The Prosecutor’s Office’s Proposal Chapter 5

“That’s impossible. I heard from a colleague that back when he was at another branch, he used to grind the investigators down for not doing their work well, to the point where some took a leave of absence due to stress, and many others applied for transfers to different prosecutors’ offices. Wherever he goes, he pokes his nose into this case and that. It’s only the investigators who suffer.”

“Is that so? I didn’t know that.”

“Mr. Hwang, you know about the case from when Prosecutor Joo was a rookie, right?”

“If you were an employee with a foot in the door of the Prosecutors’ Office back then, there’s no one who doesn’t know about that case.”

I knew exactly what ‘that case’ my mentor was talking about. I first encountered Prosecutor Joo Taeson’s name in articles about that incident when I was a sophomore at the Seoul Police Academy.

It was when he was a second-year rookie prosecutor. It is known among the public as the ‘Prosecutor Yoon Soyeon Suicide Case.’

Around that time, Prosecutor Yoon Soyeon, who had been a classmate of Prosecutor Joo Taeson at the Judicial Research and Training Institute, took her own life, unable to endure the routine verbal abuse and physical assault of her chief prosecutor.

It is said that one year before she took her own life, Prosecutor Yoon Soyeon had suffered under severe pressure to drop the investigation due to an alleged bidding corruption case between Danhyeon Casino and Osong Construction. In the end, she couldn’t properly proceed with the investigation and had to close it, but being targeted by her chief prosecutor at that time became her undoing.

Prosecutor Joo was the only internal whistleblower who testified to the circumstances of the assault Prosecutor Yoon Soyeon had suffered, and in the end, the chief prosecutor was forced to resign. Of course, Prosecutor Joo Taeson was also demoted for ‘contempt.’ It wouldn’t be the Prosecutors’ Office if they didn’t retaliate against those who defy them.

The corruption case involving Danhyeon Casino—where my late father worked as a driver—the violence suffered by Prosecutor Yoon Soyeon, and Prosecutor Joo Taeson’s sense of justice all intermingled, embedding that case into my mind with unparalleled intensity. Perhaps it was because I was a student at the Seoul Police Academy at the time. I understood the vertical, hierarchical atmosphere of the prosecution and police better than anyone. Even in university, it wasn’t much different.

Four years later, while working in the police force, I had a brief connection with Prosecutor Joo. And I received help from him—a man I respected—that I could never forget in my police career. Since it was just one of countless cases for Prosecutor Joo, I had no expectation that he would remember me. We had only met about twice.

Anyway, my mentor continued his gossip about Prosecutor Joo to Mr. Hwang.

“When he was a rookie, he pretended to be a man of justice, but now that he’s gained seniority, he’s just throwing his weight around as a prosecutor. I don’t know why he’s always hounding the investigators when they don’t even have any power. I hear he actually does a lot of dirty work behind the scenes, too. He always has that gloomy, expressionless face, too.”

“…Personality aside, he really is just too handsome. That’s a face you don’t see in the Prosecutors’ Office. That kind of look shouldn’t be wasted like this; it should be on TV. It’s a crime—a real crime—that he’s smart enough to pass the bar exam.”

“For a person, facial expressions are more important than the face. There are even rumors that he’s being sponsored.”

“No way! The clerk in his room said he’s actually really sweet, more than you’d think. He cracks jokes, too. Wouldn’t the people working in the same room know better?”

“It’s true.”

My mentor said it flatly. Mr. Hwang, who was conversing with him, didn’t seem to agree, but seeing the other person’s antipathy, he didn’t argue further. It seemed my mentor was just jealous of Prosecutor Joo’s appearance.

‘Do you think it’s easy for a rookie prosecutor to stand up and put his own career on the line? In an organization as stiff and blocked up as the prosecution?’

I grumbled only to myself and, acting like the youngest, I went to a small cafe inside the building to run a coffee errand. Outside, the last of the autumn rain was still in full swing.

Perhaps because of the rain, all the staff were eating inside the branch; the cafe was crowded, unlike usual. The coffee orders were also backed up in a long line. Waiting for my order to come out, I blankly watched the cold raindrops hitting the glass wall. The rain flowed down, just like tears.

I finished the coffee errand and was sitting at my desk checking my afternoon tasks when suddenly the glass door of the fine collection department swung open with enough force to shatter it. An elegantly dressed middle-aged woman wearing a designer scarf walked in without hesitation, and as soon as I saw her, I had a premonition that this was ‘Oh Jahyeon,’ whom I had spoken to in the morning.

Her way of speaking had been sharp and rough, but her voice had sounded very cultured, and this person’s appearance was exactly that. Her attire looked upscale, and her skin was pale and soft, but her expression was aggressive.

The voice, which had become familiar to my ears through our morning call, bombarded the fine collection department without hesitation.

“Who is Lee Chaeha?”

“That is me.”

I had no intention of losing in this battle of nerves, so I stood up and answered calmly. Oh Jahyeon tilted her head to the side and scanned me from head to toe. The agitation of the surrounding staff was carried on the current of the humid air. The section chief of the Execution Division popped out from the inner office.

Before the section chief could intervene, I added in a clear voice. It was my job, after all, and I didn’t need anyone else’s help for the protests of a non-payer.

“Ms. Oh Jahyeon, you can just pay the fine; there is no need to be this angry.”

“Look at this little thing speaking so rudely. Do you even know who I am?”

Oh Jahyeon opened the handbag hanging on her arm and threw a bundle of 50,000 won bills at my face. The money hit me and scattered on the floor. I tried to steady my sense of humiliation and move closer to Oh Jahyeon, but a wave of alcohol hit me. For a moment, I even confirmed the location of the fire extinguisher, wondering if she had brought a bundle of money soaked in alcohol to attempt arson.

But fortunately, the bills were not wet, and the source of the alcohol smell was indeed Oh Jahyeon. She was dead drunk, just as I had guessed during our morning call.

She stumbled slightly and said:

“Hey, take it and get lost. Try calling me for that crap again. Section chief, educate the person under you properly.”

The section chief’s face, which I glanced at, was red. It wasn’t because he was angry, but rather he looked ashamed, so I judged that I shouldn’t make eye contact and quickly turned my head away. His expression was a confession that he had at least received a meal or two from her, if not the money.

I quietly picked up the money Oh Jahyeon had thrown. I hadn’t expected anyone to help, but a few people, including Mr. Hwang, picked up the bills that had scattered for me. I bowed my head repeatedly, thanking them as I gathered the money. The section chief—who had seemingly received something from Oh Jahyeon—and my mentor, who had handed me the file with her name on it, didn’t move a muscle.

When I finished picking up the money and stood up, I spotted the profile of Prosecutor Joo Taeson standing beyond the glass door. He was watching the direction where Oh Jahyeon had disappeared. I wondered how long he had been standing there. I wondered if he had watched the whole thing as Oh Jahyeon threw money at my face and insulted me.

Mr. Hwang let out a long sigh.

“Are you alright, Chief Lee? Of all people, it had to be Oh Jahyeon, the troublemaker of Danhyeon City…. Didn’t you hear anything when you received the file?”

“Yes, I’m fine. Thank you.”

“This is driving me crazy, really. How could they not tell you that?”

As Mr. Hwang snapped sharply over my shoulder, my mentor cleared his throat awkwardly, his shoulders hunching. Mr. Hwang glared at my mentor, who was pretending not to hear, shook his head, and went back to his seat.

I placed the money I had carefully collected on my desk and checked outside once more. Prosecutor Joo was still standing there, looking in the direction where Oh Jahyeon had disappeared. I hesitated for a moment, but decided to summon the courage. I composed my expression and walked toward the glass door.

As the door opened, Prosecutor Joo’s gaze, which had been stretched out into the hallway, drifted toward me along with the rain-drenched outside air. I bowed my head and looked up at him, who was a head taller than me.

“Hello, Prosecutor. Is there anything you need?”

“No, I was just passing by. Looks like the non-payer caused quite a scene.”

Unlike the cold feeling exuded by his appearance, he answered unexpectedly in a friendly manner. It felt a bit embarrassing personally, as it seemed he had witnessed the entire scene of me being hit by money. I kept ending up looking like I was being pushed around here and there in front of Prosecutor Joo. Fearing he might be left with a bad impression of me, I answered in a calm voice.

“It happens often, so it’s fine.”

“You know that woman is Oh Jahyeon, right?”

“Are you aware of her as well, Prosecutor?”

For even Prosecutor Joo to know Oh Jahyeon. I understood a little better why Oh Jahyeon had been so insistent on asking if I didn’t know who she was.

“She’s a local power broker and a casino director. All the civil servants working in Danhyeon City know her.”

He shifted his body as if to head upstairs, then turned back and looked down at me.

“Chief Lee Chaeha is on night duty today, right?”