novelraw Chapter 117 : A Connection Doesn’t End Just Because I Leave
Chapter 117 : A Connection Doesn’t End Just Because I Leave
Chapter 117: A Connection Doesn’t End Just Because I Leave
Yang Sobo set his teacup down and stared straight at me.
“So that’s why you need me, isn’t it? You said you’d hold his leash and turn him into So-ryong’s loyal dog. And in return, you want the distribution network? That’s absurd. That’s not a deal—it’s extortion.”
I had expected resistance, but his stubbornness was far greater than I had imagined.
Still, I said nothing and simply looked at him in silence.
“……And that distribution network isn’t my business to give away.”
At last, he opened his mouth.
“It is the blood vessels and breathing holes of our compatriots who have taken root all over the world. Unless you share blood with us as a brother, I cannot hand that lifeline over to an outsider like you. That is my duty as a Hwagyo.”
His resolute answer left no room for rebuttal, and for a moment, I was at a loss for words.
“Instead of the distribution network, I’ll give you this.”
He pulled out an old file from his desk drawer and tossed it onto the table in front of me.
Inside the file were stacks of building and land registry documents from the Myeong-dong and Jongno areas.
They had become dirt cheap after the currency reform, but this was the heart of Seoul, a place whose value would soon skyrocket beyond imagination.
Its worth did not fall behind the distribution network in the slightest.
No—right now, to me, it was worth even more than that.
“This is…….”
“These are the last of my prime assets. Things I put under borrowed names to avoid the eyes of those government bastards. I’ll hand them over to you at half the market price.”
It was an unbelievably bold offer. I stopped running calculations in my head and asked,
“Why are you making such a proposal? If they’re under borrowed names, couldn’t you just pass them on to So-ryong as they are?”
“Do you think that child can protect these for decades?”
There was a bitter note in Yang Sobo’s voice as he spoke.
“You might be able to. After all, you’re a person of the Republic of Korea. But So-ryong is not.”
I closed the file. There was no reason to refuse this offer.
“Why aren’t you taking So-ryong with you?”
“He refused. He said he would stay here.”
Deep anguish flickered across Yang Sobo’s face.
It seemed he had been reminded of Wang Sogun during his conversation with So-ryong.
“He said that if even he were to leave, who would remember his father…… I couldn’t bring myself to stop him.”
“Very well. In exchange for this, I will hold Jin Tae-gang’s leash. As long as I’m alive, I will make sure that Jin Tae-gang never points his blade at So-ryong’s neck.”
At my answer, the look in his eyes grew even deeper.
“Then summon Jin Tae-gang tomorrow. I need to see with my own eyes whether you truly are someone who can hold his leash.”
The next day, a heavy silence filled Yang Sobo’s office.
Only Yang Sobo and Baek Min-woo were seated there, but the atmosphere was clearly different from before.
That was because there was a guest they were waiting for today.
Yang Sobo gently touched his teacup and asked in a low voice,
“Baek. Are you really sure about this? That bastard isn’t a beast that can be tamed.”
“If he can’t be tamed, then all we have to do is tighten the leash even more.”
Baek Min-woo replied calmly.
At that moment, Zhang Wei’s voice came from outside the door.
“Sir, President Jin Tae-gang has arrived.”
“Let him in.”
The door opened, and Jin Tae-gang entered with a stiff expression.
He first bowed deeply to Yang Sobo in proper courtesy, then carefully sat down beside Baek Min-woo.
The Gunsan shark, once filled with ambition, was now nervously watching the two men who would decide his fate.
Yang Sobo merely observed the scene without saying a word.
The first to speak was Baek Min-woo.
“President Jin. I informed the Elder about what we discussed at our last meeting. I recommended you to him as the new owner of Incheon.”
At those words, Jin Tae-gang’s eyes flashed with shock and elation.
But that joy quickly froze at Baek Min-woo’s cold follow-up.
“However, the Elder has many concerns. He wonders whether President Jin’s blade might someday be turned toward So-ryong.”
This both represented Yang Sobo’s thoughts and served as a test thrown at Jin Tae-gang.
Placed on the testing ground, Jin Tae-gang was momentarily at a loss for words.
‘This bastard…… what on earth is he plotting?’
In his mind echoed Baek Min-woo’s voice from the night before, when he had secretly summoned him.
‘President Jin Tae-gang. I’ve heard that among the Hwagyo, “opium” is a taboo. But what do you think would happen if someone were smuggling it through Gunsan Port—and even distributing it?’
That quiet whisper was a dagger that pierced straight through his most vile and fatal weakness.
‘And…… about that old flour mill at Gunsan Port. I heard it burned down completely in a fire in 1958, which is rather strange. The owner of that factory, President Ju from Shanghai, disappeared on the night of the fire. And coincidentally, starting the very next month, President Jin’s business began to grow rapidly.’
Jin Tae-gang’s face turned deathly pale.
Sucking the blood of his compatriots to build his own wealth.
That was a taboo that could never be tolerated within Hwagyo society.
‘I think this should be enough for you to understand. Don’t even think about talking back to me tomorrow. I’ll be watching closely to see just how loyal of a dog you can become.’
Having finished his recollection, Jin Tae-gang clenched his teeth.
As he suppressed the humiliation, his shoulders trembled faintly. He stood up from his seat and bowed deeply toward Yang Sobo and Baek Min-woo.
“Sir, if you entrust Incheon to me…… no, if Master Baek pushes me forward, I swear on everything I have.”
He looked back at Baek Min-woo.
In his eyes, there was no longer ambition, only desperate urgency for survival.
“Incheon alone is enough for me. I have no greater greed. I will become the strongest spear and shield protecting Young Master So-ryong alongside Master Baek.”
A bitter smile rose to Yang Sobo’s lips as he watched him.
It was only a fleeting glance, but the perceptive man understood everything.
That oath was not the vow of a loyal dog—it was the submission of a wolf terrified of a fledgling’s blade.
At last, Yang Sobo made his decision.
“Very well. Jin Tae-gang. I’ll entrust Incheon to you. Return to Gunsan immediately and settle everything. Prepare to lead your people into Incheon, and I’ll contact you separately.”
“Yes, sir.”
Though he answered firmly, Jin Tae-gang furtively watched Baek Min-woo’s reaction.
When Baek Min-woo gave a small nod, Jin Tae-gang finally stood and left the office.
Seeing Jin Tae-gang’s pale face, Zhang Wei, who had been waiting outside, asked,
“President Jin. What on earth happened? Did Baek Min-woo grab hold of some weakness of yours?”
“……Zhang Wei. You don’t know. You have no idea what kind of man that bastard is.”
Muttering incomprehensible words, Jin Tae-gang left Yang Sobo’s residence.
As Jin Tae-gang fled the office as if escaping, a heavy silence once again settled over the room.
Yang Sobo looked at Baek Min-woo with a blank expression, betraying no emotion.
But his eyes alone wavered more complexly than ever before.
“What exactly did you put around that bastard’s neck?”
After a long while, he finally spoke.
There was clear wariness in his voice.
What kind of method could have turned that ambition-filled beast of Gunsan into such an obedient dog in just one night? He had to know.
There was no guarantee that the blade that man wielded would never someday be aimed at So-ryong’s neck.
But Baek Min-woo calmly lifted his teacup. Reflected in it, his face looked like that of an ordinary twenty-year-old youth, yet his gaze was as deep as that of an old man who had lived through decades.
“There’s no need for you to know, sir.”
“Hah…….”
Yang Sobo let out a hollow chuckle in disbelief.
“So now you’re even keeping secrets from me. Do you really think I’ll just trust you without question?”
“I don’t believe everything can be resolved by trust alone. I place more faith in transactions. And aren’t we in the middle of one right now, sir?”
Baek Min-woo set his teacup down and spoke firmly.
“How I handle Jin Tae-gang is irrelevant. What matters is the ‘result’—that he will move according to your will. I promised you that result, sir, and I have proven it.”
Baek Min-woo met Yang Sobo’s gaze head-on.
“As long as I’m alive, Jin Tae-gang will never bite Young Master So-ryong. His fangs will be aimed only at your enemies. That is the value I offer you.”
It was an arrogant declaration. Yet at the same time, it was an undeniable truth.
Yang Sobo was a man who now had to leave Korea, while Baek Min-woo was a man who would remain on this land and build a new empire.
To protect the legacy he would leave behind and his successor, he needed a powerful proxy like Baek Min-woo.
‘Sir. Do not trust Baek Min-woo too much. He is a wolf that can never be tamed.’
Recalling Zhang Wei’s words, Yang Sobo gave a bitter smile.
Only when it was time to leave did he finally realize the truth—that all this time, he had been under the illusion that he could keep Baek Min-woo beneath his feet.
But from the very beginning, Baek Min-woo had emphasized that they were equals, that their relationship was horizontal, not one of superior and subordinate.
It was only that he had willfully ignored it.
After a long silence, he nodded with a deep, heavy sigh.
“You’re right. The time has come for me to rely on you.”
“Rely? It’s a transaction. I have always dealt with you through transactions. And I have never once broken a promise I made to you. That’s how it’s been until now, and that’s how it will continue. Even if you are far away, in another place.”
“Indeed. You always kept your promises. It was simply that I couldn’t bring myself to trust you.”
Yang Sobo said nothing more.
He merely pierced Baek Min-woo with a profound gaze for a long while.
Soon, a strange smile formed on his lips.
It was an expression layered with resignation at realizing his era had ended, and acknowledgment of Baek Min-woo—all mingled together.
“I’ll call for you again once the real estate I’ve decided to hand over is ready. Come then and finalize the transfer procedures. Before that, I’ll need to do some internal cleanup.”
“Thank you, sir.”
“As you said, the connection between you and me doesn’t end just because I leave.”
He added quietly. Yang Sobo’s eyes sharpened once more, just as they used to be.
“You’ll need my Hwagyo distribution network eventually. No matter how capable you are, you can’t handle matters across the sea all on your own.”
It was a remark that implied their relationship would continue going forward.
‘Of course. That’s why I’m not letting go of my ties with you.’
Baek Min-woo muttered inwardly, while outwardly he merely bowed his head humbly.
“When that time comes, I’ll seek your wisdom once again.”
Yang Sobo took an envelope out of the drawer and placed it on the table.
“It’s a telegram from your younger brother.”
Baek Min-woo silently accepted the telegram.
When he opened the envelope, inside was a short message written in Min-soo’s clumsy handwriting.
Words saying he missed him, words of thanks, and words saying he was doing well and staying healthy.
Yang Sobo was making it perfectly clear to Baek Min-woo. That his younger brother’s safety was still firmly in his hands.
It was a silent warning that if he so desired, something could happen to his younger brother across the sea.
Reading the intent, a faint smile appeared on Baek Min-woo’s lips.
“It seems you worry a great deal, sir.”
“……I’ll trust you.”
“Yes. You should.”
Baek Min-woo stood up and bowed deeply to Yang Sobo one last time.
“Then, I’ll wait until you call for me again.”