The Way to Save the Crazy Returnees – Chapter 22 – Kang Ye-seong (3)

Author: CleiZz

My conversation with Kang Ye-seong was over. He had returned to the broadcasting station, while I stayed in the café for a while before getting up.

Just then, a red sports car pulled up in front of the café.

“Hey, boss.”

I nodded lightly at Seo Do-hwan’s greeting and got into the car.

“How’d the talk go?”

“Mm.”

“So… what happened?”

“It was a complete disaster.”

“What?!” Seo Do-hwan exclaimed. “Then why do you look so pleased?”

“Do I?”

He nodded.

“Anyone would think you just won the lottery.”

“Winning the lottery makes you happy?” I tilted my head. “How much do you even get for first place?”

“Hundreds of millions? Sometimes three to five billion won.”

“And that’s enough to make you happy?”

Seo Do-hwan looked at me in disbelief and shook his head.

“This is exactly why rich kids are the way they are.”

I honestly didn’t understand what his problem was. For me, that amount wasn’t even one percent of my assets. I’d rather take a lifetime vacation than a sum like that.

I frowned at his mocking tone and spoke.

“Seo Do-hwan, don’t tell me you forgot that the sports car you’re driving right now was a gift from that rich bastard?”

That’s right.

The one who had given him this car was none other than me.

Since it didn’t seem like he’d be running off anytime soon and he had practically moved into my house, I decided to just buy him one.

Seo Do-hwan fell silent at my words. He must know that saying the wrong thing now could get this car taken back.

Maintaining his silence as he drove, he eventually asked again.

“So, why was it a disaster?”

Why did I fail?

“Because I touched on a sensitive issue with Kang Ye-seong. He got angry.”

“Surely you didn’t touch his family?”

Seo Do-hwan asked, surprised.

“Do I look like that much of a piece of trash?”

He went quiet.

What the hell, this guy.

“Seo Do-hwan, why aren’t you answering?”

“Ahem, ahem!”

Seo Do-hwan cleared his throat before asking,

“If it wasn’t about family, then what was it?”

He feigned nonchalance, but I answered his question kindly.

“Members.”

“Members?”

Seo Do-hwan looked puzzled and pressed further.

“What do you mean, members? Kang Ye-seong? He seemed like such a nice guy.”

I’d been waiting for that question.

I smiled and spoke.

***

When I asked Kang Ye-seong if he wanted to continue working with Victory’s current members, he fell silent.

Then he spoke.

“Could you clarify what you mean by that?”

“Exactly as I said—do you want to keep working with the existing members?”

Kang Ye-seong’s expression hardened. I, on the other hand, smiled lightly.

“Mr. Kang Ye-seong, I’m sure you understand what I mean, but my condition is—”

“I won’t hear it.”

He cut me off firmly.

“If joining your agency comes with the condition of replacing members, I refuse.”

“Why?”

“Because they’re family.”

He spoke with anger.

“We’ve been through everything together for nearly seven years, from trainee days to now. You want me to abandon them and start over with different members? I can’t do that. No—I won’t.”

It was the answer I’d expected, yet hearing it still astonished me.

Even faced with such conditions, he remained unwavering, choosing loyalty to his members.

Kang Ye-seong, who wasn’t crazy in the least, was truly like a bamboo stalk—straight and unyielding.

Industry insiders who knew him called him a plum blossom that never fell from its branch, but to me, he was more like bamboo.

“I never imagined a fan of ours would put forth such conditions. I’ll be taking my leave now.”

True to his words, Kang Ye-seong shot up from his seat.

“Wait a moment, Mr. Kang Ye-seong.”

I stopped him. “You called your members family, didn’t you? But they aren’t really family, are they?”

“What are you trying to say?”

“There are members who left you.”

Even though he had cherished Victory’s members as if they were his own family.

Stage name: Sol.

Real name: Ji Ye-chan.

He had left the group the moment Victory’s comeback was confirmed. He was the same age and a close friend of Kang Ye-seong. Yet, he left Victory without a word to the members who had spent seven years by his side. He just walked away overnight.

At the mention of his name, Kang Ye-seong suddenly burst out,

“Ye-chan didn’t abandon us!”

“Oh, really?”

Kang Ye-seong bit down hard on his lip. He knew that Ji Ye-chan had abandoned a failing group teetering on the edge of collapse.”

‘Even if that wasn’t the whole truth.’

But that much, Kang Ye-seong didn’t know.

I smiled politely and said,

“If you ever need help, don’t hesitate to call me.”

Kang Ye-seong’s face twisted. Even in anger, he looked remarkably handsome.

In any case, he replied,

“That won’t ever happen.”

And that was how our conversation ended.

***

“Why did you do that?” Seo Do-hwan asked, almost interrogatively.

“Because it had to be done.”

Kang Ye-seong was smart. Not just smart—a genius. He was a member of Mensa, in the top 2% of IQ.

“Seo Do-hwan, do you know what happens when a genius goes mad?”

“I don’t know.”

“I do.”

I had seen it happen, more than once.

“A genius loses empathy for others’ pain. They act solely for themselves. Even if someone dies in the process, they won’t bat an eye. That’s how a genius goes mad.”

Kang Ye-seong had gone mad in that way—never reaching the very top, losing his mind, and in the process, directly and indirectly causing countless deaths. Even the members he had once called “family” were among them.

“So that’s why you did it?”

“Yeah.”

If I hadn’t, Kang Ye-seong would have doubted me endlessly. He was the type who believed there was no such thing as kindness without strings attached.

He would have spiraled into paranoia, constantly wondering what I truly wanted from him.

And in the end, he would have lost his mind. But that won’t happen now.

“By the way, where are we going?”

“Lee Yoo-seong’s school. It’s time to finish now.”

“Aha.”

It seemed he had taken a liking to Lee Yoo-seong, so sending him to school under the guise of Seo Jong-pil had been the right move.

Before long, we arrived at Lee Yoo-seong’s school. No longer Cheongha High School—now renamed Cheongmyeong High School.

And just in time for the end of the school day.

“Yoo-seong!”

“Yoon-hoo hyung!”

“Hey! Am I invisible here?”

“Do-hwan hyung!”

Lee Yoo-seong greeted us with a wide, cheerful smile.

“What’s this? Did you come to pick me up?”

“Yeah, hop in.”

“Okay!”

Lee Yoo-seong waved to the students he had been walking home with, then got into the car.

“Were those kids your friends?”

“Hm? Well…”

He smiled awkwardly. “I’m not really sure. But… they were the ones who came up to me first!”

Then Lee Yoo-seong said they had apologized to him.

“They said they avoided me because they were scared of Lee Jin-hyuk. But now that he’s gone…”

“Cowards, aren’t they?”

“Huh?”

“If Lee Jin-hyuk had still been around, they’d still be ignoring you.”

“Yeah, probably.”

Lee Yoo-seong said calmly, surprisingly unfazed.

“But he’s not here anymore!”

He smiled brightly.

“Now I’ve got brothers, so what does it matter to me!”

“Well said.”

Lee Yoo-seong chuckled, scratching his head in embarrassment. Seo Do-hwan, clearly amused, laughed.

“You know what? Let’s eat out tonight!”

“Whoa! You’re treating us, hyung?”

“Nope, it’s on Kwak Yoon-ho.”

“Why is the story going that way?”

“Then, are you trying to squeeze blood from a stone?”

Seo Do-hwan threw out the proverb with a smug grin. Hanging around Lee Yoo-seong seemed to be making him a little sharper.

“Fine, let’s go.”

I set the navigation to a restaurant my grandfather and I used to frequent. For some reason, I had a feeling we’d be visiting this place often from now on.

***

“Thanks for the meal!”

Lee Yoo-seong patted his full stomach happily.

“Was it good?”

“Yeah! Absolutely delicious!”

It had to be—after all, this was a long-standing, family-run restaurant.

“I didn’t think you’d know a spot like this, boss,” Seo Do-hwan said, flicking his toothpick. “The century-old Grandma’s Gukbap Restaurant, huh.”

“Why? Is that strange?”

“Not strange exactly, but I thought you only went to five-star hotel restaurants.”

“Why waste money there?”

The mansion already had a top-class chef, after all.

“Now that we’ve eaten, let’s head home. It’s really late, and Yoo-seong has school tomorrow.”

“Yes!”

It was already past 10 p.m.

We hadn’t planned to stay so long at the gukbap place, but talking through unfinished discussions made time fly.

“Lee Yoo-seong, should I give you a ride to school tomorrow?”

“Yes! I want to show off to my friends!”

“You don’t have any friends yet.”

“I’ll have some starting tomorrow!”

Seo Do-hwan teased him while driving. I listened to their playful banter with one ear and opened my tablet with the other, handling matters related to Cheongmyeong High School and Club T.U.

Cheongmyeong High School wasn’t a problem—I’d already sent someone to cover for me—so there wasn’t much to do. But T.U. was another story.

I wanted to hand over the club to Seo Do-hwan quickly, but it wasn’t the right time.

‘Besides, the surrounding area still isn’t cleaned up.’

There had been frequent drug-related incidents at nearby clubs.

‘By now, the cleanup should have been finished.’

Someone must still be supplying drugs, and the current police presence wasn’t enough to stop it.

Due to this ongoing issue, I couldn’t hand T.U. over to Seo Do-hwan yet; it was too soon, and if he got involved with drugs, all my efforts so far would be wasted.

“Boss? Boss!”

“Hm? What is it?”

“Your phone’s ringing!”

“Oh.”

Seo Do-hwan pointed out my phone buzzing relentlessly.

At this late hour? A call from an unknown number.

Still, I answered.

If it was a scam, I could hang up immediately. If not…

“Hello?”

—He… hello…?

I needed to speak, so I called the familiar name.

“Mr. Lee Nak-hwa?”