Chapter 674: Malicious Intention (3)

Han Sun-Myung was the only son of HANS, a renowned mid-sized law firm in Gangnam run by his father and grandfather. He was so spoiled growing up that he didn't hesitate to speak informally to me, someone older than him. Of course, he was also upset because I called him Bong-Pil.

"Fuck, what did you just call me? You son of a bitch!"

Apparently, being called by his past name really got to him that he even spit out some rice while yelling.

I tilted my head and said, "Why? That's your name. Bong-Pil. Han Bong-Pil."

Han Sun-Myung couldn't hold it in and jumped up with his fists clenched.

'

What's the point of trying to erase your past? You can't even calm yourself down and raise your fist

.'

The moment Han Sun-Myung lunged at me, I reached out and pressed down on his shoulder firmly. As I pressed one shoulder, he lost his balance and sat right down.

Thud.

"

Oof

."

Han Sun-Myung winced, probably from his tailbone hitting the hard chair.

"Don't act up and sit down. There are a lot of eyes watching," I warned.

Just then, Chief Yang Sung-Taek, the talent agent from Ace Entertainment sitting next to me, scolded me in a low voice. "Chief Jung, what do you think you're doing? You're picking a fight with my actor right in front of me? And who's Bong-Pil?"

I removed my hand from Han Sun-Myung's shoulder and faced Yang Sung-Taek. He seemed genuinely offended. His already sharp eyes narrowed even more.

I asked, "Are you really asking because you don't know?"

Han Sun-Myung's past probably got erased thanks to his lawyer father and grandfather, who sent him to the U.S. Considering they even changed his nationality to make him an American citizen during his escape-study-abroad trip, it was clearly professional work.

However, there was no way a major agency like Ace Entertainment wouldn't know about it. Before signing exclusive contracts with actors or singers, major entertainment companies hired private investigators to conduct surprisingly thorough background checks. After all, all the investment could go up in smoke if something like a school bullying scandal were to surface post-debut.

That was the reason I was 100% certain that Yang Sung-Taek knew everything.

Still, Yang Sung-Taek shamelessly played dumb. "I'm asking because I really don't know."

In that case, I had no choice but to treat him the way he wanted. Actually, this worked out well.

"Oh~ So you don't know. Then just sit back and watch." With that, I resumed cornering Han Sun-Myung. "Why did you do it, Bong-Pil?"

"Fuck! Who the hell is Bong-Pil?!"

He tried to play dumb, but his pupils were shaking and his breathing turned rough.

"Hey, do you really think you can hide it? Denying it won't help. You're the one who leaked it to the reporter at Entertainment All Times, right? But if you hurt Deok-Bae, did you think your past wouldn't come out? By the way, you're not exactly the thoughtful type, are you?"

Han Sun-Myung's body began to tremble with rage. A little more pressure and he might start confessing.

"Oh, and Bong-Pil..."

"Damn it! Stop calling me Bong-Pil! My name is Sun-Myung!"

He was so furious his fists were clenched tight.

I leaned in, daring him. "What? Are you gonna hit me?"

At that moment, Yang Sung-Taek grabbed Han Sun-Myung's wrist. He knew that if Han Sun-Myung came at me, even by accident, he would get beat to a pulp by a former national boxing champ like me.

"Sun-Myung, hold it in."

"But Mr. Yang! Why are you stopping me? Are you taking his side?"

"Shut up, idiot. I'm taking your side right now."

Unfortunately, Yang Sung-Taek managed to stop Han Sun-Myung. It was a bit disappointing because the provocation almost worked.

Yang Sung-Taek stared at me. "Chief Jung, you've come to the wrong place. We don't know any Bong-Pil or Bong-Pal, and we've never contacted Entertainment All Times. So just leave. We've got to eat and get ready for filming."

If Han Sun-Myung had just made a confession and apologized for his doing, it could have ended here. If he had, I was ready to back off after watching the Everyday's schedule entry disappear. It wasn't something I wanted, but Deok-Bae said he wouldn't dwell on the past and it was best not to ruin the current vibe of the popular

Hwaranjeon.

But just as I expected, this was only the beginning. Both Han Sun-Myung and Yang Sung-Taek had malicious intent. They planned to keep Deok-Bae from even appearing in the first broadcast.

In the end, I stood up and warned the two of them. "Mr. Yang, you know I've messed up more than a few people's lives after they crossed me, right?"

"Well, I actually don't. I don't have a clue what you're talking about."

Yang Sung-Taek seemed determined to brazen it out.

'

Fine, go ahead and try

.'

I stared at Yang Sung-Taek, then turned to Han Sun-Myung one last time. "And Han Bong-Pil. I don't know why a perpetrator like you is acting like the victim, but remember this one thing—I've never let anyone off the hook for messing with my actors."

With that, I left the table where the two were sitting.

Since the confession approach failed, I had no choice now but to become the inquisitor and start swinging the blade.

***

The moment Jung Yoon-Ho walked away, Han Sun-Myung ground his teeth and cursed. "Fuck. How the hell did that bastard find out?"

Yang Sung-Taek let out a deep sigh. "Sun-Myung, for god's sake, calm your temper. Do you have to make it so obvious?"

"But you saw it too! That bastard came here already knowing everything!"

"So what if he did? Your dad and grandfather already cleaned up your past. There's no evidence. You even got plastic surgery. But if you blow up like this, what then?"

"I don't know... What do we do now?"

Yang Sung-Taek sighed and replied, "You said you've already got your old school friends on your side, right? If something gets published, they'll support you on social media. If the reporters and friends back you up, burying a rookie like Deok-Bae is nothing. You know how easily the networks discard people."

Han Sun-Myung thought for a moment before asking, "But... what if they catch me lying?"

"Don't worry. It won't come out. And your dad and grandfather said they'd help, so what's the problem?"

"I know, but my so-called friends all have such loose lips..."

"Your dad and grandfather will take care of shutting them up. Don't worry. Even if the truth comes out, it'll take years. By then, it's already over. So just grit your teeth and deny it all. Got it?"

Only then did Han Sun-Myung's expression lighten. "Then get the reporters right away and prep the article. I'll eat while you do."

"Alright. It'll take a little time since we need to prepare the press release."

"Okay."

As Yang Sung-Taek stood up, Han Sun-Myung started scarfing down the galbijjim[1] from Yang Sung-Taek's tray. He had saved those three pieces to eat last.

"Hey, Han Sun-Myung. You owe me a premium Hanwoo for that galbijjim."

Still chewing, Han Sun-Myung nodded. "Sure, whatever.

Mmm

..."

With his anger slightly calmed, Yang Sung-Taek turned and headed to the changing room. Once he was in a secluded area, he called Kim Dong-Soo.

"Mr. Kim, it's Chief Yang calling."

-You should've called sooner. So, how's it going?

"Just as you warned, Chief Jung is onto us. I have no idea how he found out, but he's impressive."

At first, Han Sun-Myung didn't care when Choi Deok-Bae showed up on set. He thought, 'How good could a rookie be?' But once Choi Deok-Bae started receiving praise from the very first shoot, Han Sun-Myung's irritability grew.

When the compliments became a daily thing, he couldn't take it anymore. A kid who used to be a bullied loner from a poor neighborhood was now becoming a celebrity and even receiving more attention than him. So before Choi Deok-Bae could even rise, Han Sun-Myung tried to crush him.

Yang Sung-Taek had told Han Sun-Myung to ignore Choi Deok-Bae, especially after all the effort to erase his past. However, Han Sun-Myung wouldn't listen. As always, he planned to use his father to crush him.

So Yang Sung-Taek, unable to resist, agreed to go along. He had to play along to keep Han Sun-Myung as an actor under his management.

Yet Kim Dong-Soo viewed touching Jung Yoon-Ho's actor without caution as risky. Since Jung Yoon-Ho wasn't an easy opponent, Kim Dong-Soo had told him never to act directly and to support Han Sun-Myung from a distance.

Veteran talent agent Yang Sung-Taek just thought Kim Dong-Soo was overly cautious. But now, he could see it for himself that Jung Yoon-Ho wasn't ordinary and Kim Dong-Soo had been right.

-I told you, didn't I? That bastard Jung Yoon-Ho. He's not someone you can take lightly.

"Yes, now that I've met him in person, I understand why you were so wary."

But Yang Sung-Taek still couldn't admit defeat.

"But... it won't be easy for him this time. Sun-Myung may be dumb, but his father and grandfather are top ex-judge attorneys, aren't they?"

-We'll see how it plays out. Look what happened to all those people who got cocky relying on their connections. Think of what happened to the former executives of Ace Entertainment. Even Assemblyman Lee Dae-Boong is completely ruined now.

"I won't let my guard down."

-

Sigh

... Do what you want. I'm about to head into the prosecutor's office for questioning, so I'll be out of touch for a while.

Ace Entertainment was still under investigation by prosecutors. And their backer, Lee Dae-Boong was also about to be arrested.

"By the way, what's going to happen to Mr. Lee?"

-He'll probably be arrested tomorrow. It looks like they won't be able to block the emergency arrest motion in the National Assembly.

"Then what do we do?"

-Don't worry. I already laundered the money and filled up the company's vault. I'm searching for a new backer now, so just focus on keeping Sun-Myung in check.

"Yes, sir."

After ending the call, Yang Sung-Taek hesitated briefly, then picked up the phone again. This time, he called Han Sun-Myung's father, Han Ji-Cheol, the president of the law firm HANS.

"Mr. Han. Hoop Entertainment's side has figured out our plan."

-Where did the leak come from?

Even after hearing the unexpected turn of events, Han Ji-Cheol remained calm.

"It looks like it came from Entertainment All Times."

-Alright. I'll contact them myself. Let's move to Plan B.

"Yes, sir."

Click.

As the call ended, Yang Sung-Taek clicked his tongue at Han Ji-Cheol's attitude.

"What kind of grudge does Han Sun-Myung have against Deok-Bae that he even got his parents involved?"

Plan B meant dropping a media bomb—flooding portal sites with articles if things went sideways. In short, it meant throwing money around like crazy.

𝒻𝑟𝘦𝘦𝘸ℯ𝒷𝑛𝘰𝓋ℯ𝘭.𝘤𝘰𝘮

"

Phew

~ Guess I better get ready too."

After assigning tasks to another Ace Entertainment talent agent on-site, Yang Sung-Taek began making calls to media outlets to launch Plan B properly.

***

After rejoining my group, I gave them a brief update on how Han Sun-Myung neither admitted nor repented for his past.

Deok-Bae let out a long sigh, then steadied himself. "I'm counting on you, hyung."

"Don't worry. Just focus on acting. I'll take care of the rest."

That was when I glanced at my phone and saw that the Everyday schedule entry had been deleted.

[Everyday V12.2]

[Date: February 24, 2021]

-05:00 p.m.:

(Deleted Schedule Entry: [NEW. Choi Deok-Bae] Entertainment All Times, "Rookie actor Mr. Choi accused of school violence. Role likely to be recast." (Meeting Note: According to internal MBS sources, some executives discussed forced removal before the first episode.))

'

The schedule entry got deleted already?

'

I immediately checked another schedule entry that had appeared alongside it.

[Everyday V12.2]

[Date: March 4, 2021]

-07:00 a.m. [NEW. Jung Yoo-Jin]

Entertainment All Times, "Popular star Jung Yoo-Jin accused of defending a school bully." (Meeting Note: Episode 15 viewership ratings of

Hwaranjeon

dropped from 26% to 21%.

Queen Jeong-Hee

overtook in viewership ratings. MBS demands Choi Deok-Bae's removal. Jung Yoo-Jin told to retract her statement of support.)

If the Entertainment All Times schedule entry for Deok-Bae got deleted but Yoo-Jin's schedule entry remained, that meant the incident itself was still going to happen. They were probably just moving up the release of the article.

If that was the case, then I had no choice but to release the article first. In situations like this, striking first usually won.

Just then, a staff member who had finished eating shouted, "We'll resume filming soon~~ Deok-Bae and Miss. Yoo-Jin, please move to the Hwarang dorm set."

Deok-Bae and Yoo-Jin looked at me.

I smiled and reassured them. "Don't worry. You two just focus on filming."

"Okay."

The two of them picked up their trays and stood up. Yeon So-Hee returned the trays and headed to the set with Deok-Bae and Yoo-Jin.

That was when I saw Han Sun-Myung and Yang Sung-Taek heading to the set. Both had confident expressions on their faces as if they had something up their sleeves.

At that moment, I realized that my article had to go up before theirs no matter what.

I was about to call Jang Moon-Ki. Then, I received a call.

Buzz~

[Caller ID: Reporter Jang Moon-Ki]

Jang Moon-Ki was calling at a perfect time.

"Mr. Jang, where are you?"

-I just arrived on site.

"Don't get out of the car. Let's meet in the alley in front of the set by the rice mill and grain shop. I think I've got an exclusive for you."

I couldn't let the staff see us meeting. So I set the location and headed for the parking lot.

***

In front of the Gyeongju Rice Shop, I got into the back seat of Jang Moon-Ki's car and started talking.

I explained how Han Sun-Myung, known as one of the Hwarang F4, had a school violence history, got his past scrubbed, fled to the U.S., and was now pretending to be a victim to block Deok-Bae's debut.

"

Hm

... Han Sun-Myung's dumber than he looks. But this is a huge scoop..."

"What is it? Don't tell me you're nervous."

"Nah~ What would a celebrity tabloid have to be scared of? It's just... HANS Law Firm's what's bothering me."

HANS, a famous law firm in Gangnam, handled lawsuits for entertainment tabloids like Entertainment All Times. This meant they could mobilize a lot of papers at once.

"You don't need to worry. We'll win for sure. What's there to be afraid of when I've got the top tabloid Weekly Star on my side?"

Jang Moon-Ki let out a disbelieving laugh. "Man. Every time I see you, Chief Jung, you've got guts. But... Can you really hold up? If your side breaks the story first, the pressure from the broadcasting network's going to be insane."

"That's exactly why I asked to meet in secret. Here."

The rhythmic pounding of the rice mill echoed through the window.

"

Hahaha

. So that's why." Then Jang Moon-Ki looked over at Reporter Ahn Tae-Baek. "What do you think, Tae-Baek?"

Ahn Tae-Baek would later become the real power at Weekly Star after Jang Moon-Ki became editor-in-chief. He had a cute, round face but the tenacity of a bulldog. Once he grabbed hold of a case, he never let go. He would even start a signature series called 'Digging to the End,'

This made him the perfect reporter for this kind of fight.

Ahn Tae-Baek smiled and said, "This is juicy. The perpetrator acting like the victim? Not quite 9 o'clock news material, but the online communities will go nuts. From our perspective, this kind of scandal is way more valuable than politics or the economy. Do you know why he's doing this?"

I shook my head. "I suspect it's an old grudge from middle school, but I'm not certain. You'll need to interview his classmates to find out."

"Got it. I'll look into that."

Jang Moon-Ki asked, "Since time's tight, let's put out an exclusive first, then follow up with second and third reports. Does that work?"

I nodded. "You're the article expert, Mr. Jang. I'll leave it to you."

Jang Moon-Ki confidently patted his chest. "You can count on me. I'll show you what real clickbait looks like."

I trusted Jang Moon-Ki fully. After all, he was great at stirring the pot. Meanwhile, I had to prepare for another battle.

'

Time to turn crisis into opportunity.

'

With this, I was going to clear any misunderstanding regarding Deok-Bae before the first episode of

Hwaranjeon

even aired and skyrocket his public recognition.

"Alright, I'll see you later. We've got to write the article now, so go on."

After receiving Jang Moon-Ki's gentle dismissal, I got out of his car and returned to mine.

***

I drove back to the set. Just as I was about to park, my phone buzzed. It was a notification that Jang Moon-Ki's article had been uploaded.

Buzz~

"It's posted already? That was fast."

I pulled my phone from my inner pocket and checked the article. At that moment, I couldn't help but be shocked. Jang Moon-Ki had gone full clickbait on the headline.

[(Exclusive) The Ugly Truth Behind

Hwaranjeon

's Supporting Actor Mr. H. The Black-Haired Foreigner. Shocking Report! (Weekly Star, Reporter Jang Moon-Ki)]

As if to take full responsibility for telling me to trust him, Jang Moon-Ki's article was packed with provocative content.

Then it started.

Buzz, Buzz~

Like the sound of war horns, notification alerts for article comments began to buzz like crazy.

'

Alright. Let the show begin.

'

I planned to win this public opinion war and give those who harassed Deok-Bae a taste of their own medicine.

'

An eye for an eye. A tooth for a tooth.

'

1.

Galbijjim

☜