Chapter 34
The Villain’s Pure Heart
An Uncomfortable Entrance
6:30 PM.
Having finished his work for the day, Seongheon stepped into Domyeongjae and headed toward Unseondang. Perhaps because it had been a busier day than usual, the courtyard was already spotless. He scanned the interior, where the airing out had already begun, before stepping back outside.
Wondering if Yeonwoo was at the Main Hall, he headed that way, only to spot her lugging out the trash.
“Ah, Ji Yeon—”
Seongheon started to call her name in haste but stopped himself. As he watched Yeonwoo dragging a large, bulging bag of trash behind her, a dry chuckle escaped him for some reason. He found the sight of her straining with both hands adorable, but then, realizing how heavy it must be, he quickly closed the distance.
Seongheon moved in, effortlessly lifting the trash bag she had been pushing with one hand. As the trash suddenly levitated, Yeonwoo looked up.
“Oh.”
“Vice President! I can do that!”
“If you drag it and it rips, who’s going to clean that up?”
“I’m almost there! I’m almost there!”
“I know. This is my house.”
Seongheon pulled ahead abruptly. He led the way, carrying the bag full of all sorts of refuse with ease, while Yeonwoo followed behind with quick, short steps. She hovered her hands beneath the bag as if to support it, her arms moving in the air as she tried to take it from him, and reacted in sync as Seongheon finally set the bag down at the disposal site.
In the end, she had done nothing but watch him throw away the trash.
Yeonwoo squeezed her eyes shut and then opened them.
“I’m going to get in trouble. It’ll be a disaster if Manager Mun finds out, Vice President.”
Seongheon dusted off his hands.
“More importantly, Ji Yeonwoo-ssi.”
When Seongheon called her name, cutting off the conversation, Yeonwoo’s eyes went round. Seongheon’s brow furrowed slightly into a frown.
“I’d like to have your phone number.”
“Pardon? My number?”
Yeonwoo looked dazed as he suddenly held out his phone, gesturing for her to input the digits.
“I need a way to contact you. I’ve been going out of my mind with frustration all day.”
“…?”
Yeonwoo swallowed her questions and took the phone reflexively. However, there was no number she could give him, no digits she could type.
“I don’t have a phone. I got rid of the number entirely.”
“Ah.”
As she returned the phone with polite fingertips, Seongheon looked down at his device.
He rubbed his brow as if he hadn’t anticipated this. Her phone number hadn’t been written anywhere on her resume, and he had been wanting to ask her several times already.
And yet, she didn’t have a number.
“Vice President, was there something you wanted to say to me?”
Yeonwoo asked cautiously, sensing his mood. At the mention of her getting rid of her phone, Seongheon let out a breath heavy with rising anger as he thought of Cha Yunseok.
“Did you get rid of it when you came to Domyeongjae?”
“Yes. That’s right.”
All day long, he had been on edge because he didn’t know her number. He’d picked up the receiver to call the Domyeongjae Main Hall, only to hesitate; he’d thought about calling Manager Mun to ask, only to hesitate again.
He knew exactly how it would look if he kept looking for Yeonwoo, so he had let the time slip away, unable to do one thing or the other.
Yeonwoo had likely discarded it fearing Cha Yunseok might track her. Fearing the phone would leave a trail. Fearing Cha Yunseok would do everything in his power to find her.
…As the pieces of her story he hadn’t known were added one by one, an uncontrollable rage surged within him.
The time was now 6:50 PM. It was almost time for Cha Yunseok to arrive.
“Ji Yeonwoo-ssi.”
“Yes, Vice President.”
“Do you know that a guest is coming here today?”
Yeonwoo nodded.
“Yes. I’ve heard. I was told a guest of yours is visiting.”
“Did you hear who is visiting?”
“No. I wasn’t told that part.”
“In a few minutes, a representative from Namsong Industrial Development will arrive. Someone I know, and someone you know.”
“…”
Cha Yunseok.
Her pupils trembled as if her face were cracking. Yeonwoo’s complexion turned pale instantly, and she closed and opened her eyes.
Before they could say anything more to each other, the radio went off first. It was a call from Manager Mun, stating that the guest had arrived and to hurry to the Main Hall.
Soon after, Seongheon’s phone rang. Confirming the caller was Manager Mun, Seongheon brought the phone to his ear.
— Vice President. The guest has arrived. Shall I bring him straight to the Main Hall?
“…”
Seongheon looked down at Yeonwoo. Watching her face, which looked weary of everything, lose even more color, he replied in a low voice.
“Bring him in.”
At that same time, the heavy iron gates of Domyeongjae, which were never opened lightly, let out a metallic clank as they swung open.
“I’ll be right there.”
Stepping out of the car, Cha Yunseok let out a greasy smile as he surveyed the interior of Domyeongjae.
Following Manager Mun’s lead, Cha Yunseok moved forward. As the roof tiles of the Main Hall, radiant with ancient beauty, came into view, Cha Yunseok let out a boiling exclamation from deep within his chest.
“I heard it was as good as the five palaces of Hanyang, but this is the real deal.”
It was a cheap commentary compared to the grandeur of the sight. Following Manager Mun with a swaggering stride, Cha Yunseok only handed over a bundle of gifts brought by his driver once they stood before the stepping stones of the Main Hall.
Manager Mun looked down at the gifts and then looked up.
“At Domyeongjae, we do not accept any gifts from the guests we serve. My secretary should have explained this over the phone.”
“Oh, come on. Or you could just pocket them on the side without the Vice President knowing. Even if you resell them, they’ll fetch a fortune. You know how it is. Just make sure to tell the Vice President that I gave them to him.”
Cha Yunseok acted arrogantly, crudely suggesting she could embezzle them.
“I’m only saying this because I know how the world works. You can’t look down on the generosity of the countryside. People living in places like this know better.”
“…”
“Has our Manager already pocketed quite a bit? I heard you’re the one in charge of the Domyeongjae storehouse. Eat while you can. That’s just how things are!”
He spoke as if he were the only one who understood. He talked as if he were overflowing with wit and as if his magnanimity pierced the heavens, but Manager Mun simply stood still before opening the door to the Main Hall.
“The Vice President has not arrived yet. You may go inside first.”
“Aigo, I’m going in. It feels good to have a lady in a skirt open the door for me. Age doesn’t matter, right?”
“…”
Cha Yunseok kicked off his shoes as if throwing them away and entered the Main Hall. After watching his shoes tumble outside the stepping stones, Manager Mun placed them neatly back on the stone.
The appointment was for seven o’clock, but Seongheon had not yet appeared. Guided to a reception area inside, Cha Yunseok sat at a low traditional table. As he sat on the floor cushion and let the time pass, the door opened a moment later.
Thinking it was Seongheon, Cha Yunseok whipped his body around, only for his eyes to widen when Yeonwoo entered.
“Hey, Yeonwoo. How’ve you been? We meet again, huh?”
Yeonwoo kept her gaze lowered as she placed the tray on the table. As she set down the water and glasses she had brought, Cha Yunseok leaned his upper body toward the table.
“Your Oppa is talking to you, but no greeting? Hmm? I came here to see you. Since you wouldn’t come out.”
As if she heard nothing, Yeonwoo gave no reaction. Cha Yunseok stared intently at her face, and upon noticing her fingertips trembling slightly, he let out a smirk.
“I don’t know if you know, but I’m staying here. Nearby.”
“When I go back to Seoul, I’m taking you with me. Holding your hand tight.”
Cha Yunseok pushed a glass forward as if telling her to pour water, and Yeonwoo picked up the pitcher. She knelt as she had been taught and poured the water politely, but Cha Yunseok suddenly grabbed her wrist.
Water spilled onto the table.
“Fuck. I’m talking to you.”
He could feel Yeonwoo clenching her jaw. Cha Yunseok widened his eyes so much his eyeballs felt like they were popping out, and he muttered as if shouting.
“Don’t make me lose my mind. Haven’t you had enough? If you’re going to run away, don’t get caught. If you are caught, you should come crawling out.”
“…Let go.”
“Shut up, fuck. I’m already pissed off just looking at you. If you don’t like it, go ahead and scream. I’ve got nothing to lose.”
“…”
“You saw it last time. No matter what you do, I can get away with anything. So go ahead, scream. Whatever I tell the Vice President here about you, that’s my choice.”
As Yeonwoo became submissive, seemingly affected by the threat, Cha Yunseok smirked.
Cha Yunseok, who had been gripping her wrist as if to break it, let go a moment later as if tossing it away. Yeonwoo picked up the pitcher again and filled the glass. This time, her trembling fingertips looked pathetic and insignificant, and Cha Yunseok sneered.
He leaned back against the support and gazed steadily at Yeonwoo.
“Stop playing around and come out now. Don’t keep trying to find the bottom of my patience, which even I don’t know.”
“If you get caught by me before you come out, our ending won’t be pretty. I won’t be fooled twice. If you get caught by my hands? Your life ends that day. Do you have any idea how much I’ve been grinding my teeth while looking for you? You’ve lost your mind because I treated you like a gentleman. Just you wait and see how I’ll catch you and torment you…”
While Cha Yunseok was speaking aggressively, the door opened. Spotting Seongheon, Cha Yunseok stood up rapidly, pushing his cushion aside, while Yeonwoo only stood up after filling Seongheon’s water glass as well.
“You’ve arrived, Vice President!”
Cha Yunseok greeted him loudly in a voice completely different from before. After finishing his greeting with a bow that was nearly a right angle, Cha Yunseok looked up.
In the meantime, Yeonwoo left the room with the tray. Seongheon stepped aside briefly to let her pass, glancing at her face, then stepped inside as if nothing had happened.
Cha Yunseok smiled like a younger brother who had found a family member lost in childhood. He then thrust his arm out, requesting a handshake.
“You’ve become even more dashing since I last saw you, Hyung-nim!”
“…”
“Aigo, my apologies. I follow the Vice President so deeply in my heart that ‘Hyung-nim’ just came out naturally.”
Seongheon looked coldly at the hand Cha Yunseok had extended.
A moment ago, Yeonwoo’s expression had been detached, as if transcending reality. It looked as though she were already prepared to die.
“It is an honor to be invited like this! Vice President!”
Cha Yunseok greeted him loudly once more. As Cha Yunseok’s outstretched hand twitched as if urging him to take it, Seongheon finally reached out slowly.
“Welcome.”
“…”
“To Domyeongjae.”
Seongheon gripped Cha Yunseok’s hand with force.
