Genius Grandson of the Loan Shark King

What if I decline the offer?

The Shanghai Public Security Bureau was a symbol of Shanghai's public power.

In that impregnable place, Yoo Seong-jin spent his time without being investigated.

He was not allowed to see anyone's face except during meal times, and the interrogation room where he stayed was under 24-hour surveillance.

Even sleep was done on a makeshift bed installed in the investigation room.

After several days, Shishin finally came into the investigation room.

"Now let's talk."

Shishin said as he sat down.

Yoo Seong-jin, who was sitting on the cot, sat down in front of him.

"How have you been? Contrary to rumors, the facilities at the Public Security Bureau's investigation room are quite good, aren't they?"

Shishin said with a smile, and Yoo Seongjin just looked at Shishin without saying anything.

"I'm going to ask you a few questions now. If you give me the answers I want, I'll let you return safely to Korea."

"How can you keep me locked up like this for days without any notice? Please explain to me what crime I committed to deserve this?"

"curious?"

"And what happened to Chief Kim Hyeon-jeong?"

"curious?"

Yoo Seong-jin frowned at Shi-shin's behavior of just repeating the same thing.

"What do you want me to do now? Call a lawyer. Contact the embassy. I am a Korean citizen and a businessman. It is wrong to detain me like this."

At those words, Shishin chuckled and raised his hand.

After a while, the interrogation room door opened and Shishin's men came in carrying a cardboard box.

Soon the police officers placed the box on the table and left.

Shishin got up from his seat and opened the box.

"This was found in Chairman Yoo's hotel room. Do you know what it is?"

What Shishin took out was a lump of white powder wrapped in plastic.

Yoo Seong-jin could easily guess what it was.

"······What do you mean?"

"I'll ask the questions. Let's find out now. Why on earth was this opium found in Chairman Yu's hotel room?"

In China, drug crimes are serious crimes regardless of nationality.

There was even a case where a Korean national drug smuggler was executed without trial.

Judging from the amount contained in the cardboard box, it was an amount that could be punished by at least life imprisonment or even death.

"You'd better not even think about getting out safely. No one will be able to protect Chairman Yoo."

Yoo Seong-jin let out a sigh.

Yoo Sung-jin has never used or distributed drugs.

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Even when the Russian Mafia, the Black Dragon Association, and the Yamaguchi-gumi, which were all confederations, were smuggling drugs, Yoo Seong-jin and Cheonha Group did not get involved in that business.

"I have never touched drugs."

Shishin asked, shaking the lump of opium in his hand.

"But why was this found in Chairman Yoo's hotel room?"

"I don't know. I never went to a hotel after arriving in Shanghai. I went straight from the airport to the JK Media headquarters."

"I have already received a statement from an employee who hid this opium lump in a hotel room and brought the bag to the hotel room under your instructions. I have also confirmed the smuggling route through which this drug came. It came from Afghanistan to China through Cheonha Trading Company."

Shanghai police had already laid a tight net.

There was only one thing Yoo Seong-jin could say.

"I have never done that."

I answered calmly, but a cold sweat ran down my spine.

I expected he'd be accused of bribery or tax evasion, but I never thought he'd bring up drug smuggling.

"Since the evidence is already this clear and there are witnesses, it's not something that can be solved by trying to evade the charges."

Yoo Seong-jin completely shut his mouth.

"But if you give us the answers we want, this box will be out of my hands."

Yoo Seong-jin didn't open his mouth until the end despite Shi Shin's sweet offer.

As Yoo Seong-jin closed his mouth, Su-shin tripped Kim Hyeon-jeong.

"Chief Kim Hyun-jung is Chairman Yoo's lover. What crime did she commit? Because of her lover, she will either spend the rest of her life in prison or be executed by firing squad."

"······."

"If you give us evidence that proves Hao Xun and the Black Dragon Society's crimes, and evidence that proves their relationship with Hu Jintao, we will let both Chairman Liu and his lover go free."

When Hao Xun's story came up, Yoo Seong-jin furrowed his brows.

"Hao Xun was your target?"

Shishin shrugged and smiled.

Yoo Seong-jin had an intuition that this was not a simple incident. It was a power struggle between those in power in China.

"I don't know that much. What do you think? Are you willing to cooperate?"

"I don't know anything."

"I already know the relationship between Cheonha Group and the Black Dragon Society. Even if you try to evade the issue, it won't be of any use."

"I don't know. Call a lawyer. And have him contact the embassy."

Yoo Seong-jin closed his eyes and crossed his arms, indicating that he would not continue the conversation.

At that action, the smile on Shishin's face disappeared and he slammed the desk down.

"Hey you little punk! Do you know where this is and still hold out like that?!"

"······."

"If this continues, I'll really screw you, you idiot!"

"······."

"You're the only one dying? Your lover is dying too!"

Although Shishin was screaming and swearing, Yoo Seongjin never opened his eyes.

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At the same time that Yoo Seong-jin was talking to Shi-shin in the interrogation room, Kim Hyeon-jeong was also being questioned in the interrogation room.

* * *

Whether it was a previously agreed action or not, the Chinese ambassador who handed over the receiver left the ambassador's office.

I made sure she was out and brought the receiver closer.

"This is Kim Mu-hyeok."

― Jiang Zemin, President Kim Moo-hyuk. It's been a long time since I've heard your voice.

As expected, the person who moved the Chinese ambassador was Jiang Zemin.

Since there weren't many people I could contact in this way, I had a rough idea.

"Nice to meet you, Chairman Jang."

- What about the comment? He's already an old man from the back room who was kicked out. But you're not surprised.

"There aren't many people who can influence the Chinese ambassador to Korea. And isn't the current ambassador from Shanghai?"

- Hmm.

Whether my reaction was unexpected or not, a soft slurping sound was heard on the other end of the phone.

- Okay, that's fine. The reason I contacted you through the ambassador was because this line is absolutely impossible to wiretap or record.

"Is that so? This is a bit scary. What on earth are you trying to say?"

There were several ways to contact me.

However, the reason he went through the Chinese embassy may have been because he was worried about recording or wiretapping, as he said.

'Or maybe he thought I was ready to bend when I came to the Chinese embassy.'

― Is there something that President Kim Moo-hyuk is afraid of? That's surprising. He seems like a fearless person.

"I'm the most fearful person in the world. I just try to hide it."

― Hahahaha. That's the funniest joke I've heard this year.

They started off with a pointless story, as if they were exploring each other.

The first one to penetrate deeply was Jiang Zemin.

- Enough with the nonsense, why did you come to see the Chinese ambassador today?

"Isn't that what you were expecting and waiting for me?"

― They say, "When you're thirsty, you dig a well." Isn't it President Kim who's thirsty, not me?

A thirsty man digs a well.

It was a provocation knowing that I care about my people.

"I came here to ask why Chairman Yoo Seong-jin was imprisoned."

- Hmm? Who is that?

I answered, gritting my teeth, knowing full well that you were pretending not to know.

"He was arrested in Shanghai."

- Ah, I think I've heard that story. I heard something like that happened in Shanghai.

"You don't seem to want to talk. I'll hang up now."

I had no intention of continuing to be dragged around. I deliberately pressured him hard.

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― The moment you hang up the phone, his life is at stake. Do you still plan on hanging up?

The outward expression of respect was erased by the words that openly threatened Yoo Seong-jin's life.

"Don't even think about making a deal with me by risking Chairman Yoo's life. His life is not up for negotiation. If his life is cut off, everything that happens after that will be triggered by Chairman Jang."

― Hahaha! You dare threaten me? President Kim is really funny.

Jiang Zemin's laughter was so loud that I furrowed my brows and put the receiver away for a moment.

- Should I kill him? If he is innocent, he will be released. If he is innocent, that is.

It's funny. China is a place where they don't care about the means and methods even if there is no crime.

Of course, Yoo Seong-jin and Kim Hyeon-jeong could not be without sin.

Because bribery was essential to doing business in China.

"It sounds like you're saying you'll make it even if there's no sin."

― How could that be? We are a country governed by the rule of law. We don't arrest innocent people. I didn't take care of it myself, but Shanghai is like my hometown, so it's even more impossible for something like that to happen.

"What do you want?"

― It's not difficult. Hand over Lai Changxing to me. And hand over the data of Hao Xun, Hu Jintao's right-hand man. Finally, destroy the data of Shanghai Gang… No, hand it over to me.

Lai Changxing was a businessman known as China's biggest smuggler.

And while doing business in Fujian Province, he smuggled a large number of various goods.

Fujian Province shares a strait with Taiwan, so its borders are tight and it used to be a pirate stronghold.

Therefore, his smuggling was possible only with the connivance, or rather, organized assistance, of the Fujian Province Navy, Customs, and Public Security.

'I never expected you to ask for Raichangxing. And how did you know that I had secured him?'

His smuggling case became known shortly after Jiang Zemin decided to use Lai Changxing's smuggling case to eliminate his political enemies.

Because it had the potential to become a huge scandal, the high-ranking officials involved informed Lai Changxing of the fact, and Lai Changxing fled to Canada with his family.

Chinese authorities have so far been reluctant to extradite him, citing the lack of an extradition treaty between the two countries.

Meanwhile, Raichangxing was living a luxurious life in Canada, frequenting casinos.

"Raichangxing? I don't know who that is."

I decided to back out for now. Raichangxing was a card I would use later.

So I contacted him in Canada, got him out of Canada using a fake passport, and then I was protecting him in an unknown place.

― Don't pretend not to know. Black Bear approached Raichangxing, who we were watching, and after that, he became like a ghost······.

Jiang Zemin trailed off and continued speaking.

― Anyway, if you just give me those three things, President Kim's business will take off again.

The reason for targeting Hao Xun was clear.

The idea was to use him to get Hu Jintao on a leash, and asking for the Shanghai faction's data was a hint to stop using it to attack him.

But no matter how much I thought about it, I couldn't figure out why he was asking for Li Changxing.

'I feel like there's something I don't know.'

There is something about Lai Changxing. The card that will hold Jiang Zemin's leash.

"What if I decline your offer?"

- Well then, there's nothing we can do. We have to do it 'by the law'. Do you know what crime those two people were arrested for?

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When I didn't answer, Jiang Zemin said with a smiling voice.

- They are accused of smuggling and distributing drugs. They were in possession of 5kg of opium. Even if Hu Jintao or Wen Jiabao came forward, they would not be able to save their lives.

"Drugs?"

Drug smuggling? Yoo Sung-jin never touches drugs.

"What kind of nonsense are you talking about?"

― We decide whether it makes sense or not. So think carefully. The lives of those two people depend on President Kim. Give me an answer within a week.

Jiang Zemin hung up the phone.

I just stood there with the receiver disconnected.

Even though my mind was complicated, one question was resolved.

'What felt strange now makes sense. It wasn't me. Jiang Zemin's target from the beginning was Hu Jintao and the Communist Youth League.'

At that moment, the Chinese ambassador came back in.

"He asked me to give it to you."

She was holding an envelope of documents in her hand.

"······Did you know all this?"

"What are you talking about? I don't know anything."

The Chinese ambassador whined. This is so annoying, really.

I roughly snatched the envelope of documents the Chinese ambassador handed me and left the Chinese embassy.

< What if I decline the offer? > End