» The Youngest Son of Sunyang
The Youngest Son of a Chaebol Family - 273
[273] Filial Sons... 1
Everyone wondered why I was using my mother's name, but only Executive Director Woo Byungjun, who was well aware of our family affairs, slapped his forehead and burst out laughing.
"Hahaha. Oh dear... What can I say... If the Madam finds out, she might foam at the mouth and collapse... Hehehe."
"Nothing could be better if that were to happen."
Executive Director Woo Byungjun, catching the genuine sentiment in my words, quickly stifled his laughter.
"My apologies. It was such an exquisite move that I just..."
"There's no need to apologize. It's fine."
Those who could guess the content of our conversation busily rustled their documents, pretending not to see or hear.
To clear the heavy air in the room, I addressed Cheon Sangpil.
"The promised funds are currently being processed. I'll let you know as soon as it's complete, so there's no need to worry too much. Just make sure to handle tomorrow's affairs well."
Watching him nod, I opened the stock status file.
Tomorrow morning, my grandmother would be penniless.
* * *
"Your aunt is trying hard not to be kicked out, I see."
Vice Chairman Jin Younggi, who strode into the hotel restaurant, looking around, sat down in a chair with a satisfied expression.
"What do you mean?"
"The hotel, I mean. It's been a while since I was here, and it's very different from before. Much more refined and modern. The staff look good, too; it's improved."
"I also heard that the department store's sales continue to rise. My aunt seems to have immense potential."
"And you had no part in it?"
He probably had some suspicions, but he was jumping to conclusions anyway. There was no need to answer seriously.
"Well, I did invest money in Miracle, but it's a step removed. As for my role... perhaps just frequenting it often enough to boost sales...?"
"Your cheekiness is quite natural... Good. Hehe."
After I drank a glass of water, the food arrived. It was Korean cuisine, so many side dishes were laid out, but my eldest uncle barely touched his chopsticks.
After a brief meal, he asked,
"What do you really want?"
"I already told my second eldest uncle everything. Did you perhaps not hear?"
"That you can't stand the sight of Grandmother?"
He truly excelled at simplifying matters. To summarize it in just one sentence.
"You could say that."
"Actually, our mother was a bit extreme. She was hell-bent on making life miserable for my sister-in-law, and I never imagined it would extend to you... There were times even I winced watching her."
Why was he being so garrulous? Did he still think I didn't know about the nominee shares?
"Then you understand me."
"Of course. That's why, as the eldest elder of this family, I intend to sort things out cleanly."
"Please, speak."
"As you wish, Mother will never step foot on Korean soil again. She'll live out her remaining years in exile abroad. Of course, if she becomes too frail to move, we'll have to care for her. She'll just be staying in a hospital anyway, won't she?"
"There are many good hospitals abroad too."
"What?"
His gently smiling face instantly contorted.
"You little brat, how dare you say that? You scoundrel! Is that something you should say? No matter how much you hate her, is it right for her to die in a foreign land?"
"Eldest uncle. You asked what I wanted, so I told you my honest feelings. Isn't she the grandmother who had her grandson run over by a truck? No matter how much she hated her grandson, was *that* a justifiable act?"
Everyone in this family shuts up whenever the truck incident is mentioned. Because Grandfather was there at the time, too.
"Eldest uncle. Just say what you have to say. My thoughts don't seem to be important right now, do they?"
He glared at me, took a long drink of water, and then spoke.
"Mother will continue to live abroad. However, we cannot truly let her live in exile. We intend to provide her with enough money to live comfortably. This is an issue you cannot stop."
I had no intention of stopping a son from showing filial piety in the richest family in Korea.
"This is what you want, isn't it? So go retrieve what you leaked to the opposition party. You know it's not good for Sunyang's name to be bandied about in public, don't you?"
"Is that all?"
"You have Cheon Sangpil with you, don't you? I heard he knows a lot about Mother's mistakes. Don't even think of using him, just make sure he keeps his mouth shut. I'll take care of the Arts Foundation so there are no lingering problems."
He didn't breathe a word about the nominee shares, so he must either think I don't know about them, or that nominee shares are outside my area of interest.
As I remained silent, he elaborately expounded on why his ideas were the best solution, beneficial to everyone.
I merely listened to him. He had no idea what a blessing it was for me that he was just babbling on and wasting time.
What kind of expression would he make if he knew I was finishing things in a single, swift day?
After happily rambling for quite some time, he stopped speaking and pulled out his mobile phone from his jacket pocket.
"Just a moment."
He opened the trembling flip phone.
"What is it?"
The urgent voice of the person on the other end, difficult to understand, leaked out.
"What?!"
He was so startled that he knocked his chair over and shot to his feet.
My eldest uncle began to glare at me, still holding the phone to his ear. Did he notice the stock movement in Myeongdong?
He must have planted people everywhere to be his eyes and ears.
"You, you scoundrel...!"
His hand, holding the unhung phone, trembled violently.
"They're saying a large block of our Sunyang shares is moving right now. Is this your doing, you bastard?"
It was impolite to remain seated while an elder stood. I slowly rose and said,
"I don't know what you said to Lawyer Cheon Sangpil, but he sought my help. So I brought him out... And he suddenly offered to sell his shares? I just happen to have a habit of buying blue-chip stocks, so... I offered him a little more than the market price."
"Was it the shares you were after from the beginning?"
"A bonus. I've told you what I want until my mouth was worn out, haven't I?"
"Hey!"
"I plan to continue leaking information to the opposition party."
"Neither the shares nor Mother will go according to your will. No matter how much you fuss, a few phone calls from me will silence everything. You'll need a hundred years just to stand against me, you brat."
"Let's say that's true. But everything up until now has merely been a prologue. If the opposition party stops, I'll move the prosecutors. If you block that too, it will erupt in the United States. If the Korean Consulate General was involved in smuggling, isn't that a diplomatic issue? If you also block the U.S., eldest uncle... Grandmother will return to Korea."
"You've completely lost your mind. What? The U.S.?"
"I'm quite curious how you'll retrieve the shares. I can roughly imagine the scenario, but..."
I wanted to let him know that nothing would be easy.
"Does a movie ever open exactly according to the script? Production company interference, director's revisions, actor's capriciousness. Many films are screened with content completely different from the scenario. You only know a movie after the final edit is done."
My eldest uncle scoffed. He was still overflowing with confidence.
"Don't mess around, take my offer. It's not too late yet."
"I apologize. I'm afraid what I'm about to say might cause you indigestion, or worse, make you choke on your breakfast. I appreciate the offer, but it won't do. I'm just going to go with my gut feeling."
Ah, my eldest uncle hadn't hung up the phone yet.
Whoever it was, they must have heard our entire conversation and would be incredibly anxious.
They must have received a lot of money to keep a close eye on the shares... Since it had failed, they would have to vomit it all out, after all.
* * *
"The real-name conversion is complete. All of it has been transferred to the Director's mother's name."
Vice President Jang Dohyung handed me a thick stack of documents.
"You've worked hard."
I said to Cheon Sangpil, who had a refreshed expression.
"You've confirmed the account, right?"
"Yes. I received the down payment."
He wasn't satisfied with 100 million dollars; this man, too, was certainly not destined for an ordinary life.
"You will surely receive the remaining balance."
I extended my hand to him.
"Now, meet your family and decide where you want to settle down while you rest. I'll look after you until the very end."
"Thank you for your consideration, Director Jin Dojun."
As Cheon Sangpil bowed his head to me, Executive Director Woo Byungjun spoke.
"Shall we depart now? Incheon or Gimpo International Airport will be swarming with Vice Chairman Jin Younggi's people. Mr. Cheon Sangpil will travel to Japan by boat from Busan Port and catch a flight to Bali from there."
"Am I being smuggled?"
Fear clouded Cheon Sangpil's face, and Executive Director Woo Byungjun burst into laughter.
"You watch too many movies. There are many passenger ships to Japan. You can get to Fukuoka in three hours. Just make sure you have your passport. Haha."
After confirming Cheon Sangpil's departure for Busan, I headed to my parents' house.
The most difficult part of this task still remained.
It felt like returning to my hometown after a long time. My mother was busy preparing dinner, and my busy father also came home early.
"You didn't come just to see your parents' faces, did you? What is it?"
"I came for several reasons. Do you think I'm such an unfilial son who doesn't even greet his parents?"
"When you want to see our faces, you usually make a reservation at a restaurant first. You don't like seeing your mother working in the kitchen."
My father pointed to my mother bustling in the kitchen.
"Exactly. But today, I'll eat at home. I thought the restaurant might get noisy if I spoke outside."
"What is it again? What trouble have you caused?"
"I'll tell you after dinner."
After dinner prepared by my mother, we sat in the living room, the three of us.
"Alright, what is it you have to tell us?"
First, I told them about Grandmother's art transactions. My father's face hardened when he learned that the Sunyang Arts Foundation was completely ruined.
"So, you're saying she sold all the paintings to buy group shares?"
"Yes. She steadily bought them up a long time ago. Among them were unlisted shares. She also secretly acquired the shares Grandfather had distributed to the founding contributors, so their value is considerable."
I couldn't bring myself to say that I had set a trap.
"Those shares are all under nominee accounts, aren't they?"
"Yes."
My father seemed to have already guessed what I was about to say.
"And, I don't know what method you used, but you ended up acquiring those shares?"
"That's right. How did you know?"
"Because if those shares had gone into your eldest uncle's possession, you wouldn't bother reporting it to us."
My father spoke calmly, as if it were nothing.
"Are you telling me to prepare because your brothers might yell at me?"
"Yes. This time, Mother also needs to steel her heart."
My mother's large eyes widened.
"Me?"
"Yes. All of Grandmother's nominee shares have been transferred to your name, Mother. I'll need to confirm the exact stake with Chairman Lee Hakjae, but it will be over 3% of the group's controlling interest."
"Y-your mother-in-law's shares... transferred to my... my name?"
"Yes."
The fact that they were group shares, and her mother-in-law's shares at that, must have been far more shocking than the sheer number. My mother stammered, but at least she spoke.
My father was so surprised that he merely gaped with his mouth open.
"Isn't it only natural for the daughter-in-law who suffered the most to inherit them? Mother, you are fully qualified."
My mother quickly recovered from the shock. From the looks of it, she didn't seem burdened by the shares or worried about attacks from relatives.
"Dojun."
"Yes."
My mother, who had regained her composure, spoke in a calm voice.
"The humiliations and indignities I experienced after marrying into this family, I endured thanks to your father."
My father held my mother's hand tightly, as if her words pained him.
"But today, thanks to you, those memories have been completely erased. This is the first time I've felt so refreshed. Thank you, my son."
My father and I were speechless at my mother's completely unexpected words.