novelraw Chapter 96 : It Wasn’t Over Yet
Chapter 96 : It Wasn’t Over Yet
Chapter 96: It Wasn’t Over Yet
Night had deepened, and before I knew it, the promised time arrived. We headed toward the old pier of Yeongdo.
In the pitch-black darkness, Han Do-gyeong was waiting for us alone on the boat.
“You came.”
Without a word, we boarded the boat. As the old engine let out a dull rumble, the boat slid into the darkness.
On the vast open sea, the only thing illuminating us was the faint moonlight.
Without saying anything, I tightly grasped the hand of my younger brother, who was sitting pressed close to me, trembling.
How long had we been running? When we arrived at the agreed coordinates, Han Do-gyeong cut the engine.
All around us was enveloped in a silence akin to death. Only the sound of the waves rocking echoed rhythmically, like a heartbeat.
“They’ll come.”
Lee Cheong-ho spoke quietly.
Just as he said, a moment later, as if it were a lie, three faint lights appeared on the distant horizon.
When Han Do-gyeong sent the same signal with a flashlight, the lights slowly began to approach us.
The ship that came close was far larger than Han Do-gyeong’s boat—a 50-ton-class tuna fishing vessel. On its bow, the Chinese characters ‘Sea King (海王號)’ stood out clearly even in the darkness.
Has the moon risen over the eastern sea.
The moment Lee Cheong-ho picked up the radio, along with crackling static, a heavy voice flowed out from beyond the marine radio.
“There are still only stars filling the sky.”
When Lee Cheong-ho replied, the large ship drew even closer. Soon, the two vessels carefully came alongside each other.
From the deck of the Sea King, several sturdy men descended and threw ropes, firmly securing our boat.
The deck of the Sea King, visible over the railing, was neatly maintained, and the crew’s movements were disciplined and efficient, without waste.
At the center of the deck, a tall, thin middle-aged man was looking down at us.
His face was deeply etched by the sea wind, but his eyes alone were sharp and calm, like a hawk’s.
Lee Cheong-ho stepped up to the railing first and, in fluent Chinese, politely paid his respects.
“Are you the one who came under President Lin’s orders. I am Lee Cheong-ho, the errand runner sent by Lord Yang.”
The captain nodded as he replied. His voice was low and resonant.
“Is Lord Yang well. I ran day and night from Kaohsiung. Where is the child you’re entrusting to me.”
At those words, Min-soo flinched and trembled.
“It’s time to go.”
I pushed Min-soo’s back. Min-soo looked back at me one last time, then, though unsteady, crossed over to the Sea King bravely.
A man who appeared to be one of President Lin’s subordinates supported Min-soo and guided him safely onto the deck. I followed Min-soo and crossed over to the deck of the Sea King as well.
Then, standing before the captain, I bowed deeply without saying a word. At my sudden action, the captain’s eyebrows lifted slightly.
Lee Cheong-ho added politely from the side.
“I ask for your care. This is the child’s older brother. Since he’s his only younger sibling, he seems quite worried.”
The captain looked at me for a moment, then his stiff expression eased, and he nodded faintly.
“He is Lord Yang’s precious guest. Even if I have to stake my life, I’ll make sure he sets foot safely on Taiwanese soil, so don’t worry.”
Sincerity showed clearly in his eyes.
Quietly, I bowed deeply once more. After giving Min-soo one last hug, I crossed back to Han Do-gyeong’s boat.
Without further delay, the Sea King turned its bow and began advancing into the darkness.
“Brother!”
Min-soo called out to me from the receding ship. Instead of answering, I simply waved my hand silently.
I stood there without moving an inch until the faint lights of the ship carrying my younger brother completely disappeared beyond the horizon.
I only hoped that this choice would return to Min-soo as a good outcome.
Before I knew it, Han Do-gyeong approached my side and lightly tapped my shoulder, telling me it was time to go back. His voice pulled me out of my deep thoughts.
“……Yes. Let’s head back now. There’s still a lot to wrap up.”
Han Do-gyeong nodded and entered the wheelhouse, turning the bow. I approached Lee Cheong-ho, who was still standing as if nailed to the deck.
His gaze, too, was fixed beyond the horizon where Min-soo had disappeared.
“How is So-ryong’s condition?”
“It looks like the treatment period will be quite long.”
“Did you report it to Lord Yang?”
“Yes. And I also informed him that Wang Hai was taken care of.”
I nodded. Yang Sobo would now know all the truth.
“I’m thinking of going up to Seoul tomorrow. What will you do, Mr. Lee Cheong-ho?”
“I plan to go up together once So-ryong can move around.”
“Understood.”
After finishing my conversation with Lee Cheong-ho, I walked across the swaying deck and entered the wheelhouse.
In the darkness, I could see Han Do-gyeong’s back as he held the helm.
“President Han. You should start wrapping things up.”
Without taking his eyes off the controls, Han Do-gyeong replied. He immediately grasped what I meant.
“Yeah.”
“Who will you hand the organization over to?”
“I’m thinking of handing it to Gi-nam.”
I recalled Park Gi-nam’s face from our first meeting, when he had played the role of a scarecrow while pretending to be a sea whale.
“Is he someone you can trust?”
“I’ve been with him for over twenty years. He can’t go against my words.”
Han Do-gyeong spoke firmly. Absolute confidence was evident in his voice.
Confidence was good. But why would there be a saying about being struck in the foot by the axe you trust? Trust alone didn’t solve everything.
“Still, you should put some safety measures in place.”
Han Do-gyeong slowly turned his head toward me.
“Once you properly start your business, your control will inevitably weaken. You know that as long as you’re in the light, it’s not easy to exert perfect influence over the shadows.”
When you do business in the light, you gain more to lose. And people with more to lose can’t move as boldly as before.
“Safety measures, huh……. Then how about eliminating it altogether? Bringing everyone out into the light?”
“Wouldn’t that be a waste? Even if that organization disappears, Busan’s smuggling rings won’t vanish. No, it’ll become even more of a mess. A sea without rules could also cause major disruptions to your business, President.”
Han Do-gyeong nodded. He understood exactly what I meant.
“I’ll think it over carefully.”
Since Han Do-gyeong surely had his own ideas, I didn’t add anything further. As a businessman who had succeeded in a previous life, he would likely have a solution.
“Do you have sufficient business funds?”
“Most of it is in dollars and yen. The remaining cash is all tied up in the bank.”
“Did you get investigated?”
Perhaps it wasn’t a pleasant memory, as Han Do-gyeong clicked his tongue softly before nodding.
“I deposited about five million hwan, and they told me to come in for an investigation. Fortunately, there’s Do-gyeong Fisheries. Thanks to the ledgers prepared there, I was able to explain it.”
“Come up to Seoul once. You’ll need to exchange the dollars anyway.”
“Hm? Are there money changers holding won right now? I heard they’re all dried up in Busan.”
“The account freeze will probably be lifted soon.”
At that moment, Han Do-gyeong’s eyes widened as he let go of the helm. The boat lurched briefly, but he didn’t care.
“What did you say?”
“Busan is bad enough, but Seoul is practically suffering from hardened arteries. Many companies are suddenly facing severe liquidity crunches, and quite a few are being pushed to the brink of bankruptcy. On top of that, Mr. Yang is moving the Overseas Chinese side in the United States and lobbying the U.S. government. The Korean government is probably going to have a massive headache as well.”
Han Do-gyeong let out a low hum.
“Before you properly start your business, come up to Seoul once. I’ll treat you.”
“Sure.”
“By the way, when I skimmed through the bribery ledger, it looked like you spread bribes to quite a lot of people.”
“Hehehe. If you don’t do that, you can’t survive.”
“Why didn’t you give bribes to Lieutenant General Lee Jin-tae?”
The moment the name Lee Jin-tae was mentioned, Han Do-gyeong recoiled and spoke as if disgusted.
“I tried approaching him for no reason and only got chewed out badly. In all my life, it was the first time I’d ever seen a soldier who hated money.”
Was that why Chairman Han entrusted Lieutenant General Lee Jin-tae with the Munitions Base Command?
“Well, I understand. I’ll put the bribery ledger to good use.”
“Be careful. It’s a double-edged sword.”
“I won’t be the one using it anyway. The KCIA will take care of it. They’ll probably remove who needs to be removed and put in only who needs to be put in. The truth sank into the sea together with Wang Hai.”
Even as we exchanged this and that conversation, the boat diligently cut through the sea.
After running for quite a while, we arrived back at Yeongdo and parted ways. After catching a bit of sleep, I contacted Oh Chung-seong and set up a meeting.
The same tea house where we had met last time. There, I came face to face with Oh Chung-seong. I tossed the bribery ledger I had brought from my chest onto the table in front of him.
“It’s the bribery ledger fed by the sea whale.”
Startled, Oh Chung-seong picked up the bribery ledger and quickly skimmed through it. His hands flipping through the pages trembled slightly.
“This…… isn’t something I can handle on my own.”
“You’ll need to report it to Deputy Director Noh Gi-tae and receive support. Before that, first make a scapegoat for the sea whale annihilation operation.”
Swallowing dryly, Oh Chung-seong closed the bribery ledger, tucked it into his chest, and nodded.
“I’ll talk to Chief Superintendent Park.”
“Yes. We’re in the same boat now, so make sure to pass some credit my way as well.”
“Understood.”
“I’ll be going up to Seoul tomorrow. I probably won’t be coming to Busan for a while. Let’s meet in Seoul.”
“……Will I be able to return to Seoul?”
A subtle doubt lingered in Oh Chung-seong’s voice.
“You solved a case of this scale. If they don’t call you back, that just means Deputy Director Noh has no intention of grooming you, Manager Oh. Or do you not trust Deputy Director Noh?”
“No. I trust him.”
“You reported about me the way I told you to, right?”
“Yes. I did as instructed.”
I had told him to remove what needed to be removed and include what needed to be included when reporting my activities in Busan to Noh Gi-tae.
“Well done. Even if you come to Seoul, let’s help each other. Understood?”
I stood up and extended my hand to Oh Chung-seong. After staring at my hand for a moment, Oh Chung-seong firmly grasped it.
“Then I’ll see you in Seoul.”
After finishing the handshake with Oh Chung-seong, I left the tea house. Then I opened the door of a gukbap restaurant at a slightly distant location and went inside.
The interior of the gukbap restaurant was eerily quiet.
“You’re already here?”
The man sitting alone inside the empty restaurant was Kwon Do-hyeong.
Perhaps he had already been drinking gukbap with soju, as his face was flushed red.
He glanced at me once, then silently refilled his soju glass. I quietly sat down across from him.
“I didn’t know you enjoyed drinking alone.”
“…….”
“Give me a drink too.”
I held out the empty glass in front of me, but he roughly slapped my hand away. The glass rolled across the floor with a sharp clatter.
I clicked my tongue audibly.
“That’s a bit much. What’s so hard about giving someone a single drink?”
“Because of you…… because of you, my life is about to be ruined!”
Kwon Do-hyeong glared at me with bloodshot eyes. Grinding his teeth, he growled.
“What do you mean by that? How is that my fault? It’s a tragedy brought on by your own greed, Major.”
I replied casually and pulled another soju glass from the side. Taking his bottle, I filled my glass and continued.
“Did I call you here, Major? No, I didn’t. Running into Manager Oh there wasn’t something I intended.”
“Because I met you…….”
He said he had been put on standby duty, yet all he did was blame others.
Well, once you were marked in the military, promotion was practically out of the question. He had already been pushed all the way down to Busan, far from Seoul, and now even put on standby duty?
It was a level where it was hard to remain in the military any longer.
“So, did you come out just to vent your resentment?”
“Resentment? Ha, resentment? I came here to kill you.”
He pulled out a pistol emitting a cold gleam from his chest and placed it on the table. The strange combination of the old wooden table and the cold metal created an eerie tension.
But I didn’t even blink.
“You’re going to shoot me here? Then your life will end there as well, Major. You know that.”
“My life is already over! Do you know how hard I worked just to get this far……!”
Kwon Do-hyeong raised his voice. His resentment burst out like a scream.
Staring straight into his madness-filled eyes, I spoke very slowly and clearly.
“It’s not over yet.”
“What?”
“Just because you take off a single uniform, does your life really end?”