Chapter 013: Suspicion (2)
Chief Jang laughed at Hee-soo's warning.
"Even if she doesn't want to, she probably won't have a choice."
"Why?"
"Reporter Jo said she wants to cover you."
"Close coverage."
"That's why she came to introduce herself today."
"What is there to cover?"
"Well, do your best."
"She says she can't understand why a chaebol would become a firefighter."
"So I told her to investigate you herself."
"And that's why she's here today."
Hee-soo let out a small laugh.
"Heh. Trying to spy on the private life of a chaebol..."
Despite saying that, his expression showed no real interest.
"I'm leaving."
"Have a good workout."
"All right. Go home."
When Hee-soo began walking away, Yoon-hee became flustered.
"Huh? Chief Jang, aren't you going with him?"
"Me?"
"I need to exercise too."
"What?"
"Aren't you his close-protection security?"
"Security?"
"Why would I be?"
"I'm not even a bodyguard."
Seeing Chief Jang's genuinely confused expression, Yoon-hee hurried after Hee-soo.
She eventually caught up with him.
"You're going home without showering?"
"The shower room here is too dirty."
"Ugh."
"There's hair everywhere, and the floor is all slippery."
"I can't tolerate that kind of thing."
Yoon-hee frowned.
"You should've told me that sooner!"
"I registered for two years!"
"You never asked."
"Besides, maybe the women's shower room is clean."
"Actually, now that I think about it, I've never seen a woman exercising here."
"Does this place even have a women's shower room?"
"What? It doesn't?"
"I don't know."
"I was saying I've never gone inside one."
"What?"
While talking, they eventually reached Hee-soo's home.
It was a huge residence hidden inside the alleys of Hannam-dong.
For a moment, Yoon-hee was overwhelmed by the scale of the property.
"S-so this is your house."
"You've never been here before?"
"Why would I have?"
"Most reporters have visited once or twice."
"Especially reporters from the business section."
Yoon-hee suddenly remembered television footage of Chairman Choi and the former chairman leaving through these gates.
"Didn't you live alone?"
"I moved back home."
"They kept telling me to come back."
"Then did you sell your Hannam-dong apartment?"
"No. I still have it."
"You didn't even know where my family home was, but you knew about my apartment?"
"I know the current situation of the person I'm investigating."
"Apparently your information isn't completely up to date."
Just as Hee-soo was about to enter the house, Yoon-hee's stomach growled loudly.
Grrrrr.
"Oh my. Sounds like thunder."
"Would you like to come in and eat?"
"It is breakfast time."
"What?"
Before she knew it, Yoon-hee had followed Hee-soo into Chairman Choi's residence.
When they entered, Chairman Choi was sitting on a sofa in the living room.
"Hee-soo, you're back?"
"Who's the woman beside you?"
"She's Reporter Jo Yoon-hee from Samhan Ilbo."
"Is that so?"
"Did you properly confirm her identity?"
"Chief Jang already did."
"Good."
"But why has a reporter followed you all the way to our house?"
At that point, Yoon-hee finally recognized Chairman Choi's face and hurriedly introduced herself.
"Hello. I'm Jo Yoon-hee, a reporter from the business section of Samhan Ilbo."
"I'm not here to conduct an interview inside your home."
"Director Choi invited me in for breakfast, so I ended up following him."
"Ah. Is that so?"
Hee-soo immediately added,
"We came back from the gym together."
"When we reached the front of the house, her stomach growled loudly enough to sound like thunder."
"So, since it was breakfast time anyway, I invited her to eat before leaving."
"I see. You did well."
"Before you go shower, tell Chief Yoon we have a guest."
"Yes."
Hee-soo headed toward the kitchen.
Before he could even return, Chief Yoon hurried out to welcome Yoon-hee.
"Oh, goodness. I didn't even know we had a guest."
"Hee-soo should've called ahead if he was bringing someone home."
A young woman wearing sportswear and an apron followed her out of the kitchen.
"A guest?"
"Huh? A woman?"
Yoon-hee immediately recognized her.
"The daughter of the head of Minjung Bank?"
"Ji Min-jeong?"
When Min-jeong realized she had been recognized, she smiled and gave Yoon-hee a small nod.
Her previously cheerful voice instantly changed into a professional one.
"That's right."
"But I'm not only the daughter of Minjung Bank's chairman."
"I also work as an analyst at Minjung Securities."
"But how do you know me?"
"Of course I know you. I'm Jo Yoon-hee from Samhan Ilbo."
Min-jeong tilted her head.
"Jo Yoon-hee?"
"Samhan Ilbo?"
"That name sounds really familiar."
Then she suddenly slapped her knee.
"Ah!"
"Jo Yoon-hee from Samhan Ilbo?"
"Then you're the daughter of Samhan Ilbo's owner!"
"Ah. Yes, that's right."
"How do you know?"
"I'm a securities analyst."
"I should at least know that much."
"Your family owns the largest media group in the country."
"But what are you doing here?"
"Well..."
Yoon-hee awkwardly tried to explain.
"I'm covering Director Choi."
"And since I've been following him from early in the morning, he told me to come eat breakfast..."
She stopped and frowned at herself.
"Ah. What am I even saying?"
Min-jeong chuckled.
Her voice suddenly changed again, switching from professional to cheerful.
"Ah, you went to interview Director Choi, I mean Hee-soo Oppa, early this morning."
"And he felt bad about sending you away without breakfast, so he invited you inside."
"Yes. That's right."
Yoon-hee couldn't believe how Min-jeong's voice changed depending on the situation.
Min-jeong suddenly looked extremely happy.
"Wait here."
"I need to help Chief Yoon prepare breakfast."
Even Min-jeong's back looked cheerful as she walked away.
Yoon-hee couldn't understand what was happening.
What is this?
Ji Min-jeong, daughter of the head of Minjung Bank, came to Choi Hee-soo's house early in the morning.
And now she's helping prepare breakfast?
Is she basically their daughter-in-law?
Wouldn't this be enough to shake the entire financial world?
Meanwhile, Hee-soo returned after showering and changing into his firefighter uniform.
Chairman Choi spoke to him as naturally as if this happened every day.
"Heading out?"
"Yes, Father."
"All right. Be careful again today."
Yoon-hee quickly asked,
"Wait. Director Choi, aren't you eating breakfast?"
"No. It's not time for me to eat yet."
Min-jeong's voice came from the kitchen.
"Oppa eats chicken breast at the fire station."
Yoon-hee checked the time.
It was eight o'clock.
She suddenly looked flustered.
"Huh?"
While she stood there awkwardly, Min-jeong came out of the kitchen.
"Oppa! Have a good day!"
"Yeah."
Hee-soo acted as though it were completely normal.
Without even turning back, he opened the door and left.
After seeing him off, Min-jeong called to Yoon-hee.
"Come eat."
When she saw Yoon-hee's awkward expression, Min-jeong spoke firmly.
"You can't just leave!"
"Chief Yoon already prepared breakfast for you too."
Yoon-hee looked almost ready to cry.
Chairman Choi also headed toward the dining room.
"Come and eat."
"Yes."
At the breakfast table, Min-jeong behaved like a member of the household.
She naturally helped Chief Yoon carry soup to the table.
Unable to contain her curiosity any longer, Yoon-hee asked,
"But why are you here this early in the morning, Min-jeong?"
Min-jeong answered as though she had been waiting for the question.
"Chairman Choi always eats Korean food for breakfast."
"But my family always eats Western food."
"Bacon, sunny-side-up eggs, sausages, bread rolls, things like that."
"So whenever I want Korean food in the morning, I come here."
"I'm a huge Korean-food lover."
"And our houses are close."
"Besides, Chief Yoon's cooking is practically Michelin-level."
The head of Minjung Bank also lived in Hannam-dong.
"Ah. Right."
"No, wait. That's not what I meant."
Yoon-hee leaned forward.
"What I'm asking is, what exactly is your relationship with this family that you can come here early in the morning and even help prepare breakfast?"
"Normally, that's something..."
"Something a daughter-in-law would do?"
Min-jeong completed the sentence for her.
Before she could continue, Chairman Choi's stern voice interrupted.
"Min-jeong, you're talking too much at the table."
"Eat while you talk."
"Reporter Jo, you must be hungry. Please eat."
Both Yoon-hee and Min-jeong flinched at the same time.
"Yes."
As they ate, Min-jeong continued quietly.
"We've known each other like friends since childhood."
"Kindergarten, elementary school, middle school, high school, and university."
Yoon-hee tilted her head.
"Didn't Director Choi attend MIT?"
"Ah. He also studied medicine at Harvard."
"I studied business administration at Harvard."
Chairman Choi then asked Yoon-hee,
"Reporter Jo, what exactly do you want to reveal about my son?"
"Most things about him have already been reported by the media."
Chief Yoon quickly interrupted.
"Oh, Chairman."
"If you start questioning her while she's eating, she'll get indigestion."
"Haha. You're right."
"I'm sorry."
"Let's eat first."
"Samhan Ilbo is also a company where we purchase a great deal of advertising."
"Yes. We're always grateful."
"Good. Your soup will get cold. Eat comfortably."
"Yes."
Yoon-hee had been starving.
She had intended to maintain proper manners, but before she realized it, she had finished an entire bowl.
Min-jeong had done exactly the same.
Chairman Choi shook his head.
"I wish my son ate this well."
"He's always eating nothing but chicken breast because he's maintaining his body."
After breakfast, Chief Yoon brought out tea.
Chairman Choi finally resumed his questioning.
"So, let's return to what we were discussing."
"What exactly do you want to reveal about my son?"
Yoon-hee's eyes changed.
"I want to know Director Choi's intentions."
"And Suseong's intentions."
"Hmm."
"So you believe there's some hidden reason behind my son becoming a firefighter."
"That's right."
"As far as I know, Director Choi Hee-soo has practically been confirmed as Suseong's next successor."
"Your first and second sons are already considered to be out of the succession competition."
"Yet someone in that position is working as a firefighter?"
"I can't understand it."
"And I believe many people in this country can't understand it either."
Chairman Choi nodded.
"Yes. That's true."
"I don't understand it either."
Then he looked directly at Yoon-hee.
"Reporter Jo, please find out why that brat is doing this."
"I'll provide anything you need for your investigation."
"What?"
Yoon-hee was the one who became flustered by the unexpected response.
She had assumed that investigating the successor of a major conglomerate would lead to a polite threat at a meeting like this.
She had even planned to use her special status as the daughter of Samhan Ilbo's owner to create the image of a determined journalist pushing forward despite corporate pressure.
Instead, everything was happening in the complete opposite way.
Min-jeong was making the same request.
"Exactly."
"I can't understand what Oppa is thinking either."
"There's an easy road right in front of him, but for some reason, he's deliberately choosing such a difficult path."
Still confused, Yoon-hee looked toward Min-jeong.
"I can't understand why you keep coming to this house either."
"That alone would make an excellent article."
The moment Yoon-hee said that, Min-jeong's eyes sparkled.
"Right?!"
"Wouldn't that be perfect front-page material?"
"Ji Min-jeong, daughter of the head of Minjung Bank, the country's number-one bank by market capitalization, visits the family of Suseong, the country's number-one conglomerate, early in the morning and even prepares breakfast for them."
"That's a huge exclusive."
"Just publish it!"
"If you want, I'll even hold a press conference!"
