It had been about a month since a disaster-level series of incidents occurred.
Once again, Yoo Seung-jae had no choice but to return home late at night due to cleaning up around him.
‘Today I have to say something.’
He still hadn’t explained to his wife about the incidents at the company. No, it would be more accurate to say he couldn’t. If he did, she’d probably flip out right away.
Still, he thought to himself, “I have to say something today,” as he pressed the password on the door lock.
“Hey, I’m ho—”
“You crazy idiot! What the hell were you thinking doing something like that? Oh my…!”
“…?”
As soon as he stepped in, he was met with his wife’s furious voice from inside. Sensing something was off, he forgot to take off his shoes and quickly headed inside.
There was his wife, angrily pointing at their son, who was slouched against the wall.
“Honey, what’s going on? Why are you yelling at this time of night…?”
“Am I supposed to not yell!? Just look at what this crazy kid has done!”
She held out a thick piece of paper, not the usual thin kind but something like a bill.
Yoo Seung-jae, glancing at the neatly folded paper with a worried look, cautiously took it and unfolded it.
“W-what is this…?”
His eyes widened instinctively as he read the bold letters at the top.
It clearly stated ‘Dunning Notice’ in five stark characters.
“This kid went and borrowed money from loan sharks just to get back to the gambling scene! It’s 500 million won!”
“500 million…!?”
What kind of lunatic lends out such an absurd amount as 500 million to someone with no real job? The loan sharks aren’t fools, after all.
“Ah, come on! I’ll just pay it back with Dad’s money! I’ll pay him back somehow later!”
In the meantime, the foolish son stood with his hands in his pockets, defiantly raising his voice.
Yoo Seung-jae’s wife, unable to hold back, pushed against their son’s temple and scolded him.
“You brainless idiot! Why would your dad pay a brat like you back!?”
“Then you mean to abandon your only son over some measly cash!?”
“Oh boy, this foolish kid…!”
On the verge of tears, she sank into a chair.
Watching this scene, Yoo Young-jun, their son, turned away with a frown, as if thinking, “Here we go again,” and opened his mouth towards his father.
“Dad, did you hear? Next time I’ll just borrow from you, so could you just pay this time…?”
BANG!
Before he could finish his sentence, something big flew and smacked him in the face, sending him tumbling to the floor.
The source of the colossal impact was none other than Yoo Seung-jae’s fist.
“Y-You crazy!?”
The punch was so sincere it left Yoo Young-jun disorientated, unable to comprehend what just happened.
Even Yoo Seung-jae’s wife was wide-eyed, questioning what she had just witnessed. After all, her husband had never laid a hand on their son before.
“You little punk! Do you even understand what state your company is in!? This month, we lost contracts with Myungjin and Cheomdan, and now it looks like we’re going to have to close down the company! You want me to cough up 500 million!?”
“W-What are you talking about, honey? You’re saying the company is closing down…!?”
Seeing her husband explode like that, Yoo Seung-jae’s wife couldn’t believe her ears.
The well-off company was on the brink of closure? Weren’t they soaring high ever since moving under Changseong? Where did this shocking news come from?
“When you were a kid, you were beating up friends and extorting them, and we got you a lawyer to save you…. And now you can’t even quit that gambling and ruin the family!? You’re no better than a beast!”
“……”
In that moment, Yoo Young-jun’s eyes briefly faltered as he grasped the gravity of the situation.
It wasn’t that he was just waking up to reality. He instinctively felt the crisis when he understood that his father could not possibly pay off the 500 million he borrowed.
“Honey, what are we going to do…!? Where are we going to get that much money…!”
“We have to find a way to get it together within the deadline. We just need to endure for a few months. I’ll definitely…”
DING DONG.
Just as he was about to respond, promising to borrow as much money as he could, the doorbell suddenly rang.
“Y-Yes, who is it…?”
Yoo Seung-jae’s wife quickly headed to the intercom and nervously checked who it was.
She could already tell, even with the poor quality of the intercom camera, that four burly men were standing across the door.
– Is this Yoo Young-jun’s place? We’re here to collect the money.
“……!”
As they casually stated their purpose for knocking, her body instantly froze.
“Honey! Give me that thing!”
“What?”
She dashed to the inner room and snatched the dunning notice from her husband’s hands.
There was still some time until the due date, but the problem lay in another clause below that.
Aside from the outrageous interest rates typical of loan sharks, it stated that they were to pay a minimum of 20% of the principal plus interest every month.
BANG! BANG!
– Hey, this isn’t opening.
– Just break it down. With the amount owed, they won’t hold it against us.
The sounds of conversation and the ruckus of them attempting to break down the door made three hearts race faster.
CRUNCH.
“Oh, how nice! All gathered here in the middle of the night? Such harmony!”
Not long after, a man covered in tattoos stormed in with a broken doorknob, striding towards the inner room.
Yoo Seung-jae’s family froze in place, unable to even think of escaping as they watched.
*
When Seo-ha returned home, there was already a guest waiting. It was Secretary Kim.
Though he usually didn’t come to her house, today was an exception because Seo-ha had asked him to come over.
“Director, I apologize for coming unannounced.”
“It’s fine. I asked you to come, after all.”
Waving her hand lightly, she gestured towards the sofa, nodding at the square chair opposite it. Secretary Kim promptly took a seat.
“I’ll keep this brief. First, I have good news from the loan company that contacted Yoo Young-jun earlier; they confirmed that they’ve taken action.”
Her lips curled into a smile at the pleasant news.
Yoo Young-jun, the one who had bullied Uju, was not only a loser borrowing money from his parents to gamble but now also piled on a mountain of debt through the loan company.
From his perspective, he probably thought he couldn’t get any more money from his father, so he’d take loans from the company and plan to beg his dad again once the news broke.
There’s a saying that it’s easier to ask for forgiveness than permission.
Though he certainly never planned for such an eventuality.
“That’s great. Do you know how much he borrowed from the loan company?”
“Originally 500 million, plus around 1.1 billion counting daily interest of 3%.”
“Do you think he’ll be able to pay it back?”
“It’s impossible. Right now, Yoo Seung-jae has around 3.2 billion in existing debts as it is.”
To grow the flourishing business, Yoo Seung-jae had borrowed large sums of money from banks and various places. Even the 3.2 billion was a result of having paid back a considerable amount; it had been much more before.
At this point, it could basically be considered game over, and Seo-ha nodded in satisfaction and spoke.
“Then tell them to handle the rest. But you remember what I asked before, right?”
“Yes, I will ensure that.”
‘Just make sure he survives.’ That was Seo-ha’s order.
It wasn’t even a matter of not killing him. Even if he bit his tongue or tried to kill himself with a knife, just make sure he stayed alive and didn’t escape from hell.
“What about the other associates?”
“Yes, I’ve taken care of them in my own way, so you don’t have to worry.”
“If Secretary Kim says that, then I can trust it.”
Without needing to hear anything about the remaining lackeys, her eyes fell to the phone that started lighting up.
“Oh…! Just a moment. I have a call. Ahem.”
The moment she saw it, delight sparkled in her eyes as she excused herself to Secretary Kim and stretched her neck lightly before answering.
Secretary Kim didn’t need to check who was on the other end.
“Hey, Uju. Did you get home? The event today went great! I watched it live the whole time. Uh-huh.”
“Oh, you brought dinner? Should we eat together then? I just got a good wine from my sister’s house. I was hoping to drink with you!”
“Sounds good, I’ll head over right away. See you later.”
Her previously cold gaze and voice vanished, replaced by a lively tone reminiscent of a schoolgirl, causing Secretary Kim to smile wryly.
They say a woman’s transformation is innocent, but this was bordering on scary.
“Uh, Secretary Kim! I’m sorry, but I’ll finish the report tomorrow! I think I need to shower and head to Uju’s place right now…!”
“Not at all. Then see you tomorrow.”
Not the Ryu Seo-ha from Changseong Corporation that he knew, but the woman Ryu Seo-ha was back, hurriedly ordering her exit as she dashed out.
Feeling a strange sense of emptiness, he suddenly missed his wife’s face more than usual.
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