#125. Ordinary. 5
Reporter Choi Gi-bae's body was frozen as if nails were driven into his feet.
He was a young man who entered the coffee shop with Manager Cha Ju-hyeok, then went out and caught a taxi.
I thought he had gone out in a hurry to find me, but no, he really came looking for me.
It seemed like he couldn't even make eye contact with the person looking down from the third floor…
“The signal will change shortly.”
Woojin, who was heading to the window, looked down at Deputy Cha Ju-hyeok, who was trying to cross the street.
He looked like he was about to ignore the crosswalk signal and cross, but he couldn't do that because there were so many cars passing by.
Despite Woojin's appearance, reporter Choi Ki-bae didn't even think about running away.
It was because it seemed like even if I ran away, they would catch up quickly.
Choi Gi-bae smiled awkwardly.
“Hahaha! I was just joking. Just joking.”
He spoke again, tapping the billiard die.
“I was going to leave out just one finger. I’m practicing these days. Hahaha!”
Woojin turned to him again and said.
“It will now take 10 seconds for the crosswalk signal to turn green.”
Woojin placed his cell phone on the billiard table.
“I won’t record.”
Instead, I will persuade.
His voice was lower than before, and all the muscles in his face were relaxed.
As his eyebrows lowered slightly, Woojin's face, dressed in a suit, felt a little cold.
People can unconsciously tell whether the other person is in a good or bad mood.
Woojin created the atmosphere in between.
“10 seconds have passed. Manager Cha Ju-hyeok will be entering the billiard hall in 3 minutes.”
“Ha, ha, ha. I said I was joking… … .”
“Reporter Choi has two choices. The former will go in a good direction, but the latter will not go down well with words.”
“What does that mean… … .”
“You have 2 minutes and 32 seconds left. Let me explain what I mean.”
* * *
The billiard hall door opened wide and Cha Joo-hyuk came in.
Reporter Choi Ki-bae was sitting weakly next to Woo-jin.
The surprise was short-lived, and Cha Joo-hyuk approached reporter Choi, chuckling.
“Oh my… … . Were you watching from here? Our reporter Choi?”
“Team Leader Cha, I think I lost my mind for a moment.”
Cha Joo-hyuk nodded.
“Right. I think that’s what happened.”
Cha Joo-hyuk took out his cell phone from his arms and played the recorded voice.
-Hey, Car Dealer. I'm not the kind of guy who's crazy about that stuff… … But you know, the unit price doesn't seem right. Two is a bit… … . That's not right… … .
Cha Joo-hyuk put his phone back in his bosom and opened his mouth as if asking a riddle.
“What do you call it when you prevent someone from doing something or scare them into doing something?”
Choi Gi-bae waved his hand.
“Threat!? Mr. Cha! Listen to me… … .”
Cha Joo-hyuk chuckled.
“Using other people’s private lives to threaten and such. You’re the one who’s the one who’s embarrassing the reporter. What will happen if I hand this audio file over to my lawyer? Yes?”
“I didn’t take the money! Car dealer! It was just a joke.”
“That’s right… … . You should have been a little more greedy. Then everything would have been fine. You could have gotten 20 million won and eaten some delicious food.”
Cha Joo-hyuk pressured Choi Ki-bae as if he were a blood relative of Shinwha Group.
He looked down at Choi Gi-bae as if he were looking at an insect.
Woojin looked at Cha Joo-hyuk with an observational gaze.
At that time, Cha Joo-hyuk reached out to reporter Choi.
"please."
“What, what?”
When Cha Joo-hyuk closed his eyes as if he was annoyed, Choi Ki-bae quickly handed him a USB from his pocket.
“What else?”
“No! Really no!”
Cha Joo-hyuk smiled in satisfaction at the sight of Choi Ki-bae crying.
“Hey, right. Who is eating this? I hope you don’t see us again.”
Choi Gi-bae nodded his head absentmindedly.
“Hey! I won’t hang around Shinwha Group. No, I’ll avoid them!”
“Excellent choice.”
Cha Joo-hyuk immediately turned around and headed towards the exit. No, he turned around again and shouted.
“It’s not like we’re playing hide and seek, and everyone is busy at this time. What the heck! What the heck! Tsk.”
“Oh, I’m sorry.”
Cha Joo-hyuk left and Woo-jin followed him out.
When Cha Ju-hyuk started the car and approached the driver's door, Woo-jin opened the door first.
“I will drive.”
“I told you you’re quick-witted?”
He climbed into the passenger seat with a satisfied smile and moved the shopping bag containing the money to the back seat.
In that moment, Woojin could see his pupils dilating.
And I remembered what he said at SH Strategy.
'By any chance… … who told you to investigate me? You're not just some parachute, are you?'
I was analyzing and obtaining information and nonverbal cues from Deputy Cha Ju-hyeok in my head.
“Let’s go.”
Woojin's driving skills in the driver's seat were very good.
It was as stable as if it had been driven by someone who had been driving for years.
Meanwhile, Cha Joo-hyuk, who had just finished talking on the phone, looked at Woo-jin as if he was curious and opened his mouth.
“How did you know Choi Gi-bae was there?”
“When Mr. Cha was heading to the meeting place, he used the navigation. When he entered the coffee shop, he looked around for a moment. Since this was his first time at the coffee shop, I thought it was highly likely that Mr. Choi had decided on the meeting place.”
"what?"
Woojin answered right away as he made a U-turn.
“They called me to the designated location and re-adjusted the amount to a higher amount. They were very confident about it. When Manager Cha made the call, he spoke as if he knew everything. I looked into Reporter Choi’s background on the way here. He didn’t have many articles and they were trivial. The size of the company he was affiliated with was also small. Reporter Choi Ki-bae’s connections were the same as Manager Cha Joo-hyuk’s information power… … . I didn’t think so.”
Cha Joo-hyuk nodded his head reflexively with an expression that said, “What kind of kid is this?”
Woojin continued speaking.
“I thought it was just a suspicion that Director Cha was chasing Reporter Choi’s whereabouts through various occupations. But I was very confident in that suspicion. A coworker could have told me. But it would have been hard to contact him today. I brought another cell phone with me just in case I could track his location. Of course, Reporter Choi’s colleague, who is Director Cha’s connection, is likely to have kept quiet from Reporter Choi. That’s why Director Cha would have called that reporter without hesitation.”
Cha Joo-hyuk blinked, and Woo-jin's words continued to flow out.
“When I asked if he had contacted the detective, he finished the calculation. He was watching from a familiar place. He spoke with confidence and firmness. He was looking down from above.”
Cha Joo-hyuk felt his hair stand on end at the explanation he was hearing for the first time.
“Of all the buildings, why a billiard hall?”
Woojin said it nonchalantly.
“Because the coffee shop has a good view.”
“If I had been watching, I would have known you went to the billiard hall, right?”
“I got into a taxi in front of the coffee shop and made a U-turn right away.”
"what?"
“I just pretended to go to another area.”
Cha Joo-hyuk raised one finger and pointed at Woo-jin.
“Hey sir… … . Is this a completely human navigation system? Huh?”
As soon as the signal came, Woojin turned his head to Cha Joo-hyuk and bowed slightly.
"thank you."
And then I looked up again and thought.
There was no difference between reporter Choi Ki-bae and deputy manager Cha Ju-hyeok.
When they feel superior to their opponents and think they have dominated them, they trample on and ridicule their weaknesses and fill their self-esteem with the sense of superiority derived from that.
* * *
Assistant Manager Cha Ju-hyeok spoke as if he wanted the director to praise him right away.
“So it worked out well.”
The director spoke as if he had seen Cha Joo-hyuk again.
“I thought you’d go down to Cheongju and mess around like last time since you weren’t wanted, but how did you find you?”
“I think I was thinking about it. I thought it was probably nearby, so I looked around and saw someone watching me from the building across the street like a pervert.”
“Yeah, there are times when you get that feeling while working. Just do that. You worked hard. Oh, and how about a parachute?”
“It seems like you’re not too sloppy and have some sense.”
The manager nodded.
“We are people who live off of intuition. You have to have a good sense, a sense. Your specs seem fine, but don’t be prejudiced by the parachute, and make it useful. Since you’ve come in anyway, you should at least run errands.”
"All right."
“Okay, go out and try.”
Cha Joo-hyuk bowed his head politely and left.
Cha Joo-hyuk, who returned to his seat like that, placed a hand on Woo-jin's shoulder, who was sitting quietly.
“Why are you so frozen?”
Woojin got up from his seat.
"no."
I was watching each and every person.
It was to understand.
“No, it’s completely frozen. Sit down. Now, what you have to do from now on is… … .”
“Car driver.”
Cha Joo-hyuk stood up when someone of higher rank than him approached.
“Miss Hye-rim said she’s going shopping, so go with her and help her out.”
"yes?"
Cha Joo-hyuk opened his eyes wide.
I don't know about other people, but Lee Hye-rim has never done anything like this.
Above all, it was because the department store employees were attentive to the customers.
ah…….
Considering her personality, she did hate having people following her around.
“Didn’t you hear? Go and get involved… .”
As he continued speaking, he suddenly turned his gaze to Woojin.
“I guess I can send him. He’ll be at YH Department Store in an hour.”
After saying those words, he disappeared somewhere.
Cha Joo-hyuk turned his head to Woo-jin.
“Did you hear that? That’s actually a good thing. Since we’re old friends. I’ll tell you some things to watch out for. Always call me Miss, and never swear. Do whatever I tell you, no matter what. Move as you please. Easy, huh?”
"All right."
“Don’t open your mouth until the young lady asks you first. Don’t ask questions even if you’re just acquaintances.”
"All right."
If the person receiving the orders now had been someone other than Woojin, it would have left an impression on Lee Hye-rim as a person.
“If shopping is long and it’s past 7pm, I’ll get off work there. I’ll report before I get off work. Of course, Miss Lee Hye-rim will decide when I get off work. Do you understand what I mean?”
"All right."
“Go now.”
"yes!"
Woojin turned around when Cha Joo-hyuk waved his hand.
At that time, Cha Joo-hyuk called Woo-jin again.
“Just in case, let’s take the car.”
Cha Joo-hyuk threw his car keys. Of course, it wasn't his car, it was a company car.
It was also a foreign car, a luxury sedan.
Calling out the vehicle number.
“When you fill up with gas, take the receipt with you.”
* * *
Lee Hye-rim said as she watched Woo-jin getting out of the foreign car.
“You’re a stranger.”
“Is that so, Miss?”
Lee Hye-rim blinked.
"what……."
Then he shook his head and smiled as if he understood.
“Hey, Shin Woojin. You don’t have to do that.”
“There are many eyes watching, Miss.”
Lee Hye-rim put a finger to her lips and made a playful expression.
“Is that so?”
"yes."
“Okay. Then follow me.”
As Lee Hye-rim moved with light steps, Woo-jin followed her.
The two went straight into the elevator, and Lee Hye-rim opened her mouth.
“I knew you’d come.”
Even if it wasn't for other older sisters or brothers, he knew how to give new recruits to himself.
It was obvious.
“You really have foresight, young lady.”
Lee Hye-rim ended up laughing again.
Something… … .
It felt like they were having a secret relationship, but as soon as the thought occurred to her, Hye-rim Lee shook her head and shook the thought away.
So when I got off the elevator, I arrived at a luxury suit shop.
“Everyone there must be wearing luxury goods, so you shouldn’t be discouraged.”
“It’s okay, miss.”
Lee Hye-rim said with a bright smile.
“Didn’t you say something like that there? Don’t spit on me?”
“I’m sorry, miss.”
Lee Hye-rim said to the employee.
“Show me a few things that would suit this person. And shoes too.”
“I’ll take you this way.”
Hye-rim Lee sat on the sofa and crossed her legs.
And I looked at the dressing room that Woojin had entered.
Has 10 minutes passed?
Woojin came out wearing a suit.
Hye-rim Lee, who was looking at Woo-jin intently, shook her head.
Woojin went back into the dressing room, and under Lee Hye-rim's gaze, he changed into his suit and came out several times.
In that way, I was able to match three suits with shoes.
“Thank you, ma’am.”
“How about it? I think I’ll be late for work today.”
Woojin's mouth formed a faint smile.
“It’s okay. I also prepared a gift for you, young lady.”
Woojin looked at his wristwatch.
Tick. Tick. Tick.
The time bomb was counting down.
