The Congressman Bows Low

Logically speaking, it made sense that the Goo Young-jin of 1998 was alive.

Just because the ghost of Goo Young-jin, who had died in 2008, had come to 1998 didn’t mean that the living Goo Young-jin had ceased to exist.

But Goo Young-jin had never considered the possibility that there could be another Goo Young-jin besides himself, who was now dead and a ghost.

Seeing his past self, living and well as the ruling party’s floor leader, Goo Young-jin was overwhelmed with complex emotions.

If only he had come back to 10 years ago while he was still alive.

If he had been the one smiling brightly in the news report.

Then he wouldn’t be a pitiful ghost like this.

He would have settled his accounts with the men who had driven him to the brink.

He had gone back in time by 10 years, but why did he have to come back dead?

He had to live as neither the living nor the dead, parasitically relying on a young man who could barely take care of himself.

Suddenly, a wave of sorrow welled up inside him.

Seeing Goo Young-jin suddenly become so gloomy, Cha Jae-rim felt a twinge of guilt.

“You shouldn’t dwell on it so much. Let go of all the desires you had in the mortal realm and become unattached. That’s the only way to reach enlightenment.”

[You say that because you’ve never had to live the life of a wealthy man.]

“You’re really good at being blunt.”

[The truth has nothing to do with feelings.]

“I was just trying to comfort you, but now you’re overreacting, and I feel even less sympathy for you.”

Cha Jae-rim’s words made Goo Young-jin suddenly angry.

[Sympathy? I’m not some pathetic creature who deserves sympathy from someone like you.]

“It seems you’ve only ever sympathized with pathetic people.”

[People who aren’t pathetic are all my competitors. No one sympathizes with their competitors.]

“That’s the kind of attitude you need to have in politics.”

Cha Jae-rim glanced at Goo Young-jin with a cold look and quickly finished off the rest of his gimbap.

Goo Young-jin couldn’t take his eyes off the TV screen until the news was over.

The usual political scenes of them hurling insults at each other were, for Goo Young-jin, nostalgia and memories.

The memories of fighting tooth and nail in that mud-slinging world came flooding back to him.

After watching the news, Goo Young-jin made up his mind.

[You have to go into politics, no matter what.]

“I’m not going to.”

[If you do, I’ll free you from your poverty.]

“Wasn’t that already the deal, in exchange for me freeing you from the Seocho-dong asphalt?”

[Then how about this? If you agree to go into politics, I’ll make you rich, not just free you from poverty.]

“I don’t need to be that rich. Money that comes easy goes easy.”

[Ugh, this little punk!]

Imagine a great politician who happens to know the future a decade ahead, constantly hovering beside you like an ever-present genie. Now, that’s what we call stratospheric luck, beating even Aladdin’s lamp-bound entity.

In Aladdin’s case, his first wish to the genie was to become a prince.

Meanwhile, Cha Jae-rim, roughly the same age as Aladdin, settled for a wish for fortune.

Yet, how was it that this man named Cha Jae-rim not only debased but also totally devoid of any redeeming qualities whatsoever?

Goo Young-jin cast an accusatory glance at Cha Jae-rim.

Cha Jae-rim repeatedly rejected Goo Young-jin’s requests, but Goo Young-jin refused to give up. After watching the news, his vague yearning had swiftly transformed into an intense desire.

***

Cha Jae-rim begrudgingly allowed Goo Young-jin to accompany him during work hours.

The condition was that he had to keep his mouth shut while he was working.

Typical of a civil servant’s daily routine, it was boring enough to be spectacle-worthy.

As it was, Goo Young-jin dutifully remained by Cha Jae-rim’s side until 10 AM. However, once 10 o’clock passed, he began to surreptitiously shirk his duties.

Goo Young-jin ambled along, grumbling and growling.

[That section manager, all he does all day is drink coffee and smoke like a chimney!]

“…”

Cha Jae-rim tried his best to ignore him.

Goo Young-jin continued to nitpick the flaws in Cha Jae-rim’s work as he proceeded with his tasks.

[Heh, the numbers are wrong there. This kid’s not even half asleep yet he still makes such basic mistakes. Even a trivial error can sow seeds of mistrust with a superior, you know.]

“You’re breaking your promise.”

[Okay, okay, I’ll keep quiet. So please!]

Goo Young-jin begged, desperate to avoid being dragged back into the darkness.

Cha Jae-rim gave a warning with his eyes.

Goo Young-jin quickly shut his mouth tight and remained silent.

‘Now I can work in peace.’

Cha Jae-rim’s face broke into a smile as he concentrated on his duties.

In the midst of his work, Cha Jae-rim was summoned by his superior, the manager of the contracts division.

With his hair standing tall like grass held in place by hair gel, his gaze sharp and eyes cold, and a beard extending from his earlobes to the hollow of his throat, the section manager certainly looked anything but ordinary.

“Hey, Chae-rim.”

“Yes, Manager.”

“Come here for a sec.”

The manager beckoned Cha Jae-rim by twitching his fingers.

The fact that he shortened Cha Jae-rim’s name to “Chae-rim” indicated that he lacked a great sense of flair.

Cha Jae-rim, who treated Goo Young-jin – a politician who had served six terms as a representative – like dirt, folded his hands together politely before the manager.

“Yes, Manager.”

“Do you have a problem following orders, or do you just lack comprehension?”

“I’m not sure what you’re referring to…”

“What do you mean, ‘what am I referring to?’ Seeing as how you lack comprehension.”

Cha Jae-rim looked down, keeping silent.

“Please be specific, and I will correct my mistakes.”

“Why are you always messing with things that are already settled? When I told you to place an order with Taeyoungsa, why did you contact a different supplier?”

“If you’re referring to the office supplies, Taeyoungsa is two to three times more expensive than the other supplier. When considering that…”

“Hey!”

The manager cut him off, growing impatient.

“Yes.”

“What do you know?”

“…Yes?”

“Do you think we don’t know that and do business with Taeyoungsa anyway?”

“…”

“Even though we’re civil servants, at the end of the day, we’re just like businesses when dealing with vendors. And in business, the most important thing is regular customers, isn’t it?”

“…”

Goo Young-jin, who had been watching from the sidelines, desperately wanted to tease Cha Jae-rim.

However, he knew that if he tried to mess with him in this situation, he would receive a red card right away.

Goo Young-jin remained silent with great effort.

Manager Kang flew into a rage at Cha Jae-rim.

“Taeyoungsa has been doing business with us since way back when you were begging your mom for money to buy lollipops. Are you saying you’re going to throw them away for a few bucks’ difference and sign a contract with someone else? Are you out of your mind?”

It wasn’t a matter of “a few bucks.”

Cha Jae-rim desperately swallowed his desire to point that out.

He knew that he would only have an ashtray hurled at him if he said it.

The manager glowered at Cha Jae-rim and yelled at him.

“My, oh my, you are really something!”

He was just about to unleash another round of fury when suddenly someone else came looking for him.

It was someone who appeared to be around the same age as the section manager.

“Manager Kang, why are you giving him a hard time so early in the morning?”

“Oh, Manager Park.”

Manager Park, who had a gentle demeanor, smiled and spoke to Manager Kang.

“Let’s take a quick smoke break.”

“Sure.”

Manager Kang got up from his seat obediently, then shot a piercing glare at Cha Jae-rim.

“Change it back to Taeyoungsa and resubmit it, got it?”

“…Yes, I understand.”

Cha Jae-rim returned to his desk.

Cha Jae-rim had been working here for a little over a year.

In all that time, the manager that he had seen was someone who, if he had to choose between “clean” and “dirty,” would definitely lean more towards “dirty.”

No – more than choosing, he was simply a “dirty” person.

His usual demeanor and behavior made it obvious.

After work, it seemed like he often went drinking and was escorted by CEOs of companies that he had subcontracted or awarded supply contracts to.

The day after these receptions, Manager Kang would brag to his department employees about it, as if he were recounting some tall tale.

Cha Jae-rim was well aware of why he was making such a fuss about changing the order to Taeyoungsa.

But what could he do? When you work under an unethical person, you have to play by their rules.

It wasn’t like he could stop him even if he tried.

Cha Jae-rim revised the document as Manager Kang had ordered.

Through the window, he watched as Manager Kang and Manager Park smoked outside.

They were deeply engaged in a conversation, smoking and facing each other with serious expressions.

Goo Young-jin glanced at Cha Jae-rim.

He was engrossed in his work.

Upon the the manager’s orders, he was changing the document that had been sent to another company and resending it to Taeyoungsa instead.

Consumed by his work, he didn’t spare even a single glance at Goo Young-jin.

Goo Young-jin looked at the two managers outside the window.

‘It can’t be more than five meters from here.’

He stealthily phased through the wall.

For Goo Young-jin, there was a physical restriction that prevented him from moving more than five meters away from Cha Jae-rim.

However, he was not subject to the limitations that others had, such as not being able to pass through concrete walls.

Goo Young-jin slipped smoothly through the wall.

By chance, when he passed through the wall, he ended up standing right between Manager Kang and Manager Park.

Goo Young-jin perked up his ears.

Manager Park said in a low voice as he leaned against a wall with his legs crossed.

“I think it’s time to give up on the side business.”

Manager Kang’s face crumpled at his words.

“W-what are you talking about, hyung? You can’t do that. I trusted you and put all my slush fund into Daewoo Motors this time.”

“Apparently, the higher-ups have been keeping a close eye on it.”

“Higher-ups… you mean the district mayor?”

“No. If it was the district mayor, the deputy mayor would hush things up.”

“Then, the mayor?”

Manager Park nodded.

Manager Kang frowned deeply and asked,

“Is the source reliable?”

“I heard it from a friend who works at city hall. He said it’s for sure.”

“Damn, that’s why it should’ve been Choi instead. I heard that Go Jin is a by-the-book kind of guy.”

“Why are you telling me this? I voted for Choi too.”

“Well, even if he’s by-the-book, it’s not like he’s going to personally search every single district office, right?”

“He might not personally check all of them, but if someone gets caught, we’re toast. If we become the scapegoats, we’re finished.”

“Nah, no way.”

“The finance department, especially your contracts division and my expenditure division are constantly messing around, so we’re sitting ducks.”

Manager Kang nervously flicked his cigarette butt on the ground and crushed it with his foot.

“Damn it, what am I going to do about my son’s tuition?”

“Let’s keep a low profile for now. Once this all blows over, we can start having fun again.”

“How come no one has been caught for their wrongdoings so far?”

“That’s the thing. My friend from the city hall gave me a tip – it was worth the drinks I bought him.”

“A tip?”

Manager Park checked his surroundings, making sure no one was around, before lighting a second cigarette.

Manager Kang lit it for him.

Manager Park exhaled a plume of smoke as he spoke.

“It’s all about meeting the performance quotas.”

“That’s what civil servants usually do, right?”

“Well, the same goes for the mayor, and especially for his subordinates. If we can bring in some cases, no one’s going to dig too deep.”

“I guess.”

“If we make a voluntary tax payment, they’ll likely go easy on us.”

Manager Kang’s face hardened.

“Are you saying we should make a voluntary tax payment right now?”

“You don’t want to? No matter how much we try, we’re going to end up getting screwed. It’s not a few times we’ve messed around.”

“So?”

“If you make a voluntary tax payment, they’ll only take action on whoever gets caught and cover up other wrongdoings in your department.”

“But aren’t they supposed to go hard on us if they catch someone red-handed?”

“They’ll put on a show publicly while quietly maintaining order behind the scenes. The mayor isn’t a complete newbie either.”

“Well, if a newly appointed mayor starts catching public officials like rats from the beginning, it wouldn’t look good.”

“True. He’s someone who’s worked as a bureaucrat his whole life, so he knows how things work.”

Manager Kang slowly nodded in agreement.

“So, what do you suggest we do, hyung? Sacrifice a scapegoat to take the fall for us?”

“That’s exactly it.”

“Well, that won’t be easy. We all know each other here. It wouldn’t feel right to just rat someone out.”

Manager Park cast a sidelong glance at Manager Kang and whispered,

“We know everyone, but among them, there are those with pretty faces and those with ugly faces as well, aren’t there?”