Chapter 545: Advertisement Cancellation Issue (4)

Gu Jin-Oh began to reveal the real reason he tried to snatch the Galactica commercial. "Truth is, I was pressured by the political world. They told me to give the Galactica commercial to Oh Joo-Hyun."

Sometimes, politicians asked large corporations to cast certain people as advertising models, but it was not really a request. Rather, it was pressure. If a company refused, they were summoned for a government audit or punished through the National Tax Service. For this reason, most businesspeople generally complied with such requests.

Sung Yoon-Jae asked, "Who was the bastard that made that kind of request?"

"Assemblyman Lee Dae-Boong."

Sung Yoon-Jae's face darkened. The name of a heavyweight assemblyman who had been elected four times in Gyeonggi-do came with serious weight.

"He's sponsoring a kid younger than his own daughter?"

'

No wonder Oh Joo-Hyun acted so brazenly despite committing crimes. Now it all makes sense.

'

Even though he was an independent, someone like Lee Dae-Boong was still too much for a businessperson to deal with. He had a solid local base, meaning there was no risk of losing his seat, and if he joined the ruling party, he was more than qualified to be nominated for Gyeonggi Governor. Especially since Seven Star Electronics operated a massive assembly plant in Gyeonggi-do, he was definitely not an easy opponent.

Gu Jin-Oh said, "I wouldn't have accepted it under normal circumstances. It hurt my pride and made me furious, but what choice did I have? He pressured us using the new factory permits. There was no way out."

Sung Yoon-Jae drew a sharp line. "What do you mean there was no way out? You should've gone after Oh Joo-Hyun, not Lee Dae-Boong!"

"Th-that's..."

"But I bet all you bastards saw it as an opportunity and were just focused on taking down Executive Director Kim. Isn't that why you planned all this crap?"

The faces of Gu Jin-Oh and Yang Gyu-Dong turned pale with panic. They clearly hadn't expected to be seen through so easily.

Sung Yoon-Jae looked at the two men with contempt, then he turned to Choi Jong-Gyu standing beside him. "Secretary Choi. You heard everything. Call the security guards and drag these two out."

"Understood."

Choi Jong-Gyu made the call, and less than thirty seconds later, four men in black suits appeared.

"Let's go."

The guards grabbed Gu Jin-Oh and Yang Gyu-Dong by the arms and started dragging them out.

"Let go! M-Mr. Sung, p-please, just this once!"

"Mr. Sung! Mr. Sung! Please, for the sake of our history!"

As they were dragged away, the two men desperately begged at the last moment. However, Sung Yoon-Jae didn't even blink. "Better get used to prison food."

Clunk.

The two were dragged outside the front door. Through the momentarily open door, a cold wind swept into the living room.

Sung Yoon-Jae inhaled the chill and let out a long, deep sigh. There was no way he felt at ease after cutting off two people who had worked as his hands and feet for so long.

Then Kim Cheon-Seok bowed his head as if it were all his fault. "I'm sorry, Mr. Sung."

"What are you sorry for?"

"If only I had worked with a little more consideration for those around me..."

"Forget it. I was foolish to expect you to coexist with petty men like them."

The two shared regretful expressions. Sung Yoon-Jae was determined to make the remaining actresses pay as well.

At that moment, I asked Sung Yoon-Jae, "Sir, if I may be so bold, do you have a plan?"

"First, I'll expose whatever I can about Oh Joo-Hyun to stop her. I'll meet with Assemblyman Lee Dae-Boong afterward to negotiate."

"Then you already have information about Oh Joo-Hyun?"

"No. I'll start digging now."

At that moment, it struck me that I should use the X-FILE I had.

'

So it's finally time to use it.

'

Before the regression, I had only used the X-FILE against celebrities. That was because the moment any information from the X-FILE was leaked to the outside, the powerful individuals listed in it could retaliate. So Kim Dong-Soo and I had always used the X-FILE in the most limited way possible.

But now, things were different. If I handed over this file's information to a company the size of Seven Star Electronics, I could take down the target without suffering any damage myself. It was the thirty-sixth strategy in warfare—borrowed-knife murder.

Right now, to thoroughly get rid of Oh Joo-Hyun who targeted Yoo-Jin, I decided to share part of the X-FILE.

"In that case, would it be all right if I gave you her weakness?"

"Do you have any usable information?"

"Yes. I do."

Sung Yoon-Jae's face brightened. "Really? Then pass it along to us. We'll make sure to compensate you properly."

I asked him to wait a moment, then opened Kim Dong-Soo's X-FILE stored on my phone. The screen began to fill with information about Oh Joo-Hyun.

[X-FILE: Oh Joo-Hyun]

Current Agency: Ace Entertainment

Age: 32

Profile (Actual): 172cm, 53kg, C-cup

Works: Lead in

Misty Peach Blossoms

, supporting role in

Iron-Blooded Girl

...

Reputation from peers: Acting 4/5, Singing 2.5/5, Variety 1/5

Strengths: Sophisticated appearance. Can carry lead roles in movies and dramas solo. Toned body from regular exercise. Natural beauty except for minor procedures. Good at speaking.

Weaknesses: Addicted to social media, gambling, and shopping.

Personality: Arrogant and rude.

Vulnerabilities: Due to all her addictions, her spending is out of control and her bank balance is zero. She has over 500 million won in private loans from acquaintances and loan sharks. Recently hasn't landed any commercials or projects, currently considering accepting a sponsor offer.

Attachments:

1. Photo of her gambling in a VIP room at a Macau casino.

2. Photo inside a Macau casino VIP suite.

...

[Compiled on: November 14, 2020]

There were a total of 10 attachments. I chose only two photos and brought them up on the screen.

"This should be enough."

The first photo showed her gambling in a VIP room at a Macau casino, wearing a tight red dress, champagne in hand, with chips stacked in front of her. The second photo showed her dress slipping off her shoulder as she linked arms with a Hong Kong male model and entered a room together.

Sung Yoon-Jae looked at me, eyes wide in shock. "Where did you get these photos?"

"I'm afraid I can't reveal the source. And please, don't let it be known that I gave them to you."

"Then would you be able to get photos of Oh Joo-Hyun and Assemblyman Lee Dae-Boong's sponsorship relationship? If you can get just that, I'll make sure you're properly rewarded. We've got people in the company who handle this sort of thing, but their specialty is a little different."

Seven Star Electronics had its own intelligence team. There were even rumors that their information unit was stronger than the National Intelligence Service. But because they mostly dealt with industrial espionage, they weren't as skilled in gathering personal dirt like the kind Colonel Baek would provide.

Still, even just the photos I gave him were more than enough to drag Oh Joo-Hyun down.

"I'm sorry. This is all I have."

Sung Yoon-Jae was clearly disappointed, but he tried to hide it. "

Hm.

Is that so? Well, that's fine. Those two photos are damning enough. We'll piece together the rest."

"Then I'll send them via Kk Talk now."

I sent the two photos to him right away.

After receiving the photos, Sung Yoon-Jae forwarded them to Choi Jong-Gyu. "Secretary Choi. Look further into the relationship between Oh Joo-Hyun and Assemblyman Lee Dae-Boong. Even if we have to mobilize the entire intelligence team."

"Yes, sir!"

After issuing the order, Sung Yoon-Jae looked at me. "Considering the gift you gave us earlier and now this... I can't just let it slide. I need to at least repay one of my debts..."

Just then, Kim Cheon-Seok suggested, "Mr. Sung, how about supporting the production budget for

Hwaranjeon

? I heard the station is practically breaking its back trying to cover the costs on their own."

As Kim Cheon-Seok said, a fusion historical drama like

Hwaranjeon

was hard to get sponsors for. Since the drama was set in the past, it was difficult to include product placements for promotional items.

So currently,

Hwaranjeon

was only receiving small-scale in-kind sponsorships from local governments and brands for things like traditional food, hanbok, and traditional furniture. But now, there was talk of directly funding the drama's production.

Sung Yoon-Jae looked at me and asked, "Drama production funding, huh? That sounds good. Then how about covering about thirty percent of the production costs? What do you think, Chief Jung?"

When the production budget increased, there could be more money shots. A money shot, simply put, was a scene that cost a lot to shoot. Since

Hwaranjeon

was planning a large-scale war scene with Baekje, the bigger their budget was, the better it would be. And that would significantly help Yoo-Jin's chances of winning this year's Grand Prize.

I answered, "If that's the case, then there's no reason to refuse."

Sung Yoon-Jae gave instructions to Kim Cheon-Seok. "Director Kim, go to MBS soon with Chief Jung."

"Yes, sir."

Sung Yoon-Jae loosened his fingers and said, "Then, before the day breaks, why don't we give Lee Dae-Boong a nice blow?"

Taking down Oh Joo-Hyun, who was being sponsored, would naturally mean screwing over Lee Dae-Boong.

Kim Cheon-Seok replied with a grin. "I'll make the calls myself."

Since there was nothing more for me to do, I told them I would be heading back.

Sung Yoon-Jae nodded. "Got it. And keep your phone on, just in case we need help. You're the expert when it comes to the entertainment side, aren't you?"

"Anytime. And once the press materials are ready, please send them my way too. I'll spread them all across the entertainment world using our promotion team's network."

𝒇𝓻𝓮𝓮𝙬𝙚𝒃𝒏𝓸𝙫𝒆𝙡.𝓬𝓸𝒎

"Let's do that. Oh, and let me know if you ever need anything too."

That's when a brilliant idea suddenly flashed through my mind.

'

If I use this opportunity right, I might be able to track down Colonel Baek.

'

Currently, Choi Yung-Ho was on Colonel Baek's trail, but he had only raided a few of his hideouts and still hadn't found his whereabouts. I had been racking my brain on how to find him, and now I realized this might be a lead.

If I let Lee Dae-Boong believe that the person who took those pictures of Oh Joo-Hyun was Colonel Baek, then he would definitely start hunting for him. After all, Colonel Baek had dug up dirt on an actress he was sponsoring.

'

And if I could make it seem like Colonel Baek was also investigating Lee Dae-Boong himself?

'

There was no doubt Lee Dae-Boong would start putting real effort into tracking him down.

'

Wait. If this works, I should let the other power players I remember from the X-FILE know too.

'

Very few people knew of Colonel Baek's existence. However, If I told the influential people listed in the X-FILE about him, they would absolutely go after him. After all, powerful people never tolerate anyone holding onto dirt about them. If this went well, I could find Colonel Baek without lifting a finger.

'

First, I'll set the trap for Assemblyman Lee Dae-Boong.

'

If my theory proved right, I would then contact the other power players from my memories to help flush Colonel Baek out.

With my mind made up, I turned to Sung Yoon-Jae with a request. "Mr. Sung, by any chance, do you have any photos of Assemblyman Lee Dae-Boong involved in any shady business?"

Sung Yoon-Jae gave me a meaningful smile. "I have something, though not as clear as what you had. But what do you need it for? Are you worried he might come after you?"

"No."

"Then?"

"I have another use for it."

"Another?"

"Yes. But I promise I'll never say it came from Seven Star Electronics."

After a moment's thought, Sung Yoon-Jae nodded. "Alright. But it absolutely cannot end up in the papers."

"Understood."

"Wait here a moment."

Sung Yoon-Jae went to his study and came back with a photo. It was a picture of Lee Dae-Boong in a room with his arm around a female employee. Though a bit blurry, his face was still clearly recognizable.

"Thank you."

"May I ask what you're going to do with it?"

"It's to make Assemblyman Lee Dae-Boong tremble in fear."

"Not to protect yourself?"

"No."

"Now that sounds interesting."

"Then I'll look forward to tomorrow morning."

I stood up and bowed. After being seen off by Kim Cheon-Seok, I called Lee Soo-Chan. Then, I began writing an anonymous letter to send to Lee Dae-Boong. Alongside the letter, I included a few photos.

"Soo-Chan, sorry to bother you this late, but can I ask a favor? Could you deliver an anonymous letter to Assemblyman Lee Dae-Boong's house by 7 a.m. tomorrow?"

-Of course. Should I come pick it up now?

"No, I'm in Pyeongchang-dong right now. I'll stop by your place on the way."

-Okay, hyung-nim. I'll be waiting.

After handing over the information that would ruin Oh Joo-Hyun, I had now used that very same material to lay a trap that might bring Colonel Baek to the surface.

***

After Jung Yoon-Ho left, Sung Yoon-Jae asked with a concerned expression when Kim Cheon-Seok returned from seeing him off, "Director Kim, who exactly is Chief Jung?"

"Well, as you saw, he's a talent agent."

"To you, does he look like just a talent agent?"

Kim Cheon-Seok turned to look at the door Jung Yoon-Ho had exited through. After a brief moment of thought, he straightened his posture and shook his head. "To call him 'just' a talent agent... that feels like an understatement."

"Exactly. No talent agent I know has access to that level of photos. That's intelligence agency-grade material."

Kim Cheon-Seok fell into silent thought. Depending on whether Sung Yoon-Jae's interest was positive or not, his own position could be affected.

"Mr. Sung, Chief Jung is someone who's been nothing but helpful to us."

Sung Yoon-Jae smiled and relaxed his expression. "

Ah,

I must've given the wrong impression. I was just surprised, that's all. And I was thinking... maybe we could recruit him to our side."

With a casual tone, he floated the idea of scouting Jung Yoon-Ho.

Relieved, Kim Cheon-Seok laughed. "I'd be lying if I said I hadn't thought about it myself."

"Really?"

"But I gave up."

"Why? We're a merit-based company. If he's that good, we can offer him a bigger title, regardless of his age."

"It's not that... it's just that... he made over 1.3 billion won last year."

Sung Yoon-Jae's eyes widened. "What? 1.3 billion? You said he's just a chief, didn't you? And only in his second year?"

"That includes incentives, but yes. It's been verified. My own salary is 300 million won, and when I heard that, I nearly called him 'sir.'"

Gu Jin-Oh's annual salary had been around 1 billion won. The fact that Jung Yoon-Ho made even more than that left Sung Yoon-Jae chuckling in disbelief. "He really is something."

Kim Cheon-Seok nodded. "Yes. He's incredible. That second-year just saved me and handed me a card to attack our enemies with."

Sung Yoon-Jae nodded and ordered, "Do not lose that guy. Got it?"

"Of course not!"

Even in Yoon-Ho's absence, the number of people drooling over him continued to grow.

***

Buzz.

My phone vibrated on the bedside table. The screen showed it was 6 a.m. I had gotten home at 3:30 a.m., and because I hadn't changed the alarm, I had only gotten about two hours of sleep.

I planned to stop by the office at 9, so I drank the glass of water on my nightstand and leaned back into bed. However, sleep wouldn't come easily. Eventually, still lying down, I opened my phone and checked the entertainment news.

[

Hwaranjeon

's second preview, Peak Viewership Ratings at 14.7%!]

There was an article saying that we had triumphed in the second preview battle between

Hwaranjeon

and

Queen Jeong-Hee

. And right below that, the results of last night's hard work were starting to appear in the news.

[(Exclusive) Celebrity O Spotted Gambling in Hong Kong!]

[(Exclusive) Celebrity O's Secret Rendezvous in Hong Kong!]

[(Breaking) Top Star O – The Truth Behind Her Image?]

[(Exclusive) Shocking! O's Double Life Exposed!]

[(Exclusive) Rising Actress L's Promiscuous Private Life]

The photos were heavily pixelated but still clear enough for anyone to recognize Oh Joo-Hyun at a glance. Aside from the two photos I had provided, Seven Star Electronics had mixed in a bunch of other pictures of Oh Joo-Hyun and released them all. Even photos involving Lee Sun-Yung were included.

"Adios~ Oh Joo-Hyun, Lee Sun-Yung."

Sung Yoon-Jae had promised that Gu Jin-Oh and Yang Gyu-Dong would soon be prosecuted for separate crimes, so for now, the articles only featured those two.

Just as I finished reading the news and tried to get some more sleep, my phone suddenly rang.

[Caller ID Restricted]

"Who could this be?"

There were plenty of suspects from Oh Joo-Hyun, Kim Dong-Soo, to even Lee Dae-Boong. Yet, I had no way of knowing for sure. Still, I wasn't scared. After all, I had cards in hand.

I answered the call without hesitation.

"Hello?"

At that moment, a completely unexpected voice came through the receiver.

-It's been a while, Chief Jung.