Chapter 671: Counterattack (5)

"Go ahead... It's fine."

When a real yakuza appeared and demanded the two of us, Yamamoto raised both hands in surrender. He was so frustrated that a thick vein bulged on his temple.

However, the one truly angry was me. I had saved his life once, and yet he repaid that favor by turning against me. Because of that, I couldn't bring myself to say what I had intended to if he had shown me goodwill.

"Understood. Then please recover well. We'll be going now."

Leaving behind Yamamoto, who was waving his hands, Kang Gam-Chan and I walked out of the hospital room.

Clack.

As I headed toward the elevator, I checked Everyday.

[Everyday V12.2]

[Date: March 1, 2021]

-10:00 p.m.:

(Deleted Schedule Entry: Preparing for a Japanese business trip. (Other: Visiting Yamamoto, chairman of Bunnies Production, in the hospital. Myocardial infarction.))

The schedule entry predicting Yamamoto's imminent myocardial infarction had disappeared. Yet in my planner, there was still a schedule entry one year later for another myocardial infarction.

[Everyday V12.2]

[Date: March 5, 2022]

-10:00 p.m.: Preparing for a Japanese business trip. (Other: Attend Chairman Yamamoto's funeral of Bunnies's Production. Myocardial infarction.)

Originally, I had planned to mention even this schedule entry depending on the situation because I didn't want to weigh a human life on a scale.

However, I just couldn't do it. If he tried to bind me with just one instance of foresight, he would stake his life to hold on to me if two proved accurate.

Once again, I realized through him just how hard it is to change fate.

***

In front of the hospital's main entrance, fifty yakuza members had parked several Binz sedans, flaunting their power. Only when Kang Gam-Chan and I exited safely did they get into their cars and tone down their presence.

Then, one yakuza member in a suit approached us to indicate our assigned vehicles. "Mr. Kang, please take the front car. Mr. Jung, you will take the one right behind. We'll escort you to the hotel."

I had no idea why they wanted to separate me from Kang Gam-Chan. But considering it was an act of goodwill to help us, I followed his instructions.

As I followed the suited yakuza and opened the left rear door, I saw an elderly man wearing a fedora. At that moment, I bowed my head.

"Thank you."

The man in the fedora looked at me and spoke in slightly awkward Korean. "Do you know who I am?"

"Yes. You're CEO Suzuki's maternal uncle, aren't you?"

The man in the fedora had a long scar on his left cheek, fierce eyes, and tiger-like eyebrows, but the traces of Suzuki's cute face remained on his. He was Koichiro, also known as Park Yung-Soo—Suzuki's maternal uncle and the boss of the Tojokai.

He nodded and answered. "I came at Suzuki's request."

"Thank you very much, sir," I gave a polite bow and got into the car.

Vroom~

As the car began to move, Koichiro spoke. "Are you hurt anywhere?"

"No. Thanks to your perfect timing, I'm safe."

"Even so, you're quite something. You just walked right in when Chairman Yamamoto called.

Hahaha

."

"I thought if I didn't go, CEO Hiroshi and the others might get hurt."

Koichiro looked at me and smiled warmly. "So there was a reason why my niece and hyung-nim insisted I save you."

Pleased by my willingness to step up for a friend, he smiled for a while.

A short while later, we arrived at the hotel we were staying at. At that moment, out of the dozen or so vehicles, only the one carrying Kang Gam-Chan and I veered off and stopped in front of the hotel.

Suzuki's uncle suggested that I get off alone, saying it wouldn't look good for ordinary people to see us traveling with yakuza.

Koichiro said, "Next time, let's meet somewhere quiet with my niece. Would that be alright?"

"Of course. Next time, I'll treat you to a meal."

Koichiro let out another hearty laugh. "It's been a while since someone offered to treat me.

Hahaha.

"

He must have been shunned by others while living as a yakuza. But since I treated him comfortably like a friend's uncle, Koichiro looked truly pleased.

I thanked him once again and got out of the car. As soon as Kang Gam-Chan also stepped out, the two cars quickly drove away.

That was when I heard familiar voices.

"Dad!"

"Mr. Jung!"

Led by Suzuki, Kang Ji-Yung and the entire Hoop Entertainment crew came running out of the hotel entrance.

"Are you alright?"

After inspecting us thoroughly, the group sighed in relief.

I looked at Suzuki and greeted her. "Thanks to you, we were able to get out safely."

Suzuki nodded with a smile. "I'm just glad you're not hurt. By the way, how did it go?"

"It was resolved well. Bunnies' side said they would step away from anything related to Hoop."

"

Oh?

Really?"

Kang Gam-Chan reassured our staff and explained that the contract termination with Aris Production had been successfully completed. Thanks to that, Ahn Ye-Eum, Eun-Ah, Sae-Ri, and the rest all let out a sigh of relief.

After sending everyone back up to the hotel, only Kang Gam-Chan, Kang Ji-Yung, and I remained to have a follow-up meeting with Suzuki about today's events. Suzuki said she would immediately begin legal action, and Kang Ji-Yung agreed to assist with it.

Then, Kang Gam-Chan asked a question he had been holding back. "Yoon-Ho, how did you know Chairman Yamamoto was sick?"

Though Kang Gam-Chan had backed me up earlier in front of Yamamoto, now he looked straight at me, asking for an explanation.

Without hesitation, I used the Japanese Bunshun reporter excuse once more. "A reporter friend of mine was investigating. Because of internal faction conflicts, the chairman showed symptoms but no one took him to the hospital."

"

Hmm

... is that so?"

"Yes, sir."

Kang Gam-Chan stared at me and said, "We must definitely secure that friend."

"I was thinking the same."

I was determined to meet Saigo Ryota, the reporter from Japanese Bunshun, and befriend him in this life too. The help I received from him in Japan before the regression was beyond measure. So this time, it was my turn to help him.

Then Kang Gam-Chan took a deep breath and spoke. "Now, shall we talk about how to handle President Choi?"

Kang Gam-Chan immediately picked up the phone and called Choi Eun-Tae.

"Mr. Chairman, I'm sorry for calling so late."

-Not at all. Koichiro already contacted me. Are you all safe?

"I'm fine, but I can no longer stand by and watch Choi Man-Sik act out. I'm thinking of calling a shareholders' meeting."

-I support that.

"Then what timing would you prefer? If you're alright with it, I'm ready to fly back to Korea immediately."

-Do it. If it's Man-Sik's doing, we can charge him with breach of duty. Come back to Korea right away.

'

Finally!

'

This was the perfect chance to eliminate Choi Man-Sik's influence from Hoop Entertainment.

"Understood. Then I'll head to your place as soon as I land in Seoul at dawn tomorrow."

-But President Kang.

"Yes, Mr. Chairman?"

-If that bastard Man-Sik stirs up Sang-Pil and Hyung-Moon to rebel, have you thought about how to handle it?

The shares of Hoop Entertainment were divided among Choi Eun-Tae from Myeongdong, our company's President Kang Gam-Chan, President Lee Sang-Pil of LSP Inc., President Park Hyung-Moon of True Angels Investment, and finally, President Choi Man-Sik.

Officially, the shares held by Choi Eun-Tae and Kang Gam-Chan made up more than half. However, the shares Choi Eun-Tae could exercise through Future Imagination Savings Bank were, in reality, no different from being Choi Man-Sik's. It was because Future Imagination Savings Bank had already been taken over by Choi Man-Sik.

Though things had been left vague until now, in the event of a true battle, the real majority shareholder wouldn't be on our side but Choi Man-Sik.

"From a legal standpoint, even a single shareholder can be charged with breach of trust. Right? I believe there's enough to hold Choi Man-Sik accountable."

-

Hmm

. But isn't there a way to keep him from attending the shareholders' meeting at all? That would make things simpler...

At that moment, I stepped into the conversation.

"I have a way."

"What is it?"

-What do you have in mind?

Both of them leaned in to listen.

Smiling, I began to explain the method.

***

Meanwhile, Choi Man-Sik was waiting at a nearby hotel, anticipating a call from Yamamoto.

Now that Yamamoto had stepped in, that fearless punk Jung Yoon-Ho would surely be restrained. Maybe he would never be able to return to Japan, and in that case, Choi Man-Sik planned to take full control of Hoop's Japan business himself.

Choi Man-Sik's first move would be to bring A1 Entertainment, which had chosen Jung Yoon-Ho over him, to its knees. Then he would dig through A2 to A6 across Japan to find slush funds.

If he could locate those slush funds, he planned to launder the money through Yamamoto's help and send it to Korea, and then use that money to fund Assemblyman Park Sang-Gon's by-election campaign. If Park Sang-Gon won the by-election, he would become the frontrunner in the next presidential race.

After that, he would cut off Choi Eun-Tae's funding under the pretense of legalizing the private loan market in Myeongdong and rise as Korea's new loan shark king.

As for Kang Eun-Gi, Choi Eun-Tae's biological son in prison, he planned to eliminate him the moment he was released, so he wasn't a concern.

Lost in his string of delightful thoughts, Choi Man-Sik began to hum. Feeling euphoric, he lifted a wine glass and lay on the bed, turning on the TV. During the late-night hours, Japanese TV was showing one of Korea's biggest hits from last year,

Blue Sky

.

Click.

Switching channels, this time

In the Name of God

was on. Even though Jung Yoo-Jin hadn't officially entered the Japanese market yet, she was already making inroads via broadcast.

"Jung Yoo-Jin is clearly on the rise. Definitely. I guess I'll start with her once this business is wrapped up."

Once Jung Yoon-Ho lost power, he planned to invite Jung Yoo-Jin, one of his managed talents, to gatherings with high-ranking officials. Powerful people would line up to meet a top actress. And by creating those opportunities, he would naturally build connections.

Originally, he had only thought of entertainment companies as tools for laundering money and supplying female celebrities. But seeing it now, it felt too wasteful to use them for just that. The Hoop Entertainment that Jung Yoon-Ho built was no longer the shabby little agency it used to be.

"I'll harvest everything you've sown, Jung Yoon-Ho."

With a chuckle, Choi Man-Sik took another sip of wine. The pleasant taste and aroma of success spread gently in his mouth.

Then, a call came in. The caller was Yamamoto. Choi Man-Sik picked up with a delighted expression.

"Yes, Mr. Chairman?"

That's when he heard unexpected news.

-Choi-kun. I'm sorry, but let's pretend nothing ever happened between us.

𝑓𝘳𝑒𝑒𝓌𝘦𝘣𝘯ℴ𝑣𝘦𝑙.𝘤𝑜𝑚

It was like a bolt from the blue.

"Wh-what do you mean, Mr. Yamamoto? Pretend nothing happened?"

-I mean I'm cutting ties with you. So don't go around using my name. And if I hear my name from your mouth, I won't stand still.

"What's this all of a sudden?"

-I simply judged, calmly, who would be more likely to win between you and Chief Jung. And out of our past ties, let me give you one piece of advice.

"Advice... in this situation, sir?"

-Don't pick a fight with Chief Jung. You'll never beat him.

Click.

The call ended with a low warning voice and there wasn't even time to ask what was going on.

"I'm... not even a match for that Jung Yoon-Ho punk?"

That was the only thing echoing in Choi Man-Sik's ears. At the same time, the fine wine that had filled his mouth suddenly tasted bitter and dry. There was a gritty and earthy texture as if he had chewed dirt. It was the taste and smell of failure.

With a scowl, Choi Man-Sik reached for his phone to call Tanaka and figure out what had happened. But then a loud knock came at the hotel room door.

Bang, bang, bang!

"Fuck. What the hell now?"

Despite the 'Do Not Disturb' sign, someone was knocking. Fuming with rage, he decided to vent it on whoever was behind that door and stomped toward it.

Click.

As soon as the door opened, Choi Man-Sik was about to shout. However, standing before him were Kang Gam-Chan of Hoop, Suzuki of AMOSE, and Japanese police officers.

And in the back, Chief Jung Yoon-Ho was watching him with a victorious smile.

***

I headed to the hotel where Choi Man-Sik was staying, accompanied by Suzuki, Kang Gam-Chan, and Japanese police. The goal was to detain Choi Man-Sik in Japan so he couldn't attend the shareholders' meeting. If he wasn't present, no rebellion could occur.

When the door opened, Choi Man-Sik, in a hotel robe, stood there, his face twisted with shock. "How did you..."

At that moment, Suzuki looked at the police behind him and nodded. "This is the man."

Then, the Japanese police stepped forward.

As they began reading out the charges in Japanese and attempted to arrest him, Choi Man-Sik shouted, "Hey! Jung Yoon-Ho! What the hell is this!? You really want to go all out with me now?"

"For fraud and breach of trust in conspiring with CEO Tanaka to harm the company, and for ordering the yakuza to detain me and Mr. Kang Gam-Chan... with all those combined, you won't be leaving Japan anytime soon."

"Wait! What do you mean I ordered the yakuza?"

Seeing Choi Man-Sik flustered, Suzuki added, "Mr. Hiroshi testified that he saw the yakuza taking the two of you in front of AMOSE headquarters. We've also secured security camera footage. And the person who ordered the yakuza testified that all instructions came from President Choi Man-Sik."

Before coming here, we met with Tanaka and persuaded him. We told him not to take the fall alone. We reminded him that Yamamoto had already abandoned him, so he should aim for a lighter sentence.

In the end, Tanaka betrayed Choi Man-Sik right away. It was easier to name Choi Man-Sik as the mastermind than to mention Yamamoto, so he didn't even hesitate.

"Th-this is nonsense! Me, the mastermind? I just..."

Choi Man-Sik tried to name someone but stopped himself. He was probably about to mention Yamamoto but couldn't risk the consequences.

"Damn it!"

That was when it happened. The Japanese police, who had been calmly handling the arrest, suddenly twisted his arm roughly, perhaps thinking he had cursed.

Thud!

Choi Man-Sik's face slammed into the door. Though known for being polite, Japanese police didn't extend the same courtesy to foreigners.

"You son of a—

Aaagh!

Let go! Don't you know who I am?"

In Korea, Choi Man-Sik was the owner of Future Imagination Savings Bank, the future son-in-law of Assemblyman Park Sang-Gon, and the sole heir to the king of Myeongdong. But in Japan, he was nothing more than a fraud suspect and a man who ordered a kidnapping.

Even as he shouted in Japanese, the police didn't care about the rights of criminals. Eventually, they stuffed a cloth into his mouth. "Shut up. You're bothering the other guests."

"

Mmph, mmph! Mmph!

"

With a cloth gag in his mouth, Choi Man-Sik was carried out of the hotel by four Japanese officers.

'

Farewell, Choi Man-Sik~

'

With this, Choi Man-Sik's plan to seize the Japanese slush funds became nearly impossible. After all, Japan often denied entry to foreigners who have committed crimes.

But more than anything, the bigger issue was that Choi Man-Sik could no longer return to Korea right away. If a shareholders' meeting were held at Hoop Entertainment while he was gone, then Choi Eun-Tae from Myeongdong would be free to lead it as he pleased.

Honestly, I hadn't expected this Japan trip to produce such excellent results. But thanks to Choi Man-Sik pushing too hard out of resentment toward me, we managed to protect the Japanese slush funds.

On top of that, we were able to significantly cut down the influence he had at Hoop Entertainment.

This Japan trip was nothing short of a game-winning grand slam.

***

Overnight, Choi Man-Sik tried to get out of the detention center with the help of the Korean consulate. However, because Suzuki immediately hired one of Japan's top law firms, he couldn't be released from custody. As a result, regardless of how the trial turned out, Choi Man-Sik would be stuck in Japan for at least a month.

Kang Gam-Chan didn't waste this golden opportunity and took an early morning flight back to Korea the next day. Of course, the schedule entry for founding Top Entertainment hadn't been erased yet, but that day no longer felt far off.

After discussing Choi Eun-Tae's slush funds in Japan with Suzuki, I began my Japan schedule right away.

Once the Tokyo preliminaries for

Project I.O.A

began, I became busier than ever. Fortunately, AMOSE, our new partner, provided top-tier support without holding back.

Tetsuya, the successor of AMOSE, joined as a judge, and Sasuke, the second son, came as the site manager. Thanks to that, even Nihonz TV, which broadcast

Project I.O.A

, treated us differently.

The production team from SBC was feeling extremely encouraged.

Then came lunchtime on the second day, and a sudden call came in from Korea.

[Caller ID: Jang Moon-Ki, Team Lead of Weekly Star]

'

What's going on with this guy?

'

Wondering what this was about, I answered the call.

-Chief Jung. I'm in Gyeongju right now. Are you on site by any chance?

"No, I'm currently in Japan for

Project I.O.A

."

At that moment, I heard something unexpected.

-

Ah~

is that so? What should I do... I heard a rumor and thought I'd better talk to you about it first.

On the current set of

Hwaranjeon

, Yoo-Jin was playing Princess Yu-Hwa, Han Woo-Hyuk was playing BiHyungRang, and a few days ago, Deok-Bae had joined as Kim Beop-Min. There were also plenty of supporting actors from Hoop Entertainment.

I was about to ask who the rumor was about. But just then, Everyday sent me an alert.

Buzz~

[Notification: A new schedule entry regarding Choi Deok-Bae has been registered for February 24, 2021.]

[Notification: A new schedule entry regarding Jung Yoo-Jin has been registered for March 4, 2021.]

Two schedule entries related to Deok-Bae's first broadcast surfaced simultaneously.