The Way to Save the Crazy Returnees Chapter 61 - Embargo (2)

 

‘What do you mean, ‘what’s your relationship with the chairman?’’

 

Maybe my expression had darkened more than I realized, because Chris flinched and hurried to explain himself.

 

“It’s just… someone asked the same question during the Victory showcase. And the rumor’s been spreading around the company ever since.”

 

“A rumor?”

 

“Yes. That you’re Chairman Kwak Jin-tae’s only grandson—his only family. That he handed WF Entertainment to you just so you could play around with it before naming you as AMA’s successor.”

 

Run WF Entertainment for fun?

 

The idea was so ridiculous I nearly laughed. My face must have twisted without me noticing, because Chris quickly added, almost apologetically:

 

“It was only a brief rumor. I don’t know if you heard, but last week the chairman of High-End Group visited Korea. Apparently Chairman Kwak Jin-tae had a meeting with him.”

 

Chris paused, then leaned in as if sharing a juicy secret.

 

“Someone claimed they saw you at that meeting.”

 

“…They saw me?”

 

“Yeah!”

 

Chris clearly didn’t believe the rumor that I was Chairman Kwak Jin-tae’s only family. If he did, he’d never dare tell me about the gossip circulating inside the company. In a way, that was reassuring.

 

“Chris, do you have any idea who started it?”

 

“No clue. I only heard it in passing.”

 

The fact that a rumor I had already cleared up was still circulating inside WF Entertainment—and with even more ridiculous details—was strange. Especially considering the meeting between my grandfather and Glakia G. Kellou, the chairman of High-End Group, took place at a high-end Korean restaurant. 

 

A place frequented by corporate elites, with all-private rooms. No one could’ve seen me and my grandfather together. And even if someone did, why assume a familial relationship?

 

‘Everyone already knows WF Entertainment is a subsidiary of AMA.’

 

It would make far more sense to assume I was there to greet the parent company’s chairman. Which meant this rumor wasn’t a misunderstanding—it was deliberate. Someone inside WF Entertainment was spreading it with intent.

 

“Then do you know when these rumors about me and Chairman Kwak Jin-tae first started?”

 

“Oh! That I know!”

 

Chris clapped lightly.

 

“It was the day after you were hospitalized.”

 

Only a handful of people knew I had collapsed from overwork. For someone to use that timing to spread a rumor like this…

 

‘I don’t know who it is yet…’

 

But I will.

 

“Chris, sorry, but could you call Team Leader Hong Ha-jin and the other team leaders to my office?”

 

“Yes?”

 

“There’s something I need to confirm.”

 

Ding—!

 

The elevator stopped at Chris’s floor.

 

“Then I’ll leave it to you. Ah, and on your way, stop by HR and bring me a list of employees who joined before I came back to work. Just those hired within the past month.”

 

“W-wait, CEO!”

 

Chris reached out, but the elevator doors had already closed. I frowned slightly, replaying our conversation in my head.

 

“What’s your relationship with Chairman Kwak Jin-tae?”

 

Just like Chris said, I’d already messed up the explanation at Victory’s showcase. Yet the rumors kept spreading—and now they’d grown even more distorted.

 

Come to think of it… I did get a question I’d never heard before at the showcase.

 

Right.

 

“It’s well-known that WF Entertainment is under AMA. May I ask what kind of relationship you have with AMA, CEO Kwak Yoon-hoo?”

 

Park Ki-cheon. Someone I had never even heard of before.

 

“I’m curious if you have a special relationship with AMA Chairman Kwak Jin-tae—since you share the same surname.”

 

There was no way he asked that just because we shared a name.

 

‘He must’ve received a tip.’

 

And the one who fed him that information was undoubtedly—

 

Ji Geon-hyuk. It had to be. Whether I’m right or not—I can confirm it now.

 

“CEO? I brought everyone you asked for.”

 

Chris had returned with the team leaders.

 

“Please, come in.”

 

I greeted them. They looked confused as to why I’d summoned them.

 

“I’m going to ask a few questions. I hope all team leaders will answer honestly—no lies.”

 

The staff gathered here were the best talents I’d handpicked over 365 regressions. Catching a lie would be trivial.

 

Why?

 

Because I knew every habit, every speech pattern—everything about them, including Chris. So I smiled and began the questioning.

 

***

 

—Hey! Kwak Yoon-hoo! You’re way past the time we agreed on!

 

Thirty minutes had passed since I came back to WF Entertainment to deal with overdue work. As soon as the time we’d agreed on passed, Seo Do-hwan called.

 

—When are you coming out?!

 

“I have something urgent to handle. I think I’ll have to leave this evening.”

 

—What?! Are you kidding me? I’m telling your grandfather EVERYTHING!

 

“He already approved it, so calling him won’t help.”

 

I lied smoothly and continued.

 

“Anyway, I’m hanging up. I’ll call you when I’m done. Just wait.”

 

Oh—right.

 

“And make sure you pick up Deok-soon and Soon-deuk after school.”

 

—Hey! Boss!!

 

I hung up on his shouting and turned back to the man nervously fidgeting in front of me.

 

“Sorry about that. I just came in today to clear some overdue work. My friend was waiting downstairs.”

 

“A-ah… I-I see…”

 

His name was Jung Sang-hwa. A PR team rookie under Hong Ha-jin—someone who joined two weeks before I was hospitalized. Also someone who happened to know Park Ki-cheon.

 

That’s right.

 

The man standing in front of me, looking like a scolded puppy, was the very one who had spread the rumor about me and my grandfather inside WF Entertainment.

 

Apparently, Park Ki-cheon had paid him to do it. And since the job was easy—just whispering a few things to a few people—he accepted without hesitation. Which meant none of the team leaders, including Chris, had lied during my questioning.

 

However—

 

“I’m really sorry, CEO.”

 

Hong Ha-jin bowed deeply.

 

“It’s alright. This isn’t your fault, Team Leader Hong.”

 

Even so, she couldn’t raise her head. Technically, she wasn’t completely blameless. While handling matters related to my hospitalization, she had accidentally revealed that information to Jung Sang-hwa.

 

And Jung Sang-hwa, thinking he’d stumbled upon a golden opportunity, passed the information to his friend Park Ki-cheon—so Park could publish an exclusive about me. In return, all Jung Sang-hwa wanted was a decent meal. Then Park Ki-cheon paid him again to spread rumors inside WF Entertainment.

 

Honestly…

 

Still, I didn’t want to place all the blame on Hong Ha-jin. So I decided to be generous. But as for Jung Sang-hwa—someone who sold my information and conspired with a reporter behind my back—I fully intended to deal with him.

 

“I’ll leave the handling of Employee Jung Sang-hwa to you, Team Leader Hong.”

 

“Yes, CEO. Leave it to me.”

 

If it was Hong Ha-jin, she wouldn’t stop at simply firing him. She’d make sure he wouldn’t be able to set foot in this industry ever again. With her connections, that was more than possible.

 

“And also, Team Leader Hong—could you contact Reporter Park Ki-cheon for me?”

 

“…Pardon?”

 

She looked startled.

 

“I’d like to have an interview with him.”

 

They say you should strike while the iron is hot.

 

Now that I knew exactly who was behind the rumors, there was no way I’d let him walk away unscathed. So what should I do?

 

Take care of it, of course.

 

I smirked, waiting for Park Ki-cheon to arrive. Knowing him, he’d come running the moment Hong Ha-jin reached out.

 

***

 

Park Ki-cheon, reporter for It’s Patch, was notorious in the entertainment world. His reputation for vicious articles was well-known. And right now, he was practically walking on air.

 

CEO Kwak Yoon-hoo wants a private interview with me?!

 

With him, of all people.

 

He’d already noticed other reporters sniffing around the rumors circulating inside WF Entertainment, and he’d been preparing to drop an exclusive on Kwak Yoon-hoo anyway.

 

Talk about perfect timing.

 

It really felt like luck was on his side. But more importantly…

 

“That little greenhorn dared to humiliate me last time.”

 

Looks like Jung Sang-hwa had done his job well.

 

“But I didn’t hear anything about him being discharged yet…”

 

Surely he didn’t leave the hospital and come straight to work just to check on some rumors.

 

No way.

 

He wasn’t that much of a workaholic. Park Ki-cheon concluded he must’ve been discharged last Friday and returned today. Convinced of that, he arrived at WF Entertainment.

 

“Reporter Park Ki-cheon?”

 

“Are you Team Leader Hong Ha-jin—the one who called?”

 

“Yes, that’s right.”

 

Park Ki-cheon put on a polite smile.

 

“My goodness, what an honor. I never imagined CEO Kwak Yoon-hoo would personally request an interview with me.”

 

“I also didn’t expect you to show up on the same day.”

 

It was a subtle jab—why show up immediately instead of scheduling properly?—but Park Ki-cheon laughed it off like he didn’t hear it.

 

“Haha! You know what they say—strike while the iron is hot! Besides, I couldn’t risk CEO Kwak changing his mind and canceling.”

 

“I see.”

 

Her tone was composed as she led him to the office where Kwak Yoon-hoo was waiting.

 

“The CEO is inside.”

 

“Oh, yes, yes! Thank you for guiding me.”

 

After flashing her another smile, Park Ki-cheon knocked lightly on the office door.

 

“Yes, come in.”

 

Hearing that, he curled his lips into a crooked smirk. Kwak Yoon-hoo—the brat who had disrespected him at the Victory showcase.

 

‘People say he’s the grandson of AMA Chairman Kwak Jin-tae.’

 

That was why he’d tried to pry into his relationship with Chairman Kwak during the showcase.

 

‘And he had the nerve to make a fool out of me?’

 

Not only that. He’d received a tip about Muse, Victory’s leader, and when he’d tried asking politely, Kwak Yoon-hoo toyed with him again. The memory made his lips twist with irritation.

 

‘This time, I’ll tear him apart.’

 

And once he returned to the office, he’d publish a massive exclusive. Just imagining Kwak Yoon-hoo struggling because of his articles put him in an excellent mood.

 

Suppressing his smirk, Park Ki-cheon grabbed the doorknob and opened the door. But the moment he stepped inside the office, he swallowed involuntarily.

 

“You’re here.”

 

Something about Kwak Yoon-hoo’s gentle smile radiated pressure. He gestured toward the seat across from him.

 

“Please, sit down, Reporter Park.”

 

For some reason, the heavy atmosphere made it difficult for Park Ki-cheon to move.

 

‘No—get a grip, Park Ki-cheon!’

 

He forced a smile and sat down.

 

“Thank you for inviting me, CEO Kwak.”

 

Leaning forward with his elbows on his knees, Kwak Yoon-hoo clasped his hands together.

 

“No. I should be the one thanking you.”

 

For walking straight into the tiger’s den. He swallowed the unspoken words and smiled.