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Chapter 27
In the end, unable to hold back any longer, Hyeonjung shouted at Youngwook, but Youngwook didn’t pay her any mind.
Even though Youngwook had shoved him away, TAEGUN—who was large and sturdy enough not to be budged—once again appealed to Youngwook.
“Sir, it will only take a moment. Please give me a little of your time.”
He was polite, but the atmosphere now was very different from before. Youngwook seemed to sense it and, no longer acting like he was above everything, flinched and shifted.
“How much do you know about Jo Jae-seok?”
“Executive Jo?”
Youngwook was surprised to hear Jo Jae-seok’s name slip from Taegun’s mouth—an unexpected mention.
“He’s the man who’s going to marry your daughter. I thought you might not know much about him, so I’ll tell you. His private life leaves a lot to be desired, and he doesn’t have much standing even within his group.”
“Are you trying to ruin my daughter’s marriage? What kind of insolent, uncultured nerve is that? If you’re going to spread lies, get lost.”
“I’m simply telling you the facts. If you truly love your daughter, you wouldn’t marry her off to a man like that.”
“Ah, enough. The engagement was arranged between our families a long time ago. It’s nothing for someone like you to be lecturing us about. Who do you think you are—where did you get the right to scold us?”
Youngwook’s gaze swept Taegun up and down as if judging him; it was so rude even Hyeonjung found it offensive.
Still, Taegun didn’t show any offense; he continued to try to persuade Youngwook. Hyeonjung’s throat tightened as she wondered why he would endure such rudeness to convince Youngwook. Her eyes stung.
“On the day of the car accident, I was on that highway too.”
“What are you? You must be someone who’s determined to break Hyeonjung’s engagement. Following the couple on their honeymoon?”
Youngwook branded Taegun a scoundrel.
“Call me whatever you like. But the person who left Hyeonjung inside the crashed car and ran away was Jo Jae-seok.”
“…….”
“Hyeonjung was inside the car crying by herself, and Jo Jae-seok didn’t show so much as a hair until we had rescued her.”
“So you’re saying you rescued Hyeonjung from the car that had been left unattended? Is that what you’re saying?”
“Yes, that is correct.”
Now Youngwook sneered, as if he finally saw Taegun’s real intention, and ripped up the business card Taegun had handed him. He scattered the torn pieces of the card in Taegun’s face.
“If you’re going to try to swindle someone, at least pick your victim, kid. Are you that bored? What—are you trying to squeeze money out of me for saving my Hyeonjung’s life?”
“I’m telling the truth.”
“Ah, whatever. Truth or not, the man who saved our Hyeonjung is Executive Jo. I’ve believed that all this time, and I will continue to believe it, so don’t ever show your face in front of my Hyeonjung again.”
Youngwook repeated Jo Jae-seok’s name like a brainwashed follower chanting the name of his leader. Why on earth did he trust Jae-seok so blindly?
“Come here one more time and open your mouth about whether Executive Jo saved Hyeonjung or not, and I’ll report you to the police as a stalker.”
Myeonghee tried to rein Youngwook in as he turned harsh toward Taegun, but Youngwook continued to yell loudly from start to finish as if he had some trusted backing.
Taegun thought this was the best moment to tell Hyeonjung the whole truth about the accident.
As Youngwook huffed and pushed Hyeonjung’s wheelchair, she shouted.
Her late-night cry rang out so loudly it echoed off the tall hospital building.
“I will not marry Jo Jae-seok!”
When she finally voiced what had been inside her, it felt like a weight had been lifted. She felt like she could finally breathe; the tangled thoughts in her head cleared.
At Hyeonjung’s declaration that she would not marry Jae-seok, Youngwook’s chastising stare—previously aimed at Taegun—fell directly on Hyeonjung.
“What did you say?”
“I said I won’t marry Jo Jae-seok. Even if my memory comes back, I don’t think I’ll marry him.”
For a moment light flashed before Hyeonjung’s eyes and a dull pain shot through her. From the blow of his hand she felt herself flung out of the wheelchair.
Before she could even let out a sound, Youngwook’s hand came down on her head again.
The slaps landed heavily, then stopped as a grim voice cut through.
“What are you doing?”
It was a voice so dangerous it felt like pressure bearing down. Taegun ground his teeth in anger.
“My daughter is under my care—what business is it of yours? Let go of her! Will you or won’t you?”
“Have you treated Hyeonjung like this all this time? Abusing her without thinking about her life at all?”
“Abuse? Parents beat their children when they won’t come to their senses—what else are we supposed to do to make them behave?”
“Kim Seon-woo.”
At the low call, the man who had been standing like a shadow stepped closer to Taegun.
“Call the police.”
At Taegun’s instruction, Secretary Kim pulled his phone from his coat pocket like a programmed robot.
“This bastard—really!”
Accused of calling the police to report him as an abuser, Youngwook lost his temper entirely. His face flushed and shifted colors as he snatched the phone from Seon-woo’s hand.
Without a struggle, Youngwook grabbed the phone and threw it to the floor. Still not satisfied, he stomped on the smashed screen, crushing it.
“Do you think I’ll let you get away with this?”
He snarled and pointed at Taegun and Kim Seon-woo, but the two men showed no reaction; their faces didn’t change. In fact, Taegun’s gaze grew colder.
A cowardly dog barks loudly—Youngwook kept shouting at the two men as if he could kill them with words.
“Hon! Call 112 right now. I’ll have this bastard thrown in as a stalker—don’t you know how harsh those laws are these days? There’s no settling out of court.”
As Youngwook ranted, Taegun, who hadn’t moved from staring at Hyeonjung, was pounced on by Youngwook. Grabbing Taegun by the collar, Youngwook snarled and demanded Myeonghee call the police immediately.
“Take Hyeonjung and go straight up to her room.”
“Father! Stop it!”
Even as he held Taegun by the collar, Taegun didn’t budge—rooted like a deep-rooted tree despite Youngwook’s violent shaking. Seeing Taegun restrain his anger made Hyeonjung feel sorry and deeply pained.
“Stop? Stop doing what? What are you doing—call them now.”
At Youngwook’s command, Myeonghee found her phone. Taegun had not been stalking Hyeonjung; he had only tried to help her. He shouldn’t be sent to the police with no wrongdoing.
“Mother, please wait. Please listen to me.”
Hyeonjung grabbed Myeonghee’s phone desperately, but Myeonghee would not be swayed. Coldly, she snatched the phone away and turned it on. When she pressed 112 and the ringing tone sounded, panic rose in Hyeonjung; she pushed herself up with her uninjured leg.
She lunged forward to grab Myeonghee’s phone, which was a step away. She was finally able to seize it but fell forward. All she could think about was ending the call; the pain didn’t even register.
“Oh my, what are you doing!”
Myeonghee tried to snatch the phone back. Taegun, who had been grappling with Youngwook, saw Hyeonjung fall and immediately shook off Youngwook’s grip and rushed to her.
Taegun’s face showed clear displeasure. Overcome with apology, Hyeonjung grabbed his arm and begged him.
“Please. Just go. I don’t want you to get into trouble because of me. I can’t bear to see you hurt for my sake.”
“Hyeonjung.”
Although Taegun called to her as if the police were no big deal, she didn’t want to be a burden any longer.
“Please.”
Taegun had done what he could to help; he thought the future decisions should be Hyeonjung’s.
“You watched your parents hit you and now you tell me to just leave you alone? To endure it? You want me to put up with this?”
Taegun’s fierce eyes seemed like they might resolve everything, but the opponent here was Jo Jae-seok. Because he belonged to a chaebol family, there was a fear that anything bad might happen to Taegun if he stayed involved, so she had to push him away.
“Please……”
Tears welled up and soaked her face; she couldn’t clearly see Taegun’s expression anymore.
