The New Groom Chapter 8

It was because Go Yoongi had accurately read the depths of Hwang Bosik’s heart. Rather than trying to fix what had already been done in a way that wouldn’t work, Hwang Bosik wanted to save face, even if it was belatedly. Simply put, his pride had been wounded, and Go Yoongi had laid out the perfect stage to satisfy his cravings.

Go Yoongi’s contributions did not end with the Jeil Gyeonggi incident. Cheonghwa Industry left a deep impression during the debate over the construction site for the pumped-storage power plant. By reading Hwang Bosik’s true intentions and taking the lead in pushing for the direction he desired, the construction site was selected exactly according to the plan Hanyang Construction had initially envisioned. For that, Cheonghwa Industry had to endure some losses, but their bond with Hanyang Construction became even stronger.

In the long run, the losses sustained by Cheonghwa Industry were merely a stepping stone for greater profit, so it was a satisfying result for both sides.

Hwang Bosik, who had already favored Go Yoongi, was practically on the verge of divorcing his daughter and making him his new son-in-law. At the same time, Lee Jeongrok’s position kept shrinking, and he felt as though he were standing on the edge of a cliff every single day.

“Mr. Jeongrok.”

It was when Hwang Bosik was having a reunion with the brothers he hadn’t seen in a long time. Lee Jeongrok was barely catching his breath during the gap. Go Yoongi, holding a champagne glass, approached him with a greasy, slick face.

“It’s quite the celebratory occasion, isn’t it? Even when we were applying for the bid, I wondered if it would go well, but look how far we’ve come. After Father put his heart and soul into it for several years, it’s finally seeing the light of day.”

“Yes. Thanks to… thanks to the great help from Cheonghwa Industry as well.”

“Help, what kind of help could I give? It’s all thanks to Father’s capability.”

“You both worked very hard.”

The choice of words—calling him “Father” without fail—was grating, but Lee Jeongrok tried his best to go along with it. Go Yoongi, who had smiled softly at the flattery, continued as if he had just remembered something.

“Come to think of it, you worked quite hard too, Mr. Jeongrok, didn’t you? You went through a lot trying to resolve the Jeil Gyeonggi article business. Thanks to that, Father’s dignity was upheld. No matter how magnanimous a person Father is, those kinds of photos are… well, you know how the world is these days. You shouldn’t leave them on the internet and become a laughingstock for no reason. I was so nervous that it might hit the portal main page, I tell you. Hahaha.”

“…”

Go Yoongi had to know that his relationship with his father-in-law had spiraled to the worst possible state because of the Jeil Gyeonggi incident, yet he brought up the topic with blatant intent. Instead of answering, Lee Jeongrok only pulled up the corners of his lips. He struggled to maintain his expression, unable to keep a straight face while Go Yoongi was laughing. As if to mock that effort, Go Yoongi was particularly clingy today.

“It seems like only good things happen in the family ever since Mr. Jeongrok married Imin noona. You know, they say that if you bring the wrong person into a house, even the existing luck leaves. Since a proper person like Mr. Jeongrok came in, it seems like luck has opened up and everything is going well. The old sayings are never wrong. Aren’t they?”

“Haha… how could that be thanks to me? It’s the result of the years of effort Father put in.”

“No, imagine if Mr. Jeongrok had been a ‘young master’ who didn’t know how the world worked. Things that went smoothly would have hit a snag, right? Do you think everything would have gone as smoothly as it does now? Of course, there was the article issue, but that was nothing special anyway.”

“…Haha. Yes. Well.”

Although he was beating around the bush, Go Yoongi’s intention was clear in the end. He was saying that the article broke because Lee Jeongrok did something wrong, that things which were going well hit a snag due to his mistakes, and that all of this was because the fortune of the household had left due to the wrong person becoming a new family member.

Lee Jeongrok put down his champagne glass, afraid he might snap its slender stem. Looking around subtly to find an excuse to avoid the situation, he made eye contact with Hwang Imin. Hwang Imin, who had been talking to a cousin, sent him a nod over her shoulder. Lee Jeongrok waved his hand at her immediately.

“Honey, come here for a second.”

Hwang Imin, having said something to her cousin, came straight to Lee Jeongrok.

Today, Hwang Imin was breathtakingly beautiful. Possessing a typical Western-style figure, she was wearing a white evening dress that took full advantage of her slim physique. It was a perfect appearance that reminded him of their wedding reception.

As he remembered the flamboyant wedding where he had dreamed of a rose-colored future, Lee Jeongrok found the taste in his mouth to be incredibly bitter. The reality he stood upon was far from rose-colored. Even so, his wife was still beautiful. Lee Jeongrok pushed his bitter feelings to one side and put his arm around Hwang Imin’s waist.

To be honest, the two of them standing together did not look like a well-matched couple. Hwang Imin, with her large double-lidded eyes, was a flamboyant beauty, but Lee Jeongrok had a generally clean and plain aura. His sharp nose and thin lips gave him a sensitive, sharp impression, and above all, for a man, his frame was slight. He was neither short nor tall, and he had a slender physique that did not suit a flamboyant beauty.

In fact, Hwang Imin suited a man with strong features, like Go Yoongi, better. From their appearance to their atmosphere, they were like water and oil and could not blend with Lee Jeongrok at all.

Nevertheless, the person standing by Hwang Imin’s side was Lee Jeongrok. The person who had married into the Hwang family and was formally recognized by society and the law was Lee Jeongrok himself. He looked at Go Yoongi with his characteristic haughty expression, with his nose slightly upturned. He could not have been more proud of the shining trophy he held at his side.

“I was greeting Mr. Yoongi. Thanking him for attending. I thought it would be good for you to greet him, too.”

“Oh, is that so?”

Hwang Imin was three years older than Lee Jeongrok, but she used polite language with him without fail. Even when Lee Jeongrok, who was not prone to physical intimacy, suddenly wrapped his arm around her waist, she nestled into him quietly and smiled brightly. Despite her flamboyant appearance, at her core, she was a typical refined lady. She spoke affectionately to Go Yoongi.

“Thank you so much for always coming and celebrating on days like today, Yoongi.”

“…It’s only natural.”

Go Yoongi, who had glanced at the hand resting on her waist, drank a sip of champagne. Lee Jeongrok had long suspected that Go Yoongi had feelings for Hwang Imin. Unlike Go Yoongi, whose words had suddenly been cut short, Lee Jeongrok had completely regained his composure. His wife was truly a trophy with many uses in various ways. He picked up the champagne glass he had set down and said leisurely.

“I am grateful to you in many ways, Mr. Yoongi. You are a good friend to my wife and always helpful to Father in body and spirit, so as a member of this family, I also feel reassured and supported. Please continue to look after us in the future.”

“Yes… of course.”

“Thank you again for gracing us with your presence today. Well then, we’ll be off; there is someone waiting for us to greet them.”

Lee Jeongrok, holding champagne in one hand and hugging Hwang Imin with the other arm, smiled by barely pulling up his lips. It wounded his pride that he had to keep a check on such a pathetic piece of vermin, but it was also true that he felt better after taking him down a peg.

Lee Jeongrok, having offered a light bow, turned away with an easygoing attitude. Only then did Hwang Imin squirm as if trying to get out of his embrace. It was when Lee Jeongrok quickly released the arm he had wrapped around her waist.

“Wait a second.”

Go Yoongi hurriedly stopped the couple.

“Actually, later, around the evening… um, so, when we move to a different venue after dinner, we’ve decided to have a simple after-party among friends at our villa. I didn’t invite you specifically because I thought Imin noona would need to spend time with Father… How about it, noona? Would you like to come with Mr. Jeongrok?”

It was insane bullshit. He hated it to death. An after-party surrounded by Go Yoongi’s friends at Go Yoongi’s villa—the thought alone was terrifying. But before he could send a signal, Hwang Imin readily nodded.

“Yoongi, you’re so mean—how can you leave noona out of the after-party? Dad is going to have his second round with his friends anyway, so it doesn’t matter to me. Of course, I should go there. Right, honey?”

Though she had asked for his opinion, Hwang Imin was already taking it for granted that they would attend the after-party. Given Lee Jeongrok’s personality, it was an offer he absolutely could not refuse. He nodded reluctantly. Go Yoongi, whose complexion had been somewhat pale, grinned.

“Great, then. Eat, and see you later.”

As they greeted him and turned away, Hwang Imin whispered excitedly.

“It should be fun. I heard they remodeled the swimming pool at Yoongi’s villa this spring, and I was curious about it, too.”

“Swimming pool? We don’t even have swimwear, so why swimming…”