Actually, It’s a Messy Melodrama Chapter 39

“Um… Secretary Choi, thank you so much.”

Was that why? Haeshin blurted out the words without thinking. Secretary Choi looked at Haeshin with a somewhat puzzled expression. It must have seemed strange that he was saying thank you again when he had already thanked him for today’s help.

For a moment, Haeshin wondered if he had said something unnecessary, but the water was already spilled. Haeshin continued, hoping his sincerity would be conveyed as best as possible.

“Even though a person who you don’t even know where he rolled in from is suddenly hanging around the CEO, you’ve always treated me with respect and taken care of me… For you, Secretary, that might be your natural attitude, but for someone like me, it’s not a given.”

“……”

“I’m truly grateful.”

Some people borrow the power of others and wield it as if it were their own. Haeshin knew all too well how petty and cruel such people could be to the weak.

Even the lackey of a third-rate neighborhood gangster would shout at students in back alleys and extort money from them. How much more could someone backed by the power of CEO Han Taejun lord it over someone like Cha Haeshin? And yet, Secretary Choi had never once shown such an attitude towards Haeshin. It was a rare thing.

Secretary Choi looked at Haeshin silently for a moment, then soon bowed his head slightly and replied.

“I am only doing what I am supposed to do. I will take my leave now. My direct contact information is saved on the phone, so please contact me when you need to.”

“Yes. Please be careful on your way.”

Haeshin bowed to Secretary Choi as he turned to leave, then plopped down on the bed in the now-empty room.

The new ‘Haeshin’s room’ was smaller than the bedroom he used when he lived with Youngmin, but Haeshin liked it. It literally felt safe.

The fact that he was staying at Han Taejun’s house felt more unreal than the life of countless deaths and regressions. Truly, life was a series of unpredictable events.

☂️

“Youngmin said something strange the other day.”

Taejun, who was chatting after having dinner at the main house for the first time in a while, let out a short, “Ah,” at Chairman Han’s sudden words. He’d thought he looked like he had something to say throughout dinner, and it seemed Jin Youngmin had already gone to see the chairman.

It was obvious what kind of strange thing Jin Youngmin would have said. Taejun, unfazed, looked at his grandfather’s face calmly and asked.

“Youngmin did? What did he say?”

“He came to see me out of the blue, saying something about you chasing after some bar boy.”

It was actually Chairman Han who was carefully watching Taejun’s expression. Taejun sneered inwardly at Jin Youngmin.

He must have expected that his grandfather would fly into a rage and berate Taejun upon hearing this news. In fact, Chairman Han was someone who would not tolerate a member of his family getting involved with a life like Cha Haeshin’s. Just like when he had opposed Jin Youngmin’s marriage to Cha Haeshin.

However, Taejun, far from being nervous at Chairman Han’s questioning, leaned back more leisurely on the sofa.

“Oh, is that all.”

“Is it true?”

Chairman Han asked again, pulling his hips forward towards Taejun. This time, too, his tone wasn’t accusatory.

“You’ve probably already looked into it, so why ask?”

Taejun wasn’t sharp either. It was the opposite. Taejun’s tone was closer to that of a grandson affectionately grumbling to his grandfather. Chairman Han’s eyebrows drooped sullenly. It was a face others would never see.

“Still, you brat, shouldn’t I hear an explanation from you?”

“Yes, that’s right. I couldn’t stop at chasing him, I got completely taken for a ride by him.”

And Taejun, too, acted spoiled in a way others could never imagine. Chairman Han shot a glare at his ill-mannered grandson.

“It seems you’re really getting out of hand now that I’ve been spoiling you.”

“So are you going to stop spoiling me now?”

At his grandson’s retort, who wouldn’t let a single word slide, Chairman Han clicked his tongue, “Tsk.” However, the thunderous scolding Jin Youngmin had expected did not come.

The rumor that Chairman Han cherished his grandson Taejun more than his own son was already so widespread that there was no one who didn’t know it. But not many people knew the true nature of their relationship.

People assumed that Chairman Han had tested and chosen Han Taejun as the successor to Myungjin Group, and thus acknowledged him. Because that was the atmosphere people usually thought of for a chaebol family.

But the relationship between Chairman Han and Taejun was much warmer and more affectionate than that. He was truly a grandson who was the apple of his eye, and it wasn’t the kind of treatment given to a corporate successor.

Even if the eldest grandson of the family had been Jin Youngmin instead of Han Taejun, Chairman Han’s treatment would not have been much different from now.

Chairman Han was not a person who unconditionally cherished someone just because they were his blood. If Taejun’s abilities and character were different from what they were now, Chairman Han’s attitude would not have been the same either. But the one of his bloodline who was most to his liking in every way happened to be the eldest grandson, so there was no reason for Chairman Han not to hold him in special regard.

Taejun, who was receiving Chairman Han’s gaze without a hint of being self-conscious, soon straightened his posture and opened his mouth.

“He was working as a waiter at a bar, but that’s not all; he just does whatever work he can get his hands on. He works at a convenience store, does designated driving at night, and also works at a logistics center.”

He wasn’t unaware of why Jin Youngmin had specifically used the expression ‘bar boy.’ However, Haeshin was not a person who lived like the image that word conjured up.

“He’s a pitiful kid.”

He didn’t say it to make an excuse. Excluding the story related to the regressions, it was the most honest thing Taejun could say. Cha Haeshin was pitiful. That’s why Taejun also became more interested.

“And I’m continuing to help him because he’s pitiful.”

“You don’t have any other feelings for him?”

“Is it not allowed? Will I get kicked out of the house?”

“The way this brat talks to his grandfather.”

At Taejun’s question, which to anyone’s eyes looked like a mischievous prank on his grandfather, Chairman Han’s expression hardened. Of course, it wasn’t because he was really angry. Chairman Han continued.

“I knew it when you kept putting off meeting Chairman Jung’s granddaughter. I figured it was a lost cause to get you married according to my wishes.”

“I was busy back then. If there was no one I particularly liked, I was going to marry whoever you told me to, Grandfather.”

“Oh, you’re good with words. Even so, I thought with your personality you wouldn’t bring home some trashy kid, but Taejun, isn’t this a bit much?”

“Grandfather. Did I say I was going to marry him or something? I’m just… helping him out because he’s a bit pitiful right now.”

At Taejun’s slick answer, Chairman Han slapped the armrest of the sofa.

“What are you, a philanthropist? You think your grandfather doesn’t know you, getting taken for a ride because you feel sorry for him?”

Taejun burst out laughing. That was true, too. Even before falling into this regression hell, Taejun wasn’t the altruistic type. Taejun continued a bit more seriously.

“Grandfather, if there was something, do you think I wouldn’t have told you? I didn’t say anything because there wasn’t. But it’s also true that I’m helping him, which is unlike me. In that sense, you could say he’s special, if you want to call it that.”

Chairman Han knew Taejun better than Taejun’s parents did. And the same was true for Taejun. Taejun was perhaps a person who knew better than Chairman Han himself with what kind of heart his grandfather cherished and loved him.

In the swamp of countless regressions, Chairman Han was a person who had never once turned his back on Taejun. Even when Taejun was half-crazy due to the regressions and did something truly crazy, Chairman Han always tried to understand and help him in some way.

That’s why Taejun was confident this time, too. No matter what he did with Cha Haeshin, Chairman Han would side with him, not Jin Youngmin. Even if he were to say he would marry Cha Haeshin.

If Jin Youngmin were to marry someone not up to his standards, opposing and ousting him would be protecting the family’s honor, but if Taejun were to do so, Chairman Han was a person who would think that siding with and supporting Taejun was protecting the honor.

“Alright. Well, I’m sure you’ll handle it well enough on your own, but… still, I’d prefer it if it were a kid of a certain standard. And a girl would be even better.”

“Yes. I’ll try my best to match that.”

At Taejun’s natural answer until the very end, Chairman Han finally burst into a hearty laugh. It was quite adorable to see the brat, who played the role of a sharp and cool-headed CEO so well in front of others, still act like a childish grandson only in front of him.

Chairman Han decided to set aside his concerns about the ‘bar boy’ for now. According to what Chairman Han had looked into, Cha Haeshin was just a pitiful soul living a diligent life.

There was no element that could pose a threat to Taejun, and even if he became a problem later, he was someone who could be dealt with without any repercussions. It wasn’t something worth interfering with in advance and hurting Taejun’s pride.

If his relationship with Taejun really deepened later on, that was a problem he could think about then. There must be a reason why Taejun, who had never shown much interest in others before, was going this far, and if the reason was valid, Chairman Han was a person who wanted to side with Taejun as much as possible.

However, if there was one thing that bothered him.

“More than that, you should pay more attention to Youngmin’s side.”

It was the fact that Jin Youngmin had come with ill intentions and tattled on Taejun’s affairs. At first, he thought it was a power grab, an attempt to drive a wedge between him and Taejun, but upon digging, he found that Youngmin was also involved with Cha Haeshin.