Trying to do something I normally wouldn’t do made my whole body break out in goosebumps, nearly driving me insane. Hahyun grabbed me, kissing me all over my face before checking his watch and sighing. Then he pulled a strange USB from his pocket and handed it to me.
“What’s this?”
“I thought you might be curious about what happens at the board meeting. Since we’re in this together, you need to know what goes on there. When you plug it into a computer, it automatically connects to the listening device I have.”
“Thank you. I’ll listen carefully, so come back safely.”
For Hahyun to be so considerate of me… His thoughtful and caring behavior was touching. Without this, I would have spent the entire board meeting anxiously biting my nails, wondering what was happening.
So Seo Hahyun had this side to him too.
I tightly gripped the USB, thinking about this.
* * *
The board meeting was held in the conference room at Fashion Group H headquarters. Since it was Hahyun’s first appearance at the headquarters, where there were mostly management staff and no models, he drew everyone’s attention.
Despite trying not to be nervous, his hands were drenched in sweat. With his heart pounding and his breathing becoming increasingly rough, Hahyun looked over at where Hajin was.
Seeing him casually shaking hands with people gave Hahyun a sense of determination.
“I like capable men.”
“Do you think I’d stay by your side?”
Although these words had been heartbreaking, they were also quintessentially Yoon Juwon. Yet strangely, there was a stinging feeling in the corner of his heart, as if he’d forgotten something important.
‘Now is not the time for this. I need to focus on my task.’
Yesterday, in his final meeting with Hajin, Hajin had given Hahyun a special mission.
“Hajin, Secretary Kim’s goal isn’t simply to take my position.”
“Then what?”
“Even if he manages to remove me, my power won’t weaken, so he’ll try to completely destroy me.”
“Do you have a plan?”
“Do you trust me?”
Although he didn’t know Hajin’s plan in detail, Hahyun had no choice but to trust him now. When Hahyun reluctantly nodded, Hajin brought out a thick file.
“What’s this?”
“Evidence that I’ve been embezzling funds.”
“What?”
The more they talked, the more Hahyun felt like he was getting lost in a maze. Why would Hajin deliberately expose his weakness at this point? Anyway, given the situation, it seemed impossible to keep the CEO position tomorrow.
“What exactly are you planning? You should be hiding this…”
“Hiding it won’t help. Secretary Kim already has it…”
“Wait, did you really embezzle?”
“Of course not… For now, keep this and present the evidence when the agenda comes up at the board meeting. That way Secretary Kim will trust you. He needs to believe you’ve changed so we can prevent him from doing anything behind our backs.”
Hajin continued explaining after that, but Hahyun, who was determined to protect Hajin, could only think that everything was ruined.
* * *
[The board meeting to discuss the dismissal of Fashion Group H’s CEO is about to begin. Please take your seats.]
The announcement played. Hahyun and Hajin, who would be contending for the CEO position, sat in the front row. After the brothers were seated, the directors attending the board meeting all found their places.
Secretary Kim was in charge of proceedings.
“Hello everyone. I am Kim Cheolwoo, former Chairman Seo’s chief secretary and internal director, who will be facilitating today’s meeting. We will now exchange opinions regarding the dismissal of CEO Seo Hajin.”
The first person to take the floor was Director Seo Sanghyun.
“In his lifetime, Chairman Seo decided to pass on management rights to Director Seo Hajin, so I question why we need this meeting today.”
In response to Sanghyun’s sharp comment, directors aligned with Secretary Kim offered their opinions. Their main argument was that after Chairman Seo’s death, Hajin had shown behavior unbecoming of a CEO, and before Secretary Kim intervened, the stock had fallen, causing shareholders’ discontent.
As if he had been waiting for this, Secretary Kim displayed Hajin’s and Hahyun’s stockholdings on a large screen.
Hahyun couldn’t hide his astonishment to see that his stock ownership was higher than Hajin’s. Judging by Secretary Kim’s relaxed attitude, it seemed he had been planning for this board meeting well in advance.
Now Hahyun finally understood why it would be impossible to prevent Hajin from being removed as CEO today.
Secretary Kim spoke up.
“Just looking at the stock ownership alone, Director Seo Hahyun clearly owns much more. Although the difference is small, Director Seo Hahyun also holds more shares. Additionally, Chairman Seo told me something privately shortly before his passing.”
At the mention that Chairman Seo had said something privately to Secretary Kim, the meeting room began to stir.
“What is it? If it’s the late Chairman’s wishes, we must certainly honor them.”
Directors who had sided with Secretary Kim agreed. Then…
“If it wasn’t an official announcement but something said only to Director Kim, doesn’t that make it invalid?”
Directors supporting Hajin objected. Secretary Kim brought order to the situation.
“Please, everyone be quiet. There is an audio recording. It would be best to listen to this first and then discuss.”
The meeting room instantly fell silent.
When Secretary Kim played the recording, Chairman Seo’s real voice began to be heard.
“Blood ties pull stronger after all. Until Hahyun gains strength, having the experienced Hajin protect the company is the better decision for the company.”
Hajin, who already knew about the recording through hacking, wasn’t particularly surprised by this situation. The recording now playing was cleverly edited, and he had already obtained the full version.
Yet the reason Hajin didn’t step forward was because he had other things to do after stepping down from the CEO position.
Hiding his cunning intentions, Hajin feigned surprise and protested.
“This is a recording I have neither heard nor seen before. We should verify its authenticity.”
The directors supporting Seo Hajin each added their objections, but the tide had already turned in Secretary Kim’s favor. Secretary Kim twisted his lips into a smile.
“Besides the significantly lower stock ownership and Chairman Seo’s wishes, there are more reasons why CEO Seo Hajin should step down.”
After Secretary Kim finished speaking and the screen changed, the meeting room stirred again. The screen was filled with evidence of Hajin’s embezzlement.
Sanghyun, who was sitting next to Hajin, poked his side and whispered:
‘You’re going this far? Inseok, that’s criminal.’
‘I’ve gathered enough material to explain. Did you speak to the directors about how they should vote?’
‘I did, but… they don’t seem to understand that they shouldn’t elect you. You should contact them yourself.’
‘Making the enemy let their guard down is the easiest strategy to win. Uncle, thank you. For trusting me.’
‘Just keep your promise to uncover the truth about your brother’s death.’
Despite the clear evidence of embezzlement, Hajin remained silent, so Secretary Kim took the microphone again.
“CEO Seo Hajin, do you have anything to say about this?”
The one who spoke up in response was not Hajin but Hahyun.
“Probably not. The evidence is right here.”
At Hahyun’s sudden statement, not only Secretary Kim but all the directors looked at him in surprise. Hahyun calmly walked forward and presented the evidence he had received from Hajin yesterday. Secretary Kim, quickly grasping the situation, displayed the documents he hadn’t previously seen on the screen, bringing the board meeting to a complete victory for Secretary Kim.
The vote naturally resulted in the decision to dismiss CEO Seo Hajin, and the police that Secretary Kim had called in advance burst into the meeting room.
“Mr. Seo Hajin, you’ll need to come with us.”
Thinking it would look suspicious if he complied too readily, Hajin added a few words.
“What are the charges?”
“Stock price manipulation and embezzlement.”
Hajin smirked.
“I see. And the arrest warrant?”
“We don’t have one, but with the evidence so clearly presented, wouldn’t it be better to cooperate?”
“…Fine.”
Hajin followed the police out.
* * *
The wiretap ended here. From the moment the word “embezzlement” was exchanged, I couldn’t think straight. I knew that Secretary Kim was plotting to bring Hajin down, but I had thought Hajin would have prepared countermeasures beforehand.
“What the hell is going on.”
Why had Hahyun, who had promised to try to protect Hajin, suddenly produced evidence against him?
My anxiety grew worse over the events unfolding beyond my knowledge.
Just then, I heard a vibration. Checking, I saw it was from Secretary Kim.
[You should prepare. You know what to tell the police, right? Say that CEO Seo Hajin unilaterally imprisoned you to frame you. That will make him a suspect in his father’s murder as well.]
My hand holding the phone trembled. I couldn’t understand why the smart and rational Hajin would take things this far.
I paced the living room anxiously, and when I couldn’t calm down, I called both brothers alternately, but couldn’t reach either of them.
“Ah… what should I do.”
I was scared at the thought that Hajin might really be charged with murder if I just stayed here.
“First, I need to understand the situation…”
With shaking hands, I went to a web portal and searched for “Fashion Group H” or “CEO Seo Hajin,” but nothing came up. Given Hajin’s influence, this would affect the stock price, so it seemed that Fashion Group H had thoroughly blocked any news articles.
