A black car stopped in front of the high fence that fortified a mansion in the elite Hannam-dong area. Yoo Hee Jae got out of the car, took off his sunglasses while pressing the bell. The gate opened on its own moments later. He entered, climbing a few steps of stone steps to the open front door.
A tall man standing by the door bowed politely to him. He was ushered into the living room, where an old man sat in a wheelchair staring at a wall lined with family photos. The man's eyes were only on a photo of a man, until Yoo Hee Jae greeted him, he didn't take his eyes off the photo.
“Hoenjang-nim, Yoo Byeonhosa-nim has arrived,” Assistant Lee Soo Kwang announced the arrival of Yoo Hee Jae again.
Mr. Park finally glanced over, then looked back at the photo.
"You must have heard from Mrs. Kim, my purpose for calling you."
"Yes, Mr Park."
"You see that picture of the man in the corner?"
"Yes."
"He's my youngest son, Park Joon Ha. That's his last photo before he left the house with that woman."
President Park moves his automatic wheelchair to the sofa in the living room, inviting Yoo Hee Jae to sit down.
"I've known long ago that they have a son, but just about 7 years ago I set out to find the child. I hired a private detective, and I found out instead that the woman was being prosecuted for the murder of the President of Shinkwang Bank. And the worse is, it turned out that she had dumped her son, my grandson, into an orphanage when the boy was 8. I felt so angry that I went to a public attorney who would defend her, paying a high price so he wouldn't have to defend her. I also helped the Hwang family negotiate with the prosecutor and the judge to punish her severely."
President Park paused to take the medicine provided by a waiter. He also invited Yoo Hee Jae to enjoy the tea that was served.
"But then I thought. In my contemplation, I realized that this all happened because of my fault. If I don't forbid their relationship, if I don't force them to separate, maybe their lives will be better. And if I don't kick her out on the day of my son's funeral, maybe the kid won't be thrown into an orphanage."
"Then I met Lawyer Hong Yoo Chan when my company was sued by the workers who were injured while building the Issume Shopping Center. I just found out that he's also a lawyer for her, even for free. That's when I found out the reason that woman killed, because she was abused first and she was only defending herself. I feel guilty. I've had too much hatred towards her for so many years. I consider her to have ruined my son's future. I blame her for my son's death. So I support Lawyer Hong financially to release him secretly. A glimmer of hope appears when I find out that Lawyer Hong had met Oh Kyung Ja's son, but that hope was extinguished again because Lawyer Hong died before I met her son."
"Then now you ask us for help to find your grandson's whereabouts?" Guess Yoo Hee Jae, even though he already knew about his job from his superiors.
Mr. Park raises his hand, then Assistant Lee hands over a file in a brown envelope.
"A few months ago, I met a man by chance at the hospital. When I saw him, I felt like I saw my son come back to life. My assistant tried to find information about him, but what he got was too less. Just one thing, he is married to daughter of Lawyer Hong."
"What?" Yoo Hee Jae was wide-eyed. He opened the envelope and the first document he saw was a copy of Hong Cha Young's marital status document with Park Joo Hyeong.
"I want you to confirm it with a DNA test, then get my new will done."
Yoo Hee Jae still looks shocked.
"I wish I could meet him before..." Mr. Park touched his chest, "this heart stopped beating."
~~~
Carrying an envelope of documents, Yoo Hee Jae walked with his eyes unfocused, out of the mansion to his car. Suddenly a luxury car stopped in his tracks. He bowed politely to the man sitting in the back of the car with the windows open.
"Get in," said the man.
Yoo Hee Jae circled the car and sat next to him.
"So, has my father-in-law changed his will?"
"Not yet, sir, I have to make sure that that person is indeed President Park's grandson."
"When the DNA test results come out, report it to me first."
Director Go turns to Yoo Hee Jae who doesn't answer, "How's your brother doing? Is his new seat on the Supreme Court comfortable?"
Yoo Hee Jae sighed quietly, "I will report to you as soon as I get the results."
Director Go nods and tells Yoo Hee Jae to come out.
Yoo Hee Jae exhaled a long and heavy breath when he was already in his own car.
"Huff... dealing with Chaebol is never easy."
~$~
The sound of Shi Jin's crying enlivened the peaceful morning. The powdered milk that Vincenzo poured into the bottle splattered on the floor. When he poured hot water into the bottle, the water accidentally poured into his hand.
"Aw... aw... hot!" Vincenzo dropped the milk bottle and spilled its contents. He cursed in Italian silently so that the dirty words wouldn't be heard by his children.
"Papà, where's my breakfast?" Rosé, who had just come out of her bedroom, sat in the dining room.
"It's on the table," Vincenzo pointed to a plastic sheet of white bread and a glass of milk.
"Only this?"
"Put on your own jam, Rosé, you're a big girl," Vincenzo poured the powdered milk back into the bottle, adding milk flakes to the floor.
"The peanut butter is used up, dad," Rosé pointed out the contents of the empty jam jar.
"Just dip it in milk, it's delicious."
Rose rolled her eyes. She decided to only drink milk, and eat snacks at school.
"Papà, Shi Jin is crying."
"I know!" Vincenzo shaked the milk as he ran into the living room, where Shi Jin was laid on the baby sofa. He carried Shi Jin on his lap, stuffed the pacifier into the baby's tiny mouth.
Cough! Shi Jin choked. Vincenzo hastily straightened the baby's body. Accidentally the bottle of milk he was holding fell, rolled over under the table. He growled in annoyance.
Rosé typed something on her phone,
'Eomma, hurry home. Papà will turn into a warewolf.'
Where is the mother?
Cha Young has to attend an important meeting in Daegu for 2 days. Cha Young has a vacancy for a daily nanny, but Vincenzo is confidently determined to take care of Shi Jin himself. And he was overwhelmed now. Shi Jin has been getting more and more fussy since his mother left.
"Papà, I'm almost late for school," called Rosé, who was already waiting on the terrace.
"Yeah, yeah," Vincenzo carried Shi Jin, out of the house.
He put Shi Jin in the baby seat before sitting in the driver's seat. Rosé who was sitting next to Shi Jin helped hold the bottle of milk her brother was drinking.
Five minutes before the school gates closed, Vincenzo's car finally arrived in front of the school. Rosé immediately got off and ran into the school grounds. Vincenzo took a long, tired breath. Suddenly he smelled an unpleasant odor from behind him. And Shi Jin cried again.
~~~
Cha Young has prepared her eyes and heart to see how messy her house is. When she opened the door, she was surpirsed.
Her house was not as messy as she imagined. The cleaning robot is circling the living room. The tables are clean and tidy. Dirty plates and glasses have been in the dishwasher. Shi Jin's milk bottles have also been washed and put into the sterilizer. Dirty clothes are spinning in the washing machine. Even on the dining table, there are sundubu jiggae and various banchans available.
"Did he hire a daily maid?" Cha Young thought.
Cha Young opened the door to her bedroom slowly. Her husband was fast asleep with their son on the big bed. In Vincenzo's hand he still held an empty milk bottle.
Cha Young slowly climbed onto the bed, trying not to wake them up, but Vincenzo was awake.
"You're home," Vincenzo said hoarsely.
"Yeah, just now. Sorry I disturbed your sleep. You must be tired."
"Hm, my bones are breaking."
"Did you take care of everything by yourself?"
"Yeah, while Shi Jin was sleeping this afternoon, I cleaned up all the mess. I've already delivered the food, it's on the table."
"Well, go back to sleep, darling," Cha Young rubbed her husband's head.
"What time is it? It's time for Rose to come home from piano lessons."
"I'll call Miri to take her home."
The man closed his eyes again and snored. Shi Jin moved and woke up. He almost cried, but Cha Young immediately carried him and left the room so as not to disturb his father.
"Shi Jin-ah, do you miss Eomma?"
Cha Young takes out the bottle of breast milk that she expressed this morning in Daegu and puts it in the hotel refrigerator, then takes it home in a special bag to maintain the quality of the milk. Shi Jin drank his milk greedily.
Cha Young has difficulty breastfeeding directly, because Shi Jin has nipple confusion. He is used to drinking from a pacifier bottle because Cha Young sometimes has to leave the house for work. The milk produced by her mammary glands is sometimes not sufficient for Shi Jin's strong drinking power, so he must also be assisted with formula milk. The baby has now grown into a fat and healthy baby.
Her cell phone on the table vibrated. Since her hands were still busy carrying Shi Jin and giving him milk, she grabbed it with her feet. But the phone fell to the floor and stopped vibrating.
The phone vibrates again, more briefly. Maybe the one who called earlier sent a short message. Cha Young ignores it, waiting for her son to finish her milk.
Shi Jin was placed on the small baby sofa before she looked at her cell phone. She furrowed her brows.
Yoo Hee Jae S&K
Can we meet for a second?
What's the matter?
I'm already in front of your house.
Cha Young raised her eyebrows. She immediately opened the door and the man was already standing in front of her with a big smile.
"Why did you come here?" Cha Young turned her head inside, towards the bedroom door, worried that her husband would suddenly appear with a gun.
Yoo Hee Jae shows something wrapped in wrapping paper, "a gift for the birth of your son."
"My son is 3 months old, you just gave him a present now?"
"Think of it as a gift for his 100th day," Yoo Hee Jae handed her the gift, then moved to enter, but Cha Young stopped him.
"I'm going to the toilet."
"My toilet is clogged."
"I'll help pump it later."
"But..."
"I'm already dying... Ouch, I can't take it anymore..." Yoo Hee Jae barged in while clutching his stomach, "Where's your toilet?"
"The left one," Cha Young pointed quickly, then she realized, "uh, why did I tell him?" But the man had already entered.
"Aish... my toilet is stained..." Cha Young grumbled.
Meanwhile in the toilet, Yoo Hee Jae doesn't actually need to go to the toilet. He looked around for things he could make DNA samples for. Toothbrush, razor, comb. Everything he put in a plastic.
A door opened. The bedroom door, not the toilet. Cha Young's body stiffened.
"Is Rosé home? I heard you talking to someone. Was it Larry who brought her here?" Vincenzo scratched his stomach while yawning.
"Err...that..."
There was a flush sound from inside the toilet whose door was open. Vincenzo turned his head, along with Yoo Hee Jae who came out of the toilet. They stare at each other for a few seconds which is so tense for Cha Young. If there is a remote to control human life, Cha Young wants to press the pause button, so she can escape. She dared not imagine what would happen in the next few minutes.
"Anyeonghaseo..." Yoo Hee Jae greeted Vincenzo politely. So polite that he bowed 90 degrees.
Vincenzo is still loading to digest what really happened.
"You must be Lawyer Hong's husband, right? Nice to meet you. I'm Yoo Hee Jae from law firm Song & Kim," Yoo Hee Jae held out his hand, but Vincenzo just glanced at it. The man pulled back his hand, "I am a partner of Lawyer Hong. We were an alumni when we were in college."
"What business are you doing here?" Vincenzo asked coldly.
"I am giving a gift for the birth of your son. Congratulation..."
Vincenzo raised the corners of his lips, "You two seem to be very close partner, huh."
"Eh, wait a minute, Mr. Park, don't move," Yoo Hee Jae's hand raised.
"What do you want to do?" Vincenzo looked at him in surprise and backed away.
"Don't move, something's moving in your hair. Just a minute..."
Cha Young was also confused by his ex's behavior.
Hop!
"Aaa..." Vincenzo screamed because his hair was grabbed by Yoo Hee Jae.
"What are you doing!" Cha Young immediately separated them.
"Ah, sorry, sir. There was a bug earlier but it's already flying because you keep moving."
"You're looking for death huh!" Vincenzo gripped the collar of Yoo Hee Jae's shirt.
"Darling, calm down," Cha Young pulled her husband, "Yoo Byeon, get out of here quickly before you turn into compost!"
“I'm sorry, excuse me,” Yoo Hee Jae bowed briefly and quickly ran away.
"Hey! Come here you asshole!"
"Calm down, darling, calm down. Take a breath, count from one to ten," Cha Young stroked her husband's chest.
"Cha Young-ah, get me my gun!"
"We live in Korea, Yeobo, how can civilians keep guns at home. It's illegal."
"Hey, bastard! Don't run away! I should have cut your hand off then!!!"
"Waaa..." Shi Jin cried because his sleep was disturbed by this commotion.
Meanwhile Yoo Hee Jae immediately got into his car, "Aish... damn it! What a shame!"
He took a deep breath, looked at some of Vincenzo's hair in the palm of his hand, "It's okay, the important thing is I've got it."
He put the strands of hairs in the plastic.
~~~
The gift from Yoo Hee Jae is opened. There is a set of Dolce & Gabbana brand baby clothes that seem to be imported directly from Italy because the packaging is exactly like what Caterina bought. There are also baby shoes, hat and toys. All of these items still have their price tags on, even a purchase receipt is tucked into the bottom of the box.
"What does this mean? Did he give me a gift or a bill?" Guman Cha Young.
Meanwhile Vincenzo was still struggling with the small mirror, watching his hair which was grabbed by Yoo Hee Jae.
"Fottutamente pazzo!" (F*cking crazy)
Cha Young shifts to cling to her husband. She stroked his hair.
"You're still handsome, my husband."
"What does your ex want? Suddenly he came to our house, then grabbed me. Has he out of his mind?"
"Maybe. Think of it like that. Don't bother with crazy people."
"Could it be that he regrets hurting you in the past and wants to come back to you, but you're already married to me, that's why he holds a grudge against me," Vincenzo surmised.
"No, no. That's impossible. Never mind, don't be angry anymore, hm?"
"Can't I sue him for molestation?"
Cha Young refrained from bursting out laughing, "Do you feel molested just because he grabbed your hair?"
"Just, you say? I can hear the roots of my hair being pulled, maybe even my scalp too!"
"Don't overdo it! Where? Let me see?" Cha Young examined Vincenzo's head, then blew it out, "Do we need to go to the hospital for a post-mortem?"
Vincenzo chuckled, "no need for a post-mortem, just a kiss."
Cha Young kissed Vincenzo's head, "is it still hurt?"
Vincenzo nodded, then pointed to his lips.
"Why does the pain move?" Cha Young laughed.
Vincenzo moved his lips further, as well as his body, causing Cha Young to be pushed backwards until she fell lying on the sofa, then he on top of her. Just as they were kissing, someone pressed the doorlock. They canceled making out.
"Papà, I'm home... oh? Eomma's home too!" Rosé ran to hug her mother.
Cha Young kissed her daughter's cheeks, "Eomma misses you so much."
"Me too..."
"Eonni, Oppa," greeted Miri.
"Thank you for taking Rosé home," said Cha Young.
"Well, you're welcome. Then, I'm going back."
"Why hurry? Let's eat together first," said Cha Young.
"No thanks, I'd like to have dinner out."
"Blind date?" Cha Young noticed Miri's appearance was different from the usual day. She was dressed beautifully with wavy hair. She wore a navy dress combined with black stockings.
"Hyung..." Larry appeared, "oh, good night, Mrs. Hong."
Cha Young and Vincenzo were even more surprised to see the appearance of this dancer, who usually wears a t-shirt and jacket, now looks neat and handsome in a white long-sleeved shirt and cloth trousers under his brown coat.
"Are any of your acquaintances or family getting married today?" Ask Vincenzo.
"No," they answered in unison.
"Then..." Vincenzo smiled crookedly, "since when did you guys..."
They both smiled shyly.
"Well, enjoy your dinner," said Cha Young, waving her hand with a big smile.
They both say goodbye.
"Good luck, Larry. We are waiting for the good news," joked Vincenzo who was poked by Cha Young.
"I know Larry liked Miri long ago, but I didn't think Miri would love him back," said Vincenzo.
"I'm not too surprised. A lawyer who married to a mafia is far more shocking than theirs."
Vincenzo laughed, but nodded in agreement.
"Come on, we should have dinner too." Cha Young went to the kitchen to warm up the tofu soup. Vincenzo followed, helping to scoop rice into three bowls.
"Oh, if I'm not misheard, Yoo Hee Jae just called my name, right?" Vincenzo recalled.
"Really? I didn't really notice that."
"He called me Mr. Park. Did you tell him my name?"
"I don't think so," Cha Young turned off the stove and placed the soup pot in the middle of the dining table, "but maybe he heard it from my employee."
Vincenzo nodded in understanding.
~~~
Yoo Hee Jae came out of the forensic laboratory with a brown envelope. He drove his car to a deserted park near the Han river, where a luxurious black car was parked there. He got out of his car and got into it.
“I haven't opened it yet,” Yoo Hee Jae handed it to Director Go.
The man opened the envelope slowly, then took a deep breath as he read the contents.
"You didn't trick us, did you?"
"You recommended the forensic expert yourself."
"Meet me with him, before he meets Hoenjang-nim."
Yoo Hee Jae did not immediately answer.
"A few years ago Hoenjang-nim was tricked by a private detective he hired. A man appeared claiming to be his grandson, even including a fake DNA test. When his cover was uncovered, Hoenjang-nim almost died of a heart attack. I just don't want that happens again."
Yoo Hee Jae nodded, "Okay, I'll arrange a meeting for you."
~~~
Yoo Hee Jae comes to Jipuragi's office to meet Cha Young. The woman immediately scolded him as soon as he entered his room.
"Hey, I want to hear your explanation, why did you grab my husband at that time? Do you still hold a grudge against me because of our past? Don't you accept that I married someone else and found my own happiness?"
"What are you talking about?" Yoo Hee Jae is confused.
"And why did you take the toothbrush, comb and razor from my toilet? What are you doing? Are you a pervert?"
"Hey!" Yoo Hee Jae snapped. He turned his head away, taking a deep breath trying to be patient, "Hong Cha Young, I have something to tell you. It's about your husband."
Cha Young crossed her arms in front of her chest, "what do you mean?"
"Did you know him very well?"
"Of course," Cha Young squinted, "are you going to try to destabilize our household with slander? You won't made it! I know him inside and outside, and I really trust him."
"It's not like that. Listen to me first. It's about your husband's family background. Did you ever know about this? Do you know who his real father was? Who was his grandfather?"
Cha Young is getting more confused, "Say it clearly!"
"Your husband, Park Joo Hyeong is the third generation of the Issume Holding chaebol family."
"What?" Cha Young glared.
"Park Joo Hyeong is Park Beom Soo Hoenjang-nim's biological grandson."
.
.
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