Ch 36

<Chapter 36>

 

One week before that day (1)

 

As sharp words flew back and forth, pheromones surged in response. Seryeong swallowed her rising anger, trying to create space in the conversation by lifting her teacup, but she couldn’t calm down enough to stop her hands from trembling. Erasing her agitated expression once more and regaining her composure, Seryeong gave Kim Seongho an awkward smile.

 

“If we combine my younger brother Youngjae’s 17% stake with the 10% of friendly shares, including Director Kim Seongho’s, that makes 27%. After that, it should be easy to sway the other shareholders to our side, don’t you think?”

 

“I don’t particularly want to meddle with a company that’s doing well… It’s a risky gamble that could bring us all down. Unless there’s a benefit that justifies it, of course.”

 

What a sly one. He could have asked about the conditions from the start, but instead, he pours cold water on the idea in front of Kang Taeoh before asking about terms. Seryeong took a small, almost inaudible breath, then crossed her legs and leaned back in her seat. She didn’t want to appear pathetic, begging when the other party had the upper hand and was presenting a negotiation.

 

“If we secure a majority at the general shareholders’ meeting and bring Yuseong Venture Capital back into the Yuseong Group, I will double your current stake through a rights offering of Yuseong Venture Capital. Of course, the issue price will be the initial issue price, not the current value. That would mean you’d see hundreds of times the profit from where you sit.”

 

Kim Seongho’s eyes changed at the mention of increasing his stake at the initial issue price. It was undoubtedly an enticing offer. But Seongho attached one condition.

 

“I can’t agree to pushing out Executive Director Choi Yoonjae. Yuseong Venture Capital has grown this much because of Executive Director Choi. Not only would there be strong opposition from the shareholders, but I also don’t want to kill the goose that lays the golden eggs.”

 

“So, you’re saying you’d agree to incorporating Yuseong Group while keeping Choi Yoonjae in place?”

 

“I’ll think about it. With a combined 27%, we still need to gather more than half. It’s not going to be easy. Most of the shareholders are very favorably disposed toward Executive Director Choi.”

 

When Kim Seongho didn’t come over as easily as she had hoped, Seryeong grew anxious. Kang Taeoh quietly sipped his tea, waiting for a break in their conversation before calmly interjecting.

 

“I’m not sure why I was called to this meeting.”

 

Taeoh raised one corner of his mouth with a look of bewilderment, and Seryeong sighed softly before turning her gaze to him.

 

“Managing Director Kang.”

 

“Yes.”

 

“You know about our company’s Finist Resort, which is currently being renovated, right? Development has stalled due to a lack of construction funds. I was wondering if there might be a way to get help from Chairman Kang…”

 

There wasn’t even the slightest flicker in Kang Taeoh’s eyes. He was well aware that they had proceeded recklessly without securing proper construction funds, and that the construction company in charge of the renovation had also suffered losses. And now she was asking him to step in. After a moment of silence, Taeoh leaned back from the sofa and let out a cynical laugh.

 

“As you know, construction companies are in a slump these days.”

 

“If it’s completed, I promise to give you 30% of the room equity instead of the construction costs. Looking at the long term, it will be more profitable.”

 

Profitable, huh. Even if they received 30% equity in a resort that was far behind in the rankings, it would take years to recoup the construction costs. Finist Resort was one of the resorts with a high vacancy rate. The location, amenities, and prices were all terrible, and everything from the planning stage needed to be re-examined. Taeoh was dumbfounded by what kind of calculation she was using to call that advantageous.

 

Kang Taeoh rose from his seat with his signature sly smile. It wasn’t a comfortable place to stay any longer. It was ridiculous how similar it was to that time.

 

What a narrow-minded person. How could the company run well when someone like that was holding on as a leader? Seryeong’s head tilted up at Taeoh’s attempt to leave.

 

“I’ll mention it to my father, but I wouldn’t get your hopes up. Then, I’ll be going now.”

 

Whether she was spewing curses behind his back or not, Taeoh ignored her and left the office. He was curious about the bewildered expression on Seryeong’s face, but he didn’t want to make eye contact and feign insincere politeness because of it.

 

***

 

Chief Yoon followed closely behind Yoonjae as he returned to his seat after finishing the conference call. Sensing something was up, Yoonjae signaled with his finger for him to come into his office.

 

“Executive Director. Here is the profile of Kang Taeoh, Managing Director of Seoin Construction, as you requested.”

 

Yoonjae’s brow furrowed as he checked the contents as soon as he received the white envelope. He was somewhat disappointed that there wasn’t much information, but there were interesting facts mixed in here and there. Most of the information was from the same secretarial office, so it was mostly unreleased information.

 

Cornell University, NBA Master’s Degree.

 

Private wedding in the United States.

 

The spouse is not known to the public.

 

There is a young daughter between the spouses, but his mother in New York is raising her.

 

His mother is the legal wife of Chairman Kang of Seoin Construction, but she immigrated after a consensual divorce due to personality differences after giving birth to Kang Taeoh.

 

Does not enjoy drinking.

 

Special hobbies include collecting art.

 

Mainly collects works by painters Michelle Sandra and Lee Junseo.

 

“…Lee Junseo?”

 

His eyes stopped at the painter Lee Junseo. It was still difficult to be certain whether it was a coincidence or fate, but he found several points to meet and talk about. In fact, if he hadn’t come to Eunho’s funeral, he might have thought it was a strange coincidence and simply been wary and moved on. But the name of Junseo that he found in Kang Taeoh’s profile strangely scratched at Yoonjae’s nerves. It was a vague hunch that Kang Taeoh might know the secret of Eunho that he was missing.

 

Yoonjae took out a business card from his pocket and slowly entered it into his cell phone. A slow ringing tone sounded as he pressed the call and held it to his ear.

 

“This is Choi Yoonjae.”

 

-You called sooner than I expected.

 

The voice responding to Yoonjae’s calm tone was endlessly relaxed. It didn’t unpleasantly provoke Yoonjae, but it wasn’t a tone that made him feel comfortable either.

 

“I’d like to meet you. When would be a good time for you?”

 

-…How about 7 p.m. tomorrow?

 

Yoonjae was as polite as possible. There was no need to be humble, nor was there any reason to be stiff.

 

“I understand. Then I’ll see you tomorrow.”

 

He didn’t know how far the story would go, but if the regression was certain, he was determined to confirm the matter of Eunho’s funeral and get an answer.

 

After finishing the call, Yoonjae leaned against the window with a troubled look on his face. The low breath he exhaled settled heavily on the floor. He pressed his fingertips firmly against his throbbing eyelids and looked out, his face looking even paler in the harsh sunlight.

 

One week prior to that day (1)

 

Yoonjae opened the window because he felt suffocated by the artificial air conditioning. The sharp movement of the wind and the afterglow of the red sunset gently fluttered along his collar, which was resting on the windowsill.

 

The address Kang Taeoh left seemed to be his residence. Yoonjae parked in front of the house and entered the upscale residential alley lined with high fortress-like walls, checking the address once more. As soon as he stopped the car in front of the house and left a message saying he had arrived, the entrance automatically opened. Yoonjae parked the car in the parking lot and slowly walked inside.

 

“Thank you for coming all this way.”

 

Where had the fierce pheromone battle from that day gone? He couldn’t feel anything, enough to believe that he was lying about being an alpha. As Yoonjae shook the hand he offered, he realized that he was deliberately controlling his pheromones with the faint musk scent flowing along his collar.

 

“Since you have to drive yourself, should I get you a light non-alcoholic cocktail?”

 

Taeoh went into the kitchen and took out the tools to make cocktails one by one. Judging from the fact that there wasn’t a speck of dust in the room, it seemed that there was a helper, but it seemed that they had all been dismissed for an important conversation.

 

Taeoh mixed non-alcoholic dry gin and lime in a shaker, poured it into a chilled cocktail glass, handed it to Yoonjae, and then took out the prepared snacks one by one from the refrigerator and moved them to the living room table.

 

“There must be a reason why you wanted to see me so quickly.”

 

Yoonjae’s stiff expression softened somewhat at Taeoh’s relaxed smile. Taeoh, who had a sense of what kind of conversation would take place, was setting the mood for a deeper conversation.

 

“I came to know exactly what you meant by what you said last time. I want to have a serious conversation, not just speculate.”

 

Contrary to Taeoh’s expectation that he would only beat around the bush, Yoonjae immediately got to the point. Taeoh put down the glass he was holding and slowly continued, pointing his finger at his forehead.

 

“I’m sure you understood the meaning of those words correctly… You’re right about what you’re thinking.”

 

The atmosphere immediately became heavy at Taeoh’s answer. It wasn’t as sharp as last time, but the intersecting gazes were calmer and more serious than ever.

 

“So, Managing Director Kang has also regressed.”

 

Taeoh nodded at Yoonjae’s low voice that scratched his ears.

 

“When time went back, I thought it was strange that everything else flowed the same, but Yoo Eunho-ssi and Executive Director Choi were subtly different. At first, I thought it was both of them, but when Executive Director Choi protected Yoo Eunho-ssi, I realized that only one person had regressed.”

 

Taeoh took a sip from his cocktail glass, leaned back in his seat, and rubbed his moistened lips with his finger.

 

“May I ask at what point you came to the present time? I can tell you first if you want.”

 

Yoonjae asked one by one, starting with the most important thing. Contrary to his expectation that he would need to explore a little more, Kang Taeoh answered so readily that it was anticlimactic.

 

“June 20th.”

 

“The day you came to Yoo Eunho-ssi’s funeral.”

 

Taeoh’s focus, which had been on the cocktail, immediately came up and turned to Yoonjae. The air instantly froze and an unusual current flowed. Taeoh’s eyes shook greatly and he moved his lips several times.

 

“…Did you see me for the first time then?”

 

Yoonjae silently signaled yes with his eyes.

 

‘I thought you wouldn’t know, but how good is your memory?’

 

Taeoh, who was looking at him with a straight gaze, moistened his lips with his tongue and asked.

 

“Is that the day for you too, Executive Director?”

 

“Yes.”

 

Taeoh massaged his stiff neck several times with the strength of his hand and muttered in a slow tone as if he was sure of something.

 

“I wanted to know the reason for the regression, but I think I have a rough idea. I don’t know about you, Executive Director, but at least I do.”

 

Taeoh was also at the scene of Eunho’s accident that day. When time went back to eight months ago the next day, Taeoh, like Yoonjae, wrote down the records of those eight months and turned his business in a direction that was favorable to him. But the time he returned was only eight months, not eight years. Taeoh searched for the meaning and eventually tentatively concluded that the cause of the regression was Eunho’s accident.

 

“How did you find out about that day?”

 

Yoonjae once again stabbed at the most important core that he was curious about. He wanted to clarify what his relationship with Eunho was.

 

Taeoh’s pupils dilated rapidly at the mention of how he knew about Eunho’s funeral and came to visit. Seeing him hesitate as if he was on the defensive, his curiosity grew like a snowball.

 

“I can’t tell you that right now. What is certain is that I have no relationship with Yoo Eunho-ssi that could be misunderstood, so you can rest assured.”

 

“……”

 

“I know that you two are in a special relationship.”

 

Yoonjae’s face hardened coldly at the words ‘special relationship’. He suspected that he had people attached to him and Eunho. He was about to say something because he felt unpleasant, but Taeoh hurriedly added.

 

“I’ll tell you little by little as we build trust, so let’s take out another card.”

 

Yoonjae stared at him, trying to read Taeoh’s intentions. He was clearly trying to tell him a lot and seemed to want to get closer.

 

“…I think you trust me, Executive Director.”

 

“I’m sure it’s the same for Managing Director Kang, but there’s a feeling you get when you’re doing business, isn’t there? I feel like Managing Director Kang is pulling me in.”

 

Yoonjae told him everything honestly. He was well aware that he could become an enemy, but it was a response that was possible because he wasn’t so sloppy that he couldn’t prevent it.

 

The conversation stopped abruptly and there was a gap in the conversation for a while. Kang Taeoh looked at Yoonjae with a cautious look, and then opened his wallet and handed him a business card, as if he had made up his mind about something. The business card was black, unlike the last one, and Yoonjae’s eyes changed when he checked the company name and position.

 

A Second Main Director. Yoonjae ran a dry hand over his face and recalled his memories before the regression.

 

“Ah… nothing has changed.”

 

“What do you mean?”

 

“Before time went back, Seoin Construction had a 5% stake in the company. Now A Second has 5%.”

 

“You have a good memory.”

 

Why would they invest in A Second, a foreign company, instead of investing in Seoin Construction, and secretly invest in it?

 

“May I ask why?”

 

“I’m weighing which side to take.”

 

There was no name in the designation, but Yoonjae understood it without difficulty. While investigating Kang Taeoh, he learned that his father was close to Chairman Choi. Yoonjae concluded that the relationship between Choi Seryeong and Kang Taeoh would not be bad, just like their parents. Perhaps Kang Taeoh was unwillingly tied to Choi Seryeong before the regression, or he became one of her allies. But now Kang Taeoh was weighing the relationship between himself and Choi Seryeong.

 

While he was distracted for a moment, Taeoh, who had been watching, cut through the gap.

 

“Let me ask you one too.”

 

“……”

 

“Do you have a Lee Junseo painting?”

 

Now even Junseo. Yoonjae expressed his displeasure to Kang Taeoh, who knew him even better than Chief Yoon.

 

“How far have you investigated me?”

 

“It’s not like that.”

 

Taeoh, who was flustered by Yoonjae’s frowning face, seemed to hesitate for a moment before finding something on his cell phone and handing it over.

 

Yoonjae, who had been on edge, looked at the photo and looked at Taeoh again with a face that couldn’t hide his embarrassment. Kang Taeoh’s private marriage partner, whom even Chief Yoon couldn’t find out, was in the photo. The other person was Junseo.

 

“Were you married?”

 

Taeoh and Junseo in the photo were a couple to anyone who saw them.

 

“Not officially married, but we have a child.”

 

“Ah……”

 

All the circumstances were pieced together like a puzzle by the fact that Junseo and Taeoh had formed a marital relationship. The reason why Kang Taeoh was so interested in him was because of Lee Junseo.

 

“I’m sorry for the death of Lee Junseo-ssi.”

 

Taeoh’s expression wasn’t very good at the expression of regret. But even Yoonjae didn’t know what was going on at all. Yoonjae hadn’t had a chance to face him for a long time since he broke up with Junseo a long time ago. He had only encountered him once at a gallery in New York, but that was it. It ended without saying a word. He felt a little wronged when Taeoh looked at him with a dark expression at his words of regret.

 

“It’s a little bitter.”

 

“……”

 

“He couldn’t erase you until the end and left. He even made a child on purpose.”

 

As he had been thinking a lot about marriage recently after imprinting with Eunho, he fully sympathized with and understood his resentment. Taeoh was also closer to complaining with a bit of grumbling rather than resenting Yoonjae.

 

“Managing Director Kang, you’ve had bad feelings for me from the beginning.”

 

Taeoh smiled bitterly and lowered his head at Yoonjae’s last words.

 

“I guess so.”

 

Yoonjae clasped his hands together and remained silent for a long time. It seemed like a clue was being solved, but his head was complicated. With several clues and results mixed up in a disorganized state, Yoonjae turned the direction back to the starting point.

 

“But, the fact that you’re telling me this means that you don’t see me as a complete enemy… Can I understand it that way?”