again, but Kim Hyeongseok elbowed him in the side.
Just stop.
"Understood."
Just like Handong Group, the Daehan Daily newsroom was thrown into chaos.
7:30 a.m.
Kim Yeonghwan stormed into work.
That was unusually early even for a morning newspaper.
He was heading toward his desk when he suddenly changed direction and marched straight toward the Internet News Team.
"Who worked the night shift here? Where are they?"
Brush, brush.
Nam Sangjun was brushing his teeth before leaving.
The overnight reporter for the Internet News Team handed off to the next shift at eight.
"Me."
"Why did you change the homepage headline to this?"
"A new article came in and... Guh."
When he tried to answer, toothpaste foam spilled out of his mouth.
"Rinse your mouth and come to my desk."
Kim Yeonghwan immediately returned to his seat.
He opened the article distribution system and checked the previous night's transmission history.
Seol Yubin had transmitted the seventh-edition article at 11 p.m.
That meant it could easily have been inserted into the sixth edition, which closed at midnight.
But the final revision time on Yubin's article was 1:10 a.m.
This wasn't even a new article.
It was just an edition update.
Why did the desk editing take that long?
If they had changed it for the sixth edition, Kim Yeonghwan might have caught it.
Nam Sangjun finished brushing his teeth and came over.
"Why did you change the homepage headline?"
"A new story came in, and it had the biggest impact. It's part of the Internet News Team's internal protocol. We change the main headline at least every three or four hours..."
Truthfully, this wasn't something Kim Yeonghwan could blame Nam Sangjun for.
He was struggling to figure out how to clean up the mess.
Then suddenly, he remembered who had been working the social affairs night desk.
Baek Harok.
You again.
